CAT Exam  >  CAT Questions  >  Directions: Read the given passage and answer... Start Learning for Free
Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.
An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.
But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.
Q. A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it failed
  • a)
    to measure a gentle earthquake
  • b)
    to measure a severe earthquake
  • c)
    to record the direction of the earthquake
  • d)
    to record the facts with a pen on paper
Correct answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer?
Most Upvoted Answer
Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follow...
"The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by." Option 4 is correct.
Free Test
Community Answer
Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follow...

Reason for replacing the simple device with a more sophisticated one:

In the passage, it is mentioned that the simple device consisting of rods of various lengths and thicknesses that stood up on end like ninepins was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it failed to record the movements of the ground or table with a pen on paper as the earthquake passed by.

Explanation:
- The simple device could only indicate the strength of the earthquake based on which rods fell, but it could not provide detailed information about the movement of the ground during the quake.
- The more sophisticated instrument, known as a seismometer, was designed to record the earthquake waves by allowing the pen to move on the paper while keeping the paper still. This ensured that the movements of the ground were accurately recorded.
- The key to solving the problem of recording legibly while the table, pen holder, and paper were all moving lay in the observation that when a person is in a moving vehicle, their feet move but their head stays still. This concept was applied to the design of the seismometer to enable clear recording of earthquake waves.

Therefore, the simple device was replaced by a more sophisticated one to improve the accuracy and detail of recording earthquake movements, allowing for better scientific analysis and understanding of seismic activity.
Attention CAT Students!
To make sure you are not studying endlessly, EduRev has designed CAT study material, with Structured Courses, Videos, & Test Series. Plus get personalized analysis, doubt solving and improvement plans to achieve a great score in CAT.
Explore Courses for CAT exam

Similar CAT Doubts

Direction: Read the following passage and answer the given question.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when the table, pen holder, and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution to that problem lay in everyday observation. Why does a person standing on a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q. A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it failed

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.Why was it necessary to invent instruments to observe an earthquake?

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.The passage states that early instruments for measuring earthquakes were

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.The early seismometers adopted the idea that in order to record the earthquake, it is

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.The everyday observation referred to in the passage relates to _____.

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer?
Question Description
Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? for CAT 2024 is part of CAT preparation. The Question and answers have been prepared according to the CAT exam syllabus. Information about Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? covers all topics & solutions for CAT 2024 Exam. Find important definitions, questions, meanings, examples, exercises and tests below for Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer?.
Solutions for Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? in English & in Hindi are available as part of our courses for CAT. Download more important topics, notes, lectures and mock test series for CAT Exam by signing up for free.
Here you can find the meaning of Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? defined & explained in the simplest way possible. Besides giving the explanation of Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer?, a detailed solution for Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? has been provided alongside types of Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? theory, EduRev gives you an ample number of questions to practice Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.An earthquake comes like a thief in the night, without warning. It was necessary therefore to invent instruments that neither slumbered nor slept. Some devices were quite simple. One, for instance, consisted of rods of various lengths and thicknesses which would stand up on end like ninepins. When a shock came, it shook the rigid table upon which these stood. If it were gentle, only the more unstable rods fell. If it were severe, they all fell. Thus, the rods by falling and by the direction in which they fell, recorded for the slumbering scientist, the strength of a shock that was too weak to waken him and know the direction from which it came.But instruments far more delicate than that were needed if any really serious advance was to be made. The ideal to be aimed at was to devise an instrument that could record with a pen on paper the movements of the ground or of the table as the quake passed by. While I write, my pen moves but the paper keeps still. With practice, no doubt, I could, in time, learn to write by holding the pen still while the paper moved. That sounds a silly suggestion, but that was precisely the idea adopted in some of the early instruments (seismometers) for recording earthquake waves. But when table, pen holder and paper are all moving, how is it possible to write legibly? The key to a solution of that problem lay in an everyday observation. Why does a person standing in a bus or train tend to fall when a sudden start is made? It is because his feet move on, but his head stays still.Q.A simple device, which consisted of rods that stood up on end like ninepins, was replaced by a more sophisticated one because it faileda)to measure a gentle earthquakeb)to measure a severe earthquakec)to record the direction of the earthquaked)to record the facts with a pen on paperCorrect answer is option 'D'. Can you explain this answer? tests, examples and also practice CAT tests.
Explore Courses for CAT exam

Top Courses for CAT

Explore Courses
Signup for Free!
Signup to see your scores go up within 7 days! Learn & Practice with 1000+ FREE Notes, Videos & Tests.
10M+ students study on EduRev