Stem sprint RC

Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the passage?

Family: Descriptive

Type: Main Point

Strategy: Pre-phrase from the passage ID → compare → cut answers that are too narrow or inaccurate

Which one of the following most completely and accurately summarizes the main idea of the passage?

Family: Descriptive

Type: Main Point

Strategy: Pre-phrase from the passage ID → compare → cut answers that are too narrow or inaccurate

The primary purpose of the passage is to

Family: Descriptive

Type: Main Purpose

Strategy: Same as Main Point → correct answer is often worded in a way you don't expect but fits the main point

The author of the passage is primarily concerned with

Family: Descriptive

Type: Main Purpose

Strategy: Same as Main Point → correct answer is often worded in a way you don't expect but fits the main point

The author mentions the 1906 survey primarily in order to

Family: Descriptive

Type: Specific Purpose (fine detail)

Strategy: Relation of the small piece to its chunk + the chain of sentences + any minor move (illustration, definition)

The primary function of the third paragraph is to

Family: Descriptive

Type: Specific Purpose (large chunk)

Strategy: Big picture → key chunks + main point → how this paragraph supports or relates to the main point

Which one of the following most accurately describes the organization of the passage?

Family: Descriptive

Type: Organization

Strategy: Revisit the key structure (major moves or points of emphasis) → check accuracy AND order

Which one of the following sequences most accurately and completely corresponds to the presentation of the material in the passage?

Family: Descriptive

Type: Organization

Strategy: Revisit the key structure (major moves or points of emphasis) → check accuracy AND order

According to the passage, which one of the following is true of the early settlers' farming methods?

Family: Descriptive

Type: Passage States

Strategy: Correct answer regurgitates the passage → treat it like Inference/Indication

The passage states which one of the following about the committee's findings?

Family: Descriptive

Type: Passage States

Strategy: Correct answer regurgitates the passage → treat it like Inference/Indication

Which one of the following can be inferred from the passage?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Inference

Strategy: Must be proven by the passage → big picture + factors of answer choice complexity

It can be inferred from the passage that the museum's curators

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Inference

Strategy: Must be proven by the passage → big picture + factors of answer choice complexity

The passage suggests that the author would be most likely to agree with which one of the following?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Indication

Strategy: Strongly supported, not proven ("most likely," "suggests") → big picture + factors

The passage provides the most support for which one of the following statements?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Indication

Strategy: Strongly supported, not proven ("most likely," "suggests") → big picture + factors

The author's attitude toward the new regulations is most accurately described as

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Author Attitude

Strategy: Author's view + tone words in the passage → check extreme language against how strong the author actually was

Which one of the following most accurately describes the author's stance toward the historians' interpretation?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Author Attitude

Strategy: Author's view + tone words in the passage → check extreme language against how strong the author actually was

As it is used in the second paragraph, the word "fragile" most nearly means

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Meaning

Strategy: Meaning in context, not the dictionary → chains of expanding sentences + meaning breadcrumbs + referential language → plug in

Which one of the following comes closest to capturing the meaning of the phrase "borrowed voice" (line 34)?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Meaning

Strategy: Meaning in context, not the dictionary → chains of expanding sentences + meaning breadcrumbs + referential language → plug in

The passage provides information that answers which one of the following questions?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Question Q

Strategy: Which question does the passage actually answer? → check each against the text

Which one of the following most logically completes the passage?

Family: Supported Conclusion

Type: Complete the Passage

Strategy: What does the passage's trajectory set up next? → must fit the main point and the last chunk

Which one of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author's claim that the policy failed?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Strengthen (claim)

Strategy: It asks you to support a CLAIM, the author's statement that the policy failed. The right answer is a new fact that gives one more reason to believe it. Ex: "Unemployment rose in every city that adopted the policy." Extreme language is a good sign here.

Which one of the following, if true, would provide the most support for the scholars' argument described in the second paragraph?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Strengthen (argument)

Strategy: It asks you to support an ARGUMENT, premises leading to a conclusion. The right answer makes the conclusion follow better from the premises in that paragraph. Only look at that part of the passage.

Which one of the following, if true, would most weaken the critics' argument described in the passage?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Weaken (argument)

Strategy: It asks you to hurt an ARGUMENT. The right answer breaks the link between the critics' premises and their conclusion. Only look at that part of the passage. Irrelevant = eliminate.

Which one of the following, if true, would most undermine the author's position regarding the dam?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Weaken (claim)

Strategy: "Position" means a CLAIM. The right answer is a new fact that gives a reason to doubt it. Extreme language is a good sign here.

The relationship between the painter and her apprentices is most analogous to which one of the following?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Analogy

Strategy: Pre-work: understand the part being paralleled before the answers → boil it down to 1-2 bullets

Which one of the following is most analogous to the approach the author attributes to modern courts?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Analogy

Strategy: Pre-work: understand the part being paralleled before the answers → boil it down to 1-2 bullets

Suppose a firm adopted the policy described in the passage. Based on the passage, which one of the following would most likely occur?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Application

Strategy: Apply the relevant part of the passage to the stem scenario → assess the scenario's details carefully

Which one of the following principles most clearly underlies the author's argument?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Principle

Strategy: Correct answer plays a supporting role → supports the author's conclusion OR justifies the author's method

Which one of the following principles is most clearly operative in the author's reasoning in the final paragraph?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Principle

Strategy: Correct answer plays a supporting role → supports the author's conclusion OR justifies the author's method

Which one of the following would be an example of the kind of evidence the author describes in the second paragraph?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Exemplify

Strategy: Understand the referenced part → pick the answer that illustrates it

Which one of the following most clearly exemplifies the "cultural borrowing" described in the passage?

Family: Logical Reasoning-type

Type: Exemplify

Strategy: Understand the referenced part → pick the answer that illustrates it

Any RC stem: how to sort it

1) "if true" on the answer, or "Suppose…" → LR-type: Strengthen, Weaken, Application 2) Asks WHY something is there:

• the whole passage → Main Point / Main Purpose

• one piece (a line, a paragraph) → Specific Purpose

• the order → Organization 3) Asks WHAT the passage says:

• "according to" / "states" → Passage States

• "can be inferred" → Inference (proven)

• "suggests" / "most likely agree" / "provides the most support for" → Indication (supported)

• "attitude" / "stance" → Author Attitude 4) Quoted word + "means" / "refers to" → Meaning 5) "analogous" → Analogy. "example of" → Exemplify. "principle" → Principle

A) According to the passage, the early settlers
B) It can be inferred from the passage that the early settlers
C) The passage suggests that the early settlers

A) Passage States: it's written in the passage. Regurgitate.
B) Inference: proven by the passage.
C) Indication: supported, doesn't have to be proven.
States = said. Inferred = proven. Suggests = supported.

A) The passage provides the most support for which one of the following?
B) Which one of the following, if true, would provide the most support for the author's claim?

A) Indication: the passage supports the answer.
B) Strengthen: "if true" on the answer. The answer supports the author's claim (that part only).
Same test as LR: who's supporting whom?

A) The primary purpose of the passage is to
B) The author mentions the 1906 survey primarily in order to
C) Which one of the following most accurately describes the organization of the passage?

A) Main Purpose: the whole passage. Same as Main Point.
B) Specific Purpose: one piece. Why is it there? Check its chunk and its chain.
C) Organization: the order of the moves. Check accuracy AND order.

A) The relationship between the painter and her apprentices is most analogous to which one of the following?
B) Which one of the following is an example of the "cultural borrowing" described in the passage?
C) Suppose a museum adopted the policy described in the passage. Which one of the following would most likely result?

A) Analogy: something SIMILAR in a different setting. Boil the passage part down to 1-2 bullets first.
B) Exemplify: an actual INSTANCE of the thing the passage describes.
C) Application: a new scenario. Predict what happens using the passage.

A) The author's attitude toward the new regulations is most accurately described as
B) The author would most likely agree with which one of the following statements about the new regulations?

A) Author Attitude: answers are attitude phrases ("qualified approval"). Defaults: the author has a position, and it's positive.
B) Indication: answers are full statements, supported by the passage.

A) Both authors would most likely agree with which one of the following?
B) The authors would most likely disagree about which one of the following?
C) Which one of the following most accurately describes the relationship between passage A and passage B?

A) CP agreement: fully supported by BOTH passages. Cut it if either one is silent.
B) CP disagreement: both passages take a side on it, opposite sides.
C) CP relationship: Oppositional, General-Specific, Same Issue Diff Aspects, or Same Issue Diff Contexts.

AC factor scan: what to do

1) Name every factor in the AC
2) For each one, ask what the passage must have said
3) If the passage didn't do that work, it's a strike
Factors aren't automatic eliminations:
- extreme/broad language is risky on Inference/Indication but a GOOD sign on Strengthen/Weaken
- negated extremes ("not all," "not always") are weak and easy to support

The author believes the new irrigation methods were adopted more quickly in the north than in the south because northern farmers had greater access to credit.

Comparative (north vs south) + Explanation (because) + Temporal (more quickly) + Multi-faceted
Passage must show: both regions' adoption speeds, compared, AND credit access named as the reason.

Most of the critics discussed in the passage rejected the composer's early work but praised her later symphonies.

Strong Language (most = over 50%) + Plural (critics) + Temporal (early vs later) + Multi-faceted
Passage must show: more than half the critics, BOTH reactions, and the early/later split.

The passage's author never questions the reliability of the survey data.

Extreme (never)
Passage must show: zero doubt about the data anywhere. One hedge kills it.

Not all historians accept the traditional account of the treaty's origins.

Negated extreme ("not all" = at least one doesn't)
Very weak, easy to support. One doubting historian is enough. Don't eliminate it for its language.

The researchers' findings are equivalent to those of the earlier study in every respect.

Equivalence (equivalent) + Extreme (every respect)
Passage must show: the findings match on everything, read literally.

The court's ruling applies to all contracts unless they were signed before 1990.

Exception/Limitation (unless) + Extreme Broadness (all contracts) + Temporal (before 1990)
Passage must show: the rule AND that exact exception.

If the dam is completed, the river's fish population will decline.

Conditional (if/then) + Temporal (will)
Passage must show: completion guarantees the decline, not just that it might cause one.

The architect's designs reflect Japanese, but not Scandinavian, influences.

X but not Y + Plural (designs, influences) + Multi-faceted
Passage must show BOTH halves: Japanese yes AND Scandinavian no. Silence on Scandinavian isn't enough.

The critic dismisses the theory because its proponents stand to profit from its adoption.

Ad Hominem (attacks motives) + Explanation (because)
Passage must show: the critic actually used the profit motive as the reason, not some other critique.

The latter approach is generally preferred by contemporary linguists.

Referential (latter) + Strong Language (generally) + Plural (linguists) + Temporal (contemporary)
Pin down what "latter" refers to first. Then: most current linguists prefer it.

The passage suggests that the painter used exactly three pigments in the 1871 portrait.

Granularity + Quantitative (exactly three) + Temporal (1871)
Very needy: a precise detail. If you don't remember it, needy + no recollection = eliminate.

The author argues that all government regulation of markets is harmful.

Extreme Broadness (all regulation) + Absurdity (too sweeping for a reasonable author)
Usually the passage was about ONE regulation. Broad claim, narrow support.

The new vaccine will eliminate the disease worldwide within a decade.

Extreme (eliminate) + Extreme Broadness (worldwide) + Temporal (within a decade)
Passage must show: total elimination, everywhere, on that timeline. Three ways to be wrong.

The predominant view among the scientists described is that the fossils are older than previously thought.

Strong Language (predominant) + Comparative (older than) + Temporal (previously) + Plural (scientists)
Passage must show: most of the scientists, a new estimate, AND that it's older than the old one.

The author mentions the 1920s strike to show that labor movements in the region were driven primarily by economic rather than political concerns.

Strong Language (primarily) + X but not Y (rather than) + Plural (movements) + Temporal (1920s)
Passage must show: economic concerns were the main driver AND political ones were secondary.