The Average Life Expectancy for the United States Population as a Whole is 73.9 Years

Question: The average life expectancy for the United States population as a whole is 73.9 years, but children born in Hawaii will live an average of 77 years, and those born in Louisiana, 71.7 years. If a newlywed couple from Louisiana were to begin their family in Hawaii, therefore, their children would be expected to live longer than would be the case if the family remained in Louisiana.

Which of the following, if true, would most seriously weaken the conclusion drawn in the passage?

(A) Insurance company statisticians do not believe that moving to Hawaii will significantly lengthen the average Louisianan's life.
(B) The governor of Louisiana has falsely alleged that statistics for his state are inaccurate.
(C) The longevity ascribed to Hawaii's current population is attributable mostly to genetically determined factors.
(D) Thirty percent of all Louisianans can expect to live longer than 77 years.
(E) Most of the Hawaiian Islands have levels of air pollution well below the national average for the United States.

Answer: C
Explanation: GMAT critical reasoning tests the reasoning, logical, and analytical thinking abilities of the candidate. The candidate has to deduce the correct option by finding the logically correct argument or by eliminating the irrelevant arguments.

Hypothesis:

i) The average life expectancy for the United States population as a whole is 73.9 years
ii) The average life expectancy for children born in Hawaii is 77 years
iii) The average life expectancy for those born in Louisiana, 71.7 years.

Conclusion: If a newlywed couple from Louisiana were to begin their family in Hawaii, therefore, their children would be expected to live longer than would be the case if the family remained in Louisiana.

Prethinking: As per the data given, we can conclude that children born in Hawaii live longer. It may be because of the weather conditions or anything else(such as genetics).

We need to check the given options to find the assumption that weaken the conclusion:

(A) Insurance company statisticians do not believe that moving to Hawaii will significantly lengthen the average Louisianan's life.
Irrelevant.
Option A states that the statisticians have no conclusion about whether the children will live longer.

(B) The governor of Louisiana has falsely alleged that statistics for his state are inaccurate.
Irrelevant.
Option B implies that stats are not accurate. So, this statement cannot weaken the argument.

(C) The longevity ascribed to Hawaii's current population is attributable mostly to genetically determined factors.
Correct.
Option C matches our prethinking. It implies that genetics may be the reason for children living longer.

(D) Thirty percent of all Louisianans can expect to live longer than 77 years.
Not relevant.
Option D shows that it does nothing to increase or decrease our belief about the children living longer.

(E) Most of the Hawaiian Islands have levels of air pollution well below the national average for the United States.
Strengthens.
Option E states that the environment in Hawaii can be the reason for Higher average life expectancy. So this statement strengthens the argument than weakening it.

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