winterschool
Q1. In the past two years, the effects of the worldwide economic downturn have been felt in all corners of the economy. For example, data from the Crescent City furniture industry show that sales have decreased 12% compared to two years ago. Yet the banks who provide working capital to the furniture retailers report that, in the first year of the downturn, the proportion of credit they provided to the retailers that was repaid on time dropped sharply, while in the second year it returned to normal levels. Question Which one of the following, if true, most helps to explain the change in credit repayment reported? A)The total dollar amount of the loans decreased slightly between the first year and the second. B)New restrictions on the banking industry instituted since the economic downturn began have limited the number of loans banks can make to troubled borrowers. C)The largest furniture chain in Crescent City slashed prices in the second year in order to stimulate sales. D)Almost all of the most financially troubled furniture retailers went out of business at the end of the first year of the economic downturn. E)Between the first and second years of the recession, wholesalers were forced to significantly raise the prices they charged to retailers. Difficulty - Hard
winterschool
Q2. Prolonged exposure to exceptionally violent or chaotic circumstances can cause Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in some individuals. Psychiatrists in Virginia indicate that the proportion of patients coming to them for treatment of symptoms related to PTSD has increased enormously over the previous five years. Thus, either Virginia has become a much more violent and chaotic place over the last fiver years or individuals are more sensitive to violence and chaos than they were five years ago. Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends? A. The number of psychiatric practices in Virginia has not increased over the previous five years. B. Individuals with PTSD are no more likely than other individuals to have other psychiatric disorders. C. Individuals with PTSD are no more likely to seek diagnosis than they were five years ago. D. Virginia is an exceptionally nonviolent and organised environment. E. Individuals in Virginia do not live in violent and chaotic circumstances any more often now than they did five years ago.
CR Questions April- 3 :Q1. Last month, a group of salespeople from a software firm attended a seminar on persuasive speaking. In the weeks following the seminar, the salespeople who attended the seminar have made more sales, on average, than those who did not attend the seminar. To increase sales, the sales manager plans to send the remaining salespeople to the same seminar next month.
Which of the following, if true, would most support the prediction that the sales manager’s plan will achieve its goal?
(A) Last month’s seminar focused solely on tactics relevant to the work at the particular company.
(B) Total company sales last month were higher than sales from the month prior to the seminar.
(C) To prepare for the seminar, the attending salespeople read a book on improving communication skills.
(D) Over the last month, the company’s sales were greater than the sales of its largest competitor.
(E) Invitations to last month’s seminar were not accepted solely by salespeople with above-average sales.
Q2. The Southfork Steel Company is in trouble. Since 1960 it has made guaranteed payments to retirees out of a pension fund paid into by current employees as a percentage of their salaries. The restructuring of the Southfork workforce, however, has meant that fewer employees are now needed to produce the same amount of work as in the days of the retired employees. Since current employees are unwilling to pay a larger percentage of their salaries into the pension system than their predecessors did, the pension fund will inevitably go bankrupt.
Which of the following, if true, casts the most doubt on the conclusion in the passage that the pension fund will inevitably go bankrupt?
A. The pension fund is invested in a conservative portfolio of bonds and money market funds that perform, on average, slightly better than inflation.
B. Financial analysts have determined that, with current levels of payments into and out of the plan, the pension fund will remain solvent for at least another seven years.
C. If the company is bought or goes out of business, the payments to retirees from the pension funds are likely to become subject to arbitration by either the new owners or the bankruptcy trustees, in which case the “guaranteed” payments could be readjusted to lower levels, or possibly terminated.
D. The restructuring of the workforce has dramatically increased the efficiency of steel production at Southfork, resulting in substantially higher revenues per employee than in the past, and consequently much higher salaries.
E. Although the modern era is referred to as a “postindustrial” age, the worldwide demand for steel has never been higher.