CAT Test 1 Question 11 to 20

DIRECTIONS for Questions 11 to 15: Use the information given in the passage below.

A joint project by the State and Central government is being undertaken in the state of TamilNadu. It is agreed that the representatives work in small committees of three, with two representatives of the Central government. It was also agreed that no committee be represented by members from the same department. The central government was represented by the following civil servants: J, who is Joint Secretary of Finance, K, who is the chairman of the Planning Commission, and L, who is Principal Secretary, Ministry of Education. The State appointed the following: M, who heads the State Planning Commission, N, who is the Accountant General, O and P who are under secretaries in the Department of Finance.

Q. 11. Which of the following represents a properly composed committee?

(1) K, L, N (2) J, K, L (3) J, K, M (4) O, M, K

Q.12. Which of the following may serve with P?

(1) K and M (2) M and L (3) K and L (4) J and K

Q.13. Which of the following must be true?

I. If J cannot serve on a committee, then M cannot be assigned to that committee.

II. If O does not serve on a committee, then J will be serving on that committee.

(1)   I only (2) II only (3) I and II (4) Neither I nor II

Q.14. If L is not available for service, which of the following must be on the committee?

(1) M and J (2) N and J (3) O and K (4) None of these

Q.15. Which of the following must be true?

I. N and O never serve on the same committee.

II. When N serves in a committee, J will serve on the same committee.

(1) I only (2) II only (3) I and II (4) Neither I nor II

Directions for Questions 16 to 20: Read each of the short passages given below and answer the question that follows it.

Q.16.

Szymanski suggests that the problem of racism in football may be present even today. He begins by verifying an earlier hypothesis that clubs’ wage bills explain 90% of their performance. Thus, if players’ salaries were to be only based on their abilities, clubs that spend more should finish higher. If there is pay discrimination against some group of players -- fewer teams bidding for black players thus lowering the salaries for blacks with the same ability as whites -- that neat relation may no longer hold. He concludes that certain clubs seem to have achieved much less than what they could have, by not recruiting black players.

Which of the following findings would best support Szymanski’s conclusions?

1. Certain clubs took advantage of the situation by hiring above-average shares of black players.

2. Clubs hired white players at relatively high wages and did not show proportionately good performance.

3. During the study period, clubs in towns with a history of discrimination against blacks, under-performed relative to their wage bills.

4. Clubs in one region, which had higher proportions of black players, had significantly lower wage bills than their counterparts in another region which had predominantly white players.

Q.17.

According to McNeill, a Brahmin priest was expected to be able to recite at least one of the Vedas. The practice was essential for several centuries when the Vedas had not yet been written down. It must have had a selective effect, since priests would have been recruited from those able or willing to memorise long passages. It must have helped in the dissemination of the work, since a memorised passage can be duplicated many times.

Which one of the following can be inferred from the above passage?

1. Reciting the Vedas was a Brahmin’s obligation

2. The Vedic priest was like a recorded audio cassette

3. McNeill studied the behaviour of Brahmin priests

4. Vedic hymns had not been scripted

Q.18.

Various studies have shown that our forested and hilly regions, and, in general, areas where biodiversity - as reflected in the variety of flora -- is high, are the places where poverty appears to be high. And these same areas are also the ones where educational performance seems to be poor. Therefore, it may be surmised that, even disregarding poverty status, richness in biodiversity goes hand in hand with educational backwardness.

Which one of the following statements, if true, can be said to best provide supporting evidence for the surmise mentioned in the passage?

1. In regions where there is little variety in flora, educational performance is seen to be as good as in  regions with high variety in flora, when poverty levels are high.

2. Regions which show high biodiversity also exhibit poor educational performance, at low levels of poverty.

3. Regions which show high biodiversity reveal high levels of poverty and poor educational performance.

4. In regions where there is low biodiversity, at all levels of poverty, educational performance is seen to be good.

Q. 19.

Cigarettes constitute a mere 20% of tobacco consumption in India, and fewer than 15% of the 200

million tobacco users consume cigarettes . Yet these 15% contribute nearly 90% of the tax revenues to

the Exchequer from the tobacco sector. The punitive cigarette taxation regime has kept the tax base

narrow, and reducing taxes will expand this base.

Which one of the following best bolsters the conclusion that reducing duties will expand the tax base?

1. The cigarette manufacturers’ association has decided to indulge in aggressive promotion.

2. There is a likelihood that tobacco consumers will shift to cigarette smoking if cigarette prices were to reduce.

3. The cigarette manufacturers are lobbying for a reduction on duties.

4. An increase in duties on non-cigarette tobacco may lead to a shift in favor of cigarette smoking.

Q.20.

The company’s coffee crop for 1998-99 totalled 8079 tonnes, an all time record. The increase over the previous year’s production of 5830 tonnes was 38.58%. The previous highest crop was 6089 tonnes in 1970-71. The company had fixed a target of 8000 tonnes to be realised by the year 2000-01, and this has been achieved two years earlier, thanks to the emphasis laid on the key areas of irrigation, replacement of unproductive coffee bushes, intensive refilling and improved agricultural practices. It is now our endeavour to reach the target of 10000 tonnes in the year 2001-02.

Which one of the following would contribute most to making the target of 10000 tonnes in 2001-02 unrealistic?

1. The potential of the productivity enhancing measures implemented up to now has been exhausted.

2. The total company land under coffee has remained constant since 1969 when an estate in the Nilgiri Hills was acquired.

3. The sensitivity of the crop to climatic factors makes predictions about production uncertain.

4. The target-setting procedures in the company have been proved to the sound by the achievement of the 8000 tonne target.

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