GMAT
In the past the country of Siduria has relied heavily on imported oil. Siduria recently implemented a program to convert heating systems from oil to natural gas. Siduria already produces more natural gas each year than it burns, and oil production in Sidurian oil fields is increasing at a steady pace. If these trends in fuel production and usage continue, therefore, Sidurian reliance on foreign sources for fuel should decline soon.Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
Political Advertisement: Mayor Delmont's critics complain about the jobs that were lost in the city under Delmont's leadership. Yet the fact is that not only were more jobs created than were eliminated, but the average pay for these new jobs has been higher than the average pay for jobs citywide every year since Delmont took office. So there can be no question that throughout Delmont's tenure the average paycheck in this city has been getting steadily bigger.Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument in the advertisement?
Capuchin monkeys often rub their bodies with a certain type of millipede. Laboratory tests show that secretions from the bodies of these millipedes are rich in two chemicals that are potent mosquito repellents, and mosquitoes carry parasites that debilitate capuchins. Some scientists hypothesize that the monkeys rub their bodies with the millipedes because doing so helps protect them from mosquitoes.Which of the following, if true, provides the most support for the scientists' hypothesis?
Historian: Newton developed mathematical concepts and techniques that are fundamental to modern calculus. Leibniz developed closely analogous concepts and techniques. It has traditionally been thought that these discoveries were independent. Researchers have, however, recently discovered notes of Leibniz' that discuss one of Newton's books on mathematics. Several scholars have argued that since the book includes a presentation of Newton's calculus concepts and techniques, and since the notes were written before Leibniz' own development of calculus concepts and techniques, it is virtually certain that the traditional view is false. A more cautious conclusion than this is called for, however. Leibniz' notes are limited to early sections of Newton's book, sections that precede the ones in which Newton's calculus concepts and techniques are presented. In the historian's reasoning, the two portions in blodface play which of the following roles?
Five years ago, as part of a plan to encourage citizens of Levaska to increase the amount of money they put into savings, Levaska's government introduced special savings accounts in which up to $3,000 a year can be saved with no tax due on the interest unless money is withdrawn before the account holder reaches the age of sixty-five. Millions of dollars have accumulated in the special accounts, so the government's plan is obviously working.Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
An overwhelming proportion of the most productive employees at SaleCo's regional offices work not eight hours a day, five days a week, as do other SaleCo employees, but rather ten hours a day, four days a week, with Friday off. Noting this phenomenon, SaleCo's president plans to increase overall productivity by keeping the offices closed on Fridays and having all employees work the same schedule-ten hours a day, four days a week.Which of the following, if true, provides the most reason to doubt that the president's plan, if implemented, will achieve its stated purpose?
Which of the following most logically completes the argument below?According to promotional material published by the city of Springfield, more tourists stay in hotels in Springfield than stay in the neighboring city of Harristown. A brochure from the largest hotel in Harristown claims that more tourists stay in that hotel than stay in the Royal Arms Hotel in Springfield. If both of these sources are accurate, however, the county's "Report on Tourism" must be in error in indicating that _______.
Proposal: Carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere block the escape of heat into space. So emission of these "greenhouse" gases contributes to global warming. In order to reduce global warming, emission of greenhouse gases needs to be reduced. Therefore, the methane now emitted from open landfills should instead be burned to produce electricity.Objection: The burning of methane generates carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere.Which of the following, if true, most adequately counters the objection made to the proposal?
Crowding on Mooreville's subway frequently leads to delays, because it is difficult for passengers to exit from the trains. Subway ridership is projected to increase by 20 percent over the next 10 years. The Mooreville Transit Authority plans to increase the number of daily train trips by only 5 percent over the same period. Officials predict that this increase is suffi cient to ensure that the incidence of delays due to crowding does not increase.Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest grounds for the officials' prediction?
Three large companies and seven small companies currently manufacture a product with potential military applications. If the government regulates the industry, it will institute a single set of manufacturing specifications to which all ten companies will have to adhere. In this case, therefore, since none of the seven small companies can afford to convert their production lines to a new set of manufacturing specifications, only the three large companies will be able to remain in business.Which of the following is an assumption on which the author's argument relies?
It is theoretically possible that bacteria developed on Mars early in its history and that some were carried to Earth by a meteorite. However, strains of bacteria from different planets would probably have substantial differences in protein structure that would persist over time, and no two bacterial strains on Earth are different enough to have arisen on different planets. So, even if bacteria did arrive on Earth from Mars, they must have died out.The argument is most vulnerable to which of the following criticisms?
Exposure to certain chemicals commonly used in elementary schools as cleaners or pesticides causes allergic reactions in some children. Elementary school nurses in Renston report that the proportion of schoolchildren sent to them for treatment of allergic reactions to those chemicals has increased significantly over the past ten years. Therefore, either Renston's schoolchildren have been exposed to greater quantities of the chemicals, or they are more sensitive to them than schoolchildren were ten years ago.Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
Certain politicians in the country of Birangi argue that a 50 percent tax on new automobiles would halt the rapid increase of automobiles on Birangi's roads and thereby slow the deterioration of Birangi's air quality. Although most experts agree that such a tax would result in fewer Birangians buying new vehicles and gradually reduce the number of automobiles on Birangi's roads, they contend that it would have little impact on Birangi's air-quality problem.Which of the following, if true in Birangi, would most strongly support the experts' contention about the effect of the proposed automobile tax on Birangi's air-quality problem?
Of patients over 65 years old who survived coronary bypass surgery-a procedure widely prescribed for people with heart disease-only 75 percent benefited from the surgery. Thus it appears that for one in four such patients, the doctors who advised them to undergo this surgery, with its attendant risks and expense, were more interested in an opportunity to practice their skills and in their fee than in helping the patient.Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the argument?
Although the earliest surviving Greek inscriptions written in an alphabet date from the eighth century B.C., a strong case can be made that the Greeks actually adopted alphabetic writing at least two centuries earlier. Significantly, the text of these earliest surviving Greek inscriptions sometimes runs from right to left and sometimes from left to right. Now, the Greeks learned alphabetic writing from the Phoenicians, and in the process they would surely have adopted whatever convention the Phoenicians were then using with respect to the direction of writing. Originally, Phoenician writing ran in either direction, but by the eighth century B.C. it had been consistently written from right to left for about two centuries.In the argument given, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?
Which of the following most logically completes the passage?Each species of moth has an optimal body temperature for effective flight, and when air temperatures fall much below that temperature, the moths typically have to remain inactive on vegetation for extended periods, leaving them highly vulnerable to predators. In general, larger moths can fly faster than smaller ones and hence have a better chance of evading flying predators, but they also have higher optimal body temperatures, which explains why ______.
A significant number of complex repair jobs carried out by Ace Repairs have to be reworked under the company's warranty. The reworked jobs are invariably satisfactory. When initial repairs are inadequate, therefore, it is not because the mechanics lack competence; rather, there is clearly a level of focused concentration that complex repairs require that is elicited more reliably by rework jobs than by first-time jobs.The argument above assumes which of the following?
Environmentalist: The use of snowmobiles in the vast park north of Milville creates unacceptable levels of air pollution and should be banned.Milville business spokesperson: Snowmobiling brings many out-of-towners to Milville in winter months, to the great financial benefit of many local residents. So, economics dictate that we put up with the pollution.Environmentalist: I disagree: A great many cross-country skiers are now kept from visiting Milville by the noise and pollution that snowmobiles generate.Environmentalist responds to the business spokesperson by doing which of the following?
Printwell's Ink Jet Division manufactures ink-jet printers and the ink cartridges they use. Sales of its ink-jet printers have increased. Monthly revenues from those sales, however, have not increased, because competition has forced Printwell to cut the prices of its printers. Unfortunately, Printwell has been unable to bring down the cost of manufacturing a printer. Thus, despite the increase in printer sales, the Ink Jet Division must be contributing less to the company's profits than it used to.Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?
Escalating worldwide demand for corn has led to a sharp increase in the market price of corn, and corn prices are likely to remain high. Corn is extensive used as feed for livestock, and because profit margins are tight in the livestock business, many farmers are expected to leave the business. With fewer suppliers, meat prices will surely rise. Nonetheless, observers expect an immediate short-term decrease in meat prices.Which of the following, if true, most helps to justify the observers' expectation?