Unit 1
Quality of being determined or of holding fast. (noun)
State of being isolate or withdrawn. (noun)
What is alienation?
Expressed without unnecessary words: brief and compact. (adj)
What is succinct?
To illustrate; serve as an example. (verb)
What is exemplify?
An incorrect term used to describe or designate something. (noun)
What is misnomer?
Which sentence best states a central idea in “Household Robots Are Here, but Where Are They Going?”
The future of robots in every household falls on the developers of Jibo and Echo.
The most promising use for robots in the near future is as smart home hubs.
As robots go, Jibo is much more effective than Echo as a smart home companion.
As companions in the home, robots are the most effective way to control household functions.
The most promising use for robots in the near future is as smart home hubs.
Read the excerpt from “Primates, Empathy, and Making Connections,” and then read the statement.
It began much more simply, with the synchronization of bodies: running when others run, laughing when others laugh, crying when others cry, or yawning when others yawn.
The power of the excerpt is revealed by the author’s use of _[blank]_.
Which option best completes the statement?
voice to convey an outlook about conforming to one’s community
tone to establish a humorous aspect to the actions of a community
parallel structure to show how individuals performed actions together
word choice to point out common characteristics of individuals
Parallel structure to show how individuals performed actions together.
Which statement most accurately combines and summarizes the information from the “Plastics” article and the “What We Know About: Plastic Marine Debris” brochure about how plastics break down?
Once plastic reaches the ocean, it does not go away or mineralize, degrading at a slower rate because of the cold water. As plastic breaks down, the pieces get smaller and smaller, turning into microplastics, which are smaller than 5mm.
Plastic is a big part of the waste produced by humans. Most of the plastic waste makes its way to the oceans, where sea animals, such as sea turtles, mistake it for food, or sea mammals, such as whales, become entangled in the small plastic debris called microplastics and microfibers.
Plastic is considered to be a main type of debris found in the ocean. Plastic can mineralize in some environments. This means plastic degrades, or breaks down, completely when introduced to carbon dioxide, water, and other inorganic molecules, like face wash and toothpaste.
Once plastic reaches the ocean, it may go through the process of mineralization, which breaks it down into smaller and smaller pieces. These pieces eventually become part of the ocean to make it colorful. Sometimes these pieces are ingested, or eaten, by sea animals
Once plastic reaches the ocean, it does not go away or mineralize, degrading at a slower rate because of the cold water. As plastic breaks down, the pieces get smaller and smaller, turning into microplastics, which are smaller than 5mm.
Which option best states a theme of the Declaration of Independence?
The colonies’ claim for independence is legitimate.
Peaceful solutions are ideal.
Injustice should never be tolerated in any situation.
The colonies’ choice to compromise is better than violence.
The colonies’ claim for independence is legitimate.
NOW is dedicated to the proposition that women, first and foremost, are human beings, who, like all other people in our society, must have the chance to develop their fullest human potential.
Which option best describes the purpose of this statement?
to debunk the false belief that men and women are different
to congratulate women on winning their equality in society
to link the argument for women’s equality to the founding ideas of the nation
to predict the changes coming in the lives of American women
To link the argument for women’s equality to the founding ideas of the nation.
Brandon wrote this sentence in an essay.
Everyone in the stadium rose to their feet.
In peer review, Cara changed their to his or her, but Brandon disagreed. Why are both Brandon and Cara correct?
Our language is changing, and many style guides now permit either their or his or her to follow everyone.
Jack Winston’s new book about political conflict advises people to nurture an attitude of tolerance toward those with different opinions.
Which is a synonym for nurture as it is used in the sentence?
encourage
If you used a thesaurus to look up antonyms of the word biodegradable, which word would you most likely find?
imperishable
Which options provide correct details about the word fervently?
Select all that apply.
An antonym of fervently is “casually.”
A synonym of fervently is “passionately.”
Which sentence correctly omits hyphens in a phrase?
The equipment that the IT department ordered was state of the art.
Read the statement from “Video Games in the Age of Cell Phones.”
[Mobile games] are increasingly, for better or worse, what we do with our free time. …
What textual evidence best supports this statement?
… Americans who play mobile games do so for more than two hours a day, up from an hour and 20 minutes in 2012, according to a survey by the NPD Group, a market-research company.
More than 100,000 new iPhone and iPad games were uploaded to Apple’s App Store last year—upwards of 500 a day, by some estimates.
This year … mobile games are expected to outearn traditional console games (Xbox, PlayStation, etc.) for the first time.
These little games have become very big business, and they’re only getting bigger.
Select all that apply.
… Americans who play mobile games do so for more than two hours a day, up from an hour and 20 minutes in 2012, according to a survey by the NPD Group, a market-research company.
More than 100,000 new iPhone and iPad games were uploaded to Apple’s App Store last year—upwards of 500 a day, by some estimates.
This year … mobile games are expected to outearn traditional console games (Xbox, PlayStation, etc.) for the first time.
Read the excerpt from “16 Things I’ve Learned from 16 Years of Dealing with Depression.”
Hopelessness is a major symptom of depression, which makes it kinda tough to see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. But the light is always there.
What option presents a correct example of an idiom?
to see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel
makes it kinda tough
But the light is always there
Hopelessness is a major symptom of depression
to see the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel
In which sentences from “How Light Pollution Works” does the author use figurative language to describe characteristics of types of light pollution?
Select all that apply.
Nighttime photos of major metropolitan areas often show this in amazing intensity, with the most brilliant blankets of sky glow emitting dusky, smoldering blazes dotted with shining hotspots.
This usually happens when lights aim directly into people’s eyes; in other words, you see straight into the source of the light.
Your neighbors might know better than to hop over your fence in the middle of the night, but do they know enough not to leave all their lights on—inside and out—in anticipation of a late night out?
Whether stringing streetlights too close together along a highway or brightening a building with midday cheer in the dead of night, practices like these can be both distracting and wasteful.
Nighttime photos of major metropolitan areas often show this in amazing intensity, with the most brilliant blankets of sky glow emitting dusky, smoldering blazes dotted with shining hotspots.
Whether stringing streetlights too close together along a highway or brightening a building with midday cheer in the dead of night, practices like these can be both distracting and wasteful.
Read the excerpt from President George W. Bush’s “Address to Joint Session of Congress Following 9/11 Attacks.”
As long as the United States of America is determined and strong, this will not be an age of terror; this will be an age of liberty, here and across the world.
Which options identify the rhetorical features used in the excerpt?
Select all that apply.
parallelism
analogy
antithesis
ethos
parallelism
antithesis
A court’s legal decision should always be based on _[blank]_.
Which option best completes the sentence?
opinion
mercy
testimony
reasoning
reasoning
Which would be the best format to use to request a raise in pay?
a formal letter
Which sentence from “Everyday Survival” uses figurative language?
For example, Pvt. Giles McCoy was aboard the U.S.S. Indianapolis when it was torpedoed and sank at the end of World War II, tossing some 900 men into the black of night and the shark-infested Pacific.
When most of us think of National Parks, we think of open spaces and healthy, abundant vegetation. We think of forests and woodlands and meadows and wildflowers—all preserved from development. We think of scenic vistas that inspire poets and artists and millions of everyday citizens. These lands are set aside, as Theodore Roosevelt put it, to preserve “the value of natural beauty as a national asset,” and to promote “outdoor life and recreation in the production of good citizenship.”
What rhetorical strategies are used in the excerpt?
Select all that apply.
inclusion of personal pronouns
repetition of a phrase
use of a call to action
Several readers contacted the editor with the _[blank]_ that one of the writers had plagiarized material for a number of articles.
Which word form correctly completes the sentence?
allegation
One constitutional principle is that appropriate governmental power comes from the consent of the governed, which refers to the people of the US. In regard to constitutional principles, the consent of the governed is usually referred to as _[blank]_.
Which option accurately completes the sentence?
popular sovereignty