Loophole in LR

CLIR?

• Method of finding what’s wrong with the argument and prephrasing an answer.
• If debate, identify the controversy (C).
• If it’s an argument, identify the loophole (L) - there’s a couple of chapters in the book on classic loopholes and flaws with arguments.
• If the stimulus is a premise set, find the inference by extrapolating what could/must be true based on the info they’ve given (I).
• If the stimulus is a paradox, find a resolution (R).

Stimulus Type: Debate

CLIR Type: Controversy
You want to link the two speakers

1. Take an inference from the second speaker

   
   a. This is adding up the second speaker’s premises and conclusion, to connect them to the first speaker

2. Stick a “whether” in front of inference
   a. Use this to know what the second speaker is going after to disprove the first speaker’s arguments. 2nd Speaker is going after 1st speaker in some form.

3. Use background info and make specific to “bridge the gap”

Stimulus Type: Argument

CLIR Type: Loophole

1. Identify the conclusion

a. Say what if or call bullshit

2. Attack the “justification” used, that proves the conclusion wrong.

a. Remember to not be overly broad and be specific

Stimulus Type: Premise Set

CLIR Type: Inference

1. Connect the premises to each other.

a. Chain conditional statements together.

2. Come up with a valid conclusion.

a. Look for a common term or interlocking point

Stimulus Type: Paradox

CLIR Type: Resolution

1. Focus on what would make the stimulus makes sense

2. Construct a Resolution bridge

• Premise 1, but resolution so premise 2

• Important to notice what the stimulus leaves out as it is to notice what it includes

Debates

Are two speaker stimuli

1. Constructed with a long statement

2. Second speaker follows with a premise or two, sometimes a conclusion

3. Goal is to connect the two speakers who have two perspectives/viewpoints

4. The second speaker will critique or present an alternative conclusion and reasoning

Premise Set

Made up of just premises, no conclusions

Sometimes we’ll have a “_____” At the end of the stimulus and asked to fill in the blank

Look for interlocking point between premises, which is a word or concept that is repeated

Sometimes there are complex premise sets

• Think intermediate, conclusion or nested claims

Paradoxes

Made up of premises that contradict each other

• Does not have a conclusion

• Will go in one direction with the first premise, then the second premise will go in another or opposite direction

• Apparent inconsistency

• Correct answer should resolve or explain the contradiction

Arguments

Consist of premises and conclusions

• Premises support the conclusion

• Conclusions rely on premises

• Premises are evidence

• Conclusions are the claim

• Goal is to attack the relationship (gaps) between the premises and conclusion

• Pay attention to question type

Premises

Fact/set of facts that support the “claim” In the stimulus. Serves as evidence

• Will answer, “why should we believe that conclusion?”

• Provides the “Why” Or “how”

• Pay attention to comma placement

  1. “Why Test” = Why ____ because____ (conclusion, premise)

  2. “Because Test” = _____ because _____ (conclusion, premise)

  3. “Because, therefore” Test = Because _____ [therefore/then/we can conclude] _____

     (premise, conclusion)

Premise Indicators

• Because

• Furthermore

• For

• Moreover

• Since

• Besides

• As

• In addition

• Given that

• After all

• For example,

• For the reason that

• In that

• As indicated by

• Due to

• Owing to

• This can be seen from

• We know this by

• What’s more

Pay attention to comma placement

Conclusion

Is the main point or primary claim in the stimulus

• Rely on premises for support

• Assertion by the author

Conclusion Indicators

• Therefore

• As a result

• Accordingly

• Clearly

• Thus

• Must be that

• Hence,

• Shows that

• So

• Conclude that

• Consequently

• For this reason

• It follows that

Pay attention to stimulus structure. Indicator can be used, but not be the ultimate claim.

Intermediate Conclusion

Claim that supports the main conclusion and is propped up by the premises

• Think of it as a wrong on the ladder to the conclusion

• Claims that can be debated or present a transitional shift in the stimulus

1. “Because test” = Then _____, because ____, because _____

   (conclusion, IC, premise)

2. “Therefore Test” = ____ therefore ____ therefore____

   (premise, IC, conclusion)

Hybrid Arguments

Are premises and nested claims with no conclusion by the author,

Often require you to critique or evaluate the support for the nested claim

Nested Claims

Statement or belief made by someone other than the author.

• Author may not agree, just reporting

• Distinguish between the two by paying attention to the highest ranking claim, which is the authors

• Can be asked to evaluate the claim itself or how it interacts with the authors conclusion

Inference vs. Valid Conclusion

Valid Conclusion = presented as part of an argument
Inference = a valid conclusion that you design yourself

Think of an inference as a “logical conclusion “or “deduction” (i.e. deduce)

Contrapositive

• Occurs when the necessary condition is absent, as the sufficient condition will be absent too

• Just the conditional statement reversed with negations applied

• Be mindful that a contrapositive can add a new element within the scope, to make the argument valid

Certainty Power Players

These words denote absolute conditions Implying 100% inclusion or exclusion.

• Certainty Premises = Strong Evidence

• Certainty Conclusions = Difficult To Prove

“The 100% indicators” Certainty PP

• Must

• Will

• Always

• All

• Every

• Invariably

• Definitely

• Undoubtedly

• Necessarily

• Certainly

• Absolutely

• Without exception

• In all cases

• Inevitably

• Every single time

Any synonyms of these words

“The 0% Indicators” Certainty PP

• Never

• Impossible

• No way

• Cannot

• None

Any synonyms of these words

Possibility Power Players

These words suggest varying degrees of likelihood and indicate something could be true, but do not guarantee 100%

Possibility Premises = Weak Evidence

Possibility Conclusions = Easy To Prove

Strong Possibility - Possibility PP

0% to 99% | More than 50%

• Most (More than 50% )

• Majority

• Usually

• Generally

• Likely

• Almost all

• Nearly all

• Tends to

• With few exceptions

• Not necessarily

• Not must

• Could be an exception

Any synonyms of these words

Weak Possibility - Possibility PP

1 % to 100% | At least, but not necessarily more

• Some (At least one)

• Could

• Can

• Maybe

• Might

• May

• Sometimes

• Possible

• Few

• Several

• Occasionally

Any synonyms of these words

Certainty Conclusions require:

Certainty Premises
Possibility Premises are bad

Possibility Conclusions require:

Certainty Premises (preferred) or Possibility Premises (usually invalid)

Logical Force Indicators

“Words” or “phrases” that expressed the strength or certainty of a statement in an argument.

• Strong

• Moderate

• Week

An argument, using strong, logical force in its conclusion, but supported by premises with weak force would likely be invalid.

Strong Logical Force Indicators

• Will

• Must

• Shall

• All

• Every

• Does

• Always

• Are

Any similar words

Moderate Logical Force Indicators

• Most

• A majority

• Usually

• Probably

• Generally

Any similar words

1. You See “Most Students Prefer Online Classes“

2. “Most” Is Moderate, So This Claim Isn’t Absolute

Weak Logical force indicators

• Some

• May

• Could

• Occasionally

• Might

Any similar words

Must Be True is equivalent to:

Cannot Be False

Original Question Stem: "Which one of the following must be true based on the information above?"

Equivalent Stem: "Which one of the following cannot be false based on the information above?"

Cannot Be True is equivalent to:

Must Be False

Original Question Stem: "If all the statements above are true, which one of the following cannot be true?"

Equivalent Stem: "If all the statements above are true, which one of the following must be false?"

Could Be True is equivalent to:

Not Necessarily False

Original Question Stem: "Which one of the following could be true given the information provided?"

Equivalent Stem: "Which one of the following is not necessarily false given the information provided?"

Not Necessarily True is equivalent to:

Could Be False

Original Question Stem: "Which one of the following is not necessarily true based on the information above?"

Equivalent Stem: "Which one of the following could be false based on the information above?"

Must Be True negated is:

Not Necessarily True

Original Question Stem: "Each of the following must be true EXCEPT:"

Negated Version: "Which one of the following is not necessarily true?"

Not Necessarily True negated is:

Must Be True

Original Question Stem: "Each of the following is not necessarily true EXCEPT:"

Negated Version: "Which one of the following must be true?"

Cannot Be True negated is:

Could Be True

Original Question Stem: "Each of the following cannot be true EXCEPT:"

Negated Version: "Which one of the following could be true?"

Could Be True negated is:

Cannot Be True

Original Question Stem: "Each of the following could be true EXCEPT:"

Negated Version: "Which one of the following cannot be true?"

Sufficient Condition

The "if" part of the conditional

If the sufficient condition is absent:

You can completely ignore the conditional statement.

Sufficient Condition Indicators

• If

• When

• Whenever

• Any

• Anytime

• All

• Every

• Every time

• Each

• In order to

• People who

• People with

Necessary Condition

The "then" part of the conditional

Can exist without SC

Ex: Oxygen is necessary for survival, but that alone does not guarantee survival

Necessary Condition Indicators

• Then

• Unless

• Only

• Only if

• Except

• Have to

• Until

• Depends

• Essential

• Without

• Need

• Need to

• Precondition

'Only If' is a _______ indicator

Necessary

Sufficient & Necessary Conditional Trick

Does _____ guarantee _____?

• If (action 1) does guarantee (action 2) then “action 1” is the sufficient conditional,

• If it does not, then “action 1” is the necessary conditional

Ex: does “park closing” guarantee “sun goes down”?

• No, because the park can close without the sun going down

'Unless' Diagram

~[The way things always are] --> Exception

What does a sufficient assumption do?

It proves the conclusion 100% true by logic

• Powerful/not boring

• Directly linked premises to conclusion

Test: Does ____ Prove the conclusion true?

Remember this guarantee the conclusion

What does a necessary assumption do?

It is proven true if the conclusion is true

• Provable (weaker language)/Boring

Test: If the conclusion is true, must _____ Be true?

Remember to ask what must be true or what the author would believe to be true

Required for the argument to hold. Doesn’t guarantee the conclusion but keeps the argument from collapsing,

The Assumption Chain

SA --> Conclusion True --> NA

SA Test

Does [assumption candidate] prove the conclusion?

NA Test

If the conclusion is true, must [assumption candidate] be true?

The negated necessary assumption is equivalent to:

The Loophole!

Loopholes

Are for attacking argument stimulus

Asking “what if…” or calling bullshit and shows why the conclusion doesn’t have to be true

• It does not negate the premises

• It does not negate the conclusion

• It attacks the gaps between the premises and the conclusion

Inferences

Think in terms of “logical conclusion” Or “deduction/deduce”

1. They are not part of the argument

2. Focus only on the information provided in the stimulus

3. Stay within the scope and logic to formulate inference

Filler

• Emotional or vague descriptors

• Doesn’t support the main argument

• Tangential information

• Details or facts that are only slightly

• “Touching” on the subject, but quickly going in another direction

• Doesn’t add anything that affects the conclusion

• Elaboration/background info

Red Flag Answer Choices

• Best Way

• Important

• Crazy Nonsense

• Grouped Extreme

• Allllllmost

• Opposite Claim

• Dormant Conditionals

• Comparatives & Absolutes

Powerful Answer Choices

• Strong Answer

• Stepladder

• Powerful Conditionals

• Grouped Opposite

Provable Answer Choices

• Weak Answers

• Provable Conditionals

Grouped Extreme Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Centers on the most extreme part of the group in stimulus

Powerful Conditionals Answer Choice

A conditional that connects premises to the conclusion or other premises

Alllllmost Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Is totally right except for one word or phrase

Stepladder Answer Choice

Outlines a directly proportional relationship between two things

Weak Answer Choice

Contains flexible language and Possibility Power Players

Opposite Claim Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Centers on the opposite of argument's conclusion

Strong Answer Choice

Contains bold language and Certainty Power Players

Dormant Conditionals Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

A conditional that is never activated by premises from stimulus

Provable Conditionals Answer Choice

A condition that reads a chain from the stimulus or states a necessary assumption

Crazy Nonsense Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Has nothing to do with anything in the stimulus

Important Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Identifies something as "important" or an Important keyword

Comparatives & Absolutes Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Mismatches Comparatives and Absolutes between the stimulus and the answer choices

Best Way Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Literally uses the words "best way" or a Best Way keyword

Grouped Opposite Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

Centers on the opposite of the group discussed in the stimulus

Shell Game Answer Choice (Red Flag Answer)

• Subtle shift in concept or terminology that makes the answer appear correct but is actually incorrect

• Might introduce a term or concept that resembles one in the stimulus but alters its meaning slightly.

• It can also involve misdirection by focusing on irrelevant details or shifting the scope of the argument subtly.