Logic (3 of 10)

One of the biggest problems in IELTS essays is a lack of logic. IELTS writing needs to be detailed and accurate, and you have to hit the target, dead centre, to get a high IELTS mark (hence the picture). So, let’s start thinking about this everyone.

Try to work out the logical problems with the following sentences. The answers will be given and explained in the next post.

1. We should let people use nuclear energy.
2. C0₂ is a major problem of global warming.
3. Thieves have trouble entering a house with a dog.
4. Fossil fuels are used faster than they are produced.
5. When I returned to the table, my bag was stolen.

Answers to Logic 2 of 10

Here are the answers to the previous post.

I will give the original illogical sentence, then my comments about it.

1. Thank you for reading this letter patiently.

We actually don’t know if the person will read ‘patiently’. We don’t know how (in what manner) this person will read the letter, and we can’t assume anything here. It is better to be neutral, with ‘Thank you for dealing with this matter’.

2. The growth increased.

Repetition! ‘Growth’ = ‘increase’. Let me assure you all: IELTS examiners do not like repetition, trust me! The word repetition appears in the IELTS 5 and 4 bandscores in the public version of the IELTS band descriptors. So, the sentence should be … [Sth.] increased, or ‘[Sth.] experienced a growth.’

3. It finished at 50. Following this, increased.

How can it increase after it finished? So, ‘finished’ must be a wrong word. Perhaps ‘rose/fell to’ would be correct.

4. In the period 90 – 95, it reaches a peak.

It reaches a peak at a point of time, not a period. The sentence could means, ‘In the period 90 – 95, it rose to a peak.’ Check out p.71 and 72 of my IELTS Writing: Task One book.

5. It will encourage the birth rate.

Maybe this is a collocation issue. We encourage people. So, the sentence could be re-written in two ways.

It will encourage people to have more children.

It will raise the birth rate.