Logical Reasoning · Principle

PrepTest 119 · Section 2 · Question 3

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

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Principle (illustrate)

The one idea it tests

Find the broad rule that the situation is a clean example of, no stronger and no weaker than the facts.

The basic logic

The passage describes a new ability that brings knowledge without a fix, and that knowledge can itself hurt, which raises a question about what we ought to do. Look for a general statement whose every part is shown by the story: something new arrives, and with it a new kind of right-or-wrong puzzle.

Tiny words that decide it

“now”
“however”
“whether”

Playground logic

The new hallway camera can tell exactly who will be blamed for the art room mess, but it cannot clean the mess, and just knowing could make some kids feel awful. So now Ms. Rivera faces a brand new question about what is fair. The rule it illustrates: new tools can create new right-or-wrong puzzles.

Step 2 · The kid story

The Mess-Spotting Camera

Owen's uncle donated a fancy camera to the school. It can replay the art room and show exactly which kid spilled the paint. Before, nobody ever knew. Now, suddenly, Ms. Rivera could find out every time. But here's the catch: the camera cannot un-spill anything. The floor stays purple either way. And Lulu pointed out something else. "If Kevin finds out he's the one who ruined the class mural, he'll feel terrible for a week. Maybe knowing is worse than not knowing." Ms. Rivera set down her coffee mug and thought hard. Should the camera even be turned on? Priya nodded slowly. "Before the camera, this question didn't exist. The new gadget made a brand new puzzle about doing the right thing."

Step 3 · Try the model question

A new camera lets Ms. Rivera learn exactly who causes each art room mess, something she could never know before. Yet it cannot fix the messes, and learning that you caused one can make a kid feel awful. So it is unclear whether the camera should be used at all.

The situation above best fits which general statement?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Talking Doorbell

A town council asked Judge Ames for guidance. "A new doorbell can recognize every visitor's face," said the council's lawyer. "Suddenly, a homeowner can know who knocked while they were away. It cannot stop burglars, though. And some neighbors are upset just knowing they are being recorded." Mr. Whitfield, speaking for the neighbors, added, "So the question is whether these doorbells should be allowed at all." Judge Ames folded her hands. "Before this gadget existed, nobody had to ask that. The invention itself has handed us a new question of fairness. That is what we must decide, not whether doorbells are good or bad in general."

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 119, Section 2, Question 3 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

List the pieces of the situation: something newly possible, a limit on what it can fix, a way it can hurt, and an open question about whether to use it. Then test each choice against all the pieces. Reject rules that go further than the passage (calling something bad overall), rules that miss the 'should we?' part, and rules about learning or knowledge in general that ignore the question of right and wrong.