PT60, S5, Q5 - Dogs learn best when they are trained using

[jennifer]

Why is the answer D instead of A, to me both are correct, why am I wrong in my thinking?....thank you

[giladedelman]

Thanks for the question!

This is an "analyze the argument" question, so our job, just as it is with assumption family questions, is to first identify the core. Step one, of course, is spotting the conclusion. Here there are only two statements, so we can ask ourselves, which one of these statements supports the other one? Well, it seems pretty clear that the second sentence, about a recent study showing how dogs responded to different types of signals, is being offered as evidence for the first sentence. That makes the first sentence the conclusion.

Now, we're being asked to identify what role that first sentence plays, so we know we can toss out any answer choices that don't identify it as a conclusion or claim that's being supported.

(D) is correct. The first sentence is supported by the study, according to the argument.

(A) is incorrect because this sentence is not a premise, it's the conclusion! A premise, remember, is something that supports the conclusion, and not the other way around.

(B) would be wrong a million times out of a million, because if something is an implicit assumption, then it's not said/written.

(C) is incorrect because the claim is not background information.

(E) is no good because there is no intermediate conclusion here; this statement is the argument's only conclusion.

Does that answer your question?

[jennifer]

Yes, thank you i see were I made the error, I did not know the definition of the word premise, I thought premise meant "main point". Thank you again.