22-03-2012, 01:03 PM
THE PRINCETON REVIEW CAT SAMPLE PAPER 1
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INSTRUCTIONS –
Please read these carefully before attempting the test
1. This test is based on pattern of previous years’ CAT papers.
2. There are three sections.
Section 1- English & Reading Comprehension (50 questions)
Section 2- Quantitative Ability & Data Interpretation (50 questions)
Section 3- Data Interpretation & Data Sufficiency (50 questions)
3. The total time allotted is 2 hours exactly. Please note your start time and end
time on the answer sheet. Do not take more than 2 hours, or you will get a
wrong assessment.
PASSAGE I
The controversy over genetically-modified food continues unabated in the West. Genetic modification
(GM) is the science by which the genetic material of a plant is altered, perhaps to make it more resistant to
pests or killer weeds, or to enhance its nutritional value. Many food biotechnologists claim that GM will be
a major contribution of science to mankind in the 21st century. On the other hand, large numbers of
opponents, mainly in Europe, claim that the benefits of GM are a myth propagated by multinational
corporations to increase their profits, that they pose a health hazard, and have therefore called for
governments to ban the sale of genetically-modified food.
PASSAGE III
At the heart of the enormous boom in wine consumption that has taken place in the English-speaking world
over the last two decades or so is a fascinating, happy paradox. In the days when wine was exclusively the
preserve of a narrow cultural elite, bought either at auctions or from gentleman wine merchants in wing
collars and bow-ties, to be stored in rambling cellars and decanted to order by one's butler, the ordinary
drinker didn't get a look-in. Wine was considered a highly technical subject, in which anybody without the
necessary ability could only fall flat on his or her face in embarrassment. It wasn't just that you needed a
The Princeton Review CAT sample paper 10
refined aesthetic sensibility for the stuff if it wasn't to be hopelessly wasted on you. It required an intimate
knowledge of what came from where, and what it was supposed to taste like.
Those were times, however, when wine appreciation essentially meant a familiarity with the great French
classics, with perhaps a smattering of other wines—like sherry and port. That was what the wine trade dealt
in. These days, wine is bought daily in supermarkets and high-street chains to be consumed that evening,
hardly anybody has a cellar to store it in and most don't even possess a decanter. Above all, the wines of
literally dozens of countries are available on our market. When a supermarket offers its customers a couple
of fruity little numbers from Brazil, we scarcely raise an eyebrow.
4. Please fill all the details, as asked on top of the answer sheet.
5. Please try to maximize your attempt overall, but you need to do well in all
sections.
6. There is 1 mark for every right answer and 0.25 negative mark for every
wrong one.
7. There is no sectional time limit.
8. Since it is a time constrained test and you have 2 hours, and all questions carry
equal marks, please do not get stuck on any question, move fast to try and do
easier ones.
9. Please do all scratch work on paper only, no extra sheets to be used. Put all
your answers on the answer sheet.
10. Relax. You are competing against yourself.