CARS Flashcards

Given the phrase "yet as useful as the creation of literature is..." was written by the author of the passage...

What does the author believe?

Given the phrase "yet as useful as the creation of literature is..." was written by the author of the passage...

What does the author believe?

The author believes that the creation of literature is irrelevant. The structure of this phrase "yet as __ as __ is..."

"Yet as useful as generic flashcards are, the student still has trouble identifying when to use the content knowledge in an actual MCAT scenarios"

Given the phrase "it has been argued that one cannot understand literature unless one writes it..." was written by the author of the passage...

What does the author believe?

The author believes that one can understand literature without writing it. The phrase that led to this conclusion was "it has been argued." The word "it" is third person and dissociates from the author's position.

"It has been argued that you should study content chapter by chapter from MCAT test prep companies... but this is often a waste of time and irrelevant to real MCAT problems."

Given the phrase "...an art in reality concerned with a selective, very reduced area of experience, which nevertheless claims to be universal."

What does the author believe?

"The author believes that art art is concerned with a reduced area of experience and disagrees that art is universal.

The phrase that leads to this conclusion was ""in reality"" which is a phrase used for stating that the true situation is different from what has been said or thought (popular belief). Another phrases that the author uses is ""nevertheless"" which shows a shift in tone and popular belief that the author disagrees with." In reality, nuclear fission produces highly toxic radioactive wastes. Nevertheless, it produces no greenhouse gases.

What is the function of the term "nevertheless/nonetheless"?

Has a concessive effect; introduces information that contrasts what was previously stated (Ordering of information negative effect --> positive effect)

Given the phrase "The relationship of the professional artist to the class that ruled or aspired to rule was complicated, various and should not be simplified. The artist's however - and it was training which made the artist a professional - taught the arist a set of conventional skills.

What does the shift in tone tell us?

"Shit in tone indicator: however (Positive info --> Negative info)

Popular belief is that the relationship between the artist and the class that ruled was complicated but the focus on the passage will be on the training that the artist received."

Nuclear fission produces no greenhouse gases. However, it does produce highly toxic radioactive wastes. (Positive --> Negative)

Given the problem: "In the context of the passage, the term tradition refers primarily to the:"

What does the phrase "In the context of the passage" mean?

It refers to the passage as a whole. This means you should used the main argument of the passage to answer the question. If a specific portion of the passage is mentioned, then you will need to go to that part of the passage

Given the problem: In the context of the passage, the term tradition refers primarily to the: A. best way to record and preserve eternal artistic truths. B. set of artistic conventions that correspond to the social manners of a ruling elite. C. system of applying mythological or symbolic elements to realistic subjects. D. expansion of the area of artistic experience to include the unconscious.

What is the root question of this problem?

Describe the role of the term tradition in the passage (2.06)

Given the problem: In the context of the passage, the term tradition refers primarily to the: A. best way to record and preserve eternal artistic truths. B. set of artistic conventions that correspond to the social manners of a ruling elite. C. system of applying mythological or symbolic elements to realistic subjects. D. expansion of the area of artistic experience to include the unconscious.

After identifying that this problem is asking you to describe the role of tradition in the passage, what are the steps to solving problem type 2.06?

1. Locate the earliest instance of the term
2. Find why the term is important (from the rest of the sentence you found it in)
3. Use the "importance" as a connector to anything else that talks about the "importance" in the previous paragraph or paragraphs
4. Connect these points

Given the problem: "According to the passage, why did past artistic conventions most likely correspond so closely to social manners of the ruling classes?"

What does the phrase "according to the passage" indicate?

According to the passage --> must go into the passage find a specific sentence that supports our answer

Given the problem and answer choices: According to the passage, why did past artistic conventions most likely correspond so closely to the social manners of the ruling classes? A. Artists were interested in the narrowness and isolation of the ruling classes as a historical phenomenon. B. Artists felt that the experiences of the ruling classes were the only kinds of activity worth recording. C. Artists aspired to the wealth and power of the ruling classes. D. Artists look to the members of the ruling classes for financial support. "

What patterns do you see in the answer choices?
What is the question really asking?"

"Problem relates ""artistic conventions"" with ""social manners of the ruling classes"" while the answer choices all relate the ""artists"" to the ""ruling class""

The question is really asking what is the relationship between the artists and the ruling class and NOT conventions and social manners."

What is the purpose of an example in a specific paragraph?

As evidence to support the topic sentences of the paragraph that they are contained in

Given the problem: "The discussion of Ford Maddox Brown's painting Work shows primarily that:"

What are the steps to finding the answer to this problem?

1. Find the paragraph where Work is described.
2. Read the sentence before the example of Work. That should be the answer

The Portrait of Gertrude Stein (1906) stands out as an indicator of this transformation: Picasso asked his subject to remain for over eighty sittings. Then he went away for the summer, annihilated the recognizable facial features, and finished the portrait away from Stein, substituting masklike features for realistic ones. (Chastised because the portrait did not look like Stein, Picasso reportedly responded with one of the notable artistic one-liners of the century: "Don't worry, it will.")

What information does the conclusion tell you about the argument?

"This transformation" = refers to some overarching transformation.
Remainder of the paragraph is fluff

The Portrait of Gertrude Stein (1906) stands out as an indicator of this transformation: Picasso asked his subject to remain for over eighty sittings. Then he went away for the summer, annihilated the recognizable facial features, and finished the portrait away from Stein, substituting masklike features for realistic ones. (Chastised because the portrait did not look like Stein, Picasso reportedly responded with one of the notable artistic one-liners of the century: "Don't worry, it will.")

After learning about this transformation, what questions can we ask?

What is the transformation about?

Given the phrase: "The standard story told of Picasso is that his precocious talent enabled him to surpass, without effort, all other artists in his milieu."

What does the phrase "the standard story' mean?

It indicates that this is a popular belief that the author will most likely go against.

Given the phrase: "The standard story told of Picasso is that his precocious talent enabled him to surpass, without effort, all other artists in his milieu. It is worth considering Picasso's own opinion that what is often considered early genius is actually the naivete of childhood."

Where is the shift in tone?

The first sentence states the popular belief. The second sentence contains the shift in tone with the statement "is actually". After the popular belief will be a shift in tone. Reading with emotion will allow you to be able to notice this shift in tone.

What is usually the response of an author to ANY standard or popular belief told in a passage?

"The response of the author to ANY standard or popular belief told in the beginning of ANY argumentative passage will almost ALWAYS be skepticism.

Standard Story → Shift in Tone → Author's Belief"

What is the structure of a passage?

1. Content/Background/Popular belief
2. Shit in Tone
3. Thesis/Author's Belief
4. Evidence (with more shits in tone to refute popular belief).
5. Conclusion (recapping Context, Shift in Tone, and Thesis over again).

Shifts in tone ALWAYS come after the (1)______. Therefore the response of the author to ANY (1)_____ told in the beginning of ANY argumentative passage will almost ALWAYS be (2)_____________.

(1) Popular belief
(2) Skepticism

"Given the problem: The assertion that Picasso's early productions contain harbingers of his later art is NOT clearly consistent with the intormation about:
A. the way Picasso described his first drawings.
B. the distortions of form and scale in these works.
C. the lack of drawings from his first eight years.
the palyfulness of his graphic experimentation."

Knowing that Picasso's early productions was discussed in the passage as context, where will the answer to this question most likely be found?

The answer is most likely to be found immediately after the shift in tone.

The shift in tone usually contradicts what was said in the popular belief/context

When asked to change the context of the passage as it relates to the main idea and predict the outcome (2.05), what can you expect from this question type?

The point of this question is to take two statements from the passage and say which one of these is contradicting. And usually one of the assertions will be the popular belief

Example: The assertion that Picasso's early productions contain harbingers of his later art is NOT clearly consistent with the information about:

The question stem contains the popular belief/context information and the correct answer would be immediately after the shift in tone because this information about clearly be inconsistent

Given the problem: Which passage information provides the strongest reason to suppose that Picasso had always been an artist of Apollinaire's first type?

What subquestion(s) would be beneficial in answering this question?

1. What is an artist of Appollinaire's first type?

Given the phrase: " Good literature is more than effective rhetoric applied to true ideas--even if we could agree upon a philosophical yardstick for measuring the truth of ideas and even if we could find some way that transcended nose counting for determining the effectiveness of the rhetoric."

What does this concluding sentence tell us about the author?

Author believes that for something to be considered good literature, it must do more than be effective rhetoric Good = descriptive; this is the author's opinion is more than = 'is' indicates that this is a fact presented by the author

Given the phrase: "A literary work is a document and as a document can be analyzed in terms of the forces that have produced it, or it may be manipulated as a force in its own right. It mirrors the past, it may influence the future. These facts it would be futile to deny, and I know of no critic who does deny them. But the reduction of a work of literature to its causes does not constitute literary criticism; nor does an estimate of its effects. Good literature is more than effective rhetoric applied to true ideas--even if you agree upon a philosophical yardstick for measuring the truth of ideas and even if we could find some way that transcended nose counting for determining the effectiveness of the rhetoric."

In this conclusion paragraph, what is the popular belief, shift in tone, and author's belief?

Popular belief: Literature can be analyzed by the forces that produce it or manipulated as a force of its own

Shift in tone: Indicator =""but""; Literary criticism =/= causes or effect

Author's belief: Good lit is more than cause and effect

Given the phrase: "These facts it would be futuile to deny, and I know of no critic who does deny them."

What information can be extracted from this statement?

"These facts" = referring to information discussed in the previous sentence

"It would be futile to deny" = popular belief

"I" = author is speaking in first person; author MUST consider this information a fact

Given the phrase: "On the other hand, exploration of the various readings which the work has received also takes the critic away from the work into psychology and the history of taste."

What information can be extracted from this statement?

"On the other hand" = phrase that contrast two different views of a single issue or problem; continuation of the previous paragraph "also takes the critic away from the work" = information stated in the previous paragraph AND exploration of various readings are not apart of literary criticism .

On the one hand I'd like a job which pays more, but on the other hand I enjoy the work I'm doing at the moment.

Given the phrase: "If investment in workers outpaces the number of good jobs, many very competent workers will face an employment market of many very undemanding jobs."

What information does this conclusion tell you about the argument?

This is an IF THEN sentence. It tells you the author's argument
So IF investment in workers outpaces the number of good jobs THEN high skilled workers will face a market of undemanding jobs

Given the phrase: "But although high-wage, high skill jobs create a demand for education and training, training does not create high-wage jobs."

What is the popular belief, shift in tone, and author's belief?

Popular belief: high wage, high skill jobs create a demand for education and training

Shift in tone: But although

Author's belief: training does not create high wage jobs

Given the phrase "Policies at all levels should encourage the coordination of employer-provided training and broader schooling"

What information can be extracted from this statement?

The author's opinion is that training is a must.
Normative phrase: "should"
A normative statement expresses a value judgment about whether a situation is desirable or undesirable. It looks at the world as it "should" be."

The term "because" used at the beginning of a sentence signals?

A causal relations (X --> Y). It indicates that the author wishes to introduce an explanation or information.

Given the phrase " Because many inferences are made during schema-based comprehension, some information may be recalled that was never presented. These inferences often cannot be discriminated by the learner from the information presented.

What information can be extracted from this statement?

Inferences made during schema-based comprehension CAUSE some info to be recalled that was never presented which the person cannot discriminate.

Because = causal relationship

In many descriptive passages, where can shifts in tone occur?

In the concluding paragraph with the rest of the passage being a description of things or events.

What is Answer Choice E and how does it help?

Answer Choice E contains every bullet point from which the correct answer can be supported.

What is Bracketing and how is it different from process of elimination?

Bracketing is a technique used to eliminate the weaker answer choice between two answer choices. It's a methodical version of process of elimination because once one answer is determined to be weaker than another answer, it cannot possibly be the correct answer. You cannot move from one bracket to another bracket before determining a winner, which is different from POE which compares all 4 answer choices at once.

What is MS;LR and how does it help?

Most support and least rationalization helps break a student's tendency to rationalizing and overthinking a wrong answer choice. It focuses students on selecting answers that are most supported from the data given in the passage and increases the efficiency in problem solving.

Given the concluding sentence: "Because many inferences are made during the schema-based comprehension, some information may be recalled that was never presented. These inferences often cannot be discriminated by the learner from the information presented."

What does that indicate about the main argument of the author?

The author believes that inferences made during schema-based comprehension CAUSE some information to be recalled that was never presented.

"Because" tells us that the author is providing what they believe is a causal relationship X --> Y.

Where does the shift in tone occur in descriptive passage?

The shifts in tone usually occur in the concluding paragraph with the rest of the passage being a description of things or events

What kind of tone can be expected of a descriptive passage?

They usually have a neutral stance. It is more balanced.

What is an assumption?

Claims the author makes without much direct evidence.
When asked about assumptions ask "Which claims does the author make in the discussion of that subject without too much evidence or spending too much of the passage talking about it?"

Given the problem: "The passage implies that art is at its best when it: " and the answer choices are:
A) transcends conventions.
B) records eternal truths.
C) reflects social manners.
D) treats religious themes.

What are the general indicators and what do they indicate?

There are two general indicators: 1) "The passage" which indicates that there will be a strong need for support from the passage and overall main argument and 2) "the blank" which indicates that we must look into the answer choices to see what kind of answer the problem is looking for.

Given the problem: "The passage implies that art is at its best when it: " and the answer choices are:
A) transcends conventions.
B) records eternal truths.
C) reflects social manners.
D) treats religious themes.

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem?

There are two specific indicators: "implies" which indicates that we will have to make one slight change to the main argument away from the passage by ourselves and "best" which indicates that we have to look into the passage to understand how the author considered art at its best. Because it is an implication problem, and this type of problem tests our ability to manipulate the main argument away from the passage, we can safely assume that the passage will NOT state what art is at its best. Instead, it will most likely state art at its worst, and we will have to infer art at its best.

Example: Cookies are unhealthy because they are high in fat and sugar.
What's the implication?
"Therefore... healthy foods are low in fat and sugar// foods in general that are high in fat and sugar are unhealthy"

Given the problem: Implicit in the passage is the assumption that:

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem?

There are two specific indicators: "Implicit" and "assumption" means that we will have to make one slight change to the main argument away from the passage by ourselves. Implication problems test our ability to manipulate the main argument away from the passage. So we can safely assume that the answer will be something not explicitly stated in the passage

Given the problem: "The discussion of Ford Maddox Brown's painting Work shows primarily that:"

What type of problem is this and what would would be the general template for solving such a problem?

The problem type is 2.03 (evaluate and describe the evidence of the argument in the passage). The general problem solving approach would be to
1) find the evidence in the passage in the middle of some paragraph
2) look at the preceding sentences at the beginning of that paragraph
3) choose the answer that closely resembles those sentences from step 2.

Given the problem: "According to the passage, why did past artistic conventions most likely correspond so closely to the social manners of the ruling classes?"

What are the general indicators and what do they indicate?

The general indicators are:
1) "according to the passage" and
2) "most likely" which tell us that the answer is stated in the passage. We will be using only the facts presented in the passage, no more and no less.

Given the problem: "According to the passage, why did past artistic conventions most likely correspond so closely to the social manners of the ruling classes?"

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem?

The specific indicator is "correspond" which indicates that this is not a main argument problem and this is not an implication problem. This is purely a descriptive problem about the relationship between the artist and the ruling class.

Given the problem: "To judge whether instantiation has occurred, a researcher would need to determine"

What are the specific indicators and what are the steps to solving this problem?

"The specific indicator is ""has occurred"" which refers to some final step of some process found in the passage.

Find the process, find the instantiation step, find the step before that. The preceding step is the answer"

Given the problem: "The assertion that Picasso's early productions contain harbingers of his later art is NOT clearly consistent with the information about:"

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem?

The specific indicators are "the assertion", "the information" and "NOT clearly consistent" which tell us that there are two conflicting bits of information given specifically word for word in the passage that we have the find. Usually the assertion is found in the beginning of the passage and corresponds with a popular belief that the author does not agree with, and the "information" that contradicts that popular belief is found after the initial shift in tone and represents the author's main argument.

Given the problem: "In the context of the passage, the term tradition refers primarily to the: "

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem and what is the general process of solving this type of problem?

The specific indicators are "the term""and "refers" which indicates that we have to:
1. Locate the earliest instance of the term.
2. Find why the term is important (from the rest of the sentence you found it in).
3. Use the "importance" as a connector to anything else that talks about that "importance" in the previous paragraph or paragraphs.
4. Connect those points.

Given the problem: "The author of the passage probably rejects the use of biography and psychology in literary criticism because these disciplines:

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem and what is the general process of solving this type of problem?

The specific indicator is "the use" which indicates that we have to:
1. Locate the earliest instance of the words "the use of biography and psychology"
2. Find why the term is important (from the rest of the sentence)
3. Read a couple of sentences before that. What was the paragraph about? Importance?
4. Connect those points

Given the problem: "The author of the passage would be most likely to agree with which of the following ideas expressed by other literary critics?"

What are the specific indicators and what do they indicate about the root question of this problem?

The specific indicator is "most likely to agree with" which tells us that we have to understand the main argument, the components or structure of the main argument and be able to match the answer choices to one of the components of the main argument.

Where can the conclusion of a paragraph be found?

Conclusions are found in the TOPIC SENTENCES of each of the paragraphs

What is the function of a normative phrase?

It indicates the author's position on that topic.

What is the function of the term "however"?

1. To introduce a problem in a Situation-Problem-Solution pattern. Situation (+) --> Problem (-)
2. Introduce a sentence that not only contrasts a previous sentence, but also seems surprising or unexpected in view of what has been stated earlier in the first sentence

1. The prototype training program proved to be successful in improving inspection accuracy. However, it did not show significant improvements in inspection speed. 2. All major studies of the greenhouse effect have concluded that sea level and precipitation will change significantly. However, most engineers and planners implicitly assume that these changes will not occur.

What is the function of the term "on the other hand"?

To contrast two different views of a single issue or problem.

Fossil fuel companies have worked relentlessly to convince the American public that global warming is a 'Chicken Little' fantasy. The insurance industry, on the other hand, knows that global warming is real because hurricanes, cyclones, and floods between 1990 and 1995 cost the industry about fifteen times as much as such events had cost in the 1980s.

What is the function of the term in contrast/by contrast?

Two sentence connectors ("in contrast" and "by contrast") contrast a single feature in two different things. Note, however, that the feature in the first thing is usually the opposite of that compared in the second thing.

The average surface temperature of the moon, about the same distance as the Earth from the Sun, is -18°C. The moon, of course, has no atmosphere. By contrast, the average surface temperature of the Earth is +15°C. This heating effect is called the natural greenhouse effect.

What is the function of the term instead?

To replace or substitute one action with another. When "instead" comes at the beginning of a sentence, it tends to be often used after a negative sentence. (negative --> positive)

Without the natural "greenhouse effect," temperatures would be much lower than they are now, and life as known today would not be possible. Instead, thanks to greenhouse gases, the earth's average temperature is a more hospitable 15°C.

What is the function of the phrase on the contrary?

Use "on the contrary" to disagree with an idea or to dispute the "truth" of a widely-held view. In the first sentence, the writer contradicts this viewpoint using a negative form ("no", "not", "nothing"), and the second sentence then supports this opposite view with evidence or correct facts, expressed in the positive form.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is not a pollutant. On the contrary, it makes crops and forests grow faster. Economic analysis has demonstrated that more CO2 and a warmer climate will raise GNP and thus average income.

What is the function of the term alternatively?

Use "alternatively" when there is a choice, or you intend to suggest an action different from that mentioned in a previous sentence. This sentence connector occurs most frequently with "can" or "could", and can also follow "or"

Nanoparticles can enter damaged cells and release enzymes that initiate the cells' auto destruct sequence, known as "apoptosis". Alternatively, they can release enzymes to try to repair the cell and return it to normal functioning.

What are subordinate connectors?

function to introduce information that contrasts or differs from information given in the same sentence. This class of contrastive connectors can be placed either at the beginning, middle or the end of a sentence, separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma. (Although, Even though, though, while, whereas) Although it is twice as far away from the Sun as Mercury, Venus is the planet with the hottest surface temperature day or night.

Words such as even more, above all, indeed, more importantly, besides all, do what?

Words used to emphasis a point or idea