GMAT Critical Reasoning Discussions

MBA
2143

Close call b/w A and C... confused.. :splat:

In an attempt to reduce the crime rate, the governor is getting tough on criminals and making prison conditions harsher. Part of this effort has been to deny inmates the access they formerly had to college-level courses. However, this action is clearly counter to the governors ultimate goal, since after being released form prison, inmates who had taken such courses committed far fewer crimes overall than other inmates.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

A. Not being able to take college-level courses while in prison is unlikely to deter anyone from a crime that he or she might otherwise have committed.
B. Former inmates are no more likely to commit crimes than are members of the general population.
C. The group of inmates who chose to take college-level courses were not already less likely than other inmates to commit crimes after being released.
D. Taking high school level courses in prison has less effect on an inmates subsequent behavior than taking college-level courses does.
E. The governors ultimate goal actually is to gain popularity by convincing people that something effective is being done about crime.
2144
IMO:B

Wealthy ppl are not allowed for deductions.....Closure of charitable institutes.

'B' files the gap b/w above two pionts...

one more...explain pls.


A proposed change to federal income tax laws would eliminate deductions from taxable income for donations a taxpayer has made to charitable and educational institutions. If this change were adopted, wealthy individuals would no longer be permitted such deductions. Therefore, many charitable and educational institutions would have to reduce services, and some would have to close their doors.


The argument above assumes which of the following?
(A) Without the incentives offered by federal income tax laws, at least some wealthy individuals would not donate as much money to charitable and educational institutions as they otherwise would have.
(B) Money contributed by individuals who make their donations because of provisions in the federal tax laws provides the only source of funding for many charitable and educational institutions.
(C) The primary reason for not adopting the proposed change in the federal income tax laws cited above is to protect wealthy individuals from having to pay higher taxes.
(D) Wealthy individuals who donate money to charitable and educational institutions are the only individuals who donate money to such institutions.
(E) Income tax laws should be changed to make donations to charitable and educational institutions the only permissible deductions from taxable income.


2145
Roland: The alarming fact is that 90 percent of the people in this country now report that they know someone who is unemployed.
Sharon: But a normal, moderate level of unemployment is 5 percent, with 1 out of 20 workers unemployed. So at any given time if a person knows approximately 50 workers, 1 or more will very likely be unemployed.

Sharons argument relies on the assumption that
(A) normal levels of unemployment are rarely exceeded
(B) unemployment is not normally concentrated in geographically isolated segments of the population
(C) the number of people who each know someone who is unemployed is always higher than 90% of the population
(D) Roland is not consciously distorting the statistics he presents
(E) knowledge that a personal acquaintance is unemployed generates more fear of losing ones job than does knowledge of unemployment statistics
need expln..


Is the answer (A)?
Sharon gives the moderate level of unemployment as 5% and the second part is likely to be greater than 2%.Use of likely in the stimulus and use of rarely are pointers that I have taken to answer.
2146
Should be C..

if there is 15% reduction in cost without using new process too, then there is no cost effectiveness withnew tech..

pls answer with explanation:

A factory was trying out a new process for producing one of its products, with the goal of reducing production
costs. A trial production run using the new process showed a 15 percent reduction in costs compared with past
performance using the standard process. The production managers therefore concluded that the new process
did produce a cost savings.
Which of the following, if true, casts most doubt on the production managers conclusion?
(A) In the cost reduction project that eventually led to the trial of the new process, production managers had initially been seeking cost reductions of 50 percent.
(B) Analysis of the trial of the new process showed that the cost reduction during the trial was entirely attributable to a reduction in the umber of finished products rejected by quality control.
(C) While the trial was being conducted, production costs at the factory for a similar product, produced without benefit of the new process, also showed a 15 percent reduction.
(D) Although some of the factorys managers have been arguing that the product is outdated and ought to be redesigned, the use of the new production process does not involve any changes in the finished product.
(E) Since the new process differs from the standard process only in the way in which the stage of production are organized and ordered, the cost of the materials used in the product is the same in both processes.
2147
IMO:B

Wealthy ppl are not allowed for deductions.....Closure of charitable institutes.

'B' files the gap b/w above two pionts...


Quote:
Originally Posted by Indian_Stallion View Post
one more...explain pls.


A proposed change to federal income tax laws would eliminate deductions from taxable income for donations a taxpayer has made to charitable and educational institutions. If this change were adopted, wealthy individuals would no longer be permitted such deductions. Therefore, many charitable and educational institutions would have to reduce services, and some would have to close their doors.



The argument above assumes which of the following?
(A) Without the incentives offered by federal income tax laws, at least some wealthy individuals would not donate as much money to charitable and educational institutions as they otherwise would have.
(B) Money contributed by individuals who make their donations because of provisions in the federal tax laws provides the only source of funding for many charitable and educational institutions.
(C) The primary reason for not adopting the proposed change in the federal income tax laws cited above is to protect wealthy individuals from having to pay higher taxes.
(D) Wealthy individuals who donate money to charitable and educational institutions are the only individuals who donate money to such institutions.
(E) Income tax laws should be changed to make donations to charitable and educational institutions the only permissible deductions from taxable income.


C & E out of scope
A : talks about some wealthy people
B : talks about individual nt wealthy people

IMO : D
2148
In an attempt to reduce the crime rate, the governor is getting tough on criminals and making prison conditions harsher. Part of this effort has been to deny inmates the access they formerly had to college-level courses. However, this action is clearly counter to the governors ultimate goal, since after being released form prison, inmates who had taken such courses committed far fewer crimes overall than other inmates.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

A. Not being able to take college-level courses while in prison is unlikely to deter anyone from a crime that he or she might otherwise have committed.
B. Former inmates are no more likely to commit crimes than are members of the general population.
C. The group of inmates who chose to take college-level courses were not already less likely than other inmates to commit crimes after being released.
D. Taking high school level courses in prison has less effect on an inmates subsequent behavior than taking college-level courses does.
E. The governors ultimate goal actually is to gain popularity by convincing people that something effective is being done about crime.



I will go with option C.
2149
In an attempt to reduce the crime rate, the governor is getting tough on criminals and making prison conditions harsher. Part of this effort has been to deny inmates the access they formerly had to college-level courses. However, this action is clearly counter to the governor's ultimate goal, since after being released form prison, inmates who had taken such courses committed far fewer crimes overall than other inmates.

Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

A. Not being able to take college-level courses while in prison is unlikely to deter anyone from a crime that he or she might otherwise have committed.
B. Former inmates are no more likely to commit crimes than are members of the general population.
C. The group of inmates who chose to take college-level courses were not already less likely than other inmates to commit crimes after being released.
D. Taking high school level courses in prison has less effect on an inmate's subsequent behavior than taking college-level courses does.
E. The governor's ultimate goal actually is to gain popularity by convincing people that something effective is being done about crime.

deepakraam Says
I will go with option C for the above CR

Nipunbans Says
Close call b/w A and C... confused.. :splat:

siddharthaduggirala Says
I will go with option C.



The answer is (C).

we need to attack the clause marked in 'Bold' ; if the inmates are already less likely to commit the crime then the bold part doesn't hold nd the argument that the action is counter to governor's advice falls apart!

Cheers!
2150

Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...

Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.

2151
Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...

Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.



IMO, D is the answer
2152
Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...

Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.

The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.

This can be the answer as this sentence mentions about a property of naturally occurring fullerences which is apparently not that of synthetic ones. In that case the synthesis cannot give a test case for the mentioned evaluation.

Pl correct me if am wrong.
2153
Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...

Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.


IMO: E
My reasoning: The basis on which author suggests to evaluate the hypothesis about the state of earth's crust is: "laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure".
I my opinion, this argument will be weakened if these 'distinctive conditions' change. Option E says that Shungite itself is created under distinctive conditions (note that these distinctive conditions might be different from the distinctive conditions to synthesize fullernes.) So, to hypothesize the earth's crust, the researchers wont have clear idea of the actual temperature and pressure.

I am desperate to hear the OA for this perplexing Q...
2154
Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...

Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.


Cant B be the answer here? If some remains were found on meteorite that collided with a spacecraft then how can the geologists confirm anything about earth's crust:) or Am I thinking too much here

IMO: E
My reasoning: The basis on which author suggests to evaluate the hypothesis about the state of earth's crust is: "laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure".
I my opinion, this argument will be weakened if these 'distinctive conditions' change. Option E says that Shungite itself is created under distinctive conditions (note that these distinctive conditions might be different from the distinctive conditions to synthesize fullernes.) So, to hypothesize the earth's crust, the researchers wont have clear idea of the actual temperature and pressure.

I am desperate to hear the OA for this perplexing Q...


Dont u think u r assuming too much ?

Btwn Nice Q:thumbsup:
2155

I think C..

Plz help me out with these...




When people evade income taxes by not declaring taxable income，a vicious cycle results．Tax evasion forces lawmakers to raise income tax rates．Which causes the tax burden on nonevading taxpayers to become heavier. This，in turn，encourages even more taxpayers to evade income taxes by hiding taxable income．
The vicious cycle described above could not result unless which of the following were true?
(A) An Increase in tax rates tends to function as an incentive for taxpayers to try to increase their pretax incomes．
(B) Some methods for detecting tax evaders, and thus recovering some tax revenue lost through evasion，bring in more than they cost，but their success rate varies from year to year.
(C) When lawmakers establish income tax rates in order to generate a certain level of revenue, they do not allow adequately for revenue that will be lost through evasion．
(D) No one who routinely hides some taxable income can be induced by a lowering of tax rates to stop hiding such income unless fines for evaders are raised at the same time．
(E) Taxpayers do not differ from each other with respect to the rate of taxation that will cause them to evade taxes．


whats the correct answer for this one?
2156
Plz help me out with these...




When people evade income taxes by not declaring taxable income，a vicious cycle results．Tax evasion forces lawmakers to raise income tax rates．Which causes the tax burden on nonevading taxpayers to become heavier. This，in turn，encourages even more taxpayers to evade income taxes by hiding taxable income．
The vicious cycle described above could not result unless which of the following were true?
(A) An Increase in tax rates tends to function as an incentive for taxpayers to try to increase their pretax incomes．
(B) Some methods for detecting tax evaders, and thus recovering some tax revenue lost through evasion，bring in more than they cost，but their success rate varies from year to year.
(C) When lawmakers establish income tax rates in order to generate a certain level of revenue, they do not allow adequately for revenue that will be lost through evasion．
(D) No one who routinely hides some taxable income can be induced by a lowering of tax rates to stop hiding such income unless fines for evaders are raised at the same time．
(E) Taxpayers do not differ from each other with respect to the rate of taxation that will cause them to evade taxes．


whats the correct answer for this one?



I will go with option C for the above CR
2157

Historian: In the Drindian Empire, censuses were conducted annually to determine the population of each village. Village census records for the last half of the 1600's are remarkably complete. This very completeness makes one point stand out; in five different years, villages overwhelmingly reported significant population declines. Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindian tax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central government using the annual census figures. Obviously, whenever the tax went up, villages had an especially powerful economic incentive to minimize the number of people they recorded; and concealing the size of a village's population from government census takers would have been easy. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the reported declines did not happen.

In the historian's argument, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?
A. The first supplies a context for the historian's argument; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argue against the position the historian seeks to establish.
B. The first presents evidence to support the position that the historian seeks to establish; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argue against that position.
C. The first provides a context for certain evidence that supports the position that the historian seeks to establish; the second is that position.
D. The first is a position for which the historian argues; the second is an assumption that serves as the basis of that argument.
E. The first is an assumption that the historian explicitly makes in arguing for a certain position; the second acknowledges a consideration that calls that assumption into question.
Plz assist me to tackle such questions.

2158

I think it is option B

2159


Historian: In the Drindian Empire, censuses were conducted annually to determine the population of each village. Village census records for the last half of the 1600s are remarkably complete. This very completeness makes one point stand out; in five different years, villages overwhelmingly reported significant population declines. Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindian tax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central government using the annual census figures. Obviously, whenever the tax went up, villages had an especially powerful economic incentive to minimize the number of people they recorded; and concealing the size of a villages population from government census takers would have been easy. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that the reported declines did not happen.

In the historians argument, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?

A. The first supplies a context for the historians argument; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argue against the position the historian seeks to establish.

B. The first presents evidence to support the position that the historian seeks to establish; the second acknowledges a consideration that has been used to argue against that position.

C. The first provides a context for certain evidence that supports the position that the historian seeks to establish; the second is that position.

D. The first is a position for which the historian argues; the second is an assumption that serves as the basis of that argument.

E. The first is an assumption that the historian explicitly makes in arguing for a certain position; the second acknowledges a consideration that calls that assumption into question.

Plz assist me to tackle such questions.


Hey sdt,

Personally, I feel the best way to tackle these questions is to Find the conclusion in the argument , one, and second is to focus on diff words such as EVIDENCE, ASSUMPTION, PREDICTION etc in the options!

Now lets try this in the Q that u just gave: (m a novice too 😃 )

THe conclusion in the above argument is that since every time the population has declined,each year of decline has followed a year in which the taxes were increased, thus it is reasonable to think that the reported declines did not happen.

How is the 1st bold related to this conclusion? first of all it is a fact and secondly it is the premise on which the historian builds;Since the records have been complete thus whenever declines happened, either they were true or reported wrongly. the 1st bold doesnt really support the conclusion directly nor it goes against it.

Thus we can eliminate E(not an assumption) and D(this is not what historian argues for)

How is the 2nd bold related to the conclusion - it is nothing but a part of the conclusion without any evidence or premise and it is something which the author argues for.

Thus we can eliminate A straight away!

Now need to choose btwn B and C.

Does the 1st bold part is really an evidence that supports the historian's position as stated in B?

Isnt it a context that helps in quoting further evidence,which is - Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindian tax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central government using the annual census figures - as stated in C.

So IMO best option would be C.

Hope ths helps!

Regards!
2160

lovely explanation mate.... but does x.... is y is improper sentence formation:clap::cheerio: just the lighter side of such a heavy explanation

Hey sdt,

Personally, I feel the best way to tackle these questions is to Find the conclusion in the argument , one, and second is to focus on diff words such as EVIDENCE, ASSUMPTION, PREDICTION etc in the options!



Does the 1st bold part is really an evidence that supports the historian's position as stated in B?

Isnt it a context that helps in quoting further evidence,which is - Tellingly, each of those five years immediately followed an increase in a certain Drindian tax. This tax, which was assessed on villages, was computed by the central government using the annual census figures - as stated in C.

So IMO best option would be C.

Hope ths helps!

Regards!
2161

Originally Posted by simcard View Post
Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...
Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.

I am still confused. Please clarify the answer.:oops:

2162
Originally Posted by simcard View Post
Hey guys try this one. Its a bit confusing...
Although fullernes- spherical molecules made entirely of carbon- were first found in the laboratory, they have since been found in nature, formed in
fissures of the mineral shungite. since laboratory synthesis of fullernes requires distinctive conditions of temperature and pressure, this discovery
should give geologists a test case evaluating hypothesis about the state of earth's crust at the time these naturally occuring fullerenes were formed.
Which of the following if true seriously undermines the argument..
Confirming that the shungite geniunely contained fullerences took careful experimentation.
Some fullerences have also been found on the remains of a small meteorite that collided with a spacecraft.
The mineral shungite itself contains large amounts of carbon, from which the fullerences appreantly formed.
The naturally occuring fullerences are arranged in a previously unknown crystalline structure.
Shungite itself is formed only under distinctive conditions.

I am still confused. Please clarify the answer.:oops:


There have been a few explanations for this question. Now which explanation is correct, is dependent on the OA.

Simcard bhai...whats the OA...Junta is waiting to hear back from you...