Originating in the 1920s, the Pyramid scheme is one of the oldest con games going. Honest people are often pulled in, thinking the scheme is a legitimate investment enterprise. The first customer to "fall for" the Pyramid scheme will actually make big money and will therefore persuade friends and relatives to join also. The chain then continues with the con artist who originated the scheme pocketing, rather than investing, the money. Finally, the pyramid collapses, but by that time, the scam artist will usually have moved out of town, leaving no forwarding address. This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options
A. it is fairly easy to spot a Pyramid scheme in the making.
B. he first customer of a Pyramid scheme is the most gullible.
C. the people who set up Pyramid schemes are able to fool honest people.
D. the Pyramid scheme had its heyday in the 1920s, but it's making a comeback.
E. the Pyramid scheme got its name from its structure.
Correct Answer
the people who set up Pyramid schemes are able to fool honest people.
Explanation
The fact that the Pyramid scheme is set up by a con artist suggests that the honest people who invest have been fooled. Choices a and b are contradicted in the passage. The paragraph says that the Pyramid scheme originated in the 1920s, but does not say it had its heyday then; thus, choice d is incorrect. Choice e is a fact, but it is not mentioned in the passage.
Analyzing Arguments problems
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1. Close-up images of Mars by the Mariner 9 probe indicated networks of valleys that looked like the stream beds on Earth. These images also implied that Mars once had an atmosphere that was thick enough to trap the sun's heat. If this were true, something happened to Mars billions of years ago that stripped away the planet's atmosphere. This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options
A. Mars now has little or no atmosphere.
B. Mars once had a thicker atmosphere than Earth does.
C. the Mariner 9 probe took the first pictures of Mars.
Correct Answer: Mars now has little or no atmosphere.
Explanation:
The paragraph states that Mars once had a thick atmosphere, but that it was stripped away. The other choices, true or not, cannot be found in the passage.
2. The image of a knitter as an older woman sitting in a comfortable, old-fashioned living room with a basket of yarn at her feet and a bun in her hair is one of the past. As knitting continues to become more popular and increasingly trendy, it is much more difficult to describe the average knitter. Knitters today might be 18, 28, 40, or 65. They might live in a big urban center and take classes in a knit- ting shop that doubles as a café or they may gather in suburban coffee shops to support one another in knitting and other aspects of life. They could be college roommates knitting in their dorm room or two senior citizens knitting in a church hall. Even men are getting in the act. It would be incredibly difficult to come up with an accurate profile of a contemporary knitter to replace that image of the old woman with the basket of yarn! This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options
A. people are returning to knitting in an attempt to reconnect with simpler times.
B. knitting is now more of a group activity, as opposed to an individual hobby.
C. creating an accurate profile of a particular type of person depends on the people in this group having traits and characteristics in common.
D. today's knitters are much less accomplished than knitters of the past.
E. young people are turning to knitting in record numbers.
Correct Answer: creating an accurate profile of a particular type of person depends on the people in this group having traits and characteristics in common.
Explanation:
The statement that it is difficult to create an accurate profile of a contemporary knitter comes immediately after a discussion about how different today's knitters are from one another and from knitters of the past. Choices a and d are not supported by the paragraph. Although the paragraph does discuss knitting done in group settings, it does not specifically say that more of today's knitting is done in groups; therefore, choice b is incorrect. Young people may be turning to knitting in record numbers, but again, that statement is not verified by the information provided in the paragraph, so choice e must be ruled out as well.
3. Most Reality TV centers on two common motivators: fame and money. The shows transform waitresses, hairdressers, investment bankers, counselors, and teachers, to name a few, from obscure figures to house-hold names. A lucky few successfully parlay their fifteen minutes of fame into celebrity. The luckiest stars of Reality TV also reap huge financial rewards for acts including eating large insects, marrying someone they barely know, and revealing their innermost thoughts to millions of people. This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options
A. the stars of Reality TV are interested in being rich and famous.
B. Reality TV is the best thing that has happened to network television in a long time.
C. for Reality TV stars, fame will last only as long as their particular television show.
D. traditional dramas and sitcoms are being replaced by Reality TV programming at an alarming rate.
E. Reality TV shows represent a new wave of sensationalistic, low quality programming.
Correct Answer: the stars of Reality TV are interested in being rich and famous.
Explanation:
This is expressed in the first sentence. Choices b, d, and e are not supported by the passage. Choice c is incorrect because the paragraph states that some Reality TV stars manage to parlay their fifteen minutes of fame into celebrity.
4. By the time they reach adulthood, most people can perform many different activities involving motor skills. Motor skills involve such diverse tasks as riding a bicycle, threading a needle, and cooking a dinner. What all these activities have in common is their dependence on precision and timing of muscular movement. This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options
A. most adults have not refined their motor skills.
B. all adults know how to ride a bicycle.
C. refined motor skills are specifically limited to adults.
D. children perform fewer fine motor activities in a day than adults do.
Correct Answer: threading a needle is a precise motor skill.
Explanation:
The second sentence states that threading a needle involves motor skill. The other choices are not in the paragraph.
5. During the last six years, the number of practicing physicians has increased by about 20%. During the same time period, the number of healthcare managers has increased by more than 600%. These percentages mean that many doctors have lost the authority to make their own schedules, determine the fees that they charge, and decide on prescribed treatments. This paragraph best supports the statement that doctors
Options
A. resent the interference of healthcare managers.
B. no longer have adequate training.
C. care a great deal about their patients.
D. are less independent than they used to be.
E. are making a lot less money than they used to make.
Correct Answer: are less independent than they used to be.
Explanation:
The author of this statement suggests that doctors are less independent. The author stresses that many doctors have lost authority. There is no support for the opinion that doctors resent the healthcare managers, however which rules out choice a. The doctors training is never mentioned (choice b). Doctors may care about their patients (choice c), but this information is not part of the paragraph. Choice e is not mentioned.
6. Statement: The Secretary lamented that the electronic media was losing its credibility and that it should try to regain it by establishing better communications with the listeners and the viewers. He also emphasised the need for training to improve the functioning.
Courses of Action:
Efforts should be made to get organised feed back on the programme.
The critical areas in which the staff requires training should be identified.
Clearly, either the work in the court needs to be speeded up or the system be reorganised so that more number of problems can be resolved at the lower levels itself, to provide speedy justice to the people. So, both the courses follow.
8. Statement: Certain mining industries in Gujarat may come to a standstill because of the notification issued by the Department of Environment and Forest banning mining operations and industries alike within 25 kms of National Park, the game sanctuary and reserve forest areas.
Courses of Action:
The Department should be asked to immediately withdraw the notification.
The Government should make effort to shift the parks, sanctuaries and reserve forests to other non-mining areas.
Clearly, none of the courses of action follows because firstly, the notification is issued to protect the natural environment and so cannot be withdrawn and secondly, the sanctuaries etc. cannot be shifted.
9. Statement: There have been many instances of derailment of trains due to landslide in the hilly areas which caused loss of many lives.
Courses of Action:
The railway authority should arrange to deploy pilot engines before the movement of passenger trains in the hilly areas to alert the trains in case of any landslide.
The railway authority should strengthen the hill slopes by putting iron meshes so that the loose boulders do not fall on the track.
Clearly, either something should be done to alert the trains well in advance in case of a landslide or some means should be adopted to prevent blockage of tracks during landslides. Thus, either I or II follows.
10. Statement: India today is midstream in its demographic transaction. In the last 60 years there has been an almost continuous decline in mortality; while fertility has declined over the last 20 years. The consequence is that there has been a rapid growth in population over the last 50 years.
Courses of Action:
India should immediately revitalise its family planning programme.
The Government should immediately launch a massive education programme through mass media highlighting the implication of population growth at the present rate.
Clearly, to face the problem of the ever-growing population, an effective family planning programme, for the people to have small families, is a must. Education shall further stress the advantages of having lesser number of children and the disasters of the fast growth in population. Thus, both the courses follow.