MUST BE TRUE
Flavonoids are a common component of almost all plants, but a specific variety of flavonoid in apples has been found to be an antioxidant. Antioxidants are known to be a factor in the prevention of heart disease.
Which one of the following can be properly inferred from the passage?
A) A diet composed of largely fruits and vegetables will help to prevent heart disease.
B) Flavonoids are essential to preventing heart disease.
C) At least one type of flavonoid helps to prevent heart disease.
D) At least one type of flavonoid helps to prevent heart disease.
E) A diet dificient in antioxidants is a common cause of heart disease.
C) Eating at least one apple each day will prevent heart disease.
Carl is clearly an incompetent detective. He has solved a smaller percentage of the cases assigned to him in the last 3 years - only 1 out of 25 - than any other detective on the police force.
Which on of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?
A) Because the police chief regards Carl as the most capable detective, she assigns him only the most difficult cases, ones that others have failed to solve.
B) Before he became a detective, Carl was a neighborhood police officer and was highly respected by the residents of the neighborhood he patrolled.
C) Detectives on the police force on which Carl serves are provided with extensive resources, including the use of a large computer database, to help them solve crimes.
D) Carl was previously a detective in a police department in another city, and in the 4 years he spent there, he solved only 1 out of 30 crimes.
E) Many of the officers in the police department in which Carl serves were hired or promoted within the last 5 years.
A) Because the police chief regards Carl as the most capable detective, she assigns him only the most difficult cases, ones that others have failed to solve.
High school students who feel that they are not succeeding in high school often drop out before graduating and go to work. Last year, however, the city's high school dropout rate was significantly lower than the previous year's rate. This is encouraging evidence that the program instituted two years ago to improve the morale of high school students has begun to take effect to reduce dropouts.
Which on of the following, if true about the last year, most seriously weakens the argument?
A) There was a recession that caused a high level of unemployment in the city.
B) The morale of students who dropped out of high school had been low even before they reached high school.
C) As in the preceding year, more high school students remained in school than dropped out.
D) High schools in the city established placement offices to assist their graduates in obtaining employment.
E) The antidropout program was primarily aimed at improving students' morale in those high schools with the highest dropout rates.
A) There was a recession that caused a high level of unemployment in the city.
Maria won this year's local sailboat race by beating Sue, the winner in each of the four previous years. We can conclude from this that Maria trained hard.
The conclusion follows logically if which one of the following is assumed?
A) Sue did not train as hard as Maria trained.
B) If Maria trained hard, she would win the sailboat race.
C) Maria could beat a four-time winner only if she trained hard.
D) If Sue trained hard, she would win the sailboat race.
E) Sue is usually a faster sailboat racer than Maria.
C) Maria could beat a four-time winner only if she trained hard.
In an experiment, two-year-old boys and their fathers made pie dough together using rolling pins and other utensils. Each father-son pair used a rolling pin that was distinctively different from those used by the other father-son pairs, and each father repeated the phrase "rolling pin" each time his son used it. But when the children were asked to identify all of the rolling pins among a group of kitchen utensils that included several rolling pins, each child picked only the one that he had used.
Which one of the following inferences is most supported by the information above?
A) The children did not grasp the function of a rolling pin.
B) No two children understood the name "rolling pin" to apply to the same object.
C) The children understood that all rolling pins have the same general shape.
D) Each child was able to identify correctly only the utensils that he had used.
E) The children were not able to distinguish the rolling pins they used from other rolling pins.
B) No two children understood the name "rolling pin" to apply to the same object.
There is relatively little room for growth in the overall carpet market, which is tied to the size of the population. Most who purchase carpet do so onlu once or twice, first in their twenties or thirties, and then perhaps again in their fifties or sixties. Thus as the population ages, companies producing carpet will be able to gain market share in the carpet market only through purchasing competitors, and not through more aggressive marketing.
Which one of the following, if true, casts the most doubt on the conclusion above?
A) Most of the major carpet producers market other floor coverings as well.
B) Most established carpet producers market several different brand names and varieties, and there is no remaining niche in the market for new brands to fill.
C) Two of the three mergers in the industry's last ten years led to a decline in profits and revenues for the newly merged companies.
D) Price reductions, achieved by cost-cutting in production, by some of the dominant firms in the carpet market are causing other producers to leave the market altogether.
E) The carpet market is unlike most markets in that consumers are becoming increasingly resistant to new patterns and styles.
D) Price reductions, achieved by cost-cutting in production, by some of the dominant firms in the carpet market are causing other producers to leave the market altogether.
Most antidepressant drugs cause weight gain. While dieting can help reduce the amount of weight gained while taking such antidepressants, some weight gain is unlikely to be preventable.
The information above most strongly supports which one of the following?
A) A physician should not prescribe any antidepressant drug for a patient if that patient is overweight.
B) People who are trying to lose weight should not ask their doctors for an antidepressant drug.
C) At least some patients taking antidepressant drugs gain weight as a result of taking them.
D) The weight gain experienced by patients taking antidepressant drugs should be attributed to lack of dieting.
E) All patients taking antidepressant drugs should diet to maintain their weight.
C) At least some patients taking antidepressant drugs gain weight as a result of taking them.
The conclusion above follows logically if which one of the following is assumed?
A) One should never regret one's pleasures.
B) Forgone pleasures that were not desired would not have been justifiably regretted.
C) Everything that one desires and then regrets not having is a forgone pleasure.
D) Many forgone pleasures would have been justifiably regretted.
E) Nothing that one should not have desired in the first place fails to be a pleasure.
D) Many forgone pleasures would have been justifiably regretted.
Newtonian physics dominated science for over two centuries. It found consistently successful application, becoming one of the most highly substantiated and accepted theories in the history of science. Nevertheless, Einstein's theories came to show the fundamental limits of Newtonian view in the early 1900s, giving rise once again to a physics that has so far enjoyed wide success.
Which one of the following logically follows from the statements above?
A) The history of physics is characterized by a pattern of one successful theory subsequently surpassed by another.
B) Long-standing success or substantiation of a theory of physics is no guarantee that the theory will continue to be dominant indefinitely.
C) Every theory of physics, no matter how successful, is eventually surpassed by one that is more successful.
D) Once a theory of physics is accepted, it will remain dominant for centuries.
E) If a long-accepted theory of physics is surpassed, it must be surpassed by a theory that is equally successful.
B) Long-standing success or substantiation of a theory of physics is no guarantee that the theory will continue to be dominant indefinitely.
Politician: All nations that place a high tax on income produce thereby a negative incentive for technological innovation, and all nations in which technological innovation is hampered inevitably fall behind in the international arms race. Those nations that, through historical accident or the foolishness of their political leadership, wind up in a strategically disadvantageous position are destined to lose their voice in world affairs. So if a nation wants to maintain its value system and way of life, it must not allow its highest tax bracket to exceed 30 percent of income.
Each of the following, if true, weakens the politician's argument EXCEPT:
A) The top level of taxation must reach 45 percent before taxation begins to deter inventors and industrialists from introducing new technologies and industries.
B) Making a great deal of money is an insignificant factor in driving technological innovation.
C) Falling behind in the international arms race does not necessarily lead to a strategically less advantageous position.
D) Those nations that lose influence in the world community do not necessarily suffer from a threat to their value system or way of life.
E) Allowing one's country to lose its technological edge, especially as concerns weaponry, would be foolish rather than merely a historical accident.
E) Allowing one's country to lose its technological edge, especially as concerns weaponry, would be foolish rather than merely a historical accident.
Researcher: People with certain personality disorders have more theta brain waves than those without such disorders. but my data shows that the amount of one's theta brain waves increases while watching TV. So watching too much TV increases one's risk of developing personality disorders.
A questionable aspect of the reasoning above is that it
A) uses the phrase "personality disorders" ambiguously
B) fails to define the phrase "theta brain waves"
C) takes a correlation to imply a causal connection
D) draws a conclusion from an unrepresentative sample of data
E) infers that watching TV is a consequence of a personality disorder
C) takes a correlation to imply a causal connection
Marian Anderson, the famous contralto, did not take success for granted. We know this because Anderson had to struggle early in life, and anyone who has to struggle early in life is able to keep a good perspective on the world.
The conclusion follows logically if which one of the following is assumed?
A) Anyone who succeeds takes success for granted.
B) Anyone who is able to keep a good perspective on the world does not take success for granted.
C) Anyone who is able to keep a good perspective on the world has to struggle early in life.
D) Anyone who does not take success for granted has to struggle early in life.
E) Anyone who does not take success for granted is able to keep a good perspective on the world.
B) Anyone who is able to keep a good perspective on the world does not take success for granted.
Light is registered in the retina when photons hit molecules of the pigment rhodopsin and change molecules' shape. Even when they have not been struck by photons of light, rhodopsin molecules sometimes change shape because of normal molecular motion, thereby introducing error into the visual system. The amount of this molecular motion is directly proportional to the temperature of the retina.
Which one of the following conclusions is most strongly supported by the information above?
A) The temperature of an animal's retina depends on the amount of light the retina is absorbing.
B) The visual systems of animals whose body temperature matches that of their surroundings are more error-prone in hot surroundings than in cold ones.
C) As the temperature of the retina rises, rhodopsin molecules react more slowly to being struck by photons.
D) Rhodopsin molecules are more sensitive to photons in animals whose retinas have large surface areas than in animals whose retinas have small surface areas.
E) Molecules of rhodopsin are the only pigment molecules that occur naturally in the retina.
B) The visual systems of animals whose body temperature matches that of their surroundings are more error-prone in hot surroundings than in cold ones.
Archaeologist: A skeleton of a North American mastodon that became extinct at the peak of the Ice Age was recently discovered. It contains a human-made projectile dissimilar to any found in that part of Eurasia closest to North America. Thus, since Eurasians did not settle in North America until shortly before the peak of the Ice Age, the first Eurasian settlers in North America probably came from a more distant part of Eurasia.
Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the archaeologist's argument?
A) The projectile found in the mastodon does not resemble any that were used in Eurasia before or during the Ice Age.
B) The people who occupied the Eurasian area closest to North America remained nomadic throughout the Ice Age.
C) The skeleton of a bear from the same place and time as the mastodon skeleton contains a similar projectile.
D) Other North American artifacts from the peak of the Ice Age are similar to ones from the same time found in more distant parts of Eurasia.
E) Climatic conditions in North America just before the Ice Age were more conducive to human habitation than were those in the part of Eurasia closest to North America at that time.
A) The projectile found in the mastodon does not resemble any that were used in Eurasia before or during the Ice Age.
Violent crime in this town is becoming a serious problem. Compared to last year, local law enforcement agencies have responded to 17 percent more calls involving violent crimes, showing that the average citizen of this town is more likely than ever to become a victim of a violent crime.
Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
A) The town's overall crime rate appears to have risen slightly this year compared to the same period last year.
B) In general, persons under the age of 65 are less likely to be victims of violent crimes than persons over the age of 65.
C) As a result of the town's community outreach programs, more people than ever are willing to report violent crimes to the proper authorities.
D) In response to worries about violent crime, the town has recently opened a community center providing supervised activities for teenagers.
E) Community officials have shown that a relatively small number of repeat offenders commit the majority of violent crimes in the town.
C) As a result of the town's community outreach programs, more people than ever are willing to report violent crimes to the proper authorities.
Columnist: Almost anyone can be an expert, for there are no official guidelines determining what an expert must know. Anybody who manages to convince some people of his or her qualifications in an area - whatever those may be - is an expert.
The columnist's conclusion follows logically if which one of the following is assumed?
A) Almost anyone can convince some people of his or her qualifications in some area.
B) Some experts convince everyone of their qualifications in almost every area.
C) Convincing certain people that one is qualified in an area requires that one actually be qualified in that area.
D) Every expert has convinced some people of his or her qualifications in some area.
E) Some people manage to convince almost everyone of their qualifications in one or more areas.
A) Almost anyone can convince some people of his or her qualifications in some area.
Which one of the following inferences is most strongly supported by the information above?
A) We have no plausible chronology of most of the events for which attempts have been made by historians to determine the right date.
B) Some of the events for which there are conflicting chronologies and for which attempts have been made by historians to determine the right date cannot be dated reliably by historians.
C) Attaching a reliable date to any event requires determining which of several conflicting chronologies is most likely to be true.
D) Determining independently of the usual sources which of several conflicting chronologies is more likely to be right is an ineffective way of dating events.
E) The soundest approach to dating an event for which the usual sources give conflicting chronologies is to undermine the credibility of as many of these sources as possible.
B) Some of the events for which there are conflicting chronologies and for which attempts have been made by historians to determine the right date cannot be dated reliably by historians.
Lobsters and other crustaceans eaten by humans are more likely to contract gill diseases when sewage contaminates their water. Under a recent proposal, millions of gallons of local sewage each day would be rerouted many kilometers offshore. Although this would substantially reduce the amount of sewage in the harbor where lobsters are caught, the proposal is pointless, because hardly any lobsters live long enough to be harmed by those diseases.
Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
A) Contaminants in the harbor other than sewage are equally harmful to lobsters.
B) Lobsters, like other crustaceans, live longer in the open ocean than in industrial harbors.
C) Lobsters breed as readily in sewage contaminated water as in unpolluted water.
D) Gill diseases cannot be detected by examining the surface of the lobster.
E) Humans often become ill as a result of eating lobsters with gill diseases.
E) Humans often become ill as a result of eating lobsters with gill diseases.
Unlike newspapers in the old days, today's newspapers and televised news programs are full of stories about murders and assaults in our city. One can only conclude from this change that violent crime is now out of control, and, to be sage from personal attack, one should not leave one's home except for absolute necessities.
Which one of the following, if true, would cast the most serious doubt on the conclusion?
A) Newspapers and televised news programs have more comprehensive coverage of violent crime than newspapers did in the old days.
B) National data show that violent crime is out of control everywhere, not just in the author's city.
C) Police records show that people experience more violent crimes in their own neighborhoods than they do outside their neighborhoods.
D) Murder comprised a larger proportion of violent crimes in the old days than it does today.
E) News magazines play a more important role today in informing the public about crime than they did in the old days.
A) Newspapers and televised news programs have more comprehensive coverage of violent crime than newspapers did in the old days.
Vague laws set vague limits on people's freedom, which makes it impossible for them to know for certain whether their actions are legal. Thus, under vague laws people cannot feel secure.
The conclusion follows logically if which one of the following is assumed?
A) People can feel secure only if they know for certain whether their actions are legal.
B) If people do not know for certain whether their actions are legal, then they might not feel secure.
C) If people know for certain whether their actions are legal, they can feel secure.
D) People can feel secure if they are governed by laws that are not vague.
E) Only people who feel secure can know for certain whether their actions are legal.
A) People can feel secure only if they know for certain whether their actions are legal.