LSAT Explanation PT 45, S1, Q14: Physician: In order to investigate diseases

LSAT Question Stem

Which one of the following, if true, would most help to justify the physician's argumentation? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Strengthen question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is E. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

Let's first analyze the argument in the passage. The physician is discussing a proposed medical study that would involve administering synthetic HGH to 200 children with pituitary gland issues. The physician argues that medical research should only be permitted if it meets two conditions: 1) it is likely to reveal important information about a medical condition, and 2) it is known to pose only a minimal risk to the subjects. The physician concludes that the proposed study should be prohibited.

The question type is Strengthen, which means we're looking for an answer choice that would help justify the physician's argument.

An "Evaluate" question for this argument could be: "Are the long-term effects of synthetic HGH known and proven to pose minimal risk to the subjects?"

Now let's evaluate each answer choice:

a) This answer choice discusses the allocation of resources for research, but it doesn't address the conditions required for permitting medical research. So, it doesn't strengthen the physician's argument.

b) This choice states that 10,000 children have already been given synthetic HGH without obvious side effects. While this might seem to address the minimal risk condition, it doesn't address the long-term effects, which is crucial information to determine the validity of the argument.

c) This choice discusses the issue of informed consent from children, which is not relevant to the conditions required for permitting medical research. Therefore, it doesn't strengthen the physician's argument.

d) This choice states that hormonal imbalances themselves do not constitute a medical condition. However, the argument is about diseases caused by hormonal imbalances, not the imbalances themselves. So, this choice doesn't help justify the physician's argument.

e) This choice states that the long-term effects of synthetic HGH have never been tested and are unknown. This directly addresses the second condition required for permitting medical research, which is that the research must be known to pose only a minimal risk to the subjects. Since the long-term effects are unknown, the study cannot be said to pose a minimal risk. Therefore, this choice strengthens the physician's argument.

The correct answer is E.