Tenses and Verb Tense Agreement

What are tenses?

Tenses are tools used to indicate when a situation or action takes place i.e. to show the position of
the situation with respect to time. They are also used as tools to harass hapless CAT aspirants with
extremely difficult questions. This COTD hopes to guide students through the concept of tenses and
verb tense agreement.
The situation being described in the sentence could have occurred now - present tense, before
now - past tense or will happen after now - future tense. So far it's simple. But it gets a bit
complicated with the introduction of aspects - simple, continuous (also called progressive), perfect
and perfect continuous.
The perfect aspect describes events occurring in the past but linked to a later point in time (either the
present or the future). They are generally formed with has/have (present), had (past) or will have
(future).
The continuous aspect describes situations that take place during a given time period - in the past,
present of future. They can be easily identified most of the time as they are of the form be verb + ing.
They generally indicate actions that were/are/will be ongoing.
The perfect continuous combines both aspects. It is of the form [ has/have (present), had (past) or will
have (future) ] + been + verb + ing.

Past

Present

Simple

I went to the market yesterday

I go to the market

Continuous

I was doing my homework

I am doing my h

Perfect

I had washed all the plates

I have washed all

Perfect Continuous

I had been waiting for you for over an

hour by then

I have been waiting for

hour

Tense Agreement
More than identification of tense, CAT questions test a student on tense consistency. The tenses in
the main clause and the subordinate clause need not be the same but they must be consistent with
the relationship that is implied by the sentence. The rules governing tenses are a bit complex and

solving these questions requires the student to rely more on what sounds right than on the actual
rules.
In complex sentences, the tense of the verb in the subordinate clause will be determined by the tense
of the verb in the main clause depending on the time relation between the clauses that is implied by
the sentence.
Suppose, the tense in the main clause is simple present tense.
E.g. She feels that the current system is biased against women.
Suppose the subordinate clause is as follows:
As Sheila failed to land a job in any of the big consulting companies, she feels that the current system is
biased against women.
The tense of the verb in the subordinate clause is not consistent with the relationship that is implied
by the sentence. As the sentence implies that Sheila is unable to find a job from some point in the
past to now, the correct tense for the subordinate clause will be present perfect tense.
Hence the correct statement is as follows:
As Sheila has failed to land a job in any of the big consulting companies, she feels that the current
system is biased against women.

Sample Questions:
o

1. Choose the option that would be grammatically correct for the underlined part:
Since the teams performance figures dropped last month, the players have been determined to put in their
hundred percent in every match, and they are.
A) have been determined to put in their hundred percent in every match, and they are
B) are determined to put in their hundred percent in every match, and have been
C) were determined to put in their hundred percent in every match, and they were
D) have been determined to put in their hundred percent in every match, and they do
Answer: D
Solution: From the sentence, we understand the subordinate clause (Since the teams performance figures
dropped last month) is an event that occurred at a single point of time in the past, the main clause (the
players have been determined to put in their hundred percent in every match) has been occurring since that point
in the past to today and subordinate clause 2 (and they do) has occurred concurrently with the main clause.
Hence, the subordinate clause should be simple past tense, the main clause should be present perfect and the
subordinate clause 2 should be simple present. Thus, the correct sentence construction is Since the teams
performance figures dropped last month, the players have been determined to put in their hundred percent in
every match, and they do.

2. Choose the option that would be grammatically correct for the underlined part:

As people become more aware of the corrupt practices of the government, the demand for a change is increasing
at a rapid rate, the new leadership of technocrats providing more transparency
A) is increasing at a rapid rate, the new leadership of technocrats providing more transparency
B) has been increasing at a rapid rate, because of the new leadership of technocrats providing more transparency
C) has increased at a rapid rate, since the transparency of a new leadership of technocrats provides more
transparency
D) will increase at a rapid rate because the transparency of a new leadership of technocrats will provide more
transparency
Answer: D
Solution: The sentence can be split into the following clauses: subordinate clause(As people become more
aware of the corrupt practices of the government), main clause (the demand for a change is increasing at a
rapid rate), and subordinate clause 2(the new leadership of technocrats providing more transparency). As the
sentence is foretelling an increasing demand for leadership of technocrats with greater awareness among the
masses, the main clause should have future tense. Hence, the subordinate clause 1 will be in simple present
tense. As the subordinate clause 2 occurs after the main clause, it should also be in simple future tense. Thus, the
correct option is option D.

Number of positive and non-negative integral solutions

for linear equations

Questions related to number of integral solutions are common in CAT. A few questions which
appeared in CAT in the past are:
1) What is the number of non-negative integral solutions of the equation A+B+C = 20?
2) Three different dice are rolled, what is the probability that the sum of the numbers shown is >= 13?
These can be solved using Permutations and Combinations concepts. A basic idea of Permutations
and Combinations is required to understand the concepts explained below.
The categories into which the questions can be categorized are as follows:
A) Positive integral solutions
B) Non-negative integral solutions
C) Integral solutions with conditions

Case 1: Positive integral solutions

Consider the following equation:

A + B + C = 10, A, B, C are positive integers.
To solve this, imagine that there are 10 identical objects placed next to each other with gaps
separating them. Now, I can select 2 gaps from among the 9 (10 objects have 9 gaps between them)
in ^9 C _2 ways. These selected gaps will hold the plus signs. Now, the number of objects to the left of
the first plus sign, the number of objects between the two plus signs and the number of objects to the
right of the second plus sign will be the values of A, B and C respectively.

Case 2: Non-negative integral solutions

Consider the same equation A+B+C = 10, but now A, B and C can take whole number values. The
number of solutions to this equation is obviously different from the number of solutions in the first
case.

To solve this equation, make a substitution of the variables in such a way that the case gets reduced
to solving the first case. Since A >= 0, (A+1) >= 1. Let A+1 = P. Similarly, B+1 = Q and C+1 = R.
Therefore, the equation gets reduced to (A+1) + (B+1) +(C+1) = 13 => P+Q+R = 13, with P, Q, R >=
1. The number of solutions for this equation is ^{12} C _2 using the concept of case 1.
Another way of solving this is, imagine that there are 10 0s and 2 1s in line. These have to be
arranged in any order. The number of ways of doing this is 12!/(10!*2!) = ^{12} C _2. One such
arrangement is as follows: 010000010000. The number of 0s to the left of the first 1 is the value of A,
the number of 0s between the two 1s is the value of B and the number of 0s to the right of the second
1 is the value of C. Therefore, in this case, the value of A = 1, the value of B = 5 and the value of C =
4.
Consider another rearrangement: 100000000001. In this case, the value of A is 0, that of B is 10 and
that of C is 0. It can be easily seen that every rearrangement can be mapped to a solution of the
equation A+B+C =10 with A,B and C taking non-negative integers.

Case 3: Integral solutions with conditions on the variables

Consider the following question from one of the previous CAT papers:
Three different dice are rolled such that the sum of the numbers shown is 13. In how many ways can
this be done?
Obviously, the dice can take only values from 1 to 6. So, the problem can be represented by the
equation: A+B+C = 13, with 1<= A, B , C <= 6.
The number of solutions to the equation A+B+C = 13 when there is no upper limit on the variables
is ^{12} C _2 = 66. ( using the concept of case 1 ). From this we have to subtract the number of
solutions which violate the condition.
When A=7, the equation reduces to B+C = 6 => No. of solutions = ^5 C _1 = 5
When A=8, B+C = 5 => No. of solutions = ^4 C _1 = 4
so on till A=11, B+C = 2 => No. of solutions = 1. Therefore, total number of cases that have to be
subtracted are 1+2++5 = 15. As same cases can exist for B and C>6, total number of cases to be
subtracted = 15*3 = 45. So, the number of solutions of the equation A+B+C = 13 with 1< = A,B,C <= 6
is 66-45 = 21.
Another way of solving the same question is by replacing A, B, C with P, Q, R where P=6-A and so
on. Here, (6-P)+(6-Q)+(6-R)=13 which implies P+Q+R=5. As A goes from 1 to 6, P goes from 0 to 5.
Hence, the problem reduces to finding the non-negative solutions of P+Q+R=5. The number of nonnegative solutions is ^7 C _2 = 21. However, be extremely cautious while transforming the equation
and ensure you know the range of the new variables before attempting to solve it.
One more method of finding the number of solutions is using generating functions. This problem can
be expressed as finding the coefficient of x^{13} in the expression (1+x+x^2 + +x^6)^3. This is

because, to find the coefficient of x^{13} from the expression (1+x+x^2++x^6)(1+x+x^2+)..3 times
is to select some powers of x from all the 3 units, such that the sum of the powers adds to 13.
In general if the linear equation is A_1+A_2+ . . +A_p= m and 0<=A_1, .. A_p <=n then the problem can
be reduced to finding the exponent of A^m in the expression (1+x+x^2+. . +x^n) ^p.

Escalator Problems
Problems on moving escalators are now becoming quite common in CAT. They are generally
straightforward once the equations have been properly deduced. The tricky part is correctly inferring
the mathematical relation implied by the question.
Fortunately, there is no need to remember any extra formula to solve escalator problems. It boils
down to properly formulating equations involving speed, time and distance.
One point to be kept in mind while solving escalator problems is that the number of steps covered by
the escalator plus the number of steps covered by the person is equal to the total number of steps
visible on a stationary escalator.
So, in an escalator with N steps, if a person covers n1 steps in time t and reaches the end of the

(Nn1) steps in the same time t.

Hence, the ratio of speed of the person to the speed of escalator is n1:(Nn1)
escalator, it means that the escalator has covered the remaining

Solved Examples:
Problems in escalators can be broadly classified into the following categories:
One person moving in one direction
One person moving in direction opposite to the escalator
Two people moving in the same direction
Two people moving in opposite directions

Let us understand each category with examples.

Consider the following examples:
1) A person is walking up an ascending escalator. He covers 50 steps and reaches the top in 25 seconds. If
the total number of steps on the escalator is 200, find the ratio of the speed of the person to the speed of
the escalator.
Solution: For the person to reach the top of the escalator, the total number of steps to be covered =
200. Since he covers 50 steps, the remaining 150 steps are covered by the escalator. Therefore, the
speed of the escalator is 150 steps/25 seconds = 6 steps/second. The speed of the person =
50steps/25 seconds = 2 steps/sec. Therefore, the required ratio is 2:6 = 1:3.
The take-away from this problem is the concept that if a total of N steps have to be covered and the
person covers a part of them, the remaining part is covered by the escalator.

2) A man takes 20 seconds to reach the top of an ascending escalator. On one particular day, the
ascending escalator was under renovation and so he had to climb up a descending escalator. He took 80
seconds to reach the top. How long would he have taken to climb to the top of a stationary escalator? The
speed of the man is 4 steps/sec.
Solution: This is a good example to show that the escalator problems are nothing but upstreamdownstream problems in a new packaging.
In this example, when the man is moving up the escalator, the speed of the escalator is added to his
own speed. Therefore, he covers the distance in lesser time. In the case in which he is climbing a
moving-down escalator, his speed is hampered by the speed on the escalator.
Let the total length of the escalator be L steps and its speed be S steps/sec.
The speed of the man is 4 steps/sec.
Therefore, L/(4+S) =20 and L/(4-S) = 80. Solving the two equations gives, S=2.4 steps/sec and L =
128 steps.
So, to climb a stationary escalator, the man takes 128/4 = 32 seconds.

3) A walks up a moving escalator and reaches the top in 25 steps. B walks up the same elevator and
reaches the top in 20 steps. The ratio of speeds of A and B is 3:2. How many steps can be seen on the
elevator?
Solution: Let the speed of A be Sa steps per unit time and that of B be Sb steps per unit time. Sa:Sb =
3:2. Let the speed of the escalator be Se steps per unit time. Let the total number of steps on the
elevator be N. Let A take Ta time to reach the top of the elevator and B take Tb time to reach the top
of the elevator. Therefore, from the relation between speed, time and distance,

N/(Sa+Se)=Ta and N/(Sb+Se)=Tb.

Number of steps climbed by A = time taken by A* speed of A = [N/(Sa+Se)]Sa = 25.
Number of steps climbed by B = time taken by B* speed of B = [N/(Sb+Se)]Sb = 20.

Sb=(2/3)Sa
Solving the 3 equations gives Sa=Se, and N = 50 steps.

4) Two people A and B walk on an ascending escalator but in different directions. If the speed of A is half
of the speed of B, and the speed of the escalator is the arithmetic mean of the speeds of A and B, on which
step of the escalator from the top, would the two people meet, if the total number of steps on the escalator
is 300 and both eventually reach their destination.
Solution: Let the speed of A be 4A. So, the speed of B is 8A. Since the speed of the escalator is the
arithmetic mean of the speeds of A and B, the speed of the escalator = 6A.
Since the speed of the escalator is more than the speed of A, he is moving up on the escalator
whereas B is moving down the escalator.
Time taken by A to reach the top = 300/(4A + 6A) = 30/A.

Time taken by B to reach the bottom = 300/(8A-6A) = 150/A.

B takes 5 times the time taken by A. So, the relative speed of A on the escalator is 5 times the speed
of B on the escalator. So, while covering a distance of 300 steps, A covers 5/6th of the distance and B
covers the remaining 1/6th. Therefore, A covers 250 steps and B covers 50 steps and hence meet at
the end of the 50th step from the top of the escalator.

Para Jumbles:
Para Jumbles, like Para Completion and Reading Comprehension, test your comprehension skills. As
you improve in any one of these three topics, you will get better at the other two. Like Para
Completion, the key to solving a para-jumble is in identifying the chain of thought. Once a student is
able to identify the central point and chain of thought, solving para-jumbles becomes fairly trivial.
When students ask me how to get better at PJs or any reading comprehension related topics, I
usually ask them to read good quality publications - articles, essays or well-written books. With less
than 70 days to CAT, you do not have time to inculcate a reading habit. The most effective way for a
student to improve in RC and related topics from now to Nov 16th is to solve as many RCs/PCs/PJs
as they can.

Toolkit:
The essential tools you must have in your toolkit to tackle Para Jumble questions are as follows:
Understand the chain of thought: This is the only sure-fire way of solving Para-Jumbles. If you
understand the paragraph, its purpose and the central idea you will know how to order the sentences.
If you identify the central idea then there is only one logical way to order the sentences- the order that
would convey that idea in the easiest way. The passage would have an implicit chain of thought identify that chain of thought and you have the correct order. Most sentences can be classified as
introduction to the idea, arguments for, arguments against, authors opinion or personal stand on the
subject, information regarding a subject etc. Identify the purpose of each statement and it would
determine its position in the paragraph.
Identifying opening sentence: The opening sentence is most likely to be the one which introduces the
subject of the passage. If the passage is about the life Edgar Allen Poe, the opening statement would
mostly be the one in which he is named. All subsequent sentences would use the pronoun he to
refer to him.
Identifying the concluding sentence: The sentence that either sums up the thoughts expressed in the
paragraph or brings the chain of thought to its logical conclusion is most likely to be the last line of the
paragraph. Sentences that are inferences are more likely to be the last line as compared to facts and
judgements.

 Identifying links: Links help you identify the internal structure of the paragraph. Try to make blocks of
sentences by finding two or more sentences that are logically related. You can identify sentences that
are linked by using the following clues:
Transition words: Transition words are an absolutely essential tool especially if you can make
neither head nor tail of a paragraph. Transition words like Indeed, Moreover, However, Also, In fact,
For example, Similarly etc provide hints about what was stated in the preceding statement. For
example, however, but etc indicate that this statement in a way contradicts the earlier one. Other
transitional words like Indeed, Moreover indicate that both the statements are consistent in their
implication. Using transitional words you can figure out links between different statements. Once you
have a block of statements it becomes easier to identify the central idea or chain of thought.
Enumeration: Look out for connectors like On the one hand, Initially, Firstly,, One reason was ,
The first time he . . etc. These sentences begin enumeration of reasons, arguments etc. They will
be closely followed by sentences that begin with On the other hand, Secondly,, Afterwards,
Another was.
Cause and Effect: Two sentences listing the cause and effect of some action would be closely linked
together with the cause preceding the effect. For example: She was over the maximum age limit for
some competitive examinations like UPSC. Hence, she was concentrating more on other competitive
examinations like CAT. Whenever you see a transitional word like Hence, As a result, Therefore
etc the sentence states the effect of something. Try to find the sentence that would state the cause for
producing this effect.
Chronology: If the information given in the paragraph describes an event, there would be a
chronological order to it. For example, a passage on the cricket world cup is likely to start with
information about the group stages and end with information about the finals.
Grammar: Pronouns within statements can be used to figure out the preceding statements. Before a
pronoun is used it must be defined in some statement. For a given pronoun, figure out which
statement contains a suitable subject. This statement will precede the given statement. Also, all
intervening statements will have the same subject.
Coherence check: After you have a tentative order, check it for coherence. This is extremely
important. Some links make sense in when statements are taken two at a time but do not work
together in a paragraph. At the end of unjumbling you should get a paragraph that is coherent.
First and last lines are given: If the first and last lines are given, the task becomes much easier. The
job is now to find the most suitable sentence that would immediately succeed or precede these lines.

Sample Questions

Lets put these tools to use:

1. The following sentences when ordered form a coherent paragraph. Find the correct ordering of
sentences.
A) The food and clothing of one man is not the food and clothing of another; if the supply is
insufficient, what one man has is obtained at the expense of some other man
B) There are goods in regard to which individual possession is possible, and there are goods in
which all can share alike
C) On the other hand, mental and spiritual goods do not belong to one man to the exclusion of
another
D) We may distinguish two sorts of goods, and two corresponding sorts of impulses
E) This applies to material goods generally, and therefore to the greater part of the present
economic life of the world
F) If one man knows a science, that does not prevent others from knowing it; on the contrary, it
helps them to acquire the knowledge
a) DBAEFC
b) BAECFD
c) DAEBCF
d) DBAECF
Answer: d)
Solution: From all the sentences we can infer that the author is discussing two kinds of goods material and mental/spiritual. The sentence that introduces this topic - sentence D - must be the first
sentence. Sentence B should immediately follow this as it states what these two goods are. We have
a classic case of enumeration here where one case is stated first and the second case is stated in the
sentence beginning with On the other hand. The second case is of spiritual/mental goods as stated
in C and explained in F. Hence CF should be the end of the paragraph. A and E which explain the first
case of material goods should be in the middle. Hence the order is DBAECF.

2. The following sentences when ordered form a coherent paragraph. Find the correct ordering of
sentences.
A) Even the enormous, impregnable stupidity of our High Command on all matters of psychology
was penetrated by a vague notion that a few "writing fellows" might be sent out with permission to
follow the armies in the field, under the strictest censorship, in order to silence the popular clamor for
more news
B) They could not understand, nor did they ever understand that a nation which was sending all its
sons to the field of honor desired with a deep and poignant craving to know how those boys of theirs
were living and how they were dying, and what suffering was theirs, and what chances they had
against their enemy, and how it was going with the war which was absorbing all the energy and
wealth of the people at home
C) Lord Kitchener, prejudiced against them, was being broken down a little by the pressure of public

opinion, which demanded more news of their men in the field than was given by bald communiqus
D) Dimly and nervously they apprehended that in order to stimulate the recruiting of the New Army
now being called to the colors by vulgar appeals to sentiment and passion, it might be well to "write
up" the glorious side of war as it could be seen at the base and in the organization of transport,
without, of course, any allusion to dead or dying men, to the ghastly failures of distinguished generals,
or to the filth and horror of the battlefields
E) In 1915 the War Office at last moved in the matter of war correspondents
a) ABECD
b) ADEBC
c) ECADB
d) EADBC
Answer: c)
Solution: We can deduce that the subjects of the paragraph are war correspondents. The essential
point of the paragraph is that the war office and the powers that be were reluctant to allow war
correspondents on the front. They were forced to reconsider because of the growing clamour for more
news. They grudgingly allowed some war correspondents thinking that they could help in recruitment
by writing up about the war.
As the paragraph is about war correspondents sentence E that introduces them should be the first
line of the paragraph. Sentence D and B talk of a dim subject that could not understand the need for
war correspondents. Sentence A and C provide suitable subjects for D and B. Hence A and C should
precede D and B. Between A and C, as A starts with Even it should follow some sentence that is
similar to it. Hence C should precede A. Hence, ECADB is the correct order.

Para Completion
Para Completion questions are deceptively easy - every good PC question gets us four different
answers and some reasoning backs each answer. That is the challenging part of PC - you have to
find not just a possible solution but also the most probable solution. A challenging PC will have 3
answers that could potentially be the missing sentence of the paragraph. But it will have one option
that is head and shoulders above the rest in terms of suitability. Your task is to put yourself into the
shoes of the paragraph author. The author is trying to tell you a thought - he is trying to communicate
his thinking, his reasons for arriving at some conclusion, some information he thinks is relevant to the
point he wants to make. If you understand what the author is trying to communicate, you will
understand what the missing sentence should be. When you see the paragraph - see it in its entirety.
Try to find the main argument or point of the paragraph - it may or may not be explicitly stated. But
everything in the paragraph would circle around this point. Every paragraph is written with the
intention of acting on the reader - to inform, persuade, amuse or entertain the reader. You can figure
out what the author is trying to do without knowing the missing sentence. The missing sentence would
thus be the one that best serves the purpose of the author.

When I was preparing for CAT I would often wonder why para completion questions are part of the
CAT examination. There is no real world situation where you as a manager will find some paragraph
with one sentence missing. Well they are there for the same reason that Para Jumbles and RCs are
there - they test your reading comprehension skills. This skill is extremely important in management
education - you will be expected to read hundreds of pages in case studies every week and
comprehend information about subjects you are not familiar with. In one week you will have to read
and understand about Apples HR problems, Reliances accounting issues and Thermaxs growth
strategy. Lack of familiarity with the subject will not be an excuse then and should not be an excuse
now.
When students ask me how to get better at PC or any reading comprehension related topics, I usually
ask them to read good quality publications - articles, essays or well-written books. With less than 70
days to CAT, you do not have time to inculcate a reading habit. The most effective way for a student
to improve in RC and related topics from now to Nov 16th is to solve as many RCs/PCs/PJs as they
can.

Toolkit
The essential tools you must have in your toolkit to tackle Para Completion questions are as follows:
Understand the chain of thought: This in the only sure-fire way of solving a PC. All other tips and tricks
will work about 60% of the time - they are useful in eliminating options but are generally a hacky way
of going about solving PC questions. There is a reason why students who are regular readers are
good at RC-type questions. It is because they are good at this very essential skill. From today till your
CAT examination, read every paragraph with this lens on - try to find the central idea or main point of
the paragraph. Every paragraph in PC represents on chain of thought. The author is trying to inform
the user of facts, opinions etc so that the reader can go from point A to point B in his own mind. The
missing sentence will be a link in this chain of thought. Figure out what the author is driving at and you
will know what the missing sentence should be.
Context of the paragraph: The author usually bases his arguments or information in some context say Indias youth, English media channels, US presidential debates etc. This context defines the
scope of the paragraph. The missing sentence, especially if it is the last sentence, will generally be
based in the same context. Thus, options that talk about things that are different from this context are
less probable options for the last sentence.
New Ideas: If the missing sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph, it is unlikely that the author
will introduce a new idea or concept in the last sentence. When I say new idea I mean something
other than the main point or context of the paragraph, illustration of the point or generalization of the
point. If the paragraph informs the reader about Ebola in Africa, the last sentence will not be about
Malaria in India.

 Contradictory sentences: The last line of a paragraph will almost NEVER contradict the main point of
the paragraph. So if the paragraph is about how a book is complete hogwash, the last line will not be
about the valid conclusions of the book.
Concluding sentences: If in the paragraph, the author dances around the main point without explicitly
stating it, the last line of the paragraph is likely to be an explicit statement of the point.
Paragraph Construction: Two common paragraph constructs are A) analogy/illustration followed by
stating of the general principle B) Stating of general idea or principle followed by
illustrations/arguments. In case A, the last line of the paragraph will most likely be about the principle
in general. In case B, the last line will most likely be about how the illustration/analogy ties back to the
general principle. The hackiest tool of the toolkit and should be used sparingly.
Grammar: Look for clues from grammar : If an option uses a pronoun then the subject should be
defined unambiguously in the preceding sentences. If it is not defined then you can eliminate the
option on that basis. Similarly, if the missing sentence is not the final sentence, and the succeeding
sentence uses a pronoun find the option that introduces a suitable subject to receive the pronoun.
Writing Style: Find the option that is consistent with the passage in writing style. If the paragraph is
sarcastic in tone, difficult to read or written in passive voice find the option that is written in the similar
style.

Solved Examples
Lets put these tools to use:
Q1) Find the most appropriate option to complete the paragraph:
A critic cannot be fair in the ordinary sense of the word. It is only about things that do not interest one
that one can give a really unbiassed opinion, which is no doubt the reason why an unbiased opinion is
always absolutely valueless. The man who sees both sides of a question, is a man who sees
absolutely nothing at all. Art is a passion, and, in matters of art, Thought is inevitably coloured by
emotion, and so is fluid rather than fixed, and, depending upon fine moods and exquisite moments,
cannot be narrowed into the rigidity of a scientific formula or a theological dogma. It is to the soul that
Art speaks, and the soul may be made the prisoner of the mind as well as of the body. One should, of
course, have no prejudices; but, as a great Frenchman remarked a hundred years ago, it is one's
business in such matters to have preferences, and when one has preferences one ceases to be
fair. It is only an auctioneer who can equally and impartially admire all schools of Art. No; fairness is
not one of the qualities of the true critic. It is not even a condition of criticism. Each form of Art with
which we come in contact dominates us for the moment to the exclusion of every other form. We must
surrender ourselves absolutely to the work in question, whatever it may be, if we wish to gain its
secret. ______________.

A) For unless we surrender, our opinion will not be objective

B) For Art is a cruel master that demands absolute submission
C) For in complete surrender, we lose objectivity but gain perspective
D) For the time, we must think of nothing else, can think of nothing else, indeed
Solving it the right way :
The chain of thought till the penultimate sentence is as follows:
An art critic cannot be fair because to be fair means to be completely uninterested in Art. The critic
should not be prejudiced but should have preferences as Art requires an emotional response and not
scientific objective response. To become an Art critic one needs to immerse oneself in that particular
art that one is studying at the moment to have any chance of understanding it.
Option A is unlikely as it is directly contradictory to the main point of the paragraph. The author does
not want the art critic to be objective. Instead he wants them to be passionate and emotional.
Option B does not fit in this chain of thought - the author clearly is appreciative of Art and is unlikely to
call it cruel. Moreover, it does not extend the chain formed till then nor does it tie it back to the main
point of the passage.
Option C is unlikely as the author does not value objectivity in art critics - he considers it worthless.
Also, it does not fit in the chain of thought, as the paragraph makes no mention of gaining a different
perspective on Art.
Option D links perfectly with the penultimate sentence and extends it by adding that not only must one
immerse oneself in the Art under consideration, one must study it exclusively.
Solving it the hacky way:
New Ideas: Option C introduces the new idea of gaining a new perspective on Art. As this has not
been mentioned by the author anywhere else in the paragraph we can eliminate option C.
Contradictory Sentences: Option A clearly contradicts the initial part of the passage where the author
states that objectivity is not desirable in an art critic. Hence we can eliminate option A.
Writing Style: Between option B and D, option D clearly has the same writing style as the paragraph it has several subordinate clauses and is rather heavy on using punctuation.
Hence, the correct answer is option D.

Q2) Find the most appropriate option to complete the paragraph:

No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being
watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as
men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinised and studied, perhaps
almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinise the transient creatures that swarm
and multiply in a drop of water. With infinite complacency men went to and fro over this globe about
their little affairs, serene in their assurance of their empire over matter. It is possible that the infusoria
under the microscope do the same. No one gave a thought to the older worlds of space as sources of
human danger, or thought of them only to dismiss the idea of life upon them as impossible or

improbable. It is curious to recall some of the mental habits of those departed days. At most
terrestrial men fancied there might be other men upon Mars, perhaps inferior to themselves and ready
to welcome a missionary enterprise. Yet across the gulf of space, minds that are to our minds as ours
are to those of the beasts that perish, intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic, regarded this earth
with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew their plans against us. ___________________.
A) Fortunately for us, their best-laid plans unraveled due to unforeseen circumstances
B) And early in the twentieth century came the great disillusionment
C) Now it is too late to do anything about it
D) No one could have foreseen the destruction they brought with them
Solving it the right way: The chain of thoughts is as follows:
Human beings were unaware that they were being watched and studied by intelligent alien life forms
much like they would study bacteria. They went about their life without considering the danger posed
by superior alien beings. Now the situation has changed where human beings are now aware of this
and our way of thinking has changed.
Option A can be eliminated as the paragraph suggests that our way of thinking has changed implying
that the aliens were not unsuccessful in their plans. Moreover this is outcome is unlikely given the
regretful tone of the author in the paragraph.
Option B is likely as it logical concludes the chain of thought constructed in the paragraph. The
passage speaks about how we were unaware, ignorant and unconcerned. Disillusionment is clearly
the next logical step indicating the end of this blissful ignorance.
Option C is unlikely as it is inconsistent with the timeline implied by the paragraph. From the
paragraph we can infer that the calamity has already struck and the human race has already been
caught unawares. We can infer that not only were humans too late in realizing but that even that
knowledge has been known for quite some time.
Option D is inconsistent with the chain of thought of the paragraph as the author rues that we did not
foresee this. Hence, it implies that it was something that could have been and should have been
foreseen.
Solving it the hacky way:
Writing style: The author has a slightly exaggerated writing style and option A, B and D are more
consistent with the style. Hence we can eliminate option C.
Concluding sentences: The author dances around the main point that aliens have attacked us and
caught us unawares in the entire paragraph without explicitly stating that. Hence it is likely that he
concludes the paragraph with the statement of the event. Hence option A and B are more likely
options. Thus, we can eliminate option D.
Contradictory sentences: Option A is clearly contradictory to the statements in the passage where the
author implies that the aliens have attacked and human way of thinking has changed as a
consequence. Hence, we can eliminate option A.

Circular Tracks and Clocks

Circular Tracks

Questions on Circular Tracks are quite common in CAT as they help test multiple concepts at once.
Students need to have clear understanding of time, distance, speed and LCM/HCF.
Two general ways of answering questions on circular tracks are:
Absolute speed approach: This approach is useful if the runners are moving in the same direction. In
this approach, we find the time taken by each individual runner to complete one round of the track.
The LCM of these times gives us the time interval required by the runners to meet each other.
Relative speed approach: This is a generalized approach that works well irrespective of the direction of
the runners. Generally when we calculate the speed of a person, we calculate it with respect to the
ground. Hence, the frame of reference is the ground. Another way of defining speed would be in
relation with some other frame of reference - for e.g. another runner. If A and B are moving towards
each other at a m/s and b m/s, we consider B as stationary. From Bs frame of reference, A is moving
towards it at (a+b)m/s. Suppose A and B are moving in the same direction at 5m/s and 4m/s from the
same starting point. In this case, A is moving away from B at (5-4) = 1m/s.

The relative speed method is an incredibly powerful method that easily reduces the complexity level
of many problems. Consider for example the following problem:
4 people A, B, C and D are standing at the 4 corners of a square of side 50 meters. They start moving at a
speed of 10 m/s in such a way that B always moves towards A, C always moves towards B, D always
moves towards C and A always moves towards D. Find the time in which all of them meet.
When this question is solved from the frame of reference of the ground, the problem is nightmarish in
its complexity. It becomes incredibly easy when we use one of the runners as the frame of reference.
Consider the frame of reference of runner A. We assume that A is stationary. Since B is always
moving towards A, B has to cover a distance equal to one side of the square (50 meters) to reach A.
Since the speed of B is 10m/s, he takes 5 seconds to reach A. Since all the people meet at the same
time, we can conclude that all 4 people meet after 5 seconds.

Consider the following question which can be solved using either approach:
Amit and Ravi are running on a circular track of 800m. Amit runs at 4m/s and Ravi runs at 5m/s. If the
race is of 10km, how many times do Amit and Ravi meet?

Absolute speed approach: The time taken by Amit to complete a round is 200s and Ravi is 160s. Hence
the LCM of the two times = LCM(160,200) = 800s. The total duration of the race for Ravi =
10km/(5m/s) = 2000s. Hence, Amit and Ravi meet quotient (2000/800) = 2 times.
Relative speed based approach: As the two are moving in the same direction, the relative speed of Ravi
with respect to Amit = (5m/s-4m/s) = 1m/s. Hence, if we assume that Amit is stationary at the starting
pointing and Ravi is running around the circular track at 1m/s. Hence, he takes 800m/1m/s = 800s to
complete one round and meet Amit. Hence, number of times they meet = quotient(2000s/800s) = 2
times.
This approach gives us the number of times when A and B meet. However, this method does not give
the actual points on the track where A and B meet. To find the actual number of points on the track,
we have to consider that both A and B are moving. The following solved examples make this point
clearer.

Solved Examples
3 persons A, B and C start moving on a circular track from a point. The ratio of their speeds is 1:2:3.
Case 1: When all three are moving in clockwise direction.
a) After how long do A and B meet for the first time?
b) After how long do all three meet for the first time?
c) After how long do all three meet for the first time at the starting point?
d) At how many distinct points on the circular track do all three meet?
Case 2: When A and B are moving in clockwise direction and C is moving in anti-clockwise direction.
a) After how long do they meet for the first time?
b) After how long do they meet at the starting point for the first time?
c) At how many distinct points on the circular track do they meet and what is the relation between the
points?

Solution:
Case 1: When all three of them are moving in the same direction:

Formula: When the speeds of A and B are in the ratio of a:b, they meet at |a-b| distinct points when A and B are
moving in the same direction.

Let the length of the track be 300 meters and the speeds of A, B and C be 1 m/s, 2 m/s and 3m/s to
simplify calculations.

The difference between the speeds of A and B is 1 m/s. The difference between the speeds of B and
C is 1 m/s. The difference between the speeds of A and C is 2 m/s. Therefore, A and B meet at 1
distinct point. Similarly, B and C also meet at one distinct point. A and C meet at 2 distinct points. The
point to be noted here is that the number of distinct point at which any 2 persons meet when they are
traveling on a circular track is the difference in their speeds when the speeds are in their reduced
ratios.

Formula: Time taken for three persons to meet for the first time = LCM(d/|a-b|,d/|c-b|) where a,b and c are the
speeds and d is the total length of the track.
Time taken for the nth meeting is n*LCM(d/|a-b|,d/|c-b|). Time taken for the first meeting at the starting point =
LCM(d/a,d/b,d/c).

The number of distinct points at which all three meet is the HCF of the differences in speeds of each
pair of runners, when all the speeds are in the reduced ratio. In this case, it is the HCF of 1,1 and 2,
which is 1. Therefore, all three runners meet at 1 distinct point on the circle.
To find the time interval between the meetings of A and B, consider the relative speed between them.
Since A is running at 1 m/s and B at 2m/s in the same direction, the relative speed between them is
1m/s. Imagine A is at rest and B is running at a speed of 1m/s. Therefore, to meet A who is at the
starting point, B has to cover a distance of 300 m at 1m/s. Therefore, he meets A for the first time
after 300 sec. B meets C for the first time after 300m/(3m/s-2m/s) = 300s. Since A and B meet only at
the starting point, all three of them meet at the starting point. Time after which they meet = 300s.
Case 2:

Formula: Time taken for two persons to meet for the first time when they are moving in opposite directions =
d/(a+b) where a and b are the speeds and d is the total length of the track. Time taken for the nth meeting is n*
(d/a+b). Time taken for the first meeting at the starting point = LCM(d/a,d/b).

Since A and B are running in the same direction, the equations between them from the first case will
hold true.
A and B meet at 2m/s - 1m/s = 1m/s => 1 distinct point.
Since B and C are running in the opposite direction, the number of distinct points at which they meet
is the sum of the speeds. B and C meet at 3m/s+2m/s = 5m/s => 5 distinct points. They meet at points
which are at 60m , 120m, 180m, 240m and 300m from the point at which they start. ( Gaps of d/5
where d is the circumference of the circle ).

Similarly, A and C meet at 3+1 = 4 distinct points. They meet at points which are 75m, 150m, 225m
and 300m from the starting point. ( Gaps of d/4 where d is the circumference of the circle ).
We can see that all three of them meet only at one distinct point, which is the starting point. The times
at which A and B meet at the starting point are 300s, 600s, so on. The times taken for B and C to
meet at the starting point are 1*300/(2m/s+3m/s), 2*300(2m/s+3m/s) , = 60s, 120s,. Therefore,
we can conclude that all three of them meet for the first time after LCM(300s, 60s) = 300s.

Clocks

Problems of clocks can be dealt with in the same way as problems of circular tracks. The hands of the
clock are nothing but runners running on a circular track.The points to be kept in mind are:
Since there are 60 minutes on the clock and 360 degree, the minute hand covers 6 degrees in one
minute.
The angle between each hour is 360/12 = 30 degrees.
So, the hour hand covers 30 degrees in one hour, or half degree in one minute.
Therefore, the relative speed between the hour hand and the minute hand is 5 and a half degrees.

Consider the following example:

John left for his friends house sometime between 5 PM and 6 PM. When he returned between 8 and 9
PM, he noticed that the hour hand and minute hand had interchanged their positions. Find the number of
minutes he was out of his house.
Solution: Let the initial angle between the hands be theta. By the time the hands interchanged, the
hour hand had travelled theta, and the minute hand covered 360*2 + 360-theta( two hours plus the
angle 360 theta).
Speed of hour hand = 1/2 degree/minute.
Distance travelled by hour hand = theta.
Therefore, time needed = theta/(1/2) = 2*theta minutes.
Speed of hour hand = 6 degrees per minute.
Distance travelled by minute hand = 360*2 + 360 theta = 1080 theta.
Therefore, time needed = (1080 theta) /6.
Since both the times are equal, 2*theta = (1080 theta)/6 => theta = 1080/13.
That means, the minute hand is ahead of the hour hand by 1080/13 degrees when John left the
house. We know that at 5 PM, the angle between the two hands is 5*30 = 150 degrees and the hour
hand is ahead. Therefore, the minute hand covers 150 + 1080/13 degrees relative to the hour hand.

Since the relative speed is 5 and a half minutes, the total time taken is (150+1080/13) /(11/2) = 42
(54/143) minutes. Therefore, John left the house at 5:42:22.

Critical Reasoning
Critical reasoning questions are comprehension questions based on a small paragraph. Your task is
to identify different elements either stated in or implied by the information in the paragraph. Like
RCs/PJs/PCs, these questions test your comprehension skills but tend to be less ambiguous.
For example consider the following paragraph:
The defense attorneys for the accused in the Aurora Theater shooting case have argued against the televising of
the trial on the grounds that it would violate the defendants right to a fair trial. They believe witnesses for the
defense would be worried about a backlash from the public if they gave a testimony supporting the accused.
The important elements of Critical Reasoning are as follows:
Premise: These are the facts stated in the passage and can be assumed to be true. All conclusions
are derived on the basis of these facts and implicit assumptions hidden within the stated inferences.
Above para:
The defense attorneys have asked that the trial should not be televised. They believe this would deter
witnesses and would not allow the defendant to have a fair trial.
Assumption: These are facts that are not explicitly stated in the paragraph but are necessary to
arrive at the conclusions stated in the paragraph. An assumption, if untrue, would invalidate the
conclusion of the paragraph even if the stated facts remain valid.
Above para:
There are two assumptions in the above paragraph:
Firstly, you cannot have a fair trial where witnesses are afraid to testify for the accused.

Secondly, televising the trial would expose the witnesses to the public and would make them
vulnerable to attacks from the public.
Stated Inference: These are conclusions stated explicitly in the paragraph.
Above para:
The accused cannot have a fair trial if witnesses refuse to testify for him fearing a backlash.
Unstated Inference: These are conclusions that can be derived with reasonable certainty (note: not
absolute) from the information given in the paragraph.
Above para:
The public would have negative reaction to anyone seen supporting the accused in the Aurora
shooting case.
Supporting Argument: These arguments strengthen the conclusion stated in the paragraph.
Examples of supporting arguments are stating the implicit assumption, examples where the stated
conclusion is true etc. Any evidence that corroborates the conclusion, even if it does not remove all
doubt regarding it, can be considered as a supporting argument.
Above para:
Many witnesses have refused to testify for the defense fearing that they would be socially ostracized
in their community if they testified.
Weakening Argument: These arguments weaken the conclusion stated in the paragraph. They may
not necessarily invalidate the conclusion, but introduce more uncertainty regarding it.
Above para:
Televising of a court trial can be done while concealing the identity of the witnesses.
Generally, the premise would be given along with stated inference (optional) and the student would be
asked to identify one of assumption, unstated inference, supporting argument or weakening
argument.

Sample Questions:
Which of the following, if true, does most to support Indias stand?
In a surprise move, India today reversed its position on the Trade Facilitation agreement and decided to veto its
ratification. India sought negotiations on the public stocking issue before it signs the agreement. India wants to
see a permanent solution to the public stocking issue that threatens its food security and could possibly hamper
its ability to feed its poor citizens during famine conditions. The Trade Facilitation agreement seeks to
streamline custom rules worldwide and has nothing to do with the public stocking issue.
a) India has a lot of support on the public stocking issue from other countries with large poor
populations including Cuba, Venezuela and Bolivia
b) If the WTO does not take a lenient stand on the public stocking issue, India would walk out of the
WTO thereby reducing the WTOs influence in the world
c) Other WTO nations are desperate to ratify the Trade Facilitation Agreement and would be more
likely to make concessions on public stocking to pass the agreement

d) Trade Facilitation would impact the lives of far fewer people as compared to the Public Stocking
issue
Answer: c)
Solution: Premise: India is refusing to sign the Trade Facilitation agreement unless it gets a solution to
the public stocking issue. The two issues are completely unrelated.
Inference: India is using the agreement as a tool to get the public stocking issue resolved to its
satisfaction.
If C is true, then India has a much better chance of getting the public stocking issue resolved if it uses
signing the agreement as leverage. Hence, C, more than any other statement would support Indias
stand.

Which of the following accurately describes the flaw in the main argument of the following paragraph?
Despite a disappointing monsoon, India has already saved adequate amount of water for this year. This is due
to better rain-water harvesting systems that have been put in place. As a result of these systems, the amount of
water in Indias reservoirs has been rising consistently. Currently, 87% of the available reservoir capacity has
been filled by these systems. Last year, only 75% of available capacity was drawn down for use.
a) It assumes that the water stored in reservoirs was the only source of water for people of India last
year
b) It takes for granted that the rain-water harvesting systems have been working as intended and are
reducing the wastage of water
c) It presumes that India is now less dependent on the monsoon season than it was in the past
d) It fails to consider the scenario that the amount of water used in India may have been declining in
the last few years
Answer: a)
Solution: Premise: India used 75% of reservoir capacity last year and now it has stored 87% of the
capacity. The steady increase in the stored water levels has been due to better rain-water harvesting
systems in spite of having less rainfall.
Conclusion: As the stored amount exceeds amount required, we have enough water for this year.
Assumption: The reservoirs provided a 100% of the water required last year. If they did not, then the
other water sources may have less than necessary amount of water and we cannot be reasonably
sure of meeting the entire years water requirement.

Highest power of a number in a factorial

Questions on the highest power of a number in a factorial are some of the easiest questions one can
hope to get from Number Systems. Even though not many questions are asked on this topic, the few
that are asked can be solved easily by understanding the concept. Missing out on these questions is
unpardonable as far as CAT is concerned.
Consider the following example:
What is the highest power of 2 in 80! ?
To solve this, we have to first understand how 80! Is constructed.
80! = 1*2*3*4*.80. From this, we can see that there are 80/2 = 40 multiples of 2 in 80!. Each of
these multiples contains one power of 2. Similarly, there are 80/4 = 20 multiples of 4 in 80!.
Since 4=22, each of these 20 numbers contains an additional power of 2. Similarly, there are 80/8 =
10 multiples of 8 in 80!. Since 8=23, each of these 10 multiples contains another additional power of
2. Similarly, there are 80/16 = 5 multiples of 16 in 80!. Since

16=24, each of these 5 numbers

contains an additional power of 2. Similarly, there are [80/32] = 2 multiples of 32 in 80!. Since 32=25,
each of these 2 numbers contains an additional power of 2. Similarly, there is [80/64] = 1 multiple of
64 in 80!. Since 64=26, this number contains an additional power of 2.
Counting all the numbers, we can see that we have a total of 40+20+10+5+2+1 = 78 powers of 2 in
80!.
In general,
Formula:
The highest power of a prime number p in x! is given by the expression [x/p]+[x/p^2]+[x/p^3]+[x/p^4]+
where [x] is the greatest integer less than or equal to x.
Now, consider the following example:
What is the highest power of 8 in 80! ?
If we solve the problem using the method used for solving case 1 ( highest power of 2 in 80! ), we get
the highest power of 8 = [80/8] + [80/64] = 10+1 = 11.
This is wrong because we are missing out on some powers of 2 and 4, which when combined give a
power of 8.
To solve this, we have to realize that 8=23. Now, if we solve for the highest power of 2 in 80! and club
every 3 powers, we get the number of powers of 8.
Since the highest power of 2 in 80! = 78, we get the highest power of 8 in 80! = [78/3] = 26.
Point to be noted here is that the method used in the first case works if the number whose highest
power is being asked is a prime number. For higher powers of the number, it has to be prime
factorized first. To make the point clearer:
In general,

Formula:
The highest power of a prime number p raised to n in x! is given by the expression
[{[x/p]+[x/p^2]+[x/p^3]+[x/p^4]+.}/n].
Consider another example:
What is the highest power of 10 in 70! ?
Since 10 is not prime, first prime factorize 10.
10 = 2*5.
Highest power of 2 in 70! = [70/2] + [70/4] + [70/8] + [70/16] + [70/32] + [70/64] = 35+17+8+4+2+1 =
67.
Highest power of 5 in 70! = [70/5] + [70/25] = 14+2 = 16.
Now, combining one power of 2 and one power of 5 gives one power of 10. Therefore, combining 16
powers of 5 and 16 powers of 2 gives 16 powers of 10. We still have some powers of 2, but we do not
have any more powers of 5. Therefore, we cannot obtain any more powers of 10. The highest power
of 10 in 70! is therefore, 16.
In general, there are always less number of powers of the highest prime number. Therefore, a shortcut can be to calculate only the highest power of the largest prime factor.
The takeaway from this example is:
Formula: To find the highest power of a composite number in a factorial, prime factorize the number and find
the highest powers of each of the prime factors. The highest power of the composite number is the minimum
value among the powers of each of the prime factors.

Some more solved examples:

1) What is the highest power of 5 in 125!?
Solution: [125/5] + [125/25] + [125/125] = 25+5+1 = 31.
2) What is the number of zeroes at the end of 150!?
Solution: The number of zeroes at the end of a number is nothing but the highest power of 10 in the
number.
Highest power of 10 in 150! = min(Highest power of 5 in 150! , Highest power of 2 in 150!).
Answer = 37.
3) What is the highest power of 8 in 25!?
Solution: 8 = 23. The highest power of 2 in 25! = [25/2]+[25/4]+[25/8]+[25/16] = 12+6+3+1=22.
Therefore, the highest power of 8 = [22/3] = 7.

Identifying Tone of the Passage

Tone of the passage indicates the opinion of the author on the subject he/she is writing about. For
example, consider you are asked to describe your favourite food item. From your voice, body
language and expressions, you would be indicating that you like the subject you are talking about.
Even without these physical clues, your attitude towards the subject would be unmistakable from what
you say and the words you choose.
Identifying the tone of the passage essentially boils down to understanding the emotion behind what
is written in the passage. Tone is essentially expressed through descriptive elements - adjectives,
adverbs, and figures of speech. Pay close attention to these while deducing the tone of the passage.
While trying to determine the tone of the passage, ask yourself the following questions:
Hear the voice: Read the passage as if the author is speaking to you. Try to hear the emotion in
his/her voice. Do you think the author is expressing approval/disapproval/neither approval or
disapproval of the subject? Do you think the author is excited by the subjected or dejected by it? Is
he/she happy to discuss the subject or getting weary of it? What is the dominant emotion? - Is the
author angry, outraged, reverential, mocking, objective etc?
Positive/Negative/Neutral: If you had no prior knowledge about the subject, how would you feel about
it? If the passage is about a person, would you want someone to say that about you?
If the answer is Dont Know for both of these questions, the tone of the passage is neutral. If the
answer is negative then the tone of the passage is negative. Similarly, if your answer is positive the
tone is positive.
This alone can help you strike off one or two options. If the tone of the passage is not negative, strike
off all options that are negative. A note of caution, even if the author does not use a single negative
word, the tone can be negative. For example, if the passage is sarcastic or satirical, the author can
indicate his displeasure regarding the subject without using a single negative word. For e.g.
Apple just launched the new iPhone 6 yesterday. A gigantic new screen and more megapixels - exactly what I
had always wanted from a phone. And to top it off, it is also extremely reasonably priced. Now you have to sell
just one, yes just one, kidney to have the privilege of owning the IPhone 6.
As seen from the above paragraph, the attitude can be superficially positive but in reality be extremely
negative and biting.
Descriptive words: When the author is guarded about expressing their opinion about a subject, you
will need to pay closer attention to the descriptive words used. Be extremely sensitive to strongly
positive or strongly negative adjectives. For example, egregious is a strongly negative word. Even if
the author tempers his judgement with other slightly positive words, the net effect would still be
negative.

Common types of tones

The tone of the passage can be classified as follows:

Subjective: The author has an opinion on the subject and tries to justify his/her opinion by stating
facts/arguments. The facts/arguments are not studied in an impartial way but are instead used as a
tool to prove their viewpoint.
Objective: The author analyzes all the information available and may come to a conclusion. If they
show approval or disapproval of the subject after studying all the facts, the tone of the passage is
critical. Critical, unlike what is indicated by common usage of the word, need not be negative. It just
implies that the author has objectively (impartially) considered all the facts and arrived at a
conclusion.
The diagram below shows examples of each type of tone.

Sample questions

As everyone knows, the general idea of the Doctrine of Descent is that the plants and animals of the present day
are the lineal descendants of ancestors on the whole somewhat simpler, that these again are descended from yet

simpler forms, and so on backwards towards the literal "Protozoa" and "Protophyta" about which we
unfortunately know nothing. Now no one supposes that Darwin originated this idea, which in rudiment at least
is as old as Aristotle. What Darwin did was to make it current intellectual coin. He gave it a form that
commended itself to the scientific and public intelligence of the day, and he won widespread conviction by
showing with consummate skill that it was an effective formula to work with, a key which no lock refused. In a
scholarly, critical, and pre-eminently fair-minded way, admitting difficulties and removing them, foreseeing
objections and forestalling them, he showed that the doctrine of descent supplied a modal interpretation of how
our present-day fauna and flora have come to be.
What is the authors tone in the passage?
a) Laudatory
b) Sarcastic
c) Analytical
d) Descriptive
Answer: c)
Solution: The first step would be to consider if the tone is objective or subjective. The author is giving
due credit to Darwin without praising him profusely. His view on the subject is impartial and hence the
tone is objective. The tone is neutral in nature and the author states the facts without stating his
pleasure/displeasure with them. Hence, using these conclusions we can eliminate option A and B.
The author not only gives facts but also gives reasons. Hence, the paragraph is not descriptive but
analytical in tone.

This book is merely a personal narrative, and not a pretentious history or a philosophical dissertation. It is a
record of several years of variegated vagabondizing, and its object is rather to help the resting reader while
away an idle hour than afflict him with metaphysics, or goad him with science. Still, there is information in the
volume; information concerning an interesting episode in the history of the Far West, about which no books
have been written by persons who were on the ground in person, and saw the happenings of the time with their
own eyes. I allude to the rise, growth and culmination of the silver-mining fever in Nevada - a curious episode,
in some respects; the only one, of its peculiar kind, that has occurred in the land; and the only one, indeed, that
is likely to occur in it. Yes, take it all around, there is quite a good deal of information in the book. I regret this
very much; but really it could not be helped: information appears to stew out of me naturally, like the precious
ottar of roses out of the otter. Sometimes it has seemed to me that I would give worlds if I could retain my facts;
but it cannot be. The more I calk up the sources, and the tighter I get, the more I leak wisdom. Therefore, I can
only claim indulgence at the hands of the reader, not justification.
What is the author's tone in the passage?
a) Descriptive
b) Satirical
c) Comic
d) Nostalgic
Answer: c)

Solution: The authors tone is clearly subjective. The main purpose of the passage is to entertain the
reader. All facts and arguments are of a humorous nature. Hence, we can eliminate Descriptive as it
belongs to the Objective class. Given the humorous nature of the passage, it can be either comic or
satirical. As the authors tone is neutral (not negative) we can eliminate satirical option. Hence, the
tone of the passage is comic.

Circular Arrangement
One has to clearly understand the difference between linear permutations and circular permutations
to solve problems on circular arrangement in CAT.
Let us consider the following illustration of 3 people sitting around a circular table and on a linear
bench.

Let us shift the people sitting around the table in clock-wise direction.

We can see that even though the people have been shifted three times, the three arrangements are
essentially the same because the sequence: P1, P2, P3 is essentially the same.
Compare the above situation with linear arrangement. If we shift the people on the linear bench, we
see that the arrangements are different.

We can see that the arrangements are different because the sequences {P1, P2, P3}, {P3, P1, P2 },
{P2, P3, P1} are different.
To list down, the sequences that are possible in a linear arrangement are:
{P1 P2 P3}; {P1 P3 P2}; {P2 P3 P1}; {P2 P1 P3}; {P3 P1 P2}; {P3 P2 P1}
The sequences possible in a circular arrangement are:
{P1 P2 P3}; {P1 P3 P2} if we consider the clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements to be different.
If we consider the clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements to be same, there is only one
arrangement {P1, P2, P3}.
The concept becomes a little clearer when we consider the arrangement of 4 people around a table.
If we consider clockwise and anti-clockwise directions to be different, the possible sequences are {P1,
P2, P3, P4}, {P1, P3, P2, P4}, {P1, P2, P4, P3}, {P1, P3, P4, P2}, {P1, P4, P2, P3}, {P1, P4, P3, P2}.

If we consider clockwise and anti-clockwise directions to be same, the possible sequences are {P1,
P2, P3, P4}, {P1, P3, P2, P4}, {P1, P2, P4, P3}.
Therefore, we can understand that circular permutations are different from linear arrangements.
In general,
Formula :
Number of arrangements of n objects when clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements are considered
different = (n-1)!
Number of arrangements of n objects when clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements are considered same =
(n-1)!/2
Number of arrangements of n objects taken r at a time when clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements are
considered different = nPr/r
Number of arrangements of n objects taken r at a time when clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements are
considered same = nPr/ (2r).

Solved Examples:

1) In how many ways can 6 friends sit around a table if:

a) clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements are considered same
b) clockwise and anti-clockwise arrangements are considered different
Solution: Applying the formula,
a) Number of ways = 5!/2 = 60
b) Number of ways = 5! = 120.
2) In how many ways can 6 friends sit around a circular table if 2 of them do not sit next to each other
(clockwise and anti-clockwise directions are considered to be different).
Solution:
Total number of ways in which 6 people can sit around a circular table = 5! = 120.
From this, we have to subtract the number of ways of arrangement when the 2 people are sitting next
to each other.
Number of ways of arrangement when 2 people are sitting next to each other:
Number of ways in which 2 people can sit next to each other = 2! = 2.
Once we have fixed the 2 people sitting next to each other as a point of reference, the other 4 can be
arranged in 4! = 24 ways.
Therefore, if the two friends are sitting next to each other, number of ways of arrangement = 2*24 =
48.
So, total number of ways of arrangement when the 2 people are not sitting next to each other = 120
48 = 72.
3) Find the number of ways of making a garland of 10 flowers from 20 flowers of different varieties.
Solution:
In a garland, clockwise direction is the same as anti-clockwise direction.

Applying the formula, we have

Number of ways = 20P10/(210).

Fact, Inference and Judgement

Fact, Inference and Judgement are one of those few questions in Verbal which can be solved in very
little time. Like Vocabulary based questions, you can solve these very quickly and they provide those
precious extra marks that are required to put you over the line. RCs take a lot of time to solve and you
will need these quick questions to make up for the extra time you will end up spending on RC
questions.
The questions on the subject are on identifying whether a statement is a fact, inference or a
judgement.

Facts
A fact is a statement, a piece of information that can be independently verified. We need not take the
authors word for it - we can go and ascertain the truth of the statement ourselves. Irrespective of
whether it is true or false, it is a statement that has a truth value. Examples of facts are :
Universal truths - For example, The sun is at the center of the solar system. In fact, even if the author
states that the earth is at the center of the solar system it would still be a fact. It would be untrue but
the nature of the statement would still be that of a fact.
Observation - All information obtained from observation can be treated as Fact. For example, Obama
has visibly aged during his time in office. This is a fact. You can check with your own eyes if the
statement is true or not.
Figures, Statistics, Results of Studies - Statistics are basically scientifically gathered observations and
hence are facts. If you have studied some facts and come to a conclusion, the statement would
become an inference. If you are stating that someone else has come to a conclusion, that statement
is a fact. For example, Recent studies have found a link between caffeinated drinks and insomnia.
Opinion/ Inferences of other people - If you state someone elses opinion, it becomes a fact. You can
verify if that said person holds this opinion or not. Similarly, if you state a conclusion or inference
made by someone else, you are stating a fact. For example, Aarti believes that Amit is the best
person for the job.

Inferences
Inferences are conclusions reached on the basis of facts. If you see the following elements within a
sentence, then it is undoubtedly an inference.
Facts - To reach a conclusion, you need to start with some facts. These facts set the context for the
conclusion
Reasoning - You extend the information available in the facts using reasoning.
Conclusion - This is the result of reasoning added to facts.
Think of a logical reasoning set - You begin with a set of clues (Facts), you think what those clues
imply (Reasoning) and you come up with the answers (Conclusion).
For example,
Only 2% of Indian companies have female directors on their board showing the lack of equal
opportunities for women in India.
The fact here is that 2% of Indian companies have female directors on their board. The implied
reasoning is that if there were equal opportunities for women, as there are for men, the number would
have been much higher. The conclusion reached is that there is lack of equal opportunities for women
in India.

Judgement
Judgements are personal opinions. At times they may be based on stated facts. However, there is an
inherent bias for or against something in the conclusion reached. A truly impartial consideration of
facts will lead you to an inference. A biased assessment of facts will lead you to a judgement.
For example, consider the situation where Anand has taken 2 days off this week.
As Anand took 2 days off this week, his team members have had to work extra hard to cover for him.
Anand has a bad work ethic as can be seen from the fact that he took 2 days off this week.
The second statement clearly shows disapproval of Anand on the basis of a fact that does not
necessarily imply that Anand is a bad worker. Hence, the first statement is an inference while the
second is a judgement.

Solved Examples:
1. Classify the following statements as Facts, Inferences or Judgements:
CLEAR and DISTINCT ideas are terms which, though familiar and frequent in men's mouths, I have
reason to think every one who uses does not perfectly understand. And possibly its but here and

there one who gives himself the trouble to consider them so far as to know what he himself or others
precisely mean by them. I have therefore in most places chose to put DETERMINATE or
DETERMINED, instead of CLEAR and DISTINCT.
a) JJF
b) JFF
c) JIF
d) FJF
Answer: a)
Solution: The first statement is clearly a judgement on part of the author as he thinks that people
rarely understand the meaning of clear and distinct ideas.
The second statement looks like a fact but is in fact a judgement. The author states that very few
people take the time to consider the meaning of these words. There is an implicit disapproval in the
statement which makes this statement a judgement.
The third statement is a fact; we can independently verify what words he has used in his work.
Hence, the correct answer if JJF.
2. Classify the following statements as Facts, Inferences or Judgements:

In every life a part is governed by the community, and a part by private initiative. The part governed
by private initiative is greatest in the most important individuals, such as men of genius and creative
thinkers. This part ought only to be restricted when it is predatory; otherwise, everything ought to be
done to make it as great and as vigorous as possible. The object of education ought not to be to
make all men think alike, but to make each think in the way which is the fullest expression of his own
personality.
a) FIJJ
b) FFIJ
c) FFJJ
d) JIJI
Answer: c)
Solution: The first statement is a fact. We can independently verify if this in fact the case. The second
statement is also a fact as we can verify if private initiative is greatest among men of genius and
creative thinkers. The remaining two sentences are the authors opinion on the topic of controlling
private initiative and education. His views are not indepedently verifiable- they are what he thinks
would be the right thing to do.
Hence the correct answer is FFJJ.

Logarithms
Every year, on an average, about 2 questions on this topic appear in CAT. The questions can be
answered quite easily if one understands the basic concepts of logarithms.
If x is a positive number such that x = by, where b is also a positive number not equal to 1, then
logarithm of x to the base b is y.
In short, logbx = y, where x, b > 0 and b1.
A few properties of logarithms:
1) logb1 = 0 for all b > 0 and b1.
Proof: Let logb1 = t. Therefore, 1 = bt, but b0 = 1. Therefore, t = 0.
2) logxx = 1, for all x > 0 and x1.
Proof: Let logxx = t. Therefore, x = xt, but x1 = x. Therefore, t = 1.
3) logbpq = logbp + logbq
In general, logb(x1x2x3x4...) = logbx1 + logbx2 + logbx3 + logbx4 + ...
4) logbp/q = logbp - logbq
5) logba = logcalogcb
6) logba = 1logab
7) logbap = p* logba
8) logbpa = (1/p)* logba
9) If b > 1 and logba1 > logba2, then a1 > a2.
10) If b < 1 and logba1 < logba2, then a1 > a2.
Note: Logarithms to the base 10 are called common logarithms and the base is generally ignored
while writing common logarithms.

Characteristic and Mantissa:

The value of the logarithm of a number consists of two parts: the integral part and the decimal part.
The integral part is called the characteristic of the logarithm and the decimal part is called the
mantissa of the logarithm.
For example, log102 = 0.3010. Here 0 is the characteristic and .3010 is the mantissa.

Note: The mantissa is always written as a positive number.

For example, if log x = -8.291, it is written as -9 + 0.709, therefore, the characteristic is -9 and
mantissa is 0.709.
If log10x = a.bcd, then the number of digits in x is (a+1).

For example, log1010000 = 4 and 10000 has 4+1=5 digits. Similarly,

log1085 = 1.9294 , and 75 has

1+1=2 digits.

Solved Examples:

1) Solve for x: log3(5x+6) = 4.

Solution: In logba, a should be greater than 0. Therefore, 5x+6 > 0 => x > -6/5.
From the equation, we have, 5x + 6 = 34 = 81 => x = (81-6)/5 = 75/5 = 15.
2) Find the number of digits in 1212, if log 2 = 0.3010 and log 3 = 0.4771.
Solution: Let x = 1212, log x = 12log 12 = 12 log(22*3) = 12*2 log 2 + 12*log 3 = 24*0.3010 +
12*0.4771 = 12.9492.
Therefore, the number of digits in 1212 is 12+1 = 13.
3)Calculate the value of log 4 + log 6 + log 8.
Solution: log 4 + log 6 + log 8 = 2*log 2 + (log 2+log 3) + 3*log 2 = 6*log 2 + log 3 = 6*0.3010 + 0.4771
= 2.2831.

Remainder Theorems
Remainder Theorem is one of the most important topics for CAT. Questions on this topic are asked
quite frequently. The topic consists of a few theorems. Understanding the theorems and how to solve
problems using the theorems, coupled with ample practice can help students to score well in this
topic.

Congruent modulo

Let n be a positive integer, then integers a and b are congruent modulo n, denoted by a = b mod n, if
n divides (a-b).

Basic Fundaes:

1) When a number n is the divisor, the remainder r can take any integral value from 0 to n-1. The
remainder can also be considered to be (r-n).
For example, remainder when 15 is divided by 16 is 15, but it can also be considered as (15 16) = 1.
Remainder when 61 is divided by 7 is 5 or (5-7) = -2.
2) Remainder of a sum of numbers when divided by another number is the same as the sum of
remainders when the numbers are individually divided by the number.
[(a+b+c+d)] mod n = [a mod n + b mod n + c mod n + d mod n] mod n
For example, the remainder when 86+87+88+89 is divided by 13 is the same as (remainder when 86
is divided by 13)+ (remainder when 87 is divided by 13)+(remainder when 88 is divided by
13)+(remainder when 89 is divided by 13) = 8+9+10+11 = 38. Since 38 can be further divided by 13,
the remainder is 38 mod 13 = 12.
3) Remainder when a product of numbers is divided by a number is the same as the product of
remainders when the numbers are individually divided by the number.
[(a*b*c*d) mod n] = [[a mod n]*[b mod n]*[c mod n]*[d mod n]] mod n
For example, the remainder when 86*87*88*89 is divided by 13 is the same as (remainder when 86 is
divided by 13)* (remainder when 87 is divided by 13)* (remainder when 88 is divided by 13)*
(remainder when 89 is divided by 13) = 8*9*10*11 = (-5)(-4)(-3)(-2) = 120. Since 120 can be further
divided by 13, the remainder is 120mod 13 = 3.

Wilsons Theorem:

When n is a prime number, (n-1)! mod n = -1 mod n.

For example, since 5 is prime, 4!mod 5 = -1 mod 5 = -1 or 4. Therefore, the remainder is 4.
Similarly, the remainder when 36! Is divided by 37 is -1 or 36.

Fermats theorem:

For any integer a and prime number p, ap - a is always divisible by p.

Also, if a is not divisible by p, i.e. if a and p are relatively prime, then ap1 mod p = 1 mod p.
For example, since 12 and 5 are relatively prime, using Fermats theorem,
remainder when 124 is divided by 5 is 1.

124mod 5 = 1 mod 5. The

Eulers totient Function and its applications:

Eulers totient function is defined as follows: If a, b, c are prime factors of a number N such that N
= apbqcr, then the number of numbers less than N and co-prime to N is (N) = N(1-1/a)(1-1/b)(11/c). The function (N) is called Eulers totient function.
Eulers totient function finds application in Eulers theorem, which states that if M and N are co-prime
to each other, then the remainder when M(N) is divided by N is 1.

Solved Examples:

1) What is the remainder when 1831 is divided by 7?

Solution: Since 18 and 7 are co-prime, we can use Fermats theorem to say that 186 mod 7 = 1 mod

1831 = (186)518, the remainder

when it is divided by 7 is 15*(remainder when 18 is divided by 7) = 154 = 4.
7. Therefore, 186 when divided by 7 leaves a remainder of 1. Since
2) What is the remainder when 46! Is divided by 47 ?
Solution: Since 47 is a prime number, using Wilsons theorem, we can say that 46! When divided by
47 leaves a remainder of 46.
3) What is the remainder when 642 is divided by 25 ?
Solution: 6 and 25 are relatively prime. Eulers totient function for 25 is:
25 = 52. Therefore, (25) = 25(1-1/5) = 25*(4/5) = 20. Therefore, using Eulers theorem, 620 when
divided by 25 leaves a remainder of 1. Since 642 = 62062062, rem(642/25) = rem(620/25)*
rem(620/25)* rem(62/25) = 1*1*rem(36/25) = 11.

Central Idea of the Passage

We recommend you to read our earlier concept on identifying tone of the passage before reading this article.
Questions on identifying the central idea of the passage are quite common in CAT. Apart from direct
questions asking students to identify the main point of the passage, knowing this concept is crucial to
effectively solving almost all reading comprehension questions.

The task can be boiled down to this: You have been given several paragraphs of text. You have to
identify what the author would say if he had to put forward his point in one sentence only. What you
need to do is step back and take a look at the big picture - minus the details. Finding the main point or
central idea of a passage is the same as summarizing the passage - you have to make sure the main
concepts of the passage are present without littering it with supporting details.
Suppose you were writing an essay, say on the recent Indian elections. You would have a particular
viewpoint on it. You would explain your viewpoint with arguments, facts and analysis. You would
mention the opposing arguments that are generally quoted and rebut them in your essay. Now
suppose, you did not have the luxury of putting across your point in 1000 words. Say you had only 20
words to explain your point of view. What would you use to communicate your thoughts in one line?
You would pick the most significant thought in the passage. You would get rid of the statistics, facts
and analysis and go straight to the heart of the matter.
Use the same approach to think what the author would do if he had to put across his viewpoint in 1
sentence. Now, how do you identify what thought is most significant to the author? Simple - just as
you would repeat/draw out/ explain/argue for your main point in the actual essay, so would the author
in his passage. The central idea is the driving force of the passage. Everything stated in the
paragraph is to further that point. It is not the conclusion derived from the information but the common
thought in all the information given.
Identifying the following elements would help in identifying the main point of the passage:
1. Primary purpose of the passage: The purpose is different from the main point of the passage. The
purpose indicates what the author desires to happen as a result of his passage. Does he seek to
influence, persuade, dissuade, inform, criticize or entertain? For example, if a passage is written by a
political party leader on the elections, its primary purpose would be to influence the reader to vote for
the political party. Similarly, if the essay is about the effects of radiation on the human body, its
purpose is to educate and inform the reader.
The purpose of the passage will help you decide the main point. If the purpose is to persuade you, the
point would be the idea the author is trying to persuade you about. Answer the question - what does
the author want of his readers and you will get the point he is trying to make. If he is trying to inform
you, then the main point would be to understand the thing being studied.
2. Supporting arguments: Once you know the purpose of the author, try to find the tools used by him/her
to achieve this purpose. If the author seeks to persuade, he will provide arguments, facts, statistics
supporting his viewpoint. If the author seeks to inform, he will give all the relevant details on the
subject. If he seeks to criticize/mock/humiliate someone then he will give examples of incidents etc
that would be embarrassing for the subject. These are arguments that support the main point of the
passage. Once you have understood what the supporting arguments are, it is easy to identify what
idea they are supporting.
3. Tone of the passage: The tone of the passage is the emotion behind what the author is saying. The
tone expresses the general attitude of the author about what is being discussed in the topic.
The main point should be consistent with the tone of the passage. If the tone is negative, the main
point should make the authors displeasure with the subject clear. At the same time, if the tone is

neutral, the main point cannot be wholly negative in its outlook and should maintain the spirit of
neutrality.

A tricky identification question will have many options underscoring the same point but in slightly
different ways. To determine the correct option, keep in the mind the following points:
1. Scope of the passage: The main point or central idea is the driving force of the passage. Hence it
should be connected to all parts of the passage. Even if it is not the subject of the paragraph, it must
be connected to it. Hence, all options that address only a part of the passage are inappropriate
options for central idea.
2. Irrelevant details: You can eliminate options that give too many irrelevant details. The option should
have all the main concepts - nothing more and nothing less.
3. New Ideas: The central idea of a passage is the summary of the passage - not an inference derived
from it. Hence, the central idea must be restricted to what is discussed in the passage. We can
eliminate all options that introduce new information or derive a new inference from the information

Solved Examples:

As everyone knows, the general idea of the Doctrine of Descent is that the plants and animals of the present day
are the lineal descendants of ancestors on the whole somewhat simpler, that these again are descended from yet
simpler forms, and so on backwards towards the literal "Protozoa" and "Protophyta" about which we
unfortunately know nothing. Now no one supposes that Darwin originated this idea, which in rudiment at least
is as old as Aristotle. What Darwin did was to make it current intellectual coin. He gave it a form that
commended itself to the scientific and public intelligence of the day, and he won widespread conviction by
showing with consummate skill that it was an effective formula to work with, a key which no lock refused. In a
scholarly, critical, and pre-eminently fair-minded way, admitting difficulties and removing them, foreseeing
objections and forestalling them, he showed that the doctrine of descent supplied a modal interpretation of how
our present-day fauna and flora have come to be.
What is the central idea of the paragraph?
a) Darwins Doctrine of Descent expounds on the idea that the current flora and fauna are the lineal
descendents of simpler life forms and explains it in a scientific, scholarly and critical and fair-minded
way
b) Darwins Doctrine of Descent is a modern and modal interpretation of an old concept that all life
forms have evolved from simpler life forms which was first propounded by Aristotle
c) Darwins Doctrine of Descent is nothing but old wine in a new bottle where he gives a more modern
and updated explanation of evolution using currently acceptable scientific and scholarly methods
d) Darwins Doctrine of Descent elaborates on the topic of evolution by expounding that all life formsflora and fauna, have evolved from simpler life forms which in turn have evolved from simpler

organisms which can be traced all the way back to simple cellular level organisms like "Protozoa" and
"Protophyta"
Answer: a)
Solution: The purpose of the paragraph is to inform the reader about the merits of the Doctrine of
Descent. The author critically examines the work and gives it credit where it is due. The tone of the
passage is neutral - neither too positive nor negative.
From the options we can reject option B as it adds new information that the original idea was first
thought of by Aristotle. The passage just says that the idea is at least as old as Aristotle without
stating its origin. We can eliminate option C as the tone of the passage is neutral and not negative like
the option. Option C is dismissive of Darwins work and hence does not match the passage in tone.
Option D gives too many details while missing out on the actual merits of the doctrine.
Duties are not performed for duty's sake, but because their neglect would make the man uncomfortable. A man
performs but one duty - the duty of contenting his spirit, the duty of making himself agreeable to himself. If he
can most satisfyingly perform this sole and only duty by helping his neighbor, he will do it; if he can most
satisfyingly perform it by swindling his neighbor, he will do it. But he always looks out for Number One - first;
the effects upon others are a secondary matter. Men pretend to self-sacrifices, but this is a thing which, in the
ordinary value of the phrase, does not exist and has not existed. A man often honestly thinks he is sacrificing
himself merely and solely for some one else, but he is deceived; his bottom impulse is to content a requirement
of his nature and training, and thus acquire peace for his soul.
What is the central idea of the paragraph?
a) Everybody is selfish and the only reason why anyone does anything is to be more comfortable with
themselves
b) Men are deceiving themselves when the make claims to a higher purpose in life
c) Men perform duties and make sacrifices just to be comfortable with themselves and for no other
reason
d) Men who swindle their neighbours are as comfortable with themselves as those who help their
neighbours
Answer: c)
Solution: The purpose of the paragraph is to persuade the reader to believe that the only reason men
perform any duty is to be comfortable with themselves. The tone of the passage is negative and
cynical in nature. We can reject option A as it reaches a new inference Everybody is selfish that is
not stated in the paragraph. Option B is incomplete and it does not address the real reason for
performing duties. Option D also states an irrelevant detail that is not central to the
paragraph. Hence, the right answer is option A.

Solving Maxima/Minima problems in Venn Diagrams

Brief Introduction to Venn Diagrams:

A Venn Diagram visually represents the relation between sets.

Consider the following diagram:

Each of the areas marked by numbers represent the following:

1: Only A
2: A and B but not C
3: Only B
4: A and C but not B
5: All three
6: B and C but not A
7: Only C
If the number of total elements = n(total), then n(total) is given by:
n(total) = n(A) + n(B) + n(C) [ n (A B C') + n (B C A') + n (C A B')] 2[n (A B C)]
This can also be written as: n(total) = n(A) + n(B) + n(C) [ n (A B) + n (B C) + n (C A)] + n
(A B C)

Solving Maxima/Minima problems in Venn Diagrams:

Consider the following problem:
According to a survey, at least 60% of the people surveyed like apples, at least 70% like oranges and
at least 80% like mangoes. Find the minimum percentage of people who like all three fruits, assuming
that everybody likes at least one fruit.

To solve this problem, we have to first realize that if we sum all the percentages given, we end up with
60+70+80 = 210%. Since the maximum can only be 100%, we have to accommodate the excess
110% by adding it to either the intersection of 2 sets or intersection of 3 sets or to both. One point to
be remembered while doing this is, every element we add to the intersection of all three elements is
counted thrice, hence a surplus of 2 elements can be taken care of by adding 1 element to the
intersection of all three sets. Similarly, every element added to the intersection of 2 sets gets counted
twice, hence a surplus of 1 element can be taken care of by adding 1 element to the intersection of 2
sets.
Since the intersection of 2 sets can accommodate a maximum of only 100%, the remaining 10% has
to be adjusted in the intersection of all three sets. Therefore, the minimum percentage of people who
like all three fruits is 10%.
An easier way to solve the question is to solve it mathematically:
Let the percentage of people who like only one fruit is x%, only 2 fruits is y% and all three fruits is z%.
We have, x+y+z = 100 (1)
x+2y+3z = 210 (2)
Subtracting (1) from (2), we get, y+2z = 110 (3)
Subtracting (3) from (1), we get, x-z = -10.
Since x can take a minimum of 0, z should take a minimum of 10. Therefore, the minimum number of
people who like all three fruits is 10%.
A slight variation of the previous example:
According to a survey, 60% of all people like apples, 70% like oranges and 80% like mangoes, find
the maximum and minimum percentages of people who like:
a) all 3 fruits
b) exactly 2 fruits
To solve this, consider the equations:
X+y+z = 100 (1)
X+2y+3z = 210 (2)
Subtracting (1) from (2), we get, y+2z = 110 (3)
Subtracting (3) from (1), we get, x-z = -10 (4)
=> -x+z=10 (5)
Adding (5) to (1), we get, y+2z = 110 (6).
This equation relates the number of elements in exactly 2 sets and all 3 sets. The maximum value for
all three sets gives the minimum value for exactly 2 sets and the minimum value for all three sets
gives the maximum value for exactly 2 sets.
From (4), we know that the minimum value of z is 10, which gives the maximum value of y = 90.
From (6), the minimum value of y = 0, which gives the maximum value of z = 55.

Therefore, for the given data, the maximum number of people who like all three is 55%, in which case
the number of people who like exactly 2 fruits is 0% (minimum) and the number of people who like
only 1 fruit is 45%.
The minimum number of people who like all three fruits is 10%, in which case the number of people
who like exactly 2 fruits is 90% (maximum) and the number of people who like only 1 fruit is 0%.

Solved Examples:
1) In a school, 60% of the students like football and 70% like cricket. What is :
a)the maximum percentage of students who like both the sports.
b)the minimum percentage of students who like both the sports.
Solution: Let the percentage of students who like both the sports be x and the percentage of students
who like neither be y.
So, percentage of students who like only football is 60-x and percentage of students who like only
cricket is 70-x. Therefore, 60-x+x+70-x+y = 100 => x-y = 30. The maximum value that x can take is
60, in which case y = 30 => Maximum percentage of students who like both the sports is 60%, in
which case 30% of the students like neither. The minimum value of x is obtained at y=0 => the
minimum percentage of students who like both the sports is 30%, in which case all the students like at
least one of the two sports.
2)In a survey, it was found that 40% of the people surveyed like Tea, 50% like Coffee and 60% like
Lemon Tea. What is the minimum percentage of people who like exactly one the three beverages, if
everybody who was surveyed likes at least one of the three beverages?
Solution: Let the percentage of people who like exactly one beverage be x, percentage of people who
like exactly 2 beverages be y and the percentage of people who like all 3 beverages be z.
x+y+z = 100 (1)
x+2y+3z = 150 (2)
Subtracting 1 from the other, we get y+2z =50 (3) Subtracting this equation from the first equation,
we get, x-z=50 or z-x=-50. The minimum value that x has to take is 50, in which case, z = 0 and y =
50.
Subtracting (3) from 2*(1) gives, 2x+y = 150. Minimum value of y = 0, in which case x = 75 and z = 25
(maximum value that z can take). Therefore, the maximum and minimum values that x can take are
75% and 50%.

Analogies

The most arbitrary of all CAT Vocab questions, one often wonders if there is any way one can prepare
for these. As these are a simple test of your verbal reasoning skills, a few tips can help you get better
at solving these over time. A good vocabulary would make a huge difference to your ability to solve
these questions and I would recommend you to skip these questions if you do not know one of the
words given in the question.
The general format is - three words are given and you have to find a fourth word which is related in
the same way to the third word as the second word is to the first word. Remember the following
guidelines while solving analogy questions:
1. Use it in a sentence
The first step while solving these questions is to form a sentence using the first two words. Say the
question is
HORSE : NEIGH :: OWL : ?.
a) bark b) hoot c) trouble d) riot
We form a sentence using the first two words as follows: The horse was neighing loudly. Neigh is a
high pitched whinnying sound made by a horse. Hence, the connection is ANIMAL:SOUND. Hence,
we need to select the option that represents a sound made by an Owl, which is hoot.
Remember, the sentence represents ONE relation between the two words. There can be multiple
relations between two words. Start with the obvious relations and move on to less obvious ones till
you find a fit from the options.
2. Order matters!
Consider the question:
Concern : Distress :: Turmoil : ?
a) Disorder b) Worry c) Mayhem d) Violence
Now let's put the first two words in a sentence: As the hours passed and there was no sign of Smita,
her parents went from being concerned to being in a state of distress.
We can see that Concern and Distress are both states of anxiety, Concern being a mild state and
Distress an extreme state of anxiety. Hence, we need to find options that are synonymous but are of
different degrees. Turmoil is a state of Disorder and Mayhem is an extreme state of Disorder.
Arranged from mild to extreme, we get the different degrees as Disorder < Turmoil < Mayhem. Now
pay attention to the order of the first two words. The first word is a milder state as compared to the
second word. Hence, the same order of degrees should be preserved. Thus the right option is
Mayhem.
3. The more specific you are the better
Consider the following question:
PLEA : CLEMENCY :: PRAYER : ?
a) Answer b) Blessing c) Freedom d) Religious

Let's use the first two words in a sentence:

The death row inmate plead for clemency. Hence we can infer that the relationship is of request :
answer. For the word prayer, both options Answer and Blessing are consistent with the
request:answer relationship. However, Blessing (religious answer) more closely applies to Prayer
(religious request) than just Answer. Hence, option B is the more suitable option.
4. Parts of speech
Consider the following question:
STATEMENT : MENDACIOUS :: PERSON : ?
a) Fallacious b) Charlatan c) Ridiculous d) Dishonest
Let's use the first two words in a sentence:
He vociferously denounced the mendacious statement. Mendacious is an adjective which means
something that in untruthful. An untruthful person can be called dishonest or at times a charlatan if he
is pretending to be something he is not. To find the more suitable option between these two we take
the help of grammar. Of the two options, charlatan is a noun while dishonest is an adjective. Hence,
we can have a dishonest person but not a charlatan person. Hence the correct option is d.
5. Check for degree/size
Consider the following question:
ANGRY : LIVID : : HAPPY : ?
a) Bemused b) Vexed c) Delighted d) Ecstatic
Let's use the first two words in a sentence: Hearing the charges pile on, Ashish went from being angry
to being livid. As we can see Livid means furiously angry or extremely angry. Hence the appropriate
answer would be someone who is extremely happy. Delighted and Ecstatic are both degrees of
happiness. However, when we compare Livid to angry, Delighted is too mild. The option that matches
in not just relation but also degree is Ecstatic.

Painted Cubes
To answer questions on painted cubes, one has to try to visualize what exactly is happening when the
cube is painted and cut.
Let us take a 5X5X5 cube to understand in detail.
The 5X5X5 cube is made up of 125 cubes of unit volume. Questions are generally asked about the
number of unit cubes which have exactly one face painted, number of unit cubes which have exactly 2

faces painted, number of unit cubes which have exactly 3 faces painted and the number of unit cubes
which have no face painted.
In a 5X5X5 cube, the number of cubes which are not exposed to air i.e., which cannot be seen is (52)*(5-2)*(5-2) = 3*3*3 = 27. The number of cubes at the corners is 8 (of any cube irrespective of
dimensions) one unit cube at each corner of the big cube.
There are 12 edges on the cube, and the number of cubes that reside on each edge is 5. But while
calculating the total number of cubes residing on the edges of the big cube, we have to take into
account the cubes that are counted more than once, and they have to be subtracted accordingly. The
total number of cubes which reside on the edges is 12*3 + 8 = 44. The first part takes care of all
interior cubes on the edges (cubes which are not part of the corners ) and the second part is the total
number of cubes on the corners.
The number of cubes which reside on each face is 5*5 = 25 and the number of unit cubes which can
be seen is the total number of unit cubes in the 5X5X5 cube the number of unit cubes which cannot
be seen = 5*5*5 3*3*3 = 98.
The following points have to be kept in mind:
The unit cubes which have no face painted are the cubes which cannot be seen from outside. In this
case the number of such cubes is 27.
The unit cubes which have exactly 3 faces painted are the ones at the corners of the big cube.
Irrespective of the dimensions of the bigger cube, this number is always 8.
The unit cubes which have exactly one face covered by paint are the ones which reside in the interior
region on the faces (cubes not touching the boundary). There are 6 faces in each cube. In this case,
the number of cubes with 1 face painted is 3*3*6 = 54.
The unit cubes which have exactly 2 faces covered by paint reside on the edges of the cube (cubes
which are at the corners do not belong to this category ). In this case, it is 3*12 = 36.
In general, for an n X n X n cube,
1. The total number of unit cubes is n3.
2. The number of unit cubes which cannot be seen = number of unit cubes which have 0 faces painted
= (n2)3.
3. The number of unit cubes which have exactly 3 faces covered by paint = 8.
4. The number of unit cubes which have exactly 2 faces covered by paint = 12*(n-2).
5. The number of unit cubes which have exactly one face covered by paint = 6*(n2)2.
In general, for a cuboid of dimensions p X q X r,
1. The total number of unit cubes = p*q*r.
2. The number of unit cubes which cannot be seen = number of unit cubes which have 0 faces painted = (p2)*(q-2)*(r-2).
3. The number of unit cubes which have exactly 3 faces covered by paint = 8.
4. The number of unit cubes which have exactly 2 faces covered by paint = 4*(p-2) + 4*(q-2) + 4*(r-2).

5. The number of unit cubes which have exactly one face covered by paint = 2*(p- 2)*(q-2) + 2*(q-2)*(r-2) +
2*(r-2)*(p-2).

Rank of a word in a dictionary

This concept requires a simple application of permutation and combination principles. Unlike other
problems where you have to figure out which formula applies, which concept or trick is needed you
need not worry about any such thing here. This requires a plain and simple application of a solving
method. If you are struggling in the Quant section make sure you ALWAYS solve these problems.
They require some time to solve but are extremely straightforward.
These questions can be of the following types:
1. Rank of n-letter word with DISTINCT letters using all n-letters
2. Rank of n-letter word with some REPEATED letters using all n-letters
3. Rank of m-letter word made out n-letters with some letters repeated
We will discuss solving type 2 and type 3 here. If you are able to solve type 3, you will find type 1
trivial.

Type 1:

Consider the problem of finding the rank of the word MORE from all the alphabetically ordered
permutations.
Lets first order the letters alphabetically: EMOR. Hence, the number of words preceding MORE is as
follows:
# of words preceding = 1 ( i.e. letter E) * 3! (i.e. permutations of remaining letters) + 1 * 2! + 1 *1! =
6+2+1=9
Hence, rank of the word = 9+1 =10

Type 2:

Consider the problem of finding the rank of the word CLASSIC in the dictionary of all 7-letter words
formed from the letters of CLASSIC.
To find the rank of a word, we first calculate the number of words that must precede the word. First
arrange all the letters in the alphabetical order. The ordered list is ACCILSS. The distinct letters are
ACILS.
1. For the first letter C, there is 1 distinct letter (A) before C. If A is in the first spot, the remaining
letters can be arranged in 6!/(2!2!) ways
2. For the second letter L, there are 3 letters (ACI) before L. If A, C or I is there in the second spot, the
remaining letters can be arranged in 5!/2! ways
3. For the third letter A, there are 0 letters before it
4. For the fourth letter S, there are 2 letters (CI) before S (as A and L have already been placed). If C
or I is there in the fourth spot, the remaining letters can be arranged in 3!/2! ways
5. For the fifth letter S, there are two letters (CI) before S. If C or I is there in the fourth spot, the
remaining letters can be arranged in 2! ways
6. For the sixth letter I, there is one letter (C) before I. Hence, there is 1 word before it
Number of words that precede CLASSIC = 1*6!/(2!2!) + 3*5!/2! + 0 + 2*3!/2! + 2*2! + 1 =
180+180+6+4+1 = 371
Rank = Number of words preceding the word +1 = 372

Type 3:

Consider the problem of finding the rank of the word CLASS in a dictionary of all 5-letter words formed
from the letters of the word CLASSIC.
First arrange the letters of CLASSIC in an alphabetical order : ACCILSS. In the table below start filling
an entry for each column for each position in the required word. Letters left is the alphabetically
ordered list of all letters left after placing the letters in the positions represented by the rows above.
For each letter that should come before the letter in our word, we find the number of permutations of
the letters starting with the selected letter. As the number of letters in the word is less than the
number of available letters, there is an element of selection as well as arrangement.

Hence the rank of the word is

Rank = 1+ 4! + 2 * 3C2 * 4!/2! + 4!/ (2!2!) + 3* (4P3+3C13!/2!)+2+2+1+1 = 1+24+72+6+3*(24+9)+6
= 208

Solved Examples:
1. Find the rank of the word DISTINCT in a dictionary of all the words formed from its letters.
Solution:
Let us first order the letters in alphabetical order. Hence, the letters are CDIINSTT. The number of
distinct letters are CDINST.
1. For the first letter, there is 1 distinct letter (C) before D. If C is in the first spot, the remaining letters
can be arranged in 7!/(2!2!) ways
2. For the second letter, there is 1 distinct letter (C) before I. If C is in the second spot, the remaining
letters can be arranged in 6!/(2!2!) ways
3. For the third letter, there are 3 distinct letters (CIN) before S. If any of these is in the third spot, the
remaining letters can be arranged in 5!/2! ways
4. For the fourth letter, there are 3 distinct letters (CIN) before T. If any of these is in the fourth spot,
the remaining letters can be arranged in 4!/2! ways
5. For the fifth letter, there is 1 distinct letter (C) before I. If C is in the fifth spot, the remaining letters
can be arranged in 3! ways
6. For the sixth letter, there is 1 distinct letter (C) before N. If C is in the sixth spot, the remaining

letters can be arranged in 2! ways

7. For the seventh letter, there is no letter before C
8. Last letter falls into place on its own

Hence, # of words preceding = 1*2! + 1*3! + 3*4!/2! + 3*5!/2! + 1*6!/(2!2!) + 1*7!/(2!2!) = 2 + 6 + 36 +

180 + 180 + 1260 = 1664
Hence, rank of the word = 1664+1 = 1665
2. Find the rank of the word LOVE in a dictionary of all the 4 letter words formed from the letters of the
word VOLUME.
As there is no repetition, we can use a smaller version of the table.

# words preceding = 3*3+2*4P2 + 5P3 = 9 + 24 + 60 = 93

Rank = 93+1= 94

Games and Tournaments

There is no "one-best-method" to solve questions on Games and Tournaments. Questions on Games
and Tournaments can be solved by logic and logic alone; that said it is good to familiarize oneself with
all the different types of questions that have appeared in the past.

A brief introduction

Tournament is a competition involving a number of contestants, all playing for the final trophy. The
tournament can be a Tennis Grand Slam or Cricket World Cup or Football World Cup or Olympics etc.
In a tournament, the contestants, be it individuals or teams might play against each other a number of
times, depending on the nature of the tournament.
A knockout tournament is one in which the contestant losing a particular match is eliminated from the
competition and he doesn't play in the further rounds. A Tennis Grand Slam is a typical example of a
knockout tournament. It is to be noted that in a knockout tournament, any two given players can play
against each other only once.

Solved Examples

Let us solve a few questions that have appeared in CAT in the past:
Study the information given below and answer the following questions
In the table below is the listing of players, seeded from highest (#1) to lowest (#32), who are due to
play in an Association of Tennis Players (ATP) tournament for women. This tournament has four
knockout rounds before the final, i.e., first round, second round, quarterfinals, and semi-finals. In the
first round, the highest seeded player plays the lowest seeded player (seed #32) which is designated
match No. 1 of first round: the 2nd seeded player plays the 31st seeded player which is designated
match No.2 of the first round, and so on. Thus, for instance, match no. 16 of first round is to be played
between 16th seeded player and the 17th seeded player. In the second round, the winner of match
No. 1 of first round plays the winner of match No. 16 of first round and is designated match No. 1 of
second round, Similarly, the winner of match No. 2 of first round plays the winner of match No. 15 of
first round, and is designated match No. 2 of second round. Thus, for instance, match No. 8 of the
second round is to be played between the winner of match No. 8 of first round and the winner of
match No. 9 of first round. The same pattern is followed for later rounds as well. The seeding of
players is as follows: [CAT 2005]
1.Maria Sharapova
2. Lindsay Davenport
3. Amelie Mauresmo
4. Kim Clijesters
5. Svetana Kuznetsova
6. Elena Dementieva
7. Justine Henin
8. Serena Williams
9. Nadia Petrova
10. Venus Williams
11. Patty Schnyder
12. Mary Pierce
13. Anastasia Myskina

14. Alicia Molik

15. Nathalie Dechy
16. Elena Bovina
17. Jelena Jankovic
18. Ana Ivanovic
19. Vera Zvonareva
20. Elena Likhovtseva
21. Daniela Hantuchova
22. Dinara Safina?
23. Silvia Farina Elia
24. Tatiana Golovin
25. Shinobu Asagoe
26. Francesca Schiavone
27. Nicole Vaudusiva
28. Gila Dulko
29. Flavia Pennetta
30. Anna Chakvetadze
31. Ai Sugiyama
32. Anna-lena Groenefeld
Question 1) If there are no upsets (a lower seeded player beating a higher seeded player) in the first
round, and only match Nos. 6, 7, and 8 of the second round result in upsets, then who would meet
Lindsay Davenport in quarter finals, in case Davenport reaches quarter finals?
a) Justine Henin
b) Nadia Petrova
c) Patty Schnyder
d) Venus Williams

Question 2) If Elena Dementieva and Serena Williams lose in the second round, while Justine Henin
and Nadia Petrova make it to the semi-finals, then who would play Maria Sharapova in the
quarterfinals, in the event Sharapova reaches quarterfinals?
a) Dinara Safina
b) Justine Henin
c) Nadia Petrova
d) Patty Schnyder

Question 3) If, in the first round, all even numbered matches (and none of the odd numbered ones)
result in upsets, an there are no upsets in the second round, then who could be the lowest seeded
player facing Maria Sharapova in semi-finals?
a) Anastasia Myskina
b) Flavia Pennetta

c) Nadia Petrova
d) Svetlana Kuznetsova

Question 4) If the top eight seeds make it to the quarterfinals, then who amongst the players listed
below would definitely not play against Maria Sharapova in the final, in case Sharapova reaches the
final?
a) Amelie Mauresmo
b) Elena Deinentieva
c) Kim Clijsters
d) Lindsay Davenport

Solution
To answer this question, we have to first visualize the pattern of the matches taking place in the
tournament.

A few observations that we can make are:

1. The sum of seeds of players is every match in the first round adds up to 33.
2. If there are no upsets, the top 16 seeds proceed to the second round.
3. The sum of seeds of players in every match in the second round, provided there are no upsets in
the first round, adds up to 17. Similarly, the sum of seeds adds up to 9 in the quarter-finals and to 5 in
the semi-finals. The top 2 seeds play in the final. All this happens if there are no upsets ( lower
seeded player beating a higher seeded player ) throughout the tournament.

To answer the first question, we have to observe that since it is mentioned that there are no upsets in
the first round, the top 16 seeds proceed to the second round. The matches in the second round are
as follows:
Match #1 : 1 vs 16
Match #2 : 2 vs 15
Match #3 : 3 vs 14
Match #4 : 4 vs 13
Match #5 : 5 vs 12
Match #6 : 6 vs 11
Match #7 : 7 vs 10
Match #8 : 8 vs 9.

Since there are upsets in the 6th, 7th and 8th matches, the seeds who proceed to the quarter-finals
are : 1,2,3,4,5,11,10 and 9.
The matches in the quarter-finals are:
Match #1: 1 vs 9
Match #2: 2 vs 10
Match #3: 3 vs 11
Match #4: 4 vs 5

Since Lindsay Davenport is seeded #2, she plays seed #10, i.e., Venus Williams in the quarters.
Hence the answer is d) Venus Williams.

In Question 2), seeds 6 and 8 lose in the second round => they are upset by seeds 11 and 9
respectively. It is also given that seed #7 makes it to the semi-finals, so #7 defeats #10 in the second
round. In the quarters, #1 plays against #9 and #2 plays against #7. Therefore, Maria Sharapova (#1)
plays against #9 ( Nadia Petrova) in the quarters.

In Question 3) we have to observe that since there are no upsets in odd numbered matches, the
seeds 1,3,5,715 reach the second round. And since all the even-numbered matches result in
upsets, the seeds 31,29,27,17 reach the second round. In the second round, #1 plays against #17,
#31 plays against #15 and so on. Since there are no upsets in the second round, seeds
1,3,5,7,9,11,13 and 15 proceed to the quarter-finals. #1 plays against #9 and reaches the semis. The
player she has to play against in the semis is either #13 or #5. So the lowest ranked player she can
play against in the semis is #13 i.e., Anastasia Myskina.

In Question 4), since the top 8 seeds reach the quarters, the matches are as follows:
#1 vs #8
#2 vs #7
#3 vs #6
#4 vs #5
From this, we can see that #1 will play either #4 or #5 in the semis, but definitely not one of them in
the finals. So, from the options, the only possibility is #4 i.e. Kim Clijsters.

Consider another question from CAT 2005:

The year is 2089. Beijing, London, New York, and Paris are in contention to host the 2096 Olympics.
The eventual winner is determined through several rounds of voting by members of the IOC with each
member representing a different city. All the four cities in contention are also represented in IOC.
In any round of voting, the city receiving the lowest number of votes in that round gets eliminated. The
survivor after the last round of voting gets to host the event.
A member is allowed to cast votes for at most two different cities in all rounds of voting combined.
(Hence, a member becomes ineligible to cast a vote in a given round if both the cities (s) he voted for
in earlier rounds are out of contention in that round of voting.)
A member is also ineligible to cast a vote in a round if the city (s) he represents is in contention in that
round of voting.
As long as the member is eligible, (s) he must vote and vote for only one candidate city in any round
of voting. The following incomplete table shows the information on cities that received the maximum
arid minimum votes in different rounds, the number of votes cast in their favour, and the total votes
that were cast in those rounds.

It is also known that

All those who voted for London and Paris in round 1, continued to vote for the same cities in
subsequent rounds as long as these cities were in contention. 75% of those who voted for Beijing in
round 1, voted for Beijing in round 2 as well.
Those who voted for New York in round 1, voted either for Beijing or Paris in round 2.

 The difference in votes cast for the two contending cities in the last round was 1.
50% of those who voted for Beijing in round I, voted for Paris in round 3. [CAT 2005]

Question 1) What percentage of members from among those who voted for New York in round 1,
voted for Beijing in round 2?
a) 33.33
b) 50
c) 66.67
d) 75

Question 2) What is the number of votes cast for Paris in round 1?

a) 16
b) 18
c) 22
d) 24

Question 3) What percentage of members from among those who voted for Beijing in round 2 and
were eligible to vote in round 3, voted for London?
a) 33.33
b) 38.10
c) 50
d) 66.67

Question 4) Which of the following statements must be true?

A)IOC member from New York must have voted for Paris in round 2.
B)IOC member from Beijing voted for London in round 3.
a) only A
b) only B
c) Both A and B
d) Neither A nor B

Solution

There are 83 votes in the second round. Since New York is eliminated in the 2nd round, the IOC
representative of New York will have a vote in the 2nd round but not in the 1st round. So, the number
of votes in the first round will be 82.

The number of votes in round 3 would be 83 + 1 (1 for the IOC representative of Beijing), but since
there are only 75 votes, 9 votes are eliminated. That implies that 9 people who voted for Beijing in the
2nd round voted for some other city in the first round that got eliminated. Since New York is the city
that got eliminated, the 9 people voted for New York in the 1st round.
The people who voted for London and Paris in the 1st round continued with their votes for the same
cities. So, 21 9 =12 people who voted for Beijing in the 1st round also voted for Beijing in the 2nd
round. It is given that this number is 3/4th of the number of people who voted for Beijing in the 1st
round. Therefore, it can be concluded that 16 people voted for Beijing in the 1st round and the
remaining 82 12 30 16 = 24 people voted for Paris in the 1st round.
By calculation, London has 30 votes in the 2nd round.
Out of the 8 extra votes that Paris got in the 2nd round, 4 are from people who voted for Beijing in the
1st round, 3 from people who voted for New York in the 1st round and 1 from the IOC representative
of New York.
In the 3rd round, there are 21 9 = 12 votes from Beijing which have to be accommodated between
London and Paris. It is given that a total of 16/2 = 8 people who voted for Beijing in the 1st round
voted for Paris in the 3rd round. 4 of them have already voted for Paris in the 2nd round and they
continue with their vote in the 3rd round. So, 4 more people from Beijing vote for Paris in the 3rd
round and 8 people from Beijing vote for London in the 3rd round. So, total number of votes for
London in the 3rd round is 38. Since the difference of votes is only 1 in the third round, it can be
concluded that the IOC representative of Beijing voted for Paris in the 3rd round. Therefore, the
answer to the first question is 75%, the answer to the second question is 24, the answer to the third
question is 66.67% and the answer to the fourth question is only statement A is true.

Modifiers
What are modifiers?

Modifiers are words, phrases or clauses that modify the meaning of some part of the sentence. As
they work on some element of the sentence, they are by definition dependent elements i.e. they make
sense only in the presence of the element that they work on.

Examples of modifiers (italicized)

Word : She filled the form quickly
Phrase: I gave the money to the woman in the blue dress
Clause: Since returning to India, Amrita has been working as a freelancer.
As modifiers make sense only in the presence of the word they are modifying, their relative placement
with respect to the modified word is extremely important. If the modifier is improperly separated from
the word it is modifying, so that it appears to be acting on a different word, the modifier is said to be
a misplaced modifier. A modifier is said to be a dangling modifier if the word it is supposed to be
modifying is missing.

Misplaced Modifiers

When modifiers are separated from the modified word by other objects, the modifier can be
erroneously thought to act on the intervening object. This confusion is caused by a grammatical error
known as misplaced modifier. This grammatical error can generally be corrected by moving the
modifier closer to the word it is modifying. For example,
While driving under the influence of alcohol, the police pulled over Sumit.
This sentence implies that the police were under the influence of alcohol. To correct the sentence, we
must either move the modifier or the word it modifies.
Thus the sentence can be re-written as:
While driving under the influence of alcohol, Sumit was pulled over by the police.
The police pulled over Sumit while he was driving under the influence of alcohol.

Dangling modifiers

A modifier is said to be a dangling modifier if the word it is supposed to be modifying is missing. This
can be corrected by adding the required word. For example,
Having failed in his first attempt, the exam had to be retaken.
Here it is unclear who has to retake the exam. The modifying clause Having failed in his first attempt
clearly describes a person and hence the sentence requires either a noun/pronoun to accept the
modification.
Thus the sentence can be re-written as:
Having failed in his first attempt, he had to retake the exam.

Solved Examples

1. Which of the following options is grammatically correct?

a) Believing in his version of events, Shekhar was acquitted by the jury
b) Turning the corner, a modern steel and glass building came into view
c) Being too young to watch the movie, the theater usher denied Amita entry
d) Ignoring Amits advice, Ameesha did not photocopy her hall-ticket
Answer: d)
Solution: Options A and C are examples of misplaced modifiers. In A, the jury would be the one to
believe or disbelieve something. Hence, the sentence should be changed to Believing in his version
of events, the jury acquitted Shekhar. Similarly, Amita and not the usher was underage and hence
the sentence should be rewritten as Being too young to watch the movie, Amita was denied entry by
the theater usher.
Option B is an example of dangling modifier. The modifier Turning the corner is obviously referring
to a person who is walking and hence requires a noun/pronoun to act on. Option D is grammatically
correct.
2. Which of the following options is grammatically incorrect?
a) Seeing his hard work and dedication, the company gave Amit a pay raise
b) They gifted their daughter a cute little puppy called Mimi
c) The designer sold the lehenga to Ashima with the golden embroidery
d) The kettle was awkwardly placed between the two tables
Answer: c)
Solution: Option C is an example of misplaced modifier. The lehenga, and not Ashima, have golden
embroidery. Hence, the sentence should be rewritten as The designer sold the lehenga with the
golden embroidery to Ashima.

Circle Properties
Circles is an important chapter as far as CAT is concerned. Generally the questions asked are on the
applications of the various properties of Circles.

Definitions:

Chord: A chord is a line-segment that is drawn between any two points on the circumference of the
circle. The largest chord in the circle is the diameter.
Arc: Arc is a curved line that is part of the circumference of the circle. A minor arc is one that is lesser
than the semi-circle and a major arc is one that is greater than the semi-circle.
Segment: The part of area of the circle that is cut by a chord is called the segment. The part that is
smaller than the area of the semi-circle is the minor segment and the part that is larger than the area
of the semi-circle is the major segment.
Sector: The part of the area of the circle that is bounded by an arc and two radii is called the sector.
Tangent: A line drawn from a point outside the circle, such that it touches the circle at only one point is
called the tangent.
Secant: A line drawn from a point outside the circle, such that it cuts the circle at two points on its
circumference is called the secant.
Central angle is the angle made at the center of the circle by a chord.

Formulae:

Consider a circle with radius 'r'.

Area of the circle = r2
Circumference of the circle = 2*r
Length of an arc with central angle = (/360)*2**r
Area of a sector with central angle = (/360)* r2

Circle Properties:

1. The perpendicular drawn from the center of a circle to a chord bisects the chord. Conversely, the
line joining the mid-point of a chord and the center of the circle, is perpendicular to the chord.
2. Chords that are equal are equidistant from the center of the circle. Conversely, if the lengths of
perpendiculars from the center of the circle to two chords are equal, the chords are equal.
3. The length of a chord keeps increasing as it moves closer to the center of the circle.
4. The angles subtended by an arc at any point on the circumference of the circle in the major
segment, are equal.
5. The angle subtended by an arc at the center is twice the angle subtended by the arc at any point
on the circumference of the circle in the major segment.

6. Equal chords subtend equal angles at the center.

7. The angle subtended by a diameter on the circumference is a right angle.
8. From an external point, there can be two tangents to a circle. The lengths of both these tangents
are equal.
9. The line joining the center of the circle and the point where a tangent touches the circle is
perpendicular to the tangent.
10. A chord is drawn from the point at which a tangent touches the circle. The angle made by this
chord with the tangent is equal to the angle made by the chord at any point on the circumference in
the alternate segment.

11. Two chords AB and CD are drawn in such a way that they intersect at a point O. Then, AO*OB =
CO*OD.
12. From a point O outside a circle, two secants are drawn such that the first secant cuts the circle at
A and B and the second secant cuts the circle at C and D.
Then, OA*OB = OC*OD.
13. From a point A outside the circle, a secant is drawn such that it cuts the circle are points S and U.
From the same point A, a tangent is drawn such that it touches the circle at T. Then, AS*AU =

AT2.

Common Tangents:

1. If two circles intersect have zero points of intersection, the number of common tangents to the two
circles is four.
2. If two circles touch each other at one point, and the circles do not lie inside each other, the number
of common tangents to the two circles is three.
3. If two circles intersect each other at 2 points, the number of common tangents to the two circles is
two.
4. If two circles touch each other at 1 point, and one circle lies completely inside the other circle, the
number of tangents to the two circles is one.
5. If one circle lies completely inside the other circle and there is no point of intersection between the
two circles, the number of common tangents is zero.

Let us try to solve a few CAT problems with the help of these concepts:

Question 1) In the following figure, the diameter of the circle is 3 cm. AB and MN are two diameters
such that MN is perpendicular to AB. In addition, CG is perpendicular to AB such that AE:EB = 1:2,
and DF is perpendicular to MN such that NL:LM = 1:2. The length of DH in cm is [CAT 2005]

a) 22 - 1

b) (22 -1)/2
c) (32 -1)/2
d) (22 - 1)/3

Solution:
To solve this problem, we have to use the property that if a perpendicular from the center of the circle
is drawn to a chord, the perpendicular bisects the chord. Length of MO = 1.5 cm, ON = 1.5 cm,
AO=OB = 1.5cm. AE:EB = 1:2, so AE = 1cm and EB = 2cm. So, EO = 0.5cm. Therefore, HL = 0.5 cm.
Similarly, OL = 0.5 cm and EH = 0.5 cm. OD = radius = 1.5 cm. Using Pythagoras Theorem in triangle
ODL, DL = 1.520.52 = 2.
DH = DL-HL = 2 - 0.5 = (22 - 1)/2.
Question 2) In the adjoining figure, I and II are circles with centres P and Q respectively. The two
circles touch each other and have a common tangent that touches them at points Rand S
respectively. This common tangent meets the line joining P and Q at 0. The diameters of I and II are
in the ratio 4 : 3. It is also known that the length of PO is 28 cm. [CAT 2004]

A) What is the ratio of the length of PQ to that of QO ?

a) 1:4
b) 1:3
c) 3:8
d) 3:4
B) What is the radius of circle II?
a) 2cm
b) 3cm
c) 4cm
d) 5cm

C) The length of SO is
a) 83 cm
b) 103 cm
c) 123 cm
d) 143 cm
Solution:
To solve this question, the property that we have to use is: The line joining the center of the circle and
the point where a tangent touches the circle is perpendicular to the tangent.
Triangles OPR and OQS are similar. So, PR/SQ = PO/QO = 4/3. Since PO = 28 cm, QO = 21 cm.
Therefore, PQ = 7 cm.
PQ:QO = 7:21 = 1:3
PQ = Radius of circle I + Radius of circle II => 7 cm = 4k + 3k => Radius of first circle = 4cm and
radius of second circle = 3cm.
OSQ forms a right triangle, in which OQ is the hypotenuse. By Pythagoras theorem, SO
= 4419 = 123 cm.

Syllogism
Syllogisms are some of the most deceptively easy questions. However, if you solve them carefully,
these are some of the simplest questions in CAT. The typical format of a syllogism is two or three
statements are given and we have to find a conclusion that must be true given these statements.
We recommend using the Venn Diagram method for solving syllogisms. Many people consider this
method extremely time-consuming but we believe that once you get into the habit of solving
syllogisms using them, you can quickly visualize how the sets will look in your mind. Once you
develop the habit of visualizing, these questions will become a cake-walk.

Venn Diagrams

1) All X are Y
When all X are Y we have the following two cases: X is a subset of Y and X and Y are equal

The first case is the less limiting case because we can draw the second case exactly like the first
case and then mention that Y that is not X is a null set.
Tip: Whenever you visualize, always visualize the less limiting case. You can move to the more limiting case
when more information is available.
Tip: Only A are B can be read as All B are A.
2) No X is Y
When no X is Y we can visualize them as non-intersecting sets. As you can see, the image is
symmetrical for X and Y i.e. No X is Y implies No Y is X.

Tip: This rule places a condition on the overlap between X and Y. But it does not mean that X and Y cannot
overlap a third set.

3) Some X are Y
Things are easier with universally true or false rules. Things get a bit trickier with partial positive or
negative rules. Some X are Y can be imagined in a number of ways and in each of the below
diagrams, the rule Some X are Y holds true. Hence, we cannot ascertain which of these is the case
until we have more information. The only case eliminated is of non-intersecting sets.

Tip: Remember Some X are Y does not imply Some X are not Y. This statement holds true when all X are Y.
4) Some X are not Y
Like the partial positive, Some X are Y, Some X are not Y also leads to a list of possibilities.

As we can see, this condition eliminates the two cases that arise when All X are Y.

Solved examples:

Question 1) Which of the following conclusions necessarily follow from the statements given?
Statements:
I) All cats are deaf.
II) Some dogs are deaf.
III) All dogs are brown animals.
Conclusions:
A) Some brown animals are deaf

B) Some dogs are cats

C) No cat is a brown animal
a) A only
b) A and B only
c) C only
d) A and C only
Answer: a)
Solution: For representing each condition, choose the least limiting representation.
Hence, we can show the conditions as follows:

From the image, we see that A is definitely true. There is no way for us to draw an overlap between
Dogs and Deaf without there being an overlap between Deaf and Brown animals.
From the image, we see one case in which B is not true and hence we can eliminate B.
We can alter the image as follows, while still following the rules stated. From the following image, we
can see that C is not true. Hence, the correct answer is only A.

Question 2) Which of the following conclusions necessarily follow from the statements given?
Statements:
I) No poet is American
II) All Americans are literate
III) All literate people are either poets or authors
Conclusions:
A) Some poets are not literate
B) All Americans are authors
C) No poets are authors
a) A only
b) B and C only
c) B only
d) None of the above
Answer: c)
Solution: For representing each condition, choose the least limiting representation.
Hence, we can show the conditions as follows:

Statement A: As we see from the above image this can be true in some cases. However, if the sets
were as follows:

Then the conclusion does not hold. Hence, A is not necessarily true.
Statement B: As we can see from the earlier two diagrams, we cannot draw the set Americans without
it being a subset of Authors. As all literate people are split into these two categories (the statement
does not rule out a literate person being both) the set of literate people must overlap with either of
these two sets. Consequently, Americans, which is a subset of literate, must overlap with either of
these sets. However, it cannot overlap with Poets. Hence, it must overlap with authors. Hence,
statement B is true.
Statement C: The statements do not address the whether there is overlap between poets and
authors. Suppose the sets are as follows:

Here, we still follow the rules given and yet there is overlap between Poets and Authors. Hence, C is
not inferrable.
Thus, the correct answer is B only.