Ahmed, Farida, Tala, and Yousef are debating how to measure Summer Olympics achievement by countries. Ahmed maintains that the best...

GMAT Multi Source Reasoning : (MSR) Questions

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Multi Source Reasoning

MSR - CR

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Discussion

Rankings Table

Graph

Ahmed, Farida, Tala, and Yousef are debating how to measure Summer Olympics achievement by countries.

Ahmed maintains that the best measure of overall Olympic achievement by a country is the most straightforward: a simple count of all medals won by that country.
Farida observes that more populous countries have more potential Olympic athletes and argues that a fair measure of overall Olympic achievement must in some way include consideration of a country's population.
Tala argues that the only real Olympic achievement by an athlete is victory. Gold medals (for first place) should be counted; silver and bronze medals (for second and third place, respectively) should not.
Yousef recommends counting each silver medal as half a gold medal, and each bronze medal as half a silver medal.

Ques. 1/3

Suppose that another person, Aisha, asserts that weighted totals, calculated according to the method indicated in the Graph tab, should provide the sole criterion of Olympic achievement. For each of the following participants in the Discussion, select Compatible if the participant's stated recommendation is compatible with Aisha's measure of Olympic success. Otherwise, select Incompatible.

Compatible

Incompatible

Ahmad

Compatible

Incompatible

Farida

Compatible

Incompatible

Yousef

Solution

Owning the Dataset

Understanding Source A: Discussion - Olympic Measurement Debate

Discussion Analysis:

Information from Dataset	Analysis
""Ahmed maintains that the best measure of overall Olympic achievement by a country is the most straightforward: a simple count of all medals won by that country.""	Ahmed advocates for counting all medals equally (gold, silver, bronze) Values simplicity and comprehensiveness - every medal represents achievement
""Farida observes that more populous countries have more potential Olympic athletes and argues that a fair measure of overall Olympic achievement must in some way include consideration of a country's population.""	Farida wants population-adjusted (per capita) measurements Believes raw medal counts unfairly favor larger countries Her approach would help smaller nations compete fairly in rankings
""Tala argues that the only real Olympic achievement by an athlete is victory. Gold medals (for first place) should be counted; silver and bronze medals (for second and third place, respectively) should not.""	Tala takes the most exclusive position - only gold medals matter Views silver and bronze as forms of losing rather than achievement Would dramatically change country rankings compared to total medal counts
""Yousef recommends counting each silver medal as half a gold medal, and each bronze medal as half a silver medal.""	Yousef proposes a weighted system: Gold=1, Silver=0.5, Bronze=0.25 Creates compromise acknowledging all medals while prioritizing gold Middle ground between Ahmed's equal counting and Tala's gold-only approach

Summary: Four individuals present different philosophies for measuring Olympic success, ranging from simple total counts to gold-only counting to weighted systems to population-adjusted measures

Understanding Source B: Rankings Table - 2008 Olympics Achievement Rankings

Shows 6 countries ranked by 5 different Olympic achievement metrics from the 2008 Summer Olympics
Key patterns observed:
- Country C dominates in total medals (1st) and total medals per capita (1st)
- Country B ranks poorly overall (6th in total medals) but excels in gold medals per capita (1st)
- Multiple ties exist in gold medal counts
Key insights:
- Same countries rank dramatically differently depending on measurement method used
- Country B appears to be small country that won few medals but high proportion of golds
Connection to Source A:
- Implements several measurement approaches debated in Source A
- Ahmed's total medal count appears as ""Total medals"" column
- Farida's per capita argument appears in three columns
- Tala's gold-focus appears as ""Total gold medals""
- Weighted medals formula differs from Yousef's proposed weighting

Understanding Source C: Graph - Olympic Points Trends 2000-2012

Shows point totals for Countries C, D, and H across four Summer Olympics (2000-2012)
Point system: 4 points for gold, 2 for silver, 1 for bronze
Key patterns observed:
- Country C shows dramatic decline from 73 to 32 points (56% decrease)
- Country H shows volatility: 47→47→24→46 with major 2008 dip
- Country D remains relatively stable with slight upward trend
Key insights:
- Country C experienced significant decline in Olympic performance over 12 years
- Country H had unusually poor 2008 Olympics but recovered by 2012
Connections:
- Point system represents another weighted approach different from both Yousef's proposal and Source B's weighted per capita
- Country C's strong 2008 performance occurred during overall decline phase

Overall Summary

Olympic achievement measurement is highly contested with theoretical debates reflected in practical applications
Different metrics produce dramatically different country rankings:
- Simple medal counts
- Per capita adjustments
- Various weighting systems
Small countries with few but high-quality medals (like Country B) can top certain rankings
Traditionally strong countries (like Country C) may show dominance in snapshot years despite long-term decline
Key insight: There's no single ""correct"" way to measure Olympic success - the choice of metric fundamentally determines which countries appear successful

Question Analysis

Source A (Discussion):

Ahmad advocates for counting all medals equally (simple count)
Farida wants to include population consideration (per capita measurement)
Yousef proposes a weighted system: silver = (mathrm{0.5}) gold, bronze = (mathrm{0.5}) silver

Source C (Graph):

Shows the weighting method: Gold = 4 points, Silver = 2 points, Bronze = 1 point
This is the method Aisha wants to use as the sole criterion

Connecting to Our Passage Analysis

Aisha's proposed system uses weighted totals with the specific ratio of (mathrm{4:2:1}) for gold:silver:bronze medals
To determine compatibility, need to compare each participant's recommendation with this weighting system

Statement Evaluations

Ahmad Evaluation:

Wants simple medal count (all medals worth 1 point each)
Gives equal weight to all medals ((mathrm{1:1:1}) ratio)
Aisha's system differentiates medal values ((mathrm{4:2:1}) ratio)
These approaches are fundamentally different
INCOMPATIBLE

Farida Evaluation:

Advocates for per capita measurements to account for population
Aisha's system uses absolute weighted totals without population adjustment
Farida's approach would divide by population; Aisha's would not
These are different measurement frameworks
INCOMPATIBLE

Yousef Evaluation:

Proposes: Silver = (mathrm{0.5 imes Gold}), Bronze = (mathrm{0.5 imes Silver = 0.25 imes Gold})
Creates a ratio of Gold:Silver:Bronze = (mathrm{1:0.5:0.25 = 4:2:1})
Aisha's system has exactly the same ratio: (mathrm{4:2:1})
Both systems value medals proportionally in the same way
COMPATIBLE

Final Answer

Only Yousef's recommendation is compatible with Aisha's measure
Both use the identical weighting ratio of (mathrm{4:2:1}) for gold:silver:bronze medals
Ahmad's equal weighting and Farida's per capita approach are both incompatible with Aisha's absolute weighted total system

[""Incompatible"", ""Incompatible"", ""Compatible""]

Answer Choices Explained

Compatible

Incompatible

Ahmad

Compatible

Incompatible

Farida

Compatible

Incompatible

Yousef

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