IBPS PO 23-Oct-2016

Read the following passage and answer the given questions.
After the Second World War, the leaders of the Western world tried to build institutions to prevent the conflicts of the preceding decades from recurring. They wanted to foster both prosperity and interdependence, to 'make war not only unthinkable but materially impossible'. Their work bore fruit. Expanded global trade has raised incomes around the world. While globalisation is sometimes portrayed as a corporate plot against the workers; that was not how it was seen before 1914. British trade unions were in favour of free trade, which kept down food prices for their members and also opened up markets for the factories in which they worked. Yet, as the Brexit vote demonstrates globalisation now seems to be receding. Most economists have been blindsided by the backslash. Free trade can be a hard sell politically. The political economy of trade is treacherous. Its benefits, though substantial, are dilute, but its costs are often concentrated. This gives those affected a strong incentive to push for protectionism. Globalisation itself thus seems to create forces that erode political support for integration.
Deeper economic integration required harmonisation of laws and regulations across countries. Differences in rules on employment contracts or product safety requirements, for instance, act as barriers to trade. Trade agreements like the TransPacific Partnership focus more on "nontariff barriers" than they do on tariff reduction. The net impact of this is likely to be that some individuals, consumers and businesses are not likely to be as benefitted as others and given rise to discontent. Thus the consequences of such trade agreements often run counter to popular preferences. Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize winner, has warned that companies influence over trade rules harms workers and erodes support for trade liberalisation. Clumsy government efforts to compensate workers hurt by globalisation contributed to the global financial crisis, by facilitating excessive household borrowing, among other things. Researchers have also documented how the cost of America's growing trade with China has fallen disproportionately on certain American cities. Such costs perpetuate a cycle of globalisation. Periods of global integration and technological progress generate rising inequality, which inevitably triggers two countervailing forces, one beneficial and one harmful. On the one hand, governments tend to respond to rising inequality by increasing redistribution and investing in education, on the other, inequality leads to political upheaval and war. The first great era of globalisation, which ended in 1914, gave way to a long period of declining inequality, in which harmful forces played a bigger rise than beneficial ones. History might repeat itself, he warns. Such warnings do not amount to
arguments against globalisation. As many economists are quick to note, the benefits of openness are massive. It is increasingly clear, however, that supporters of economic integration underestimated the risks both that big slices of society would feel left behind and that nationalism would continue to provide an alluring alternative. Either error alone might have undercut support for globalisation and the relative peace and prosperity it has brought in combination, they threaten to reverse it.

In the given passage, there are blanks, each of which has
been numbered. Against each, five words are suggested, one of which fits the blank appropriately. Find the appropriate word in each case. The use of technology in education
has been present throughout history. Over the last century, schools have modified their ...(23)... to teaching as well as the methods that are used to enhance student learning. Chalk and slate were at one time the newest technology. From there, technological changes have gone from film, radio and television to desktop computers and now into interactive white boards like SMART Technology. The capabilities teachers have with new technology give them the ...(24)... to differentiate lessons for ...(25)... overall learning. Microsoft PowerPoint is one of the most popular technology tools used in any classroom. SMART Technologies has integrated the SMART Board Software with PowerPoint, thus combining the newest technology with the most popular Sl. This brief description shows that new technology is being implemented in the classroom. Unfortunately, due to ...(26)... costs, the more advanced the new'equipment becomes; the less likely schools are willing to ...(27)... it for their classrooms. ...(28)... sufficient funds, it is difficult for schools to obtain technologically advanced classrooms. SMART Technology is the most recent equipment to enter the classroom. In 2002, SMART Boards ranged from $999.0 to $1,999.00, and that was for just the board. If a school wanted to better … (29)... its finances and purchase the rolling floor stand accessory, which makes the technology more accessible to all teachers. It Would pay an additional amount of somewhere $425.00 and $499.00. Any school that desires technology must have capacity to ...(30)... it. However, even with sufficient funds, a technological integration effort is only as strong as the administrative, support behind it.

In these questions, two equations numbered I and II are given. You have to solve both the equations and mark the appropriate answer.

Give answer :

(1) If x < y

(2) If x > y

(3) If x ≤ y

(4) If x ≥ y

(5) If relationship between x and y cannot be determined