Read the passage and answer the question that follows: Though persons of any…
2021
Read the passage and answer the question that follows:
Though persons of any age can have cancer, recent research has shown that eating a fiber-rich diet may reduce the risk of some types of cancer. Modern lifestyle has resulted in increased consumption of junk food that is low in fiber. We should fortify junk food with fiber.
“NO JUNK FOOD NO CANCER”!
Which of the following is correct about the slogan above?
- A.
The statement cannot be logically inferred from the passage.
- B.
The statement is a logical inference from the passage above.
- C.
The passage has contradicting statements.
- D.
None of the above
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept
A conclusion is a valid logical inference only if it follows necessarily from the given statements — it must not assert more than the premises support. A common error is over-generalisation: turning a qualified claim (“may reduce the risk of some types”) into an absolute one (“NO ... NO cancer”).
Application
The passage offers three guarded statements: cancer can affect persons of any age; a fiber-rich diet may reduce the risk of some types of cancer; and junk food is low in fiber. The slogan “NO JUNK FOOD NO CANCER” claims that removing junk food removes cancer altogether. The decisive gap is one of strength: the premise is hedged (“may”) and partial (“some types”), whereas the slogan is absolute (“no ... no cancer”). A tentative claim about reducing the risk of certain cancers cannot license a guarantee about eliminating all cancer. So the slogan asserts far more than the passage can support.
Cross-check
The passage holds no mutually contradicting statements, so reading it as containing a contradiction fails. The slogan is plainly not a necessary consequence of the premises, so it is not supported as an inference. Because one description does fit accurately — that the slogan cannot be inferred — the “none of the above” escape does not apply. Therefore the slogan cannot be logically inferred from the passage.