Logical Reasoning · Paradox

PrepTest 114 · Section 2 · Question 2

Phase 1 (your first ~400 questions): read the guidance, then answer. No clock.

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Paradox

The one idea it tests

Cutting back on the troublemaker made things worse, and adding more made them better. Find the hidden route that explains it.

The basic logic

Two facts clash: you would expect less of X to help, yet more of X helps. Look for an answer showing that the extra X gets sent somewhere else, so less of it reaches the trouble spot. Both facts must shake hands.

Tiny words that decide it

“oddly”
“therefore”
“more”

Playground logic

Ms. Rivera expected that letting fewer balls into the gym would keep the hallway clear (bottom bun), yet more balls in the gym made the hallway clearer (the clash). The handshake: extra balls give kids something to do inside, so fewer wander the halls.

Step 2 · The kid story

Too Many Balls, Fewer Problems

Kids kept spilling out of the gym into the hallway and bumping into lockers. Ms. Rivera figured the gym was too busy, so she cut the balls in half to calm things down. The hallway got worse. Then Nadia's mom donated a giant bag of balls. Oddly, the hallway emptied. Marcus scratched his head. 'More stuff should mean more chaos!' Priya pointed her juice box at the gym. 'When there were only a few balls, most kids had nothing to play with, so they wandered out. With lots of balls, everybody has a game. The extra balls keep kids busy inside, so fewer of them end up in the hall.' Lulu wrote it down: more balls in the gym, fewer kids in the hallway. Both facts fit now.

Step 3 · Try the model question

Kids crowding the hallway outside the gym is a problem. Ms. Rivera reduced the number of balls in the gym, expecting fewer kids to cause trouble. Surprisingly, the hallway got more crowded, and when many more balls were added, the hallway cleared out.

Which choice would do the most to clear up the puzzle?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Case of the Extra Benches

A park manager stood before Judge Lorna Fitch. 'Your Honor, the town says I caused the crowds on the grass. We removed benches to stop people lingering, and the grass got trampled more. When we added benches, the grass recovered.' The town's lawyer frowned. 'That makes no sense.' Mr. Whitfield, for the manager, snapped his suspenders. 'It does. With benches, people sit on benches. Without them, they sit on the grass. More benches move the weight off the lawn.' The judge nodded. 'Both facts now shake hands. Case dismissed.'

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 114, Section 2, Question 2 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

Write the clash in one line: what everyone expected, and what actually happened. Then hunt for a choice that explains how the surprising direction could work, usually by showing the extra amount gets used or sent somewhere else so the trouble spot gets less. Run the Handshake Test: both facts must fit together afterward. Drop choices that explain only one side, change the subject to a different kind of case, or would make the surprise even worse.