RC Practice Questions by e GMAT PDF

4/29/2014
700+ level Reading

Comprehension
Questions
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COMPREHENSION
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CONTENTS
Free WebinaR: Key strategies to ace gmat rc............................................................................................................... 2
Passage 1 ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
WHEN TO THINK AND WHEN TO SLEEP ...................................................................................................... 4
AnswerS....................................................................................................................................................................................... 7
SOLUTION: Q#1........................................................................................................................................................................ 7
SOLUTION: Q#2...................................................................................................................................................................... 12
SOLUTION: Q#3...................................................................................................................................................................... 13
SOLUTION: Q#4...................................................................................................................................................................... 14
Twin Main Point Practice passages ................................................................................................................................ 15
Passage 1 .............................................................................................................................................................................. 15
Passage 2 .............................................................................................................................................................................. 16
Twin Main Point Practice passages-Solutions ........................................................................................................... 18
Passage 1 .............................................................................................................................................................................. 18
Passage 2 .............................................................................................................................................................................. 21
More e-GMAT Free Resources .......................................................................................................................................... 25
Meet the Top Instructors .................................................................................................................................................... 26
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more than 1 million people.
PASSAGE
WHEN TO THINK AND WHEN TO SLEEP
Researchers argue that the brain stem comprising the medulla oblongata, the pons and the
mid brain is better at handling a large amount of information. On the other hand, the Cerebral
Cortex that is responsible for rational decision making is better at applying very strict,
mathematical rules on fewer variables involving well-defined parameters. Consequently,
researchers agree that it is better to sleep on certain complex decision rather than burn
midnight oil to arrive at rationale solution. They believe that in these situations, rationality
comes on the way of making a rational decision and that the brain stem is better equipped
to handle them than the Cerebral
Cortex, arguing that its better to leave such decisions on unconscious thought process
thinking without paying attention. There are decisions where, the researchers
believe, CONSCIOUS thought outperforms unconscious thought. For example, when a
decision requires application of very strict, mathematical rules, conscious thought is
beneficial.
Several experiments that incorporated several combinations of plethora of specifications
revealed the workings of the brain stem and the Cerebral cortex. In one such experiment, the
participants were asked to choose a car from 10 leading brands of automobiles. The
researchers gave them just four parameters to consider for their choice - mileage, cost,
reliability, and re-sale value, asking them to take instantaneous decision. The participants
came up with the second-to-none decision in this scenario, proving that the conscious mind
was super-efficient in processing limited amount of data. Keeping all the other conditions
fixed the researchers this time asked the participants to sleep on the choice and declare their
decision later. The resulting choices that participants made were not as optimal.
In another set of similar experiments, the researchers were baffled by the appalling choices
that the test group made when they conducted the same experiment with 10 leading brands,
but doubled the parameters, adding such features to consider as brand appeal, durability,
safety, and off-road capability. The researchers argued that Cerebral cortex could not make
sense of the expanded information set that led to poor decision making. However, the
decisions made by another test group that was allowed to sleep on the decision before
declaring their choice were much more worthy, even though not as good as the decision
produced by the conscious mind that processed fewer parameters. This led the researchers
to conclude that our unconscious mind can process larger amounts of information - as long
as we give it time to do so. Another suitable situation, according to researchers, to employ
the goal-dependent, deliberative process in the absence of conscious attention is when we

are low on energy or easily distracted at the time when we are faced with a complex decision
to make. Similarly, when in high spirits, it may be better to invoke the conscious mind to
arrive at a much more optimal solution. Main Point: Power of conscious and unconscious
mind
EXERCISES
Q1. The reason why the author has written this passage is that he wants to:
A. argue that functions of Cerebral cortex only can lead to such important and complex
decisions as buying a home or selecting a school.
B. compare and contrast the functions of brain stem and Cerebral Cortex to show the
benefits of one over the other in making complex decision.
C. debate that all important decisions must be taken from Cerebral Cortex as it leads to
rational decisions in complex situations.
D. summarize through examples which situations are conducive for conscious minds and
when to employ brain stem to make optimal decisions of complex nature.
E. Prove that sleeping on a complex decision is the best way to arrive at the optimal
decision in complex situations.
Q2. According to the passage, when one is an environment where once can get easily
distracted one should:
A. Put the conscious mind to rest and let the subconscious mind take over
B. If faced with a complex decision; one should sleep over the decision rather than
employ conscious decision making
C.
Not make any decisions that could have a major financial or economic impact
D. Ensure that one is not low on energy

E.
Not expect the unconscious mind to work as efficiently as when one is in high spirits.
Q3. What does the author mean by in high spirits?

A. In the influence of alcohol
B.
Happy to be faced with a daunting situation.
C.
Teeming with positive energy to face a tough decision
D.
Ready with creative ideas to tackle almost every situation.
E.
Fresh and energetic.
Q4. What can be deduced by rationality comes on the way of making a rational
decision?
A. Conscious efforts do not necessarily yield best results.
B. Thinking with attention always results in the best judgment.
C. Rational people always prefer sleeping on a decision to make important choices.
D. Unconscious mind cannot be dependent upon for making optimal choices.
E. There is no place for rationality when unconscious mind starts working.
ANSWERS
The Correct answers for the above questions are listed below:
1.
2.
3.
4.
B
E
E
A
SOLUTION: Q#1
Paragraph
Researchers argue that the brain stem
comprising the medulla oblongata, the pons and
the mid brain is better at handling a large
amount of information. On the other hand, the
Cerebral Cortex that is responsible for rational
decision making is better at applying very strict,
mathematical rules on fewer variables involving
well-defined parameters.
Consequently, researchers agree that it is better
to sleep on certain complex decision rather
than burn midnight oil to arrive at rationale
solution. They believe that in these situations,
rationality comes on the way of making a
rational decision and that the brain stem is
better equipped to handle them than the
Cerebral Cortex, arguing that its better to leave
such decisions on unconscious thought process
thinking without paying attention. There are
decisions where, the researchers believe,
conscious thought outperforms unconscious
thought. For example, when a decision requires
application of very strict, mathematical rules,
conscious thought is beneficial.
My Paragraph Summary
Conscious mind helps in arriving at decision that
requires application of strict rules on limited
parameters. On the contrary, unconscious mind
leads to best decisions when there is large
amount of information.
The reason why the author has written this passage is that he wants to:
Several experiments that incorporated several

combinations of plethora of specifications
revealed the workings of the brain stem and the
Cerebral cortex. In one such experiment, the
participants were asked to choose a car from 10
leading brands of automobiles. The researchers
gave them just four parameters to consider for
their choice - mileage, cost, reliability, and resale
value, asking them to take instantaneous
decision. The participants came up with the
second-to-none decision in this scenario,
proving that the conscious mind was
superefficient in processing limited amount of
data. Keeping all the other conditions fixed the
researchers this time asked the participants to
sleep on the choice and declare their decision
later. The resulting choices that participants
made were not as optimal.
Experiment 1- Conscious mind yielded the best

result when participants were given four
parameters for consideration to choose a car
from 10 brands.
Experiment 2 The decision was not that
optimal when they left the decision on the
unconscious mind.
In another set of similar experiments, the

researchers were baffled by the appalling
choices that the test group made when they
conducted the same experiment with 10 leading
brands, but doubled the parameters, adding such
features to consider as brand appeal, durability,
safety, and off-road capability. The researchers
argued that Cerebral cortex could not make
sense of the expanded information set that led to
poor decision making. However, the decisions
made by another test group that was allowed to
sleep on the decision before declaring their
choice were much more worthy, even though not
as good as the decision produced by the
conscious mind that processed fewer
parameters. This led the researchers to conclude
that our unconscious mind can process larger
amounts of information as long as we give it
time to do so. Another suitable situation,
according to researchers, to employ the goaldependent, deliberative process in the absence
of conscious attention is when we are low on
energy or easily distracted at the time when we
are faced with a complex decision to make.
Similarly, when in high spirits, it may be better
to invoke the conscious
mind to arrive at a much more optimal solution.
Experiment 1 The conscious mind made poor

decision when the parameters were doubled.
Experiment 2 When with double parameters,
the participants relied on their unconscious
mind, their decision was better than the one
taken with conscious mind.
Answer choices
Explanation
A. argue that functions of Cerebral cortex Inconsistent: The author does not mention
anywhere in the passage that only conscious
only can lead to such important and
mind can take important and
complex decisions as buying a home
complex decisions. Even unconscious mind is
or selecting a school.
capable of doing so.
B. compare and contrast the functions of
brain stem and Cerebral Cortex to
show the benefits of one over the other
in making complex decision.
Out of Scope: The author through examples

talks about the ability of the conscious and
unconscious minds. He does not even talk
about the functions of these two minds. Also,
he does not say that one is better than the
other.
C. debate that all important decisions must

be taken from Cerebral Cortex as it
leads to rational decisions in complex
situations.
Inconsistent: There is no debate of any sort in

the passage. The author talks about the
abilities of both the conscious and the
unconscious minds equally.
D. summarize through examples which

situations are conducive for conscious
minds and when to employ brain stem
to make optimal decisions of complex
nature.
Correct. From the paragraph summaries we

know that the experiments are the examples
through which the author proved that
conscious mind takes best decision when
given less parameters and the unconscious
mind does the same when given more
parameters.
E. prove that sleeping on a complex

Partial Scope: The author also talks about the
decision is the best way to arrive at the functions of the conscious mind while
optimal decision in complex situations. making important decisions but the author
talks much more than that. This choice only
covers partial scope, does not talk about
scenarios where the conscious mind is
favored.
PRE-THINK Presenting experiments, the author says that conscious mind can
take the best decision of complex nature if decision making requires application of
strict rules on limited parameters. If larger amount of information is needed to be
processed, then the unconscious mind takes the optimal decision.
PRE-THINK - The author recommends that when faced with a

complex decision we use the unconscious mind when we are
easily distracted.
SOLUTION: Q#2
According to the passage, when one is an environment where once can get easily distracted one
should
This is a specific question. Note the word distraction is used at the end of the passage. Hence
lets read that section to do the pre-thinking.
This led the researchers to conclude that our unconscious mind can process larger
amounts of information as long as we give it time to do so. Another suitable situation,
according to researchers, to employ the goal-dependent, deliberative process in the
absence of conscious attention is when we are low on energy or easily distracted at the
time when we are faced with a complex decision to make.
Answer Choice
Explanation
Put the subconscious mind to rest and let the

Cerebral Cortex take over
Opposite: The author recommends the opposite.
Not make any decisions that could have a major

financial or economic impact
Out of scope: The author does not mention

anything about decisions that have major
financial or economic impact.
Put the conscious mind to rest and let the

subconscious mind take over
Close: The passage suggests this only when faces

with a complex decision, not always.
Not expect the unconscious mind to work as

efficiently as when one is in high spirits.
Inconsistent: situations of high energy are not

related to the situations when one is easily
distracted.
If faced with a complex decision, one should

prefer using the unconscious mind.
Correct: The author recommends using the

unconscious mind when faced with complex
situation and in scenarios when one is easily
distracted.
SOLUTION: Q#3
What does the author mean by in high spirits?
Relevant Portion - Another suitable situation, according to researchers, to employ the
goaldependent, deliberative process in the absence of conscious attention is when we are low
on energy or easily distracted at the time when we are faced with a complex decision to make.
Similarly, when in high spirits, it may be better to invoke the conscious mind to arrive at a much
more optimal solution.
PRE-THINK - In the highlighted area, it is said that unconscious mind should be employed
when low on energy. Hence, in high spirits would mean in fresh state of mind as then use of
conscious mind is recommended.
Choice
Explanation
In the influence of alcohol.
Incorrect: This is not the intended meaning.
Happy to be faced with a daunting situation.
Teeming with positive energy to face a tough

decision.
Ready with creative ideas to tackle almost every Incorrect: This is not the intended meaning.
situation.
Fresh and energetic.
Correct: This is the correct meaning because the

author says that when tired, make use of
unconscious mind, when energetic use
conscious mind.
SOLUTION: Q#4
What can be deduced by rationality comes on the way of making a rational decision?
PRE-THINK - Putting conscious effort actually hinders taking the best decision in certain
situations.
Choices
Conscious efforts do not necessarily yield best
results.
Explanation
Correct: This indeed is the meaning of the
phrase.
Thinking with attention always results in the best Opposite: This phrase means just the opposite.
judgment.
Rational people always prefer sleeping on a
decision to make important choices.
Out of Scope: This is a generic phrase applicable

for all & not a specific group.
Unconscious mind cannot be dependent upon for Opposite: The phrase does mean that
making optimal choices.
unconscious mind helps in making optimal
decision.
There is no place for rationality when
unconscious mind starts working.
Out of Scope: This phrase has no causality about

it.
TWIN MAIN POINT PRACTICE PASSAGES

This article is the continuation of our previous article named Paragraph Summaries An approach
to Main Point. (http://gmatclub.com/forum/paragraph-summaries-an-approach-to-main-point134468.html)
In this article, we discussed in details what a passage and a paragraph are and we presented a
frame work to as to how we can summarize each paragraph and then synthesize them to arrive at
main point of the a passage.
This article also included details of characteristics of incorrect answer choices and the core skills
you need to answer the main point question.
In this article, we have included two practice passages for main point question. Upon reading the
passages, you will realize that both the passages are on the same topic. The idea behind this
exercise is to show that two different passages written on the same subject matter can have two
different main points.
Find it out for yourself. Read the passages, apply the framework provided in the Main Point article
mentioned above and arrive at the correct answer choice. Post your detailed analysis for both
questions. We will publish detailed official solution once we get enough responses. So get cracking.
All the best!
PASSAGE 1
Researchers argue that the brain stem comprising the medulla oblongata, the pons and the mid
brain is better at handling a large amount of information. On the other hand, the Cerebral Cortex
that is responsible for rational decision making is better at applying very strict, mathematical rules
on fewer variables involving well-defined parameters. Consequently, researchers agree that it is
better to sleep on certain complex decision rather than burn midnight oil to arrive at rationale
solution. They believe that in these situations, rationality comes on the way of making a rational
decision and that the brain stem is better equipped to handle them than the Cerebral Cortex,
arguing that its better to leave such decisions on unconscious thought process thinking without
paying attention. There are decisions where, the researchers believe, CONSCIOUS thought
outperforms unconscious thought. For example, when a decision requires application of very strict,
mathematical rules, conscious thought is beneficial.
Several experiments that incorporated several combinations of plethora of specifications revealed
the workings of the brain stem and the Cerebral cortex. In one such experiment, the participants
were asked to choose a car from 10 leading brands of automobiles. The researchers gave them just
four parameters to consider for their choice - mileage, cost, reliability, and re-sale value, asking
them to take instantaneous decision. The participants came up with the second-to-none decision in
this scenario, proving that the conscious mind was super-efficient in processing limited amount of
data. Keeping all the other conditions fixed the researchers this time asked the participants to sleep
on the choice and declare their decision later. The resulting choices that participants made were not
as optimal.
In another set of similar experiments, the researchers were baffled by the appalling choices that the
test group made when they conducted the same experiment with 10 leading brands, but doubled
the parameters, adding such features to consider as brand appeal, durability, safety, and off-road
capability. The researchers argued that Cerebral cortex could not make sense of the expanded
information set that led to poor decision making. However, the decisions made by another test
group that was allowed to sleep on the decision before declaring their choice were much more
worthy, even though not as good as the decision produced by the conscious mind that processed
fewer parameters. This led the researchers to conclude that our unconscious mind can process
larger amounts of information as long as we give it time to do so. Another suitable situation,
according to researchers, to employ the goal-dependent, deliberative process in the absence of
conscious attention is when we are low on energy or easily distracted at the time when we are
faced with a complex decision to make. Similarly, when in high spirits, it may be better to invoke the
conscious mind to arrive at a much more optimal solution.
EXERCISES
1. The reason why the author has written this passage is that he wants to:
A. argue that functions of Cerebral cortex only can lead to such important and complex
B. compare and contrast the functions of brain stem and Cerebral Cortex to show the
C. debate that all important decisions must be taken from Cerebral Cortex as it leads to
D. summarize through examples which situations are conducive for conscious minds and
E. prove that sleeping on a complex decision is the best way to arrive at the optimal
PASSAGE 2
Evidence has been presented that the unconscious mind, still viewed by many psychological
scientists as the shadow of a real conscious mind, is identifiably more deliberate, action oriented
and complex than its conscious counterpart. Furthermore researchers have proven that the mind is
incredibly efficient at extracting meaning from stimuli of which one is not consciously aware. The
claims above are made on conclusive experimentations in which test subjects who were allowed to
sleep during a decision making process made more optimal decisions when compared to the
subjects who were given the exact same amount of time but were not allowed to sleep, leading
researchers to believe that rationality comes on the way of making a rational decision. Researchers
explain that while the conscious mind can only follow strict rules, unconscious mind can handle and
integrate a larger amount of information, explaining why it can make better decisions. Even more
surprising than this unconscious minds ability is that the mental processes that drive such decision
making are necessarily minimal and unsophisticated and do not require humongous amount of
calories to make us arrive at the best decision whereas using conscious mind for complex decisions
burns up a lot of energy, setting in fatigue, forcing the conscious mind to give up and leading to
subconscious decisions. Overall, researchers agree that there is no need to have sleepless night
pondering over a complex issue to resolve it when it can actually be solved more efficiently by
snoring the night away.
EXERCISES
1. The purpose of the passage is to:

A. highlight the differences among psychologists regarding the importance of the
unconscious mind in making complex decisions.
B. contrast and compare the workings of the rationality with that of deliberate, actionoriented and complex decision making processes.
C. prove by citing results of experiments that one decision-making process is better than
the other.
D. show that unconscious mind is not that undependable as previously thought.
E. ascertain that using conscious and unconscious minds together yield second-to-none
judgments.
TWIN MAIN POINT PRACTICE PASSAGES-SOLUTIONS

PASSAGE 1
Researchers argue that the brain stem comprising the medulla oblongata, the pons and the mid
brain is better at handling a large amount of information. On the other hand, the Cerebral Cortex
that is responsible for rational decision making is better at applying very strict, mathematical rules
on fewer variables involving well-defined parameters. Consequently, researchers agree that it is
better to sleep on certain complex decision rather than burn midnight oil to arrive at rationale
solution. They believe that in these situations, rationality comes on the way of making a rational
decision and that the brain stem is better equipped to handle them than the Cerebral Cortex,
arguing that its better to leave such decisions on unconscious thought process thinking without
paying attention. There are decisions where, the researchers believe, CONSCIOUS thought
outperforms unconscious thought. For example, when a decision requires application of very strict,
Several experiments that incorporated several combinations of plethora of specifications revealed
the workings of the brain stem and the Cerebral cortex. In one such experiment, the participants
were asked to choose a car from 10 leading brands of automobiles. The researchers gave them just
four parameters to consider for their choice - mileage, cost, reliability, and re-sale value, asking
them to take instantaneous decision. The participants came up with the second-to-none decision in
this scenario, proving that the conscious mind was super-efficient in processing limited amount of
data. Keeping all the other conditions fixed the researchers this time asked the participants to sleep
on the choice and declare their decision later. The resulting choices that participants made were not
as optimal.
In another set of similar experiments, the researchers were baffled by the appalling choices that the
test group made when they conducted the same experiment with 10 leading brands, but doubled
the parameters, adding such features to consider as brand appeal, durability, safety, and off-road
capability. The researchers argued that Cerebral cortex could not make sense of the expanded
information set that led to poor decision making. However, the decisions made by another test
group that was allowed to sleep on the decision before declaring their choice were much more
worthy, even though not as good as the decision produced by the conscious mind that processed
fewer parameters. This led the researchers to conclude that our unconscious mind can process
larger amounts of information as long as we give it time to do so. Another suitable situation,
according to researchers, to employ the goal-dependent, deliberative process in the absence of
conscious attention is when we are low on energy or easily distracted at the time when we are
faced with a complex decision to make. Similarly, when in high spirits, it may be better to invoke the
conscious mind to arrive at a much more optimal solution.
EXERCISES
F. argue that functions of Cerebral cortex only can lead to such important and complex
G. compare and contrast the functions of brain stem and Cerebral Cortex to show the
H. debate that all important decisions must be taken from Cerebral Cortex as it leads to
I. summarize through examples which situations are conducive for conscious minds and
J. prove that sleeping on a complex decision is the best way to arrive at the optimal
SOLUTIONS
Hopefully you would have read the passage and the Main Point Question. Here I would approach
this question. The first step is to summarize individual paragraphs.
Paragraph
Researchers argue that the brain stem comprising the

medulla oblongata, the pons and the mid brain is better at
handling a large amount of information. On the other hand,
the Cerebral Cortex that is responsible for rational decision
making is better at applying very strict, mathematical rules
on fewer variables involving well-defined parameters.
Consequently, researchers agree that it is better to sleep
on certain complex decision rather than burn midnight oil
to arrive at rationale solution. They believe that in these
situations, rationality comes on the way of making a
rational decision and that the brain stem is better equipped
to handle them than the Cerebral Cortex, arguing that its
better to leave such decisions on unconscious thought
process thinking without paying attention. There are
decisions where, the researchers believe, CONSCIOUS
thought outperforms unconscious thought. For example,
when a decision requires application of very strict,
Conscious mind helps in arriving at

decision that requires application
of strict rules on limited
parameters. On the contrary,
unconscious mind leads to best
decisions when there is large
amount of information.
Several experiments that incorporated several

combinations of plethora of specifications revealed the
workings of the brain stem and the Cerebral cortex. In one
such experiment, the participants were asked to choose a
car from 10 leading brands of automobiles. The
Experiment 1- Conscious mind

yielded the best result when
participants were given four
parameters for consideration to
choose a car from 10 brands.
researchers gave them just four parameters to consider for

their choice - mileage, cost, reliability, and re-sale value,
asking them to take instantaneous decision. The
participants came up with the second-to-none decision in
this scenario, proving that the conscious mind was superefficient in processing limited amount of data. Keeping all
the other conditions fixed the researchers this time asked
the participants to sleep on the choice and declare their
decision later. The resulting choices that participants made
were not as optimal.
Experiment 2 The decision was

not that optimal when they left the
decision on the unconscious mind,
In another set of similar experiments, the researchers were

baffled by the appalling choices that the test group made
when they conducted the same experiment with 10 leading
brands, but doubled the parameters, adding such features
to consider as brand appeal, durability, safety, and off-road
capability. The researchers argued that Cerebral cortex
could not make sense of the expanded information set that
led to poor decision making. However, the decisions made
by another test group that was allowed to sleep on the
decision before declaring their choice were much more
worthy, even though not as good as the decision produced
by the conscious mind that processed fewer parameters.
This led the researchers to conclude that our unconscious
mind can process larger amounts of information as long
as we give it time to do so. Another suitable situation,
according to researchers, to employ the goal-dependent,
deliberative process in the absence of conscious attention
is when we are low on energy or easily distracted at the
time when we are faced with a complex decision to make.
Similarly, when in high spirits, it may be better to invoke
the conscious mind to arrive at a much more optimal
solution.
Experiment 1 The conscious

mind made poor decision when the
parameters were doubled.
Experiment 2 When with double
parameters, the participants relied
on their unconscious mind, their
decision was better than the one
taken with conscious mind.
So basically, what the author said in the first paragraph, he proved those points by mentioning
some studies in the subsequent paragraphs.
PRE-THINKING MAIN POINT Below is the main point that I came up by combining the
summaries of the three paragraphs.
So now lets do the POE to find out the correct answer:

Answer choices
Explanation
A. argue that functions of Cerebral
Inconsistent: The author does not
cortex only can lead to such
mention anywhere in the passage that only
important and complex decisions as conscious mind can take important and
buying a home or selecting a school. complex decisions. Even unconscious mind
is capable of doing so.
B. compare and contrast the functions Out of Scope: The author through
of brain stem and Cerebral Cortex
examples talks about the ability of the
to show the benefits of one over the conscious and unconscious minds. He does
other in making complex decision.
not even talk about the functions of these
two minds. Also, he does not say that one
is better than the other.
C. debate that all important decisions
Inconsistent: There is no debate of any
must be taken from Cerebral Cortex sort in the passage. The author talks about
as it leads to rational decisions in
the abilities of both the conscious and the
complex situations.
unconscious minds equally.
D. summarize through examples
which situations are conducive for
conscious minds and when to
employ brain stem to make optimal
decisions of complex nature.
E. prove that sleeping on a complex

decision is the best way to arrive at
the optimal decision in complex
situations.
Correct. From the paragraph summaries

we know that the experiments are the
examples through which the author
proved that conscious mind takes best
decision when given less parameters and
the unconscious mind does the same when
given more parameters.
Partial Scope: The author also talks about
the functions of the conscious mind while
making important decisions but the author
talks much more than that. This choice
only covers partial scope, does not talk
about scenarios where the conscious mind
is favored.
PASSAGE 2
Evidence has been presented that the unconscious mind, still viewed by many psychological
scientists as the shadow of a real conscious mind, is identifiably more deliberate, action oriented
and complex than its conscious counterpart. Furthermore researchers have proven that the mind is
incredibly efficient at extracting meaning from stimuli of which one is not consciously aware. The
claims above are made on conclusive experimentations in which test subjects who were allowed to
sleep during a decision making process made more optimal decisions when compared to the
subjects who were given the exact same amount of time but were not allowed to sleep, leading
researchers to believe that rationality comes on the way of making a rational decision. Researchers
explain that while the conscious mind can only follow strict rules, unconscious mind can handle and
integrate a larger amount of information, explaining why it can make better decisions. Even more
surprising than this unconscious minds ability is that the mental processes that drive such decision
making are necessarily minimal and unsophisticated and do not require humongous amount of
calories to make us arrive at the best decision whereas using conscious mind for complex decisions
burns up a lot of energy, setting in fatigue, forcing the conscious mind to give up and leading to
subconscious decisions. Overall, researchers agree that there is no need to have sleepless night
pondering over a complex issue to resolve it when it can actually be solved more efficiently by
EXERCISES

F. highlight the differences among psychologists regarding the importance of the
unconscious mind in making complex decisions.
G. contrast and compare the workings of the rationality with that of deliberate, actionoriented and complex decision making processes.
H. prove by citing results of experiments that one decision-making process is better than
the other.
I. show that unconscious mind is not that undependable as previously thought.
J. ascertain that using conscious and unconscious minds together yield second-to-none
judgments.
SOLUTIONS
Hopefully you would have read the passage and the Main Point Question. Here I would approach
this question. The first step is to summarize individual paragraphs.
Paragraph
Evidence has been presented that the unconscious mind,

still viewed by many psychological scientists as the
shadow of a real conscious mind, is identifiably more
deliberate, action oriented and complex than its
conscious counterpart. Furthermore researchers have
proven that the mind is incredibly efficient at extracting
meaning from stimuli of which one is not consciously
aware. The claims above are made on conclusive
Unconscious mind is better in

making complex decision than the
conscious mind because it can
process larger amount of
information and uses less energy.
The conscious mind can only process
strict rules and uses up lots of
energy, making one easily tired.
experimentations in which test subjects who were

allowed to sleep during a decision making process made
more optimal decisions when compared to the subjects
who were given the exact same amount of information
but were not allowed to sleep, leading researchers to
believe that rationality comes on the way of making a
rational decision. Researchers explain that while the
conscious mind can only follow strict rules, unconscious
mind can handle and integrate a larger amount of
information, explaining why it can make better decisions.
Even more surprising than this unconscious minds
ability is that the mental processes that drive such
decision making are necessarily minimal and
unsophisticated and do not require humongous amount
of calories to make us arrive at the best decision whereas
using conscious mind for complex decisions burns up a
lot of energy, setting in fatigue, forcing the conscious
mind to give up and leading to subconscious decisions.
Overall, researchers agree that there is no need to have
sleepless night pondering over a complex issue to resolve
it when it can actually be solved more efficiently by
PRE-THINKING MAIN POINT Below is the main point that I came up from the summary of this
single-paragraph passage.
Now lets do the POE to see which answer choice is correct:

Answer Choices
A. highlight the differences among
psychologists regarding the
importance of the unconscious mind
in making complex decisions.
B. contrast and compare the workings
of the rationality with that of
deliberate, action-oriented and
complex decision making processes.
Explanation
Partial Scope: This is covered only in the
beginning. This does not talk about the
majority of the passage where the author
also talks about the inefficiency of the
conscious mind in making complex
decisions.
Inconsistent: The author has only
contrasted the functions of the two minds.
He does not talk about how they work; i.e.
the mechanisms that drive them. He hasnt
presented any similarity between the too.
C. prove by citing results of

experiments that one decisionmaking process is better than the
other.
Correct. The author presents the result of

an experiment that proved that the
unconscious mind can make better
judgment than the conscious mind
because the unconscious mind can process
larger amount of information without
using up much calories.
D. show that unconscious mind is not

as undependable as previously
thought.
Opposite: The author talks only about the

efficiency of the unconscious mind. This
choice goes against the information in the
passage.
Out of Scope: Nowhere in the passage has
the author spoken about using both the
minds together for best decisions.
E. ascertain that using conscious and

unconscious minds together yield
second-to-none judgments.
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the goal-dependent, deliberative process in the absence of conscious attention is when we

D. Ensure that one is not low on energy

Q3. What does the author mean by in high spirits?

Happy to be faced with a daunting situation.

Teeming with positive energy to face a tough decision

Ready with creative ideas to tackle almost every situation.

Fresh and energetic.

Several experiments that incorporated several

Experiment 1- Conscious mind yielded the best

In another set of similar experiments, the

Experiment 1 The conscious mind made poor

Out of Scope: The author through examples

C. debate that all important decisions must

Inconsistent: There is no debate of any sort in

D. summarize through examples which

Correct. From the paragraph summaries we

E. prove that sleeping on a complex

PRE-THINK - The author recommends that when faced with a

Put the subconscious mind to rest and let the

Opposite: The author recommends the opposite.

Not make any decisions that could have a major

Out of scope: The author does not mention

Put the conscious mind to rest and let the

Close: The passage suggests this only when faces

Not expect the unconscious mind to work as

Inconsistent: situations of high energy are not

If faced with a complex decision, one should

Correct: The author recommends using the

In the influence of alcohol.

Incorrect: This is not the intended meaning.

Happy to be faced with a daunting situation.

Incorrect: This is not the intended meaning.

Teeming with positive energy to face a tough

Incorrect: This is not the intended meaning.

Correct: This is the correct meaning because the

Out of Scope: This is a generic phrase applicable

Out of Scope: This phrase has no causality about

TWIN MAIN POINT PRACTICE PASSAGES

1. The purpose of the passage is to:

TWIN MAIN POINT PRACTICE PASSAGES-SOLUTIONS

Researchers argue that the brain stem comprising the

Conscious mind helps in arriving at

Several experiments that incorporated several

Experiment 1- Conscious mind

researchers gave them just four parameters to consider for

Experiment 2 The decision was

In another set of similar experiments, the researchers were

Experiment 1 The conscious

So now lets do the POE to find out the correct answer:

E. prove that sleeping on a complex

Correct. From the paragraph summaries

2. The purpose of the passage is to:

Evidence has been presented that the unconscious mind,

Unconscious mind is better in