The Economist Reading Challenge Week 1: Article 1

Question

https://gmatclub.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/economist-logo2.png Reading Challenge: Week 1 | Article 1 Full Collection of The Economist Reading Challenges STEP 1: Read The Economist Article: How Europe Vaccine Caution Can Cost Lives It does not take much for people to lose confidence in vaccines. When a few Europeans who had received the AstraZeneca (az) shot for covid-19 suffered unusual blood clotting that was sometimes fatal, many countries in the European Union stopped using it. They say this shows they take safety seriously. Unfortunately, their caution is more likely to cost lives..... read the full article on Economist.com - registration is required for limited Free Access . You can also get Full Access to The Economist Magazine as a part of the The Economist GMAT Tutor Course Article Length: 644 words Time Limit: 7 mins for reading Total Time: 10 mins (7 mins for reading + 3 mins for questions) STEP 2: Attempt the questions Attempt the questions and post your responses by Friday 8 am Pacific Time . We will be keeping this thread in competition mode so no one can see others users’ responses. Good Luck! 1 1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true? a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries b. Separating causation and correlation is hard c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine 2 2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following? a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine 3 3. The main purpose of the passage is: a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution Note: The above questions were created by GMAT Club STEP 3: Check Main Economist Reading Challenge Topic for weekly winners and to Find More Questions and Articles to Read Step 4: Ace the RC section on the GMAT!

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rvgmat12 · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
b. Separating causation and correlation is hard
c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations
d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine
B is right as per the passage

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
Not correct
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated
Not correct
c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19
Not mentioned
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan
Correct
e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution. 
Incorrect

In my view it must be D

Posted from my mobile device

aviii6990 · Answer

Below are the answers to Article-1:

1- C (directly mentioned in the passage)

2- E (POE can be used)

3-B (conveys the main point of the passage)

mSKR · Answer

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
Not ignored .EMA : urged people to keep getting jabbed.
Warning

b. Separating causation and correlation is hard 
Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation.

c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations
The suspensions began after Norway reported four cases of blood clotting in adults given the az vaccine.

d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
there had been 30 “thromboembolic events” among the 5m people in the eu who have received az’s vaccine.

e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine
both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild.

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking 
Seems correct: author refrs the taking this vaccine is not risky . He mentioned these 2 statistics to suggest his claim 
30 “thromboembolic events” among the 5m people(30/5m = 0.000006%) 
Its medicines regulator reckons that both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild.

b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate
not mentioned

c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events
people willing is not mentioned

d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events
no comparison between these medicines

e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine
author is supporting the idea that people can continue to take

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
Author favours az vaccine inspute of %less of evience side effects
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated
He didn’t mention these are rumours

c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 
argue in favour of taking vaccines

d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan
no plan is mentioned

e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution
this is mot main purpose

ramlala · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?    IMO D

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries  We can not say that EMA has ignored the warnings, but EMA confirmed the advice of suspension of the vaccination 
b. Separating causation and correlation is hard  Not True 
c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations  Not mentioned clearly 
 d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable   Yes it is not remarkable. "The ema reckons that as of March 10th there had been 30 “thromboembolic events” among the 5m people in the eu who have received az’s vaccine. By itself, that is no more remarkable" 
e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine  Both have similar side effects   IMO A

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking   Author said if the side effect rate is within the control, it is safe 
b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate  Both vaccination have been administered widely 
c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events  people are not willing to 
d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events  not relevant 
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine  that is not pre-known. not relevant

3. The main purpose of the passage is:    IMO C

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine  partly 
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated  no rumors 
 c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19   Yes it costs many lives 
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan  there is no flow in the vaccine deployment plan. irrelevant 
e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution  partly

sumitkrocks · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a.  European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries

b. Separating causation and correlation is hard
Author mentions about the gap in understanding; however, did not mean Separating causation and correlation is hard

c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations

d.  Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable 
Author mention the count of people who got such thromboembolic events- did not mention about the effect

e.  The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking
 b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate 
 c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events 
 d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events 
 e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine 
 b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated 
Author has presented the cases where such rumors have caused more loss of lives in the long run and also presented the figures supporting the success of vaccination so far
 c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 
 d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan 
 e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution

Ranasaymon · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
-> No, EMA confirmed the advice

b. Separating causation and correlation is hard  
-> Yes, ' Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation'

c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations
-> We don't know whether Norway was the first. we just know that Norway was the first to report the blood clotting 
->  'The suspensions began after Norway reported four cases of blood clotting in adults given the AZ vaccine. Within days at least 16 of them, including Germany, France and Italy, had called a halt'

d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
-> Side effects of thrombo events were remarkable but nor more than the positive effects.

e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine
-> No, both have similar side effects 
 
2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking
 b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate 
->  Its medicines regulator reckons that both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild. 
-> Both vaccines have almost the same side effect rate, but no such concerns about halting the Pfizer

c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events
d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

-> Topic: Vaccine
 Scope: Stopping the vaccine and losing confidence in vaccine
 Author's POV: Should not stop vaccination
 Purpose: (+)ve persuasion to carry out the program

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
-> No, author is positive toward the vaccination program even if there is mild risk

b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated
-> The rumors are true. Yet the author is trying to convince that the vaccine program should not be halted.

c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19
-> It misses the topic of the passage 'vaccine'

d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan 
-> Yes, it matches

e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution
-> Too narrow, and misses the big picture

private07 · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
b. Separating causation and correlation is hard
c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations
d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine

IMO - B
"the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation" is mentioned in the passsage.

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking
b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate
c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events
d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine

IMO - A (Not sure)
With POE, eliminate B as no where its mentioned that Pfizer is administered widely, eliminate C as out of scope, eliminate D as there is no comparison of popularity is mentioned, and eliminate E as the passage never suggest people to take AZ vaccine if they're likely to get blood clot, rather it says that even regular activities are prone to blood clots ("People routinely undertake activities that involve a small risk of blood clots, such as flying, taking birth-control pills, smoking and eating unhealthily.")

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated
c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan
e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution

IMO - C
The title of the passage itself suggests this - How Europe’s vaccine caution can cost lives

immensitas · Answer

Here are my answers:

1. B
2. D
3. C

ananya3 · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true? -   IMO B

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries -   Incorrect  
The EU countries did not issue any warning. Many countries in the European Union stopped using the AZ vaccines, citing that they take safety seriously.

b. Separating causation and correlation is hard -   Correct  
"confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation"

c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations -   Incorrect  
Norway was among the first to report cases of blood clotting

d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable -   Incorrect  
side effects of thromboembolic events are not mentioned in the passage.."there had been 30 “thromboembolic events” among the 5m people in the eu who have received az’s vaccine"

e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine -   Incorrect  
"both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild."

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following? -   IMO A

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking -   Correct  
by POE

b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate -   Incorrect  
as far as the passage is concerned - "Britain has administered more than 10m doses of each of the az vaccine and the one made by Pfizer, an American firm"

c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events -   Incorrect  
the willingness of people to take a vaccine is not mentioned in the passage.

d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events -   Incorrect  
the comparison of the two vaccines in terms of popularity is not mentioned in the passage

e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine -   Incorrect  
this scenario is not mentioned in the passage

3. The main purpose of the passage is: -   IMO B

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine -   Incorrect  
on the contrary, the passage suggest that vaccination is likely to be many, many times less dangerous than catching covid-19
 
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated -   Correct  
the passage tries to address the issue of the limited number of cases of the side effects of the vaccine, whilst suggesting that the benefits far outweigh the limited risks associate with the vaccine.

c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 -   Incorrect  
the first paragraph mention caution, but it is in the context of the EU countries, whose caution to not administer the vaccine is more likely to cost lives.

d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan -   Incorrect  
the deloyment plan is not exactly discussed in the passage

e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution -   Incorrect  
there is only one example mentioned of a past campaign from Japan

RohitSaluja · Answer

Here is my analysis of each of the question

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries - The first paragraph mentions that EMA is urging people to continue to take the jab
b. Separating causation and correlation is hard - The passage mentions that it is difficult to disentangle causation and correlation but did not mention it is hard, I suppose hard and difficult are not the same thing
 c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations - The very first line of the first paragraph mentions this 
d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable - Passage stats 30 cases out of 5million, so not sure whether to call it remarkable or not, but C is definite, so we can eliminate this
e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine - Passage said they are of equal magnitude

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking - This was not mentioned in the passage
b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate - The author mentioned both have been used equally 
c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events - Not mentioned in the passage, only the no. of thromboembolic events were mentioned
 d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events - The theme of the passage is centered around that EU countries have stopped vaccination for AZ vaccines, it can be implied that they are not as popular as Pfizer due to concerns 
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine - The author never said/implied so

The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine - Nope, the author rather criticized the ban on vaccines
 b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated - Seems good, hold on to it 
c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 - This was not 
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan - Nowhere in the passage, the plan for deployment was discussed 
e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution - There was only one example for past vaccination program which was mentioned but that was not the main purpose

So we are left with

jabhatta2 · Answer

my answers 
1. B

2. D 
(guessed on D. Was not sure how to eliminate option B. Eventually eliminated B because of line  "Britain has administered more than 10m doses of each of the az vaccine and the one made by Pfizer"  )

3. D

eliminated B because the concern about blood clotting is not a rumor but a reality. But the author is basically saying, its too small a problem compared to the positive effects of taking the vaccine.

eliminated C because option C is way to generalistic. Though the author is saying in the case of AZ, extra caution when it comes to blood clotting specifically is not good (but only after comparing the positive effects vs. the negative effects) - he certainly is not saying extra caution is not good IN EVERY CASE for EVERY vaccine dose which is what option C implies.

HoneyLemon · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
  b. Separating causation and correlation is hard
  c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations
d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine

imo : B . 
from below line we can find the same 
  Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation.

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking
b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate
 c.  People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events 
 d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine

imo : C . 
from below line we can find the same 
  With clots, even as evidence from specific cases needs investigating, the mass of overall data shows that the vaccines are safe.

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated
c.   To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19  
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan
e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution

imo : C . 
from below line we can find the same 
  That logic is wrong on two counts. One is that, while vaccination is halted, people will contract covid-19. Precautionary regulation would have continued with vaccination while the clotting was investigated because, given the prevalence of the disease in Europe, which is growing, that would minimise death and suffering. The other mistake is that doubts caused by a temporary halt are likely to persist.

rishi02 · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
No mention either of the EMA ignoring warnings or the EU countries issuing warnings.

b. Separating causation and correlation is hard
 Correct answer! The passage explicitly states, “Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation.”

c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations
While the passage says, “The suspensions began after Norway reported four cases of blood clotting in adults given the az vaccine” it does not mention which countries were the first to suspend vaccinations.

d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
No mention whether the thromboembolic events were remarkable or not

e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine
As per the article, both vaccines appear to have a similar side effect rate.

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking
The author does not define or imply any thresholds.

b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate
There is no evidence to confirm that the Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely

c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events
Unlikely, given that the entire premise of the article is that a few thromboembolic incidents resulted in certain European nations suspending vaccination.

d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events
 Correct answer! Given that many countries in the European Union have stopped using it after four cases of blood clotting were reported in Norway, this seems to be implied.

e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine
The article does not offer any such advice

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
As per the article, The az vaccine, like others, has been shown to be safe in millions of people.

b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated
Runner-up answer choice. However, the article talks about a singular ‘rumor’ concerning a particular vaccine, rather than a generalization about covid-19 vaccines

c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19
The article argues than an over abundance of caution is not the right approach and in avoiding a small risk (thromboembolic events), Europe may have left itself exposed to a far greater one (rise in death toll from covid-19)

d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan
No such discussion in the article

e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution
 Correct answer!

AkashM · Answer

1.

Eliminate A because the passage does not tells us that EMA ignored the warning. It says that they suggested the opposite. It is quite possible that EMA reached their conclusion after careful evaluation of the warnings issued by EU countries.

Eliminate C because the passage tells us that the suspensions began after Norway reported the first four cases, but it does not tell us whether Norway was one of the first to do it. Maybe Norway was the last country to suspend the vaccine program.
(Although, it would not be wrong to imply that Norway is one of the first country to do it, since Norway reported the first cases and many EU countries have suspended the vaccine program.)

Eliminate D because the passage never mentions that a sudden relief from chronic back pain or cancer remission are not remarkable. It only tell us that 30 cases of thromboembolic events among 5m people is as remarkable as those things.

Eliminate E because regulators from Britain have suggested that both AZ and Pfizer have the same side effect rate.

B  remains and is the correct answer. The passages mentions in the beginning of the fourth paragraph that 'Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation.' which means it must hard to separate those two.

2.

Eliminate A because even though the no of thromboembolic events caused by AZ is 0.0006% it still did not cause any alarm.

Eliminate B because according to the passage the no of doses of AZ and Pfizer has been the same. Therefore, it cannot be implied that Pfizer vaccine is administered more widely.

Eliminate D the passage has not compared the popularity of AZ and Pfizer vaccines, much less give any reasons for it even if such a bias exists.

Eliminate E because the passage never suggests so, on the contrary, it has encouraged people to get the AZ vaccine even if it entails such a scenario. It says the risk is far less dangerous than getting covid-19.
 
 C  remains and is the correct answer. Although there were 30 events of thromboembolic cases among 5m people, the passage never mentions any opposition from the regulators or people to the vaccine. That implies that people were still willing to take the vaccine.

3.

Eliminate A because the passage not only talks about the risks associated with AZ vaccines but also it tells us why the risks should not be given much prominence. This statement alone does not highlight the main purpose.

Eliminate B because the passages does not address any rumors, it takes on certain valid cases and tells us why they should not be considered. Although, the passage does encourage people to be vaccinated.

Eliminate D because the passage does not talk about vaccines deployment plan.

Eliminate E because the passage does not talk about vaccine distribution. Although it does mention an example from past vaccine campaign, that itself does not encompass the main idea.

C  remains and is the correct answer. The underlying theme across almost all the paragraphs has been that being cautious with the vaccine program is likely to cause more harm than good.

deepverma · Answer

1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?

a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries
b. Separating causation and correlation is hard- > correct 
c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations 
d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable
e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine

2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking
b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate 
c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events
d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events  -> Correct 
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine

3. The main purpose of the passage is:

a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated - in hindsight it could be an effect but not the overall purpose
c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 --wrong, abundance of caution 
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan -  Correct 
e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution - mentioned, but not overall purpose

LipiSinha · Answer

Q1.
A. No. This is not supported by the passage. The passage states that the EMA urged people to keep getting vaccinations when the mentioned European countries had called a halt on it.

B. Yes. This is explicitly stated in the beginning of the 4th paragraph in the passage.  "Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation."

C. No. Although the passage states that Norway was the first country that reported four cases of blood clotting, yet it nowhere mentions that Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations.

D. No. The passage nowhere talk about the side effects of the thromboembolic events.

E. No. This too is untrue as per the passage. The 5th paragraph states that equal doses of each of the two vaccines have been administered in Britain and "both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild".

Q2.
A. Yes. This has been implied in the very beginning of the passage when the author says that a few European countries have stopped using the vaccine and then goes on to say that  "Unfortunately, their caution is more likely to cost lives."  He also emphasizes this point in the other paragraphs that follow.
 
 In Paragraph 3,  "The AZ vaccine, like others, has been shown to be safe in millions of people."
 
In Paragraph 4,  "With clots, even as evidence from specific cases needs investigating, the mass of overall data shows that the vaccines are safe."
 
In Paragraph 5,  "Its medicines regulator reckons that both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild."
 
In Paragraph 6,  "Even if it turns out to entail a minuscule risk of clotting disorders, vaccination is likely to be many, many times less dangerous than catching covid-19."

B. No. The passage explicitly states that equal doses of each of the 2 vaccines have been administered and both have the same side effect rate.

C. No. No evidence of this has been provided in the passage. It only states that the doubt caused in the people's mind due to the temporary halt are likely to persist and that people may not want to get vaccinated once the halt is lifted.

D. No. No evidence of this has been provided in the passage.

E. No. No such claim has been made in the passage. On the contrary the author says, "Even if it turns out to entail a minuscule risk of clotting disorders, vaccination is likely to be many, many times less dangerous than catching covid-19. People routinely undertake activities that involve a small risk of blood clots, such as flying, taking birth-control pills, smoking and eating unhealthily. "

Q3.

Pre-thinking: On reading the passage thoroughly, it is quite evident that the author is trying to argue that the temporary ban by the European countries on the AZ vaccinations is a faulty decision.

A. No. The author is not trying to outline the risk of the AZ vaccine.

B. No. The author does not talk about any rumor surrounding Covid-19 vaccine.

C. No. The author makes no such argument anywhere in the passage.

D. Yes. This matches the pre-thinking statement. The author first highlights the flaw, then provides statistics to prove that this is a flaw and then goes on to provide outcomes that this flaw would result in.

E. No. The author nowhere talks about past vaccination campaigns.

ashmit99 · Answer

1.
A. Incorrect. The EMA did not ignore. It evaluated the scenario instead. It is mentioned "On March 18th the EMA confirmed this advice. It is hard to see how it could have reached any other conclusion. The az vaccine, like others, has been shown to be safe in millions of people." This means the EMA didn't ignore.

B. Correct. It is mentioned that it was difficult to seperate causation and correlation.

C. Incorrect. Norway was the first country to have blood clot cases not the first one to ban vaccine.

D. Incorrect. "By itself, that is no more remarkable than the fact that some of them will have suddenly had relief from chronic back pain or seen their cancer go into remission." This line makes this option incorrect.

E. Nothing like that mentioned.

2. 
A. Correct.

B. We don't know if the rate was same. Incorrect.

C. What people are okay with is not given in the text.

D. Incorrect.

E. Incorrect. Blood clot is not a big thing as per the text. It may have caused by other things too. So not a big deal.

3. 
A. Incorrect. It's somewhat opposite. The author does not mention the risks of AZ.

B. Incorrect. The author neither dispels any rumor nor encourages anyone to take the shot. He/she is just evaluating what happened.

C. Correct. The author argues that this was not the right approach to deal with this scenario. He/she also explains it by giving an example of japan.

D. Incorrect.

E. Incorrect. That's the case only with 1 or 2 paras.

sneck28 · Answer

Q1-B
 
 1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true?
 
a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries - WRONG- The Opposite 
  The World Health Organisation, the European Medicines Agency (ema) and the regulator in Britain, where the az vaccine has been used abundantly, urged people to keep getting jabbed.

b. Separating causation and correlation is hard - RIGHT
  Any confusion lies in the difficulty of disentangling causation from correlation.

c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations - WRONG - Not mentioned
The suspensions began after Norway reported four cases of blood clotting in adults given the az vaccine. Similar reports have come from other European countries. Within days at least 16 of them, including Germany, France, and Italy, had called a halt.

d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable - WRONG - The Opposite
 The ema reckons that as of March 10th there had been 30 “thromboembolic events” among the 5m people in the eu who have received az’s vaccine. By itself, that is no more remarkable than the fact that some of them will have suddenly had relief from chronic back pain or seen their cancer go into remission .

e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine - WRONG - The opposite
 Britain has administered more than 10m doses of each of the az vaccine and the one made by Pfizer, an American firm. Its medicines regulator reckons that both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild.

Q2- A -  Process of elimination 
 
2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following?

a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking - RIGHT 
 6/1000 = 0.0006% - 3/6 of 1000 people get blood clots as per the current data and the author encourages people to get vaccinated keeping the current stats in mind.

b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate - WRONG
 Britain has administered more than 10m doses of each of the az vaccine and the one made by Pfizer, an American firm.
 
c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events - WRONG 
 Not mentioned
 
d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events - Wrong 
 Same explanation as B
 
e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine - WRONG 
 The opposite. 
ts medicines regulator reckons that both vaccines cause between three and six reports of side-effects for every 1,000 doses delivered, almost all of which are mild.
Even if it turns out to entail a minuscule risk of clotting disorders, vaccination is likely to be many, many times less dangerous than catching covid-19. People routinely undertake activities that involve a small risk of blood clots, such as flying, taking birth-control pills, smoking and eating unhealthily.

Q3 - C 
 
 3. The main purpose of the passage is:
 
a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine - Wrong
 The opposite. The passage suggests that the AZ vaccine is not risky & backs this up with statistics.
 
b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated - WRONG
 Partly true. The article encourages people to get vaccinated but does not dispel rumors. It in fact accepts the fact that there are side effects but the rate is too for one to take them seriously and underscores that the pros of taking the vaccine outweigh the cons

c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 - RIGHT
 The title is a big giveaway - How Europe’s vaccine caution can cost lives
 
d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan -WRONG -  Irrelevant

e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution - WRONG 
 Though the passage gives Japan's example its not the crux of the passage

MrBaby · Answer

IMO 1. C 2. A 3. A Not sure, but want to join the competition! Below is my opinions. Thanks!

___________________________________________________________________________ 1. According to the passage which of the following statements is true? a. European Medicines Agency (EMA) has ignored the warnings issued by the EU countries --> INCORRECT : The passage mentions that "On March 18th the EMA confirmed this advice.", not ignored. b. Separating causation and correlation is hard --> INCORRECT : Not mentioned in the passage. c. Norway was one of the first countries to suspend vaccinations --> CORRECT : The suspensions began after Norway reported four cases of blood clotting in adults given the az vaccine. d. Side effects of thromboembolic events were not remarkable --> INCORRECT : "“thromboembolic events” among the 5m people in the eu who have received az’s vaccine. By itself, that is no more remarkable than the fact that XXXX." No more remarkable than doesn't mean not remarkable. e. The AZ vaccine appears to have a higher side effect rate than the Pfizer vaccine --> INCORRECT : No comparison between the AZ vaccine and the Pfizer vaccine in the passage. 2. According to the passage the author implies which of the following? a. As long as the AZ vaccine causes less than 0.0005% side effect rate, it is worth taking --> CORRECT : Can imply from "Less than 1% of either group went on to suffer any serious illness." b. The Pfizer vaccine has been administered more widely but has the same side effect rate --> INCORRECT : Not mentioned in the passage. c. People are willing to take the AZ vaccine even if there is a small risk of thromboembolic events --> INCORRECT : Cannot imply this because we don't know about the willing of people. d. The AZ vaccine is not as popular as Pfizer vaccine due to the recent concerns surrounding thromboembolic events --> INCORRECT : No comparison about how popular the vaccine are. e. People who are likely to get blood clots should not get the AZ vaccine --> INCORRECT : Not mentioned in the passage. 3. The main purpose of the passage is: a. To outline the risk of the AZ vaccine --> CORRECT : The passage mostly mentioned about the risk of the AZ vaccine after inoculation. b. To dispel the rumors surrounding covid-19 vaccines and encourage people to get vaccinated --> INCORRECT : Cannot find the rumors in the passage. c. To argue that caution is not the right approach with covid-19 --> INCORRECT : Too extreme. d. To highlight a flaw in the vaccine deployment plan --> INCORRECT : The passage doesn't want to highlight a flaw, just mentioned some flaw. e. To provide examples from past vaccination campaigns and how certain events negatively impacted vaccine distribution --> Interesting choice, but I cannot find the relationship between past vaccination campaigns and vaccine distribution.

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