GRE: DEMO SESSION HANDOUT

Text Completion

For questions 1-6, select one entry for each Q4. Historically, arguments against women’s
blank from the corresponding column of suffrage (i)______ from the claim that women
choices. Fill all blanks in the way that best would cancel out their husbands’ votes to the
completes the text. charge that women would merely (ii)_______
their husbands’ preferences, thus making their
Q1. If animal parents were judged by human votes redundant. Such arguments, while once
standards, the cuckoo would be one of nature’s convincing, today seem (iii) _______ indeed.
more _______ creatures, blithely laying its eggs
in the nest of other birds, leaving the incubating
and nurturing to them. D .
A. Ran the gauntlet G.Ponderous
Override
A. Mettlesome
B. Ran the gamut E. Ape H. Shabby
B. Industrious
C. Held the line F. Disclaim I. Cogent
C. Domestic

D. Lacklustre

E. Feckless Q5. The successful tech company faces an iron-

Q2. In interviews, despots are often surprisingly
_____; this helps to explain how seemingly aw-
ful people are able to command so many fol-
lowers.
ic problem in the fall quarter; people are so ex-
cited about the next (i) _______ of its product,
which will be released over the holidays, that
they refuse to purchase the (ii) ______ version.
A. Ingenuity D. Obsolete

A. Malign B. Implication E. Current

B. Indignant C. Iteration F. Practical

C. Forgiving

D. Personable
Q6. The American system of government is
E. Munificent wonderfully responsive to crisis, but seemingly
(i)______ to perennial problems, limping along
with (ii)_______ solutions to (iii)________
problems.
Q3. There are number of theories to explain
these events and, since even the experts dis- A. Empathetic D. Faddish G. Coarse
agree, it is (i)_______ the rest of us in our role
as responsible scholars to (ii) ______ dogmatic B. Obliging E. Tendentious H. Chronic
statements.
C. Indifferent F. Makeshift I. Acute
A. Paradoxical for D. Quarrel over

B. Incumbent on E. Issue forth

C. Opportune for F. Refrain from

Critical Reasoning
Columnist: George Orwell‟s book 1984 seems
to have exercised a lot of influence on many
intellectuals. One thousand readers of the most
intellectually stimulating national daily were sur-
veyed and asked to name the one book that had
the most influence on their lives. The book cho-
sen most often was the Bible; 1984 was second.
The answer to which one of the following
questions would most help in evaluating the
columnist’s argument?
A. How many of those surveyed had actually
read the books they chose?
B. How many books had each person surveyed
read?
C. Did people speak the truth while answering
the survey question?
D. Overall how many book titles were nominat-
ed by these 1000 people?
E. How many people chose 1984?
The recent decline in the employment rate was
spurred by predictions of slow economic growth
in the coming year. However, those predictions
would not have affected the employment rate if
it had not been for the lack of capital reserves of
major industries. So if major industries increase
their capital reserves, the employment rate will
not decline in the future.
Q2. Which of the following, if true, casts the
most doubt on the validity of the argument
above?
A. Major industry foresaw the drop in employ-
ment.
B. Some major industries had appreciable capi-
tal reserves.
C. An increase in labour costs could adversely
affect the employment rate.
D. The government could pass legislation man-
dating that major industries set aside a fixed
amount as capital reserves every year.
E. The drop in the employment rate was more
severe this year than last.
Reading Comprehension -1
Questions 1 and 2 are based on the following
reading passage.
In keeping with the notable incorporation of
operatic elements into the rock music lexicon,
the genre in the 1970’s experienced a significant
shift in emphasis away from recording and to-
ward music performance itself. Several factors
effected this change. First, the extended length
and the moralising subject matter of songs of
the era rendered them less appropriate for radio
play and more suitable for public presentation.
Additionally, the advent of the concept album,
in which multiple tracks revolved around a sin-
gle unifying narrative or theme, furnished a ba-
sis upon which similarly calibrated perfor-
mances could be enacted. Finally, as PA system
technology improved, it became possible to hold
concerts with 100,000 people or more, which
encouraged artists to craft concerts that diverged
from the merely musical toward the experien-
tial. Bands began conceiving of their perfor-
mances as shows, more akin to musical theatre
guided by plot and setting than to the traditional
concert guided by the omnipresent set-list. In-
stead of simply playing one song after another,
therefore, bands developed full performance
medleys revolving around specific motifs, and
punctuated by bombastic light shows, costume
changes, and other massive stunts. For example,
the popular British band Pink Floyd famously
built a barrier in the middle of stage during one
performance then had it dramatically knocked
down mid-show as a promotion for their new
album The Wall.
Q1. The passage cites all of the following as
reasons for the inclusion of operatic elements
into the rock music genre in the 1970’s EX-
CEPT:
A. changes in concert equipment changed the
way shows could be delivered.
B. Pink Floyd’s dramatic staging served to
promote an influential album.
C. shifts in the content of the music contributed
to the songs having a more “story-telling”
quality.
D. one medium through which rock songs had
typically been delivered to the public be-
came less conducive to the genre.
E. artists altered their performances to reflect
changes in the modern concert ambiance.
Q2. In the context of the passage, the word
effected (line 3) most nearly means
A. influenced
B. moved forward
C. transformed
D. determined
E. brought about
Reading Comprehension -2
Measuring more than five feet tall and ten feet
long, the Javan rhinoceros is often called the
rarest large mammal on earth. None exist in
zoos. Like the Indian rhino, the Javan has only
one horn; African and Sumatran rhinos have
two. While the Javan rhino habitat once extend-
ed across southern Asia, now there are fewer
than one hundred of the animals in Indonesia
and under a dozen in Vietnam. Very little is
known about Javan rhinos because they lead
secretive and solitary lives in remote jungles.
Till today, scientists debate whether females
even have horns, and most scientific work has
had to rely on DNA garnered from dung.
The near extinction of the Javan rhino is the
direct result of human actions. For centuries,
farmers, who favoured the same habitat, viewed
them as crop eating pests and shot them on
sight. During the colonial period, hunters
slaughtered thousands. Now, human efforts to
save them may well prove futile. The Viet-
namese herd is probably doomed, as too few
remain to maintain the necessary genetic varia-
tion. Rhinos from Java cannot supplement the
Vietnamese numbers because in the millions of
years since Indonesia separated from the main-
land, the two groups have evolved into separate
sub-species. In Indonesia, the rhinos are pro-
tected on the Ujung Kulon peninsula, which is
unsettled by humans, and still have sufficient
genetic diversity to have a chance at survival.
Ironically, however, the lack of human distur-
bance allows mature forests to replace the
shrubby vegetation the animals prefer. Thus,
human benevolence may prove little better for
these rhinos than past human maltreatment.
Q1. For what purpose does the author in-
clude the last sentence of the passage? A. To
demonstrate that the Vietnamese herd has better
odds of surviving than the Indonesian herd.
B. To illustrate that human benevolence can be
just as detrimental to the survival of a species as
can human maltreatment.
C. To reinforce the idea that the Indonesian herd
of the Javan rhino species will not survive.
D. To support the fact that good actions on part
of humans can increase the chances of survival
of the Javan rhinoceros species
E. To support the contention that the Javan rhino
species may not be able to recover from its cur-
rent state
Q2. Which of the following best expresses the
author’s attitude toward the likely fate of the
Javan Rhino?
A. slightly optimistic about the species’ long-
term survival
B. resigned to the extinction of the species
C. ambivalent about the long-term outcome for
the species
D. pessimistic about the species’ chance for sur-
vival
E. uncertain about the ongoing impact of farm-
ers and hunters
Q3. Which of the following can be inferred
from the passage?
A. More is known about the genetics of the Ja-
van rhino than is known about its mating pat-
terns
B. Javan rhinos are one of the most endangered
animal species on the planet.
C. Hunters killed more Javan rhinos in Indone-
sia than in Vietnam.
D. Most animal extinctions are the result of hu-
man actions.
E. Genetic diversity is the most important factor
for the survival of a species.
Sentence Equivalence

For questions 1-5, select the two answer Q3. Lady Astor once commented to Winston
choices that, when used to complete the sen- Churchill, “If I were married to you, I’d put poi-
tence, fit the meaning of the sentence as a son in your coffee.”
whole and produce completed sentences that Churchill’s famous ______: “Nancy, if you were
are alike in my wife, I’d drink it.”
meaning.
A. anecdote
Q1. In previous decades, it was simply assumed B. aphorism
that fathers of young children would work full-
time and at the same intensity as they did before C. retort
becoming parents, but today, increasing num-
bers of men — wanting to further their careers D. recrimination
but also wanting to spend time with their chil-
dren — are more _________ about this E. rejoinder
arrangement.
F. maxim
A. stolid

B. ambiguous Q4. Most Physics books are dense and abstruse,

whereas Richard Feynman can describe the
C. whimsical most recondite mysteries with impressive
_______ .
D. ambivalent
A. luridness
E. equivocal
B. sagacity
F. officious
C. prowess
Q2. Many young employees actively seek out
mentors, but when managers attempt to mentor D. panache
young employees who have not sought out men-
toring, the help often comes across as presump- E. limpidity
tuous and _______.
F. lucidity
A. baneful

B. noxious

C. patronising

D. amenable

E. pragmatic

F. condescending