OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

This question focuses on the main idea of the passage. The reading constantly flips back and forth, taking one side at first, then another on the forecast for American entrepreneurship. The author is careful to present his or her arguments fairly and with some reservations (e.g., it is not clear that..., suggests that..., may seem..., does not necessarily..., it may not bring..., can be...). Ultimately, the view is balanced.

(A) Census data provide the source of the author's first observation, but the author is not specifically proposing a new interpretation of those data, let alone for such an interpretation to be generally adopted by the public. Yes, the census data reveal that unemployment numbers are even direr than was previously suspected, and yes, the author states that the forecast for American entrepreneurship may not be equally alarming. However, it is a stretch to say that the author is proposing that the data are themselves to be interpreted differently. (By the way, the word data is technically plural; the GMAT doesn't seem to test this fact, but you should not be thrown by a passage that reads new census data reveal rather than reveals, as would be typical in speech.)

(B) The author never argues that any group of college students should (or should not) form their own companies. If anything, the author offers both sides of the issue, leaving it up to individuals to decide.

(C) CORRECT. The contemporary economic issue is the forecast for American entrepreneurship, which is the focus of the passage. The author presents a nuanced view of this issue.

(D) The author offers one fact about the varying rates at which businesses of two types (low-value and high-value) are founded. However, the author never evaluates the viability (or likelihood of success) of these types.

(E) The analogy drawn in the last two sentences is not the main point of the passage; it is a final observation, one that sheds light on the issue, but the making of this particular analogy is not the primary purpose for which the passage was written.

The correct answer is C.
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Question is asking numbers, which we can not exactly tell increased or decreased from the passage. passage only states the proportion decreased from previous year. May be number of both high valued and low valued increased but the proportion wise it is low.

the passage tells us that while the average number of new businesses per year has increased the proportion of high value business has decreased..
first of all the question asks about the number of businesses and secondly (proportion=number/total)because total is increasing and proportion is decreasing this means that the number may increase or decrease ,it may even be same i say.

Golusoni

2. According to the passage, the reason that many college graduates are choosing to launch their own companies in the present economic climate is that

(A) they are hampered by the difficulty of finding outside investors

They are in no way hampered by difficulty of finding outside investors. The passage only states that foreign investors aren't willing to invest in startups. That doesn't mean that many college graduates would choose to launch their own companies. Completely nonsensical

(B) they cannot easily find positions typically open to workers of their experience

HOLD. The passage does state that many youngsters start something on their own because of unemployment

(C) the prevalence of low-value companies has increased

So what??? How could that be a reason?? That can at best be a deterrent for college graduates to not start a new company because the prevalence of low-value companies has increased

(D) they are forced to decide between renting and buying property

This can't be a reason. This is just an analogy.

(E) forecasts of the unemployment rate are likely to become less dire in coming years

Nowhere mentioned

Hope it helps

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