Federal investigators, called in at the request of the management of Ploutos National Bank, recently apprehended a ring of seven embezzlers from among the bank's employees. The bank management decided to call in the federal investigators when they were unable to account for millions of dollars missing in their budget for this year. All the funds those seven individuals embezzled have been returned to the bank, and that accounts for about two thirds of the total amount missing. All seven of the accused have plea-bargained to avoid trial and are now serving in prison on reduced sentences.Which of following conclusions can most properly be drawn from the information above?

Diamond Enterprises is a store in Apisville that sells specialty luxury items. For several years, Diamond reaped substantial profits and was considering building branch stores in nearby counties. Stibium Industries, for several years the single largest employer in Apisville and the surrounding region, abruptly closed its plant last year, causing widespread unemployment. Only a fraction of the former Stibium workers have found new jobs, and many of these at much lower wages. Early this year, Diamond Enterprises has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, citing the closure of Stibium as one of the primary causes. Which of the following inferences is best supported by the passage?

In Metroville, the KP subway line follows the riverfront from downtown to the neighborhoods surrounding the university. No matter how many trains the subway runs on the KP line, there are always congestion and delays on the KP line. The subway submitted a proposal for an alternate subway line that would travel from downtown to the neighborhoods surrounding the university via the inland neighborhoods, hoping to draw some of the congestion from the KP line. The city hired urban planning consultants who concluded the subway's proposal of a new line would not reduce commuter congestion on the KP line.Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain the urban planning consultants' position?

Recently, many medical students have been enrolling in joint M.D./J.D. programs, in which they receive both medical and law degrees at the conclusion of their studies. But since medical students primarily earn their law degree in order to protect themselves from malpractice lawsuits as doctors, we must still conclude that they are primarily doctors, and not lawyers.Which of the following is an assumption that supports drawing the conclusion above from the reason given?

A minor league baseball franchise experienced a drop in attendance this week after they suffered three losses by margins of ten runs or more last week. Many spectators of those games wrote letters to the editors of the local sporting news, complaining of the poor play of the team in those three losses. Nevertheless, the front office of this baseball franchise maintains that the team's poor play in those three losses has nothing to do with this week's decline in attendance.Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the position held by the front office of the baseball franchise?

When complaints against staff are brought to Human Resources at Sarpedon Inc., the Human Resources department cannot always determine whether there was just cause for the complaint. This is usually due to insufficient evidence provided by the claimant. Nevertheless, Sarpedon will sometimes dismiss an employee because of such a complaint, even if unsubstantiated.Which of the following conclusions can most properly be drawn from the information above?

The rate of health complications of patients on intravenous (IV) therapy at a particular hospital was higher than usual. Government inspectors found that the typical IV solutions used in this hospital had somewhat high concentrations of sodium and potassium, which were raising patients' blood pressure and taxing their kidneys. The government inspectors mandated lowering the sodium and potassium in these IV preparations, and threatened with a possible government fine. In compliance, the hospital lowered the sodium and potassium levels in the IV solutions to the correct levels. Nevertheless, patients on IV therapy at that hospital continued to have a high rate of health complications.Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain why acting on the government inspectors' recommendations failed to achieve its goal?

In a few recent cases, some teenagers with advanced programming abilities used a new programming language, FANTOD, to hack into ETS and change their own SAT scores. All of the teenagers convicted of this crime were highly skilled in programming FANTOD. In light of these cases, some colleges have discounted the official SAT scores of applicants with a knowledge of FANTOD, and have required them to take special admission tests in supervised conditions on their own campuses.Which of following conclusions can most properly be drawn from the information above?

Naturalist: For several years, coyote have had a robust population throughout the Susquehanna National Forest. Over the past seven years, the Canic Chemical Corporation in nearby Harrisville has been releasing low levels of bromide compounds into the air and groundwater. Some of these compounds, in sufficient concentrations, are suspected of compromising the immune systems of young coyote. A recent study over the entire forest established that 30% of young coyote did not survive their first year of life. Clearly, the bromide compounds released by Canic pose a direct threat to the well-being of coyote in the forest. The answer to which of the following would be most useful for evaluating the naturalist's reasoning?

Recently ApexCo has begun drilling off the coast of Mycondia. In this time, the number of animals that end up on the beach, coated in oil and other industrial by-products, has increased dramatically. Nonetheless, no Peterson's loggerhead turtles, a tortoise common in the waters off the coast of Mycondia, have washed upon shore. ApexCo's public relations claim that while some of the by-products are clearly harmful to aquatic life, the lack of Peterson's loggerhead turtles that are washed ashore suggest that not all the aquatic life there is adversely affected. Which of the following, if true, casts the most doubt on the argument employed by ApexCo's public relations firm?

In the past, traditional, 2-D films made by Hollywood studios have been considered more lucrative than 3-D films. Nevertheless, a recent study has found that the most popular films from the past year used 3-D techniques significantly more than less popular films did. This confirms the view that 3-D films have become more lucrative than traditional, 2-D films.The conclusion above is based on which of the following assumptions?

Recently, a team of scientists digging through a tar pit unearthed a jawbone fossil. Initially, the team hypothesized that the jawbone came from a young gomphothere, a now extinct distant relative of the elephant, since the teeth were those of a juvenile. The gomphothere, however, is known for its large molars, and the teeth on the jawbone would not allow enough room for the molars of an adult gomphothere to fit. Based on this evidence, the scientists conclude that the jawbone fossil provides evidence of a distinct species closely related to the gomphothere.Which of the following, if true, would best provide evidence showing that the conclusion above is possibly flawed?

Recent trends in the clothing industry have suggested that more clothing is being produced more quickly and cheaply than in the past; styles can go from the runway to stores in as little as three weeks. While most experts have focused on minimizing the time this process takes, True Clothing has in fact made efforts to take longer to produce its clothing. Which of the following would, if true, most help to explain the strategy of True Clothing referred to above?

At Learnington Academy, a high percentage of students are currently failing their classes, as overcrowding is making it difficult for them to receive the individualized attention from teachers that would allow them to pass. Enrollment is predicted to increase by 25 percent over the next three years. Learnington's administration has decided to hire only 10 percent more teachers for this time period, anticipating that this will be sufficient to ensure that the number of students failing because of lack of attention will not increase.Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest grounds for the administration's prediction?

Mountain County and Sunrise County are two comparable counties, with similar numbers of registered voters. Both are in the same region of the state. In both counties, about 60% of the registered voters are registered Republicans, and almost all others are registered Democrats. In 2005, Republican candidate Alf Landon ran for supervisor of Mountain County, and Republican candidate Thomas Dewey ran for supervisor of Sunrise County. Both took similar stands on issues, and both ran against conservative Democratic candidates in the general county-wide election, and none of these four candidates was an incumbent at the time of this election. The Republican Congressman representing Sunrise County endorsed Mr. Dewey, but the Republican Congressman representing Mountain County refrained from endorsing Mr. Landon. Mr. Dewey won his election, but Mr. Landon lost his election. Clearly, the endorsement positions of the respective Congressmen were the deciding factors in these elections.In evaluating the argument, it would be most useful to know which of the following?