Question

Difficulty: Very hardDrawing Inferences and Deductions from Unseen Passages

Read the passage below carefully:

'The surveyor folded the topographical map, pressed his thumb against the damp parchment until the ink smeared over the northern boundary, and handed the roll to his assistant without a word. He looked back once at the sprawling ridge where the ancient baobabs stood, then instructed the team to mark the soil as unfit for cultivation in their official log.'

From the passage, what can be inferred about the surveyor's underlying motivation?

  1. He intends to deliberately obscure details and falsify records regarding the northern land.Answer
  2. B
    He aims to protect the ancient baobab trees from commercial agricultural development.
  3. C
    He is following standard administrative procedures for reporting soil survey findings.
  4. D
    He is expressing silent anger towards his assistant for making errors on the map.

Answer

The surveyor intends to deliberately obscure details and falsify records regarding the northern land.
The physical act of smearing ink over the boundary map combined with giving instructions to log the soil as unfit for cultivation demonstrates a calculated attempt to suppress accurate data and fabricate official records.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the surveyor's physical manipulation of the map.
He intentionally presses his thumb onto the wet ink to obliterate the northern boundary lines.
Physical destruction of map details prevents others from seeing the accurate boundary.
2
Evaluate the verbal directive given to the surveying team.
He instructs them to record the soil as unfit for cultivation in the official log.
This instruction creates an official written record that contradicts actual site findings.
3
Synthesize the physical action and verbal directive to deduce intent.
Combining physical obliteration with false documentation proves an intentional effort to deceive.
Logical deduction requires linking both subtle actions to reveal the underlying motive of falsification.

Key Concept

Drawing Inferences and Deductions from Unseen Passages
Estimated Time:2m 0s
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