- (Topic 3)
Economists use two competing models to describe the effects of commercial advertising—advertising as market competition and advertising as market power. The market competition model holds that the fundamental function of advertising is lo provide information about products and brands. It is argued that information in ads permits greater marketplace efficiencies, such as lower prices and reduced monopoly power. In a similar vein, much discussion regarding political advertising has rested on its informational value. Does political advertising provide political information and help voters make informed decisions'1 Nelson argues that promoting bars of soap in commercial ads is no different than promoting political ideas ideology from political candidates in political ads. on the grounds that information is being distributed m both cases. Others, such as Ferguson and Jamieson, disagree with Nelson's proposition. Ferguson, for example, pointed out that choosing a political candidate is more like buying an experience good (where the quality is hard to evaluate prior to purchase) rather than a search good (where the quality is easily evaluated before the purchase). According to Ferguson, claims in political ads do not have true informational value, because it is difficult for voters to draw inferences about the future deeds of a candidate from what the ads say Furthermore. Jamieson argues that political ads reshape the public image of political candidates and change voters feelings about the candidates with subtle emotional cues but without substantive information upon which to base a reasoned judgment.
In the context of the passage as a whole, the highlighted sentence serves primarily to
Correct Answer:
E
- (Topic 2)
Correct Answer:
D
- (Topic 3)
Despite the (i) _____ nature of contemporary science, the (ii) _____ of many individuals (iii) _____ : the work of women and minority scientists has too often been exploited or deemed rudimentary and unworthy of inclusion into science history books.
Correct Answer:
AEI
- (Topic 3)
Instances of "galactic cannibalism"—mergers in which large galaxies completely consume smaller ones—may be fairly common. Tidal forces produced by the Milky Way's powerful gravity, for example, appear to be dismantling and engulfing a dwarf galaxy in the constellation Sagittarius, producing large clumps and streamers of stars connecting the two galaxies. Astronomers have also observed two dense clusters of stars and gas at the heart of the Andromeda galaxy, an apparent "double nucleus" that may contain the remnant of a cannibalized dwarf galaxy. But this twin-lobed appearance could also be created by two parts of a single nucleus bisected by a lane of dust. Scientists believe that only about 25 percent of such apparent double nuclei actually represent galactic cannibalism. Many of the rest result from the illusion of proximity that occurs when objects at different distances appear along the same line of sight: others consist of debris from galactic "collisions." in which one galaxy has passed through another without merging, causing waves of new star formation.
The passage suggests that a galactic collision differs from galactic cannibalism in that
Correct Answer:
D
- (Topic 3)
Lohr's (i) _____ the trappings of literary celebrity creates a Romantic aura tor him: by distancing himself from all public discourse about himself or his work. Lohr becomes an even greater, albeit more (ii) _____ . celebrity than most authors manage in all their interviews and memoirs.
Correct Answer:
AE