Analyzing Arguments problems
- 1. For too long, school cafeterias, in an effort to provide food they thought would be appetizing to young people, mimicked fast-food restaurants, serving items such as burgers and fries, pizza, hot dogs, and fried chicken. School districts nationwide are now addressing this trend by incorporating some simple and inexpensive options that will make cafeteria lunches healthier while still appealing to students.
This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options- A. school cafeterias have always emphasized nutritional guidelines over any other considerations.
- B. young people would rather eat in a school cafeteria than a local fast-food restaurant.
- C. school lunch menus are becoming healthier due to major new initiatives on the part of school districts.
- D. it is possible to make school lunches both healthier and appealing without spending a great deal of money and undertaking a radical transformation.
- E. vegetarian lunch options would greatly improve the nutritional value of the school lunch program. Discuss
Correct Answer: it is possible to make school lunches both healthier and appealing without spending a great deal of money and undertaking a radical transformation.
Explanation:
The final sentence of the paragraph supports choice d. The other choices are not supported by the passage. Choice c may seem correct at first, but the paragraph states that the new initiatives are simple and inexpensive, not major. Choice e might seem to represent a truth, but vegetarian options are not discussed in this paragraph.
- 2. Forest fires feed on decades-long accumulations of debris and leap from the tops of young trees into the branches of mature trees. Fires that jump from treetop to treetop can be devastating. In old-growth forests, however, the shade of mature trees keeps thickets of small trees from sprouting, and the lower branches of mature trees are too high to catch the flames.
This paragraph best supports the statement that
Options- A. forest fire damage is reduced in old-growth forests.
- B. small trees should be cut down to prevent forest fires.
- C. mature trees should be thinned out to prevent forest fires
- D. forest fires do the most damage in old-growth forests.
- E. old-growth forests have a larger accumulation of forest debris. Discuss
Correct Answer: forest fire damage is reduced in old-growth forests.
Explanation:
The last sentence provides direct support for choice a. The author never suggests that any trees should be cut down or thinned out, which eliminates choices b and c. Choice d contradicts the author's opinion. The author suggests that old growth forests have less debris, which rules out choice e.
- 3. 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. Discuss
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.
- 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.
- E. threading a needle is a precise motor skill. Discuss
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. 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. Discuss
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.
- 6. 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. Discuss
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.
- 7. 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.
- D. Mars is closer to the sun than Earth is.
- E. Mars is more mountainous than Earth is. Discuss
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.
- 8. 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. Discuss
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.
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