GRE Reading Comprehension
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Source: magoosh reading medium
The element ytterbium increases its electrical resistance when subject to high mechanical stresses. This property has made it an indispensable component in a medical tool designed to measure the stress on bones, which can guide physicians in setting broken bones. Unfortunately, ytterbium is rare, found in only a few meager sources around the world. A steep market demand will cause the price to skyrocket, and this technology so helpful to physicians will become unaffordable.
Question List: 1
Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?
- A Just one mining company controls all the ytterbium that is imported into the United States, where these medical tools are manufactured.
- B The process of extracting pure ytterbium from its ores, euxenite and xenotime, is very expensive and involves strong acids.
- C Ytterbium is also used as an additive, in small quantities, in the manufacture of stainless steel and solid-state lasers.
- D Some common alloys of tin also increase their electrical resistance under mechanical loads.
- E The largest source of ytterbium is in a relatively remote region of China.