PrepTest 112 · Section 3 · Question 2

The Lunch Button

The school cafeteria got a shiny new gadget: a lunch-order button. You press a picture of the dish you want, and two minutes later a tray slides out of a little window. No waiting, no hunting. Marcus was thrilled. "This is the end of the buffet line! Why would anyone shuffle past twelve trays when the button hands you exactly what you want, faster?" Lulu checked her clipboard. She had spent all week watching the buffet line. "Lots of kids do not know what they want when they walk in," she said. "They wander down the line, see something weird like purple potato pancakes, and try it just for fun. The button only gives you what you already picked." Marcus paused mid-cheer. "So the line does a second job the button cannot do?" Lulu nodded. "Exactly."

The new lunch-order button gives each student exactly the dish they choose, faster than the buffet line can. Since the button is quicker and more precise, Marcus concludes that buffet line use will drop sharply once the button is installed.

Suppose each choice is true. Which one does the most damage to Marcus's prediction?

The Case of the Jigsaw Shop

A toy company sued a puzzle shop's landlord, claiming the shop was doomed and the lease should end early. Their lawyer, Ms. Petrakis, argued: "Our new app shows any puzzle picture you want, instantly. Since people want pictures fast, the puzzle shop will lose its customers." Mr. Whitfield rose, suspenders gleaming. "Your Honor, people do not buy puzzles just to see a picture. They buy them to spend a slow, cozy evening snapping pieces together with family. The app does not give them that." The judge peered over her glasses. "So the shop sells something the app cannot replace. The prediction assumes the picture is the only reason anyone buys a puzzle. Request denied."