ELA - Modifiers
Using a new, high-technology process, _______________ by simulating the natural processes that occur over time in the Earth’s crust.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. diamonds can be created
B. it is possible to create diamonds
C. diamond creation is now possible
D. scientists can create diamonds
D. scientists can create diamonds
Your job is to choose the noun that can logically be described by the modifier “using a new, high-tech process.” Diamonds can’t use a process, “diamond creation” and “it” are ambiguous nouns that can’t clearly perform a process. So the only logical choice is “scientists.”
The first 3 prime numbers multiplied together equal:
A. 0
B. 1
C. 6
D. 30
D. 30
A prime number is any number that is only divisible by 1 and itself. 0 and 1 are not prime numbers, so the first 3 prime numbers are 2, 3, and 5.
The quality of the new products that ACME Corporation has developed over the past year and that ____________________ many investors.
A. has recently arrived on retailers’ shelves worry
B. has recently arrived on retailers’ shelves worries
C. have recently arrived on retailers’ shelves worries
D. have recently arrived on retailers’ shelves worry
D. have recently arrived on retailers’ shelves worry
We’ll need to determine the subject by addressing who or what takes on each of our verbs. Using both logic and sentence structure, we can identify that what “have recently arrived on retailers’ shelves” are the products. The core of the sentence reads “the quality worry.” Since quality is singular, the verb we need is “worries.”
Jenna's salary last year was 80% of what it is this year. By what percent did her salary increase from last year to this year?
A. 25%
B. 15%
C. 20%
D. 16.67%
A. 25%
With percent change problems it is important to recognize that you take the percentage of the original value. The formula is (new - original)/original, and then multiply by 100 to convert to a percent.
Recognizing that, the percent change here is (100 - 80)/80.
Electromagnetic waves are a form of energy that travel through space at the speed of light, including radio waves, x-rays, and ultraviolet rays–which cannot be seen by the human eye–and visible light. Electromagnetic _______________ are responsible for our perception of colors.
A. waves falling within the visible spectrum
B. waves, falling within the visible spectrum,
C. waves, which fall within the visible spectrum,
D. waves fall within the visible spectrum,
A. waves falling within the visible spectrum
The modifier “falling within the visible spectrum” is essential–it tells us which subset of electromagnetic waves are being discussed with this particular fact.
Which of the following are rational numbers?
I) -2.7
II) pi
III) 0.675
A. I
B. I and III
C. II and III
D. I, II, and III
B. I and III
Pi is an irrational number. Any square roots or fractions that result in non-terminating, non-repeating decimals fall under the category of irrational numbers. 0.675 and -2.7 are both terminating decimals and thus fall under the category of rational numbers.
The damage caused by the series of storms was relatively minimal, but among the casualties _____ a cluster of farmhouses on the western outskirts of the town.
A. were
B. was
C. are
D. have been
B. was
The subject of the sentence that is referred to as “among the casualties” is “a cluster.” We describe the cluster as “a cluster of farmhouses” to provide additional context, but the subject “a cluster” itself is singular, despite being accompanied by a plural noun in its modifying context. With this in mind, the only answer option that agrees with the singular subject “a cluster” is “was.”
A part-time employee whose hourly wage was decreased by 20 percent decided to increase the number of hours worked per week so that the employee's total income did not change. By what percent should the number of hours worked be increased?
A. 12.5%
B. 20%
C. 25%
D. 50%
C. 25%
We can set up equations for income before and after the wage reduction. Initially, the employee earns W wage and works H hours per week. After the reduction, the employee earns .8W wage and works X hours. By setting these equations equal to each other, we can determine the increase in hours worked:
WH = .8WX (divide both sides by .8W)
1.25H = W We know that the new number of hours worked will be 25% greater than the original number.
Several continents have taken turns as home to the world’s tallest building: for nearly 4,000 years it was Africa, home of Egypt’s Great Pyramid, and then Europe built a series of increasingly taller cathedrals until Paris’s Eiffel Tower took the honor. North America then dominated the skyscraper era until Asia assumed the title it still holds, with _______ standing at over a half-mile tall.
A. Dubai, home to the Burj Khalifa,
B. Dubai’s Burj Khalifa
C. Dubai and the Burj Khalifa
D. the home of the Burj Khalifa, Dubai,
B. Dubai’s Burj Khalifa
Immediately after the blank is the modifier “standing at over a half-mile tall,” which can only describe a building, not a city. Of the answer choices, only choice B correctly sets up Burj Khalifa as the noun to be modified by “standing.”
Which of the following are real numbers?
I) 4 + 3i
II) the square root of 5
III) -2
A. I
B. I and II
C. II and III
D. I, II, and III
C. II and III
Complex numbers (any number in the form of x+yi) are not real numbers. The square root of 5 is irrational, but rational and irrational numbers both fall into the category of real numbers. -2 is an integer, which is a subcategory of real numbers.
The ambitious young athlete had already _____ three marathons before deciding to attempt an ultramarathon in the mountains. This remarkable achievement inspired many other runners in the local community to pursue similar goals.
A. ran
B. run
C. running
D. runs
B. run
The phrase "had already" prior to the blank indicates that this sentence is using the past perfect tense. Because the sentence uses the past perfect tense it requires "run" following "had."
Portia purchased a laptop for $480, but after checking the merchant's website realized that she had been overcharged by 20%. By how much, in dollars, was she overcharged?
A. $24
B. $48
C. $80
D. $96
C. $80
Here Portia is overcharged by 20%, meaning that she paid 20% more than the item should have cost. That means that the amount she paid, $480, equals 20% more than she should have paid:
480 = 1.2(p), where p is the price she should have paid.
To solve for p, divide both sides by 1.2:
400=p
This means that she should have paid $400 but instead paid $480, so she overpaid by $80.
Known primarily for its eight legs, ____________________ pump blue, copper-based blood. Two of the hearts are responsible for pumping oxygenated blood to the body and one directs blood to the gills for efficient oxygen exchange.
A. the three hearts of an octopus
B. an octopus’s three hearts
C. the three hearts within an octopus
D. the octopus has three hearts that
D. the octopus has three hearts that
Your task is to decide which noun can be described as being known for its remarkable problem-solving abilities. It does not make sense to say that the three hearts of an octopus are known for their remarkable problem-solving abilities.
What is the least common multiple of 30 and 45?
A. 1350
B. 450
C. 270
D. 90
D. 90
The least common multiple (LCM) refers to the smallest multiple for each number that is shared by all the numbers of a given set, so in this case, it is the smallest multiple of 30 and 45. The best way to approach these problems is to factorize each number and calculate the LCM from the frequency of these numbers.
Much of the basin that was transformed into the Great Lakes by the Laurentide Glacier during the last ice age _____ formed by seismological events that occurred nearly one billion years earlier.
A. is
B. had been
C. were
D. has been
B. had been
The subject of the verb we need to choose is the singular “basin.” For verb tense, look at the timeline: the action we’re asked to choose took place a billion years prior to the last ice age and Laurentide Glacier. For that reason, we need a verb tense in the past.
During a clearance sale, a retailer discounted the original price of its TVs by 25% for the first two weeks of the month, then for the remainder of the month further reduced the price by taking 20% off the sale price. For those who purchased TVs during the last week of the month, what percent of the original price did they have to pay?
A. 40%
B. 45%
C. 55%
D. 60%
D. 60%
In this case, the initial 25% off means that customers will pay 75% of the original price. Then for the second discount, keep in mind that the discount is taken off of the sale price, not of the original price. So that's 20% off of the 75% that they did pay, which can be made easier by looking at what the customer does pay: 80% of the 75% sale price. Using fractions, that means they pay: 4/5(3/4) of the original price, which nets to 3/5 of the original price, or 60%.
Published since 1851, _______________ Henry Jarvis Raymond, who had no previous journalism experience, and George Jones.
A. the founders of the New York Times were
B. the New York Times was founded by
C. the New York Times’ founders are
D. the two men who founded the New York Times are
B. the New York Times was founded by
So your key decision is to identify what can logically be described by the phrase “published since 1851.” While a person can colloquially be “published," “since 1851” is a long timeframe for an activity for any one person, so it’s fairly clear that the phrase is describing the newspaper, not the founders.
If abcd=10 and bce<0, which of the following must be true?
A. a>0
B. b does not = 0
C. c<1
D. d<0
B. b does not = 0
Since abcd=10 but there are no individual statements about each number on its own, we can’t conclude if a, b, c, or d are positive or negative. Recall that two negative numbers will give a positive product. What we can conclude, though, is that neither a, b, c, or d can equal 0 because then the product would equal 0. This means b does not = 0.
Recent research into exercise science _____ that rest and recovery are far more important than was thought previously. For this reason, professional athletes exert themselves to maximum intensity far more infrequently than most amateurs would think.
A. discovers
B. discover
C. has discovered
D. are discovering
C. has discovered
Here the subject of the verb is “research,” meaning that you need a singular verb. “Discovers” connotes that research routinely discovers this one particular fact on an ongoing basis, whereas the correct “has discovered” properly sets this discovery in the recent past.
In a bakery, 70% of the doughnuts are glazed. If glazed doughnuts account for 21% of all pastries in the bakery, what percent of all pastries in the bakery are doughnuts?
A. 35%
B. 24%
C. 28%
D. 30%
D. 30%
You can set this problem up algebraically by recognizing what you're really solving for, which is essentially a ratio of doughnuts (D) to total (T). You're given that the ratio of glazed (G) to doughnuts (D) is 70/100, and you're given that glazed (G) to total (T) is 21/100. Knowing that, you can set up:
G=7/10(D)
and
G=21/100(T)
And since G has to be equal in each of those equations, you can set the equations equal:
7/10(D) = 21/100(T)
From there, your goal is to solve for D/T, so you'll divide both sides by T to get:
7/10(D/T) = 21/100
And then multiply both sides by 10/7 to cancel the fraction on the left and move all the numbers to the right. Now you have:
D/T = 21/100(10/7)
Now you should see how cleanly the terms on the right factor, leaving you with:
D/T = 3/10