October 1996 LSAT Section 1 Question 7

The crux of creativity resides in the ability to manufacture variation on a theme. If we look at the history of scien...

Batman on June 2, 2014

Help

(1) Please explain why choice (c) and (d) can also be "must be true" according to the stimulus. (2) Is the 1st sentence on the stimulus("The crux of creativity resides in the ability to manufacture variations on a them") sufficient and necessary condition clause although it doesn't have S&N condition terms( all, if, must, when...etc) on the sentence? If choice(a) is "must be true, " then it seems that the 1st sentence has S&N condition though. ( Creativity ===> ability to manufacture variation :: Not ability to manufacture variation ==> Not creativity) Thanks,

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Naz on June 4, 2014

This is a BIZARRO Must Be True question. First, we must determine whether the passage is an argument or a set of facts. Here we have a set of facts.

The passage is going to 100% support all of the incorrect answers (since this is a BIZARRO Must Be True) and our correct answer is the only one that won't be 100% supported by the passage. So, we must be able to identify where in the passage each incorrect answer choice is supported.

We are told that the crux (i.e. main part) of creativity is the ability to manufacture variation on a theme. You're correct in pointing out that this sentence does not have any Sufficient & Necessary indicator words. However, you can say since the essential part of creativity is the ability to manufacture variation on a theme, creativity requires the ability to manufacture variation on a theme.

C ==> MVT
not MVT ==> not C

We are then told that every idea is built upon a thousand related ideas. Thus, we know that every idea has this characteristic. So, if it is an idea, then it is built upon a thousand related ideas.

I ==> BTTRI
not BUTRI ==> not I

The final statement says that "careful analysis" shows us that what we call "a new theme or new discovery is itself always and without exception some sort of variation, on a deep level, of previous themes."

So, we can write this as: If it is a new theme or new discovery, then it is some sort of variation of previous themes.

NT or ND ==> VPT
not VPT ==> not NT & not ND

Ultimately, the passage discusses how all creativity is really just a variation on something else.

Let's look at answer choice (C): "Careful analysis of a specific variation can reveal previous themes of which it is a variation." This answer choice is 100% supported by the passage, i.e. "careful analysis leads us to understand that what we choose to call a new theme or a new discovery is itself always and without exception some sort of variation, on a deep level, of previous themes."

Let's look at answer choice (D), "All great scientific discoverers have been able to manufacture a variation on a theme."

Again this goes along with the overall theme of the passage: all creativity is based on making a variation of previous things.

A great scientific discoverer is going to make new discoveries--which we know are always some sort of variation of previous themes. Thus, it must be true that a great scientific discoverer has been able to manufacture a variation on a theme.

Hope that was helpful! Let us know if you have any other questions.

Batman on June 8, 2014

Thanks a lot!!!^^