PrepTest 152 · Section 2 · Question 22

The Original Tag

Marcus climbed the slide to make an announcement. "Nobody wrote down when tag was invented, but it's clear the very first tag had no bases. Bases came later." Owen squinted. "How do you know?" "Simple," Marcus said. "Whenever the orange cones go missing, kids go back to the original no-bases tag. And when the cones come back, they switch right away." Priya set down her juice box. "Marcus, you said they go back to the original game. But whether no-bases tag is the original is the very thing you're trying to prove." Marcus opened his mouth, then closed it. Lulu wrote on her clipboard: Proof uses the answer. Kevin added helpfully, "Dinosaurs played tag first, probably." Nobody could prove him wrong either.

Marcus: No one recorded when tag began, but clearly the first tag game had no bases, and bases came later. We know this because whenever the cones go missing, kids go back to the original no-bases game, and switch back to bases as soon as the cones return.

Which choice best describes a weakness in Marcus's reasoning?

The Case of the First Recipe

Two bakers argued over who invented the town's famous pie. The first baker's lawyer stood. "Your Honor, it's clear the first version was plain apple, and the cinnamon came later. Whenever the cinnamon supply runs out, every bakery returns to the original plain apple recipe." Mr. Whitfield rose, thumbs in his suspenders. "Your Honor, counsel calls plain apple 'the original.' But that is exactly what he's supposed to prove. His evidence wears the conclusion like a name tag." The judge chuckled. "A pie can't prove it came first by calling itself first. Try again, counsel, with fresh evidence."