My Take:
1.a
2.b
3.
4.b
5.b
6.c
7.
8.d
9.b ?
RC of the Day 2nd April 2013 
*What is the shelf-life of an idea ? Just few short months ago, the talk-and not just in Washington, DC-was
of empire, America's that is. Even before the invasion of Iraq, pundits of all stripes were casting aside their
coyness to proclaim that America was the latest imperial power to bestride the world. Today, with tribulations
besetting the new Romans in both Afghanistan and Iraq, their most recent conquests, the chorus has died
down, but the ideal is far from dead. Too many people have invested too much in it.
of empire, America's that is. Even before the invasion of Iraq, pundits of all stripes were casting aside their
coyness to proclaim that America was the latest imperial power to bestride the world. Today, with tribulations
besetting the new Romans in both Afghanistan and Iraq, their most recent conquests, the chorus has died
down, but the ideal is far from dead. Too many people have invested too much in it.
*For several years, after all, commentators have been announcing the discovery of an American empire.
Books and articles have poured forth, professors and pundits have pondered the implications-and a surprising number have welcomed the new role. “No need to run away from the label,” argues Max Boot, a fellow at
the Council on foreign Relations in New York: “America's destiny is to police the world.”
Books and articles have poured forth, professors and pundits have pondered the implications-and a surprising number have welcomed the new role. “No need to run away from the label,” argues Max Boot, a fellow at
the Council on foreign Relations in New York: “America's destiny is to police the world.”
*Behind the claim lies a conjunction of circumstances. First is the sheer scale of America's power. While
the sole super-power remains more than ready to put its technological powers to military use, its western
allies, wearied by centuries of fighting, have been quick to cash in their post-cold-war peace dividends and
turn to more pacific pursuits. Russia is diminished. China still lags behind. America's pre-eminence in the
skies, at sea and on land is thus unchallenged. In terms of both brute force and gee-whizz gadgetry, it
leaves even its nearest competitors standing, or rather quaking.
the sole super-power remains more than ready to put its technological powers to military use, its western
allies, wearied by centuries of fighting, have been quick to cash in their post-cold-war peace dividends and
turn to more pacific pursuits. Russia is diminished. China still lags behind. America's pre-eminence in the
skies, at sea and on land is thus unchallenged. In terms of both brute force and gee-whizz gadgetry, it
leaves even its nearest competitors standing, or rather quaking.
*Matching this military might, runs the argument, is an unrivalled degree of economic power. Throw together
all the output from Hollywood and Silicon Valley to Wall Street and Tin Pan Alley, and you have a commercial
empire that would have been the envy of the British East India Company or Cecil Rhodes. And with “hard”
power and “soft” power combined, you have influence on a scale never seen before. The polite term for it is
Globocop. What other country divides the world up into five military commands with four-star generals to
match, keeps several hundred thousands of its legionaries on active duty in 137 countries-and is now
unafraid to use them ? For, stung by the events of September 11th, America is no longer shy about spilling
blood, even its own. Weren't the Afghan and Iraqi wars largely designed to show just that ?
all the output from Hollywood and Silicon Valley to Wall Street and Tin Pan Alley, and you have a commercial
empire that would have been the envy of the British East India Company or Cecil Rhodes. And with “hard”
power and “soft” power combined, you have influence on a scale never seen before. The polite term for it is
Globocop. What other country divides the world up into five military commands with four-star generals to
match, keeps several hundred thousands of its legionaries on active duty in 137 countries-and is now
unafraid to use them ? For, stung by the events of September 11th, America is no longer shy about spilling
blood, even its own. Weren't the Afghan and Iraqi wars largely designed to show just that ?
*To power and global reach can therefore be added another imperial characteristic : an actual desire to sally
forth and act. Even before Americans were attacked on September 11th 2001, influential voices were
calling for a more activist foreign policy. Some were what Ivo Daalder, a fellow at the Brookings Institution
in Washington, DC, calls “assertive nationalists”, some were “democratic imperialists”. Both groups were
impatient with the constraints imposed by treaties, multilateral action and America's membership of
international clubs like the U N. Both wanted to see America hit back when attacked. Both thought the
Clinton administration had been timid, if not craven, in defence of American interests.
forth and act. Even before Americans were attacked on September 11th 2001, influential voices were
calling for a more activist foreign policy. Some were what Ivo Daalder, a fellow at the Brookings Institution
in Washington, DC, calls “assertive nationalists”, some were “democratic imperialists”. Both groups were
impatient with the constraints imposed by treaties, multilateral action and America's membership of
international clubs like the U N. Both wanted to see America hit back when attacked. Both thought the
Clinton administration had been timid, if not craven, in defence of American interests.
*If, before September 11th, George Bush belonged to either of these groups, it was to the assertive nationalists
– along with men like **** Cheney, his vice-president, and Donald Rumsfeld, his secretary of defence. The
president's instincts were to take robust action if necessary, but to avoid foreign entanglements. In particular,
even as a candidate, he had been hostile to the idea of “nation-building” (correctly, state-building) abroad,
an ambition more closely identified with the democratic imperialists, also known as neoconservatives.
Later, though, Mr. Bush started to come round to that idea. September 11th , he was to say a year after the
event, “taught us that weak states, like Afghanistan, can pose as great a danger to our national interests
as strong states.” Accordingly, “We will extend the peace by encouraging free and open societies on every
continent.'
– along with men like **** Cheney, his vice-president, and Donald Rumsfeld, his secretary of defence. The
president's instincts were to take robust action if necessary, but to avoid foreign entanglements. In particular,
even as a candidate, he had been hostile to the idea of “nation-building” (correctly, state-building) abroad,
an ambition more closely identified with the democratic imperialists, also known as neoconservatives.
Later, though, Mr. Bush started to come round to that idea. September 11th , he was to say a year after the
event, “taught us that weak states, like Afghanistan, can pose as great a danger to our national interests
as strong states.” Accordingly, “We will extend the peace by encouraging free and open societies on every
continent.'
*So there it is. The American empire passes the duck test : it not only looks like a duck and walks like a
duck, it also quacks like a duck. And, unfashionable as the idea may seem, it has been given a remarkably
warm reception. Even non-Americans seem well-disposed. Over a year ago Robert Cooper, a British
diplomat, called for “a new kind of imperialism”, albeit one that would be provided by the “post-modern
European Union”. Michael Ignatieff, a Canadian now at Harvard, has also been ready to argue that “imperialism
doesn't stop being necessary just because it is politically incorrect, though not for him another European
imperium. Doubtful as he is about the enterprise, he can see no alternative to American leadership.
duck, it also quacks like a duck. And, unfashionable as the idea may seem, it has been given a remarkably
warm reception. Even non-Americans seem well-disposed. Over a year ago Robert Cooper, a British
diplomat, called for “a new kind of imperialism”, albeit one that would be provided by the “post-modern
European Union”. Michael Ignatieff, a Canadian now at Harvard, has also been ready to argue that “imperialism
doesn't stop being necessary just because it is politically incorrect, though not for him another European
imperium. Doubtful as he is about the enterprise, he can see no alternative to American leadership.
*Many like Mr. Ignatieff are ready to lend support to the idea of an American empire, moved by a desire to
bring people living in failed states out of their disorder and misery, and believing that only America can run
such an empire. Others are more concerned to deny terrorists a base from which to launch attacks on the
West. All take succour from recent, generally favorable reassessments of the British empire, notably the
one offered in a book (and television series) by Niall Ferguson, a Scottish historian now at New York
University. “What the British empire proved,” writes Mr. Ferguson, “is that empire is a form of international
government that can work-and not just for the benefit of the ruling power.” The British empire, he suggests,
“though not without blemish” , may have been the least bloody path to modernity for its subjects.
bring people living in failed states out of their disorder and misery, and believing that only America can run
such an empire. Others are more concerned to deny terrorists a base from which to launch attacks on the
West. All take succour from recent, generally favorable reassessments of the British empire, notably the
one offered in a book (and television series) by Niall Ferguson, a Scottish historian now at New York
University. “What the British empire proved,” writes Mr. Ferguson, “is that empire is a form of international
government that can work-and not just for the benefit of the ruling power.” The British empire, he suggests,
“though not without blemish” , may have been the least bloody path to modernity for its subjects.
*Such thoughts are still too controversial for senior members of the Bush administration to utter aloud. “We
don't seek an empire,” avers Mr Bush himself. “Our nation is committed to freedom for ourselves and for
others.” With equal vigour Mr. Rumsfeld insists : “We're not imperialistic.” But after one regime-changing
war in Iraq, the administration seems to be gathering the wool of empire, and doing so with a civilizing
mission that sounds pretty imperial.
don't seek an empire,” avers Mr Bush himself. “Our nation is committed to freedom for ourselves and for
others.” With equal vigour Mr. Rumsfeld insists : “We're not imperialistic.” But after one regime-changing
war in Iraq, the administration seems to be gathering the wool of empire, and doing so with a civilizing
mission that sounds pretty imperial.
*If Mr. Bush does not state the aims explicitly, the neocons feel no such embarrassment. For them,
Afghanistan and Iraq are just the start. The transformation of the entire Middle East – Iran, Syria, Saudi
Arabia, the lot-must now ensue. In logic, once that is democratized under American tutelage, other regions
will have to follow. The United States has long felt free to intervene in Latin America; even before September
11th it was being drawn into Colombia. The Balkans, after a more direct intervention, are benefiting from
even starker American supervision (or indirect rule, to use the imperial term, via the EU and UN). Can parts
of Asia and Africa be far behind ?
Afghanistan and Iraq are just the start. The transformation of the entire Middle East – Iran, Syria, Saudi
Arabia, the lot-must now ensue. In logic, once that is democratized under American tutelage, other regions
will have to follow. The United States has long felt free to intervene in Latin America; even before September
11th it was being drawn into Colombia. The Balkans, after a more direct intervention, are benefiting from
even starker American supervision (or indirect rule, to use the imperial term, via the EU and UN). Can parts
of Asia and Africa be far behind ?
49. Which one of these correctly states the author's opinion about the shelf life of an idea?
a. It lasts a few short months as demonstrated in the case of the Americas' empire
b. The idea's shelf life is ascertained by the actual events that take place on the ground
c. Ideas' inherently are short lived, but in some circumstances this can be prolonged by vested
interests
d. In all cases where the idea is centered around America, the shelf life of the ideas is even shorter
because it is the only remaining superpower.
a. It lasts a few short months as demonstrated in the case of the Americas' empire
b. The idea's shelf life is ascertained by the actual events that take place on the ground
c. Ideas' inherently are short lived, but in some circumstances this can be prolonged by vested
interests
d. In all cases where the idea is centered around America, the shelf life of the ideas is even shorter
because it is the only remaining superpower.
50. The author is least likely to agree with which statement?
a. Many books and articles have been written about the empire of America
b. Most political commentators have welcomed this role of America at the center of the world
c. America is open to putting its technological prowess to military use just like its western allies
d. America's preeminence is yet unchallenged
a. Many books and articles have been written about the empire of America
b. Most political commentators have welcomed this role of America at the center of the world
c. America is open to putting its technological prowess to military use just like its western allies
d. America's preeminence is yet unchallenged
51. What have been the two changes in the perspective of George Bush?
a. To enter into deliberations before tasking military action and to avoid foreign entanglements
b. To not enter the areas of nation building in foreign lands and to not regard seriously the dangers
to national security from weak states
c. The lack of danger to national security posed by Afghanistan and to deliberate before tasking
military actions
d. There has been as change on only aspect
a. To enter into deliberations before tasking military action and to avoid foreign entanglements
b. To not enter the areas of nation building in foreign lands and to not regard seriously the dangers
to national security from weak states
c. The lack of danger to national security posed by Afghanistan and to deliberate before tasking
military actions
d. There has been as change on only aspect
52. According to the passage, which one of these is not a reason leading to extension of support to the
idea of an American empire?
a. Elevate the misery of the people living in failed states
b. Denial to potential terrorists of a possible base to launch another attack
c. Regarding the presence of any empire as a form of international government
d. As an antidote to the growing British empire which is presenting as threat to the American
empire
idea of an American empire?
a. Elevate the misery of the people living in failed states
b. Denial to potential terrorists of a possible base to launch another attack
c. Regarding the presence of any empire as a form of international government
d. As an antidote to the growing British empire which is presenting as threat to the American
empire
53. Which one of these can be understood to be overt supporters of imperialism in some form?
a. Robert Cooper b. Michael Ignatieff c. Niall Ferguson d. Donald Rumsfeld
a. Robert Cooper b. Michael Ignatieff c. Niall Ferguson d. Donald Rumsfeld
54. According to the passage, which statement is true about neocons?
a. They are overt supporters of the ideas of the American empire
b. Transformation of Afghanistan and Iraq is the beginning of a desirable process
c. The neocons' opinion is echoed within the Bush administration though not as openly
d. All of the above
a. They are overt supporters of the ideas of the American empire
b. Transformation of Afghanistan and Iraq is the beginning of a desirable process
c. The neocons' opinion is echoed within the Bush administration though not as openly
d. All of the above
55. According to the passage the author implies
a. there is no alternative to American leadership
b. there is an American imperialism in the offing
c. Only Americans can restore order to this chaos
d. None of the above
a. there is no alternative to American leadership
b. there is an American imperialism in the offing
c. Only Americans can restore order to this chaos
d. None of the above
Happy CATing 
P.S -(*) Indicates a new Para 
RC OF THE DAY 2/04/2013
C
C
B
D
B
D
B
OAs RC of the Day 2nd april 😁
49. c
The author opens the passage with the question about the shelf life of an idea. The rest of the passage talks about how the idea of the American empire has been prevalent for some time and ends the para saying “..but the ideas…too much in it”. He then goes on to mention the vested interests. This is most in agreement with option (c) and is correct. The rest of the choices are not corroborated by the passage.
50. c
The third Para in the passage talks about “while…and turn to more pacific pursuits”. This means the Western allies are not on the same wavelength when it comes to use of technological prowess for military purposes. Hence, choice (c) is correct.
51. b
The latter part of the fifth para mentions this – “The President's instincts…. entanglements” and further “September 11th …..strong states”. This makes choice (b) correct.
52. d
The answer lies towards the end of the sixth para where the author talks about Mr. Ignatieff. “Many like…of the West”. Further while talking about Mr. Ferguson “What the British…. ruling power”. This rules out choice (d), which is not mentioned and is the correct answer.
53. d
The sixth passage mentions the views of Mr. Ignatieff, Mr. Cooper and Mr. Ferguson. Mr. Rumsfeld has been mentioned as a covert supporter of imperialism but his statement “ We're not imperialistic”, means choice (d) is the answer.
54. d
Para seven mentions points choices (a) and (b). Choice (c) is inferred from the statement “If Mr. Bush…embarrassment”. This means choice (d) is the answer.
55. d
The views presented in (a), (b) and (c) are not the author's.
Happy CATing 👍
Ye thread dead ho gyi New version switch hote hi 
Okay I'm Back 
happy Solving happy CATing 
👍
👍Hi, can neone suggest a good book for RC.
RC Of the Day 16/04/2013 😁
*What quality of justice is handed down in The Hague? The court draws its practices from both the Anglo Saxon adversarial system and the Continental inquisitorial tradition. The judges run the show, presiding over cases and hearing appeals (there are no juries, because, as an annual report explains, 'This Tribunal does not need to shackle itself' with the 'ancient trial-by-jury system') But with little precedent to guide them, the judges have had to make up the rules as they have gone along. As at Nuremberg and Tokyo, many traditional procedural safeguards have been dispensed with. There is no ban on second or third-hand 'hearsay' evidence, for example, because it is argued, judges are better equipped than juries to weigh the merits of such testimony. The troubling upshot of this, says Michael Scharf, a formed State Department official, has been that 'over ninety per cent' of the evidence cited comes from hearsay sources.
*
The judge-made Rule 61 has also aroused concern. The tribunal is not permitted to conduct trials in absentia, in recognition of the controversy practices that amount to the same thing. Rule 61, which can be invoked if a Balkan government refuses to turn someone in to The Hague, allows prosecutors to present highlights of their case against the accused in their absence, in the hope that the bad publicity will compel the authorities to hand them over. This practice is tantamount to a mini-trial in absentia, but worse, because defence lawyers are banished from the courtroom (on one occasion, lawyer Igor Pantelic was instructed to hear out accusations against his client, Radovan Karadzic, from the public gallery.)
In the push to condemn Balkan wrongdoers, the Office of the Prosecution wields considerable political influence, Its leader, Carla del Ponte, has the power to bring national leaders to book. In January 2001 she summoned Biljana Palvsic, the former President of the Bosnian Serb Republic, to The Hague; six months later she had also lined up Slobodan Milosevic. When her predecessor Louise Arbour won a case compelling the Croatian government to hand over General Tihomir Blaskic, she recalled that people in her office 'stopped whining, saying there's no political will, no one helps us', because they suddenly released that they had 'a huge amount of power'. This is reflected in the allocation of funds. The prosecution receives almost a third of the United Nation's annual sponsorship of the court ($96.4 million in total in 2001). It can also expect political and financial support from America, Britain and other Nato powers — and the moral and campaigning support of Western human rights organizations.
The defence is very much the poor relation at The Hague. In principle, the prosecution and defence should be placed on an equal footing, but this is negated, in practice, by the structure of the court, which rests on the tripod of prosecution, judges and registry. This arrangement grants the prosecution membership of a club from which the defence is expressly excluded. By the same token, prosecutors, judges and registry personnel enjoy the same privileges as UN officials, whereas defenders do not. (Lawyer Anthony D' Amato) complained that while a prosecutor was allowed to take UN flights from Belgrade to Prijedor to collect evidence against his client, he was given a small allowance and told to make his own way.) And while the prosecution has been set up with a co-ordinating office and budget, the defence does not enjoy equivalent resources. It does not get much support from governments either. Steven Kay believes that some Western politicians 'have a massive problem' discussing the defence.
The Yugoslavia tribunal has sometimes been accused of ignoring the rights of the accused, but nothing has quite matched a controversy that has dogged its sister court, the UN's International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, based in Arusha, Tanzania. On 3 November 1999, it was toppled from its human rights pedestal when the appeals chamber ordered the release of genocide suspect Jean Bosco Barayagwiza on the grounds that his 'fundamental rights were repeatedly violated'.
Barayagwiza, founder of Radio Television Libre des Mille Collines, had spent eleven months in a Cameroonian jail without being charged. When he issued a writ of habeas corpus demanding his release, the tribunal never got around to hearing it. His first court appearance came ninety-six days after his transfer to Arusha — a clear breach of his right to be seen without delay. The appeal chamber thus ruled that the prosecutor's handling of the case was 'tantamount to negligence', and that his trial would thus be a 'travesty of justice'. It ordered that Barayagwiza be released forthwith, and all charges dropped. To emphasize the seriousness of the ruling, it was tagged 'with prejudice' in order to prevent chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte from arresting and imprisoning him again. The decision was a huge blow to the prosecution.
56. Which one of these is correct with reference to The Hague and the Jury system?
a. The Jury system is not included since it is considered archaic
b. Hearsay evidence is admissible because there is no jury
c. Both a and b
d. In the situation of no rules, the jury system is dysfunctional
57. Which one of these best describes the author's attitude to the clause permitting conduct of trials in absentia?
a. Supportive b. Critical c. Optimistic d. Neutral 5
58. According to the passage, which one of these does not show the Office of the Prosecution as wielding considerable power?
a. The power vested in its leader to bring national leaders to book
b. Summons sent to Biljana Plasvic, the former President of the Bosnian Serb republic
c. Summons sent to Slobodan Milosevic
d. The employees of the Prosecution convicting General Tihomir Blaskic 59.
59.According to the passage, which one of these statements is the author most likely to agree with?
a. The inequality between the footing of the defense and prosecution is justified
b. The structure of the court is correct in putting the prosecution on a higher footing than the defense
c. The inequality between the structure of the defense and prosecution should not be present
d. The inequality is remedied by the national governments which extend preferential treatment to the defense
60. What is the reason the author regards the release of Jean Bosco as a moment that “toppled” the UN's International Criminal Tribunal?
a. The genocide suspect was released due to negligent handling of the case
b. The genocide suspect was released after being found “not guilty” due to mishandling of the evidence
c. The release of a genocide victim happened because there was no judge available for the hearing
d. The release of the genocide suspect occurred due to the “power game” between the prosecution and the defense
Happy CATing 👍
RC
Puys, I have a doubt in question no.3 Do solve the set , we can discuss the OAs
The rate at which pollen settles is dictated principally by the size and density of the grain. The slower the settlement rate, the greater the dispersal range. Numerous species reduce the density of their pollen grains through air cavities in their walls. The grains of many species quickly dehydrate after release. There is a limit, however, to the lower range of pollen size. The smaller a particle becomes, the more difficult its capture, because as airflow carrying particles sweeps past surfaces, inertia represents a principal component of the mechanism for capture. Usually considered a ―primitive‖ feature in textbooks, wind-pollination has, in fact, reappeared independently in many plant groups relatively recently in geological time. General textbooks still often give the impression that the anemophilous syndrome is rather uninteresting, often defining it mainly as a combination of negatives: a lack of nectar, scent, petals, etc. Wind pollination has traditionally been viewed as a reproductive process dominated by random events—the vagaries of the wind and weather. This view seems justified by the potential hazards a pollen grain is subject to when transported over long distances. Pollen loss through happenstance is compensated for in wind-pollinated plants to a large degree by pollen-to-ovule ratios that greatly exceed those of insect-pollinated species. And unlike the sticky pollen grains of plants pollinated by insects, the pollen grains of wind-pollinated plants are smooth and dry, to avoid clumping and precipitating, and the stigma of the female is huge, sticky, and feathery, the better to catch any floating pollen grains. Similarly, wind-pollinated plants typically evolved to grow in stands, such as pine forests, corn fields and grasslands. Indeed the wind vector is only useful in large, near-monoculture populations. However, recent research has shown that several remarkably sophisticated mechanisms for dispersal and capture are characteristic of wind-pollinated plants. Pollen release is often tied to the recognition of unambiguous environmental clues. The devices that operate to prevent self-pollination are also sometimes extremely intricate. Many species take advantage of the physics of pollen motion by generating aerodynamic environments within the immediate vicinity of their reproductive organs. Two biological features appear to be critical in this process: the density and size of the pollen grain and the morphology of the ovulate organ. The shape of the female organ creates patterns of airflow disturbances through which pollen grains travel. The obstructing organ causes airflow to separate around windward surfaces and creates turbulence along leeward surfaces as ambient wind speeds increase. Because the geometry of female organs is often species-specific, airflow disturbance patterns that are also species-specific can be generated. The speed and direction of this pattern combines with the physical properties of a species' pollen to produce a highly synergistic pattern of pollen collision on windward surfaces and sedimentation on leeward surfaces of reproductive organs. The aerodynamic consequences of this synergism 100 5can significantly increase the pollen-capture efficiency of an ovulate organ
1. In general, according to the author of the passage, pollen grains that would have the greatest dispersal range would have which of the following characteristics?
I. Small size
II. Dryness
III. Low-density
A. I only
B. I and II only
C. I and III only
D. I, II and III
E. II and III only 2.2.22
2. Which of the following is the tone of the passage, in the most part?
A. Critical B. Descriptive C. Laudatory D. Humorous E. Condescending 3.
3.Based on the information set forth in the passage, all the following mechanisms serve to reduce pollen loss in wind-pollinated plants EXCEPT:
A. retention of pollen within the male organ when weather conditions are not conducive to dispersal.
B. growth of plants in large populations with few species.
C. creation of species-specific air-flow disturbance patterns by the morphology of the ovulate organ. D. development of intricate mechanisms to prevent self-pollination.
E. high pollen-to-ovule ratios 4.
4. Based on passage information, it is reasonable to conclude that wind-pollinated plants are LEAST likely to be found:
A. in tropical rain forests of South America.
B. in the taiga and other northern European coniferous forests.
C. in the valleys of California.
D. along river banks in temperate climates
E. on the windy slopes of the Himalayas
RC for the day 18-04-2013
In days of old, seers entered a trance state and then infonned anxious seekers what kind of mood the gods were in, and whether this was an auspicious time to begin a journey, get married, or start a war. The prophets of Israel repaired to the desert and then returned to announce whether Yahweh was feeling benevolent or wrathful. Today The Market's fickle will is clarified by daily reports from Wall Street and other sensory organs of finance. Thus we can learn on a day-to-day basis that The Market is "apprehensive," "relieved," "nervous," or even at times "jubilant." On the basis of this revelation awed adepts make critical decisions about whether to buy or sell. Like one of the devouring gods of old, The Market-aptly embodied in a bull or a bear-must be fed and kept happy under all circumstances. True, at times its appetite may seem excessive-a $35 billion bailout here, a $50 billion one there-but the alternative to assuaging its hunger is too terrible to contemplate. The diviners and seers of The Market's moods are the high priests of its mysteries. To act against their admonitions is to risk excommunication and possibly damnation. Today, for example, if any government's policy vexes The Market, those responsible for the irreverence will be made to suffer. That The Market is not at all displeased by downsizing or a growing income gap, or can be gleeful about the expansion of cigarette sales to Asian young people, should not cause anyone to question its ultimate omniscience. Like Calvin's inscrutable deity, The Market may work in mysterious ways, "hid from our eyes," but ultimately it knows best. Omniscience can sometimes seem a bit intrusive. The traditional God of the Episcopal Book ofCommon Prayer is invoked as one "unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid." Like Him, The Market already knows the deepest secrets and darkest desires of our hearts-or at least would like to know them. But one suspects that divine motivation differs in these two cases. Clearly The Market wants this kind of x-ray omniscience because by probing our inmost ears and desires and then dispensing across-the-board solutions, it can further extend its reach. Like the gods of the past, whose priests offered up the fervent prayers and petitions of the people, The Market relies on its own Intermediaries: motivational researchers. Trained in the advanced art of psychology, which has long since replaced theology as the true "science of the soul," the modern heirs of the medieval confessors delve into the hidden fantasies, insecurities, and hopes of the populace.
41. The author cites the example of bailouts in the first paragraph in order to:
(1) highlight how the market is so powerful that even its excesses have to be tolerated. (2) point out the financial damage that can be caused by markets. (3) draw our attention to the fact that markets are not perfect. (4) caricature the excessive appetite of the market.
42. The examples about downsizing, growing income gap and cigarette sales are cited to highlight which of the following?
(1) The market is responsible for many of the problems that plague society. (2) The market is primarily unethical in its principles. (3) The market is now a global phenomenon. (4) The market is governed solely by economic gain.
43. Which of the following best describes the tone of the passage?
(1) caustic (2) sarcastic (3) cynical (4) antagonistic
RC - 19/04/2013
Writing with a pen or pencil on a piece of paper is becoming an infrequent activity, even for those who were once taught the rigorous rules of penmanship in grade school and hardly saw a day go by without jotting down a telephone number or a list of food items to buy at the market on the way home, and for that purpose carried with them something to write with and something to write on. In an emergency, lacking pen or notebook, they might even approach a complete stranger to ask for assistance. The kind of notebooks I'm describing are still available in stationery stores (the ones made by an outfit called Moleskine come in a variety of sizes and colours), so someone must still be scribbling in them-unless they are bought purely out of nostalgia for another time and remain unused now that they have so much competition. No question, one can use a smart phone as an aid to memory, and I do use one myself for that purpose. But I don't find them a congenial repository for anything more complicated than reminding myself to pick up a pair of pants from the cleaners or make an appointment with the cat doctor. If one has the urge to write down a complete thought, a handsome notebook gives it more class. Even a scrap of paper and a stub of a pencil are more preferable for philosophizing than typing the same words down, since writing a word out, letter by letter, is a more self-conscious process and one more likely to inspire further revisions and elaborations of that thought. Inevitably, anyone, including its owner, perusing through one of these notebooks years or even months later, is going to be puzzled or embarrassed by many of the entries, surprised by others he has forgotten (like a glorious meal in a restaurant for which he took the trouble to itemize the dishes and their ingredients), and impressed by an occasional striking passage, which, lacking the quotation marks, he is not sure whether to attribute to himself or to someone far cleverer, funnier and more articulate, whom he happened to be reading at the time. Who asked the question: Are there percentagewise more idiots in the world today than in the earlier ages of humanity? Who described a book as an autoerotic classic? Who said: Our blindness prevents us from seeing our madness? Who made the observation that all donkeys look sad? Spoke of poetry's hideous imprisonment in language? Called the United Sates an empire in a search of a graveyard? Described someone as a eulogist of torture? Likened our political system to a bordello, where our elected officials parade naked before an audience of seated generals, fundamentalist preachers and bankers? Who said: The eye knows things the mouth cannot say? I have no idea, though I suspect some of them are not mine. Or could they be? I won't be losing any sleep about their authorship, since I have many other notebooks crowded with similarly mystifying entries, and I continue to fill out new ones, day and night. Just think, if you preserve them, your grandchildren will be able to read your jewels of wisdom fifty years from now, which may prove exceedingly difficult, should you decide to confine them solely to a smart phone you purchased yesterday.
55. Why does the author feel the notebooks are a better mediurn for writing down one's thoughts when compared to electronic devices?
[1] Electronic devices are better suited for jotting down reminders for things-to-do than for writing down deeper thoughts.
[2] The physical act of writing spurs us to reflect upon and refine our thought process.
[3] Notebooks can be used anywhere unlike electronic devices like computers which need electricity. [4] Electronic device make us lax with respect to the quality of our writing.
56. Based on the passage which of the following can be inferred as the reason why the author believes that notebooks are more likely to preseiVe your thoughts for posterity than smart phones? [1] Unlike smart phones, notebooks celebrate the importance of our innermost thoughts by being used solely for that purpose.
[2] Notebooks are more likely to appeal to kids than smart phones, which will compete with future technologies for our attention.
[3) Electronic devices like smart phones are more likely to fall into disuse and be discarded when we upgrade to a new model.
[4] Technology might have changed so much that a smart phone might become obsolete.
57. Which of the following can be a suitable title for the passage?
[1] PreseiVing the Past [2]
[2]The Lost World of Notebooks [3)
[3] Take Care of Your Little Notebook
[4] Notebooks in the age of Netbooks
Can we increase number of RC's posted in 1 day?????
as Mock season is approaching it will give us good amount of practice from different sources????
p.s.-kindly tag other guys also 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃
RC-20/04/2013
Most people who work in corporations or academia have witnessed something like the following: A number of engineers are sitting together in a room, bouncing ideas off each other. Out of the discussion emerges a new concept that seems promising. Then some laptop-wielding person in the corner, having performed a quick Google search, announces that this "new" idea is, in fact, an old one-or at least vaguely similar-and has already been tried. Either it failed, or it succeeded. If it failed, then no manager who wants to keep his or her job will approve spending money trying to revive it. If it succeeded, then it's patented and entry to the market is presumed to be unattainable, since the first people who thought of it will have "first-mover advantage" and will have created "barriers to entry." The number of seemingly promising ideas that have been crushed in this way must number in the millions. What if that person in the corner hadn't been able to do a Google search? It might have required weeks of library research to uncover evidence that the idea wasn't entirely new-and after a long and toilsome slog through many books, tracking down many references, some relevant, some not. When the precedent was finally unearthed, it might not have seemed like such a direct precedent after all. There might be reasons why it would be worth taking a second crack at the idea, perhaps hybridizing it with innovations from other fields. In the pre-net era, managers were forced to make decisions based on what they knew to be limited information. Today, by contrast, data flows to managers in real time from countless sources that could not even be imagined a couple of generations ago, and powerful computers process, organize, and display the data in ways that are as far beyond the hand-drawn graph paper plots of the past. In a world where decision-makers are so close to being omniscient, it's easy to see risk as a quaint artifact of a primitive and dangerous past. The illusion of eliminating uncertainty from corporate decision-making is not merely a question of management style or personal preference. In the legal environment that has developed around publicly traded corporations, managers are strongly discouraged from shouldering any risks that they know about-or, in the opinion of some future jury, should have known about-even if they have a hunch that the gamble might pay off in the long run. There is no such thing as "long run" in industries driven by the next quarterly report. The possibility of some innovation making money is just that-a mere possibility that will not have time to materialize before the subpoenas from minority shareholder lawsuits begin to roll in. Today's belief in ineluctable certainty is the true innovation-killer of our age. In this environment, the best an audacious manager can do is to develop small improvements to existing systems climbing the hill, as it were, toward a local maximum, trimming fat, eking out the occasional tiny innovation. Any strategy that involves crossing a valley-accepting short-term losses to reach a higher hill in the distance-will soon be brought to a halt by the demands of a system that celebrates short-term gains and tolerates stagnation, but condemns anything else as failure. In short, a world where big stuff can never get done.
41. The author cites which of the following as the reason why in the days before Google people would have taken a second shot at an idea that has been tried before?
[1] People would unknowingly have added to the original idea by researching about the same.
[2] People would have explored and understood an idea and its implications more thoroughly.
[3) Researching an idea might lead them to innovation in other fields that might be useful.
[4] People would not have given up an idea easily after investing so much time researching it.
42. According to the passage, which of the following is/are the reason[s] behind our aversion to risk?
I. The belief that with the right amount and kind of information, uncertainty can be eliminated.
II. The decrease in the time available for innovation since companies' fortunes fluctuate with quarterly results.
III. Legal responsibility towards shareholders since risk entails the possibility of a loss.
[1] Both I and II
(2] Both II and III [3)
[3]Both I and III
[4) I, II and III
43. Which of the following would be a suitable title to the passage?
(1) Risk Aversion (3)9209
(2) Innovation of Starvation
(3)Incremental Innovation
(4) Fear of Failure
RC-20-04-2012
That there is an irrelevant representative or descriptive element in many great works of art is not in the least surprising. Representation is not of necessity baneful, and highly realistic forms may be extremely significant. Very often, however, representation is a sign of weakness in an artist. A painter too feeble to create forms that provoke more than a little aesthetic emotion will try to eke that little out by suggesting the emotions of life. To evoke the emotions of life he must use representation. Thus a man will paint an execution, and, fearing to miss with his first barrel of significant form, will try to hit with his second by raising an emotion of fear or pity. But if in the artist an inclination to play upon the emotions of life is often the sign of a flickering inspiration, in the spectator a tendency to seek, behind form, the emotions of life is a sign of defective sensibility always. It means that his aesthetic emotions are weak or, at any rate, imperfect. Before a work of art people who feel little or no emotion for pure form find themselves at a loss. They are deaf men at a concert. They know that they are in the presence of something great, but they lack the power of apprehending it. They know that they ought to feel for it a tremendous emotion, but it happens that the particular kind of emotion it can raise is one that they can feel hardly or not at all. And so they read into the forms of the work those facts and ideas for which they are capable of feeling emotion, and feel for them the emotions that they can feel—the ordinary emotions of life. When confronted by a picture, instinctively they refer back its forms to the world from which they came. They treat created form as though it were imitated form, a picture as though it were a photograph. Instead of going out on the stream of art into a new world of aesthetic experience, they turn a sharp corner and come straight home to the world of human interests. For them the significance of a work of art depends on what they bring to it; no new thing is added to their lives, only the old material is stirred. A good work of visual art carries a person who is capable of appreciating it out of life into ecstasy: to use art as a means to the emotions of life is to use a telescope for reading the news. You will notice that people who cannot feel pure aesthetic emotions remember pictures by their subjects; whereas people who can, as often as not, have no idea what the subject of a picture is. They have never noticed the representative element, and so when they discuss pictures they talk about the shapes of forms and the relations and quantities of colours. Often they can tell by the quality of a single line whether or not a man is a good artist. They are concerned only with lines and colours, their relations and quantities and qualities; but from these they win an emotion more profound and far more sublime than any that can be given by the description of facts and ideas.
31. According to the passage, an artist whose painting of an event looks like a photograph is likely to be
(a) a great artist.
(b) a flawed artist.
(c) a plagiarist.
(d) someone who cannot be called an artist.
32. ”Deaf men at a concert” suggests that the author
(a) believes that some people cannot appreciate art because they try too hard.
(b) believes that some people do not understand art and aesthetics.
(c) believes that concerts can be appreciated only by experts.
(d) believes that the common man cannot understand or appreciate art.
33. According to the passage, a person who cannot remember the subject of a picture is likely to be (a) capable of really appreciating art and feeling pure aesthetic emotions.
(b) not capable of really appreciating art and feeling pure aesthetic emotions.
(c) a deaf man at a concert.
(d) a person who uses a telescope to read the news
RC of The Day 20/04/2013 😁 Interesting one
QUESTION 1: Let's start small. Explain the future.
ANSWER 1: Today, the PC is used as a primary tool for creating documents of many types; word processing, spreadsheets, presentations. But by and large, when you want to find a document, archive it or transmit it, you don't really use the electronic form. You get it out on paper and send it. In the coming information age, access to documents, broadly defined, will be done electronically, just by traveling across a network that people now call an information highway. It's also called digital convergence, a term popularized by John Sculley, and information at your fingertips, a term I use a lot. I'm quite content this will happen. I could be wrong about how quickly.
QUESTION 2 How will Microsoft participate in the information highway?
ANSWER 2: The current interactive user interface doesn't consist of much. It doesn't have the shared information and the reviews, the niceties that will make people want the systems. Microsoft is spending a lot of money to build software that we think is better. It will run in the box in your home that controls your set as you make choices. We're involved in creating the much bigger piece of software at the other end of the fiber-optic cable, the program that runs on the computer, which stores the movie data base, the directory and everything else.
QUESTION 3: The mainframe?
ANSWER 3: The successor to the mainframe. But its speed and data capacity go beyond what's now used to do airline reservations or credit card databases. Watching a movie doesn't require much computer power. You're just picking the information off the magnetic disc, putting it on the wire and sending it. But if you're synthesizing a 3-D scene, kind of a virtual reality thing, with 20 people in a multiplayer game, then you have some computation. Or say the President is making a speech.
QUESTION 4: How will being able to respond directly to the president alter our system of government?
ANSWER 4: The idea of representative democracy will change. Today, we claim we don't use direct democracy because it would be impractical to poll everybody on every issue. The truth is that we use representative democracy because we want to get an above-average group to think through problems and make choices that, in the short term, might not be obvious, even if they are to everybody's benefit over the long term.
QUESTION 5: In your pocket?
ANSWER 5: It's a futuristic device unlike today's personal digital assistants. Instead of using keys to enter your house, the Wallet PC identifies that you're allowed to go into a certain door and it happens electronically. Instead of having tickets to the theater, your Wallet PC will digitally prove that you paid. When you want to board a plane, instead of showing your tickets to 29 people, you just use this. You have digital certificates. Digital money. It has a global positioning thing in it, so you can see a map of where you are and where you might want to go. It's our vision of the small, portable PC of, say, five years from now.
QUESTION 6: Why do some of your critics say you and by extension, Microsoft are not innovative, that you are evolutionary rather than revolutionary? Here's a quote: Bill is just a systems guy who has been able to fund a wider range of me-too applications on the basis of one extremely lucrative product MS-DOS practically handed to him ten years ago by IBM. All he's done since is hang in.
ANSWER 6: DOS has been as much as 25 percent of our profit. But believe me, those profits go to the bottom line. If the company weren't profitable you could say, Ah, DOS, they're using it to fund the other stuff. The fact is, everything is very profitable here. And we're doing so many innovative things now, even my harshest critics will never say that again.
QUESTION 7: Perhaps. But why did they say it in the first place that, along with vision, luck, timing and an unrelenting need to win, you've succeeded by picking up the fumbles of your competitors? You were given the right to license MS-DOS by IBM because it thought the future was in hardware, not in software or operating systems.
ANSWER 7: [Stands, paces] So here's our management meeting: Well, I don't know what we're supposed to do. Has anybody fumbled anything recently? I mean, come on! Hey, Digital Research: I hear they're fumbling something. Let's go do something there. What was the first microcomputer software company? Microsoft. The very first! Who were we imitating when we dropped out of school and started Microsoft? When we did the Altair BASIC? When, early on, we did CD-ROM conferences and talked about all this multimedia software? And who were we imitating when we did Microsoft Word? When we did Excel? It's just nonsense.
QUESTION 8: And now Windows is so popular in the stand-alone-PC market that you've blown away competitors like IBM's OS/2 and HP's New Wave. Has Windows won?
ANSWER 8: If you define the term narrowly enough, you could say yes. Windows has a substantial share of the volume on DOS-based PC's. But we keep doing versions. And despite its current success, unless we keep the price low and keep improving the product dramatically, then it will be supplanted. Of course, we think there are enough improvements in the next version, 4.0, code-named Chicago, to extend Windows success another couple of years. And then we'll have a version after that.
QUESTION 9: Do you have an unfair advantage over your competition because your systems people who do things like MS-DOS and Windows exchange data freely with your applications programmers, thereby breaching the Chinese wall, the ethical boundary that's supposed to separate them? Its been an oft- repeated charge.
ANSWER 9: [Strongly] Chinese wall is not a term we've ever used. And companies often have more than one product. Kodak makes film and cameras, and those two parts of the company can work together. IBM makes computers, some peripherals, and software and applications. Ford not only makes cars, it makes repair parts. The day it thinks of a new car, it doesn't call in all the other repair-parts companies to build those repair parts. We're actually more open than any other company that has multiple products. We take lots of affirmative steps to help other companies. Naturally, our applications group is the most committed to Windows. In the early days they didn't hesitate when I said, Hey, we're going to do Windows. Other companies did, even though we begged them to write for Windows. That gave us a leadership position, which we've continued to increase over the years.
QUESTION 10: Let's talk about the recent government investigations. Last year the Federal Trade Commission concluded a three-year look into Microsoft's affairs. During that time many of your competitors complained about alleged Microsoft strong-arm business tactics and monopolistic practices. After two votes the FTC decided not to proceed with any action. Now the Justice Department has picked up the ball. Is Justice asking questions different from the FTC's?
ANSWER 10: It's the same stuff.
QUESTION 11: Why don't you just refer them to the FTC files?
ANSWER 11: That's millions of pieces of paper.
QUESTION 12: Did these investigations take you by surprise?
ANSWER 12: At some point, with the kind of success we've had, it's both expected and appropriate for one government agency to review what's going on in the industry. The fact that we have a second one doing it, sort of double jeopardy, is unprecedented. But fine, we'll go through another one. It may take many years.
QUESTION 13: Are you hoping that it takes many years?
ANSWER 13: No. It would be better if it were over soon.
QUESTION 14: What was the toughest part of testifying before the FTC?
ANSWER 14: No real problem. I was quoted once. I think the quote was misinterpreted as answering the question, What's the worst case in your dealings with the FTC? with, Well, if I trip on steps when I'm walking in and break my head open, that's the worst case.
QUESTION 15: Does the FTC have to go through all that trouble to understand your industry?
ANSWER 15: Yeah. It takes some time. But if it hadn't looked at the software industry, then the status quo still would have been maintained.
QUESTION 16: This also happened to IBM and AT&T;, with the latter being broken up. Do you fear that?
ANSWER 16: No. The government decides when something's important enough to look into. Then it allows all your competitors to call it up and say, Please hold them back this way. Please make it harder for them to create good products in this way. Please tell them not to compete with us anymore. Microsoft makes a little mouse, so we had these guys who make mice saying, Why don't you tell them not to do mice. They do Windows and they do mice. Some guy who does Arabic software layers complained that he didn't like the way we were doing Arabic software layers. The government looks at all the mud that gets thrown up on the wall. We did have one competitor who launched a paranoid political attack against us with the FTC in an attempt to persuade the government to help it compete.
Questions
25. According to the passage, which one of these is not a possible attribute listed for the Wallet PC?
a. It will identify you and would facilitate your entry into your house without the keys
b. It will allow you to go to a movie theater without buying the ticket on the spot by proving that you've paid
c. It will print money as and when you want it through a digital process
d. It will utilize digital money to facilitate transactions 26.
26.With which of these statements is the interviewee likely to agree?
a. Microsoft was an evolutionary company but it has now become a revolutionary one
b. 25 % of Microsoft's revenues come from DOS and that is a lesson for the organization c. The fact that DOS is the main revenue maker for Microsoft is now under attack
d. 25 % of Microsoft's revenues come from DOS but that is used to fund innovations 27.
27.What is the interviewee's tone when he cites the instance of the Microsoft management meeting?
a. Humorous b. Sarcastic c. Pedantic d. Critical
28. What is the meaning of the phrase “Chinese wall” as mentioned in the passage?
a. Trade embargo on IT products enforced between China and the US
b. Ethical boundary between the software programmers and marketers
c. Ethical boundary between people making different products by the same company
d. The Chinese trade policy that does not allow Wallet PCs to be freely exported 29.
29.Which one of these statements is not mentioned with respect to the FTC?
a. It conducted investigation into AT & T and broke the company
b. It conducted investigation into IBM and AT&T;, and broke them up
c. It takes some time to understand the industry in which the company it is investigating operates
d. The kind of questions that it is asking Microsoft are the same as the Justice Department
Happy CATing 👍
RC-21/04/2013
The word "modern" in its Latin form "modemus" was used for the first time in the late 5th century in order to distinguish the present, which had become officially Christian, from the Roman and pagan past. With varying content, the term "modern" again and again expresses the consciousness of an epoch that relates itself to the past of antiquity, in order to view itself as the result of a transition from the old to the new. Some writers restrict this concept of"modernity" to the Renaissance, but this is historically too narrow. People considered themselves modern during the period of Charles the Great, in the 12th century, as well as in France of the late 17th century, at the time of the famous "Querelle des Anciens et des Modernes." This is to say, the term "modern" appeared and reappeared exactly during those periods in Europe when the con-sciousness of a new epoch formed itself through a renewed relationship to the ancients whenever, moreover, antiquity was considered a model to be recovered through some kind of imitation. The spell, which the classics of the ancient world cast upon the spirit of later times, was first dissolved with the ideals of the French Enlightenment. Specifically, the idea of being "modem" by looking back to the ancients changed with the belief, inspired by modern science, in the infinite progress of knowledge and in the infinite advance towards social and moral betterment. Another form of modernist consciousness was formed in the wake of this change. The romantic modernist sought to oppose the antique ideals of the classicists; he looked for a new historical epoch, and found it in the idealized Middle Ages. However, this new ideal age, established early in the 19th century, did not remain a fixed ideal. In the course of the 19th century, there emerged out of this romantic spirit that radicalized consciousness of modernity, which freed itself from all specific historical ties. This most recent modernism simply makes an abstract opposition between tradition and the present; and we are, in a way, still the contemporaries of that kind of aesthetic modernity, which first appeared in the midst of the 19th century. Since then, the distinguishing mark of works, which count as modern, is the "new." The characteristic of such works is "the new" which will be overcome and made obsolete through the novelty of the next style. But, while that which is merely "stylish" will soon become out-moded, that which is modern preserves a secret tie to the classical. Of course, whatever can survive time has always been considered to be a classic. But the emphatically modem document no longer borrows this power of being a classic from the authority of a past epoch; instead, a modem work becomes a classic because it has once been authentically modern. Our sense of modernity creates its own self enclosed canons of being classic. In this sense we speak, e.g., in view of the history of modern art, of classical modernity. The relation between "modern" and "classical" has definitely lost a fixed historical reference.
58. Which of the following statements can be validated from the first paragraph of the passage?
{1) The concept of modernity, as understood now, has a purely religious origin.
{2) The term modern owes its lineage to the Renaissance period, which was characterised by radical changes in the intellectual as well as social scenario.
{3) The perception of modernity is a relative one and the term is applied to those eras in history when the antiquity was obliterated and something new was ushered in.
{4) The term modern refers to those junctures in history when a period marked by radical changes and new developments recaptured and remodeled the spirit of the past.
59. Which of the following is correct according to the passage?
I. Modern science has brought in its wake a more progressive outlook.
II. The romantic modernists were disillusioned by the established conventions in art and found refuge in the Middle ages.
Ill.The 19th century was an era of breaking free from all historical ties and establishing a new age of modernity.
[1) Only I [2) Only II [3) Only III [4) I, II and III
60. From a reading of the passage, we can say that the author is:
(1) disparaging modernists for actually not bringing in anything new.
(2) eulogizing the modernists for developing new styles based on earlier models.
(3) stating his belief that a truly modern work of art incorporates styles that are always valued.
(4) expressing his views about modernism in a neutral and matter-of-fact manner.