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[
"highway traffic has not increased over the past year",
"the number of traffic fatalities the year before the new speed limit was introduced was not abnormally high",
"the new speed limit was more strictly enforced than the old",
"the majority of drivers obeyed the new speed limit"
] | A year ago the government reduced the highway speed limit, and in the year since, there have been significantly fewer highway fatalities than there were in the previous year. Ttherefore, speed limit reduction can reduce traffic fatalities. | 1 | train_500 | The argument is most vulnerable to the criticism that it takes for granted that |
[
"It draws an analogy between semiplaning monohulls and conventional ships that constitutes an objection to the argument's main conclusion, one that is subsequently rejected by appeal to another analogy.",
"It constitutes a potential objection to the argument's main conclusion, but is subsequently countered by an analogy drawn between ships and airplanes.",
"It draws a distinction between characteristics of semiplaning monohulls and characteristics of conventional ships that the argument's main conclusion compares to a distinction between types of airplanes.",
"It serves as one of two analogies drawn between semiplaning monohulls and jet airplanes, which function together to support the argument's main conclusion."
] | Engineer: Semiplaning monohulls are a new kind of ship that can attain twice the speed of conventional ships. Due to increased fuel needs, transportation will be much more expensive on semiplaning monohulls than on conventional ships. Similarly, travel on jet airplanes was more expensive than travel on other planes at first, but jet airplanes still attracted enough passengers to be profitable, because they offered greater speed and reliability. Semiplaning monohulls offer the same advantages over traditional ships. Thus they will probably be profitable as well. | 1 | train_501 | Which one of the following most accurately describes the role played in the engineer's argument by the statement that transportation will be much more expensive on semiplaning monohulls than on traditional ships? |
[
"Seafood stores within the city will in the future set prices that are lower than those at suburban seafood stores",
"Any people who currently own seafood stores in the suburbs surrounding Eastville will relocate their businesses nearer to the city",
"The wholesale price of fish is likely to fall in the future",
"More fish wholesalers are located within the city than in the surrounding suburbs"
] | Fish currently costs about the same at seafood stores throughout Eastville and its surrounding suburbs. Seafood stores buy fish from the same wholesalers and at the same prices, and other business expenses have also been about the same. But new tax breaks will substantially lower the cost of doing business within the city. Ttherefore, in the future, profit margins will be higher at seafood stores within the city than at suburban seafood stores. | 0 | train_502 | For the purposes of evaluating the argument, it would be most useful to know whether |
[
"The argument bases its conclusion on what the best decision is for the present on uncertain projections about what the best decision will be for the future.",
"The argument rejects a well-established way of achieving an end without explaining why an unconventional way is better suited for achieving the end.",
"The argument ignores the opinions of expert reporters in the field of baseball when there is no superior source of information.",
"The argument bases its conclusion on facts that could, considering the circumstances, have been the product of circumstances other than those presumed by the argument's proponents."
] | A professional baseball team manager, in order to have the funds to sign a new second-baseman, discreetly arranged to trade one of the most popular outfielders on the team for a lesser-known player and an undisclosed amount of money. The manager secretly considered the outfielder to be overrated and overpaid. Reporters forcefully criticized the trade, arguing that the team had lost its best player and that the manager had violated his fiduciary duties to the team and the fans. A few weeks after being traded, the outfielder was retraded, for twice the value received by the original team manager. Plainly, the outfielder' s price shows that the reporters' criticism of the manager' s action was accurate. | 3 | train_503 | The reasoning in the argument is vulnerable to the criticism that the argument does which one of the following? |
[
"presumes, without providing justification, that the field inspectors were just as likely to choose a defective item for testing as they were to choose a nondefective item",
"presumes, without providing justification, that the field inspectors made an equal number of visits to each of the various manufacturing sites of the supplier",
"overlooks the possibility that the field inspectors tend to choose items for testing that they suspect are defective",
"bases its conclusion on too small a sample of items tested by the laboratory"
] | Quality control investigator: Upon testing samples of products from our supplier that were sent by our field inspectors from various manufacturing locations, our laboratory discovered that over 20 percent of the samples were defective. Since our supplier is contractually required to limit the rate of defects among items it manufactures for us to below 5 percent, it has violated its contract with us. | 2 | train_504 | The reasoning in the quality control investigator's argument is flawed in that the argument |
[
"fails to consider the possibility that there may be other medical reasons for surgically removing a child's tonsils",
"infers from the fact that an action has a certain effect that the action is intended to produce that effect",
"fails to consider the possibility that some breathing problems during sleep may be caused by something other than swollen tonsils",
"relies on an inappropriate appeal to authority"
] | Pediatrician: Swollen tonsils give rise to breathing problems during sleep, and the surgical removal of children' s swollen tonsils has been shown to alleviate sleep disturbances. So removing children' s tonsils before swelling even occurs will ensure that the children do not experience any breathing problems during sleep. | 2 | train_505 | The pediatrician's argument is most vulnerable to the criticism that it |
[
"The sheep and goats herded by the peoples of the southern Levant until 6, 000 years ago grazed extensively on the seedlings and saplings of indigenous tree species.",
"Carbon dating of organic remains from the southern Levant reliably demonstrates that there were no forests present in that area prior to 6, 000 years ago.",
"Organic remains from the northern Levant reliably indicate that tree species flourished there without interruption during the period when the southern Levant was being abandoned.",
"Since there are few traces of either quarried stone or of mud brick in buildings excavated in the southern Levant, it is likely that the buildings built there prior to 6, 000 years ago were made almost entirely of timber."
] | The Levant -- the area that borders the eastern Mediterranean-was heavily populated in prehistoric times. The southern Levant was abandoned about 6, 000 years ago, although the northern Levant, which shared the same climate, remained heavily populated. Recently archaeologists have hypothesized that the sudden depopulation in the southern Levant was due to an economic collapse resulting from deforestation. | 1 | train_506 | If the statements above are true and the archaeologists' hypothesis is correct, which one of the following CANNOT be true? |
[
"it is more important to impress people who are not intellectuals than people who are intellectuals",
"many intellectuals are not widely read in history",
"there are other easy ways to impress intellectuals that do not involve knowing history",
"there are people who learn about history who do not impress intellectuals"
] | If you know a lot about history, it will be easy for you to impress people who are intellectuals. But unfortunately, you will not know much about history if you have not, for example, read a large number of history books. Ttherefore, if you are not well versed in history due to a lack of reading, it will not be easy for you to impress people who are intellectuals. | 2 | train_507 | The argument's reasoning is flawed because the argument overlooks the possibility that |
[
"To be economically more successful, Europe needs to train more people in the new technologies.",
"Japan's successful economy depends upon an uncommonly narrow base of highly skilled labor.",
"Japan is not the best country against which to measure a country's economic success.",
"European countries have economies that are more successful than those of most other countries."
] | The most successful economies have been, and will continue to be, those that train as many people as possible in the human skills required to research, to develop, and to apply new technology. Japan is a model for this sort of training effort. Europe as a whole is in a weaker position: there is a shortage of skilled labor trained to use the new technologies, and there are not enough scientists able to develop and apply the technology. However, even in Japan there is a shortage of technically qualified people, and, like most European countries, Japan has far too many workers qualified to perform only menial tasks. | 0 | train_508 | Which one of the following can be properly inferred from the passage? |
[
"Although some cathedrals are not built of stone, every cathedral is impressive. Ttherefore, buildings can be impressive even though they are not built of stone.",
"Not all public buildings are well designed, but some poorly designed public buildings were originally intended for private use. Ttherefore, the poorly designed public buildings were all originally designed for private use.",
"All municipal hospital buildings are massive, but not all municipal hospital buildings are forbidding in appearance. Ttherefore, massive buildings need not present a forbidding appearance.",
"Although some buildings designed by famous architects are not well proportioned, all government buildings are designed by famous architects. Ttherefore, some government buildings are not well proportioned."
] | Not all tenured faculty are full professors. Ttherefore, although every faculty member in the linguistics department has tenure, it must be the case that not all of the faculty members in the linguistics department are full professors. | 3 | train_509 | The flawed pattern of reasoning exhibited by the argument above is most similar to that exhibited by which one of the following? |
[
"It is the council's responsibility to improve the community's quality of life.",
"If a new generating station is to be built, the council should endorse a plant of the type specified by the design in question.",
"A plant of the type specified by the design in question would allow for the lowest electricity rates.",
"The council should recommend the building of a new generating station."
] | Councilperson X: We have an obligation to help ensure that electricity rates are the lowest possible. Since the proposed design for a new generating station would clearly allow for the lowest rates, it must be the design we endorse if we agree that we have no choice but to approve construction of a new plant. Councilperson Y: Helping to ensure the lowest electricity rates is not the council' s only job; we also have an obligation not to lower the quality of life of our community. A plant of the type specified by the design would damage our community' s air quality to such an extent that the benefit of lower rates would be outweighed. | 1 | train_510 | Which one of the following is an issue about which the two councilpersons disagree? |
[
"Almost all of the data on the effects of the weed-killer are drawn from laboratory studies in which both forms of the weed-killer's molecules are equally concentrated in the soil and equally likely to break down in that soil.",
"In general, if the molecules of a weed-killer are always present in two forms, then it is likely that weeds are killed by one of those two forms but unaffected by the other.",
"Data on the weed-killer's effects that rely solely on the examination of the effects of only one of the two forms of the weed-killer's molecules will almost certainly be misleading.",
"Of the two forms of the weed-killer's molecules, the one that kills weeds is found in most local soil conditions to be the more concentrated form."
] | Chemist: The molecules of a certain weed-killer are always present in two forms, one the mirror image of the other. One form of the molecule kills weeds, while the other has no effect on them. As a result, the effectiveness of the weed-killer in a given situation is heavily influenced by which of the two forms is more concentrated in the soil, which in turn varies widely because local soil conditions will usually favor the breakdown of one form or the other. Thus, much of the data on the effects of this weed-killer are probably misleading. | 0 | train_511 | Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the chemist's argument? |
[
"The number of infectious illnesses that children in a daycare nursery or school develop is roughly proportional to the number of children in the facility, and daycare nurseries are smaller than most schools.",
"Although in general the illnesses that children contract through contact with other children at daycare nurseries are not serious, some of those illnesses if untreated have serious complications.",
"Those children who have older siblings are likely to catch any common infectious illnesses that their older siblings have.",
"By school age, children who have been in daycare nurseries have developed the immunities to common childhood illnesses that children who have not been in such nurseries have yet to develop."
] | Preschool children who spend the day in daycare nurseries are ill more often than those who do not. They catch many common illnesses, to which they are exposed by other children in the nurseries. However, when these children reach school age they tend to be ill less often than their classmates who did not spend the day in daycare nurseries during their preschool years. | 3 | train_512 | Which one of the following, if true, best explains the discrepancy in the information above? |
[
"The change to Rapilux Tires in most Diomedes models moves those models to the highest safety rating category; several national consumer advocacy groups give focused advertising to cars in this category.",
"Some of the tires previously used on these particular Diomedes models are being phased out by those tire manufacturers, and would have to be replaced anyway, and no tire that would fit these Diomedes Models is any cheaper than the Rapilux Tires chosen.",
"The new Rapilux Tires facilitate loading the new cars onto the trucks that deliver them to the Diomedes showroom.",
"Few car buyers are likely to decide against buying a Diomedes Motors model simply because it now comes with Rapilux Tires."
] | Diomedes Motors has just decided to start using Rapilux Tires on most models of its new cars. The tires cost the same as the previous tires, and the change in tires will not change the sticker price of any car, nor will it change the profit on the sale of any particular car. Nevertheless, the CEO of Diomedes Motors expects this change in tires to increase Diomedes' profits in the coming year. | 0 | train_513 | Which of the following, if true, provides the best reason for the expectation? |
[
"fails to explain why the number of samples sent through the service has increased",
"offers no defense of the university's need for continued delivery of rabies virus samples",
"overlooks the possibility that there has been a change in the hazardousness of the rabies virus samples themselves",
"does not address the potential for harm that is posed by the recent increase in the number of samples sent through the service"
] | Safety inspector: The number of laboratory samples of rabies virus sent through the university delivery service has recently grown dangerously high. We need to limit this use of the service. Biologist: There is no need for a limit. The university delivery service has been handling rabies virus samples for 20 years with no accidents. | 3 | train_514 | As a rebuttal of the safety inspector's claim, the biologist's reasoning is flawed in that it |
[
"with the larger number of plants growing per acre, more fertilizer will be required",
"with the closer spacing of the rows, the acreage on which corn is planted will be utilized much more intensively than it was before, requiring more frequent fallow years in which corn fields are left unplanted",
"with the closer spacing of the rows, the growing corn plants will quickly form a dense canopy of leaves, which will, by shading the ground, minimize the need for costly weed control and irrigation",
"with the closer spacing of the rows, corn plants will be forced to grow taller because of increased competition for sunlight from neighboring corn plants"
] | A new machine for harvesting corn will allow rows to be planted only fifteen inches apart, instead of the usual thirty inches. Corn planted this closely will produce lower yields per plant. Nevertheless, the new machine will allow corn growers to double their profits per acre because __. | 2 | train_515 | Which of the following most logically completes the argument? |
[
"If extracts from a type of mushroom slow, reverse, or prevent the growth of cancerous tumors in mammals, then the mushroom is capable of using cellulose to make beta-glucans.",
"Any organism capable of obtaining glucose from wood can use cellulose to make beta-glucans.",
"The greater the degree of branching of beta-glucans, the greater the degree of immune-cell activity it triggers in mammals.",
"Mammals obtain no beneficial health effects from eating cellulose."
] | Mammals cannot digest cellulose and ttherefore cannot directly obtain glucose from wood. Mushrooms can, however; and some mushrooms use cellulose to make highly branched polymers, the branches of which are a form of glucose called beta-glucans. Beta-glucan extracts from various types of mushrooms slow, reverse, or prevent the growth of cancerous tumors in mammals, and the antitumor activity of beta-glucans increases as the degree of branching increases. These extracts prevent tumor growth not by killing cancer cells directly but by increasing immune-cell activity. | 2 | train_516 | Which one of the following is most strongly supported by the information above? |
[
"Death from an alcohol-related disease generally does not occur until five to ten years after the onset of excessive alcohol consumption.",
"The diseases that can be caused by excessive alcohol consumption can also be caused by other kinds of behavior that increased between 1951 and 1963.",
"Many who died of alcohol-related diseases between 1951 and 1963 consumed illegally imported alcoholic beverages produced by the same methods as those used within Geronia.",
"The death rate resulting from alcohol-related diseases increased just as sharply during the ten years before and the ten years after the prohibition of alcohol as it did during the years of prohibition."
] | Between 1951 and 1963, it was illegal in the country 25. of Geronia to manufacture, sell, or transport any alcoholic beverages. Despite this prohibition, however, the death rate from diseases related to excessive alcohol consumption was higher during the first five years of the period than it was during the five years prior to 1951. Ttherefore, the attempt to prevent alcohol use merely made people want and use alcohol more than they would have if it had not been forbidden. | 2 | train_517 | Each of the following, if true, weakens the argument EXCEPT: |
[
"the presence of the desert animals in the glade do not serve as evidence against the claim of the developer.",
"most of these desert animals in the glade would have perished if the glade had not been created in that location.",
"the shade from all the plants in the glade measurably reduces the ambient temperature within the glade.",
"enclosing the fruit -- bearing plants in wire cages to prevent consumption by desert animals would allow for fruit sales to cover the cost of the glade's development."
] | Forty miles to the west of Tucson, a developer attempted to develop an "oasis" glade in the Sonoran Desert. He created a glade that, the developer claims, is as lush and plant-filled as the ambient 35 degree C temperatures allow. In particular, the developer planted several native fruit-bearing plants, such as prickly-pear cactus. Once the glade was established, a number of desert birds and mammals would regularly inhabit the glade, often eating most of the fruit that falls from the plants. | 0 | train_518 | The considerations given best serve as part of an argument that: |
[
"Dinosaurs were susceptible to fatal respiratory problems caused by contamination of the air by asteroid debris.",
"A cloud of debris capable of diminishing sunlight by 20 percent would have cooled the earth's surface by 7 to 10 degrees Celsius.",
"Loss of the herbivorous dinosaurs would have deprived the carnivorous dinosaurs of their food source.",
"Dinosaurs inhabited most landmasses on the planet but were not especially abundant in the area of the asteroid strike."
] | Some scientists believe that 65 million years ago an asteroid struck what is now the Yucatan Peninsula, thereby causing extinction of the dinosaurs. These scientists have established that such a strike could have hurled enough debris into the atmosphere to block sunlight and cool the atmosphere. Without adequate sunlight, food sources for herbivorous dinosaurs would have disappeared, and no dinosaurs could have survived a prolonged period of low temperatures. These same scientists, however, have also established that most debris launched by the asteroid would have settled to the ground within six months, too soon for the plants to disappear or the dinosaurs to freeze. | 0 | train_519 | Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy between the scientists' beliefs and the scientists' results, as described above? |
[
"Recent evidence strongly suggests that there are other senses besides sight, touch, smell, hearing, and taste.",
"Synesthesiacs can be temporarily rid of their synesthetic experiences by the use of drugs.",
"The particular ways in which sensory experiences overlap in synesthesiacs follow a definite pattern.",
"Synesthesiacs demonstrate a general, systematic impairment in their ability to use and understand words."
] | The five senses have traditionally been viewed as distinct yet complementary. Each sense is thought to have its own range of stimuli that are incapable of stimulating the other senses. However, recent research has discovered that some people taste a banana and claim that they are tasting blue, or see a color and say that it has a specific smell. This shows that such people, called synesthesiacs, have senses that do not respect the usual boundaries between the five recognized senses. | 3 | train_520 | Which one of the following statements, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
[
"The multiple-use philosophy takes into account some nonfinancial needs of the public.",
"Natural resources should be used in combinations that will most greatly benefit present and future generations.",
"The present and future needs of the public would best be met by designating greater numbers of wilderness areas.",
"Designating a wilderness area prevents any exploitation of natural resources in that area."
] | "Multiple use" refers to the utilization of natural resources in combinations that will best meet the present and future needs of the public. Designating land as a wilderness area does not necessarily violate the multiple-use philosophy, for even when such use does not provide the greatest dollar return, it can provide the greatest overall benefit from that site. | 0 | train_521 | Which one of the following is an assumption required by the argument? |
[
"Severe back pain and other problems often cause individuals to miss workdays.",
"Chiropractic treatment is more effective in treating severe back problems when utilized over a long period of time, as opposed to sporadically.",
"Individuals who receive chiropractic or other treatment prior to developing severe back problems are not less likely to develop back pain than those who do not.",
"Any person who receives chiropractic treatment for back pain may also benefit from other forms of treatment."
] | The Ergonomic Society conducted a study that indicated that many people develop severe back problems during adulthood, and that virtually all such people who received chiropractic treatment showed great improvement. Ttherefore, in order to minimize the proportion of the population that suffers from back pain, the Ergonomic Society recommended that chiropractic treatment be directed toward those adults who suffer from severe back problems. | 2 | train_522 | Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends? |
[
"One may choose for oneself the people with whom one will associate, if doing so could make it easier to live an enjoyable life.",
"No one should be denied the freedom to make lifestyle choices that accord with his or her personal beliefs.",
"If having a given freedom could make it less difficult for someone to live an enjoyable life, then no one should be denied that freedom.",
"No one whose enjoyment of life depends, at least in part, on friends and associates who share many of the same personal beliefs should be deliberately prevented from having such friends and associates."
] | Essayist: It is much less difficult to live an enjoyable life if one is able to make lifestyle choices that accord with one' s personal beliefs and then see those choices accepted by others. It is possible for people to find this kind of acceptance by choosing friends and associates who share many of their personal beliefs. Thus, no one should be denied the freedom to choose the people with whom he or she will associate. | 2 | train_523 | Which one of the following principles, if valid, most helps to justify the essayist's argument? |
[
"arguing that leniency is not a trait of individuals but that, rather, it is a property of certain kinds of decisions",
"charging that the politician exaggerated the severity of a problem in order to justify a sweeping solution",
"claiming that the politician's evidence, properly analyzed, has no bearing on the conclusion the politician derives from it",
"arguing that an analysis of the consequences of certain legislation undermines the politician's conclusion"
] | Politician: The mandatory jail sentences that became law two years ago for certain crimes have enhanced the integrity of our system of justice, for no longer are there two kinds of justice, the kind dispensed by lenient judges and the kind dispensed by severe ones. Public advocate: But with judges stripped of discretionary powers, there can be no leniency even where it would be appropriate. So juries now sometimes acquit a given defendant solely because the jurors feel that the mandatory sentence would be too harsh. Those juries, then, do not return an accurate verdict on the defendant' s guilt. This is why it is imperative that the legislation instituting mandatory jail sentences be repealed. | 3 | train_524 | The public advocate responds to the politician's argument by doing which one of the following? |
[
"Because taking this drug does not cure the disease for which it is prescribed, but only reduces the disease's most harmful effects, doctors should not continue to prescribe this drug.",
"We will never fully understand what causes people to engage in criminal activity. Ttherefore, we should investigate other ways to improve society's ability to combat crime.",
"Although less effective in preventing theft than security guards, burglar alarm systems are more affordable to maintain. Because the greater loss from theft when alarms are used is outweighed by their lower cost, companies are advised always to use burglar alarm systems.",
"Swamps play an important role in allaying the harsh effects of floods because they absorb a great deal of water. Although dams prevent many floods, they worsen the effects of the greatest floods by drying up swamps. Thus dams should not be built."
] | Policy analyst: Increasing the size of a police force is only a stopgap method of crime prevention; it does not get at the root causes of crime. Ttherefore, city officials should not respond to rising crime rates by increasing the size of their city' s police force. | 0 | train_525 | The flawed reasoning in which one of the following arguments most closely resembles the flawed reasoning in the policy analyst's argument? |
[
"Because of strict laws governing industrial development, environmental conditions in Thomasville are unlikely to become harsher for trees than they have been during the last 20 years.",
"A number of trees from one of the species widespread in Thomasville 20 years ago reached the end of their natural life span in the intervening period.",
"Thomasville has reliable records to show which trees in existence 20 years ago were cut down to permit new construction downtown.",
"A city with a high proportion of any one species of trees can have its tree population devastated by one outbreak of a disease."
] | In preparation for a large-scale tree-planting project, Thomasville has recorded the location, species, and condition of every tree in its downtown area. The results will be compared with results of the last such tree census, taken 20 years ago. Planting trees primarily from the species that turns out to have the best record of survival will assure downtown Thomasville of an abundant tree population 20 years from now. | 3 | train_526 | Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the claim that the tree-planting proposal will assure an abundant tree population? |
[
"Most people deterred from eating \"imitation butter\" because of its name choose alternatives with a lower butterfat content than this product has.",
"Some individuals who need to reduce their intake of cholesterol are not deterred from using the reduced-butterfat product by the negative connotations of the term \"imitation. \"",
"The manufacturers who wish to call their product \"lite butter\" plan to change the composition of the product so that it contains more water than it now does.",
"The manufacturers who prefer to use the word \"lite\" instead of \"imitation\" are motivated principally by the financial interest of their stockholders."
] | When butterfat was considered nutritious and healthful, a law was enacted requiring that manufacturers use the term "imitation butter" to indicate butter whose butterfat content had been diminished through the addition of water. Today, it is known that the high cholesterol content of butterfat makes it harmful to human health. Since the public should be encouraged to eat foods with lower rather than higher butterfat content and since the term "imitation" with its connotations of falsity deters many people from purchasing products so designated, manufacturers who wish to give reduced-butterfat butter the more appealing name of "lite butter" should be allowed to do so. | 0 | train_527 | Which one of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the argument? |
[
"Although the increase in the percentage of fantasy books sold has been substantial, publishers estimate that sales could increase even further.",
"Publishers often select a manuscript on the basis of whether they think that the published book will receive favorable reviews by book reviewers.",
"Few readers of fantasy fiction read book reviews, and even fewer select books to purchase on the basis of those reviews.",
"Many of the book reviews of new fantasy- fiction novels also mention great fantasy novels of the past."
] | Although tales of wonder and the fantastic are integral to all world literatures, only recently has the fantasy genre had a commercial resurgence in North America. During the last 20 years, sales of fantasy-fiction books written for adults have gone from 1 to 10 percent of total adult-fiction sales. At the same time, the number of favorable reviews of fantasy books has increased markedly. Some booksellers say that the increased sales of fantasy books written for adults can be traced to the increased favorable attention given the genre by book reviewers. | 2 | train_528 | Which one of the following, if true, undermines the booksellers' explanation of the growth in sales of fantasy-fiction books for adults? |
[
"uses generalizations about a class to draw conclusions about an individual entity in that class",
"uses a fact to support a conclusion when that fact's relevance has yet to be determined",
"in fact, grants a concession that is fatal to the argument's conclusion",
"supports its conclusion by using two conflicting claims"
] | Air pollution from a rural factory may have caused increased levels of carbon dioxide in the air, but the argument that the increased level of carbon dioxide is harming the local livestock is clearly without merit; the amount of carbon dioxide near the factory is, in fact, less than that found in cities like Los Angeles every day. | 1 | train_529 | The argument is vulnerable to criticism because it |
[
"In 1970 fewer new species emerged than went extinct.",
"The regions of the world where new species tend to emerge at the highest rate are also where species tend to go extinct at the highest rate.",
"Scientists are now better able to identify species facing serious risk of extinction than they were in 1970.",
"The vast majority of the species that have ever existed are now extinct."
] | Columnist: Contrary to what many people believe, the number of species on Earth is probably not dwindling. Extinction is a natural process, and about as many species are likely to go extinct this year as went extinct in 1970. But the emergence of new species is also a natural process; there is no reason to doubt that new species are emerging at about the same rate as they have been for the last several centuries. | 0 | train_530 | Which one of the following, if true, most weakens the columnist's argument? |
[
"If the Rienzi was not sunk by sabotage, water flooded into it unusually fast.",
"The Rienzi was so strongly constructed as to resist imploding under deep-sea pressure.",
"If the Rienzi had sunk more slowly, it would have imploded.",
"If the Rienzi became fully flooded, it did so only after it reached the ocean floor."
] | The Rienzi, a passenger ship, sank as a result of a hole in its hull, possibly caused by sabotage. Normally, when a holed ship sinks as rapidly as the Rienzi did, water does not enter the ship quickly enough for the ship to be fully flooded when it reaches the ocean floor. Full flooding can be achieved, however, by sabotage. Any ship that sinks deep into the ocean when not fully flooded will implode. Deep-sea photographs, taken of the sunken Rienzi where it rests on the ocean floor, reveal that the Rienzi did not implode. | 0 | train_531 | Which one of the following must be true on the basis of the information above? |
[
"Bell's workers will not accept a package of improved benefits in place of their desired wage increase.",
"The workers at Bell Manufacturing will not be going on strike.",
"Bell's management will refuse to increase its workers' wages.",
"Bell Manufacturing will begin to suffer increased losses."
] | The workers at Bell Manufacturing will shortly go on strike unless the management increases their wages. As Bell' s president is well aware, however, in order to increase the workers' wages, Bell would have to sell off some of its subsidiaries. So, some of Bell' s subsidiaries will be sold. | 1 | train_532 | The conclusion above is properly drawn if which one of the following is assumed? |
[
"Manufacturers have significantly increased their budgets for advertisements touting the fuel efficiency of hybrid cars.",
"Hybrid vehicles have a reputation for having less power than comparable non-hybrid vehicles.",
"Most people buy hybrid cars for reasons other than to save money in the long run.",
"Gasoline prices are projected to fall over the next few years."
] | Congress has passed a law that scales back the tax credits offered to purchasers of hybrid cars. Because of this, the number of hybrid cars sold each year, which has approximately doubled in each of the last five years, is likely to flatten in the next few years. | 2 | train_533 | Which of the following statements, if true, most weakens the conclusion that the number of hybrid cars sold annually is likely to flatten in the next few years? |
[
"The whole-language method invariably succeeds in teaching awareness of how spoken language can be broken into component sounds.",
"Some children who are taught by the whole-language method are not prevented from learning how sounds are represented by means of letters.",
"The whole-language method succeeds in teaching many children how to represent sounds symbolically by means of letters.",
"When the whole-language method succeeds in teaching someone how to represent sounds by means of letters, that person acquires the ability to read an alphabetic language."
] | Psychologist: Phonemic awareness, or the knowledge that spoken language can be broken into component sounds, is essential for learning to read an alphabetic language. But one also needs to learn how sounds are symbolically represented by means of letters; otherwise, phonemic awareness will not translate into the ability to read an alphabetic language. Yet many children who are taught by the whole-language method, which emphasizes the ways words sound, learn to read alphabetic languages. | 1 | train_534 | Which one of the following can be properly inferred from the psychologist's statements? |
[
"The rate at which interest earned on money deposited in regular savings accounts is taxed depends on the income bracket of the account holder.",
"Many Levaskans who already had long-term savings have steadily been transferring those savings into the special accounts.",
"Many of the economists who now claim that the government's plan has been successful criticized it when it was introduced.",
"A substantial number of Levaskans have withdrawn at least some of the money they had invested in the special accounts."
] | Five years ago, as part of a plan to encourage citizens of Levaska to increase the amount of money they put into savings, Levaska' s government introduced special savings accounts in which up to $3, 000 a year can be saved with no tax due on the interest unless money is withdrawn before the account holder reaches the age of sixty-five. Millions of dollars have accumulated in the special accounts, so the government' s plan is obviously working. | 1 | train_535 | Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
[
"Selection and genetic manipulation allow plants of virtually any species to be economically bred to have a distinctive shade of color without altering their other characteristics.",
"There is a considerable degree of variation in shade of color between weeds of different species.",
"Farm laborers who are responsible for the manual weeding of crops carry out other agricultural duties at times in the growing season when extensive weeding is not necessary.",
"When crops are weeded manually, overall size and leaf shape are taken into account in distinguishing crop plants from weeds."
] | A company plans to develop a prototype weeding machine that uses cutting blades with optical sensors and microprocessors that distinguish weeds from crop plants by differences in shade of color. The inventor of the machine claims that it will reduce labor costs by virtually eliminating the need for manual weeding. | 0 | train_536 | Which of the following is a consideration in favor of the company's implementing its plan to develop the prototype? |
[
"overlooks the possibility that authors of etiquette books are purporting to state what is correct behavior for one particular culture only",
"reaches a conclusion about how people actually behave on the basis of assertions regarding how they ought to behave",
"fails to justify its presumption regarding the influence of rules of etiquette on individual behavior",
"bases a generalization about all books of etiquette on the actions of a few authors"
] | Numerous books describe the rules of etiquette. Usually the authors of such books merely codify standards of behavior by classifying various behaviors as polite or rude. However, this suggests that there is a single, objective standard of politeness. Clearly, standards of politeness vary from culture to culture, so it is absurd to label any one set of behaviors as correct and others as incorrect. | 0 | train_537 | The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
[
"Reliability is a measure of how long a product functions without needing repair.",
"Damage to room air conditioners during shipping and installation does not occur with great frequency in the United States or in Japan.",
"Production facilities of firms designated as United States manufacturers are not all located in the United States.",
"Japanese manufacturers often use more reliable components in their room air conditioners than do United States manufacturers."
] | I. Room air conditioners produced by Japanese manufacturers tend to be more reliable than those produced by United States manufacturers. II. The average lifetime of room air conditioners produced by United States manufacturers is about fifteen years, the same as that of room air conditioners produced by Japanese manufacturers. | 0 | train_538 | Which one of the following, if true, would best reconcile the two statements above? |
[
"The proposed change will encourage more patent applications to be filed.",
"The current rules for patent applications facilitate progress in scientific research by rewarding the communication of discoveries.",
"Most researchers oppose the proposed change to the patent system.",
"Delays in the communication of discoveries will have a chilling effect on scientific research."
] | The proposed change to the patent system is bound to have a chilling effect on scientific research. Under current rules, researchers have one full year after the initial publication of a new discovery to patent the discovery. This allows research results to be shared widely prior to the patent application. The proposed change would have the application precede initial publication, which would delay the communication of discoveries. | 3 | train_539 | The conclusion drawn above follows logically if which one of the following is assumed? |
[
"When Maxilux awarded the tire contract to Rubco, the only criterion on which Rubco's bid was clearly ahead of its competitors' bids was price.",
"In any Maxilux model, the spare tire is exactly the same make and model as the tires that are mounted on the wheels.",
"The production facilities for the Max 100 and those for the tires to be supplied by Rubco are located very near each other.",
"When people who have purchased a carefully designed luxury automobile need to replace a worn part of it, they almost invariably replace it with a part of exactly the same make and type."
] | The Maxilux car company' s design for its new luxury model, the Max 100, included a special design for the tires that was intended to complement the model' s image. The winning bid for supplying these tires was submitted by Rubco. Analysts concluded that the bid would only just cover Rubco' s costs on the tires, but Rubco executives claim that winning the bid will actually make a profit for the company. | 3 | train_540 | Which of the following, if true, most strongly justifies the claim made by Rubco's executives? |
[
"If a certain activity ought to be prohibited, so should any other activity that interferes with the enforcement of that prohibition.",
"If a commercial form of a certain activity ought to be prohibited, then so should all noncommercial forms of that activity.",
"The fishing industry has a right to hunt members of species that are not endangered.",
"All actions that are instrumental in achieving ends that are permissible are themselves permissible."
] | Antiwhaling activist: Not all species of whales are threatened with extinction. Nevertheless, given the highly mechanized technology used in whaling, a ban on the whaling of endangered species cannot be enforced without banning the whaling of all other species. Hence, since hunting endangered whale species should be banned, all whale-hunting should be banned. | 0 | train_541 | Which one of the following principles, if established, would do the most to justify the conclusion drawn by the antiwhaling activist? |
[
"The royal arms hotel is the only hotel in Springfield.",
"The Royal Arms hotel is the largest hotel in Springfield",
"There is only one hotel in Harristown that is larger than the Royal Arms Hotel.",
"More tourists stay in hotels in Harristown than stay in the Royal Arms Hotel."
] | According to promotional material published by the city of Springfield, more tourists stay in hotels in Springfield than stay in the neighboring city of Harristown. A brochure from the largest hotel in Harristown claims that more tourists stay in that hotel than stay in the Royal Arms Hotel in Springfield. If both of these sources are accurate, however, the "Report on Tourism" for the region must be in error in stating that __. | 0 | train_542 | which of the following most logically completes the argument below? |
[
"Government agents had to issue fines totaling over $27 million to 650 violators of the river dumping regulations.",
"Much of the money that was designated last year for estuary preservation has been spent on research and not enforcement.",
"Factory owner opposition to the government's anti-pollution efforts grew more violent last year in response to the increased enforcement.",
"The largest known polluter on the Ukuluku river relocated to another part of Tritonia, closer to the airport, so as to decrease its shipping costs."
] | Data froma recent biodiversity study of the Ukuluku river estuary in Tritonia showed that last year the pollution rate of this environmentally sensitive region was significantly lower than in previous years. The Tritonian government, which spent millions of dollars last year to enforce laws against dumping waste into the river, is claiming that the study data indicate that its increased efforts to halt the pollution are proving effective. | 3 | train_543 | Which one of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the government's claim? |
[
"concluding that a claim is false on the grounds that insufficient evidence has been offered to support it",
"appealing to evidence that tends to undermine rather than support the argument's conclusion",
"appealing to evidence that presupposes the truth of the argument's conclusion",
"inferring solely from an effect produced by an action that a purpose of the action is to produce that effect"
] | Meerkat "sentinels, " so-called because they watch for predators while other meerkat group members forage, almost never fall victim to those predators, yet the foragers often do. This advantage accruing to the sentinel does not mean that its watchful behavior is entirely self-interested. On the contrary, the sentinel' s behavior is an example of animal behavior motivated at least in part by altruism. The loud bark emitted by the sentinel as it dashes for the cover of the nearest hole alerts other group members to the presence of danger. | 3 | train_544 | Which one of the following is a questionable reasoning technique employed in the argument? |
[
"Some people think nationalism is defensible. Hasn't nationalism been the excuse for committing abominable crimes?",
"Some people think workaholics are compensating for a lack of interpersonal skills. However, aren't most doctors workaholics?",
"Some people think that economists can control inflation. Can meteorologists make the sun shine?",
"Some people think appropriating supplies at work for their own personal use is morally wrong. Isn't shoplifting morally wrong?"
] | Does watching someone else eat fill one' s own stomach? In which one of the following does the reasoning most closely parallel that employed in the passage? | 2 | train_545 | Some people believe that witnessing violence in movies will discharge aggressive energy. |
[
"the best drivers use the same navigational principles that fish use in schools",
"a self-driving robotic car using the navigational principles that fish use in schools would be better than a human-driven car at avoiding crashes and congestion",
"studying the principles fish use to navigate in schools could help engineers to design a self-driving robotic car that avoids common traffic problems",
"constructing a self-driving robotic car requires expertise in fish biology"
] | In constructing a self-driving robotic car, engineers face the challenge of designing a car that avoids common traffic problems like crashes and congestion. These problems can also affect fish traveling together in schools. However, the principles fish use to navigate in schools ensure that these problems are much less common within schools of fish than among cars on the road. Hence, __. | 2 | train_546 | Which one of the following most logically completes the argument? |
[
"Similarly, we could conclude that Karen's family would have more living space if they moved from an apartment to a single-family home. After all, single-family homes are typically larger than apartments.",
"Similarly, we could conclude that most of Ward's farm is planted with corn. After all, in Ward's county most of the fields that used to be planted with other crops are now planted with corn.",
"Similarly, we could conclude that most of this city's air pollution would be eliminated if this city built a public transportation system. After all, public transportation produces much less pollution per passenger, and all automobile trips could be replaced by trips on public transportation.",
"Similarly, we could conclude that Javier could consume fewer calories by eating for breakfast, lunch, and dinner only a portion of what he now eats, and eating the remainder as snacks. After all, breakfast, lunch, and dinner together account for most of the calories Javier consumes."
] | Branson: Most of the air pollution in this country comes from our largest cities. These cities would pollute less if they were less populated. So if many people in these cities were to move to rural areas, air pollution in the country as a whole would be reduced. | 3 | train_547 | Which one of the following demonstrates most effectively by parallel reasoning that Branson's argument is flawed? |
[
"Acme would be able to avoid bankruptcy if it did not have to repay the bank loan",
"Acme has other debts besides the bank loan",
"last year is not the only year for which Acme overstated earnings",
"Acme's earnings for last year, when accurately stated, are below $1 million"
] | Acme' s bank loan must be immediately repaid in full if Acme' s earnings fall below $1 million per year. If Acme has to repay the entire loan immediately, it will have to declare bankruptcy. Acme had seemed safe from bankruptcy, having reported annual earnings of well over $1 million in each year it has had the bank loan. However, Acme has now admitted overstating its earnings for last year, so it will have to declare bankruptcy. | 3 | train_548 | The argument requires the assumption that |
[
"Production work on Thieves began before production work on The B/g Heist was started",
"The director of Thieves worked with the director of The Big Heist on several earlier projects",
"Before Thieves began production, its script had been circulating for several years among various film studios, including the studio that produced The Big Heist.",
"The characters and plot twists that are most similar in the two films have close parallels in many earlier films of the same genre."
] | Film Director: It is true that certain characters and plot twists in my newly released film The Big Heist are similar to characters and plot twists in Thieves, a movie that came out last year. Pointing to these similarities, the film studio that produced Thieves is now accusing me of taking ideas from that film. The accusation is clearly without merit. All production work on The Big Heist was actually completed months before Thieves was released. | 3 | train_549 | Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest support for the directors position? |
[
"It is not possible to major in both biology and French literature.",
"There are more biology majors than there are French-literature majors.",
"French Literature 205 is a required course for French-literature majors.",
"Only biology majors are allowed to take Biology 218."
] | At Tromen University this semester, some students taking French Literature 205 are also taking Biology 218. Every student taking Biology 218 at Tromen is a biology major. Ttherefore, some of the students taking French Literature 205 are not French-literature majors. | 0 | train_550 | The conclusion drawn above follows logically if which one of the following is assumed to be true at Tromen University? |
[
"The amino-acid decomposition that enables eggshells to be used in dating does not take place in other organic matter found at ancient archaeological sites.",
"The oldest archaeological sites are not in southern Africa, but rather in cooler regions of the world.",
"If the site being dated has been subject to large unsuspected climatic fluctuations during the time the eggshell has been at the site, application of the technique is less likely to yield accurate results.",
"After 200, 000 years in a cool climate, less than one-fifth of the amino acids in a fragment of eggshell that would provide material for dating with the technique will have decomposed and will thus no longer be suitable for examination by the technique."
] | Measurements of the extent of amino-acid decomposition in fragments of eggshell found at archaeological sites in such places as southern Africa can be used to obtain accurate dates for sites up to 200, 000 years old. Because the decomposition is slower in cool climates, the technique can be used to obtain accurate dates for sites almost a million years old in cooler regions. | 2 | train_551 | The information above provides the most support for which one of the following conclusions? |
[
"Heating raw milk in a microwave oven to a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius destroys nearly all of the lysozyme initially present in that milk.",
"A liquid exposed to a conventional heat source of exactly 50 degrees Celsius will reach that temperature more slowly than it would if it were exposed to a conventional heat source hotter than 50 degrees Celsius.",
"Heating any liquid by microwave creates small zones within it that are much hotter than the overall temperature that the liquid will ultimately reach.",
"Enzymes in raw milk that are destroyed through excessive heating can be replaced by adding enzymes that have been extracted from other sources."
] | A cup of raw milk, after being heated in a microwave oven to 50 degrees Celsius, contains half its initial concentration of a particular enzyme, lysozyme. If, however, the milk reaches that temperature through exposure to a conventional heat source of 50 degrees Celsius, it will contain nearly all of its initial concentration of the enzyme. Ttherefore, what destroys the enzyme is not heat but microwaves, which generate heat. | 2 | train_552 | Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument? |
[
"A manager should take foreseeable problems into account when making decisions.",
"A manager should be held responsible for mistakes made by those whom the manager directly supervises.",
"A manager, and only a manager, should be held responsible for a project's failure.",
"A manager should be able to depend on contractors to do their jobs promptly."
] | Arbitrator: The shipping manager admits that he decided to close the old facility on October 14 and to schedule the new facility' s opening for October 17, the following Monday. But he also claims that he is not responsible for the business that was lost due to the new facility' s failing to open as scheduled. He blames the contractor for not finishing on time, but he too, is to blame, for he was aware of the contractor' s typical delays and should have planned for this contingency. | 0 | train_553 | Which one of the following principles underlies the arbitrator's argument? |
[
"The number of amateur musicians who play popular music has decreased.",
"Many professional musicians play in more than one band.",
"The number of professional musicians in some bands has increased.",
"The total number of professional bands has increased as a result of electrification."
] | Beginning in the 1950s, popular music was revolutionized by the electrification of musical instruments, which has enabled musicians to play with increased volume. Because individual musicians can play with increased volume, the average number of musicians per band has decreased. Nevertheless, electrification has increased rather than decreased the overall number of musicians who play popular music professionally. | 3 | train_554 | Which one of the following is most strongly supported by the statements above, if those statements are true? |
[
"In the country as a whole, the average hourly wage for full-time jobs has decreased slightly for each of the last three years.",
"The year before last, the unemployment rate reached a ten-year low; last year, however, the unemployment rate increased slightly.",
"Last year, to reduce costs, employers moved many full-time jobs from regions with relatively high hourly wages to regions where those jobs typically pay much less.",
"Last year, hourly wages for most full-time jobs in the manufacturing sector declined while those for most full-time jobs in the service sector increased."
] | Economist: Although average hourly wages vary considerably between different regions of this country, in each region, the average hourly wage for full-time jobs increased last year. Paradoxically, however, in the country as a whole, the average hourly wage for full-time jobs decreased last year. | 2 | train_555 | Which one of the following, if true of the economist's country, most helps to resolve the apparent paradox in the economist's statements? |
[
"whether the current methods of disposing of sewage sludge by dumping do environmental damage",
"whether the burning of oil from sewage sludge would, in contrast to nuclear power production, produce gases that would have a harmful warming effect on climate worldwide",
"whether the processes that are used to turn sewage into clean water and sewage sludge have been improved in recent decades",
"whether the cost of producing and using oil from sewage sludge would be economically sustainable"
] | Activist: Accidents at the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl nuclear plants have shown the dangers of nuclear power. It was earlier argued that nuclear power was necessary because fossil fuels will eventually run out. Recently, however, a technology has been developed for deriving from sewage sludge an oil that can be used to generate power. This new technology, ttherefore, together with the possibility of using alternative sources of energy like solar, wind, and hydroelectric power, raises the hope that we can dispense altogether with nuclear power and that we can meet our energy needs in a way that better protects the environment from harm than we do at present. | 2 | train_556 | Which one of the following considerations is LEAST relevant in evaluating the degree of practicability of the hope expressed by the activist above? |
[
"employing an analogy to characterize interrelationships",
"demonstrating that cooperation is feasible by citing an instance",
"attributing without justification fraudulent intent to people",
"showing that shifting costs onto the patient contradicts the premise of health-care reimbursement"
] | Coherent solutions for the problem of reducing health-care costs cannot be found within the current piecemeal system of paying these costs. The reason is that this system gives health-care providers and insurers every incentive to shift, wherever possible, the costs of treating illness onto each other or any other party, including the patient. That clearly is the lesson of the various reforms of the 1980s: push in on one part of this pliable spending balloon and an equally expensive bulge pops up elsewhere. For example, when the government health-care insurance program for the poor cut costs by disallowing payments for some visits to physicians, patients with advanced illness later presented themselves at hospital emergency rooms in increased numbers. | 0 | train_557 | The argument proceeds by |
[
"Because of the vast amount of medical knowledge one needs in order to become a successful specialist and because few people have the motivation required to obtain such knowledge, most people are unlikely to become successful specialists.",
"Those who excel at one sport are unlikely to excel at another, because it is rare for someone who has the specialized talents necessary for success in one sport to also have the different specialized talents necessary for success in a different sport.",
"Engineers can never design an automobile that both meets high standards for comfort and safety and uses fuel efficiently, because high levels of comfort and safety generally require that a car be heavy, while efficient use of fuel usually requires that a car be light.",
"Good painters cannot become good scholars of painting. Painters are inevitably biased toward their own style of painting and, accordingly, cannot be objective scholars."
] | Fine short story writers are unlikely to become great novelists. Short story writers must master the ability to interweave the many small details that together allow mundane incidents to illuminate important truths. Because the novel drowns in such detail, novelists must focus on larger matters. Only a few writers possess both the ability to weave together many small details and the ability to focus on larger matters. | 1 | train_558 | The reasoning in which one of the following is most similar to the reasoning above? |
[
"Some people who know Drew well have sent Drew cards along with flowers.",
"Some people send flowers for a reason other than the desire to please.",
"Most people send roses when they send flowers.",
"Someone who does not know Drew well would be unlikely to send Drew flowers."
] | If the flowers Drew received today had been sent by someone who knows Drew well, that person would have known that Drew prefers violets to roses. Yet Drew received roses. On the other hand, if the flowers had been sent by someone who does not know Drew well, then that person would have sent a signed card with the flowers. Yet Drew received no card. Ttherefore, the florist must have made some sort of mistake: either Drew was supposed to receive violets, or a card, or these flowers were intended for someone else. | 1 | train_559 | Which one of the following statements, if true, most weakens the argument? |
[
"It is a claim that the argument derives from another claim and that it uses to support its conclusion.",
"It is a claim that, according to the argument, is to be understood in a manner specified by the conclusion.",
"It is a generalization, one sort of objection to which the argument illustrates by giving an example.",
"It is a generalization that the argument uses to justify the relevance of the specific example it cites."
] | Even those who believe that the art of each age and culture has its own standards of beauty must admit that some painters are simply superior to others in the execution of their artistic visions. But this superiority must be measured in light of the artist' s purposes, since the high merits, for example, of Jose Rey Toledo' s work and his extraordinary artistic skills are not in doubt, despite the fact that his paintings do not literally resemble what they represent. | 1 | train_560 | The claim that some painters are superior to others in the execution of their artistic visions plays which one of the following roles in the argument? |
[
"Paul agreed to lend Tom $10. But Paul also owes Maria $10. So it is unacceptable for Paul to fulfill his promise to lend Tom $10 while he still owes Maria money.",
"Felicia agreed to tutor Alan in mathematics on Tuesday. However, on his way to the tutorial session, Alan was injured in a car accident and was unable to attend that day. Thus, it was acceptable for Felicia not to tutor Alan in mathematics on Tuesday.",
"Quinn agreed to water Laura's plants while Laura was out of town. But Laura had forgotten to give Quinn the keys to her place. However, it was unacceptable for Quinn to fail to fulfill his promise to Laura, since Laura did not excuse Quinn from his obligation to water her plants.",
"Ian agreed to pick up Ali at the train station. But Ian decided to stop and return his overdue library books first. As a result, Ian was unable to pick up Ali at the train station. Thus, it was acceptable for Ian to fail to pick up Ali at the train station."
] | A promise is defined as any agreement that yields an obligation. It is acceptable not to keep one' s promise if either the person to whom the promise is made tells the promisor not to keep it, or the promisor is unable to fulfill the obligation due to circumstances beyond the promisor' s control. | 1 | train_561 | Which one of the following is an application of the principle above pertaining to promising? |
[
"Science, employing statistics and the laws of probability, is concerned not with the single event but with mass behavior.",
"In accepting a mathematical description of nature, science has become far more accurate at identifying underlying forces.",
"The aim of science is to define the manifold of nature within the terms of a single harmonious theory.",
"When the events a theory postulates are detected, the theory is accepted even without an explanation of how those events are brought about."
] | Early in this century Alfred Wegener developed the concept of continental drift. His ideas were rejected vehemently because he postulated no identifiable force strong enough to make the continents move. We have come to accept Wegener' s theory, not because we have pinpointed such a force, but because new instruments have finally allowed continental movement to be confirmed by observation. | 3 | train_562 | The passage best illustrates which one of the following statements about science? |
[
"The argument proceeds by stating a general fact, offering specific anecdotes, and then drawing a conclusion.",
"The argument proceeds by stating several facts that serve as the basis for the conclusion at the end of the argument.",
"The argument proceeds by first stating a conclusion and then offering several premises to justify that conclusion.",
"The argument proceeds by stating several facts, offering a universal rule, and then drawing a conclusion by applying the facts to the rule."
] | Dwight works at a mid-sized regional tech company. He approaches all tasks with unmatched enthusiasm and leads the company in annual sales. The top salesman is always the best employee. Ttherefore, Dwight is the best employee. | 3 | train_563 | Which of the following most accurately describes how the argument proceeds? |
[
"It attempts to support its conclusion by citing a generalization that is too broad.",
"It overlooks the possibility that some programs do not require a peripheral component such as a mouse.",
"It introduces information unrelated to its conclusion as evidence in support of that conclusion.",
"It treats an event that can cause a certain result as though that event is necessary to bring about that result."
] | Unplugging a peripheral component such as a "mouse" from a personal computer renders all of the software programs that require that component unusable on that computer. On Fred' s personal computer, a software program that requires a mouse has become unusable. So it must be that the mouse for Fred' s computer became unplugged. | 3 | train_564 | The argument is most vulnerable to which one of the following criticisms? |
[
"As the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes rises, the pretax price also rises.",
"The pretax price of a pack of cigarettes gradually decreased throughout the year before and the year after the tax increase.",
"During the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes did not increase by as much as it had during the year prior to the tax increase.",
"For the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes was not eight or more cents lower than it had been the previous year."
] | In the years following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a pack of cigarettes, sales of cigarettes fell ten percent. In contrast, in the year prior to the tax increase, sales had fallen one percent. The volume of cigarette sales is ttherefore strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes. | 3 | train_565 | The argument above requires which of the following assumptions? |
[
"Leon will go to the picnic only if Vera also goes. However, according to his friends Leon does not plan to go to the picnic: so it is certain that Vera is not planning to go.",
"Therese will work in the yard tomorrow only if Maria helps her and it is not raining. Although Maria does not like working in the yard, she will help Therese. So unless it rains tomorrow, Therese will certainly work in the yard.",
"Jim will go to the party only if both Sam and Elaine also go. Sam is going to the party, but Elaine is not going. So it is certain that Jim will not go to the party.",
"If Paula works with Elise, then Jane will work with Arthur only. However, if Paula does not work, Elise will also work with Jane. So if Paula does not work, Arthur will work with both Jane and Elise."
] | Alice will volunteer to work on the hospital fundraising drive only if her brother Bruce also volunteers and a majority of the others working on the drive promise to select Bruce to manage the drive. However, although Bruce is willing to volunteer, none of the others working on the drive will promise to select Bruce to manage the drive. Thus it is certain that Alice will not volunteer. | 2 | train_566 | In which one of the following arguments is the pattern of reasoning most similar to the pattern of reasoning in the argument above? |
[
"Other government programs are no more effective in reducing unemployment than is the job-creation program.",
"The unemployment rate is higher now than at any time before the inception of the job-creation program.",
"If the job-creation program had been run more efficiently, it could have better served its purpose.",
"The unemployment rate would not have risen even more than it has if the job- creation program had not been in existence."
] | Legislator: We should not waste any more of the taxpayers' money on the government' s job-creation program. The unemployment rate in this country has actually risen since the program was begun, so the program has clearly been a failure. | 3 | train_567 | Which of the following is an assumption on which the legislator's argument depends? |
[
"The rate and quality of learning, with learning understood as the acquiring of the ability to solve problems within a given curriculum area, depend on the quantity of teaching an individual student receives in any given curriculum.",
"All students should have identical exposure to learn the material being taught in any given curriculum.",
"Unequal treatment, in a sense, of individual students is required in order to ensure equality with respect to the educational tasks they master.",
"The more experienced the teacher is, the more the students will learn."
] | When individual students are all treated equally in that they have identical exposure to curriculum material, the rate, quality, and quantity of learning will vary from student to student. If all students are to master a given curriculum, some of them need different types of help than others, as any experienced teacher knows. | 2 | train_568 | If the statements above are both true, which one of the following conclusions can be drawn on the basis of them? |
[
"A novel that poetically condenses a major emotional crisis does not have to be indifferent to the important moral questions raised by that crisis.",
"To deserve the level of praise that Colette has received, a novelist's work must concern itself with important moral questions.",
"The vividness of Colette's language was not itself the result of poetic condensation.",
"Critics who suggest that Colette's novels are indifferent to great moral questions of her time greatly underestimate her literary achievements."
] | The French novelist Colette (1873-1954) has been widely praised for the vividness of her language. But many critics complain that her novels are indifferent to important moral questions. This charge is unfair. Each of her novels is a poetic condensation of a major emotional crisis in the life of an ordinary person of her time. Such emotional crises almost invariably raise important moral questions. | 0 | train_569 | Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends? |
[
"Humans are less at risk of contracting Lyme disease in areas where biodiversity is high.",
"The greater the biodiversity of an area, the more likely any given host animal in that area is to pass Lyme disease to ticks.",
"Ticks feed on white-footed mice only when other host species are not available to them.",
"Very few animals that live in areas where there are no white-footed mice are infected with Lyme disease."
] | Humans get Lyme disease from infected ticks. Ticks get infected by feeding on animals with Lyme disease, but the ease of transmission from host animal to tick varies. With most species of host animal, transmission of Lyme disease to ticks is extremely rare, but white-footed mice are an exception, readily passing Lyme disease to ticks. And white-footed mouse populations greatly expand, becoming the main food source for ticks, in areas where biodiversity is in decline. | 0 | train_570 | The information in the passage most strongly supports which of the following? |
[
"infers that a product will be disliked by the public merely from the claim that the product was disliked by critics",
"takes for granted that products with similar content that are in different media will be of roughly equal popularity",
"restates as a conclusion a claim earlier presented as evidence for that conclusion",
"draws a general conclusion on the basis of just one individual case"
] | Some video game makers have sold the movie rights for popular games. However, this move is rarely good from a business perspective. After all, StarQuanta sold the movie rights to its popular game Nostroma, but the poorly made film adaptation of the game was hated by critics and the public alike. Subsequent versions of the Nostroma video game, although better than the original, sold poorly. | 3 | train_571 | The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism in that the argument |
[
"This summer, Florida orange producers will employ a large number of migrant workers, a strategy that will substantially decrease their labor costs.",
"The hot weather is likely to increase the revenues of companies engaged in tourism and recreation that comprise the largest portion of the state economy.",
"Because of the hot and dry weather, the costs of irrigation for Florida orange growers will be nearly 30% higher this summer.",
"The decline in the supply of oranges caused by the unfavorable weather will result in a substantial increase in their market price."
] | Industry Analyst: This summer is expected to be particularly hot and dry in the major orange-growing regions of Florida, the state accounting for the largest share of orange production in the United States. While hot and dry weather usually leads to a substantial drop in the yield of oranges, my projections indicate that the revenues of Florida orange producers will not be substantially affected by these unfavorable conditions. | 3 | train_572 | Which of the following statements, if true, would support the claim of the Industry Analyst? |
[
"The reflective properties of the material of which comets are composed vary considerably from comet to comet.",
"Previous estimates of the mass of Halley's comet which were based on its brightness were too low.",
"The total amount of light reflected from Halley's comet is less than scientists had previously thought.",
"Scientists need more information before they can make a good estimate of the mass of Halley's comet."
] | Comets do not give off their own light but reflect light from other sources, such as the Sun. Scientists estimate the mass of comets by their brightness: the greater a comet' s mass, the more light that comet will reflect. A satellite probe, however, has revealed that the material of which Halley' s comet is composed reflects 60 times less light per unit of mass than had been previously thought. | 1 | train_573 | The statements above, if true, give the most support to which one of the following? |
[
"The first is a conclusion that the argument as a whole seeks to refute; the second is a claim that has been advanced in support of that conclusion.",
"The first is the main conclusion of the argument; the second is an objection that has been raised against that conclusion.",
"The first is the main conclusion of the argument; the second is a prediction made on the basis of that conclusion.",
"The first is a conclusion that the argument as a whole seeks to refute; the second is the main conclusion of the argument."
] | Criminologist: Some legislators advocate mandating a sentence of life in prison for anyone who, having twice served sentences for serious crimes, is subsequently convicted of a third serious crime. These legislators argue that <b> such a policy would reduce crime dramatically </b>, since it would take people with a proven tendency to commit crimes off the streets permanently. What this reasoning overlooks, however, is that people old enough to have served two prison sentences for serious crimes rarely commit more than one subsequent crime. <b> Filling our prisons with such individuals would have exactly the opposite of the desired effect, </b> since it would limit our ability to incarcerate younger criminals, who commit a far greater proportion of serious crimes. | 3 | train_574 | In the argument as a whole, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles? |
[
"The Earth's crust first formed in the area that is now Western Australia.",
"The Earth's crust took no longer than 300 million years to start to form.",
"All naturally occurring microdiamonds were formed at the time the Earth's crust was being formed.",
"The Earth's crust took billions of years to form."
] | Researchers working in Western Australia have discovered the oldest fragments of the Earth' s early crust that have yet been identified: microdiamonds. These microscopic crystals measure only 50 microns across and were formed 4. 2 billion years ago. This discovery sheds light on how long it took for the Earth' s crust to form, since this date is only 300 million years after the formation of the Earth itself. | 1 | train_575 | If the statements above are true, which one of the following must also be true? |
[
"The regional government's standards allow some bacteria in municipal water supplies.",
"Chlorine is the least effective disinfecting agent.",
"Where accessible, deep aquifers are the best choice as a source for a municipal water supply.",
"A municipality's initial decision whether or not to use chlorine is based on the amount of bacterial contamination in the water source."
] | Although water in deep aquifers does not contain disease-causing bacteria, when public water supplies are drawn from deep aquifers, chlorine is often added to the water as a disinfectant because contamination can occur as a result of flaws in pipes or storage tanks. Of 50 municipalities that all pumped water from the same deep aquifer, 30 chlorinated their water and 20 did not. The water in all of the municipalities met the regional government' s standards for cleanliness, yet the water supplied by the 20 municipalities that did not chlorinate had less bacterial contamination than the water supplied by the municipalities that added chlorine. | 0 | train_576 | Which one of the following can properly be concluded from the information given above? |
[
"The first is a prediction that, if accurate, would provide support for the main conclusion of the argument; the second is that main conclusion.",
"The first is a prediction that, if accurate, would provide support for the main conclusion of the argument; the second is a conclusion drawn in order to support that main conclusion.",
"The first is an objection that the argument rejects; the second presents a conclusion that could be drawn if that objection were allowed to stand.",
"The first is an objection that the argument rejects; the second is the main conclusion of the argument."
] | Last year a record number of new manufacturing jobs were created. Will this year bring another record? Well, a new manufacturing job is created either within an existing company or by the start-up of a new company. Within existing firms, new jobs have been created this year at well below last year' s record pace. At the same time, there is considerable evidence that the number of new companies starting up will be no higher this year than it was last year, and surely <b> the new companies starting up this year will create no more jobs per company than did last year' s start-ups </b>. Clearly, it can be concluded that <b> the number of new jobs created this year will fall short of last year' s record </b>. | 0 | train_577 | In the argument given, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles? |
[
"The publisher's share of a magazine's retail price is 50 percent, and the publisher also retains all of the magazine's advertising revenue.",
"In market research surveys, few consumers identify Paper&Print as a book or stationery store but many recognize and value the broad range of magazines it carries.",
"Recently magazine publishers, seeking to increase share in competitive sectors of the market, have been competitively cutting the retail prices of some of the largest circulation magazines.",
"Consumers who subscribe to a magazine generally pay less per issue than they would if they bought the magazine through a retail outlet such as Paper& Print."
] | Paper& Print is a chain of British stores selling magazines, books, and stationery products. In Britain, magazines' retail prices are set by publishers, and the retailer' s share of a magazine' s retail price is 25 percent. Since Paper& Print' s margin on books and stationery products is much higher, the chain' s management plans to devote more of its stores' shelf space to books and stationery products and reduce the number of magazine titles that its stores carry. | 1 | train_578 | Which of the following, if true, most strongly argues that the plan, if put into effect, will not increase Paper& Print's profits? |
[
"Novel X and Novel Y are both semiautobiographical novels, and the two novels contain many very similar themes and situations.",
"It is less likely that one of the authors of Novel X or Novel Y is guilty of plagiarism than that the similarity of themes and situations in the two novels is merely coincidental.",
"The fact that Novel X and Novel Y are both semiautobiographical novels and contain many very similar themes and situations might lead one to suspect plagiarism on the part of one of the authors.",
"If the authors of Novel X and Novel Y are from very similar backgrounds and have led similar lives, suspicions that either of the authors plagiarized are very likely to be unwarranted."
] | Novel X and Novel Y are both semiautobiographical novels and contain many very similar themes and situations, which might lead one to suspect plagiarism on the part of one of the authors. However, it is more likely that the similarity of themes and situations in the two novels is merely coincidental, since both authors are from very similar backgrounds and have led similar lives. | 1 | train_579 | Which one of the following most accurately expresses the conclusion drawn in the argument? |
[
"If there are no sophisticated listeners in the audience, then there will be no inspired musical performances in the concert.",
"If there will be people in the audience who understand their musical roots, then at least one musical performance in the concert will be inspired.",
"If there are sophisticated listeners in the audience, then there will be inspired musical performances in the concert.",
"No people who understand their musical roots will be in the audience if the audience will not be treated to a good show."
] | If there are any inspired performances in the concert, the audience will be treated to a good show. But there will not be a good show unless there are sophisticated listeners in the audience, and to be a sophisticated listener one must understand one' s musical roots. | 0 | train_580 | If all of the statements above are true, which one of the following must also be true? |
[
"the number of programs that are frequently copied illegally is low in comparison to the number of programs available for sale",
"the total market value of all illegal copies is low in comparison to the total revenue of the computer industry",
"most people who illegally copy programs would not purchase them even if purchasing them were the only way to obtain them",
"many users who illegally copy programs never find any use for them"
] | The computer industry's estimate that it loses millions of dollars when users illegally copy programs without paying for them is greatly exaggerated. Most of the illegal copying is done by people with no serious interest in the programs. Thus, the loss to the industry is quite small, because__. | 2 | train_581 | Which of the following best completes the passage below? |
[
"In network television news reports, it is not usual for a reporter to offer additional factual evidence and background information to develop a story in which opposing views are presented briefly by their advocates.",
"It is not possible for television to present public issues in a way that allows for the nuanced presentation of diverse views and a good-faith interchange between advocates of opposing views.",
"Television news reporters introduce more of their own biases into news stories than do newspaper reporters.",
"Since it is not possible to present striking images that would symbolize events for viewers, and since images hold sway over words in television, television must oversimplify."
] | The format of network television news programs generally allows advocates of a point of view only 30 seconds to convey their message. Consequently, regular watchers become accustomed to thinking of issues in terms only of slogans and catch phrases, and so the expectation of careful discussion of public issues gradually disappears from their awareness. The format of newspaper stories, on the other hand, leads readers to pursue details of stories headed by the most important facts and so has the opposite effect on regular readers -- that of maintaining the expectation of careful discussion of public issues. Ttherefore, in contrast to regular newspaper reading, regular watching of network television news programs increases the tendency to think of public issues in oversimplified terms. | 0 | train_582 | The argument assumes which one of the following? |
[
"Typically, a SaleCo employee's least productive hours in the workplace are the early afternoon hours.",
"Those SaleCo employees who have a four-day workweek do not take any of their office work to do at home on Fridays.",
"Employees at SaleCo are compensated not on the basis of how many hours a week they work but on the basis of how productive they are during the hours they are at work.",
"Working ten hours a day has allowed the most productive employees to work two hours alone each day in their respective offices relatively undisturbed by fellow employees."
] | An overwhelming proportion of the most productive employees at SaleCo' s regional offices work not eight hours a day, five days a week, as do other SaleCo employees, but rather ten hours a day, four days a week, with Friday off. Noting this phenomenon, SaleCo' s president plans to increase overall productivity by keeping the offices closed on Fridays and having all employees work the same schedule-ten hours a day, four days a week. | 3 | train_583 | Which of the following, if true, provides the most reason to doubt that the president's plan, if implemented, will achieve its stated purpose? |
[
"Supermarket tabloids should not be considered stimulating.",
"One should be able to be creative even in a stark, empty work area.",
"It is unhealthy to work in a cluttered work area.",
"The quality of the stimuli in an artist's environment matters."
] | Wanda: It is common sense that one cannot create visual art without visual stimuli in one' s work area, just as a writer needs written stimuli. A stark, empty work area would hinder my creativity. This is why there are so many things in my studio. Vernon: But a writer needs to read good writing, not supermarket tabloids. | 3 | train_584 | Are you inspired by the piles of laundry and empty soda bottles in your studio? Which one of the following most accurately expresses the principle underlying Vernon's response to Wanda? |
[
"The best form of government is the one that is most likely to produce an outcome that is on the whole good.",
"A society should adopt a democratic form of government if and only if most members of the society prefer a democratic form of government.",
"In choosing a form of government, it is better for a society to avoid the inherently worst than to seek to attain the best.",
"Democratic governments are not truly equitable unless they are designed to prevent interest groups from exerting undue influence on the political process."
] | Philosopher: Some of the most ardent philosophical opponents of democracy have rightly noted that both the inherently best and the inherently worst possible forms of government are those that concentrate political power in the hands of a few. Thus, since democracy is a consistently mediocre form of government, it is a better choice than rule by the few. | 2 | train_585 | Which one of the following principles, if valid, most helps to justify the philosopher's argument? |
[
"It supports Peter's argument by offering an explanation of all of Peter's premises.",
"It offers information that supports each of the claims that Peter makes in his argument.",
"It supports Peter's argument by supplying a premise without which Peter's conclusion cannot properly be drawn.",
"It supports the conclusion of Peter's argument by offering independent grounds for that conclusion."
] | Peter: Because the leaves of mildly drought-stressed plants are tougher in texture than the leaves of abundantly watered plants, insects prefer to feed on the leaves of abundantly watered plants. Ttherefore, to minimize crop damage, farmers should water crops only just enough to ensure that there is no substantial threat, from a lack of water, to either the growth or the yield of the crops. Jennifer: Indeed. In fact, a mildly drought-stressed plant will divert a small amount of its resources from normal growth to the development of pesticidal toxins, but abundantly watered plants will not. | 3 | train_586 | Jennifer's comment is related to Peter's argument in which one of the following ways? |
[
"Whether the crews that currently replace incandescent bulbs in Traverton's traffic signals know how to convert the existing fixtures so as to accept LED arrays",
"Whether the expected service life of LED arrays is at least as long as that of the currently used incandescent bulbs",
"Whether any cities have switched from incandescent lights in their traffic signals to lighting elements other than LED arrays",
"Whether Traverton's city council plans to increase the number of traffic signal lights in Traverton"
] | Traverton's city council wants to minimize the city's average yearly expenditures on its traffic signal lights and so is considering replacing the incandescent bulbs currently in use with arrays of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as the incandescent bulbs burn out. Compared to incandescent bulbs, LED arrays consume significantly less energy and cost no more to purchase. Moreover, the costs associated with the conversion of existing fixtures so as to accept LED arrays would be minimal. | 1 | train_587 | Which of the following would it be most useful to know in determining whether switching to LED arrays would be likely to help minimize Traverton's yearly maintenance costs? |
[
"Training new employees costs more than giving existing employees a raise.",
"Paying employees the minimum will hurt the company's image amongst customers.",
"Dissatisfied employees lead to labor unrest, and the resulting protests disrupt business.",
"Automation is the leading cause for unemployment."
] | Employer: In the current economic climate, the best way to run a business is to pay employees the least amount possible to do the job. The supply of labor is far outpacing demand since the number of college graduates increases every year and the average age of retirement is also increasing. Applicants will typically take the first job offer on the table, and any employee who demands a raise can be easily replaced from the labor pool. Even if the employee is unhappy, he or she will often remain on the job due to the competition in the job market. Keeping payroll costs low allows more resources to be devoted to innovation, delivering a higher quality product to customers. | 3 | train_588 | Each of the following, if true, weakens the employer's argument EXCEPT: |
[
"Sometimes a painting so resembles others of its era that no expert is able to confidently decide who painted it.",
"Drechen is unlikely to have ever visited the home region of Birelle in France.",
"The carving style of the picture frame is not typical of any specific region of Europe.",
"The frame was made from wood local to the region where the picture was painted."
] | A newly discovered painting seems to be the work of one of two seventeenth-century artists, either the northern German Johannes Drechen or the Frenchman Louis Birelle, who sometimes painted in the same style as Drechen. Analysis of the carved picture frame, which has been identified as the painting's original seventeenth-century frame, showed that it is made of wood found widely in northern Germany at the time, but rare in the part of France where Birelle lived. This shows that the painting is most likely the work of Drechen. | 3 | train_589 | Which of the following is an assumption that the argument requires? |
[
"overlooks the possibility that most families' incomes are below average",
"fails to take into account inflation with respect to the Andersen family's income",
"presumes, without providing justification, that the government makes no errors in gathering accurate estimates of family income",
"fails to consider the possibility that the Andersen family's real income was above average in the recent past"
] | Government statistics show that the real (adjusted for inflation) average income for families has risen over the last five years. Ttherefore, since this year the Andersen family' s income is average for families, the family' s real income must have increased over the last five years. | 3 | train_590 | The reasoning in the argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that the argument |
[
"The leaves used for the tea contain a soluble narcotic.",
"The Akabe also drink the tea in the evening, after their day's work is done.",
"The drink is full of nutrients otherwise absent from the Akabe diet.",
"When celebrating, the Akabe drink the tea in large quantities."
] | Members of the Amazonian Akabe people commonly take an early-morning drink of a tea made from the leaves of a forest plant. Although they greatly enjoy this drink, at dawn they drink it only in small amounts. Anthropologists hypothesize that since this tea is extraordinarily high in caffeine, the explanation for the Akabe' s not drinking more of it at dawn is that high caffeine intake would destroy the surefootedness that their daily tasks require. | 0 | train_591 | Which one of the following, if true, most seriously calls the anthropologists' explanation into question? |
[
"Resident physicians have a more direct effect on the lives of others than do air traffic controllers and nuclear power plant operators.",
"Those who are not engaged in work that has life- or-death consequences should only sometimes be allowed to work exceptionally long hours.",
"There is no indispensable aspect of residency training that requires resident physicians to work exceptionally long hours.",
"Some resident physicians would like to complete their residency training without working exceptionally long hours."
] | Air traffic controllers and nuclear power plant operators are not allowed to work exceptionally long hours, because to do so would jeopardize lives. Yet physicians in residency training are typically required to work 80-hour weeks. The aforementioned restrictions on working exceptionally long hours should also be applied to resident physicians, since they too are engaged in work of a life-or-death nature. | 2 | train_592 | Which one of the following is an assumption the argument depends on? |
[
"Longer prison sentences were the primary cause of the decrease in the violent crime rate over the course of last year.",
"As in the past, last year's increase in public anxiety about violent crime has been consistently underreported in the news media.",
"People who feel the most anxiety about violent crime usually live in areas with relatively high violent crime rates.",
"The proportion of violent crimes covered in the news media nearly doubled over the course of last year."
] | Statistical studies show that last year there was the greatest drop in the violent crime rate over the course of a year since such statistics were first gathered. But they also reveal that at the same time public anxiety about violent crime substantially increased. | 3 | train_593 | Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy described above? |
[
"The healing of ankle fractures that have been surgically repaired is always checked by means of a follow-up x-ray.",
"Doctors who are general practitioners rather than orthopedists are less likely than orthopedists to judge the stability of an ankle fracture correctly.",
"X-rays of patients of many different orthopedists working in several hospitals were reviewed.",
"Many ankle injuries for which an initial x-ray is ordered are revealed by the x-ray not to involve any fracture of the ankle."
] | Often patients with ankle fractures that are stable, and thus do not require surgery, are given follow-up x-rays because their orthopedists are concerned about possibly having misjudged the stability of the fracture. When a number of follow-up x-rays were reviewed, however, all the fractures that had initially been judged stable were found to have healed correctly. Ttherefore, it is a waste of money to order follow-up x-rays of ankle fracture initially judged stable. | 2 | train_594 | Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument? |
[
"reduces the average number of employees per department",
"reduces the number of its departments",
"raises the salary for department heads",
"promotes some current department heads to higher-level managerial positions"
] | A significant number of Qualitex Corporation' s department heads are due to retire this year. The number of employees other than current department heads who could take on the position of department head is equal to only about half of the expected vacancies. Oualitex is not going to hire department heads from outside the company or have current department heads take over more than one department, so some departments will be without department heads next year unless Qualitex __. | 1 | train_595 | Which of the following most logically completes the argument? |
[
"Whether advertisements for prescription medications are currently an important source of information about newly available medications for physicians",
"Whether some people might go to a physician for no reason other than to ask for a particular medication they have seen advertised",
"Whether physicians would give in to a patient's demand for a prescription medication chosen by the patient when the one originally prescribed by the physician fails to perform as desired",
"Whether advertising for prescription medications might alert patients to the existence of effective treatments for minor ailments that they had previously thought to be untreatable"
] | It is illegal to advertise prescription medications in Hedland except directly to physicians, either by mail or in medical journals. A proposed law would allow general advertising of prescription medications. Opponents object that the general population lacks the specialized knowledge to evaluate such advertisements and might ask their physicians for inappropriate medications. But since physicians have the final say as to whether to prescribe a medication for a patient, inappropriate prescriptions would not become more common. | 2 | train_596 | Which of the following would it be most useful to establish in order to evaluate the argument? |
[
"The amount of energy needed to run at a given speed is proportional to the surface area of the running animal.",
"The ratio of surface area to body weight is smaller in large animals than it is in small animals.",
"Small animals can move more rapidly than large animals can.",
"There is little variation in the ratio of energy output to body weight among animals."
] | The energy an animal must expend to move uphill is proportional to its body weight, whereas the animal' s energy output available to perform this task is proportional to its surface area. This is the reason that small animals, like squirrels, can run up a tree trunk almost as fast as they can move on level ground, whereas large animals tend to slow down when they are moving uphill. | 1 | train_597 | Which one of the following is an assumption on which the explanation above depends? |
[
"Most types of salmon that inhabit lakes spend part of the time in shallow water and part in deeper water.",
"Neither of the two populations of sockeyes has interbred with the native salmon.",
"When the native salmon in Lake Clearwater were numerous, they comprised two distinct populations that did not interbreed.",
"The total number of sockeye salmon in the lake is not as large as the number of native salmon had been many years ago."
] | Because the native salmon in Lake Clearwater had nearly disappeared, sockeye salmon were introduced in 1940. After being introduced, this genetically uniform group of sockeyes split into two distinct populations that do not interbreed, one inhabiting deep areas of the lake and the other inhabiting shallow areas. Since the two populations now differ genetically, some researchers hypothesize that each has adapted genetically to its distinct habitat. | 1 | train_598 | Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the researchers' hypothesis? |
[
"Unique radiolytic products have seldom been found in any irradiated food.",
"Cancer and other serious health problems have many causes that are unrelated to radioactive substances and gamma rays.",
"A study showed that irradiation leaves the vitamin content of virtually all fruits and vegetables unchanged.",
"A study showed that the cancer rate is no higher among people who eat irradiated food than among those who do not."
] | Consumer advocate: In some countries, certain produce is routinely irradiated with gamma rays in order to extend shelf life. There are, however, good reasons to avoid irradiated foods. First, they are exposed to the radioactive substances that produce the gamma rays. Second, irradiation can reduce the vitamin content of fresh foods, leaving behind harmful chemical residues. Third, irradiation spawns unique radiolytic products that cause serious health problems, including cancer. | 1 | train_599 | Each of the following, if true, weakens the consumer advocate's argument EXCEPT: |
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