Directions: Travis Kalanick spent most of the past decade turning a taxi app…
2020
Directions: Travis Kalanick spent most of the past decade turning a taxi app (Uber) into the world's most valuable startup. Uber is a ride-hailing service that he helped found in 2009 and built into a transportation colossus.
Travis Kalanick stepped down Tuesday as chief executive of Uber, after a seemingly endless series of scandals raised doubts over his leadership. Kalanick's resignation doesn't come as a surprise -- after he was caught on video chewing out an Uber driver who questioned the company's compensation policies in February. Meanwhile, shareholders released a damning report on the firm's management culture.
Which of the following is not in line with the passage?
(I) Kalanick's resignation came under the pressure of the damning report released by the shareholders on management's culture; this is one of the reasons for the resignation of the Chief Executive of Uber.
(II) Travis Kalanick stepped down as chief executive of Uber because an endless series of scandals raised doubts over his leadership, as well as because he was caught on video chewing out an Uber driver and the shareholders' report was not in favour of management.
(III) Travis Kalanick spent most of the past decade turning a taxi app (Uber) into the world's most valuable startup.
- A.
Only II
- B.
Only I and III
- C.
Only I and II
- D.
All of these
- E.
None of these
Attempted by 2 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: E
Concept
In a "which statement is NOT in line with the passage" task, a statement counts as in line only if every claim it makes is stated in, or fairly inferable from, the passage — with no contradiction and nothing that goes beyond the text. The right choice is the option that names exactly the set of statements that fail this test; and you must check it against the wording actually offered, because if no listed combination matches that set, the "none" option is what remains.
Application — test each statement
Statement I: it ties the resignation to the shareholders' damning report on management culture, calling the report one of the reasons. The passage places that report right beside the scandals and the driver video as the backdrop to the step-down ("Meanwhile, Shareholders released a damning report on the firm's management culture"). The link is presented as concurrent context rather than an explicit cause, so reading the report as a contributing factor is the most natural fit with the text and does not contradict it.
Statement II: it attributes the step-down to the endless scandals raising doubts over his leadership, the video of him chewing out a driver, and the shareholders' report being unfavourable to management. All three points are stated outright in the passage, so this statement is fully supported.
Statement III: it says Kalanick spent most of the past decade turning a taxi app (Uber) into the world's most valuable startup — a near-verbatim copy of the opening sentence, and therefore supported.
Cross-check — match against the offered options
Statements II and III are squarely supported, and statement I sits within the passage's framing. So no statement is clearly out of line, which makes the set of out-of-line statements empty. None of the listed combinations names such a set: "Only II", "Only I and III" and "Only I and II" each wrongly flag a supported statement, and "All of these" over-counts. Even on the strictest reading — where one might quibble that statement I's causal wording goes a shade beyond the text — the out-of-line set would be just that single statement, and there is still no option naming it alone. Either way, the only option that does not misstate the set is the "none" choice.