# 🐝 LSAT Logical Reasoning Cheat Sheet

*The Burton Method Quick Reference*

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## 📦 Every LR Question Has Two Parts

| Part | What It Is | Your Job |
|------|-----------|----------|
| **Stimulus** | The short paragraph | Find the conclusion + premises |
| **Question Stem** | The actual task | Know what they're asking |

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## 🎯 Question Type Quick Guide

### MUST-KNOW QUESTION TYPES

| Type | What They Ask | Your Move |
|------|--------------|-----------|
| **Main Conclusion** | "What's the main point?" | Find the claim everything supports |
| **Weaken** | "What hurts this argument?" | Attack the assumption |
| **Strengthen** | "What helps this argument?" | Support the assumption |
| **Flaw** | "What's wrong with this logic?" | Name the reasoning error |
| **Assumption** | "What must be true for this to work?" | Find the hidden link |
| **Inference** | "What must be true based on this?" | Stay close to the text |
| **Parallel** | "Which argument uses similar logic?" | Match the structure |

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## 🧠 The "Just Because… Doesn't Mean…" Test

Use this for EVERY argument:

> "Just because [PREMISE]… doesn't mean [CONCLUSION]."

If that sounds like a fair criticism → you've found the assumption.

**Example:**
- Premise: "Coffee drinkers perform better on tests"
- Conclusion: "Law students should drink more coffee"
- Test: "Just because coffee helps test performance… doesn't mean it'll help law students specifically."

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## 🔍 Conclusion Indicator Words

These usually signal the main point:

| Word | Example |
|------|---------|
| Therefore | "Therefore, we should invest." |
| Thus | "Thus, the plan will fail." |
| So | "So it follows that..." |
| Hence | "Hence the conclusion." |
| Consequently | "Consequently, action is needed." |
| It follows that | "It follows that X is true." |

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## 🔍 Premise Indicator Words

These usually signal support:

| Word | Example |
|------|---------|
| Because | "Because sales dropped..." |
| Since | "Since the data shows..." |
| Given that | "Given that X occurred..." |
| For | "For the study revealed..." |
| Due to | "Due to budget cuts..." |
| As | "As the evidence indicates..." |

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## ⚠️ Common Flaw Types

| Flaw | Plain English |
|------|--------------|
| **Causation ≠ Correlation** | "They happened together, so one caused the other" (nope) |
| **Overgeneralization** | "It worked once, so it always will" (nope) |
| **Necessary vs Sufficient** | "It's required, so it's enough" (nope) |
| **Ad Hominem** | "You're wrong because you're biased" (attacks person, not argument) |
| **Circular Reasoning** | "It's true because it's true" (no real support) |
| **Sampling Error** | "This small group did X, so everyone does" (unrepresentative) |
| **Equivocation** | "This word means one thing here, another there" (slippery terms) |

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## ⏱️ Timing Strategy

| Phase | Time | Goal |
|-------|------|------|
| **Questions 1-10** | ~12 min | Bank time (these are easier) |
| **Questions 11-20** | ~15 min | Stay steady |
| **Questions 21-26** | ~8 min | Don't panic, make educated guesses |

**Rule:** Never spend more than 2 minutes on one question. Flag and move.

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## 🎯 Burton Power Moves

### For Weaken Questions:
1. Find the conclusion
2. Identify the assumption
3. Predict: "What could make this less likely?"
4. Match your prediction

### For Strengthen Questions:
1. Find the conclusion
2. Identify the assumption
3. Predict: "What could make this MORE likely?"
4. Match your prediction

### For Flaw Questions:
1. Find the conclusion
2. Spot the logical leap
3. Name it in plain English
4. Match your description (even if wording is abstract)

### For Inference Questions:
1. NO conclusion to find — just facts
2. Stay CLOSE to the text
3. Avoid extreme answers ("always", "never", "all")
4. The right answer MUST be true

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## 🚫 Wrong Answer Traps

| Trap | What It Looks Like |
|------|-------------------|
| **Too Extreme** | "All," "never," "always," "impossible" |
| **Out of Scope** | Introduces new concepts not in stimulus |
| **Reverses Logic** | Gets the direction backwards |
| **Irrelevant** | True statement, but doesn't answer the question |
| **Half Right** | Starts good, ends bad |

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## 💡 When You're Stuck

1. Re-read the question stem — make sure you know the TASK
2. Re-identify the conclusion — are you sure?
3. Eliminate obviously wrong answers
4. Between two answers? Pick the one closer to the stimulus
5. Flag and move — don't waste time

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