What to expect on the gmat 3

Tham khảo tài liệu what to expect on the gmat 3, ngoại ngữ, anh ngữ phổ thông phục vụ nhu cầu học tập, nghiên cứu và làm việc hiệu quả
Nội dung trích xuất từ tài liệu:
What to expect on the gmat 3 – CRITICAL REASONING – Well, of course an apple is redder and an orange more orange. It is rather absurd to be making such acomparison because even though apples and oranges are both fruit, they are not the same kind of fruit. If youwere to compare a Fuji apple to a gala apple, or a naval orange to a clementine, then you would have a legit-imate comparison. But comparing two things that do not fit in the same category makes for an illogical com-parison. It is obvious here, but in many arguments, you may have to look harder to detect an apples-to-orangescomparison. Two questions from the pretest can help demonstrate how common this fallacy is and how toidentify it. 7. Unemployment in Winston County has risen only 4% since I took office. Under my predecessor, unemployment rose 14%. Clearly, my economic policies are far more effective. Which of the following must be true in order for this argument to be valid? a. Winston County’s population dropped significantly during the current administration. b. The national unemployment rate increased by 12% during the previous administration but only 2% during the current administration. c. Key socioeconomic variables such as the state of the national economy and the demographics of Winston County are comparable for each administration. d. Key policy changes, such as increased job training for the unemployed, were implemented under the current administration. e. Tax incentives have been implemented to bring new businesses to Winston County. The problem here is that unless key variables that affect unemployment are the same during these twoadministrations, this is a case of comparing apples to oranges. For example, if the predecessor was in office dur-ing a deep national recession, no matter how good his economic policies were, he would experience a higherunemployment rate. If Winston County’s economy had been supported largely by a factory that shut downduring the predecessor’s administration, that might also explain a significantly higher unemployment rate. Thenational recession and the factory closing would both have a huge impact on the county’s unemployment nomatter who was in office. Without knowing that the variables are nearly the same or without making allowancesfor differences in those variables, one must assume this is a case of comparing apples to oranges. The same is true for the question about where to go for heart surgery:12. One out of four heart surgery patients at St. Vincent’s dies from complications during surgery. Only one out of six heart surgery patients at St. Mary’s dies from complications during surgery. If you need heart surgery, make sure you go to St. Mary’s, not St. Vincent’s. Which of the following, if true, is the best reason to reject this argument? a. St. Vincent’s specializes in heart surgery for elderly and high-risk patients. b. St. Mary’s surgical equipment is more up to date than St. Vincent’s. c. St. Vincent’s has the most renowned heart surgeon in the country on its staff. d. St. Vincent’s offers flexible payment options for balances not covered by insurance. e. Two doctors who used to work at St. Mary’s now work at St. Vincent’s. 98 Don’t Get PersonalRemember that on the GMAT exam, you must assess arguments and answer questions based only on the infor-mation presented on the test. For the moment, forget what you might know or how you might feel about thetopic or issue. Base your answer only on the argument and evidence in front of you. The best reason to reject this argument is the one that shows us this is an apples-to-oranges compari- son. To make a fair comparison of mortality rates, the patient base for both hospitals would have to be nearly identical. Because the patients at St. Vincent’s are already at a higher risk for mortality, their mortality rates are necessarily going to be higher — but that doesn’t mean you are less likely to survive surgery there. Assum- ing you are not an elderly or high-risk patient, to make an informed choice, you would need statistics about St. Vincent’s mortality rates for surgery on patients that are not elderly or high risk. A PPEALS E MOTION TO Arguments that appeal to emotions try to rouse your sense of pity, fear, or anger instead of offering logical reasons for accepting their claim. Here is an example: Let’s go to Morning Glory for coffee. That national coffee chain is putting Morning Glory out of business, and I feel bad for the owner. Although feeling sorry for the owner is a legitimate emotion, it is not a logical reason to go to Morning Glory for coffee. Similarly, see the fo ...