NTS NTS - National Testing Service Critical Thinking and Logical Reasoning 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: If all roses are flowers and all flowers need water, what can be concluded?
- All water has flowers.
- Roses need water. (Correct answer)
- All things needing water are roses.
- Flowers are roses.
Correct answer: Roses need water.
By syllogistic reasoning, since roses are flowers and flowers need water, roses must also need water.
Question 2: Which conclusion follows from: "No mammals are cold-blooded. All snakes are cold-blooded."?
- Some snakes are mammals.
- All cold-blooded animals are snakes.
- No snakes are mammals. (Correct answer)
- Some mammals are snakes.
Correct answer: No snakes are mammals.
Since mammals are never cold-blooded and snakes always are, snakes and mammals share no members.
Question 3: Identify the logical fallacy: "You can't trust his opinion on taxes because he's wealthy."
- Straw man
- Ad hominem (Correct answer)
- False dilemma
- Slippery slope
Correct answer: Ad hominem
Attacking the person's wealth instead of evaluating their argument is an ad hominem fallacy.
Question 4: In the sequence 2, 6, 18, 54, ___, what comes next?
- 108
- 162 (Correct answer)
- 216
- 270
Correct answer: 162
Each term is multiplied by 3: 2×3=6, 6×3=18, 18×3=54, 54×3=162.
Question 5: Which number is the odd one out: 4, 9, 16, 25, 35, 49?
- 9
- 25
- 35 (Correct answer)
- 49
Correct answer: 35
All others (4, 9, 16, 25, 49) are perfect squares, but 35 is not (it falls between 5²=25 and 6²=36).
Question 6: Which of the following is an example of deductive reasoning?
- The sun has risen every day, so it will rise tomorrow.
- All mammals breathe air; whales are mammals; therefore whales breathe air. (Correct answer)
- Every time I study hard, I pass; so studying must help.
- Most students who study tend to pass exams.
Correct answer: All mammals breathe air; whales are mammals; therefore whales breathe air.
Deductive reasoning draws a logically certain conclusion from general premises applied to a specific case.
NTS NTS - National Testing Service Critical Thinking and Logical Reasoning 1
If all roses are flowers and all flowers need water, what can be concluded?