Guide 7
M A N H A TTA N
GM/
r£
R e a d i n g C o m p r e h e n si o n
Includes 6
Free Online
Exams
&More!
Int roduces M et hods for Focused, Efficient Reading
Teaches Effect ive GM AT Problem Solving St rat egies
Includes Pract ice Problem s w ith Det ailed Explanat ions
,
Updat ed for The Official Guide for GM AT® Review 13th Ed.
Jason Arvanites, Manhattan GMAT Instructor
9 9 t h Pe r c e n t ile In st r u c t o r s
• Co n t e n t -Ba se d Cu r r icu lu m
GM A T a n d G M A C a r e r e g i s t e r e d t r a d e m a r k s o f t h e G r a d u a t e M a n a g e m e n t A d m i s s i o n C o u n c i l w h i c h n e i t h e r s p o n s o r s n o r e n d o r s e s t h i s p r o d u c t .
M A N H A T T A N G MAT
R e a d in g Co m p r e h e n sio n
G M A T St r a t e g y G u id e
T his in-depth guide takes the m ystery o ut o f co m plex reading passages b y pro viding
a to o lkit o f sketc hing techniques that aim to b uild c o m prehensio n, speed, and
accuracy. L earn to iden tif y the underlying structure o f reading passages, and
develo p m etho ds to tackle the to ughest co m prehensio n questio ns.
uide
3
Read in g Co m p reh en sio n GM AT St r at eg y Gu id e, Fift h Ed it io n
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IN ITIA T IV E
C e r t if i e d C h a i n o f C u st o d y
Pr o m o t *n 9 Su st a in a b le Fo r e st r y
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IN STRU CTION AL GU IDE SERIES
0
0
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s
GM A T Ro ad m ap
N u m b er Pr o p e r t ie s
B
C r it ic a l Reaso n in g
B
Re ad in g C o m p r eh en sio n
B
Se n t e n c e C o r r ect io n
□
In t e g r a t e d Reaso n in g & Essay
(ISBN : 9 7 8 - 1 - 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 6 9 - 1 )
B
Fr ac t io n s, D ecim als, & Per cen t s
(ISBN : 97 8 - 1 - 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 6 3 - 9 )
A lg e b r a
(ISBN : 9 78 - 1- 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 6 2 - 2 )
W o r d Pr o b lem s
(ISBN : 9 78 - 1- 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 6 8 - 4 )
Geo m etry
(ISBN : 97 8 - 1 - 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 6 4 - 6 )
(ISBN : 978- 1- 9 35 70 7- 6 5- 3 )
(ISBN : 978 - 1- 9 35 70 7- 6 1- 5 )
(ISBN : 978 - 1- 9 35 70 7- 6 6- 0 )
(ISBN : 978 - 1- 9 35 70 7- 6 7- 7 )
(ISBN : 978 - 1- 9 35 70 7- 8 3- 7 )
SU PPLEM EN TAL GU IDE SERIES
M a t h G M A T Su p p le m e n t G u id e s
V e r b a l G M A T Su p p le m e n t G u id e s
Fo u n d at io n s o f GM A T M at h
Fo u n d at io n s o f GM A T V er b al
(ISBN : 9 78 - 1 - 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 5 9 - 2 )
(ISBN : 978 - 1- 9 35 70 7- 0 1- 9 )
A d v a n c e d GM A T Q u an t
(ISBN : 9 78 - 1 - 9 3 5 7 0 7 - 1 5 - 8 )
O f f ic ia l G u id e C o m p an io n
(ISBN : 97 8 - 0 - 9 8 4 1 7 8 - 0 1 - 8 )
MANHATTAN
G M AT
A pril 2 4 th , 2 0 1 2
D ear S tudent,
T hank yo u for pic kin g up a c o py o f R ea ding C om prehension. I hope this b oo k pro vides just the guidanc e yo u need to
get the m o st o ut o f yo ur G M A T studies.
As with m o st ac c o m plishm ents, there were m an y peo ple involved in the creatio n o f the b o o k yo u are ho ldin g. F irst
and foremost is Z eke Y anderho ek, the fo under o f M anhattan G MAT . Z eke was a lo ne tuto r in N ew Y ork when he
started the c o m pany in 2 0 0 0 . N ow, 12 years later, the co m pany has instructo rs and offices natio nwide and co ntributes
to the studies and successes o f tho usands o f students each year.
O ur M an h attan G M A T S trategy G uides are based on the c o n tin uin g experiences o f o ur instructo rs and students.
D ave M ah ler deserves special reco gnitio n for his co ntrib utio ns over the past num b er o f years. D an M c N aney and
C ath y H uang pro vided their design expertise to m ake the books as user-friendly as possible, and N oah T eitelb aum and
L iz K risher m ade sure all the m o ving pieces cam e to gether at just the righ t tim e. A nd there’s C hris R yan. B eyo nd pro­
vidin g additio ns and edits for this bo ok, C hris co ntinues to be the driving force b ehind all o f o ur curric ulum efforts.
H is leadership is invaluab le. F inally, th an k yo u to all o f the M an h attan G M A T students who have provided input and
feedb ac k over the years. T his b o o k wo uldn’t be h alf o f what it is with o ut yo ur voice.
A t M an h attan G MAT , we c o n tin ually aspire to provide the best instructo rs and resources possib le. W e hope that
yo u will find o ur c o m m itm ent m anif est in this book. I f yo u have an y questio ns or co m m ents, please em ail me at
dgo nzalez@ m anhattanprep.co m . I ’ll lo o k fo rward to reading yo ur co m m ents, and I ’ll be sure to pass them alo ng to
o ur c urric ulum team.
T hanks again, and best o f luc k preparing for the G MAT !
Sincerely,
D an G onzalez
P resident
M an hattan G M AT
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3 . Fo llo w t h e in st r u c t io n s on t h e scr e e n .
Yo u r o n e y e a r o f o n lin e a c c e ss b e g in s on t h e d a y t h a t yo u r e g ist e r yo u r b o o k a t t h e a b o v e U RL.
Yo u o n ly n ee d t o r e g i st e r y o u r p r o d u ct O N CE a t t h e a b o v e U RL. To u se y o u r o n lin e r e so u r ce s an y
t im e A FTER yo u h a v e co m p le t e d t h e r e g ist r a t io n p r o ce ss, lo g in t o t h e f o llo w in g U RL:
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Pl e a se n o t e t h a t o n lin e a c c e ss is n o n t r a n sf e r a b le . Th i s m e a n s t h a t o n ly N EW a n d U N REG ISTERED co p ie s o f t h e b o o k
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2 . Em a i l a co p y o f y o u r p u r c h a se r e ce ip t t o b o o k s@ m a n h a t t a n g m a t .co m t o a c t i v a t e
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t h a t yo u u se d t o p u r c h a se t h e e Bo o k .
Fo r an y t ech n ical issu es, em ail b o o k s@m an h at t an g m at .co m o r call 8 0 0 - 5 7 6 - 4 6 2 8 .
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Th e 6 f u l l - l e n g t h
c o m p u t e r - a d a p t i v e p r a c t ic e e x a m s in clu d e d w it h t h e
p u r c h a se o f t h i s b o o k a r e d e liv e r e d o n lin e u si n g M a n h a t t a n GM AT’s p r o p r i­
e t a r y c o m p u t e r - a d a p t i v e t e st e n g in e . Th e e x a m s a d a p t t o y o u r a b i li t y le v e l by
d r a w i n g f r o m a b a n k o f m o r e t h a n 1 ,2 0 0 u n iq u e q u e st io n s o f v a r y i n g
d i f f i c u l t y le v e ls w r it t e n b y M a n h a t t a n GM A T’s e xp e r t i n st r u ct o r s, a ll o f w h o m
h a v e sco r e d in t h e 9 9 t h p e r c e n t ile on t h e O f f i c ia l GM AT. At t h e en d o f e a ch
e xa m yo u w ill r e ce iv e a sco r e , an a n a l y s i s o f y o u r r e su lt s, a n d t h e o p p o r t u n it y
t o r e v ie w d e t a ile d e x p l a n a t i o n s f o r e a c h q u e st io n . Yo u m ay ch o o se t o t a k e
t h e e x a m s t im e d o r u n t im e d .
Th e co n t e n t p r e se n t e d in t h i s b o o k is u p d a t e d p e r io d ic a lly t o e n su r e t h a t
it r e f l e c t s t h e GM A T’s m o st cu r r e n t t r e n d s a n d i s a s a c c u r a t e a s p o ssib le .
Yo u m a y v ie w a n y kn o w n e r r o r s o r m in o r c h a n g e s u p o n r e g i st e r in g f o r
o n lin e a c c e ss.
Important Note: Th e 6 c o m p u t e r a d a p t i v e o n lin e e x a m s in clu d e d w it h t h e p u r c h a se o f
t h i s b o o k a r e t h e SA M E e x a m s t h a t yo u r e ce iv e u p o n p u r c h a si n g A N Y b o o k in t h e
M a n h a t t a n GM AT Co m p le t e St r a t e g y G u id e Se t .
Reading Com prehension Online Question Bank
Th e B o n u s O n lin e Q u e st io n B a n k f o r Reading Comprehension c o n si st s o f 2 5 e xt r a p r a c t i c e q u e st i o n s (w it h
d e t a ile d e x p l a n a t i o n s) t h a t t e st t h e v a r ie t y o f co n c e p t s a n d s k i l l s co v e r e d in t h i s b o o k. Th e se q u e st io n s
p r o v id e yo u w it h e xt r a p r a c t i c e b e yo n d t h e p r o b le m se t s co n t a in e d in t h i s b o o k. Yo u m a y u se o u r o n lin e
t i m e r t o p r a c t i c e y o u r p a c i n g b y se t t i n g t im e l i m it s f o r e a ch q u e st io n in t h e b a n k .
Online Updates to the Contents in this Book
Th e co n t e n t p r e se n t e d in t h i s b o o k is u p d a t e d p e r io d ic a lly t o e n su r e t h a t it r e f le c t s t h e GM AT's m o st
c u r r e n t t r e n d s. Yo u m a y v ie w a ll u p d a t e s, i n c l u d in g a n y kn o w n e r r o r s o r c h a n g e s, u p o n r e g i st e r in g f o r
o n lin e a c c e ss .
T A B LE
1. I n t r o d u ct io n t o P r in cip le s
Pr o b lem Set
2 . C o m p o n e n t s o f P a ssa g e s
Pr o b lem Set
3 . Sh o r t P a ssa g e s
Pro b lem Set
4 . Lo n g P a ssa g e s
of CO N T EN T S
11
25
35
41
45
55
59
Pro b lem Set
69
5 . T h e Se v e n St r a t e g ie s
75
6 . Q u e st io n A n a ly sis
83
7 . P a ssa g e s & P r o b le m Se t s
99
A p p e n d i x A . O f f icia l G u id e P r o b le m Se t
157
R e a d in g Co m p r e h e n sio n
In t r o d u ct io n t o P r in cip le s
Challenges o f Reading Com prehension
Tw o Ext rem es a n d a Balanced App ro ach
Principle #1: Engage w it h t he Passage
Principle #2: Lo o k for t he Sim p le St ory
Principle #3: Lin k to W hat You Alread y Kno w
Principle #4: Unpack t he Beginning
Principle #5: Lin k to W hat You Have Ju st Read
Principle #6: Pay At t ent ion to Sign als
Principle #7: Pick up t he Pace
Su m m a ry o f t he 7 Principles o f Act ive, Efficient Reading
Pract ice on Non-GM ATM at erial
In t r o d u ct io n t o P r in cip le s
Y ou are pro b ab ly already f am iliar with R eadin g C o m prehensio n from o ther standardized tests. Y ou are
given a passage to read, an d yo u are asked questio ns ab o ut the sub stance an d struc ture o f the passage.
O n the G M AT , yo u c an expec t to see fo ur R eadin g C o m prehensio n passages. E ach passage w ill typ i­
c ally be ac c o m panied b y three to fo ur questio ns, for a to tal o f 12 to 14 R eadin g C o m prehensio n ques­
tions. Y ou sho uld be aware o f several lo gistic al features o f G M A T R eadin g C o m prehensio n passages.
G M A T R eadin g C o m prehensio n passages come in two basic forms: L O N G and SH O R T . L o ng pas­
sages, wh ic h gen erally co nsist o f over 3 0 0 wo rds in three to five paragraphs, take up mo re th an 50 lines
on the co m puter screen (or over 35 lines in The O fficia l G uide f o r G MA T R eview, 1 3 th E dition and The
O fficia l G uide f o r G MA T V erbal R eview, 2 nd E dition). E xam ples o f lo ng passages on the G M A T appear
on pages 3 6 4 , 3 6 8 , an d 3 7 4 o f T he O fficia l G uide fo r G MA T R eview, 1 3 th E dition .
S ho rt passages, wh ic h gen erally co nsist o f 2 0 0 - 2 5 0 words in two or three paragraphs, take up fewer
th an 5 0 lines on the c o m puter screen in len gth (or under 35 lines in The O fficia l G uide fo r G MA T
R eview, 13 th E dition an d The O fficia l G uide f o r G MA T V erbal R eview, 2 nd E dition ). E xam ples o f short
passages on the G M A T appear on pages 3 6 6 , 3 7 0 , and 3 7 2 o f The O fficia l G uide fo r G MA T R eview,
1 3 th E dition .
I n the past few years, sho rt passages have been more co m m o n on the G M A T th an lo ng passages. O f
the fo ur passages th at yo u see on the G M AT , three o f them are lik e ly to be sho rt an d one o f them long.
H owever, yo u m igh t get two sho rt an d two long. Moreover, there is no set order in the appearance o f
sho rt and lo ng passages. F inally, the paragraphs themselves have been gettin g longer. Y ou m igh t see a
lo ng passage with o n ly two paragraphs, or a short passage m ade up o f o n ly one paragraph.
Q uestio ns a p pe a r o ne a t a tim e . T he questio ns are presented one at a tim e on the righ t side o f the
co m puter screen. T he co m plete readin g passage rem ains on the left side o f the screen wh ile yo u answer
questio ns on th at passage. Y ou w ill o n ly be able to see the first questio n before readin g the passage.
1
Introduction to Principles
T he nu m b e r o f questions p e r passag e is N O T sta ted. T he G M A T does no t indic ate ho w m an y ques­
tio ns are asso ciated with a p artic ular passage (e.g., the G M A T does not say th at “Q uestio ns 6 - 9 refer
to the fo llo wing passage”). H owever, the length o f the passage and the num b er o f questio ns are stro ngly
c o rrelated. G enerally, each sho rt passage has three questio ns asso ciated with it, and each lo ng passage
has fo ur questio ns asso ciated with it.
L ine num bers a re n o t lis te d. T ho ugh the O fficia l G uide (1 3th E d.) an d older G M A T tests list line
num b ers do wn the side o f the paragraphs, the G M A T itself does no t no w num b er the lines in each pas­
sage. W h e n necessary, the G M A T w ill use yello w h igh ligh tin g in the passage to in dic ate the lo c atio n o f
a p artic ular term , phrase, or sec tio n.
C h a l l e n g e s o f R e a d in g C o m p r e h e n sio n _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T he G M A T m akes R eadin g C o m prehensio n diffic ult in several ways.
T he c o nten t is de m a nding . P assages focus on specific and often un f am iliar topics in physic al science
(physics, astro no m y, geo lo gy, c hem istry), b io lo gic al science (bio lo gy, ec o lo gy), so c ial science, histo ry,
an d b usiness. N o spec ialized kno wledge b eyo nd h igh school is assum ed, b ut the passages are written
for an educ ated po st-co llege audienc e. I n fact, at least some o f the passages seem to be adapted fro m
jo urn als pub lished in p artic ular fields for educated laypeo ple. Y ou m igh t be neither kno wledgeab le nor
en thusiastic ab o ut these fields. Moreo ver, even business topics— wh ic h are pro b ab ly in h eren tly interest­
in g to yo u, since yo u are plan n in g to go to business school— are m ade to ugh b y co m plex writin g.
Y o u ha ve to re a d o n sc reen. Y ou c anno t print the passage out and m ark it up. I nstead, yo u have to
scro ll a win do w up an d do wn to see all o f a lo ng passage. F urtherm o re, readin g on a co m puter screen is
dif f ic ult on the eyes.
Y ou c a n n o t p re vie w a ll the questions. Y ou c anno t lo o k over all the questio ns, glean ideas ab o ut
wh at th ey are askin g yo u, an d th en read the passage. N or c an yo u go b ac k after answering a few mo re
questio ns an d c hange yo ur response to the first questio n (now th at yo u f in ally understand the passage).
R ather, yo u have to grasp the co ntent o f the passage relatively well after yo ur first read, h avin g pre­
viewed o n ly the first questio n.
Y o u ha ve to re a d qu ic kly. Y ou sho uld o nly take at most fo ur m inutes to read a passage an d understand
it (2 Vi to 3 m inutes for a sho rt passage, 3Vi to 4 m inutes for a lo ng passage). Y ou m ay find R eadin g
C o m prehensio n f rustratin g for prec isely this reason. I f yo u had eno ugh tim e, yo u co uld m aster alm o st
an y passage an d answer alm o st an y questio n correctly. B ut yo u do no t have th at luxury.
Y o u ha ve to s ta y w ith it. R eadin g C o m prehensio n is the one questio n type th at regularly asks three
to fo ur questio ns aro un d one b lo ck o f co ntent. W ith every other G M A T questio n type, if yo u get
c o m pletely stuc k on the co ntent o f a partic ular questio n, yo u can always take a guess an d move on to
ano ther questio n ab o ut so m ething co m pletely different witho ut in c urrin g too drastic a penalty. B ut yo u
c anno t afford to give up en tirely on a R eadin g Co mprehensio n passage, wh ic h c an represent alm o st
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
a tenth o f the V erb al questio ns yo u face. So yo u m ust to ugh it o ut and wrin g a decent level o f under­
stan din g o ut o f every passage, no m atter what.
T w o E x t r e m e s a n d a B a la n ce d A p p r o a c h _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
O ne respo nse to the c hallenges o f R eadin g C o m prehensio n is to beco m e a H unter. H unters avo id
the first read-thro ugh alto gether, reaso ning th at most questio ns require some kin d o f detailed lo ok-up
an yway— so wh y no t just skip the in itial readin g and go righ t to the questio ns? As their nam e im plies,
H unters sim ply go “h un tin g” for the answer in a passage they have never read.
T his strategy seems to save tim e up fro nt, b ut yo u have to spend a lo t m ore tim e per questio n. M o re
im po rtantly, the appro ach leads to m an y wro ng answers. W ith o ut a go o d general un derstan din g o f the
passage, H unters c an f all prey to trap answers.
A t the o ther extrem e, so me G M A T test-takers beco me Sc ho lars. Sc ho lars do a very c areful first readthro ugh, payin g attentio n to details. “A fter all,” Scholars worry, “I co uld be asked ab o ut an y aspect o f
the passage— an d if I skim over an yth in g, ho w c an I be sure that th at one clause was not im po rtant,
even c ritic al, to m y o verall un derstan din g?”
O ne ob vious pro b lem w ith th is m etho d is th at it takes far too m uch tim e. M o re im po rtantly, if yo u
read too slo wly an d pay too m uc h attentio n to all the details, yo u c an easily lose sight o f the b ig pic ture:
the gist an d struc ture o f the who le passage. A n d the b ig pic ture is wh at yo u ab so lutely need to take away
from the first read.
T he m iddle gro und b etween H unters an d Scho lars is o ccupied b y B ig P ic tu re R eaders, who take a
b alanc ed appro ac h. B efore tryin g to answer the questio ns, they read the passage with an eye to ward
struc ture. A t the b egin n in g o f the passage, B ig P ic ture R eaders go slowly, en surin g a so lid grasp o f the
basics. B ut th ey go q uic k ly at the end, keeping m ino r details at arm s length. T hey read A C T I V E L Y b ut
E F F I CI E N T L Y .
T he go al o f B ig P ic ture R e adin g is to avoid fin ish in g a passage and feeling th at yo u just wasted yo ur
tim e— either b ecause yo u go t lo st in the weeds, or b ecause yo u skim m ed over the passage at too re­
mo ved a level to grasp an y co ntent.
H o w do yo u beco m e a B ig P ic ture R eader on the G M AT ? H ere are Se ven P rinc iples o f Ac tive, E f­
fic ient R ea d in g to guide yo u.
P r in c i p l e # 1 : E n g a g e w it h t h e P a ssa g e _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T he first princ iple has to do with yo ur em otiona l a ttitude to ward the passage. T he m ax im E ngage with
the Pa ssage is no t as warm an d fuzzy as it seems. I t is based on a sim ple truth ab o ut yo ur b rain: yo u
sim ply c anno t learn so m ething th at yo u ac tively lo athe or visc erally reject. So gettin g over yo ur dread
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
1
o f the passage is no t just a feel-go o d exercise. It is a prerequisite. Y ou do no t have to f all m adly in love
with m edieval F lem ish po etry or the c h em istry o f zinc, b ut yo u do have to stop keeping the topic at an
em o tio nal arm s len gth .
O ne q uic k an d effec tive m etho d is to preten d th a t yo u re a lly lik e th is stuff. S ay to yo urself, “T his is
great! I get to spend the next eight m inutes th in kin g ab o ut sea urchins/” W h o kno ws— yo u m igh t ac tu­
ally like them , learn so m ething alo ng the way, and do well on the questio ns (the m ost im po rtan t th in g).
A no ther way to help yo urself get into the passage psyc ho lo gic ally is to id e n tify g o o d g uys a n d ba d
g uys. I f the sea urc h ins are threatened b y enviro nm ental dam age, get a little an gry on th eir b ehalf. I f
yo u engage yo ur em o tio ns, yo u w ill b o th enjo y the passage more and rec all it b etter th an o therwise.
I f yo u c an n o t sto m ac h these steps, s im p ly ac knowledg e th a t yo u do n o t fin d th e passag e th rillin g .
A llo w yo urself a m o m ent o f disappo intm ent. T hen h unker do wn and get b ac k into it. W h atever yo u do,
do no t let yo urself be pushed aro und b y the passage. Love it or hate it, yo u have to o wn it.
T he next six princ iples have to do with yo ur cognitive processes: wh at yo u do with yo ur b rain as yo u do a
B ig P ic ture R ead. T o illustrate these processes, we will c o nstruc t an analo gy. I m agine, if yo u will, th at
yo ur b rain is a com pa ny s hea dq ua rters.
M o re precisely, a p a rt o f yo ur b rain is like a co m pany’s headquarters: yo ur w o rk in g m em ory, where yo u
store ac tive tho ughts. Y our attentio n lives here. W h en yo u are th in k in g ab o ut sea urc h ins, yo ur ideas
ab o ut sea urc h ins live in yo ur wo rkin g m emory. O n ly a few item s fit at a tim e. Y our wo rkin g m em o ry is
the m o st valuab le real estate in yo ur b rain.
Y our jo b is to be the rec ruiter for the headquarters in yo ur b rain . A recruiter has two tasks: (1) to let in
all the talented, im po rtan t people A N D (2) to keep out all the people who w ill no t co ntrib ute.
As yo u read the passage, yo u have to ac t like a selective recruiter. Y ou have to let the im po rtan t parts
into yo ur wo rkin g m em o ry, b ut yo u also have to skim over the un im po rtan t parts, so th at yo u do not
distrac t yo urse lf with every last detail.
T he next six princ iples ex plain ho w to be a goo d recruiter for yo ur b rain.
P r in c i p l e # 2 : Lo o k f o r t h e Sim p le St o r y _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
E very G M A T passage has a sim ple s to ry— the g ist o r c ore m ea ning o f the passag e. Y ou m ust find
this sim ple sto ry on the first read-thro ugh.
H o w do yo u iden tif y this sim ple story? H ere are three different m etho ds. Also , for now, do no t wo rry
ab o ut whether, or how, yo u write do wn the sim ple sto ry as yo u read a passage. J ust focus on fin din g th at
story.
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
1. T ex t I t T o M e . As yo u read, ask yo urself this questio n: ho w wo uld yo u retell all this stuf f to an
intelligen t b ut b o red teenager in just a co uple o f sentences? C an yo u give h im or her just 5 —10 words to
describ e a paragraph? Y ou w ill find yo urself c uttin g out the trivia.
S im plif yin g does no t c o n tradic t the princ iple o f b eing engaged with the co ntent o f the passage. Y ou
sho uld be ex trem ely interested in the passage, so yo u kno w what is im po rtant.
2 . M ak e a T ab le o f C o n ten ts. A lternatively, yo u can create a sho rt tab le o f co ntents. U se five wo rds or
fewer for the h eadlin e o f each paragraph. As written, these headlines m ay no t so und ex ac tly like a story,
b ut th ey o utlin e the sam e narrative.
3 . L o o k f o r C o n te n t an d J u d gm e n t . T he parts o f a sim ple sto ry can gen erally be classified as C o ntent
or J udgm ent, as follows:
C o n te n t: th e s c ie n tif ic o r h is to ric al sub je c t m atte r o f th e p assage .
(a) C auses (effects, evidence, lo gic al results)
(b) P rocesses (steps, m eans, ends)
(c)
C atego ries (exam ples, generalities)
J u d gm e n t : w h at th e au th o r an d a n y o th er peo ple b e lieve ab o ut th e C o n ten t.
(a) T heories an d H ypo theses
(b) E valuatio ns and O pinio ns
(c)
C o m pariso ns an d C o ntrasts
(d) A dvantages and D isadvantages
R e m in de r: D o n ’t F o rge t th e T wist. E ven as yo u lo o k for the sim ple story, realize th at on the G M AT ,
there w ill often be some im po rtan t q ua lifica tion or contra st — a k e y t w is t or two in the road. A fter all,
such twists help the G M A T ask diffic ult questio ns. B e ready to inco rpo rate a key twist or even two in
yo ur sim ple story.
F or exam ple, a passage m igh t be ab o ut the wo rldwide dec line in the po pulatio n o f frogs. I n describ ing
vario us theo ries, the passage m igh t em phasize a distinc tio n b etween the pessim istic theo ries shared by
m o st scientists an d the o ptim istic th eo ry o f one S cientist X , who believes th at the dec line is tak in g place
with in a n atural o sc illatio n.
T he sim ple sto ry m igh t go lik e this:
T h e n u m b e r o f f r o g s in t h e w o r l d is f al l i n g f ast . T h e r e ar e a f e w p o ssi b l e ex p l an at i o n s,
i n c l u d i n g p o l l u t i o n , c l i m at e c h a n g e , an d loss o f h ab i t at . M o s t sci en t i st s t h i n k t h i s d e c l i n e
is a ser i o u s p r o b l e m ca u s ed b y h u m a n act i vi t y , b u t Sc i e n t i st X t h i n k s it 's p ar t o f a n at u r al
c y c l e an d t h e f r o g s w i l l c o m e b ack so o n o n t h e i r o w n .
H ere, the co ntrast is b etween wh at m o st scientists believe ab o ut the frog dec line and wh at S cientist X
believes.
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
1
Introduction to Principles
P r in c i p l e # 3 : Li n k t o W h a t Y o u A lr e a d y K n o w
W h e n yo u read words on a page, th ey typ ic ally ac tivate pre-existing kno wledge in yo ur head. T his is a
c ruc ial part o f c o m prehending wh at yo u are reading. E very wo rd th at yo u kno w in the E nglish lan guage
is n aturally tied to a web o f m em o ries and ideas. I n fact, if a wo rd does N O T ac tivate ideas when yo u
read it, it m igh t as well be zzyrglbzrch\
N o rm ally, yo ur b rain wakes up these ideas and mem ories as a n atural part o f reading. H owever, under
stress, yo ur eyes c an pass over wo rds and even reco gnize them , b ut no ideas co m e to life in yo ur b rain .
Y ou are too distrac ted an d o verwhelm ed, and the words on the page rem ain just wo rds.
I n this case, try c o nc retizing . T hat is, a c tive ly imagine wh a t th e wo rd s a re re fe rrin g to. R e-explain
the o rigin al text to yo urself. V isualize what it represents. I ndulge in sim plif ic atio ns, even stereo types.
M ak e up exam ples an d use an y o ther m ental handles that yo u c an.
O f co urse, there is a dan ger in ac tively co ncretizing part o f a G M A T passage— yo u m igh t intro duc e
o utside ideas. H owever, th at dan ger is sm all in co m parison to the worse pro blem o f not understa nding a t
a ll wh at yo u are readin g, espec ially at the start o f a passage.
C o nsider the fo llo wing sentence, whic h co uld be the o pening o f a passage:
M o st ex o b io lo g ists— scien tists w h o search for life on o th er p lan ets or m oons— ag ree th at
carb on p ro b ab ly p ro vid es th e back b on e o f an y ex traterrestrial b io lo g ical m olecu les, ju st
as it do es o f terrestrial ones, since carb on is uniqu e am ong th e elem en ts in its ab ility to
form long , stab le ch ain s o f atom s.
I deally, yo u c an read this sentenc e an d grasp it witho ut an y prob lems. B ut reco gnize th at under pres­
sure, yo u m igh t need some help un derstan din g the sentence.
I n yo ur m in d, yo u m igh t co ncretize this sentence in the fo llo wing m anner:
W ords
C o ncretized I deas
.. .ex o b io lo g ists- scien tists...
sm art folks in white coats
...w h o search fo r life
who peer thro ugh telescopes
on o th er p lan ets or m o o n s...
lo o king for little green m en
...carb o n p ro b ab ly provid es th e
c arb o n: charc o al, key elem ent in livin g
b ack b o n e o f ex traterrestrial
th ings
b io lo g ical m o lecu les...
b ac kb o ne: like a spine to a little m o l­
ec ule
MANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
.. .its ab ilit y to form long , stab le
carb o n can m ake lo ng, stab le c hains
chain s o f atom s.
like bones in a b ac kb o ne
or lin ks in a physic al c h ain
Y ou sho uld N O T write this c o ncretizatio n do wn (except as an exercise durin g yo ur preparatio n). T he
process sho uld happen q uic k ly in yo ur head. Moreover, as yo u read f urth er into the passage, the need to
co ncretize sho uld dim in ish . I n fac t, if yo u do too m uch c o ncretizing alo ng the way, yo u m igh t intro ­
duc e too m an y o utside ideas an d lose trac k o f wh at is ac tually written in the passage. H owever, concret­
izin g c an help yo u m ake sense o f a diffic ult passage, so yo u sho uld prac tic e this technique.
P r in c i p l e # 4 : U n p a c k t h e B e g i n n i n g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Y ou m ust understand the first few sentences o f every passage, because th ey supply c ritic al co ntext for
the entire text. I f yo u do no t grasp these sentences at first, yo u have two choices. E ither yo u c an take
mo re tim e with them righ t away, or yo u c an read a little further and gather more co ntext. I n the latter
case, yo u M U S T go b ac k an d re-ac quire tho se in itial sentences later.
A ll too often, G M A T students satisf y them selves with an “im pressio nistic ” sense o f the b egin n in g o f a
passage. H owever, fo rm in g a n im pressio n is n o t c o m pre hending th e passag e. G iven the im po rtanc e
o f the in itial sentenc es, yo u sho uld m ake sure yo u grasp 10 0% o f the b egin n in g o f an y passage (even if
yo u o n ly grasp 4 0 % o f the end). T hat is far b etter than co m prehending 7 0 % o f the text thro ugho ut.
C o m plic atin g m atters, the G M A T often opens passages with lo ng, o paque sentences. H o w do yo u
m ake sure yo u understand them , either no w or later? T he process o f c o nc retizing c an help. Y ou c an also
use the u n p a c kin g tec hnique. A c adem ic lan guage is often dense with lo ng no un phrases fo rm ed out
o f sim ple sentences. T o u n p a c k a n a c a dem ic -style sentenc e, tu rn it in to a fe w sim ple sentenc es that
express essen tially the sam e m ean in g.
I n general, yo u sho uld N O T write th is un pac kin g o ut (except as an exercise) or apply it thro ugho ut the
passage. L ike c o nc retizing, un pac kin g is a po werful tool to sm ash open resistant lan guage, espec ially at
the start o f the passage. U se this tec hnique judic io usly.
T he steps to un pac kin g a co m plex sentenc e are as follows:
1. G ra b a c o nc rete n o u n firs t. P ic k so m ething th at yo u can to uc h an d th at causes o ther th in gs to hap­
pen. D o no t n ec essarily pic k so m ething at the start o f the sentence.
2 . T u rn a c tio ns ba c k in to verbs . I n ac adem ic lan guage, verbs are often m ade into no un or adjective
phrases. R e-c reate the verbs. A lso , feel free to start with T here is or T here wa s.
3 . P u t o n ly O N E sim ple th o u g h t in a sentenc e. O ne sub ject, one verb.
MANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
1
4. L in k eac h s ubsequent sentenc e to th e previo us one, using th is o r th ese . F or instanc e, This resulted
in... T his process m im ic s speech, whic h is usually easy to understand.
5 . Sim p lify o r “quo te o ff” de ta ils. I f a jargo n wo rd is used in an im po rtant way, put quotes aro und it.
T h in k to yo urself
..wh a tever tha t m ea ns. .
and keep go ing. I f the term is necessary, yo u w ill figure it
o ut from co ntext later.
C o nsider th is exam ple o pening o f a passage:
In a d iach ro n ic in vestig atio n o f possib le b eh avio ral ch ang es resu ltin g from accid en tal
ex p osure in early ch ild h o o d to en vironm en tal lead dust, tw o sam p le groups w ere track ed
o ver d ecad es.
1. G rab a co ncrete no un first, espec ially a cause. A goo d c andidate is lea d dust . T he first sentence c o uld
sim ply b e this: T here wa s lea d dust in va rious environm ents.
2 . T urn o ther parts o f speech, such as ac tio n no uns and adjectives, b ac k into verbs. F or in stan c e, ex po­
sure beco mes were ex posed . B eh a viora l becomes b eha ved .
3. P ut o n ly one th o ugh t in a sentenc e, such as T here wa s lea d dust in va rious environm ents .
4. L in k each sentence to the previo us with this/ these. So the second sentence c o uld read, Y oung ch ildren
in these environm ents were ex posed to this dust by a ccident .
5. S im p lif y or “quo te off” details or jargo n. F or instanc e, the term “ dia ch ronic” needs a p air o f quotes,
so th at yo u do no t fo cus on it. Y ou m igh t even th in k o f it just as “^/-something.”
T he f in al list o f a few sim ple sentences c o uld come o ut this way:
(1)
Th ere w as lead d u st in variou s environ m en ts.
(2)
Young ch ild ren in th ese environm en ts w ere ex posed to th is du st by accid en t
(3)
This ex p osure m ay have chang ed how th e child ren b eh aved .
(4)
This w h o le m atter w as in vestig ated .
(5)
In th is "d iach ro n ic" in vestig atio n , tw o sam p le groups w ere track ed o ver tim e.
T his unpac ked list is easier to dive into and understand th an the o rigin al sentenc e— even tho ugh the
list c o ntains n early twic e as m an y wo rds! A lso note th at the sub ject an d verb o f the o rigin al sentence do
no t appear un til the end o f the list. T his pheno menon is very co m m o n. O ften, it is easiest to understand
the o uter “f ram e” o f the sentenc e last.
A gain , it is often no t prac tic al to em plo y such an elab orate process in real tim e on the G M AT . H o w­
ever, kn o win g ho w to b reak do wn a co m plex sentence into its co m po nent ideas c an help yo u read
m ore effic iently in general. I n additio n, yo u c an use this technique if yo u are stuc k on one o f the early
sentences, alth o ugh it w ill require some effort.
M A N H A TTA N
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
I nc identally, the ten -do llar wo rd dia ch ronic m eans “happenin g over tim e” in c ertain tec h n ic al settings.
I f yo u needed to kn o w th at wo rd, yo u wo uld be able to infer its m ean in g from co ntext. F or in stanc e,
the passage m igh t co ntrast th is dec ades-lo ng dia ch ronic investigatio n with a synch ronic study o f a crosssectio n o f peo ple all ex am in ed at one tim e. F or the G M AT , yo u need to have an educ ated adult s wo rk­
in g vo c ab ulary, b ut yo u w ill no t need advanc ed kno wledge o f an y spec ialized jargo n.
P r in c i p l e # 5 ; Li n k t o W h a t Y o u H a v e Ju s t R e a d
As yo u read further, yo u m ust c o ntinue to ask yo urself ab o ut the m e a n ing and p urpo se o f wh at yo u are
reading. W h at does th is sentenc e m ean, in rela tion to everyth ing else I h a ve read?. W h y is this sentence
here? W h at f unc tio n does it serve in relatio n to the previo us text?
I n the un pac kin g tec hnique, yo u saw the po wer o f lin kin g. C o m plic ated ideas c an be m ade digestib le
b y b reakin g them into pieces an d h o o king them together. I n writin g, we do no t always use this and
these, b ut we o ften put references to o ld info rm atio n at the b egin n in g o f sentenc es, even co m plex ones,
to ho o k them to previo us m aterial. L ikewise, we tend to save new info rm atio n for the end o f sentences.
W h at kin ds o f relatio nships c an a sentenc e have to the previous text? I n general, yo u sho uld th in k ab o ut
these po ssib ilities:
(1)
Is the new sentence ex pec ted o r surprising ?
(2)
D oes it s u p p o rt o r oppose earlier m aterial?
(3)
D oes it a n swe r o r a s k a questio n?
M o re spec if ic ally, the C o ntent/ Judg m ent fram ewo rk th at yo u enco untered before c an guide yo u. D o
N O T use this fram ewo rk as a c h ec klist. R ather, sim ply be aware o f the vario us possib le relatio nships.
C o n ten t: the sc ientif ic or h isto ric al sub jec t m atter o f the passage.
(a)
C auses
(effects, evidence, lo gic al results)
(b)
Processes
(steps, m eans, ends)
(c)
C atego ries
(examples, generalities)
J udgm en t: wh at the autho r an d an y other people believe ab o ut the C o ntent.
(a)
T heories an d H ypo theses
(b)
E valuatio ns and O pinio ns
(c)
C o m pariso ns an d C o ntrasts
(d)
A dvantages and D isadvantages
D o no t o ver-analyze as yo u read. Y ou have been lin k in g sentences to gether an d m ak in g sense o f them as
a who le for m an y years— in fac t, yo u are do ing so now, as yo u read this chapter. W e are just desc rib ing
the process.
MANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
Chapter 1
P r in c i p l e # 6 ; P a y A t t e n t io n t o S i g n a l s_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T o help lin k new m aterial to previous text that yo u have read, yo u sho uld be aware o f vario us lan guage
signals.
F irst o f all, p a ra g ra p h brea ks are im po rtant. T hey indic ate so m ething new. T he sentences in the sim ple
sto ry o ften co rrespo nd to dif ferent paragraphs in the passage. I f yo u take a “T ab le o f C o ntents” ap­
pro ach to the sim ple story, yo ur headlines correspond to the different paragraphs.
T his does no t m ean th at paragraphs canno t shift directio n in tern ally; th ey o c c asio nally do. B ut para­
graph b reaks are no t rando m . E ach one m arks a new b egin n in g o f some kin d.
S ec o nd, s ig na l wo rd s in dic ate relatio nships to previo us text. H ere are a num b er o f such relatio nships,
to gether with th eir co m m o n signals.
R elatio nship
S ignal
F ocus attentio n
As for; Regarding; In reference to
A dd to previo us po int
Furtherm ore; M oreover; In ad d itio n ; As w ell as; Also; Like­
w ise; Too
P ro vide c o ntrast
On on e hand / On th e o th er hand; Wh ile; Rather; Instead ; In
contrast; A ltern atively
P rovide c o nc eding co ntrast (autho r Gran ted; It is tru e th at; Certain ly; A d m itted ly
un w illin gly agrees)
Despite; Although
P rovide em phatic c o ntrast (autho r
Bu t; How ever; Even so; All th e sam e; Still; Th at said
asserts o wn po sitio n)
Neverth eless; Non etheless; Yet; Oth erw ise
Despite [concession], [assertion]
D ism iss previo us po int
In an y even t; In an y case
P o int o ut sim ilarity
Likew ise; In th e sam e w ay
S truc ture the discussio n
First, Secon d , etc.; To b egin w ith ; Nex t; Fin ally; Again
G ive exam ple
For ex am ple; In p articu lar; For in stan ce
G eneralize
In g eneral; To a g reat ex ten t; Bro ad ly speak ing
S um up, perhaps with exceptio n
In conclusion; In brief; Overall; Ex cep t for; Besides
I ndic ate lo gic al result
Th erefore; Thus; As a result; So; Accord in g ly; Hen ce
I ndic ate lo gic al cause
Because; Sin ce; As; Resulting from
R estate for c larity
In o th er w ords; Th at is; Nam ely; So to sp eak
H edge or soften po sitio n
Ap p aren tly; At least; Can, Could, May, M ig h t, Sh ou ld ; Pos­
sib ly; Likely
S tren gth en po sitio n
M A N H A TTA N
GMAT
After all; Must, Have to; Alw ays, Never, etc.
Chapter 1
Introduction to Principles
I ntro duce surprise
Actu ally; In fact; In deed
R eveal auth o r’s attitude
Fo rtu n ately; Un fo rtu n ately; ot her adverbs; So- called
P r in c i p l e # 7 : P i c k U p t h e P a ce
As yo u read the passage, go faster after the first paragraph. I n yo ur wo rkin g m em o ry, ho ld the gro wing
jigsaw puzzle th at is the b ig pic ture o f the passage. As yo u read text later in the passage, ask whether
wh at yo u are readin g adds an yth in g truly signific ant to that jigsaw puzzle. T o ward the end, o n ly dive
into in fo rm atio n th at is c learly part o f the b ig pic ture.
D o N O T get lo st in details later on in the passage. D o N O T try to m aster every b it o f co ntent. Y ou
m ust read the who le passage— b ut keep later parts at arm s length.
O n ly pay close attentio n to the f o llo wing elem ents later on in the passage:
(1)
B e g in ning s o f pa ra g ra phs . T he first or second sentence often functio ns as a topic
sentence, in dic atin g the co ntent and/or purpo se o f the paragraph.
(2)
B ig surprise s or c hanges in directio n.
(3)
B ig results, answers, or payoffs.
E veryth ing else is just detail. D o no t skip the later text en tirely Y ou m ust pass yo ur eyes over it and ex­
trac t som e m ean in g, so th at if yo u are asked a specific questio n, yo u rem em b er th at yo u saw so m ething
ab o ut th at p artic ular po int, an d yo u kno w (sort of) where to lo ok. Moreover, tho se b ig surprises and
results c an be b uried in the m iddle o f paragraphs. Y ou m ust ac tually read the later paragraphs an d m ake
some sense o f them .
N evertheless, do no t try to grasp the who le passage deeply the first tim e thro ugh . Y our attentio n and
yo ur wo rkin g m em o ry are the m o st valuab le assets yo u have on the G M A T in general and on R eadin g
C o m prehensio n in partic ular. A llo c ate these assets carefully.
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
23
Chapter 1
introduction to Principles
Su m m a r y : T h e 7 P r in c ip le s o f A ct iv e , E f f ic ie n t
R e a d in g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T o b eco m e a B ig P ic ture R eader o f G M A T R eadin g Co m prehensio n passages, fo llo w these principles.
(1)
E ng ag e w ith th e P assag e
(2)
L o o k fo r th e Sim ple Sto ry
(3)
L in k to W h a t Y o u A lre a d y K n o w
(4)
U n pa c k the B e g in ning
(5)
L in k to W h a t Y o u H ave J u s t R ead
(6)
P a y A tte n tio n to Sig na ls
(7)
P ic k up th e P ac e
W ill yo u c o nsc io usly go th ro ugh each o f these principles every tim e yo u read? O f co urse not. Y ou need
to prac tic e them so th at th ey b eco m e a n atural part o f yo ur reading.
P r a c t ic e o n N o n - G M A T M a t e r ia l_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
R eadin g C o m prehensio n m ay seem dif fic ult to im prove, espec ially in a sho rt perio d o f tim e. H owever,
yo u c an ac c elerate yo ur progress b y applyin g these principles to wh at yo u read outside o f the G M AT , as
part o f yo ur d aily lif e. A c tively engage with the m aterial, espec ially if yo u are no t in itially attrac ted to
it. L o o k for the sim ple story. L in k wh at yo u read to what yo u already kno w and to wh at yo u have just
read. U n pac k and/or co ncretize lan guage if necessary. P ay attentio n to signals. A n d pic k up the pace as
yo u read, in o rder to avo id gettin g lo st in details.
T hese princ iples wo rk on a wide range o f expo sito ry writin g— a c o m pany’s an n ual repo rt, a b o o k review
in the newspaper, an artic le in yo ur co llege alum n i m agazin e. B y applyin g these princ iples o utside o f a
testin g or test-prep enviro nm ent, yo u w ill beco me m uch more co m fo rtab le with them .
G ranted, some o utside m aterial is more G M A T -like th an o ther m aterial. Y ou sho uld read m ajo r jo ur­
nals an d newspapers, suc h as The E conomist, the W all S treet J ourna l , th e A tla ntic M onthly, an d the N ew
York T imes, to b eco m e b etter info rm ed ab o ut the wo rld in general. H owever, these pub lic atio ns are
so m ewhat too digestib le. T he paragraphs are too short, and neither the topics nor the writin g itself is
quite as b o rin g as wh at yo u find on the G M AT .
I n th is regard, u n ive rs ity a lu m n i m ag azines are goo d sources o f artic les th at resemb le R eadin g C o m ­
prehensio n passages in style an d sub stance. (N o offense to o ur alm a m aters!) Also , if yo u are no t n atu­
rally attrac ted to science to pics, th en yo u sho uld co nsider reading a few artic les in S cientific A merica n or
sim ilar pub lic atio ns th at po pularize the latest advances in science an d techno lo gy. I n this way, yo u c an
gain f am iliarity w ith sc ience w ritin g aim ed at an educated b ut no n-spec ialized audience.
24
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
P r o b le m Se t
I n prob lem s # 1—4 , c o nc retize eac h sentenc e. F ocus on specific term s th at yo u c an visualize. Asso ciate
these term s with yo ur kn o wledge an d m em o ries, and create a m in d’s-eye view o f each sentenc e. Spend
no m o re th an 1 5 - 2 0 seconds per sentenc e. T hen write do wn this co nc retizatio n. (W e do no t suggest
th at yo u write do wn c o ncretizatio ns on the G M AT , b ut b y writin g them do wn no w as part o f this exer­
cise, yo u c an co m pare them to the sam ple answers and develop yo ur ab ility to co ncretize.)
1. Com p u ter m odels o f p o ten tial terrestrial clim ate chang e o ver th e nex t cen tu ry m ust tak e in to
acco u n t certain assum ptions ab o u t ph ysical and chem ical processes.
2. Com pany X has ex p erien ced a m ore rap id rate o f g row th th an Com pany Y, becau se Com pany X
has in vested m ore resources in p ro jects w ith a m ore rapid p ayou t th an has Com pany Y.
3. Given th e co m p lex ity o f th e brain 's p ercep tu al and co g n itive processes, it is n ot surprising th at
d am age to even a sm all set o f neu rons can in terfere w ith th e ex ecu tio n o f seem in g ly sim p le tasks.
4 . The rise o f Ath en ian d em o cracy in an cien t tim es can be consid ered a reactio n to class con flict,
m ost im p o rtan tly b etw een a n ative aristo cracy and th e in h ab itan ts o f n earb y to w n s in corp o rated
p o litically in to th e g ro w in g city- state.
I n prob lem s # 5 - 8 , un p a c k eac h co m plex sentence. T hat is, find a few sim ple sentenc es th at co nvey the
sam e info rm atio n as the o rigin al sentence. D o the un pac kin g in yo ur head first, th en write do wn the
unpac ked sentences. (D o no t write do wn unpac ked sentences durin g the G M A T , b ut b y writin g them
do wn no w as p art o f th is exercise, yo u c an co m pare them to the sam ple answers an d develo p yo ur ab il­
ity to unpac k.)
5. Th e sim p listic classificatio n o f livin g th in g s as p lant, anim al, o r "o th er" has b een d rastically
revised b y b io lo g ists in reactio n to th e d isco very o f m icroorganism s th at d o n ot f it p revio u s tax o­
nom ic schem es.
6. Desp ite assurances to th e co n trary b y g overn m en ts aroun d th e w o rld , th e d evelo p m en t o f
space as an aren a o f w arfare is n early certain , as m ilitary success o ften d ep en d s on n ot ced in g th e
"h ig h g ro u n d ," o f w h ich o u ter sp ace m ig h t be con sid ered th e suprem e ex am p le.
7. Sin ce th e success o f m odern d ig ital su rveillan ce does n ot o b viate th e n eed fo r in tellig en ce g ath ­
ered via old- fashion ed hum an in teractio n , ag en cies charg ed w ith counter- terrorism resp on sib ili­
ties m ust d evo te sig n ifican t effo rt to p lan tin g and/ or cu ltivatin g "assets"— th at is, sp ies— w ith in
terro rist org aniz ations th at th reaten th e co un try.
8. Stu d en ts learn in g to f ly fix ed- w ing aircraft are tau g h t to use m em ory d evices, such as th e lan d ­
ing ch eck list GUM PS ("gas, u n d ercarriag e, m ix ture, prop eller, sw itch es"), t h at rem ain co n stan t
even w h en n ot every elem en t o f th e d evice is relevan t, as in th e case o f plan es w ith non- retractab le lan d in g gear.
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
1
Introduction to Principles
R ead the fo llo wing passage, an d then co m plete the exercises on the next page.
Passage: Pro-Drop Languages
In m any so- called "p ro- drop" or "p ronoun- d rop " langu ages, verb s
in flect fo r n u m b er and person. In oth er w ords, by ad d in g a prefix o r suf­
fix o r b y ch an g in g in som e o th er w ay, th e verb itself in d icates w h eth er th e
su b ject is sin g u lar o r p lu ral, as w ell as w h eth er th e su b ject is first person (/
o r we), seco nd person (you), or th ird person (he, she, it, or they). For ex am ple,
in Po rtu g u ese, w h ich is at least p artially a pro- drop langu age, th e verb fato
m eans "I sp eak": th e - o at th e end o f th e w ord in d icates first person, sin g u lar
su b ject (as w ell as p resen t tense). As a result, th e su b ject p ro noun eu, w h ich
m eans "I" in Portu g u ese, does n ot need to be used w ith falo ex cep t to em ­
phasize w h o is d o in g th e speaking .
It sh ou ld b e n oted th at n ot every lan g uag e th at drops its pronouns
in flects its verb s. N eith er Ch inese nor Jap an ese verb s, fo r in stan ce, ch an g e
form at all to in d icate n um b er or person; how ever, p erson al p ronou ns are
reg u larly o m itted in both sp eech and w ritin g , leavin g th e p ro p er m ean ­
ing to be in ferred from contex tu al clues. M oreover, n ot every lan g uag e
th at in flects its verb s drops su b ject pronouns in all non- em p hatic contex ts.
Lin g u ists arg u e ab o u t th e pro- drop status o f th e Russian langu age, b u t th ere
is no d o u b t th at, alth ou g h th e Russian present- tense verb govoryu ("I sp eak ")
u n am b ig u o u sly in d icates a first person, sing u lar su b ject, it is com m on for
Russian sp eakers to ex press "I sp eak " as ya govoryu, in w h ich ya m eans "I,"
w ith o u t in d icatin g eith er em phasis or contrast.
Neverth eless, Russian speakers do freq u en tly d rop su b ject and o b ject
pronouns; on e stu d y o f ad u lt and child sp eech in d icated a pro- drop rate o f
4 0 - 8 0 %. M oreo ver, p erson al pronouns m ust in fact be d ro p p ed in som e
Russian senten ces in o rd er to co n vey p articu lar m eanings. It seem s safe to
co n jectu re th at lan g uag es w hose verb s in flect u n am b ig u ously fo r person
and n u m b er p erm it pronoun d ropp in g, if o n ly u n d er certain circum stances,
in o rd er to accelerate com m un ication w ith o u t loss o f m ean in g. A fter all, in
th ese lan g uag es, b oth th e su b ject pronoun and th e verb in flectio n co n vey
th e sam e in form ation , so th ere is no real need both to in clu d e th e su b ject
pronou n an d to in flect th e verb .
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Chapter 1
Introduction to Principles
9.
U npac k the first two sentences o f the first paragraph. T hat is, b reak them do wn into a series o f
sim ple lin ked sentences.
10.
H o w does the sec o nd sentenc e o f the first paragraph relate to the first sentence? W h at wo rds
in dic ate this relatio nship? U se the C o ntent/J udgm ent fram ewo rk, if it is helpful:
C o ntent: (a) C auses (effects; evidence; lo gic al result)
(b) P rocesses (steps; m eans; end)
(c) C atego ries (exam ple; generality)
J udgm en t:
(d) T heories/H ypo theses
(e) E valuations/O pinions
(f) C o m pariso ns/C o ntrasts
(g) Advantages/D isadvantages
(h) G eneral J udgm ents (support/oppose; expected/surprising; answer/ask ques­
tions)
11.
H o w do the th ird an d f o urth sentences o f the first paragraph relate to wh at cam e before?
U se
the C o ntent/J udgm ent fram ewo rk.
12.
A n alyze the sec o nd paragraph, usin g the C o ntent/Judgm ent fram ewo rk. W h at does this para­
graph say, in b rief? H o w does th is paragraph relate to the first paragraph? W h ere are the b ig surprises
and b ig results, if any?
13.
P erfo rm the sam e analysis on the th ird paragraph.
14.
W h at is the sim ple sto ry o f th is passage? T ry one or more o f these different styles:
(a) F ull Sentences
• S um m arize each paragraph in just a co uple o f sentences.
(b) “T ext I t T o M e ”
• S um m arize each paragraph in 5 - 1 0 wo rds or ab b reviatio ns.
• U se sym b o ls (such as = to equate two things).
• S till try to express f ull tho ughts.
(c) T ab le o f C o ntents
• G ive each paragraph a title or h eadline o f no mo re th an five words.
• D o no t try to express f ull tho ughts.
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
27
Introduction to Principles
S o l u t io n s_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
C o ncretizatio ns
T hese co ncretizatio ns are specific exam ples. Y our o wn co ncretizatio ns w ill lik e ly be different. A gain , on
the G M A T , yo u w ill never write do wn f ull co ncretizatio ns such as these. R ather, yo u need to prac tic e
the process so th at yo u c an c arry it o ut q uic k ly in yo ur head.
1.
C o ncretized I deas
W o rds
Com p u ter m od els o f p o ten tial terrestrial
B ig co mputers in some lab o rato ry run n in g pro ­
clim ate ch an g e o ver th e n ex t cen tu ry...
gram s ab o ut po tential terrestrial c lim ate c hange
(ho w the E arth ’s weather m igh t change) over the
next 100 ye ars ...
...m u st tak e in to acco u n t certain assum ption s
T hese pro gram s m ust kno w, or assum e, ho w
ab o u t p h ysical and ch em ical processes.
physics and c h em istry works: ho w water heats up
and evaporates, for in stanc e.
2.
C o ncretized I deas
W o rds
Com pany X has ex p erien ced a m ore rapid rate
o f g ro w th th an Co m p any Y...
M ake up ac tual exam ples for C o m pan y X and
C o m pan y Y. M ake the exam ples extrem e. V andelay I ndustries has gro wn very quic kly, wh ile
D under M if f lin has h ardly gro wn at all.
...b ecau se Com p any X has in vested m ore
V andelay has put more m o ney into “q uic k
resources in p ro jects w ith a m ore rapid p ayou t
hits.” M ayb e V andelay has just hired some top
th an has Com pany Y.
salespeople who im m ediately generate revenue.
D under M if f lin puts its m o ney into lo nger-term
projects. M ayb e D under M if f lin is b uildin g lab o ­
ratories for R & D .
3.
C o ncretized I deas
W ords
Given th e co m p lex ity o f th e brain 's p ercep tu al
T he b rain is co m plex. I t does co m plex thin gs,
and co g n itive p ro cesses...
like a co m puter in yo ur skull.
perc eptual: ho w we see an d h ear
co gnitive: ho w we th in k an d reaso n
G iven all t h a t ...
M ANHATTAN
GM A T
Introduction toPrinciples
1
.. .it is n o t su r p r i si n g t h a t d a m a g e t o e v e n a
sm al l set o f n e u r o n s . ..
.. .it is no t surprisin g th at just a little b rain dam ­
age (say, caused b y a sm all stroke), f ryin g some
wires in the c o m puter...
.. .can i n t e r f e r e w i t h t h e e x e cu t i o n o f s e em i n g l y .. .c an mess up ho w yo u do even “sim ple” things
(say, speakin g alo ud or ridin g a bike). A fter all,
si m p l e t ask s.
yo ur co m puter wo uld pro b ab ly stop wo rking
co m pletely if yo u opened it up and ripped out
“just a few” wires.
4.
W ords
C o ncretized Ideas
T h e r ise o f A t h e n i a n d e m o c r a c y in an c i e n t
A thenian dem o crac y in anc ient tim es: Socrates,
t im es...
Plato, P ericles, etc. vo ting in a pub lic square.
M arb le statues and pillars everywhere.
.. .can b e c o n s i d e r e d a r e ac t i o n t o class c o n ­
Y ou c an th in k o f all th at as the result o f class
f lict ...
co nflic t: different ec o no m ic and so cial groups
strugglin g with each other. T he workers versus
the nobles.
. . . m o s t i m p o r t a n t l y b e t w e e n a n a t i v e ar ist o cr a- N ative aristo c rac y: the rich & po werful people o f
c y an d t h e i n h a b i t a n t s o f n e a r b y t o w n s i n co r p o - Athens. T hey are strugglin g with the people from
r at ed p o l i t i c a l l y i n t o t h e g r o w i n g ci t y- st at e.
the provinces who are no w under A thens’ thum b .
T he m ap o f “greater A thens” grows.
U n pac kin g
L ike the co nc retizatio ns, these unpac ked sentences are sim ply exam ples o f the process. Y our versions
w ill lik e ly differ. N o te th at un pac kin g often involves some co nc retizing as well. A gain , yo u sho uld
no t write do wn unpac ked sentences durin g the G M AT . T his exercise is m eant to develop yo ur m ental
m usc les, so yo u c an take apart co m plex ac adem ic lan guage.
5.
L ivin g th in gs c an be c lassif ied as plant, an im al, or “other.”
T his c lassif ic atio n is sim plistic .
I n fac t, it has b een drastic ally revised b y biolo gists.
W h y? B ecause c ertain m ic ro o rganism s (say, bacteria) have been disco vered.
T hese m ic ro o rganism s do no t fit previous “taxo no m ic ” schemes (that is, classificatio ns).
6.
Spac e co uld be develo ped as an arena o f warfare.
I n fact, th at’s n early c ertain to happen.
(E ven th o ugh go vernm ents say o therwise.)
M ANHATTAN
GM AT
Introduction to Principles
T h ats because to win wars, yo u often have to ho ld the “h igh gro und.”
A n d o uter spac e m ay be the b est “h igh gro un d” aro und.
7.
T here is so m ething c alled “m o dern digital surveillanc e” (say, spy
bugs in c ell phones).
T his kin d o f surveillan c e has b een suc cessful.
B ut we still need peo ple to gather “in telligen c e” b y talk in g to o ther peo ple.
So , the C I A etc. has to wo rk h ard to put “assets” (spies) inside A1 Q aeda etc.
8.
T here are peo ple who learn to fly “fixed-wing airc raft.”
T hese students learn m em o ry devices.
A n exam ple o f a m em o ry devic e is G U M P S , whic h is a lan din g chec klist.
T hese m em o ry devices stay the sam e no m atter what.
I n fact, th ey stay the sam e even when part o f the m em o ry devic e
does no t apply.
A n exam ple is planes with “no n-retrac tab le” lan din g gear.
P assage: “P ro-D ro p L anguages”
9.
T he first two sentences c o uld be unpac ked in the fo llo wing way:
T here are lan guages c alled “pro no un-dro p” languages.
I n m an y o f these lan guages, verbs “in f lec t” for num b er and person.
T hat is, yo u c h ange the verb itse lf somehow.
T his c hange shows who is do ing the ac tio n (I, yo u, or someone else).
T he verb tells us whether th at sub jec t is sin gular or plural.
T he verb also tells us whether that sub ject is first, second, or third perso n.
10.
T he seco nd sentenc e restates and ex pla ins the first sentence. A c lear c lue is given b y the first
three words: I n oth er words. T he sec ond sentenc e provides spec ific ex am ples to help the reader un ­
derstand a general assertio n in the first sentence: verbs inflect fo r num b er a n d person . A lso , the second
sentence is n e u tra l in to n e an d attitude.
11.
T he th ird an d fo urth sentences pro vide an even m ore spec ific ex a m ple o f the pheno m enon
describ ed in the first two sentenc es { verbs inflect fo r num b er a nd person ). A c lear clue is given at the start
o f the th ird sentenc e: F or ex ample. I n the th ird sentence, yo u read ab o ut ho w the P o rtuguese verb fa lo
is inflected. I n the f o urth sentence, yo u are to ld th at the pro no un eu does no t need to be used with fa lo .
A gain , the th ird an d f o urth sentences are n e u tra l in tone and attitude.
12.
T he sec ond paragraph pro vides qu a lific a tio n a n d c o n tra s t to the first paragraph. T he second
paragraph also pro vides spec ific ex a m ples to suppo rt this co ntrast.
I n brief, the sec ond paragraph m akes these po ints:
• N O T every pro -dro p lan guage has verb inflectio ns.
E xam ple o f C h in ese & Japanese: pro-drop b ut no t inflected.
• N O T every inflected-verb lan guage drops its pro no uns, either!
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Introduction to Principles
E xam ple o f R ussian: inflec ted but not pro-drop.
L o gic ally, the catego ries o f (A) “pro -dro p” and (B ) “inflected verbs” c an be seen as o verlapping circles
on a V enn diagram . T he assertio n in the first paragraph is that these two circles overlap. I n o ther words,
som e A —B. T he sec ond paragraph co unters that these circles do no t co m pletely overlap, no r does one
circle co m pletely c o n tain the other. T hat is, N O T a ll A = B, a nd N O T a ll B = A .
T he “b ig surprises” an d results are these two qualific atio ns. Y ou do not have to m aster the exam ples,
alth o ugh yo u sho uld read them an d m ake some sense o f them . Moreover, at this stage, yo u m igh t no t
grasp the nuanc es o f the c o m plicated R ussian exam ple. T his is okay, as lo ng as yo u understand the b ig
pic ture o f this paragraph.
13. I n the first two sentenc es, the th ird paragraph provides a c o n tra s t to th e c o n tra s t b y c o n tin uin g
with the exam ple o f R ussian, whic h turns out to be at least so m ewhat pro-dro p.
T hen the th ird paragraph proposes a hypo thesis (inflected-verb lan guages are at least p artially prodrop)
th at fo llows fro m the R ussian exam ple. F inally, the paragraph offers a ra tio n a le for th at hypo thesis.
I n brief, the th ird paragraph m akes these points:
•
A c tually, R ussian IS so m etim es pro-dro p.
•
H ypo thesis: I nflected-verb languages are at least p artially pro -dro p.
•
W h y? T he in flec tio n and the sub ject pro no un are redundant.
T he switc hb ac k at the b egin n in g m igh t be co nsidered a “b ig surprise.” Y ou need to grasp th at the autho r
is q ualif yin g the exam ple o f the R ussian lan guage. F o rtunately, yo u are given a clue in the very first
wo rd o f the sentence, N evertheless, whic h h igh ligh ts a co ntrast to wh at cam e im m ediately prior. W h at
fo llows N evertheless is a po sitio n th at the autho r wants to espouse.
T he “b ig result” is the hypo thesis in the th ird sentence. N ote th at this is the first tim e th at the autho r
goes b eyo nd straigh t repo rting and m akes a c laim : he or she states th at it is sa fe to conjecture so m ething.
14. T he sim ple sto ry o f the passage can be expressed in at least three different styles.
F ull Sentences
(1)
M an y “pro no un-dro p” languages have verbs th at “in flec t,” or change.
• T he inflected verb tells yo u so m ething ab o ut the sub ject.
• So yo u can drop the sub ject prono un.
• P o rtuguese is an example.
(2)
N O T every pro -dro p lan guage has verb inflectio ns.
• C h inese & J apanese are exam ples.
L ikewise, N O T every inflected-verb lan guage is pro-dro p!
• R ussian is an exam ple.
M A N H A TTA N
GMAT
Chapter 1
Introduction to Principles
(3)
B U T , R ussian is ac tually sort o f pro -dro p.
SO I th in k inflected-verb lan guages are all so rt o f pro-dro p.
• W h y? T he inflec ted verb and the pro no un tell yo u the sam e th in g.
T ext I t T o M e
(1)
P ro -dro p = inf lec t verbs. N o subj.
(2)
N o t all pro -dro p = inflect. N o t all inflec t = pro -dro p, either.
(3)
B ut ac tually, inf lec t = so rt o f pro -dro p. W h y repeat yrself.
T ab le o f C o ntents
(1)
“P ro no un-D ro p” L anguages & I nflected Verbs
(2)
E xceptio ns B o th W ays
(3 )
I nflected V erbs = P ro -D rop A nyway
M ANHATTAN
GM A T
33
Ch a p t e r / 2
R e a d in g C o m p r e h e n sio n
C o m p o n e n t s o f P a ssa g e s
The Point
Ba ckg r o u n d Su p p o r t ; a n d Im plicat ions
Foreshadow ing
Co m p o n e n t s o f P a ssa ge s
R eadin g C o m prehensio n passages cover a wide range o f topics and are struc tured in m an y different
ways. H owever, all passages have c ertain co m po nents. B y un derstan din g an d lo o kin g for these co m po ­
nents, yo u c an m ore easily grasp the m ean in g and struc ture o f the passage.
A n y R eadin g C o m prehensio n passage has four possible components:
(1)
T he P oint
(2)
B ac kgro und
(3)
S uppo rt
(4)
I m plicatio ns
T hese co m po nents w ill each be co nsidered in turn.
T h e P o in t _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T he P oint is th e m o s t im p o rta n t m essag e o f the passag e. I n other wo rds, the autho r has written the
passage in o rder to co nvey the P o int, even if no th in g else gets thro ugh to the reader. T he P o int explains
wh y the passage is interesting, at least in the auth o rs o pinio n.
E very passage c o ntain s a P o int. P erhaps surprisin gly, the P o int is often m ade explic it in a single sen­
tence. I n the “P ro -D ro p L an guages” passage fro m last chapter, the P oint is the hypo thesis put fo rward
in the th ird paragraph:
It seem s safe to co n jectu re th at l a n g u a g e s w h o se v e r b s i n f l e c t u n a m b i g u o u s l y f o r
p e r so n a n d n u m b e r p e r m i t p r o n o u n d r o p p i n g , if o n ly u nd er certain circum stances, in
o rd er to accelerate co m m u n icatio n w ith o u t loss o f m ean ing.
T he autho r wants yo u to rem em b er this P oint. O f course, the autho r also wants yo u to understand ho w
m an y pro -dro p lan guages wo rk in general, ho w some pro-drop lan guages do no t inflec t th eir verbs, and
Components of Passages
so fo rth. B ut the m o st im po rtan t m essage is this hypo thesis, whic h is also the m o st im po rtant c laim
th at the autho r puts fo rward.
H o w does the P o int relate to the sim ple sto ry o f the passage, as discussed in C hapter 1? V ery simply,
th e P o in t is th e c ru x o f th e sim ple story. A fter all, the P oint is the m ost im po rtant message th at the
autho r wants to convey. Y ou c an also relate the P oint to the C o ntent/Judgm ent fram ewo rk. T he P o int
c o ntains the m o st im po rtan t J udgm en t m ade b y the autho r ab o ut the c entral C o ntent o f the passage.
T hus, a c ruc ial task for yo u as reader is to fin d the P o int! B y the end o f yo ur first read-thro ugh, yo u
sho uld th in k ab o ut the sim ple sto ry yo u have co nstructed. U se it to iden tif y the P oint.
W h ere is the P o int in the passage? I t can be alm o st anywhere. T he way to find the P oint is to ask “what
is the m o st im po rtan t m essage th at the autho r is tryin g to co nvey in this passage? I f he or she had to
cho ose, wh at wo uld be the one th in g I sho uld take away fro m reading this passage?”
T he P o int m ay b e an y kin d o f im po rtant message, but across sam ple passages, yo u c an observe a few
co m m o n varieties th at so m etim es overlap:
(a)
R eso lu tio n: resolves an issue or a problem
(b)
An s we r: answers a questio n (sim ilar to R eso lution)
(c)
N ew I dea: describ es a surprising new idea, theory, or research result
(d)
R eason: explain s an ob servatio n
D urin g the G M A T , yo u w ill not have to classif y the P oint as one o f the prec eding types. R ather, this list
is m ean t to help yo u iden tif y and understand the P oint as yo u read a variety o f passages.
N o tic e th at th e P o in t is re la te d to a passag e’s purpo se. T he po in t is wh at the autho r wants to convey.
T he purpo se o f a passage is gen erally to co nvey th at P oint. H owever, the purpo se c an often be describ ed
m o re b ro adly or ab strac tly as well. F or instance, the purpose o f the “P ro-D rop L an guages” passage is
to desc rib e ho w lan guages m ay be catego rized as pro-drop and as verb -inflec ting, and to discuss the
c o m plex relatio nship b etween these two types o f languages.
A lso no te th at the P o int m ay no t m ake a lo t o f sense on its own. F or in stan c e, in order to understand
an d be c o nvinc ed th at la ngua ges whose verbs inflect una mb iguouslyf o r person a nd num b er p erm it pronoun
drop ping, yo u need to understand the rest o f the “P ro-D rop L anguages” passage.
O c casio nally, the P o int is spread across two sentences, or it m ay be less th an explic it. H owever, most
passages have a c lear P o int with in a single sentence.
I f yo u have alre ady started to study C ritic al R easo ning, yo u m igh t suspect th at the P oint o f a R eadin g
C o m prehensio n passage is sim ilar to the co nclusion o f a C ritic al R easo ning argum ent. Y ou are right!
T he P o in t o f a pa ssa g e is in fa c t a na log o us to the c o nc lusion o f a n a rg um ent.
N o te th at passages do no t always m ake im passio ned argum ents or take stro ng po sitio ns, so the P o int
o f a passage m igh t be less o f a “c laim ” th an the co nclusion o f an argum ent. So m etim es the P o int o f a
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Components of Passages
Chapter 2
passage is just the m o st in terestin g an d general fact ab o ut the topic. T he autho r m ay sim ply wish to
info rm the reader o f this fac t, rather th an co nvince the reader o f a deb atab le po sitio n.
S im ply lo o kin g for the P o int as yo u read w ill m ake yo u a more ac tive reader. Y ou w ill find th at yo ur
co m prehensio n o f each passage w ill im prove as a result.
B a c k g r o u n d , S u p p o r t , a n d I m p lic a t io n s_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
T he o ther co m po nents all relate to the P oint in some way.
1. H ie B a c kg ro u n d is in fo rm a tio n yo u need to un de rsta nd the P o int. T he co ntext and the basic
facts ab o ut the to pic are given in the B ac kgro und. T his co m po nent m ay be brief.
2. T he Su p p o rt is evidenc e, a s se rtio ns , a nd o pinio ns F O R the P o int. T he S uppo rt m igh t inc lude
co ncessions to the o ther side o f the argum ent. T his co m po nent is always present and o ften co nstitutes a
sub stantial po rtio n o f the passage.
T he B ac kgro un d an d the S uppo rt m ay be intertwined. It is never im po rtan t to determ ine whether a
partic ular sentenc e is B ac kgro un d or S uppo rt. A sentence c an provide b ac kgro und info rm atio n an d sup­
po rt the P o int at the sam e tim e.
3. T he I m plic a tio n s a re re su lts fro m th e P o int. I n other wo rds, the autho r no w assum es th at yo u are
co nvinc ed o f the P o int an d so b egins to enum erate the co nsequences. I m plic atio ns are no t always pres­
ent, b ut when th ey are, th e y tend to be im po rtant. T he G M A T likes to ask questio ns ab o ut the I m plic a­
tions.
A lth o ugh yo u do no t have to separate B ac kgro und and S uppo rt in every case, yo u sho uld understand
wh at yo u are readin g in term s o f the four co mponents:
(1)
Is
this the m ain message? I f so, this is the Point.
(2)
Is
this just b ac kgro un d info rm atio n? I f so, this is B ac kgro und.
(3)
Is this suppo rtin g evidence for the m ain message? I f so, this is Suppo rt.
(4)
Is this an im plic atio n o f the m ain message? I f so, this is an I m plicatio n.
MANHATTAN
GMAT
!9
Com ponent s o f Passages
Chapt er 2
F o r e sh a d o w in g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
I n ro ugh ly 2/3 o f the passages in The O fficia l G uide, some part o f the B ac kgro und or the S uppo rt also
func tio ns as fo reshado wing. F o re sha do wing sets up the P o int. I t often does so b y stan din g in co ntrast
to the P oint.
F o reshado wing
P oint
P ro b lem ......................
leads t o ..........
R eso lutio n
Q uestio n .....................
leads t o ..........
A nswer
O ld I dea......................
leads t o ..........
N ew I dea
O b servatio n...............
leads t o ..........
R easo n or N ew I dea
A n O ld I dea m igh t be a typ ic al expec tatio n or way o f th in kin g (e.g., T raditionally, lower returns on
investm ents correla te with lower risk ). A n O bservatio n often expresses no t o n ly a fac t b ut also an o pinio n
ab o ut th at fac t (e.g., T he decision a b out wh ere to store h igh -level nuclea r wa ste f o r m illennia has unfortu­
na tely not b een resolved). N o te th at in b o th o f these exam ples, an adverb { tra ditionally, unfortuna tely) sets
up a c o ntrast th at w ill be m ade explic it with the P oint.
N o te th at just as yo u w ill never have to classify the P oint on the G M AT , yo u w ill no t have to c lassify
the fo reshado wing. T his list is o n ly m eant to help yo u iden tif y and understand the relatio nships b e­
tween an y fo reshado wing an d the P oint.
F o re sh a d o wing is n o t a lwa ys present. D o not rely on fo reshado wing to iden tif y the P oint. H owever, if
fo reshado wing is present, it c an help yo u to find the P oint more q uic k ly an d easily.
40
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Components of Passages
P r o b le m Se t
A n s w e r th e que s tio ns b e lo w b y re fe rrin g to th e fo llo win g passage.
P a ssa ge : Ro ck Flo u r
A lth o u g h o rg an ic ag ricu ltu re m ay
fertiliz ers. Rock flour, prod u ced in ab u n d an ce
seem to be th e w ave o f th e fu tu re, som e
b y q u arry and m in in g o p eration s, m ay b e
ex p erts b elieve th at th e nex t stag e in ag ricu l­
ab le to rep lenish trace elem en ts ch eap ly and
tu ral d evelo p m en t req u ires th e w id esp read
increase crop yield s d ram atically.
ad o p tio n o f so m eth in g very in org an ic: fertiliz er
Not all rock flo u r w ou ld be su itab le
m ade from p o w d ered rocks, also know n as
fo r use as fertiliz er. Certain ch em ical elem ents,
"rock flo u r." Th e b io ch em ical processes o f life
such as lead and cad m ium , are poisonou s to
d ep en d n ot o n ly on elem en ts com m on ly as­
hum ans; thus, ap p lyin g rock flo u r con tain in g
sociated w ith livin g organism s, such as ox ygen,
sig n ifican t am ou nts o f such elem en ts to farm ­
h yd ro g en, and carb o n (th e fu n d am en tal ele­
land w ould be in ap p rop riate, even if th e crops
m ent o f org an ic ch em istry), b u t also on m any
th em selves do n ot accu m u late th e poisons,
o th er elem en ts in th e p erio d ic tab le. Sp ecifical­
b ecau se hum an co n tact co uld result d irectly or
ly, p lants n eed th e so- called "b ig six " n utrients:
in d irectly (e.g., via soil ru n o ff in to w ater sup ­
n itro g en , ph osphorus, potassium , calciu m ,
plies). How ever, m ost rock flo u r prod u ced by
sulfur, and m agnesium . In m odern in d ustrial
qu arries seem s safe fo r use. A fter all, g laciers
ag ricu ltu re, th ese n u trien ts are com m on ly su p ­
have been creatin g n atu ral rock flo u r fo r th o u ­
p lied b y trad itio n al ch em ical fertiliz ers. How ­
sands o f years as th ey ad van ce and retreat,
ever, th ese fertiliz ers o m it trace elem en ts, such
g rin d in g up th e g round u n d ern eath . Glacial
as iron, m o lyb d enu m , an d m ang an ese, th at
ru n off carries th is rock flo u r in to rivers, and
are co m p on en ts o f essen tial p lan t enzym es
dow nstream , th e resultin g allu vial d ep osits are
and p ig m en ts. For instan ce, t h e g reen p ig m en t
ex trem ely fertile. If th e use o f m an- m ade rock
ch lo ro p h yll, w h ich tu rn s su n lig h t in to en erg y
flo u r is in corp o rated in to ag ricu ltu ral p ractices,
th at p lants can use, req u ires iron. As crops are
it m ay be possib le to m ake op en plains as rich
h arvested , th e n ecessary trace elem en ts are
as allu vial soils. Such increases in ag ricu ltu ral
n ot rep laced and b ecom e d ep leted in th e soil.
p ro d u ctivity w ill b e n ecessary to feed an ever-
Even tu ally, cro p yield s dim in ish , d esp ite th e ap ­
m ore- crowded w orld .
p licatio n o r even over- ap p lication o f trad itio n al
1. W h at is the P o int o f th is passage? J ustif y yo ur choice. C atego rize the P o int: (a) R eso lutio n, (b) A n ­
swer, (c) N ew I dea, or (d) R easo n. (T he P o int m ay f all into mo re than one catego ry.)
2 . I den tif y the o ther co m po nents o f the passage, if present: B ac kgro und, S uppo rt, an d I m plicatio ns.
A gain , justif y yo ur assignm ents.
3. I den tif y an y fo reshado wing, if present. I f there is fo reshado wing, catego rize it: (a) P roblem, (b) Q ues­
tio n, (d) O ld I dea, or (d) O b servatio n. (L ike the P o int, fo reshado wing m ay f all into m ore th an one
catego ry.)
4 . W h at is the sim ple sto ry o f th is passage?
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Components of Passages
So l u t i o n s_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
1. T he P o int o f this passage is c o ntain ed in the first sentence o f the first paragraph: S ome ex perts b elieve
tha t the nex t sta ge in a gricultura l develop m ent req uires the widesprea d a doption o f som eth ing very inorga nic:
fertiliz er m a de fro m p o w d ered rock s, also k nown as arock f l o u r ” T his is the m o st im po rtan t m essage that
the autho r intends to convey.
T wo o ther c andidates for the P o int say n early the sam e th in g, as th ey exto l the po tential benefits o f ro c k
flour. I n fact, these o ther sentenc es are perhaps even more em phatic th an the P oint itself, b ut th ey are
sligh tly narro wer in scope.
(a) L ast sentenc e, first paragraph: R ock flo u r . .. ma y b e a b le to replenish tra ce elem ents chea ply a n d increa se
crop yield s dra ma tica lly. T his sentenc e explain s ho w ro ck flo ur m ay be able to help us achieve the next
stage in agric ultural develo pm ent. T hus, this sentence is S uppo rt for the P oint.
(b) S ec o nd-to -last sentenc e, sec o nd paragraph: I f the use o f m a n-m a de rock flo u r is incorpora ted into a g­
ricultura l pra ctices, it ma y b e possib le to mak e open pla ins as rich as a lluvia l soils. T his sentenc e prac tic ally
restates the P o int in co ncrete term s. H owever, those concrete terms { open pla ins, a lluvia l soils) are more
specific th an the P oint. T hus, this sentence sho uld also be classified as S uppo rt for the P oint.
C atego rizatio n o f the P oint:
T he P oint is a N ew I dea: a new type o f fertilizer th at m ay seem surprising in itially. A lternatively, the
P oint c an be co nsidered the R eso lutio n to a P ro blem (the depletio n o f trace elem ents essential for plant
gro wth). A s was m entio ned in the text, it is not im po rtant for yo u to determ ine whether the P oint is a
N ew I dea or a R eso lutio n; it c o uld be b o th. T hese catego ries are o n ly there to help yo u reco gnize and
understand the P oint.
2 . T he o ther parts o f the passage c an be lab eled thus.
B ac kgro und:
F irst paragraph
F irst clause, first sentence:
A lthough orga nic a griculture... future,
S ec o nd sentenc e:
The b ioch em ica l processes... p erio d ic table.
T hird sentenc e:
S pecifica lly,... ma gnesium.
F o urth sentenc e:
I n m odern . .. tra ditiona l ch em ica lfertiliz ers.
T hese sentences give in fo rm atio n, b ut th ey do no t delineate the prob lem th at m ust be solved.
S uppo rt:
F irst paragraph
H owever, these fertiliz ers om it... pigm ents.
F ifth sentenc e:
all the way th ro ugh to
S ec o nd p aragraph
S ec o nd to last sentence
:
I f the use... a lluvia l soils.
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
Components of Passages
T his S uppo rt b egins fro m the H owevery whic h intro duces the problem. T he rest o f th at paragraph ex­
plains the pro b lem th at ro c k flo ur solves.
N o te th at the S uppo rt inc ludes the qualific atio ns and concessions in the first h alf o f the second paragraph.
I m plicatio ns:
S ec o nd paragraph
L ast sentenc e:
S uch increa ses . .. m ore crowd ed world .
T his sentence tells yo u the result o f the P oint. T hat is, if yo u ac cept the P oint, then with the resulting
increa ses in a gricultura l p rod uctivity, we m ay able to f e e d the world!
3 . T he first clause o f the first sentenc e (A lthough orga nic a griculture ma y seem to b e the wa ve o f the future)
is fo reshado wing. T his fo reshado wing sets up the P oint b y tellin g yo u wh at m ay seem to be the solutio n
(im plyin g th at so m ething else IS the solution). N o te that this fo reshado wing is im m ediately follo wed b y
the P o int itself. T his juxtapo sitio n is not unusual.
T he c atego ry o f fo reshado wing is O ld I dea (the old “new idea” o f orga nic a griculture , as the autho r
im plies). T hus, yo u c an no w see th at the P oint is really N ew I dea: an idea th at m ay solve a pro blem, o f
co urse, b ut yo u do no t learn ab o ut th at problem in the fo reshado wing.
4 . A s yo u saw in the last chapter, the sim ple sto ry o f the passage c an be expressed in at least three differ­
ent styles.
F ull Sentences
(1)
So m e th in k the future o f agric ulture depends on ro ck flo ur (= po wdered rock).
• P lants require c ertain elements.
• N o rm al fertilizers do not give yo u the trace elem ents such as iro n.
• R o c k flo ur m igh t f ill the gap.
(2)
So m e ro ck flo ur is b ad, even poisonous.
B U T m o st wo uld be fine.
G laciers m ake n atural ro c k flour whic h is goo d for the so il.
I f we use ro c k flour, m ayb e we can feed the wo rld.
T ext I t T o M e
(1)
A gric ult, f uture = ro c k flour (= powder). G ives plants m issing trac e elem s.
(2)
So m e flo ur = b ad. B ut glaciers m ake it & its go od. M igh t feed the wo rld.
T ab le o f C o ntents
(1)
R o c k F lo ur as F uture o f A gric ulture
(2)
C o ncerns; R eassurin g G laciers
M ANHATTAN
GMAT
R e a d in g C o m p r e h e n sio n
Sh o r t P a ssa g e s