Assumptions Exercise

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ASSUMPTIONS

Whenever we say something (in any conversation) there are certain assumptions which must be true for
the statement to make sense. In other words an assumption is something that is ‘taken for granted’ in
the context of a statement.

Most questions on Statement and Assumptions give you a statement and follow it up with two further
statements which have to be tested for whether they are implied in the original statement or not. In
order to identify whether an assumption is implied in a statement the best way to do so is to look at the
original statement in the question by negating the assumption which is being tested. In case the
assumption being tested is implied, negating it will have the effect of weakening the argument of the
original statement.

Directions: In each question below is given a statement followed by two assumptions numbered I and

II. Consider the statement and decide which of the given assumption is implicit.

Given answer

(a) If only assumption I is implicit.

(b) If only assumption II is implicit.

(c) If both I and II are implicit.

(d) If neither I nor II is implicit.

1. Statement: Strong programming skills cannot be the only criteria for a successful career in the field of
Information Technology.

Assumptions

I. Bright careers in Information Technology are not linked only with strong programming skills.

II. If a person has excellent communication skills as well as strong programming skills, only then would
he be successful.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 1


2. Statement: The maximum IAS exam selection will be from our institute—A director of a coaching
institution.

Assumptions

I. Most of the students who study in this institute are genius.

II. Teachers of the coaching institution are preparing their students thoroughly.

3. Statement: Over a cricketing career most players would do well to remember that there is only one
thing that overcomes hard luck—hard work.

Assumptions

I. If a cricketer is hardworking, he/she can easily tackle the toughest phases of his cricketing career.

II. A cricketer writes his/her own destiny by hard work.

4. Statement: The case of Marion Jones clearly indicates that if taking drugs play a vital role in the
performance of athletes, there is absolutely no use of spending time to watch the athletics in the
Olympics.

Assumptions

I. Cricketers, hockey players and footballers are not involved in doping. So we can spend time to watch
such games.

II. Asian athletes do not win medals because they refrain from taking drugs.

5. Statement: A Reliance Fresh Retail store was attacked by vegetable vendors in Ranchi.

Assumptions

I. Reliance Fresh has affected the livelihood of local vegetable vendors.

II. Reliance Fresh stores are built in thickly populated areas.

6. Statement: UPSC is tougher than MPPSC. So I will appear in MPPSC.

Assumptions

I. Every graduate should appear in MPPSC.

II. One should avoid tougher things because one might fail in them and failure might lead to a loss of
time. On the other hand if something is easy the chances of succeeding are high.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 2


7. Statement: Rahim is a tall boy.

Assumptions

I. Rahim’s father’s height is 6 feet 7 inches.

II. Any height above 6 feet is considered to be tall.

8. Statement: What is the distance of my home from my office?

Assumptions

I. My home is at the centre of the city.

II. My office is 10 km away from the park, which is 1 km away from my home.

9. Statement: A says to B “Refer to the Cambridge dictionary instead of the Oxford dictionary to be good
at English.”

Assumptions

I. B wants to be good at English.

II. A is a good advisor.

10. Statement: Narayan the CEO of the company says to his employee, “Achieve the targets we have set
for you or I will fire you.”

Assumptions

I. With Narayan’s statement, the employee will work hard to achieve his targets.

II. All bosses are in the habit of intimidating their employees.

11. Statement: In the last year, Lucknow University has launched a number of management courses for
the better future of its students.

Assumptions

I. These courses may attract students.

II. Lucknow University is conscious about the future of students.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 3


12. Statement: “We should take permission from the director of the college in order to organise the
annual fest.” One student to another.

Assumptions

I. Without the director’s permission we can’t organise the annual fest.

II. The director does not want to celebrate annual fests.

13. Statement: “If you want to specialise in Human Resource Management in India, join XLRI.”

Assumptions

I. XLRI provides specialisation in HRM.

II. XLRI has the best HRM course in India.

14. Statement: Most rural folks are uneducated and therefore superstitious.

Assumptions

I. Education increases rational thinking.

II. Rural folks don’t go to school.

15. Statement: Since the exam is held on the third Sunday of November it is going to be held on 18th
November this year.

Assumptions

I. This year it will not be held on 15th, 19th, 20th or 21st of November.

II. This year it will not be held on 16th or 17th November.

16. Statement: “See it first only on our channel”, an advertisement of a news channel.

Assumptions

I. Advertising is the first and most important thing for every channel.

II. Other news channels do not want to show things first.

17. Statement: To keep my knowledge about world affairs strong I always read The Economist
magazine.

Assumptions

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 4


I. There is no other magazine except The Economist for world affairs.

II. The Economist is a cheap magazine.

18. Statement: The present condition of law and order is the worst of all time.

Assumptions

I. The present government does not pay heed to the requirements of maintaining law and order.

II. In earlier days, the law and order condition was better.

19. Statement: India’s contribution to the growing global market of management consultancy may
touch $5 billion by 2030, which is 10 per cent of the current export size.

Assumptions

I. The current export size is $50 billion.

II. The current year is 2010.

20. Statement: A Harvard University study raises fresh concerns about the anti-allergy drug Crocin which
is prescribed to patients following antibiotic medication. Compared with other two anti-allergy drugs
(one of the three must be prescribed), this study shows that Crocin significantly raises the risk of
adverse side effects following antibiotic medication.

Assumptions

I. There is no risk if one of the two other anti-allergy drugs are administered.

II. It is necessary to take an anti-allergy drug after antibiotic medication.

21. Statement: Children whose mothers eat more Frito Lays during pregnancy have higher motor skills
and more athletic capability than those whose mothers eat little, according to a new British study.

Assumptions

I. Those whose mothers don’t eat Frito Lays have zero motor skills and athletic capability.

II. It is essential for pregnant women to have Frito Lays in order to have children with higher motor skills
and more athletic capability.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 5


22. Statement: Many students were caught red-handed and rusticated while using unfair means during
the recent university examinations.

Assumptions

I. The University authorities have never taken such strong actions earlier.

II. The examination administration committee had prior knowledge about this issue.

23. Statement: The parents of majority of the students of IIM Ahmedabad have decided to withdraw
their wards from the institute to protest against the sharp fee hike.

Assumptions

I. It is likely that such attempts will make the IIM Ahmedabad authority to rethink the sharp fee hike.

II. The institution will be closed after 10th of June.

24. Statement: In the absence of Ravi, Sunil will be teaching mathematics in AMS.

Assumptions

I. AMS has only two teachers of mathematics.

II. Ravi is better than Sunil.

25. Statement: It is clear from the past records of the gym that most people who exercise at the gym
regularly maintain the perfect correlation between height and weight.

Assumptions

I. Exercise at the gym is essential for everyone.

II. If one wants to have weight according to his height, he should exercise at the gym regularly.

26. Statement: “Please switch off your mobile phones while you are in class”, a notice outside a
classroom in XYZ.

Assumptions

I. Every student of XYZ keeps mobile phones.

II. Switched on mobile phones might distract the atmosphere of the class.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 6


27. Statement: If you have the desire to excel, we have a job for you.

Assumptions

I. If you don’t have a desire to excel, you will not get a job with us.

II. Every job requires the desire to excel.

28. Statement: “Please submit your fee well before 10th February”, A notice at a coaching institution.

Assumptions

I. Unless they are instructed through a notice, a number of students will not submit their fee.

II. The institute will be closed after 10th of August.

29. Statement: The telephone department has started going home to home to collect bills.

Assumptions

I. A substantial number of customers fail to pay their bills in the telephone department.

II. There has been a high default rate in the case of telephone bill payments.

30. Statement: Use Brylcream to look handsome.

Assumptions

I. People want to look handsome.

II. Only ugly people will purchase this product.

31. Statement : The school authority has decided to increase the number of students in each classroom
to seventy from the next academic session to bridge the gap between income and expenditure to a
larger extent.

Assumptions

I. The income generated by way of fees of the additional students will be sufficient enough to bridge the
gap.

II. The school will get all the additional students in each class from the next academic session.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 7


32. Statement : The driver of the huge truck pulled the emergency brakes to avoid hitting the auto
rickshaw which suddenly came in front of the truck.

Assumptions

I. The auto rickshaw driver may be able to steer his vehicle away from the oncoming truck.

II. The truck driver may be able to stop the truck before it hits the autorickshaw .

33. Statement : The doctor warned the patient against any further consumption of alcohol, if he desired
to get cured from the ailment and live a longer life.

Assumptions

I. The patient may follow the doctor’s advice and stop consuming alcohol.

II. The doctor may be able to cure the patient from the ailment, if the patient stops consuming alcohol.

34. Statement : The chairman of the company urged all the employees to refrain from making long
personal calls during working hours in order to boost productivity.

Assumptions

I. Majority of the employees may respond positively to the chairman’s appeal.

II. Most of the employees may continue to make long personal calls during working hours.

35. Statement : The local cultural club decided to organize a musical event to raise money for the
construction of the club building.

Assumptions

I. The local residents may not allow the club to organize the musical event in the locality.

II. The money allocated by organizing the musical event may be substantial enough for the club to start
construction.

36. Statement : The traffic police department has put up huge notice boards at all major junctions of the
city, warning drivers to refrain from using cell phones while driving or else their licenses will be
impounded.

Assumptions

I. The drivers of the vehicles may ignore the warning and continue using cell phones while driving.

II. The traffic police department may be able to nab most of the offenders and impound their licenses.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 8


37. Statement : 1’s advice to 2’s-If you want to study Marketing, join institute XZ”.

Assumptions:

I. 2 listens 1‟s advice.

II. Institute XZ provides good Marketing education.

38. Statements: Love marriages mostly end in divorce

Assumptions: I. There are cases of divorce.

II. Love marriages do take place.

39. Statements: “Please drop this letter in the letter box”. An officer tells his assistant.

Assumptions: I. The assistant would follow the instructions.

II. The assistant knows the address where the letter is to be sent.

40. Statement: “Buy pure and natural milk of company Z”- An advertisement in a Newspaper.

Assumptions: I. Artificial milk can be prepared.

II. People do not mind paying more for pure and natural milk

41. Statements: It is dangerous to lean out of a running train.

Assumptions:

I. All those who lean out of train run the risk of being hurt.

II. Generally people do not like to get hurt.

42. Statement: “We need to appoint teachers”- principal informs the school staff.

Assumptions: I. Teachers are available.

II. Present teachers are not good.

43. Statement: Unemployment allowance should be given to all unemployed Indian youth above 18
years of age.

Assumptions: I. There are unemployed youth in India who needs monetary support.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 9


II. The government has sufficient funds to provide allowance to all unemployed youth.

44. Statement: If you are an engineer, we have a challenging job for you.

Assumptions: I. We need an engineer.

II. You are an engineer.

45. Statement: "Please put more people on the job to make up for the delay."

Assumptions: I. Delay is inevitable in most jobs.

II. Output will increase with more number of people on the job.

46. Statement: Rohit's mother instructed him to return home by train if it rains heavily.

Assumptions: I. Rohit may not be able to decide himself if it rains heavily.

II. The trains may ply even if it rains heavily.

47. Statement: Prabodh wrote a second letters to his mother after a month as he did not receive any
reply to the first letter.

Assumptions: I. Prabodh‟s mother did not receive the letter.

II. The letter generally reaches within a fortnight.

48. Statement: As there is a great demand, every person seeking tickets of the programme will be given
only five tickets.

Assumptions:

I. The organizers are not keen on selling the tickets.

II. No one is interested in getting more than five tickets.

49. Statement: The organization should promote employees on the basis of merit alone and not on the
basis of length of service or seniority.

Assumptions:

I. Length of service or seniority does not alone reflect merit of an employee.

II. It is possible to determine and measure merit of an employee.

LEGALIGHT CRITICAL REASONING 10

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