section ⅱ
time-35 minutes
26 questions
directions: the questions in this section are based on the reasoning contained in brief statements or passages. for some questions, more than one of the choices could conceivably answer the question. however, you are to choose the best answer, that is the response that most accurately and completely answers the question. you should not make assumptions that are by commonsense standards implausible, superfluous, or incompatible with the passage. after you have chosen the best answer, blacken the corresponding space on your answer sheet.
1.an office building at state university contains a concrete stairway, the carpet on which has become worn and frayed. despite numerous warnings by the occupational safety and health administration, the university has not replaced a burned-out light in the stairway. fred, a student, recently caught his heel in the torn carpet, tripped, and fell down the stairway. he was hospitalized for a severe concussion and other injuries. after his release from the hospital, he required much more medical attention and medication and had to withdraw from the university for a semester. he brings suit against the university.
which one of the following is the best ling of causal analysis for fred's attorney to pursue in the personal injury case?
(a) the concrete steps, because they were hard, worsened fred's injuries.
(b) the university is responsible for the condition of the carpet.
(c) the burned-out light constitutes negligence.
(d) the distance fred fell worsened his injuries.
(e) the occupational safety and health administration has no jurisdiction over the university.
2.research shows that exercise has a beneficial effect on health. after much testing with many different types of persons, it has been shown that, in most cases, exercise definitely helps to prevent illnesses caused by viruses. the common cold is caused by a virus. therefore._________
which one of the following is the best completion of the argument above?
(a) exercise alone will not prevent the common cold
(b) exercise is no more effective than antibiotics in preventing the common cold
(c) exercise is probably not effective in preventing colds caused by bacteria
(d) exercise helps the body to destroy invading viruses
(e) exercise may help to prevent the common cold
3.just a few years ago salmon could not survive in the oxygen-starved and polluted thames. nor could many other species. but now, after years of determined effort, the salmon have returned, and that is a sure sign that the river is pollution-free.
each of the following indicates a possible flaw in the reasoning in the passage above eexcept:
(a) the salmon that have returned may be of a strain that is unaffected by the pollutants.
(b) the pollution may have been reduced to a level at which the salmon can survive.
(c) oxygen starvation is often a consequence of pollution, and this may have killed the salmon.
(d) the salmon may have been killed by one particular pollutant, which has now been removed while others remain.
(e) there may still be pollution, but its nature may have changed to a form that saimon can tolerate.
4.the state's licensing procedures for day-care providers are inadequate.used to leave my son with a wonderful woman who kept a group of neighborhood children, but she quit rather than put up with the licensing paperwork. and a friend of mine tells me that he cannot recommend the day-care center that he uses, even though it is licensed, because the care providers are not interested in doing anything beyond meeting the minimum requirments of health and safety.
the author of the passage argues by
(a) providing examples to support two opposing positions
(b) basing a conciusion on specific cases
(c) disputing evidence cited by those with an opposing point of view
(d) predicting personal experience from a general principle
(e) using a generalization based on observation to undermine a theoretical principle
5.all 250 of the city's democratic ward leaders were polled about the number of registered republicans who became registered democrats during the year. from the reports of the 20 leaders who replied to the questionnaire, we know that altogether they received a total of 500 former republicans into the democratic party within the year. projecting from this sample, we conclude that at least 6,000 republicans became democrats during the year.
which one of the following statements, if true, most clearly undermines the conclusion?
(a) several years ago, 5,000 members of the republican party registered as democrats.
(b) the more than 90 percent of ward leaders not replying had no former republicans registering as democrats.
(c) because they were too busy, more than 90 percent of the ward leaders did not reply percent of the ward leaders did not reply
(d) a number of the newly registered democrats returned to the republican party at a later date.
(e) similar figures can be produced from past years for registrationchanges from the democratic party to the republican party
6.a linguist recently argued that all human languages must have a common origin because some concepts are universal; that is they appear in all languages. for example, all languages are capable of describing lightness and darkness.
which one of the following, if true would most senously weaken the argument?
a) the bernese language does not contain basic nouns like automobile and airplane.
(b) no one linguist could possibly speak all known languages.
(c) all speakers, regardless of their languages are confronted with similar stimuli like lightness and darkness.
(d) the similarity between human language and dolphin language has not been attributed to a common origin.
(e) some languages include concepts of which speakers of other languages are not even aware.
7.all psychiatrists are doctors. only psychiatrists were invited to the conference. all who were invited to the conference stayed at the hefford hote. therefore, only psychiatrists stayed at the hefford hotel.
which one of the following statements, if added as a premise to the argument, would make the conclusion valid?
(a) only those who were invited to the conference stayed at the hefford hotel.
(b) all who were invited to the conference were psychiatrists.
(c) all psychiatrists were invited to the conference.
(d) no one who was invited to the conference failed to stay at the hefford hotel.
(e) only doctors stayed at the hefford hotel.
question 8-9
a thing is "nauseous" if it makes one sick to the stomach; the unfortunate victim of this malaise is "nauseated" . the common misuse of "nauseous" can be illustrated with the following sentence: "when he sits too long, turns his head too abruptly, or walks any distance, he gets dizzy, loses balance, and becomes nauseous." he doesn't become nauseous unless he turns other people's stomachs; he becomes nauseated. a person who is nauseated is no more nauseous than a person who has been poisoned is poisonous.
8.based on the passage above, which phrase does not provide a logical completion to the following sentence?
a person who is nauseated is no more nauseous than a person who has been_______.
(a) murdered is murderous
(b) corrupted is corruptible
(c) awed is awesome
(d) irritated is irritating
(e) scared is scary
9.the author's approach in the passage includes all of the following except
(a) explaining how a word is misused
(b) drawing an analogy
(c) providing an example
(d) relying on a word's ambiguous meaning
(e) defining key terms
10. therapy, whether physical or social, is a counterirritant that aids in that equilibrium of the physical organs that protects the central nervous system. whereas pleasure is a counterirritant (for example, sports, entertainment, and alcohol), comfort is the removal of irritants. both pleasure and comfort are strategies of equilibrium for the central nervous system.
it can be concluded from the statements above that the exile of a deviant member of a group can be
(a) therapeutic for the rest of the group
(b) irritating for the rest of the group
(c) pleasurable for the rest of the group
(d) comforting for the rest of the group
(e) counterirritating for the rest of the group
11. the situation has gotten worse. unless elizabeth goes i must go. but she will not to if i stay so we will both have to go.
what is the flaw in the reasoning above?
(a) the first claim, that the situation has gotten worse, is irrelevant.
(b) a possible course of action is overlooked
(c) it is assumed that staying is the same as not going.
(d) the conclusion refers to a possibility that is not explicitly referred to in any of the premises.
(e) insufficient information is given about the circumstances.
12. student x: i'm worried about failing the course.
student y: don't worry. as the professor said, any student who fails to submit a term paper will fail the course. so just make sure that you submit a term paper, and you will not fail the course.
which one of the following exhibits the same logical flaw as that exhibited in student y's remark?
(a) any restaurant that serves paella without saffron is not authentic so if the restaurant serves paella with turmeric instead of saffron, it is authentic.
(b) any native fishers who earn their livings by fishing the local rivers and lakes are worth hiring as guides. so a person who is a native fisher is worth hiring as a guide.
(c) anyone who can consistently bowl over 200 points per game should become a professional bowler. if you can consistently bowl over 200 points per game, you should become a professional bowler.
(d) any engineer who cannot solve the equation in a reasonable amount of time will not get a license. so if you are an engineer who can solve the equation in a reasonable amount of time, you will get a license.
(e) any cook who is in a hot kitchen will have the kitchen. if you are a cook in a kitchen that is hot, you will be forced to leave the kitchen.
13. trade protection is bad policy. take the case of the microcomputer industry. the united states government attempted to restore the computer chip market to united states manufacturers, who had ceased production in the face of an abundant supply of cheap chips from foreign manufacturers. under trade protection, it was expected that, as government-imposed quotas and excise taxes forced the price of foreign chips to rise, united states manufactures would reenter the market. they did, but at only slightly lower prices that the now-high prices of foreign firms. the lesson has been simple: trade protection means that united states manufactures gain while united states manufactures gain while united states consumers lose.
which one of the following is an assumption on which the author's argument relies?
(a) it is unreasonable to expect that government-imposed quotas and excise taxes will reduce prices for united states consumers.
(b) united states manufacturers of computer chips are more concerned with high profits that are foreign manufacturers.
(c) the united states government's primary purpose in trade protection is to restore markets and profits to united states manufacturers.
(d) with respect to trade protection, the microcomputer industry is representative of united states industry in general.
(e) the quality of the chips produced by united states manufacturers is better than the quality of the chips produced by foreign manufacturers.
questions 14-15
until now, this painting was believed to be a self portrait of the artist, but it probably is not. true, the heavy gold chain worn by the gentleman in the picture is similar to one presented to the artist by the queen of england after he had painted her portrait. but the sword hanging at the gentleman's hip suggests that he was a knight, a rank higher than any the artist ever attained.
14. the argument above depends on assuming that the self-portrait would
(a) include objects that are important to the artist
(b) not exaggerate the rank achieved by the artist
(c) be similar to portraits of others whom the artist had painted
(d) be verifiable only through the examination of objects in the painting
(e) not portray the artist engaged in the activity of painting
15. which one of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author's argument?
(a) historians cannot determine whether the artist was ever knighted.
(b) the artist painted only one self-portrait in his entire life.
(c) several gentlemen of the artist's day wore heavy gold chains like the one in the painting.
(d) the gentleman in the painting resembles portraits of the artist painted by other artists.
(e) the artist was the only gentleman of his day who received a heavy gold chain from the queen of england.
16. colleges boast about the great sizes of their libraries. they quote figures in the hundreds of thousands of volumes, but how many books can a student read in four years-a thousand? what good, then, are all the rest?
which one of the following statements most accurately expresses the author's main point?
(a) college librarians do not have anything about which they can boast.
(b) no student can read more than a thousand books in four years.
(c) it is silly to boast about a library's size, regardless of whether the library is large or small.
(d) unused books are a waste of taxpayers' money.
(e) college libraries are unnecessarily large.
17. eli:according to many scientists the widespread production and use of chlorofluorocarbons (cfcs)-e.g., to provide coolant for air conditioners-inevitably leads to their escape into the atmosphere where they destroy the vital ozone layer. in my opinion, the continued use of cfcs by humans is like a harmful habit, which, if unchecked, could have disastrous effects on the user, namely self-destruction. the obvious and necessary cure, therefore, is a complete ban on cfc production and use.
mark: the cure you propose would kill, not save, the user. a ban on cfc production and use would cause the destruction of the air conditioning industry.
the source of mark, and eli's dispute is their lack of agreement on which one of the following terms?
(a) cure
(b) user
(c) ban
(d) production
(e) destruction
18. if there is a decrease in the number of homeless families, then either the number of available jobs has increased or else the cost of renting or purchasing housing has decreased. if the cost of renting or purchasing housing has decreased, then the supply of housing must be greater than the demand.
assume that there is a decrease in the number of homeless families. according to the passage, which one of the following statements. cannot be true?
(a) the number of jobs has been decreasing.
(b) the cost of renting or purchasing housing has been decreasing, and housing has been decreasing, and housing supply exceeds demand.
(c) the number of jobs has been increasing, and the cost of renting or purchasing housing has been stable.
(d) the number of jobs has been decreasing, the cost of renting or purchasing housing has been decreasing, and housing demand exceeds supply.
(e) the number of jobs has been increasing, the cost of renting or purchasing housing has been increasing, and housing supply exceeds demand.
19. everyone knew that if the team's star player were too badly injured to play in saturday's game, the team would lose. since the team won, the star player must have played
which one of the following is most similar in logie to the argument above?
(a) red spots on the feet are a symptom of a disease called borosis. this patient has green spots on his feet, therefore, he does not have borosis.
(b) if the frost comes late, the farmer has a good crop. because the frost was late, the farmer must have a good crop.
(c) the instructor in a course ruled that if a student received an a on either the term paper or the final exam, then the student would receive an a for the course. anne received an a on the term paper and a c on the final exam. therefore, anne received an a for the course.
(d) people in driving school realized that if pete had another auto accident, he would be expelled from the driving school, pete was not expelled from the driving school. therefore, he must not have had another auto accident.
(e) if swenson pays a $100 fine, he will not be expelled from the country club. because swenson has not been expelled, he must have paid the fine.
20. an examination of corruption provides the basis for rejecting the view that an exact science of society can ever be constructed. as with all other social phenomena that involve deliberate secrecy, it is intrinsically impossible to measure corruption, and this is not merely due to the fact that social science has not yet reached its goal, achievable to be sure, of developing adequate quantifying techniques. if people were ready to answer question about their embezzlements and bribes, it would their embezzlements and bribes, it would mean that these practices had acquired the character of legitimate, taxable activities and had ceased to be corrupt. in other words, corruption must disappear if it is to be measurable.
which one of the following most accurately states a hidden assumption that the author must make in order to advance the argument above
(a) some people believe that an exact science of society can be constructed.
(b) the primary purpose of an exact science to quantify and measure phenomena
(c) an intrinsic characteristic of social phenomena that involve deliberate secrecy is that they cannot be measured.
(d) an exact science of social phenomena that involve deliberate secrecy cannot be constructed.
(e) an exact science can be constructed only when the phenomena it studies can be measured.
question 21-22
this country does not need any more restrictions on pollution. in fact, we should abolish those that are currently on the books. in spite of various restrictions, pollution levels have actually increased over the past 40 years. most importantly, dramatic statistics show that, as pollution levels have increased over this period, the general health of the population has improved rather than deteriorated.
21. which one of the following assertions, if true, provides the most effective challenge to the author's conclusion?
(a) the general health of this country's population has improved over the past 40 years primarily because of new advances in medicine and nutrition, not because of pollution.
(b) there are several countries in the would in which there have been no restrictions on which there have been no restrictions on pollution over the past 40 years, and pollution levels have actually increased.
(c) similar statistics show that, in several countries, the general health of the population has improved over the past 40 years, while pollution levels have actually decreased.
(d) pollution levels would have increased even more than they have and the general health of the population would not have improved as much as it has without the restrictions that have been on the books.
(e) in the period prior to the past 40 years, pollution restrictions were nonexistent in this country and the general health of the population improved at a far slower rate than it did during the past 40 years.
22. the author concludes that there should be no restrictions on pollution partly because
(a) they are no longer needed to improve the general health of the population
(b) they reduce the positive effect that pollution has on the general health of the population
(c) statistics show that as pollution restrictions have increased so have pollution levels
(d) pollution has not yet reached levels that are detrimental to the health of the general population
(e) they are ineffective in lowering pollution levels.
23. in metropolitan areas, almost 60 percent of all fires are set by children, while in rural areas about 40 percent are a psychological survey discovered that all children who play with fire believe that there will be no consequences if their parents catch them doing it.
which one of the following inferences can be most reliably drawn from the passage above?
(a) most children who believe there will no consequences if they are discovered playing with fire do play with fire.
(b) parents who discover their children playing with fire will prevent those children from playing with fire in the future.
(c) if parents have successfully instilled in their children the belief that there will be consequences if they are caught playing with fire, these children have not been among those playing with fire.
(d) children who play with fire attach no sense of right or wrong to this action.
(e) most children who do not play with fire believe there will be consequences if their parents discover them playing with fire.
24. somewhere, somehow, what was once a perfectly good rule by which to live was twisted into the false and sinister idea that "money is the root of all evil" to the contrary, the proper use of money provides us with the food, clothes, health care, and shelter that we all need to sustain our lives.
the author's argument is logically flawed in that it
(a) uses examples that do not refute the generalization that all evil is rooted in money
(b) uses inappropriate examples to demonstrate the proper use of money
(c) ignores some of the evil things that money can buy
(d) fails to acknowledge that food, clothes, health care, and shelter can sometimes lead to evil
(e) fails to recognize that money can be sued for a lot of other good things besides sustenance
25. in a recent experiment, a high school english teacher interspersed real,commonly used proverbs with several nonsensical proverbial-sounding statements that he had made up. he then asked his students to evaluate all of the statements on the list. in general, the students found the bogus proverbs and the real proverbs to be equally full of wisdom and meaning,. the teacher concluded that proverbs attain their status as proverbs more through frequent usage than through their inherent wisdom.
which one of the following if true, would most effectively challenge the teacher's conclusion?
(a) some proverbs are used more frequently than others.
(b) there were more real proverbs than bogus proverbs in the list of statements.
(c) there are stylistic differences between proverbial and proverbial-sounding statements.
(d) some students view a statement in one way and other students view the same statement in a very different way.
(e) the students selected as evaluators were too inexperienced to judge the wisdom of the statements.
26. it is commonly accepted that we should be concerned about our own physical health. the desire to take responsibility for all aspects of our physical condition, however, produces a number of negative consequences. by focusing exclusively on our physical health, we tend to ignore out mental health. therefore, although we can derive physical benefits from our preoccupation with physical health, we often do so at the expense of our mental health.
the author establishes her position in the passage by doing which one of the following?
(a) she defends her position and then extencls it into a second area.
(b) she reveals a contradiction in a position commonly held to be correct.
(c) she supports a commonly held point of view by providing additional evidence
(d) she first states her position and then qualifies it with a number of concessions