English
Language Reading Comprehension Practice Questions – Set 40
Directions(1
– 10): Read the passage given below and then answer the questions given below
the passage. Some words may be highlighted for your attention. Read carefully.
The future looks
increasingly perilous for the human worker. New robots are no
longer flummoxed by staircases and doorknobs; clever software
is capable of driving cars and carrying on (rudimentary) conversations. While a
workless world remains a distant possibility, a period of automation-driven
disruption seems to loom ahead. Many futurists reckon that as machines replace
people, governments will need to find ways to redistribute income from the
machines (and the people who own them) to displaced workers, to ensure that the
benefits of automation-driven growth are shared widely. In a recent interview
Bill Gates proposed one method for doing this: a tax on robots, the money from
which could be used to retrain workers and expand employment in health care and
education. But is this the right response?
Mr Gates’s proposal would
solve several problems at once. In addition to raising money (which could be
used to fund new employment opportunities for people), the tax would probably
slow the pace of automation: a good thing, from Mr Gates’s perspective.
Economists typically dislike taxes on such investments, since buying and using
new equipment raises productivity and growth. But if the pace of automation is
too rapid for society to handle, as Mr Gates supposes, then slowing automation
could do more good than harm: by prolonging employment for workers who might
otherwise fall into long-term unemployment, for instance.
There are reasons to be
sceptical of this approach, however. Not all new robots displace human labour;
some make existing workers more productive, and deterring such investments
would leave workers worse off. Automation can also reduce consumer costs. A
robot tax which reduced the use of machines in health care and therefore kept
medical costs growing rapidly might hurt as many workers as it helped. Mr
Gates’s plan also seems premature; for now, at least, productivity growth
remains disappointing, suggesting that automation is occurring too slowly
rather than too rapidly. The last thing most economies need is slower economic
growth. But the biggest problem with an attempt to squeeze money out of robots
is that the machines are not the big winners of the digital era. The gains from
growth have flowed to landowners and the dominant firms whose profits have
accounted for a growing share of economic output. A tax on land would be an
efficient way to capture a share of the benefits of economic growth without
discouraging productive investment. And in an economy dominated by “superstar”
firms, in which the top company in each industry tends to earn hefty profits,
progressive income or wealth taxes might raise lots of money without much
harming growth: provided that rich people cannot easily shield their lucre in
tax havens.
Of course, tax might not
be the best way to manage the massive profits of the superstar firms of the
digital economy. Big profits are a sign that companies wield market power. That
power might stem from network effects (the value, in a networked world, of
being on the same platform as everyone else), or from the competitive advantage
a company receives from control over massive amounts of proprietary data, or
from government protections or anti-competitive behaviour. To shrink corporate
profits and redirect more of the benefits of new technologies to individuals,
governments might need to take a page from the early 20th
century and break up or regulate hulking digital monopolies.
1. How will slowing automation help workers?
a) By providing support to their work
b) By providing employment
c) By prolonging employment for
workers who would otherwise fall under the unemployed category
d) By increasing taxes
e) Both 3 and 4
2. Which two sector’s employment could be
benefitted by the taxes on robots?
a) Corporate and health
b) Health and education
c) Education and corporate
d) Tax offices and superstar firms
e) Cannot be inferred
3. How are robot taxes related to medical costs?
a) Proportionally
b) Inversely
c) Not related
d) Directly
e) Cannot be inferred
4. Why is a robot tax required?
a) To encourage the displacement of
workers.
b) To discourage the displacement of
workers.
c) To ensure proper redistribution of
income.
d) To ensure justice.
e) To give a lesson to the superstar
firms.
5. The author makes certain assumptions throughout
the passage. Pick the assumption not made by the author.
a) Machines will replace humans in
the near future.
b) A robot tax will help the workers.
c) A robot tax is directly related to
medical costs.
d) Profits are a sign of market
power.
e) None of the above.
6. What is the author’s view about the robot tax
proposed by Bill Gates?
a) Encouraging
b) Critical
c) Sceptical
d) Not concerned
e) Sympathetic
7. What is the antonym of the word ‘perilous’ as
used in the passage?
a) Dangerous
b) Unsafe
c) Tortuous
d) Horrific
e) Secure
8. What is the synonym of the word ‘flummoxed’?
a) Clear
b) Vague
c) Perplex
d) Puzzle
e) Both 3 and 4
9. What is the meaning of the word ‘lucre’ as used
in the passage?
a) Money
b) Stocks
c) Bonds
d) Either 2 or 3
e) Black money
10. What is the meaning of the phrase ‘take a
page’ as used in the passage?
a) Tear a page from a book
b) Imitate someone
c) Highlight the important events
d) Interpret the important events
e) None of the above
Answers with Explanations:
1. C) According to the passage, ‘…then
slowing automation could do more good than harm: by prolonging employment for
workers who might otherwise fall into long-term unemployment, for instance.’Thus
the correct answer is option C.
2. B) As
mentioned in the passage, ‘…a tax on robots, the money from which could be
used to retrain workers and expand employment in health care and education.’
Thus we can infer option
B to be the correct answer.
3. D) A
robot tax which reduced the use of machines in health care and therefore kept
medical costs growing rapidly. Thus we can infer that a higher robot tax will
also increase medical costs. Thus option D is the correct answer.
4. C) According
to the passage, ‘Many futurists reckon that as machines replace people,
governments will need to find ways to redistribute income from
the machines (and the people who own them) to displaced
workers, to ensure that the benefits of automation-driven growth are shared
widely. In a recent interview Bill Gates proposed one method for doing this: a
tax on robots, ..’
Thus option C is the
correct answer to be inferred.
5. A) ‘While
a workless world remains a distant possibility..’ This sentence proves that the
author does not believe that machines will replace humans in the near future.
Therefore, option A is the correct answer.
6. C) Throughout
the passage the author has tried to show that robot tax might not be a good
idea at all. Though he has not criticised it outright, the author has sounded
sceptical (doubtful about its success) about it. Thus option C is the correct
answer.
7. E) The
word ‘perilous’ means 'dangerous'. Thus the correct opposite would be ‘secure’.
The other words are synonyms.
8. E) The
word ‘flummoxed’ means to 'bewilder someone greatly'. Thus both options C and D
are correct synonyms.
9. E) Money
that is gained in a dishonest way is known as ‘lucre’. Thus ‘black money’ is
the correct option.
10. B) The
phrase to ‘take a page’ means to 'imitate someone or something' and thus option
B is the correct answer.
