1. A recent study provides a stark reminder of how out of control our surveillance culture has become. The study claims that there are 37 million closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in the EU, roughly one for every twenty people, a far higher figure than previous research indicated. Most CCTV cameras are privately owned by businesses and individuals who use them to protect their property. However, there are many CCTV cameras in public buildings such as schools, hospitals and universities. The publication of the report will lead eventually to restrictions on this surveillance because, given that this level of intrusion into our privacy is totally unacceptable, it will stimulate widespread protest against the way in which our lives are being monitored. Which one of the following, if true, most weakens the above argument?
2. When prescribing medical treatment, a doctor’s sole aim is normally to achieve the best health outcome for patients. However, because the population is increasing and the public health budget is finite, there are times when it is valid to weigh other considerations against individual health outcomes. Which one of the following illustrates the principle used in the above argument?
3. If you want to eat healthily in a restaurant, you should be careful where you sit. Research from Cornell University has shown that people who sit by the window or in a well-lit part of a restaurant order healthier foods than those who sit at a dark table or in a booth. People sitting farthest from the front door ate the fewest salads and were seventy percent more likely to order dessert. The closer a table was to a TV screen, the more fried food a person bought. A table of four sitting within two tables of the bar drank an average of three more alcoholic drinks than those sitting just one table further away. Which one of the following can be drawn as a conclusion from the above passage?
4. The movie Argo claims to tell the story of the escape of US diplomats from Iran in 1979, but many of its scenes are completely fictional. Its misrepresentation of events was condemned internationally. However, the movie makes it clear from the beginning that it is not a documentary but a drama 'based on a true story'. Audiences tolerate historical inaccuracies; they have seen enough movies to know when the truth is being stretched for the sake of entertainment. In the case of Argo, the director decided to include an exciting (but entirely fictional) chase sequence at the climax of the movie. The fact that the movie won so many awards shows that his decision was justified. Which one of the following is an underlying assumption of the above argument?
5. Computers have revolutionised the modern classroom, but experienced teachers are right to suggest that increased presence of computers inhibits student learning. They argue that it is far easier for a student to look up an answer online than to engage in the process of reaching a conclusion. Furthermore, computers can prove to be a distraction for students. It is difficult for a single teacher to monitor every student on a computer, and this allows some students to play games instead of doing schoolwork. Which one of the following, if true, would most weaken the above argument?
6. Bottles of wine have to be sealed with a closure that will protect the wine until it is ready to be consumed. For wines that are intended for bottle maturation, the closure must also allow the wine to mature. Cork was once the only option and is still the most widely used closure. However, a small percentage of bottles with cork closures suffer from cork failure, which means the wine becomes oxidised and tastes stale. Metal screw-top closures have been championed in recent years by wine producers from Australia and New Zealand. Screw-tops preserve the fruit flavour of the wine longer than cork. Consequently, they are becoming increasingly popular where the winemaker wants to preserve a fresh fruit character. Which one of the following can be drawn as a conclusion from the above passage?
7. In the aftermath of the global economic recession, governments around the world reduced various forms of social security payments, such as benefits payments for people who are unemployed or sick. Since a reduction in a person’s income motivates them to work to maintain a particular level of consumption, people who receive social security are now better motivated to work. Which one of the following illustrates the principle used in the above argument?
8. When we hear of a famine, civil war or other catastrophe, it is natural to want to do something to help those in need. For decades, many wealthier nations have had foreign aid programmes in place to respond to such disasters with food and other donations. Yet even well-intentioned foreign aid operations can have negative consequences. For example, flooding an area with free food can force local farmers out of business, damage existing food supply chains and produce additional hardship in the long term. Political pressures in a donor country may make it difficult for the government to stop buying surplus food from its own farmers to send as aid, even when cash donations may bring about better long-term outcomes. Which one of the following best expresses the main conclusion of the above argument?
9. Excessive consumption of sugar causes tooth decay and gum disease. People with high sugar intake often use toothpastes that contain baking soda. A study showed that those who combine the use of baking soda toothpaste with the use of Superclean mouthwash had ten percent fewer such problems. It is apparent that the mouthwash Superclean is exceptional among health products in promoting oral health. Which one of the following is the best statement of the flaw in the above argument?
10. The reaction by sporting bodies to the use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs is one of zero tolerance: random testing and severe penalties with no excuses if the tests are positive. It’s a hasty, misguided response. Although most people agree that taking drugs deliberately to gain an advantage is cheating, many athletes complain that it has gone too far and they can't risk taking a cold remedy or using a hay fever spray. It is also well known that the results of drug tests can be distorted with masking substances or with new drugs that are as yet undetectable. The crime is not using drugs but getting caught. Which one of the following best expresses the main conclusion of the above argument?
11. A necklace is made from a repeated pattern of three different types of bead with different sizes and shapes. The beads must always follow the order of the pattern shown below. If the necklace begins with bead 1 and ends with bead 2, which one of the following CANNOT be the total length of the necklace?
12. Below is a diagram of my rectangular garden which has a path that leads from one side to the other (shaded in grey). What percentage of the area of the garden is path?
13. Three friends often share lunch together. One day they order 3 rounds of egg sandwiches, 2 packs of salad and 2 cartons of fresh orange juice at a cost of €12.50. On another day the order is for 3 rounds of egg sandwiches, 1 pack of salad and 3 cartons of fresh orange juice at a cost of €13.00. If 3 rounds of egg sandwiches, 3 packs of salad and 3 cartons of fresh orange juice cost €15.00, what is the cost of one carton of orange juice?
14. A customer takes three bags of coins to the bank. One bag contains 5 cent coins, one contains 10 cent coins and the third contains 20 cent coins. The total value of the coins is 840 cents. If there are twice as many 5 cent coins as 10 cent coins, and twice as many 10 cent coins as 20 cent coins, what is the total number of coins?
15. This was the Kallinder Football League table before yesterday’s matches:
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16. Nicola has been collecting information to help her to select a new laptop. She has decided that she wants it to have an Intel Core i3 processor and that she wants to secure the biggest price reduction she can. It must have at least 3 GB of RAM and a hard drive with a capacity of at least 320 GB. She has created the following table to summarise her research:
Non rispondere
17. A survey of 138 000 property owners in Cambridge was conducted and the results are shown in the charts below. Each property owner in the sample owned one property only and each property was owned by one owner.
Non rispondere
18. The block below is part of a set of different-shaped blocks which can be interlocked to complete a cube.
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19. At the entrance to the pedestrianised street where I work, ACCESS ONLY has been painted on the roadway. Four of the letters have been painted onto two rectangular manhole covers which are identical in size. Workmen are often careless in replacing these covers. This morning, as I arrived at work, I could see:
Non rispondere
20. I wish to carpet this bedroom and its adjoining dressing room.
piece P 4.4 m x 6.5 m piece Q 5.5 m x 6.0 m piece R 5.0 m x 7.0 m piece S 3.0 m x 7.0 m piece T 3.5 m x 6.5 m I have decided to buy the cheapest of these pieces that will suit my requirements. Which piece of carpet will I buy?
Non rispondere 21. The Interpretation of Dreams and Totem and Taboo are two works by:
1 di 4 23. Which of the following statements about the role of ions in a healthy human is/are correct?
Binding of calcium ions to troponin molecules causes tropomyosin to block the myosin binding site. During the progress of an action potential along a neurone, sodium ions diffuse into the neurone and potassium ions diffuse out. At a synapse, calcium ions may diffuse into the presynaptic neurone and trigger the movement of vesicles. Non rispondere 24. The healthy human stomach releases a solution so that the pH is kept between 1.8 and 3.5. The presence of food stimulates more acid to be released so that the pH can fall as low as 1 before a meal is eaten. The bacteria present in the meal release an enzyme, amylase, which functions at an optimum pH of 6. As soon as these bacteria have entered the human stomach, which of the following statements may be correct?
Starch may bind to the active site of some of the bacterial amylase molecules in the stomach. The alkali solution causes the tertiary structure of some of the bacterial amylase molecules to change. The bacterial amylase molecules may become denatured so that only some starch molecules are hydrolysed Non rispondere 25. Which of the following processes could be affected by a change in temperature?
ATP synthesis in cristae The uptake of glucose in the ileum The excretion of carbon dioxide in the alveoli The light-independent reactions of photosynthesis Phagocytosis Non rispondere 26. Which of the following parts of a eukaryotic cell contain DNA or RNA?
27. The coronary arteries supply blood to the cardiac muscle. Which of the following may occur in otherwise healthy cardiac muscle after a coronary artery is blocked?
A decrease in pH A reduction in Krebs cycle reactions An accumulation of reduced NADP Non rispondere 28. Which one of the following is an enzyme?
29. Which of the following occur(s) during interphase in a human stem cell?
30. Which of the following show the nucleotides that form base pairs during the process of translation in a healthy eukaryotic cell?
DNA nucleotides with DNA nucleotides DNA nucleotides with RNA nucleotides RNA nucleotides with RNA nucleotide Non rispondere 31. In a certain species of tree, the density of hair on the upper epidermis of the leaf is determined by a single pair of alleles which show incomplete dominance. The phenotype is not affected by the environment. Which one of the following is the maximum number of different hair density phenotypes that could be observed in a forest of these trees?
32. Red-green colour blindness in humans is a sex-linked condition, inherited in the same way as haemophilia. Which of the following statements is/are correct about red-green colour blindness?
In males with the condition, the allele is inherited from the mother. The allele causing the condition would be in a white blood cell of a person with the condition. The phenotype is only expressed in males. Non rispondere 33. An individual is heterozygous for three autosomal genes P, Q and R. Considering just these three genes, and assuming no mutations, what is the maximum possible number of different gametes produced by this individual?
34. Which of the following processes are common to DNA replication and transcription in a healthy human cell?
Breaking hydrogen bonds Use of only free adenine-, thymine-, cytosine- and guanine-containing nucleotides Polymerase enzymes creating phosphodiester bonds Complementary base pairing Non rispondere 35. A section of the coding strand of the DNA sequence of a gene that is expressed in a healthy human liver cell is 5′-ATGCGCCGTAT-3′. A microRNA (miRNA) regulates this gene by signalling an enzyme to cleave the mRNA corresponding to this section. What would the sequence be for the miRNA that regulates this gene?
36. Which of the following conditions could develop as a result of high blood cholesterol concentration?
37. An otherwise healthy human has an asthma attack. The airways may become narrowed. Which of the following statements is/are correct?
Asthma treatment may cause relaxation of the circular muscles in the alveoli. The bronchi do not have cartilage so narrowing can occur. The left bronchus is less likely to narrow because the heart is typically on the left side. Non rispondere 38. In constant physiological conditions in a healthy human body, which of the following shows the relationship of haemoglobin to carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and oxygen?
Haemoglobin has the highest affinity for oxygen, then carbon dioxide, and the lowest affinity for carbon monoxide.
Haemoglobin has the highest affinity for carbon monoxide, then oxygen, and the lowest affinity for carbon dioxide.
Haemoglobin has the highest affinity for carbon monoxide, then carbon dioxide, and the lowest affinity for oxygen.
Haemoglobin has the highest affinity for oxygen, then carbon monoxide, and the lowest affinity for carbon dioxide.
Haemoglobin has the highest affinity for carbon dioxide, then oxygen, and the lowest affinity for carbon monoxide.
None 39. Luteinising hormone (LH), oestrogen and progesterone concentrations vary during the menstrual cycle in a healthy adult human female with no underlying genetic condition. Which of the following shows the relative concentrations of these hormones present in the blood when ovulation occurs?
40. Which of the following bonds would you find in an antibody molecule?
2 di 4 41. Element X is a transition metal. Which of the following statements are likely properties of element X?
X reacts with cold water to form hydrogen gas and an alkaline solution. X forms a coloured, crystalline sulfate. X forms a variety of stable simple ions which are negatively charged. X is a good conductor of heat. Non rispondere 42. Which of the following reactions, if any, are classified as homogeneous?
N₂(g) + 3H₂(g) ⇌ 2NH₃(g) HCl(aq) + NH₃(aq) → NH₄Cl(aq) CaCO₃(s) → CaO(s) + CO₂(g) Non rispondere 43. Which one of the following is a correct statement about the properties of elements across Periods 2 and 3 from Group I to VII?
44. In which two equations do the underlined species form an acid-base conjugate pair?
45. Which of the following polymers contain the same type of links between repeating units as those that occur in proteins?
46. The table below contains the first eight ionisation energies of an element X, which exists in the third period of the Periodic Table.
Non rispondere
47. Hydrogen is made industrially by reacting methane and water (steam), as shown in the equation below. Which one of the following statements about the reaction above is correct?
48. When the following equation is balanced, what is the correct value of x?
49. Which of the following molecular substances possess a permanent molecular dipole in the gaseous state?
50. The following substances have ionic structures. Which of the substances has the highest melting point when only the size and the charge of the ions are considered?
(Atomic numbers: O = 8; Na = 11; Mg = 12; S = 16; K = 19; Ca = 20)Non rispondere
51. The following substances contain oxygen. Which oxidation states are shown by oxygen in these substances?
52. When 84.0 g of magnesium carbonate is heated, only 30.0 g of magnesium oxide is produced. What is the percentage yield of the product magnesium oxide?
3 di 4 53. On Monday, the price of a coat was €80. On Tuesday morning, the price was reduced by 20%. On Wednesday morning, the price was further reduced by 10% of Tuesday’s price. How much did I save by buying the coat on Wednesday afternoon instead of on Monday? [Assume ‘Monday’, ‘Tuesday’, and ‘Wednesday’ all refer to days within a single week.]
54. The line y = 3x – 7 intersects the y-axis at (0, p). The line y = 9 – 4x intersects the y-axis at (0, q). What is the value of |p – q|?
56. Which one of the following is equivalent to:
57. The length of a table is slightly less than 2 m. This length is measured with a percentage error of 0.5%. Which of the following has the appropriate number of significant figures for expressing this measurement?
58. A satellite is in orbit around the Earth. The diameter of its orbit is 8.0 × 10⁴ km and the time taken for one complete orbit is 8.0 × 10⁴ s. What is the speed v of the satellite in orbit and what is its angular velocity ω? [Assume that the orbit is circular.]
59. A body is in mechanical equilibrium. Here are three statements about the body:
The body is not moving in any direction. The resultant moment on the body is zero. The resultant force on the body is zero. Which of the statements MUST be correct?
Non rispondere 60. A student has three 6.0 Ω resistors. Which of the following total resistances can the student NOT create by connecting all three resistors in series, in parallel or in any series or parallel combination?
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