Because the market system enables entrepreneurs
and investors who develop new technology to reap
financial rewards from their risk of capital, it may seem
that the primary result of this activity is that some
(5) people who have spare capital accumulate more. But in
spite of the fact that the profits derived from various
technological developments have accrued to relatively
few people, the developments themselves have served
overall as a remarkable democratizing force. In fact,
(10) under the regime of the market, the gap in benefits
accruing to different groups of people has been
narrowed in the long term.
This tendency can be seen in various well-known
technological developments. For example, before the
(15) printing press was introduced centuries ago, few
people had access to written materials, much less to scribes
and private secretaries to produce and transcribe
documents. Since printed materials have become
widely available, however, people without special
(20) position or resources—and in numbers once thought
impossible—can take literacy and the use of printed
texts for granted. With the distribution of books and
periodicals in public libraries, this process has been
extended to the point where people in general can have
(25) essentially equal access to a vast range of texts that
would once have been available only to a very few. A
more recent technological development extends this
process beyond printed documents. A child in school
with access to a personal computer and modem—
(30) which is becoming fairly common in technologically
advanced societies—has computing power and
database access equal to that of the best-connected
scientists and engineers at top-level labs of just fifteen
years ago, a time when relatively few people had
(35) personal access to any computing power. Or consider
the uses of technology for leisure. In previous centuries
only a few people with abundant resources had the
ability and time to hire professional entertainment, and
to have contact through travel and written
(40) communication—both of which were prohibitively
expensive—with distant people. But now broadcast
technology is widely available, and so almost anyone
can have an entertainment cornucopia unimagined in
earlier times. Similarly, the development of
(45) inexpensive mail distribution and telephone
connections and, more recently, the establishment of
the even more efficient medium of electronic mail have
greatly extended the power of distant communication.
This kind of gradual diffusion of benefits across
(50) society is not an accident of these particular
technological developments, but rather the result of a
general tendency of the market system. Entrepreneurs
and investors often are unable to maximize financial
success without expanding their market, and this
(55) involves structuring their prices to the consumers so
as to make their technologies genuinely accessible to an
ever-larger share of the population. In other words,
because market competition drives prices down, it
tends to diffuse access to new technology across
(60) society as a result.
1. Which one of the following does the passage identify as being a result of a technological development?
A. burgeoning scientific research
B. educational uses of broadcasting
C. widespread exchange of political ideas
D. faster means of travel
E. increased access to databases
The OA is E
2. As used in the passage, the word "democratizing" (line 9) most nearly means equalizing which one of the following?
A. distribution of tangible and intangible goods
B. opportunity to create new technology
C. accumulation of financial assets in investments
D. participation in the regulation of society through either public or private institutions
E. generally acknowledged social status in a community
The OA is A
3. Which one of the following most accurately represents the primary function of the reference to maximization of financial success (lines 52–54)?
A. It forms part of the author’s summary of the benefits that have resulted from the technological developments described in the preceding paragraph.
B. It serves as the author’s logical conclusion from data presented in the preceding paragraph regarding the social consequences of technological development.
C. It forms part of a speculative hypothesis that the author presents for its interest in relation to the main topic rather than as part of an argument.
D. It serves as part of a causal explanation that reinforces the thesis in the first paragraph regarding the benefits of technological development.
E. It forms part of the author’s concession that certain factors complicate the argument presented in the first two paragraphs.
The OA is D
4. It can be most reasonably inferred from the passage that the author would agree with which one of the following statements?
A. The profits derived from computer technology have accrued to fewer people than have the profits derived from any other technological development.
B. Often the desire of some people for profits motivates changes that are beneficial for large numbers of other people.
C. National boundaries are rarely barriers to the democratizing spread of technology.
D. Typically, investment in technology is riskier than many other sorts of investment.
E. Greater geographical mobility of populations has contributed to the profits of entrepreneurs and investors in technology.
The OA is B
5. From the passage, it can be most reasonably inferred that the author would agree with which of the following statements?
A. The democratizing influence of technology generally contributes to technological obsolescence.
B. Wholly unregulated economies are probably the fastest in producing an equalization of social status.
C. Expanded access to printed texts across a population has historically led to an increase in literacy in that population.
D. The invention of the telephone has had a greater democratizing influence on society than has the invention of the printing press.
E. Near equality of financial assets among people is a realistic goal for market economies.
The OA is C
and investors who develop new technology to reap
financial rewards from their risk of capital, it may seem
that the primary result of this activity is that some
(5) people who have spare capital accumulate more. But in
spite of the fact that the profits derived from various
technological developments have accrued to relatively
few people, the developments themselves have served
overall as a remarkable democratizing force. In fact,
(10) under the regime of the market, the gap in benefits
accruing to different groups of people has been
narrowed in the long term.
This tendency can be seen in various well-known
technological developments. For example, before the
(15) printing press was introduced centuries ago, few
people had access to written materials, much less to scribes
and private secretaries to produce and transcribe
documents. Since printed materials have become
widely available, however, people without special
(20) position or resources—and in numbers once thought
impossible—can take literacy and the use of printed
texts for granted. With the distribution of books and
periodicals in public libraries, this process has been
extended to the point where people in general can have
(25) essentially equal access to a vast range of texts that
would once have been available only to a very few. A
more recent technological development extends this
process beyond printed documents. A child in school
with access to a personal computer and modem—
(30) which is becoming fairly common in technologically
advanced societies—has computing power and
database access equal to that of the best-connected
scientists and engineers at top-level labs of just fifteen
years ago, a time when relatively few people had
(35) personal access to any computing power. Or consider
the uses of technology for leisure. In previous centuries
only a few people with abundant resources had the
ability and time to hire professional entertainment, and
to have contact through travel and written
(40) communication—both of which were prohibitively
expensive—with distant people. But now broadcast
technology is widely available, and so almost anyone
can have an entertainment cornucopia unimagined in
earlier times. Similarly, the development of
(45) inexpensive mail distribution and telephone
connections and, more recently, the establishment of
the even more efficient medium of electronic mail have
greatly extended the power of distant communication.
This kind of gradual diffusion of benefits across
(50) society is not an accident of these particular
technological developments, but rather the result of a
general tendency of the market system. Entrepreneurs
and investors often are unable to maximize financial
success without expanding their market, and this
(55) involves structuring their prices to the consumers so
as to make their technologies genuinely accessible to an
ever-larger share of the population. In other words,
because market competition drives prices down, it
tends to diffuse access to new technology across
(60) society as a result.
1. Which one of the following does the passage identify as being a result of a technological development?
A. burgeoning scientific research
B. educational uses of broadcasting
C. widespread exchange of political ideas
D. faster means of travel
E. increased access to databases
The OA is E
2. As used in the passage, the word "democratizing" (line 9) most nearly means equalizing which one of the following?
A. distribution of tangible and intangible goods
B. opportunity to create new technology
C. accumulation of financial assets in investments
D. participation in the regulation of society through either public or private institutions
E. generally acknowledged social status in a community
The OA is A
3. Which one of the following most accurately represents the primary function of the reference to maximization of financial success (lines 52–54)?
A. It forms part of the author’s summary of the benefits that have resulted from the technological developments described in the preceding paragraph.
B. It serves as the author’s logical conclusion from data presented in the preceding paragraph regarding the social consequences of technological development.
C. It forms part of a speculative hypothesis that the author presents for its interest in relation to the main topic rather than as part of an argument.
D. It serves as part of a causal explanation that reinforces the thesis in the first paragraph regarding the benefits of technological development.
E. It forms part of the author’s concession that certain factors complicate the argument presented in the first two paragraphs.
The OA is D
4. It can be most reasonably inferred from the passage that the author would agree with which one of the following statements?
A. The profits derived from computer technology have accrued to fewer people than have the profits derived from any other technological development.
B. Often the desire of some people for profits motivates changes that are beneficial for large numbers of other people.
C. National boundaries are rarely barriers to the democratizing spread of technology.
D. Typically, investment in technology is riskier than many other sorts of investment.
E. Greater geographical mobility of populations has contributed to the profits of entrepreneurs and investors in technology.
The OA is B
5. From the passage, it can be most reasonably inferred that the author would agree with which of the following statements?
A. The democratizing influence of technology generally contributes to technological obsolescence.
B. Wholly unregulated economies are probably the fastest in producing an equalization of social status.
C. Expanded access to printed texts across a population has historically led to an increase in literacy in that population.
D. The invention of the telephone has had a greater democratizing influence on society than has the invention of the printing press.
E. Near equality of financial assets among people is a realistic goal for market economies.
The OA is C