Forum Home > GMAT > Quantitative > Problem Solving (PS)
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.
Dec 1310:00 AM EST
-12:00 PM EST
Have you ever wondered how to score a PERFECT 805 on the GMAT? Meet Julia, a banking professional who used the Target Test Prep course to achieve this incredible feat. Julia's story is nothing short of an inspiration.
Dec 1405:30 AM PST
-07:30 AM PST
Did you know that around 66% of CR questions fall under a certain Framework? Learn how to Pre-think assumptions within 90 seconds using Guided Framework driven Pre- thinking in Causality, Plan-Goal, Comparison and more!
Dec 1410:00 AM EST
-12:00 PM EST
Think a 100% GMAT Verbal score is out of your reach? Target Test Prep will make you think again! Our course uses techniques such as topical study and spaced repetition to maximize knowledge retention and make studying simple and fun.
Dec 1411:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Attend this session to learn how to Deconstruct arguments, Pre-Think Author’s Assumptions, and apply Negation Test.- Dec 15
11:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Attend this free GMAT Algebra Webinar and learn how to master the most challenging Inequalities and Absolute Value problems with ease. 
Dec 1511:30 AM EST
-12:30 PM EST
Struggling to find the right strategies to score a 99 %ile on GMAT Focus? Riya (GMAT 715) boosted her score by 100-points in just 15 days! Discover how the right mentorship, tailored strategies, and an unwavering mindset can transform your GMAT prep.
Dec 1608:00 AM PST
-11:59 PM PST
GMAT Club 12 Days of Christmas is a 4th Annual GMAT Club Winter Competition based on solving questions. This is the Winter GMAT competition on GMAT Club with an amazing opportunity to win over $40,000 worth of prizes!- Dec 17
09:00 AM PST
-10:00 AM PST
Join Manhattan Prep instructor Whitney Garner for a fun—and thorough—review of logic-based (non-math) problems, with a particular emphasis on Data Sufficiency and Two-Parts. - Dec 18
10:00 AM PST
-11:00 AM PST
Here is the essential guide to securing scholarships as an MBA student! In this video, we explore the various types of scholarships available, including need-based and merit-based options.
30 Nov 2003, 14:56
Kudos
Bookmarks
B
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
65%
(hard)
Question Stats:
64% (02:20) correct
36%
(02:30)
wrong
based on 6112
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
The recycling of municipal solid waste is widely seen as an environmentally preferable alternative to the prevailing practices of incineration and of dumping in landfills. Recycling is profitable, as the recycling programs already in operation demonstrate. A state legislator proposes that communities should therefore be required to adopt recycling and to reach the target of recycling 50 percent of all solid waste within 5 years.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the advisability of implementing the proposal?
(A) Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30 percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.
(B) Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
(C) Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their materials usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and transportation.
(D) Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated, produce the least pollution.
(E) Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.
CR29111.01
Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the advisability of implementing the proposal?
(A) Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30 percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.
(B) Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
(C) Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their materials usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and transportation.
(D) Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated, produce the least pollution.
(E) Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.
CR29111.01
12 Dec 2018, 04:39
Kudos
Bookmarks
dj
The recycling of municipal solid waste is widely seen as an environmentally preferable alternative to the prevailing practices of incineration and of dumping in landfills. Recycling is profitable, as the recycling programs already in operation demonstrate. A state legislator proposes that communities should therefore be required to adopt recycling and to reach the target of recycling 50 percent of all solid waste within 5 years.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the advisability of implementing the proposal?
(A) Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30 percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.
(B) Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
(C) Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their materials usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and transportation.
(D) Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated, produce the least pollution.
(E) Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the advisability of implementing the proposal?
(A) Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30 percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.
(B) Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
(C) Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their materials usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and transportation.
(D) Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated, produce the least pollution.
(E) Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.
Recycling is preferable to incineration and dumping in landfills.
Recycling is profitable too.
Proposal: Legislator proposes that communities should be required to adopt recycling and to reach the target of recycling 50 percent of all solid waste within 5 years.
We need to question the proposal i.e. what would question the advisability of implementing the proposal? The thing that comes to my mind is that a 50% limit has been set. What if 50% things are not recyclable?
(A) Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30 percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.
Just because existing programs are voluntary, it does not mean that all communities should not be required to adopt now. If the proposal has enough merits, perhaps making it compulsory may be a good idea.
(B) Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
This is as per our pre-thinking. Existing programs have been restricted to 20% since only 20% can match processed raw materials in quality and price. So achieving 50% may not be possible.
(C) Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their materials usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and transportation.
Right now, the quantities are too small to work out. If recycling becomes mandatory, it is possible that the current difficulty of finding purchasers will be sorted since the quantities are bound to increase. Hence, this is no reason to not establish the program. The program may actually resolve this difficulty.
(D) Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated, produce the least pollution.
It doesn't matter that these materials produce least pollution. If they are recycled, they produce no pollution.
(E) Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.
What happens to materials that cannot be recycled is irrelevant.
Answer (B)
18 Jul 2020, 22:50
Kudos
Bookmarks
The Story
The recycling of municipal solid waste is widely seen as an environmentally preferable alternative to the prevailing practices of incineration and of dumping in landfills. - The statement is talking about a widely held current notion in solid waste management. Recycling is considered environmentally better than incineration and dumping. (“is widely seen as” – such wording hints that the author might not agree with this view.)Recycling is profitable, as the recycling programs already in operation demonstrate. - Recycling is profitable. (The author, so far, seems to be making a case for recycling. He doesn’t compare the profitability of the two alternatives. Our speculation above that the author might go on to disagree with the widely held view turned out to not hold in this case.)
A state legislator proposes that communities should therefore be required to adopt recycling and to reach the target of recycling 50 percent of all solid waste within 5 years. - A legislator proposes that communities should adopt recycling, and within 5 years, recycle 50% of their solid waste.
Gist:A legislator proposes that recycling should be made more prevalent for solid waste management. Communities should be required to recycle 50% of all solid waste within 5 years.
Why?
1. Recycling is widely seen as environmentally preferable to its alternatives
2. Recycling is profitable
The Gap
The legislator proposes the plan to manage solid waste in a more environment-friendly way. She assumes that there are no factors that might make recycling a worse alternative. What if there is some negative impact on the environment that makes recycling less favorable?E.g., What if some environment-unfriendly toxins are present in certain solid wastes that can only be eliminated through incineration and not through recycling?
The Goal
What might lead us to believe that implementing the proposal is not advisable? We considered one notion above. There could be other factors too that might make us doubt implementing the proposal. Right now we could think of one.The Evaluation
A. Existing recycling programs have been voluntary, with citizen participation ranging from 30 percent in some communities to 80 percent in others.Incorrect. The fact that existing programs are voluntary does not put a question on making recycling mandatory in all communities. In case recycling has merits, extending it to all communities should benefit the state.
Within the volunteering communities, the ones that currently recycle less than 50%, the proposal will require them to recycle more – a good thing. In the ones that currently recycle more than 50%, there is no reason to believe that the voluntary programs will reduce recycling simply because a new requirement sets a low bar.
B. Existing recycling programs have been restricted to that 20 percent of solid waste that, when reprocessed, can match processed raw materials in quality and price.
Correct. Let’s understand this option carefully. Existing programs have an upper limit. They have been restricted to 20% of solid waste. 20% of solid waste is what, after recycling, can match raw materials in quality and price. I.e., reprocessing additional solid waste would lead to a decline in quality, an increase in price, or both. Thus, if the communities are required to recycle more than 20% of solid waste, the additional reprocessed materials can have a negative impact on profitability. The profitability of recycling is one piece of evidence the legislator uses to support his proposal. If profitability is called into question, the advisability of implementing the proposal itself is called into question.
C. Existing recycling programs have had recurrent difficulties finding purchasers for their materials usually because of quantities too small to permit cost-effective pickup and transportation.
Incorrect. If the proposal is implemented, if anything, these difficulties will be alleviated since quantities will probably increase. So, if this answer choice were true, it would make even more sense to implement the proposal. This answer choice is in the opposite direction.
D. Some of the materials that can be recycled are the very materials that, when incinerated, produce the least pollution.
Incorrect. Recycling even these materials would likely still produce even lesser pollution. No reason not to recycle these materials.
E. Many of the materials that cannot be recycled are also difficult to incinerate.
Incorrect. Such materials perhaps go to landfills then. The option does not imply that a significant proportion of materials cannot be recycled, just that of the materials that cannot be recycled, many are difficult to incinerate. No clue how big a chunk such materials make. The proposal to recycle 50% in 5 years still holds as is.
Additional Notes
SC Notes:
- 1. Do not get confused by the two uses of ‘that’ close to each other in option B. The usage is correct.
2. The third line in the passage uses “should be required” following the verb “propose”, which would be expected to be followed by a subjunctive verb.
3. Note how “with” prepositional phrase has been used at the end of a clause to present more information about the clause.
4. Option B and option D use “when” followed by an adjective. Such usage is explained in this article: https://gmatwithcj.com/articles/the-alth ... onception/
5. Option C uses “have had”, which is the present perfect form of the verb “have”.
If you have any doubts regarding any part of this solution, please feel free to ask.
