Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) Bulbs are Growing in Market Share as a Replacement for the Standard Incandescent Light Bulb.

Question: Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs are growing in market share as a replacement for the standard incandescent light bulb. However, an even newer technology is emerging: the light-emitting diode (LED) bulb. Like CFL bulbs, LED bulbs are energy efficient, and they can last around fifty thousand hours, about five times as long as most CFL bulbs. Yet, a single LED bulb costs much more than five CFL bulbs.

The information in the passage above most supports which of the following conclusions?

A) LED bulbs are most likely to be used in locations where light bulbs would be difficult or costly to replace.
B) CFL bulbs will need to come down further in price in order to compete with LED bulbs.
C) LED bulbs are most likely to be used in locations where there is frequent accidental breakage of bulbs.
D) CFL bulb designs are likely to advance to the point where they can last as long as LED bulbs.
E) LED bulbs are likely to drop in price, to the point of being competitive with CFL bulbs.

“Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs are growing in market share as a replacement for the standard incandescent light bulb.” – is a topic of GMAT critical Reasoning. This GMAT Critical Reasoning topic has been taken from the book ‘501 GMAT Questions’. In this question, the candidates need to provide an option that does not support the argument provided in the passage. GMAT critical reasoning tests the logical and analytical skills of the candidates. Critical reasoning in GMAT requires candidates to find the strengths and weaknesses of the argument, or find the logical flaw in the argument. The GMAT CR section contains 10 -13 GMAT critical reasoning questions out of 36 GMAT verbal questions.

Answer: A
Explanation:

Hypothesis: CFL market share increasing as a replacement for the standard incandescent light bulb. LED and CFL both are are energy efficient, and they can last around fifty thousand hours, about five times as long as most CFL bulbs.
Conclusion: A single LED bulb costs much more than five CFL bulbs.

Let us check the given assumptions that must be true, supporting the conclusion:

A) LED bulbs are most likely to be used in locations where light bulbs would be difficult or costly to replace.
-Option A states about the 4th variable, operation cost. In case the operation cost of bulb becomes more, then people would tend to buy LED. As the LED costs lower than CFL. Hence, option A is the correct answer.

B) CFL bulbs will need to come down further in price in order to compete with LED bulbs.
-Option B cannot be related to the above question as it provides different premise. Hence option B irrelevant.

C) LED bulbs are most likely to be used in locations where there is frequent accidental breakage of bulbs.
-Option C states about using CFL bulbs as the breakage of bulbs have become frequent. So, this product have become irrelevant, due to lact of logical sense.

D) CFL bulb designs are likely to advance to the point where they can last as long as LED bulbs.
-Option D and B are similar. They both provides new premises which are not required.

E) LED bulbs are likely to drop in price, to the point of being competitive with CFL bulbs.
-Option E cannot be related to the above question as it provides different premise. Hence option E irrelevant.

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