Princeton GRE Practice.doc

GRE Practice Section 1 of 6GRE practice section 1 of 6 Question 1 of 2 Men and women, because of their inherent physical differences, are not equally suited for many tasks. Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and supporting your position, be sure to address the most compelling reasons and/or examples that could be used to challenge your position. Question 2 of 2 The following opinion was provided in a letter to the editor of a national aeronautics magazine: “Manned space flight is costly and dangerous. Moreover, the recent success of a series of unmanned space probes and satellites has demonstrated that a great deal of useful information can be gathered without the costs and risks associated with sending men and women into space. Therefore, we should invest our resources in unmanned space flight.” Write a response in which you discuss one or more alternative explanations that could rival the proposed explanation and explain how your explanation(s) can plausibly account for the facts presented in the argument. GRE Practice Section 2 of 6GRE Practice Section 2 of 6 Question 1 of 20 His colorful lifestyle aside, Bob Dylans reputation as a _ artist stems from the vast number of songs he produced during the 1960s and 1970s. Blank (i) A, humble B, flamboyant C, competent D, wealthy E, prolificAnswer: EThe clue is vast number of songs he produced. Therefore, find a word that means producing a vast number of things. Prolific is the best match.Question 2 of 20After screenwriter Neil Jordans most recent work opened in selected urban areas, many theatergoers were (i)_ , but after pundits expressed their (ii)_ , acceptance of the films unique structure increased and demand for a wider release surged. Blank (i) A skeptical B erratic C ebullient Blank (ii) D diffidence E approbation F trepidation Answer: A, ELook at the two blanks. Try working with the first blank. Anything could go in that blank. For the second blank, however, we know that the critics must have said something good, because acceptance increased and demand for a wider release surged. Therefore, the second blank needs a positve word. Neither diffidence nor trepidation are positive, so eliminate them both. Approbation must work and does. There is also the transition word but in the sentence, so we know that the first blank must go in the other direction. The audience must have been on the fence until the critics weighed in. On the fence works for the blank, so, erratic and ebullient can be elliminated.Question 3 of 20 Although journalism is usually described as a (i)_ investigation of deeds and occurrences, journalists are not a breed apart from the rest of us: they are (ii)_ individuals caught in a net of individual, political, and societal concerns. Blank (i) A dispassionate B nonpartisan C meticulous Blank (ii) D logical E passionate F defenseless Answer: B, ETry starting with blank two. Were told that journalists are not a breed apart from the rest of us. Because there is a “colon” punctuation mark, the sentence continues in the same direction. Also, individuals caught in a net of individual, political, and societal concerns helps as a clue about blank two. Find a word similar to “caring or human.” Eliminate everything but passionate. For blank one, we need an opposite of blank two because of the trigger Although. The opposite of passionate, “caring”, or “subjective” might be something like “objective”. More specifically, the clue that even journalists have political concerns, helps indicate that nonpartisan will be the best match as an opposite of blank two.Question 4 of 20The importance of Hans Lippershey to other astronomers of his period was (i)_ because his were the only lenses (ii)_ in Europe for decades. Blank (i) A inconsequential B restricted C considerableBlank (ii) D obtainable E allowed F manufactured Answer: C, DThe first part of the sentence tells us that our friend Hans has some relationship with astronomers, but we dont know if he is the coolest kid at the campfire, or out back washing dishes. The second part of the sentence tells us that hes got the only lenses of some kind in Europe at the time. Thats sure to make him popular with the telescope set, so now we can fill in the first blank. His importance must be large. This knocks out inconsequential and restricted, but considerable works. For the second blank, we know that hes got the only lenses in Europe, so the most we can say is available. Be careful here. We have no evidence that access to lenses is restricted in some way, so eliminate allowed, nor do we know where they were actually made, so eliminate manufactured. Only obtainable worksQuestion 5 of 20Until about 1980, almost all economists assumed that economic growth is fueled by demand pressure at the level of the consumer; after the combination of high inflation and unemployment experienced in the 1970s, however, economists detected no (i)_ this previously (ii)_ view of economic growth. Blank (i) A deviations from B grounds for C preference for Blank (ii) D revolutionary E unquestioned F ubiquitous Answer: B, FThe first half of the sentence tells us that the 70s econominc crisis show us that the dominant econominc model to date was wrong. Since this sentence is separated by the semi-colon, the second half of the sentence must say the same thing. For the first blank, the economists should have detected no evidence or support. This allows you to eliminate deviations from and preference for. Grounds for works. We know that all economists assumed the old model was true, so we need a word that says that it was believed by all. That helps to eliminate revolutionary and unquestioned. ubiquitous works.Question 6 of 20Many policy makers insist that consumer spending is a strong economic (i)_ and, therefore, (ii)_ of retail stores is a contributing factor to low-performing economies. To improve economic conditions in Lakewood, Colorado, the city has begun charging residents a public improvement fee, on top of normal sales tax, which will (iii)_ tax breaks offered to major retailers to attract their business.Blank (i) A strategem B catalyst C axiom Blank (ii) D a paucity E a respite F an apex Blank (ii) G indemnify H liquidate I underwriteAnswers: B, D and IThe first two blanks work against each other. If spending is an economic depressant, then many retail stores will create low-performing economies. If it is a stimulant, then few stores will create low-performing economies. Because the final sentence says that tax breaks are being used to attract retailers, you know you should choose the second option. Therefore, catalyst and a paucity are the correct choices for first two blanks, respectively. Stratagem is an appealing choice for the first blank, but consumer spending itself is not a stratagem (though how politicians use it could qualify). An axiom is a generally accepted principle. Respite is a break and an apex is a culmination, so neither of these choices work in the second blank. You should fill in a phrase similar to pay for in the last blank because the money is collected from tax payers and offered to retailers. Underwrite means to support financially and would definitely help attract business. Indemnify is to secure against loss and liquidate is to pay off a debt. The sentence offers no clues to such circumstances existing between the city and retailers.Question 7 of 20Computer technology offers some tantalizing new innovations to the study of literature, and some scholars are seizing this opportunity to address one of literatures great puzzles. Until the 20th century, few would have questioned the authorship of Shakespeares work. The consensus among scholars was that William Shakespeare, a Stratford grain dealer, penned the plays, perhaps with some help from others. In recent decades, many began to question the authenticity of this attribution. Various luminaries were put forth as the real author Lord Francis Bacon, among others. Scholars argued that an ordinary yeoman would be unlikely to boast the vocabulary, style, and knowledge evinced in the Shakespearean canon; moreover, the doubters could offer biographical facts about the grain dealer that contradict the disseminated biographical facts about the Bard.A computer study conducted at Claremont McKenna College has upended the debate. The program divided each Shakespeare text into blocks and counted common words within each block. The computer measured and ranked eigenvalues, or modes, which are complex patterns of deviation from a writers normal rates of word frequency. The finding was that while Shakespeares language patterns were internally consistent, they varied considerably from the patterns of any other author. While it seems certain that none of the previously attributed authors can be definitively identified as Shakespeare, this does not rule out that yet another author may be discovered to be the true author. While this is unlikely to happen, it warns us that the most prominent feature of the computer study is its message of the consistency by which writers practice their craft.The author of the passage focuses primarily on A discussing a series of computer studies and their impact on the study of ShakespeareB recounting the effect of one computer studys findings on an academic debateC ruling out a definitive attribution of a particular authors workD illustrating the many difficulties involved in establishing author attributionEdetermining the exact value of computer technology in relation to the study of authorial attributionAnswer: BIn the first paragraph, the author tells us that computer technology can aid the study of literature. The author then goes on to discuss various past theories on who Shakespeare really was. In the second paragraph the author looks at a particular computer study, the results of which suggested that Shakespeare was not any of the previously attributed authors. The closest summary is therefore (B).Question 8 of 20Computer technology offers some tantalizing new innovations to the study of literature, and some scholars are seizing this opportunity to address one of literatures great puzzles. Until the 20th century, few would have questioned the authorship of Shakespeares work. The consensus among scholars was that William Shakespeare, a Stratford grain dealer, penned the plays, perhaps with some help from others. In recent decades, many began to question the authenticity of this attribution. Various luminaries were put forth as the real author Lord Francis Bacon, among others. Scholars argued that an ordinary yeoman would be unlikely to boast the vocabulary, style, and knowledge evinced in the Shakespearean canon; moreover, the doubters could offer biographical facts about the grain dealer that contradict the disseminated biographical facts about the Bard.A computer study conducted at Claremont McKenna College has upended the debate. The program divided each Shakespeare text into blocks and counted common words within each block. The computer measured and ranked eigenvalues, or modes, which are complex patterns of deviation from a writers normal rates of word frequency. The finding was that while Shakespeares language patterns were internally consistent, they varied considerably from the patterns of any other author. While it seems certain that none of the previously attributed authors can be definitively identified as Shakespeare, this does not rule out that yet another author may be discovered to be the true author. While this is unlikely to happen, it warns us that the most prominent feature of the computer study is its message of the consistency by which writers practice their craft.The passage suggests that the author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements concerning computer technology? A It can confirm an authors unique style. B It can undermine scholarly consensus and create confusion in determining authorial attribution.C It can offer valuable insights to assist in academic discussions.Answers: A and CAt the end of the passage the author states that the most salutary feature of the computer study is its message of the consistency by which writers practice their craft. This supports answer choice (A). The passage also states in the first paragraph that computer technology offers some tantalizing new innovations to the study of literature and states in the second paragraph that a computer study conducted at Claremont McKenna College has upended the debate. Therefore, answer choice (C) is also correct: the author believes that computer technology offers insights which assist in academic discussions.Question 9 of 20Computer technology offers some tantalizing new innovations to the study of literature, and some scholars are seizing this opportunity to address one of literatures great puzzles. Until the 20th century, few would have questioned the authorship of Shakespeares work. The consensus among scholars was that William Shakespeare, a Stratford grain dealer, penned the plays, perhaps with some help from others. In recent decades, many began to question the authenticity of this attribution. Various luminaries were put forth as the real author Lord Francis Bacon, among others. Scholars argued that an ordinary yeoman would be unlikely to boast the vocabulary, style, and knowledge evinced in the Shakespearean canon; moreover, the doubters could offer biographical facts about the grain dealer that contradict the disseminated biographical facts about the Bard.A computer study conducted at Claremont McKenna College has upended the debate. The program divided each Shakespeare text into blocks and counted common words within each block. The computer measured and ranked eigenvalues, or modes, which are complex patterns of deviation from a writers normal rates of word frequency. The finding was that while Shakespeares language patterns were internally consistent, they varied considerably from the patterns of any other author. While it seems certain that none of the previously attributed authors can be definitively identified as Shakespeare, this does not rule out that yet another author may be discovered to be the true author. While this is unlikely to happen, it warns us that the most prominent feature of the computer study is its message of the consistency by which writers practice their craft.It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about authorial attribution? A Computer programs that perform modal textual analysis provide the best means of uncovering authorship.B Study of language patterns within a work can aid in determining authorship.C The true authorship of Shakespeares works will never be definitively determined.E The authenticity of authorial contribution is best confirmed by comparison of biographical facts.F Ranking eigenvalues within a given text provides the most useful means of determining authorship.Answer: BThe passage explains that the computer study looked at common words and word frequencies to determine that so far no other authors word usage has been found to be sufficiently similar to Shakespeare. The best answer is therefore (B). One way to eliminate the wrong answers in this question is to examine the wording. The words best in answer choices (A) and (D), and most useful in answer choice (E) make all of these answer choices fairly strong. In general avoid the extreme wording unless that wording is warranted by the passage.Question 10 of 20Computer technology offers some tantalizing new innovations to the study of literature, and some scholars are seizing this opportunity to address one of literatures great puzzles. Until the 20th century, few would have questioned the authorship of Shakespeares work. The consensus among scholars was that William Shakespeare, a Stratford grain dealer, penned the plays, perhaps with some help from others. In recent decades, many began to question the authenticity of this attribution. Various luminaries were put forth as the real author Lord Francis Bacon, among others. Scholars argued that an ordinary yeoman would be unlikely to boast the vocabulary, style, and knowledge evinced in the Shakespearean canon; moreover, the doubters could offer biographical facts about the grain dealer that contradict the disseminated biographical facts about the Bard.A computer study conducted at Claremont McKenna College has upended the debate. The program divided each Shakespeare text into blocks and counted common words within each block. The computer measured and ranked eigenvalues, or modes, which are complex patterns of deviation from a writers normal rates of word frequency. The finding was that while Shakespeares language patterns were internally consistent, they varied considerably from the patterns of any other author. While it seems certain that none of the previously attributed authors can be definitively identified as Shakespeare, this does not rule out that yet another author may be discovered to be the true author. While this is unlikely to happen, it warns us that the most prominent feature of the computer study is its message of the consistency by which writers practice their craft.In the context in which it appears, message, highlighted, most nearly means A conclusionB cipherC memorandumD themeE argumentAnswer: AThe passage states that the message involves the consistency by which writers practice their craft which is one of the m