1)

When a subscriber of one telecom operator calls another subscriber of different telecom operator, the destination telecom company (of the
receiving subscriber) charges a small connection fee to the originating telecom operator. In Country Y, this connection fee, which is charged
on a per minute basis, is stipulated by the regulator and thus, is same for every telecom operator.
Recently, in country Y, several new telecom operators have entered the market and almost all of them are enticing customers by charging
much lower call rates than are charged by the existing operators. Since connection fee is one of the sources of revenue for new companies,
the regulator should increase the connection fee so that the financials of the new telecom operators improve and thereby, they are able to
better compete in the market.
1.Select a statement below which provides the strongest reason to suggest that the recommendation of the author would have the
opposite effect than as envisaged.

A. The connection fee is such a small component of revenues of any telecom companies that no company could survive by just relying on this.
B. In the past, whenever regulator has been advised a course of action by an outside agency, the regulator has taken a completely opposite
action step.
C. The financial health of a telecom company is determined by the total profits generated by the company, irrespective of the source of
revenues.
D. Due to highly competitive call rates, the number of outgoing calls from an average user of a new telecom company is expected to be much
greater than the number of incoming calls.
E. Increase in the connection fee may be passed on by the companies to the end users, which may make consumers switch their existing
telecom company.
2.Which of the following statements is an assumption made by the author?

A. The regulator will most probably agree with the authors recommended course of action
B. To improve the financials of the new companies, all the possible sources of revenues should be utilized in the best manner possible.
C. One of the goals of the regulator is to make the telecom market highly competitive, which will ensure consumer welfare
D. Weak financials is one of the reasons which restrict the ability of the new companies to compete in the market.
E. New companies will not have to pay increased connection fee to the existing companies

2)
The popular view is that Ozone layers depletion is real, as certain as Neil Armstrong's landing on the moon. While that may be the case, the
attribution of such depletion to man-made chemicals is not true. Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines spewed forth more than a thousand times
the amount of ozone-depleting chemicals in one volcanic eruption than all the fluorocarbons manufactured by wicked, diabolical and
insensitive corporations in history. Mankind can't possibly equal the output of even one eruption from Pinatubo, much less 4 billion years'
worth of them, so how can it be held responsible for destroying ozone.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument of the author depends?
A. It would take mankind more than 4 billion years to destroy Ozone.
B. Each molecule of ozone depleting chemical released during an eruption of Mount Pinatubo destroys the same quantity of ozone as a
molecule of fluorocarbons.
C. The amount of ozone-depleting chemicals released during a single eruption in Mount Pinatubo is much higher than the quantity of
fluorocarbons produced by the companies
D. The molecular structure of ozone-depleting chemicals released during a volcanic eruption does not prevent them from reaching the
stratosphere, the layer of the atmosphere where the ozone layer resides.
E. The rate at which an ozone depleting chemical, whether man-made or released in a volcanic eruption, is released is not more important in
the destruction of ozone layer than the quantity of chemicals released.

3)
Prior to 1971, the United States was on various forms of a gold standard through which the value of the dollar was backed by gold reserves
and paper money could be redeemed for gold on demand. Since 1971, the United States dollar has been a fiat currency backed by "full faith
and credit of the government and not backed by, valued in, or convertible into gold. A gold standard restricts the ability of government to
print money at will and to spend more than it earns in tax revenue. Besides, the economy has historically performed best under a gold
standard. Therefore, for reasons above, the voters should vote for a party that backs the return of the gold standard in the country.

Which of the following data sets can be best used by the author of the above argument to further his conclusion?
A. Major economic indicators of United States since 1980
B. Expenditure on education and healthcare from 1960 to 2000
C. Money printed by the government as proportion of the Gross Domestic Product from 1950 to 1970
D. Growth in the difference between the revenue and expenditure figures for the government for the last 100 years beginning from 1901.
E. Economic growth in the country in 1971 and in 1972.

4)
The renaissance in Britain's car industry has been a beacon of hope in an economy that has been broadly flat for the best part of two years. It
can help rebalance the UK economy by increasing our manufacturing output and our exports. It can also create high quality jobs. But we
shouldn't be under too many illusions: even if manufacturing companies like Jaguar can help increase UK exports, many economists doubt
they can be a major source of new jobs over the long term.
Which of the following best explains the reason for the doubt expressed by the economists?
A. The car industry does not create low-quality jobs.
B. Even though Jaguars exports grew more than 20% in the last year, its number of employees grew only by 5%.
C. The car industry is a capital intensive industry and frequently goes through cycles of growth and recession.
D. To succeed in the global manufacturing industry, a company has to be extraordinarily efficient, which means using the same workforce for
more production.
E. US car companies are financially well off than their British peers and can cut down their prices to gain market share.

5)
Per a recent survey carried out in Rambo City, capital of Papula country, an average middle-aged person drives his or her car for two
thousand miles in a year and 99% of these people own a gasoline-run car. In addition, the survey suggested that if offered an economical
option to switch to electric cars, most of these people would change their gasoline-run cars. The government of Papula is impressed with the
environmental considerations shown by the citizens of Papula and is planning to implement a plan that would allow all the current owners of
gasoline-run cars to switch to electric cars at a minimal cost.
Which of the following statements casts the most doubt on the ability of the plan to meet its required objective of significantly reducing air
pollution in Papula in the next 5 years?

A. Though some of the citizens are concerned about the negative environmental impact of air pollution, they will not spend any extra money
to protect the environment.
B. The budget deficit of the government of Papula is already at alarming levels, and any further increase in the deficit could lead to the
bankruptcy of the country.
C. Since Papula is an aging country, with more than half its population near retirement age, the chief consideration for a large number of its
citizens is the convenience to drive rather than the costs to do so.
D. In the last two decades, Papula has emerged as a major economic hub, leading to an increase in the living standard of its citizens and in
the number of cars in the region.
E. Since people who dont own gasoline cars would not be benefitted from the proposed plan, they may strongly oppose the use of taxpayer
money on such a plan.

6)
Experia Inc , one of the pioneers in the online retailing in the cosmetics business, does not have a physical presence and sells all its products
through its website. While evaluating its various marketing channels to make the best use of its funds, the company has discovered that it
attracts two times as many visitors for every dollar spent on Google than on Cosmetico, an online magazine. The company also found that the
average purchase of a customer does not depend on the fact whether he/she came through Google or the magazine. The company has,
therefore, decided to shift some of its marketing funds from the magazine to Google.
Which of the following most strongly undermines the ability of the companys plan to increase its profits?

A. An average reader of a Cosmetico magazine has income that is several times greater than the income of an average Google user
B. The conversion ratio from visitors to customers is several times higher in case of Cosmetico than in case of Google
C. Last time, when the company shifted more of its resources from Cosmetico to Google, it resulted in an immediate increase in its sales
D. Given the large presence of Google across various geographies, the visitors that come from Google are much more spread geographically
than those who come from Cosmetico.
E. By investing time and money on writing articles in Comimetico, Experia can reduce its customer acquisition costs to half to what they are
now.

Which of the following casts the most doubt on the ability of the plan to achieve its objective of increasing the sales of the company?

A. Whereas almost all online retailers advertise their products on Google, there are only a few retailers, especially in the cosmetics business,
which use Cosmetico as a marketing channel
B. In the past, it has been seen that in case of customer originating from Cosmetico that such customers become regular customers of the
company and make most of their latter purchases by directly visiting the companys website.
C. The average order size of a customer depends more on the product line of the company than any characteristic of the customer
D. The average monthly costs of advertising at Google is just a small fraction of the average monthly costs of advertising at Cosmetico
E. It has been observed that the customers who come through Google are generally more satisfied with the Experias products than customers
who come from Cosmetico and the former also praise the Experias products on various online forums while the latter do not.

7)
Scientists have determined that Radon - a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas - is unstable because of its radioactive nature and
continuously decays into Progeny. Since it has been proven that there was no Progeny at the time of earths formation, one can accurately
estimate earths age by determining the increase in Progeny in earths atmosphere over the last 200 years and using it to determine how
many years it would have taken to reach current levels of Progeny.
The answer to which of the following questions would be most important in determining whether using the method would help in achieving
the stated objective?
A. Whether the rate of decay of Radon into Progeny is different during day time and night time?
B. Whether Progeny is stable or gets converted into some other gas at constant rate?
C. Whether there have been any changes in the atmosphere in the past century that have increased the radioactivity decay level of all gases?
D. Whether there are methods, better than the method given, to estimate the earths age?
E. Whether amount of Radon or Progeny varies from region to region?

8)
To determine the extent of tax fraud, the Internal Revenue Service audited the current year tax returns of a random set of 1000 individuals.
Even though only 10% of the individuals in the group were self-employed (other 90% were working professionals), they accounted for 50% of
the fraudulent cases.
For the group above, which of the following would be most useful in assessing whether tax fraud by self-employed individuals may be
responsible for majority of the money that the IRS loses every year?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

The trend of average income of self-employed individuals over the past few years compared to that of the rest of the group.
The difference between average annual taxes paid by a self-employed individual and a working professional.
The average tax fraud committed by a self-employed individual versus a working professional.
The diversity of demographics represented in the group versus that of the nation.
The number of women in the group who were working professionals versus self-employed.

9)
A zero-CO2 U.S. economy can be achieved within the next thirty to fifty years without the use of nuclear power. The U.S. renewable energy
resource base is vast and practically untapped. Available wind energy resources in 12 Midwestern and Rocky Mountain states equal about 2.5
times the entire electricity production of the United States. Given that we can satisfy our electricity needs by harnessing only 40% of the wind
energy resources in these 12 states, it is extremely likely that we will be able to do away with CO2.
Which of the following would be most useful to evaluate the above argument?
A. What is the amount of wind energy resources available in rest of the states in the United States?
B. Are there any other renewable energy resources such as solar power, which can be used?
C. With the use of current technologies, what proportion of electricity generated through wind energy can be stored for use at future times
when wind may not be blowing?
D. Are there strong corporate lobbies which will strongly oppose any move to substitute non-renewable sources of energy?
E. What proportion of wind energy is available only at inaccessible areas?

10)
Environmentalists support a major phase-down of fossil fuels and substitution of favored 'nonpolluting' energies to conserve depleting
resources and protect the environment. Yet energy megatrends contradict those concerns. Fossil-fuel resources are becoming more abundant,
not scarcer, and promise to continue expanding as technology improves, world markets liberalize, and investment capital expands. However,
these facts do not mean a smaller role of the nonpolluting sources of energy in the long run given that
Which one of the following statements best completes the passage above?
A. The costs of producing energy from nonpolluting sources of energy have remained constant in the last five years.
B. The availability of fossil fuels does mean an increased use of the same.
C. The amount of confirmed deposits of fossil fuels is sufficient to serve the world energy needs at least over the next two centuries.
D. There is an increasing sense of acceptance across the world on the harmful effects of the use of fossil fuels on the environment
E. Nonpolluting sources of energy are less cost-effective than fossil fuels.

11)
The stock market has shorted HP stock in response to HP CEO Leo Apothekers decision to divest the tablet business to invest to achieve good
positions in great industries. Such myopic behavior indicates that the stock market is focused at short term results even when they come
at the expense of long term benefits. While HP could have made some money in the tablet market in the short term, it has no strategic
advantage in the tablet space and refocusing and investing the management focus on industries where HP does have a strategic advantage
will provide enduring profits in the long term.
In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?
A. The first is a position that the argument as a whole seeks to defend whereas the second is a position that is contested in the argument.
B. The first states the conclusion of the argument as a whole; the second states an intermediate conclusion that is drawn in order to support
the main conclusion.
C. The first is the position that the argument as a whole opposes; the second provides evidence against the position being opposed.
D. The first states an intermediate conclusion that is drawn in order to support the conclusion of the argument as a whole; the 2nd states the
conclusion of the argument as a whole
E. The first and second both state intermediate conclusions that are drawn in order to support jointly the conclusions of the argument as a
whole
Products that are high performance and full of features generally provide higher profit margins than simpler products. Because stock market
rewards higher returns on research and development and a companys decisions are driven by stock prices, incumbents in any industry
invest their research and development efforts on making products more complex, leaving the products that provide the lowest profit
margins to competitors. However, such a strategy often backfires since it allows competitors to build competence and slowly come after
those high margin products. Therefore, the best strategy for an incumbent is to invest to maintain leading positions in both low margin and
high margin products.
A. The first is an assumption that forms the basis for a course of action that the argument criticizes; the second presents the course of action
endorsed by the argument.
B. The first is a consideration raised to explain the appeal of a certain strategy; the second presents that strategy
C. The first is an assumption that has been used to justify a certain strategy; the second is a consideration that is used to cast doubt on that
assumption.
D. The first is a consideration raised in support of a strategy the argument endorses; the second presents grounds in support of that
consideration.
E. The first is a consideration that has been used to justify pursuing a goal that the argument rejects; the second presents a course of action
that has been adopted in pursuit of a goal.

12)
Consumer advocate: it is generally true, at least in this state, that lawyers who advertise a specific service charge less for that service than
lawyers who do not advertise. It is also true that each time restrictions on the advertising of legal services have been eliminated, the number of
lawyers advertising their services has increased and legal costs to consumers have declined in consequence. However, eliminating the state
requirement that legal advertisements must specify fees for specific services would almost certainly increase rather than further reduce
consumers legal costs. Lawyers would no longer have an incentive to lower their fees when they begin advertising and if no longer required to
specify fee arrangements, many lawyers who now advertise would increase their fees.
In the consumer advocates argument, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?
(A) The first is a generalization that the consumer advocate accepts as true; the second is presented as a consequence that follows from the
truth of that generalization.
(B) The first is a pattern of cause and effect that the consumer advocate argues will be repeated in the case at issue; the second acknowledges a
circumstance in which that pattern would not hold.
(C) The first is pattern of cause and effect that the consumer advocate predicts will not hold in the case at issue; the second offers a
consideration in support of that prediction.
(D) The first is evidence that the consumer advocate offers in support of a certain prediction; the second is that prediction.
(E) The first acknowledges a consideration that weighs against the main position that the consumer advocate defends; the second is that
position.

13)
Achievers Administrative Officer: At Achievers School, students from economically underprivileged backgrounds, who study free of charge
under the companys social responsibility clause, tend to spend less-time in school than the financially well-to-do, fee paying students. This is
despite the fact that on average, economically underprivileged children have more pressing academic needs than the fee paying-students.
Critics of the school have concluded that the economically underprivileged students are not receiving proper academic attention.
However, this conclusion is almost certainly baseless. Careful investigation has recently shown two things: students from financially well to
do households hang around in school premises to discuss their after-school parties, and tend to stay back in the school after classes to attend
such optional sports activities that have nothing to do with a students academic development.
In the administrative officers argument, the two boldface portions play which of the following roles?
A. The first states the conclusion of the administrative officers argument; the second provides support for that conclusion.
B. The first is used to support the conclusion of the administrative officers argument; the second states that conclusion.
C. The first was used to support the conclusion drawn by school critics; the second states the position that the administrative officers
argument opposes.
D. The first was used to support the conclusion drawn by school critics; the second provides support for the conclusion of the administrative
officers argument.
E. The first states the position that the administrative officers argument opposes; the second states the conclusion of the administrative
officers argument.

14)
The decline of manufacturing in a region sets off a chain reaction. Once manufacturing is outsourced, process-engineering expertise cant be
maintained, since it depends on daily interactions with manufacturing. Without process-engineering capabilities, companies find it
increasingly difficult to conduct advanced research on next-generation process technologies. Without the ability to develop such new
processes, they find they can no longer develop new products.
Which of the following is best supported by the passage?
A. In the long term, an economy with a deteriorating infrastructure for advanced process engineering and with declining manufacturing
activity will likely lose its ability to innovate.
B. To develop new products, a company must never cut down on its manufacturing.
C. An increase in the manufacturing activity in a region leads to increase in innovation within the region

D. To develop new products, a company needs to frequently change its processes.

E. An economy that has growing manufacturing capabilities will churn out more new products than other economies.

15)
Paleontologist: About 2.8 million years ago, many species that lived near the ocean floor suffered substantial
population declines. These declines coincided with the onset of an ice age. The notion that cold killed those
bottom-dwelling creatures outright is misguided, however; temperatures near the ocean floor would have
changed very little. Nevertheless, the cold probably did cause the population declines, though
indirectly. Many bottom-dwellers depended for food on plankton, small organisms that lived close to the
surface and sank to the bottom when they died. Most probably, the plankton suffered a severe
population decline as a result of sharply lower temperatures at the surface, depriving many
bottom-dwellers of food.
In the paleontologist's reasoning, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?
A. The first introduces the hypothesis proposed by the paleontologist; the second is a judgment offered in spelling
out that hypothesis.
B. The first introduces the hypothesis proposed by the paleontologist; the second is a position that the
paleontologist opposes.
C. The first is an explanation challenged by the paleontologist; the second is an explanation proposed by the
paleontologist.
D. The first is a judgment advanced in support of a conclusion reached by the paleontologist; the second is that
conclusion.
E. The first is a generalization put forward by the paleontologist; the second presents certain exceptional cases in
which that generalization does not hold.

16)
In countries where automobile insurance includes compensation for whiplash injuries sustained in
automobile accidents, reports of having suffered such injuries are twice as frequent as they are in
countries where whiplash is not covered. Some commentators have argued, correctly, that since there is
presently no objective test for whiplash, spurious reports of whiplash injuries cannot be readily
identified. These commentators are, however, wrong to draw the further conclusion that in the countries with the
higher rates of reported whiplash injuries, half of the reported cases are spurious: clearly, in countries where
automobile insurance does not include compensation for whiplash, people often have little incentive to report whiplash
injuries that they actually have suffered.
In the argument given, the two boldfaced portions play which of the following roles?
A. The first is a finding whose accuracy is evaluated in the argument; the second is an intermediate conclusion drawn
to support the judgment reached by the argument on the accuracy of that finding.
B. The first is a finding whose accuracy is evaluated in the argument; the second is evidence that has been used to
challenge the accuracy of that finding.
C. The first is a finding whose implications are at issue in the argument; the second is an intermediate conclusion that
has been used to support a conclusion that the argument criticizes.
D. The first is a claim that the argument disputes; the second is a narrower claim that the argument accepts.
E. The first is a claim that has been used to support a conclusion that the argument accepts; the second is that
conclusion

17)
Despite improvements in treatment for asthma, the death rate form this disease has doubled during the past decade from its previous rate.
Two possible explanations for this increase have been offered. First, the recording of deaths due to asthma has become more widespread and
accurate in the past decade than it had been previously. Second, there has been an increase in urban pollution. However, since the rate of
deaths due to asthma has increased dramatically even in cities with long-standing, comprehensive medical records and with little or no urban
pollution, one must instead conclude that the cause of increased deaths is the use of bronchial inhalers by asthma sufferers to relieve their
symptoms.

Each of the following, if true, provides support to the argument EXCEPT:

(A) Urban populations have doubled in the past decade.
(B) Records of asthma deaths are as accurate for the past twenty years as for the past ten years.
(C) Evidence suggests that bronchial inhalers make the lungs more sensitive to irritation by airborne pollen.
(D) By temporarily relieving the symptoms of asthma, inhalers encourage sufferers to avoid more beneficial measures.
(E) Ten years ago bronchial inhalers were not available as an asthma treatment.

Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

(A) Urban pollution has not doubled in the past decade.
(B) Doctors and patients generally ignore the role of allergies in asthma.
(C) Bronchial inhalers are unsafe, even when used according to the recommended instructions.
(D) The use of bronchial inhalers aggravates other diseases that frequently occur among asthma sufferers and that often lead to fatal
outcomes even when the asthma itself does not.
(E) Increased urban pollution, improved recording of asthma deaths, and the use of bronchial inhalers are the only possible explanations of
the increased death rate due to asthma.

18)
Excavations of the Roman city of Sepphoris have uncovered numerous detailed mosaics depicting several readily identifiable animal species :
a hare, a partridge, and various Mediterranean fish. Oddly, most of the species represented did not live in the Sepphoris region when these
mosaics were created. Since identical motifs appear in mosaics found in other Roman cities, however, the mosaics of Sepphoris were very
likely created by traveling artisans from some other part of the Roman Empire.
Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
a. The Sepphoris mosaics are not composed exclusively of types of stones found naturaly in the Sepphoris area.
b. There is no single region to which all the species depicted in the Sepphoris mosaics are native.
c. No motifs appear in the Sepphoris mosaics that do not also appear in the mosaics of some other Roman city.
d. All of the animal figures in the Sepphoris mosaics are readily identifiable as representations of known species.
e. There was not a common repertory of mosaic designs with which artisans who lived in various parts of the Roman Empire were familiar.