An inference about public space — Aptitude Question
An inference about public space: The public library is a strange institution by the standards of modern economics. Answer and worked solution on CodeKairo.
- Topic: Reading Comprehension
- Section: Verbal Ability
- Difficulty: Medium
- Time target: 90 seconds
Question
The public library is a strange institution by the standards of modern economics. It gives away, free of charge, a service that people would pay for. It admits everyone regardless of what they can spend. And it survives, in most countries, on a budget that would embarrass a mid-sized company. Its defenders no longer argue chiefly about books; they argue about the library as one of the few remaining places a person may sit for an afternoon without being asked to buy anything.
Which statement can be inferred from the passage?
Options
- Places where one may spend time without spending money have become uncommon.
- Libraries no longer stock books.
- Libraries are funded better than most companies.
- People no longer read.
Show the answer and the worked solution
Correct answer: A. Places where one may spend time without spending money have become uncommon.
Worked solution
- Describing the library as one of the few remaining such places implies that these places have become uncommon.
- The other options contradict the passage or go far beyond it.
Answer: Places where one may spend time without spending money have become uncommon.
The idea
Phrases like 'one of the few remaining' carry an implication about the wider category. That implication is what an inference question tests.
Shortcut. 'One of the few remaining places' means such places were once commoner and are now scarce; the option saying they 'have become uncommon' restates it. The rest contradict the passage or go far beyond it.
Common trap. "Libraries no longer stock books." — a misreading of 'no longer argue chiefly about books': the defence has moved away from books, not the collection.