Thầy Minh’s Education Studio

Reading

Practice Test 1
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The Greek alphabet was probably invented 1

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during the eighth century B.C.E. The new Which choice completes the text with the
technology encountered remarkable resistance most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line in the form of a highly developed and
5 ritualized oral culture. That is, the traditions A) static
of prealphabetic Greece were actively B) repaired
preserved in numerous oral stories regularly C) adjusted
recited and passed along from generation to
D) solved
generation by the Greek bards. Since they
10 were not written down, they were never
wholly ________, but would shift slightly with
each telling to fit the circumstances or needs
of a particular audience, gradually
incorporating new practical knowledge while
letting the obsolete fall away.

We owe our recognition of the oral nature 2

of the Homeric epics to the pioneering Which choice completes the text with the
research undertaken by Milman Parry and his most logical and precise word or phrase?
assistant Albert Lord in the 1930s. Careful
study revealed that the poems were composed A) proposed
almost entirely of repetitions of phrases with B) invited
two or more words. Moreover, Homer’s choice
C) utilized
of one particular phrase rather than another
seemed at times to be governed less by its D) visited
exact meaning than by what the rhythm and
structure of the line demanded; the bard
apparently ________ one specific formula
after another in order to fit the driving beat of
the chant, in a trance of rhythmic
improvisation.

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Thomas Jefferson's decision not to 3

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________ lotteries was endorsed by classical Which choice completes the text with the
wisdom, which held that, far from being a most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line debased game, lots were a way of divining the
5 future and of involving the gods in everyday A) expand
affairs. B) publicize
C) condemn
D) legalize

The speech was a hodgepodge of random 4

and contradictory information that could not
Which choice completes the text with the
be integrated into ________, consistent whole.
most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) an ambiguous
B) a coherent
C) an amorphous
D) an unintelligible

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Acid rain is damaging lakes in ________ 5

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way, causing the virtually unnoticed Which choice completes the text with the
destruction of these aquatic ecosystems. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) a manifest
B) an insidious
C) a methodical
D) an obvious

A hypocrite may commit reprehensible acts 6

but escape discovery by affecting ________.
Which choice completes the text with the
most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) profundity
B) enthusiasm
C) innocence
D) immorality

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In an effort to relieve people's physical 7

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discomforts, modern medicine sometimes Which choice completes the text with the
wrongly treats the body's defense mechanisms most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line as ________ and in need of corrective
5 intervention. A) complex
B) suppressive
C) medicinal
D) defective

As ________ as the disintegration of the 8

Roman Empire must have seemed, that Which choice completes the text with the
disaster nevertheless presented some most logical and precise word or phrase?
constructive aspects.
A) momentous
B) decisive
C) advantageous
D) catastrophic

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In the opening scene, the playwright creates 9

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such a strong impression of the ________ of Which choice completes the text with the
the main characters that none of their most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line subsequent, apparently honorable actions can
5 redeem these characters in the eyes of the A) degradation
audience. B) integrity
C) conviction
D) dignity

Many scientists have such specialized 10

expertise that they look only at isolated Which choice completes the text with the
aspects of nature, but ecologists are concerned most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line with the ________ of the natural
5 environment. A) purity
B) paradox
C) totality
D) erosion

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Notoriously ________ regarding issues of 11

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national security, the Prime Minister Which choice completes the text with the
dumbfounded her opponents when she most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line compromised on a defense appropriations
5 bill they had expected her to contest. A) evenhanded
B) compliant
C) pacific
D) intransigent

The doctor ________ so frequently on 12

disease-prevention techniques that her
Which choice completes the text with the
colleagues accused her of inconsistency.
most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) vacillated
B) sermonized
C) experimented
D) relied

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Although hostile demonstrations and 13

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discord marred James Meredith’s 1962 Which choice completes the text with the
enrollment at the University of Mississippi, most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line the commencement ceremony in which he
5 became the university’s first African American A) tranquil
graduate was surprisingly ________. B) daunting
C) controversial
D) opportune

Rather than focusing on the ________ 14

sequence of events, the historian E.M.W.
Which choice completes the text with the
Tillyard avoids a chronological approach and
most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line portrays, instead, the dominant belief patterns
5 of an age. A) rational
B) temporal
C) universal
D) qualitative

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The fashion designer’s new line of spring 15

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clothing was described in the style section of Which choice completes the text with the
the newspaper as ________, even most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line incandescent; the runway collection had
5 dazzled the audience. A) unassuming
B) capricious
C) vivacious
D) resplendent

Climate models do not yield definitive 16

forecasts of what the future will bring; such
Which choice completes the text with the
models serve only as a clouded crystal ball in
most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line which a range of ________ possibilities can be
5 glimpsed. A) discarded
B) plausible
C) impeccable
D) forgotten

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The cellist Yo-Yo Ma performs both 17

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classical and contemporary works; he is Which choice completes the text with the
honored both as an active _________ most logical and precise word or phrase?
Line of the new and as an incomparable
5 interpreter of the old. A) excluder
B) reviler
C) disparager
D) proponent

To her great relief, Jennifer found that 18

wearing sunglasses in bright sunlight helped to Which choice completes the text with the
________ her headaches. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) ascertain
B) mitigate
C) extend
D) propagate

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Done right, public transport can be faster, 19

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more comfortable, and cheaper than the private What is the main idea of the text?
automobile. In Shanghai, German-made
Line magnetic levitation trains skim over elevated A) European countries excel at public
5 tracks at 266 miles an hour, whisking people to transportation.
the airport at a third of the speed of sound. In B) Some public transportation systems are
provincial French towns, electric-powered superior to travel by private automobile.
streetcars run silently on rubber tires, sliding C) Americans should mimic foreign public
through narrow streets along a single guide rail transportation systems when possible.
10 set into cobblestones. From Spain to Sweden,
D) Much international public transportation
Wi-Fi equipped high-speed trains seamlessly
is engineered for passengers to work
connect with highly ramified metro networks,
while on board.
allowing commuters to work on laptops as they
prepare for same-day meetings in once distant
15 capital cities. In Latin America, China, and
India, working people board fast-loading buses
that move like subway trains along dedicated
busways, leaving the sedans and SUVs of the
rich mired in dawn-to-dusk traffic jams. And
20 some cities have transformed their streets into
cycle-path freeways, making giant strides in
public health and safety and the sheer livability
of their neighborhoods—in the process turning
the workaday bicycle into a viable form of mass
transit.

I accompanied Thiam for the ritualistic 20

morning greetings. It took a long time to
Which choice best states the main purpose of
complete the full circle. As we moved in our
the text?
Line orbit, I noticed others circulating in theirs. The
5 entire village was in motion, and from all A) To recall a favorite pastime.
directions one could hear “How did you sleep?” B) To illuminate a cultural concept.
followed by inquiries about each family
C) To justify an unpopular
member’s sleep. As we walked the village, it
conclusion.
became clear that in the tradition of its
10 inhabitants, and even in their imagination, the D) To recommend a course of action.
concept of divided, differentiated, segmented
space does not exist. There are no fences,
hedges, nets, ditches, or demarcation lines
anywhere. The space is single, communal, open;
15 it puts up no limits, offers no resistance.

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The ability to recognize specific individuals 21

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has profound implications for the evolution of Which choice best states the main purpose of
complex social behaviors such as reciprocal the text?
Line altruism. Many researchers assumed that
5 recognition of individuals, a phenomenon A) To describe a behavior.
predominantly observed in laboratory studies of B) To dismiss a theory.
fish, might also operate extensively in free- C) To predict a result.
ranging fish populations, where it could
D) To appraise an assumption.
underpin these complex interactions. In fact,
10 evidence of individual recognition in free-
ranging fish populations is equivocal. The
possibility exists that for many species,
individual recognition observed in the
laboratory might be an artifact of experimental
15 designs, which enforce prolonged interaction
between individuals and which prevent the
diluting effects on social structure of
immigration into and emigration from the
shoal, factors that in nature would erode group
20 stability and prevent the learning of individual
identities.

Some studies have suggested that posture can 22

influence cognition, but we should not overstate
Which choice best states the main purpose of
this phenomenon. A case in point: In a 2014
the text?
Line study, Megan O’Brien and Alaa Ahmed had
5 subjects stand or sit while making risky A) It presents the study by O’Brien and
simulated economic decisions. Standing is more Ahmed to critique the methods and
physically unstable and cognitively demanding results reported in previous studies of the
than sitting; accordingly, O’Brien and Ahmed effects of posture on cognition.
hypothesized that standing subjects would B) It argues that research findings about the
10 display more risk aversion during the decision- effects of posture on cognition are often
making tasks than sitting subjects did, since misunderstood, as in the case of O’Brien
they would want to avoid further feelings of and Ahmed’s study.
discomfort and complicated risk evaluations.
C) It explains a significant problem in the
But O’Brien and Ahmed actually found no
emerging understanding of posture’s
15 difference in the groups’ performance.
effects on cognition and how O’Brien and
Ahmed tried to solve that problem.
D) It discusses the study by O’Brien and
Ahmed to illustrate why caution is needed
when making claims about the effects of
posture on cognition.
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Among some Native American peoples, the 23

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oral tradition of one group has sometimes Which choice best states the main purpose of
influenced that of another; indeed, tracing such the text?
Line influence has been one major task of scholars
5 of Native American oral literature. European A) To assess the extent of a particular
influences are often regarded, understandably, influence on a narrative tradition.
as another matter. Nellie Barnes, for example, B) To point out the prevalence of a type of
in an early stylistic study of Native American narrative once thought to be rare.
oral literature, considered only forms C) To report results of recent research on a
10 preceding the influence of Europeans. Yet the particular narrative tradition.
example of the Zuni version of the Italian folk
D) To propose an expansion of the focus of
tale "The Cock and the Mouse" suggests that,
a particular area of research.
notwithstanding the opinions of scholars of
Native American oral literature, European
15 influence is not always synonymous with the
waning of Native American traditions. The
Zuni narrator utilized the European story as an
opportunity to exercise his narrative genius,
thus leaving his tradition enhanced rather than
20 diminished by the European influence. Such
examples should cause scholars researching
influences on Native American oral narratives
to reassess their notions of the proper domain
of such studies.

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According to the prevailing view, Homo 24

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erectus, an ancestor of Homo sapiens, lacked the Which choice best states the main purpose of
intellectual and technological sophistication to the text?
Line have achieved controlled use of fire; that had to
5 wait for the emergence of H. sapiens 40,000 A) To challenge an entrenched
years ago. However, recent evidence seriously interpretation of certain well-known
undermines this view. At two sites in Kenya, findings.
many small, lens-shaped patches of discolored B) To reconcile two competing
earth were uncovered along with bones and interpretations of certain findings.
10 stone tools of H. erectus. Analysis showed that C) To present evidence that calls a popular
the patches, which, like the tools and bones, view into question.
dated from 1.6 million years ago, were almost
D) To point out the scientific implausibility
certainly the result of deliberately built fires,
of particular interpretations of certain
since those fires were evidently much hotter
findings.
15 than typical naturally occurring bush fires. The
size of the patches rules out lightning strikes,
which could have explained the fires' high
temperatures. Furthermore, the fires were fed by
a mixture of grasses and woods that strongly
20 suggests deliberately collected fuel. In addition,
many of H. erectus' tools were made of basalt or
quartz, stones which, when exposed to the
intense heat near a campfire, form characteristic
dimples on their surface. A recent study found
25 that such dimples never appear on tools dating
earlier than 1.6 million years ago but do
consistently appear on later tools.

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The first printers in Europe modeled their 25

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books very closely on handwritten manuscripts, Which choice best describes the function of
leading to an easy acceptance of print among the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
Line readers but to significant missteps in trying to
5 apply technology. The attempt to replicate A) It provides a specific example of an
manuscripts' appearance encouraged approach mentioned earlier in the
experiments in two- or three-color printing. passage.
This was intricate and expensive work, and B) It qualifies a claim made earlier in the
many printers found it preferable to pay expert passage.
10 calligraphers to manually adorn unbound sheets C) It corrects a misconception regarding
with additional colors. Illuminated headings and early printed books.
decoration familiar from the manuscript age
D) It anticipates an argument that is
had helped lead readers through the text. To
discounted by later evidence.
achieve similar effects, printers began to
15 experiment with new arrangements of type,
using large fonts for headings and substituting
decorative woodcuts for hand-executed initial
letters. Ultimately, readers came to accept books
printed in just one color.

Noting that bison herds appear to graze 26

selectively in areas occupied by prairie dog
Which choice best describes the function of
colonies, Coppock hypothesized that the the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
Line attraction is due to improved forage quality:
5 prairie dogs' own grazing activities alter herbage A) To provide information about the kinds
dynamics, plant species composition, and of forage preferred by prairie dogs.
nutrient cycling. The colonies' territory contains B) To specify what makes forage conditions
relatively little low-quality mature standing created by prairie dogs appealing to
herbage and is characterized by communities of bison.
10 plants that are high in crude protein and highly
C) To suggest that prairie dogs' activities can
digestible. However, such effects are not
cause environmental degradation.
produced only by prairie dogs. Willms showed
that sites selectively grazed by cattle had reduced D) To identify characteristics that influence
standing dead plant material, altered species prairie dogs' selection of sites to colonize.
15 composition, and increased soil nitrates,
ammonium, and available phosphorus. In fact,
long-term, intensive use by any grazer will cause
comparable changes in plant communities.

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Abolitionist Frederick Douglass' move to 27

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Rochester, New York, in 1847 was a major step Which choice best describes the function of
in his finding his own intellectual path. Along the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
Line with much of the rest of western New York,
5 Rochester became fertile ground for an A) It points out a similarity between
antislavery movement that dissented from that Garrison's position and that of Douglass
led by William Lloyd Garrison, with whom prior to the latter's move to Rochester.
Douglass had previously been aligned. Unlike B) It illustrates the extent to which Garrison
the Garrisonians, who believed the Union disdained politics as a tool to achieve
10 established by the United States Constitution abolition.
must be dissolved in order to abolish slavery, C) It explains the motivation behind the
many Rochester activists began to see both the Rochester abolitionists' split with
Constitution and the political process as Garrison.
invaluable instruments for achieving that goal. D) It suggests that the previous alliance
15 During the 1840s and 1850s, many abolitionists between Douglass and Garrison has been
had become frustrated by the failure of overemphasized.
Garrison's method of moral persuasion. They
turned instead to politics to fight slavery.

One might assume the most admired 28

architecture would be the best built. This was Which choice best describes the function of
generally true in the past, but in the twentieth the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
Line century, when new materials and new aesthetic
5 theories often drove architects to cavalier A) It helps substantiate the author's claims
experimentation, even celebrated architects fell about pre-twentieth-century architecture.
short. When designing the Centre Georges B) It provides a specific example of the trend
Pompidou in Paris, Renzo Piano and Richard cited in the previous sentence.
Rogers turned the building literally inside out. C) It bolsters the claim that modern
10 Previously hidden elements such as pipes, ducts, architecture abhors aesthetic
and elevators were exposed to view-and exposed experimentation.
to the elements. The result might have been
foreseen: after only twenty years, the building D) It restates the assumption mentioned in
was closed for a two-year renovation. Although the passage's opening sentence.
15 the authorities maintained that the
unexpectedly large numbers of visitors
necessitated the renovation, much of the budget
was spent on refurbishing the facade.

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As with so many endeavors, nature writing 29

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has become increasingly specialized. There The text as a whole best supports which
has been a generally healthy movement from statement about the “movement”?
Line the anthropocentric to the biocentric, from
5 human focused to world focused, a movement A) It had surprisingly little impact on
that Thoreau anticipated late in his life with readers.
his more scientific writing. This movement B) It would have dismayed Thoreau.
has led to some fine objective writing, but it C) It vastly improved the genre of nature
has also led to many dull pages, exhaustive writing.
10 and, occasionally, exhausting works. The
D) It involved losses as well as gains.
problem is that readers are human beings and
therefore naturally interested in the human.
The driving youthful question that enlivened
Thoreau’s Walden—How to live?—has been
15 all but forgotten.

Calling it a cover-up would be far too 30

dramatic. But for more than half a century—
The “dark cloud’’ refers to an
even in the midst of some of the greatest
Line scientific achievements in history—physicists A) unsupported hypothesis
5 have been quietly aware of a dark cloud B) unknown threat
looming on a distant horizon. The problem is
C) evil influence
this: There are two foundational pillars upon
which modern physics rests. One is general D) important contradiction
relativity, which provides a theoretical
10 framework for understanding the universe on
the largest of scales: stars, galaxies, clusters of
galaxies, and beyond. The other is quantum
mechanics, which provides a theoretical
framework for understanding the universe on
15 the smallest of scales: molecules, atoms, and
all the way down to subatomic particles like
electrons and quarks. But these same
theoretical tools inexorably lead to another
disturbing conclusion: general relativity and
20 quantum mechanics cannot both be right.
The two theories underlying the tremendous
progress of physics during the last hundred
years—progress that has explained the
expansion of the heavens and the fundamental
structure of matter—are mutually
incompatible.

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Archaeologists have traditionally thought 31

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that the rise of agriculture required early Which of the following, if true, would most
farmers to settle down near their crops. But challenge the “implication”?
Line new findings suggest that Catalhoyiik, Turkey
5 - a large Neolithic village of such early farmers A) Catalhoyiik's farmers obtained through
- was smack in the middle of marshy wetlands. trade the wheat and barley that Rosen
Archaeologist Arlene Rosen’s analysis of fossil analyzed.
remains of wheat and barley found at B) Catalhoyiik’s farmers understood the
Catalhoyiik indicates that the grain was grown impact of soil conditions on crop
10 in a dry area. Some experts reject the productivity.
implication that Catalhoyiik’s farmers C) Catalhoyiik’s farmers shared wheat and
cultivated distant fields, since large quantities barley fields with neighboring villages.
of grain would have had to be transported. D) Catalhoyiik’s farmers used wood that
However, archaeobotanist Eleni Asouti has deteriorated in the damp environment.
15 shown that the wood used for construction at
Catalhoyiik grew at least twelve kilometers
away from the village.

The nineteenth-century Russian novelist 32

Fyodor Dostoyevsky believed that humans are
Which hypothetical situation best illustrates
basically irrational. People are able to sense a
Dostoyevsky's belief about human nature
Line world of pleasure and pain that their intellects
expressed in the final sentence?
5 cannot account for logically. Dostoyevsky
believed that human beings desire chaos as A) A man who desires better job
well as creation, irrationality as well as opportunities enrolls in classes to learn
rationality. If we were told what our lives new skills.
would be like in ten years, he felt, we would B) A woman who wants more adventure in
10 immediately set out to alter the certitude of her life decides to take up a new sport.
our own futures, however bright those futures
C) A student who loves music splurges on a
might be. People do not really want to act
stereo system that she cannot really
prudently to their own advantage; they wish to
afford.
follow their impulses.
D) A single parent arranges for his children
to stay with their grandparents while he
attends a conference.

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“Ghosts of the Old Year” is an early 1900s 33

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poem by James Weldon Johnson. In the poem, Which quotation from “Ghosts of the Old
the speaker describes experiencing an ongoing Year” most effectively illustrates the claim?
Line cycle of anticipation followed by regretful
5 reflection: ______ A) “The snow has ceased its fluttering
flight, / The wind sunk to a whisper
light, / An ominous stillness fills the
night, / A pause—a hush.”
B) “And so the years go swiftly by, / Each,
coming, brings ambitions high, / And
each, departing, leaves a sigh / Linked to
the past.”
C) “What does this brazen tongue declare, /
That falling on the midnight air / Brings
to my heart a sense of care / Akin to
fright?”
D) “It tells of many a squandered day, / Of
slighted gems and treasured clay, / Of
precious stores not laid away, / Of fields
unreaped.”

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“The Edge” is a 1994 novel by R. K. Narayan. 34

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In the novel, the protagonist Ranga was a Which quotation from “The Edge” most
familiar figure in the streets of Malgudi as he effectively illustrates the author's suggestion?
Line slowly passed in front of homes, offering his
5 service in a high-pitched, sonorous cry, “Knives A) " 'Not only knives, but also scythes,
and scissors sharpened.” He stuck his arm clippers and every kind of peeler and
through the frame of a portable grinding cutter in your kitchen, also bread knives,
apparatus; an uncomplicated contraption even butcher s hatchets in those days
operated by an old cycle wheel connected to a when I carried the big grindstone; in
10 foot-pedal. But Narayan suggested that Ranga those days I could even sharpen a
offers a service that many do not consider a maharaja s sword' (a favorite fantasy of
necessity. his was that if armies employed swords he
could become a millionaire)"
B) "You might interrupt his loquaciousness
and repeat your question: 'How long have
you been a sharpener of knives and other
things?' "
C) "At the Market Road he dodged the traffic
and paused in front of tailor’s and
barber’s shops, offering his services."
D) "Getting people to see the importance of
keeping their edges sharp was indeed a
tiresome mission."

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"Leaves of Grass" (1855) is a poetry 35

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collection by American author and poet Walt Which quotation from “Leaves of Grass”
Whitman. This collection of loosely connected most effectively illustrates Whitman's
Line poems represents the celebration of his suggestion?
5 philosophy of life and humanity and praises
nature and the individual human's role in it. A) "It is all as well done, in my opinion, as
Whitman describes his own literary journey, could be practicable."
starting with his childhood home on Long B) "Swiftly, on limitless foundations, the
Island. He also portrays the people and places United States are founding a literature.
10 that have influenced him along the way. In Every day I go among the people of
describing his own activity, Whitman suggests Manhattan Island, Brooklyn, and other
that the components of American literature can cities, and among the young men, to
more readily be found in the daily lives of city discover the spirit of them, and to refresh
dwellers than in published literature. myself. These are to be attended to; I am
myself more drawn here than to those
authors, publishers, importations,
reprints, and so forth."
C) "I pass coolly through those,
understanding them perfectly well, and
that they do the indispensable service,
outside of men like me, which nothing
else could do."
D) "In poems, the young men of The States
shall be represented, for they out-rival the
best of the rest of the earth."

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Text 1 36

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The author of Text 2 would most likely
It is striking how our culture has characterize the “people” mentioned in Text
wholeheartedly adopted the recycling ethic. 1 as
Most parents have probably received
Line humbling lectures from their children after A) emotional
5 tossing a glass jar or newspaper in the trash B) indecisive
can. But the popularity of recycling is even C) unmotivated
more surprising considering the
D) uninformed
inconveniences associated with it. Who hasn’t
experienced the annoyance of trying to satisfy
10 complicated rules about what can and cannot
be recycled? Glass jars—but not their tops?
Plastics number 1 and 2—but not number 3?
Still there is no sign that the public is
becoming impatient, so convinced are people
15 of the virtues of recycling.

Text 2

Mandatory recycling programs aren’t good 37

for posterity. They offer mainly short-term The authors of both texts would most likely
benefits to a few groups— like politicians and agree that recycling rules are
waste-handling corporations—while diverting
20 money from genuine social and A) convoluted
environmental problems. Recycling programs B) unethical
actually consume resources. They require C) antiquated
extra administrators and a continual public
relations campaign explaining what to do D) unenforceable
25 with dozens of different products—recycle
milk jugs but not milk cartons, index cards
but not construction paper. Collecting a ton
of recyclable items is three times more
expensive than collecting a ton of garbage
30 because crews pick up less material at each
stop. Recycling may be the most wasteful
activity in the modern United States: a waste
of time and money, a waste of human and
natural resources.

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Text 1 38

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The author of Text 2 and the “teachers”
Foraging near the hut that he built himself, mentioned Text 1, would probably disagree
cultivating beans whose properties invited regarding which of the following about
speculation, gazing into the depths of Walden Walden ?
Line Pond, Henry David Thoreau epitomizes a long-
5 standing American worship of nature. A) The extent to which Walden presents
Generations of teachers have assigned nature as being threatened.
Thoreau’s book Walden (1854), which recounts B) The extent to which Walden successfully
his experiment in living in solitary harmony recounts Thoreau’s experiment in
with nature, as an illustration of the intensity solitary living.
10 with which nineteenth-century America C) The extent to which Walden has been
protested the intrusion into pastoral harmony considered an important work of
of the forces of industrialization and literature.
urbanization. In this sense, Walden is revered D) Whether Walden recognizes the spread
as a text of regret, a lament for a world passing of industrialization and urbanization.
15 out of existence.

Text 2

Although Thoreau, in Walden, was

sometimes ambivalent about the mechanization
that he saw around him, at other times he was
downright enthusiastic, as in his response to the
20 railroad: “When I hear the iron horse make the
hills echo with his snort like thunder, shaking
the earth with his feet, and breathing fire and
smoke from his nostrils,... it seems as if the
earth had got a race now worthy to inhabit it.”
25 At Walden Pond, civilization and
industrialization no longer seemed threatening.
Providing a full record of Thoreau’s purposeful
energy, Walden demonstrates that the power
unleashed by the machine is not that different
30 from the power required to transform the
wilderness into a productive garden.

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In the space of the “first hundred days” of the

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39
Roosevelt Administration the policy known as The author of the text would most likely
the New Deal took its basic shape. The consider the information in the figure to be
Line theoretical underpinnings of the New Deal were
5 found in the thought of the English economist A) support for his argument that since the
John Maynard Keynes, a proponent of state- implementation of the New Deal there
monopoly capitalism. Reflecting the profound was greater government control of the
changes accruing in the economies of the economy.
capitalist countries during the era of the general B) support for his argument that the New
10 crisis of capitalism, Keynes and his followers Deal not only saved but also increased the
argued that capitalism was no longer a self- production of the private sector.
regulating system and that energetic C) indicative of the dangers of allowing too
government regulation was required to ensure much government control over an
the normal course of capitalist reproduction. In economy.
15 conformity with these general theoretical
D) proof that the private sector of the U.S.
propositions put forth by the Keynesians, the
economy was likely to shrink regardless
New Deal government set as its fundamental
of heightened government regulation.
socio-economic task the restoration of the
economy and salvation of the threatened US
20 ruling class through active government
intervention in the process of capitalist
reproduction and through systematic
government regulation of the economy. The
commencement of the New Deal marked the
transformation of state-monopoly capitalism,
which had begun during World War I, into a
constant factor in US economic life.

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40
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Despite its name, the Global Positioning

System is not about maps; its about time. Each Which additional information, if presented
satellite in the constellation has multiple atomic in the figure, would be most useful in
Line clocks on board, synchronized down to the evaluating the underlined statement in the
5 nanosecond. The satellites continually text?
broadcast their time and position information
down to Earth, where GPS receivers in A) The total number of GPS devices sold
equipment acquire signals and use the B) The number of individuals in each
minuscule differences in their arrival time to industry using GPS devices
10 determine an exact position. While GPS was C) The percentage of the industry that relies
initially conceived to aid navigation, globally on the GPS devices
synchronized time is now a much more critical D) The amount of revenue in dollars for
function of the system. Telecom networks rely each industry
on GPS clocks to keep cell towers synchronized
15 so calls can be passed between them. Many
electrical power grids use the clocks in
equipment that fine-tunes current flow in
overloaded networks. The finance sector uses
GPS-derived timing systems to timestamp
20 ATM, credit card, and high-speed market
transactions. Computer network
synchronization, digital television and radio,
Doppler radar weather reporting, seismic
monitoring, even multi-camera sequencing for
film production—GPS clocks have a hand in all.

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The first public airing of Darwinian 41

evolution caused almost no stir whatsoever. But What purpose does the graph serve in
when Darwin published his ideas in book form relation to the text as a whole?
Line the following year, the reaction was quite
5 different. On the Origin of Species by Means of A) It connects the genetic findings of other
Natural Selection, or the Preservation of scientists with the biological findings of
Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life soon sold Darwin.
out its first press run of 1,250 copies, and
B) It provides indisputable evidence to
within a year some 4,250 copies were in
prove the theories contained within
circulation. Allies applauded it as a brilliant
10
unifying breakthrough; scientific rivals called Darwin’s On the Origin of Species.
attention to the gaps in his evidence, including C) It reinforces a statement from an expert
what would come to be known as "missing that much more has been learned since
links" in the fossil record. The objection Darwin’s scientific era.
certainly applied to the paucity of ancestral D) It offers evidence that the fossils found
15
human fossils in Darwins time. Years of by Darwin and his contemporaries were
painstaking work by paleontologists after different than the fossils found in the
Darwin's publication, however, have filled in next century.
many of the important gaps. There are many
more extinct species to be discovered, but the
20 term “missing link” has for the most part
become as outdated as the idea of special
creation for each species. “The last 30 years
have seen an explosion of new finds,” says
biological anthropologist William Jungers of
Stony Brook University in New York.

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We all know that humans do most of their

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42
learning socially, that is, we learn from others Information about which of the following is
rather than discovering things ourselves presented in the graph but NOT discussed in
Line through trial-and-error. There may also be a the text?
5 social component to animal learning. Most
social animals that are reared artificially in A) Social learning within a species
captivity will be deficient in many skills that B) Social learning from another species
adult animals of that species are generally
C) Cross-fostering birds
proficient at. For example, ring-tailed lemurs
10 raised artificially do not show the “normal” D) Animal feeding behaviors
food preferences that wild lemurs display and
instead will eat a larger variety of food.
Cross-fostering experiments, in which
animals are raised by members of a different
15 species, have also revealed the effects of social
learning. For example, Frans de Waal allowed
some young rhesus macaques, which don’t
normally engage in social reconciliation
following a conflict, to spend five months of
20 their young lives with stump-tailed macaques,
which are much more prone to reconciling
disputes peacefully. These fostered rhesus
macaques learned the behavior of
reconciliation, and it stuck with them even after
25 they were placed back with other rhesus
macaques.

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There are some who question the reason for 43

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this conference. Let them listen to the voices of Using information in the graph and the text,
women in their homes, neighborhoods, and it can be reasonably inferred that
Line workplaces. There are some who wonder
5 whether the lives of women and girls matter to A) in America and across the world the
economic and political progress around the greatest gender disparity in poverty rates
globe. Let them look at the women gathered is among those 65 and older.
here and at Huairou—the homemakers and B) women 18 to 64 comprise 15.4 percent of
nurses, the teachers and lawyers, the the world’s poor.
10 policymakers and women who run their own C) while a high percentage of children are
businesses. It is conferences like this that poor in America, the opposite is true
compel governments and peoples everywhere worldwide.
to listen, look, and face the world’s most
D) poverty rates in America are in line with a
pressing problems. The great challenge of this
worldwide gender disparity.
15 conference is to give voice to women
everywhere whose experiences go unnoticed,
whose words go unheard. Women comprise
more than half the worlds population, 65
percent of the world’s poor, and two-thirds of
20 those who are not taught to read and write. We
are the primary caretakers for most of the
worlds children and elderly. Yet much of the
work we do is not valued—not by economists,
not by historians, not by popular culture, not by
government leaders.

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 1 1

In 1996, a loggerhead turtle called Adelita 44

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swam across 9,000 miles from Mexico to Japan, It can reasonably be inferred from the text
crossing the entire Pacific on her way. Wallace and the graphic that if scientists adjusted the
Line J. Nichols tracked this epic journey with a coils to reverse the magnetic field simulating
5 satellite tag. But Adelita herself had no such that in the East Atlantic (Cape Verda Islands),
technology at her disposal. How did she steer a the hatchlings would most likely swim in
route across two oceans to find her destination? which direction?
Nathan Putman has the answer. By testing
hatchling turtles in a special tank, he has found A) Northwest
10 that they can use the Earth’s magnetic field as B) Northeast
their own Global Positioning System (GPS). By C) Southeast
sensing the field, they can work out both their
latitude and longitude and head in the right D) Southwest
direction.
15 Putman works in the lab of Ken Lohmann,
who has been studying the magnetic abilities of
loggerheads for over 20 years. In his lab at the
University of North Carolina, Lohmann places
hatchlings in a large water tank surrounded by a
20 large grid of electromagnetic coils. In 1991, he
found that the babies started swimming in the
opposite direction if he used the coils to reverse
the direction of the magnetic field around them.
They could use the feld as a compass to get their
25 bearing.

CO NTI N U E
Extra Vocab
 1 1
The advocates of the program charged with 1

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
developing a revolutionary reactor based on Which choice completes the text with the
nuclear fusion confidently predicted that there most logical and precise word or phrase?
would soon be proof of the reactor’s ________.
A) redundancy
B) profitability
C) futility
D) feasibility

Despite his frequent shifting of allegiance, 2

Johnson is not a flagrant opportunist, but he is Which choice completes the text with the
nonetheless a striking specimen of moral most logical and precise word or phrase?
________.
A) excellence
B) earnestness
C) equivocation
D) ignorance

Through a series of ________, Professor 3

Juárez presented a dramatic narrative that Which choice completes the text with the
portrayed life in the ancient Mayan city. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) conundrums
B) vignettes
C) dynamics
D) tangents

The modest acceptance speech of the 4

Academy Award-winning actress revealed a Which choice completes the text with the
________ that contrasted with her most logical and precise word or phrase?
uninhibited screen performances.
A) theatricality
B) sullenness
C) flamboyance
D) reserve

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 1 1
Doug was both ________ and 5

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
unpretentious: he possessed penetrating acuity Which choice completes the text with the
and discernment and was also extremely most logical and precise word or phrase?
humble.
A) diligent
B) perspicacious
C) obtuse
D) apologetic

Despite its patent implausibility, this belief 6

has become so ________ that no amount of Which choice completes the text with the
rational argument will suffice to eradicate it. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) inconsequential
B) entrenched
C) outmoded
D) infrequent

The charlatan’s seemingly frank and open 7

demeanor was actually a ________ means of Which choice completes the text with the
enlisting his patient’s confidence. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) disingenuous
B) debilitating
C) diminutive
D) prosaic

Much of this author’s work, unfortunately, 8

is uneven, with ________ chapter often Which choice completes the text with the
immediately following a sublime one. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) an enthralling
B) a mediocre
C) an eloquent
D) a superior

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 1 1
In young children, some brain cells have a 9

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
________ that enables them to take over the Which choice completes the text with the
functions of damaged or missing brain cells. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) fragility
B) reminiscence
C) perniciousness
D) plasticity

The aspiring writer, who remained 10

undaunted even after being rejected by several Which choice completes the text with the
major publishers, felt certain of achieving most logical and precise word or phrase?
literary ________.
A) vindication
B) abasement
C) celebrity
D) neglect

Fred often used ________ to achieve his 11

professional goals, even though such artful Which choice completes the text with the
subterfuge alienated his colleagues. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) chicanery
B) diligence
C) disputation
D) consensus

Whether substances are medicines or 12

poisons often depends on dosage, for Which choice completes the text with the
substances that are curative in small doses can most logical and precise word or phrase?
be ________ in large.
A) effective
B) benign
C) toxic
D) miraculous

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 1 1
The professor commented to other faculty 13

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
members that Sheila seemed temperamentally Which choice completes the text with the
suited to the study of logic, given her most logical and precise word or phrase?
________ for analyzing intricate arguments.
A) penchant
B) sympathy
C) disregard
D) contempt

While traveling near the Sun, the comet 14

Hale-Bopp produced a ________ amount of Which choice completes the text with the
dust, much more than the comets Halley or most logical and precise word or phrase?
Hyakutake.
A) disposable
B) redundant
C) superficial
D) prodigious

Nightjars possess a camouflage perhaps 15

unparalleled in the bird world: by day they Which choice completes the text with the
roost hidden in shady woods, so blended with most logical and precise word or phrase?
their surroundings that they are nearly
impossible to ________. A) dislodge
B) discern
C) interrupt
D) classify

Many economists believe that since 16

resources are scarce and since human desires Which choice completes the text with the
cannot all be ________, a method of most logical and precise word or phrase?
apportionment is needed.
A) indulged
B) verified
C) usurped
D) expressed

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 1 1
The range of colors that homeowners could 17

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
use on the exterior of their houses was Which choice completes the text with the
________ by the community’s stringent rules most logical and precise word or phrase?
regarding upkeep of property.
A) circumscribed
B) bolstered
C) embellished
D) cultivated

Only after the campaign volunteers became 18

aware of their candidate’s questionable Which choice completes the text with the
motives could they recognize the ________ most logical and precise word or phrase?
statements made in his seemingly candid
speeches. A) insightful
B) cordial
C) duplicitous
D) astute

No longer narrowly preoccupied with their 19

own national pasts, historians are increasingly Which choice completes the text with the
________ in that they often take a most logical and precise word or phrase?
transnational perspective.
A) conciliatory
B) bombastic
C) cosmopolitan
D) jocular

The consumer advocate claimed that while 20

drug manufacturers tout the supposed Which choice completes the text with the
advantages of their proprietary brands, generic most logical and precise word or phrase?
versions of the same medications are often
equally ________. A) efficacious
B) prohibitive
C) counterproductive
D) prescriptive

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 1 1
Latoya’s ________ is shown by her ability to 21

...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
be self-critical: she can see her own faults more Which choice completes the text with the
clearly than anyone else can. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) objectivity
B) cynicism
C) open-mindedness
D) perceptiveness

Because drummer Tony Williams paved the 22

way for later jazz-fusion musicians, he is Which choice completes the text with the
considered a ________ of that style. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) revivalist
B) beneficiary
C) disparager
D) progenitor

Since other seabirds customarily nest in 23

colonies on ocean cliffs and islands, the Which choice completes the text with the
marbled murrelet’s ________ nesting in most logical and precise word or phrase?
forests many miles from the sea must be
considered atypical. A) ambivalence about
B) indifference to
C) aversion to
D) predilection for

In the classroom, Carol was unusually 24

________; on the playground, however, she Which choice completes the text with the
became as intractable as the other children. most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) optimistic
B) mercurial
C) magnanimous
D) docile

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