1.

A fossil recently discovered in Marlandia, a chain of islands, proves that a present-day reptile
indigenous to Marlandia is descended from an ancient reptile species that lived on the islands
millions of years ago. The finding is surprising since the ancestral species was thought to have
become extinct when Marlandia was submerged in a global sea-level rise twenty-five million
years ago. Based on the new discovery, many scientists have concluded that the sea-level rise
in question left at least part of Marlandia unsubmerged.

Which of the following would, if true, provide the most additional support for the scientists'
conclusion?

A. Reptiles in Marlandia have adapted to many environmental changes since the sea-level rise.
B. Marlandia separated from a much larger landmass about eighty million years ago.
C. No fossils that prove the relationship between the present-day species and the ancestral
species have been found anywhere other than Marlandia.
D. The present-day reptiles are able to thrive on very tiny Marlandia islands.
E. The ancestral reptiles could not have survived long at sea.

2. Recent observations suggest that small, earthlike worlds form a very low percentage of the
planets orbiting stars in the galaxy other than the sun. Of over two hundred planets that
astronomers have detected around other stars, almost all are hundreds of times larger and
heavier than the earth and orbit stars much smaller than the sun.

Which of the following, if true, would most weaken the above justification of the claim that
earthlike worlds form a low percentage of the total number of planets?

A. There are millions of planets orbiting stars around which astronomers have not attempted to
detect planets.
B. The best current astronomical theories predict that almost all planets around other stars are
probably hundreds of times larger than the earth.
C. A planet orbiting a star similar to the sun would be more likely to be earthlike in size than
would a planet orbiting a much smaller star.
D. The smaller a planet is relative to the star it orbits, the more difficult it is for astronomers to
detect.
E. The observations would have detected any small, earthlike worlds orbiting the stars around
which larger planets have been detected.

3. Mansour: We should both plan to change some of our investments from coal companies to
less polluting energy companies. And here’s why. Consumers are increasingly demanding
nonpolluting energy, and energy companies are increasingly supplying it.

Therese: I'm not sure we should do what you suggest. As demand for nonpolluting energy
increases relative to supply, its price will increase, and then the more polluting energy will cost
relatively less. Demand for the cheaper, dirtier energy forms will then increase, as will the stock
values of the companies that produce them.

Therese responds to Mansour’s proposal by doing which of the following?

A. Advocating that consumers use less expensive forms of energy

B. Implying that not all uses of coal for energy are necessarily polluting
C. Disagreeing with Mansour’s claim that consumers are increasingly demanding nonpolluting
energy
D. Suggesting that leaving their existing energy investments unchanged could be the better
course
E. Providing a reason to doubt Mansour’s assumption that supply of nonpolluting energy will
increase in line with demand

4. Scientist: In an experiment, dogs had access to a handle they could pull to release food into
a nearby enclosure that contained a familiar dog and nothing else, contained an unfamiliar dog
and nothing else, or was empty. The dogs typically released more food to the familiar dog than
to the unfamiliar dog. This suggests that dogs are more motivated to help other dogs they know
than to help unfamiliar dogs.

The scientist's argument would be most strengthened if it were true that, in the experiment, the
dogs with access to the handle tended to release more food when

A. the behavior was being encouraged by a familiar person than when it was being encouraged
by an unfamiliar person
B. the enclosure was empty than when it contained an unfamiliar dog
C. An unfamiliar dog in the enclosure was displaying hostility toward them than when an
unfamiliar dog in the enclosure appeared friendly
D. a dog in the enclosure appeared uninterested in food already released into the enclosure than
when it appeared interested in that food
E. a familiar dog was in the enclosure than when a familiar dog was visible but the enclosure
was empty

5. Columnist: Metro City has a lower percentage of residents with humanities degrees than any
other city of comparable size in our nation. Nationwide, university graduates generally earn
more than people who are not university graduates, but those with humanities degrees typically
earn less than do graduates with degrees in other disciplines. So the main reason Metro City
has higher income per capita than any other city of comparable size in our nation must be its
low percentage of residents with humanities degrees.

Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the columnist's argument?

A. Metro City residents with humanities degrees have higher income per capita than do people
with humanities degrees in any other city of comparable size in the nation.
B. The percentage of residents with university degrees is lower in Metro City than in any other
city of comparable size in the nation.
C. Nationwide, university graduates without humanities degrees typically earn more than do
individuals without university degrees.
D. Metro City residents with degrees outside the humanities have per capita income no higher
than the per capita income of such residents of other cities of comparable size in the nation.
E. In Metro City, a lower proportion of university graduates have humanities degrees than in
any other city of comparable size in the nation.

6. Most geologists believe oil results from chemical transformations of hydrocarbons derived
from organisms buried under ancient seas. Suppose, instead, that oil actually results from
bacterial action on other complex hydrocarbons that are trapped within the earth. As is well
known, the volume of these hydrocarbons exceeds that of buried organisms. Therefore, our oil
reserves would be greater than most geologists believe.
Which of the following, if true, gives the strongest support to the argument above about our oil
reserves?

A. Most geologists think optimistically about the earth’s reserves of oil.

B. Most geologists have performed accurate chemical analyses on previously discovered oil
reserves.
C. Ancient seas are buried within the earth at many places where fossils are abundant.
D. The only bacteria yet found in oil reserves could have leaked down drill holes from surface
contaminants.
E. Chemical transformations reduce the volume of buried hydrocarbons derived from
organisms by roughly the same proportion as bacterial action reduces the volume of other
complex hydrocarbons.

7. In the United States, injuries to passengers involved in automobile accidents are typically
more severe than in Europe, where laws require a different kind of safety belt. It is clear from
this that the United States needs to adopt more stringent standards for safety belt design to
protect automobile passengers better.

Each of the following, if true, weakens the argument above EXCEPT:

A. Europeans are more likely to wear safety belts than are people in the United States.
B. Unlike United States drivers, European drivers receive training in how best to react in the
event of an accident to minimize injuries to themselves and to their passengers.
C. Cars built for the European market tend to have more sturdy construction than do cars built
for the United States market.
D. Automobile passengers in the United States have a greater statistical chance of being
involved in an accident than do passengers in Europe.
E. States that have recently begun requiring the European safety belt have experienced no
reduction in the average severity of injuries suffered by passengers in automobile accidents.

8. The more frequently employees take time to exercise during working hours each week, the
fewer sick days they take. Even employees who exercise only once a week during working
hours take less sick time than those who do not exercise. Therefore, if companies started fitness
programs, the absentee rate in those companies would decrease significantly.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?

A. Employees who exercise during working hours occasionally fall asleep for short periods of
time after they exercise.
B. Employees who are frequently absent are the least likely to cooperate with or to join a
corporate fitness program.
C. Employees who exercise only once a week in their company’s fitness program usually also
exercise after work.
D. Employees who exercise in their company’s fitness program use their working time no more
productively than those who do not exercise.
E. Employees who exercise during working hours take slightly longer lunch breaks than
employees who do not exercise.

9. The contingency-fee system, which allows lawyers and their clients to agree that the lawyer
will be paid only in the event of success, does not increase the number of medical malpractice
lawsuits brought against doctors. As attorneys must cover the costs for their time and research,
they want to be assured that any medical malpractice case they accept on a contingency-fee
basis has substantial merit. Consequently, attorneys turn away many people who come to see
them, for lack of a good case.

The argument above is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it fails to

A. specify the criteria attorneys use to judge the merits of a medical malpractice case
B. consider whether, in the absence of a contingency-fee option, even people with meritorious
cases are much less likely to initiate litigation if they believe they might incur large legal fees
C. note whether, in successful medical malpractice lawsuits, the average monetary award after
legal costs have been deducted is less under contingency-fee arrangements than otherwise
D. consider the effect of the contingency-fee system on the number of lawsuits sought for
reasons other than medical malpractice
E. acknowledge the rising cost of medical malpractice insurance

10. Errors in the performance of repetitive or “boring” tasks—often attributed to a momentary

lapse in concentration—can be serious in such activities as flying a passenger aircraft. Is there
any method that would provide warning of such lapses—for example by monitoring brain
activity? Researchers scanned the brains of volunteers performing a repetitive task. When the
tasks were being performed correctly, the volunteers’ brains showed activity in cognitive-
processing regions. However, these regions became less active several seconds before some
errors were made, and another brain region, region X, became active. The researchers
concluded that the monitoring of region X could provide warning of an impending error.

Which of the following, if true, most supports the researchers’ conclusion?

A. The cognitive effort required in performing a repetitive task diminishes significantly with
increases in the number of repetitions of the task performance.
B. Once a mistake was made and detected, brain activity in regions associated with cognitive
effort sometimes increased.
C. Other research found that whenever significant activity occurs in region X, it is generally
with repetitive tasks, soon before an error occurs.
D. The diminution of brain activity in cognitive processing regions and the increase of activity
in region X began at least 5 seconds before the errors occurred.
E. Reduced activity in brain regions associated with cognitive effort was accompanied by
increased activity in regions that become active during sleep.

11. Advertisement: Our competitors’ computer salespeople are paid according to the value of
the products they sell, so they have a financial incentive to convince you to buy the most
expensive units—whether you need them or not. But here at Comput-o-Mart, our salespeople
are paid a salary that is not dependent on the value of their sales, so they won’t try to tell you
what to buy. That means when you buy a computer at Comput-o-Mart, you can be sure you’re
not paying for computing capabilities you don’t need.

Which of the following would, if true, most weaken the advertisement’s reasoning?

A. Some less-expensive computers actually have greater computing power than more expensive
ones.
B. Salespeople who have a financial incentive to make sales generally provide more attentive
service than do other salespeople.
C. Extended warranties purchased for less-expensive computers can cost nearly as much as the
purchase price of the computer.
D. Comput-o-Mart is open only limited hours, which makes it more difficult for many shoppers
to buy computers there than at other retail stores.
E. Comput-o-Mart does not sell any computers that support only basic computing.

12. Sasha: It must be healthy to follow a diet high in animal proteins and fats. Human beings
undoubtedly evolved to thrive on such a diet, since our prehistoric ancestors ate large amounts
of meat.

Jamal: But our ancestors also exerted themselves intensely in order to obtain this food, whereas
most human beings today are much less physically active.

Jamal responds to Sasha by doing which of the following?

A. Refuting her statement about our prehistoric ancestors

B. Bringing forth a piece of information for the purpose of suggesting that she should qualify
her main conclusion
C. Citing additional evidence that indirectly supports her conclusion and suggests a way to
broaden it
D. Questioning whether her assumption about our prehistoric ancestors permits any conclusions
about human evolution
E. Expressing doubts about whether most human beings today are as healthy as our prehistoric
ancestors were

13. Most of Western music since the Renaissance has been based on a seven-note scale known
as the diatonic scale, but when did the scale originate? A fragment of a bone flute excavated at
a Neanderthal campsite has four holes, which are spaced in exactly the right way for playing
the third through sixth notes of a diatonic scale. The entire flute must surely have had more
holes, and the flute was made from a bone that was long enough for these additional holes to
have allowed a complete diatonic scale to be played. Therefore, the Neanderthals who made
the flute probably used a diatonic musical scale.

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

A. The first is presented as evidence that is confirmed by data presented elsewhere in the
argument given; the second states a hypothesis that this evidence is used to undermine.
B. The first is an opinion, for which no supporting evidence is presented in the argument given,
that is used to support the main conclusion of the argument; the second is that main conclusion.
C. The first describes a discovery as undermining the position against which the argument is
directed; the second states the main conclusion of the argument.
D. The first is a preliminary conclusion drawn on the basis of evidence presented elsewhere in
the argument given; the second is the main conclusion that this preliminary conclusion supports.
E. The first provides evidence to support the main conclusion of the argument; the second states
a subsidiary conclusion that is drawn in order to support the main conclusion stated earlier in
the argument.

14. Consumer advocate: In our nation, food packages must list the number of calories per food
serving. But most of the serving sizes used are misleadingly small and should be updated. The
serving sizes were set decades ago, when our nation’s people typically ate smaller portions than
they do today, and, as a result, people eating typical portions today consume more calories than
the package labeling appears to indicate that they will. It is time package labeling reflected
these changes.

Which of the following is the main point of the consumer advocate’s argument?

A. The number of calories per serving listed on most food packages in the consumer advocate’
s nation is misleadingly small.
B. Most serving sizes used on food packages in the consumer advocate’s nation should be
increased to reflect today’s typical portion sizes.
C. People eating typical portions today often consume far more calories than the number of
calories per serving listed on food packages in the consumer advocate’s nation.
D. The serving sizes used on food packages in the consumer advocate’s nation were set when
people ate smaller portions on average than they do today.
E. The use of misleadingly small serving sizes on food packages in the consumer advocate’s
nation probably leads many people to consume more calories than they otherwise would.

15. The lobbyists argued that because there is no statistical evidence that breathing other people’
s tobacco smoke increases the incidence of heart disease or lung cancer in healthy nonsmokers,
legislation banning smoking in workplaces cannot be justified on health grounds.

Of the following, which is the best criticism of the argument reported above?

A. It ignores causes of lung cancer other than smoking.

B. It neglects the damaging effects of smoke-filled air on nonsmokers who are not healthy.
C. It fails to mention the roles played by diet, exercise, and heredity in the development of heart
disease.
D. It does not consider the possibility that nonsmokers who breathe smoke-filled air at work
may become more concerned about their health.
E. It does not acknowledge that nonsmokers, even those who breathe smoke-filled air at work,
are in general healthier than smokers.

16. Suriland cannot both export wheat and keep bread plentiful and affordable in Suriland.
Accordingly, Suriland’s wheat farmers are required to sell their crop to the government, which
pays them a dollar per bushel less than the price on the world market. Therefore, if the farmers
could sell their wheat on the world market, they would make a dollar per bushel more, less any
additional transportation and brokerage costs they would have to pay.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?

A. Suriland’s wheat farmers have higher production costs than do farmers in many other wheat-
producing countries.
B. Sale of a substantial proportion of Suriland’s wheat crop on the world market would probably
depress the price of wheat.
C. The transportation and brokerage costs that Suriland’s farmers would face if they sold their
wheat outside Suriland could amount to almost a dollar per bushel.
D. Suriland is surrounded by countries that do not import any wheat.
E. The price of a bushel of wheat on the world market occasionally drops below the average
cost of producing a bushel of wheat in Suriland.
17. City resident: These new digital electronic billboards should be banned for light pollution
since they are much too bright.

Outdoor advertising spokesperson: No, that’s not true. Testing with a sophisticated light meter
shows that at night they throw off less light than traditional billboards that are reflectively lit.
Your mistaken perception that they are brighter comes from looking directly at the light
source—the screen itself.

The underlying strategy of the spokesperson’s response to the resident is most analogous to the
underlying strategy of which of the following?

A. A doctor dismisses a patient’s claim to have had a heart attack, citing a cardiac enzyme blood
test.
B. A politician rejects an accusation of perjury by denying the credibility of witness testimony.
C. An insurance agent rejects a claim, on the grounds that there is insufficient evidence to
support the claimant’s testimony.
D. An investigator casts doubt on the results of a lie detector, citing the subject’s report of illness
during the test.
E. A psychologist treats a mental illness by encouraging a patient to abandon inconsistent
beliefs.

18. In a certain rural area, people normally dispose of household garbage by burning it. Burning
household garbage releases toxic chemicals known as dioxins. New conservation regulations
will require a major reduction in packaging—specifically, paper and cardboard packaging—for
products sold in the area. Since such packaging materials contain dioxins, one result of the
implementation of the new regulations will surely be a reduction in dioxin pollution in the area.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?

A. Garbage containing large quantities of paper and cardboard can easily burn hot enough for
some portion of the dioxins that it contains to be destroyed.
B. Packaging materials typically make up only a small proportion of the weight of household
garbage, but a relatively large proportion of its volume.
C. Per-capita sales of products sold in paper and cardboard packaging are lower in rural areas
than in urban areas.
D. The new conservation regulations were motivated by a need to cut down on the consumption
of paper products in order to bring the harvesting of timber into a healthier balance with its
regrowth.
E. It is not known whether the dioxins released by the burning of household garbage have been
the cause of any serious health problems.

19. Banker: My country’s laws require every bank to invest in its local community by lending
money to local businesses, providing mortgages for local home purchases, and so forth. This is
intended to revitalize impoverished local communities. But it is clear that the law will soon
entirely cease to serve its intended purpose. An increasing number of banks incorporated in our
country exist solely on the Internet and are not physically located in any specific community.

The banker’s argument is most vulnerable to criticism on which of the following grounds?

A. It overlooks the possibility that most banks that are physically located in specific
communities in the banker’s country are not located in impoverished communities.
B. It takes for granted that a law that ceases to serve its originally intended purpose no longer
serves any other beneficial purpose, either.
C. It confuses a condition that would, if present, be likely to produce a given effect, with a
condition that would probably be the cause if that effect were present.
D. It overlooks the possibility that even if there is a strong correlation between two phenomena,
neither of those phenomena are necessarily causally responsible for the other.
E. It fails to adequately address the possibility that an increase in the number of banks of one
kind in the banker’s country will not lead to the complete elimination of banks of another kind.

20. A country ’ s Aeronautics Board (AB) employs inspectors who make routine annual
inspections of all aircraft. On inspecting Azura Airlines’ airplanes in December, they reported
considerably more violations of AB rules this year, compared to a year ago. This fact explains
why Azura had more accidents this year, compared to last year.

Which of the following, if true, would cast most doubt on the conclusion in the passage?

A. Some aviation experts in other countries consider certain AB rules to be too lax and too easy
to get around.
B. Azura’s routes are no more dangerous than are those of most other airlines.
C. The AB increased the length and rigor of its inspections this year, compared to last year.
D. Prior to last year Azura had an excellent safety record with very few accidents.
E. In both years the AB report on Azura did not include violations on airplanes owned by Azura
but leased by another airline.

21. Researchers in City X recently discovered low levels of several pharmaceutical drugs in
public drinking water supplies. However, the researchers argued that the drugs in the water
were not a significant public health hazard. They pointed out that the drug levels were so low
that they could only be detected with the most recent technology, which suggested that the
drugs may have already been present in the drinking water for decades, even though they have
never had any discernible health effects.

Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the researchers’ reasoning?

A. If a drug found in drinking water is not a significant public health hazard, then its presence
in the water will not have any discernible health effects.
B. There is no need to remove low levels of pharmaceutical drugs from public drinking water
unless they present a significant public health hazard.
C. Even if a substance in drinking water is a public health hazard, scientists may not have
discerned which adverse health effects, if any, it has caused.
D. Researchers using older, less sensitive technology detected the same drugs several decades
ago in the public drinking water of a neighboring town but could find no discernible health
effects.
E. Samples of City X’s drinking water taken decades ago were tested with today’s most recent
technology, and none of the pharmaceutical drugs were found.

22. Meteorologists say that if only they could design an accurate mathematical model of the
atmosphere with all its complexities, they could forecast the weather with real precision. But
this is an idle boast, immune to any evaluation, for any inadequate weather forecast would
obviously be blamed on imperfections in the model.
Which of the following, if true, could best be used as a basis for arguing against the author’s
position that the meteorologists’ claim cannot be evaluated?

A. Certain unusual configurations of data can serve as the basis for precise weather forecasts,
even though the exact causal mechanisms are not understood.
B. Most significant gains in the accuracy of the relevant mathematical models are accompanied
by clear gains in the precision of weather forecasts.
C. Mathematical models of the meteorological aftermath of such catastrophic events as volcanic
eruptions are beginning to be constructed.
D. Modern weather forecasts for as much as a full day ahead are broadly correct about 80
percent of the time.
E. Meteorologists readily concede that the accurate mathematical model they are talking about
is not now in their power to construct.

23. Shirla: In figure skating competitions that allow amateur and professional skaters to
compete against each other, the professionals are bound to have an unfair advantage. After all,
most of them became professional only after success on the amateur circuit.

Ron: But that means that it’s been a long time since they’ve had to meet the more rigorous
technical standards of the amateur circuit.

Which of the following is most likely a point at issue between Shirla and Ron?

A. Whether there should be figure skating competitions that allow amateur and professional
skaters to compete against each other
B. Whether the scores of professional skaters competing against amateurs should be subject to
adjustment to reflect the special advantages of professionals
C. Whether figure skaters can successfully become professional before success on the amateur
circuit
D. Whether the technical standards for professional figure skating competition are higher than
those for amateur figure skating competition
E. Whether professional figure skaters have an unfair advantage over amateur figure skaters in
competitions in which they compete against each other

24. Some theorists and critics insist that no aesthetic evaluation of a work of art is sound if it is
based even in part on data about the cultural background of the artist. This opinion is clearly
false. The only sound aesthetic evaluations of artists’ works are those that take into account
factors such as the era and the place of the artists’ births, their upbringing and education, and
the values of their societies—in sum, those factors that are part of their cultural background.

The above argument is most vulnerable to which of the following objections?

A. The argument presupposes the conclusion for which it purports to provide evidence.
B. The argument cites evidence that undermines rather than supports the conclusion.
C. The argument draws its conclusion by means of an equivocal interpretation of key terms.
D. The argument assumes that the production of an effect is evidence of an intention to produce
that effect.
E. The argument assumes that evaluative disputes can be resolved by citing factual evidence.
25. Since 1978 when the copyright law was changed, books that are less than fifty years old
must not be photocopied without the publisher’s permission. Thus, any book that has been
photocopied since 1978 without the publisher’s permission must be at least fifty years old.

The reasoning above exhibits a flaw similar to one in which of the following?

A. Any member of the solar system must be either a planet or a moon, so if an asteroid is neither
a planet nor a moon, it must not be a member of the solar system.
B. Anyone who rides a city bus must buy a bus pass, and since Demetrios has a bus pass, he
must be riding on a city bus.
C. A driver who turns right must signal, so any driver who did not signal must not have turned
right.
D. Anyone who legally crosses a national boundary must have a passport; thus anyone who
does not have a passport cannot legally cross a national boundary.
E. Any wage earner residing in the state must pay state taxes, so since Blodwen pays state taxes,
she must be resident in the state.

26. Psychologist: In a survey, several hundred volunteers rated their own levels of self-control
and their overall life satisfaction. The volunteers who rated themselves as having better self-
control also reported greater satisfaction with their lives. This suggests that self-control is one
factor that helps people avoid situations likely to produce dissatisfaction.

In order to assess the strength of the psychologist’s argument, it would be most helpful to know
whether

A. people typically rate themselves as having significantly better self-control than expert
psychological assessments would rate them as having
B. people's perceptions of how satisfied they are with their lives could be affected by factors of
which they are unaware
C. there is a high level of self-control that tends to reduce overall life satisfaction
D. people's ratings of their overall satisfaction with their lives tend to temporarily decrease in
situations likely to produce dissatisfaction
E. feelings of dissatisfaction significantly interfere with people’s ability to exercise self-control

27. The retinas of premature babies are not fully developed at birth. Because their retinas are
so delicate, premature babies sometimes lose their sight. Methods for preventing this syndrome,
which is called retinopathy of prematurity, have improved, but the proportion of premature
babies who lose their sight because of this syndrome has increased.

Which of the following, if true, best reconciles the apparent discrepancy described above?

A. When premature babies are born, their retinas are developmentally unprepared to deal with
light and air in the environment outside the womb.
B. The oxygen that must be administered to premature babies at birth can sometimes have a
damaging effect on the babies’ retinas, but the oxygen is now administered in less damaging
concentrations than it used to be.
C. The effects of retinopathy of prematurity can be reduced by controlling the exposure of
premature babies to light and oxygen, but this method cannot completely prevent the syndrome.
D. The improvement of methods to prevent retinopathy of prematurity has been a gradual
process, and there is still a need for further knowledge.
E. Improved medical technology is saving the lives of premature babies who would previously
have died, but these babies have even more delicate retinas than do other premature babies and
are more apt to lose their sight.

28. There are fundamentally two possible changes in an economy that will each cause inflation
unless other compensating changes also occur. These changes are either reductions in the
supply of goods and services or increases in demand. In a pre-banking economy the quantity of
money available, and hence the level of demand, is equivalent to the quantity of gold available.

If the statements above are true, then it is also true that in a pre-banking economy

A. any inflation is the result of reductions in the supply of goods and services.
B. if other factors in the economy are unchanged, increasing the quantity of gold available will
lead to inflation.
C. if there is a reduction in the quantity of gold available, then, other things being equal,
inflation must result.
D. the quantity of goods and services purchasable by a given amount of gold is constant.
E. whatever changes in demand occur, there will be compensating changes in the supply of
goods and services.

29. Kayla: Many people are reluctant to shop in our neighborhood because street parking is
scarce. The city plans to address this by adding parking meters with time limits that ensure that
parking spaces are generally available. But this plan will surely backfire—shoppers dislike
paying at parking meters, so most will probably drive to other neighborhoods to shop at malls
with free parking.

Which of the following, if true, would be the most logically effective rebuttal a proponent of
the city’s plan could make to Kayla’s objection?

A. Most shoppers dislike hunting for scarce street parking spaces much more than they dislike
paying for metered parking spaces.
B. The city could post signs with street parking time limits to ensure that parking spaces become
available without forcing shoppers to pay at meters.
C. Currently, most shoppers in the neighborhood drive only occasionally to shop at malls in
other neighborhoods.
D. The neighborhood already contains a parking lot where shoppers must pay to park.
E. The nearby malls with free parking have no parking time limits to help ensure that parking
spaces in their lots become available.

30. Beets and carrots are higher in sugar than many other vegetables. They are also high on the
glycemic index, a scale that measures the rate at which a food increases blood sugar levels. But
while nutritionists usually advise people to avoid high-sugar and high-glycemic-index foods,
despite any nutritional benefits they may confer, they are not very concerned about the
consumption of beets and carrots.

Which of the following, if true, would best explain the nutritionists’ lack of concern?

A. Foods with added sugar are much higher in sugar, and have a larger effect on blood sugar
levels, than do beets and carrots.
B. Most consumption of beets and carrots occurs in combination with higher-protein foods,
which reduce blood sugar fluctuations.
C. Beets and carrots contain many nutrients, such as folate, beta-carotene, and vitamin C, of
which many people fail to consume optimal quantities.
D. The glycemic index measures the extent to which a food increases blood sugar levels as
compared to white bread, a food that is much less healthy than beets and carrots.
E. Nutritionists have only recently come to understand that a food’s effect on blood sugar levels
is an important determinant of that food’s impact on a person’s health.

31. Clearbell Telephone provides slow-dialing (SD) service to customers for a low fee, and
fast-dialing (FD) service to other customers who pay a somewhat higher fee. FD technology,
however, is so efficient that it costs Clearbell substantially less per average call to provide than
does SD. Nonetheless, accountants have calculated that Clearbell’s profits would drop if it
provided FD to all its customers at the current low-fee rate.

Assume that installation costs for FD are insignificant if the customer already has SD service.
Which of the following, if true about Clearbell, best explains the results of the accountants’
calculation?

A. The extra revenue collected from customers who pay the high fee is higher than the extra
cost of providing SD to customers who pay the low fee.
B. The low fee was increased by 6 percent last year, whereas the higher fee was not increased
last year.
C. Although 96 percent of customers regard FD service as reliable and more convenient than
SD, fewer than 10 percent of them choose to pay the higher fee for FD service.
D. The company’s competitors generally provide business customers with FD service at low-
fee rates.
E. Profits rose slightly each month for the first three months after FD was first offered to
customers, then fell slightly each month for the succeeding three months.

32. Manufacturers sometimes discount the price of a product to retailers for a promotion period
when the product is advertised to consumers. Such promotions often result in a dramatic
increase in amount of product sold by the manufacturers to retailers. Nevertheless, the
manufacturers could often make more profit by not holding the promotions.

Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the claim above about the manufacturers’
profit?

A. The amount of discount generally offered by manufacturers to retailers is carefully

calculated to represent the minimum needed to draw consumers’ attention to the product.
B. For many consumer products the period of advertising discounted prices to consumers is
about a week, not sufficiently long for consumers to become used to the sale price.
C. For products that are not newly introduced, the purpose of such promotions is to keep the
products in the minds of consumers and to attract consumers who are currently using competing
products.
D. During such a promotion retailers tend to accumulate in their warehouses inventory bought
at discount; they then sell much of it later at their regular price.
E. If a manufacturer fails to offer such promotions but its competitor offers them, that
competitor will tend to attract consumers away from the manufacturer’s product.

33. The recycling of municipal solid waste is widely seen as an environmentally preferable
alternative to the prevailing practices of incineration and of dumping in landfills. Recycling is
profitable, as the recycling programs already in operation demonstrate. A state legislator
proposes that communities should therefore be required to adopt recycling and to reach the
target of recycling 50 percent of all solid waste within 5 years.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the advisability of
implementing the proposal?

A. Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30
percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.
B. Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when
reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
C. Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their
materials, usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and
transportation.
D. Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated,
produce the least pollution.
E. Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.

34. Mashika: We already know from polling data that some segments of the electorate provide
significant support to Ms. Puerta. If those segments also provide significant support to Mr.
Quintana, then no segment of the electorate that provides significant support to Mr. Quintana
provides significant support to Mr. Ramirez.

Salim: But actually, as the latest polling data conclusively shows, at least one segment of the
electorate does provide significant support to both Mr. Quintana and Mr. Ramirez.

Among the following statements, which is it most reasonable to infer from the assertions by
Mashika and Salim?

A. At least one segment of the electorate provides significant support neither to Mr. Quintana
nor to Mr. Ramirez.
B. At least one segment of the electorate provides significant support to Ms. Puerta but not to
Mr. Quintana.
C. Each segment of the electorate provides significant support to Ms. Puerta.
D. Each segment of the electorate provides significant support to Mr. Quintana.
E. Each segment of the electorate provides significant support to Mr. Ramirez.

35. Biologist: Species with broad geographic ranges probably tend to endure longer than species
with narrow ranges. The broader a species’ range, the more likely that species is to survive the
extinction of populations in a few areas. Therefore, it is likely that the proportion of species
with broad ranges tends to gradually increase with time.

The biologist’s conclusion follows logically from the above if which of the following is
assumed?

A. There are now more species with broad geographic ranges than with narrow geographic
ranges.
B. Most species can survive extinctions of populations in a few areas as long as the species’
geographic range is not very narrow.
C. If a population of a species in a particular area dies out, that species generally does not
repopulate that area.
D. If a characteristic tends to help species endure longer, then the proportion of species with
that characteristic tends to gradually increase with time.
E. Any characteristic that makes a species tend to endure longer will make it easier for that
species to survive the extinction of populations in a few areas.

36. Advertisement: Today’s customers expect high quality. Every advance in the quality of
manufactured products raises customer expectations. The company that is satisfied with the
current quality of its products will soon find that its customers are not. At MegaCorp, meeting
or exceeding customer expectations is our goal.

Which of the following must be true on the basis of the statements in the advertisement above?

A. MegaCorp’s competitors will succeed in attracting customers only if those competitors adopt
MegaCorp’s goal as their own.
B. A company that does not correctly anticipate the expectations of its customers is certain to
fail in advancing the quality of its products.
C. MegaCorp’s goal is possible to meet only if continuing advances in product quality are
possible.
D. If a company becomes satisfied with the quality of its products, then the quality of its
products is sure to decline.
E. MegaCorp’s customers are currently satisfied with the quality of its products.

37. Ozone in the stratosphere blocks deadly ultraviolet rays from the sun, but
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in aerosols and other products have thinned this protective layer.
Evidence of this is the ozone hole that forms over the South Pole every Antarctic spring as
temperatures drop below – 78 ° C, the temperature at which ozone depletion occurs.
Measurements of the ozone hole taken at various times this spring show that, compared with
the same times the previous year, its area diminished by four million square kilometers.
Nevertheless, scientists have not concluded that the ozone layer is recovering.

Which of the following would, if true, provide the strongest reason for the scientists’ reaction
to the measurements?

A. The ozone hole has steadily grown in size every year for the past decade except this year.
B. The length of time that the ozone hole persists fluctuates from year to year.
C. As a result of international treaties, CFCs have been completely banned for several years.
D. Weather patterns allowed unusual amounts of warm air to mix into the polar regions this
year.
E. Human-made CFCs retain their ability to destroy ozone molecules for seventy-five to one
hundred years.

38. Pharmaceutical companies spend more than ever on research and development; yet the
number of new drugs patented each year has dropped since 1963. At the same time, profits—
at constant 1963 dollars—for the industry as a whole have been steadily increasing.

Which of the following, if true, is the single factor most likely to explain, at least in part, the
three trends mentioned above for money spent, drugs patented, and profits made?

A. Government regulations concerning testing requirements for novel drugs have become
steadily more stringent.
B. Research competition among pharmaceutical companies has steadily intensified as a result
of a general narrowing of research targets to drugs for which there is a large market.
C. Many pharmaceutical companies have entered into collaborative projects with leading
universities, while others have hired faculty members away from universities by offering very
generous salaries.
D. The number of cases in which one company’s researchers duplicated work done by another
company’s researchers has steadily grown.
E. The advertising budgets of the major pharmaceutical companies have grown at a higher rate
than their profits have.

39. Researchers conditioned a group of flies to associate a particular odor with a weak electric
shock. Twenty-four and forty-eight hours later the researchers conducted tests on the flies, both
individually and in groups, to determine whether the flies retained the conditioning. When
tested individually, the flies were significantly less likely to avoid areas marked with the odor.
The researchers hypothesized that in the presence of the odor, a fly that retains the conditioned
association gives off an alarm signal that arouses the attention of any surrounding flies,
retriggering the association in them and thereby causing them to avoid the odor.

The researchers’ hypothesis requires which of the following assumptions?

A. The flies do not give off odors as alarm signals.

B. Flies that did not avoid the odor when tested individually were not merely following other
flies’ movements when tested in a group.
C. Flies that did not avoid the odor when tested individually were less likely than the other flies
to avoid the odor when tested in a group.
D. Prior to their conditioning, the flies would likely have found the odor used in the experiment
to be pleasant.
E. An electric shock was used during the flies’ conditioning and during the later tests.

40. First discovered several years ago in North American lakes and rivers, the northern
snakehead is a nonnative fish with no local predators. To keep the northern snakehead ’s
population from growing, for the past three years wildlife officials have been paying
recreational fishers for each northern snakehead they catch. In this way, the officials hope to
stop the northern snakeheads from eliminating rare native fish species.

To evaluate the likelihood that the wildlife officials’ plan will succeed, it would be most useful
to determine which of the following?

A. Whether the northern snakehead’s population in local lakes and rivers could be reduced by
introducing predators from its native habitat
B. How local population numbers of rare native fish species have been changing since the
wildlife officials started paying recreational fishers to catch northern snakeheads
C. Whether the fish species on which the northern snakehead preys in regions to which it is
native and in which it is abundant have become significantly depleted in recent decades
D. What total number of northern snakehead have been caught by recreational fishers since the
wildlife officials began paying for them
E. Whether rare native fish species in the region face any threats to their survival other than the
proliferation of northern snakehead
41. Scientist: A greenhouse gas, for example, carbon dioxide, forms a transparent layer that
traps solar heat beneath it in the earth’s atmosphere. Atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide are
currently increasing, causing the climate to warm—an effect that is predicted by at least one
computer model of the greenhouse effect. But the warming that has occurred is a great deal less
than what would be expected based on the model. Therefore, _______.

Which of the following most logically completes the scientist’s argument?

A. better measurements of atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide are needed

B. the definition of “greenhouse gas” should probably be reconsidered
C. there are factors besides the increase in greenhouse-gas emissions contributing to the
warming of the climate
D. the computer model of the greenhouse effect must be incorrect in some respect
E. the likely consequences of any warming of the climate are unlikely to be much less damaging
than predicted

42. Although elementary school children have traditionally received considerable instruction
in creating visual art, there has been no such instruction in music. Consequently, in contrast to
the situation for visual art, most people as adults do not recognize the artistic intentions of
composers. To remedy this situation, a few educators now recommend teaching elementary
school students to compose music.

Which of the following, if true, is the strongest basis for arguing that implementation of the
recommendation will not lead to the desired result?

A. Few elementary school students are likely to create superior compositions.

B. Traditional education facilitates the appreciation of visual art, but not the recognition of the
artistic intentions of artists.
C. More people report that they enjoy music than report that they enjoy visual art.
D. Some composers have had little formal instruction in composition.
E. The recommendation is based on the results of a controlled longitudinal study conducted in
three schools within a single city.

43. Distressed by his own personal tragedies, the Roman philosopher Cicero once asked himself
whether a wise person should try to achieve the Stoic ideal of complete emotionlessness. Cicero
reasoned that, however desirable the goal may be, a wise person could never attain it, since
emotions are not simply irrational urges. They are, rather, a product of one’s estimate of the
goodness and badness of the events, people, and actions one witnesses.

Which of the following is an assumption required by Cicero’s reasoning?

A. Wise people inevitably evaluate at least some of the things they observe.
B. Irrationality makes evaluation of what one observes impossible.
C. Wisdom precludes attempting to attain what one cannot.
D. If evaluations are based only on reason, then they are inaccurate.
E. A wise person will not evaluate what cannot be directly observed.

44. Exports of United States wood pulp will rise considerably during this year. The reason for
the rise is that the falling value of the dollar will make it cheaper for paper manufacturers in
Japan and Western Europe to buy American wood pulp than to get it from any other source.
Which of the following is an assumption made in drawing the conclusion above?

A. Factory output of paper products in Japan and Western Europe will increase sharply during
this year.
B. The quality of the wood pulp produced in the United States would be adequate for the
purposes of Japanese and Western European paper manufacturers.
C. Paper manufacturers in Japan and Western Europe would prefer to use wood pulp produced
in the United States if cost were not a factor.
D. Demand for paper products made in Japan and Western Europe will not increase sharply
during this year.
E. Production of wood pulp by United States companies will not increase sharply during this
year.

45. A new handheld device purports to determine the severity of concussions by reading the
brain’s electrical signals and comparing them to a database of 15,000 scans compiled at a brain
research lab. The device is intended to help doctors decide whether an athlete who has received
a blow to the head during a competition should be sent back into the game.

Which of the following would it be most useful to establish in order to evaluate the effectiveness
of the device for its intended purpose?

A. Whether the database of brain scans will regularly be updated with new scans
B. Whether by use of this device doctors will be able to make a sound decision about whether
to allow an athlete back into the competition before it ends
C. Whether the device will be endorsed by a large number of medical professionals
D. Whether the database includes scans of non-injured athletes in the same game as the injured
athlete
E. Whether team doctors have until now been mistaken in their assessments of whether an
athlete can safely continue to play

46. A company’s personnel director surveyed employees about their satisfaction with the
company’s system for awarding employee performance ratings. The survey data indicated that
employees who received high ratings were very satisfied with the system. The personnel
director concluded from these data that the company’s best-performing employees liked the
system.

The personnel director’s conclusion assumes which of the following?

A. No other performance rating system is as good as the current system.

B. The company's best-performing employees received high ratings.
C. Employees who received low ratings were dissatisfied with the system.
D. Employees who receive high ratings from a performance-rating system will like that system.
E. The company ’ s best-performing employees were motivated to perform well by the
knowledge that they would receive performance ratings.

47. Letter to the editor: If the water level in the Searle River Delta continues to drop, the rising
sea level will make the water saltier and less suitable for drinking. Currently, 40 percent of the
water from upstream tributaries is diverted to neighboring areas. To keep the delta’s water level
from dropping any further, we should end all current diversions from the upstream tributaries.
Neighboring water utilities are likely to see higher costs and diminished water supplies, but
these costs are necessary to preserve the delta.

Which of the following would, if true, indicate a serious potential weakness of the suggested
plan of action?

A. Desalination equipment would allow water from the delta to be used for drinking even it if
became saltier.
B. Water level is only one factor that affects salinity in the delta.
C. The upstream tributaries’ water levels are controlled by systems of dams and reservoirs.
D. Neighboring areas have grown in population since the water was first diverted from upstream
tributaries.
E. Much of the recent drop in the delta’s water level can be attributed to a prolonged drought
that has recently ended.

48. Under the agricultural policies of Country R, farmers can sell any grain not sold on the open
market to a grain board at guaranteed prices. It seems inevitable that, in order to curb the
resultant escalating overproduction, the grain board will in just a few years have to impose
quotas on grain production, limiting farmers to a certain flat percentage of the grain acreage
they cultivated previously.

Suppose an individual farmer in Country R wishes to minimize the impact on profits of the
grain quota whose eventual imposition is being predicted. If the farmer could do any of the
following and wants to select the most effective course of action, which should the farmer do
now?

A. Select in advance currently less profitable grain fields and retire them if the quota takes
effect.
B. Seek long-term contracts to sell grain at a fixed price.
C. Replace obsolete tractors with more efficient new ones.
D. Put marginal land under cultivation and grow grain on it.
E. Agree with other farmers on voluntary cutbacks in grain production.

49. The proportion of manufacturing companies in Alameda that use microelectronics in their
manufacturing processes increased from 6 percent in 1979 to 66 percent in 1990. Many labor
leaders say that the introduction of microelectronics is the principal cause of the great increase
in unemployment during that period in Alameda. In actual fact, however, most of the job losses
were due to organizational changes. Moreover, according to new figures released by the labor
department, there were many more people employed in Alameda in the manufacturing industry
in 1990 than in 1979.

Which of the following, if true, best reconciles the discrepancy between the increase in
unemployment and the increase in jobs in the manufacturing industry of Alameda?

A. Many products that contain microelectronic components are now assembled completely by
machine.
B. Workers involved in the various aspects of the manufacturing processes that use
microelectronic technology need extensive training.
C. It is difficult to evaluate numerically what impact on job security the introduction of
microelectronics in the workplace had before 1979.
D. In 1990 over 90 percent of the jobs in Alameda’s manufacturing companies were filled by
workers who moved to Alameda because they had skills for which there was no demand in
Alameda prior to the introduction of microelectronics there.
E. Many workers who have retired from the manufacturing industry in Alameda since 1979
have not been replaced by younger workers.
Answer key

1. E
2. D
3. D
4. E
5. D
6. E
7. D
8. B
9. B
10. C
11. E
12. B
13. B
14. B
15. B
16. B
17. A
18. A
19. E
20. C
21. D
22. B
23. E
24. A
25. C
26. E
27. E
28. B
29. A
30. B
31. A
32. D
33. B
34. B
35. D
36. C
37. D
38. B
39. B
40. B
41. D
42. B
43. A
44. B
45. B
46. B
47. E
48. D
49. D