Comprehension PYQ — Page 7

Researchers were able to use Stem cells to gauge the neurotoxic effects of the environmental pollutant Bisphenol A (BPA). They used a combination of biochemical and cell-based assays to examine the gene expression profile during the differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells upon treatment with BPA, a compound known to cause heart diseases, diabetes, and developmental abnormalities in humans. They were able to detect and measure BPA toxicity towards the proper specification of primary germ layers, such as endoderm and ectoderm, and the establishment of neural progenitor cells. On the basis of the passage given above, the following assumptions have been made: 1. BPA may alter embryonic development, in vivo. 2. Biochemical and cell-based assays are useful in finding out treatments for pollution-induced diseases. 3. Embryonic stem cells could serve as a model to evaluate the physiological effects of environmental pollutants. Which of the above assumptions are valid?

The resolution of bankruptcy cases of Indian banks under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code should help bring non-performing assets (NPA) situation under some control Despite the slow pace of resolutions by the National Company Law Tribunal, the Code can be helpful in cleaning up bank books, in future credit cycles. The recapitalisation of public sector banks too can help increase the capital cushion of banks and induce them to lend more and boost economic activity. But bad debt resolution and recapitalisation are only a-part of the solution as they, by themselves, can do very little to rein in reckless lending that has pushed the Indian banking system to its current sorry state. Unless there are systemic reforms that address the problem of unsustainable lending, future credit cycles will continue to stress the banking system. Which one of the following statements best reflects the most logical, rational and practical suggestion implied by the passage given above?

With respect, to what are called denominations of religion, if everyone is left to be a judge of his own religion, there is no such thing as religion that is wrong; but if they are to be a judge of each other's religion, there is no such thing as a religion that is right, and therefore all the world is right or all the world is wrong in the matter of religion. What is the most logical assumption that can be made from the passage given above?

India faces a challenging immediate future in energy and climate policy-making. The problems are multiple: sputtering fossil fuel production' capabilities; limited access to electricity and modern cooking fuel for the poorest; rising fuel imports in an unstable global energy context; continued electricity pricing and governance challenges leading to its costly deficits or surplus supply; and not least, growing environmental contestation around land, water and air. But all is' not bleak: growing energy efficiency programmes, integrated urbanisation and transport policy discussions; inroads to, enhancing energy access and security; and bold renewable energy initiatives, even if not fully conceptualised, suggest the promise of transformation. Which one of the following statements best reflects the critical message conveyed by the passage given above?

“……. Most people would agree that telling deliberate lies is wrong, except perhaps in certain special situations where more harm will be done by telling the truth. Even the most truthful people probably tell a good many more lies that might be regarded asemantic lies; their use of words contains some measure of falsehood, more or less deliberate." The idea which the first part of the passage mentions is

At the heart of agro ecology is the idea that agroecosystems should mimic the biodiversity levels and functioning of natural ecosystems. Such agricultural mimics, like their natural models, can be productive, pest-resistant, nutrient conserving, and resilient to shocks and stresses. In ecosystems there is no 'waste, nutrients are recycled indefinitely. Agro ecology aims at closing nutrient loops, i.e., returning all nutrients that come out of the soil back to the soil such as through application of farmyard manure. It also harnesses natural processes to control pests and build soil fertility i.e., through intercropping. Agro ecological practices include integrating trees with livestock and crops. Consider the following: 1. Cover crops 2. Fertigation 3. Hydroponics 4. Mixed farming 5. Polyculture 6. Vertical farming Which of the above fanning practices can be compatible with agro ecology, as implied by the passage?

Can a democracy avoid being a welfare state for long? Why cannot mass welfare be left entirely to the markets? There is a built-in tension between markets and democracy, Markets do not work on a one-person-one-vote principle as democracies do What one gets out of the market place depends on one's endowments, skills, purchasing power and the forces of demand and supply. Markets reward individual initiative and skill, and may also lift many from the bottom rungs of society, but some people never get the opportunity to develop skills that markets demand; they are simply too poor and too handicapped; or skill formation takes too long. By creating jobs, markets may be able to help even unskilled people, but capitalism has always witnessed bursts of unemployment. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Modern democracies rely on the market forces to enable them to be welfare states. 2. Markets ensure sufficient economic growth necessary for democracies to be effective. 3. Government programmes are needed for those left behind in economic growth. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Nothing can exist in a natural state which can be called good or bad by common assent, since every man who is in natural state consults only his own advantage, and determines what is good or bad according to his own fancy and insofar as he has regard for his own advantage alone, and holds himself responsible to no one save himself by any law; and therefore sin cannot be conceived in a natural state, but only a civil state, which is decreed by common consent what is good or bad, and each one holds himself responsible to the state. Which one of the following statements best reflects the central idea of the passage given above?

Medieval merchants risked the hazards of the silk Road to reach the markets of China; Portuguese caravels in the 15th century sailed beyond the bounds of the known world, searching less for knowledge than for gold and Spices. Historically, the driver for opening frontiers has always been the search for resources. Science and curiosity are weaker drivers. The only way to open up space, whether the space of solar system or 'interstellar space is to create an. economic engine, and that engine is resource extraction. Which one of the following statements best sums up the passage given above?

Our cities are extremely vulnerable to climate change because of large concentrations of populations and poor infrastructure. Moreover, population densities are increasing in them but we have not yet developed the systems to address climate change impacts. Our cities contribute 65 per cent of the GDP, but there are not enough facilities to cater to the needs of the people- It is important to address the issues of air quality, transport, etc., that are vital to identifying sustainable solutions. We need to involve citizens in city planning and create an ecosystem that meets the needs of the people. Which among the following is the most logical and rational inference that can be made from the -passage given above?

Researchers simulated Street lighting on artificial grassland plots containing pea-aphids, sap-sucking insects, at night. These were exposed to two different types of light a white light similar to newer commercial LED lights and an amber light similar to sodium street lamps. The low intensity amber light was shown to inhibit, rather than induce, flowering in a wild plant of the pea family which is a source of food for the pea-aphids in grasslands. The number of aphids was also significantly suppressed under the light treatment due to the limited amount of food available. Which one of the following statements best reflects the most critical inference that can be made from the passage given above?

A central message of modern development economics is the importance of income growth, by which meant growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In theory, rising GDP creates employment and investment opportunities. As incomes grow in a country where the level of GDP was once low, households, communities, and governments are increasingly able to set aside some funds for the production of things that make for a good life. Today GDP has assumed such a significant place in the development lexicon, that if someone mentions "economic growth", we know they mean growth in GDP. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Rising GDP is essential for a country to be a developed country. 2. Rising GDP guarantees a reasonable distribution of income to all households. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

A social and physical environment riddled with poverty, inequities, unhygienic and insanitary conditions generates the risk of infectious diseases, Hygiene has different levels : Personal, domestic and community hygiene. There is no doubt that personal cleanliness brings down the rate of infectious diseases. But the entry of the market into this domain has Created a false sense of security that gets Conditioned and reinforced by the onslaught of advertisements. Experience in Western Europe Shows that along with personal hygiene, general improvements in environmental conditions and components like clean water, sanitation and food security have brought down infant/child death/infection rates considerably. The obsession with hand hygiene also brings in the persisting influence of the market on personal health, overriding or marginalising the negative impact on ecology and the emergence of resistant germs. On the basis of the passage given above, the following assumptions have been made: 1. People who are obsessed with personal hygiene tend to ignore the community hygiene. 2. Emergence of multi-drug resistant germs can be prevented by personal cleanliness. 3. Entry of the market in the domain of hygiene increases the risk of infectious diseases. 4. Scientific and micro-level, interventions are not sufficient to bring down the burden of infectious diseases. 5. It is community hygiene implemented through public - health measures that is really effective in the battle against infectious diseases. Which of the above assumptions are valid?

Computers increasingly deal not just with abstract data like Credit card details and databases, but also with the real world of physical objects and Vulnerable human bodies. A modem car 'is a Computer on wheels; an aeroplane is a computer on Wings. The arrival of the "Internet of Things" will see computers baked into everything from road signs and MIU scanners to Prosthetics and insulin pumps. There is little evidence that these gadgets will be any more trustworthy than their desktop counterparts. Hackers have already proved that they can take remote control of internet connected cars and pacemakers. Which one of the following statements best reflects the most critical inference that can be made from the passage given above?

The best Universities like Harvard and MIT, despite having the luxury of having some truly excellent teachers on their payroll, are increasingly embracing the "flipped classroom" format, where students listen to video lectures at home, and spend class time applying their knowledge, solving Problems, discussing examples, etc. Professors guide that discussion and fill in wherever necessary, explaining those bits that Seem to be eluding the students and throwing in advanced ideas that happen to be topical. These universities have made their video lectures available free for anyone. in the world. They are also encouraging colleges and universities all over the world to integrate these online, courses into their own pedagogy, picking the pieces that are appropriate for their needs and building a package around them. Which one of the following statements best reflects the central idea of the passage given above?

Fig trees (genus Ficus) are considered sacred in India, East Asia and Africa and are common in agricultural and urban landscapes where other large trees are absent. In natural forests, fig trees provide food for wildlife when other resources are scarce and support a high density and diversity of frugivores (fruit-eating animals). If frugivorous birds and bats continue to visit fig trees located in Sites with high human disturbance, sacred fig trees may promote frugivore abundance. Under favourable microclimate, plenty of seedings of other tree species would grow around fig trees. On the basis of the passage given above, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Fig trees can often be keystone species in natural forests. 2. Fig trees can grow where other large woody species cannot grow. 3. Sacred trees can have a role in biodiversity conservation. 4. Fig trees have a role in the seed dispersal of other tree species. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Policy makers and media have placed the blame for skyrocketing food prices on a variety of factors, including high fuel prices, had weather in key food producing countries, and the diversion of land to non-food production. Increased emphasis, however, has been placed on a surge in demand for food from the most populous emerging economies. It seems highly probable that mass consumption in these countries could be well poised to create a food crisis. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Oil production countries are one of the reasons for high food prices. 2. If there is a food crisis in the world in the near future, it will be in the emerging economies. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

In the immediate future, we will see the increasing commodification of many new technologies-artificial intelligence and robotics, 3D manufacturing, custom made biological and pharmaceutical products, lethal autonomous weapons and driverless cars. This will pose conundrums. The moral question of how a driverless car will decide between hitting jaywalker and swerving and damaging the car has often been debated. The answer is both simple save the human life and complex. At which angle should the car swerve just enough to save the jaywalker or more than enough? If the driverless car is in Dublin, who would take the decision? The Irish Government, or the car’s original code writer in California, or a software programmer in Hyderabad to whom maintenance is outsourced? If different national jurisdictions have different fine print on prioritizing a human life, how will it affect insurance and investment decisions, including transnational ones? Which of the following statements best reflect the rational, plausible, and practical implications that can be derived from the passage given above? 1. Too much globalization is not in the best interests of any country. 2. Modern technologies are increasingly blurring the economic borders. 3. Innovation and capital have impinged on the domain of the state. 4. Public policy of every country should focus on developing its own supply chains. 5. Geopolitics will have to reconcile to many ambiguities and uncertainties. Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Aristocratic government ruins itself by limiting too narrowly the circle within which power is confined; oligarchic government ruins itself by the incautions scramble for immediate wealth. But even democracy ruins itself by excess of democracy. Its basic principle is the equal right of all to hold office and determine public policy. This is, at first glance, a delightful arrangement; it becomes disastrous because the people are not properly equipped by education to select the best rulers and the wisest courses. The people have no understanding and only repeat what their rulers are pleased to tell them. Such a democracy is tyranny or autocracy— Plato Which one of the following statements best reflects the crux of the passage given above?

Private investment, in general, is volatile. Foreign private investment is more volatile because the available investment avenues are significantly greater (i.e., the entire world). Therefore, the responsibility of providing employment cannot be left to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The current FDI inflows are volatile over time and across sectors and regions, which is a necessary consequence of their search for the highest returns. The adverse consequences are unstable employment and accentuation of income and regional inequalities. A probable positive consequence of foreign investment is the inflow of new technology and its subsequent diffusion. However, the technology diffusion is not at all certain because the existing state of physical and human capital in India may prove inadequate for the diffusion. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Relying on foreign investment, in the long run, is not an economically sound policy. 2. Policies must be undertaken to reduce volatility in foreign private investment. 3. Policies must be undertaken to strengthen domestic private investment. 4. Public investment should be given priority over private investment. 5. Substantial public investment in education and health should be undertaken. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

Our urban bodies cannot possibly ensure sustainable delivery of water in our cities unless financing mechanisms are put in place. Water delivery requires heavy investment in collecting it from a natural source, treating it to make it potable, and laying a distribution network of pipes for delivery to the users. It also requires investments in sewerage infrastructure and sewage treatment plants so that the sewers can carry the wastewater to these plants to ensure that no untreated sewage is discharged back into natural water bodies. If our cities were rich enough to meet the entire cost, water could be delivered free. They are not. What is the most logical and crucial message conveyed by the passage?

In India, authorities always look to store the maximum amount of water in reservoirs during the monsoon season, which is then used for irrigation and generation of electricity during the summer months. It is an internationally accepted practice that the water level of a reservoir should be kept below a certain level before the onset of monsoon season. This is so that when monsoon rains come, there is space to store the excess rain water and also so that water can be released in a regulated manner. But the authorities store the maximum amount of water in reservoirs even before the close of the monsoon, only to ensure greater electricity generation and irrigation: With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. High risks involved in holding maximum water in reservoirs are due to our over-dependence on hydropower projects. 2. Storage capacity of dams should not be fully used before or during monsoon season. 3. Role of dams in flood control is underestimated in India. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

The pulse variety 'Pusa Arhar 16' has the potential to be grown in the paddy-growing regions of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh and eventually in all of India. Its yield (about 2000 .kg/hectare) will be significantly greater than those of the existing varieties and because its size will be uniform, it will be amenable to mechanical harvesting, an attractive feature for farmers in northern. India who currently use this technology for paddy. Most important, Arhar straw, unlike paddy straw, is green and can be ploughed back into the soil. In paddy straw, the problem is the high silica content, which does not allow for easy decomposition. In the case of Arhar, the farmer, even after combine harvesting, just needs to run a rotovator to cut the leftover straw into pieces, which can be ploughed back and will decompose very fast. All this is difficult with leftover paddy stalks that cannot be easily salvaged or ploughed back. Farmers, therefore, choose the easiest option of simply burning it. Which of the following are the most rational inferences that can be made from the passage? 1. Farmers' income will be higher with pulse cultivation than with paddy cultivation. 2. Pulse cultivation causes less pollution as compared to paddy cultivation. 3. Pulse straw can be used to improve soil quality. 4. In the context of northern Indian agriculture, paddy straw has no usefulness. 5. Mechanized agriculture is the main cause for stubble burning. Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Although most of the Genetically Modified (GM) crops cultivated now are genetically engineered for a single trait, in future, crops genetically engineered for more than one trait will be the norm. Thus, biotechnology's role in agriculture and the regulation of the same cannot be understood solely in the context of the current generation of GM crops. Instead, there is a need to take a comprehensive look, taking into account various aspects, including socio-economic impacts, so that the potential of the technology can be harnessed while minimizing negative impacts. Given the importance of biotechnology in developing varieties that can help in climate change mitigation and adaptation, not using biotechnology as a part of the climate change action plan; Domestic regulation of biotechnology cannot be viewed in isolation of trade policy and obligations under various international treaties and conventions. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Biotechnology regulation is an evolving process. 2. Participation of people is needed in policy decisions regarding biotechnology regulation; 3. Biotechnology regulation should take into account socio economic aspects in decision-making. 4. Wider involvement of political executive in biotechnology regulation improves its effectiveness in dealing with the country's trade policies and international obligations. Which of the above assumptions are valid?