Posted by TCYonline.com on September 8, 2010
Data Interpretation consists of three sections viz. Data Interpretation, Data Sufficiency and Reasoning. It is easily the most scoring section of any exam- if the fundamentals are in place.
Data Interpretation (D.I.) : contains information presented in the form of Bar graphs, Line Graphs, Pie Charts, Tables, Histograms etc. The student is required to analyze the information provided and supply the answer to asked queries related to the data given. Students who are good at heavy mental calculation are at an advantage as it is one of the keys for doing well in this section. This section tests the students’ skills in Percentage calculation, Profit and Loss Analysis, and Ratio Proportion.
Data Sufficiency: is a section where a statement is given and with it are provided two options which could hold the key to the answer. The student is required to independently analyze both the answer keys and see from which the answer can be derived. The student has to tick one of the five options for the answer.
• If answer can be derived from Answer key A- then answer is A.
• If answer can be derived from Answer key B- then answer is B.
• If answer can be derived from both A & B independently- then answer will be C.
• If answer can be derived from a combination of A & B- then answer is D.
• If answer cannot be derived from any of the options, then the answer is E.
Imp: Many times students get confused when the solution does yield an answer with both the answer keys but the answer is different in both the cases. In such a scenario, C would be the correct option is the right one as long as both the options provide unique answers (i.e. it can’t be -2 or +2, it has to be either).
Reasoning: as a section can be tackled very well if the mental calculation is fast. There are broadly three types of reasoning questions: Linear, Circular and Tabular.
To Prepare for CAT 2010 you can get complete study material consists Notes, CAT Test Papers, CAT Practice Papers CAT Sample Papers CAT Previous Papers online. Visit the links given below to prepare for CAT 2010.
CAT
CAT 2010
CAT Quants
CAT Mock Test
CAT Test Paper
CAT Practice Papers
Posted by TCYonline.com on August 24, 2010
Language is not a cultural artifact that we learn the way we learn to tell
time or how the federal government works. Instead, it is a distinct
piece of the biological makeup of our brains. Language is a complex,
specialized skill, which develops in the child spontaneously, without
conscious effort or formal instruction, is deployed without awareness of
its underlying logic, is qualitatively the same in every individual, and is
distinct from more general abilities to process information or behave
intelligently. For these reasons some cognitive scientists have described
language as a psychological faculty, a mental organ, a neural system,
and a computational module. But I prefer the admittedly quaint term
“instinct”. It conveys the idea that people know how to talk in more or
less the sense that spiders know how to spin webs. Web spinning was not
invented by some unsung spider genius and does not depend on having
had the right education or on having an aptitude for architecture or the
construction trades. Rather, spiders spin spider webs because they have
spider brains, which give them the urge to spin and the competence to
succeed. Although there are differences between webs and words, I
will encourage you to see language in this way, for it helps to make sense
of the phenomena we will explore.
Thinking of language as an instinct inverts the popular wisdom, especially
as it has been passed down in the canon of the humanities and social
sciences. Language is no more a cultural invention than is upright posture.
It is not a manifestation of a general capacity to use symbols: a three year old,
we shall see, is a grammatical genius, but is quite incompetent at the
visual arts, religious iconography, traffic signs, and the other staples of
the semiotics curriculum. Though language is a magnificent ability
unique to Homo sapiens among living species, it does not call for
sequestering the study of humans from the domain of biology, for a
magnificent ability unique to a particular living species is far from
unique in the animal kingdom. Some kinds of bats home in on flying
insects using Doppler sonar. Some kinds of migratory birds navigate
thousands of miles by calibrating the positions of the constellations
against the time of day and year. In nature’s talent show, we are simply
a species of primate with our own act, a knack for communicating
information about who did what to whom by modulating the sounds
we make when we exhale.
Once you begin to look at language not as the ineffable essence of
human uniqueness but as a biological adaptation to communicate
information, it is no longer as tempting to see language as an insidious
shaper of thought, and, we shall see, it is not. Moreover, seeing language
as one of nature’s engineering marvels an organ with “that perfection
of structure and co adaptation which justly excites our admiration,” in
Darwin’s words gives us a new respect for your ordinary Joe and the
Much maligned English language (or any language). The complexity of
language, from the scientist’s point of view, is part of our biological
birthright; it is not something that parents teach their children or
something that must be elaborated in school as Oscar Wilde said,
“Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to
time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” A preschooler’s
tacit knowledge of grammar is more sophisticated than the thickest
style manual or the most state of the art computer language system,
and the same applies to all healthy human beings, even the notorious
syntax fracturing professional athlete and the, you know, like,
inarticulate teenage skateboarder. Finally, since language is the product
of a well engineered biological instinct, we shall see that it is not the nutty
barrel of monkeys that entertainer columnists make it out to be.
- Read the passage and answer the questions
below:
1. According to the passage, which of the following
does not stem from popular wisdom on language?
1. Language is a cultural artifact.
2. Language is a cultural invention.
3. Language is learnt as we grow.
4. Language is unique to Homo Sapiens.
5. Language is a psychological faculty.
2. Which of the following can be used to replace the
“spiders know how to spin webs” analogy as used by
the author?
1. A kitten learning to jump over a wall
2. Bees collecting nectar
3. A donkey carrying a load
4. A horse running a Derby
5. A pet dog protecting its owner’s property
3. According to the passage, which of the following is
unique to human beings?
1. Ability to use symbols while communicating with
one another.
2. Ability to communicate with each other through
voice modulation.
3. Ability to communicate information to other
members of the species.
4. Ability to use sound as means of communication.
5. All of the above.
4. According to the passage, complexity of language
cannot be taught by parents or at school to children
because
1. children instinctively know language.
2. children learn the language on their own.
3. language is not amenable to teaching.
4. children know language better than their
teachers or parents.
5. children are born with the knowledge of
semiotics.
5. Which of the following best summarizes the passage?
1. Language is unique to Homo Sapiens.
2. Language is neither learnt nor taught.
3. Language is not a cultural invention or artifact as
it is made out.
4. Language is instinctive ability of human beings.
5. Language is use of symbols unique to human
beings.
http://www.tcyonline.com/exam-notifications-mba-entrance/100000
http://www.tcyonline.com/exam-notifications-mba-entrance/100000-98
http://www.tcyonline.com/CAT-Preparation/
Posted by girish seshamani on July 15, 2010
As a trainer for CAT\MAT and other competitive exams over the last ten years, I find lot of intelligent students not being able to crack the Group Discussion and Interview. The fear of the unknown is so high, that these set of students, see themselves as failures.
In our country, English is the second language. Apart from metropolitan cities, which have a number of convent schools, all other students stand at a huge disadvantage, since they are not exposed to the English Language. In all these states, even though the English Language is part of the curriculum, the English Language is taught in their mother tongue. The teachers themselves are not trained properly and they do not have the ability to make the English Language interesting. Moreover the interaction between students also happens in their mother tongue, with the net result being a rude shock, when they get exposed to the outside world.
When I interacted with this category of students at length their concerns were:
If we try to converse in English with our teachers, they reply in our mother tongue
English is not required for me because I am joining the family business
Our friends make fun of us or treat us as social outcasts, if we try to converse in English
Our parents are not educated and our siblings are also sailing in the same boat
Our teachers discourage the use of English
We know only a few words
We do not know how to construct a sentence and pronounce the word, so we will end up making fools of ourselves
Emotionally sensitive
Inability to speak in front of a small group or public speaking
Thinking in one’s mother tongue and translating into English
After listening to their concerns, I just asked them one question, How did you pick up your mother tongue? The answer was prompt. We learnt to speak our mother tongue by listening to our parents speak. My next question was, Did your parents teach you grammar? The answer was No
I then went on to tell them, the English Language also needs to be learnt, the same way.
I worked out a plan of action which I am listing below:
Be passionate about the English Language
Make it a point to watch News Channels, Animal Planet or National Geographic. Close your eyes and focus on the words. Likewise, if you share a passion for a particular game, as in, cricket or football, listen to the commentary
In the initial phase do not bother about your grammatical accuracy, fluency or vocabulary. Your focus should be to reach a level, where you can boldly communicate in the English Language, with whatever vocabulary you have
Identify one person in your locality who speaks the English Language fluently. Have a serious discussion with this person, and tell him that you want to improve your language, and you are prepared to stretch the limit. Ask him to correct your mistakes. Fix up a time convenient to him and interact with him for anywhere between 10 – 15 minutes daily. This conversation can be in person or on phone. Ask him to correct your mistakes and make it a point, not to repeat the same mistake again.
Avail of every opportunity that you get to speak. Never bother about the reaction of the audience. There are bound to be people in the audience who will smile sarcastically or may laugh at you, while you are delivering your speech. Let me tell you that these people are failures. They have not achieved anything in their life, and are filled with envy. Make yourself mentally so tough, that nothing should pull you down, and destroy your confidence
Do not compare yourself with anyone. You are unique
Read any magazine which is related to your area of interest. If you want to go in for fiction, there is nothing to beat, James Hadley Chase. You will not put the book down, till you have finished, reading the book fully. The language used is also simple.
Always think in English. If you think in your mother tongue, and translate into English, the structure will go horribly wrong. Let us take a sentence; Rita is beautiful, which is the right structure. Assuming that your mother tongue is Hindi, the translation will be, Rita khoobsurat hai, which when translated to English becomes, Rita beautiful is. Always remember the basic structure of the English Language, which is, Subject + Verb + Object
Practice Auto Suggestion. Human beings are blessed with two minds, conscious mind and the subconscious mind. When we go to sleep in the night, the subconscious mind comes on top and the conscious mind goes down. Auto suggestion means feeding your subconscious mind with positive thoughts. In this case, let us assume that you have to deliver a speech after one week. Everyday before going to sleep, imagine that you are one of the best speakers in the world. People admire you and they have come in huge numbers to listen to you. See yourself talking confidently, and the audience listening to you, with full attention. After your speech gets over, the entire crowds’ gets up from their seats and give you a standing applause. Do this everyday without fail, and more importantly, believe in the power of the subconscious mind. Visualize this whole scene again and again. The great tennis player, Andre Agassi, is a master of the subconscious mind. When you get up in the morning, the conscious mind comes on top, and the subconscious mind goes down. The job of the conscious mind, is purely to implement the commands, given to it, by the subconscious mind. You can rewrite your whole destiny, if you tap the power of your subconscious mind
Before I wind up, I would like to quote Martin Luther King, who said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenges and controversies”
HAPPY SPEAKING
Posted by girish seshamani on July 10, 2010
Once you get into your B School, you are all set to begin an exciting stage in your life. Undoubtedly MBA is a coveted degree, if it is done from a reputed institute. Over a period of two years, we study or we are exposed to around 35 subjects.
The basic objective of studying these subjects, is to ensure that your fundamentals are strong. No one expects you to master all the subjects. Tomorrow when you take up a leadership role, you should have the basic knowledge about all functions, to ensure that no one takes you for a ride.
At the end of the first year, students go for summer placements. The summer placement runs for around four months. After finishing their summers, students come back and the second year begins wherein they specialize in their core area.
Before the students go for their placement, they have to choose their core specialization, as in, Finance, Marketing, Operations and Human Resources. The students have a dual specialization. On most occasions, whenever I interact with students, I see students choosing the core field due to peer pressure. When I sit with them and discuss as to what made them choose that field, the replies that I get are:
Majority of my batch mates have chosen that field
We heard it is a sunrise industry
This field pays much more than any other line
As a teacher, it pains me a lot when I see students getting into functions they are not fit for. Personally I do make it a point to tell students to identify their strengths by doing an honest introspection and to discuss the same with their family members and close circle of friends. If they have professional contacts, they are the best people, since they are already working in that line. They are not only the best source of information they will also guide you properly. Once the student narrows down on his core specialization, he will know the gap to be bridged in terms of skill sets after he interacts with professionals working in that industry.
Lot of B Schools have come out with super specialization programs which is an add on to the core specialization. The areas are:
Airlines and Airport Mangement
Shipping and Logistics Management
Retail Mangement
Supply Chain Management
Let me also tell you that there is nothing called as a sunrise industry. Each and every industry has to go through the stages of Infancy, Growth, Stability and Decline. It is part of the economic cycle.
I also reiterate the point that compensation is totally secondary. According to me, at the start of your career what you learn, is more important than what you earn. I also see students having unrealistic expectations and living in their own dream world. Your specialization should be in tune with your skills. If you choose the wrong line, apart from being a misfit for the job, you are also putting your entire career at risk. If you get into an industry purely for money, the day is not far off when you will get frustrated and land up in a mess.
Once you have identified your skill sets and decided your core specialization, ensure that you keep yourself updated in that line. You need to seriously devote time to understand the industry, the major players, the standing of the industry right now and the future of the industry. The best source of information will be newspapers like Economic Times and Business Standard. Apart from this, try to identify a mentor, when you go for your summer placements. If you prove your worth during the summer placements, there is every chance that the organization will consider you, when they come for the final placements.
I would like to share some critical points to be kept in mind throughout the program:
- Integrity is the foundation on which your career is built. Never lie. If you have done a mistake have the courage to accept your mistake, instead of trying to hide it or getting into arguments.
- Be the first person to take the initiative. Put your heart and soul in your job, when you go for summer placements.
- Be disciplined and punctual. Never take any leave.
- Strictly adhere to organizational decorum.
- As I mentioned earlier, this is the apt time to identify a mentor, who will be your guiding and inspirational force. Never try to put on a mask and show interest. They are seasoned professionals and your reputation will take a beating. Be genuine. Be yourself.
- Be in touch with your mentor and work on your weakness. This should be done throughout the program.
- If you have the habit of gossiping, work seriously on it. All relationships are built on trust. Trust is built up only once. It cannot be built again and again. Likewise during the course of your program never criticize any of your batch mates or professors.
- During the program, you will get lot of opportunities to make presentations. Take each presentation as a challenge and keep on raising your bar.
- Be mentally alert and focused on the program.
- In group presentations you may have to work with other candidates who are not known to you. Extend your full cooperation and take the responsibility of keeping the group bonded together. Each individual will have his idea. Genuinely congratulate your group member if he has come up with excellent points. It is natural to get discouraged if your points are not included in the presentation. Try to find out why the point is not relevant. Always remember that our learning process continues till death. Moreover when you start your career you will inevitably be part of a team. You cannot afford to create disharmony within the group.
- Be very careful whenever you speak. Choose your words with care. Never indulge in any kind of casual talk. Likewise ensure that you are well dressed and maintain good hygiene. Groom yourself to become a person who can be trusted.
- Work on your vocabulary. Keep a daily target and strictly adhere to it.
- Keep working on honing your listening skills. There is a huge difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is done with the ears. Listening is done with the mind and the heart. Powerful listeners can create miracles.
The basic objective of having summer placements is to get exposed to what an organization is, how does it work, the role of each department and how the industry works as a whole. This is because most of the students are fresh from college and directly enroll for an MBA Program.
The second year is the time when you have to hone your skills in your line or function and ensure that you keep abreast of all the latest developments in that line.
Likewise during your final placements make a very careful choice. There are two critical points which you need to keep in mind. The first is the reputation of the organization. The second is the Human Resource Interventions that the organization has in place. All professional organizations have an individual career growth plan for each employee. They also have structured training programs to help the new employee develop his skill sets and also get him exposed to all the functions. Your first job is the most critical because it is going to determine the entire course of your career. When an organization selects an employee, it does so with a long term perspective in mind. Never make the mistake of job hopping. It is suicidal. As of today, job hopping is looked upon very negatively by all reputed players in the industry. Even an experience of five years in an organization, makes the other company think. You need to have a really valid reason for quitting the organization.
My only advice to all MBA students is to make the right choice in terms of their specialization. Once you make the right decision, believe me, it will be an eternal honeymoon for you.
CHEERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by TCYonline.com on July 6, 2010
The greatest undoing of many CAT aspirants has been the fear of the reading comprehension (RC) section and the consequent inbuilt resistance to RC-based questions. Some test-takers believe, mistakenly though, that RC-based questions are subjective and the right answer could depend upon the opinion of the test-maker, which the test-taker does not necessarily share. Nothing could be farther from truth.
Another misconception is that the online format makes RC more difficult. Some of the fallacious reasons advanced are:
The test-taker can no longer underline important parts of the passage that would have been helpful in locating the correct answer.
Since the passage is displayed on only half of the screen, the test-taker has to scroll up and down a number of times to read the passage.
Since, only one question is available at a time on the other half of the screen, overviewing all the questions becomes time consuming.
Talking of the third fallacy first, let it be known that all the questions are visible on the right half of the screen, while the passage is available on the left. So, the passage and the questions can be viewed simultaneously. Underlining never helped in cracking CAT RC, because the test requires the student to comprehend the underlying idea, rather than the detail. Scrolling up and down the passage repeatedly also means you are looking at the detail whereas you be looking for the underlying idea instead.
In most cases, the test-taker cannot attempt each question based on each passage. So, the best way is to choose what suits you best. Select the passage for attempt that you find interesting. Your interest means you understand, or will understand easily.
Remember every RC passage has a one-line gist. A 10-line gist means you did not understand the underlying idea.
So how should you go about cracking the RC section of CBT CAT?
Construct a “Dot Diagram” of the passage
Remember the dot diagram that you find in the kids section of a paper or magazine? There could be hundreds of dots. When once you join a few dots to form a picture, the other dots become irrelevant. Your RC is like that dot diagram. The hundreds of words are like the hundreds of dots. The questions revolve around the picture and not around the words. So get the picture out of the dot diagram.
Now how do you join the dots? Our advice:
Pre-read (First reading: 1 min)
Get a feel of the passage by reading the opening lines of each paragraph (the opening paragraph in particular) as well as the concluding lines of the last paragraph. Also have a look at the question stems (not the options).
Speed read (Second reading: 3 min)
Say you have to drive a train from Delhi to Mumbai. Should you drive at the same speed throughout? What about the stations that fall along the way? You will definitely slow down and even stop at some of the stations. Do the same thing in the case of RC.
I keep forgetting as I proceed: Speed read the first paragraph. Write down its gist in one single phrase on your scratch sheet. Do the same thing in case of the other paragraphs. Now you have five ideas for (say) five paragraphs. The common link among these five ideas is your dot diagram.
Post-read (Third reading: 30 sec)
This is to make sure that the picture you made was right. Look for repetitive words and phrases in the passage. These have to be part of the picture.
The opening paragraph and the concluding paragraph are important. But remember if the test-taker is smart the test-maker is smarter. Sometimes there may be nothing much in these paragraphs. So don’t overdo it.
Linking up the answers
You will be able to view all the questions together. But the answers to various questions based on a passage should have some link. And the link is provided by (you guessed it) the picture that you formed.
