1. Since Jessica's participation in local politics increased significantly after she joined her school's political science club, it is clear that her involvement in that club led her to take an interest in politics. The argument above is flawed because:
2. Mrs. Orlof teaches two history classes, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Yesterday she gave the same test to both classes. Anyone who failed the test must take a retest. Since a greater percentage of students who took the morning test failed the test than students who took the afternoon test, more of Orlof's morning history students than afternoon history students will have to take the retest.
3. The average height of members of the high school basketball team is six feet, three inches. Jerry is on the high school basketball team, so Jerry must be taller than six feet.
The argument above is flawed because it confuses
4. Catherine goes to her local movie theater only to see romantic comedies. Since Catherine did not go to the movies yesterday, there is not a romantic comedy playing at her local theater.
The reasoning above is flawed because the evidence:
5. A recent study of 100 employees from six departments of a major corporation found 65% to be sleep deprived. The researchers concluded that the majority of corporate employees are sleep deprived. The researcher's conclusion is suspect because it:
6. People have claimed that Jamie's paintings have given them the blues. Clearly this cannot be entirely correct, since many of Jamie's paintings contain no blue at all. The argument above is flawed because the author:
7. Career counselor: It is best for artists to build a practical and safe career that will guarantee them a secure income, and then pursue their art in their spare time. That way, they will be motivated to work hard at their day jobs to support their art making, and both their career and their art will thrive. Which one of the following, if true, would most weaken the argument?
8. Aron: The two double A batteries in my CD player are dead, so the CD player doesn't work. My television remote control, which also uses two double A batteries, works fine. So if I move the two batteries from my television remote control to my CD player, the CD player will definitely work. Aron's argument is most strengthened if which one of the following is true?
9. The untimely death of Professor Hathaway halted his groundbreaking research into the uses of solar power. It therefore appears that Hathaway's research will not result in practical applications. Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
10. Last season at City Opera House, far more people attended opera X than opera Y. However, opera Y generated far greater net profits for City Opera House than did opera X
Each of the following could directly explain the result indicated above EXCEPT:
11. Surveys show that people who use calorie information to decide which foods to eat consume on average 100 calories less than they would if they didn't check calorie information before eating. Strangely though, people who use calorie information in this way weigh more on average than people who don't check calorie information before eating.
Which one of the following, if true, best explains the surprising statistic stated above?
12. Choose the pair of words/phrases among the choices that exhibits the same logical relationship as the words/phrases in the following pair.
building : blueprint
13. Choose the pair of words/phrases among the choices that exhibits the same logical relationship as the words/phrases in the following pair.
gavel : judge
14. Choose the pair of words/phrases among the choices that exhibits the same logical relationship as the words/phrases in the following pair.
conductor : orchestra
15. Barney: Last winter, I slipped on the outside stairs of PineTree Café and broke my leg. My fall was caused by ice on the stairs that the restaurant failed to remove. Since the restaurant clearly did not provide a safe atmosphere for its customers, I am justified in taking it to court.
Lydia: Unwarranted lawsuits are sweeping the country-lawsuits that have no legal merit and are brought simply to make lawyers and their clients rich. If this trend continues, soon our legal system will be swamped to the point where it won't be able to administer justice to people who truly deserve it. You therefore should drop your case against PineTree Café.
The speakers above appear to disagree on which one of the following points?
16. Arthur: The solutions to most mystery novels I read are not believable. However, my enjoyment of a mystery novel depends only on its suspenseful mood and colorful characters.
Norton: Roughly 80% of the mystery novels I read have believable solutions, which is good since I do not enjoy mystery novels that don't have believable solutions. The speakers above:
17. The higher the price of an antique, the greater people's expectation that the object is rare. That, in turn, makes the antique appear more valuable. If the statements above are correct, then offering an antique for sale at a bargain price:
18. Some drugs combat obesity or alcohol addiction by turning off pleasure centers in the brain. However, if the dosage is too high, there's a risk that people taking them will be plunged into depression. The statements above, if true, support which one of the following assertions?
19. Only circus animals with a clean bill of health will perform in today's exhibition. A monkey, a poodle, and a horse will perform in today's exhibition. No circus animals with a clean bill of health were prescribed medications this week. If the statements above are true, which one of the following must also be true on the basis of them?
20. A company can either invest in employee training seminars or update its computer network. Since updating the computer network would result in more measurable benefits, the company would be best off updating its computer network. The argument above assumes that:
21. Looking to increase the profits of his lemonade stand, Johann doubled the price of a cup of lemonade from 25 cents to 50 cents. This clearly shows Johann's lack of business sense, for now he'll almost certainly sell fewer cups at the new price and therefore make less money than before. The argument above assumes that:
22. Detective: The robbery at the mall was carried out by a mall employee acting alone roughly one hour after the mall closed last Saturday night. The only employees present at the mall at the time of the robbery were security guards Evans and Clark. Since the mall's surveillance system was disabled by the thief just before the robbery, the thief must be Evans.
The argument above would be valid if:
23. Whereas many industries suffer during economic recessions, the art industry does well. Some think the reason is that artists feed off the anxiety and uncertainty during recessions to produce inspired works. Others think that recessions, while harmful to most people, produce a handful of very rich people willing to pay very high prices for artworks, driving up the value of the art market as a whole. The author of the passage above is primarily interested in:
24. Sometimes people get caught in a "downward spiral," a case in which something leads to a result which in turn leads to more of the original thing, bringing on more of the result. As the process continues, the result continually gets worse and worse. An example is when people turn to binge eating when depressed, which causes them to put on weight and feel unhealthy, which then makes them more depressed, leading to more overeating, and so on.
The author is mainly concerned with:
25. The very large increase in allergies over the last thirty years is due to the great success of immunizations administered over this time period. Since immunizations have nearly eliminated life-threatening diseases such as polio, the human immune system increasingly targets other environmental substances in order to keep working properly. Allergy symptoms such as runny nose and itchy eyes result when the immune system attacks pollen that is breathed in from the air. Which one of the following best expresses the main point of the passage above?