'UPSC Prelims CSAT Questions 2023

As a society, we opted for a myth that online learning is the same irrespective of the instrument on which it is received. Now that schools are reopening, it will be totally wrong to assume that children who have been dependent on a smartphone can be treated on a par with those who were able to use a better receiver. Indeed, this is simply one of the many grave indicators of the difficulty that the idea of a fixed curriculum will present to schools after they reopen. There must be stress on the fallacy involved in the term “learning loss”. The idea of loss and gain, although understandably popular in our times, is not suitable for making sense of children’s development in reading, writing, or listening with comprehension. Children acquire these capacities and gradually refine them over a long period of time. It’s not a good idea to expect that their progress in these areas can be monitored with vast, crudely designed surveys. We must remember that a capacity once acquired will resurface and gradually gain strength if the need for it arises at a comfortable pace. And that’s where the problem lies, namely, that our system simply does not care for the child’s comfort, and very few among teachers recognise that as the topmost priority in organising their lessons.

With reference to the above passage answer the following questions :

Q1 From the reading the above passage alone which statement best describes the passage above:

With of the following statement are true with reference to the above passage only ➖

1. The surveys can capture the learning loss of the students accurately.
2. A capacity gained through education is lost if not refined at a fast pace.
3. A teacher must prepare his/her lessons at a pace keeping at top priority the comfort of the students.

High-frequency Linkedin data for 22 countries shows that in recent years women have been establishing businesses at a slightly higher average rate than men. The share of women founders has doubled in the past five years, while the share of men founders has increased by 55%.  The trend has continued during and since the pandemic started and included a 43% jump in the founding rate for women between 2019 and 2020. Some portion of this number includes "necessity founders" emerging from the pandemic, with one of the reported drivers of self-employment during this period being job scarcity. At the same time, evidence suggests that not all founding activity was driven by necessity. During the pandemic, the number of unicorn companies owned by women increased nearly five-fold, from 18 in 2020 to 83 in 2021.10 This represents 14% of the 595 companies that joined the Crunchbase Unicorn Board in 2021. However, this upwards shift manifests in a context where the dollar investment in women-owned businesses still represents a minor share of the amount directed towards men-founded businesses. In 2019, the percentage of total investment in all-female businesses was 3%, having dropped 4% from 2018. In 2020, that number decreased further to 2% and remained at 2% in 2021.

With reference to the above passage answer the following questions :

From the reading of the above passage alone which of the following statements are true?

With of the following statement are true with reference to the above passage only ➖

1. ‘Necessity Founders’ is born out of necessity as there is scarcity of jobs and is one of the drivers for self-employment.
2.  All women founders during the pandemic are necessity founders and they make necessary things.

Abhishek is travelling by his car, which  is equipped with FASTAG which has prepaid balance of INR 630 which automatically pays the toll booth. Each toll booth charges INR 3 less than the previous toll booth.  At the end of end of the journey his prepaid balance is zero.

Which one of the the following statements cannot be true ?

There are seven persons P, Q, R, S, T, U and V up on a ladder(not in this order).P is further up than T but is lower than R. Q is in the middle. V is between P and Q. T is between Q and U. If U is between T and S, the person on the bottom step of the ladder will be ?

Consider the following statements :

1. A is taller than B
2. C is taller than A
3. D is taller than C
4.  E is the tallest of all

If A, B, C, D, E are made to sit in the above order of their height then who will be sitting in the middle ?
 

John Ruskin championed art as both ethical teacher and moral yardstick against which society could be measured. This was at a time when the world was  rapidly changing. The workers were becoming alienated from the works they produced and science was competing with art and literature as a source of knowledge and spiritual sustenance. As an art critic and social economist Ruskin defined the relationship between art and society and between the worker and society in novel ways, influencing figures as diverse as Proust and Gandhi. His five volumes of Modern Painters (1843–60) became an ambitious series of essays on the social context in which art is produced and which in turn mirrors the society that produces it. Art, therefore, appeals to the intellect as well as to the aesthetic sensibility. In illustrating the connection between art’s power to evoke great thought, as well as its capacity to give aesthetic pleasure, Ruskin states:

“A finished work of a great artist is only better than its sketch if the sources of pleasure belonging to colour and realization—valuable in themselves—are so employed as to increase the impressiveness of the thought.”

With reference to the above passage answer the following questions :

 From the reading the above passage alone which statement best describes the passage above:

With of the following statement are true with reference to the above passage only ➖

1. John Ruskin emphasises the importance of the thought or idea behind a work of art, rather than just the technical skill or aesthetic appeal.
2. John Ruskin quotes that a great piece of art is guaranteed if the artist has pleasure painting it.
3. Ruskin argues that  great artist should use their technical abilities to elevate the meaning and impact of their work, rather than simply creating something that looks pretty or impressive.

Read the following statements and answer the question based on logical deduction:

1. Whatever can be thought of or spoken of exists.
2. That which does not exist cannot be thought of hence it cannot be addressed.
3. There is no such thing as non-being, so everything is a state of being for human thought.