Events & Promotions
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Question 1
B
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
75%
(hard)
Question Stats:
51% (02:59) correct
49%
(03:04) wrong
based on 334
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Question 2
A
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
45%
(medium)
Question Stats:
56% (01:01) correct 44%
(00:52) wrong
based on 416
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Question 3
B
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
25%
(medium)
Question Stats:
71% (01:10) correct 30%
(01:22) wrong
based on 400
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Question 4
C
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:
21% (00:55) correct 79%
(00:55) wrong
based on 394
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Question 5
C
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:
26% (02:02) correct 74%
(01:42) wrong
based on 370
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Passage A
To a neuroscientist, you are your brain; nothing
causes your behavior other than the operations of your
brain. This viewpoint, together with recent findings in
neuroscience, radically changes the way we think
(5) about the law. The official line in the law is that all
that matters is whether you are rational, but you can
have someone who is totally rational even though their
strings are being pulled by something beyond their
control. Indeed, people who believe themselves to be
(10) making a free and rational moral choice may really be
deluding themselves—a brain scan might show that
such a choice correlates with activity in emotional
centers in the brain rather than in the region of the
brain associated with deliberative problem solving.
(15) This insight suggests that the criminal-justice system
should abandon the idea of retribution—the idea that
bad people should be punished because of their freely
chosen immoral acts—which is now dominant as a
justification of punishment. Instead, the law should
(20) focus on deterring future harms. In some cases, this
might mean lighter punishments. If it is really true that
we do not get any prevention bang from our
punishment buck when we punish some person, then it
is not worth punishing that person.
Passage B
(25) Neuroscience constantly produces new
mechanistic descriptions of how the physical brain
causes behavior, adding fuel to the deterministic view
that all human action is causally necessitated by events
that are independent of the will. It has long been
(30) argued, however, that the concept of free will can
coexist with determinism.
In 1954 English philosopher Alfred J. Ayer put
forth a theory of “soft determinism.” He argued, as the
philosopher David Hume had two centuries earlier,
(35) that even in a deterministic world, a person can still
act freely. Ayer distinguished between free actions and
constrained actions. Free actions are those that are
caused by internal sources, by one’s own will (unless
one is suffering from a disorder). Constrained actions
(40) are those that are caused by external sources, for
example, by someone or something forcing you
physically or mentally to perform an action, as in
hypnosis or in mental disorders such as kleptomania.
When someone performs a free action to do A, he or
(45) she could have done B instead, since no external
source precluded doing so. When someone performs a
constrained action to do A, he or she could have done
only A.
Ayer argued that actions are free as long as they
(50) are not constrained. It is not the existence of a cause
but the source of the cause that determines whether an
action is free. Although Ayer did not explicitly discuss
the brain’s role, one could make the analogy that those
actions—and indeed those wills—that originate from
(55) a disease-free brain are not constrained, and are
therefore free, even though they may be determined.
To a neuroscientist, you are your brain; nothing
causes your behavior other than the operations of your
brain. This viewpoint, together with recent findings in
neuroscience, radically changes the way we think
(5) about the law. The official line in the law is that all
that matters is whether you are rational, but you can
have someone who is totally rational even though their
strings are being pulled by something beyond their
control. Indeed, people who believe themselves to be
(10) making a free and rational moral choice may really be
deluding themselves—a brain scan might show that
such a choice correlates with activity in emotional
centers in the brain rather than in the region of the
brain associated with deliberative problem solving.
(15) This insight suggests that the criminal-justice system
should abandon the idea of retribution—the idea that
bad people should be punished because of their freely
chosen immoral acts—which is now dominant as a
justification of punishment. Instead, the law should
(20) focus on deterring future harms. In some cases, this
might mean lighter punishments. If it is really true that
we do not get any prevention bang from our
punishment buck when we punish some person, then it
is not worth punishing that person.
Passage B
(25) Neuroscience constantly produces new
mechanistic descriptions of how the physical brain
causes behavior, adding fuel to the deterministic view
that all human action is causally necessitated by events
that are independent of the will. It has long been
(30) argued, however, that the concept of free will can
coexist with determinism.
In 1954 English philosopher Alfred J. Ayer put
forth a theory of “soft determinism.” He argued, as the
philosopher David Hume had two centuries earlier,
(35) that even in a deterministic world, a person can still
act freely. Ayer distinguished between free actions and
constrained actions. Free actions are those that are
caused by internal sources, by one’s own will (unless
one is suffering from a disorder). Constrained actions
(40) are those that are caused by external sources, for
example, by someone or something forcing you
physically or mentally to perform an action, as in
hypnosis or in mental disorders such as kleptomania.
When someone performs a free action to do A, he or
(45) she could have done B instead, since no external
source precluded doing so. When someone performs a
constrained action to do A, he or she could have done
only A.
Ayer argued that actions are free as long as they
(50) are not constrained. It is not the existence of a cause
but the source of the cause that determines whether an
action is free. Although Ayer did not explicitly discuss
the brain’s role, one could make the analogy that those
actions—and indeed those wills—that originate from
(55) a disease-free brain are not constrained, and are
therefore free, even though they may be determined.
1. Both passages are concerned with answering which one of the following questions?
(A) Should people be punished for actions that are outside of their control?
(B) Does scientific research into the brain have implications regarding freedom of the will?
(C) Can actions that are not free be effectively deterred by the threat of punishment?
(D) Is the view that retribution is a legitimate justification for punishment compatible with the findings of neuroscience?
(E) Can an action be free if someone else physically forced the actor to perform it?
(A) Should people be punished for actions that are outside of their control?
(B) Does scientific research into the brain have implications regarding freedom of the will?
(C) Can actions that are not free be effectively deterred by the threat of punishment?
(D) Is the view that retribution is a legitimate justification for punishment compatible with the findings of neuroscience?
(E) Can an action be free if someone else physically forced the actor to perform it?
2. Which one of the following concepts plays a role in the argument of passage B but not in that of passage A?
(A) mental disorder
(B) free choice
(C) causality
(D) self-delusion
(E) moral responsibility
(A) mental disorder
(B) free choice
(C) causality
(D) self-delusion
(E) moral responsibility
3. One purpose of the reference by the author of passage B to David Hume (line 34) is to
(A) characterize Ayer as someone who is not an original thinker
(B) add credence to the theory of soft determinism
(C) suggest that the theory of soft determinism is primarily of historical importance
(D) suggest that the theory of soft determinism has been in existence as long as mechanistic descriptions of the brain have
(E) add intellectual respectability to the view that the brain should not be described mechanistically
(A) characterize Ayer as someone who is not an original thinker
(B) add credence to the theory of soft determinism
(C) suggest that the theory of soft determinism is primarily of historical importance
(D) suggest that the theory of soft determinism has been in existence as long as mechanistic descriptions of the brain have
(E) add intellectual respectability to the view that the brain should not be described mechanistically
4. Passage B differs from passage A in that passage B displays an attitude toward the ideas it discusses that is more
(A) engaged
(B) dismissive
(C) detached
(D) ironic
(E) skeptical
(A) engaged
(B) dismissive
(C) detached
(D) ironic
(E) skeptical
5. Which one of the following arguments is most analogous to the argument advanced in passage A?
(A) Many word processors are packed with nonessential features that only confuse most users and get in the way of important functions. Word processors with fewer features thus enhance productivity.
(B) Economic models generally presume that actors in an economy are entirely rational. But psychological studies have documented many ways in which people make irrational choices. Thus, economic models, in theory, should not be able to predict human behavior.
(C) The existing program for teaching mathematics in elementary schools is based on mistaken notions about what sorts of mathematical concepts children can grasp, and it should therefore be replaced.
(D) Civil disobedience is justified only in those cases in which civil law conflicts with one’s sincere moral or religious convictions. Any attempt to justify civil disobedience on something other than moral or religious grounds is therefore illegitimate.
(E) Being autonomous does not imply having full control over one’s behavior. After all, addicted smokers are unable to exercise control over some behaviors but are nevertheless autonomous in the general sense.
(A) Many word processors are packed with nonessential features that only confuse most users and get in the way of important functions. Word processors with fewer features thus enhance productivity.
(B) Economic models generally presume that actors in an economy are entirely rational. But psychological studies have documented many ways in which people make irrational choices. Thus, economic models, in theory, should not be able to predict human behavior.
(C) The existing program for teaching mathematics in elementary schools is based on mistaken notions about what sorts of mathematical concepts children can grasp, and it should therefore be replaced.
(D) Civil disobedience is justified only in those cases in which civil law conflicts with one’s sincere moral or religious convictions. Any attempt to justify civil disobedience on something other than moral or religious grounds is therefore illegitimate.
(E) Being autonomous does not imply having full control over one’s behavior. After all, addicted smokers are unable to exercise control over some behaviors but are nevertheless autonomous in the general sense.
30 May 2023, 09:47
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Explanation
4. Passage B differs from passage A in that passage B displays an attitude toward the ideas it discusses that is more
Explanation
The question is asking about the relative tones of the passages. Use your Bottom Line of each passage.
A. No. This answer choice is reversed. Passage A is advocating a point of view, while passage B is presenting a theory.
B. No. Neither passage is negative in tone.
C. Yes. Passage A is advocating a point of view, while passage B is presenting a theory without passing judgment.
D. No. Neither passage uses irony.E. No. Neither passage is negative in tone.
Answer: C
Explanation
The question is asking about the relative tones of the passages. Use your Bottom Line of each passage.
A. No. This answer choice is reversed. Passage A is advocating a point of view, while passage B is presenting a theory.
B. No. Neither passage is negative in tone.
C. Yes. Passage A is advocating a point of view, while passage B is presenting a theory without passing judgment.
D. No. Neither passage uses irony.E. No. Neither passage is negative in tone.
Answer: C
30 May 2023, 09:50
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Explanation
5. Which one of the following arguments is most analogous to the argument advanced in passage A?
Explanation
The question is asking for an argument analogous to that in passage A. Passage A argues against the current punishment system because of new neuroscience findings. (Note: You can approach this question similarly to the way you would approach a Parallel the Reasoning Arguments question.)
A. No. Passage A does not discuss reducing features.
B. No. While this answer may be tempting because it mentions rationality, passage A does not discuss irrational actions.
C. Yes. As in passage A, this answer argues against a current system because of updated information about the brain.
D. No. Passage A rejects a justification based on new findings about the brain.
E. No. This answer choice does not discuss rejecting a current system.
Answer: C
Explanation
The question is asking for an argument analogous to that in passage A. Passage A argues against the current punishment system because of new neuroscience findings. (Note: You can approach this question similarly to the way you would approach a Parallel the Reasoning Arguments question.)
A. No. Passage A does not discuss reducing features.
B. No. While this answer may be tempting because it mentions rationality, passage A does not discuss irrational actions.
C. Yes. As in passage A, this answer argues against a current system because of updated information about the brain.
D. No. Passage A rejects a justification based on new findings about the brain.
E. No. This answer choice does not discuss rejecting a current system.
Answer: C
