Strengthen/Weaken Practice Test

While the ivory trade has been banned in most developed nations, in newly-developed countries ivory is prized as a signal of wealth. In particular, there is great demand for complete elephant tusks - items that have spawned a counterfeit industry in which replicas of complete tusks are mass-produced and sold as real ivory. Buyers should beware, however, of tusks that have no imperfections as these are almost certainly counterfeits.

Which of the following most strengthens the argument above?

The Metropolitan Cooking Academy surveyed prospective students and found that students wanted a curriculum that focused on today's healthy dining trends. In order to reverse the trend of declining interest in the school's programs, administrators propose a series of new courses focused on cooking exotic species of fish, alternative grains such as quinoa, and organically produced vegetables.

Which of the following, if true, supplies the best reason to suspect that the proposed new courses will increase interest in the Metropolitan Cooking Academy?