Q9 - There are many agricultural

[mshinners]

Question Type:
Explain a Result

Stimulus Breakdown:
Expected: Pumpkins would be grown in areas where there's no risk of frost damage.
Unexpected: Pumpkins are grown in areas with bad winters.

Answer Anticipation:
We need to explain why pumpkins aren't grown in areas that would avoid one set of problems (frost damage/delayed planting). The correct answer should therefore focus on why there are other considerations that make growing pumpkins in these regions better than in areas that avoid frost damage.

Correct answer:
(D)

Answer choice analysis:
(A) If anything, opposite. The cold areas make it hard to predict when growing season starts, so aiming for a specific maturation date would be harder there.

(B) If anything, opposite. If bees are necessary and they like the warmth, then pumpkins should be grown in warm areas.

(C) Out of scope. Where the pumpkins are sold isn't inherently related to where they're grown. You may buy local, but the LSAT doesn't! (Well, they might, but we don't know for sure.)

(D) Bingo. While growing in warm areas avoids frost damage and planting delays, growing in cold areas avoids fungus and disease. The answer doesn't establish this is a bigger problem than frost damage, but we don't need a perfect answer for an Explain a Result question; just one that allows you to tell a story that makes sense. Here, the story is that farmers risk frost damage to avoid fungus.

(E) Confusing. This answer seems to be conflating warm (long growing seasons) and cold (use a greenhouse) locations. In any case, it doesn't suggest why farmers would prefer the cold, focusing on the seeds instead of the pumpkins.

Takeaway/Pattern:
Clearly define the unexpected outcome to make it easier to find the answer!

#officialexplanation

[Jdanz653]

Question Type: Resolve the discrepancy. So out task will be to reconcile to seemingly contradictory statements.

The argument states that there are areas where one can grow pumpkins well into autumn without risking damage from frost. However, it is the case that pumpkins are primarily produced in regions where, because the winters are long, the growing season is shortened and pumpkins are at risk of damage from early autumn frost.

So it seems like we will have to explain why not just grow the in the region with a longer growing season instead of the delayed one.

A: Talks about how pumpkins reach maturity in autumn, Okay, that could be the case, but it doesn't tell me why they are mainly grown in these other regions. If anything, this makes the scenario even more strange since it would seem to make more sense to grow pumpkins in the longer growing seasons region so they have more of an opportunity to fully mature due to the fact that autumn in these regions does not carry the risk of frost. Eliminate

B: States the pumpkins mainly need bees for pollination, which are only active during the warm weather. Again, doesn't explain why they choose an area that gets colder quicker. Eliminate.

C: This answer choice states that more pumpkins are sold to people who reside in areas where the growing season is long compared to those who live in areas where the growing season is delayed. Again, if anything, this answer choice makes the stimulus even more bizarre. Why not just produce pumpkins in the region where most people consume them? Eliminate.

D: Talks about prolonged cold temperatures kill fungi or disease that would otherwise be detrimental to the health of pumpkins. Hmmm... this looks good! This would explain why they are grown in a region that expose them to cold more so than the region with a lengthy growing season. Keep for now.

E: Talks about producing pumpkin seed rather than pumpkins themselves. Eliminate

Looks like D it is then!