Critical Reasoning MCQs for UPSC Prelims

Today, if we consider cities such as New York, London and Paris as some of the most iconic cities in the world, it is because plans carrying a heavy systems approach were imposed on their precincts. The backbone of the systems theory is the process of translating social, spatial and cultural desirables into mathematical models using computing, statistics, optimization and an algorithmic way of formulating and solving problems. The early universities of the West which began to train professionals in planning, spawned some of the most ingenious planners, who were experts in these domains. This was because these very subjects were absorbed into the planning curriculum that had its roots in the social sciences, geography and architecture. Planning in India, and its education differ from the West. Based on the above passage, the following assumptions have been made : 1. India needs a new generation of urban professionals with knowledge relevant to modern urban practice. 2. Indian universities at present have no capacity or potential to impart training in systems approach. Which of the assumptions given above is/are correct?

1. A 1 only
2. B 2 only
3. C Both 1 and 2
4. D Neither 1 nor 2

Passage: Chemical pesticides lose their role in sustainable agriculture if the pests evolve resistance. The evolution of pesticide resistance is simply natural selection in action. It is almost certain to occur when vast numbers of a genetically variable population are killed. One or a few individuals may be unusually resistant (perhaps because they possess an enzyme that can detoxify the pesticide). If the pesticide is applied repeatedly, each successive generation of the pest will contain a larger proportion of resistant individuals. Pests typically have a high intrinsic rate of reproduction, and so a few individuals in one generation may give rise to hundreds or thousands in the next, and resistance spreads very rapidly in a population. This problem was often ignored in the past, even though the first case of DDT resistance was reported as early as 1946. There is an exponential increase in the numbers of invertebrates that have evolved resistance and in the number of pesticides against which resistance has evolved. Resistance has been recorded in every family of arthropod pests as well as in weeds and plant pathogens. Take the Alabama leaf worm, a moth pest of cotton, as an example. It has developed resistance in one or more regions of the world to aldrin, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, lindane and toxaphene. If chemical pesticides brought nothing but problems - if their use was intrinsically and acutely unsustainable - then they would already have fallen out of widespread use. This has not happened. Instead, their rate of production has increased rapidly. The ratio of cost to benefit for the individual agricultural producer has remained in favour of pesticide use. In the USA, insecticides have been estimated to benefit the agricultural products to the tune of around $5 for every $1 spent. Moreover, in many poorer countries, the prospect of imminent mass starvation, or of an epidemic disease, are so frightening that the social and health costs of using pesticides have to be ignored. In general the use of pesticides is justified by objective measures such as 'lives saved', 'economic efficiency of food production' and 'total food produced'. In these very fundamental senses, their use may be described as sustainable. In practice, sustainability depends on continually developing new pesticides that keep at least one step ahead of the pests - pesticides that are less persistent, biodegradable and more accurately targeted at the pests. With reference to the passage, consider the following statements: 1. Use of chemical pesticides has become imperative in all the poor countries of the world. 2. Chemical pesticides should not have any role in sustainable agriculture. 3. One pest can develop resistance to many pesticides. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. A 1 and 2 only
2. B 3 only
3. C 1 and 3 only
4. D 1, 2 and 3

The history of renewable energy suggests there is a steep learning curve, meaning that, as more is produced, costs fall rapidly because of economies of scale and learning by doing. The firms' green innovation is path-dependent: the more a firm does, the more it is likely to do in the future. The strongest evidence for this is the collapse in the price of solar energy, which became about 90% cheaper during the 2010s, repeatedly beating forecasts. Moving early and gradually gives economies more time to adjust, allowing them to reap the benefits of path-dependent green investment without much disruption. A late, more chaotic transition is costlier. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made : I. Path-dependent green investments will eventually most likely benefit growth as well as public finances in a country like India. II. If other green technologies follow the same pattern as that of solar energy, there will most likely be an easy green transition. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid ?

1. A I only
2. B II only
3. C Both I and II
4. D Neither I nor II

One of the dismal realities of the agricultural sector in independent India has been that it never experienced a high-growth phase, unlike the non-agricultural economy. The highest decadal growth (compound annual growth rate or CAGR) for agriculture has been just 3-5% in the 1980s. Also, after experiencing a spurt in decadal growth during the 1980s, agricultural growth suffered relative stagnation thereafter. This is in sharp contrast to non-agricultural growth, which consistently increased from the 1980s to 2000s. Which one of the following statements best reflects the corollary to the above passage?

1. A The benefit of economic reforms percolates down more slowly to the agriculture sector than in other sectors of the economy.
2. B For India, the green revolution was not as useful as it was expected to be.
3. C India lagged behind other countries in adapting mechanized and modern farming.
4. D Rural-to-urban migration resulted in the stagnant agriculture sector.

Passage: The IMF has pointed out that the fast growing economies of Asia face the risk of falling into 'middle-income trap'. It means that average incomes in these countries, which till now have been growing rapidly, will stop growing beyond a point - a point that is well short of incomes in the developed West. The IMF identifies a number of causes of middle-income trap - none of which is surprising - from infrastructure to weak institutions, to lax macroeconomic conditions. The overall cause, says IMF, is slow growth of productivity. Question: Which among the following is the most logical, rational and critical inference that can be made from the above passage?

1. A Once a country reaches middle-income stage, it runs the risk of falling productivity which leads to stagnant incomes.
2. B Falling into middle-income trap is a general characteristic of fast growing economies.
3. C There is no hope at all for emerging Asian economies to sustain the growth momentum.
4. D As regards growth of productivity, the performance of Asian economies is not satisfactory.

Passage: The Global Financial Stability Report finds that the share of portfolio investments from advanced economies in the total debt and equity investments in emerging economies has doubled in the past decade to 12 percent. The phenomenon has implications for Indian policy makers as foreign portfolio investments in the debt and equity markets have been on the rise. The phenomenon is also flagged as a threat that could compromise global financial stability in a chain reaction, in the event of United States Federal Reserve's imminent reversal of its 'Quantitative Easing' policy. Which among the following is the most rational and critical inference that can be made from the above passage?

1. A Foreign portfolio investments are not good for emerging economies.
2. B Advanced economies undermine the global financial stability.
3. C India should desist from accepting foreign portfolio investments in the future.
4. D Emerging economies are at a risk of shock from advanced economies.

Passage: A changing climate, and the eventual efforts of governments (however reluctant) to deal with it, could have a big impact on investors' returns. Companies that produce or use large amounts of fossil fuels will face higher taxes and regulatory burdens. Some energy producers may find it impossible to exploit their known reserves, and be left with 'stranded assets' - deposits of oil and coal that have to be left in the ground. Other industries could be affected by the economic damage caused by more extreme weather - storms, floods, heat waves and droughts. On the basis of the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Governments and companies need to be adequately prepared to face the climate change. 2. Extreme weather events will reduce the economic growth of governments and companies in future. 3. Ignoring climate change is a huge risk for investors. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

1. A 1 and 2 only
2. B 3 only
3. C 1 and 3 only
4. D 1, 2 and 3

In our country, regrettably, teaching and learning for the examination have been our forte but the new demands of society and the future of work require critical and independent thinking, learning through doing, asking questions from multiple disciplinary perspectives on the same issue, using evidence for building arguments, and reflecting and articulation. Higher education should not "either be a mere servant of the government policy or a passive respondent to public mood." Higher learning is all about how to think rather than what to think. Teaching has to be re-invented. With reference to the above passage, the following assumptions have been made : I. Higher education is a constantly evolving subject that needs to align towards new developments in all spheres of society. II. In our country, sufficient funds are not allocated for promoting higher education. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

1. A I only
2. B II only
3. C Both I and II
4. D Neither I nor II