GMAT Critical Reasoning Discussions

[KG2008]

Originally Posted by shiva1985

1) Author reasons that there is no wrong in government companies selling stoves. We need to support this.
A.Yes if this true then the government company can sell just as a private company would have. (second part says private company can do the same and no one complains).
B.Cannot support
C.Irrelevant doesn't in any way concerned with government companies sales
D.Here the reasoning is based on merchants' complaints.
E.Irrelevant

2) Authors wants to prove speed limit is not necessary. He says driving slow-- results in more time-- and hence collision and doesn't protect environment.
What can be the flaw or the missing link? there is not relationship mentioned between more time spent and more accidents. So E should be the answer. Note:Author says more time spent-- more exhaust so he not provide further justification on environment pollution So D can't be the answer.
3)premise--> people who believe others trust them--- have confidence
conclusion-->people who trust others---- think difficult task as challenge = people with confidence
So there should be something that relates people who believe others trust them and people who trust others to arrive at the conclusion of people who trust others. Only C provides this. I think C is the answer. You have forgotten to type option E
4) Mullen proposes-- increase tax on rich who made profits.
Mullen made huge investments and large profits (Mullen is rich)
A. Mullen's recommendation is not favorable for himself
B. Yes goes with what is stated.
C.Doesn't go with what is stated
D.proposal is not favorable
E.Not parallel with what is stated.
I think answer is B
5)I think the answer is B. The argument states indulging in hobby is not successful because it exacerbates the situation if people fail. So the author has to assume the same is not a case of s successful strategy

hi Shiva, Great answers! I am Kasi Gupta planning to take GMAT in SEP-OCT timing.

I think the answer for 2nd Question is D.

First i like to explain why E is wrong.The Passage states that When Vehicles Spend long time on road-> it emits more gas->inturn vehicles collides beacuse of gas emission.(here the usage of conjunction 'and' is important to notice). But that is not stated as per the answer choice E.
E states that long time on road-> causes collision of vehicles,which is irrelevant for the question asked.

But if you consider the Question D, think of a scenario in which a lot of emission caused by just a single vehicle (something similar to our local Autorickshaws).This scenario states the flaw in the passage which states if vehicles ride long time on road it causes emission.But why not a single polluted vehicle staying short time on road cause the same amount of pollution.

Hope i have given right explanation.

Also the Official answer for the Question is D . It is in LSAT Oct 2002 Section IV question no 14.

Thanks,
Kasi Gupta

[shiva1985]

Originally Posted by KG2008

hi Shiva, Great answers! I am Kasi Gupta planning to take GMAT in SEP-OCT timing.

I think the answer for 2nd Question is D.

First i like to explain why E is wrong.The Passage states that When Vehicles Spend long time on road-> it emits more gas->inturn vehicles collides beacuse of gas emission.(here the usage of conjunction 'and' is important to notice). But that is not stated as per the answer choice E.
E states that long time on road-> causes collision of vehicles,which is irrelevant for the question asked.

But if you consider the Question D, think of a scenario in which a lot of emission caused by just a single vehicle (something similar to our local Autorickshaws).This scenario states the flaw in the passage which states if vehicles ride long time on road it causes emission.But why not a single polluted vehicle staying short time on road cause the same amount of pollution.

Hope i have given right explanation.

Also the Official answer for the Question is D . It is in LSAT Oct 2002 Section IV question no 14.

Thanks,
Kasi Gupta

Hi KG,
Best of luck in your GMAT.
Agreed with answer D. Would like to add this. The statement says --- more time is spent doing X and Y, here X and Y are parallel actions I don't think conjunction "and" means Y is a result of X. However E can be ruled out because the author says runs a risk. E is about "significant risk" .

[ashishjha100]

1.From 1973 to 1976, total United States consumption of cigarettes increased 3.4 percent, and total sales of chewing tobacco rose 18.0 percent. During the same period, total United States population increased 5.0 percent.
If the statements above are true, which of the following conclusions can be properly drawn?
A. United States manufacturers of tobacco products had higher profits in 1976 than in 1973.
B. Per capita consumption of cigarettes in the United States was lower in 1976 than in 1973.
C. The proportion of nonsmokers in the United States population dropped slightly between 1973 and 1976.
D. United States manufacturers of tobacco products realize a lower profit on cigarettes than on chewing tobacco.
E. A large percentage of United States smokers switched from cigarettes to chewing tobacco between 1973 and 1976.

2.When storing Renaissance oil paintings, museums conform to standards that call for careful control of the surrounding temperature and humidity, with variations confined within narrow margins. Maintaining this environment is very costly, and recent research shows that even old oil paint is unaffected by wide fluctuations in temperature and humidity. Therefore, museums could relax their standards and save money without endangering their Renaissance oil paintings.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
A. Renaissance paintings were created in conditions involving far greater fluctuations in temperature and humidity than those permitted by current standards.
B. Under the current standards that museums use when storing Renaissance oil paintings, those paintings do not deteriorate at all.
C. Museum collections typically do not contain items that are more likely to be vulnerable to fluctuations in temperature and humidity than Renaissance oil paintings.
D. None of the materials in Renaissance oil paintings other than the paint are vulnerable enough to relatively wide fluctuations in temperature and humidity to cause damage to the paintings.
E. Most Renaissance oil paintings are stored in museums located in regions near the regions where the paintings were created.

3.
Since it has become known that several of a bank’s top executives have been buying shares in their own bank, the bank’s depositors, who had been worried by rumors that the bank faced impending financial collapse, have been greatly relieved. They reason that since top executives evidently have faith in the bank’s financial soundness, those worrisome rumors must be false. They might well be overoptimistic, however since corporate executives have sometimes bought shares in their own company in a calculated attempt to dispel negative rumors about the company’s health.
In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?

A. The first summarizes the evidence used in the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second states the counterevidence on which the argument relies. B. The first summarizes the evidence used in the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second is an intermediate conclusion supported by the evidence. C. The first is an intermediate conclusion that forms part of the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second is evidence that undermines the support for this intermediate conclusion. D. The first is an intermediate conclusion that forms part of the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second is the main conclusion of the argument. E. The first is an intermediate conclusion that forms part of the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second states a further conclusion supported by this intermediate conclusion.
4.
One of the limiting factors in human physical performance is the amount of oxygen that is absorbed by the muscles from the bloodstream. Accordingly, entrepreneurs have begun selling at gymnasiums and health clubs bottles of drinking water, labeled "SuperOXY," that has extra oxygen dissolved in the water. Such water would be useless in improving physical performance, however, since the only way to get oxygen into the bloodstream so that it can be absorbed bye the muscles is through the lungs.
Which of the following, if true, would serve the same function in the argument as the statement in boldface?

1. A. the water lost in exercising can be replaced with ordinary tap water
   1. B. the amount of oxygen in the blood of people who are exercising is already more than the muscle can absorb
      
   2. C. world-class athletes turn in record performance without such water
      
   3. D. frequent physical exercise increases the body’s ability to take in and use oxygen
      
   4. E. lack of oxygen is not the only factor limiting human physical performance

[shiva1985]

Originally Posted by ashishjha100

1.From 1973 to 1976, total United States consumption of cigarettes increased 3.4 percent, and total sales of chewing tobacco rose 18.0 percent. During the same period, total United States population increased 5.0 percent.
If the statements above are true, which of the following conclusions can be properly drawn?
A. United States manufacturers of tobacco products had higher profits in 1976 than in 1973.
B. Per capita consumption of cigarettes in the United States was lower in 1976 than in 1973.
C. The proportion of nonsmokers in the United States population dropped slightly between 1973 and 1976.
D. United States manufacturers of tobacco products realize a lower profit on cigarettes than on chewing tobacco.
E. A large percentage of United States smokers switched from cigarettes to chewing tobacco between 1973 and 1976.

2.When storing Renaissance oil paintings, museums conform to standards that call for careful control of the surrounding temperature and humidity, with variations confined within narrow margins. Maintaining this environment is very costly, and recent research shows that even old oil paint is unaffected by wide fluctuations in temperature and humidity. Therefore, museums could relax their standards and save money without endangering their Renaissance oil paintings.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
A. Renaissance paintings were created in conditions involving far greater fluctuations in temperature and humidity than those permitted by current standards.
B. Under the current standards that museums use when storing Renaissance oil paintings, those paintings do not deteriorate at all.
C. Museum collections typically do not contain items that are more likely to be vulnerable to fluctuations in temperature and humidity than Renaissance oil paintings.
D. None of the materials in Renaissance oil paintings other than the paint are vulnerable enough to relatively wide fluctuations in temperature and humidity to cause damage to the paintings.
E. Most Renaissance oil paintings are stored in museums located in regions near the regions where the paintings were created.

3.
Since it has become known that several of a bank’s top executives have been buying shares in their own bank, the bank’s depositors, who had been worried by rumors that the bank faced impending financial collapse, have been greatly relieved. They reason that since top executives evidently have faith in the bank’s financial soundness, those worrisome rumors must be false. They might well be overoptimistic, however since corporate executives have sometimes bought shares in their own company in a calculated attempt to dispel negative rumors about the company’s health.
In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?

A. The first summarizes the evidence used in the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second states the counterevidence on which the argument relies. B. The first summarizes the evidence used in the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second is an intermediate conclusion supported by the evidence. C. The first is an intermediate conclusion that forms part of the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second is evidence that undermines the support for this intermediate conclusion. D. The first is an intermediate conclusion that forms part of the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second is the main conclusion of the argument. E. The first is an intermediate conclusion that forms part of the reasoning called into question by the argument; the second states a further conclusion supported by this intermediate conclusion.
4.
One of the limiting factors in human physical performance is the amount of oxygen that is absorbed by the muscles from the bloodstream. Accordingly, entrepreneurs have begun selling at gymnasiums and health clubs bottles of drinking water, labeled "SuperOXY," that has extra oxygen dissolved in the water. Such water would be useless in improving physical performance, however, since the only way to get oxygen into the bloodstream so that it can be absorbed bye the muscles is through the lungs.
Which of the following, if true, would serve the same function in the argument as the statement in boldface?

1. A. the water lost in exercising can be replaced with ordinary tap water
   1. B. the amount of oxygen in the blood of people who are exercising is already more than the muscle can absorb
   2. C. world-class athletes turn in record performance without such water
   3. D. frequent physical exercise increases the body’s ability to take in and use oxygen
   4. E. lack of oxygen is not the only factor limiting human physical performance

1)
A.No data about cost price and selling price is mentioned so this cannot be the conclusion
B. per capita consumption = (cigarettes consumed/ population). 1973 (X/Y) 1976 (1.034 X / 1.05 Y) so 1973 > 1976. Correct
C. There is no data on number of smokers and non smokers
D. similar to A
E. Out of scope
I think B is the answer
2)Author mentions about oil paintings, temperature and oil paints
A. Irrelevant the paragraph is concerned about storage at present
B. Irrelevant
C. Out of scope other items can be maintained separately
D.Correct. If author expresses his concern only about paints then he should assume other materials in the paintings are not affected
E.Irrelevant
I think D is the answer
For 3 and 4 refer pages 45 and 46 .

[nitya34]

I believe its B(OA is wrong here)
One of the limiting factors in human physical performance is the amount of oxygen that is absorbed by the muscles from the bloodstream. Accordingly, entrepreneurs have begun selling at gymnasiums and health clubs bottles of drinking water, labeled "SuperOXY," that has extra oxygen dissolved in the water. Such water would be useless in improving physical performance, however, since the only way to get oxygen into the bloodstream so that it can be absorbed bye the muscles is through the lungs.
Which of the following, if true, would serve the same function in the argument as the statement in boldface?

1. A. the water lost in exercising can be replaced with ordinary tap water
   1. B. the amount of oxygen in the blood of people who are exercising is already more than the muscle can absorb
   2. C. world-class athletes turn in record performance without such water
   3. D. frequent physical exercise increases the body’s ability to take in and use oxygen
   4. E. lack of oxygen is not the only factor limiting human physical performance

[jpmadhav]

Hi,

Please solve this...Found this very tough to understand...

In a nature reserve in India, people are sometimes attacked by tigers. It is believed that the tigers will only attack people from behind. So for the past few years many workers in the reserve have started wearing masks depicting a human face on the back of their heads. While many area residents remain skeptical, no worker wearing one of these masks has yet been attacked by a tiger.

Which of the statements below, if true, would best support the argument of those who advocate the use of the mask?

(A) Many workers in the nature reserve who do not wear the masks have been attacked recently by tigers.
(B) Workers in other nature reserves who wear similar masks have not been
attacked recently by tigers.
(C) No tigers have been spotted on the nature reserve in recent years.
(D) Many of the workers who wear the masks also sing while they work in order to frighten away any tigers in the area.
(E) The tigers have often been observed attacking small deer from in front rather than from behind.

Cheers
Madhav

[getneonow]

Originally Posted by jpmadhav

Hi,

Please solve this...Found this very tough to understand...

In a nature reserve in India, people are sometimes attacked by tigers. It is believed that the tigers will only attack people from behind. So for the past few years many workers in the reserve have started wearing masks depicting a human face on the back of their heads. While many area residents remain skeptical, no worker wearing one of these masks has yet been attacked by a tiger.

Which of the statements below, if true, would best support the argument of those who advocate the use of the mask?

(A) Many workers in the nature reserve who do not wear the masks have been attacked recently by tigers.
(B) Workers in other nature reserves who wear similar masks have not been
attacked recently by tigers.
(C) No tigers have been spotted on the nature reserve in recent years.
(D) Many of the workers who wear the masks also sing while they work in order to frighten away any tigers in the area.
(E) The tigers have often been observed attacking small deer from in front rather than from behind.

Cheers
Madhav

D must be the answer. If correct, I will provide my explanation.

Neo

[jpmadhav]

Sorry....OA is A.....

[getneonow]

Originally Posted by jpmadhav

Sorry....OA is A.....

any explanation provided in your source??

[jpmadhav]

Dude,

I am pasting the complete explanation given....from Kaplan CR's...

The (Implied) Conclusion: The masks prevent the tigers from attacking the people who wear them.

The Evidence: For the past few years many workers have worn these masks and none of them has been attacked by a tiger. We can’t be sure that the masks are responsible for this situation. The tigers might no longer be attacking people at all. To strengthen the case for the masks we need evidence that the tigers are still attacking
humans, though not attacking humans wearing masks.

Evidence about other reserves (B) can’t help us—it’s just more of the same. Perhaps there were no tigers spotted (C) because they are no longer on the reserve.
In that case masks have nothing to do with worker safety. And maybe it’s the singing (D), and not the masks, that has prevented the tiger attacks. Both (C) and (D) are au contraire choices. Tigers attacking deer (E) doesn’t tell us anything about the tigers’ behavior with regard to humans, much less humans with masks.

But still not able to understand the explanation.....

Regards
Madhav