It is difficult to keep deep wounds free of bacteria. Even strong antibiotics fail to
kill the bacteria that live in such wounds. However, many physicians have succeeded in
eliminating bacteria from deep wounds by packing the wound with a sweet substance like
sugar. Which one of the following, if true, most helps to explain why treating deep wounds
with sugar as described above is successfu Your answer:
People who are red/green color-blind cannot distinguish between green and brown. Gerald
cannot distinguish between green and brown. Therefore Gerald is red/green color-blind.
Which on the of the following most closely parallels the reasoning in the arguement
presented in the passag Your answer:
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. The passage best illustrates which one of the
following statements about science Your answer:
The Theory of military deterrence was based on a simple psychological truth, that fear
of retaliation makes a would-be aggressor nation hesitate before attacking and is often
sufficient to deter it altogether from attacking. Clearly, then, to maintain military
deterrence, a nation would have to be believed to have retaliatory power so great that a
potential aggressor nation would have reason to think that it could not defend itself
against such retaliation. If the statements above are true, which one of the following can
be properly inferred Your answer:
To the editor: In 1960, an astronomer proposed a mathematical model for determining
whether extraterrestrial life exists. It was based on the assumptions that life as we know
it could exist only on a planet and that many stars are, like our Sun, orbited by planets.
On the basis that there are nine panets in our solar system and one of them has life as we
know it, the astonomer predicted that there are as many as one million extraterrestrial
civilizations accross all solar systems. Yet astronomers to date have not detected even
one planet outside our solar system. This indicates that the astronomer's model is wrong,
and life as we know it exists only on the planet Earth. --- Clay Moltz --- Which one of
the following, if accepted by Clay Moltz, would require him to reconsider his conclusion Your
answer:
If Max were guilty, he would not ask the police to investigate. Therefore, his asking
the police to investigate shows that he is not guilty. The logical structure of the
argument above is most similar to which one of the following Your answer:
A population of game ducks at a western lake contains 55 males to every 45 females,
while a population of game ducks at an eastern lake contains 65 males for every 35
females. Among those ducks that have not yet bred there are only slightly more males than
females, but among older ducks the number of males greatly exceeds the number of females.
Because there are appreciably more males among adult ducks than among young ducks, we can
infer that the greater the disparity in overall sex ratios, the greater the percentage of
older male ducks in the population. Which one of the following can be inferred from the
passage Your answer:
The common procedure for determining whether a food additive should be banned from use
is to compare its health-related benefits with its potential risks. Yellow Dye No. 5, an
additive used to color lemon soda, might cause allergic reactions in a few consumers. For
most consumers of lemon soda, however, the coloring enhances their enjoyment of the
beverage. This particular additive should not be banned, therefore, because its benefits
greatly outweigh its risks. A flaw in the argument is that the autho Your answer:
Fines levied against those responsible for certain environmentally damaging accidents
are now so high that is costs a company responsible for such an accident more to pay the
fine than it would have cost to adopt measures that would have prevented the accident.
Therefore, since businesses value their profits, those that might have such accidents will
now install adequate environmental safeguards. Which one of the following, if true, most
seriously weakens the argument Your answer:
Even in a democracy, it is necessary to restrict the dissemination of advanced
technological knowlege that is of commercial or national-security value. Dissemination to
certain countries, those that are or will be competitors or enemies, should be selectively
prohibited. There must, however, be free exchange of scientific information. In order to
act in accordance with the position above, it would be necessary to be able to rely on
each of the following EXCEPT Your answer:
Water vapor evaproated from the ocean contains a greater proportion of oxygen-16 and a
smaller proportion of the heavier oxygen-18 than does seawater. Normally, this phenomenon
has no effect on the overall composition of the ocean, because evaproated seawater returns
to the ocean through precipitation. During an ice age, however, a large amount of
precipitation falls on ice caps, where it is trapped as ice. Which one of the following
conclusions about a typical ice age is most strongly supported by the statements above Your
answer:
Some of the most prosperous nations in the world have experienced a pronounced drop in
national savings rates--the percentage of after-tax income an average household saves.
This trend will undoubtedly continue if the average age of these nations' populations
continues to rise, since older people have fewer reasons to save than do younger people.
Which of the following indicates an error in the reasoning leading to the prediction above
Your answer:
The term "pit bull" does not designate a breed of dog, as do the terms
"German shepherd" and "poodle." It is like the terms "Seeing-Eye
dog" and "police dog," which designate dogs according to what they do. If
you take two German shepherds and place them side by side, you cannot tell by appearance
alone which is the police dog and which is the Seeing-Eye dog. Which one of the following
is the main point of the passage Your answer:
Historically, monetary systems have developed only in population centers with
marketplaces. Through the fourth century B.C.E., Mesopotamian cities engaged in trade, but
had never had marketplaces. By that period, however, Greek cities all had marketplaces, or
agorae. The Greek cities' agorae were centrally located and goods were traded there either
for money or for commodities. If all of the statements in the passage are true, then which
one of the following must also be true Your answer:
For Questions 15 & 16 ------ Computer operating system software has become
increasingly standardized. But when a large business with multiple, linked computer
systems uses identical operating system software on all of its computers, a computer
vandal who gains access to one computer automatically has access to the data on all the
computers. Using a program known as a "virus," the vandal can then destroy much
of the data on all the computers. If such a business introduced minor variations into its
operating system software, unauthorized access to all the computers at the same time could
be virtually eliminated. Furthermore, variations in operating system software can be
created without any loss of computer compatibility to the business. Therefore, it is
advisable for businesses to implement such variations. Which one of the following, if
true, supports the conclusion in the passage Your answer:
Which one of the following can be inferred from the passage in Question 15 Your
answer:
It is the mark of a superior conductor that he or she has the authority to insist, even
with a top orchestra, that rehearsal work must be intensified. This authority cannot
simply be claimed; the conductor must earn it by winning the orchestra's respect for the
artistic interpretations he or she is currently pursuing. In taking the position outlined,
the author presupposes which one of the following Your answer:
In the United States proven oil reserves -- the amount of oil considered extractable
from known fields -- are at the same level as they were ten years ago. Yet over this same
period no new oil fields of any consequence have been discovered, and the annual
consumption of domestically produced oil has increased. Which one of the following, if
true, best reconciles the discrepancy described above? Your answer:
Train service suffers when a railroad combines commuter and freight service. By dividing
its attention between its freight and commuter customers, a railroad serves neither
particularly well. Therefore, if a railroad is going to be a successful business, then it
must concentrate exclusively on one of these two markets. For the argument to be logically
correct, it must make which one of the following assumptions Your answer:
Most people in the United States view neither big nor small business as particularly
efficient or dynamic and regard both as providing consumers with fairly priced goods and
services. However, most people consistently perceive small business as a force for good in
society, whereas big business is perceived as socially responsible only in times of
prosperity. The statements above, if true, would provide the strongest support for which
one of the following hypotheses Your answer:
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. Which one of the following is an assumption on which the
explanation above depends Your answer:
The 1980's have been characterized as a period of selfish individualism that threatens
the cohesion of society. But this characterization is true of any time. Throughout history
all human actions have been motivated by selfishness. When the deeper implicatons are
considered, even the simplest "unselfish" acts prove to be instances of selfish
concern for the human species. Which one of the following is a flaw in the arguement Your
answer:
A medical journal used a questionnaire survey to determine whether a paricular change in
its format would increase its readership. Sixty-two percent of those who returned the
questionnaire supported that change. On the basis of this outcome, the decision was made
to introduce the new format. Which one of the following, if it were determined to be true,
would provide the best evidence that the journal's decision will have the desired effect Your
answer:
Passage for Questions 24 & 25 --- ---- Shanna: Owners of any work of art, simply by
virtue of ownership, ethically have the right to destroy that artwork if they find it
morally or aesthetically distateful, or is caring for it becomes inconvenient. -----
Jorge: Ownership of unique artworks,unlike ownership of other kinds of objects, carries
the moral right to possess but not to destroy. A unique work of art with aesthetic or
historical value belongs to posterity and so must be preserved, whatever the personal
wishes of its legal owner. Which one of the following principles, if accepted, would
contribute most to Shanna's defense of her position against that of Jorge Your answer:
Employ the passage from Question 24: On the basis of their statements, Shanna and Jorge
are committed to disagreeing about the truth of which one of the following statements Your
answer: