Some people believe that saying that an organization is hierarchical says everything there is to say about how that organization operates. All bureaucratically controlled organizations are hierarchical. Yet the Public Works Department, although bureaucratically controlled, operates quite differently than most other bureaucratically controlled organizations operate.
Summary
The stimulus can be diagrammed as follows:
Notable Valid Inferences
The Public Works Department is hierarchical. A company being hierarchical does not reveal everything about the nature of that company’s operations—there are differences in how hierarchical companies operate.
A
The Public Works Department operates more like a nonbureaucratically controlled organization than like a bureaucratically controlled organization.
This could be false. It could be that the Public Works Department operates differently in a manner not characteristic to nonbureaucratic or bureaucratic organizations. The stimulus does not offer enough information for us to know what “differently” means in practice.
B
Any organization that is hierarchical is bureaucratically controlled.
This could be false. We know all bureaucratically controlled organizations are hierarchical, but we cannot assume this relationship goes both ways. As shown in the diagram, we assume it is a one-way relationship.
C
From the fact that a given organization is hierarchical nothing can reliably be concluded about how that organization operates.
This could be false. There may be some information one can gather from the fact that an organization is hierarchical—maybe all hierarchical organizations share certain qualities. We know, however, that there are some qualities they do not all share.
D
Not all hierarchical organizations operate in the same way.
This must be true. We know the Public Works Department is hierarchical and it operates differently from other hierarchical organizations. Therefore, (D) must be true.
E
Whether or not an organization is bureaucratically controlled has nothing to do with how that organization operates.
This could be false. The stimulus does not suggest a company’s operations are unaffected by whether it is bureaucratically controlled or not. The stimulus only says that a company being hierarchical doesn’t tell us everything there is to know about its operations.
Summary
Telecom manufacturers in R argue that their products should be exempted from a ban on exports to S (which is meant to push S to become less repressive). In support, the manufacturers claim that when telecom equipment is widely available to a country’s population, that country cannot remain repressive.
Notable Assumptions
The manufacturers’ argument that exporting their equipment to S will help to make S less repressive requires the assumption that telecom equipment exported to S will be widely available to S’s population. Without this assumption, there would be no link between the manufacturers’ premise and their conclusion.
A
The government of S has recently increased the amount of telecommunication equipment it allows to be imported into the country.
It’s not necessary to the argument that anything has recently changed about S’s import conditions. For example, if S had always allowed lots of telecom imports, that wouldn’t undermine the argument.
B
The telecommunication equipment that would be imported into S if the exemption were to be granted would not be available solely to top government officials in S.
This avoids one scenario where telecom equipment would not be available to the population of S. In other words, this is part of the broader assumption that S’s population will actually receive the exported equipment—which is necessary to the argument.
C
A majority of the members of R’s legislature do not favor exempting telecommunication equipment from the ban on exports to Country S.
Whatever the members of R’s legislature think about this plan is totally independent of the manufacturers’ argument. In other words, this is irrelevant.
D
Of all exports that could be sent to Country S, telecommunication equipment would be the most effective in helping citizens of S oppose that country’s repressive government.
The manufacturers’ point is simply that exporting telecom equipment would help make S less repressive. It’s not necessary that it would be the most effective way to do so.
E
Without pressure from Country R, the government of S would be able to continue repressing its citizens indefinitely.
The manufacturers never claim that their plan (or any other pressure from R) is necessary to make S less repressive, only that it would be helpful. So, this isn’t necessary.
Summary
Over the next few years, pollutant leaching in Country X will probably cause fewer problems. Why? Because pollutant leaching causes the most problems for countries in the same GDP range as Country X. This is because poorer, less-developed countries generate fewer pollutants, while richer, more-developed countries are more able to prevent pollution problems.
Notable Assumptions
For Country X’s pollutant problems to decrease, based on the premises it would have to change its level of development. There’s no indication that countries even can decrease their level of development so much that they stop producing pollutants, so the argument must assume that Country X will increase its development level within the next few years.
A
Within the next few years, Country X will impose a system of fines for illegal waste disposal by its industrial companies.
The argument never mentions fines, and definitely doesn’t depend on them. There’s also no reason for us to think that this is the only possible way for Country X to reduce its level of pollution problems.
B
Countries surrounding Country X will reduce the amount of pollution that their factories release into the air and water.
This is irrelevant. The argument isn’t concerned with countries surrounding Country X, and in fact specifically talks about pollutants leaching from dumps and landfills, rather than air and water pollution generally.
C
Industrial development in Country X will increase in the next few years.
In other words, Country X will move out of the “danger zone” of development where it’s producing pollutants but can’t yet deal with them. If we were to negate this, and assume instead that Country X wouldn’t increase development, the argument would fall apart.
D
Country X will begin the process of industrialization in the next few years.
First, the argument strongly implies that Country X has already begun the process of industrial development. Second, we know that starting industrialization increases pollution problems. So this just contradicts the argument.
E
No other country with a similar amount of industrial development has pollution problems that are as severe as those in Country X.
The argument is just saying that Country X will reduce its level of pollution problems. How the severity of those problems compares to other countries is irrelevant.
"Surprising" Phenomenon
How is the survival of Country A’s most widely read magazines in doubt when readership numbers and the number of financially successful magazines are greater than ever?
Objective
The right answer will be a hypothesis that explains a key difference between the struggling, widely read magazines and the financially successful ones. This difference will explain how it is possible for some magazines to financially struggle while others succeed in the same economic environment.
A
Most magazines reduce the amount they charge for advertisements during a recession.
(A) provides support for the fact that most magazines have experienced decreases in advertising revenue, but it does not offer insight into how, despite this, the number of financially successful magazines is higher than ever.
B
The audience for a successful television show far exceeds the readership of even the most widely read magazine.
The stimulus is solely focused on magazines. The audience size of a successful television show is not relevant to the stimulus.
C
Advertising is the main source of revenue only for the most widely read magazines; other magazines rely on circulation for their revenue.
The difference in the magazines’ revenue models explains the discrepancy. While the most widely read magazines depend on advertising revenue (which has dried up due to the recession), other magazines are able to profit from the country’s unprecedentedly high readership numbers.
D
Because of the recession, people in Country A have cut back on magazine subscriptions and are reading borrowed magazines.
People cutting back on magazine subscriptions would likely affect all magazines the same. (D) does not explain why some magazines are succeeding while others are failing.
E
More of the new general interest magazines that were launched this year in Country A have survived than survived in previous years.
(E) deepens the discrepancy; it does not help to resolve it. It highlights how one type of magazine is successful while failing to offer insight into why some magazines are succeeding as the most widely read ones fail.
Summary
In a month-long study of blackbirds, the percentage of smaller birds that survived until the end of the study was larger than the percentage of larger birds that survived until the end.
But the author believes that size is not a determinant of a blackbird’s chances of survival. This conclusion is based on the fact that smaller blackbirds tend to be younger than larger ones.
But the author believes that size is not a determinant of a blackbird’s chances of survival. This conclusion is based on the fact that smaller blackbirds tend to be younger than larger ones.
Very Strongly Supported Conclusions
The smaller birds were more likely to survive. You’d think this suggests the smaller size of the bird might help the bird survive. But apparently this is not correct, because the smaller birds in the study were younger than the larger birds. The author’s suggesting that the smaller birds ended up more likely to survive simply because they were younger and thus could be expected to survive longer than older birds due to age.
A
Among the blackbirds that survived the month-long study, there was no relation between size and age.
This is anti-supported. We know the smaller blackbirds were generally younger than the larger ones, and the smaller blackbirds were more likely to survive. That suggests that there is a relationship between size and age among the surviving birds. The smaller ones tend to be younger.
B
Larger blackbirds of a given age are actually more likely to survive over a one-month period than are smaller blackbirds of the same age.
The author does not suggest that larger blackbirds of the same age as smaller ones are more likely to survive. Only that the smaller ones are not more likely to survive. But the chances of survival among larger and smaller birds of the same age could be equal.
C
Among blackbirds of the same size, a difference in age probably does not indicate a difference in chances of survival over a one-month period.
The author suggests that among blackbirds of the SAME AGE, size wouldn’t indicate a difference in survival. But this does not imply that among blackbirds of the SAME SIZE, age doesn’t indicate a survival difference. In fact, the author suggests younger birds are more likely to survive than older ones.
D
Among blackbirds of the same age, a difference in size may not indicate a difference in chances of survival over a month-long period.
This is strongly supported, because the author says size is not a determinant of a blackbird’s chances of survival over a month-long period. In other words, you can’t assume that a smaller bird automatically has a lower chance of survival than a larger bird simply due to its size.
E
With a larger sample of blackbirds, the percentage of smaller birds that survive a one-month period would be the same as the percentage of larger birds that survive.
The stimulus doesn’t suggest what would happen with a larger sample of blackbirds. If we know that a larger sample of blackbirds would involve smaller birds that are more similar in age to larger birds, then something like (E) would be supported. But we don’t know that a larger sample of birds would make the ages more similar between smaller and larger birds.