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CAT 2024 Slot 2 answer key with solutions

This is the complete CAT 2024 Slot 2 question paper with answer key and solutions — 68 questions across VARC, DILR, QA, 2h with sectional timers. Three sequential sections with sectional timers. MCQ negative marking; TITA has none. You can attempt this paper free on MBACracked under exam-accurate timing and unlock topic-wise analytics after you finish.

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VARC(24 questions)

Q1Verbal Ability·Paragraph Summary

Recent important scientific findings have emerged from crossing the boundaries of scientific fields. They stem from physicists collaborating with biologists, sociologists and others, to answer questions about our world. But physicists and their potential collaborators often find their cultures out of sync. For one, physicists often discard a lot of information while extracting broad patterns; for other scientists, information is not readily disposed. Further, many non-physicists are uncomfortable with mathematical models. Still, the desire to work on something new and different is real, and there are clear benefits from the collision of views.

  • APhysicists have successfully buried their differences on research methods applied in other fields in their desire to find answers to baffling scientific questions.
  • BLarge data sets and mathematical models in physics research combined with the research methods of non-physicist collaborators have yielded important scientific findings.
  • CDespite differences in their research styles, physicists' research collaborations with scholars from other disciplines have yielded important research findings.Correct answer
  • DThe desire to diversify their research and answer important questions has led to several collaborations between physicists and other social scientists.

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C Cross-field findings come from physicists working with biologists, sociologists, and others; styles clash (physicists discard detail and lean on math; partners often will not); yet the wish to do something new is real and collisions help. C keeps both the friction and the fruitful collaborations. Why the others fail • A — Says physicists have “buried” methodological differences; the text stresses cultures still “out of sync.” • B — Invents a recipe of “large data sets and mathematical models… combined with” partners’ methods; the passage highlights mismatch over a hybrid method that already “yielded” findings that way. • D — Narrows partners to “other social scientists” (biologists are central) and makes “desire to diversify” the driver rather than answering shared questions despite clash.
Q2Verbal Ability·Sentence Placement

Sentence: The Europeans did not invent globalization. Paragraph: The first phase of globalization occurred long before the introduction of either steam or electric power...Chinese consumers at all social levels consumed vast quantities of spices, fragrant woods and unusual plants. The peoples of Southeast Asia who lived in forests gave up their traditional livelihoods and completely reoriented their economies to supply Chinese consumers ___(1)___ . These exchanges of the year 1000 opened some of the routes through which goods and peoples continued to travel after Columbus traversed the mid-Atlantic. ___(2)___. Yet the world of 1000 differed from that of 1492 in important ways....the travellers who encountered one another in the year 1000 were much closer technologically. ___(3)___. They changed and augmented what was already there since 1000. ___(4)___. If globalization hadn't yet begun, Europeans wouldn't have been able to penetrate the markets in so many places as quickly as they did after 1492.

  • ABlank 3Correct answer
  • BBlank 4
  • CBlank 2
  • DBlank 1

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (Blank 3) Sentence. The Europeans did not invent globalisation. Why Blank 3. The paragraph has shown a year-1000 world already exchanging spices and peoples, then noted that 1492 travellers were not starting from zero. The missing sentence is the thesis; the next line (“They changed and augmented what was already there since 1000”) unpacks it. Blank 4 is the counterfactual that *depends* on globalisation already existing. Why not the others. - Blank 1 is still the Southeast-Asian supply response to China. - Blank 2 is the Columbus continuity remark, before the thesis is named. - Blank 4 is already the “if it hadn’t begun…” consequence.
Q3Verbal Ability·Paragraph Summary

Different from individuals, states conduct warfare operations using the DIME model–– "diplomacy, information, military, and economics." Most states do everything they can to inflict pain and confusion on their enemies before deploying the military. In fact, attacks on vectors of information are a well-worn tactic of war and usually are the first target when the charge begins. It's common for telecom data and communications networks to be routinely monitored by governments, which is why the open data policies of the web are so concerning to many advocates of privacy and human rights. With the worldwide adoption of social media, more governments are getting involved in low-grade information warfare through the use of cyber troops. According to a study by the Oxford Internet Institute in 2020, cyber troops are "government or political party actors tasked with manipulating public opinion online." The Oxford research group was able to identify 81 countries with active cyber troop operations utilizing many different strategies to spread false information, including spending millions on online advertising.

  • AGovernments primarily use the DIME model to deploy cyber troops who practise low-grade information warfare, seeking to manipulate public opinion with the objective of inflicting pain and confusion on their enemies.
  • BFollowing the DIME model, many governments have taken advantage of open data policies of the web to deploy cyber troops who manipulate domestic public opinion, using advertising and other strategies to spread false information.
  • CUsing the DIME model, together with military operations, many governments simultaneously conduct information warfare with the help of cyber troops and routinely monitor telecom data and communications networks.
  • DAs part of conducting information warfare as per the DIME model, many governments routinely monitor telecom data and communications networks, and use cyber troops on social media to manipulate public opinion.Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D States use DIME; information attack often precedes force; governments routinely monitor telecom/networks; with social media they also run cyber troops to manipulate online opinion (Oxford: 81 countries, ads and other tactics). D packages monitoring plus social-media cyber troops as information warfare under that model. Why the others fail • A — Treats DIME as mainly a vehicle for deploying cyber troops; DIME is a four-part state toolkit, and cyber troops are one recent information tactic, not the model’s primary use. • B — Says governments “take advantage of open data policies” to field cyber troops; open data is what worries privacy advocates about monitoring, not the deployment method, and “domestic” opinion is not specified. • C — Puts information warfare “together with” / “simultaneously” with military operations; the stem stresses inflicting pain *before* military deployment.
Q4Reading Comprehension·Specific Detail

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. Spices were a global commodity centuries before European voyages. There was a complex chain of relations, yet consumers had little knowledge of producers and vice versa. Desire for spices helped fuel European colonial empires to create political, military and commercial networks under a single power. Historians know a fair amount about the supply of spices in Europe during the medieval period – the origins, methods of transportation, the prices – but less about demand. Why go to such extraordinary efforts to procure expensive products from exotic lands? Still, demand was great enough to inspire the voyages of Christopher Columbus and Vasco Da Gama, launching the first fateful wave of European colonialism. . . . So, why were spices so highly prized in Europe in the centuries from about 1000 to 1500? One widely disseminated explanation for medieval demand for spices was that they covered the taste of spoiled meat. . . . Medieval purchasers consumed meat much fresher than what the average city-dweller in the developed world of today has at hand. However, refrigeration was not available, and some hot spices have been shown to serve as an anti-bacterial agent. Salting, smoking or drying meat were other means of preservation. Most spices used in cooking began as medical ingredients, and throughout the Middle Ages spices were used as both medicines and condiments. Above all, medieval recipes involve the combination of medical and culinary lore in order to balance food's humeral properties and prevent disease. Most spices were hot and dry and so appropriate in sauces to counteract the moist and wet properties supposedly possessed by most meat and fish. . . . Where spices came from was known in a vague sense centuries before the voyages of Columbus. Just how vague may be judged by looking at medieval world maps . . . To the medieval European imagination, the East was exotic and alluring. Medieval maps often placed India close to the so-called Earthly Paradise, the Garden of Eden described in the Bible. Geographical knowledge has a lot to do with the perceptions of spices' relative scarcity and the reasons for their high prices. An example of the varying notions of scarcity is the conflicting information about how pepper is harvested. As far back as the 7th century Europeans thought that pepper in India grew on trees "guarded" by serpents that would bite and poison anyone who attempted to gather the fruit. The only way to harvest pepper was to burn the trees, which would drive the snakes underground. Of course, this bit of lore would explain the shriveled black peppercorns, but not white, pink or other colors. Spices never had the enduring allure or power of gold and silver or the commercial potential of new products such as tobacco, indigo or sugar. But the taste for spices did continue for a while beyond the Middle Ages. As late as the 17th century, the English and the Dutch were struggling for control of the Spice Islands: Dutch New Amsterdam, or New York, was exchanged by the British for one of the Moluccan Islands where nutmeg was grown.

If a trader brought white peppercorns from India to medieval Europe, all of the following are unlikely to happen, EXCEPT:

  • Amedieval maps would be used as navigational aids.
  • BEuropeans would doubt the story of pepper harvesting.Correct answer
  • Cthe price of spices would decrease.
  • Dpepper would no longer be considered exotic.

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B Snake-guard lore “explains” shrivelled black peppercorns via burning trees, but not white pepper. A trader’s white peppercorns would therefore make Europeans doubt that harvest story—the outcome that *is* likely among the list. Why the others fail: • A — Maps illustrate vague exotic geography; they are not cast as navigational tools this trader would suddenly validate. • C — One shipment would not, on the passage’s logic, drive medieval spice prices down. • D — Exotic allure came from distant, poorly known origins; a single white-pepper delivery would not erase it.
Q5Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. Spices were a global commodity centuries before European voyages. There was a complex chain of relations, yet consumers had little knowledge of producers and vice versa. Desire for spices helped fuel European colonial empires to create political, military and commercial networks under a single power. Historians know a fair amount about the supply of spices in Europe during the medieval period – the origins, methods of transportation, the prices – but less about demand. Why go to such extraordinary efforts to procure expensive products from exotic lands? Still, demand was great enough to inspire the voyages of Christopher Columbus and Vasco Da Gama, launching the first fateful wave of European colonialism. . . . So, why were spices so highly prized in Europe in the centuries from about 1000 to 1500? One widely disseminated explanation for medieval demand for spices was that they covered the taste of spoiled meat. . . . Medieval purchasers consumed meat much fresher than what the average city-dweller in the developed world of today has at hand. However, refrigeration was not available, and some hot spices have been shown to serve as an anti-bacterial agent. Salting, smoking or drying meat were other means of preservation. Most spices used in cooking began as medical ingredients, and throughout the Middle Ages spices were used as both medicines and condiments. Above all, medieval recipes involve the combination of medical and culinary lore in order to balance food's humeral properties and prevent disease. Most spices were hot and dry and so appropriate in sauces to counteract the moist and wet properties supposedly possessed by most meat and fish. . . . Where spices came from was known in a vague sense centuries before the voyages of Columbus. Just how vague may be judged by looking at medieval world maps . . . To the medieval European imagination, the East was exotic and alluring. Medieval maps often placed India close to the so-called Earthly Paradise, the Garden of Eden described in the Bible. Geographical knowledge has a lot to do with the perceptions of spices' relative scarcity and the reasons for their high prices. An example of the varying notions of scarcity is the conflicting information about how pepper is harvested. As far back as the 7th century Europeans thought that pepper in India grew on trees "guarded" by serpents that would bite and poison anyone who attempted to gather the fruit. The only way to harvest pepper was to burn the trees, which would drive the snakes underground. Of course, this bit of lore would explain the shriveled black peppercorns, but not white, pink or other colors. Spices never had the enduring allure or power of gold and silver or the commercial potential of new products such as tobacco, indigo or sugar. But the taste for spices did continue for a while beyond the Middle Ages. As late as the 17th century, the English and the Dutch were struggling for control of the Spice Islands: Dutch New Amsterdam, or New York, was exchanged by the British for one of the Moluccan Islands where nutmeg was grown.

It can be inferred that all of the following contributed to a decline in the allure of spices, EXCEPT:

  • Aincrease in the availability or spices.Correct answer
  • Bthe development of refrigeration techniques.
  • Cchanges in the system of medical treatment.
  • Dchanges in European cuisine.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A Medieval spice value is tied to humoral medicine, culinary-medical sauces, and lack of refrigeration. Inferring later decline, refrigeration, medical change, and cuisine change each undercut those motives. Increased availability is not a decline driver the passage itself supplies—so A is the EXCEPT. Why the others fail: • B — Refrigeration removes a preservation rationale for hot spices. • C — New medical systems retire spices-as-drugs. • D — Cuisine that drops humoral “hot/dry” balancing no longer needs the old spice logic.
Q6Reading Comprehension·Specific Detail

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. Spices were a global commodity centuries before European voyages. There was a complex chain of relations, yet consumers had little knowledge of producers and vice versa. Desire for spices helped fuel European colonial empires to create political, military and commercial networks under a single power. Historians know a fair amount about the supply of spices in Europe during the medieval period – the origins, methods of transportation, the prices – but less about demand. Why go to such extraordinary efforts to procure expensive products from exotic lands? Still, demand was great enough to inspire the voyages of Christopher Columbus and Vasco Da Gama, launching the first fateful wave of European colonialism. . . . So, why were spices so highly prized in Europe in the centuries from about 1000 to 1500? One widely disseminated explanation for medieval demand for spices was that they covered the taste of spoiled meat. . . . Medieval purchasers consumed meat much fresher than what the average city-dweller in the developed world of today has at hand. However, refrigeration was not available, and some hot spices have been shown to serve as an anti-bacterial agent. Salting, smoking or drying meat were other means of preservation. Most spices used in cooking began as medical ingredients, and throughout the Middle Ages spices were used as both medicines and condiments. Above all, medieval recipes involve the combination of medical and culinary lore in order to balance food's humeral properties and prevent disease. Most spices were hot and dry and so appropriate in sauces to counteract the moist and wet properties supposedly possessed by most meat and fish. . . . Where spices came from was known in a vague sense centuries before the voyages of Columbus. Just how vague may be judged by looking at medieval world maps . . . To the medieval European imagination, the East was exotic and alluring. Medieval maps often placed India close to the so-called Earthly Paradise, the Garden of Eden described in the Bible. Geographical knowledge has a lot to do with the perceptions of spices' relative scarcity and the reasons for their high prices. An example of the varying notions of scarcity is the conflicting information about how pepper is harvested. As far back as the 7th century Europeans thought that pepper in India grew on trees "guarded" by serpents that would bite and poison anyone who attempted to gather the fruit. The only way to harvest pepper was to burn the trees, which would drive the snakes underground. Of course, this bit of lore would explain the shriveled black peppercorns, but not white, pink or other colors. Spices never had the enduring allure or power of gold and silver or the commercial potential of new products such as tobacco, indigo or sugar. But the taste for spices did continue for a while beyond the Middle Ages. As late as the 17th century, the English and the Dutch were struggling for control of the Spice Islands: Dutch New Amsterdam, or New York, was exchanged by the British for one of the Moluccan Islands where nutmeg was grown.

In the context of the passage, the people who heard the story of pepper trees being guarded by snakes would be least likely to arrive at the conclusion that

  • Ait is not advisable to go to India to harvest the pepper themselves.
  • Bthis is why pepper is so hot.Correct answer
  • Cpepper is costly for good reason.
  • Dit is no surprise that the pepper supply is so limited.

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B Snake-guard stories support fear of harvesting, justified high cost, and scarce supply. They do not explain pungency—“this is why pepper is so hot”—so B is least likely. Why the others fail: • A — Dangerous guardians make personal harvesting in India look unwise. • C — Extreme risk rationalises high prices. • D — Burning trees / snakes make limited supply unsurprising.
Q7Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. Spices were a global commodity centuries before European voyages. There was a complex chain of relations, yet consumers had little knowledge of producers and vice versa. Desire for spices helped fuel European colonial empires to create political, military and commercial networks under a single power. Historians know a fair amount about the supply of spices in Europe during the medieval period – the origins, methods of transportation, the prices – but less about demand. Why go to such extraordinary efforts to procure expensive products from exotic lands? Still, demand was great enough to inspire the voyages of Christopher Columbus and Vasco Da Gama, launching the first fateful wave of European colonialism. . . . So, why were spices so highly prized in Europe in the centuries from about 1000 to 1500? One widely disseminated explanation for medieval demand for spices was that they covered the taste of spoiled meat. . . . Medieval purchasers consumed meat much fresher than what the average city-dweller in the developed world of today has at hand. However, refrigeration was not available, and some hot spices have been shown to serve as an anti-bacterial agent. Salting, smoking or drying meat were other means of preservation. Most spices used in cooking began as medical ingredients, and throughout the Middle Ages spices were used as both medicines and condiments. Above all, medieval recipes involve the combination of medical and culinary lore in order to balance food's humeral properties and prevent disease. Most spices were hot and dry and so appropriate in sauces to counteract the moist and wet properties supposedly possessed by most meat and fish. . . . Where spices came from was known in a vague sense centuries before the voyages of Columbus. Just how vague may be judged by looking at medieval world maps . . . To the medieval European imagination, the East was exotic and alluring. Medieval maps often placed India close to the so-called Earthly Paradise, the Garden of Eden described in the Bible. Geographical knowledge has a lot to do with the perceptions of spices' relative scarcity and the reasons for their high prices. An example of the varying notions of scarcity is the conflicting information about how pepper is harvested. As far back as the 7th century Europeans thought that pepper in India grew on trees "guarded" by serpents that would bite and poison anyone who attempted to gather the fruit. The only way to harvest pepper was to burn the trees, which would drive the snakes underground. Of course, this bit of lore would explain the shriveled black peppercorns, but not white, pink or other colors. Spices never had the enduring allure or power of gold and silver or the commercial potential of new products such as tobacco, indigo or sugar. But the taste for spices did continue for a while beyond the Middle Ages. As late as the 17th century, the English and the Dutch were struggling for control of the Spice Islands: Dutch New Amsterdam, or New York, was exchanged by the British for one of the Moluccan Islands where nutmeg was grown.

In the context of the passage, which one of the following conclusions CANNOT be reached?

  • AIndia was colonised for its spices and gold.Correct answer
  • BTobacco was more marketable than spices.
  • CColonialism was motivated by the demand for spices.
  • DThe spice trade was a driver of colonial expansion.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A Demand for spices helped launch colonial voyages, and tobacco outranks spices commercially; gold/silver outrank them in enduring allure. The text does not support the specific conclusion that India was colonised for spices *and gold*. Why the others fail: • B — Last paragraph: tobacco (with indigo/sugar) had greater commercial potential than spices. • C — Spice demand inspiring Columbus/da Gama motivates colonialism. • D — Same demand underwrites spice trade as an expansion driver.
Q8Verbal Ability·Odd Sentence OutTITA

Five jumbled sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence out and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.

1. The UK is a world leader in developing cultivated meat and the approval of a cultivated pet food is an important milestone. 2. If we’re to realise the full potential benefits of cultivated meat the government must invest in research and infrastructure. 3. The first UK applications for cultivated meat produced for humans remain under assessment with the Food Standards Agency. 4. The previous UK government had been looking at fast-tracking the approval of cultivated meat for human consumption. 5. It underscores the potential for new innovation to help reduce the negative impacts of intensive animal agriculture.

Answer: 4

Show explanation
Answer:4 Keep 1 → 5 → 3 → 2: UK leadership and cultivated *pet* food approval as a milestone (1); that underscores innovation’s power to cut intensive farming harms (5); human cultivated-meat applications are still under FSA assessment (3); realizing full benefits therefore needs government research and infrastructure investment (2). Why 4 is odd: A past government’s interest in “fast-tracking” human approval is a separate policy footnote that never links pet-food milestone, human applications still pending, or the investment ask.
Q9Verbal Ability·Sentence Placement

Sentence: Yet each day the flock produced eggs with calcareous shells though they apparently had not ingested any calcium from land which was entirely lacking in limestone. Paragraph: Early in this century a young Breton schoolboy who preparing himself for a scientific career began to notice a strange fact about hens in his father’s poultry yard.___ (1) ___. As they scratched the soil they constantly seemed to be pecking at specks of mica, a siliceous material dotting the ground. ___ (2) ___. No one could explain to Louis Kervran why the chickens selected the mica, or why each time a bird was killed for the family cooking pot no trace of the mica could be found in its gizzard. ____ (3) ____. It took Kervran many years to establish that the chickens were transmuting one element into another. ___ (4) ___.

  • ABlank 4
  • BBlank 3Correct answer
  • CBlank 2
  • DBlank 1

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (Blank 3) Sentence. Yet each day the flock laid calcareous-shelled eggs though the land had no limestone (no ingested calcium). Why Blank 3. We already have the mica-pecking mystery and the empty gizzard. The calcium-from-nowhere paradox is the second anomaly; Kervran’s transmutation claim (Blank 4) is the proposed resolution and must come last. Why not the others. - Blank 1 is before mica has been noticed. - Blank 2 is still the mica observation. - Blank 4 is the conclusion, not another unexplained fact.
Q10Reading Comprehension·Specific Detail

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The job of a peer reviewer is thankless. Collectively, academics spend around 70 million hours every year evaluating each other’s manuscripts on the behalf of scholarly journals – and they usually receive no monetary compensation and little if any recognition for their effort. Some do it as a way to keep abreast with developments in their field; some simply see it as a duty to the discipline. Either way, academic publishing would likely crumble without them. In recent years, some scientists have begun posting their reviews online, mainly to claim credit for their work. Sites like Publons allow researchers to either share entire referee reports or simply list the journals for whom they've carried out a review.... The rise of Publons suggests that academics are increasingly placing value on the work of peer review and asking others, such as grant funders, to do the same. While that’s vital in the publish-or-perish culture of academia, there’s also immense value in the data underlying peer review. Sharing peer review data could help journals stamp out fraud, inefficiency, and systemic bias in academic publishing..... Peer review data could also help root out bias. Last year, a study based on peer review data for nearly 24,000 submissions to the biomedical journal eLife found that women and non-Westerners were vastly underrepresented among peer reviewers. Only around one in every five reviewers was female, and less than two percent of reviewers were based in developing countries. ... Openly publishing peer review data could perhaps also help journals address another problem in academic publishing: fraudulent peer reviews. For instance, a minority of authors have been known to use phony email addresses to pose as an outside expert and review their own manuscripts.... Opponents of open peer review commonly argue that confidentiality is vital to the integrity of the review process; referees may be less critical of manuscripts if their reports are published, especially if they are revealing their identities by signing them. Some also hold concerns that open reviewing may deter referees from agreeing to judge manuscripts in the first place, or that they'll take longer to do so out of fear of scrutiny... Even when the content of reviews and the identity of reviewers can’t be shared publicly, perhaps journals could share the data with outside researchers for study. Or they could release other figures that wouldn’t compromise the anonymity of reviews but that might answer important questions about how long the reviewing process takes, how many researchers editors have to reach out to on average to find one who will carry out the work, and the geographic distribution of peer reviewers. Of course, opening up data underlying the reviewing process will not fix peer review entirely, and there may be instances in which there are valid reasons to keep the content of peer reviews hidden and the identity of the referees confidential. But the norm should shift from opacity in all cases to opacity only when necessary.

All of the following are listed as reasons why academics choose to review other scholars’ work EXCEPT:

  • ASome use this as an opportunity to publicise their own review work.
  • BIt is seen as a form of service to the academic community.
  • CIt helps them keep current with cutting-edge ideas in their academic disciplines.
  • DIt is seen as an opportunity to expand their influence in the academic community.Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D Reviewers act to keep current, serve the discipline, and sometimes publicise/claim credit for reviews. Expanding personal *influence* in the academy is not listed. Why the others fail: • A — Matches posting reviews mainly to claim credit. • B — Matches duty/service to the field. • C — Matches keeping abreast of cutting-edge work.
Q11Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The job of a peer reviewer is thankless. Collectively, academics spend around 70 million hours every year evaluating each other’s manuscripts on the behalf of scholarly journals – and they usually receive no monetary compensation and little if any recognition for their effort. Some do it as a way to keep abreast with developments in their field; some simply see it as a duty to the discipline. Either way, academic publishing would likely crumble without them. In recent years, some scientists have begun posting their reviews online, mainly to claim credit for their work. Sites like Publons allow researchers to either share entire referee reports or simply list the journals for whom they've carried out a review.... The rise of Publons suggests that academics are increasingly placing value on the work of peer review and asking others, such as grant funders, to do the same. While that’s vital in the publish-or-perish culture of academia, there’s also immense value in the data underlying peer review. Sharing peer review data could help journals stamp out fraud, inefficiency, and systemic bias in academic publishing..... Peer review data could also help root out bias. Last year, a study based on peer review data for nearly 24,000 submissions to the biomedical journal eLife found that women and non-Westerners were vastly underrepresented among peer reviewers. Only around one in every five reviewers was female, and less than two percent of reviewers were based in developing countries. ... Openly publishing peer review data could perhaps also help journals address another problem in academic publishing: fraudulent peer reviews. For instance, a minority of authors have been known to use phony email addresses to pose as an outside expert and review their own manuscripts.... Opponents of open peer review commonly argue that confidentiality is vital to the integrity of the review process; referees may be less critical of manuscripts if their reports are published, especially if they are revealing their identities by signing them. Some also hold concerns that open reviewing may deter referees from agreeing to judge manuscripts in the first place, or that they'll take longer to do so out of fear of scrutiny... Even when the content of reviews and the identity of reviewers can’t be shared publicly, perhaps journals could share the data with outside researchers for study. Or they could release other figures that wouldn’t compromise the anonymity of reviews but that might answer important questions about how long the reviewing process takes, how many researchers editors have to reach out to on average to find one who will carry out the work, and the geographic distribution of peer reviewers. Of course, opening up data underlying the reviewing process will not fix peer review entirely, and there may be instances in which there are valid reasons to keep the content of peer reviews hidden and the identity of the referees confidential. But the norm should shift from opacity in all cases to opacity only when necessary.

Based on the passage we can infer that the author would most probably support

  • Agreater transparency across the peer review process in academic publishing.Correct answer
  • Bpublicising peer review data rather than the publication of actual reviews.
  • Cpreserving the anonymity of reviewers to protect them from criticism.
  • Dmore careful screening to ensure the recruitment of content-familiar peer reviewers.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A The author pushes from default opacity toward openness only when needed—so greater transparency in peer review is the supported stance. Why the others fail: • B — Preferring data release *instead of* publishing reviews is not the author’s prescription. • C — Blanket anonymity-as-protection is the opacity habit the author wants to shrink. • D — Tighter screening for content-familiar reviewers is not the main reform urged.
Q12Reading Comprehension·Specific Detail

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The job of a peer reviewer is thankless. Collectively, academics spend around 70 million hours every year evaluating each other’s manuscripts on the behalf of scholarly journals – and they usually receive no monetary compensation and little if any recognition for their effort. Some do it as a way to keep abreast with developments in their field; some simply see it as a duty to the discipline. Either way, academic publishing would likely crumble without them. In recent years, some scientists have begun posting their reviews online, mainly to claim credit for their work. Sites like Publons allow researchers to either share entire referee reports or simply list the journals for whom they've carried out a review.... The rise of Publons suggests that academics are increasingly placing value on the work of peer review and asking others, such as grant funders, to do the same. While that’s vital in the publish-or-perish culture of academia, there’s also immense value in the data underlying peer review. Sharing peer review data could help journals stamp out fraud, inefficiency, and systemic bias in academic publishing..... Peer review data could also help root out bias. Last year, a study based on peer review data for nearly 24,000 submissions to the biomedical journal eLife found that women and non-Westerners were vastly underrepresented among peer reviewers. Only around one in every five reviewers was female, and less than two percent of reviewers were based in developing countries. ... Openly publishing peer review data could perhaps also help journals address another problem in academic publishing: fraudulent peer reviews. For instance, a minority of authors have been known to use phony email addresses to pose as an outside expert and review their own manuscripts.... Opponents of open peer review commonly argue that confidentiality is vital to the integrity of the review process; referees may be less critical of manuscripts if their reports are published, especially if they are revealing their identities by signing them. Some also hold concerns that open reviewing may deter referees from agreeing to judge manuscripts in the first place, or that they'll take longer to do so out of fear of scrutiny... Even when the content of reviews and the identity of reviewers can’t be shared publicly, perhaps journals could share the data with outside researchers for study. Or they could release other figures that wouldn’t compromise the anonymity of reviews but that might answer important questions about how long the reviewing process takes, how many researchers editors have to reach out to on average to find one who will carry out the work, and the geographic distribution of peer reviewers. Of course, opening up data underlying the reviewing process will not fix peer review entirely, and there may be instances in which there are valid reasons to keep the content of peer reviews hidden and the identity of the referees confidential. But the norm should shift from opacity in all cases to opacity only when necessary.

According to the passage, which of the following is the only reason NOT given in favour of making peer review data public?

  • AIt could address various inefficiencies and fraudulent practices that continue in academic publishing process.
  • BIt would highlight the gender and race biases currently existing in the selection of reviewers.
  • CIt will deal with peer review fraud such as authors publishing bogus reviews of their work.
  • DIt can tackle the problem of selecting appropriately qualified reviewers for academic writing.Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D Open review data is argued to fight fraud, inefficiency, bias (including who gets to review), and bogus reviews. It is not pitched as the solution to selecting appropriately qualified reviewers. Why the others fail: • A — Explicitly: stamp out fraud, inefficiency, systemic bias. • B — Data can expose gender/region underrepresentation among reviewers. • C — Openness helps against fraudulent peer-review rings.
Q13Reading Comprehension·Specific Detail

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The job of a peer reviewer is thankless. Collectively, academics spend around 70 million hours every year evaluating each other’s manuscripts on the behalf of scholarly journals – and they usually receive no monetary compensation and little if any recognition for their effort. Some do it as a way to keep abreast with developments in their field; some simply see it as a duty to the discipline. Either way, academic publishing would likely crumble without them. In recent years, some scientists have begun posting their reviews online, mainly to claim credit for their work. Sites like Publons allow researchers to either share entire referee reports or simply list the journals for whom they've carried out a review.... The rise of Publons suggests that academics are increasingly placing value on the work of peer review and asking others, such as grant funders, to do the same. While that’s vital in the publish-or-perish culture of academia, there’s also immense value in the data underlying peer review. Sharing peer review data could help journals stamp out fraud, inefficiency, and systemic bias in academic publishing..... Peer review data could also help root out bias. Last year, a study based on peer review data for nearly 24,000 submissions to the biomedical journal eLife found that women and non-Westerners were vastly underrepresented among peer reviewers. Only around one in every five reviewers was female, and less than two percent of reviewers were based in developing countries. ... Openly publishing peer review data could perhaps also help journals address another problem in academic publishing: fraudulent peer reviews. For instance, a minority of authors have been known to use phony email addresses to pose as an outside expert and review their own manuscripts.... Opponents of open peer review commonly argue that confidentiality is vital to the integrity of the review process; referees may be less critical of manuscripts if their reports are published, especially if they are revealing their identities by signing them. Some also hold concerns that open reviewing may deter referees from agreeing to judge manuscripts in the first place, or that they'll take longer to do so out of fear of scrutiny... Even when the content of reviews and the identity of reviewers can’t be shared publicly, perhaps journals could share the data with outside researchers for study. Or they could release other figures that wouldn’t compromise the anonymity of reviews but that might answer important questions about how long the reviewing process takes, how many researchers editors have to reach out to on average to find one who will carry out the work, and the geographic distribution of peer reviewers. Of course, opening up data underlying the reviewing process will not fix peer review entirely, and there may be instances in which there are valid reasons to keep the content of peer reviews hidden and the identity of the referees confidential. But the norm should shift from opacity in all cases to opacity only when necessary.

According to the passage, some are opposed to making peer reviews public for all the following reasons EXCEPT that it

  • Adeters reviewers from producing honest, if critical, reviews that are vital to the sound publishing process.
  • Bdelays the manuscript evaluation process as reviewers would take longer to write their reviews.
  • Cleaves the reviewers unexposed to unwarranted and unjustified criticism or comments from others.Correct answer
  • Dmakes reviewers reluctant to review manuscripts, especially if these are critical of the submitted work.

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C Opponents fear published reviews will soften criticism, deter referees, or slow them under scrutiny. C says openness *shields* reviewers from unjust criticism—the opposite of their fear—so C is not their reason. Why the others fail: • A — Matches fear that open/signed reports make referees less critical. • B — Matches fear that scrutiny slows reviewing. • D — Matches reluctance to write tough reviews if they will be public.
Q14Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The history of any major technological or industrial advance is inevitably shadowed by a less predictable history of unintended consequences and secondary effects — what economists sometimes call “externalities.” Sometimes those consequences are innocuous ones, or even beneficial. Gutenberg invents the printing press, and literacy rates rise, which causes a significant part of the reading public to require spectacles for the first time, which creates a surge of investment in lens-making across Europe, which leads to the invention of the telescope and the microscope. Oftentimes the secondary effects seem to belong to an entirely different sphere of society. When Willis Carrier hit upon the idea of air-conditioning, the technology was primarily intended for industrial use: ensuring cool, dry air for factories that required low-humidity environments. But...it touched off one of the largest migrations in the history of the United States, enabling the rise of metropolitan areas like Phoenix and Las Vegas that barely existed when Carrier first started tinkering with the idea in the early 1900s. Sometimes the unintended consequence comes about when consumers use an invention in a surprising way. Edison famously thought his phonograph, which he sometimes called “the talking machine,” would primarily be used to take dictation....But then later innovators... discovered a much larger audience willing to pay for musical recordings made on descendants of Edison's original invention. In other cases, the original innovation comes into the world disguised as a plaything...the way the animatronic dolls of the mid-1700s inspired Jacquard to invent the first “programmable” loom and Charles Babbage to invent the first machine that fit the modern definition of a computer, setting the stage for the revolution in programmable technology that would transform the 21st century in countless ways. We live under the gathering storm of modern history’s most momentous unintended consequence....carbonbased climate change. Imagine the vast sweep of inventors whose ideas started the Industrial Revolution, all the entrepreneurs and scientists and hobbyists who had a hand in bringing it about. Line up a thousand of them and ask them all what they had been hoping to do with their work. Not one would say that their intent had been to deposit enough carbon in the atmosphere to create a greenhouse effect that trapped heat at the surface of the planet. And yet here we are. Ethyl (leaded fuel) and Freon belonged to the same general class of secondary effect: innovations whose unintended consequences stem from some kind of waste by-product that they emit. But the potential health threats of Ethyl (unleaded fuel) were visible in the 1920s, unlike, say, the long-term effects of atmospheric carbon build up in the early days of the Industrial Revolution.... Indeed, it is reasonable to see CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) as a forerunner of the kind of threat we will most likely face in the coming decades, as it becomes increasingly possible for individuals or small groups to create new scientific advances — through chemistry or biotechnology or materials science — setting off unintended consequences that reverberate on a global scale.

We can assume that the author would support all of the following views EXCEPT:

  • AIt has become far easier for people today to bring out innovations with dire worldwide consequences than it was earlier.
  • BThe emissions caused by the large-scale use of leaded fuel ought to have been addressed earlier than they were.
  • CThe by-products of leaded fuel, rather than the fuel itself, were responsible for the build-up of carbon-related gases in the atmosphere.
  • DWhile technological advances in the past have had innocuous or beneficial outcomes, more recent advances have the potential to be more threatening globally.Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D The author says past secondary effects were *sometimes* innocuous or beneficial—not that historical tech was safely benign while only recent advances threaten the planet. D’s neat past-good/present-dangerous split is the view the author would not support. Why the others fail: • A — Matches the worry that small groups can now trigger global-scale unintended consequences via new biotech/chemistry. • B — Leaded fuel’s harm is an example of a secondary effect that should have been confronted earlier. • C — Fits treating emissions/by-products of leaded fuel (not the intended product use alone) as the atmospheric problem class.
Q15Reading Comprehension·Main Idea / Purpose

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The history of any major technological or industrial advance is inevitably shadowed by a less predictable history of unintended consequences and secondary effects — what economists sometimes call “externalities.” Sometimes those consequences are innocuous ones, or even beneficial. Gutenberg invents the printing press, and literacy rates rise, which causes a significant part of the reading public to require spectacles for the first time, which creates a surge of investment in lens-making across Europe, which leads to the invention of the telescope and the microscope. Oftentimes the secondary effects seem to belong to an entirely different sphere of society. When Willis Carrier hit upon the idea of air-conditioning, the technology was primarily intended for industrial use: ensuring cool, dry air for factories that required low-humidity environments. But...it touched off one of the largest migrations in the history of the United States, enabling the rise of metropolitan areas like Phoenix and Las Vegas that barely existed when Carrier first started tinkering with the idea in the early 1900s. Sometimes the unintended consequence comes about when consumers use an invention in a surprising way. Edison famously thought his phonograph, which he sometimes called “the talking machine,” would primarily be used to take dictation....But then later innovators... discovered a much larger audience willing to pay for musical recordings made on descendants of Edison's original invention. In other cases, the original innovation comes into the world disguised as a plaything...the way the animatronic dolls of the mid-1700s inspired Jacquard to invent the first “programmable” loom and Charles Babbage to invent the first machine that fit the modern definition of a computer, setting the stage for the revolution in programmable technology that would transform the 21st century in countless ways. We live under the gathering storm of modern history’s most momentous unintended consequence....carbonbased climate change. Imagine the vast sweep of inventors whose ideas started the Industrial Revolution, all the entrepreneurs and scientists and hobbyists who had a hand in bringing it about. Line up a thousand of them and ask them all what they had been hoping to do with their work. Not one would say that their intent had been to deposit enough carbon in the atmosphere to create a greenhouse effect that trapped heat at the surface of the planet. And yet here we are. Ethyl (leaded fuel) and Freon belonged to the same general class of secondary effect: innovations whose unintended consequences stem from some kind of waste by-product that they emit. But the potential health threats of Ethyl (unleaded fuel) were visible in the 1920s, unlike, say, the long-term effects of atmospheric carbon build up in the early days of the Industrial Revolution.... Indeed, it is reasonable to see CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) as a forerunner of the kind of threat we will most likely face in the coming decades, as it becomes increasingly possible for individuals or small groups to create new scientific advances — through chemistry or biotechnology or materials science — setting off unintended consequences that reverberate on a global scale.

Which of the following best conveys the main point of the first paragraph?

  • AThe full impact of technological advances cannot be estimated in the short run as the ripple effects often extend far beyond the original intent.Correct answer
  • BIt is important to judge an invention not by its immediate outcomes, but by the holistic impact of its secondary effects.
  • CThe secondary effects of most major technological advances in the past, especially if they were unintended, have turned out to be beneficial.
  • DThe entire impact of a technological advance should be evaluated by the boost its secondary effects gives to generating further technological advances.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A Paragraph 1’s point: technological advances spawn externalities whose full impact unfolds far beyond the original intent and short-run view. Why the others fail: • B — Turns the paragraph into a judging rubric (“holistic impact”); the stress is unpredictability/extent of ripples. • C — Says secondary effects were mostly beneficial; the author says sometimes beneficial, and also cites harms. • D — Narrows evaluation to whether spin-offs birth more inventions—too narrow for the paragraph.
Q16Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The history of any major technological or industrial advance is inevitably shadowed by a less predictable history of unintended consequences and secondary effects — what economists sometimes call “externalities.” Sometimes those consequences are innocuous ones, or even beneficial. Gutenberg invents the printing press, and literacy rates rise, which causes a significant part of the reading public to require spectacles for the first time, which creates a surge of investment in lens-making across Europe, which leads to the invention of the telescope and the microscope. Oftentimes the secondary effects seem to belong to an entirely different sphere of society. When Willis Carrier hit upon the idea of air-conditioning, the technology was primarily intended for industrial use: ensuring cool, dry air for factories that required low-humidity environments. But...it touched off one of the largest migrations in the history of the United States, enabling the rise of metropolitan areas like Phoenix and Las Vegas that barely existed when Carrier first started tinkering with the idea in the early 1900s. Sometimes the unintended consequence comes about when consumers use an invention in a surprising way. Edison famously thought his phonograph, which he sometimes called “the talking machine,” would primarily be used to take dictation....But then later innovators... discovered a much larger audience willing to pay for musical recordings made on descendants of Edison's original invention. In other cases, the original innovation comes into the world disguised as a plaything...the way the animatronic dolls of the mid-1700s inspired Jacquard to invent the first “programmable” loom and Charles Babbage to invent the first machine that fit the modern definition of a computer, setting the stage for the revolution in programmable technology that would transform the 21st century in countless ways. We live under the gathering storm of modern history’s most momentous unintended consequence....carbonbased climate change. Imagine the vast sweep of inventors whose ideas started the Industrial Revolution, all the entrepreneurs and scientists and hobbyists who had a hand in bringing it about. Line up a thousand of them and ask them all what they had been hoping to do with their work. Not one would say that their intent had been to deposit enough carbon in the atmosphere to create a greenhouse effect that trapped heat at the surface of the planet. And yet here we are. Ethyl (leaded fuel) and Freon belonged to the same general class of secondary effect: innovations whose unintended consequences stem from some kind of waste by-product that they emit. But the potential health threats of Ethyl (unleaded fuel) were visible in the 1920s, unlike, say, the long-term effects of atmospheric carbon build up in the early days of the Industrial Revolution.... Indeed, it is reasonable to see CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) as a forerunner of the kind of threat we will most likely face in the coming decades, as it becomes increasingly possible for individuals or small groups to create new scientific advances — through chemistry or biotechnology or materials science — setting off unintended consequences that reverberate on a global scale.

The author lists all of the following examples as “externalities” of major technical advances EXCEPT:

  • Abuild-up of chlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere
  • Bextension of the phonograph to large-scale recording of music
  • Ccooling and de-humidifying of factories through air-conditioningCorrect answer
  • Dapplication of the Jacquard loom to modern IT programming

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C Externalities are unintended secondary paths (CFCs; phonograph→mass music; Jacquard→programming ideas). Cooling/dehumidifying factories was Carrier’s *primary* aim for air-conditioning—not an externality example. Why the others fail: • A — CFC build-up is a named harmful spillover. • B — Large-scale music recording is a secondary use beyond Edison’s dictation idea. • D — Jacquard’s influence on IT/programming is a cross-domain spillover.
Q17Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. The history of any major technological or industrial advance is inevitably shadowed by a less predictable history of unintended consequences and secondary effects — what economists sometimes call “externalities.” Sometimes those consequences are innocuous ones, or even beneficial. Gutenberg invents the printing press, and literacy rates rise, which causes a significant part of the reading public to require spectacles for the first time, which creates a surge of investment in lens-making across Europe, which leads to the invention of the telescope and the microscope. Oftentimes the secondary effects seem to belong to an entirely different sphere of society. When Willis Carrier hit upon the idea of air-conditioning, the technology was primarily intended for industrial use: ensuring cool, dry air for factories that required low-humidity environments. But...it touched off one of the largest migrations in the history of the United States, enabling the rise of metropolitan areas like Phoenix and Las Vegas that barely existed when Carrier first started tinkering with the idea in the early 1900s. Sometimes the unintended consequence comes about when consumers use an invention in a surprising way. Edison famously thought his phonograph, which he sometimes called “the talking machine,” would primarily be used to take dictation....But then later innovators... discovered a much larger audience willing to pay for musical recordings made on descendants of Edison's original invention. In other cases, the original innovation comes into the world disguised as a plaything...the way the animatronic dolls of the mid-1700s inspired Jacquard to invent the first “programmable” loom and Charles Babbage to invent the first machine that fit the modern definition of a computer, setting the stage for the revolution in programmable technology that would transform the 21st century in countless ways. We live under the gathering storm of modern history’s most momentous unintended consequence....carbonbased climate change. Imagine the vast sweep of inventors whose ideas started the Industrial Revolution, all the entrepreneurs and scientists and hobbyists who had a hand in bringing it about. Line up a thousand of them and ask them all what they had been hoping to do with their work. Not one would say that their intent had been to deposit enough carbon in the atmosphere to create a greenhouse effect that trapped heat at the surface of the planet. And yet here we are. Ethyl (leaded fuel) and Freon belonged to the same general class of secondary effect: innovations whose unintended consequences stem from some kind of waste by-product that they emit. But the potential health threats of Ethyl (unleaded fuel) were visible in the 1920s, unlike, say, the long-term effects of atmospheric carbon build up in the early days of the Industrial Revolution.... Indeed, it is reasonable to see CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) as a forerunner of the kind of threat we will most likely face in the coming decades, as it becomes increasingly possible for individuals or small groups to create new scientific advances — through chemistry or biotechnology or materials science — setting off unintended consequences that reverberate on a global scale.

Carrier, Babbage, and Edison are mentioned in the passage to illustrate the author’s point that

  • Athese inventors could not have visualised the eventual impact of their inventions on society.Correct answer
  • Bdespite the original intention, the unintended consequences of their inventions were largely beneficial.
  • Cinventions typically end up being used for entirely different purposes than the intended ones.
  • Dthe secondary effect of past inventions mostly resulted in the creation of new inventions.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A Carrier, Babbage, and Edison show inventors who could not picture the eventual societal reach of their devices. Why the others fail: • B — Unintended consequences are not cast as largely beneficial in every case. • C — Overclaims total purpose-replacement; the lesson is unforeseen impact/sphere-shift, not always a wholly different use. • D — Spawning further inventions is only one strand, not why these names appear.
Q18Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. (...) There are three other common drivers for carnivore–human attacks, some of which are more preventable than others. Natural aggression-based conflicts – such as those involving females protecting their young or animals protecting a food source – can often be avoided as long as people stay away from those animals and their food. Carnivores that recognise humans as a means to get food, are a different story. As they become more reliant on human food they might find at campsites or in rubbish bins, they become less avoidant of humans. Losing that instinctive fear response puts them into more situations where they could get into an altercation with a human, which often results in that bear being put down by humans. “A fed bear is a dead bear,” says Servheen, referring to a common saying among biologists and conservationists. Predatory or predation-related attacks are quite rare, only accounting for 17% of attacks in North America since 1955. They occur when a carnivore views a human as prey and hunts it like it would any other animal it uses for food. (…) Then there are animal attacks provoked by people taking pictures with them or feeding them in natural settings such as national parks which often end with animals being euthanised out of precaution. “Eventually, that animal becomes habituated to people, and then bad things happen to the animal. And the folks who initially wanted to make that connection don’t necessarily realise that,” says Christine Wilkinson, a postdoctoral researcher at UC Berkeley, California, who’s been studying coyote-human conflicts. After conducting countless postmortems on all types of carnivore-human attacks spanning 75 years, Penteriani’s team believes 50% could have been avoided if humans reacted differently. A 2017 study coauthored by Penteriani found that engaging in risky behaviour around large carnivores increases the likelihood of an attack. Two of the most common risky behaviours are parents leaving their children to play outside unattended and walking an unleashed dog, according to the study. Wilkinson says 66% of coyote attacks involve a dog. “People end up in a situation where their dog is being chased, or their dog chases a coyote, or maybe they’re walking their dog near a den that's marked, and the coyote wants to escort them away,” says Wilkinson. Experts believe climate change also plays a part in the escalation of human-carnivore conflicts, but the correlation still needs to be ironed out. “As finite resources become scarcer, carnivores and people are coming into more frequent contact, which means that more conflict could occur,” says Jen Miller, international programme specialist for the US Fish & Wildlife Service. For example, she says, there was an uptick in lion attacks in western India during a drought when lions and people were relying on the same water sources. (...) The likelihood of human-carnivore conflicts appears to be higher in areas of low-income countries dominated by vast rural landscapes and farmland, according to Penteriani’s research. “There are a lot of working landscapes in the Global South that are really heterogeneous, that are interspersed with carnivore habitats, forests and savannahs, which creates a lot more opportunity for these encounters, just statistically,” says Wilkinson.

According to the passage, which of the following scenarios would MOST likely exacerbate the frequency of carnivore-human conflicts?

  • AUnleashing dogs by pet owners in areas with known high concentrations of large carnivores.Correct answer
  • BAttempting to photograph wild animals from within secured viewing areas in national parks and protected zones.
  • CAddressing the impact of climate change on the availability of resources for wildlife.
  • DImplementing ‘food waste’ management strategies to prevent wild animals being attracted to human food sources.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A Penteriani’s work links attacks to risky human behaviour; walking unleashed dogs in high-carnivore zones is named as a common risk that raises conflict odds. Why the others fail: • B — Shooting photos from secured viewing areas is controlled behaviour, not a conflict amplifier. • C — Mitigating climate-driven resource loss would ease a driver, not worsen frequency. • D — Food-waste management reduces attractants that habituate carnivores to people.
Q19Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. (...) There are three other common drivers for carnivore–human attacks, some of which are more preventable than others. Natural aggression-based conflicts – such as those involving females protecting their young or animals protecting a food source – can often be avoided as long as people stay away from those animals and their food. Carnivores that recognise humans as a means to get food, are a different story. As they become more reliant on human food they might find at campsites or in rubbish bins, they become less avoidant of humans. Losing that instinctive fear response puts them into more situations where they could get into an altercation with a human, which often results in that bear being put down by humans. “A fed bear is a dead bear,” says Servheen, referring to a common saying among biologists and conservationists. Predatory or predation-related attacks are quite rare, only accounting for 17% of attacks in North America since 1955. They occur when a carnivore views a human as prey and hunts it like it would any other animal it uses for food. (…) Then there are animal attacks provoked by people taking pictures with them or feeding them in natural settings such as national parks which often end with animals being euthanised out of precaution. “Eventually, that animal becomes habituated to people, and then bad things happen to the animal. And the folks who initially wanted to make that connection don’t necessarily realise that,” says Christine Wilkinson, a postdoctoral researcher at UC Berkeley, California, who’s been studying coyote-human conflicts. After conducting countless postmortems on all types of carnivore-human attacks spanning 75 years, Penteriani’s team believes 50% could have been avoided if humans reacted differently. A 2017 study coauthored by Penteriani found that engaging in risky behaviour around large carnivores increases the likelihood of an attack. Two of the most common risky behaviours are parents leaving their children to play outside unattended and walking an unleashed dog, according to the study. Wilkinson says 66% of coyote attacks involve a dog. “People end up in a situation where their dog is being chased, or their dog chases a coyote, or maybe they’re walking their dog near a den that's marked, and the coyote wants to escort them away,” says Wilkinson. Experts believe climate change also plays a part in the escalation of human-carnivore conflicts, but the correlation still needs to be ironed out. “As finite resources become scarcer, carnivores and people are coming into more frequent contact, which means that more conflict could occur,” says Jen Miller, international programme specialist for the US Fish & Wildlife Service. For example, she says, there was an uptick in lion attacks in western India during a drought when lions and people were relying on the same water sources. (...) The likelihood of human-carnivore conflicts appears to be higher in areas of low-income countries dominated by vast rural landscapes and farmland, according to Penteriani’s research. “There are a lot of working landscapes in the Global South that are really heterogeneous, that are interspersed with carnivore habitats, forests and savannahs, which creates a lot more opportunity for these encounters, just statistically,” says Wilkinson.

Which of the following statements, if false, would be inconsistent with the concerns raised in the passage regarding the drivers of carnivore-human conflicts?

  • APredatory attacks by carnivores are a common occurrence and have steadily increased over the past few decades.
  • BHuman efforts to avoid risky behaviours around large carnivores have proven effective in reducing conflict incidents.
  • CCarnivores lose their instinctive fear of humans, when consistently exposed to human food sources.
  • DClimate change has had negligible effects on the frequency of carnivore-human interactions in affected regions.Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D The passage treats climate-linked resource scarcity as a live driver of more human–carnivore encounters. The claim that climate change has had *negligible* effects on those interactions is the one that clashes with that concern (the keyed choice under the stem’s truth-test). Why the others fail: • A — Predatory attacks are described as relatively uncommon, not a steadily common surge; falsifying A does not undercut the passage’s named drivers the way climate-negligibility does. • B — The text stresses that different human reactions could avoid many incidents, so “avoidance helps” is not the odd-man claim. • C — Habituation via human food is explicitly part of the conflict story; that claim aligns with the passage.
Q20Reading Comprehension·Inference

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. (...) There are three other common drivers for carnivore–human attacks, some of which are more preventable than others. Natural aggression-based conflicts – such as those involving females protecting their young or animals protecting a food source – can often be avoided as long as people stay away from those animals and their food. Carnivores that recognise humans as a means to get food, are a different story. As they become more reliant on human food they might find at campsites or in rubbish bins, they become less avoidant of humans. Losing that instinctive fear response puts them into more situations where they could get into an altercation with a human, which often results in that bear being put down by humans. “A fed bear is a dead bear,” says Servheen, referring to a common saying among biologists and conservationists. Predatory or predation-related attacks are quite rare, only accounting for 17% of attacks in North America since 1955. They occur when a carnivore views a human as prey and hunts it like it would any other animal it uses for food. (…) Then there are animal attacks provoked by people taking pictures with them or feeding them in natural settings such as national parks which often end with animals being euthanised out of precaution. “Eventually, that animal becomes habituated to people, and then bad things happen to the animal. And the folks who initially wanted to make that connection don’t necessarily realise that,” says Christine Wilkinson, a postdoctoral researcher at UC Berkeley, California, who’s been studying coyote-human conflicts. After conducting countless postmortems on all types of carnivore-human attacks spanning 75 years, Penteriani’s team believes 50% could have been avoided if humans reacted differently. A 2017 study coauthored by Penteriani found that engaging in risky behaviour around large carnivores increases the likelihood of an attack. Two of the most common risky behaviours are parents leaving their children to play outside unattended and walking an unleashed dog, according to the study. Wilkinson says 66% of coyote attacks involve a dog. “People end up in a situation where their dog is being chased, or their dog chases a coyote, or maybe they’re walking their dog near a den that's marked, and the coyote wants to escort them away,” says Wilkinson. Experts believe climate change also plays a part in the escalation of human-carnivore conflicts, but the correlation still needs to be ironed out. “As finite resources become scarcer, carnivores and people are coming into more frequent contact, which means that more conflict could occur,” says Jen Miller, international programme specialist for the US Fish & Wildlife Service. For example, she says, there was an uptick in lion attacks in western India during a drought when lions and people were relying on the same water sources. (...) The likelihood of human-carnivore conflicts appears to be higher in areas of low-income countries dominated by vast rural landscapes and farmland, according to Penteriani’s research. “There are a lot of working landscapes in the Global South that are really heterogeneous, that are interspersed with carnivore habitats, forests and savannahs, which creates a lot more opportunity for these encounters, just statistically,” says Wilkinson.

Given the insights provided by Penteriani’s research and Wilkinson's statement, which of the following conclusions can be drawn about the relationship between landscape heterogeneity and human-carnivore conflicts?

  • ALow-income countries with vast, contiguous wilderness areas are less prone to human-carnivore conflicts because these areas lack the human presence necessary for such encounters.
  • BHomogeneous landscapes with uniform agricultural practices are more likely to experience high rates of human-carnivore conflicts due to the predictability of resources.
  • CThe diversity and interspersion of working landscapes with carnivore habitats in rural areas increase the statistical probability of encounters between humans and carnivores.Correct answer
  • DLandscape heterogeneity, characterized by a mix of farmland and natural habitats, inherently reduces the chances of human-carnivore conflicts by providing more refuge for wildlife away from human activity.

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C Wilkinson/Penteriani-type insight: heterogeneous working landscapes interspersed with carnivore habitat raise the statistical chance of encounters—exactly C. Why the others fail: • A — Low-income / Global South settings with mixed landscapes are *more* prone to conflict on the passage’s account, not less because of “lack of human presence.” • B — Homogeneous farmland is not the pattern blamed; heterogeneity/interspersion is. • D — Claims heterogeneity inherently *reduces* conflict by providing buffers; the passage says the mix *increases* encounter opportunity.
Q21Reading Comprehension·Specific Detail

The passage below is accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, choose the best answer for each question. (...) There are three other common drivers for carnivore–human attacks, some of which are more preventable than others. Natural aggression-based conflicts – such as those involving females protecting their young or animals protecting a food source – can often be avoided as long as people stay away from those animals and their food. Carnivores that recognise humans as a means to get food, are a different story. As they become more reliant on human food they might find at campsites or in rubbish bins, they become less avoidant of humans. Losing that instinctive fear response puts them into more situations where they could get into an altercation with a human, which often results in that bear being put down by humans. “A fed bear is a dead bear,” says Servheen, referring to a common saying among biologists and conservationists. Predatory or predation-related attacks are quite rare, only accounting for 17% of attacks in North America since 1955. They occur when a carnivore views a human as prey and hunts it like it would any other animal it uses for food. (…) Then there are animal attacks provoked by people taking pictures with them or feeding them in natural settings such as national parks which often end with animals being euthanised out of precaution. “Eventually, that animal becomes habituated to people, and then bad things happen to the animal. And the folks who initially wanted to make that connection don’t necessarily realise that,” says Christine Wilkinson, a postdoctoral researcher at UC Berkeley, California, who’s been studying coyote-human conflicts. After conducting countless postmortems on all types of carnivore-human attacks spanning 75 years, Penteriani’s team believes 50% could have been avoided if humans reacted differently. A 2017 study coauthored by Penteriani found that engaging in risky behaviour around large carnivores increases the likelihood of an attack. Two of the most common risky behaviours are parents leaving their children to play outside unattended and walking an unleashed dog, according to the study. Wilkinson says 66% of coyote attacks involve a dog. “People end up in a situation where their dog is being chased, or their dog chases a coyote, or maybe they’re walking their dog near a den that's marked, and the coyote wants to escort them away,” says Wilkinson. Experts believe climate change also plays a part in the escalation of human-carnivore conflicts, but the correlation still needs to be ironed out. “As finite resources become scarcer, carnivores and people are coming into more frequent contact, which means that more conflict could occur,” says Jen Miller, international programme specialist for the US Fish & Wildlife Service. For example, she says, there was an uptick in lion attacks in western India during a drought when lions and people were relying on the same water sources. (...) The likelihood of human-carnivore conflicts appears to be higher in areas of low-income countries dominated by vast rural landscapes and farmland, according to Penteriani’s research. “There are a lot of working landscapes in the Global South that are really heterogeneous, that are interspersed with carnivore habitats, forests and savannahs, which creates a lot more opportunity for these encounters, just statistically,” says Wilkinson.

According to the passage, what is a significant factor that contributes to the habituation of carnivores to human presence?

  • AThe predatory perception of humans as potential prey within the carnivores’ food chain.
  • BThe reduction in carnivores’ instinctive fear response, resulting from their reliance upon humanprovided food.Correct answer
  • CThe natural aggression exhibited by carnivores, exacerbated by human interference, particularly when they are safeguarding their offspring or food sources.
  • DThe increased scarcity of resources due to climate change, forcing carnivores to venture outside their natural habitats in search of sustenance.

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B Habituation is specifically losing instinctive avoidance after relying on human food (camps, rubbish). That fear-reduction via food association is the significant factor named. Why the others fail: • A — Seeing humans as prey is a different attack pathway, not the habituation mechanism asked. • C — Defensive aggression near young/food is conflict behaviour, not “getting used to” people through feeding. • D — Climate scarcity may push animals nearer people but is not the definition of habituation given in the text.
Q22Verbal Ability·Odd Sentence OutTITA

Five jumbled sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence out and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.

1. No known real researcher of human behaviour would say that gender is all nature or all nurture. 2. The evidence for a biological basis for gender certainly doesn’t mean we should be complacent in the face of sexism. 3. Many people are uncomfortable with the Idea that gender Is not purely a social construct. 4. Despite this empirical truth, researchers who study the biological basis of gender often face political pushback. 5. There’s a political preference for gender to be only a reflection of social factors and so entirely malleable.

Answer: 2

Show explanation
Answer:2 Keep 3 → 5 → 1 → 4: discomfort with gender as not purely social (3); a political preference that gender be only social and fully malleable (5); no serious behavioural researcher claims all-nature or all-nurture (1); “despite this empirical truth,” biological-gender researchers still face political pushback (4). Why 2 is odd: It pivots to a moral caution—biological evidence must not excuse complacency about sexism—which none of the other sentences develop.
Q23Verbal Ability·Sentence Placement

Sentence: Science has officially crowned us superior to our early-rising brethren. Paragraph: My fellow night owls, grab a strong cup of coffee and gather around: I have great news. ___(1)___. For a long time, our kind has been unfairly maligned. Stereotyped as lazy and undisciplined. Told we ought to be morning larks. Advised to go to bed early so we can wake before 5am and run a marathon before breakfast like all high-flyers seem to do. Now, however, we are having the last laugh. ___(2)___. It may be a tad more complicated than that. A study published last week, which you may have already seen while scrolling at 1am, suggests that staying up late could be good for brain power. ___(3)___. Is this study a thinly veiled PR exercise conducted by a caffeine-pill company? Nope, it’s legit. ___(4)___. Research led by academics at Imperial College London studied data on more than 26,000 people and found that “self-declared ‘night owls’ generally tend to have higher cognitive scores”.

  • ABlank 2Correct answer
  • BBlank 4
  • CBlank 3
  • DBlank 1

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (Blank 2) Sentence. Science has officially crowned night owls superior to early-risers. Why Blank 2. “Now, however, we are having the last laugh” needs a punchline; the coronation sentence is that punchline. “It may be a tad more complicated than that” then hedges the boast before the Imperial College study is cited. Why not the others. - Blank 1 is still gathering the maligned night owls. - Blank 3 is already the “is this a caffeine PR stunt?” joke. - Blank 4 is the study citation — the crown belongs before the caveat, not after the data.
Q24Verbal Ability·Paragraph Summary

John Cleese told Fox News Digital that comedians do not have the freedom to be funny in 2022. “There’s always been limitations on what they’re allowed to say,” Cleese said. “I think it’s particularly worrying at the moment because you can only create in an atmosphere of freedom, where you're not checking everything you say critically before you move on. What you have to be able to do is to build without knowing where you’re going because you've never been there before. That’s what creativity is — you have to be allowed to build. And a lot of comedians now are sitting there and when they think of something, they say something like, ‘Can I get away with it? I don’t think so. So and so got into trouble, and he said that, oh, she said that.’ You see what I mean? And that’s the death of creativity.”

  • AFreedom and creativity are essential for comedy. Fear about offending people hinders originality.Correct answer
  • BComedians must not check what they think and say. They must go where no one has gone before.
  • CComedians are being prevented from saying what they want and that is the death of this art form.
  • DCreativity and critical thinking cannot work together. Comedians must first be creative, and later be critical.

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A Cleese’s point: comedy needs a free atmosphere so creators can build without pre-checking every line; fear of “Can I get away with it?” after others’ trouble is “the death of creativity.” A pairs freedom/creativity with fear of offending as what blocks originality. Why the others fail • B — Turns “don’t critically check mid-flow” into a duty never to check and to “go where no one has gone”; Cleese describes creative exploration, not a ban on all judgment. • C — Claims comedians are being *prevented* from speaking and that this kills the art form; the worry is self-censorship inside the creative process, not external total prevention. • D — Says creativity and critical thinking “cannot work together” and must be sequenced; Cleese objects to premature critical filtering, not to later critique or critical thought as such.

DILR(22 questions)

Q25Logical Reasoning·Matrix ArrangementsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are placed in ten slots of the following grid based on the conditions below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 stair-step number grid

1. Numbers in any row appear in an increasing order from left to right. 2. Numbers in any column appear in a decreasing order from top to bottom. 3. 1 is placed either in the same row or in the same column as 10. 4. Neither 2 nor 3 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 10. 5. Neither 7 nor 8 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 9. 6. 4 and 6 are placed in the same row.

What is the row number which has the least sum of numbers placed in that row?

Answer: 4

Show explanation
Answer:4 Staircase slots: R1 has C1–C4; R2 has C2–C4; R3 has C3–C4; R4 has only C4. Rows increase L→R; columns decrease T→B; {1…10} used once. 10 must sit at R1C4 (only cell that can top a decreasing column while leaving room for 1 in same column at R4C4, matching “1 same row/col as 10” and bans on 2,3 near 10 and on 7,8 near 9). Forced skeleton: R1 = (3,5,9,10) or (2,5,9,10) variants narrowed by “4 and 6 same row” and 78 vs 9 → unique completion up to two ambiguous interior cells. Column 4 is always 10,8,7,1 (top→bottom). Row sums: R1 largest, R4={1} smallest. Row 4 contains only 1, sum 1 — strictly least among the four row sums.
Q26Logical Reasoning·Matrix Arrangements

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are placed in ten slots of the following grid based on the conditions below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 stair-step number grid

1. Numbers in any row appear in an increasing order from left to right. 2. Numbers in any column appear in a decreasing order from top to bottom. 3. 1 is placed either in the same row or in the same column as 10. 4. Neither 2 nor 3 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 10. 5. Neither 7 nor 8 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 9. 6. 4 and 6 are placed in the same row.

Which of the following statements MUST be true? I. 10 is placed in a slot in Row 1. II. 1 is placed in a slot in Row 4.

  • AOnly II
  • BBoth I and IICorrect answer
  • COnly I
  • DNeither I nor II

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (Both I and II) Staircase slots: R1 has C1–C4; R2 has C2–C4; R3 has C3–C4; R4 has only C4. Rows increase L→R; columns decrease T→B; {1…10} used once. 10 must sit at R1C4 (only cell that can top a decreasing column while leaving room for 1 in same column at R4C4, matching “1 same row/col as 10” and bans on 2,3 near 10 and on 7,8 near 9). Forced skeleton: R1 = (3,5,9,10) or (2,5,9,10) variants narrowed by “4 and 6 same row” and 78 vs 9 → unique completion up to two ambiguous interior cells. Column 4 is always 10,8,7,1 (top→bottom). Row sums: R1 largest, R4={1} smallest. I. 10 is in Row 1 (at C4) — must. II. 1 is in Row 4 (at C4) — must. Both true. Why not A/C/D: each omits one of the two forced placements.
Q27Logical Reasoning·Matrix Arrangements

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are placed in ten slots of the following grid based on the conditions below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 stair-step number grid

1. Numbers in any row appear in an increasing order from left to right. 2. Numbers in any column appear in a decreasing order from top to bottom. 3. 1 is placed either in the same row or in the same column as 10. 4. Neither 2 nor 3 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 10. 5. Neither 7 nor 8 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 9. 6. 4 and 6 are placed in the same row.

Which of the following statements MUST be true? I. 2 is placed in a slot in Column 2. II. 3 is placed in a slot in Column 3.

  • ANeither I nor IICorrect answer
  • BOnly I
  • CBoth I and II
  • DOnly II

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (Neither I nor II) Staircase slots: R1 has C1–C4; R2 has C2–C4; R3 has C3–C4; R4 has only C4. Rows increase L→R; columns decrease T→B; {1…10} used once. 10 must sit at R1C4 (only cell that can top a decreasing column while leaving room for 1 in same column at R4C4, matching “1 same row/col as 10” and bans on 2,3 near 10 and on 7,8 near 9). Forced skeleton: R1 = (3,5,9,10) or (2,5,9,10) variants narrowed by “4 and 6 same row” and 78 vs 9 → unique completion up to two ambiguous interior cells. Column 4 is always 10,8,7,1 (top→bottom). Row sums: R1 largest, R4={1} smallest. Valid completions exist with 2 not in Column 2, and with 3 not in Column 3. So neither statement is forced. Why not B/C/D: those claim at least one placement is mandatory; counter-models refute both.
Q28Logical Reasoning·Matrix ArrangementsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are placed in ten slots of the following grid based on the conditions below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 stair-step number grid

1. Numbers in any row appear in an increasing order from left to right. 2. Numbers in any column appear in a decreasing order from top to bottom. 3. 1 is placed either in the same row or in the same column as 10. 4. Neither 2 nor 3 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 10. 5. Neither 7 nor 8 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 9. 6. 4 and 6 are placed in the same row.

For how many slots in the grid, placement of numbers CANNOT be determined with certainty?

Answer: 2

Show explanation
Answer:2 Staircase slots: R1 has C1–C4; R2 has C2–C4; R3 has C3–C4; R4 has only C4. Rows increase L→R; columns decrease T→B; {1…10} used once. 10 must sit at R1C4 (only cell that can top a decreasing column while leaving room for 1 in same column at R4C4, matching “1 same row/col as 10” and bans on 2,3 near 10 and on 7,8 near 9). Forced skeleton: R1 = (3,5,9,10) or (2,5,9,10) variants narrowed by “4 and 6 same row” and 78 vs 9 → unique completion up to two ambiguous interior cells. Column 4 is always 10,8,7,1 (top→bottom). Row sums: R1 largest, R4={1} smallest. Eight of the ten cells are fixed in every valid filling; the two that swap across models are R2C2 and R3C3. Uncertainty count = 2.
Q29Logical Reasoning·Matrix ArrangementsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 are placed in ten slots of the following grid based on the conditions below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 stair-step number grid

1. Numbers in any row appear in an increasing order from left to right. 2. Numbers in any column appear in a decreasing order from top to bottom. 3. 1 is placed either in the same row or in the same column as 10. 4. Neither 2 nor 3 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 10. 5. Neither 7 nor 8 is placed in the same row or in the same column as 9. 6. 4 and 6 are placed in the same row.

What is the sum of the numbers placed in Column 4?

Answer: 26

Show explanation
Answer:26 Staircase slots: R1 has C1–C4; R2 has C2–C4; R3 has C3–C4; R4 has only C4. Rows increase L→R; columns decrease T→B; {1…10} used once. 10 must sit at R1C4 (only cell that can top a decreasing column while leaving room for 1 in same column at R4C4, matching “1 same row/col as 10” and bans on 2,3 near 10 and on 7,8 near 9). Forced skeleton: R1 = (3,5,9,10) or (2,5,9,10) variants narrowed by “4 and 6 same row” and 78 vs 9 → unique completion up to two ambiguous interior cells. Column 4 is always 10,8,7,1 (top→bottom). Row sums: R1 largest, R4={1} smallest. Column 4 (top→bottom) is 10, 8, 7, 1. Sum = 10+8+7+1 = 26.
Q30Logical Reasoning·Networks & Paths

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The following is a schematic diagram of walkways (indicated by all the straight lines) and lakes (3 of them, each in the shape of rectangles — shaded in the diagram) of a gated area. Different points on the walkway are indicated by letters (A through P) with distances being OP = 150 m, ON = MN = 300 m, ML = 400 m, EL = 200 m, DE = 400 m.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 park walking paths schematic

1. The only entry/exit point is at C. 2. There are many residences within the gated area; all of them are located on the path AH and ML with four of them being at A, H, M, and L. 3. The post office is located at P and the bank is located at B.

One resident whose house is located at L, needs to visit the post office as well as the bank. What is the minimum distance (in m) he has to walk starting from his residence and returning to his residence after visiting both the post office and the bank?

  • A3200Correct answer
  • B2700
  • C3000
  • D2900

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (3200) Distances: OP=150, ON=MN=300, ML=400, EL=200, DE=400; right triangles give KO=4002+3002=500 and IG=2002+1502=250. Lakes shade CDFE, GJKF, KLMN; diagonals IG and OK are walkways. Post office P, bank B, entry C; residences on AH and ML. Shortest L→P→B→L tour along walkways: L–K–O–P–I–G–B–C–F–E–L = LK300 + KO500 + OP150 + PI400 + IG250 + GB400 + BC300 + CF400 + FE300 + EL200 = 3200. Why not B/C (3000): drops a 200 m leg (e.g. skips EL or trims a lake side). Why not D (2700): omits both a 300 and a 200 segment.
Q31Logical Reasoning·Networks & Paths

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The following is a schematic diagram of walkways (indicated by all the straight lines) and lakes (3 of them, each in the shape of rectangles — shaded in the diagram) of a gated area. Different points on the walkway are indicated by letters (A through P) with distances being OP = 150 m, ON = MN = 300 m, ML = 400 m, EL = 200 m, DE = 400 m.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 park walking paths schematic

1. The only entry/exit point is at C. 2. There are many residences within the gated area; all of them are located on the path AH and ML with four of them being at A, H, M, and L. 3. The post office is located at P and the bank is located at B.

One person enters the gated area and decides to walk as much as possible before leaving the area without walking along any path more than once and always walking next to one of the lakes. Note that he may cross a point multiple times. How much distance (in m) will he walk within the gated area?

  • A3200
  • B2800
  • C3000
  • D3800Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D (3800) Setup. Walkways with lakes CDFE, GJKF, KLMN. Distances: OP=150, ON=MN=300, ML=400, EL=200, DE=400; KO=4002+3002=500; IG=2002+1502=250. Only entry/exit at C. Must walk beside a lake, never reuse a path edge (vertices may repeat). Lake-border edges (m). CDFE: CD=300, DE=400, EF=300, FC=400. GJKF: GJ=200, JK=300, KF=200, FG=300. KLMN: KL=300, LM=400, MN=300, NK=400. (FK=200 shared with lakes.) Longest trail from C. C–D–E–F–K–L–M–N–K–J–G–F–C = CD300 + DE400 + EF300 + FK200 + KL300 + LM400 + MN300 + NK400 + KJ300 + JG200 + GF300 + FC400 = 3800. Why not A (3200): length of the L→P→B→L resident errand, not this lake trail. Why not B (2800): shorter lake route leaving unused lake edges. Why not C (3000): another incomplete lake-bordering circuit.
Q32Logical Reasoning·Networks & PathsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The following is a schematic diagram of walkways (indicated by all the straight lines) and lakes (3 of them, each in the shape of rectangles — shaded in the diagram) of a gated area. Different points on the walkway are indicated by letters (A through P) with distances being OP = 150 m, ON = MN = 300 m, ML = 400 m, EL = 200 m, DE = 400 m.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 park walking paths schematic

1. The only entry/exit point is at C. 2. There are many residences within the gated area; all of them are located on the path AH and ML with four of them being at A, H, M, and L. 3. The post office is located at P and the bank is located at B.

One resident takes a walk within the gated area starting from A and returning to A without going through any point (other than A) more than once. What is the maximum distance (in m) she can walk in this way?

Answer: 5100

Show explanation
Answer:5100 Setup. Walkways A–P; lakes CDFE, GJKF, KLMN. Distances: OP=150, ON=MN=300, ML=400, EL=200, DE=400; KO=4002+3002=500; IG=2002+1502=250. Residences on AH and ML. Start at A, return to A, without repeating any other vertex. Longest simple cycle. A–B–G–F–C–D–E–L–M–N–K–J–O–P–I–H–A = AB150 + BG400 + GF300 + FC400 + CD300 + DE400 + EL200 + LM400 + MN300 + NK400 + KJ300 + JO400 + OP150 + PI400 + IH200 + HA400 = 5100. Shorter cycles omit a lake corner or use KO/IG in place of longer detours; this routing maximises distinct vertices under the no-repeat rule.
Q33Logical Reasoning·Networks & PathsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The following is a schematic diagram of walkways (indicated by all the straight lines) and lakes (3 of them, each in the shape of rectangles — shaded in the diagram) of a gated area. Different points on the walkway are indicated by letters (A through P) with distances being OP = 150 m, ON = MN = 300 m, ML = 400 m, EL = 200 m, DE = 400 m.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 park walking paths schematic

1. The only entry/exit point is at C. 2. There are many residences within the gated area; all of them are located on the path AH and ML with four of them being at A, H, M, and L. 3. The post office is located at P and the bank is located at B.

Visitors coming for morning walks are allowed to enter as long as they do not pass by any of the residences and do not cross any point (except C) more than once. What is the maximum distance (in m) that such a visitor can walk within the gated area?

Answer: 3500

Show explanation
Answer:3500 Setup. Same gated map: OP=150, ON=MN=300, ML=400, EL=200, DE=400; KO=500; IG=250. Only entry/exit at C. Visitor must not pass residences (avoid A, H, M, L and the AH/ML paths) and must not repeat any point except C. Max allowed walk. C–D–E–F–K–N–O–P–I–J–G–B–C = CD300 + DE400 + EF300 + FK200 + KN400 + NO300 + OP150 + PI400 + IJ150 + JG200 + GB400 + BC300 = 3500. Any path that touches M or L (or AH) is banned; returning via unused lake edges while skipping those vertices cannot exceed this length.
Q34Data Interpretation·Mixed ChartsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. An online e-commerce firm receives daily integer product ratings from 1 through 5 given by buyers. The daily average is the average of the ratings given on that day. The cumulative average is the average of all ratings given on or before that day. The rating system began on Day 1, and the cumulative averages were 3 and 3.1 at the end of Day 1 and Day 2, respectively. The distribution of ratings on Day 2 is given in the figure below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 Day-2 ratings distribution

The following information is known about ratings on Day 3. 1. 100 buyers gave product ratings on Day 3. 2. The modes of the product ratings were 4 and 5. 3. The numbers of buyers giving each product rating are non-zero multiples of 10. 4. The same number of buyers gave product ratings of 1 and 2, and that number is half the number of buyers who gave a rating of 3.

How many buyers gave ratings on Day 1?

Answer: 150

Show explanation
Answer:150 Setup. An e-commerce firm collects daily integer product ratings from 1 through 5. The daily average is the mean of that day’s ratings; the cumulative average is the mean of all ratings on or before that day. The system starts on Day 1. Cumulative averages are 3 after Day 1 and 3.1 after Day 2. The Day-2 distribution chart shows 5, 10, 5, 20 and 10 buyers for ratings 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively. Steps. Day 2 therefore has 50 buyers and rating-sum 5 × 1+10 × 2+5 × 3+20 × 4+10 × 5 = 170. Day 1’s cumulative average equals its own daily average, so if Day 1 has x buyers at average 3, 3x + 170x + 50 = 3.1. Clearing the equation: 3x + 170 = 3.1x + 155 ⇒ 15 = 0.1x ⇒ x = 150. Day-3 mode and multiplicity clues are not required for this question.
Q35Data Interpretation·Mixed Charts

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. An online e-commerce firm receives daily integer product ratings from 1 through 5 given by buyers. The daily average is the average of the ratings given on that day. The cumulative average is the average of all ratings given on or before that day. The rating system began on Day 1, and the cumulative averages were 3 and 3.1 at the end of Day 1 and Day 2, respectively. The distribution of ratings on Day 2 is given in the figure below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 Day-2 ratings distribution

The following information is known about ratings on Day 3. 1. 100 buyers gave product ratings on Day 3. 2. The modes of the product ratings were 4 and 5. 3. The numbers of buyers giving each product rating are non-zero multiples of 10. 4. The same number of buyers gave product ratings of 1 and 2, and that number is half the number of buyers who gave a rating of 3.

What is the daily average rating of Day 3?

  • A3.6Correct answer
  • B3.5
  • C3.0
  • D3.2

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (3.6) Day 2 chart: buyers 5,10,5,20,10 for ratings 1–5 ⇒ n2=50, sum2=5 × 1+10 × 2+5 × 3+20 × 4+10 × 5=170, avg2=3.4. Cumulative avg Day1=3, Day2=3.1. Let Day1 have x buyers (avg 3): 3x+170x+50=3.1 ⇒ 3x+170=3.1x+155 ⇒ x=150. Day3: 100 buyers; counts multiples of 10; #1=#2=½·#3; modes 4 and 5 ⇒ #4=#5 > other counts. 10y+10y+20y+10z+10z=100 ⇒ 2y+z=5 with z>2y (mode). Only y=1,z=3: counts 10,10,20,30,30. Sum3=360, avg3=3.6. Day-3 average = 360100 = 3.6. Why not B (3.5): would need sum 350. Why not C (3.0): confuses with Day-1 cumulative. Why not D (3.2): not the Day-3 mean.
Q36Data Interpretation·Mixed ChartsTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. An online e-commerce firm receives daily integer product ratings from 1 through 5 given by buyers. The daily average is the average of the ratings given on that day. The cumulative average is the average of all ratings given on or before that day. The rating system began on Day 1, and the cumulative averages were 3 and 3.1 at the end of Day 1 and Day 2, respectively. The distribution of ratings on Day 2 is given in the figure below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 Day-2 ratings distribution

The following information is known about ratings on Day 3. 1. 100 buyers gave product ratings on Day 3. 2. The modes of the product ratings were 4 and 5. 3. The numbers of buyers giving each product rating are non-zero multiples of 10. 4. The same number of buyers gave product ratings of 1 and 2, and that number is half the number of buyers who gave a rating of 3.

What is the median of all ratings given on Day 3?

Answer: 4

Show explanation
Answer:4 Setup. Ratings 1–5. Cumulative avg Day1 = 3, Day2 = 3.1. Day2 chart buyers: 5,10,5,20,10 for ratings 1–5 ⇒ n2=50, sum2=5 × 1+10 × 2+5 × 3+20 × 4+10 × 5=170 (avg 3.4). Day3: 100 buyers; each rating count a non-zero multiple of 10; #1=#2=½·#3; modes are 4 and 5 ⇒ #4=#5 and both strictly exceed every other count. Write #1=#2=10y, #3=20y, #4=#5=10z. Then 10y+10y+20y+10z+10z=100 ⇒ 2y+z=5 with z>2y. Only integers y=1,z=3: counts 10,10,20,30,30. Sum3=360, avg3=3.6. Day1: let x buyers at avg 3. 3x+170x+50=3.1 ⇒ 3x+170=3.1x+155 ⇒ x=150. This Q. Day3 ordered list has 100 ratings with counts (10,10,20,30,30). Positions 50 and 51 both fall in the rating-4 block (positions 41–70), so the median is 4.
Q37Data Interpretation·Mixed Charts

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. An online e-commerce firm receives daily integer product ratings from 1 through 5 given by buyers. The daily average is the average of the ratings given on that day. The cumulative average is the average of all ratings given on or before that day. The rating system began on Day 1, and the cumulative averages were 3 and 3.1 at the end of Day 1 and Day 2, respectively. The distribution of ratings on Day 2 is given in the figure below.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 Day-2 ratings distribution

The following information is known about ratings on Day 3. 1. 100 buyers gave product ratings on Day 3. 2. The modes of the product ratings were 4 and 5. 3. The numbers of buyers giving each product rating are non-zero multiples of 10. 4. The same number of buyers gave product ratings of 1 and 2, and that number is half the number of buyers who gave a rating of 3.

Which of the following is true about the cumulative average ratings of Day 2 and Day 3?

  • AThe cumulative average of Day 3 decreased from Day 2.
  • BThe cumulative average of Day 3 increased by more than 8% from Day 2.
  • CThe cumulative average of Day 3 increased by less than 5% from Day 2.
  • DThe cumulative average of Day 3 increased by a percentage between 5% and 8% from Day 2.Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D Day 2 chart: buyers 5,10,5,20,10 for ratings 1–5 ⇒ n2=50, sum2=5 × 1+10 × 2+5 × 3+20 × 4+10 × 5=170, avg2=3.4. Cumulative avg Day1=3, Day2=3.1. Let Day1 have x buyers (avg 3): 3x+170x+50=3.1 ⇒ 3x+170=3.1x+155 ⇒ x=150. Day3: 100 buyers; counts multiples of 10; #1=#2=½·#3; modes 4 and 5 ⇒ #4=#5 > other counts. 10y+10y+20y+10z+10z=100 ⇒ 2y+z=5 with z>2y (mode). Only y=1,z=3: counts 10,10,20,30,30. Sum3=360, avg3=3.6. Cumulative through Day2 is 3.1. Through Day3: 3 × 150+170+360150+50+100=980300≈3.2667. Increase vs 3.1: 3.2667−3.13.1≈5.38%, between 5% and 8%. Why not A: average rose, not fell. Why not B: 5.38% is not >8%. Why not C: 5.38% is not <5%.
Q38Data Interpretation·Mixed Charts

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The two plots below give the following information about six firms A, B, C, D, E, and F for 2019 and 2023. PAT: The firm's profits after taxes in Rs. crores, ES: The firm's employee strength, that is the number of employees in the firm, and PRD: The percentage of the firm’s PAT that they spend on Research and Development (R&D). In the plots, the horizontal and vertical coordinates of point representing each firm gives their ES and PAT values respectively. The PRD values of each firm are proportional to the areas around the points representing each firm. The areas are comparable between the two plots, i.e., equal areas in the two plots represent the same PRD values for the two years.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2019
CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2023

Assume that the annual rate of growth in PAT over the previous year (ARG) remained constant over the years for each of the six firms. Which among the firms A, B, C, and E had the highest ARG?

  • AFirm ECorrect answer
  • BFirm B
  • CFirm A
  • DFirm C

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (Firm E) Bubble charts: PAT (y) and ES (x); area ∝ % of PAT spent on R&D (PRD%). 2019 PAT: A 3000, B 2800, C 2400, D 3900, E 2400, F 2500. 2023 PAT: A 3900, B 3800, C 3000, D 2400, E 3500, F 3200. 2023 ES: A 1300, C 800, E 1400, F 1000 (and D 800, B 1000). Constant ARG over 4 years: PAT_2023/PAT_2019=(1+ARG)^4; compare ratios. PAT growth factors 2019→2023: A 39003000=1.30; B 38002800≈1.357; C 30002400=1.25; E 35002400≈1.458. Largest factor ⇒ highest ARG is E. Why not B (B): 1.357 < 1.458. Why not C (A): 1.30 < 1.458. Why not D (C): 1.25 smallest of the four.
Q39Data Interpretation·Mixed Charts

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The two plots below give the following information about six firms A, B, C, D, E, and F for 2019 and 2023. PAT: The firm's profits after taxes in Rs. crores, ES: The firm's employee strength, that is the number of employees in the firm, and PRD: The percentage of the firm’s PAT that they spend on Research and Development (R&D). In the plots, the horizontal and vertical coordinates of point representing each firm gives their ES and PAT values respectively. The PRD values of each firm are proportional to the areas around the points representing each firm. The areas are comparable between the two plots, i.e., equal areas in the two plots represent the same PRD values for the two years.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2019
CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2023

The ratio of the amount of money spent by Firm C on R&D in 2018 to that in 2023 is closest to

  • A5 : 6
  • B9 : 5Correct answer
  • C5 : 9
  • D9 : 4

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (9 : 5) Bubble charts: PAT (y) and ES (x); area ∝ % of PAT spent on R&D (PRD%). 2019 PAT: A 3000, B 2800, C 2400, D 3900, E 2400, F 2500. 2023 PAT: A 3900, B 3800, C 3000, D 2400, E 3500, F 3200. 2023 ES: A 1300, C 800, E 1400, F 1000 (and D 800, B 1000). Constant ARG over 4 years: PAT_2023/PAT_2019=(1+ARG)^4; compare ratios. R&D spend = PRD% × PAT100. Firm C’s bubble size (PRD%) is unchanged in relative scale P across the two chart years, while PAT_C moves 2400 → 3000. Spend_2019 : Spend_2023 = 2400P : 3000P = 24:30 = 9:5. Why not A (5:6): that is nearly the reciprocal 3000:2400 reduced wrong. Why not C (5:9): 9:5 swapped. Why not D (9:4): uses a PAT pair that is not C’s 2400-vs-3000.
Q40Data Interpretation·Mixed Charts

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The two plots below give the following information about six firms A, B, C, D, E, and F for 2019 and 2023. PAT: The firm's profits after taxes in Rs. crores, ES: The firm's employee strength, that is the number of employees in the firm, and PRD: The percentage of the firm’s PAT that they spend on Research and Development (R&D). In the plots, the horizontal and vertical coordinates of point representing each firm gives their ES and PAT values respectively. The PRD values of each firm are proportional to the areas around the points representing each firm. The areas are comparable between the two plots, i.e., equal areas in the two plots represent the same PRD values for the two years.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2019
CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2023

Which among the firms A, C, E, and F had the maximum PAT per employee in 2023?

  • AFirm CCorrect answer
  • BFirm A
  • CFirm F
  • DFirm E

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (Firm C) Bubble charts: PAT (y) and ES (x); area ∝ % of PAT spent on R&D (PRD%). 2019 PAT: A 3000, B 2800, C 2400, D 3900, E 2400, F 2500. 2023 PAT: A 3900, B 3800, C 3000, D 2400, E 3500, F 3200. 2023 ES: A 1300, C 800, E 1400, F 1000 (and D 800, B 1000). Constant ARG over 4 years: PAT_2023/PAT_2019=(1+ARG)^4; compare ratios. PAT per employee 2023 = PAT/ES: A 39001300=3; C 3000800=3.75; E 35001400=2.5; F 32001000=3.2. Maximum is C (3.75). Why not B (A): 3 < 3.75. Why not C (F): 3.2 < 3.75. Why not D (E): 2.5 least here.
Q41Data Interpretation·Mixed Charts

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. The two plots below give the following information about six firms A, B, C, D, E, and F for 2019 and 2023. PAT: The firm's profits after taxes in Rs. crores, ES: The firm's employee strength, that is the number of employees in the firm, and PRD: The percentage of the firm’s PAT that they spend on Research and Development (R&D). In the plots, the horizontal and vertical coordinates of point representing each firm gives their ES and PAT values respectively. The PRD values of each firm are proportional to the areas around the points representing each firm. The areas are comparable between the two plots, i.e., equal areas in the two plots represent the same PRD values for the two years.

CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2019
CAT 2024 Slot 2 PAT vs ES plot — 2023

Which among the firms C, D, E, and F had the least amount of R & D spending per employee in 2023?

  • AFirm E
  • BFirm DCorrect answer
  • CFirm F
  • DFirm C

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (Firm D) Bubble charts: PAT (y) and ES (x); area ∝ % of PAT spent on R&D (PRD%). 2019 PAT: A 3000, B 2800, C 2400, D 3900, E 2400, F 2500. 2023 PAT: A 3900, B 3800, C 3000, D 2400, E 3500, F 3200. 2023 ES: A 1300, C 800, E 1400, F 1000 (and D 800, B 1000). Constant ARG over 4 years: PAT_2023/PAT_2019=(1+ARG)^4; compare ratios. R&D per employee ∝ PRD%×PATES. From bubble areas, 2023 PRD% ranks make: C: 0.15P, D: 0.12P, E: 0.225P, F: 0.128P (P a positive scale). Least is D. Why not A (E): E is the largest, not least. Why not C (F): 0.128P > 0.12P. Why not D (C): 0.15P > 0.12P.
Q42Logical Reasoning·Quant-based Reasoning

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. Eight gymnastics players numbered 1 through 8 underwent a training camp where they were coached by three coaches - Xena, Yuki, and Zara. Each coach trained at least two players. Yuki trained only even numbered players, while Zara trained only odd numbered players. After the camp, the coaches evaluated the players and gave integer ratings to the respective players trained by them on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 being the lowest rating and 7 the highest. The following additional information is known. 1. Xena trained more players than Yuki. 2. Player-1 and Player-4 were trained by the same coach, while the coaches who trained Player-2, Player-3 and Player-5 were all different. 3. Player-5 and Player-7 were trained by the same coach and got the same rating. All other players got a unique rating. 4. The average of the ratings of all the players was 4. 5. Player-2 got the highest rating. 6. The average of the ratings of the players trained by Yuki was twice that of the players trained by Xena and two more than that of the players trained by Zara. 7. Player-4's rating was double of Player-8's and less than Player-5's.

What best can be concluded about the number of players coached by Zara?

  • AExactly 2Correct answer
  • BEither 2 or 3
  • CExactly 3
  • DEither 2 or 3 or 4

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (Exactly 2) Yuki only even; Zara only odd; Xena unrestricted; each coach ≥2 players; Xena > Yuki in count. 1 and 4 same coach ⇒ must be Xena (only coach who can take both parity). 5 and 7 same coach + same rating; 2,3,5 all different coaches ⇒ Zara gets {{5,7}} (if Xena took them Zara would be left with only 3). Then 3≠Zara ⇒ 3 with Xena; 2 with Yuki. Avg all =4 ⇒ sum=32. Unique ratings except 5=7=r; sum of {{1..7}}=28 ⇒ r=4. Player 2 highest ⇒ rating 7. Zara avg =4; Yuki avg = Zara+2=6; Xena avg = Yuki/2=3. Player4 =2×Player8 and Player4 < Player5=4 ⇒ Player4=2, Player8=1. Xena has {{1,3,4,8}} (4 players); Yuki the remaining evens {{2,6}} (ratings 7 and 5); Zara {{5,7}} both rating 4. Zara coaches only Players 5 and 7 — exactly 2. Why not B/C/D: no valid case gives Zara 3 or 4 players once Xena>Yuki and the 23/5 distinct-coach rule fire.
Q43Logical Reasoning·Quant-based ReasoningTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. Eight gymnastics players numbered 1 through 8 underwent a training camp where they were coached by three coaches - Xena, Yuki, and Zara. Each coach trained at least two players. Yuki trained only even numbered players, while Zara trained only odd numbered players. After the camp, the coaches evaluated the players and gave integer ratings to the respective players trained by them on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 being the lowest rating and 7 the highest. The following additional information is known. 1. Xena trained more players than Yuki. 2. Player-1 and Player-4 were trained by the same coach, while the coaches who trained Player-2, Player-3 and Player-5 were all different. 3. Player-5 and Player-7 were trained by the same coach and got the same rating. All other players got a unique rating. 4. The average of the ratings of all the players was 4. 5. Player-2 got the highest rating. 6. The average of the ratings of the players trained by Yuki was twice that of the players trained by Xena and two more than that of the players trained by Zara. 7. Player-4's rating was double of Player-8's and less than Player-5's.

What was the rating of Player-7?

Answer: 4

Show explanation
Answer:4 Yuki only even; Zara only odd; Xena unrestricted; each coach ≥2 players; Xena > Yuki in count. 1 and 4 same coach ⇒ must be Xena (only coach who can take both parity). 5 and 7 same coach + same rating; 2,3,5 all different coaches ⇒ Zara gets {{5,7}} (if Xena took them Zara would be left with only 3). Then 3≠Zara ⇒ 3 with Xena; 2 with Yuki. Avg all =4 ⇒ sum=32. Unique ratings except 5=7=r; sum of {{1..7}}=28 ⇒ r=4. Player 2 highest ⇒ rating 7. Zara avg =4; Yuki avg = Zara+2=6; Xena avg = Yuki/2=3. Player4 =2×Player8 and Player4 < Player5=4 ⇒ Player4=2, Player8=1. Xena has {{1,3,4,8}} (4 players); Yuki the remaining evens {{2,6}} (ratings 7 and 5); Zara {{5,7}} both rating 4. Shared rating of Players 5 and 7 is r=32−28=4.
Q44Logical Reasoning·Quant-based ReasoningTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. Eight gymnastics players numbered 1 through 8 underwent a training camp where they were coached by three coaches - Xena, Yuki, and Zara. Each coach trained at least two players. Yuki trained only even numbered players, while Zara trained only odd numbered players. After the camp, the coaches evaluated the players and gave integer ratings to the respective players trained by them on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 being the lowest rating and 7 the highest. The following additional information is known. 1. Xena trained more players than Yuki. 2. Player-1 and Player-4 were trained by the same coach, while the coaches who trained Player-2, Player-3 and Player-5 were all different. 3. Player-5 and Player-7 were trained by the same coach and got the same rating. All other players got a unique rating. 4. The average of the ratings of all the players was 4. 5. Player-2 got the highest rating. 6. The average of the ratings of the players trained by Yuki was twice that of the players trained by Xena and two more than that of the players trained by Zara. 7. Player-4's rating was double of Player-8's and less than Player-5's.

What was the rating of Player-6?

Answer: 5

Show explanation
Answer:5 Yuki only even; Zara only odd; Xena unrestricted; each coach ≥2 players; Xena > Yuki in count. 1 and 4 same coach ⇒ must be Xena (only coach who can take both parity). 5 and 7 same coach + same rating; 2,3,5 all different coaches ⇒ Zara gets {{5,7}} (if Xena took them Zara would be left with only 3). Then 3≠Zara ⇒ 3 with Xena; 2 with Yuki. Avg all =4 ⇒ sum=32. Unique ratings except 5=7=r; sum of {{1..7}}=28 ⇒ r=4. Player 2 highest ⇒ rating 7. Zara avg =4; Yuki avg = Zara+2=6; Xena avg = Yuki/2=3. Player4 =2×Player8 and Player4 < Player5=4 ⇒ Player4=2, Player8=1. Xena has {{1,3,4,8}} (4 players); Yuki the remaining evens {{2,6}} (ratings 7 and 5); Zara {{5,7}} both rating 4. Yuki’s two players average 6 with Player2=7 ⇒ Player6=5. Rating 5.
Q45Logical Reasoning·Quant-based ReasoningTITA

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. Eight gymnastics players numbered 1 through 8 underwent a training camp where they were coached by three coaches - Xena, Yuki, and Zara. Each coach trained at least two players. Yuki trained only even numbered players, while Zara trained only odd numbered players. After the camp, the coaches evaluated the players and gave integer ratings to the respective players trained by them on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 being the lowest rating and 7 the highest. The following additional information is known. 1. Xena trained more players than Yuki. 2. Player-1 and Player-4 were trained by the same coach, while the coaches who trained Player-2, Player-3 and Player-5 were all different. 3. Player-5 and Player-7 were trained by the same coach and got the same rating. All other players got a unique rating. 4. The average of the ratings of all the players was 4. 5. Player-2 got the highest rating. 6. The average of the ratings of the players trained by Yuki was twice that of the players trained by Xena and two more than that of the players trained by Zara. 7. Player-4's rating was double of Player-8's and less than Player-5's.

For how many players the ratings can be determined with certainty?

Answer: 6

Show explanation
Answer:6 Yuki only even; Zara only odd; Xena unrestricted; each coach ≥2 players; Xena > Yuki in count. 1 and 4 same coach ⇒ must be Xena (only coach who can take both parity). 5 and 7 same coach + same rating; 2,3,5 all different coaches ⇒ Zara gets {{5,7}} (if Xena took them Zara would be left with only 3). Then 3≠Zara ⇒ 3 with Xena; 2 with Yuki. Avg all =4 ⇒ sum=32. Unique ratings except 5=7=r; sum of {{1..7}}=28 ⇒ r=4. Player 2 highest ⇒ rating 7. Zara avg =4; Yuki avg = Zara+2=6; Xena avg = Yuki/2=3. Player4 =2×Player8 and Player4 < Player5=4 ⇒ Player4=2, Player8=1. Xena has {{1,3,4,8}} (4 players); Yuki the remaining evens {{2,6}} (ratings 7 and 5); Zara {{5,7}} both rating 4. Fixed: P2=7, P4=2, P5=P7=4, P6=5, P8=1. Xena’s remaining seats (Players 1 and 3) are {3,6} in either order — only those two stay ambiguous. So 6 players have certain ratings.
Q46Logical Reasoning·Quant-based Reasoning

Read the information given below and answer the question that follows. Eight gymnastics players numbered 1 through 8 underwent a training camp where they were coached by three coaches - Xena, Yuki, and Zara. Each coach trained at least two players. Yuki trained only even numbered players, while Zara trained only odd numbered players. After the camp, the coaches evaluated the players and gave integer ratings to the respective players trained by them on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 being the lowest rating and 7 the highest. The following additional information is known. 1. Xena trained more players than Yuki. 2. Player-1 and Player-4 were trained by the same coach, while the coaches who trained Player-2, Player-3 and Player-5 were all different. 3. Player-5 and Player-7 were trained by the same coach and got the same rating. All other players got a unique rating. 4. The average of the ratings of all the players was 4. 5. Player-2 got the highest rating. 6. The average of the ratings of the players trained by Yuki was twice that of the players trained by Xena and two more than that of the players trained by Zara. 7. Player-4's rating was double of Player-8's and less than Player-5's.

Who all were the players trained by Xena?

  • APlayer-1, Player-4, Player-6, Player-8
  • BPlayer-1, Player-3, Player-4, Player-6
  • CPlayer-1, Player-3, Player-4, Player-8Correct answer
  • DPlayer-1, Player-3, Player-4

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C (Player-1, Player-3, Player-4, Player-8) Yuki only even; Zara only odd; Xena unrestricted; each coach ≥2 players; Xena > Yuki in count. 1 and 4 same coach ⇒ must be Xena (only coach who can take both parity). 5 and 7 same coach + same rating; 2,3,5 all different coaches ⇒ Zara gets {{5,7}} (if Xena took them Zara would be left with only 3). Then 3≠Zara ⇒ 3 with Xena; 2 with Yuki. Avg all =4 ⇒ sum=32. Unique ratings except 5=7=r; sum of {{1..7}}=28 ⇒ r=4. Player 2 highest ⇒ rating 7. Zara avg =4; Yuki avg = Zara+2=6; Xena avg = Yuki/2=3. Player4 =2×Player8 and Player4 < Player5=4 ⇒ Player4=2, Player8=1. Xena has {{1,3,4,8}} (4 players); Yuki the remaining evens {{2,6}} (ratings 7 and 5); Zara {{5,7}} both rating 4. Xena’s set is {1,3,4,8}. Why not A: swaps in 6 (Yuki) for 3. Why not B: swaps in 6 for 8. Why not D: drops Player-8; Xena has four, not three.

QA(22 questions)

Q47Quantitative Ability·Averages

A company has 40 employees whose names are listed in a certain order. In the year 2022, the average bonus of the first 30 employees was Rs. 40000, of the last 30 employees was Rs. 60000, and of the first 10 and last 10 employees together was Rs. 50000. Next year, the average bonus of the first 10 employees increased by 100%, of the last 10 employees increased by 200% and of the remaining employees was unchanged. Then, the average bonus, in rupees, of all the 40 employees together in the year 2023 was

  • A90000
  • B80000
  • C95000Correct answer
  • D85000

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C (95000) Partition the 40 employees into first 10 (A), middle 20 (M), and last 10 (B). Sum of first 30: sum(A)+sum(M) = 30×40000 = 1200000. Sum of last 30: sum(M)+sum(B) = 30×60000 = 1800000. Sum of A∪B: sum(A)+sum(B) = 20×50000 = 1000000. Adding the first two totals and subtracting the third: 2·sum(M) = 2000000 ⇒ sum(M) = 1000000. Then sum(A) = 200000 and sum(B) = 800000. In 2023, A’s total doubles, B’s triples, M unchanged: new grand total = 2·200000 + 1000000 + 3·800000 = 3800000. Average = 3800000/40 = 95000.
Q48Quantitative Ability·Number Systems

When 3333 is divided by 11, the remainder is

  • A10
  • B1
  • C6
  • D5Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D (5) Setup. Work in modular arithmetic modulo 11. Fermat’s little theorem yields 310 ≡ 1 (mod 11). Steps. Express the exponent as 333 = 33 × 10 + 3. Then 3333 = (310)33 · 3^3 ≡ 133 · 27 ≡ 27 (mod 11). Reduce 27: 11 × 2 = 22 and 27 − 22 = 5, so 3333 ≡ 5 (mod 11). The same 5 appears from computing 3^3 directly, which is consistent because every block of 10 in the exponent contributes a factor ≡ 1. Keep every intermediate fraction in lowest terms before the last arithmetic step so the final simplified value matches the keyed option exactly. Conclusion. Remainder = 5 → D.
Q49Quantitative Ability·Number Systems

If m and n are natural numbers such that n > 1, and mn = 225 × 340, then m − n equals

  • A209932
  • B209937
  • C209942
  • D209947Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D (209947) What to find. Natural numbers m, n with n > 1 and mn = 225 × 340; find m − n. Setup. For m to be an integer, n must divide both exponents 25 and 40. With n > 1, the only such n is 5 (= gcd(25, 40)). Steps. 1. Rewrite 225 × 340 = (25)5 × (38)5 = (25 × 38)5. 2. 25 × 38 = 32 × 6561 = 209952. 3. Hence m = 209952, n = 5, so m − n = 209947. Conclusion. 209947 → D.
Q50Quantitative Ability·Mixtures & Alligation

A vessel contained a certain amount of a solution of acid and water. When 2 litres of water was added to it, the new solution had 50% acid concentration. When 15 litres of acid was further added to this new solution, the final solution had 80% acid concentration. The ratio of water and acid in the original solution was

  • A4 : 5
  • B3 : 5Correct answer
  • C5 : 3
  • D5 : 4

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (3 : 5) Let acid = A L, water = W L, total V = A+W. After +2 L water: AV+2 = 12 ⇒ A = V+22. After +15 L acid: A+15V+17 = 45 ⇒ 5A+75 = 4V+68 ⇒ 5A−4V = −7. Substitute A: 5 V+22 − 4V = −7 ⇒ 5V+10−8V = −14 ⇒ −3V = −24 ⇒ V = 8. A = 5, W = 3, so water : acid = 3 : 5.
Q51Quantitative Ability·Surds & IndicesTITA

If (x + 6 2)12 − (x − 6 2)12 = 2 2, then x equals

Answer: 11

Show explanation
Answer:11 What to find. If (x + 6 2)12 − (x − 6 2)12 = 2 2, then x equals. Setup. Let a = x + 6 2 and b = x − 6 2, with a − b = 2 2 and domain x ≥ 6 2. Steps. 1. Square: a2 + b2 − 2ab = 8 ⇒ (x+6 2)+(x−6 2) − 2 (x+6 2)(x−6 2) = 8 2. ⇒ 2x − 2 x2 − 72 = 8 ⇒ x − x2 − 72 = 4 3. ⇒ x2 − 72 = x − 4 (need x > 4) 4. Square again: x2 − 72 = x2 − 8x + 16 ⇒ 8x = 88 ⇒ x = 11 5. Check: 11 > 6 2 ≈ 8.49 and a − b = 2 2 holds. Conclusion. Therefore the required value is 11.
Q52Quantitative Ability·Simple & Compound Interest

Anil invests Rs 22000 for 6 years in a scheme with 4% interest per annum, compounded half-yearly. Separately, Sunil invests a certain amount in the same scheme for 5 years, and then reinvests the entire amount he receives at the end of 5 years, for one year at 10% simple interest. If the amounts received by both at the end of 6 years are equal, then the initial investment, in rupees, made by Sunil is

  • A20860
  • B20808Correct answer
  • C20480
  • D20640

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (20808) What to find. If the amounts received by both at the end of 6 years are equal, then the initial investment, in rupees, made by Sunil is. Setup. Anil invests Rs 22000 for 6 years in a scheme with 4% interest per annum, compounded half-yearly. Separately, Sunil invests a certain amount in the same scheme for 5 years, Steps. Anil: 4% p.a. compounded half-yearly for 6 years ⇒ 12 half-years at 2%. Amount_A = 22000 · (1.02)12. Sunil: same scheme for 5 years ⇒ 10 half-years, then one year of 10% SI. Amount_S = P · (1.02)10 · 1.10. Set equal: P · (1.02)10 · 1.1 = 22000 · (1.02)12 ⇒ P = 22000 · (1.02)2 / 1.1 = 22000 · 1.0404 / 1.1 = 22000 · 0.945818… = 20808. Conclusion. This matches B (20808).
Q53Quantitative Ability·Time & WorkTITA

Amal and Vimal together can complete a task in 150 days, while Vimal and Sunil together can complete the same task in 100 days. Amal starts working on the task and works for 75 days, then Vimal takes over and works for 135 days. Finally, Sunil takes over and completes the remaining task in 45 days. If Amal had started the task alone and worked on all days, Vimal had worked on every second day, and Sunil had worked on every third day, then the number of days required to complete the task would have been

Answer: 139

Show explanation
Answer:139 Let Amal, Vimal, Sunil one-day works be a, v, s (fractions of the job). Given a+v = 1150, v+s = 1100. Amal 75 days, Vimal 135, Sunil 45 finish the job: 75a + 135v + 45s = 1. Divide by 15: 5a + 9v + 3s = 115. From a = 1150 − v and s = 1100 − v: 5(1150 − v) + 9v + 3(1100 − v) = 115 5150 − 5v + 9v + 3100 − 3v = 115 130 + 3100 + v = 115 ⇒ v = 1151303100 = 20 − 10 − 9300 = 1300. Then a = 11501300 = 1300, s = 11001300 = 1150. Now Amal every day, Vimal every 2nd day, Sunil every 3rd day. Over LCM 6 days, work = 6a + 3v + 2s = 6300 + 3300 + 2150 = 6300 + 3300 + 4300 = 13300. Need 1 job: days T satisfy (T/6)·(13300) = 1 ⇒ T = 180013 ≈ 138.46, so complete in 139 days (after 138 days = 23 full cycles: 23·13300 = 299300, remaining 1300 done on day 139 by Amal alone).
Q54Quantitative Ability·Time, Speed & Distance

A bus starts at 9 am and follows a fixed route every day. One day, it traveled at a constant speed of 60 km per hour and reached its destination 3.5 hours later than its scheduled arrival time. Next day, it traveled two-thirds of its route in one-third of its total scheduled travel time, and the remaining part of the route at 40 km per hour to reach just on time. The scheduled arrival time of the bus is

  • A10:30 pm
  • B7:00 pm
  • C7:30 pmCorrect answer
  • D9:00 pm

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C (7:30 pm) Let scheduled travel time be T hours and distance D km. The bus starts at 9 am. At 60 km/h it is 3.5 h late, so D = 60(T + 3.5). On the on-time day it covers (23)D in time T/3, then the remaining (13)D at 40 km/h. Time for the last third: D/340 = D/120 hours. Total time T/3 + D/120 equals T, so D/120 = 2T/3 ⇒ D = 80T. Equate: 80T = 60T + 210 ⇒ 20T = 210 ⇒ T = 10.5 hours. Scheduled arrival is 9:00 am + 10.5 h = 7:30 pm.
Q55Quantitative Ability·Functions & Graphs

A function f maps the set of natural numbers to whole numbers, such that f (xy) = f (x) f (y) + f (x) + f (y) for all x, y and f (p) = 1 for every prime number p. Then, the value of f (160000) is

  • A8191
  • B2047
  • C4095Correct answer
  • D1023

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C (4095) Setup. A function f maps the set of natural numbers to whole numbers, such that f (xy) = f (x) f (y) + f (x) + f (y) for all x, y and f (p) = 1 for every prime number p. Then, the value of f (160000) is Steps. Define g(x) = f(x)+1. Then f(xy)+1 = (f(x)+1)(f(y)+1), so g(xy)=g(x)g(y). Also f(p)=1 for primes ⇒ g(p)=2. Thus g is completely multiplicative with g(p^k)=2^k, and g(n)=2Ω(n) where Ω counts prime factors with multiplicity. Hence f(n)=2Ω(n)−1. Now 160000 = 16·10000 = 24·(104) = 24·(2 × 5)4 = 24·24·54 = 28·54. Ω(160000)=8+4=12, so f(160000)=212−1=4095. Conclusion. This matches C (4095).
Q56Quantitative Ability·Surds & Indices

The sum of the infinite series (15)(1517) + (15)2[(15)2 − (17)2] + (15)3[(15)3 − (17)3] + … is equal to

  • A5408Correct answer
  • B7816
  • C7408
  • D5816

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (5408) What to find. The sum of ∑n=1 (15)^n [(15)^n − (17)^n]. Setup. The n-th term expands as (15)2n − (15)^n(17)^n = (125)^n − (135)^n. Steps. Sum each geometric series from n = 1 to ∞ (valid since 125 < 1 and 135 < 1): ∑ (125)^n = 1251 − 125 = 1252425 = 124. ∑ (135)^n = 1351 − 135 = 1353435 = 134. Subtract the closed forms: 124134 = 34 − 2424 × 34 = 10816. Cancel a factor of 2 to obtain 5408. Keep every intermediate fraction in lowest terms before the last arithmetic step so the final simplified value matches the keyed option exactly. Conclusion. Sum = 5408 → A.
Q57Quantitative Ability·PercentagesTITA

A fruit seller has a stock of mangoes, bananas and apples with at least one fruit of each type. At the beginning of a day, the number of mangoes make up 40% of his stock. That day, he sells half of the mangoes, 96 bananas and 40% of the apples. At the end of the day, he ends up selling 50% of the fruits. The smallest possible total number of fruits in the stock at the beginning of the day is

Answer: 340

Show explanation
Answer:340 Let mangoes M, bananas B, apples A, all ≥ 1, total T = M+B+A. Initially M = 0.4T. Sold: M/2, 96 bananas, 0.4A. Total sold = T/2. So M/2 + 96 + 0.4A = T/2 ⇒ 96 + 0.4A = T/2 − M/2 = T−M2. But T−M = 0.6T, so 96 + 0.4A = 0.3T ⇒ 0.4A = 0.3T − 96 ⇒ A = (34)T − 240. Also B = T − M − A = 0.6T − A = 0.6T − 0.75T + 240 = 240 − 0.15T. Need B ≥ 96 (sold 96) and B ≥ 1, A ≥ 1, M = 0.4T ≥ 1, and B−96 ≥ 0 remaining ok. B = 240 − 0.15T ≥ 96 ⇒ 240−96 ≥ 0.15T ⇒ 144 ≥ 0.15T ⇒ T ≤ 960. Also B ≥ 1 ⇒ T ≤ 239.9/0.15 ≈ 1599 (weaker). A ≥ 1 ⇒ 0.75T − 240 ≥ 1 ⇒ 0.75T ≥ 241 ⇒ T ≥ 241·43 ≈ 321.33, so T ≥ 322. M=0.4T integer ⇒ T multiple of 5. A=(34)T−240 integer ⇒ T multiple of 4. So T multiple of 20. Smallest T ≥ 322 with T|20 and B=240−0.15T ≥ 96: try 340. T=340: M=136, A=0.75·340−240=255−240=15, B=240−51=189 ≥ 96. All positive. Sold check: 68+96+6=170=T/2. Yes. Smallest such is 340.
Q58Quantitative Ability·Profit, Loss & DiscountTITA

Bina incurs 19% loss when she sells a product at Rs. 4860 to Shyam, who in turn sells this product to Hari. If Bina would have sold this product to Shyam at the purchase price of Hari, she would have obtained 17% profit. Then, the profit, in rupees, made by Shyam is

Answer: 2160

Show explanation
Answer:2160 What to find. Then, the profit, in rupees, made by Shyam is. Setup. Bina incurs 19% loss when she sells a product at Rs. 4860 to Shyam, who in turn sells this product to Hari. If Bina would have sold this product to Shyam at the purchase price of Hari, she would have obtained 17% profit. Steps. Bina sells at 4860 with 19% loss ⇒ cost for Bina C satisfies 4860 = 0.81C ⇒ C = 4860/0.81 = 6000. If Bina sold at Hari’s purchase price (i.e. Shyam’s selling price to Hari), she would make 17% profit: that price = 1.17·6000 = 7020. So Shyam bought at 4860 and sold at 7020; profit = 7020 − 4860 = 2160. Conclusion. Therefore the required value is 2160.
Q59Quantitative Ability·Circles

Three circles of equal radii touch (but not cross) each other externally. Two other circles, X and Y, are drawn such that both touch (but not cross) each of the three previous circles. If the radius of X is more than that of Y, the ratio of the radii of X and Y is

  • A(4 + 2 3) : 1
  • B(7 + 4 3) : 1Correct answer
  • C(2 + 3) : 1
  • D(4 + 3) : 1

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (1 : (7 + 4 3)) Three equal circles of radius r are mutually tangent; their centers form an equilateral triangle of side 2r. The distance from the centroid to a center is 2r3. The small circle Y in the middle gap satisfies 2r3 = r + r_Y ⇒ r_Y = r(23 − 1). The large circle X enclosing all three (internally tangent) satisfies 2r3 = r_X − r ⇒ r_X = r(23 + 1). Hence r_X / r_Y = 23 + 123 − 1 = 2 + 32 − 3. Multiply by conjugate: (2+3)2/(4−3) = 4 + 4 3 + 3 = 7 + 4 3. So r_X : r_Y = (7+4 3) : 1, which is the pair appearing in option B.
Q60Quantitative Ability·Inequalities

If x and y satisfy the equations |x| + x + y = 15 and x + |y| – y = 20, then (x – y) equals

  • A20
  • B10
  • C15Correct answer
  • D5

Answer: C

Show explanation
Answer:C (15) From |x| + x + y = 15: if x ≥ 0 then 2x + y = 15; if x < 0 then y = 15. From x + |y| − y = 20: if y ≥ 0 then x = 20; if y < 0 then x − 2y = 20. Case x = 20 (≥ 0: then 2 × 20 + y = 15 ⇒ y = −25 < 0. Check second: x − 2y = 20 − 2(−25) = 70 ≠ 20. Impossible. Case y = 15 ≥ 0 (forcing x < 0 from first equation’s x<0 branch): second gives x = 20, but x < 0 contradicted. Case x < 0 and y < 0: first ⇒ y = 15, but y < 0 contradicted. Case x ≥ 0 and y < 0: 2x + y = 15 and x − 2y = 20. From first y = 15 − 2x. Plug: x − 2(15−2x) = 20 ⇒ x − 30 + 4x = 20 ⇒ 5x = 50 ⇒ x = 10. y = 15 − 20 = −5 < 0. Consistent. x − y = 10 − (−5) = 15.
Q61Quantitative Ability·Quadratic Equations

The roots α, β of the equation 3x2 + λx – 1 = 0, satisfy 1α2 + 1β2 = 15. The value of (α3 + β3)2 is

  • A16
  • B4Correct answer
  • C1
  • D9

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (4) Setup. α, β are roots of 3x2 + λx − 1 = 0, so s = α+β = −λ/3 and p = αβ = −13. They also satisfy 1α2 + 1β2 = 15. Steps. Rewrite 1α2 + 1β2 = α2+β2p2 = s2 − 2pp2 = 15. Insert p = −13: s2 − 2(−13)19 = 15 ⇒ 9(s2 + 23) = 15 ⇒ 9s2 + 6 = 15 ⇒ 9s2 = 9 ⇒ s2 = 1. Now α3+β3 = (α+β)(α2 − αβ + β2) = s(s2 − 3p) = s(1 − 3(−13)) = s(1+1) = 2s. Squaring: (α3+β3)2 = 4s2 = 4. Conclusion. 4 → B.
Q62Quantitative Ability·Inequalities

All the values of x satisfying the inequality 1x + 512x − 3 are

  • A−5 < x < 32 or 32 < x ≤ 8
  • B−5 < x < 32 or x > 32
  • Cx < −5 or x > 32
  • Dx < −5 or 32 < x ≤ 8Correct answer

Answer: D

Show explanation
Answer:D What to find. Solution set of 1x + 512x − 3. Setup. Domain excludes the poles x = −5 and x = 32. Steps. 1. Bring to one side: 1x + 512x − 3 ≤ 0. 2. Common denominator: (2x − 3) − (x + 5)(x + 5)(2x − 3) ≤ 0 ⇒ x − 8(x + 5)(2x − 3) ≤ 0. 3. Critical points −5, 32, 8. Wavy-curve sign chart (excluding poles) yields x < −5 or 32 < x ≤ 8. Conclusion. D.
Q63Quantitative Ability·Ratio & Proportion

When Rajesh's age was same as the present age of Garima, the ratio of their ages was 3 : 2. When Garima’s age becomes the same as the present age of Rajesh, the ratio of the ages of Rajesh and Garima will become

  • A2 : 1
  • B5 : 4Correct answer
  • C4 : 3
  • D3 : 2

Answer: B

Show explanation
Answer:B (5 : 4) What to find. When Garima’s age becomes the same as the present age of Rajesh, the ratio of the ages of Rajesh and Garima will become. Setup. When Rajesh's age was same as the present age of Garima, the ratio of their ages was 3 : 2. When Garima’s age becomes the same as the present age of Rajesh, the ratio of the ages of Rajesh and Garima will become Steps. Let present ages be R (Rajesh) and G (Garima). The gap is R−G. When Rajesh was age G, Garima was G−(R−G)=2G−R, and G:(2G−R)=3:2. So 2G=3(2G−R) ⇒ 2G=6G−3R ⇒ 3R=4G ⇒ R=4k, G=3k for some k. When Garima reaches age R, Rajesh will be R+(R−G)=2R−G=8k−3k=5k. The future ratio is 5k:4k = 5:4. Conclusion. This matches B (5 : 4).
Q64Quantitative Ability·Permutations & CombinationsTITA

P, Q, R and S are four towns. One can travel between P and Q along 3 direct paths, between Q and S along 4 direct paths, and between P and R along 4 direct paths. There is no direct path between P and S, while there are few direct paths between Q and R, and between R and S. One can travel from P to S either via Q, or via R, or via Q followed by R, respectively, in exactly 62 possible ways. One can also travel from Q to R either directly, or via P, or via S, in exactly 27 possible ways. Then, the number of direct paths between Q and R is

Answer: 7

Show explanation
Answer:7 What to find. Then, the number of direct paths between Q and R is. Setup. P, Q, R and S are four towns. One can travel between P and Q along 3 direct paths, between Q and S along 4 direct paths, and between P and R along 4 direct paths. There is no direct path between P and S, Steps. Let p = #direct paths Q–R and q = #direct paths R–S. P→S routes: P–Q–S gives 3 × 4=12; P–R–S gives 4q; P–Q–R–S gives 3pq. So 12+4q+3pq=62 ⇒ q(4+3p)=50. (1) Q→R routes: direct p; via P: 3 × 4=12; via S: 4q. So p+12+4q=27 ⇒ p+4q=15. (2) From (2), p=15−4q. With p,q positive integers, q∈{1,2,3}. Only q=2 yields (1): 2(4+3 × 7)=2 × 25=50 with p=7. Hence the number of direct Q–R paths is 7. Conclusion. Therefore the required value is 7.
Q65Quantitative Ability·CirclesTITA

The coordinates of the three vertices of a triangle are: (1, 2), (7, 2), and (1, 10). Then the radius of the incircle of the triangle is

Answer: 2

Show explanation
Answer:2 What to find. Then the radius of the in circle of the triangle is. Setup. The coordinates of the three vertices of a triangle are: (1, 2), (7, 2), and (1, 10). Then the radius of the in circle of the triangle is Steps. The points (1,2), (7,2), (1,10) give legs of length 6 and 8 along the axes directions and hypotenuse 10. For a right triangle, inradius r=leg1+leg2−hyp2=6+8−102=2. Equivalently Area=24, s=12, r=Area/s=2. After simplifying, the numeric/symbolic result lines up with 2, and substituting the stem’s given constants back into the last displayed equation reproduces the same value with no leftover factors. Conclusion. Therefore the required value is 2.
Q66Quantitative Ability·LogarithmsTITA

If a, b and c are positive real numbers such that a > 10 ≥ b ≥ c and log8(a + b)log2 c + log27(a - b)log3 c = 23, then the greatest possible integer value of a is

Answer: 14

Show explanation
Answer:14 Official equation. log8(a + b)log2 c + log27(a - b)log3 c = 23, with a > 10 ≥ b ≥ c > 0. Simplify. Change of base: log8(a + b)log2 c = 13 logc(a + b), log27(a - b)log3 c = 13 logc(a - b). So (13)[logc(a + b) + logc(a - b)] = 23 logc((a + b)(a - b)) = 2 a2b2 = c2. Maximize a. With b ≥ c > 0 and b ≤ 10, a = b2 + c22b2 = b 2 ≤ 10 2 ≈ 14.14. Also a > 10, so the greatest possible integer value of a is 14.
Q67Quantitative Ability·Linear EquationsTITA

If x and y are real numbers such that 4x2 + 4y2 – 4xy – 6y + 3 = 0, then the value of (4x + 5y) is

Answer: 7

Show explanation
Answer:7 What to find. If x and y are real numbers such that 4x2 + 4y2 – 4xy – 6y + 3 = 0, then the value of (4x + 5y) is. Setup. If x and y are real numbers such that 4x2 + 4y2 – 4xy – 6y + 3 = 0, then the value of (4x + 5y) is Steps. Rewrite 4x2+4y2−4xy−6y+3=0 as (2x−y)2 + 3y2−6y+3=0 = (2x−y)2 + 3(y−1)2=0. Sum of squares vanishes only if 2x−y=0 and y−1=0, so y=1, x=12. Then 4x+5y=4·(12)+5 × 1=2+5=7. After simplifying, the numeric/symbolic result lines up with 7, and substituting the stem’s given constants back into the last displayed equation reproduces the same value with no leftover factors. Conclusion. Therefore the required value is 7.
Q68Quantitative Ability·Mensuration

ABCD is a trapezium in which AB is parallel to CD. The sides AD and BC when extended, intersect at point E. If AB = 2 cm, CD = 1 cm, and perimeter of ABCD is 6 cm, then the perimeter, in cm, of ∆AEB is

  • A8Correct answer
  • B10
  • C9
  • D7

Answer: A

Show explanation
Answer:A (8) What to find. If AB = 2 cm, CD = 1 cm, and perimeter of ABCD is 6 cm, then the perimeter, in cm, of ∆AEB is. Setup. ABCD is a trapezium in which AB is parallel to CD. The sides AD and BC when extended, intersect at point E. If AB = 2 cm, CD = 1 cm, and perimeter of ABCD is 6 cm, then the perimeter, in cm, of ∆AEB is Steps. AB∥CD with AB=2, CD=1, and AB+BC+CD+DA=6 ⇒ AD+BC=3. Extending AD and BC meets at E. Similarity △EAB∼△ECD with ratio AB/CD=2. Thus EA/ED=EB/EC=2. With the vertex order E–D–A and E–C–B, AD=EA−ED=ED and BC=EB−EC=EC, so AD+BC=ED+EC=3. Perimeter of △AEB = EA+EB+AB=2 ED+2 EC+2=2(ED+EC)+2=2 × 3+2=8. Conclusion. This matches A (8).

Answer key

Quick reference — click a question number to jump to the full solution.

Q#SectionAnswerTopic
1VARCCVerbal Ability
2VARCAVerbal Ability
3VARCDVerbal Ability
4VARCBReading Comprehension
5VARCAReading Comprehension
6VARCBReading Comprehension
7VARCAReading Comprehension
8VARC4Verbal Ability
9VARCBVerbal Ability
10VARCDReading Comprehension
11VARCAReading Comprehension
12VARCDReading Comprehension
13VARCCReading Comprehension
14VARCDReading Comprehension
15VARCAReading Comprehension
16VARCCReading Comprehension
17VARCAReading Comprehension
18VARCAReading Comprehension
19VARCDReading Comprehension
20VARCCReading Comprehension
21VARCBReading Comprehension
22VARC2Verbal Ability
23VARCAVerbal Ability
24VARCAVerbal Ability
25DILR4Logical Reasoning
26DILRBLogical Reasoning
27DILRALogical Reasoning
28DILR2Logical Reasoning
29DILR26Logical Reasoning
30DILRALogical Reasoning
31DILRDLogical Reasoning
32DILR5100Logical Reasoning
33DILR3500Logical Reasoning
34DILR150Data Interpretation
35DILRAData Interpretation
36DILR4Data Interpretation
37DILRDData Interpretation
38DILRAData Interpretation
39DILRBData Interpretation
40DILRAData Interpretation
41DILRBData Interpretation
42DILRALogical Reasoning
43DILR4Logical Reasoning
44DILR5Logical Reasoning
45DILR6Logical Reasoning
46DILRCLogical Reasoning
47QACQuantitative Ability
48QADQuantitative Ability
49QADQuantitative Ability
50QABQuantitative Ability
51QA11Quantitative Ability
52QABQuantitative Ability
53QA139Quantitative Ability
54QACQuantitative Ability
55QACQuantitative Ability
56QAAQuantitative Ability
57QA340Quantitative Ability
58QA2160Quantitative Ability
59QABQuantitative Ability
60QACQuantitative Ability
61QABQuantitative Ability
62QADQuantitative Ability
63QABQuantitative Ability
64QA7Quantitative Ability
65QA2Quantitative Ability
66QA14Quantitative Ability
67QA7Quantitative Ability
68QAAQuantitative Ability

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