1. Jorge: You won’t be able to write well about the rock music of the 1960s, since you were just an infant then. Rock music of the 1960s was created by and for people who were then in their teens and early twenties.
Ruth: Your reasoning is absurd. There are living writers who write well about ancient Roman
culture, even though those writers are obviously not a part of ancient Roman culture.
Why should my youth alone prevent me from writing well about the music of a period as
recent as the 1960s?
Ruth responds to Jorge’s criticism by
(A) challenging his claim that she was not in her
teens or early twenties during the 1960s
(B) clarifying a definition of popular culture that is
left implicit in Jorge’s argument
(C) using the example of classical culture in order
to legitimize contemporary culture as an
object worthy of serious consideration
(D) offering an analogy to counter an unstated
assumption of Jorge’s argument
(E) casting doubt on her opponent’s qualification
to make judgments about popular culture
2. Anne: Halley’s Comet, now in a part of its orbit relatively far from the Sun, recently flared brightly enough to be seen by telescope. No comet has ever been observed to flare so far from the Sun before, so such a flare must be highly unusual.
Sue: Nonsense. Usually no one bothers to try to observe comets when they are so far from the Sun. This flare was observed only because an observatory was tracking Halley’s Comet very carefully.
Sue challenges Anne’s reasoning by
(A) pointing out that Anne’s use of the term
“observed” is excessively vague
(B) drawing attention to an inconsistency between
two of Anne’s claims
(C) presenting evidence that directly contradicts
Anne’s evidence
(D) offering an alternative explanation for the
evidence Anne cites
(E) undermining some of Anne’s evidence while
agreeing with her conclusion
3. Seemingly inconsequential changes in sea temperature due to global warming eventually result in declines in fish and seabird populations. A rise of just two degrees prevents the vertical mixing of seawater from different strata. This restricts the availability of upwelling nutrients to phytoplankton. Since zooplankton, which feed upon phytoplankton, feed the rest of the food chain, the declines are inevitable.
Which one of the following most accurately
describes the role played in the argument by the
statement that zooplankton feed upon
phytoplankton?
(A) It is a hypothesis supported by the fact that
phytoplankton feed on upwelling nutrients.
(B) It is intended to provide an example of the
ways in which the vertical mixing of seawater
affects feeding habits.
(C) It helps show how global temperature changes
affect larger sea animals directly.
(D) It is offered as one reason that global warming
must be curtailed.
(E) It is offered in support of the idea that global
warming poses a threat to all organisms.
Ruth: Your reasoning is absurd. There are living writers who write well about ancient Roman
culture, even though those writers are obviously not a part of ancient Roman culture.
Why should my youth alone prevent me from writing well about the music of a period as
recent as the 1960s?
Ruth responds to Jorge’s criticism by
(A) challenging his claim that she was not in her
teens or early twenties during the 1960s
(B) clarifying a definition of popular culture that is
left implicit in Jorge’s argument
(C) using the example of classical culture in order
to legitimize contemporary culture as an
object worthy of serious consideration
(D) offering an analogy to counter an unstated
assumption of Jorge’s argument
(E) casting doubt on her opponent’s qualification
to make judgments about popular culture
2. Anne: Halley’s Comet, now in a part of its orbit relatively far from the Sun, recently flared brightly enough to be seen by telescope. No comet has ever been observed to flare so far from the Sun before, so such a flare must be highly unusual.
Sue: Nonsense. Usually no one bothers to try to observe comets when they are so far from the Sun. This flare was observed only because an observatory was tracking Halley’s Comet very carefully.
Sue challenges Anne’s reasoning by
(A) pointing out that Anne’s use of the term
“observed” is excessively vague
(B) drawing attention to an inconsistency between
two of Anne’s claims
(C) presenting evidence that directly contradicts
Anne’s evidence
(D) offering an alternative explanation for the
evidence Anne cites
(E) undermining some of Anne’s evidence while
agreeing with her conclusion
3. Seemingly inconsequential changes in sea temperature due to global warming eventually result in declines in fish and seabird populations. A rise of just two degrees prevents the vertical mixing of seawater from different strata. This restricts the availability of upwelling nutrients to phytoplankton. Since zooplankton, which feed upon phytoplankton, feed the rest of the food chain, the declines are inevitable.
Which one of the following most accurately
describes the role played in the argument by the
statement that zooplankton feed upon
phytoplankton?
(A) It is a hypothesis supported by the fact that
phytoplankton feed on upwelling nutrients.
(B) It is intended to provide an example of the
ways in which the vertical mixing of seawater
affects feeding habits.
(C) It helps show how global temperature changes
affect larger sea animals directly.
(D) It is offered as one reason that global warming
must be curtailed.
(E) It is offered in support of the idea that global
warming poses a threat to all organisms.
