january 2016
CERTIFIED
PROJECT
MANAGEMENT ANALYST
PRACTICE QUESTIONS
www.iqnglobal.com
CPMA
Practice Questions
1.
The duration of the whole project will be fixed by the time taken to complete the largest path through
the network. This path is called the ____________and activities on it are known as _______________.
Activities on the critical path must be started and completed on timae, otherwise the total project time
will be extended.
A.
B.
C.
D.
2.
B.
C.
D.
The benefits must justify the costs.
The project must be the 'best' option from those under consideration for its particular purpose.
The project must compete with projects in other areas of the business for funds.
The costs, benefit and funding should be always be justified in pre-determined parameter
Many people working on projects find managing unreasonable expectations from sponsors to be the most
difficult. However, practicing _____________________ can result in a more focused project.
A.
B.
C.
D.
6.
Selecting jobs
Building industrial relations
Management policies
Motivation
Any project will have economic costs and economic benefits. Economic feasibility has all three strands
BUT NOT necessarily
A.
B.
C.
D.
5.
The business The Business Assurance Co-ordinator (BAC) ensures that the project meets the
organisations mission.
The specialist The Technical Co-ordinator is responsible for ensuring that the project does not have
technical problems.
The user The User Assurance Co-ordinator represents the user throughout the process.
The manager The Project Co-ordinator organises and leads the team.
An assessment of social feasibility will address a number of areas, among those is:
A.
B.
C.
D.
4.
path, critical activities
way, critical works
fact, critical activities
act, works
PRINCE methodologies have three separate progress assurance roles, which includes all of the following
EXCEPT
A.
3.
critical
critical
critical
critical
careful obedience
intelligent disobedience
careful disobedience
intelligent obedience
It is important to understand who has an interest in a project, because part of the responsibility of the
project manager is ________________________________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
communication and the management of expectations
confirmation and management by exceptions
communication and management of conflict
confirmation and management of exploitation
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Practice Questions
7.
Although the composition of the project team is critical, project managers often find it is not possible to
assemble the ideal team, and have to do the best they can with the personnel available. If the project
manager feels the best available team does not possess the skills and talent required, the project should
be_________________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
8.
Which is FALSE for scalable methodology?
A.
B.
C.
D.
9.
abandoned or delayed
abandoned rather than delayed
delayed rather than abandoned
first delayed and then abandoned
This approach recognises the differences in project size, risk and complexity, and allows a customized
best practice management approach for each project.
This approach builds on the Project Management Institutes PMBOK (Project Management Body of
Knowledge),
This approach identifies differences between minor and major projects on nine dimensions and their
impact on project management.
This approach enables management and stakeholder involvement at critical times in the project
Which of the following approaches was developed for IT projects, however, its focus and flexibility made
it appropriate for marketing projects?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Prince2
Scalable
Adaptive Project Framework (ADF)
Predictive Project Framework (PDF)
10. The WBS will go down through a series of levels until the project tasks produce manageable outputs.
These are called___________________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
work packages
tangible outputs
lowest level products
deliverables
11. A very important aspect of project planning is the determination of dependencies and interactions.
Careful analysis of dependencies is a major step towards a workable project plan, since it provides _____.
A.
B.
C.
D.
an order in which things must be tackled
a sequence in which procedures are executed
a combination of methodologies
an alternative way-out to resist loss
12. Functional organisation structures are simple and almost intuitive in their operation. However, they tend
to promote insularity of thought and even distrust between functions. Achieving full co-ordination of the
work of the various departments can be very difficult. This sort of problem leads to the _______
structure.
A.
B.
C.
matrix
complex
analytic
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Practice Questions
D. vertical
13. __________________ structured organisations can undertake projects successfully, partly, because they
are able to provide in-depth expertise to project managers by allocating expert staff from appropriate
functions. However, such staff can suffer from lack of focus if they still have a major functional role to
play and it can be difficult to integrate their efforts properly.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Globally
Functionally
Matrix
Ce-metrical
14. Primary functions in a manufacturing company might NOT be
A.
B.
C.
D.
production
sales
finance
warehousing
15. Sub-departments of marketing might NOT be
A.
B.
C.
D.
selling
advertising
distribution
finance
16. The ____________ structure imposes an extra layer of cross-functional management on top of
the___________ structure in order to improve co-operation and integration of effort by granting authority
to project managers. Typically, the superimposed structure will be concerned with individual products or
product groups.
A.
B.
C.
D.
matrix, functional
functional, matrix
team based, functional
project based, team based
17. Following is an excerpt from the text: "This approach is very flexible and easy to use; it tends to
complete projects quickly if the discipline of project management is well-understood. In particular, it
requires clear project definition if control is to be effective and comprehensive project review if longerterm learning is to take place." Which approach does the excerpt refer to?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Project-based
Functional
Team-based
Matrix
18. A high level of motivation is common and the integration of specialist work is eased by commitment to
project delivery. Staff may work on several projects at the same time and thus have responsibilities to
several project managers.
In which structure of organisation is the above mentioned situation TRUE?
A. Project-based
B. Functional
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C. Team-based
D. Matrix
19. In the feasibility studies of IS projects, the number of stages "Option Evaluation" has is:
A.
B.
C.
D.
3
4
5
6
20. Typically, four stages exist within a project life cycle. It may help you to remember the four stages if
you think of them as the four Ds. Which is TRUE?
A.
B.
C.
D.
The project definition stage may also include the procedures required for project selection.
The project design phase will include detailed planning for activity, cost, quality and time.
The project delivery phase does not necessarily include all the work required to deliver the planned
project outcomes.
Longer-term review will examine the project outcomes after the passage of time to establish its
overall degree of success, but should be avoided because of time and cost consuming.
21. Performance driver analysis is essentially a _____________________ technique. The essence of the
technique is to identify two groups of performance-related influences: those that enable good
performance and those that hinder or prevent it.
A.
B.
C.
D.
calculating and communication
risk minimising and motivation
brainstorming and presentation
consulting and harmonisation
22. Saunders et al (2005) undertook research on the screening and evaluation criteria for new
product development (NPD) research. They found that criteria for acceptance or rejection of product
concepts vary through the NPD process. At the initial screening stage, there is a focus on the
______________ criteria.
A.
B.
C.
D.
marketing
projecting
commercial
financial
23. The decision to terminate a project is not the end of the project management process, which ends after
the ________________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
project
project
project
project
analysis
supervision
cancellation
evaluation
24. ________________ determines how well the project met its objectives, including time, cost and quality,
and how well the needs of its stakeholders were met.
A. Evaluation
B. Supervision
C. Communication
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D. Formulation
25. Small projects may have informal reviews, but larger projects need formal reviews. Although evaluation
takes place throughout the project, an integrated evaluation at the end of the project reflects on reasons
for success and failure that may be missed in operational management. Project _______ are rigorous
reviews, using a structured approach, and often undertaken by an independent party.
A.
B.
C.
D.
audits
frauds
missions
tasks
26. The project manager should be aware of the following matters for each stakeholder or stakeholder group
EXCEPT
A.
B.
C.
D.
Goals
Past attitude and behaviour
Expected future behaviour
Reaction to possible past developments
27. Project management as a discipline developed because of a need to __________________ to obtain
desired results within a set timeframe. Common project management tasks include establishing goals and
objectives, developing a work-plan, scheduling, budgeting, co-ordinating a team and communicating.
A.
B.
C.
D.
co-ordinate resources
cooperate mechanisms
construct business logic
conduct business analysis
28. The consideration of project management will first address the types of projects (_____________),
how these are undertaken (_______________) and why they do it (______________).
A.
B.
C.
D.
activities, strategic goals & competitive position, people and processes
people and processes, activities, strategic goals & competitive position
strategic goals & competitive position, people and processes, activities
activities, people and processes, strategic goals & competitive position
29. Project management in its widest sense is fundamental to much strategy. This is because very
few organisations are able to do the same things in the same ways year after year.
___________________ change forces many organisations to include extensive processes of adaptation into
their strategies.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Continuing environmental
Policies
Management discretion
Organisational structure
30. The product managers may each have their own ________________; in which case the
_______________department itself would be small or non-existent. The authority of product managers
may vary from organisation to organisation.
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A. marketing team, marketing
B. finance team, finance
C. hr team, hr
D. IT team, IT
31. The _________ organisation structure is now regarded as rather old-fashioned, since it is essentially a
complex way of retaining the basic functional structure by adding extra resources to overcome its
disadvantages. More modern approaches seek fundamental improvements and tend to focus on processes
and projects.
A.
B.
C.
D.
matrix
team-based
project-based
functional
32. In the project management plan, the project manager will submit the final product and any interim
deliverables to the ________________ for formal acceptance.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Standards Project Team (SPT)
Standards Performance Team (SPT)
C.Standards Program Team (SPT)
Standards Planning Team (SPT)
33. While the discipline of a Project Portfolio Management approach is perfectly logical, it must be recognised
that the ____________ are often not.
A.
B.
C.
D.
steps
conditions
outcomes
methodologies
34. Identifying the work packages forms the foundation for developing schedules, budgets and
resource requirements, and also forms the foundation for assigning _____________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
adhoc tasks
responsibilities
workflows
package work
35. _________________ can be split into activities or tasks that are used to create a workflow. These contrast
with activities and tasks, which are about what is involved in doing work.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Work functions
Work packages
Work statuses
Work tasks
36. A very important aspect of ________________ is the determination of dependencies and interactions. At
any level of WBS analysis, some tasks will be dependent on others; that is to say, a dependent task cannot
commence until the task upon which it depends is completed.
A.
B.
project terminating
project implementing
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C.
D.
project planning
project initiating
37. __________________are the artefacts used to manage the project. They include the project management
organisation structure, planning documentation, reports and so on.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Technical products
Quality products
Mature products
Management products
38. In contrast to the multitude of such small events, modern organisations are likely to undergo
_______________ change far less often, but sufficiently frequently and with developments that have
sufficiently long lives for project management to be an important aspect of strategic implementation.
A. significant
B. specific
C. sporadic
D. minor
39. _____________ is the term when work is added to the project after the scope has been established and
agreed.
A. Scope change
B. Scope creep
C. Strategic scope
D. Strategic scope change
40. Monitoring cannot make a project successful it is a neutral part of the project process. However,
timely monitoring (followed by effective control) can help identify and avoid if necessary the three
Cs constrictions that challenge projects, which DOES NOT include:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Crises
Catastrophes constraint
Change
Complexity
41. _________________ is usually the responsibility of the project co-ordinator and may be carried out
informally (through weekly briefs) or through routine review of the project documents.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Project planning
Monitoring
Estimating
Delayering
42. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. Relationship Management could give significant shorter-term returns.
B. Relationship Management could give significant longer-term returns.
C. Relationship Management could give insignificant shorter-term returns.
D. Relationship Management could give insignificant longer-term returns.
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Practice Questions
43. Initiating tasks are carried out by the ___________________.
A. project stakeholder
B. project charter
C. project manager
D. project sponsor
44. Some project managers have the job title 'Project Manager'. Which is TRUE about them?
A.
B.
C.
D.
These
These
These
These
people
people
people
people
usually have one major responsibility: the project planning.
usually have one major responsibility: the project.
usually have one major responsibility: the project monitoring.
usually have one major responsibility: the project initiating.
45. Project management is the combination of ________________and _______________used to control and
monitor activities undertaken within the project.
A.
B.
C.
D.
systems techniques, people
machine, technicians
software, programmer
techniques, project managers
46. A project will be deemed successful if it is completed at the specified level of quality _______and ______.
A.
B.
C.
D.
by the manager, in time
on time, within budget
within budget, before planned time
on time, in minimal budget
47. The way in which a project manager co-ordinates a project from initiation to completion, using project
management and general management techniques, is known as the ____________________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Project
Project
Project
Project
Management
Management
Management
Management
system
technique
process
coordination
48. An effective project management process helps project managers maintain _________________and meet
their responsibilities.
A.
B.
C.
D.
adjusting projects
control of projects
ad hoc tasks
cost of projects
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Practice Questions
49. Project management techniques encourage ______________________by identifying, from the outset,
those activities which might threaten successful completion of a project.
A.
B.
C.
D.
management of action
management by section
management by exception
managing from direction
50. The ideal project team achieves project completion on time, within budget and to the required
specifications with the minimum amount of ________________from the project manager.
A.
B.
C.
D.
direct supervision
indirect supervision
complex supervision
mix supervision
51. The project team will comprise individuals with___________________________. The project manager
should choose a balanced team that takes advantage of each team member's skills and compensates
elsewhere for their weaknesses.
A.
B.
C.
D.
equal skills and education
differing skills and personalities
various experiences and complexions
same age and equal abilities
52. The project manager should keep in touch with the relationships of team members and act as
a ___________________ if necessary.
A.
B.
C.
D.
conciliator
facilitator
substitute
mentor
53. ______________________refers to the number of subordinates or team members responsible to a person.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Span of management
Area of management
Focus of management
Circle of management
54. __________________ is accountable for the resources invested into the project and responsible for the
achievement of the project's business objectives.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Project
Project
Project
Project
vendor
manager
stakeholder
sponsor
55. One approach to stakeholders dispute management strategy is to organise affairs in a way that minimises
exposure to the___________________.
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A.
B.
C.
D.
risk of disputes
risk of control
risk of management
risk of functions
56. Conflict between project stakeholders may be resolved by all EXCEPT
A.
B.
C.
D.
Negotiation
Partnering
Mediation
Bargaining
57. Meredith and Mantell (2003) state that success or failure of a project is based on whether they have
achieved targets on the following EXCEPT
A.
B.
C.
D.
Required performance
No. of projects
Cost
Due date
58. Project managements contribution is now widely recognised as important within the
_______________areas of organisations.
A.
B.
C.
D.
business
management
departmental
functional
59. For project planning is fundamental to project success, ________________________must be established,
use of shared resources must be planned and, most fundamental of all, jobs must be done in a sensible
sequence.
A.
B.
C.
D.
prudent management and online support
practical understanding and trained-up team
realistic timescales and resource requirements
quick reviews and suitable locations
60. Models such as Kerzners are a guide to progress; in particular they indicate ____________________for
project managers.
A.
B.
C.
D.
leading challenges
organisational changes
departmental progress
career development routes
61. Project management is a way of making ___________________ more deliberate and therefore betterconsidered.
A.
competitive strategy
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B.
C.
D.
policy changes
ad hoc strategy
management style changes
62. According to Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2008), the ________________________of knowledge
requires effective systems to link the people who have knowledge with the applications that need it.
A.
B.
C.
D.
collection and dissemination
creation and exploitation
achievement and allocation
moderation and storage
63. Functional structures of organisations are simple and almost intuitive in their________________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
operation
implementation
application
synchronization
64. The matrix structure is now regarded as rather _______________, since it is essentially a
_______________way of retaining the basic functional structure.
A.
B.
C.
D.
latest, simple
old, modern
old-fashioned, complex
classical, traditional
65. The permeability of a project is the extent to which its ___________________________are subject to
influences outside the control of the project manager. The extent of these influences might be very
limited in a short, simple project of a well-understood type.
A.
B.
C.
D.
objectives and solutions
solutions and processes
objectives and processes
management and solutions
66. Paisley Ltd plans to purchase a machine costing 13,500. The machine will save labour costs of 7,000 in
the first year. Labour rates in the second year will increase by 10%. The estimated average annual rate
of inflation is 8% and the company's real cost of capital is estimated at 12%.
The machine has a two-year life with an estimated actual salvage value of 5,000 receivable at the end of
Year 2. All cash flows occur at the year end.
What is the NPV (to the nearest 10) of the proposed investment?
Note: The present value at a discount rate of 11%:
Period
Discount Rate
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1
2
3
1.0000
0.8267
0.6835
What is the NPV (to the nearest 10) of the proposed investment?
A.
B.
C.
D.
1,150
970
770
550
67. A fishbone is also known as:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Poka-yoke diagram
Kaizen diagram
Taguchi diagram
Ishikawa diagram
68. Project managers often use control chart to view overall progress of projects against planned schedule.
Following is a typical project schedule control chart demonstrating progress of a software programme
development of Sansung i-Phone:
Days Ahead of schedule
4
3
2
1
0
1
2
3
4
Days behind of schedule
Reporting Period
What should be interpreted from this control chart?
A.
B.
C.
D.
By the end of period 3, the project had fallen behind by almost one and a quarter day.
By the end of period 3, the project had fallen behind by almost one and a half days.
By the end of period 3, the project had fallen behind by almost two days.
By the end of period 3, the project had fallen behind by almost one day.
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Practice Questions
69. Maclan Motors is undertaking a project for upgrading its sports car engine. At the initial stage the project
team has developed a fish bone diagram to aid them focus in areas on priority basis.
How a fish bone diagram may help the project team in this respect?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Fish bone diagram itself is an essential tool to the process of analysis.
Fish bone diagram will arrange key areas in a chronological manner.
Fish bone diagram forms a good medium forbrainstorming a problem and for presenting the
eventual results.
Fish bone diagram helps in constructing scenario for upgraded model of sports engine only.
70. Project managers often view resource diagram in order to know:
A.
B.
C.
D.
The time scale and to estimate resource requirements.
Resource requirement, usage and availability throughout the whole process.
Resource requirements, usage and availability for a known time.
How to plan and control projects.
71. Milestone slip chart compares planned and actual progress towards project milestones. Shown below is a
typical milestone chart:
2
3
State what is indicated by milestone 4?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Planned and actual progress towards milestones was achieved.
Planned and actual progress towards milestones was not achieved.
Planned progress was faster than actual progress but repetition is not expected.
Planned progress was faster than actual progress but repetition is not possible.
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72. Which of the following is FALSE regarding control charts?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Values above the upper and lower control limits indicate points out of adjustment.
Control charts are built so that retrospective data can be quickly compared to past performance data.
Control charts graphically present data.
Control charts plot data over time.
73. When a sample measurement falls inside the control limits, it means that
A.
B.
C.
D.
each unit manufactured is good enough to sell
the process limits cannot be determined statistically
the process output exceeds the requirements
if there is no other pattern in the samples, the process is in control
74. If a sample of parts is measured and the mean of the measurements is outside the control limits the process
is
A.
B.
C.
D.
in control, but not capable of producing within the established control limits
out of control and the process should be investigated for assignable variation
within the established control limits with only natural causes of variation
d. monitored closely to see if the next sample mean will also fall outside the control limits
75. The following is a project network diagram. (The numbers in parenthesis represent hours.)
A (6)
D (3)
G (2)
B (4)
Start (0)
E (6)
End (0)
F (4)
C (8)
The length of the critical path from A is:
A.
B.
C.
D.
14 hours
5 hours
6 hours
11 hours
76. Which of the following statements is correct for a project with a positive Net Present Value (NPV)?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Internal rate of return (IRR) exceeds the cost of capital
Accepting the project has an indeterminate effect on shareholders
The discount rate exceeds the cost of capital
The profitability index equals one
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77. Which of the following capital budgeting methods states the project return as a percentage?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Payback period
Net present value
Internal Rate of Return
Discounted payback period
78. What is the Net Present Value (NPV) of a project that costs $100, 000 and returns $45, 000 annually for
three years if the cost of capital is 14%?
Number of periods
Discount factor
0.877
0.769
0.675
A.
B.
C.
D.
$16, 100.00
$35, 000.00
$3, 397.57
$4, 445.00
79. Following is a simple network diagram that illustrates a typical computer installation project in one of the
factory of super motor car company Bintally Motor Works.
D1
F3
E6
G3
A3
START
B5
C2
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Can activity D be delayed without delaying the completion of the project? If so, how many days?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Yes, 4 days
No, 4 days
Yes, 8 days
No, 8 days
80. Following is a simple network diagram that illustrates a typical computer installation project in one of the
factory of super motor car company Bintally Motor Works.
D1
F3
E6
G3
A3
START
B5
END
C2
What is the duration of the critical path for this project?
A.
B.
C.
D.
7 days
12 days
10 days
4 days
81. Following is a simple network diagram that illustrates a typical computer installation project in one of the
factory of super motor car company Bintally Motor Works.
D1
F3
E6
G3
A3
START
B5
C2
What is the earliest start time for Activity G?
A.
B.
C.
D.
3
9
6
7
days
days
days
days
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Practice Questions
82. Following is a simple network diagram that illustrates a typical computer installation project in one of the
factory of super motor car company Bintally Motor Works.
D1
F3
E6
G3
A3
START
B5
C2
What is the latest start time for Activity F?
A.
B.
C.
D.
3 days
4 days
7 days
9 days
83. A Gantt chart is used to:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Show how activities are related
Show when activities take place
Enable the critical path to be evaluated
Show resources used over time
84. A resource histogram is used to:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Show how activities are related.
Show when activities take place.
Enable the critical path to be evaluated.
Show resources used over time.
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85. Crashing is the term used when:
A.
B.
C.
D.
The project time has to be at minimum extra cost.
Insufficient resources are available for the project to be completed on time.
The cost of a project has to be reduced.
The project time has to be at minimum cost.
86. If the earliest start time and latest start time of an activity are 8 and 9 respectively, the float for this
activity is:
A.
B.
C.
D.
Zero
1
17
3
87. A project manager wishes to identify abnormality in his project. Which of the following tools would aid him
in this respect?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Control charts
Scatter diagram
Histograms
Pareto charts
88. Mr. MacDowell is considering of selling tickets of education programmes. He is determined that the
attendants will vary on the personality and popularity of the professor making speech in the programme. It is
not possible to arrange speech of well-known professor throughout the year. Mr. MacDowell cannot sort out
any probable outcome from the relationship between personality of professor and the attendees.
Which of the following technique may help Mr. MacDowell as a better planning tool for his project of selling
tickets of education programmes?
A.
B.
C.
D.
A Gantt Chart
PERT
Resource Histogram
Scatter Graph diagram
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Answers
26
51
76
27
52
77
28
53
78
29
54
79
30
55
80
31
56
81
32
57
82
33
58
83
34
59
84
10
35
60
85
11
36
61
86
12
37
62
87
13
38
63
88
14
39
64
15
40
65
16
41
66
17
42
67
18
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68
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69
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70
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71
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47
72
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48
73
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74
25
50
75
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