GMAT Reading Comprehension- Commonplace Items Sometimes Play Surprising Roles in World Development

Reading Passage Question

Commonplace items sometimes play surprising roles in world development. For example, though most people today associate nutmeg with simple baked goods, this common spice once altered the course of political history. For centuries, the nutmeg tree grew only in the Banda Islands, a small chain in the southwest Pacific. Locals harvested the aromatic nuts of the tree and sold them to traders. Eventually these nuts, from which the spice is made, ended up as a luxury item in the European market, via Venetian spice merchants. Eager to establish a monopoly over this valuable spice, the Dutch attacked the Bandas, subjugating the native people in a mostly successful attempt to control the nutmeg trade.

However, one island in the Banda chain remained in the hands of the British and was the object of much conflict between the Netherlands and England. After many battles, the British offered to cede control of the island in exchange for New Amsterdam, a Dutch outpost on the east coast of North America. At the time, the Dutch, inveterate traders, were more interested in the spice trade than in the mercantile value of New Amsterdam and so accepted the offer. In 1667, the Treaty of Breda gave the Dutch complete control of the Banda Islands, and thus of the nutmeg trade, and gave the British New Amsterdam, which they promptly renamed New York.

“Commonplace items sometimes play surprising roles in world development.”- is a GMAT reading comprehension passage with answers. Candidates need a strong knowledge of English GMAT reading comprehension.

This GMAT Reading Comprehension consists of 3 comprehension questions. The GMAT Reading Comprehension questions are designed for the purpose of testing candidates’ abilities in understanding, analyzing, and applying information or concepts. Candidates can actively prepare with the help of GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.

Solution and Explanation

1. Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the claim that New Amsterdam would have remained a Dutch possession if not for the conflict over nutmeg?

1. Attempts to cultivate nutmeg trees outside of the Banda Islands had failed.
2. Few people lived in New Amsterdam before it was ceded to the British.
3. The British controlled trade in other valuable spices, such as cloves.
4. New Amsterdam served as a trading center for furs exported to Europe.
5. The Netherlands controlled no North American territories other than New Amsterdam.

2. The second paragraph performs which of the following functions in the passage?

1. It offers specific information to complete the logic of the author's claims.
2. It summarizes and evaluates the evidence given thus far.
3. It presents the author's main point to explain a unique situation.
4. It cites a particular case to demonstrate the importance of historical change.
5. It discusses the necessary outcome of the author's assertions.

3. In the passage, the author is primarily interested in

1. tracing the history of a major city
2. discussing the role of spices in world development
3. offering a specific example to support a general claim
4. arguing for continued research into political history
5. presenting an innovative view of a commonplace item

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