List of top Verbal and Logical Ability Questions on Critical Reasoning asked in XAT

All the parliamentarians whom the reporter interviewed told that they had voted as per their conscience. Therefore, probably all the parliamentarians voted as per their conscience. This argument is an example of:
Nature lovers are attracted to forests and nature parks. Just look at the number of people visiting the Corbett national park.
Which of the following exhibits a pattern of reasoning least dissimilar to (that is, closest to) the one shown in the argument above?
In this era of global capital flows, so much money is now flowing through the world that no single country can fight inflation effectively by tightening its monetary policy.
If the above is true, which of the following could be most logically concluded?

Consider the following:

"Tata Steel, one of the biggest steel makers in the world, was born in Jamshedpur."

If the above passage is true, then it can be concluded that the location of Tata Steel has been one of the reasons for its success.

  1. The conclusion is false.
  2. This is a farfetched conclusion.
  3. This is a valid conclusion.

"Tata Steel, one of the biggest steel makers in the world, was born in Jamshedpur. The very success of Tata Steel could lead to its failure in the future and hence the challenge for Tata Steel is to recognise its strengths that make it successful in initial conditions and stick to them."

  1. This is a valid conclusion.
  2. The conclusion is contrary to the ideas described in the passage.
  3. This is an internally contradictory conclusion.

Recently it was reported that the Indian textile sector was not doing well. If the ideas contained in the passage are agreed to, then which of the following could be a possible reason?

  1. All Indian firms are as old as international firms.
  2. Indian textile firms are dispersed all over the country, with most of them also having an international presence.
  3. Textile firms in India were subjected to trade union activity in the period from the 1960s to the 1980s.
Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

The Yoga system is divided into two principal parts, Hatha and Raja Yoga. Hatha Yoga deals principally with the physiological part of man with a view to establish his health and train his will. The processes prescribed to arrive at this end are so difficult that only a few resolute souls go through all the stages of its practice. Many have failed and some have died in the attempt. It is therefore strongly denounced by all the philosophers. The most illustrious Shankaracharya has remarked in his treatise called Aparokshanubhuti that 'the system of Hatha Yoga was intended for those whose worldly desires are not pacified or uprooted.'

Which one of the following, if true, most substantially strengthens the idea given in the passage?
Read the passage below and answer the question that follows.

History, if viewed as a repository not merely of anecdotes or chronology, could produce a decisive transformation in the image of science by which we are now possessed. That image has previously been drawn, even by scientists themselves, mainly from the study of finished scientific achievements as these are recorded in the classics and, more recently, in the textbooks from which each new scientific generation learns to practice its trade.

Which of the following best summarizes the passage above?
Read the passage below and answer the question that follows.

History, if viewed as a repository not merely of anecdotes or chronology, could produce a decisive transformation in the image of science by which we are now possessed. That image has previously been drawn, even by scientists themselves, mainly from the study of finished scientific achievements as these are recorded in the classics and, more recently, in the textbooks from which each new scientific generation learns to practice its trade.

Which of the following statements is the author most likely to agree with?
Goodricke Group Ltd is planning to give top priority to the core competence of production and marketing of tea in 2007. The company plans to increase the production of orthodox varieties of tea. Goodricke intends to invest Rs. 10 crore to modernize its factories. The company has reported a net profit of Rs. 5.49 crore for 2006, against Rs. 3.76 crore in 2005.

Which of the following can be deduced from the caselet?
Directions: Read the following caselet and answer the question that follows.

According to recent reports, CEOs of large organisations are paid more than CEOs of small organisations. It does not seem fair that just because a CEO is heading a big organisation, he or she should be paid more. A CEO's salary should be tied to performance, especially growth in sales and profits. Big organisations are of course more complex to run than small ones, but every CEO puts in a large amount of energy and time managing the organisation. There is no proof that CEOs of big organisations face more stress than CEOs of small organisations. All CEOs should be paid according to their performance.

A person seeking to refute this argument might argue that
Directions: Read the following caselet and answer the question that follows.

According to recent reports, CEOs of large organisations are paid more than CEOs of small organisations. It does not seem fair that just because a CEO is heading a big organisation, he or she should be paid more. A CEO's salary should be tied to performance, especially growth in sales and profits. Big organisations are of course more complex to run than small ones, but every CEO puts in a large amount of energy and time managing the organisation. There is no proof that CEOs of big organisations face more stress than CEOs of small organisations. All CEOs should be paid according to their performance.

Which of the following, if true, would strengthen the speaker's argument?
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

Hindi ought to be the official language of India. There is no reason for the government to spend money printing documents in different languages just to cater to people who cannot read or write Hindi. The government has better ways to spend taxpayers' money. People across India should read, write, or learn Hindi at the earliest.

Which of the following, if true, would weaken the speaker's argument the most?
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the question that follows.

Hindi ought to be the official language of India. There is no reason for the government to spend money printing documents in different languages just to cater to people who cannot read or write Hindi. The government has better ways to spend taxpayers' money. People across India should read, write, or learn Hindi at the earliest.

United Nations members contribute funds, proportionate to their population, for the smooth functioning of the UN. By 2010, India, being the most populous nation on the planet, would contribute the maximum amount to the UN. Therefore, the official language of the United Nations should be changed to Hindi.

Which of the following is true?
Read the passage below and answer the question that follows.

The Bistupur-Sakchi corner needs a speed-breaker. Loyola school children cross this intersection, on their way to the school, and many a times do not check out for traffic. I get to read regular reports of cars and other vehicles hitting children. I know that speed-breakers are irritating for drivers, and I know that children cannot be protected from every danger, but this is one of the worst intersections in town. There needs to be a speed-breaker so that vehicles have to slow down and the children be made safer.

Which of the following types of argument is used in the passage above?
Read the passage and the additional information below, then answer the question that follows.

The Bistupur-Sakchi corner needs a speed-breaker. Loyola school children cross this intersection, on their way to the school, and many a times do not check out for traffic. I get to read regular reports of cars and other vehicles hitting children. I know that speed-breakers are irritating for drivers, and I know that children cannot be protected from every danger, but this is one of the worst intersections in town. There needs to be a speed-breaker so that vehicles have to slow down and the children be made safer.

According to a recent research conducted by the district road planning department, ten percent of students come with parents in cars, twenty percent of students use auto-rickshaws, twenty percent of students use taxis, forty percent of students use the school buses, and ten percent of students live in the hostel inside the school.

Which of the following is true about the paragraph containing the survey data above?
Directions for questions 37 to 41: Analyze the statements given and provide an appropriate answer for the questions that follow.

Industry experts expect improvements in job safety training programs to lead to safer work environments. A recent survey indicated, however, that for manufacturers who improved job safety training programs during the 1980s, the number of on-the-job accidents increased in the months following the imparting of improved training programs.

Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy in the passage above?
Directions for questions 37 to 41: Analyze the statements given and provide an appropriate answer for the questions that follow.

Prediction, the hallmark of natural sciences, appears to have been possible by reducing phenomena to mathematical expressions. Some social scientists also want the power to predict accurately and assume they ought to perform the same reduction. But this would be a mistake, it would neglect data that are not easily mathematized and thereby would only distort the social phenomena.

Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main conclusion of the argument?
Directions for questions 37 to 41: Analyze the statements given and provide an appropriate answer for the questions that follow.

Chandra: Hailey's Comet, now in a part of its orbit relatively far from the Sun, recently flared brightly enough to be seen by telescope on earth. This has never happened before, so such a flare must be highly unusual.
Surya: Nonsense. Usually no one bothers to observe comets when they are so far from the Sun. This flare was observed only because an observatory was tracking Hailey's Comet very carefully.

Surya challenges Chandra's reasoning by:
Directions for questions 37 to 41: Analyze the statements given and provide an appropriate answer for the questions that follow.

Most antidepressant drugs cause weight gain. While dieting can help reduce the amount of weight gained as one takes such antidepressants, some weight gain is unlikely to be preventable.

The information above most strongly supports which one of the following?
Directions for questions 37 to 41: Analyze the statements given and provide an appropriate answer for the questions that follow.

The number of airplanes equipped with a new anti-collision device has increased steadily during the past two years. During the same period, it has become increasingly common for key information about an airplane's altitude and speed to disappear suddenly from air traffic controllers' screens. The new anti-collision device, which operates at the same frequency as air traffic radar, is therefore responsible for the sudden disappearance of key information.

Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument above?