It’s time to take a look at the typical kinds of questions you will see in an LSAT humanities reading comp passage. This is the third article in a series of articles about LSAT Humanities Passage Questions.

The series includes:

• Humanities Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension
• LSAT Reading Comp Outlines for Humanities
• LSAT Humanities Passage Questions 

LSAT Humanities Passage Question 1: Macro Question

We start with a typical macro style question, a primary purpose question.

1. The author’s main purpose in the passage is to

(A)       question the validity of free market ethics.
(B)       argue that there is little difference between society’s morals and the ethics binding a particular profession.
(C)       demonstrate that professional ethics compete with societal ethics in the creation of a system of values.
(D)       argue that medical ethics are both simpler and superior to business ethics.
(E)       describe various ethical systems that shape our moral and cultural attitudes.

Considering the tone of the passage, the author is taking a stand, making a point, so it is somewhat argumentative more than descriptive. For that reason we can immediately rule out the passive answer choice (E). Answer (E) tries to tempt you with language from the passage, but the passage’s purpose is more specific than a simple description.

Answer (C) has just the right scope — the conflict and influence of professional ethics.

Answer (A) distorts the author’s purpose. Free market ethics are an example of professional ethics, but the author is not judging them on way or the other. The author uses them as an example but does not imply anything is wrong with them.

Answer (B) is in scope, but is actually the opposite of what the author is trying to say.

Answer (D) is incorrect because it focuses on a single detail of medical ethics which is too narrow to be the primary purpose. Further, there is no direct comparison made between medical ethics and “business” ethics.

LSAT Humanities Passage Question 2: ALL/EXCEPT Detail Question

The second question is an ALL/EXCEPT detail question.

2. According to the passage, most people would consider all of the following to be moral standards regardless of their profession, EXCEPT:

(A)       Keeping secret a person’s private matters.
(B)       Telling the truth.
(C)       Using one’s expertise for good.
(D)       Insisting on obedience to hierarchical structures.
(E)       Refusing to inflict intentional harm on another.

The second paragraph deals with examples that vary in degree more than in substance, so this is where we would find examples of what “most people would consider,” to be “moral standards.” Because this is an ALL/EXCEPT question, you’re job is to find four right answer and cross them off. Whatever you’re left with will be the right answer.

The right answer is (D), which is a value a soldier holds that is in conflict with a researcher’s values (example of Durkheim from the third paragraph). Since those values are in conflict, it is doubtful the author intends you to understand either of them as a standard moral value.

The wrong answers are right from the second paragraph. Answers (A), (C) and (E) are values that the author says we all hold but that doctors hold to a greater degree. Answer (B) is from the example of the college professor.

LSAT Humanities Passage Question 3: Detail Question 

The third question is another detail question:

3. According to the author, trade had a beneficial influence in

(A)       promoting tolerance and understanding.
(B)       encouraging generosity.
(C)       synthesizing religious morals.
(D)       fostering the role of the middle class in a benevolent society.
(E)       shaping our attitudes and moral values.

We know the examples of the influence of free trade come from the “pursuit of profit,” paragraph. The right answer is (A), which is right out of line (31).

Answer (B) is a contradiction of line (34).

Answer (C) is a distortion. Religious values are discussed generically as “..the teachings of the dominant world religious…” but that is not to imply there is a synthesis or combination of their morals into a single system.

(D) has the cart before the horse. Writers wanted to promote the role of the middle class so they wrote about free trade, not the other way around.

(E) picks out a detail from the last paragraph, but the author doesn’t specifically say that the influence of economic ideas on our values is a “benefit.”

LSAT Humanities Passage Question 4: Inference Question

The fourth question is an inference question:

4. The author implies which of the following?

(A)       The values of generosity and sharing are not as important as tolerance and understanding.
(B)       Societies have always had a degree of interdependence, with or without trade.
(C)       Many cultures lacked justice and equality before the introduction of trade.
(D)       The duties of a soldier are more important to a society than the duties of a researcher.
(E)       Trade has influenced the teachings of the world’s religions.

As an open ended question stem, we’re not immediately sure where we’ll find the right inference. Scanning the answer choices, it look like we’ll find them in the third paragraph which deals primarily with the ethics of trade.

Answer (B) is correct. If you consider line (33), “Trade made different societies aware of their interdependence,” the author implies with the word “aware” that societies were already interdependent, but discovered that fact through trade.

Answer (A) goes too far. The author states that generosity and sharing are not necessarily promoted by trade, but that does not imply they are better or worse than other values.

Answer (C) is a distortion of line (34). Trade helped to advance the values of justice and equality, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t exist prior to trade.

Answer (D) is a distortion of a detail. The values of a soldier and a researcher are in conflict, but the author doesn’t pick sides.

Answer (E) is so distorted, it should only tempt the most casual reader. Again, there is a conflict between the values of trade and the world’s religions but no other relationship is implied.

LSAT Humanities Passage Question 5: How and Why Question

The fifth question is a how and why question dealing with how the passage is structured and why the author used certain details.

5. The author refers to Durkheim in the second paragraph primarily to

(A)       contrast medical ethics with research ethics.
(B)       argue that unspoken professional ethics have a higher moral authority than wider cultural mores.
(C)       demand that society have a greater sense of obedience to hierarchical structures.
(D)       demonstrate that no two professions share the same unspoken rules.
(E)       show how two professions can have conflicting ethical standards.

We know where to find the Durkheim detail. Durkheim is the soldier and researcher example. The right answer is (E). Durkheim’s soldier and researcher have differing views about the role of authority.

Answer (A) is wrong. Durkheim presents a contrast, but the contrast is between a soldier and a researcher, not a researcher and a doctor.

Answer (B) tries to tempt you with a detail close to Durkheim, but not from Durkheim, so it must be wrong.

Answer (C) is wrong in the first word, “demand.” Durkheim is an example of the author’s general line of reasoning, but “demand” goes too far in tone.

(D) goes too far. Durkheim shows that two professions can be in conflict, but to say no two professions share the same unspoken rules goes beyond the scope of one single example.

LSAT Humanities Passage Question 6: Sneaky Macro Question 

The sixth and final question is a sneaky way to ask a macro question. This question is a great one to answer after dealing with the other questions when you have a better familiarity with the author’s line of reasoning.

6. The author views the role of economic and political factors as

(A)       more important in the formation of ethical systems than the role of traditional cultural ethics.
(B)       a factor in the development of medical ethics.
(C)       influential in the development of social values and occasionally in conflict with traditional ethical values.
(D)       in conflict with each other.
(E)       a set of ethics that is often perceived as moral misbehavior by society in general.

As with all macro questions, even sneaky ones, you’re basically looking for a restatement of the main idea. You find this in (C). This is almost a restatement of the last sentence in the passage.

Answer (A) is a distortion. These influences work in concert, sometimes in conflict, but the author doesn’t say which is more influential.

Answer (B) is too narrow to be the answer to a macro question. The scope of the passage is greater than just medical ethics.

Answer (D) is wrong since the author spends no time contrasting economic and political values.

Answer (E) is wrong because it distorts a narrow detail of the final paragraph. We know that some professions “seek to justify what may be perceived as moral misbehavior,” but this is too narrow to be the answer or to be connected in general to the role of economic and political values.

LSAT Humanities Passage Questions Summary Tips

• Continue to use the TestSherpa method in all types of passages.
• Take the time to make an outline.
• Look for passages with topics you might be familiar with.
• Don’t be thrown by references to people, places, ideas and writings you’ve never heard of.

Now return to our LSAT page to read another lesson series.

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This is the second article in a series about LSAT Reading Comp Humanities passages. If you are reading this article before seeing the passage we are discussing, please read the first article in the series before continuing. The series includes:

• Humanities Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension
• LSAT Reading Comp Outlines for Humanities
• LSAT Humanities Passage Questions 

LSAT Reading Comp Outlines for Humanities

Let’s start at the most logical place, the first paragraph:

 

Some humanities passages start with this sort of fluffy introduction. This paragraph is simply setting the stage for the topic of the rest of the passage. We get a topic tip-off in the phrase “relatively little study on the question…” which seems to be saying that since there’s been little writing about what follows before, this passage will take on the duty of exploring it. The next sentence, then, spells out what the passage will be about (of course, after we read the paragraph, we underlined the phrase as a reminder):

“…how and to what degree ethics in one profession clash with the ethics of another, or with the generally accepted societal ethics.”

A more simple paraphrase of topic, scope and purpose and a guess of the passages main idea might sound like:

Topic: Ethics

Scope and Purpose: To answer the question of how and to what degree professional ethics clash with societal ethics

Main idea: The ethics of someone’s job might clash with society’s ethics.

Carry your guess at the main idea and topic with you as you quickly evaluate the remaining paragraphs for their basic topics.

LSAT Reading Comp Outline: Second Paragraph

Continuing with the second paragraph:

Just as you anticipated, author is starting to answer the question “how and to what degree do professional ethics conflict with societal ethics,” with some specific examples. Does it matter if you’re familiar with the Hippocratic oath, with patient confidentiality or even with college professors? Of course not. What’s important is that you know why the author mentions them (as examples of differing sets of ethics) and where to find them later if you’re asked about them.

After reading the paragraph, you might underline the following”

• “Consider the example of medical ethics.”
• “Hippocrates”
• “college professor”

The paragraph uses medical ethics as an example of conflicts in professional and societal ethics. Underline Hippocrates and college professor so you can find them in a hurry if you need to.

Your paraphrase might be:

P2: Medical ethics is an example of a contrast between professional and societal ethics.

LSAT Reading Comp Outline: Third Paragraph

 Now moving to the third paragraph:

The author now gives another set of examples of a clash between professional and societal ethics, this time involving “…the pursuit of profit” which we’ve underlined. The rest of the passage, while interesting, is really just more examples of ethical standards in conflict. You might note that the author seems to indicate the clash is even more extreme in the pursuit of profit than in medical ethics. In the examples from medical ethics paragraph, the professions only seemed to differ in a matter of degree, the professions in this paragraph seem to actually be in conflict with other elements of society.

What do you do with Durkheim? Who is Durkheim? Who really cares? Durkheim is another detail used in support for the argument that professional ethical systems can be in conflict with society’s ethics. Underline Durkheim in case you get asked later and move right along.

Your paraphrase for the passage might be:

P3: The conflict is possibly even greater when it involves the pursuit of profit.

LSAT Reading Comp Outline: Fourth Paragraph 

Finally, we paraphrase the final paragraph and form our outline:

 

Again, more examples of professional ethics (particularly with regard to free trade and the pursuit of profit) in conflict with societal ethics. The author tosses in a kind of summary phrase, “…moral values are … shaped by economic and political factors…” to emphasize the priority that professional ethics has taken on in contrast with cultural ethics.

Your paraphrase of this paragraph might read:

P4: The ethics of free trade conflict with societal ethics and are very influential.

So putting all of our paraphrases together for outline we get:

P1: The ethics of someone’s job might clash with society’s ethics.

P2: Medical ethics is an example of a contrast between professional and societal ethics.

P3: The conflict is possibly even greater when it involves the pursuit of profit.

P4: The ethics of free trade conflict with societal ethics and are very influential.

Main idea (refined): Professional ethics, especially involved in the pursuit of free trade and profit, conflict with traditional values and are at least as influential to our attitudes.

Now let’s review LSAT Humanities Passage Questions.

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Humanities passages typically involve literature, philosophy, ethics and language. Your approach in a humanities passage should not change — you still use the TestSherpa method.

This is the first article in a series of articles about humanities passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension. The series includes:

• Humanities Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension
• LSAT Reading Comp Outlines for Humanities
• LSAT Humanities Passage Questions

Humanities Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension

Some candidates love humanities passages because they were English or Philosophy majors and are used to reading and even writing in that style. Other students find them boring and are intimidating by unfamiliar details, such as references to philosophers and works they’ve never read. In many cases, the structure of a humanities passage may be more convoluted than a natural science passage. You will still be rewarded for recognizing key structural elements in the writing.

Tips for LSAT Humanities Passages

Here are some general tips for attacking humanities passages:

• Don’t be tempted to read humanities passage in more depth just because they contain unfamiliar references or more tortuous logic — the TestSherpa method works just as well for humanities passages as for other types of passages.
• Continue to focus on topic, scope, purpose, topic phrases, key words, main idea, and logical structure.
• Look for passages with topics you might be familiar with. No matter what you’re major was, you undoubtedly took many humanities courses in your undergraduate career. Even if you disagree with the author, having some familiarity with the topic can only help.
• Don’t be thrown by references to people, places, ideas and writings you’ve never heard of  — your job is not to memorize, this is an open book test. You can always look up details later.
• Relax and let unfamiliar ideas and phrases go by without worrying about them. Treat them as you would a detail in a science passage. Just try to get a feel for the main idea in each paragraph then underline key topic phrases that will help you form your outline.

TestSherpa Process for Reading Comprehension

Before seeing our sample passage, let’s review the TestSherpa process for Reading Comprehension:

 (1) Read the first paragraph and guess at main idea, scope and tone

 (2) Read the rest of the passage and build an outline

 (3) Confirm your outline

 (4) Tackle the questions

 Next, use this technique for the following passage.

Sample LSAT Humanities Passage

Take about eight (8) minutes to read the following passage and answer the questions before moving to the explanations.

 

1. The author’s main purpose in the passage is to

(A)       question the validity of free market ethics.
(B)       argue that there is little difference between society’s morals and the ethics binding a particular profession.
(C)       demonstrate that professional ethics compete with societal ethics in the creation of a system of values.
(D)       argue that medical ethics are both simpler and superior to business ethics.
(E)       describe various ethical systems that shape our moral and cultural attitudes.

2. According to the passage, most people would consider all of the following to be moral standards regardless of their profession, EXCEPT:

(A)       Keeping secret a person’s private matters.
(B)       Telling the truth.
(C)       Using one’s expertise for good.
(D)       Insisting on obedience to hierarchical structures.
(E)       Refusing to inflict intentional harm on another.

3. According to the author, trade had a beneficial influence in

(A)       promoting tolerance and understanding.
(B)       encouraging generosity.
(C)       synthesizing religious morals.
(D)       fostering the role of the middle class in a benevolent society.
(E)       shaping our attitudes and moral values.

4. The author implies which of the following?

(A)       The values of generosity and sharing are not as important as tolerance and understanding.
(B)       Societies have always had a degree of interdependence, with or without trade.
(C)       Many cultures lacked justice and equality before the introduction of trade.
(D)       The duties of a soldier are more important to a society than the duties of a researcher.
(E)       Trade has influenced the teachings of the world’s religions.

5. The author refers to Durkheim in the second paragraph primarily to

(A)       contrast medical ethics with research ethics.
(B)       argue that unspoken professional ethics have a higher moral authority than wider cultural mores.
(C)       demand that society have a greater sense of obedience to hierarchical structures.
(D)       demonstrate that no two professions share the same unspoken rules.
(E)       show how two professions can have conflicting ethical standards.

6. The author views the role of economic and political factors as

(A)       more important in the formation of ethical systems than the role of traditional cultural ethics.
(B)       a factor in the development of medical ethics.
(C)       influential in the development of social values and occasionally in conflict with traditional ethical values.
(D)       in conflict with each other.
(E)       a set of ethics that is often perceived as moral misbehavior by society in general.

After you try this passage on your own, take a look at how we formed a road map of this passage in LSAT Reading Comp Outlines for Humanities.

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Now that we’ve formed our outline for our science passage, let’s take a look at the questions. This is the third in a series of articles about LSAT science passage questions. The series includes:

• Natural Science Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension
• LSAT Reading Comp Outlines For Science
• LSAT Science Passage Questions

LSAT Science Passage Question 1: Macro Question

The macro question we presented you with at the beginning of this lesson was a “primary purpose,” question. As you know from the lesson on Reading Comprehension questions, you can often discard two or three of the answer choices just by reading the first word and comparing to your understanding of the tone of the passage.

1. The primary purpose of this passage is to

(A)       argue for the existence of black holes.
(B)       critique the current theories regarding black holes.
(C)       describe recent theories involving observable information from within a black hole.
(D)       compare Hawking’s theories to those of mainstream researchers.\
(E)       present evidence that black holes are formed by particles crossing the event horizon.

What was the tone of the passage? Was it argumentative. Certainly there are a few arguments in the passage, we know this because of key words like “since,” and “thus.” But the tone is really more descriptive that anything else. So you can toss out answer choices (A) and (B) simply for their first words, “argue,” and “critique.”

Answer choice (C) is the right answer and matches our refined main idea. It starts with the tone word “describe,” which is appropriate, and its scope is broad enough to contain the entire passage. We don’t know what we don’t know about black holes, and the passage describes how information may or may not pass back through the event horizon.

Answer choices (D) and (E) start with acceptable tone words, “compare,” and “describe,” but go astray in the rest of their answers. Hawking doesn’t show up until the final passage, so it seems unlikely that the primary purpose is to compare his work to anything except as an example of new thinking on black holes. The scope is too narrow for (D) to be correct and the word “mainstream” connected to the word “compare” implies that Hawking is not mainstream, which the author never suggests. The passage never talks about the formation of black holes so (E) is incorrect. Besides, when we do read about particles passing the event horizon, we can assume the black hole already exists.

LSAT Science Passage Question 2: Inference Question

The second question deals with a detail in the second paragraph; however, there is no way to determine that from reading the question stem. So this might be a candidate to skip for later when you’ve gained more familiarity with the passage by answering some other questions. Remember, there is no reason you have to answer the questions in the order they’re given. Skip around and look for questions that seem easier. Easier questions would give you a specific detail in the question stem to refer back to.

2. The passage implies which of the following about black holes?

(A)       Particles from the interior of a black hole are so transformed when they cross back through the event horizon that they are atypical and cannot be used to characterize the black hole.
(B)       The classical theory of general relativity states that black holes cannot be characterized by contents within the interior of the event horizon.
(C)       Black holes cannot be characterized by angular momentum.
(D)       Electric charge cannot be measured from within a black hole.
(E)       We can only make guesses as to the specific mass of a black hole.

The answer is (B). It is in line with the thrust of the entire passage and can be inferred from the last sentence of the second paragraph. We know from our basic main idea that it’s possible no information ever leaves the black hole. The last sentence of the second paragraph talks about what we can use to characterize black holes according to the classical theory of general relativity: mass, angular momentum and electric charge. The formal logic word “only” tell us that nothing else can be used to characterize black holes. Thus, (B) is correct in saying that the contents cannot be used.

(A) is a distortion and a contradiction of the passage. The classical theory is in line with the idea that the reason we have difficulty describing black holes is that particles never cross back over the event horizon, not that they are somehow transformed.

Answer (C) is a contradiction. The last sentence of the second paragraph specifically contradicts this answer choice.

Answers (D) and (E) are beyond the scope of the passage. The last sentence of the second paragraph says we can characterize black holes by angular momentum and electric charge, but we don’t know anything about how we would measure them or to their degree.

LSAT Science Passage Question 3: Detail Question

The third question is what we like to see in a detail question. It gives us a specific handle to relate back to the passage. In this case, the handle is “singularities,” and so we know we’re referencing the short third paragraph.

3. According to the passage, which one of the following is true regarding singularities.

(A)       The singularity is the theoretical spheroidal surface surrounding the mass of a black hole.
(B)       The singularity is composed of particles traveling away from the center of mass.
(C)       All particles in the interior of the event horizon must move toward the singularity.
(D)       Particles move away from the singularity but are bound by the event horizon.
(E)       The singularity can account for the escape of information from inside a black hole.

The answer is (C), and as is the case with many detail question, the right answer is right out of the passage if you know where to look. (C) is basically a restatement of the last sentence of the third paragraph.

(C) is the right answer and is basically a paraphrase of the last sentence in the third paragraph.

Answers (A) and (E) are examples of “right answer, wrong question.” These answers take details from other paragraphs that don’t deal with singularities and try to tie that information to singularities. This is to penalize readers who don’t pay attention to structure and make a good outline. (A) is would be the right answer for a question about the event horizon, not singularities. (E) would be the right answer for a question about quantum physics (especially according to Hawking).

(B) is a contradiction. The passage states that particles must move toward the singularity. (D) is wrong for the same reason but tries to trick you with it’s half-right half-wrong nature. It’s true that the event horizon holds in the particles, but it doesn’t make the first part true.

LSAT Science Passage Question 4: Detail Question

Question 4 is another detail question regarding the second paragraph. Science passages often contain more details than inferences, which is why some students who like details find science passages easy despite the technical language they employ. This should be an easy point because the question stem points so well to our paraphrase of the second paragraph:

We can’t describe black holes from our position on the outside.

4. The author states that which one of the following is the reason scientists cannot describe the interior of a black hole?

(A)       Scientists are still fine-tuning the theory of general relativity.
(B)       The singularity infinitely curves space-time making such descriptions impossible.
(C)       Scientists can only measure the mass of a black hole.
(D)       The event horizon is only an imaginary surface.
(E)       No particles ever leave the interior of a black hole.

The right answer is (E). This is right out of the first sentence of the second paragraph.

(A) is true, but not related to the details of the second paragraph. Right answer, wrong question. Similarly answer choice (B) deals with the singularity, which is from the third paragraph, not the second.

Answer choice (C) is a distortion of the last sentence of paragraph two. According to the classical theory of general relativity, scientists can use angular momentum and electric charge as well as mass to characterize black holes. Also, the passage never says anything about “measurement” of mass.

Answer (D) is the distortion of a detail from the first paragraph. Not only is it out of scope for this question (we’re looking at the second paragraph), it misuses a phrase from the first paragraph. The author doesn’t imply that we cannot describe black holes because the event horizon is theoretical or “imaginary.”

LSAT Science Passage Question 5: Inference Question

The fifth question lacks a good handle in the question stem, so we know it won’t be as easy to locate an answer. By scanning the answer choices, however, we might guess the answer is in the final paragraph.

5. The author implies which of the following?

(A)       Quantum physics cannot account for the escape of information from inside a black hole.
(B)       Certain events have not yet been accounted for in theories regarding the singularity.
(C)       Stephen Hawking’s recently presented arguments about information emitted from black holes challenges the accepted views of quantum physics.
(D)       Academic journals are only interested in theories from leading physicists.
(E)       Mathematical equations indicate that the singularity does not actually exist.

Answer choice (B) is inferred by the phrase starting in line 33, “…and that new phenomena must come into play as one approaches the singularity.”

Answer choice (A) is in direct contradiction with the fourth paragraph. The LSAT is trying to trick you into thinking you’ve missed something, but remember that inferences in Reading Comprehension are still pretty straightforward.

Answer (C) goes too far with the word “challenge.” The author uses reasonable phrases like “fine-tuning,” and “could account for.” (E) also goes to far. Our theory is not complete, but that doesn’t mean the singularity doesn’t exist.

Answer choice (D) picks on an extraneous detail. An inference question in Reading Comprehension will never be about such random elements in the passage. The test is seeing if you can separate the substance from the fluff.

LSAT Science Passage Question 6: How and Why Question

The final question is a why and how question that deals with how the author structures the passage and why certain details are used. The specific detail is Stephen Hawking and the question stem even tells us where to find him. These questions are not asking what the detail is, or even what’s inferred by them, but about why the author mentions the detail.

6. The author refers to Stephen Hawking in the fourth paragraph primarily to

(A)       illustrate some common misconceptions about black holes.
(B)       demonstrate that we are still refining our understanding of black holes.
(C)       describe recent theories of quantum physics.
(D)       show the differences between quantum physics and theories of general relativity.
(E)       reinforce similarities between two theories about the event horizon.

Review your outline and your paraphrase of the fourth paragraph:

P4: Our theories of black holes are not complete — information might pass back through after all.

We know that whatever detail the author brings up must reinforce this idea. Answer choice (B) most closely matches the main idea of paragraph four.

Answer (A) is incorrect because even though the author says Hawking’s ideas are still being reviewed, to say they are “misconceptions,” goes too far.

(C) is wrong because the author is not describing recent theories, just mentioning a new one to support the main idea of the fourth paragraph.

The author never says there are specific similarities between two theories, but is concerned with refining one theory so (D) and (E) are incorrect. (D) is far beyond the scope of the fourth paragraph. (E) goes too narrow by referring to the event horizon.

LSAT Science Passage Summary Tips

• Don’t be intimidated by technical details.
• Continue to use your TestSherpa method in all types of passages.
• Science passages may be boring, but if you like scanning for details you may find them easier than other passages.
• Take the time to form a great outline and underline topic phrases — you’ll definitely need them later.
• Try drawing a sketch to help you understand the physical relationships of details in the passage.

Now return to our LSAT prep course page to read another lesson series.

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 Science passages can be intimidating on the LSAT test, especially if you’re not used to reading science jargon. This makes your outlining process even more important than on another type of reading comp passage.

This is the second in a series about LSAT Reading Comp for Science.  If you didn’t read the passage in previous article first, you should go to the first article in the series and try it before moving on with this article. The series includes:

• Natural Science Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension
• LSAT Reading Comp Outlines For Science
• LSAT Science Passage Questions

LSAT Reading Comp Outlines For Science

Using the passage we just saw for our example, we’re going to build our road map. Let’s take a look at the first paragraph.

As is typical of a science passage, this one has a lot of details:

• “…theoretical event horizon…”
• “…photons traveling away from the center of mass…”
• “…the strong gravitational field…”
• “…particles from outside that area…”

These details can seem intimidating because they are so technical. This is especially true for non-science readers. Realize that just as in most other LSAT passages, these details are only there to support the passage. The LSAT is trying to intimidate you and waste your time with these details.

What happens when you read a science passage is you start to dwell on unfamiliar terms, so you read the same line over and over again until you decide it’s over your head. The truth is:

1) some details cannot be deciphered in a science passage and you will never be asked to do so;

2) you’re safe skipping details and rereading them only if you get asked a question about them later.

Want proof? We’ve substituted Flintstones characters for the details we picked out in the first paragraph above. Read the passage with the new “details,” and see if the logic and structure doesn’t get you through the main idea anyway.

Look how much easier it is to understand the passage if you just take the key phrases we underlined above and formed a quick paraphrase:

• “The event horizon limits the interior of the black hole…”
  “…particles from outside that area can enter…”
  “…but will be incapable of exit.” 

It’s pretty clear that this opening paragraph is about one simple idea:

Main idea: The event horizon is like a barrier around a black hole – stuff can get in but nothing gets out.

After reading the first paragraph you might have come up with the following and even taken the time to write something like this down in your test booklet:

Topic: Black Holes

Scope and Purpose: To describe a specific characteristic of black holes, the event horizon.

Main idea: The event horizon is like a barrier around a black hole – stuff can get in but nothing gets out.

You might try a sketch to help you visualize the situation:

LSAT Reading Comp Outline: Second Paragraph

Now that we know what the passage is mainly about:

Main idea: The event horizon is like a barrier around a black hole — stuff can get in but nothing gets out.

Let’s continue on with the second paragraph as we build our outline.

Again we’re faced with a lot of details. But the entire paragraph can be summarized by the one sentence we’ve underlined. If you struggle, you might notice the key words like “Since,” which signals evidence, and “For this reason,” which signals an upcoming conclusion. A paraphrase might be:

We can’t describe black holes from our position on the outside.

LSAT Reading Comp Outline: Third Paragraph

The third paragraph is short and sweet.

I don’t know about you, but anytime someone starts spouting off about space-time I figure I’m either at a Star Trek convention or faced with a really intimidating big brain on the other side of the conversation. This passage is no different — I feel an urge to snooze. But again, even though the paragraph in question is relatively short to start with, you can easily whittle it down further to a few key phrases we’ve underlined. In particular, the word “Thus” tells you that a conclusion is coming, and is probably the main idea.

Here’s what we underlined:

• Center
• Singularity
• Gravity becoming infinitely powerful
• Thus
• All particles
• Move toward it 

Like a bad piece of poetry, it’s now entirely obvious and not subtle at all:

Everything in a black hole moves toward the center “singularity”

Fourth Paragraph and Road Map

The fourth and final paragraph throws in a curve ball:

There is a ton of stuff going on here: dense scientific writing, details, and some macro-details about Steven Hawking’s recent thoughts about black holes. Those are all details supporting the simple phrases we underlined above:

• “…the current theory is not complete…”
• “…new arguments that black holes do eventually emit information about what crosses the event horizon…”

Putting it all together into our outline, we get:

P1: The event horizon is like a barrier around a black hole – stuff can get in but nothing gets out.

P2: We can’t describe black holes from our position on the outside.

P3: Everything in a black hole moves toward the center “singularity”

P4: Our theories of black holes are not complete — information might pass back through after all.

Main Idea (refined): We thought the inside of a black hole was indescribable since no information could leave, but that might not be true.

Basically, when it comes to black holes, we don’t know what we don’t know. The structure of the passage seems to be: Here’s some facts we think we know about black holes, but the theory is changing and here’s a contradictory example (Steven Hawking). Simple once you break it down.

Next we’ll look at some typical questions you might be asked for a passage like this in the next article, LSAT Science Passage Questions.

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Science passages typically involve topics in biology, chemistry, physics and medicine. Your approach in a science passage should not change — you still use the TestSherpa method. Even though science passages can be intimidating (mostly because few test takers and pre-law students are science majors), you will find that the structure of these passages is very similar to the other passages on the test. As long as you’re not intimidated by technical jargon, you’ll get through just fine.

 This is the first in a series of articles about natural science passages in LSAT reading comprehension. The series includes:

• Natural Science Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension
• LSAT Reading Comp Outlines For Science
• LSAT Science Passage Questions

Natural Science Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension

Of course, science passages are pretty boring. But that can work to your advantage since they tend to be straightforward and descriptive. Once you get over the intimidation fear factor, you might find science passages to be your favorite. In fact, inference questions in science passages are easy and there are usually more detail questions. If you like scanning for details that are right in front of you, this is the type of passage for you.

General Tips for Science Passages in LSAT Reading Comprehension

Here are some general tips for attacking science passages:

• Don’t be tempted to read science passage in more depth just because they contain dense details — the TestSherpa method works just as well for science passages as for other types of passages.
• Continue to focus on topic, scope, purpose, topic phrases, key words, main idea, and logical structure.
• Don’t be thrown by unfamiliar technical jargon — your job is not to memorize, this is an open book test. You can always look up details later.
• Relax and let unfamiliar words wash over you. Just try to get a feel for the main idea in each paragraph then underline key topic phrases that will help you form your outline.
• Here’s a tip we learned from one of our students: try drawing diagrams in science passages to visualize what’s going on. It may not always work, but many science passages discuss a physical relationship.

Process for Reading Comprehension

Before we see the passage, let’s review the TestSherpa process for Reading Comprehension:

(1) Read the first paragraph and guess at main idea, scope and tone

(2) Read the rest of the passage and build an outline

(3) Confirm your outline

(4) Tackle the questions

Next, use this technique for the following passage.

Take about 8 minutes for the following passage and questions before moving onto the rest of the lesson.

 1. The primary purpose of this passage is to

(A)       argue for the existence of black holes.
(B)       critique the current theories regarding black holes.
(C)       describe recent theories involving observable information from within a black hole.
(D)       compare Hawking’s theories to those of mainstream researchers.
(E)       present evidence that black holes are formed by particles crossing the event horizon.

2. The passage implies which of the following about black holes?

(A)       Particles from the interior of a black hole are so transformed when they cross back through the event horizon that they are atypical and cannot be used to characterize the black hole.
(B)       The classical theory of general relativity states that black holes cannot be characterized by contents within the interior of the event horizon.
(C)       Black holes cannot be characterized by angular momentum.
(D)       Electric charge cannot be measured from within a black hole.
(E)       We can only make guesses as to the specific mass of a black hole.

3. According to the passage, which one of the following is true regarding singularities.

(A)       The singularity is the theoretical spheroidal surface surrounding the mass of a black hole.
(B)       The singularity is composed of particles traveling away from the center of mass.
(C)       All particles in the interior of the event horizon must move toward the singularity.
(D)       Particles move away from the singularity but are bound by the event horizon.
(E)       The singularity can account for the escape of information from inside a black hole.

5. The author implies which of the following?

(A)       Quantum physics cannot account for the escape of information from inside a black hole.
(B)       Certain events have not yet been accounted for in theories regarding the singularity.
(C)       Stephen Hawking’s recently presented arguments about information emitted from black holes challenges the accepted views of quantum physics.
(D)       Academic journals are only interested in theories from leading physicists.
(E)       Mathematical equations indicate that the singularity does not actually exist.

6. The author refers to Stephen Hawking in the fourth paragraph primarily to

(A)       illustrate some common misconceptions about black holes.
(B)       demonstrate that we are still refining our understanding of black holes.
(C)       describe recent theories of quantum physics.
(D)       show the differences between quantum physics and theories of general relativity.
(E)       reinforce similarities between two theories about the event horizon.

After you’ve attempted this passage on your own, go to LSAT Reading Comp Outlines For Science to see how we constructed our own road map of this natural science passage.

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Why and How Questions

Why and how questions ask you about why the author used certain details or how the passage is put together. They’re structural and ask you to get inside the head of the author. The test wants to see if you can analyze the author enough to think like the author.

This is the first of a series of articles about Reading Comprehension Questions on the LSAT test. The series includes the following articles:

• Reading Comprehension Questions: an introduction
• Reading Comp Macro Questions
• Reading Comp Inference Questions
• Reading Comp Detail Questions
• Reading Comp Why and How Questions

Reading Comp Why and How Questions 

Question stems for why and how questions might include:

The author refers to… in order to…

The author is primarily concerned with…

In the second paragraph… the passage refers to… in order to… 

Here is an example of a why and how question:

6. In the third paragraph, the author of the passage refers to horse-drawn implements primarily in order to

(A)       support the idea that many farmers do not embrace changes.
(B)       argue the importance of new technology in agriculture.
(C)       show that the acceptance of new technology in agriculture is routine.
(D)       compare older technologies to newer technologies.
(E)       demand that new agricultural technologies must be properly promoted.

Answer the question on your own before reading our analysis.

When the LSAT test starts each answer choice with a tone word, it’s a rare gift. You can easily rule out a couple of answer choice on the basis of the first word alone. First, the question stem helps you locate the detail right away. Remember that the purpose of a why and how question is to see if you understand how the author put the passage together, not if you can find a detail. So these questions actually help you find the detail faster. Then note that the tone of the section the question refers to is descriptive, not argumentative.

The author mentions “horse-drawn implements,” as an example for the sentence that precedes it, not to make an argument. Thus, you can rule out answers (B) and (E) right away on the basis of their first words. “Argue,” and “demand,” just don’t fit the tone of the author in that section.

Let’s review the remaining choices:

(A)       support the idea that many farmers do not embrace changes.

This is the correct answer. The only reason the author mentions this detail is to show that, according to the sentence that precedes it, “not all changes were welcome.”

(C)       show that the acceptance of new technology in agriculture is routine.

This answer contradicts what the author is really trying to do. Change is not routine.

(D)       compare older technologies to newer technologies.

This might be tempting since new technology is the real focus of the paragraph; however, it is out of scope as the author never makes a comparison between “horse-drawn implements,” and newer technologies such as “genetically-modified crops.”

LSAT Tips for Why and How Questions

Context. The key is the context the detail is in. Read the lines before and after the detail. Watch for keywords. Are things being contrasted, argued, described? Is the detail an example, a contradiction, an exception?

Eliminate the wrong answers. Typically, the wrong answers to a why and how question will have one or more of the following characteristics:

• A contradiction of the main purpose in the detail, paragraph or passage.
• A repeat of details in the passage but not an explanation of their purpose
• Include the wrong tone words such as “demand” when the author is simply describing a situation
• Imply a connection of details that doesn’t exist and is thus out of scope

Reading Comprehension Questions Summary Tips

The main types of questions in Reading Comprehension are macro (main-idea), inference, detail and why and how questions.

Ignore details until you’re asked for them.

Focus on key phrases that describe the thrust of the paragraph. After you’ve read the paragraph, go back and underline the key phrases that seem to summarize the paragraph. Make your own paraphrase and jot it down in the test booklet. This will form your outline and help you decide what the main idea is. Not only will this save you time later, you’ll get a “gimme” point or two with macro questions.

If you’re stuck on an answer, Reading Comprehension questions are especially susceptible to elimination strategies. Watch for wrong answers that have:

• Bad tone words and extreme language
• Distortion (tying two details together in a way the author didn’t intend)
• Out of scope or details from the wrong paragraph
• Contradictions
• Bizarre, wacky answers

Now return to our LSAT test prep course to read another lesson series. 

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Once or twice in a passage the LSAT will ask you something about a particular detail. The important thing to remember is that the LSAT is an open book test. We call these detail questions.

This is the first of a series of articles about Reading Comprehension Questions on the LSAT test. The series includes the following articles:

• Reading Comprehension Questions: an introduction
• Reading Comp Macro Questions
• Reading Comp Inference Questions
• Reading Comp Detail Questions
• Reading Comp Why and How Questions

Reading Comp Detail Questions

Everything you need to know to answer a detail question is right there in front of you. There are one or two questions about details per passage and literally tens or hundreds of details. Ignore the details as you read and instead focus on the main idea of each paragraph so you’ll know where to look for the details later.

The following are examples of detail question stems:

• According to the author…
• According to the passage…
• The author makes all of the following points, EXCEPT…
• The author describes Borundi as… 

The following is an example of a detail question:

5. According to the author, technological improvements in agriculture

(A)       have resulted in increased competition for resources.
(B)       have not created new agricultural opportunities.
(C)       are the result of educational campaigns.
(D)       include new irrigation methods and disease-resistant genetic clones.
(E)       are the cause of new global water shortages.

Answer this question before reading our analysis.

Technological improvements, sounds like paragraph two. Remember our paraphrase:

There have been technological improvements, but the need for food keeps growing and there is competition for land and resources.

Sure enough, starting on line 25 we even underlined “Technological improvements,” as we read. In that line come the words for answer choice (D), “new irrigation,” and “genetic clones.” The right answer to a detail question is right out of the passage in front of you. It’s easy if you know where to look thanks to your outline.

Let’s look at the other answer choices.

(A)       have resulted in increased competition for resources.

This is a distortion. It grabs the next detail and incorrectly ties it to the detail in the question stem.

(B)       have not created new agricultural opportunities.

This actually contradicts the passage. The sentence we’re referred to says just the opposite.

(C)       are the result of educational campaigns.

Again, ties to another detail, not the one we’re looking at. And of course, the tie is distorted. Educational campaigns didn’t result in technological improvements, at least we can’t tell that they did from this passage.

(E)       are the cause of new global water shortages.

This is totally bizarre in that it ties to a detail from the last paragraph. Out of scope, distorted and so wacky we hope you weren’t too tempted by it.

LSAT Tips for Reading Comp Detail Questions

Only a point or two. Remember, it’s more important to know where to look for a detail than to memorize all the many details in a passage.

Use the question stem. The question stem will point you to the paragraph and usually a specific line in the passage.

Eliminate the wrong answers. Typically, the wrong answers to a detail question will have one or more of the following characteristics:

• Distortion of a detail (tying two details together in a way the author didn’t intend)
• An outright contradiction
• Scattered details from paragraph the question stem doesn’t refer to

Now that you’ve learned how to deal with reading comp detail questions, let’s learn about Reading Comp Why and How Questions.

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Inference questions ask you to find the inferences and assumptions made in the passage. The main goal of the entire test is to assess your ability to go beyond what is on the page. It’s not unusual to face two or more inference questions in each passage.

This is the first of a series of articles about Reading Comprehension Questions on the LSAT test. The series includes the following articles:

• Reading Comprehension Questions: an introduction
• Reading Comp Macro Questions
• Reading Comp Inference Questions
• Reading Comp Detail Questions
• Reading Comp Why and How Questions 

Reading Comp Inference Questions

The following are some examples of inference questions:

• The author suggests which of the following…
• It can be inferred from the passage that…
• The author assumes that…

The passage suggests which one of the following… 

For the passage in this lesson, you might get a couple of inference questions like the following.

3. The author infers which of the following about food security?

(A)       Much of the world faces threats from a lack of food security today despite technological advances in food production.
(B)       Food security is the main cause of child malnutrition.
(C)       Food security is among the top goals of international agencies seeking to increase food production and distribution.
(D)       The issue of food security is greater in the tropics and subtropics than in other parts of the world.
(E)       Food security is a greater risk to the world population than is water scarcity.
4. The passage suggests which one of the following about the use of land?

(A)       The majority of available land in the world is used for purposes other than agriculture and grazing.
(B) The poorest nations have less land to use for agriculture and grazing.
(C) If population trends continue, there will be no land left for agricultural use in 50 years.
(D) Genetic engineering will result in a more efficient use of land in agriculture.
(E) Farmers use a smaller percentage of available land for agriculture today than was used 10,000 years ago.

Answer these questions on your own before reading the following analysis.

The answers to both of these questions was (A).

3. The author infers which of the following about food security?

When you read this question, scan the passage for “food security” and you’ll know you’re dealing with inferences made in the second paragraph. Recall that we wrote something like the following in the test booklet as our paraphrase of the second paragraph:

There have been technological improvements, but the need for food keeps growing and there is competition for land and resources.

So the thrust of any inference from this paragraph must somehow support the paradox that technology keeps advancing but we still face food issues.

(A)       Much of the world faces threats from a lack of food security today despite technological advances in food production.

This seems very reasonable, fits our paraphrase and in fact is the correct answer. Unlike the Logical Reasoning section which really makes you work for your inferences, Reading Comprehension inferences are often just this simple. You don’t need to stretch too far to find them. You’re just looking for answer choices that fit the author’s overall point of view.

(B)       Food security is the main cause of child malnutrition.

This is a distortion that connects two details from the passage in a way that the author didn’t intend. Food security and child malnutrition are simply offered as examples of the main idea of the second paragraph – technology has advanced but we still have problems.

(C)       Food security is among the top goals of international agencies seeking to increase food production and distribution.

Another distortion. The paragraph mentions the IFPRI, but we don’t know that it is an international agency and we don’t know any connection it has to increasing food production and distribution. We only know that they conducted some research that indicates food security will remain a risk despite technological advances.

(D)       The issue of food security is greater in the tropics and subtropics than in other parts of the world.

This may be tempting because the passage tells us that these areas have suffered a decline in per capita food distribution rates. But we don’t know that the decline is the result of food security, especially relative to the issue of food security in the rest of the world.

(E)       Food security is a greater risk to the world population than is water scarcity.

Again a distortion. The author talks about food security before discussing water scarcity, but no ranking is implied.

4. The passage suggests which one of the following about the use of land?

The first paragraph is where we read about the overuse of land, so this question will most likely not stray very far from the first paragraph (except for the wrong answer choices, of course).

(A)       The majority of available land in the world is used for purposes other than agriculture and grazing.

This comes from a detail in the first paragraph used in support of the author’s discussion of land use: “Over 38 percent of the available land across the globe is utilized for agriculture or grazing.” That means that 62 percent – the majority – is used for other purposes. Thus, (A) is correct.

(B) The poorest nations have less land to use for agriculture and grazing.

The passage states that “The crisis is the worst in many of the most overpopulated areas that already face security and health issues as well as intractable poverty.” The passage doesn’t tell us the percentage of land used in these areas or how that percentage differs from the rest of the world, so we cannot make this assumption.

(C) If population trends continue, there will be no land left for agricultural use in 50 years.

You can easily rule this choice out for it’s extreme language. The author talks about an impending crisis, but falls far short of arguing that there will be NO land left.

(D) Genetic engineering will result in a more efficient use of land in agriculture.

Again the LSAT test picks up on the strange detail of the final paragraph hoping that you will confuse it for a main idea. This is mostly to penalize lazy readers who didn’t underline key phrases and make their own paraphrases of each paragraph. There is no connection anywhere in the passage between genetic engineering and use of land.

(E) Farmers use a smaller percentage of available land for agriculture today than was used 10,000 years ago.

This seems tempting because we’re facing a greater crisis today than we did 10,000 years ago; however, the passage states that “Some 10,000 years ago, the percentage of land used by the world’s first farmers was insignificant.” That means they used less than we do today.

LSAT Tips for Reading Comp Inference Questions

Inferences are easy. Inference questions in Reading Comprehension are typically very reasonable. You don’t need to stretch too far to find them. In fact, the majority are simply ways to restate the author’s main idea.

Prephrase and use your outline. Your paraphrases and outline will help you find details and remember what is in line with the author’s reasoning.

Eliminate the wrong answers. Typically, the wrong answers to an inference question will have one or more of the following characteristics:

• Distortion of a detail (tying two details together in a way the author didn’t intend)
• Making an inference that is the opposite of what is stated in the passage
• Making an inference that is out of the scope of the paragraph or the entire passage
• Using extreme language (since most inferences are reasonable and easy, you’ll rarely find words like “never,” or “always,” in the correct answer choice

Now that you’ve learned about reading comp inference questions, let’s look at Reading Comp Detail Questions.

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Macro Questions deal with the entire passage. You’ll typically get one or two of these questions with every passage.

This is the second of a series of articles about Reading Comprehension Questions on the LSAT test. The series includes the following articles:

• Reading Comprehension Questions: an introduction
• Reading Comp Macro Questions
• Reading Comp Inference Questions
• Reading Comp Detail Questions
• Reading Comp Why and How Questions

 Reading Comp Macro Questions

Because they have to be wide enough to include the entire passage, the right answers have to be fairly reasonable in tone and scope. Many wrong answers are easily eliminated because the tone is too extreme or the scope is too narrow.

Sample macro-question stems:

• Which one of the following best states the main purpose of the passage?
• The main idea of the passage is…
• The author of the passage is most likely a…
• The passage is most likely a… 

For the passage we just read, you might get a macro question like the following:

1. Which one of the following best expresses the author’s main idea?

(A)       The world population will increase to nine billion in the next 50 years causing issues of poverty and malnutrition.
(B)       Farmers are overly concerned with the negative aspects of agricultural technology and should be more open to change.
(C)       An increased need for food production has caused agricultural workers to mistrust technology.
(D)       Continued innovation in agricultural technology is a necessity to deal with the increasing needs of food production and environmental overuse.
(E)       Genetically-modified crops present the only reasonable solution to our current crisis in food production.

Try your hand at answering this question before moving to the explanation.

The right answer is…

(D)       Continued innovation in agricultural technology is a necessity to deal with the increasing needs of food production and environmental overuse.

This answer choice is reasonable in tone, matches the scope and almost exactly matches our roadmap. In other words, it contains each paragraph topic without going too far in scope or using extreme language. Perfectly reasonable for a Reading Comprehension answer.

Now let’s analyze the wrong answer choices, all of which are common in Reading Comprehension macro questions.

(A)       The world population will increase to nine billion in the next 50 years causing issues of poverty and malnutrition.

This question type is focused on a particular detail in the first paragraph. The LSAT is trying to tempt you by offering you something you might recognize directly from the passage. A macro or main idea question can never be answered with a detail.

(B)       Farmers are exceedingly concerned with the negative aspects of agricultural technology and should be more open to change.

This answer choice is also focused only on the scope of a single paragraph – the third paragraph. It then goes on to distort tone and scope. Tone is distorted by the word “exceedingly,” since the paragraph points out that farmers have been skeptical of technology throughout history and doesn’t discuss an increase. Scope is distorted because the paragraph points out farmers’ skepticism but doesn’t go as far as saying the should be more open to change.

(C)       An increased need for food production has caused agricultural workers to mistrust technology.

Again, for similar reasons as (B), this answer choice goes too far beyond the scope of the third paragraph. The test is trying to trick you by tying the main idea to an element in the final paragraph to make the answer choice seem like it covers the entire passage. We don’t know that food production is tied in any fashion to “agricultural workers” and their mistrust of technology.

(E)      Genetically-modified crops present the only reasonable solution to our current crisis in food production.

Again, the LSAT is picking up on a particular detail of the final paragraph in the hopes that you will think it was the main idea of the entire passage. Thanks to our handy outline, we know better. Besides, the tone is wrong since the author doesn’t use words like “only reasonable solution,” in the passage.

Tips for Reading Comp Macro Questions

The right answer for a macro questions is usually reasonable and boring. When you’re faced with a macro question, you are looking for the main idea of the entire passage. It is almost always reasonably phrased (avoid words like “never,” or “only”) and is generally broad enough to describe the passage as a whole, not just one or two paragraphs.

Prephrase your own main idea. If you’ve followed the TestSherpa method closely, you will already have the outline and main idea ready as a prephrase. By having the topic, scope and main idea in mind before you even read the answer choices, you will be less tempted by the wrong answer choices.

Eliminate the wrong answers. Typically, the wrong answers to a macro or main idea question will have one or more of the following characteristics:

• Too specific to certain details or paragraphs (scope too narrow)
• Distortions that tie part of the main idea to something that is out of scope or extreme
• Extreme language is usually wrong (unless the author is extreme in tone, which is very rare in Reading Comprehension)
• Choices that go beyond the scope of the passage even if they’re in the same topic

Now that you’ve learned how to handle Reading Comp Macro Questions, let’s look at Reading Comp Inference Questions.

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