GMAT Critical Reasoning

Question 1:

The Village Times is famous for its investigative journalism, often breaking cases involving corporate whistleblowing before any other news outlet. Since The Village Times focuses so narrowly on big corporate scandal, its readers are probably not going to be aware of big corporations beyond the ones that have been discredited. Which of the following can be inferred from the argument?

Question 2:

Bright Brand detergent whitens laundry more significantly than the other leading brands. Its closest-selling competitor bleaches clothing at only 80% of the whiteness of Bright Brand. But Bright Brand has benefitted from a new bleaching additive developed in the past year which significantly strengths the bleaching-power of detergents, so it’s clear Bright Brand has an unfair advantage over the other leading brands.
Which of the following best describes the flaw in the argument above?

Question 3:

Arsenic poisoning is usually determined by hair analysis. Since arsenic is most commonly found in contaminated drinking water, which typically becomes polluted by nearby arsenic pesticide products sprayed on crops, finding arsenic in a person’s hair follicles reveals that he or she lives or used to live near farms that use arsenic pesticide products. Each of the following is an assumption upon which the argument depends EXCEPT

Question 4:

Riverrun City treated all of its sewage waste at Treatment Center X, where the contaminants were removed and the resulting sludge disinfected. Despite this, however, the lagoon around the treatment center is overrun with algae and cyanobacteria, indicating an excess of nitrogen and phosphorus in the treated waste released into the surrounding environment. This year, Riverrun City has implemented stricter guidelines on Treatment Center X in order to cut the excess nitrogen and phosphorus levels in the city by half. Under the new guidelines the sludge will be disinfected and the contaminents removed, but both phosphorus and nitrogen will be released into the environment as a gas, rather than though the pipes leading to the lagoon. Which of the following is necessary for the city of Riverrun to succeed in its plan?

Question 5:

New statistics have shown that a person who is evaluated by a psychiatrist within six weeks after the death of a loved one is ten times more likely to be classified as depressed then they would otherwise have been. Yet many psychiatrists encourage patients who are in the early stages of grief to undergo evaluation for depression. Therefore, depression is often misdiagnosed in patients who are not typically depressed.
The argument relies on which of the following assumptions?

Question 6:

A new study has shown that Olestra molecules are so large and fatty that they cannot be metabolized by enzymes and bacteria in the gut and are neither absorbed nor digested. Furthermore, the additive prevents the body from absorbing beneficial vitamins. Since Olestra is mainly found in potato chips, if the potato chip manufacturers put warning labels describing the harmful effects of the additive on all products containing Olestra, people will decrease their consumption of Olestra.
Which of the following is an assumption upon which the argument depends?

Question 7:

Fitness expert: I do not recommend my clients engage in long-term extremely high-impact exercise to lose weight. Extreme high-impact exercise usually involves running, which can put unnecessary strain on joints and ligaments. Instead, I would recommend clients engage in aerobic dancing, which burns as many calories as running, as an alternative program.
Which of the following, if true, most helps resolve the apparent contradiction in the fitness expert’s remarks?

Question 8:

Last week, tickets to a certain amusement park were sold at half the usual price as part of a promotional special. This week, despite tickets returning to normal prices, amusement park has reported more visitors than in the previous week.

Each of the following, if true, would help resolve the apparent paradox EXCEPT:

Question 9:

Of the archaeologists working in major digs in Africa and Asia Minor, approximately 12% are women, according to statistics published in an anthropological periodical recently. But there were less than half that number of women working archaeological digs twenty years ago, even though the number of total archaeologists working in Africa and Asia Minor has doubled in that time. With more women joining the archaeological professions than ever before, and an increasing number of aging archaeologists retiring, it’s likely the total number of archaeologists working in Africa and Asia Minor will remain constant over the next five years.
Which of the following can be properly inferred given the above statements?

Question 10:

Lobbyist: Banning all forms of automatic weapons is a radical proposal for gun control and is separate from the course of action necessary for preventing mass shootings and widespread gun violence in day-to-day life. Lawmakers often react to the high body count of isolated incidents by proposing such bans, but only because they lack psychological insight into the minds of the shooters themselves.
Each of the following could be logically inferred from the lobbyist’s statements EXCEPT:

Question 11:

Coffee shop employees who have been there for more than two years are eligible for seniority. Seniority status is granted to those employees who have no write-ups, and employees with seniority get their shift-requests granted before those employees who have had write-ups. The shift-request consideration is only granted to this select group, and to no other employees.
Which of the following inferences is most strongly supported by the information above?

Question 12:

The radiologist reviewed the primary care physician’s unusual diagnosis too briefly to confirm it, but too thoroughly to dismiss it entirely. Therefore, the radiologist’s review was not sufficient to permit a confirmation of diagnosis.
Which of the following is an assumption upon which the argument depends?