CAT 2017 Slot 2 — VARC Question 20
Answer the following questions based on the information given below.
Typewriters are the epitome of a technology that has been comprehensively rendered obsolete by the digital age. The ink comes off the ribbon, they weigh a ton, and second thoughts are a disaster. But they are also personal, portable and, above all, private. Type a document and lock it away and more or less the only ways anyone else can get it is if you give it to them. That is why the Russians have decided to go back to typewriters in some government offices, and why in the US, some departments have never abandoned them. Yet it is not just their resistance to algorithms and secret surveillance that keeps typewriter production lines-well one, at least-in business (the last British one closed a year ago). Nor is it only the nostalgic appeal of the mental body and the stout well-defined keys that make them popular on eBay. A typewriter demands something particular: attentiveness. By the time paper is loaded, the ribbon tightened, the carriage returned, the spacing and the margins set, there’s a big premium on hitting the right key. That means sorting out ideas, pulling together a kind of order and organizing details before actually striking off. There can be no thinking of screen with a typewriter. Nor are there any easy distractions. No online shopping. No urgent emails. No Twitter. No need even for electricity -perfect for writing in a remote hideaway. The thinking process is accompanied by the encouraging clack of keys, and the ratchet of the carriage return. Ping!.
According to the passage, some government still use typewriters because:
Answer & solution
- A
they do not want to abandon old technologies that may be useful in the future.
- B
they want to ensure that typewriter production lines remain in business.
- C
they like the nostalgic appeal of typewriter.
they can control who reads the document.
Option 1 is incorrect. The passage makes no mention of technology that may be useful in the future. Eliminate option 1. Option 2 is incorrect. The passage does not imply any relation between government and typewriter production lines. Eliminate option 2.
Option 3 is incorrect. Nostalgic appeal is not the reason governments use typewriters. Eliminate option 3.
Option 4 is correct. The passage states: “Type a document and lock it away and more or less the only way anyone else can get it is if you give it to them.” Retain option 4.
Hence, the correct answer is option 4.