Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Sep 2807:00 PM EDT
-10:00 PM EDT
Boost your GMAT score in less than one month in a live online class + 6 months access to TTP OnDemand video courses included! Class starts Mon, Tues, Wed, Thur, Fri Sept. 28, 2026 - Oct. 16, 2027, 7:00pm-10:00pm EST
Sep 2911:00 AM EDT
-01:00 PM EDT
" Description: Top scores are possible when you enroll in a powerful GMAT course, taught live online + 6 months access to TTP OnDemand video courses included! Class starts Tues/Thur Sept. 29, 2026 - Dec. 3, 2026, 11:00am-1:00pm EST
Oct 0107:00 AM BST
-08:00 AM GMT
Welcome to the GMAT Club's Free Interview Prep Event for Top MBA Programs! Buy tickets - Virtual series that’s all set to equip you to -excel in your MBA interviews.
Oct 0301:00 PM EDT
-04:00 PM EDT
Top scores are possible when you enroll in a powerful GMAT course, taught live online + 6 months access to TTP OnDemand video courses included! Class starts Saturdays Oct. 3, 2026 - Dec. 26, 2026, 1:00pm-4:00pm EST
01 Jun 2026, 11:45
Kudos
Bookmarks
Mavis: The US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn.
Alfredo: The industrial process used to make ethanol from corn will yield greater energy outputs to inputs if done on a larger scale.
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
95%
(hard)
Question Stats:
42% (02:49) correct
58%
(02:46)
wrong
based on 441
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Alfredo: The United States could make significant progress toward becoming independent of petroleum-derived gasoline as a source of energy by diverting a large proportion of corn grown in the US to the production of ethanol for fuel. Brazil is virtually independent of petroleum as a source of fuel because that country has been very successful in ethanol production.
Mavis: Ethanol derived from corn will never be a viable substitute for petroleum-derived gasoline in the US. While it is true that Brazil has been very successful in replacing gasoline with ethanol, the US cannot expect the same degree of success with corn-derived ethanol. Brazil’s ethanol is derived from sugarcane, which is very easy to convert to ethanol and, in Brazil, very easy to cultivate. Corn, on the other hand, is difficult to grow, requiring intensive cultivation. Also, the amount of fuel energy that can be garnered from land is only 0.05 watts per square meter for corn ethanol.
Select Mavis for the statement that, if true, most supports Mavis’s reasoning, and select Alfredo for the statement that, if true, most supports Alfredo’s reasoning. Make only two selections, one in each column.
Mavis: Ethanol derived from corn will never be a viable substitute for petroleum-derived gasoline in the US. While it is true that Brazil has been very successful in replacing gasoline with ethanol, the US cannot expect the same degree of success with corn-derived ethanol. Brazil’s ethanol is derived from sugarcane, which is very easy to convert to ethanol and, in Brazil, very easy to cultivate. Corn, on the other hand, is difficult to grow, requiring intensive cultivation. Also, the amount of fuel energy that can be garnered from land is only 0.05 watts per square meter for corn ethanol.
Select Mavis for the statement that, if true, most supports Mavis’s reasoning, and select Alfredo for the statement that, if true, most supports Alfredo’s reasoning. Make only two selections, one in each column.
| Mavis | Alfredo | |
| Brazil has nearly reached its ethanol-producing capacity. | ||
| The US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn. | ||
| The price of petroleum-derived gasoline has risen steadily over the past eight years. | ||
| The industrial process used to make ethanol from corn will yield greater energy outputs to inputs if done on a larger scale. | ||
| Sugarcane cannot be grown in sufficient quantities in the US for sugar-derived ethanol to significantly diminish petroleum consumption in the US. |
ShowHide Answer
Official Answer
Mavis: The US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn.
Alfredo: The industrial process used to make ethanol from corn will yield greater energy outputs to inputs if done on a larger scale.
Solving this question helps.
Taking a timed set of similar questions in
GMAT Club Forum Quiz →
is even better.
01 Jun 2026, 11:46
Kudos
Bookmarks
Answer Explanation (Official):
Infer
Alfredo recommends diverting much of the corn grown in the US to produce ethanol for fuel, to make the US less dependent on petroleum-derived gasoline. To support this recommendation, he draws an analogy between the US and Brazil. He says that Brazil is already virtually independent of petroleum as a fuel source because it produces a lot of ethanol. He then implies that the US could follow Brazil’s lead with equal success.
Mavis critiques Alfredo’s reasoning by pointing out that Brazil’s ethanol is derived from sugarcane, which is easier to grow than the corn grown in the US, and corn yields little ethanol fuel energy relative to the amount of land needed.
Mavis could further support her argument by asserting that the US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn, because difficulty in increasing corn yields per acre would make it even harder to use ethanol derived from corn as a viable substitute for petroleum-derived gasoline in the US. If true, that would strengthen Mavis’s argument and weaken Alfredo’s.
Note that the claim that the US can’t grow enough sugarcane to significantly diminish petroleum consumption would not greatly strengthen Mavis’s counterargument against Alfredo. That’s because both Mavis’s and Alfredo’s arguments are specifically about how feasible it would be for the US to produce more ethanol from corn, not from sugarcane.
One way Alfredo could counter Mavis’s argument would be to claim that the process used to make ethanol from corn will yield more fuel energy relative to the amount of inputs if it is done on a larger scale. If true, that claim suggests that the US could more closely match Brazil’s efficiency in producing ethanol simply by producing much more ethanol, as Alfredo recommends. That would strengthen Alfredo’s argument and weaken Mavis’s.
First column:
The correct answer is The US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn.
Second column:
The correct answer is The industrial process used to make ethanol from corn will yield greater energy outputs if done on a larger scale.
Infer
Alfredo recommends diverting much of the corn grown in the US to produce ethanol for fuel, to make the US less dependent on petroleum-derived gasoline. To support this recommendation, he draws an analogy between the US and Brazil. He says that Brazil is already virtually independent of petroleum as a fuel source because it produces a lot of ethanol. He then implies that the US could follow Brazil’s lead with equal success.
Mavis critiques Alfredo’s reasoning by pointing out that Brazil’s ethanol is derived from sugarcane, which is easier to grow than the corn grown in the US, and corn yields little ethanol fuel energy relative to the amount of land needed.
Mavis could further support her argument by asserting that the US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn, because difficulty in increasing corn yields per acre would make it even harder to use ethanol derived from corn as a viable substitute for petroleum-derived gasoline in the US. If true, that would strengthen Mavis’s argument and weaken Alfredo’s.
Note that the claim that the US can’t grow enough sugarcane to significantly diminish petroleum consumption would not greatly strengthen Mavis’s counterargument against Alfredo. That’s because both Mavis’s and Alfredo’s arguments are specifically about how feasible it would be for the US to produce more ethanol from corn, not from sugarcane.
One way Alfredo could counter Mavis’s argument would be to claim that the process used to make ethanol from corn will yield more fuel energy relative to the amount of inputs if it is done on a larger scale. If true, that claim suggests that the US could more closely match Brazil’s efficiency in producing ethanol simply by producing much more ethanol, as Alfredo recommends. That would strengthen Alfredo’s argument and weaken Mavis’s.
First column:
The correct answer is The US has nearly reached its maximum yield per acre of corn.
Second column:
The correct answer is The industrial process used to make ethanol from corn will yield greater energy outputs if done on a larger scale.
02 Jun 2026, 02:46
Kudos
Bookmarks
Notice the mix-up trap.
In the prompt, Alfredo speaks first, while in the answer table, Mavis's column is first.
There are little pitfalls like that one all through the GMAT, designed to test our level of attention to detail.
In the prompt, Alfredo speaks first, while in the answer table, Mavis's column is first.
There are little pitfalls like that one all through the GMAT, designed to test our level of attention to detail.
