Verbal for CAT 2024(Slot-3) | Verbal Ability & Reading Comprehension (VARC) PDF Download

Q1: The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.
Lyric poetry is a genre of private meditation rather than public commitment. The impulse in Marxism toward changing a society deemed unacceptable in its basic design would seem to place demands on lyric poetry that such poetry, with its tendency toward the personal, the small scale, and the idiosyncratic, could never answer. There is within Marxism, however, also a strand of thought that would locate in lyric poetry alternative modes of perception and description that call forth a vision of worlds at odds with a repressive reality or that draw attention to the workings of ideology within the hegemonic culture. The poetic imagination may indeed deflect larger social concerns, but it may also be implicitly critical and utopian.
(a) Marxism has internal contradictions due to which one strand of Marxism sees no merit in lyric poetry while another appreciates the alternative modes of perception in poetry.
(b) The focus of lyric poetry is largely personal while that of Marxism is bringing change in society. Unless the difference is resolved, poetry will remain largely utopian.
(c) Marxism makes unreasonable demands on lyric poetry. However, lyric poetry has its own merits that are largely ignored by Marxism due to its personal nature.
(d) The focus of lyric poetry as personal may not seem compatible with Marxism. However, it is possible to envisage lyric poetry as a symbol of resistance against an oppressive culture.

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Ans: (d)
The main idea of the paragraph is that lyric poetry, with its tendency towards the personal and idiosyncratic, seems at odds with Marxism, which has an impulse to address larger social concerns and change societies. However, within Marxism, there is a strand of thought that believes lyric poetry may be implicitly critical and utopian. 
Option 4 is a good summary. The paragraph does not say Marxism has "internal contradictions" due to which there are differences in how lyric poetry is perceived. It only says that one strand of Marxism believes lyric poetry can bring to light how envisioned worlds do not match the repressive reality. 
Option 1 is hence incorrect. The first part of option 2 is correct: the focus of lyric poetry is largely personal while that of Marxism is bringing change in society. But the paragraph does not say that unless the difference is resolved, poetry will remain largely utopian. So, option 2 is ruled out. 
Option 3 is easily ruled out. The paragraph does not say Marxism makes "unreasonable" demands on lyric poetry or that the merits of lyric poetry are "largely ignored" by Marxism.

Q2: There is a sentence that is missing in the paragraph below. Look at the paragraph and decide where (option 1, 2, 3, or 4) the following sentence would best fit.
Sentence: Taken outside the village of Trang Bang on June 8, 1972, the picture captured the trauma and indiscriminate violence of a conflict that claimed, by some estimates, a million or more civilian lives.
Paragraph: The horrifying photograph of children fleeing a deadly napalm attack has become a defining image not only of the Vietnam War but the 20th century. ___(1)___. Dark smoke billowing behind them, the young subjects' faces are painted with a mixture of terror, pain and confusion. ___(2)___. Soldiers from the South Vietnamese army's 25th Division follow helplessly behind. ___(3)___. The picture was officially titled "The Terror of War," but the photo is better known by the nickname given to naked 9-year-old at its centre "Napalm Girl". ___(4)___.
(a) Option 4
(b) Option 3
(c) Option 1
(d) Option 2

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Ans: (b)
Tricky question. The missing sentence states when and where 'the picture' was taken and details of the violent conflict it captures. At first glance, it looks as if this sentence can fit in any of the given blanks. Consider blank 1. The sentence before it says the horrifying photograph is a defining image not only of the Vietnam War but the 20th century. The sentence that follows the blank details the scene the photograph captures. If the missing sentence were to be placed in blank 1, while it would continue from the first line very logically, it would not transition very well into the second line describing the scene. The missing sentence talks of the million civilian lives lost in the conflict. This idea is not followed up in the description of the photo. So, blank 1 is not a very good fit. Blank 2 is the easiest one to rule out, as both the sentence before and after it describe the scene captured in the photo. The missing sentence would break the flow of ideas if it is placed here. Blank 3 seems a good place to plug the missing sentence in as the line that follows this blank is a description of the picture as "The Terror of War" and this description fits the idea in the missing sentence that it was a traumatic and violent conflict that claimed a million civilian lives. Now, the sentence before blank 4 says the picture was officially titled “The Terror of War" but it is better known as “Napalm Girl”. If the missing sentence were to be placed in blank 4, the paragraph would pivot from the Napalm girl to when and where the picture was taken. This is hence not a good choice. Blank 3 is the correct choice.

Q3: The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.
Humans have managed to tweak the underlying biology of various plants and animals to produce high-tech crops and microbes. But regulating these entities is complicated, as the framework of policies and procedures are outdated and not flexible enough to adapt to emerging technology. The question is whether regulation will ever be able to keep up with human innovation, to regulate living things, which are apt to be unpredictable and unique; to capture all the potential risks when new biological entities are introduced, or when they pass on variations of their genes?
(a) A new framework of rules and procedures for regulating the most recent research emerging from biotechnology is urgently needed, to keep up with this rapidly changing discipline.
(b) Current regulation of biotechnology is outdated, but it is debatable if we can create a framework, imaginative and flexible, to cover all contingencies in this fast-changing area.
(c) The problem with formulating regulation for innovation in the scientific arena it that it is impossible to imagine the outcomes or risks related to the outcomes of all the research.
(d) The mercurial nature of biological entities calls for scientists to shape the regulations governing emerging technology, with regular calibration to handle variations in the field.

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Ans: (b)
The paragraph observes that regulating innovations that tweak the underlying biology of various plants and animals is complicated, as policies and procedures become outdated and are not flexible enough to adapt to emerging technology. It questions whether regulation can keep up with human innovation and capture all potential risks. Option 2 is a good summary. Note that the paragraph only questions whether it is possible to have proper regulation of the emergent technology. It does not say that such regulation is urgently needed to regulate the most recent research in the field (as option 1 says) or declare that it is impossible to imagine the outcomes or risks related to the research (as option 3 says). So, both these options are incorrect. While the paragraph does say that living things are apt to be unpredictable and unique, it does not say that this mercurial nature of biological entities is why the regulations governing emerging technology have to be put in place. Option 4 is hence incorrect.

Q4 to 7: The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question.
There is a group in the space community who view the solar system not as an opportunity to expand human potential but as a nature preserve, forever the provenance of an elite group of scientists and their sanitary robotic probes. These planetary protection advocates [call] for avoiding "harmful contamination" of celestial bodies. Under this regime, NASA incurs great expense sterilizing robotic probes in order to prevent the contamination of entirely theoretical biospheres. . . .
Transporting bacteria would matter if Mars were the vital world once imagined by astronomers who mistook optical illusions for canals. Nobody wants to expose Martians to measles, but sadly, robotic exploration reveals a bleak, rusted landscape, lacking oxygen and flooded with radiation ready to sterilize any Earthly microbes. Simple life might exist underground, or down at the bottom of a deep canyon, but it has been very hard to find with robots. . . . The upsides from human exploration and development of Mars clearly outweigh the welfare of purely speculative Martian fungi. . . .
The other likely targets of human exploration, development, and settlement, our moon and the asteroids, exist in a desiccated, radiation-soaked realm of hard vacuum and extreme temperature variations that would kill nearly anything. It's also important to note that many international competitors will ignore the demands of these protection extremists in any case. For example, China recently sent a terrarium to the moon and germinated a plant seed—with, unsurprisingly, no protest from its own scientific community. In contrast, when it was recently revealed that a researcher had surreptitiously smuggled super-resilient microscopic tardigrades aboard the ill-fated Israeli Beresheet lunar probe, a firestorm was unleashed within the space community. . . .
NASA's previous human exploration efforts made no serious attempt at sterility, with little notice. As the Mars expert Robert Zubrin noted in the National Review, U.S. lunar landings did not leave the campsites cleaner than they found it. Apollo's bacteria-infested litter included bags of feces. Forcing NASA's proposed Mars exploration to do better, scrubbing everything and hauling out all the trash, would destroy NASA's human exploration budget and encroach on the agency's other directorates, too. Getting future astronauts off Mars is enough of a challenge, without trying to tote weeks of waste along as well.
A reasonable compromise is to continue on the course laid out by the U.S. government and the National Research Council, which proposed a system of zones on Mars, some for science only, some for habitation, and some for resource exploitation. This approach minimizes contamination, maximizes scientific exploration . . . Mars presents a stark choice of diverging human futures. We can turn inward, pursuing ever more limited futures while we await whichever natural or manmade disaster will eradicate our species and life on Earth. Alternatively, we can choose to propel our biosphere further into the solar system, simultaneously protecting our home planet and providing a backup plan for the only life we know exists in the universe. Are the lives on Earth worth less than some hypothetical microbe lurking under Martian rocks?
Q4: The author mentions all of the following reasons to dismiss concerns about contaminating Mars EXCEPT:
(a) the lack of evidence of living organisms on Mars makes possible contamination from earthly microbes a moot point.
(b) the use of similar probes on astronomical bodies like the moon have had little effect on the environment.
(c) efforts to contain contamination on Mars are likely to be derailed as competitor countries may not follow similar restrictions.
(d) earlier explorations have already contaminated pristine space environments.

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Ans: (b)
With regard to the moon and asteroids, the author only argues that these are "desiccated, radiation-soaked" realms of "hard vacuum and extreme temperature variations that would kill nearly anything" and that China recently sent a terrarium to the moon and germinated a plant seed. The author does not say that similar probes on the moon have had "little effect" on the environment. 
So, option 2 does not relate to what the author argues. On the other hand, all other options relate to the contents of the passage. In the second paragraph, the author argues that life on Mars has been "very hard to find with robots" and that the "upsides from human exploration and development of Mars clearly outweigh the welfare of purely speculative Martian fungi". 
So, option 1 relates to what is stated in the passage. The author gives the example of China to drive home the point that many international competitors will ignore the demands of protection extremists in any case. 
Option 3 also relates to the contents of the passage. The author also argues in the fourth paragraph that NASA’s previous human exploration efforts made no serious attempt at sterility, with little notice. So, option 4 is ruled out.

Q5: The author's overall tone in the first paragraph can be described as
(a) approving of the amount of money NASA spends to restrict the spread of contamination in space.
(b) sceptical about the excessive efforts to sanitise planets where life has not yet been proven to exist.
(c) indifferent to the elitism of a few scientists aiming to corner space exploration.
(d) equivocal about the reasons extended by the group of scientists seeking to limit space exploration.

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Ans: (b)
The author’s tone in the first paragraph is clearly sceptical. Note the use of "harmful contamination" in quotes. Further, the author’s description of those who call for planetary protection indicates that this is not the author’s position ("There is a group...", "these planetary protection advocates...", "under this regime..."). So, option 2 is the correct choice.

Q6: The author is unlikely to disagree with any of the following EXCEPT:
(a) the proposal for a zonal segregation of the Martian landscape into regions for different purposes.
(b) that while NASA's earlier missions were not ideal in their approach to space contamination, they likely did no grave damage.
(c) space contamination should be minimised until the possibility of life on the astronomical body being explored is ruled out.
(d) the exorbitant costs of continuing to keep the space environment pristine may be unsustainable.

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Ans: (c)
Trickily worded question, but the answer choice is otherwise easy to pick. The choice the author is NOT unlikely to disagree with = the choice the author is NOT likely to agree with Option 3 is the exact opposite of the author's argument. So, this is the correct answer choice. All other options relate to points mentioned in the passage, as seen from the lines given below: 
Option 1 - "A reasonable compromise is to continue on the course laid out by the U.S. government and the National Research Council, which proposed a system of zones on Mars, some for science only, some for habitation, and some for resource exploitation." 
Option 2- "NASA’s previous human exploration efforts made no serious attempt at sterility, with little notice." 
Option 4- "Forcing NASA’s proposed Mars exploration to do better, scrubbing everything and hauling out all the trash, would destroy NASA’s human exploration budget and encroach on the agency’s other directorates, too. Getting future astronauts off Mars is enough of a challenge, without trying to tote weeks of waste along as well."

Q7: The contrasting reactions to the Chinese and Israeli "contaminations" of lunar space
(a) are evidence of China's reasonable approach towards space contamination.
(b) are valid as the contamination of the lunar environment from animal sources is far greater than from plants.
(c) reveal global biases prevalent in attitudes towards different countries.
(d) indicate that national scientists may have different sensitivities to issues of biosphere protection.

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Ans: (d)
The author observes that China germinated a plant seed on the moon with "no protest from its own scientific community" whereas the smuggling of tardigrades aboard the Israeli probe unleashed a "firestorm" within the space community. These differing reactions therefore indicate that national scientists may have different sensitivities to issues of biosphere protection. Option 4 is the correct choice.

Q8: There is a sentence that is missing in the paragraph below. Look at the paragraph and decide where (option 1, 2, 3, or 4) the following sentence would best fit.
Sentence: Many have had to leave their homes behind, with more than 1.3 million people being displaced due to the drought.
Passage: Somalia has been dealing with an enormous humanitarian catastrophe, driven by the longest and most severe drought the country has experienced in at least 40 years. ___(1)___. Five consecutive rainy seasons have failed, causing more than 8 million people - almost half of the country's population – to experience acute food insecurity. ___(2)___. More than 43,000 people are believed to have lost their lives, with half of the lives lost likely being children under five. The damage the drought has caused is far-reaching. ___(3)___. Farmers have lost all their agricultural income, while pastoralists have lost more than 3 million livestock, impoverishing entire communities, and leaving them on the brink of famine. ___(4)___. Some, like the pastoralists, may never be able to go back as their livelihoods have been irreversibly wiped out.
(a) Option 4
(b) Option 3
(c) Option 1
(d) Option 2

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Ans: (a)
The missing sentence is about the huge number of people displaced due to the drought. Let us consider each blank in order. Blank 1 is right after the first sentence which talks of the longest and most severe drought in Somalia in 40 years. The sentence that follows blank 1 explains the reason for the drought. The missing sentence, which is about people displaced by the drought, is not a good fit here. Consider blank 2. The sentence before it is about acute food insecurity experienced in Somalia while the one that follows the blank and explains the scale of the impact of the crisis. These sentences are logically linked, so blank 2 is not a good choice either. Both blanks 3 and 4 are placed between sentences that describe the damage caused by the drought. Between these, 4 is better than 3. This is because the missing sentence says 'many' have had to leave their homes behind while the sentence following 4 says 'some' may never be able to go back. There is a link between the missing sentence and the sentence following blank 4 both in terms of structure and ideas. The sentence before 3 is a general one about the damage caused by the drought and the sentence following it describes the damage to specific sections of people- farmers and pastoralists. It seems reasonable that the paragraph first explains the problems of farmers and pastoralists, those first impacted by the drought, and then follows to explain the impact of the drought on people at large. So, option 4 is the correct choice.

Q9 to 12: The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question.
Languages become endangered and die out for many reasons. Sadly, the physical annihilation of communities of native speakers of a language is all too often the cause of language extinction. In North America, European colonists brought death and destruction to many Native American communities. This was followed by US federal policies restricting the use of indigenous languages, including the removal of native children from their communities to federal boarding schools where native languages and cultural practices were prohibited. As many as 75 percent of the languages spoken in the territories that became the United States have gone extinct, with slightly better language survival rates in Central and South America . . .
Even without physical annihilation and prohibitions against language use, the language of the "dominant" cultures may drive other languages into extinction; young people see education, jobs, culture and technology associated with the dominant language and focus their attention on that language. The largest language "killers" are English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Russian, Hindi, and Chinese, all of which have privileged status as dominant languages threatening minority languages.
When we lose a language, we lose the worldview, culture and knowledge of the people who spoke it, constituting a loss to all humanity. People around the world live in direct contact with their native environment, their habitat. When the language they speak goes extinct, the rest of humanity loses their knowledge of that environment, their wisdom about the relationship between local plants and illness, their philosophical and religious beliefs as well as their native cultural expression (in music, visual art and poetry) that has enriched both the speakers of that language and others who would have encountered that culture. . . .
As educators deeply immersed in the liberal arts, we believe that educating students broadly in all facets of language and culture . . . yields immense rewards. Some individuals educated in the liberal arts tradition will pursue advanced study in linguistics and become actively engaged in language preservation, setting out for the Amazon, for example, with video recording equipment to interview the last surviving elders in a community to record and document a language spoken by no children.
Certainly, though, the vast majority of students will not pursue this kind of activity. For these students, a liberal arts education is absolutely critical from the twin perspectives of language extinction and global citizenship. When students study languages other than their own, they are sensitized to the existence of different cultural perspectives and practices. With such an education, students are more likely to be able to articulate insights into their own cultural biases, be more empathetic to individuals of other cultures, communicate successfully across linguistic and cultural differences, consider and resolve questions in a way that reflects multiple cultural perspectives, and, ultimately extend support to people, programs, practices, and policies that support the preservation of endangered languages.
There is ample evidence that such preservation can work in languages spiraling toward extinction. For example, Navajo, Cree and Inuit communities have established schools in which these languages are the language of instruction and the number of speakers of each has increased.
Q9: The author believes that a liberal arts education combined with participation in language preservation empower students in all of the following ways EXCEPT that they will
(a) develop a better understanding of their own culture.
(b) learn different languages.
(c) establish schools to preserve languages spiralling towards extinction.
(d) overcome cultural barriers to communication.

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Ans: (c)
Refer to the lines, "When students study languages other than their own, they are sensitized to the existence of different cultural perspectives and practices. With such an education, students are more likely to be able to articulate insights into their own cultural biases, be more empathetic to individuals of other cultures, communicate successfully across linguistic and cultural differences, consider and resolve questions in a way that reflects multiple cultural perspectives, and, ultimately extend support to people, programs, practices, and policies that support the preservation of endangered languages". The author believes that a liberal arts education combined with participation in language preservation empower students to learn different languages, gain a better understanding of their own culture and overcome cultural barriers to communication. The author does not say liberal arts students are likely to establish schools to preserve endangered languages. So, option 3 is the correct answer choice.

Q10: It can be inferred from the passage that it is likely South America had a slightly better language survival rate than North America for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:
(a) European colonists allowed children of native speakers to stay at home with their families.
(b) not many native speakers were killed by European colonists.
(c) the colonial government was unable to mainstream the locals.
(d) locals were provided job opportunities in the colonial administration.

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Ans: (d)
The reasons given in the passage for language extinction in North America are (a) the death and destruction brought by European colonists to many Native American communities, (b) US federal policies restricting the use of indigenous languages and (c) the removal of native children from their communities to federal boarding schools where native languages and cultural practices were prohibited. Options 1 to 3 relate to these aspects. Option 4 talks about locals being provided job opportunities in the colonial administration. This is not an idea discussed in the first paragraph. So, option 4 is the correct answer choice.

Q11: Which one of the following hypothetical scenarios, if true, would most strongly undermine the central ideas of the passage?
(a) A liberal arts education requires that, in addition to being fluent in English, students gain fluency in two of the top five most spoken languages globally.
(b) Schools that teach endangered languages can preserve the language only for a generation.
(c) Recording a dying language that has only a few remaining speakers freezes it in time: it stops evolving further.
(d) Most liberal arts students will pursue jobs in publishing and human resource management rather than doctorates in linguistics.

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Ans: (a)
The author argues that a liberal arts education is absolutely critical from the twin perspectives of language extinction and global citizenship. If a liberal arts education requires that besides English, students only gain fluency in two of the most spoken languages globally, then the author's argument-- that such an education can help preserve languages spiraling toward extinction-- is undermined. So, option 1 is the correct choice. Consider option 2. Even if schools that teach endangered languages can preserve the language only for a generation, they still manage to keep these languages from going extinct immediately. Even if option 2 were true, the author's position would not be undermined. Similarly, even if option 3 were true and recording a dying language only manages to freeze it in time, it helps keep the language from going extinct. The author's position would not be undermined. Option 4 states that most liberal arts students will pursue jobs in publishing and human resource management rather than doctorates in linguistics. This is something the author himself observes: "Some individuals educated in the liberal arts tradition will pursue advanced study in linguistics and become actively engaged in language preservation...Certainly, though, the vast majority of students will not pursue this kind of activity." Option 4 does not undermine the author's argument.

Q12: In the context of the passage, which one of the following hypothetical scenarios, if true, is NOT an example of the kind of loss that occurs when a language becomes extinct?
(a) The Inuits of Alaska have 35 different words to describe the texture of snow. When the language becomes extinct, we will lose that understanding of nature.
(b) The Lamkangs of Manipur have only 3 remaining native speakers of the language. When they die, we will lose one more group from the government list of indigenous tribes.
(c) The Andamanese language has a word to describe someone who has lost a step-sister. When the language dies, we will lose the concept of the word and the emotions it evokes.
(d) The Nicobarese language describes 20 different moods of the ocean. By the time the last speaker is educated in a Central Board school, they will have forgotten their language.

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Ans: (b)
The passage is about languages lost and the loss of the worldview, culture and knowledge of the people who spoke the language along with it. Options 1, 3 and 4 all relate to this kind of loss. Option 2, on the other hand, is about the loss of one more group from the government list of indigenous tribes. This does not relate to the loss described in the passage.

Q13: There is a sentence that is missing in the paragraph below. Look at the paragraph and decide where (option 1, 2, 3, or 4) the following sentence would best fit.
Sentence: This reality is putting stress on employees who have to pay for transport, desk lunches, more childcare, clothing and that after-work socialisation – costs they haven't incurred for nearly two years.
Paragraph: ___(1)___. Prices are rising at their fastest rate in 40 years, consequently, return-to-office-related costs have shot up – think petrol and food, for instance. ___(2)___. Yet wages haven't kept up with inflation – even despite the salary growth many workers have enjoyed during a favourable pandemic labour market. ___(3)___. This is especially jarring for workers who were able to save during remote work, when these expenditures weren't a factor. ___(4)___. In April 2022, Umus, a London university lecturer, told BBC Worklife that they were spending nearly a quarter of what they made every day on return-to-work costs.
(a) Option 2
(b) Option 3
(c) Option 1
(d) Option 4

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Ans: (b)
The missing sentence is about the stress brought forth by 'this reality'. This sentence cannot be the opening sentence of a paragraph. So, blank 1 is ruled out. Blank 2 is also ruled out as both the sentences before and after it relate to the 'reality' mentioned in the missing sentence. Blank 3 is a good fit, as the missing sentence is about costs incurred by those returning to work. The sentence following blank 3, too, relates to this idea. Blank 4 is easily ruled out as 'this reality' mentioned in the missing sentence does not relate to the subject of the sentence before blank 4.

Q14 to 17: The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question.
Moutai has been the global booze sensation of the decade. A bottle of its Flying Fairy which sold in the 1980s for the equivalent of a dollar now retails for $400. Moutai's listed shares have soared by almost 600% in the past five years, outpacing the likes of Amazon. . . .
It does this while disregarding every Western marketing mantra. It is not global, has meagre digital sales and does not appeal to millennials. It scores pitifully on environmental, social and governance measures. In the Boy Scout world of Western business it would leave a bad taste, in more ways than one.
Moutai owes its intoxicating success to three factors—not all of them easy to emulate. First, it profits from Chinese nationalism. Moutai is known as the "national liquor". It was used to raise spirits and disinfect wounds in Mao's Long March. It was Premier Zhou Enlai's favourite tipple, shared with Richard Nixon in 1972. Its centuries-old craftsmanship—it is distilled eight times and stored for years in earthenware jars—is a source of national pride. It also claims to be hangover-proof, which would make it an invention to rival gunpowder....
Second, it chose to serve China's super-rich rather than its middle class. Markets are littered with the corpses of firms that could not compete in the cut-throat battle for Chinese middle-class wallets. And the country's premium market is massive—at 73m-strong, bigger than the population of France, notes Euan McLeish of Bernstein, an investment firm, and still less crowded with prestige brands than advanced economies. Moutai is to these well-heeled drinkers what vintage champagne is to the rest of the world.....
Third, Moutai looks beyond affluent millennials and digital natives. The elderly and the middle-aged, it found, can be just as lucrative. Its biggest market now is (male) drinkers in their mid-30s. Many have no siblings, thanks to four decades of China's one-child policy—which also means their elderly parents can splash out on weddings and banquets. Moutai is often a guest of honour.
Moutai has succeeded thanks to nationalism, elitism and ageism, in other words—not in spite of this unholy trinity. But it faces risks. The government is its largest shareholder—and a meddlesome one. It appears to want prices to remain stable. Exorbitantly priced booze is at odds with its professed socialist ideals. Yet minority investors—including many foreign funds—lament that Moutai's wholesale price is a third of what it sells for in shops. Raising it could boost the company's profits further. Instead, in what some see as a travesty of corporate governance, its majority owner has plans to set up its own sales channel.....
In the long run, its biggest risk may be millennials. As they grow older, health concerns, work-life balance and the desire for more wholesome pursuits than binge-drinking may curb the "Ganbei!" toasting culture [heavy drinking] on which so much of the demand for Moutai rests. For the time being, though, the party goes on.
Q14: Which one of the following is both a reason for Moutai's success as well as a possible threat to that success?
(a) Its appeal to the rich.
(b) Government involvement in its business.
(c) Its appeal to the older age group.
(d) Chinese love of liquor filled celebration.

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Ans: (c)
According to the passage, Moutai has succeeded thanks to nationalism, elitism and ageism. It faces risks due to government meddling, lack of corporate governance and aging millennials being prompted to put an end to the heavy drinking culture due to various factors. The passage identifies ageism as both a reason for Moutai's success ("The elderly and the middle-aged, it found, can be just as lucrative") as well as a threat ("In the long run, its biggest risk may be millennials. As they grow older, health concerns, work-life balance and the desire for more wholesome pursuits than binge-drinking may curb the “Ganbei!” toasting culture [heavy drinking] on which so much of the demand for Moutai rests"). So, option 3 is the correct choice. Note that Moutai's appeal to the rich is not identified as a threat to its success. Government involvement in the business is only identified as a threat, not reason for success. Chinese love of liquor-filled celebration is a reason for and not a threat to Moutai's success. As millennials grow older, they may put an end to the heavy drinking culture and it is that which poses a threat to Moutai.

Q15: In the context of the passage we can infer that to succeed in the liquor industry in China, a marketing firm must consider all of the following factors affecting the Chinese liquor market EXCEPT that
(a) the competition for winning over the middle class is very stiff.
(b) there is money to be made from marketing to the middle class.
(c) the government may control the pricing of products.
(d) there are few competitors to meet the demands of high end liquor consumers.

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Ans: (b)
Let us consider each option in order.
Both options 1 and 2 relate to the middle class market for liquor in China. Regarding this, the passage says, "Markets are littered with the corpses of firms that could not compete in the cut-throat battle for Chinese middle-class wallets." In other words, the competition for winning over the middle class is very stiff and cut-throat. Many firms tried their hand in competing in this market and failed. So, option 1 is true while 2 is false.
Option 3 is true, based on the penultimate paragraph.
Option 4 is true as well: "And the country’s premium market is massive—at 73m-strong, bigger than the population of France, notes Euan McLeish of Bernstein, an investment firm, and still less crowded with prestige brands than advanced economies."
So, option 2 is the correct answer choice.

Q16: In the context of the passage, it is most likely that the author refers to Moutai's marketing strategy as "the unholy trinity" because
(a) it profits from Chinese nationalist feelings.
(b) it exposes the firm to long term risks.
(c) it contradicts the Western strategy of marketing.
(d) there is nothing holy about marketing techniques for liquor.

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Ans: (c)
Right at the beginning of the passage, the author observes that Moutai has succeeded "while disregarding every Western marketing mantra. It is not global, has meagre digital sales and does not appeal to millennials." It is this that he refers to while stating that Moutai has succeeded thanks to nationalism, elitism and ageism and not in spite of this "unholy" trinity. So, option 3 is the correct choice. Option 1 only relates to nationalism and does not explain the reference to “the unholy trinity”. Option 4 is irrelevant and easily ruled out. Only option 2 is close, as it seems reasonable at first to think that it is because of the risks that the reliance on nationalism, elitism and ageism exposes Moutai to that the author calls it “the unholy trinity”. But this option is incorrect as neither nationalism nor elitism are identified as threats to Moutai's success by the author.

Q17: The phrase "would make it an invention to rival gunpowder" has been used in the passage in a sense that is
(a) substantive.
(b) metaphorical.
(c) literal.
(d) synonymical.

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Ans: (b)
The author draws parallels between Moutai and gunpowder in terms of the potency of the invention. The usage is metaphorical. Anything that is substantive has a firm basis in reality. The comparison here is not substantive or literal. Nor is it synonymical, that is, having the same meaning.

Q18: Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.
1. To create a synapse, the neuron has specialized structures, often seen as tiny swellings, at its terminal end of the axon where it stores the chemicals that are emitted to transmit a signal to the next neuron.
2. This fetal warm-up act—the soldering of neural connections before the eyes actually function—is crucial to the performance of the visual system.
3. The reasons for this paring back of synapses is a mystery, but synaptic pruning is thought to sharpen and reinforce the "correct" synapses, while removing the weak and unnecessary ones.
4. Neural connections between the eyes and the brain are formed long before birth, establishing the wiring and the circuitry that allow a child to begin visualizing the world the minute she emerges from the womb.
5. During this rehearsal period, synapses—points of chemical connection—between nerve cells are generated in great excess, only to be pruned back during later development.

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Ans: 1
All sentences except 1 relate to the soldering of neural connections before birth in the fetus. 1, which is about how a neuron creates a synapse, is the odd one out. Ordering the sentences, we see that 4 is the best opening sentence. 4 says neural connections between the eyes and the brain are formed long before birth. 5 adds to 4, stating that a great excess of neural connections are established in this "rehearsal period" and pruned back during later development. 3 continues the idea in 5, stating that the reason for this paring back of synapses is a mystery. 2 concludes the paragraph observing that this fetal "warm-up act" is crucial to the performance of the visual system. 4532 makes a cogent paragraph; 1 is the odd one out.

Q19: Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.
1. Part of the appeal of forecasting is not just that it seems to work, but that you don't seem to need specialized expertise to succeed at it. 
2. The tight connection between forecasting and building a model of the world helps explain why so much of the early interest in the idea came from the intelligence community. 
3. This was true even though the latter had access to classified intelligence. 
4. One frequently cited study found that accurate forecasters' predictions of geopolitical events, when aggregated using standard scientific methods, were more accurate than the forecasts of members of the US intelligence community who answered the same questions in a confidential prediction market. 
5. The aggregated opinions of non-experts doing forecasting have proven to be a better guide to the future than the aggregated opinions of experts.

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Ans: 2
All sentences except 2 relate to the idea of forecasting by non-experts versus that by experts. If the sentences were to be arranged in a paragraph, 1 would be the opening sentence. 43 is a strong link; the 'latter' referred to in 3 is the US intelligence community that 4 mentions. 5 offers a good conclusion to the paragraph based on the preceding sentences. 1435 is a cogent paragraph. 2, which is about the connection between forecasting and building a model of the world is not related to the contents of the paragraph.

Q20: The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.
When the tradwife puts on that georgic, pinstriped dress, she is not just admiring the visual cues of a fantastical past. She takes these dreams of storybook bliss literally, tracing them backward in time until she reaches a logical conclusion that satisfies her. And by doing so, she ends up delivering an unhappy reminder of just how much our lives consist of artifice and playacting. The tradwife outrages people because of her deliberately regressive ideals. And yet her behaviour is, on some level, indistinguishable from the nontradwife's. The tradwife's trollish genius is to beat us at our own dress-up game. By insisting that the idyllic cottage daydream should be real, right down to the primitive gender roles, she leaves others feeling hollow, cheated. The hullabaloo and headaches she causes may be the price we pay for taking too many things at face value: our just deserts, served Instagram-perfect by a manicured hand on a gorgeous ceramic dish, with fat, mouthwatering maraschino cherries on top.
(a) The tradwife, with her vintage dress and traditional roles, highlights the superficiality of modern life and challenges current societal norms.
(b) The tradwife's commitment to outdated gender roles and retro fashion critiques the superficiality of today's societal ideals.
(c) By promoting an idealized past, the tradwife exposes the artifice of contemporary values and mocks societal norms.
(d) The tradwife's vintage dress and adherence to traditional roles reveal the artificial nature of modern life and its superficial values.

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Ans: (a)
The paragraph says that when the tradwife (traditional housewife) puts on her pinstriped dress, displays her deliberately regressive ideals and re-creates the past, she ends up reminding us of just how much our lives consist of artifice and playacting and just how much we take too many things at face value. For, the tradwife's behaviour is not, at some level, different from the nontradwife's. By insisting that the idyllic cottage daydream she presents is real and her open display of primitive gender roles, the tradwife beats us at our own game of Instagrammed reality, thereby challenging us to face up to what we are.
Option 1, which states that the tradwife highlights the superficiality of modern life and challenges current societal norms, is a good summary.
Option 2 is easily eliminated. The paragraph does not say the tradwife critiques-- that is, that she critically examines -- the superficiality of today's societal ideals.
Option 3 is also out because the paragraph does not say the tradwife mocks societal norms by promoting an idealized past.
Option 4 seems close, though. But this option implies that (a) the tradwife’s vintage dress and (b) adherence to traditional roles reveal the artificial nature of modern life. But it is not the dress as such or the role adhered to that reveals the superficiality of modern life, it is the tradwife's insistence on the reality of the idyllic cottage daydream that prompts us to see how we too take too many things at face value and how our current societal norms are not so ideal too. Option 4 is not as good a summary as 1.

Q21 to 24: The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question.
Fears of artificial intelligence (AI) have haunted humanity since the very beginning of the computer age. Hitherto these fears focused on machines using physical means to kill, enslave or replace people. But over the past couple of years new AI tools have emerged that threaten the survival of human civilisation from an unexpected direction. AI has gained some remarkable abilities to manipulate and generate language, whether with words, sounds or images. AI has thereby hacked the operating system of our civilisation.
Language is the stuff almost all human culture is made of. Human rights, for example, aren't inscribed in our DNA. Rather, they are cultural artefacts we created by telling stories and writing laws. Gods aren't physical realities. Rather, they are cultural artefacts we created by inventing myths and writing scriptures….What would happen once a non-human intelligence becomes better than the average human at telling stories, composing melodies, drawing images, and writing laws and scriptures? When people think about Chatgpt and other new AI tools, they are often drawn to examples like school children using AI to write their essays. What will happen to the school system when kids do that? But this kind of question misses the big picture. Forget about school essays. Think of the next American presidential race in 2024, and try to imagine the impact of AI tools that can be made to mass-produce political content, fake-news stories and scriptures for new cults…
Through its mastery of language, AI could even form intimate relationships with people, and use the power of intimacy to change our opinions and worldviews. Although there is no indication that AI has any consciousness or feelings of its own, to foster fake intimacy with humans it is enough if the AI can make them feel emotionally attached to it….
What will happen to the course of history when AI takes over culture, and begins producing stories, melodies, laws and religions? Previous tools like the printing press and radio helped spread the cultural ideas of humans, but they never created new cultural ideas of their own. AI is fundamentally different. AI can create completely new ideas, completely new culture…. Of course, the new power of AI could be used for good purposes as well. I won't dwell on this, because the people who develop AI talk about it enough….
We can still regulate the new AI tools, but we must act quickly. Whereas nukes cannot invent more powerful nukes, AI can make exponentially more powerful AI.… Unregulated AI deployments would create social chaos, which would benefit autocrats and ruin democracies. Democracy is a conversation, and conversations rely on language. When AI hacks language, it could destroy our ability to have meaningful conversations, thereby destroying democracy….And the first regulation I would suggest is to make it mandatory for AI to disclose that it is an AI. If I am having a conversation with someone, and I cannot tell whether it is a human or an AI—that's the end of democracy. This text has been generated by a human. Or has it?
Q21: The author identifies all of the following as dire outcomes of the capture of language by AI EXCEPT that it could
(a) out-strip human creativity and endeavours in the spheres such as art and music and, in the formulation of laws.
(b) apply its mastery of language to create strong emotional ties which could exacerbate the polarization of political views.
(c) spawn a completely new culture through its ability to create new ideas and opinions.
(d) eventually subvert democratic processes through the mass creation and spread of fake political content and news.

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Ans: (b)
Tricky question as all options seem apt at first glance. Refer to the lines, "What will happen to the course of history when AI takes over culture, and begins producing stories, melodies, laws and religions? Previous tools like the printing press and radio helped spread the cultural ideas of humans, but they never created new cultural ideas of their own. AI is fundamentally different. AI can create completely new ideas, completely new culture." Based on these lines, we know options 1 and 3 are mentioned in the passage. Option 4, too, relates to concerns raised by the author: "Think of the next American presidential race in 2024, and try to imagine the impact of AI tools that can be made to mass-produce political content, fake-news stories and scriptures for new cults…" Though the passage says AI could "form intimate relationships with people, and use the power of intimacy to change our opinions and worldviews", it does not specifically say that this could be used to exacerbate the polarization of political views. So, option 2 is the correct answer choice.

Q22: The author terms language "the operating system of our civilization" for all the following reasons EXCEPT that it
(a) is fundamental to the articulation and spread of human values and culture in our society.
(b) has laid the foundation for the creation of cultural artefacts through writing and telling of stories.
(c) can influence political views and opinions as it engenders close emotional ties among people.
(d) is the basis of AI tools like ChatGPT which can be used to generate academic content and opinion.

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Ans: (b)
The author says language is "stuff almost all human culture is made of", for it is using language that we create cultural artefacts like stories, art, laws and scripture. 
Options 1 and 2 are ruled out. Further, the author remarks that with its mastery of language, "AI could even form intimate relationships with people, and use the power of intimacy to change our opinions and worldviews." 
So, option 3 is also ruled out. Consider option 4. AI tools have mastery of language but this does not mean language is the basis of AI tools like ChatGPT. This is hence the correct answer choice.

Q23: The tone of the passage could best be described as
(a) cautionary, because the author lays out some adverse effects of the proliferation of unregulated AI tools.
(b) alarmist, because the passage discusses scenarios of the influence of new AI tools on language and human emotions.
(c) quizzical, as the passage poses several questions, concluding with the question of whether or not the passage content has been generated by AI.
(d) prescient, as the author analyses the future impact of the use of new AI tools on crucial areas of our society and culture.

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Ans: (a)
The passage discusses some dire outcomes of the proliferation of unregulated AI. The tone is cautionary. Option 1 is the correct choice. The author is not being alarmist. He is not trying to raise unnecessary fear on the impact of AI. So, option 2 is incorrect. The author is not merely raising questions but also cautioning against unregulated AI. Option 3 is hence incorrect. The author is not predicting the future, that is, being prescient, either. So, option 4 is incorrect.

Q24: We can infer that the author is most likely to agree with which of the following statements?
(a) People's fears of the dangers of students using ChatGPT and other new AI tools are unfounded.
(b) Apart from its drawbacks, AI tools have been beneficial in boosting technological and industrial advance worldwide.
(c) The commonly expressed fear that future AI developments will fatally harm humans is unfounded.
(d) One of the biggest casualties from the spread of unregulated AI is likely to be the democratic process.

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Ans: (d)
Option 4 sums up the main idea of the last paragraph: unregulated AI could ruin democracies. So, option 4 is the correct choice.
The author does not dismiss people’s fears of the dangers of students using ChatGPT. He only says this line of thinking misses the big picture. Option 1 is not a statement the author is likely to agree with.
With regard to the good uses of AI, the author says he would not dwell on it as those who develop AI talk about it enough. It is the drawbacks of unregulated AI that the author focuses on. Option 2 is not as good a choice as 4.
The author is not likely to dismiss any fear of potentially harmful AI developments in future, as he too shares these fears. So, option 3 is also ruled out.