NYPD Police Officer flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Main idea

The central claim that the entire passage supports. It is broader than any single detail and is usually stated or implied in the opening or closing sentences.

Valid inference

A conclusion that must be true given the passage, even if unstated. It is forced by the text rather than merely plausible from outside knowledge.

Contrast signal words

Words such as however, but, although, and yet that mark a shift in direction. The author's main point often appears in the clause following a contrast signal.

Overreach answer choice

An option using absolute words like all, never, must, or only when the passage supports something weaker. Such choices are usually incorrect in comprehension questions.

Comma splice

Two independent clauses joined by only a comma. It is corrected with a conjunction, a semicolon, or a period separating two sentences.

Sentence fragment

A group of words punctuated as a sentence but missing a subject, a finite verb, or a complete thought. It cannot stand alone as a sentence.

Its versus it's

Its is the possessive form showing ownership. It's is a contraction meaning it is or it has and never shows possession.

Subject-verb agreement with collectives

Collective nouns such as team, squad, or jury take a singular verb when the group acts as one unit, and a plural verb when members act individually.

Chunking

Grouping separate items into meaningful units so more information fits in working memory, such as splitting a ten-digit number into three groups.

Spaced repetition

Reviewing material at expanding intervals, such as one day, three days, and one week, which produces stronger long-term retention than massed study.

Primacy and recency effects

Items at the beginning and end of a list are recalled better than middle items. Middle material therefore needs extra rehearsal to be retained.

Retrieval practice

Strengthening memory by actively recalling information, such as self-testing, rather than passively rereading notes. Recall effort itself improves later retention.

Problem sensitivity defined

The ability to recognize that something is wrong or could go wrong before it becomes obvious, based on subtle cues and deviations from the expected pattern.

Escalation triggers

Conditions requiring immediate escalation: risk of injury, a weapon, a crime in progress, or a vulnerable person in danger. These outrank routine matters.

Severity, immediacy, likelihood

Three factors for ranking problems. Imminent danger to life takes priority over property damage, which takes priority over procedural or paperwork concerns.

Anomaly clustering

Several small irregularities occurring together often indicate one larger underlying problem, warranting more attention than any single oddity alone.

Quarter and half turns

A quarter turn equals 90 degrees, a half turn equals 180 degrees, and a full turn equals 360 degrees. Two quarter turns equal one half turn.

Facing north directions

When facing north, right is east, left is west, and behind is south. Rotating clockwise from north moves toward east.

Facing south directions

When facing south, right is west, left is east, and behind is north. This is the reverse of the orientation when facing north.

Opposite compass directions

Directions 180 degrees apart: north and south, east and west, northeast and southwest, northwest and southeast. A half turn produces the opposite direction.

Deductive reasoning defined

Reasoning from general rules to a guaranteed conclusion. If the premises are true and the form is valid, the conclusion must also be true.

All A are B

Every member of set A is also in set B. It does not imply that every B is an A, so the reverse claim is invalid.

Contrapositive validity

From if P then Q, it validly follows that if not Q then not P. This reversed-and-negated form preserves truth.

Affirming the consequent

An invalid argument form: from if P then Q and Q, concluding P. The consequent being true does not guarantee the antecedent.

Denying the antecedent

An invalid argument form: from if P then Q and not P, concluding not Q. The rule may still apply through another condition.

Inductive reasoning defined

Reasoning from specific observations to a general rule. The conclusion is probable rather than certain and can be weakened by new evidence.

Arithmetic versus geometric sequences

In an arithmetic sequence the difference between terms is constant. In a geometric sequence the ratio between terms is constant.

Interleaved sequences

A sequence using two alternating rules, one for odd-numbered positions and one for even-numbered positions. Each subsequence is analyzed separately.

Correlation versus causation

Two events occurring together does not prove one causes the other. A third factor may influence both, so causal claims need more evidence.

Transitive ordering

If A comes before B and B comes before C, then A comes before C. This rule chains relative positions into a complete order.

Immediate versus sometime before

Immediately before means the items occupy adjacent positions with nothing between them. Sometime before allows unspecified items in between.

Elimination in ordering problems

Testing each candidate arrangement against every stated rule and crossing out any that violates one, until only the valid arrangement remains.