15 questionswith explanationsfor RAS, Patwari, VDO and other Rajasthan exams
A, P, R, X, S and Z are sitting in a row. S and Z are in the centre, A and P are at the ends. R is sitting to the left of A. Who is sitting to the right of P?
Answer: (2) X
Explanation
In a row of six, S and Z take the two middle places and A and P the two ends. R is next to A on its left, so A is at the right end with R beside it; P is at the left end and X sits between P and the centre. So X is to the right of P.
Find the word that can be formed from the letters of the given word - PRAGMATIC
Answer: (4) MAGIC
Explanation
PRAGMATIC has the letters M, A, G, I and C, so MAGIC can be made. GUITAR needs U, AGMARK needs K and GAME needs E, which are not there.
One morning, Hritik walks 2 km towards East, then turns right and walks 3 km, then turns left and walks 2 km. Which direction is he facing now?
Answer: (4) East
Explanation
He walks East, turns right to face South, then turns left to face East again. So he is facing East.
The sum of ages of X, Y and Z is 45 years. What is Y’s age? Statements: (I) Y is 12 years older than X. (II) Z is 15 years old.
Answer: (3) Both statements (I) and (II) are sufficient to answer the question.
Explanation
From (II), X + Y = 45 − 15 = 30. From (I), Y = X + 12. Together, 2X + 12 = 30, so X = 9 and Y = 21. Neither statement alone is enough, but both together are.
What is the last letter of the word which is formed by rearranging the following letters? C, P, A, O, E, C, K (A bird)
Answer: (2) K
Explanation
The letters C, P, A, O, E, C, K make PEACOCK, a bird. Its last letter is K.
A cyber-attack hits a major city’s network, crippling services. Courses of action would be - (I) The authorities should immediately shut down all networks. (II) The IT team should identify and fix the vulnerability.
Answer: (4) Both (I) and (II) follow
Explanation
VMOU's key gives (D) both: shutting the networks at once stops the attack from spreading, and the IT team then finds and fixes the weakness. By the usual rule for course-of-action questions, though, shutting down all of a city's networks is an extreme step that itself cripples services, so most books would answer (B) Only (II); the board kept (D).
Statements (I) and (II) are given below, read them and select the correct answer - Statements: (I) Online shopping has increased significantly. (II) Many local retail shops are shutting down.
Answer: (1) Statement (I) is the cause and Statement (II) is its effect.
Explanation
As more people shop online, fewer buy from local shops, so many local retail shops close. Statement (I) is the cause and (II) its effect.
A drawer has 6 red, 8 blue and 10 black socks, all mixed. In the dark, what is the least number of socks you must take out to be sure of getting two black socks?
Answer: (3) 16
Explanation
In the worst case all 6 red and 8 blue socks come out first (14 socks), and only then must the next 2 be black, so 14 + 2 = 16. Four socks make sure only of a pair of some colour, and 15 makes sure of just one black sock.
Nine coins look identical, but one of them is heavier than the others. Using a simple pan balance, what is the minimum number of weighings that is certain to find the heavier coin?
Answer: (2) 2
Explanation
Divide the coins into three groups of 3 and weigh two groups: the heavier pan, or the balance if both are equal, shows the group with the heavy coin. Then weigh two coins of that group; the same logic finds it, so 2 weighings suffice, and one weighing (three outcomes) cannot separate nine coins.
A farmer has 15 goats. All but 8 of them die. How many goats are left?
Answer: (3) 8
Explanation
'All but 8' means every goat except 8 dies, so exactly 8 are left. Subtracting 8 from 15 gives 7, which is the number that die, not the number left.
Which of the following is the logical opposite (negation) of the statement 'All the students of the class passed the test'?
Answer: (4) At least one student of the class failed the test
Explanation
A statement about 'all' becomes false as soon as a single exception exists, so its negation is 'at least one student failed'. 'No student passed' and 'all failed' are much stronger claims, and 'some passed' can be true even when all passed, so none of them is the exact opposite.
Statements: I. This week, the government schools of the district changed their timings to 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. II. This week, the sale of earthen pots (matkas) rose sharply in the district's markets. Which of the following is correct?
Answer: (4) Both statements are effects of a common cause
Explanation
Neither event can cause the other: new school timings do not make people buy matkas, and matka sales do not change school timings. Both follow from one common cause, a spell of severe heat, when schools move to morning hours and people buy matkas to keep drinking water cool; 'independent causes' is wrong because a single cause explains both.
Statement: A wide crack has appeared in a wall of an old government school building during the monsoon. Courses of action: I. The students should be shifted to a safe room until the wall is inspected and repaired. II. The wall should be painted over so that the crack no longer shows. Which course(s) of action follows?
Answer: (2) Only I follows
Explanation
Moving the children away from the danger until the wall is checked and repaired is a sensible, proportionate step. Painting over the crack only hides it and leaves the wall as unsafe as before, so II does not follow.
Statement: A school has put up a notice: "Parents are requested to check the school website for the examination timetable." Assumptions: I. Most of the parents can use the internet. II. Parents are not allowed to visit the school. Which assumption is implicit in the statement?
Answer: (1) Only I is implicit
Explanation
Asking parents to look at a website works only if most of them can go online, so I is implicit. Nothing in the notice suggests that visiting the school is forbidden, so II is not an assumption.
Should every village panchayat have a public library? Arguments: I. Yes, it would help build a reading habit among the villagers. II. No, because books can be bought in the market. Which argument is strong?
Answer: (4) Only argument I is strong
Explanation
A library gives villagers free access to books and so supports reading, which makes argument I strong. That books are sold in markets does not help those who cannot afford them or live far from a shop, so argument II is weak.