Hi friends..

So now that all of you have read the tips on how to approach the reasoning questions let us try and do one simple example.
This example is of medium level and in the final exam the level of questions will be higher so be prepared and do the critical reasoning part practice thouroughly and carefully as this part is the one in which students most often make elementary mistakes due to time constraints and other pressures.


Example question

Some of our federal legislators are opposed to government endowments or other financial support for photography as an art form on the basis that much of modern photography portrays nudity and is thus obscene. These legislators are mistaken, however, since even they would agree that Michelangelo’s works of art, most of which depict nudity, are not obscene.

Which of the following statements, if true, would most seriously weaken the argument above?

• The artistic level of the works of the vast majority of modern photographers does not approach that of Michelangelo's works.
• Many modern photographic works of art have been displayed in museums alongside Michelangelo's works.
• The majority of Michelangelo's work was not funded or otherwise supported by the government.
• What these legislators consider to be obscene does not coincide with what the general citizenry views as obscene.
• The works of Michelangelo that portray nudity are considered not obscene due to their relatively high artistic value.

The author of the passage attempts to refute the legislators' argument by reasoning essentially as follows:

Premise: Michelangelo's works portray nudity.

Premise: Michelangelo's works are not considered obscene.

Intermediate Conclusion: A work of art that portrays nudity is not necessarily obscene.

Final Conclusion: The legislators are mistaken about why they should not provide funding for photographic art that portrays nudity.

The first answer choice (we'll call it "A") is the second-best answer among the five choices. (A) Suggests a possible explanation why modern photographers' works portraying nudity might be considered obscene while Michelangelo's works portraying nudity would not. But a better response would go further—to explain how artistic value affects whether an artwork is considered obscene. Thus, while (A) tends to weaken the argument, you should look for another answer choice that refutes the argument's unstated assumption more directly.

The second answer choice (we'll call it "B") actually strengthens (supports) the argument, rather than weakening it. (B) Provides some evidence, albeit weak, that Michelangelo's works are relevantly similar to those of modern photographers.

The third answer choice (we'll call it "C") is irrelevant to the argument, which relies on a logical connection between nudity and obscenity, not on any logical connection between federal funding and obscenity

The fourth answer choice (we'll call it "D")fails to provide enough information to either weaken or support the argument. More specifically, (D) does not indicate how the general citizenry's view as to what is obscene compares with that of the legislators. Without this information, (D) accomplishes nothing toward either weakening or supporting the argument.

The fifth answer choice (we'll call it "E")is the best one. (E) directly refutes the unstated assumption that Michelangelo's works and those of modern photographers are similar in all respects relevant to the argument—by stating explicitly that Michelangelo's works are considered not obscene because of their relatively high artistic value.

2. CRITICAL REASONING

NUMBER OF QUESTIONS: 14-15

TEST SECTION: In the 75-Minute Verbal Ability section, interspersed with Reading Comprehension and Sentence Correction questions

FORMAT: Multiple-choice (you select one of 5 choices by clicking on an oval)

SKILLS TESTED: Your ability to understand, criticize, and draw reasonable conclusions from arguments.

Before trying out some example questions and how to solve them read the tips on how to go about solving the critical reasoning part.

Important tips on critical reasoning questions

• always read the question stem first (before reading the passage). It will contain useful clues about what to look for and think about as you read the passage.

• that ask you to identify an assumption and those that ask you to find the choice that most weakens the argument, your task is to determine what must be assumed in order for the argument's conclusion to be reasonably inferable. In the latter type of question, your second task is to find the statement among the answer choices that refutes that assumption.

• if the passage confuses you, try identifying the argument's conclusion (often signaled by terms such as "as a result," "consequently," and "therefore") and its premises—evidence that is given as factual (often signaled by terms such as "because," "since," and "given that.") The passages do not always present the components of an argument in the most coherent sequence. Reasoning linearly from premises to conclusion can help you make sense of it all.

• In any question that asks which answer choice most effectively either weakens or strengthens the argument, you can be certain that one or two of the answer choices will go the wrong way—by accomplishing just the opposite of what the question asks for. Be on the lookout for them; it's remarkably easy to become confused and go for this type of answer choice under time pressure and during a momentary lapse of concentration.

• many passages contain superfluous statements, which are irrelevant to the argument and shouldn't come into play at all in responding to the question at hand. Don't be thrown by these red herrings; separate them out from the important logical features of the argument.

Tackling the verbal portion

The verbal portion of the GMAT consists of three types of questions: Reading Comprehension, Arguments, and Sentence Correction. They are designed to test your ability to reason using the written word. There is roughly the same number of each type of question, for a total of 41 questions.




1. GMAT READING COMPREHENSION



FORMAT:

The GMAT reading comprehension section passages are about 200 to 400 words long. The subject matter of a passage can be almost anything, but the most common themes are politics, history, culture, science, and business.


READING METHODS

There are many methods explained in Gmat books to go about the reading of the comprehension passages. The most common ones are skimming or speed reading of the passage.
According to me this is not a very good idea, the reason being in speed reading the reader is just skimming through the passage and collecting only the most important information from that passage and leaves the other information as it is without recollecting then in their minds.
In reality the speed reading technique of passages is based for those written materials that are non technical in nature which is not the case in Gmat exam reading comprehension passages. The passages you get in reading comprehension are very detailed and demands close scrutiny from the reader. Therefore the technique of speed working may not work in the Gmat reading comprehension.
Another technique that is prevalent for tackling these passages is reading the questions first. This technique can backfire also as questions are themselves sometimes are a paragraph long and reading the question twice or maybe thrice will take away your precious time.
Even after you read the question 2-3 times you maybe clueless as to what its exact reference is to the main passage , this technique is a form of gamble and taking such a big risks in your exam is not a wise idea .
The technique that can be used for tackling the reading comprehension is reading the first two sentences of each paragraph. The topic of the paragraph is explained in the first few sentences. Reading the first sentence of each paragraph will give an overview of the passage. The topic sentences act in essence as a summary of the passage. Furthermore, since each passage is only three or four paragraphs long, previewing the topic sentences will not use up an inordinate amount of time.
I will be giving more detailed information on how to tackle the reading comprehension in later posts as this is an important part of the exam. Illustrations will also be provided for interactive and easy understanding.