Question

1. Grammar & Writing Style

   Which sentence communicates most concisely?

If I am right, then we need to be innovative in our search for new solutions.

If I am right about this being the case, then we as individuals need to be creative and innovative in our search for new solutions.

Which of the following sentences should be rewritten in active voice?

The experiment was first conducted at Yale University in the 1970s.

The gold medal was won by gymnast Peter Vidmar in Los Angeles

3. Identify the correct active equivalent of this passive sentence: The books will be taken from the library by the movers on January 16.

The movers will take the books from the library on January 16.

The movers are taking the books from the library on January 16.

The movers took the books from the library on January 16.

4. Find a suitable alternative to this expression in business jargon: at the end of the day

finally

at sundown

when all is said and done

5. Choose the best way to eliminate biased language in the sentence below.
   
   Everyone who took part in the play should leave his costume in the theatre.

Actors and actresses who took part in the play should leave his or her costume in the theatre.

Those who took part in the play should leave their costumes in the theatre.

The original sentence is OK.

6. Choose the best transition for the following sentence.
   
   _____ Iran claims its nuclear ambitions include only peaceful ends, the United States and the European Union remain unconvinced.

Answer

Because

While

Disregarding the fact that

7. Identify the type of introductory phrase used here:
   
   Returning the tickets to the box office, the students ask for a refund.

A noun phrase

A verb phrase

A dependent clause

An adverb                                                       

8. True or false
   
   My fellow researchers and I is a third-person, plural construction.

True

False

9. Which logical fallacy, if any, is committed in the following sentence?
   
   We conclude, based on the claims of the director, who has many years' experience, that all employees who have integrity on the job are the same ones who behave with integrity off the job.

Hasty generalization

Non sequitur

False dilemma

None of the above

10. Choose the best way to eliminate biased language in the sentence below.
    
    Each newspaper editor presents his most important story, and the editor-in-chief decides which stories receive front-page coverage.

Each newspaper editor presents his or her most important story, and the editor-in-chief decides which stories receive front-page coverage.

Newspaper editors present their most important story, and the editor-in-chief decides which stories receive front-page coverage.

The original sentence is OK.

11. Identify the type of conjunction for the underlined word below:
    
    He donned his tuxedo, and his associates held their breath as he walked into the convention center.

Coordinating

Subordinating

Correlative

Adverbial

None of the above

12. Identify the type of conjunction for the underlined words below:
    
    Not only her cousins but also her cousins' children worked for the family business.

Coordinating

Subordinating

Correlative

Adverbial

None of the above

13. True or False. The following statement is a good thesis for a persuasive essay.
    
    Some claim that global warming is a hoax, a scheme dreamed up by anti-business elements, but I take issue with that assertion.

True

False

14. Which logical fallacy, if any, is committed in the following sentence?
    
    Americans consume too many calories, so we need to drink more diet soda.

Hasty generalization

Non sequitur

False dilemma

None of the above

15. Which logical fallacy, if any, is committed in the following sentence?
    
    Studying manufacturing companies in the 1950s teaches us that the future of our company hinges, as is the case for all organizations under capitalism, on its ability to fulfill an emerging need.

Hasty generalization

Non sequitur

False dilemma

None of the above

16. What type of sentence is the following?
    
    The witness claimed she saw the defendant and heard him talk about his family in terms that proud fathers often use to discuss their children.

Simple

Compound

Complex

Compound/Complex

17. Pick out the topic sentence in the paragraph below.
    
    (A) For example, the vivacious, energetic person, quick of movement and speech, who constantly performs in metabolic overdrive, may tend to be somewhat less disposed to careful analysis of past actions than is the slower, more reflective person. The impulsive person, impatient to do and have done, may be virtually incapable of prior reflection. (B) Conscience, in this case, may operate only after the fact. (C) It is not, of course, a matter of one disposition, one metabolic rate, being preferable to another. (D) Each presents some fertile areas for the development and use of conscience, and each presents some barren ones.
    
    Ruggiero, V. (1997). Thinking critically about ethical issues (4th ed.). Mountain View, CA: Mayfield Publishing Company (p. 33)

A

B

C

D

18. Which logical fallacy, if any, is committed in the following sentence?
    
    Number of years of experience at a candidate's last job will determine the value of that candidate to the hiring company.

Hasty generalization

Non sequitur

False dilemma

None of the above

19. Which sentence represents the best mood? If both are correct, mark the preferred form.

If that had been the supervisor, she would not have been amused.

If that would have been the supervisor, she would not have been amused.

20. What type of sentence is the following?
    
    Aspiring to a higher position, the supervisor carefully carried out his responsibilities, and he never missed a stewardship interview with the manager.

Simple

Compound

Complex

Compound/Complex

21. Identify the figure of speech in the following phrase:
    
    Nevada thrives because of the gaming industry.

Simile

Euphemism

Hyperbole

Personification

22. True or false. Deleting the by and it would improve the sentence below.
    
    By distributing noncash rewards from time to time, it can help managers encourage loyalty.

True

False

23. True or false. The following sentence needs to be revised for clarity.
    
    The purpose of the first interview was to gather information about the prospective mothers during insemination or pregnancy and to learn about the homes, families, and communities into which the children were to be born.

True

False

24. True or false. The following sentence contains a redundancy.
    
    In December the operations director asked the board to back or support more stringent safety enforcement on the work floor.

True

False

25. True or false. The following sentence contains a redundancy.
    
    Buying organic food can help you avoid pesticides.

True

False

Answer 1

Answer 1: If I am right, then we need to be innovative in our search for new solutions.

Answer 2: The gold medal was won by gymnast Peter Vidmar in Los Angeles.

Answer 3: The movers will take the books from the library on January 16.

Answer 4: when all is said and done

Answer 5: Those who took part in the play should leave their costumes in the theatre.