English Section Test

English Sectional Test/ No. of Questions: 40/ Marking Scheme: Correct: +4 Wrong: -1/ Time: 40 min

Direction: Read the following passages and answer the following questions Passage 1The Kansas Board of Education voted 6 to 4 to remove evolution, and the Big Bang theory as well, from the state’s science curriculum. In so doing, the board transported its jurisdiction to a never-never lane where a Dorothy of the new millennium might exclaim, “They still call it Kansas, but I don’t think we are in the real world anymore.” The new standards do not forbid the teaching of evolution, but the subject will no longer be included in statewide tests for evaluating students – a virtual guarantee, given the realities of education, that this central concept of biology will be diluted or eliminated, thus reducing courses to something like chemistry without the periodic table, or American history without Lincoln.

The Kansas skirmish marks the latest episode of a long struggle by religious Fundamentalists and their allies to restrict or eliminate the teaching of evolution in public schools—a misguided effort that our courts have quashed at each stage, and that saddens both scientists and most theologians. No specific theory, including evolution, can pose any threat to religion—for these two great tools of human understanding operate in complimentary(not contrary) fashion in there totally separate realms: science as an inquiry about the factual state of the natural world, religion as a search for spiritual meaning and ethical values.

In the early 1920s, several states simply forbade the teaching of evolution outright, opening an epoch that inspired the infamous 1925 Scopes trial(leading to the conviction of a Tennessee high school teacher) and that ended only in 1968, when the Supreme Court declared such laws unconstitutional on First Amendment grounds. In a second round in the late 1970s, Arkansas and Louisiana required that if evolution be taught, equal time must be given to Genesis literalism, masquerading as oxymoronic “creation science.” The Supreme Court likewise rejected those laws in 1987.

The Kansas decision represents creationism’s first-and surely temporary-success with a third strategy for subverting a constitutional imperative: that by simply deleting, but not formally banning, evolution and by not demanding instruction in a biblically literalist “alternative,” there narrowly partisan religious motivations might not derail their goals.

Given this protracted struggle, Americans of goodwill might be excused for supposing that some genuine scientific or philosophical dispute motivates this issue: Is evolution speculative and ill founded? Does evolution threaten our ethical values or our sense of life’s meaning? As a paleontologist by training, and with abiding respect for religious traditions, I would raise three points to alleviate these worries: First, no other Western nation has endured any similar movement, with any political clout, against evolution-a subject taught as fundamental, and without dispute, in on other countries that share our major socio-cultural tradition.

Second, evolution is as well documented as any phenomenon in science, as the earth’s revolution around the sun vice versa. In this sense, we can call evolution a “fact.” (Science does not deal in certainly, so “fact” can only mean a proposition affirmed to such a high degree that it would be perverse to withhold one’s provisional assent.)

The major argument advanced by the school board-that large-scale evolution must be dubious because the process has not been directly observed-smacks of absurdity and only reveals ignorance about the nature of science. Good science integrates observation with inference. No process that unfolds over such long stretches of time (mostly, in this case, before humans appeared), or attain infinitude beneath our powers of direct visualization (subatomic particles, for example),l can be seen directly. If justification required eyewitness testimony, we would have no sciences of deep time-no geology, no ancient human history either.( Should I believe Julius Caesar ever existed ?The hard bony evidence for human evolution, as described in the preceding pages, surely exceeds our reliable documentation of Caesar’s life.)

Third ,no factual discovery of science ( statements about how nature “ is ” ) can , in principle lead us to ethical conclusions ( how we “ ought” to behave ) or to convictions about intrinsic meaning ( the “ purpose” of our lives.) . These last two questions-and what more important inquiries could we make? - lie firmly in the domains of religion, philosophy and humanistic study. Science and religion should be equal, mutually respecting partners, each the master of its own domain, and with each domain vital to human life in a different way.

Questions Compiled by: Abhranil Das ([email protected]/ PH: 9832376051) of 8

mailto:[email protected]/


1. The author can be said to be: (a) In favor of the decision made by the Kansas Board of Education(b) Against decision made by the Kansas Board of Education(c) Against the theory of evolution(d) In favor of the theory of evolution

1. a & c 2 .b only 3. b & d 4. c only

2. According to the author:(a) Evolution is a well documented phenomenon in science(b) No science “facts” can lead us to ethical conclusions or to convictions about intrinsic meaning (c) Julius Caesar never existed(d) Good science should integrate observation with inference.

1. a only 2. b & d only 3.a, b, c & d 4.a, b and d

3. According to the author:(a) The Kansas skirmish was the first episode of a long struggle by religious Fundamentals to restrict or eliminate the

teaching of evolution in public school(b) A “fact” can sometimes mean a proposition affirmed to such a high degree that it would be perverse to withhold one’s

provisional assent.(c) Science and religion should be mutually respecting partners(d) The evidence for human evolution does not exceed our reliable documentation of Caesar’s life

4. The author raises all the following questions except:(a) Is evolution speculative and ill founded?(b) Does evolution threaten our ethical values or our sense of life’s meaning?(c) What is the purpose of life?(d) The Kansas decision represents creationism’s first success?

5. The author’s tone towards the Creationist and their actions can be said to be:(a) Highly critical(b) Objective(c) Analytical(d) Mildly critical

6. Which of the following was a major argument advanced by the school board?(a) Religions is more important than science(b) Large-scale evolution is not certain because the process has not been directly observed(c) There are many loopholes in the way the theory of evolution has been constructed and maintained (d) Many other Western countries have not included the theory of evolution in their curricula

7. What does the author most likely mean by the lines: “Dorothy of the new millennium might exclaim, “They still call it Kansas, but I do not think we are in the real world anymore.”?

(a) Kansas as a state is economically backward(b) Kansas is not willing to come to terms with reality(c) Kansas as a state is still steeped in religion (d) Kansas is worse of than many other states in the new millennium

8. The author:(a) Does not have any respect for religion(b) Considers that some scientific theories can pose threats to religion




(c) Is of the opinion that Science and religion operate in a complimentary fashion in separate realms(d) Feels that evolution is not as well documented as some other scientific phenomena

9. Which of the following, if true, would most weaken the author’s arguments?(a) The theory of evolution is not being taught in schools in some under developed countries(b) Religion and Science are two pillars of society, so both have to be given due respect(c) In most schools in Germany and Finland, teaching of evolution has been banned for over two decades(d) A majority of the members of the Kansas School Board were regular church-goers

10. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author’s arguments?(a) The theory of evolution have some flaws that were recently discovered by biologists(b) The author had earlier published an article in which he had questioned the importance of science to human development (c) The Supreme Court’s rejection of the Tennessee, Arkansas and Louisiana cases were later repealed A Kansas School Board member has recently been elected to the American Scientists’ Hall of Fame

Passage 2Just over a decade ago, project Tiger was hailed as the success story for the preservation of not just the big cats but also all other wildlife. When the project was launched in 1973, the tiger population in the wilds had dropped to an alarming figure of just 1,800 as compared to the estimates of 40,000 before Independence. Apart from passing a stringent law banning the hunting of tigers, nine wildlife reserves were established. A scientific management plan saw, among other things, core areas, free of all human activity, being earmarked in each sanctuary. Regular patrolling by forest guards dissuaded poachers. Most important was the level of political commitment, with the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi personally taking interest and even hauling up Forest Department officials for non-performance. More tiger reserves were soon established and today there are 27 of them in the prime forests of India. Tiger population in such reserves has grown from 268 when the project began to over 1,500 now. The overall tiger population in the wilds is put at 3,500.

Now all this is being undone rapidly. The missing tigers of Sariska are an ominous signal that things are going terribly wrong in our wildlife preserves. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh rightly termed it as “the biggest crisis in the management of our wildlife”, when he wrote to Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje last week about Sariska. He asked her to institute a high-level independent inquiry to identify the causes and fix responsibility for the disappearance of the tigers. The prime minister would also do well to focus the searchlight on the Union Ministry of Environment apart from the other state ministries involved in the management of wildlife. Political commitment at all levels is the key and any revamp must begin from the top. Like Indira, the prime minister should make preserving wildlife his personal mission and get the chief ministers of concerned states to get the massage. Also as wildlife conservationist Ullas Karanth says, “What needs to change is the self-denial approach by ministry and forest officials who continue to maintain that nothing is wrong.” The prime minister should call for a total review of all wildlife preserves on an urgent basis and take remedial measures. If we don’t do this soon enough the roar of the tiger in Indian forests may echo only in Kipling’s books.

11. According to the passage, preserving wildlife as a personal mission was taken by: a. Vasundhara Raje.b. Indira Gandhi.c. Manmohan Singh.d. Officials of the Ministry of Forest, India.

12. Project Tiger was a success story in the beginning because of (a) Passing a stringent law banning the hunting of tigers.(b) Political commitment.(c) Scientific management plan.(d) All the above.

13. The number of prime forest of India is




(a) 268.(b) 1500.(c) 27.(d) None of the above.

14. Things are going terribly wrong in the wildlife preserves mainly because of(a) Miss-management of the forest department and political aloofness.(b) Poaching.(c) Massive de-forestation.(d) Wildlife is not supposed to survive in modern age.

15. According to the passage tiger population is maximum(a) In Sariska.(b) In the natural forests of India.(c) In the reserve forest of India.(d) In the natural forests of India in 1970’s.

Passage 3WHEN is a shareholder not a shareholder? When he owns part of a mutually owned building society (thrift) that is converting itself into a quoted bank. That is the conclusion reached by disaffected members of Britain’s Halifax, which became a bank on June 2nd in an £18.4 billion ($30 billion) stock market flotation.

Halifax’s conversion was meant to make its nearly 8m members an average of £2,400 richer. Not all of them got their cut. Some 314,000 members, roughly 4% of the total, were deliberately excluded from the bonanza. Some exclusions, such as members with next to nothing in their accounts, provoked little reaction. Others have proved more controversial: No shares went to nearly 100,000 members living abroad, in countries where the bank found it “onerous” to comply with securities laws. These members could have used addresses in one of the 27 “permitted” countries, but many say they were told this too late.

The heirs of 250,000 Halifax members who died between the conversion announcement and the flotation got the decreased members’ full entitlement only if the heirs themselves had been members for at least two years. Solicitors serving as executors to the wills of several Halifax members were given only one member’s allocation to divide among all of the estates they are overseeing.

Second-named holders of joint accounts missed out if their first-named partner died during the conversion period. So did couples who were long-time Halifax members but, in re-mortgaging their homes, inadvertently swapped the order of their names on the forms. (This confused Halifax’s computers into thinking they were new customers, ineligible for shares.) In nursing homes where the accounts of several patients were registered in the name of a care worker, the carer got just one block of shares to split among all of his charges, depriving many elderly and disabled members of thousands of pounds.

Douglas French, a former chairman of the British parliament’s building-societies committee, describes Halifax’s treatment of such members as “grotesquely unfair”. It may also damage the bank’s bottom line. Some mortgage brokers report customers refusing to borrow from Halifax because of its share-distribution policy. Many expatriate customers have moved their business elsewhere.

Halifax refuses to budge. It claims that it distributed shares in the fairest possible way, and that most of its unhappy savers and borrowers could have got shares had they paid closer attention to the 166-page conversion document distributed in January. “There was only so much hand-holding we could so,” says David Gilchrist, a spokesman. Legally, he insists, Halifax is in the right. Some share-less depositors say they plan to test that by bringing a class-action lawsuit in America.




16. Halifax is located in:(a) USA (b) Britain (c) Canada (d) Australia

17. What is the total membership of Halifax? (a) 314,000 (b) 100,000 (c) 8,000,000 (d) 250,000

18. Shares reached the members living outside of Britain, if they lived in one of how many permitted countries?(a) 35 (b) 27 (c) 25 (d) 36

19. According to the passage, which of the following types of members was not affected by Halifax’s conversion?(a) Members living abroad (b) Joint account holders(c) Members who were patients (d) Heirs of Halifax founders

DIRECTION: In each question four sentences are given only one is grammatically correct. Pick up that sentence.

20. A. He was deprived of not only his money but also his luggage.B. Not only he was deprived of his money but also his luggageC. He was not only deprived of his money but also his luggage.D. He not only was deprived of his money but also his luggage.

21. A. It displeased the mother that her son had not performed the duties which she had taught him to her satisfaction.B. It displeased the mother that her son to her satisfaction had not performed the duties which she had taught him.C. It displeased the mother that her son had not performed to her satisfaction the duties which she had taught him.D. It displeased the mother that her son did not perform the duties to her satisfaction which she had taught him.

22. A. Acts are often pushed through Parliament in spite of opposition with but little modification.B. With but little modification, Acts are often pushed through Parliament in spite of opposition.C. Acts with but little modification are often pushed through parliament in spite of opposition.D. Acts are often pushed through Parliament with but little modification in spite of opposition.

23. A. Some firms only work when they are faced with the threat of closure.B. Only some firms work when they are faced with the threat of closure.C. Some firms work only when they are faced with the threat of closure.D. Some firms work when they are faced with the threat of closure only.

24. A. The nursery boy recited the whole long poem after he had gone through it with perfect accuracy.

B. With perfect accuracy, the nursery boy recited the whole long poem after he had gone through it.C. The nursery boy with perfect accuracy recited the whole long poem after he had gone through it.D. The nursery boy recited with perfect accuracy the whole long poem after he had gone through it.

DIRECTIONS: In each question below is given a statement followed by two assumptions. An assumption is something that is supposed or taken for granted. You have to consider the statement and the following assumptions and decide which of the assumptions is implicit in the statement.

Give answer(a) If only assumption I is implicit.(b) If only assumption II is implicit(c) If either I or II is implicit(d) If neither I nor II is implicit and




(e) If both I and II are implicit.25. Statement: in case of any difficulty about this case, you may contact our company’s lawyer.

Assumptions:(i) Each company has a lawyer of its own.(ii) The company’s lawyer is thoroughly briefed about this case.

26. Statement: a good manager must draw the utmost work from each worker.Assumption:(i) It is possible to get the maximum work from each worker.(ii) Managers are expected to get the best work from their workers.

27. Statement: I can take you quickly from Kanpur to Lucknow by my cab but then you must pay me double the normal charges.Assumptions:(i) Normally, it will take more time to reach Lucknow from Kanpur.(ii) People want to reach quickly but they will not pay extra money for it.

28. Statement: The coffee powder of company ‘X’ is better in taste than the much advertised coffee of company ‘Y’.Assumptions:(i) If your product is not good, you spend more on advertising.(ii) Some people are tempted to buy a product by the advertisement.

29. Statement: A good executive has to be task oriented as well as people-oriented.Assumptions:(i) Some executives are only people-oriented.(ii) Some executives are not at all oriented to people.

DIRECTION: In making decisions about important questions, it is desirable to be able to distinguish between ‘strong’ arguments and ‘weak’ arguments so far as they relate to questions. ‘Weak’ arguments may not be directly related to the question and may be of minor importance or may be related to a trivial aspect of the question.

Each question below is followed by two arguments. You have to decide which of the arguments is ‘strong’ and which is ‘weak’.

Give answers,a. If only argument (i) is strong.b. If only argument (ii) is strong.c. If either (i) or (ii) is strong.d. If neither (i) nor (ii) is strong.e. If both (i) and (ii) are strong.f.

30. Should the pay scale of government and private employees be made similar?Arguments:(i) Yes! Employees will work with more dedication and will not change their job.(ii) No! This will stop the feeling of competitiveness and ultimately affect the productivity and profitability.

31. Should student’s union in universities be abolished?Arguments:(i) Yes! Students can pay full attention to their career development.(ii) No! All the great leaders had been student union leaders.




32. Should all college-going students compulsorily be sent for military training?Argument:(i) Yes! This will help them in becoming more punctual and disciplined.(ii) No! Military training should be provided to only deserving students.

33. Should internal assessment in colleges be abolished?Arguments:(i) Yes! This will help in reducing the possibility of favoritism.(ii) No! The teaching faulty will lose control over students.

34. Should the government stop spending huge amounts of money on international sports?Arguments:(i) Yes! This money can be utilized for the uplift of the poor.(ii) No! Sportspersons will be frustrated and will not get international exposure.

Directions: The sentence given in each question, when properly sequenced, from a coherent paragraph. Each sentence is labeled with a letter. Choose the most logical order of sentenced from among the given choices to construct a paragraph.

35. A. According to these scientists every summer will see severe conflicts over water not just between states but individual as well, if the issue of scarcity of the planet’s most essential natural resources is not addressed on a war footing.B. Water scarcity in India is just not confined to the stand-off between Tamilnadu and Karnataka over Cauvery water or between Delhi and Haryana for control of river Yamuna.C. They say the days of easy water are over.D. Social scientists believe that these are gentle disputes as compared to the doomsday scenario they are predicting.

a. ABDCb. BDCAc. DCABd. BADC

36. A. For it is here, that that the practice of polygamous marriage has survived since time immemorial.

B. Yet, to behavioural scientists and ethnologists it is a very important place.C. Almost every able-bodied youth in this village boasts of four to eight wives, living in perfect harmony.D. Dhadigam is a tiny, nondescript hamlet in western Gujarat that hardly ever shows up in any tourism map.

a. ADBCb. CDBAc. DBACd. BDAC

37. A. One expected him to die any time.B. One imagine that he spoke of so remote a subject to escape from the actualities that have become so grim.C. The Great War has just broken out and the peace loving philosopher was shocked to see civilized nations take to barbarism.




D. When Russell spoke at Columbia University in 1914, he looked like his subject epistemology thin, pale and moribund.

a. ADBCb. BADCc. CABDd. DACB

38. A. Mankind has been traveling from time immemorial.B. In the earliest of times, travel was merely a way to find suitable food, until man learned to grow his own food.C. Travelling is by no means a twenty first century idea.D. Perhaps one of the earliest reasons to travel was to develop trade and commerce to tap resources in other lands.

a. CABDb. DCABc. ADBCd. DABC

39. A. This is prime lion country.B. Late February in Kuno Sanctuary, the world is all sunshine, crisp air and flowering trees.C. But in the 1880s, lions vanished from this open, rugged scrubland along the Vindhiyas.D. Today, in an ambitious conservation step, work is on here at a frenetic pace to bring back the Lord of jungle.

a. ACBDb. CADBc. CABDd. BACD

40. A. Thus brings the search for relief: painkillers, ice, yoga, herbs even surgery.B. most computers users develop disorders because they ignore warnings like tingling fingers, a numb hand or a sore shoulder.C. They keep pointing and dragging until tendons chafe and scar tissue forms, along with bad habits that are almost impossible to change.D. But cures are elusive, because Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI) present a bag of ills that often defy easy diagnosis.

a. BDACb. BADCc. BCAD d. ABCD



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