CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) - VARC Section - PDF

CAT 2023 SOLVED PAPER (SLOT-2) Section I: VARC Question Numbers (1 to 4): The passage below is the historian calls on them: it is he who decides to which accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, f...

CAT 2023 SOLVED PAPER (SLOT-2) Section I: VARC Question Numbers (1 to 4): The passage below is the historian calls on them: it is he who decides to which accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, facts to give the floor, and in what order or context…. choose the best answer for each question. The only reason why we are interested to know that the The Positivists, anxious to stake out their claim for history battle was fought at Hastings in 1066 is that historians as a science, contributed the weight of their influence regard it as a major historical event…. Professor Talcott to the cult of facts. First ascertain the facts, said the Parsons once called [science] "a selective system of positivists, then draw your conclusions from them…. cognitive orientations to reality." It might perhaps have This is what may [be] called the common-sense view of been put more simply. But history is, among other things, history. History consists of a corpus of ascertained facts. that. The historian is necessarily selective. The belief in The facts are available to the historian in documents, a hard core of historical facts existing objectively and inscriptions, and so on … [Sir George Clark] contrasted independently of the interpretation of the historian is a the "hard core of facts" in history with the surrounding preposterous fallacy, but one which it is very hard to pulp of disputable interpretation forgetting perhaps that eradicate. the pulpy part of the fruit is more rewarding than the 1. If the author of the passage were to write a book on hard core…. It recalls the favourite dictum of the great the Battle of Hastings along the lines of his/her own liberal journalist C. P. Scott: "Facts are sacred, opinion reasoning, the focus of the historical account would is free."… be on: What is a historical fact? … According to the common- 1. exploring the socio-political and economic factors sense view, there are certain basic facts which are the that led to the Battle. same for all historians and which form, so to speak, the 2. deriving historical facts from the relevant backbone of history—the fact, for example, that the documents and inscriptions. Battle of Hastings was fought in 1066. But this view 3. providing a nuanced interpretation by relying on calls for two observations. In the first place, it is not with the auxiliary sciences. facts like these that the historian is primarily concerned. It is no doubt important to know that the great battle 4. producing a detailed timeline of the various events was fought in 1066 and not in 1065 or 1067, and that it that led to the Battle. was fought at Hastings and not at Eastbourne or 2. According to this passage, which one of the following Brighton. The historian must not get these things wrong. statements best describes the significance of But [to] praise a historian for his accuracy is like praising archaeology for historians? an architect for using well-seasoned timber or properly 1. Archaeology helps historians to interpret mixed concrete in his building. It is a necessary historical facts. condition of his work, but not his essential function. It is 2. Archaeology helps historians to ascertain factual precisely for matters of this kind that the historian is accuracy. entitled to rely on what have been called the "auxiliary sciences" of history—archaeology, epigraphy, 3. Archaeology helps historians to carry out their numismatics, chronology, and so forth…. primary duty. The second observation is that the necessity to establish 4. Archaeology helps historians to locate the oldest these basic facts rests not on any quality in the facts civilisations in history. themselves, but on an apriori decision of the historian. 3. All of the following, if true, can weaken the passage’s In spite of C. P. Scott's motto, every journalist knows claim that facts do not speak for themselves, today that the most effective way to influence opinion is EXCEPT: by the selection and arrangement of the appropriate 1. a fact, by its very nature, is objective and facts. It used to be said that facts speak for themselves. universal, irrespective of the context in which it This is, of course, untrue. The facts speak only when is placed. 2 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 2. the truth value of a fact is independent of the Mr Deneen’s fixation on the essence of liberalism leads historian who expresses it. to the second big problem of his book: his failure to 3. facts, like truth, can be relative: what is fact for recognise liberalism’s ability to reform itself and address person X may not be so for person Y. its internal problems. The late 19th century saw America suffering from many of the problems that are reappearing 4. the order in which a series of facts is presented today, including the creation of a business aristocracy, does not have any bearing on the production of the rise of vast companies, the corruption of politics meaning. and the sense that society was dividing into winners 4. All of the following describe the “common-sense view” and losers. But a wide variety of reformers, working within of history, EXCEPT: the liberal tradition, tackled these problems head on. 1. history is like science: a selective system of Theodore Roosevelt took on the trusts. Progressives cognitive orientations to reality. cleaned up government corruption. University reformers 2. history can be objective like the sciences if it is modernised academic syllabuses and built ladders of derived from historical facts. opportunity. Rather than dying, liberalism reformed itself. 3. real history can be found in ancient engravings Mr Deneen is right to point out that the record of and archival documents. liberalism in recent years has been dismal. He is also 4. only the positivist methods can lead to credible right to assert that the world has much to learn from the historical knowledge. premodern notions of liberty as self-mastery and self- denial. The biggest enemy of liberalism is not so much Question Numbers (5 to 8): The passage below is atomisation but old-fashioned greed, as members of the accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, Davos elite pile their plates ever higher with perks and choose the best answer for each question. share options. But he is wrong to argue that the only Over the past four centuries liberalism has been so way for people to liberate themselves from the successful that it has driven all its opponents off the contradictions of liberalism is “liberation from liberalism battlefield. Now it is disintegrating, destroyed by a mix itself”. The best way to read “Why Liberalism Failed” is of hubris and internal contradictions, according to Patrick not as a funeral oration but as a call to action: up your Deneen, a professor of politics at the University of Notre game, or else. Dame…. Equality of opportunity has produced a new 5. All of the following statements are evidence of the meritocratic aristocracy that has all the aloofness of decline of liberalism today, EXCEPT: the old aristocracy with none of its sense of noblesse oblige. Democracy has degenerated into a theatre of 1. “And technological advances are reducing ever the absurd. And technological advances are reducing more areas of work into meaningless drudgery.” ever more areas of work into meaningless drudgery. “The 2. “Democracy has degenerated into a theatre of gap between liberalism’s claims about itself and the the absurd.” lived reality of the citizenry” is now so wide that “the lie 3. “‘The gap between liberalism’s claims about itself can no longer be accepted,” Mr Deneen writes. What and the lived reality of the citizenry’ is now so better proof of this than the vision of 1,000 private planes wide that ‘the lie can no longer be accepted,’…” whisking their occupants to Davos to discuss the 4. “… the creation of a business aristocracy, the question of “creating a shared future in a fragmented rise of vast companies …” world”?…. 6. The author of the passage refers to “the Davos elite” Deneen does an impressive job of capturing the current to illustrate his views on: mood of disillusionment, echoing left-wing complaints 1. the fact that the rise in liberalism had led to a about rampant commercialism, right-wing complaints greater interest in shared futures from unlikely about narcissistic and bullying students, and general social classes. worries about atomisation and selfishness. But when he concludes that all this adds up to a failure of 2. the way the debate around liberalism has been liberalism, is his argument convincing?…. He argues captured by the rich who have managed to that the essence of liberalism lies in freeing individuals insulate themselves from economic hardships. from constraints. In fact, liberalism contains a wide range 3. the unlikelihood of a return to the liberalism of of intellectual traditions which provide different answers the past as long as the rich continue to benefit to the question of how to trade off the relative claims of from the decline in liberal values. rights and responsibilities, individual expression and 4. the hypocrisy of the liberal rich, who profess to social ties…. liberals experimented with a range of ideas subscribe to liberal values while cornering most from devolving power from the centre to creating national of the wealth. education systems. CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 3 7. The author of the passage is likely to disagree with So you’re cool and you care about the planet; you’ve all of the following statements, EXCEPT: killed two birds with one stone. But do people simply 1. liberalism was the dominant ideal in the past purchase a second-hand item, flash it on Instagram with century, but it had to reform itself to remain so. #vintage and call it a day without considering whether what they are doing is actually effective? 2. if we accept that liberalism is a dying ideal, we According to a study commissioned by Patagonia, for must work to find a viable substitute. instance, older clothes shed more microfibres. These 3. the essence of liberalism lies in greater individual can end up in our rivers and seas after just one wash self-expression and freedoms. due to the worn material, thus contributing to microfibre 4. claims about liberalism’s disintegration are pollution. To break it down, the amount of microfibres exaggerated and misunderstand its core features. released by laundering 100,000 fleece jackets is 8. The author of the passage faults Deneen’s equivalent to as many as 11,900 plastic grocery bags, conclusions for all of the following reasons, EXCEPT: and up to 40 per cent of that ends up in our oceans… So where does this leave second-hand consumers? 1. its repeated harking back to premodern notions [They would be well advised to buy] high-quality items of liberty. that shed less and last longer [as this] combats both 2. its extreme pessimism about the future of microfibre pollution and excess garments ending up in liberalism today and predictions of an ultimate landfills…. decline. Luxury brands would rather not circulate their latest 3. its failure to note historical instances in which season stock around the globe to be sold at a cheaper the process of declining liberalism has managed price, which is why companies like ThredUP, a US to reverse itself. fashion resale marketplace, have not yet caught on in the UK. There will always be a market for consignment 4. its very narrow definition of liberalism limited to but there is also a whole generation of people who have individual freedoms. been taught that only buying new products is the norm; Question Numbers (9 to 12): The passage below is second-hand luxury goods are not in their psyche. Ben accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, Whitaker, director at Liquidation Firm B-Stock, told choose the best answer for each question. Prospect that unless recycling becomes cost-effective The Second Hand September campaign, led by Oxfam and filters into mass production, with the right technology... seeks to encourage shopping at local organisations to partner it, “high-end retailers would rather put brand and charities as alternatives to fast fashion brands such before sustainability.” as Primark and Boohoo in the name of saving our planet. 9. The central idea of the passage would be As innocent as mindless scrolling through online shops undermined if: may seem, such consumers are unintentionally—or 1. second-hand stores sold only high-quality clothes. perhaps even knowingly—contributing to an industry that uses more energy than aviation…. 2. clothes were not thrown and burnt in landfills. Brits buy more garments than any other country in 3. Primark and Boohoo recycled their clothes for Europe, so it comes as no shock that many of those vintage stores. clothes end up in UK landfills each year: 300,000 tonnes 4. customers bought all their clothes online. of them, to be exact. This waste of clothing is destructive 10. According to the author, companies like ThredUP to our planet, releasing greenhouse gasses as clothes have not caught on in the UK for all of the following are burnt as well as bleeding toxins and dyes into the reasons EXCEPT that: surrounding soil and water. As ecologist Chelsea 1. the British don’t buy second-hand clothing. Rochman bluntly put it, “The mismanagement of our waste has even come back to haunt us on our dinner 2. luxury brands do not like their product to be plate.” devalued. It’s not surprising, then, that people are scrambling for 3. recycling is currently not financially attractive for a solution, the most common of which is second-hand luxury brands. shopping. Retailers selling consigned clothing are 4. luxury brands want to maintain their brand image. currently expanding at a rapid rate … If everyone bought 11. The act of “thrifting”, as described in the passage, just one used item in a year, it would save 449 million can be considered ironic because it: lbs of waste, equivalent to the weight of 1 million Polar bears. “Thrifting” has increasingly become a trendy 1. offers luxury clothing at cut-rate prices. practice. London is home to many second-hand, or more 2. is not cost-effective for retailers. commonly coined ‘vintage’, shops across the city from 3. is an anti-consumerist attitude. Bayswater to Brixton. 4. has created environmental problems. 4 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 12. Based on the passage, we can infer that the opposite with American executives. This makes European of fast fashion, ‘slow fashion’, would most likely refer politicians nervous. to clothes that: They should not be. An irony of European integration is 1. are sold by genuine vintage stores. that it is often American companies that facilitate it. Google Translate makes European newspapers 2. do not shed microfibres. comprehensible, even if a little clunky, for the continent’s 3. do not bleed toxins and dyes. non-polyglots. American social-media companies make 4. are of high quality and long lasting. it easier for Europeans to talk politics across borders. Question Numbers (13 to 16): The passage below is (That they do not always like to hear what they say accompanied by four questions. Based on the passage, about each other is another matter.) Now Netflix and choose the best answer for each question. friends pump the same content into homes across a continent, making culture a cross-border endeavour, too. Umberto Eco, an Italian writer, was right when he said If Europeans are to share a currency, bail each other the language of Europe is translation. Netflix and other out in times of financial need and share vaccines in a deep-pocketed global firms speak it well. Just as the pandemic, then they need to have something in EU employs a small army of translators and interpreters common—even if it is just bingeing on the same series. to turn intricate laws or impassioned speeches of Watching fictitious northern and southern Europeans Romanian MEPs into the EU’s 24 official languages, so tear each other apart 2,000 years ago beats doing so in do the likes of Netflix. It now offers dubbing in 34 reality. languages and subtitling in a few more…. 13. Based on information provided in the passage, all of The economics of European productions are more appealing, too. American audiences are more willing the following are true, EXCEPT: than before to give dubbed or subtitled viewing a chance. 1. only half of Netflix’s original programming in the This means shows such as “Lupin”, a French crime EU is now produced in America. caper on Netflix, can become global hits…. In 2015, 2. Netflix has been able to transform itself into a about 75% of Netflix’s original content was American; truly European entity. now the figure is half, according to Ampere, a media- 3. European television productions have the potential analysis company. Netflix has about 100 productions under way in Europe, which is more than big public to become global hits. broadcasters in France or Germany…. 4. national broadcasters dominate in the EU in terms Not everything works across borders. Comedy of total television viewing hours. sometimes struggles. Whodunits and bloodthirsty 14. Which one of the following research findings would maelstroms between arch Romans and uppity tribesmen weaken the author’s conclusion in the final have a more universal appeal. Some do it better than paragraph? others. Barbarians aside, German television is not 1. Research shows that Netflix hits produced in always built for export, says one executive, being polite. France are very popular with North American A bigger problem is that national broadcasters still audiences. dominate. Streaming services, such as Netflix or Disney+, account for about a third of all viewing hours, 2. Research shows that older women across the even in markets where they are well-established. Europe EU enjoy watching romantic comedies on Netflix, is an ageing continent. The generation of teens staring whereas younger women prefer historical fiction at phones is outnumbered by their elders who prefer to dramas. gawp at the box. 3. Research shows there is a wide variance in the In Brussels and national capitals, the prospect of Netflix popularity and viewing of Netflix shows across as a cultural hegemon is seen as a threat. “Cultural different EU countries. sovereignty” is the watchword of European executives 4. Research shows that Netflix has been gradually worried that the Americans will eat their lunch. To be losing market share to other streaming television fair, Netflix content sometimes seems stuck in an service providers. uncanny valley somewhere in the mid-Atlantic, with local quirks stripped out. Netflix originals tend to have fewer 15. Based only on information provided in the passage, specific cultural references than shows produced by which one of the following hypothetical Netflix shows domestic rivals, according to Enders, a market analyst. would be most successful with audiences across The company used to have an imperial model of the EU? commissioning, with executives in Los Angeles cooking 1. An Italian com edy show hosted by an up ideas French people might like. Now Netflix has offices international star. across Europe. But ultimately the big decisions rest CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 5 2. A trans-Atlantic romantic drama set in Europe ‘modern’ sector that uses advanced technologies and and America. a larger ‘traditional’ sector characterized by very low 3. A murder mystery drama set in North Africa and productivity.___(2)___. While this distinction between France. developing and advanced economies may have made some sense in the 1950s and 1960s, it no longer 4. An original German TV science fiction production. appears to be very relevant. A combination of forces 16. The author sees the rise of Netflix in Europe as: have produced a widening gap between the winners 1. a looming cultural threat. and those left behind.___(3)___. Convergence 2. an economic threat. between poor and rich parts of the economy was arrested and regional disparities widened.___(4)___. 3. a unifying force. As a result, policymakers in advanced economies 4. filling an entertainment gap. are now grappling with the same questions that have 17. There is a sentence that is missing in the paragraph long preoccupied developing economies: mainly how below. Look at the paragraph and decide where to close the gap with the more advanced parts of the (option 1, 2, 3, or 4) the following sentence would economy. best fit. 1. Option 1 2. Option 2 Sentence: And probably much earlier, moving the 3. Option 3 4. Option 4 documentation for kissing back 1,000 years 19. Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and compared to what was acknowledged in the scientific 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them community. can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Paragraph: Research has hypothesised that the Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of earliest evidence of human lip kissing originated in a that sentence as your answer. very specific geographical location in South Asia 3,500 years ago.___(1)___. From there it may have 1. The banning of Northern Lights could be spread to other regions, simultaneously accelerating considered a precursor to censoring books for the spread of the herpes simplex virus 1. According “moral”, world view or religious reasons. to Dr Troels Pank Arbøll and Dr Sophie Lund 2. Attempts to ban books are attempts to silence Rasmussen, who in a new article in the journal authors who have summoned immense courage Science draw on a range of written sources from the in telling their stories. earliest Mesopotamian societies, kissing was 3. Now the banning and challenging of books in the already a well-established practice 4,500 years ago US has escalated to an unprecedented level. in the Middle East.___(2)___. In ancient Mesopotamia, people wrote in cuneiform script on 4. The widely acclaimed fantasy novel Northern clay tablets.___(3)___. Many thousands of these clay Lights was banned in some parts of the US, and tablets have survived to this day, and they contain was the second most challenged book in the US. clear examples that kissing was considered a part 5. The American Library Association documented of romantic intimacy in ancient times.___(4)___. an unparalleled number of reported book “Kissing could also have been part of friendships and challenges in 2022, about 2,500 unique titles. family members' relations," says Dr Troels Pank 20. Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and Arbøll, an expert on the history of medicine in 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them Mesopotamia. can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. 1. Option 2 2. Option 1 Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of 3. Option 3 4. Option 4 that sentence as your answer. 18. There is a sentence that is missing in the paragraph 1. Self-care particularly links to loneliness, below. Look at the paragraph and decide where behavioural problems, and negative academic (option 1, 2, 3, or 4) the following sentence would outcomes. best fit. 2. “Latchkey children” refers to children who Sentence: Dualism was long held as the defining routinely return home from school to empty feature of developing countries in contrast to homes and take care of themselves for extended developed countries, where frontier technologies and periods of time. high productivity were assumed to prevail. 3. Although self-care generally points to negative Paragraph: ___(1)___. At the core of development outcomes, it is important to consider that the economics lies the idea of ‘productive dualism’: that bulk of research has yet to track long-term poor countries’ economies are split between a narrow consequences. 6 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 4. In research and practice, the phrase “children in The mind computes counterfactuals for many self-care” has come to replace latchkey in an reasons. Counterfactuals explain the past and effort to more accurately reflect the nature of their prepare for the future, they implicate various relations circumstances. including causal ones, and they affect intentions and 5. Although parents might believe that self-care decisions. They modulate emotions such as regret would be beneficial for development, recent and relief, and they support moral judgments such research has found quite the opposite. as blame. The ability to create counterfactuals develops throughout childhood and contributes to 21. The four sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3 and 4) given reasoning about other people's beliefs, including their below, when properly sequenced, would yield a false beliefs. coherent paragraph. Decide on the proper sequencing of the order of the sentences and key in the sequence 1. Counterfactuals help people to prepare for the of the four numbers as your answer. future by understanding intentions and making decisions. 1. Contemporary African writing like ‘The Bottled Leopard’ voices this theme using two children 2. Counterfactual thinking helps to reverse past and and two backgrounds to juxtapose two varying future actions and reason out false beliefs. cultures. 3. People create counterfactual alternatives to reality 2. Chukwuemeka Ike explores the conflict, and for various reasons, including reasoning about casts the Western tradition as condescending, other people's beliefs. enveloping and unaccommodating towards local 4. Counterfactual alternatives to reality are created African practice. for a variety of reasons and is part of one's 3. However, their views contradict the reality, for a developmental process. rich and sustaining local African cultural ethos 24. The passage given below is followed by four alternate exists for all who care, to see and experience. summaries. Choose the option that best captures 4. Western Christian concepts tend to deny or feign the essence of the passage. ignorance about the existence of a genuine and Heatwaves are becoming longer, frequent and intense enduring indigenous African tradition. due to climate change. The impacts of extreme heat 22. The four sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3 and 4) given are unevenly experienced; with older people and below, when properly sequenced, would yield a young children, those with pre-existing medical coherent paragraph. Decide on the proper sequencing conditions and on low incomes significantly more of the order of the sentences and key in the sequence vulnerable. Adaptation to heatwaves is a significant of the four numbers as your answer. public policy concern. Research conducted among at-risk people in the UK reveals that even vulnerable 1. Like the ants that make up a colony, no single people do not perceive themselves as at risk of neuron holds complex information like self- extreme heat; therefore, early warnings of extreme awareness, hope or pride. heat events do not perform as intended. This suggests 2. Although the human brain is not yet understood that understanding how extreme heat is narrated is enough to identify the mechanism by which very important. The news media play a central role emergence functions, most neurobiologists agree in this process and can help warn people about the that complex interconnections among the parts potential danger, as well as about impacts on give rise to qualities that belong only to the whole. infrastructure and society. 3. Nonetheless, the sum of all neurons in the 1. Heatwaves pose an enormous risk; the media nervous system generate complex human plays a pivotal role in alerting people to this emotions like fear and joy, none of which can be danger. attributed to a single neuron. 2. People are vulnerable to heatwaves caused due 4. Human consciousness is often called an to clim ate change, m easures taken are emergent property of the human brain. ineffective. 23. The passage given below is followed by four alternate 3. Protection from heat waves is important but summaries. Choose the option that best captures current reports and public policies seem the essence of the passage. ineffective. People spontaneously create counterfactual 4. News stories help in warning about heatwaves, alternatives to reality when they think “if only” or “what but they have to become more effective. if” and imagine how the past could have been different. CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 7 Section II: DI & LR Question Numbers (1 to 5):There are nine boxes arranged in a 3 × 3 array as shown in Tables 1 and 2. Each box contains three sacks. Each sack has a certain number of coins, between 1 and 9, both inclusive. The average number of coins per sack in the boxes are all distinct integers. The total number of coins in each row is the same. The total number of coins in each column is also the same. Table 1 gives information regarding the median of the 3. For how many boxes are the average and median of numbers of coins in the three sacks in a box for some of the numbers of coins contained in the three sacks the boxes. In Table 2 each box has a number which in that box the same? represents the number of sacks in that box having more 4. How many sacks have exactly one coin? than 5 coins. That number is followed by a * if the sacks 5. In how many boxes do all three sacks contain in that box satisfy exactly one among the following three different numbers of coins? conditions, and it is followed by ** if two or more of these conditions are satisfied. Question Numbers (6 to 10): Three participants – Akhil, Bimal and Chatur participate in a random draw i) The minimum among the numbers of coins in competition for five days. Every day, each participant the three sacks in the box is 1. randomly picks up a ball numbered between 1 and 9. ii) The median of the numbers of coins in the three The number on the ball determines his score on that sacks is 1. day. The total score of a participant is the sum of his iii) The maximum among the numbers of coins in scores attained in the five days. The total score of a day the three sacks in the box is 9. is the sum of participants’ scores on that day. The 2-day 1. What is the total number of coins in all the boxes in average on a day, except on Day 1, is the average of the the 3rd row? total scores of that day and of the previous day. For example, if the total scores of Day 1 and Day 2 are 1. 45 25 and 20, then the 2-day average on Day 2 is calculated 2. 36 as 22.5. Table 1 gives the 2-day averages for Days 3. 30 2 through 5. 4. 15 Table 1: 2-day averages for Days 2 through 5 2. How many boxes have at least one sack containing 9 coins? Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 1. 4 15 15.5 16 17 2. 8 Participants are ranked each day, with the person having 3. 3 the maximum score being awarded the minimum 4. 5 rank (1) on that day. If there is a tie, all participants with 8 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) the tied score are awarded the best available rank. For 6. What is Akhil's score on Day 1? example, if on a day Akhil, Bimal, and Chatur score 8, 7 1. 6 and 7 respectively, then their ranks will be 1, 2 and 2 2. 5 respectively on that day. These ranks are given in Table 2. 3. 7 Table 2: Ranks of participants on each day 4. 8 7. Who attains the maximum total score? Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 1. Akhil Akhil 1 2 2 3 3 2. Chatur Bimal 2 3 2 1 1 3. Cannot be determined Chatur 3 1 1 2 2 4. Bimal 8. What is the minimum possible total score of Bimal? The following information is also known. 9. If the total score of Bimal is a multiple of 3, what is 1. Chatur always scores in multiples of 3. His score on the score of Akhil on Day 2? Day 2 is the unique highest score in the competition. 1. 5 His minimum score is observed only on Day 1, and it matches Akhil’s score on Day 4. 2. Cannot be determined 2. The total score on Day 3 is the same as the total 3. 4 score on Day 4. 4. 6 3. Bimal’s scores are the same on Day 1 and Day 3. 10. If Akhil attains a total score of 24, then what is the total score of Bimal? Question Numbers (11 to 15): Odsville has five firms – Alfloo, Bzygoo, Czechy, Drjbna and Elavalaki. Each of these firms was founded in some year and also closed down a few years later. Each firm raised Rs. 1 crore in its first and last year of existence. The amount each firm raised every year increased until it reached a maximum, and then decreased until the firm closed down. No firm raised the same amount of money in two consecutive years. Each annual increase and decrease was either by Rs. 1 crore or by Rs. 2 crores. The table below provides partial information about the five firms. First year of Last year of Total amount raised Firm existence existence (Rs. crores) Alfloo 2009 2016 21 Bzygoo 2012 2015 Czechy 2013 9 Drjbna 2011 2015 10 Elavalaki 2010 13 11. For which firm(s) can the amounts raised by them 3. It is exactly Rs. 8 crores. be concluded with certainty in each year? 4. It is either Rs. 7 crores or Rs. 8 crores or Rs. 9 1. Only Bzygoo and Czechy and Drjbna crores. 2. Only Drjbna 13. What is the largest possible total amount of money (in Rs. crores) that could have been raised in 2013? 3. Only Czechy and Drjbna 14. If Elavalaki raised Rs. 3 crores in 2013, then what is 4. Only Czechy the smallest possible total amount of money 12. What best can be concluded about the total amount (in Rs. crores) that could have been raised by all the of money raised in 2015? companies in 2012? 1. It is either Rs. 7 crores or Rs. 8 crores. 1. 9 2. 11 2. It is either Rs. 8 crores or Rs. 9 crores. 3. 12 4. 10 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 9 15. If the total amount of money raised in 2014 is Rs. 12 2. Anjali took Ride-1 at 11 am after waiting for 30 mins crores, then which of the following is not possible? for Chitra to complete it. It was the only ride where Anjali waited. 1. Alfloo raised the same amount of money as Bzygoo in 2014. 3. Bipasha began her first of three rides at 11:30 am. All three visitors incurred the same amount of ticket 2. Alfloo raised the same amount of money as expense by 12:15 pm. Drjbna in 2013. 4. The last ride taken by Anjali and Bipasha was the 3. Bzygoo raised the same amount of money as same, where Bipasha waited 30 mins for Anjali to Elavalaki in 2013. complete her ride. Before standing in the queue for 4. Bzygoo raised more money than Elavalaki in that ride, Bipasha took a 1-hour coffee break after 2014. completing her previous ride. Question Numbers (16 to 20): 16. What was the total amount spent on tickets (in Rs.) by Anjali, Bipasha, and Chitra visited an entertainment park Bipasha? that has four rides. Each ride lasts one hour and can 1. 90 accommodate one visitor at one point. All rides begin at 9 am and must be completed by 5 pm except for Ride-3, 2. 120 for which the last ride has to be completed by 1 pm. 3. 100 Ride gates open every 30 minutes, e.g. 10 am, 4. 110 10:30 am, and so on. Whenever a ride gate opens, and 17. Which were all the rides that Anjali completed by there is no visitor inside, the first visitor waiting in the 2:00 pm? queue buys the ticket just before taking the ride. The ticket prices are Rs. 20, Rs. 50, Rs. 30 and Rs. 40 for 1. Ride-1, Ride-2, and Ride-3 Rides 1 to 4, respectively. Each of the three visitors took 2. Ride-1 and Ride-3 at least one ride and did not necessarily take all rides. 3. Ride-1, Ride-2, and Ride-4 None of them took the same ride more than once. The 4. Ride-1 and Ride-4 movement time from one ride to another is negligible, and a visitor leaves the ride immediately after the 18. Which ride was taken by all three visitors? completion of the ride. No one takes a break inside the 1. Ride-4 park unless mentioned explicitly. 2. Ride-3 The following information is also known. 3. Ride-2 1. Chitra never waited in the queue and completed her 4. Ride-1 visit by 11 am after spending Rs. 50 to pay for the 19. How many rides did Anjali and Chitra take in total? ticket(s). 20. What was the total amount spent on tickets (in Rs.) by Anjali? 10 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) Section III: QA 1. For any natural numbers m, n, and k, such that k 9. Pipes A and C are fill pipes while Pipe B is a drain divides both m + 2n and 3m + 4n, k must be a pipe of a tank. Pipe B empties the full tank in one common divisor of hour less than the time taken by Pipe A to fill the 1. m and n 2. m and 2n empty tank. When pipes A, B and C are turned on 3. 2m and 3n 4. 2m and n together, the empty tank is filled in two hours. If pipes 2. Any non-zero real numbers x, y such that y  3 and B and C are turned on together when the tank is x x3 empty and Pipe B is turned off after one hour, then  , will satisfy the condition Pipe C takes another one hour and 15 minutes to fill y y3 the remaining tank. If Pipe A can fill the empty tank 1. If y > 10, then –x > y in less than five hours, then the time taken, in 2. If x < 0, then –x < y minutes, by Pipe C to fill the empty tank is 3. If y < 0, then –x < y 1. 90 2. 75 x y 4.  3. 120 4. 60 y x 10. Minu purchases a pair of sunglasses at Rs.1000 and 3. The sum of all possible values of x satisfying the sells to Kanu at 20% profit. Then, Kanu sells it back 2 2  x 16 equation 24x  22x  22x  30  0, is to Minu at 20% loss. Finally, Minu sells the same pair of sunglasses to Tanu. If the total profit made by 1. 3/2 2. 1/2 Minu from all her transactions is Rs.500, then the 3. 3 4. 5/2 percentage of profit made by Minu when she sold 4. Let a, b, m and n be natural numbers such that the pair of sunglasses to Tanu is a > 1 and b > 1. If am bn = 144145, then the largest possible value of n – m is 1. 35.42% 2. 26% 1. 289 2. 580 3. 31.25% 4. 52% 3. 290 4. 579 11. The price of a precious stone is directly proportional to the square of its weight. Sita has a precious stone 5. For some positive real num ber x, if weighing 18 units. If she breaks it into four pieces logx (25) 16 log (x)   , with each piece having distinct integer weight, then 3 logx (0.008) 3 then the value of the difference between the highest and lowest log3 (3x2) is possible values of the total price of the four pieces 6. Let k be the largest integer such that the equation will be 288000. Then, the price of the original precious (x – 1)2 + 2kx + 11 = 0 has no real roots. If y is a stone is positive real number, then the least possible value of 1. 1620000 2. 972000 k  9y is 3. 1944000 4. 1296000 4y 7. The number of positive integers less than 50, having 12. In a company, 20% of the employees work in the exactly two distinct factors other than 1 and itself, is manufacturing department. If the total salary obtained by all the manufacturing employees is one-sixth of 8. Ravi is driving at a speed of 40 km/h on a road. Vijay is 54 meters behind Ravi and driving in the same the total salary obtained by all the employees in the direction as Ravi. Ashok is driving along the same company, then the ratio of the average salary obtained road from the opposite direction at a speed of by the manufacturing employees to the average salary 50 km/h and is 225 meters away from Ravi. The obtained by the non-manufacturing employees is speed, in km/h, at which Vijay should drive so that 1. 6 : 5 2. 4 : 5 all the three cross each other at the same time, is 3. 5 : 4 4. 5 : 6 1. 58.8 2. 61.6 3. 67.2 4. 64.4 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 11 13. Anil borrows Rs. 2 lakhs at an interest rate of 8% If the radius of the circle is r, then the area of the per annum, compounded half-yearly. He repays triangle is Rs. 10320 at the end of the first year and closes the loan by paying the outstanding amount at the end of 2abr 2 abr 2 1. 2 2 2. the third year. Then, the total interest, in rupees, a b a2  b2 paid over the three years is nearest to abr 2 4abr 2 1. 40991 2. 33130 3. 2 2 4. 2(a  b ) a2  b2 3. 45311 4. 51311 18. In a rectangle ABCD, AB = 9 cm and BC = 6 cm. 14. If a certain amount of money is divided equally among P and Q are two points on BC such that the areas of n persons, each one receives Rs. 352. However, if the figures ABP, APQ, and AQCD are in geometric two persons receive Rs. 506 each and the remaining progression. If the area of the figure AQCD is four amount is divided equally among the other persons, times the area of triangle ABP, then BP : PQ : QC is each of them receive less than or equal to Rs. 330. 1. 1 : 2 : 1 2. 2 : 4 : 1 Then, the maximum possible value of n is 3. 1 : 1 : 2 4. 1 : 2 : 4 15. Jayant bought a certain number of white shirts at the 19. The area of the quadrilateral bounded by the Y-axis, rate of Rs. 1000 per piece and a certain number of the line x = 5, and the lines |x – y| – |x – 5| = 2, is blue shirts at the rate of Rs. 1125 per piece. For each shirt, he then set a fixed market price which 20. If p2 + q2 – 29 = 2pq – 20 = 52 – 2pq, then the was 25% higher than the average cost of all the shirts. difference between the maximum and minimum He sold all the shirts at a discount of 10% and made possible value of (p3 – q3) is a total profit of Rs. 51000. If he bought both colors of 1. 189 2. 243 shirts, then the maximum possible total number of 3. 486 4. 378 shirts that he could have bought is 21. Let both the series a1, a2, a3,... and b1, b2, b3... be 16. A container has 40 liters of milk. Then, 4 liters are in arithmetic progression such that the common removed from the container and replaced with 4 liters differences of both the series are prime numbers. of water. This process of replacing 4 liters of the liquid If a5 = b9, a19 = b19 and b2 = 0, then a11 equals in the container with an equal volume of water is 1. 83 2. 79 continued repeatedly. The smallest number of times of doing this process, after which the volume of milk 3. 84 4. 86 in the container becomes less than that of water, is 22. Let a n and b n be two sequences such that an = 13 + 6(n – 1) and bn = 15 + 7(n – 1) for all 17. A triangle is drawn with its vertices on the circle C natural numbers n. Then, the largest three digit integer such that one of its sides is a diameter of C and the that is common to both these sequences, is other two sides have their lengths in the ratio a : b. ANSWERS VARC 1. (1) 2. (2) 3. (3) 4. (1) 5. (1) 6. (4) 7. (1) 8. (1) 9. (1) 10. (1) 11. (4) 12. (4) 13. (2) 14. (3) 15. (3) 16. (3) 17. (1) 18. (2) 19. (2) 20. (3) 21. (4321) 22. (4132) 23. (4) 24. (1) DILR 1. (1) 2. (4) 3. (4) 4. (9) 5. (5) 6. (3) 7. (2) 8. (25) 9. (3) 10. (26) 11. (3) 12. (1) 13. (17) 14. (2) 15. (3) 16. (4) 17. (1) 18. (4) 19. (6) 20. (140) QA 1. (2) 2. (3) 3. (2) 4. (4) 5. (7) 6. (6) 7. (15) 8. (2) 9. (1) 10. (3) 11. (4) 12. (2) 13. (4) 14. (16) 15. (407) 16. (7) 17. (1) 18. (2) 19. (45) 20. (4) 21. (2) 22. (967) 12 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) EXPLANATIONS VARC Incorrect Answers: For questions 1 to 4: 1. Interpretation of historical facts: Not directly Passage Explanation (Paragraph-wise): tied to archaeology in the passage. Paragraph 1: The Positivists’ influence on history is 3. Primary duty of historians: Overlooks the discussed, emphasizing their approach of ascertaining author’s focus on broader interpretation. facts before drawing conclusions. This approach, known 4. Locating oldest civilizations: Not the general as the common-sense view, sees history as a collection role of archaeology as described in the of facts derived from documents and inscriptions. passage. Paragraph 2: Challenges the common-sense view by 3. 3 Question Explanation: Asks which statement arguing that significant historical facts are not the primary does not weaken the passage’s claim about the concern of historians. It emphasizes the importance of nature of historical facts. broader contexts and interpretations, with factual Correct Answer: Facts, like truth, can be relative. accuracy being a necessary but not essential function of Supports the passage’s view that facts require historians. interpretation and are not absolute (“The facts Paragraph 3: Further critiques the common-sense view, speak only when the historian calls on them...”). stating that facts don’t speak for themselves and require Incorrect Answers: interpretation by historians. It emphasizes the selective nature of history and the influence of interpretation in 1. Objective and universal nature of facts: shaping historical narratives. Contradicts the passage’s emphasis on 1. 1 Question Explanation: Asks about the likely interpretation. focus of a historical account of the Battle of 2. Independent truth value of facts: Against Hastings by the author, given their perspective on the passage’s subjective view of historical history. interpretation. Correct Answer: Exploring the socio-political and 4. Order of facts and meaning production: economic factors that led to the Battle. Suggests facts alone can convey meaning, The author emphasizes interpretation over just opposing the passage’s view. collecting facts. The passage suggests a broader 4. 1 Question Explanation: Identifies which focus on socio-political and economic contexts description does not align with the “common-sense rather than just factual details (“But [to] praise a view” of history. historian for his accuracy...”). Correct Answer: History is like science: a Incorrect Answers: selective system of cognitive orientations to reality. 2. Deriving historical facts: Contradicts the This view contrasts with the common-sense view’s author’s emphasis on interpretation. focus on objective facts, suggesting a more 3. Relying on auxiliary sciences: Misinterprets interpretive approach (“...the belief in a hard core the author’s view that auxiliary sciences of historical facts...”). support, not define, a historian’s work. Incorrect Answers: 4. Detailed timeline of events: Overly factual, 2. Objective history from facts: Aligns with the not in line with the author’s emphasis on broader common-sense view. socio-political contexts. 3. Real history in ancient engravings: 2. 2 Question Explanation: Seeks the role of Consistent with the emphasis on factual archaeology for historians as indicated in the evidence. passage. 4. Positivist methods for credible history: Correct Answer: Archaeology helps historians to Agrees with the reliance on factual and ascertain factual accuracy. empirical evidence. The passage mentions auxiliary sciences like For questions 5 to 8: archaeology help establish basic facts, supporting Passage Explanation (Paragraph-wise): the historian’s work but not being the primary Paragraph 1: Discusses the success of liberalism over function (“The historian must not get these things the past four centuries and its recent disintegration due wrong...”). to internal contradictions and hubris. It mentions the paradox of the meritocratic aristocracy and the CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 13 degradation of democracy, along with the negative 7. 1 Question Explanation: Identifies a statement that environmental impacts of the fashion industry. the author of the passage would likely agree with. Paragraph 2: Presents a critique of Patrick Deneen’s Correct Answer: Liberalism was the dominant view that the failures of liberalism are comprehensive. It ideal in the past century, but it had to reform itself acknowledges the broad range of liberal intellectual to remain so. traditions and the ability of liberalism to reform itself, citing The passage acknowledges the historical historical examples of such reforms. adaptability of liberalism, showing how it has Paragraph 3: Argues against Deneen’s failure to reformed in response to challenges. recognize liberalism’s capacity for self-reform. It highlights Incorrect Answers: the historical adaptability of liberalism in addressing 2. Liberalism as a dying ideal: The passage internal problems and challenges. does not suggest liberalism needs replacing Paragraph 4: Suggests that despite Deneen’s critique, but rather calls for its reform. liberalism has played a role in facilitating European integration, pointing out that American companies often 3. Essence of liberalism in freedoms: aid this process. Oversimplifies liberalism, contrary to the passage’s broader view. 5. 1 Question Explanation: Seeks to identify which statement does not represent evidence of 4. Claims of disintegration exaggerated: The liberalism’s decline as discussed in the passage. passage does recognize the challenges faced Correct Answer: “And technological advances are by liberalism , not dismissing them as reducing ever more areas of work into meaningless exaggerations. drudgery.” 8. 1 Question Explanation: Seeks to identify which While this statement discusses a negative aspect criticism is not made by the author against of modernity, it does not directly relate to the Deneen’s conclusions on liberalism. decline of liberalism, which is the central theme of Correct Answer: Its repeated harking back to the passage. premodern notions of liberty. Incorrect Answers: The passage does not criticize Deneen for referring 2. Democracy degraded: Indicates a failure of to pre modern notions of liberty. In fact, it liberal democratic ideals. acknowledges the value in revisiting these concepts. 3. Gap between liberalism’s claims and Incorrect Answers: reality: Directly critiques the failure of liberalism to meet its promises. 2. Extreme pessimism: The passage criticizes Deneen’s overly pessimistic view of liberalism’s 4. Business aristocracy and vast companies: future. Suggests economic disparities arising under liberal policies, a sign of liberalism’s decline. 3. Failure to note historical reversals: The passage points out Deneen’s oversight of 6. 4 Question Explanation: Asks about the role of the historical examples where liberalism has “Davos elite” in illustrating the author’s views on liberalism. managed to reform. Correct Answer: The hypocrisy of the liberal rich, 4. Narrow definition of liberalism: The passage who profess to subscribe to liberal values while faults Deneen for focusing too narrowly on cornering most of the wealth. individual freedom in defining liberalism. The passage uses “the Davos elite” as an example For questions 9 to 12: of the hypocrisy within liberal circles, where the Passage Explanation (Paragraph-wise): wealthy, despite espousing liberal values, Paragraph 1: Introduces the “Second Hand September” accumulate wealth and privileges, contradicting campaign led by Oxfam, aimed at encouraging shopping liberal ideals. at local organizations and charities as alternatives to fast Incorrect Answers: fashion brands. It highlights the environmental impact of 1. Rise in shared futures interest: Not supported the fashion industry, including energy usage and waste by the passage. contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and pollution. 2. Rich capturing debate: Doesn’t capture the Paragraph 2: Mentions the trend of second-hand shopping as a response to the environmental problems irony and hypocrisy highlighted in the passage. caused by fast fashion. It describes the rapid expansion 3. Unlikelihood of past liberalism return: of retailers selling consigned clothing and the potential Misinterprets the passage’s discussion on the environmental benefits of buying used items. Davos elite. 14 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) Paragraph 3: Addresses a potential issue with second- The passage notes that older clothes might shed hand shopping, noting that older clothes might shed more more microfibres, contributing to pollution, which microfibres, contributing to pollution. The paragraph points is ironic considering thrifting is promoted for out the complexity of the issue, suggesting that buying environmental benefits. high-quality items that last longer could be a solution. Incorrect Answers: Paragraph 4: Discusses the challenges faced by fashion 1. Luxury clothing at low prices: Not mentioned resale marketplaces like ThredUP in the UK, particularly as ironic in the passage. due to attitudes towards second-hand luxury goods and 2. Not cost-effective for retailers: Not discussed the preferences of luxury brands to maintain their brand in the passage. image. 3. Anti-consumerist attitude: Not directly related 9. 2 Question Explanation: Asks which scenario would undermine the central idea of the passage to the irony mentioned in the passage. about the impact of fast fashion and the role of 12. 4 Question Explanation: Inquires about the likely second-hand shopping. characteristics of ‘slow fashion’ based on the Correct Answer: Clothes were not thrown and passage. burnt in landfills. Correct Answer: Are of high quality and long lasting. If clothes were not discarded in landfills, it would contradict the passage’s emphasis on the The passage suggests that buying high-quality environmental impact of clothing waste and the items that last longer could combat environmental need for alternative shopping practices. issues, implying these are characteristics of ‘slow fashion.’ Incorrect Answers: Incorrect Answers: 1. Second-hand stores selling only high- quality clothes: Aligns with the suggestion of Sold by genuine vintage stores: Not specifically buying quality items. mentioned as a feature of ‘slow fashion.’ Do not shed microfibres: While desirable, not 3. Primark and Boohoo recycling clothes: directly linked to the concept of ‘slow fashion’ in Would support the passage’s advocacy for the passage. sustainable practices. Do not bleed toxins and dyes: Also desirable, 4. Customers buying all clothes online: Doesn’t but not directly tied to ‘slow fashion’ in the passage. directly address the central idea of reducing For questions 13 to 16: clothing waste through second-hand shopping. Passage Explanation (Paragraph-wise): 10. 1 Question Explanation: Asks why companies like ThredUP have not become popular in the UK, Paragraph 1: Discusses the role of translation in Europe, except for one reason. comparing the European Union’s translation efforts to those of companies like Netflix. Netflix offers content in Correct Answer: The British don’t buy second- multiple languages through dubbing and subtitling, hand clothing. reflecting the linguistic diversity of Europe. The passage does not suggest that the British are Paragraph 2: Explains the economics of European averse to buying second-hand clothing. In fact, it productions and their appeal to American audiences. indicates a market for second-hand clothing in the There’s a shift from primarily American content to a more UK. balanced offering, with Netflix investing heavily in European Incorrect Answers: productions. 2. Luxury brands devalue products: Mentioned Paragraph 3: Addresses the challenges of content as a barrier to ThredUP’s success. translation and cultural adaptability. Certain genres like 3. Recycling not financially attractive: Stated comedy may struggle across borders, while others like as a challenge for luxury brands. historical dramas have universal appeal. The paragraph 4. Maintaining brand image: Identified as a also touches on the dominance of national broadcasters preference of luxury brands. in Europe. 11. 4 Question Explanation: Asks about the irony in Paragraph 4: Discusses the perception of Netflix as a the practice of “thrifting” as described in the cultural hegemon in Europe, highlighting concerns about passage. cultural sovereignty and the homogenization of content. It notes Netflix’s shift from an imperial commissioning Correct Answer: Has created environmental model to a more localized approach, though major problems. decisions are still made by American executives. CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 15 Paragraph 5: Argues that American companies like mysteries, making this option the most likely to Netflix and Google have facilitated European integration. succeed across different cultures. The passage suggests that shared cultural experiences, Incorrect Answers: such as watching the same series, can contribute to a 1. Italian comedy: Comedy struggles across sense of common identity among Europeans. borders, as mentioned in the passage. 13. 2 Question Explanation: Seeks to identify the statement that is not true based on the information 2. Trans-Atlantic rom antic dram a: Not provided in the passage. specifically aligned with the passage’s emphasis on universally appealing genres. Correct Answer: Netflix has been able to transform itself into a truly European entity. 4. Germ an TV science fiction: German television is noted as not always being built for The passage does not suggest that Netflix has export, except for notable exceptions. become a truly European entity. It still makes major decisions through American executives, indicating 16. 3 Question Explanation: Inquires about the author’s it retains a largely American perspective. perspective on the rise of Netflix in Europe. Incorrect Answers: Correct Answer: A unifying force. 1. Only half of Netflix’s original programming The passage suggests that Netflix, by providing in the EU is now produced in America: shared content across Europe, is contributing to Supported by the passage mentioning the shift cultural integration and a sense of common identity. in content. Incorrect Answers: 3. European television productions can 1. Looming cultural threat: The passage does become global hits: Validated by the example not portray Netflix as a threat but as an of “Lupin.” integrative force. 4. National broadcasters dominate in the EU: 2. Economic threat: The economic aspect is not Stated in the passage regarding the viewing the focus of the passage. habits in Europe. 4. Filling an entertainment gap: Oversimplifies 14. 3 Question Explanation: Asks which research the passage’s view of Netflix’s role in cultural finding would weaken the author’s conclusion in integration. the final paragraph. 17. 1 Sentence Placement in Paragraph Correct Answer: Research shows there is a wide Given Sentence: “And probably much earlier, variance in the popularity and viewing of Netflix moving the documentation for kissing back 1,000 shows across different EU countries. years compared to what was acknowledged in the If there’s wide variance in popularity across EU scientific community.” countries, it undermines the idea of shared cultural Paragraph Structure: experiences fostering European integration. Earliest evidence of human lip kissing originated Incorrect Answers: in South Asia 3,500 years ago. 1. Netflix hits popular in North America: Aligns with Spread to other regions and accelerating the spread the passage’s mention of European shows’ of herpes simplex virus 1. global appeal. Dr. Troels Pank Arbøll and Dr. Sophie Lund 2. Older women’s viewing preferences: Does not Rasmussen’s study on Mesopotamian societies. directly counter the passage’s conclusion about Cuneiform script on clay tablets in Mesopotamia. cultural integration. Examples of kissing as part of romantic intimacy 4. Netflix losing market share: Doesn’t directly in ancient times. address the cultural impact or unifying role of Analysis: Netflix content in Europe. Before Blank 1: Discusses the origin of kissing 15. 3 Question Explanation: Asks which hypothetical in South Asia. Netflix show would be most successful across the EU based on the passage. Before Blank 2: Mentions the spread of kissing and its consequences. Correct Answer: A murder mystery drama set in North Africa and France. Before Blank 3: Introduces researchers and their study. The passage notes the universal appeal of certain genres like historical dramas and murder Before Blank 4: Describes the medium of documentation (clay tablets). 16 CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) Option 2: The given sentence fits best before Blank from the previous sentence. 2 because it provides a transitional context between Incorrect Answers: the origin of kissing in South Asia and its Option 1: The sentence doesn’t connect well with documented existence in Mesopotamia. It bridges the previous sentence. It talks about convergence the gap by suggesting that kissing was practiced and regional disparities but doesn’t smoothly follow even earlier than previously thought (in the idea of the widening gap. Mesopotamia, 4,500 years ago), which is crucial information before introducing the researchers’ Option 3: This sentence seems to introduce a study on Mesopotamian societies. new idea about policymakers in advanced economies grappling with questions, and it doesn’t Incorrect Answers: directly connect with the previous sentence. Option 1: Placing the sentence here would disrupt Option 4: This option talks about policymakers in the flow by introducing the idea of an earlier origin advanced economies but doesn’t provide a smooth before establishing the basic premise of kissing’s transition from the previous sentence about the origin in South Asia. widening gap. Option 3: Here, the sentence would be out of 19. 2 Identifying the Odd Sentence context as it interrupts the introduction of the researchers and their work. Sentences: Option 4: This placement would be too late, as it 1. The banning of Northern Lights could be should logically precede the specifics about considered a precursor to censoring books for Mesopotamian documentation. “moral”, world view or religious reasons. 18. 2 Sentence Placement in Paragraph 2. Attempts to ban books are attempts to silence authors who have summoned immense Given Sentence: “Dualism was long held as the courage in telling their stories. defining feature of developing countries in contrast to developed countries, where frontier technologies 3. Now the banning and challenging of books in and high productivity were assumed to prevail.” the US has escalated to an unprecedented level. Paragraph Structure: 4. The widely acclaimed fantasy novel Northern Introduction to the idea of ‘productive dualism’ in Lights was banned in some parts of the US, development economics. and was the second most challenged book in Distinction between developing and advanced the US. economies in the 1950s and 1960s. 5. The American Library Association documented Forces leading to economic disparities and an unparalleled number of reported book widening gaps. challenges in 2022, about 2,500 unique titles. Policymakers grappling with similar issues in Explanation: Sentence 2 is the odd one out. It advanced economies. focuses on the broader theme of silencing authors, Analysis: which, while relevant to the topic of book banning, The paragraph talks about the concept of does not fit the specific narrative flow established ‘productive dualism’ at the core of development by the other sentences about the escalation of economics, where poor countries have economies book banning and specific examples (like “Northern split between a ‘modern’ sector and a ‘traditional’ Lights”). sector. The paragraph then mentions that this Logical Sequence of Other Sentences: distinction between developing and advanced 3 5 4 1: These sentences form a coherent economies, which was relevant in the past, is no narrative about the increasing trend of book banning longer very relevant due to various forces leading in the US, with specific reference to the case of to a widening gap between winners and those left “Northern Lights” and its historical context as a behind. precursor to current trends. The missing sentence should logically connect 20. 3 Identifying the Odd Sentence these ideas and explain the consequences of this Sentences: widening gap. 1. Self-care particularly links to loneliness, Option 2: This option talks about the consequences behavioural problems, and negative academic of the widening gap, stating that convergence was outcomes. arrested, and regional disparities widened. This fits well with the context and provides a logical flow CAT 2023 Solved Paper (Slot-2) 17 2. “Latchkey children” refers to children who the Western views with the reality of rich African routinely return home from school to empty cultural traditions. homes and take care of themselves for 2 as the Following Statement: Now that the extended periods of time. conflict and reality are established, Sentence 2 3. Although self-care generally points to negative introduces Chukwuemeka Ike, who explores this outcomes, it is important to consider that the specific conflict in his work, providing an example bulk of research has yet to track long-term of the general theme introduced earlier. consequences. 1 as the Concluding Statement: Sentence 1 4. In research and practice, the phrase “children talks about a specific work, ‘The Bottled Leopard,’ in self-care” has come to replace latchkey in which illustrates the previously discussed themes an effort to more accurately reflect the nature and conflict, making it a fitting conclusion to the of their circumstances. sequence. 5. Although parents might believe that self-care 22. 4132 would be beneficial for development, recent Proper Sequencing of Sentences research has found quite the opposite. Sentences: Explanation: Sentence 3 is the odd one out. It 1. Like the ants that make up a colony, no single introduces a qualifier about the lack of long-term neuron holds complex information like self- research on the outcomes of self-care, which is a awareness, hope or pride. slight deviation from the other sentences’ focus on defining “latchkey children,” explaining the 2. Although the human brain is not yet understood terminology evolution, and discussing the impacts enough to identify the mechanism by which of self-care. emergence functions, most neurobiologists agree that complex interconnections among Logical Sequence of Other Sentences: the parts give rise to qualities that belong only 2 4 5 1: These sentences provide a to the whole. coherent narrative about “latchkey children,” the 3. Nonetheless, the sum of all neurons in the evolution of the term to “children in self-care,” and nervous system generates complex human the associated negative outcomes, both perceived emotions like fear and joy, none of which can and researched. be attributed to a single neuron. 21. 4321 4. Human consciousness is often called an Proper Sequencing of Sentences emergent property of the human brain. Sentences: Analysis of Correct Sequence (4132): 1. Contemporary African writing like ‘The Bottled 4 as the Starting Statement: This introduces the Leopard’ voices this theme using two children concept of human consciousness as an emergent and two backgrounds to juxtapose two varying property, setting the theme for the discussion on cultures. how complex properties emerge from simpler 2. Chukwuemeka Ike explores the conflict, and elements. casts the Western tradition as condescending, 1 as the Next Statement: This provides a enveloping and unaccommodating towards local metaphor (ants in a colony) to explain the concept African practice. introduced in Sentence 4, illustrating how individual components (neurons, like ants) contribute to a 3. However, their views contradict the reality, for a larger, complex system (consciousness, like the rich and sustaining local African cultural ethos colony). exists for all who care, to see and experience. 3 as the Following Statement: Building on the 4. Western Christian concepts tend to deny or