Practice Passage Test - 7 | Practice Passages for MCAT PDF Download

According to Figure 1, for both males and females at the age of 0, life expectancy 1980–2000 has not increased significantly; therefore, this figure illustrates that the life expectancy of infants has plateaued (choice A is correct). There is not enough information given in the passage or the figure to determine the age that is most ideal for accurately calculating life expectancy (choice B is wrong). In 1980, males at the age of 55 had a lower life expectancy rate (34.2) than females (36.8; choice C is wrong). Between the years 1900–2000, life expectancy rates at age 75 decreased for females in 1920 and for males in 1940 (choice D is wrong).

Item I is false: intergenerational mobility is the mobility across generations. This usually occurs when the child has a higher or lower social class than their parents (choices A and C can be eliminated). Note that both remaining answer choices include Item II so it must be true: unlike intergenerational mobility, intragenerational mobility is the mobility within the generation for an individual. The pre-modernist moved up in social class within his lifetime. Item III is true: meritocracy is the system in which power and prestige are given to those who have the skills to be appointed in the upper class. The pre-modernist gained mobility through his craftsmanship skills (choice B can be eliminated and choice D is correct).

Absolute poverty is defined as the capacity of necessary living resources that individuals are able to attain; poor pre-modernists have no choice but to live in a society that they struggle to acquire those necessities (choice A is correct). Social change is the adjustment of social systems that can occur over a period of time; pre-modernists in poverty were less likely to participate in creating social changes because of their fatalistic point of view (choice B is wrong). Relative poverty is when there is a reference point of the group of people in comparison to another group of people based on their socioeconomic status and living conditions; the question stem is closely related to absolute poverty because it focuses more on the physical resources needed for survival (choice C is wrong). Global inequality can be eliminated as an answer because the question does not go into the inequalities in a global perspective (choice D is wrong).

Discrimination is the mistreatment of others based on their perceived differences in characteristics and social position. The men view the woman as an out-group member because they do not identify themselves as being in the same group as her based on their status and gender (choice D is correct and choice C is wrong). Prejudice leads to discrimination. It is the positive or negative attitude that people have about another group of people based on their perceptions of them. The scenario does not closely relate to the concept of prejudice because the men have already committed the action of discrimination against the woman by mocking her (choice A and choice B are wrong).

By following the gender mortality ratio in 1925, ages 41-50 have a mortality ratio of roughly 3.4, meaning that for every 1 female who dies, 3.4 males die within this age range; therefore, this is the highest mortality ratio between men and women (choice C is correct). Although ages 21-30 have the highest ratio in 2000, the same trend does not apply for the year 1925 (choice A is wrong). Ages 31-40 show gender mortality ratio at its lowest in 1925 (choice B is wrong). Although ages 51-60 have a high gender mortality ratio in 1975, it is not the same case for 1925 (choice D is wrong).