PP1 (Shorter) Verbal Section 2 (Hard) Q4

The Right Answers

Blank 1: You can use Math Strategy to solve this blank. The word "and" indicates the idea before and after the "and" support each other. Before the "and", the sentence states that these individuals are "refusing to confess their mistakes." Continuing with that idea, we guess that they must be claiming "perfection." The answer choice that most closely matches this guess is infallibility.

Blank 3: I would argue that blank 3 is easier than blank 2 and should be done before because we have a clear Block of 4 relationship occurring:

mechanisms of self-correction = _________ process

The word "mechanisms" matches with the word "process." Completing this relationship, we can put the phrase "self-correction" in the blank. The answer choice that most closely matches this guess is a remedial.

Blank 2: We know via the Math Strategy and the comma after "need" that these ideas support each other, that blank 2 describes the feeling of the "men" mentioned in the previous part of the sentence. What does the sentence tell us about these men? It tells us that they claim "infallibility," that they HATE to be wrong. So how would they feel about a "self-correction" process? Probably not very good. The answer choice that most closely matches this guess is discomfiting.

The Wrong Answers

Blank 1:

  • immunity: This choice has no evidence. We don't know whether or not these men are "immune" to anything.

  • impartiality: This choice contradicts the logic of the sentence. The evidence tells us that these men argue they're perfect. Certainly, they are not unbiased observers.

Blank 2:

  • expedient: This choice contradicts the logic of the sentence. The men find the "remedial" process uncomfortable, not convenient or advantageous.

  • imminent: This choice is odd from a usage perspective. How can one "find" something "imminent"? Doesn't make sense.

Blank 3:

  • an adaptable: This choice has no evidence. We don't know whether or not the process can change.

  • an injudicious: This choice contradicts the logic of the sentence. If the men are receiving "benefit" from the process, it's certainly not an unfair process or one that has negative connotations.