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Verbal Test A Solutions
1) The passage suggests that it is safer to spread your savings across a range of different
investments.
True – the third sentence explains that the very rich have been diversifying their
portfolios to reduce the risk of, as the first sentence explains, there being sudden changes
in share prices.
2) Returns on stamp investments have been 60% higher than equity returns over the last
ten years.
Cannot tell – the passage states that alternative investments such as stamps have
“outperformed traditional investments by around 60%”. However this statement does
specify that equity investments are a type of traditional investment.
3) A piece of art is of more aesthetic value to a potential investor if it can be stored at
home.
True – as the last sentence in the passage explains, there is a downside to investing in
expensive art that then has to be stored in a bank vault. Part of what is lost is indeed the
aesthetic value of being able to appreciate how the art looks.
4) In the last ten years, the richest people in society have suffered a drop in the value of
their share portfolios.
True – it can be inferred from the first sentence of the passage that the sudden changes in
stock market prices (“highly volatile equities”) have led to the need to mitigate risk and
preserve capital i.e. from further losses.
5) Some of the work that Picasso produced has subsequently been proved to be fake.
False – the passage mentions that there is a danger in buying a fake due to fraudsters
flooding the market. However any work produced by Picasso would, by definition, not be
fake.
6) The Barclays Cycle Hire scheme has been unprofitable because cycling in London is
seen to be dangerous.
False – while the third paragraph does indeed claim that “Cycling in London is widely
perceived as dangerous”, the second paragraph states that “10 million journeys have been
taken since the scheme’s launch”. The scheme’s economic failure is due to the high
percentage of free journeys.
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7) The majority of participants in the BCH scheme use the bicycles for short journeys.
True – the second paragraph states that, “95% of all BCH journeys clock in at under half an
hour”. Hence the majority of journeys are short.
8) Cycling in London is less dangerous today than it was in the 1990s.
Cannot tell – while the last paragraph states that “cycling fatalities have fallen by 20% since
the new millennium” the same paragraph also mentions that “Cycling advocates believe
more measures are needed to ensure London’s streets are safe for cyclists.” No direct
comparison is given to definitively say whether cycling is more or less dangerous, especially
as fatalities are not the only measure of danger – no figures are given for injuries.
9) It is free to use the BCH cycles, provided journeys are limited to under half an hour.
False – while journeys lasting under half an hour are free, users do need to pay a “small
access fee”. For some answers, you will need to look for information in more than one part
of the passage.
10) The number of London cyclists has risen by more than 80% thanks to the mayor of
London’s initiatives.
Cannot tell – while the final paragraph states that “the number of cyclists in London
increasing by over 80% since the turn of the century” it is impossible to tell from the
information provided whether this rise was a direct result of the mayor’s initiatives in 2010.
11) Abstract expressionism was a loose community of American artists painting in the
late 1940s.
Cannot tell – the nationality of the painters is not specified. While abstract expressionism is
described as an “American painting movement” the first paragraph also mentions “the
immigration of European avant garde painters to New York”.
12) Abstract expressionism was unified by its emotional intensity and its belief in the
primacy of painting.
True – this paraphrases the last sentence in the second paragraph.
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13) Painters such as Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock, with very different styles,
refuted the notion that they belonged to the same artistic movement.
Cannot tell – while Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock are cited as abstract
expressionist painters, and the second paragraph states that “Abstract expressionism was not
distinguished by a cohesive style and the painters associated with the movement rejected the
idea that they were a “school” of art.” Nowhere, however, does the passage detail Pollock
and de Kooning’s views on the matter.
14) Abstract expressionism inspired European art movements such as minimalism and
neo-expressionism.
Cannot tell – while the last paragraph states that “The movement heralded a shift of artistic
influence from Europe to America” and goes on to say that “It influenced later art
movements such as minimalism and neo-expressionism” it does not follow that these are
European art movements. Be careful not to make assumptions.
15) As its name suggests, abstract expressionist art is non-representative.
False – the second paragraph states that “The work was mostly, but not exclusively, nonrepresentational”. A generalization is not the same thing as an absolute.
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