Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

Excavation in City Y found ten ships that all sank at the same time in the city’s harbor, in one sudden event in approximately A.D. 800. One possible explanation for the sinking is a tsunami, caused by a strong earthquake from a fault under the sea about fifteen miles away. However, it is more likely that a powerful storm sank the ships, since, if an earthquake had been responsible, there would also have been major damage to the city’s walls and buildings―but there apparently was no such major damage, otherwise we would have discovered records from that time mentioning major building repairs.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

A. There is evidence that the fault in question had produced tsunamis earlier in City Y’s history.

B. Some record-keeping practices existed in City Y around A.D. 800.

C. City Y’s harbor offered relatively good protection for ships from the effects of a storm.

D. City Y was wealthy enough to have carried out repair work fairly quickly after an earthquake.

E. If a powerful storm had sunk the ships, there would have been major damage to walls and buildings in the city, but not as much as an earthquake would have caused.

View Answer

Answer: B