TEST3CRITICALREASONING2

SECTION IV

Time—35 minutes

25 Questions

Directions: The questions in this section are based on the reasoning contained in brief statements or passages. For some questions, more than one of the choices could conceivably answer the question. However, you are to choose the best answer, that is, the response that most accurately¹ and completely answers the question. You should not make assumptions that are by commonsense² standards implausible, superfluous³, or incompatible⁴ with the Passage After you have chosen the best answer, blacken the corresponding space on your answer sheet

1. With the passage of the new tax reform law, the annual tax burden on low-income taxpayers⁵ will be reduced, on average, by anywhere from $100 to $300. Clearly, tax reform is in the interest of low-income taxpayers.

Which one of the following, if true, most undermines the conclusion above?

(A) Tax reform, by simplifying the tax code will save many people the expense of having an accountant do their taxes.

(B) Tax reform, by eliminating tax incentives⁶ to build rental⁷ housing, will push up rents an average of about $40 per month for low-income taxpayers.

(C) Low-income taxpayers have consistently voted for those political candidates who are strong advocates of tax reform.

(D) The new tax reform laws will permit low and middle-income taxpayers to deduct⁸ Child-care expenses from their taxes.

(E) Under the new tax reform laws, many low-income taxpayers who now pay taxes will no Longer be required to do so.

2. If we are to expand the exploration of our solar system. Our next manned flight should be to Phobos one of Mars’s moons, rather than to Mars itself. The flight times to each are the same, But the Phobos expedition would require less than half the fuel load of a Mars expedition and would, therefore, be much less costly⁹. So, it is clear that Phobos should be our next step in Space exploration.

Which one of the following, if true, would most help to explain the difference in fuel requirement?

(A) More equipment would be required to explore Phobos than to explore Mars.

(B) Smaller spaceships require less fuel than larger spaceships.

(C) Information learned during the trip to Phobos can be used during a subsequent trip to Mars.

(D) The shortest distance between Phobos and Mars is less than half the shortest distance Between Earth and Mars.

(E) Lift-off for the return trip from Phobos requires much less fuel than that from Mars because of Phobos weaker gravitational pull.

3. Scientific research that involves international collaboration¹⁰ has produced papers of greater influence. As measured by the number of times a paper is cited in subsequent papers, than has research without any collaboration. Papers that result from international collaboration are cited an average of seven times, whereas papers with single authors are cited only three times on average This difference shows that research projects conducted by international research teams are of greater importance than those conducted by single researchers.

Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?

(A) Prolific¹¹ writers can inflate¹² the number of citations¹³ they receive by citing themselves in Subsequent papers.

(B) It is possible to ascertain¹⁴ whether or not a paper is the product of international Collaboration by determining the number of citations it has received

(C) The number of citations a paper receives is a measure of the importance of the Research it reports.

(D) The collaborative efforts of scientists who are citizens of the same country do not produce papers that are as important as papers that are produced by international Collaboration