GMAT Verbal › Identifying Wording Gaps
Type 1a supernovae, caused by the detonation of matter accreted onto white dwarf stars, explode with a highly predictable brightness. Since the brightness of these explosions fades over distance in a highly predictable way, scientists have long used images measuring the brightness of type 1a supernovae to determine the distance to distant galaxies.
Which of the following discoveries, if true, would most jeopardize scientists' reliance on images of type 1a supernovae as tools for measuring distances to distant galaxies?
Computer manufacturers, in an effort to increase sales, often include at no additional charge a number of utility software programs. Since these programs take care of tasks such as virus protection, disk defragmentation, and application updating, they are of considerable savings to the computer manufacturers as well.
The argument above would be most strengthened by which of the following, assuming that it is true?
If a package isn’t scanned by the parcel company by 4:30pm, it will not be included for overnight delivery. James is responsible for shipping prototypes to a client, who has expressed that if they do not receive the prototypes - which were delayed by over a week because of production issues - by Thursday morning, the client will cancel its account with the company. Fortunately, James dropped off the prototypes at the parcel company at 4:00pm on Wednesday, so the company will not lose the client’s account.
Which of the following, it true, most justifies the reasoning above?
In the United States, more Gala apples are produced than are any other type of apple. However, of apple trees sold at commercial nurseries in the US, more Granny Smith trees are sold than are any other type of apple tree, despite the fact that Granny Smith trees produce no more or fewer apples per year than do any other type of tree.
Which of the following, if true, would best resolve the apparent paradox presented above?
Senator: Between 1950 and present, the number of women diagnosed with postpartum depression each year in the country of Heranita has increased by a factor of ten. We must improve our systems for supporting women after childbirth to stem this increase in the number of new mothers experiencing postpartum depression.
Which of the following, if true, would most call the argument above into question?
Ecological studies have shown that the current landfill that serves Sturgeon County is responsible for the vast majority of the county's groundwater pollution problem. Surprisingly, however, Sturgeon County's leading environmentalists support a ballot initiative that will invest in the expansion of the current landfill, as opposed to another initiative that will invest the same amount of money in creating a new landfill that would have zero impact on the county's groundwater.
Which of the following, if true, serves as the best justification for the environmentalists' position?
Oil executive: While it is true that the number of reported oil spills per year has increased steadily over the last three decades, this is much more a function of how easy it is to detect small oil spills than of an increase in frequency of oil spills overall. In the past the only spills reported were those large enough to be detected by environmentalists and journalists. Nowadays analytics will report to the authorities even the smallest fissures in pipelines and tankers.
Which of the following, if true, best supports the executive’s argument?
Research studies on albatrosses and other soaring birds have found that the least intrusive geolocation tag placement, defined as the placement that minimizes interference with movement, is close to the center of the bird's back. While the placement increases drag when the birds dive into the water, it does not affect the birds’ ability to stay aloft for days at a time because the feathers of the back aren’t used for lift during soaring. However, the majority of studies on birds in general indicate that the least intrusive geolocation tag placement is under the tailfeathers, a placement that would cause great instability during flight but that doesn’t interfere with underwater movement
Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain the exception noted above?