Analytical Ability

Detailed Solution

171. Answer: C
This is a strengthen question. The argument claims that, because of the evidence in a burial site, both the conquering Egyptians and the conquered Nubians shared in the ruling of Nubia. The argument assumes that all of the evidence from the burial site stems from an era after Egypt conquered Nubia. If some of the evidence predated that time, the fact that some people were buried according to Nubian tradition would not say anything about who ruled the region after Egypt took over. Consider each choice, looking for one that strengthens that assumption:
(A) This choice doesn't have to do with the burial of Egyptians or Nubians, so it is outside of the scope.
(B) This choice is also outside of scope, as it has to do with burials in Egypt, where the local culture and the ruling culture were (as far as we know from the passage) the same.
(C) This is correct. This confirms the assumption that the evidence from the burial site pertains to the period after Egypt took over, solidifying the claim that Nubians had some control over burial practices even after the area was conquered.
(D) The number of people buried at the site is unimportant; the focus is on the burial practices used.

172. Answer: B
This is a weaken question. The argument makes a rather odd claim. Much of the passage concerns the benefits of municipal bonds, including a suggesting that Northopolis issue such a bond. Then the conclusion is that the city will pay for new school buildings with tax revenues. Money from bond issues is not the same thing, so it's unclear what one has to do with the other. To weaken the argument, that distinction-- the assumption that issuing a bond will somehow increase tax revenues--must be made clear. Consider each choice:
(A) This is irrelevant, as it doesn't address either the bond issue or the effect of "reluctance" on tax revenues.
(B) This is correct. It relates the existence of the proposed bond issue to tax revenues, which would decrease as a result of the bond issue.
(C) This is irrelevant, as it doesn't address tax revenues.
(D) Again, this choice is irrelevant; the cost of the buildings is not what the conclusion of the argument is about.

173. Answer: B
This is a weaken question. The experts' proposal involves expanding opportunities for women so that affected women will have fewer children, thus limiting the size of the population peak that the same experts have predicted. We're looking for a choice that suggests that the proposal will not limit the size of the peak or cause it to occur earlier. Consider each one:
(A) This is irrelevant. If the proposal 20 years ago was not followed (and we don't know whether it was or not) the fact that it was made doesn't tell us whether it would be effective or not today.
(B) This is correct. The proposal is based on the assumption that greater opportunities could be arranged for women in developing countries. If the maximum possible opportunities are already present, and have been built into the prediction, the proposal will not bring about any changes in the population peak.
(C) The argument is concerned primarily with developing countries, not industrialized countries.
(D) It doesn't matter whether the goal is desirable; the question is concerned with whether the goal will be attained.

174. Answer: D
This is an explanation question. The apparent paradox is that, while the price of rice effectively declined, rice consumption also declined. Consider each choice in turn, looking for a reason why this might occur:
(A) This doesn't tell us anything about the effect of the coupons.
(B) The amount of fluctuation is outside the scope; we're concerned with the effect of lowering the price of rice.
(C) That the average consumption of rice declined is not important; the study described in the passage included a control group, to which the households given coupons were compared.
(D) This is correct. If these families had money to purchase preferable rice substitutes, they may have increased or kept constant their consumption of rice and rice substitutes, but shifted some of their consumption from rice to substitutes because of the coupons.

175. Answer: D
This is an evidence question, only with an atypical format for the answer choices. Each one is simply a statement; it doesn't begin with "Whether." The argument hinges on the difference between students at rural and suburban schools and those at urban schools. The result mentioned in the question is that the difference between those two groups of students, in terms of driving under the influence, is explained by the distances between housing and sources of liquor. We're looking for a choice that would either strengthen or weaken that claim. Consider each choice in turn:
(A) If we knew that "all" students didn't purchase alcohol from these sources, this might cast some doubt on the claim, but "many" leaves an awful lot to be desired. It doesn't directly affect the argument.
(B) This is a different comparison--students vs. non-students. We need a choice that focuses on the comparison drawn in the passage.
(C) Enrollment doesn't matter, since the argument is phrased in terms of likelihood that a certain student would drive under the influence, not the absolute number of students.
(D) This is correct. The conclusion was drawn based on police records. If this choice is true, students driving under the influence near rural and suburban universities are more likely to be caught doing so (and thus appear in police records) than their counterparts at urban universities.

176. Answer: A
This is an "evaluate the argument" question. In a sense, we're looking for an assumption, just in a different format that in assumption questions. This argument claims that, because U.S. cities are not bicycle-friendly, U.S. cities cannot implement European-style bicycle sharing programs. Each choice has two possible outcomes ("whether" it is the case, or it is not the case), so we're looking for a choice in which one of the outcomes would have an impact on the argument. Consider each in turn:
(A) This is correct. If an increase in the number of bicyclists could change attitudes toward bicyclists, a bicycle-sharing program may well solve the problem suggested in the argument.
(B) This is not important; it doesn't matter if people (car-drivers or not) can operate bicycles if cities are too hostile to bicyclists.
(C) This is outside the scope. The problem described in the passage is not the lack of bicycle lanes, it is the culture of U.S. cities.
(D) As with (B), this is not relevant, since it doesn't address the issue of hostility to bicyclists.

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50	51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70	71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81	82	83	84	85	86	87	88	89	90	91	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	100
101	102	103	104	105	106	107	108	109	110	111	112	113	114	115	116	117	118	119	120
121	122	123	124	125	126	127	128	129	130	131	132	133	134	135	136	137	138	139	140
141	142

Passage Reading Verbal Logic Non Verbal Logic Numerical Logic Data Interpretation Reasoning Analytical Ability Basic Numeracy About Us Contact Privacy Policy Major Tests FAQ

---