Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Some psychiatric studies indicate that among distinguished artists the rates of manic depression and major depression are ten to thirteen times as prevalent as in the population at large.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

Between 1990 and 1998, occupancy in Branson Hospital averaged 79 percent of capacity, while admission rates remained constant, at an average of 9 admissions per 100 beds per year. Between 1998 and 2002, however, occupancy rates increased to an average of 85 percent of capacity, while admission rates declined to 8 per 100 beds per year. Which of the following conclusions can be most properly drawn from the info given above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Many economists predict that the next recession, when it comes, will be caused by Federal Reserve action taken to prevent an inflationary upsurge that would result if the economy were to expand at an annual rate of three percent or more.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

Abolition of government regulation of airfares has increased competition among airlines and thus will eventually lead to compromises in airline safety. Anxious to reduce fares in what has, as a result of deregulation, become a highly competitive market, airlines will be tempted to reduce costs by decreasing safety inspections and routine maintenance of aircraft. Which of the following, if true, would cast the most serious doubt on the prediction that deregulation of airfares will ultimately compromise airline safety?

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

Last year in the United States, women who ran for state and national offices were about as likely to win as men. However, only about fifteen percent of the candidates for these offices were women. Therefore, the reason there are so few women who win elections for these offices is not that women have difficulty winning elections but that so few women want to run. Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the conclusion given?

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

In a psychological experiment conducted at South bay University, groups of men with various levels of education read stories in which people caused harm, some of them doing so intentionally, and some accidentally. When asked about appropriate penalization for those who had caused harm, the less educated men, unlike the educated ones, assigned punishments that did not vary according to whether the harm was done intentionally or accidentally. Uneducated men, then, do not regard people's intentions as relevant to penalization. Which of the following, if true, would most seriously weaken the conclusion above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Robinson is a botanist whose dream is to reestablish an authentic pre-human piece of Hawaii, a place now awash with introduced species of plants and animals.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

An experimental microwave clothes dryer heats neither air nor cloth. Rather, it heats water on clothes, thereby saving electricity and protecting delicate fibers by operating at a lower temperature. Microwaves are waves that usually heat metal objects, but developers of a microwave dryer are perfecting a process that will prevent thin metal objects such as hairpins from heating up and burning clothes. Which of the following, if true, most strongly indicates that the process, when perfected, will be insufficient to make the dryer readily marketable?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Psychologists now contend that the way adults think and feel are determined as much by their peers in early childhood than by their parents.

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Released the first Friday of every month and covering the preceding month, the Labor Department's employment report discloses the amount of new jobs to be created during the reporting period and the amount of hours to be worked.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

In Morigia the average age of cars that are still in use has historically been seven years, but now it is nearly nine years. Car manufacturers claim that the current poor economy has forced people to put off buying new cars, and thus when the economy improves, the average age of cars will return to former levels. Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the car manufacturers' prediction?

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

After observing the Earth's weather patterns and the 11-year sunspot cycle of the Sun for 36 years, scientists have found that high levels of sunspot activity precede shifts in wind patterns that affect the Earth's weather. One can conclude that meteorologist will be able to improve their weather forecasts based on this information. Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

The proposed health care bill would increase government regulation of health insurance, establish standards that would guarantee wider access to people with past health problems and to workers changing jobs who otherwise could be uncovered for months.

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Because the financial review covered only the last few fiscal years, and therefore the investigators were unable to determine the extent of possible earlier overpayments.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

The chanterelle, a type of wild mushroom, grows beneath host trees such as the Douglas fir, which provide it with necessary sugars. The underground filaments of chanterelles, which extract the sugars, in turn provide nutrients and water for their hosts. Because of this mutually beneficial relationship, harvesting the chanterelles growing beneath a Douglas fir seriously endangers the tree. Which of the following, if true, casts the most doubt on the conclusion drawn above?

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

A computer equipped with signature-recognition software, which restricts access to a computer to those people whose signatures are on file, identifies a person's signature by analyzing not only the form of the signature but also such characteristics as pen pressure and signing speed. Even the most adept forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes. Which of the following can be logically concluded from the passage above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Two new studies indicate that many people become obese more due to the fact that their bodies burn calories too slowly than overeating.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

Passengers must exit airplanes swiftly after accidents, since gases released following accidents are toxic to humans and often explode soon after being released. In order to prevent passenger deaths from gas inhalation, safety officials recommend that passengers be provided with smoke hoods that prevent inhalation of the gases. Which of the following, if true, constitutes the strongest reason not to require implementation of the safety officials' recommendation?

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

Organic farmers are looking for non-chemical methods to rid their crops of pests. Giving crops a slight electric shock has no ill effect on crops but rids them of caterpillars. This method should be employed by organic farmers all over the country. Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the view that it would not be advisable to try to eradicate agricultural pests with the method mentioned above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

We now have wireless computer networks, direct-broadcast satellite television, digital wireless cable television networks, global telephone service, and global positioning systems that can pinpoint an individual's location to a few inches.

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

The British colonies in North America attracted a mass immigration of religious dissenters and poor people throughout the 17^th and 18^th centuries, coming from all parts of the British Isles, Germany, the Netherlands, and other countries.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

American customers expect high quality. When the quality of a manufactured product is raised, it in turn raises customer expectations. A company that believes that the quality of its products is satisfactory will soon discover that its customers are not similarly satisfied. The goal of Sunnybrook Corporation is to meet or exceed customer expectations. Which of the following must be true on the basis of the statements above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

After adopting broadband internet access, wireless personal digital assistants, and super-fast home PCs, Weston Insurance has hired new employees, which doubles to 250 the junior staff in the claims department working from home.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

Although the new cochleae manufactured by Medotech will cost more than twice as much as the cochlear implants now in use, Medotech implants should still be cost-effective. Not only will surgery and recovery time be reduced, but Medotech cochlear replacements should last longer, thereby reducing the need for further hospital stays. Which of the following must be studied in order to evaluate the argument presented above?

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

The U.S. Forest Service, then five years old, decided to put out every fire in its domain, and within three decades the agency formulated what it called the 10 A.M. policy, directing that fires be extinguished quicker than they had been in the past.

Directions: The following question presents a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

Dr. Tonegawa won the Nobel Prize for discovering how the body can constantly change its genes to fashion a seeming unlimited number of antibodies, each specifically targeted at an invading microbe or foreign substance.

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer choices given.

The Burmese ferret badger burrows its home in the ground. Based on the fact that different local populations of Burmese ferret badgers of the same species dig homes of different styles, zoologists have concluded that the badgers building styles are a culturally acquired, rather than a genetically transmitted, trait. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the conclusion drawn by the zoologists?

The primary purpose of the passage is to

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The fact that superior service can generate a competitive advantage for a company does not mean that every attempt at improving service will create such an advantage. Investments in service, like those in production and distribution, must be balanced against other types of investments on the basis of direct, tangible benefits such as cost reduction and increased revenues. If a company is already effectively on a par with its competitors because it provides service that avoids a damaging reputation and keeps customers from leaving at an unacceptable rate, then investment in higher service levels may be wasted, since service is a deciding factor for customers only in extreme situations. This truth was not apparent to managers of one regional bank, which failed to improve its competitive position despite its investment in reducing the time a customer had to wait for a teller. The bank managers did not recognize the level of customer inertia in the consumer banking industry that arises from the inconvenience of switching banks. Nor did they analyze their service improvement to determine whether it would attract new customers by producing a new standard of service that would excite customers or by proving difficult for competitors to copy. The only merit of the improvement was that it could easily be described to customers.

The author implies that one way that VHS producers won control over the VCR market was by

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Traditionally, the first firm to commercialize a new technology has benefited from the unique opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing followers to adapt to a standard or invest in an unproven alternative. Today, however, the largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in developing integrated approaches for successful mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette recorders (VCR's), for example, were first to develop the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be more successful at forming strategic alliances with other producers and distributors to manufacture and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta producers were reluctant to form such alliances and eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for the global VCR market.
Despite Beta's substantial technological head start and the fact that VHS was neither technically better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a dominant position. Strategic alignments with producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS advantage. The perception among consumers that prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS format further expanded VHS's share of the market. By the end of the 1980's, Beta was no longer in production.

The passage is primarily concerned with which of the following?

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Traditionally, the first firm to commercialize a new technology has benefited from the unique opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing followers to adapt to a standard or invest in an unproven alternative. Today, however, the largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in developing integrated approaches for successful mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette recorders (VCR's), for example, were first to develop the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be more successful at forming strategic alliances with other producers and distributors to manufacture and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta producers were reluctant to form such alliances and eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for the global VCR market.
Despite Beta's substantial technological head start and the fact that VHS was neither technically better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a dominant position. Strategic alignments with producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS advantage. The perception among consumers that prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS format further expanded VHS's share of the market. By the end of the 1980's, Beta was no longer in production.

Which of the following best describes the relation of the first paragraph to the passage as a whole?

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Traditionally, the first firm to commercialize a new technology has benefited from the unique opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing followers to adapt to a standard or invest in an unproven alternative. Today, however, the largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in developing integrated approaches for successful mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette recorders (VCR's), for example, were first to develop the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be more successful at forming strategic alliances with other producers and distributors to manufacture and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta producers were reluctant to form such alliances and eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for the global VCR market.
Despite Beta's substantial technological head start and the fact that VHS was neither technically better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a dominant position. Strategic alignments with producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS advantage. The perception among consumers that prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS format further expanded VHS's share of the market. By the end of the 1980's, Beta was no longer in production.

The author uses the word "only" in last sentence most likely in order to

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The fact that superior service can generate a competitive advantage for a company does not mean that every attempt at improving service will create such an advantage. Investments in service, like those in production and distribution, must be balanced against other types of investments on the basis of direct, tangible benefits such as cost reduction and increased revenues. If a company is already effectively on a par with its competitors because it provides service that avoids a damaging reputation and keeps customers from leaving at an unacceptable rate, then investment in higher service levels may be wasted, since service is a deciding factor for customers only in extreme situations. This truth was not apparent to managers of one regional bank, which failed to improve its competitive position despite its investment in reducing the time a customer had to wait for a teller. The bank managers did not recognize the level of customer inertia in the consumer banking industry that arises from the inconvenience of switching banks. Nor did they analyze their service improvement to determine whether it would attract new customers by producing a new standard of service that would excite customers or by proving difficult for competitors to copy. The only merit of the improvement was that it could easily be described to customers.

The alignment of producers of VHS-format VCR's with producers of prerecorded videotapes is most similar to which of the following?

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Traditionally, the first firm to commercialize a new technology has benefited from the unique opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing followers to adapt to a standard or invest in an unproven alternative. Today, however, the largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in developing integrated approaches for successful mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette recorders (VCR's), for example, were first to develop the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be more successful at forming strategic alliances with other producers and distributors to manufacture and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta producers were reluctant to form such alliances and eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for the global VCR market.
Despite Beta's substantial technological head start and the fact that VHS was neither technically better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a dominant position. Strategic alignments with producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS advantage. The perception among consumers that prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS format further expanded VHS's share of the market. By the end of the 1980's, Beta was no longer in production.

The passage suggests that bank managers failed to consider whether or not the service improvement mentioned

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The fact that superior service can generate a competitive advantage for a company does not mean that every attempt at improving service will create such an advantage. Investments in service, like those in production and distribution, must be balanced against other types of investments on the basis of direct, tangible benefits such as cost reduction and increased revenues. If a company is already effectively on a par with its competitors because it provides service that avoids a damaging reputation and keeps customers from leaving at an unacceptable rate, then investment in higher service levels may be wasted, since service is a deciding factor for customers only in extreme situations. This truth was not apparent to managers of one regional bank, which failed to improve its competitive position despite its investment in reducing the time a customer had to wait for a teller. The bank managers did not recognize the level of customer inertia in the consumer banking industry that arises from the inconvenience of switching banks. Nor did they analyze their service improvement to determine whether it would attract new customers by producing a new standard of service that would excite customers or by proving difficult for competitors to copy. The only merit of the improvement was that it could easily be described to customers.

The passage suggests which of the following about service provided by the regional bank prior to its investment in enhancing that service?

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The fact that superior service can generate a competitive advantage for a company does not mean that every attempt at improving service will create such an advantage. Investments in service, like those in production and distribution, must be balanced against other types of investments on the basis of direct, tangible benefits such as cost reduction and increased revenues. If a company is already effectively on a par with its competitors because it provides service that avoids a damaging reputation and keeps customers from leaving at an unacceptable rate, then investment in higher service levels may be wasted, since service is a deciding factor for customers only in extreme situations. This truth was not apparent to managers of one regional bank, which failed to improve its competitive position despite its investment in reducing the time a customer had to wait for a teller. The bank managers did not recognize the level of customer inertia in the consumer banking industry that arises from the inconvenience of switching banks. Nor did they analyze their service improvement to determine whether it would attract new customers by producing a new standard of service that would excite customers or by proving difficult for competitors to copy. The only merit of the improvement was that it could easily be described to customers.

According to the passage, consumers began to develop a preference for VCR's in the VHS format because they believed which of the following?

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Traditionally, the first firm to commercialize a new technology has benefited from the unique opportunity to shape product definitions, forcing followers to adapt to a standard or invest in an unproven alternative. Today, however, the largest payoffs may go to companies that lead in developing integrated approaches for successful mass production and distribution.
Producers of the Beta format for videocassette recorders (VCR's), for example, were first to develop the VCR commercially in 1975, but producers of the rival VHS (Video Home System) format proved to be more successful at forming strategic alliances with other producers and distributors to manufacture and market their VCR format. Seeking to maintain exclusive control over VCR distribution, Beta producers were reluctant to form such alliances and eventually lost ground to VHS in the competition for the global VCR market.
Despite Beta's substantial technological head start and the fact that VHS was neither technically better nor cheaper than Beta, developers of VHS quickly turned a slight early lead in sales into a dominant position. Strategic alignments with producers of prerecorded tapes reinforced the VHS advantage. The perception among consumers that prerecorded tapes were more available in VHS format further expanded VHS's share of the market. By the end of the 1980's, Beta was no longer in production.

According to the passage, investments in service are comparable to investments in production and distribution in terms of the

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The fact that superior service can generate a competitive advantage for a company does not mean that every attempt at improving service will create such an advantage. Investments in service, like those in production and distribution, must be balanced against other types of investments on the basis of direct, tangible benefits such as cost reduction and increased revenues. If a company is already effectively on a par with its competitors because it provides service that avoids a damaging reputation and keeps customers from leaving at an unacceptable rate, then investment in higher service levels may be wasted, since service is a deciding factor for customers only in extreme situations. This truth was not apparent to managers of one regional bank, which failed to improve its competitive position despite its investment in reducing the time a customer had to wait for a teller. The bank managers did not recognize the level of customer inertia in the consumer banking industry that arises from the inconvenience of switching banks. Nor did they analyze their service improvement to determine whether it would attract new customers by producing a new standard of service that would excite customers or by proving difficult for competitors to copy. The only merit of the improvement was that it could easily be described to customers.

The discussion of the regional bank serves which of the following functions within the passage as a whole?

Directions: This question is based on the following reading passage. Choose the best answer to the  question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The fact that superior service can generate a competitive advantage for a company does not mean that every attempt at improving service will create such an advantage. Investments in service, like those in production and distribution, must be balanced against other types of investments on the basis of direct, tangible benefits such as cost reduction and increased revenues. If a company is already effectively on a par with its competitors because it provides service that avoids a damaging reputation and keeps customers from leaving at an unacceptable rate, then investment in higher service levels may be wasted, since service is a deciding factor for customers only in extreme situations. This truth was not apparent to managers of one regional bank, which failed to improve its competitive position despite its investment in reducing the time a customer had to wait for a teller. The bank managers did not recognize the level of customer inertia in the consumer banking industry that arises from the inconvenience of switching banks. Nor did they analyze their service improvement to determine whether it would attract new customers by producing a new standard of service that would excite customers or by proving difficult for competitors to copy. The only merit of the improvement was that it could easily be described to customers.