XAT 2019: Previous Year Question Paper with Solutions

 Page 1


XAT 2019
English
1. Choose the option that would fill in the blanks meaningfully in the sentence(s) below:
______ the importance of ‘horizontal stratification’ ______ higher education is widely acknowledged, ______ attention has been
applied to horizontal stratification ______ compulsory schooling.
A    Whereas; with: too less; to
B    While; within: far less; within
C    While; without: further less; within
D    While; on: far fewer; about
E    Whereas; about: for less; of
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From an initial reading, we can understand that the two parts of the sentence are contrasting each other. So the perfect fir for the first
blank is "while". 
Since in the first case the importance is widely acknowledged, in the second case it has to be the opposite, so the best fit for the third
blank would be "far less". 
In the second and fourth blank, we need an apt preposition, and the correct one would be "within".
So the correct option is B.
  
2. Please study the paragraph given below:
In 1942, the French writer Albert Camus composed an essay, ‘The Myth of Sisyphus’. It draws on the Greek fable of a man
condemned to roll a rock up a mountain only to have it roll back down under its own weight, a ______ that lasts for eternity.
Camus argues that this image ______ the human condition in a world where we can no longer make sense of events; but instead
of committing suicide, we should ______ ourselves to this ‘elusive feeling of absurdity’ and bear it as best we can. In this sense,
Sisyphus is the ideal hero.
Consider the following words:
1. surrender
2. choice
3. symbolises
4. quandary
5. attune
6. option
7. reconcile
8. depicts
Which of the following options is the most appropriate sequence that best fits the blanks in the above paragraph?
A    4, 2, 6
B    2, 3, 1
C    4, 5, 1
D    2, 5, 7
E    4, 3, 7
A n s w e r : E
  
.
Page 2


XAT 2019
English
1. Choose the option that would fill in the blanks meaningfully in the sentence(s) below:
______ the importance of ‘horizontal stratification’ ______ higher education is widely acknowledged, ______ attention has been
applied to horizontal stratification ______ compulsory schooling.
A    Whereas; with: too less; to
B    While; within: far less; within
C    While; without: further less; within
D    While; on: far fewer; about
E    Whereas; about: for less; of
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From an initial reading, we can understand that the two parts of the sentence are contrasting each other. So the perfect fir for the first
blank is "while". 
Since in the first case the importance is widely acknowledged, in the second case it has to be the opposite, so the best fit for the third
blank would be "far less". 
In the second and fourth blank, we need an apt preposition, and the correct one would be "within".
So the correct option is B.
  
2. Please study the paragraph given below:
In 1942, the French writer Albert Camus composed an essay, ‘The Myth of Sisyphus’. It draws on the Greek fable of a man
condemned to roll a rock up a mountain only to have it roll back down under its own weight, a ______ that lasts for eternity.
Camus argues that this image ______ the human condition in a world where we can no longer make sense of events; but instead
of committing suicide, we should ______ ourselves to this ‘elusive feeling of absurdity’ and bear it as best we can. In this sense,
Sisyphus is the ideal hero.
Consider the following words:
1. surrender
2. choice
3. symbolises
4. quandary
5. attune
6. option
7. reconcile
8. depicts
Which of the following options is the most appropriate sequence that best fits the blanks in the above paragraph?
A    4, 2, 6
B    2, 3, 1
C    4, 5, 1
D    2, 5, 7
E    4, 3, 7
A n s w e r : E
  
.
Explanation:
In the first blank we are looking for a word that signifies a dilemma, quandary(4) is a word that goes well here as it means "state of
perplexity or uncertainty over what to do in a difficult situation".
The second blank requires a word that goes with the essence of depicting an image, symbolizes(3) is the perfect fit for this blank as
there is no option which has the word depict(8) in it.
The third blank requires a word that means to accept or come to terms with something, while attune(5) is a good choice, reconcile(7) is
the best choice and is also available in the options.
Hence the answer is 437.
3. Study the first sentence and then identify from among the options given the closest antonym of the highlighted word in the
second sentence:
It’s conventional wisdom that procreation between first cousins is unhealthy. But what are the actual genetic risks?
A    tangible
B    relative
C    abstract
D    hard
E    unfounded
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
The highlighted word is conventional which here means common knowledge, known by all. The perfect antonym would be unfounded
which means having no foundation or not based on truth.
4. Carefully read the following paragraph:
Who could resist the idea of remembering everything they wanted to, without trying? Learning would be made easy, exams a
______ and you would never forget where you left your keys. And memory-related disorders like Alzheimer’s would have met
their match. So, it is of little surprise that scientists have turned their attention to ways of ______ human memory using
techniques that ______, supplement or even mimic parts of the brain. The immediate goal is to treat memory disorders, but the
idea of a memory ______ for everyday life is gaining ground.
Fill in the blanks in the above paragraph, with the best option from among the following:
A    ?joy; augmenting; awaken; crutch
B    routine; expanding; invigorate; crutch
C    breeze; enhancing; stimulate; prosthesis
D    routine; expanding; trigger; support
E    breeze; exploring; simulate; aid
A n s w e r : C
Explanation:
The first blank requires a word that conveys the idea of something which is easy to do. Joy is a word that conveys the expression, but
we have a better choice which is a breeze (a thing that is easy to accomplish). Hence we have eliminated Options A B and D.
The second blank requires a word that goes with the idea of increasing or improving, enhancing is a perfect fit.
So we can conclude that the correct option is C as the other two words stimulate (encourage or increase activity) and prosthesis
(artificially created or modified body part) match for the respective blanks.
         
  
.
Page 3


XAT 2019
English
1. Choose the option that would fill in the blanks meaningfully in the sentence(s) below:
______ the importance of ‘horizontal stratification’ ______ higher education is widely acknowledged, ______ attention has been
applied to horizontal stratification ______ compulsory schooling.
A    Whereas; with: too less; to
B    While; within: far less; within
C    While; without: further less; within
D    While; on: far fewer; about
E    Whereas; about: for less; of
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From an initial reading, we can understand that the two parts of the sentence are contrasting each other. So the perfect fir for the first
blank is "while". 
Since in the first case the importance is widely acknowledged, in the second case it has to be the opposite, so the best fit for the third
blank would be "far less". 
In the second and fourth blank, we need an apt preposition, and the correct one would be "within".
So the correct option is B.
  
2. Please study the paragraph given below:
In 1942, the French writer Albert Camus composed an essay, ‘The Myth of Sisyphus’. It draws on the Greek fable of a man
condemned to roll a rock up a mountain only to have it roll back down under its own weight, a ______ that lasts for eternity.
Camus argues that this image ______ the human condition in a world where we can no longer make sense of events; but instead
of committing suicide, we should ______ ourselves to this ‘elusive feeling of absurdity’ and bear it as best we can. In this sense,
Sisyphus is the ideal hero.
Consider the following words:
1. surrender
2. choice
3. symbolises
4. quandary
5. attune
6. option
7. reconcile
8. depicts
Which of the following options is the most appropriate sequence that best fits the blanks in the above paragraph?
A    4, 2, 6
B    2, 3, 1
C    4, 5, 1
D    2, 5, 7
E    4, 3, 7
A n s w e r : E
  
.
Explanation:
In the first blank we are looking for a word that signifies a dilemma, quandary(4) is a word that goes well here as it means "state of
perplexity or uncertainty over what to do in a difficult situation".
The second blank requires a word that goes with the essence of depicting an image, symbolizes(3) is the perfect fit for this blank as
there is no option which has the word depict(8) in it.
The third blank requires a word that means to accept or come to terms with something, while attune(5) is a good choice, reconcile(7) is
the best choice and is also available in the options.
Hence the answer is 437.
3. Study the first sentence and then identify from among the options given the closest antonym of the highlighted word in the
second sentence:
It’s conventional wisdom that procreation between first cousins is unhealthy. But what are the actual genetic risks?
A    tangible
B    relative
C    abstract
D    hard
E    unfounded
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
The highlighted word is conventional which here means common knowledge, known by all. The perfect antonym would be unfounded
which means having no foundation or not based on truth.
4. Carefully read the following paragraph:
Who could resist the idea of remembering everything they wanted to, without trying? Learning would be made easy, exams a
______ and you would never forget where you left your keys. And memory-related disorders like Alzheimer’s would have met
their match. So, it is of little surprise that scientists have turned their attention to ways of ______ human memory using
techniques that ______, supplement or even mimic parts of the brain. The immediate goal is to treat memory disorders, but the
idea of a memory ______ for everyday life is gaining ground.
Fill in the blanks in the above paragraph, with the best option from among the following:
A    ?joy; augmenting; awaken; crutch
B    routine; expanding; invigorate; crutch
C    breeze; enhancing; stimulate; prosthesis
D    routine; expanding; trigger; support
E    breeze; exploring; simulate; aid
A n s w e r : C
Explanation:
The first blank requires a word that conveys the idea of something which is easy to do. Joy is a word that conveys the expression, but
we have a better choice which is a breeze (a thing that is easy to accomplish). Hence we have eliminated Options A B and D.
The second blank requires a word that goes with the idea of increasing or improving, enhancing is a perfect fit.
So we can conclude that the correct option is C as the other two words stimulate (encourage or increase activity) and prosthesis
(artificially created or modified body part) match for the respective blanks.
         
  
.
5. Read the following statements and answer the question that follows:
1. They subjected the residues from sherds of the rhyta- vessels to radiocarbon dating to determine their ages and
chromatography - mass  spectrometry (GC-MS) - to identify their structure and isotopic composition and found that the vessels
were used to store cheese.
2. In many Neolithic sites near the Adriatic Sea, researchers unearthed cone-shaped clay vessels, known as rhyta, with four legs
on the bottom and a round opening on the side.
3. Fresh milk couldn’t be kept for long without going bad; cheese, on the other hand, could be stored for months at a time,
providing much-needed calories to early farmers between harvests.
4. Archaeologists who used to assume animals such as cows and goats were mainly used for meat early in their domestication
history are thus forced to admit that humans might have been using animals for dairy quite early in their domestication history.
5. “If you kill one cow, you eat meat for about a week until it goes off; but by milking the animals, the farmer would be spreading
the food gain from that animal over several months rather than just one week”
Rank the above five statements so as to make it a logical sequence:
A    2, 1, 5, 4, 3
B    4, 5, 2, 1, 3
C    4, 2, 1, 3, 5
D    2, 1, 3, 5, 4
E    4, 1, 2, 5, 3
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
2 introduces us to an archaeological discovery of clay vessels. 1 takes it forward by telling about the studies carried out on the finds
which conclude that the vessels were used to store cheese. 3 explains why cheese was stored instead of milk. At the same time, 5
elaborates why cows were domesticated for milk rather than for meat. 4 states the changes in views of several archaeologists as a
result of the discovery. 
Hence the correct order of the sentences is 21354.
6. Read the following statements and answer the question that follows:
1. An in-depth exploration of the Indian case and case studies of early adopters of mobile technology will provide spectrum
managers a pragmatic and modern approach whereby they could utilize their resources efficiently and optimally.
2. Even as spectrum management regimes are moving from a command and control regime to a flexible use regime, new
technological developments are suggesting that there are significant opportunities in managing large swathes of spectrum as a
common property resource, in addition to flexible use.
3. Political legacies and market realities in different regimes pose unique challenges for spectrum managers who must
negotiate a tricky path to the land promised by technological possibility.
4. On the other hand, supply of spectrum is restricted due to competing nature of uses and vested interests of incumbent
holders.
5. The demand for spectrum has never been so acute as today's communication services extend beyond simple voice to
complex data and video, augmented by evolving technologies such as peer-to-peer sharing, social networking, Fourth and Fifth
Generation networks, Big Data, and cloud computing.
Rank the above five statements so as to make it a logical sequence:
A    1, 2, 4, 5, 3
B    5, 2, 3, 1, 4
C    4, 5, 2, 3, 1
D    3, 4, 5, 2, 1
E    2, 5, 4, 3, 1
  
.
Page 4


XAT 2019
English
1. Choose the option that would fill in the blanks meaningfully in the sentence(s) below:
______ the importance of ‘horizontal stratification’ ______ higher education is widely acknowledged, ______ attention has been
applied to horizontal stratification ______ compulsory schooling.
A    Whereas; with: too less; to
B    While; within: far less; within
C    While; without: further less; within
D    While; on: far fewer; about
E    Whereas; about: for less; of
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From an initial reading, we can understand that the two parts of the sentence are contrasting each other. So the perfect fir for the first
blank is "while". 
Since in the first case the importance is widely acknowledged, in the second case it has to be the opposite, so the best fit for the third
blank would be "far less". 
In the second and fourth blank, we need an apt preposition, and the correct one would be "within".
So the correct option is B.
  
2. Please study the paragraph given below:
In 1942, the French writer Albert Camus composed an essay, ‘The Myth of Sisyphus’. It draws on the Greek fable of a man
condemned to roll a rock up a mountain only to have it roll back down under its own weight, a ______ that lasts for eternity.
Camus argues that this image ______ the human condition in a world where we can no longer make sense of events; but instead
of committing suicide, we should ______ ourselves to this ‘elusive feeling of absurdity’ and bear it as best we can. In this sense,
Sisyphus is the ideal hero.
Consider the following words:
1. surrender
2. choice
3. symbolises
4. quandary
5. attune
6. option
7. reconcile
8. depicts
Which of the following options is the most appropriate sequence that best fits the blanks in the above paragraph?
A    4, 2, 6
B    2, 3, 1
C    4, 5, 1
D    2, 5, 7
E    4, 3, 7
A n s w e r : E
  
.
Explanation:
In the first blank we are looking for a word that signifies a dilemma, quandary(4) is a word that goes well here as it means "state of
perplexity or uncertainty over what to do in a difficult situation".
The second blank requires a word that goes with the essence of depicting an image, symbolizes(3) is the perfect fit for this blank as
there is no option which has the word depict(8) in it.
The third blank requires a word that means to accept or come to terms with something, while attune(5) is a good choice, reconcile(7) is
the best choice and is also available in the options.
Hence the answer is 437.
3. Study the first sentence and then identify from among the options given the closest antonym of the highlighted word in the
second sentence:
It’s conventional wisdom that procreation between first cousins is unhealthy. But what are the actual genetic risks?
A    tangible
B    relative
C    abstract
D    hard
E    unfounded
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
The highlighted word is conventional which here means common knowledge, known by all. The perfect antonym would be unfounded
which means having no foundation or not based on truth.
4. Carefully read the following paragraph:
Who could resist the idea of remembering everything they wanted to, without trying? Learning would be made easy, exams a
______ and you would never forget where you left your keys. And memory-related disorders like Alzheimer’s would have met
their match. So, it is of little surprise that scientists have turned their attention to ways of ______ human memory using
techniques that ______, supplement or even mimic parts of the brain. The immediate goal is to treat memory disorders, but the
idea of a memory ______ for everyday life is gaining ground.
Fill in the blanks in the above paragraph, with the best option from among the following:
A    ?joy; augmenting; awaken; crutch
B    routine; expanding; invigorate; crutch
C    breeze; enhancing; stimulate; prosthesis
D    routine; expanding; trigger; support
E    breeze; exploring; simulate; aid
A n s w e r : C
Explanation:
The first blank requires a word that conveys the idea of something which is easy to do. Joy is a word that conveys the expression, but
we have a better choice which is a breeze (a thing that is easy to accomplish). Hence we have eliminated Options A B and D.
The second blank requires a word that goes with the idea of increasing or improving, enhancing is a perfect fit.
So we can conclude that the correct option is C as the other two words stimulate (encourage or increase activity) and prosthesis
(artificially created or modified body part) match for the respective blanks.
         
  
.
5. Read the following statements and answer the question that follows:
1. They subjected the residues from sherds of the rhyta- vessels to radiocarbon dating to determine their ages and
chromatography - mass  spectrometry (GC-MS) - to identify their structure and isotopic composition and found that the vessels
were used to store cheese.
2. In many Neolithic sites near the Adriatic Sea, researchers unearthed cone-shaped clay vessels, known as rhyta, with four legs
on the bottom and a round opening on the side.
3. Fresh milk couldn’t be kept for long without going bad; cheese, on the other hand, could be stored for months at a time,
providing much-needed calories to early farmers between harvests.
4. Archaeologists who used to assume animals such as cows and goats were mainly used for meat early in their domestication
history are thus forced to admit that humans might have been using animals for dairy quite early in their domestication history.
5. “If you kill one cow, you eat meat for about a week until it goes off; but by milking the animals, the farmer would be spreading
the food gain from that animal over several months rather than just one week”
Rank the above five statements so as to make it a logical sequence:
A    2, 1, 5, 4, 3
B    4, 5, 2, 1, 3
C    4, 2, 1, 3, 5
D    2, 1, 3, 5, 4
E    4, 1, 2, 5, 3
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
2 introduces us to an archaeological discovery of clay vessels. 1 takes it forward by telling about the studies carried out on the finds
which conclude that the vessels were used to store cheese. 3 explains why cheese was stored instead of milk. At the same time, 5
elaborates why cows were domesticated for milk rather than for meat. 4 states the changes in views of several archaeologists as a
result of the discovery. 
Hence the correct order of the sentences is 21354.
6. Read the following statements and answer the question that follows:
1. An in-depth exploration of the Indian case and case studies of early adopters of mobile technology will provide spectrum
managers a pragmatic and modern approach whereby they could utilize their resources efficiently and optimally.
2. Even as spectrum management regimes are moving from a command and control regime to a flexible use regime, new
technological developments are suggesting that there are significant opportunities in managing large swathes of spectrum as a
common property resource, in addition to flexible use.
3. Political legacies and market realities in different regimes pose unique challenges for spectrum managers who must
negotiate a tricky path to the land promised by technological possibility.
4. On the other hand, supply of spectrum is restricted due to competing nature of uses and vested interests of incumbent
holders.
5. The demand for spectrum has never been so acute as today's communication services extend beyond simple voice to
complex data and video, augmented by evolving technologies such as peer-to-peer sharing, social networking, Fourth and Fifth
Generation networks, Big Data, and cloud computing.
Rank the above five statements so as to make it a logical sequence:
A    1, 2, 4, 5, 3
B    5, 2, 3, 1, 4
C    4, 5, 2, 3, 1
D    3, 4, 5, 2, 1
E    2, 5, 4, 3, 1
  
.
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
2 is introducing a scenario where, despite a shift in the regime of spectrum management, new technological developments are
suggesting that there are significant opportunities in managing large swathes of the spectrum as a common property resource. 5
elaborates the opportunities mentioned earlier. 4 presents a potential problem to 5 due to the supply of spectrum being restricted. 3
elaborates the problem mentioned in 4. 1 provides a solution to the presented problem.
Hence the correct order of the sentences is 25431.
Instructions [7 - 8 ]
Read the poem given below and answer the question that follows it:
Black lake, black boat, two black, cut-paper people.
Where do the black trees go that drink here?
Their shadows must cover Canada.
A little light is filtering from the water flowers
Their leaves do not wish us to hurry:
They are round and flat and full of dark advice.
Cold words shake from the oar.
The spirit of blackness is in us, it is in the fishes.
A snag is lifting a valedictory, pale hand;
Stars opening among the lilies.
Are you not blinded by such expressionless sirens?
This is the silence of abandoned souls.
7. Which of the following options best explains the effect of the images in Line 1?
A    The first line encapsulates the theme of the poem.
B    The images are suffused with an overpowering sense of rebellion.
C    The atmosphere indicates a cyclical nature of life and death.
D    The black lake lacks regenerative potential; ‘black boat’ connotes the funerary boat; cut-paper people are unreal.
E    The repeated use of black suggests evil.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The speaker tersely describes an ominous setting: "Black lake, black boat, two black, cut-paper people."  
Though this line describes the setting of the poem, it does not convey the theme, nor does it imply an overpowering sense of rebellion or
cyclical nature of life and death.
While it does suggest evil as a whole, each element of the first line conveys a distinct image.
Such an essence is is conveyed only in option D.
        
8. Which of the following options presents a convincing evaluation of the line, ‘Stars opening among the lilies’?
A    The stars are flowers in the sky and the flowers in the lake are stars in water.
B    The ethereal light of the stars gets reflected among the lilies.
C    
The spirit of blackness does not hinder the appearance of beauty in nature which is symbolic of hope blossoming in
the soul.
D    The mirror images, the worlds above and overlap.
  
.
Page 5


XAT 2019
English
1. Choose the option that would fill in the blanks meaningfully in the sentence(s) below:
______ the importance of ‘horizontal stratification’ ______ higher education is widely acknowledged, ______ attention has been
applied to horizontal stratification ______ compulsory schooling.
A    Whereas; with: too less; to
B    While; within: far less; within
C    While; without: further less; within
D    While; on: far fewer; about
E    Whereas; about: for less; of
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From an initial reading, we can understand that the two parts of the sentence are contrasting each other. So the perfect fir for the first
blank is "while". 
Since in the first case the importance is widely acknowledged, in the second case it has to be the opposite, so the best fit for the third
blank would be "far less". 
In the second and fourth blank, we need an apt preposition, and the correct one would be "within".
So the correct option is B.
  
2. Please study the paragraph given below:
In 1942, the French writer Albert Camus composed an essay, ‘The Myth of Sisyphus’. It draws on the Greek fable of a man
condemned to roll a rock up a mountain only to have it roll back down under its own weight, a ______ that lasts for eternity.
Camus argues that this image ______ the human condition in a world where we can no longer make sense of events; but instead
of committing suicide, we should ______ ourselves to this ‘elusive feeling of absurdity’ and bear it as best we can. In this sense,
Sisyphus is the ideal hero.
Consider the following words:
1. surrender
2. choice
3. symbolises
4. quandary
5. attune
6. option
7. reconcile
8. depicts
Which of the following options is the most appropriate sequence that best fits the blanks in the above paragraph?
A    4, 2, 6
B    2, 3, 1
C    4, 5, 1
D    2, 5, 7
E    4, 3, 7
A n s w e r : E
  
.
Explanation:
In the first blank we are looking for a word that signifies a dilemma, quandary(4) is a word that goes well here as it means "state of
perplexity or uncertainty over what to do in a difficult situation".
The second blank requires a word that goes with the essence of depicting an image, symbolizes(3) is the perfect fit for this blank as
there is no option which has the word depict(8) in it.
The third blank requires a word that means to accept or come to terms with something, while attune(5) is a good choice, reconcile(7) is
the best choice and is also available in the options.
Hence the answer is 437.
3. Study the first sentence and then identify from among the options given the closest antonym of the highlighted word in the
second sentence:
It’s conventional wisdom that procreation between first cousins is unhealthy. But what are the actual genetic risks?
A    tangible
B    relative
C    abstract
D    hard
E    unfounded
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
The highlighted word is conventional which here means common knowledge, known by all. The perfect antonym would be unfounded
which means having no foundation or not based on truth.
4. Carefully read the following paragraph:
Who could resist the idea of remembering everything they wanted to, without trying? Learning would be made easy, exams a
______ and you would never forget where you left your keys. And memory-related disorders like Alzheimer’s would have met
their match. So, it is of little surprise that scientists have turned their attention to ways of ______ human memory using
techniques that ______, supplement or even mimic parts of the brain. The immediate goal is to treat memory disorders, but the
idea of a memory ______ for everyday life is gaining ground.
Fill in the blanks in the above paragraph, with the best option from among the following:
A    ?joy; augmenting; awaken; crutch
B    routine; expanding; invigorate; crutch
C    breeze; enhancing; stimulate; prosthesis
D    routine; expanding; trigger; support
E    breeze; exploring; simulate; aid
A n s w e r : C
Explanation:
The first blank requires a word that conveys the idea of something which is easy to do. Joy is a word that conveys the expression, but
we have a better choice which is a breeze (a thing that is easy to accomplish). Hence we have eliminated Options A B and D.
The second blank requires a word that goes with the idea of increasing or improving, enhancing is a perfect fit.
So we can conclude that the correct option is C as the other two words stimulate (encourage or increase activity) and prosthesis
(artificially created or modified body part) match for the respective blanks.
         
  
.
5. Read the following statements and answer the question that follows:
1. They subjected the residues from sherds of the rhyta- vessels to radiocarbon dating to determine their ages and
chromatography - mass  spectrometry (GC-MS) - to identify their structure and isotopic composition and found that the vessels
were used to store cheese.
2. In many Neolithic sites near the Adriatic Sea, researchers unearthed cone-shaped clay vessels, known as rhyta, with four legs
on the bottom and a round opening on the side.
3. Fresh milk couldn’t be kept for long without going bad; cheese, on the other hand, could be stored for months at a time,
providing much-needed calories to early farmers between harvests.
4. Archaeologists who used to assume animals such as cows and goats were mainly used for meat early in their domestication
history are thus forced to admit that humans might have been using animals for dairy quite early in their domestication history.
5. “If you kill one cow, you eat meat for about a week until it goes off; but by milking the animals, the farmer would be spreading
the food gain from that animal over several months rather than just one week”
Rank the above five statements so as to make it a logical sequence:
A    2, 1, 5, 4, 3
B    4, 5, 2, 1, 3
C    4, 2, 1, 3, 5
D    2, 1, 3, 5, 4
E    4, 1, 2, 5, 3
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
2 introduces us to an archaeological discovery of clay vessels. 1 takes it forward by telling about the studies carried out on the finds
which conclude that the vessels were used to store cheese. 3 explains why cheese was stored instead of milk. At the same time, 5
elaborates why cows were domesticated for milk rather than for meat. 4 states the changes in views of several archaeologists as a
result of the discovery. 
Hence the correct order of the sentences is 21354.
6. Read the following statements and answer the question that follows:
1. An in-depth exploration of the Indian case and case studies of early adopters of mobile technology will provide spectrum
managers a pragmatic and modern approach whereby they could utilize their resources efficiently and optimally.
2. Even as spectrum management regimes are moving from a command and control regime to a flexible use regime, new
technological developments are suggesting that there are significant opportunities in managing large swathes of spectrum as a
common property resource, in addition to flexible use.
3. Political legacies and market realities in different regimes pose unique challenges for spectrum managers who must
negotiate a tricky path to the land promised by technological possibility.
4. On the other hand, supply of spectrum is restricted due to competing nature of uses and vested interests of incumbent
holders.
5. The demand for spectrum has never been so acute as today's communication services extend beyond simple voice to
complex data and video, augmented by evolving technologies such as peer-to-peer sharing, social networking, Fourth and Fifth
Generation networks, Big Data, and cloud computing.
Rank the above five statements so as to make it a logical sequence:
A    1, 2, 4, 5, 3
B    5, 2, 3, 1, 4
C    4, 5, 2, 3, 1
D    3, 4, 5, 2, 1
E    2, 5, 4, 3, 1
  
.
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
2 is introducing a scenario where, despite a shift in the regime of spectrum management, new technological developments are
suggesting that there are significant opportunities in managing large swathes of the spectrum as a common property resource. 5
elaborates the opportunities mentioned earlier. 4 presents a potential problem to 5 due to the supply of spectrum being restricted. 3
elaborates the problem mentioned in 4. 1 provides a solution to the presented problem.
Hence the correct order of the sentences is 25431.
Instructions [7 - 8 ]
Read the poem given below and answer the question that follows it:
Black lake, black boat, two black, cut-paper people.
Where do the black trees go that drink here?
Their shadows must cover Canada.
A little light is filtering from the water flowers
Their leaves do not wish us to hurry:
They are round and flat and full of dark advice.
Cold words shake from the oar.
The spirit of blackness is in us, it is in the fishes.
A snag is lifting a valedictory, pale hand;
Stars opening among the lilies.
Are you not blinded by such expressionless sirens?
This is the silence of abandoned souls.
7. Which of the following options best explains the effect of the images in Line 1?
A    The first line encapsulates the theme of the poem.
B    The images are suffused with an overpowering sense of rebellion.
C    The atmosphere indicates a cyclical nature of life and death.
D    The black lake lacks regenerative potential; ‘black boat’ connotes the funerary boat; cut-paper people are unreal.
E    The repeated use of black suggests evil.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The speaker tersely describes an ominous setting: "Black lake, black boat, two black, cut-paper people."  
Though this line describes the setting of the poem, it does not convey the theme, nor does it imply an overpowering sense of rebellion or
cyclical nature of life and death.
While it does suggest evil as a whole, each element of the first line conveys a distinct image.
Such an essence is is conveyed only in option D.
        
8. Which of the following options presents a convincing evaluation of the line, ‘Stars opening among the lilies’?
A    The stars are flowers in the sky and the flowers in the lake are stars in water.
B    The ethereal light of the stars gets reflected among the lilies.
C    
The spirit of blackness does not hinder the appearance of beauty in nature which is symbolic of hope blossoming in
the soul.
D    The mirror images, the worlds above and overlap.
  
.
E    
Lilies purify the ‘dark’ into ‘light’ as symbolized in and by stars.
A n s w e r : C
Explanation:
So far, the poem was conveying the image of engulfing blackness; suddenly, the speaker notices, "Stars open among the lilies".
The light that now appears along with the newly formed visible "lilies" stuns the speaker as it is not held back by the darkness around,
but rather it blossoms hope. 
In option C, this evaluation is well expressed. 
Therefore, the correct answer is C.
Instructions [9 - 11 ]
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow it:
Does having a mood disorder make you more creative? That’s the most frequent question I hear about the relationship. But because we
cannot control the instance of a mood disorder (that is, we can’t turn it on and off, and measure that person’s creativity under both
conditions), the question should really be: Do individuals with a mood disorder exhibit greater creativity than those without? Studies that
attempt to answer this question by comparing the creativity of individuals with a mood disorder against those without, have been well,
mixed.
Studies that ask participants to complete surveys of creative personality, behavior or accomplishment, or to complete divergent thinking
measures (where they are asked to generate lots of ideas) often find that individuals with mood disorders do not differ from those
without. However, studies using “creative occupation” as an indicator of creativity (based on the assumption that those employed in
these occupations are relatively more creative than others) have found that people with bipolar disorders are overrepresented in these
occupations. These studies do not measure the creativity of participants directly, rather they use external records (such as censuses
and medical registries) to tally the number of people with a history of mood disorders (compared with those without) who report being
employed in a creative occupation at some time. These studies incorporate an enormous number of people and provide solid evidence
that people who have sought treatment for mood disorders are engaged in creative occupations to a greater extent than those who have
not. But can creative occupations serve as a proxy for creative ability?
The creative occupations considered in these studies are overwhelmingly in the arts, which frequently provide greater autonomy and
less rigid structure than the average nine-to-five job. This makes these jobs more conducive to the success of individuals who struggle
with performance consistency as the result of a mood disorder. The American psychiatrist Arnold Ludwig has suggested that the level
of emotional expressiveness required to be successful in various occupations creates an occupational drift and demonstrated that the
pattern of expressive occupations being associated with a greater incidence of psychopathology is a self-repeating pattern. For
example, professions in the creative arts are associated with greater psychopathology than professions in the sciences whereas, within
creative arts professions, architects exhibit a lower lifetime prevalence rate of psychopathology than visual artists and, within the visual
arts, abstract artists exhibit lower rates of psychopathology than expressive artists. Therefore, it is possible that many people who
suffer from mood disorders gravitate towards these types of professions, regardless of creative ability or inclination.
9. Go through the following:
1.Mood disorders do not lead to creativity
2.The flexibility of creative occupations makes them more appealing to people with mood disorder
3.Mood swings in creative professions is less prevalent than in non-creative professions
Which of the following would undermine the passage’s main argument?
A    2 & 3
B    1 & 2
C    3 only
D    2 only
E    1, 2 & 3
A n s w e r : C
Explanation:
The idea conveyed in the passage is that while people with mood swings generally do better in creative profiles as compared to nine to
five jobs, hence there is the possibility of mood swings being more prevalent in creative jobs as compared to other ones. 
There is no direct indication of mood swings leading to increased creativity (1) or the flexibility factor of creative jobs making it more
  
.