SAT Writing - Quiz 7 – Expression of Ideas

11 Questions (9 Minutes is Recommended)

.Directions.

The passage below is accompanied by a number of questions. All of the questions in this quiz
focus on how the passage might be revised to improve the expression of ideas. (Other quizzes
in this program focus exclusively on how the passage might be edited to correct errors in
sentence structure, usage, or punctuation.)

Some questions will direct you to an underlined portion of a passage. Others will direct you to
a location in the passage or ask you to think about the passage as a whole.

After reading the relevant portion of the passage, choose the answer that most effectively
improves the quality of the writing in the passage. Many questions include a “NO CHANGE”
option. Choose that option if you think the best choice is to leave the relevant portion of the
passage as it is.

Questions 1-11 are based on the following passage. . .1………………………………………. ..……….

A Blue Jean Crisis A) NO CHANGE

In the 1960s, a stylistic variation of blue jeans B) showing their faces in
came into vogue: "distressed" jeans. First C) getting noticed by consumers of

popularized by California surfers whose jeans were D) appearing in

well-worn from repeated exposure to wind, sand,

. .2………………………………………. ..……….
and saltwater, distressed jeans began ..1 .. popping
up in New York City ..2 .. boutiques by the middle Which of the following alternatives to the
underlined portion is most acceptable?
of the decade. They enjoyed intermittent periods of
A) banquets
popularity for over two decades before becoming a
B) stores
fashion “must-have” in the 1990s. The explosion in
C) bouquets
demand ..3 . forced manufacturers to increase the
.

D) streets
production of jeans that featured visible fading,
discolorations, and even holes.
. .3………………………………………. ..……….

A) NO CHANGE
B) made
C) prompted
D) teased

CONTINUE
 \.4 .. [1] The process, called sandblasting, . .4………………………………………. .. ……….
required workers to use industrial-strength air
To make this paragraph most logical, which is
compressors to blow sand at high speeds directly at the best ordering of the three sentences?
the jeans. [2] In order to create the desired A) 1, 3, and 2
aesthetic, clothing companies developed a simple B) 2, 3, and 1
industrial process for distressing the garments. C) 2, 1, and 3
[3] Cheap and effective, sandblasting soon became D) 3, 2, and 1
common in factories across the world \.5 .. and
around the globe. . .5………………………………………. ..……….

A) NO CHANGE
\.6 .. Tragically, sandblasting had unforeseen B) and all over the globe
side effects for garment workers. Evidence of harm C) and globally
first arose in 2004 in Turkey, a leading exporter of D) DELETE the underlined portion.
jeans. There, a doctor examined dozens of young
men from a factory town to determine their . .6……………………………………… . ..……….
suitability for military service. He found that
A) NO CHANGE
several of the men were suffering from silicosis, a
B) Luckily
disease normally found only in quarrymen and
C) Notably
miners. Caused by fine particles of sand lodging in D) Financially
the lungs, silicosis is untreatable and can result in
lung cancer and death. \.7 .. All of the affected men
. .7……………………………………… . ..……….
had previously worked as sandblasters in the town
The writer is considering deleting the preceding
factory.
sentence in its entirety. Should the writer make
the deletion?
A) Yes, because the sentence is not supported
by numerical data.
B) Yes, because the sentence contains
information that is irrelevant.
C) No, because the sentence provides
information that is relevant to the main focus
of the paragraph.
D) No, because the sentence matches the rest of
the passage in tone and style.

CONTINUE
 \.8 .. As news of the doctor's findings spread, . .8………………………………………. .. ……….
denim factory workers across the country sought
Which of the following provides the most
medical attention, fearing that they themselves relevant introduction to the sentence?
might also have silicosis. Sadly, Turkish doctors A) NO CHANGE
diagnosed \.9 .. hundreds of additional cases of B) As distressed jeans became more and more
popular
silicosis. To date, over 40 deaths in Turkey have
C) As the demand for Turkish-made distressed
been attributed to silicosis contracted during jeans increased
sandblasting. In 2009, the Turkish government D) Just like Turkish quarrymen and miners
outlawed the practice in jeans factories.
Meanwhile, outraged workers' rights advocates . .9………………………………………. ..……….
pressured clothing companies to shut down A) NO CHANGE
sandblasting operations in Turkey, as well as other B) hundreds of additional cases
countries. C) additional cases of silicosis in the hundreds
D) DELETE the underlined portion.
Unfortunately, reform efforts have not
...10 ………………………………… . ..…… ….
. 10.. snuffed out the practice of sandblasting. Many
apparel companies contract with independent A) NO CHANGE
factories to produce their clothing. These industrial B) pummeled
manufacturers, located primarily in Asia, are often C) completely wiped off the face of the earth

poorly regulated. .11.. As a result, sandblasting D) eradicated

continues in some countries, an unfortunate fact that

...11 ………………………………… . ..…… ….
may change only if consumers demand more
accountability and oversight from the manufacturers A) NO CHANGE

of distressed jeans. B) Nevertheless

C) However
D) Surprisingly

STOP
If you finish before time is called, you may check your work in this section only.
Do not return to any other section in the test.