December 2001 LSAT Section 3 Question 11

Peter: Because the leaves of mildly drought–stressed plants are tougher in texture than the leaves of abundantly w...

rolltribe on September 6, 2015

Mildly drought-stressed

How can you infer from the conclusion that "watering plants just enough" is equal to "mildly drought-stressed"? What if this type of watering the plants just enough to avoid damage from lack of water means just one drop of water passed what would otherwise be considered mildly drought-stressed? Get what I'm saying?

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Naz on September 9, 2015

The passage is not concluding that "watering plants just enough" is equal to "mildly drought-stressed." It is inferring that since those of mildly drought-stressed plants are tougher in texture, it would be beneficial to water plants less (but not so little where it would damage them), i.e. just enough to ensure that there is no substantial threat to either growth or the yield of the crops from lack of water. This way, decreasing the amount of water could give it the same benefits as seen in leaves of mildly drought-stressed plants.

Moreover, we are not being asked to find an error in reasoning or weaken the argument. Your focus should be on how to support Peter's argument as opposed to how to tear it down.

Hope that helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions.