Weekly Critical Reasoning for CAT: Exercise 1

We are glad to announce that we have taken the initiative to launch a series of question sets on Critical Reasoning for CAT and GMAT aspirants. Each of the questions set will have 10 new questions on Critical Reasoning along with detailed explanations for each of them. It will be a weekly series i.e. 1 question set will be published each week. We would advice all of the aspiring candidates of CAT or GMAT (or management entrance applicants) to complete solving the entire set at a go and then referring to the solutions for the correct answer and explanations to each of the questions on Critical Reasoning.

Questions:

1. Which of the following best completes the passage below?
In a survey of job applicants, two-fifths admitted to being at least a little dishonest. However, the survey may underestimate the proportion of job applicants who are dishonest, because____.
A. some dishonest people taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to be honest
B. some generally honest people taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to be dishonest
C. some people who claimed on the survey to be at least a little dishonest may be very dishonest
D. some people who claimed on the survey to be dishonest may have been answering honestly
E. some people who are not job applicants are probably at least a little dishonest


2. The average life expectancy for the United States population as a whole is 73.9 years, but children born in
Hawaii will live an average of 77 years, and those born in Louisiana, 71.7 years. If a newlywed couple from
Louisiana were to begin their family in Hawaii, therefore, their children would be expected to live longer than would be the case if the family remained in Louisiana.
Which of the following, if true, would most seriously weaken the conclusion drawn in the passage?
A. Insurance company statisticians do not believe that moving to Hawaii will significantly lengthen the average
Louisianan’s life.
B. The governor of Louisiana has falsely alleged that statistics for his state are inaccurate.
C. The longevity ascribed to Hawaii’s current population is attributable mostly to genetically determined factors.
D. Thirty percent of all Louisianans can expect to live longer than 77 years.
E. Most of the Hawaiian Islands have levels of air pollution well below the national average for the United States.


3. The average life expectancy for the United States population as a whole is 73.9 years, but children born in
Hawaii will live an average of 77 years, and those born in Louisiana, 71.7 years. If a newlywed couple from
Louisiana were to begin their family in Hawaii, therefore, their children would be expected to live longer than would be the case if the family remained in Louisiana.
Which of the following statements, if true, would most significantly strengthen the conclusion drawn in the passage?
A. As population density increases in Hawaii, life expectancy figures for that state are likely to be revised downward.
B. Environmental factors tending to favor longevity are abundant in Hawaii and less numerous in Louisiana.
C. Twenty-five percent of all Louisianans who move to Hawaii live longer than 77 years.
D. Over the last decade, average life expectancy has risen at a higher rate for Louisianans than for Hawaiians.
E. Studies show that the average life expectancy for Hawaiians who move permanently to Louisiana is roughly equal to that of Hawaiians who remain in Hawaii.


4. Insurance Company X is considering issuing a new policy to cover services required by elderly people who suffer from diseases that afflict the elderly. Premiums for the policy must be low enough to attract customers.
Therefore, Company X is concerned that the income from the policies would not be sufficient to pay for the claims that would be made.
Which of the following strategies would be most likely to minimize Company X’s losses on the policies?
A. Attracting middle-aged customers unlikely to submit claims for benefits for many years.
B. Insuring only those individuals who did not suffer any serious diseases as children
C. Including a greater number of services in the policy than are included in other policies of lower cost
D. Insuring only those individuals who were rejected by other companies for similar policies
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E. Insuring only those individuals who are wealthy enough to pay for the medical services


5. A program instituted in a particular state allows parents to prepay their children’s future college tuition at current rates. The program then pays the tuition annually for the child at any of the state’s public colleges in which the child enrolls. Parents should participate in the program as a means of decreasing the cost for their children’s college education.
Which of the following, if true, is the most appropriate reason for parents NOT to participate in the program?
A. the parents are unsure about which public college in the state the child will attend.
B. The amount of money accumulated by putting the prepayment funds in an interest-bearing account today will be greater than the total cost of tuition for any of the public colleges when the child enrolls.
C. The annual cost of tuition at the state’s public colleges is expected to increase at a faster rate than the annual increase in the cost of living.
D. Some of the state’s public colleges are contemplating large increases in tuition next year.
E. The prepayment plan would not cover the cost of room and board at any of the state’s public colleges.


6. Company Alpha buys free-travel coupons from people who are awarded the coupons by Bravo Airlines for flying frequently on Bravo airplanes. The coupons are sold to people who pay les for the coupons than they would pay by purchasing tickets from Bravo. This making of coupons results in lost revenue for Bravo.
To discourage the buying and selling of free-travel coupons, it would be best for Bravo Airlines to restrict the
A. number of coupons that a person can be awarded in a particular year
B. use of the coupons to those who were awarded the coupons and members of their immediate families
C. days that the coupons can be used to Monday through Friday
D. amount of time that the coupons can be used after they are issued
E. number of routes on which travelers can use the coupons


7. The ice on the front windshield of the car had formed when moisture condensed during the night. The ice melted quickly after the car was warmed up the next morning because the defrosting vent, which blows on the front windshield, was turned on full force.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously jeopardizes the validity of the explanation for the speed with which the ice melted?
A. The side windows had no ice condensation on them
B. Even though no attempt was made to defrost the back window, the ice there melted at the same rate as did the ice on the front windshield.
C. The speed at which ice on a window melts increases as the temperature of the air blown on the window increases
D. The warm air from the defrosting vent for the front windshield cools rapidly as it dissipates throughout the rest of the car.
E. The defrosting vent operates efficiently even when the heater, which blows warm air toward the feet or faces of the driver and passengers, is on.


8. To prevent some conflicts of interest, Congress could prohibit high-level government officials from accepting positions as lobbyists for three years after such officials leave government service. One such official concluded, however, that such a prohibition would be unfortunate because it would prevent high-level government officials from earning a livelihood for three years.
The official’s conclusion logically depends on which of the following assumptions?
A. Laws should not restrict the behavior of former government officials.
B. Lobbyists are typically people who have previously been high-level government officials.
C. Low-level government officials do not often become lobbyists when they leave government service.
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D. High-level government officials who leave government service are capable of earning a livelihood only as lobbyists.
E. High-level government officials who leave government service are currently permitted to act as lobbyists for only three years.


9. A conservation group in the United States is trying to change the long-standing image of bats as frightening creatures. The group contends that bats are feared and persecuted solely because they are shy animals that are active only at night.
Which of the following, if true, would cast the most serious doubt on the accuracy of the group’s contention?
A. Bats are steadily losing natural roosting places such as caves and hollow trees and are thus turning to more developed areas for roosting.
B. Bats are the chief consumers of nocturnal insects and thus can help make their hunting territory more pleasant for humans.
C. Bats are regarded as frightening creatures not only in the United States but also in Europe, Africa, and South
America.
D. Raccoons and owls are shy and active only at night; yet they are not generally feared and persecuted.
E. People know more about the behavior of other greatly feared animal species, such as lions, alligators, and greatly feared animal species, such as lions, alligators, and snakes, than they do about the behavior of bats.


10. Meteorite explosions in the Earth’s atmosphere as large as the one that destroyed forests in Siberia, with approximately the force of a twelve-megaton nuclear blast, occur about once a century.
The response of highly automated systems controlled by complex computer programs to unexpected circumstances is unpredictable.
Which of the following conclusions can most properly be drawn, if the statements above are true, about a highly automated nuclear-missile defense system controlled by a complex computer program?
A. Within a century after its construction, the system would react inappropriately and might accidentally start a nuclear war.
B. The system would be destroyed if an explosion of a large meteorite occurred in the Earth’s atmosphere.
C. It would be impossible for the system to distinguish the explosion of a large meteorite from the explosion of a nuclear weapon.
D. Whether the system would respond inappropriately to the explosion of a large meteorite would depend on the location of the blast.
E. It is not certain what the system’s response to the explosion of a large meteorite would be, if its designers did not plan for such a contingency.

Solutions:
1.
A is the best answer.
If applicants who are in fact dishonest claimed to be honest, the survey results would show a smaller proportion of dishonest applicants than actually exists. Therefore, this choice is the best answer. B is inappropriate because generally honest applicants who claimed to be dishonest could contribute to the overestimation, but not to the underestimation, of dishonest applicants. D is inappropriate because applicants who admitted their dishonesty would not contribute to an underestimation of the proportion of dishonest applicants. C and E are inappropriate because the argument is concerned neither with degrees of dishonesty nor with the honesty of non-applicants.
2.
C is the best answer.
This choice suggests that a significant proportion of Hawaii’s population is genetically predisposed to be long lived. Since Louisianans are not necessarily so predisposed, and since the Louisianans’ children will acquire their genetic characteristics from their parents, not from their birthplace, this choice presents a reason to doubt that Hawaiian born children of native Louisianans will have an increased life expectancy. Therefore, this choice is the best answer. Because the conclusion concerns people born in Hawaii, not the average Louisianan, A does not weaken the conclusion. Because the governor’s allegation is false, it cannot affect the conclusion. D fails to weaken the conclusion because it is consistent with the information given and the conclusion about life expectancy. By suggesting that Hawaii’s environment is in one respect particularly healthy, E supports the conclusion.
3.
If B is true, the greater abundance of longevity-promoting environmental factors it mentions is probably at least partly responsible for the higher life expectancy in Hawaii. Children born in Hawaii benefit from these factors from birth, and thus Louisianans who have children in Hawaii increase their children’s chances of living longer.
Therefore, B is the best answer. If life expectancy in Hawaii is likely to be falling, as A says, the argument is weakened rather than strengthened. C and E, in the absence of other relevant information, have no bearing on the conclusion; thus, they are inappropriate. D is irrelevant, because the information it mentions about rates would already have been incorporated into the statistics cited in the passage.
4.
Insurance companies can improve the ratio of revenues to claims paid, thus minimizing losses, if they insure as many people belonging to low-risk groups as they can. Because the strategy described in A adds a low-risk group to the pool of policyholders, this choice is the best answer. B is irrelevant, since no link is established between childhood diseases and diseases affecting the elderly. C is inappropriate, since increasing the number of services covered is unlikely to minimize losses. D is inappropriate, since it would increase the likelihood that claims against the policy will be made. Because policyholders will file claims against the policy for services covered rather than pay for the cost of the services themselves, E is irrelevant.
5.
The passage recommends that parents participate in a tuition prepayment program as a means of decreasing the cost of their children’s future college education. If B is true, placing the funds in an interest bearing account would be more cost-effective than participating in the prepayment program. Therefore, B would be a reason for
NOT participating and is the best answer. A is not clearly relevant to deciding whether to participate since the program applies to whatever public college the child might attend. C and D, by stating that tuition will increase, provide support for participating in the program. E is not clearly relevant to deciding whether to participate, since the expenses mentioned fall outside the scope of the program.
6.
Restricting use of the coupons to the immediate families of those awarded them, as B suggests, would make the coupons valueless for anyone else, so that marketing the coupons would no longer be possible. The coupons, however, would still allow the people to whom Bravo gives them to enjoy free travel. Thus, awarding coupons would remain a strong incentive to frequent travel on Bravo. Therefore, B is the best answer. A would do nothing to reduce the resale value of the coupons. C, D and E all not only fail to prevent Alpha’s coupon sales from competing with Bravo’s own ticket sales, but also potentially reduce the usefulness of the coupons to the people to whom they are awarded.
7.
The speed with which the ice on the windshield melted is attributed to the air blowing full force from the defrosting vent onto the front windshield. This explanation of B is undermined if, as B states, no attempt was made to defrost the back window and the ice on the back window melted as quickly as did the ice on the windshield. Therefore, B is the best answer. In the absence of other information, the lack of ice condensation on the side windows that is mentioned in A is irrelevant to the validity of the explanation. C might support the explanation, since the air from the defrosting vent was warm. Neither of D and E gives a reason to doubt that air from the vent caused the ice’s melting, and thus neither jeopardizes the explanation’s validity.
8.
The official argues that prohibiting high-level government officials from accepting positions as lobbyists for three years would prevent the officials from earning a livelihood for that period. The reasoning tacitly excludes the possibility of such officials earning a living through work other than lobbying. Therefore, D, which expresses this tacit assumption, is the best answer. The official’s argument does not depend on the assumption in A, since the argument would not be invalidated if some restrictions on the behavior of government officials were desirable.
The official’s argument does not depend on the assumption in B, since the argument would not be invalidated if lobbyists were not typically former high-level government officials. The official’s argument does not depend on the assumption in C, since the argument would not be invalidated if former low-level government officials did often become lobbyists. The official’s argument does not depend on the assumption in E, since the argument would not be invalidated if former high-level government officials could act as lobbyists indefinitely.
9.
The group’s contention suggests that animals that are shy and active at night are feared and persecute for that reason. D establishes that raccoons and owls are shy and active at night, but that they are neither feared nor persecuted. Therefore, D is the best answer. Although an increasing prevalence of bats might explain the importance of addressing people’s fear of bats, A does not address the original causes of that fear. B and E, while relevant to the rationality of people’s fear of bats, do not affect the assessment of the accuracy of the group’s contention. That bats are feared outside the United States, as C states, does not conflict with the group’s explanation for fear of bats in the United States.
10.
If the defense system designers did not plan for the contingency of large meteorite explosions, such explosions would, from the system’s perspective, be unexpected. The system’s response to such explosions is consequently unpredictable. E expresses this inference and is thus the best answer. A cannot be inferred since it is consistent with the stated information that no meteorite explosion will occur within a century. B cannot be inferred since there is no information to suggest that meteorite explosions in the atmosphere would destroy the system. C cannot be inferred since it is consistent with the stated information that an appropriately designed nuclear defense system might be able to distinguish nuclear from meteorite explosions. D cannot be inferred since there is no information to suggest that the location of blasts would determine the appropriateness of defense system’s response.