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I've mentioned the golden rule in many threads and people are always messaging me and asking more about it and my take on verbal. Well here is a thread that explains it all perfectly. I promise this is the best way to improve your verbal score. Try it, practice it, improve.
The Golden Rule
Basics:
1) Mark out 2 obviously wrong answers to leave you with the 2 answers that sound good.
2) Pick the LESS WRONG answer. This means pick the answer that does not contain anything even remotely contradicting to what you thought of the passage. Even if it doesn't seem as explicitly correct as the other answer, if it does not contain wrong information, it is the less wrong answer.
Reason it works:
Wrong details make questions 100% wrong.
Right details do NOT make questions 100% right.
Test makers will make 2 questions that sound good. One will include a trap. It will sound really really good but then have 1 small detail where you think "well that's not quite right, but the rest sounds so great". Don't fall for it.
The other answer (the correct one) will sound right but not as obviously right, so you doubt picking it.
Example
I'm going to simulate a passage here. The blanks are there because let's be honest, you didn't understand everything. You just picked up on key words and some ideas.
John Smith .... African artist ..... contemplative .... art .... south Africa ..... art that makes one think about the human perspective .... not normally seen by the human eye .... mixed colors and blurred details .... Smith raised in poverty ..... believes art makes one contemplate human experience ..... art must reflect humanity to be true art.
Try to answer this question using the golden rule.
Which of the following would the author most likely enjoy?
A) A detailed drawing of a city skyline.
B) A picture of his mother.
C) A realistic painting of an impoverished African child with no shoes.
D) An abstract painting of a man alone on the subway.
Now lets walk through it:
1) Mark out 2 wrong answer.
So we know the author likes art about the humanities and that it should express the human perspective and condition to be true art. That seemed pretty obvious from the passage, and we know that.
Answer A we mark out because it is a skyline, not of human perspective. Answer B we mark out because a picture is not an art piece and it also doesn't express the human experience.
2) Pick the less wrong answer.
We have C. This sound pretty darn good. An impoverished African child definitely makes us feel for the painting and shows human perspective. Also, I remember Africa being mentioned and something about poverty, so this sounds pretty darn good.
We have D. It is abstract. That sounds good with the blurred details and mixed colors. It also shows a lonely man, so that fits the human perspective and experience part. It makes you feel for a lonely man on the subway all alone.
Choice C must be incorrect because it mentions "realistic", which the author does not endorse.
Answer D is correct and includes no contradictions.
In reality, Answer C is super enticing in a timed MCAT where you barely understood the passage. You think "It mentions Africa, poverty, and clearly evokes emotion about the human perspective and experience." However, you did remember a slight something about not normally seen by the human eye and mixed colors and blurred details. Be confident in what you read. Even though this answer sounds great, "realistic" is a contradicting detail and makes the whole answer wrong no matter how great the rest of it is. Answer D matches the main point AND has no contradicting details. Pick it and be a winner.
I made this post so I do not have to answer a dozen messages and questions about it anymore. I believe it is sufficiently explained in this post. If you're still uncertain about it, you need to practice. After all, no advice is going to instantly jump up your verbal score. Practice is key. Practice using this rule DAILY and you will improve.
The Golden Rule
Basics:
1) Mark out 2 obviously wrong answers to leave you with the 2 answers that sound good.
2) Pick the LESS WRONG answer. This means pick the answer that does not contain anything even remotely contradicting to what you thought of the passage. Even if it doesn't seem as explicitly correct as the other answer, if it does not contain wrong information, it is the less wrong answer.
Reason it works:
Wrong details make questions 100% wrong.
Right details do NOT make questions 100% right.
Test makers will make 2 questions that sound good. One will include a trap. It will sound really really good but then have 1 small detail where you think "well that's not quite right, but the rest sounds so great". Don't fall for it.
The other answer (the correct one) will sound right but not as obviously right, so you doubt picking it.
Example
I'm going to simulate a passage here. The blanks are there because let's be honest, you didn't understand everything. You just picked up on key words and some ideas.
John Smith .... African artist ..... contemplative .... art .... south Africa ..... art that makes one think about the human perspective .... not normally seen by the human eye .... mixed colors and blurred details .... Smith raised in poverty ..... believes art makes one contemplate human experience ..... art must reflect humanity to be true art.
Try to answer this question using the golden rule.
Which of the following would the author most likely enjoy?
A) A detailed drawing of a city skyline.
B) A picture of his mother.
C) A realistic painting of an impoverished African child with no shoes.
D) An abstract painting of a man alone on the subway.
Now lets walk through it:
1) Mark out 2 wrong answer.
So we know the author likes art about the humanities and that it should express the human perspective and condition to be true art. That seemed pretty obvious from the passage, and we know that.
Answer A we mark out because it is a skyline, not of human perspective. Answer B we mark out because a picture is not an art piece and it also doesn't express the human experience.
2) Pick the less wrong answer.
We have C. This sound pretty darn good. An impoverished African child definitely makes us feel for the painting and shows human perspective. Also, I remember Africa being mentioned and something about poverty, so this sounds pretty darn good.
We have D. It is abstract. That sounds good with the blurred details and mixed colors. It also shows a lonely man, so that fits the human perspective and experience part. It makes you feel for a lonely man on the subway all alone.
Choice C must be incorrect because it mentions "realistic", which the author does not endorse.
Answer D is correct and includes no contradictions.
In reality, Answer C is super enticing in a timed MCAT where you barely understood the passage. You think "It mentions Africa, poverty, and clearly evokes emotion about the human perspective and experience." However, you did remember a slight something about not normally seen by the human eye and mixed colors and blurred details. Be confident in what you read. Even though this answer sounds great, "realistic" is a contradicting detail and makes the whole answer wrong no matter how great the rest of it is. Answer D matches the main point AND has no contradicting details. Pick it and be a winner.
I made this post so I do not have to answer a dozen messages and questions about it anymore. I believe it is sufficiently explained in this post. If you're still uncertain about it, you need to practice. After all, no advice is going to instantly jump up your verbal score. Practice is key. Practice using this rule DAILY and you will improve.