Logical Reasoning · Paradox
PrepTest 141 · 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
- “but”
- “whereas”
- “both”
Playground logic
Lulu notices that kids log a gift in the IOU notebook but never log a lunch trade. The key: in a trade, both kids get something, so nobody owes anybody. In a gift, only one kid gets something.
Step 2 · The kid story
The IOU Notebook Mystery
Lulu keeps an IOU notebook at the lunch table. When Nadia gives Owen her extra granola bar, Lulu writes it down: 'Owen owes Nadia one.' But when Tommy swaps his apple for Kevin's pretzels, Lulu writes nothing at all. Marcus is confused. 'Both times food moved from one kid to another. Why does only one go in the book?' Priya smiles. 'Think about who walked away with something. In the swap, Tommy got pretzels and Kevin got an apple. Both sides won. Nobody is left owing. In the gift, only Owen got something. Nadia is waiting for a turn.' Lulu taps her clipboard. 'Exactly. The notebook is for one-way deals. Trades already pay themselves back.' Marcus thinks for a second, then hides his cookie before anyone can log it.
Step 3 · Try the model question
At the lunch table, Lulu records an IOU whenever one child gives another child food. But when two children swap food, she never records an IOU, even though food still changes hands.
Which one of these, if true, best resolves the apparent puzzle in Lulu's record keeping?
Step 4 · The courtroom tale
The Barn Raising Bill
Farmer Gibbs sued his neighbor. 'Your Honor, when I helped him fix his fence, I sent him a bill. But when we both helped each other plant our fields in the same week, neither of us sent a bill. He says that is unfair and inconsistent!' Judge Alvarez smiled. 'Mr. Gibbs, in the planting week, did you each get a field planted?' 'Yes, ma'am.' 'And with the fence, did you get anything?' 'Only sore hands.' 'Then there is no puzzle,' the judge said. 'When both sides benefit, the trade settles itself. When only one side benefits, a bill makes sense.' Case closed.
Step 5 · Work the real question
Open PrepTest 141, Section 2, Question 2 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.
Your answer
How to apply it
State the two observations in your own head as 'Here people do X, there people do Y.' Ask what is different about the two situations, especially who benefits and how. Look for the choice that names a difference that fits both sides. Use the Handshake Test: the right answer explains the first scene and the second scene. Drop choices that only explain one scene, or that talk about something both scenes share.