Information and Ideas
The following text is from Jane Austen’s 1811 novel Sense and Sensibility. Elinor lives with her younger sisters and her mother, Mrs. Dashwood.
Elinor, this eldest daughter, whose advice was so effectual, possessed a strength of understanding, and coolness of judgment, which qualified her, though only nineteen, to be the counsellor of her mother, and enabled her frequently to counteract, to the advantage of them all, that eagerness of mind in Mrs. Dashwood which must generally have led to imprudence. She had an excellent heart;—her disposition was affectionate, and her feelings were strong; but she knew how to govern them: it was a knowledge which her mother had yet to learn; and which one of her sisters had resolved never to be taught.
According to the text, what is true about Elinor?
A. Elinor often argues with her mother but fails to change her mind.
B. Elinor can be overly sensitive with regard to family matters.
C. Elinor thinks her mother is a bad role model.
D. Elinor is remarkably mature for her age.
What is D, Elinor is remarkably mature for her age?
“We Are Marching” is a 1921 poem by Carrie Law Morgan Figgs. In the poem, the speaker predicts future success: ______
Which quotation from “We Are Marching” most effectively illustrates the claim?
A. “Can’t you hear the sound of feet?”
B. “You who are out just get in line.”
C. “We have answered duty’s call.”
D. “We shall never know defeat.”
What is D, “We shall never know defeat?"
The following text is from Srimati Svarna Kumari Devi’s 1894 novel The Fatal Garland (translated by A. Christina Albers in 1910). Shakti is walking near a riverbank that she visited frequently during her childhood.
"She crossed the woods she knew so well. The trees seemed to extend their branches like welcoming arms. They greeted her as an old friend. Soon she reached the river-side."
Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
A. It suggests that Shakti feels uncomfortable near the river.
B. It indicates that Shakti has lost her sense of direction in the woods.
C. It emphasizes Shakti’s sense of belonging in the landscape.
D. It conveys Shakti’s appreciation for her long-term friendships.
What is C, it emphasizes Shakti’s sense of belonging in the landscape?
The invention in 1958 of the integrated circuit (or microchip) radically altered the semiconductor industry. In fact, some historians argue that it fundamentally ______ the industry by enabling it to take advantage of mass production methods for the first time.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A. overwhelmed
B. bypassed
C. obstructed
D. transformed
What is D, transformed?
What is the correct pronunciation of Kiribati? In the Gilbertese language spoken by residents of the island nation, the letter combination -ti makes the -s sound; as a result, the country’s name ______ pronounced “Kiribas.”
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. are
B. have been
C. are being
D. is
What is D, is?
When fashion designer Lloyd Henri Kiva New opened his store in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 1945, he quickly became known for creating delicately crafted leather goods, like belts and hats. He was perhaps most renowned for his colorful handbags, which he made by hand using a long and painstaking process. As he gained more customers, New began using sewing machines and other tools to help him produce bags more efficiently, though he continued to handcraft the crucial details that made each bag unique.
Based on the text, what would have been the most likely consequence if New had not begun using sewing machines?
A. He would have been unable to ensure that each bag included unique, handcrafted details.
B. He would have struggled to meet the increasing demand for his bags.
C. He would have had to individually design each bag he produced.
D. He would not have been able to generate as much interest in his bags.
What is B, he would have struggled to meet the increasing demand for his bags?
Biologists have generally believed that the diet of jaguars consists mostly of land-based mammals, but researchers studying a population of jaguars living in the Brazilian Pantanal, a tropical wetland, claim that jaguars can survive on a diet of more fish and aquatic reptiles than mammals.
Which finding, if true, would most directly support the researchers’ claim?
A. Aquatic reptile and fish remains were detected more often than were mammal remains in an analysis of jaguar waste matter found in the area.
B. Exceptionally high numbers of yacare caiman, an aquatic reptile, were found living in the area.
C. Aquatic prey like the reptiles and fish in the area provide a source of omega-3 fatty acids that aren’t often found in land mammals.
D. When jaguars in the area preyed on mammals, they tended to prefer semiaquatic ones like capybaras.
What is A, aquatic reptile and fish remains were detected more often than were mammal remains in an analysis of jaguar waste matter found in the area?
In 2007, computer scientist Luis von Ahn was working on converting printed books into a digital format. He found that some words were distorted enough that digital scanners couldn’t recognize them, but most humans could easily read them. Based on that finding, von Ahn invented a simple security test to keep automated “bots” out of websites. The first version of the reCAPTCHA test asked users to type one known word and one of the many words scanners couldn’t recognize. Correct answers proved the users were humans and added data to the book-digitizing project.
Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
A. To discuss von Ahn’s invention of reCAPTCHA
B. To explain how digital scanners work
C. To call attention to von Ahn’s book-digitizing project
D. To indicate how popular reCAPTCHA is
What is A, to discuss von Ahn’s invention of reCAPTCHA?
The following text is from Anita Desai’s 2011 novella Translator Translated. While working on her translation of a novel written in Odia (a language of India) into English, the narrator looks out her window at night to clear her mind.
"I tried to distract myself with these sights of the ordinary world, but in my mind it was the lines I had been translating and the lines that I had been writing that remained in the forefront. I longed for sleep to obliterate them but it eluded me. Perhaps everything would be normal again once I had sent off the manuscript, I thought, and looked forward to completing the work."
©2011 by Anita Desai
As used in the text, what does the word “completing” most nearly mean?
A. Destroying
B. Finishing
C. Advertising
D. Rejecting
What is B, finishing?
While one requires oxygen and one does ______ and anaerobic respiration are both forms of cellular respiration—that is, they are processes by which cells break down glucose to use as energy.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. not aerobic
B. not. Aerobic
C. not, aerobic
D. not; aerobic
What is C, not, aerobic?
The practice of logging (cutting down trees for commercial and other uses) is often thought to be at odds with forest conservation (the work of preserving forests). However, a massive study in forest management and preservation spanning 700,000 hectares in Oregon’s Malheur National Forest calls that view into question. So far, results of the study suggest that forest plots that have undergone limited logging (the careful removal of a controlled number of trees) may be more robust than plots that haven’t been logged at all. These results, in turn, suggest that ______
Which choice most logically completes the text?
A. logging may be useful for maintaining healthy forests, provided it is limited.
B. other forest management strategies are more effective than limited logging.
C. as time passes, it will be difficult to know whether limited logging has any benefits.
D. the best way to support forest health may be to leave large forests entirely untouched.
What is A, logging may be useful for maintaining healthy forests, provided it is limited?
An Ideal Husband is an 1895 play by Oscar Wilde. In the play, which is a satire, Wilde suggests that a character named Lady Gertrude Chiltern is perceived as both extremely virtuous and unforgiving, as is evident when another character says ______
Which quotation from An Ideal Husband most effectively illustrates the claim?
A. “Lady Chiltern is a woman of the very highest principles, I am glad to say. I am a little too old now, myself, to trouble about setting a good example, but I always admire people who do.”
B. “Do you know, [Lady Chiltern], I don’t mind your talking morality a bit. Morality is simply the attitude we adopt towards people whom we personally dislike.”
C. “[Lady Chiltern] does not know what weakness or temptation is. I am of clay like other men. She stands apart as good women do—pitiless in her perfection—cold and stern and without mercy.”
D. “Lady Chiltern, you are a sensible woman, the most sensible woman in London, the most sensible woman I know.”
What is C, “[Lady Chiltern] does not know what weakness or temptation is. I am of clay like other men. She stands apart as good women do—pitiless in her perfection—cold and stern and without mercy?"
Using NASA’s powerful James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), Mercedes López-Morales and colleagues measured the wavelengths of light traveling through the atmosphere of WASP-39b, an exoplanet, or planet outside our solar system. Different molecules absorb different wavelengths of light, and the wavelength measurements showed the presence of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in WASP-39b’s atmosphere. This finding not only offers the first decisive evidence of CO₂ in the atmosphere of an exoplanet but also illustrates the potential for future scientific breakthroughs held by the JWST.
Which choice best describes the overall structure of the text?
A. It discusses a method used by some researchers, then states why an alternative method is superior to it.
B. It describes how researchers made a scientific discovery, then explains the importance of that discovery.
C. It outlines the steps taken in a scientific study, then presents a hypothesis based on that study.
D. It examines how a group of scientists reached a conclusion, then shows how other scientists have challenged that conclusion.
What is B, it describes how researchers made a scientific discovery, then explains the importance of that discovery?
The following text is adapted from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1837 story “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment.” The main character, a physician, is experimenting with rehydrating a dried flower.
"At first [the rose] lay lightly on the surface of the fluid, appearing to imbibe none of its moisture. Soon, however, a singular change began to be visible. The crushed and dried petals stirred and assumed a deepening tinge of crimson, as if the flower were reviving from a deathlike slumber."
As used in the text, what does the phrase “a singular” most nearly mean?
A. A lonely
B. A disagreeable
C. An acceptable
D. An extraordinary
What is D, an extraordinary?
Key-value pairs are an important aspect of JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), an electronic file format for storing and transmitting data. Keys function as labels, while values contain the actual information. In a JSON file storing data about fire belly ______ instance, you could encounter a key such as “species” with the associated value of “Cynops orientalis.”
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. newts. For
B. newts, for
C. newts: for
D. newts; for
What is B, newts, for?
Paleontologists searching for signs of ancient life have found many fossilized specimens of prehistoric human ancestors, including several from the Pleistocene era discovered in a geological formation in the Minatogawa quarry in Japan. However, to study the emergence of the earliest multicellular organisms to appear on Earth, researchers must turn elsewhere, such as to the Ediacaran geological formation at Mistaken Point in Canada. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the 146-hectare reserve contains more than 10,000 fossils that together document a critical moment in evolutionary history.
What does the text indicate about the geological formation at Mistaken Point?
A. It holds a greater number of fossils but from a smaller variety of species than the formation in the Minatogawa quarry does.
B. It has provided evidence that the earliest human species may have emerged before the Pleistocene era.
C. It is widely considered by paleontologists to be the most valuable source of information about prehistoric life forms.
D. It contains specimens from an older time period than those found in the formation in the Minatogawa quarry.
What is D, it contains specimens from an older time period than those found in the formation in the Minatogawa quarry?
DAILY DOUBLE
Puerto Rico is an island in the Caribbean Sea. Indigenous people there started raising guinea pigs about 1,700 years ago. Guinea pigs had originally been domesticated much earlier in both Colombia and Peru. So were guinea pigs brought to Puerto Rico from Colombia or from Peru? Ancient Caribbean trade routes connected Puerto Rico with Colombia but not with Peru. Therefore, guinea pigs in Puerto Rico probably came from Colombia and descended from Colombian guinea pigs.
Which finding, if true, would most directly weaken the underlined claim?
A. Ancient guinea pigs in Puerto Rico were genetically less similar to ancient guinea pigs in Colombia than to ancient guinea pigs in Peru.
B. Guinea pigs are common in ancient Puerto Rican art, especially in pottery.
C. Modern breeds of guinea pigs don’t look like images of guinea pigs in ancient art from Puerto Rico, Colombia, and Peru.
D. The guinea pig population of ancient Colombia was much larger than the guinea pig population of ancient Peru.
What is A, ancient guinea pigs in Puerto Rico were genetically less similar to ancient guinea pigs in Colombia than to ancient guinea pigs in Peru?
Generally it takes Tule geese about four days to migrate south for the winter. From their summer breeding grounds in Cook Inlet, Alaska, the birds begin by flying over the Gulf of Alaska, keeping about 100 miles from the Canadian shore. They pause to rest on the Pacific Ocean, then fly toward Summer Lake, Oregon, before finally arriving at their winter destination of Sacramento Valley, California. In 2020, however, it took the geese over twice as long to make their way from Cook Inlet to Sacramento Valley. According to researchers, the reason was airborne pollutants.
Which choice best states the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
A. It illustrates a change in Tule geese’s usual flight behavior.
B. It suggests an explanation for why Tule geese breed in Alaska.
C. It describes part of the Tule geese’s typical winter migration journey.
D. It compares Tule geese to other birds that migrate south for the winter.
What is C, it describes part of the Tule geese’s typical winter migration journey?
Drivers who strongly believe that the toll they must pay to use the Lewis and Clark Bridge, which spans the Ohio River to connect Indiana and Kentucky, is currently too high are unlikely to be ______ a proposal to increase the toll. Advocates for a higher toll are likely to have more success if they instead direct their arguments toward a more persuadable segment of the population.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A. receptive to
B. apprised of
C. incensed by
D. cited in
What is A, receptive to?
Water in the North Atlantic Ocean is pushed eastward by powerful winds, but the rotation of Earth and interference from nearby landmasses together cause ______ to swirl into a massive, churning whirlpool—also called the North Atlantic Gyre—that spins clockwise.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. these
B. those
C. them
D. it
What is D, it?
The following text is adapted from Countee Cullen’s 1926 poem “Thoughts in a Zoo.”
They in their cruel traps, and we in ours,//Survey each other’s rage, and pass the hours//Commiserating each the other’s woe,//To mitigate his own pain’s fiery glow.//Man could but little proffer in exchange//Save that his cages have a larger range.//That lion with his lordly, untamed heart//Has in some man his human counterpart,//Some lofty soul in dreams and visions wrapped,//But in the stifling flesh securely trapped.
Based on the text, what challenge do humans sometimes experience?
A. They cannot effectively tame certain wild animals because of a lack of compassion.
B. They cannot focus on setting attainable goals because of a lack of motivation.
C. They quickly become frustrated when faced with difficult tasks because of a lack of self-control.
D. They have aspirations that cannot be fulfilled because of certain limitations.
What is D, they have aspirations that cannot be fulfilled because of certain limitations?
The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), a band of clouds that encircles Earth in the tropics and is a major rainfall source, shifts position in response to temperature variations across Earth’s hemispheres. Data from Huagapo Cave in Peru suggest the ITCZ shifted south during the Little Ice Age (circa 1300–1850), but a shift as far into South America as Huagapo should have led to dry conditions in Central America, which is inconsistent with climate models. To resolve the issue, geologist Yemane Asmerom and colleagues collected data from Yok Balum Cave in Central America and compared them with the Huagapo data. They concluded that during the Little Ice Age, the ITCZ may have expanded northward and southward rather than simply shifted.
Which finding from Asmerom and colleagues’ study, if true, would most directly support their conclusion?
A. Neither the Yok Balum data nor the Huagapo data show significant local variations in temperature during the Little Ice Age.
B. Both the Yok Balum data and the Huagapo data show increased temperatures and prolonged dry conditions during the Little Ice Age.
C. The Yok Balum data show prolonged dry conditions during the same portions of the Little Ice Age in which the Huagapo data show heightened levels of rainfall.
D. The Yok Balum data and the Huagapo data show strongly correlated patterns of high rainfall during the Little Ice Age.
What is D, the Yok Balum data and the Huagapo data show strongly correlated patterns of high rainfall during the Little Ice Age?
The following text is from John Dryden’s 1697 translation of Virgil’s poem the Aeneid, written in the first century BCE. Queen Dido has just heard the Trojan hero Aeneas recount a sad tale.
But anxious cares already seiz’d the queen://She fed within her veins a flame unseen;//The hero’s valor, acts, and birth inspire//Her soul with love, and fan the secret fire.//His words, his looks, imprinted in her heart,//Improve the passion, and increase the smart.
Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
A. To indicate that Dido is hiding her skepticism of Aeneas’s account
B. To emphasize that Dido has been deeply affected by Aeneas’s story
C. To imply that Dido engages both emotionally and intellectually with Aeneas
D. To suggest that Dido is worried that Aeneas might discover a secret she is keeping from him
What is B, to emphasize that Dido has been deeply affected by Aeneas’s story?
The results of randomized clinical trials testing the efficacy of common medical interventions sometimes fail to ______ conclusions that practitioners reach based on their real-world observations of patients. While there are several possible reasons for this, one is that practitioners may overlook confounding variables that account for the results they attribute to the interventions in question.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A. circumvent
B. corroborate
C. disseminate
D. implement
DAILY DOUBLE
As a behavioral economist, Katy Milkman of the University of Pennsylvania recognizes that people sometimes make irrational economic decisions. Milkman’s research can thus address anomalies that neoclassical economic ______ assume that people are consistently rational decision-makers—cannot explain.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. models—which
B. models, which
C. models which
D. models which—
What is A, models—which?