A major story in recent years has been the triumph of electronic mail. Since the early 1990s, e-mail users have multiplied exponentially. Some major corporations have now chosen e-mail as their primary channel for all communications, internal and external. Yet, however effective and inexpensive email may be, it is not without flaws. The medium is impersonal, lacking the intimacy of a letter or the immediacy of a phone call. As an interactive medium, e-mail is less than ideal, since message allow correspondents politely to ignore points they do not wish to address, or indeed not to respond at all. 

1. The attitude of the author of the passage could best the described as
(a) uniformly favourable
(b) intensely subjective
(c) harshly critical
(d) objective and mixed

2. The word “immediacy” in the passage most nearly means
(a) quickness
(b) precision
(c) closeness
(d) tragedy

Questions 3 and 4 refer to the following passage:

Ecology—the study of the relationships among organism, and between organism and their environment is a relatively new branch of science. The name itself was coined by a German biologist, Ernst Haeckel, in 1866. Haeckel postulated the living world as a community, where each species has a distinctive role to play. One of the major focuses of ecological study today is fieldwork, analyzing relationships within an ecosystem, or a collection, say a coral reef. The results of such studies have provided conservationists and wildlife managers with important new insights, though many questions remain unanswered. 

3. Based on the passage, why might many of the basic questions posed by ecology still remain unanswered today
(a) Ecology has received little support from funding agencies and from the general public.
(b) The areas studied by ecologists are remote and inhospitable
(c) Ecologists have found it difficult to enlist the cooperation of other scientists.
(d) Ecology is a relatively young, developing branch of science.

4. Based on the passage, all of the following might be considered an ecosystem except
(a) a temperate forest
(b) a coral reef
(c) an ice crystal
(d) a tropical rainforest

Questions 5 and 6 refer to the following passage:

Until quite recently, hypnosis has been a specialized and often controversial technique used only in marginal areas of medicine. However, hypnosis is now increasingly finding mainstream use. For example, mental health experts have found that the suggestions of a skilled therapist are often remarkably effective in countering anxiety and depression. The benefits of hypnosis, though, are not limited to the emotional and psychological realm. Hypnosis helps burn-center patients to manage excruciating pain, and a recent research study found that hypnosis can dramatically shorten the time required for bone fractures to heal, often by several weeks.

5. The passage indicates that hypnosis
(a) is the most effective means to manage pain
(b) is used in many areas of mainstream medicine
(c) is still a controversial means to treat anxiety and depression
(d) is limited primarily to mental health medicine

6. The word “manage” in the passage most nearly means
(a) direct
(b) administer
(c) bring about
(d) cope with

Every morning I turn first to the sports section of the newspaper, but not for the reasons you might imagine. I am not an athlete, and I follow professional and college sports indifferently at best. What quickens my pulse is not the tightness of a pennant race or a new record in the butterfly, but rather the language of sports writing. Where else can you find such a veritable lexicon of vivid verbs? Stomp, crush, rob, cream, nip, and vaporize are among my favourites. The euphemisms of political reporting and the dry objectivity of the finance and obituary sections are not for the sports writer, whose lifeblood is spectacle and hyperbole.

7. The author states that he turns “first to the sports section of the newspaper” (line 1) because it
(a) contains colourful writing
(b) focuses on interesting personality profiles of athletes
(c) functions as a welcome escape from articles on politics and finance
(d) offers reports about the author’s two favourite pastimes, baseball and swimming

8. The author’s attitude toward the “lexicon of vivid verbs” can best be described as
(a) dryly ironic
(b) calmly objective
(c) clinically detached
(d) humorously upbeat

Though many seniors resist technology, embracing high-tech breakthroughs can often help them stay young. My mother's uncle is a good example. Even though he was in his seventies, he eagerly embraced home-computing and developed a worldwide network of correspondents. As a hospital volunteer, he devised a program through which patients could communicate easily and cheaply by email with their far-flung relatives. When he turned 83, he moved to a retirement home, and within two months, he knew at least a quarter of the 200 residents. They had all signed up for the biweekly meetings of his new computer club! 

9. The author tells the story of his uncle primarily in order to
(a) entertain the reader
(b) emphasize the benefits of retirement homes for seniors
(c) show that learning about technology can keep a person occupied and productive
(d) recommend the use of computers as a way for seniors to stay in touch with family

10. Which of the following items best describes the author’s uncle’s personality, as he is presented in the passage?
(a) taciturn and reclusive
(b) egocentric and dull
(c) industrious and outgoing
(d) athletic and competitive

The history of communications is a chronicle of prophecies as well as of inventions. The appearance of each new medium has provoked the pronouncement that its predecessor is now obsolete. Yet such forebodings have seldom proved accurate. Television has failed to bury radio, for example, and email has not yet replaced letters or fax. Such a historical perspective should make us wary of the prediction that computers will soon replace the book. Whole libraries may be available on a single CD-ROM, but there remains the deep seated sensory pleasure of taking down a volume from the shelves or spreading out on a beach blanket with a page-turner. 

11. From the evidence of the passage, what would the author's reaction likely be to the videophone, which combines picture and sound?
(a) a warm welcome to such a technological breakthrough
(b) a stern warning about the threat posed by such an instrument
(c) a philosophical reminder that the days of the conventional telephone aren't yet over
(d) a puzzled question about the need for such a complex device

12. In context of the passage, the word “pronouncement” most nearly means
(a) speech
(b) prediction
(c) declaration
(d) plea

Directions: The following passage in this section is followed by questions based on the content of the reading passage. Read the passage carefully and chose the best answer to each question. The questions are to be answered on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.  

Urbanization is an important index of socio-economic structure of a region as urban centers have special role to play in its development. In statistical sense, urbanization connotes to the ratio of urban population to the total population size, its characteristics and the administrative setup of a particular area. Statistics reveal that nearly half the world's population lives in cities. Between 1960 and 1992 the number of city dwellers worldwide rose by 1.4 billion. Most of this city growth has occurred in developing countries, where the number of people living in cities is increasing every year. Cities with more than 10 million inhabitants are known as mega cities. It is predicted that by 2015, 22 of the 27 mega cities would be in developing countries. Historically, the city was the place where arts and sciences were flourishing. Democracy was a new type of governance that found its seedbed in the city and still nowadays political power is largely concentrated in cities and governments have established their premises in cities. The administrative functions are usually executed in capital cities of countries. The city is the market place for economic activity.

Consider the following questions related with the above passage and answer them accordingly:

Question 1: Consider the following statements –
1. The city brings together communication, competence and creativeness.
2. Average wages and income for urban areas are higher than in rural areas, even making allowance for higher living costs in the cities.
3. In developing countries today urban health conditions seem to be better than in rural areas.
4. Higher life expectancy and low child and women mortality rate in the urban areas of developing countries sound like one of the blessings of urbanization.

Which of the above statements are correct in context of urbanization?
(a) 1, 2 and 3
(b) 1, 3 and 4
(c) 2, 3 and 4
(d) All of the above

Question 2: Consider the following statements –
1. Education is a powerful motive for moving to the city.
2. Cities have always provided intellectual stimulus and educational leadership.

Which of the above statement/s is/are correctly stated?
(a) Only 1
(b) Only 2
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Directions: The following passage in this section is followed by questions based on the content of the reading passage. Read the passage carefully and chose the best answer to each question. The questions are to be answered on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Poverty is one of the main problems which have attracted attention of sociologists and economists. It indicates a condition in which a person fails to maintain a living standard adequate for his physical and mental efficiency. It is a situation people want to escape. It gives rise to a feeling of a discrepancy between what one has and what one should have. The term poverty is a relative concept. It is very difficult to draw a demarcation line between affluence and poverty. According to Adam Smith - Man is rich or poor according to the degree in which he can afford to enjoy the necessaries, the conveniences and the amusements of human life. Poverty has many dimensions changing from place to place and across time. There are two inter-related aspects of poverty-Urban and rural poverty. The main causes of urban poverty are predominantly due to impoverishment of rural peasantry that forces them to move out of villages to seek some subsistence living in the towns and cities. In this process, they even lose the open space or habitat they had in villages albeit without food and other basic amenities. When they come to the cities, they get access to some food though other sanitary facilities including clean water supply still elude them. And they have to stay in the habitats that place them under sub-human conditions. 

Question 3: Which of the following can be said to be a disputed fact in context of above paragraph?
(a) While a select few have standards of living comparable to the richest in the world, the majority fails to get two meals a day.
(b) The Indian state has undoubtedly failed in its responsibilities towards its citizens over the last 60 odd years.
(c) The causes of rural poverty are manifold including inadequate and ineffective implementation of anti-poverty programmes.
(d) The overdependence on monsoon with non-availability of irrigational facilities often result in crop-failure and low agricultural productivity forcing farmers in the debt-traps. 

Question 4: Consider the following statements –
1. The rural communities do not spend large percentage of annual earnings on social ceremonies like marriage; feast etc.
2. There has been increase in unemployment creating poverty like situations for many.

Which of the above statement/s is/are correctly stated?
(a) Only 1
(b) Only 2
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2 

Question 5: Consider the following –
1. Need for the state to move out of many areas
2. The process of decentralization should devolute lot more powers to panchayats.
3. New laws have to be evolved to ensure more accountability.

Which of the above steps must Govt. of India should take to ward off poverty?
(a) 1 and 2
(b) 1 and 3
(c) 2 and 3
(d) All of the above

To understand the impact of sexual harassment on women one must listen to the account of its victims as no one conveys the meaning and truth of sexual harassment better than the women who have endured it. In response to the question during the survey conducted in and around Delhi University, "What kind of emotional response does eve teasing /sexual harassment evoke in you", not a single woman ticked the category of "indifferent". The survey of the Gender Study Group shows that most women felt disgusted, insulted and scared by any sort of harassment. Women often internalise male perceptions of sexual harassment and blame themselves for having brought on the harassment. They not only doubt the validity of their own experiences but begin to believe that they themselves must be 'abnormal', ‘cheap’, 'indecent' or deserving the violence that comes their way. Most respondents, men and women, described 'verbal harassment' as eve teasing and contrasted this with 'physical harassment' which has been seen as sexual harassment. They described eve teasing as relatively harmless behaviour committed usually by strangers, while sexual harassment would be grievous committed by acquaintances or men in positions of institutional power. In addition, most men and women described eve teasing as isolated incidents while sexual harassment would typically be repetitive and sustained over a long period of time. Many respondents said that they felt extreme anger, frustration and helplessness at not being able to do anything about the harassment. Many women having faced this behaviour also said that they find it difficult to trust or have friendships with men. In response to the question "Has sexual harassment /eve teasing affected your academic/personal development in any way?' ,45% of women stated that sexual harassment on Delhi campus roads has affected their personal or academic development in one way or another. Many women have found a way of handling these situations by changing their personalities but at one level these changes are also forced by the circumstances over which they have no control, and has left some of them bitter.

Consider the following questions related with the above passage and answer them accordingly:

Question 6: Consider the following statements -
1. By treating sexual harassment as 'normal' the administration has systematically legimatised the sexist violence women face in the University.
2. Authority Structures Despite gross instances of sexual harassment in the past the Delhi University administration has not treated sexual harassment as a serious problem which has traumatic consequences for the women.
Which of the above statement/s is/are incorrectly stated?
(a) Only 1
(b) Only 2
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Question 7: Consider the following –
1. ignore as a strategy
2. scream for help
3. lash out
4. Use self-defence mechanisms
Which of the above strategies women could use in case of Street Harassment:
(a) 1, 2 and 3
(b) 1, 3 and 4
(c) 2, 3 and 4
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Directions: The following passage in this section is followed by questions based on the content of the reading passage. Read the passage carefully and chose the best answer to each question. The questions are to be answered on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

The Supreme Court has justifiably raised questions over the controversial appointment of Central Vigilance Commissioner P.J. Thomas. His selection as the country’s anti-corruption watchdog has been challenged by two public interest litigations (PILs) on the charge that he is involved in the 2G spectrum allocation scam and an oil import scam. While hearing two PILs, a Bench consisting of Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia and Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan has said when Mr Thomas is under a cloud, his appointment is questionable. It said, “At every stage, an accused might say: Sir, you can’t proceed. You are yourself an accused! Then what will happen? How will he function?” Clearly, the Bench was disturbed over reports about his lack of integrity and voiced concern over his appointment. It is a pity that Attorney-General G.E. Vahanvati, instead of sharing the Bench’s concern over the controversial selection, indulged in semantics and claimed that “impeccable integrity” was neither an eligibility criterion nor mandatory for such appointments.

Consider the following questions related with the above passage and answer them accordingly:

Question 8: Consider the following statements–
1. Appointment of any person who heads the country’s anti-corruption watchdog unit can be challenged by public interest litigations (PILs).
2. While appointment of CVC, one of the members raised a voice of dissent against his selection because of his questionable record.
Which of the above statement/ statements are correctly stated?
(a) Only 1
(b) Only 2
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Question 9: If any person is appointed as CVC, then –
(a) He/ She must not be accused in any case
(b) impeccable integrity was neither an eligibility criterion nor mandatory for such appointments
(c) impeccable integrity should be an eligibility criterion and must be mandatory for such appointments
(d) No voice of dissent against his selection must be raised from any quarters because of his questionable record

Instead of being open about these issues, in this country we would prefer young people not to know. So sex should not be talked about in school, we are told. And at home? As far as girls are concerned, the norm is to teach them through admonition. "Be careful", "Look how you're sitting", "Is this the way to walk?", "Behave yourself", "Cover yourself", "Don't be so shameless!" — the list is endless. By being reprimanded, girls are supposed to learn how to protect themselves without ever knowing why or from what. As a result, they grow up being ashamed, confused and uninformed about themselves and their bodies. And are also rendered far more vulnerable. In this age of globalisation and the knowledge economy, we cannot pull down the shutters and believe that people's access to information on any subject, including matters relating to sex, can be controlled. Would it not be better to teach both boys and girls about these issues in an atmosphere that encourages them to ask questions and to clear their doubts? How can such knowledge be considered obscene or against 'Indian values'?

Consider the following questions related with the above passage and answer them accordingly:

Question 10: Consider the following statements –
1. Today, girls have to be taught more about sex education because they are more vulnerable than their mothers.
2. Girls of today do not know enough about their bodies to understand how to protect themselves from assault and disease

Which of the above can be concluded from the given passage?
(a) Only 1
(b) Only 2
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2