Traditionally, members of a community such as a town or neighborhood

Question

Traditionally, members of a community such as a
town or neighborhood share a common location and a
sense of necessary interdependence that includes, for
example, mutual respect and emotional support. But as
  (5)   modern societies grow more technological and
sometimes more alienating, people tend to spend less
time in the kinds of interactions that their communities
require in order to thrive. Meanwhile, technology has
made it possible for individuals to interact via personal
  (10)   computer with others who are geographically distant.
Advocates claim that these computer conferences, in
which large numbers of participants communicate by
typing comments that are immediately read by other
participants and responding immediately to those
  (15)   comments they read, function as communities that can
substitute for traditional interactions with neighbors.

What are the characteristics that advocates claim
allow computer conferences to function as
communities? For one, participants often share
  (20)   common interests or concerns; conferences are
frequently organized around specific topics such as
music or parenting. Second, because these conferences
are conversations, participants have adopted certain
conventions in recognition of the importance of
  (25)   respecting each others’ sensibilities. Abbreviations are
used to convey commonly expressed sentiments of
courtesy such as “pardon me for cutting in” (“pmfci”)
or “in my humble opinion” (“imho”). Because a
humorous tone can be difficult to communicate in
  (30)   writing, participants will often end an intentionally
humorous comment with a set of characters that, when
looked at sideways, resembles a smiling or winking
face. Typing messages entirely in capital letters is
avoided, because its tendency to demand the attention
  (35)   of a reader’s eye is considered the computer equivalent
of shouting. These conventions, advocates claim,
constitute a form of etiquette, and with this etiquette as
a foundation, people often form genuine, trusting
relationships, even offering advice and support during
  (40)   personal crises such as illness or the loss of a loved
one.

But while it is true that conferences can be both
respectful and supportive, they nonetheless fall short of
communities. For example, conferences discriminate
  (45)   along educational and economic lines because
participation requires a basic knowledge of computers
and the ability to afford access to conferences. Further,
while advocates claim that a shared interest makes
computer conferences similar to traditional
  (50)   communities—insofar as the shared interest is
analogous to a traditional community’s shared 
location—this analogy simply does not work.
Conference participants are a self-selecting group; they
are drawn together by their shared interest in the topic
  (55)   of the conference. Actual communities, on the other
hand, are “nonintentional”: the people who inhabit
towns or neighborhoods are thus more likely to exhibit
genuine diversity—of age, career, or personal
interests—than are conference participants. It might be
  (60)   easier to find common ground in a computer
conference than in today’s communities, but in so
doing it would be unfortunate if conference participants
cut themselves off further from valuable interactions in
their own towns or neighborhoods.    1 
 1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses the central idea of the passage?

(A) Because computer conferences attract participants who share common interests and rely on a number of mutually acceptable conventions for communicating with one another, such conferences can substitute effectively for certain interactions that have become rarer within actual communities.
(B) Since increased participation in computer conferences threatens to replace actual communities, members of actual communities are returning to the traditional interactions that distinguish towns or neighborhoods.
(C) Because participants in computer conferences are geographically separated and communicate only by typing, their interactions cannot be as mutually respectful and supportive as are the kinds of interactions that have become rarer within actual communities.
(D) Although computer conferences offer some of the same benefits that actual communities do, the significant lack of diversity among conference participants makes such conferences unlike actual communities.
(E) Even if access to computer technology is broad enough to attract a more diverse group of people to participate in computer conferences, such conferences will not be acceptable substitutes for actual communities.

2 
 2. Based on the passage, the author would be LEAST likely to consider which one of the following a community?

(A) a group of soldiers who serve together in the same battalion and who come from a variety of geographic regions
(B) a group of university students who belong to the same campus political organization and who come from several different socioeconomic backgrounds
(C) a group of doctors who work at a number of different hospitals and who meet at a convention to discuss issues relevant to their profession
(D) a group of teachers who work interdependently in the same school with the same students and who live in a variety of cities and neighborhoods
(E) a group of worshipers who attend and support the same religious institution and who represent a high degree of economic and cultural diversity

3 
 3. The author’s statement that “conferences can be both respectful and supportive” (lines 42–43) serves primarily to

(A) counter the claim that computer conferences may discriminate along educational or economic lines
(B) introduce the argument that the conventions of computer conferences constitute a form of social etiquette
(C) counter the claim that computer conferences cannot be thought of as communities
(D) suggest that not all participants in computer conferences may be equally respectful of one another
(E) acknowledge that computer conferences can involve interactions that are similar to those in an actual community

4 
 4. Given the information in the passage, the author can most reasonably be said to use which one of the following principles to refute the advocates’ claim that computer conferences can function as communities (line 15)?

(A) A group is a community only if its members are mutually respectful and supportive of one another.
(B) A group is a community only if its members adopt conventions intended to help them respect each other’s sensibilities.
(C) A group is a community only if its members inhabit the same geographic location.
(D) A group is a community only if its members come from the same educational or economic background.
(E) A group is a community only if its members feel a sense of interdependence despite different economic and educational backgrounds.

5 
 5. What is the primary function of the second paragraph of the passage?

(A) to add detail to the discussion in the first paragraph of why computer conferences originated
(B) to give evidence challenging the argument of the advocates discussed in the first paragraph
(C) to develop the claim of the advocates discussed in the first paragraph
(D) to introduce an objection that will be answered in the third paragraph
(E) to anticipate the characterization of computer conferences given in the third paragraph

6 
 6. Which one of the following, if true, would most weaken one of the author’s arguments in the last paragraph?

(A) Participants in computer conferences are generally more accepting of diversity than is the population at large.
(B) Computer technology is rapidly becoming more affordable and accessible to people from a variety of backgrounds.
(C) Participants in computer conferences often apply the same degree of respect and support they receive from one another to interactions in their own actual communities.
(D) Participants in computer conferences often feel more comfortable interacting on the computer because they are free to interact without revealing their identities.
(E) The conventions used to facilitate communication in computer conferences are generally more successful than those used in actual communities.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

5. What is the primary function of the second paragraph of the passage?

Explanation

As we saw originally,  Paragraph 2  sums up the argument of the conference-as-community crowd  (C).  By the time  paragraph 2  rolls around we’re far beyond how computer conferences began  (A).

(B)  describes the purpose of  paragraph 3 , not  paragraph 2 .  (D)  would be more correct if it read  “to introduce an argument that will be countered in....,”  and  (E)  would better read  “to the characterization of computer conferences rebutted in....”

Answer: C

6. Which one of the following, if true, would most weaken one of the author’s arguments in the last paragraph?

Explanation

Two arguments are made in  paragraph 3 , and the first (computer conferences aren’t communities because they  “discriminate” ) is easier to weaken because it gets a lighter treatment. If  (B)  is true and computers are more  “affordable and accessible,”  then that is reason to argue that, today, there’s less discrimination  “along educational and economic lines.”  Greater acceptance of diversity  (A)  isn’t the same as greater diversity, and the latter is what the author argues is required of a true community.

(C)  is a distortion; the author isn’t arguing in  paragraph 3  that today’s communities aren’t civil and supportive enough (though he does imply, in  Paragraph 1 , that fewer people participate in communities than they did years ago). The comfort level of people in communities  (D)  doesn’t come under the author’s radar; if anything, the author would seem to favor sacrificing the comfort of anonymity in favor of some risky, face-to-face contact.

In the same way,  (E)  suggests that computer conferences are more efficient than true communities, but efficient communication is not the characteristic about which the author is so nostalgic.

Answer: B

brindapr · Answer

Can someone explain why E, and not C, is the answer for question 4?

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

4. Given the information in the passage, the author can most reasonably be said to use which one of the following principles to refute the advocates’ claim that computer conferences can function as communities (line 15)?

Explanation

The stem cites  line 15 , but since the  “refutation of the claim”  doesn’t occur until  paragraph 3 , that’s where we must go. As we said before, ultimately the conference-as-community argument fails because computer conferences lack the kind of  “genuine diversity” (line 58)  that tie people together in  “a sense of interdependence”  (a phrase from line 4 that’s echoed in Paragraph 3).  (E)  correctly cites that diversity as a necessary condition of community.

(A)  can’t be  “refuting”  the claim of conference-as-community, because  (A)  sums up why advocates make that claim in the first place  (lines 36-41) .

The adoption of etiquette conventions  (B)  is a characteristic of computer conferences that make them more respectful and supportive, but the author never asserts that, for instance, actual neighbors living next door have to have such etiquette conventions. They already are a community, because they live nearby and have mutual interests.

(C)  is tricky. Proximity is listed in  paragraph 1  as an aspect of  “traditional communities.”  But the question has to do with how the author refutes a claim, and the two necessary conditions of community in that refutation are a lack of discrimination  (lines 44-47)  and the presence of diversity (lines 47-59), and  (C)  mentions none of that.

(D)  is easier to reject, since it’s a 180; diversity, not sameness, is what characterizes community.

Answer: E

ReedArnoldMPREP · Answer

It's pretty dang tricky.

When you struggle with an RC passage, you need to check carefully these three things:

1). Have I misread/misinterpreted/misunderstood/missed detail in the passage or in the question itself?

2). Have I set a good prediction/goal for the right answer of that question to achieve?

3). Have I chosen an answer that matches a good prediction/goal for this question?

It seems most likely to me your struggles come from #1 here, particularly regarding the *question itself*.

What, *exactly*, does this question ask for?

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

2. Based on the passage, the author would be LEAST likely to consider which one of the following a community?

Explanation

The four wrong choices all demonstrate elements that are a part of the author’s definition of community: shared interest  (line 49) —note that the four wrong ones all use the words  “the same” —as well as  “genuine diversity” (lines 55-59).  But in  (C) , there’s a sameness of interest with little diversity. Indeed,  (C)  could have been written as a clear illustration of conferences as described in  lines 53-55.

Answer: C

ajit05052002 · Answer

1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses the central idea of the passage?

Can some one please explain why option (d) is correct here instead of (a).

guddo · Answer

1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses the central idea of the passage?

Which one of the following most accurately expresses the central idea of the passage?

The passage first explains why some people think computer conferences can function like communities: participants share interests, follow etiquette, and sometimes give emotional support. But the author argues that computer conferences still fall short of real communities because they are self-selected and less diverse.  The central point  is that computer conferences may offer some community-like benefits, but they are not true  substitutes for actual communities .

(A) Because computer conferences attract participants who share common interests and rely on a number of mutually acceptable conventions for communicating with one another, such conferences can substitute effectively for certain interactions that have become rarer within actual communities.

This reflects the advocates’ view, not the author’s central view. The author argues that computer conferences do not fully substitute for actual communities.

(B) Since increased participation in computer conferences threatens to replace actual communities, members of actual communities are returning to the traditional interactions that distinguish towns or neighborhoods.

This is not supported. The passage does not say people are returning to traditional community interactions.

(C) Because participants in computer conferences are geographically separated and communicate only by typing, their interactions cannot be as mutually respectful and supportive as are the kinds of interactions that have become rarer within actual communities.

This is incorrect. The passage says computer conferences can be respectful and supportive.

(D) Although computer conferences offer some of the same benefits that actual communities do, the significant lack of diversity among conference participants makes such conferences unlike actual communities.

This is correct. The author accepts that conferences can provide respect, support, and shared interests, but argues that they are unlike actual communities because participants are self-selected and less diverse.

(E) Even if access to computer technology is broad enough to attract a more diverse group of people to participate in computer conferences, such conferences will not be acceptable substitutes for actual communities.

This is too speculative. The passage says current conferences lack diversity and access is limited, but it does not mainly argue about what would happen even if access became broader.

Answer: (D)

egmat · Answer

Hi ajit05052002,

Good question, because (A) is the classic "looks familiar" trap on a main-idea question. It sounds right because you  did  read those exact ideas in the passage - but they belong to the  advocates , not to the  author .

What (A) actually says

Read the end of (A): computer conferences "can  substitute effectively  for certain interactions that have become rarer within actual communities." That is precisely the advocates' claim from paragraph  1  (lines  11 - 16 ). The author sets that view up only to knock it down. So (A) captures the position the passage  argues against  - it can't be the central idea.

Why the whole passage points to (D)

Walk the  three  paragraphs and notice the author's own voice only arrives at the end:

-  Para 1  - advocates say conferences can substitute for communities.
-  Para 2  - develops  their  supporting characteristics (shared interests, etiquette, support in crises).
-  Para 3  - the author finally speaks: "But... they nonetheless  fall short of communities ," the key reason being the "significant lack of diversity" (lines  55 - 59 ).

A correct main-idea answer must cover  all three  paragraphs, and especially the author's turn in para  3 . (D) does exactly that: it concedes conferences "offer some of the same benefits" (the para  2  material)  and  states the author's actual point - the lack of diversity makes them "unlike actual communities."

The habit to lock in

On main-idea questions, always ask:  whose view is this - the author's, or a view the author is setting up to challenge?  An answer that restates the position the passage  rejects  (like A here) is never the main idea, no matter how much of its wording you recognize from the text.

So (D) wins because it matches the author's conclusion; (A) loses because it's the claim the author spends paragraph  3  refuting.

Answer: D

Traditionally, members of a community such as a town or neighborhood

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GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

Traditionally, members of a community such as a town or neighborhood

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