Q82: Passage
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- The calendar used by most of the world (the Gregorian calendar) has 365 days.
- Because 365 days can’t be divided evenly by 7 (the number of days in a week), calendar dates fall on a different day of the week each year.
- The Hanke-Henry permanent calendar, developed as an alternative to the Gregorian calendar, has 364 days.
- Because 364 can be divided evenly by 7, calendar dates fall on the same day of the week each year, which supports more predictable scheduling.
Q. The student wants to explain an advantage of the Hanke-Henry calendar. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
(a) The Gregorian calendar has 365 days, which is one day longer than the Hanke-Henry permanent calendar.
(b) Adopting the Hanke-Henry permanent calendar would help solve a problem with the Gregorian calendar.
(c) Designed so calendar dates would occur on the same day of the week each year, the Hanke-Henry calendar supports more predictable scheduling than does the Gregorian calendar.
(d) The Hanke-Henry permanent calendar was developed as an alternative to the Gregorian calendar, which is currently the most-used calendar in the world.
Ans: (c)
- Choice C is the best answer. The sentence explains an advantage of the Hanke-Henry calendar, noting that it supports more predictable scheduling than does the Gregorian calendar and describing how it does so (by having calendar dates occur on the same day each year).
- Choice A is incorrect. The sentence compares the number of days in the Gregorian and Hanke-Henry calendars; it doesn’t explain an advantage of the Hanke-Henry calendar.
- Choice B is incorrect. While the sentence refers to a possible reason to adopt the Hanke-Henry calendar—that doing so would help solve a problem with the Gregorian calendar—it doesn’t identify the problem or the solution and thus doesn’t explain the advantage of the Hanke-Henry calendar.
- Choice D is incorrect. The sentence describes the origins of the Hanke-Henry calendar; it doesn’t explain an advantage of it.
Q83: Passage
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- The Haudenosaunee Confederacy is a nearly 1,000-year-old alliance of six Native nations in the northeastern US.
- The members are bound by a centuries-old agreement known as the Great Law of Peace.
- Historian Bruce Johansen is one of several scholars who believe that the principles of the Great Law of Peace influenced the US Constitution.
- This theory is called the influence theory.
- Johansen cites the fact that Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson both studied the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.
Q. The student wants to present the influence theory to an audience unfamiliar with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
(a) Historian Bruce Johansen believes that the Great Law of Peace was very influential.
(b) The influence theory is supported by the fact that Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson both studied the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.
(c) The influence theory holds that the principles of the Great Law of Peace, a centuries-old agreement binding six Native nations in the northeastern US, influenced the US Constitution.
(d) Native people, including the members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, influenced the founding of the US in many different ways.
Ans: (c)
- Choice C is the best answer. The sentence effectively presents the influence theory to an audience unfamiliar with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, explaining the theory’s position that the Great Law of Peace influenced the US Constitution while avoiding mention of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy itself.
- Choice A is incorrect. The sentence broadly emphasizes Johansen’s ideas about the Great Law of Peace; it doesn’t identify the influence theory or effectively present it.
- Choice B is incorrect. The sentence emphasizes one fact that supports the influence theory; it doesn’t effectively present the theory to an audience unfamiliar with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.
- Choice D is incorrect. The sentence makes a broad generalization about Native people’s influence on the founding of the US; it doesn’t effectively present the influence theory.
Q84: Passage
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- In 1999, astronomer Todd Henry studied the differences in surface temperature between the Sun and nearby stars.
- His team mapped all stars within 10 parsecs (approximately 200 trillion miles) of the Sun.
- The surface temperature of the Sun is around 9,800°F, which classifies it as a G star.
- 327 of the 357 stars in the study were classified as K or M stars, with surface temperatures under 8,900°F (cooler than the Sun).
- 11 of the 357 stars in the study were classified as A or F stars, with surface temperatures greater than 10,300°F (hotter than the Sun).
Q. The student wants to emphasize how hot the Sun is relative to nearby stars. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
(a) At around 9,800°F, which classifies it as a G star, the Sun is hotter than most but not all of the stars within 10 parsecs of it.
(b) Astronomer Todd Henry determined that the Sun, at around 9,800°F, is a G star, and several other stars within a 10-parsec range are A or F stars.
(c) Of the 357 stars within ten parsecs of the Sun, 327 are classified as K or M stars, with surface temperatures under 8,900°F.
(d) While most of the stars within 10 parsecs of the Sun are classified as K, M, A, or F stars, the Sun is classified as a G star due to its surface temperature of 9,800°F.
Ans: (a)
- Choice A is the best answer. Noting that the Sun (9,800°F) is hotter than most stars within 10 parsecs of it, the sentence emphasizes how hot the Sun is relative to nearby stars.
- Choice B is incorrect. The sentence explains that astronomer Todd Henry determined the classifications for the Sun and several other stars nearby; it doesn’t emphasize how hot the Sun is relative to nearby stars.
- Choice C is incorrect. The sentence explains that the majority of stars near the Sun are classified as K or M stars; it doesn’t indicate the Sun’s temperature or emphasize how hot it is relative to nearby stars.
- Choice D is incorrect. While the sentence indicates that the Sun is classified differently than most nearby stars due to its surface temperature, it doesn’t emphasize how hot the Sun is relative to nearby stars.
Q85: Passage
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- The Atlantic Monthly magazine was first published in 1857.
- The magazine focused on politics, art, and literature.
- In 2019, historian Cathryn Halverson published the book Faraway Women and the “Atlantic Monthly.”
- Its subject is female authors whose autobiographies appeared in the magazine in the early 1900s.
- One of the authors discussed is Juanita Harrison.
Q. The student wants to introduce Cathryn Halverson’s book to an audience already familiar with the Atlantic Monthly. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
(a) Cathryn Halverson’s Faraway Women and the “Atlantic Monthly” discusses female authors whose autobiographies appeared in the magazine in the early 1900s.
(b) A magazine called the Atlantic Monthly, referred to in Cathryn Halverson’s book title, was first published in 1857.
(c) Faraway Women and the “Atlantic Monthly” features contributors to the Atlantic Monthly, first published in 1857 as a magazine focusing on politics, art, and literature.
(d) An author discussed by Cathryn Halverson is Juanita Harrison, whose autobiography appeared in the Atlantic Monthly in the early 1900s.
Ans: (a)
- Choice A is the best answer. The sentence effectively introduces Cathryn Halverson’s book to an audience already familiar with the Atlantic Monthly, noting the title of Halverson’s book and describing its content without providing background information about the Atlantic Monthly.
- Choice B is incorrect. The sentence introduces the Atlantic Monthly and mentions that it’s referred to in Cathryn Halverson’s book title; it doesn’t effectively introduce Halverson’s book.
- Choice C is incorrect. The sentence assumes that the audience is unfamiliar with the Atlantic Monthly, providing background information about the magazine; it doesn’t effectively introduce Halverson’s book to an audience already familiar with the Atlantic Monthly.
- Choice D is incorrect. While the sentence assumes that the audience is familiar with the Atlantic Monthly, it doesn’t effectively introduce Cathryn Halverson’s book.
Q86: Passage
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- The magnificent frigatebird (fregata magnificens) is a species of seabird that feeds mainly on fish, tuna, squid, and other small sea animals.
- It is unusual among seabirds in that it doesn’t dive into the water for prey.
- One way it acquires food is by using its hook-tipped bill to snatch prey from the surface of the water.
- Another way it acquires food is by taking it from weaker birds by force.
- This behavior is known as kleptoparasitism.
Q. The student wants to emphasize a similarity between the two ways a magnificent frigatebird acquires food. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
(a) A magnificent frigatebird never dives into the water, instead using its hook-tipped bill to snatch prey from the surface.
(b) Neither of a magnificent frigatebird’s two ways of acquiring food requires the bird to dive into the water.
(c) Of the magnificent frigatebird’s two ways of acquiring food, only one is known as kleptoparasitism.
(d) In addition to snatching prey from the water with its hook-tipped bill, a magnificent frigatebird takes food from other birds by force.
Ans: (b)
- Choice B is the best answer. The sentence emphasizes a similarity between the two ways a magnificent frigatebird acquires food, noting that neither way requires the seabird to dive into the water.
- Choice A is incorrect. The sentence describes how a magnificent frigatebird captures prey without diving into water; it doesn’t emphasize a similarity between the two ways the seabird acquires food.
- Choice C is incorrect. The sentence notes the term used to describe one of the two ways that magnificent frigatebirds acquire food; it doesn’t emphasize a similarity between the two ways.
- Choice D is incorrect. The sentence describes the two ways that a magnificent frigatebird acquires food; it doesn’t emphasize a similarity between the two ways.
Q87: Passage
The following text is adapted from Elizabeth von Arnim’s 1922 novel The Enchanted April. Mrs. Wilkins and her friend Rose are traveling in Italy.
“I’m going to have one of these gorgeous oranges,” said Mrs. Wilkins, staying where she was and reaching across to a black bowl piled with them. “Rose, how can you resist them. Look—have this one. Do have this beauty—” And she held out a big one.
Q. As used in the text, what does the phrase “reaching across to” most nearly mean?
(a) Joining with
(b) Gaining on
(c) Stretching toward
(d) Arriving at
Ans: (c)
- Choice C is the best answer because as used in the text “reaching across to” most nearly means stretching toward. The text begins with Mrs. Wilkins stating that she wants to have one of the oranges that she’s admiring. The text then indicates that Mrs. Wilkins, staying where she is, holds out a big orange to her friend. This context suggests that when the text describes Mrs. Wilkins as reaching across to the bowl of oranges, it means that she is stretching toward the bowl.
- Choice A is incorrect because the text never suggests that Mrs. Wilkins is joining with, or becoming attached to, the bowl of oranges. Rather, the text indicates that she is stretching toward the bowl so she can pick out oranges for herself and her friend Rose to eat.
- Choice B is incorrect because the text never suggests that Mrs. Wilkins is gaining on, or overtaking in a competition or race, the bowl of oranges. The text suggests instead that the bowl is sitting still on a surface and that Mrs. Wilkins is extending her arm toward the bowl so she can pick out oranges for herself and her friend Rose to eat.
- Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t indicate that Mrs. Wilkins is arriving at the bowl of oranges. In fact, the text states that Mrs. Wilkins stays where she is when reaching across to the bowl, meaning that she remains at a distance from it.
Q88: Passage
The following text is adapted from Jerome K. Jerome’s 1889 novel Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog). The narrator is traveling by boat with Harris and another friend.
[Harris] told us anecdotes of how he had gone across the [English] Channel when it was so rough that the passengers had to be tied into their [beds], and he and the captain were the only two living souls on board who were not ill. Sometimes it was he and the second mate who were not ill; but it was generally he and one other man. If not he and another man, then it was he by himself.
Q. Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?
(a) It indicates the reason for Harris’s eagerness to resume traveling.
(b) It hints at Harris’s feeling that during an earlier boat trip, others didn’t include him in activities.
(c) It emphasizes that Harris always boasts about his own constitution when speaking of a previous boat trip.
(d) It reveals that
although Harris claims to prefer solitary activities when traveling, he actually enjoys having company.
Ans: (c)
- Choice C is the best answer because it most accurately describes how the underlined sentence functions in the text as a whole. In the text, Harris tells stories about his previous boat trip across the English Channel, when conditions were so rough that others onboard became seasick. According to the text, Harris’s accounts vary somewhat but generally involve him and only one other man not growing ill. The underlined sentence then adds that if it was “not [Harris] and another man” who didn’t develop seasickness, “then it was [Harris] by himself.” That is, some versions of the story even involve Harris being the only person onboard who resisted seasickness. Therefore, the underlined sentence emphasizes that Harris always boasts about his own constitution, or physical wellbeing, when speaking of a previous boat trip.
- Choice A is incorrect because the text doesn’t portray Harris as being eager to resume traveling; instead, it shows Harris boasting of how he didn’t become seasick on a previous boat trip when most or all of the other people onboard did.
- Choice B is incorrect because there’s nothing in the text to suggest that Harris felt excluded from activities during an earlier boat trip. The text suggests that Harris experienced isolation during that trip because others onboard had grown ill, not because Harris had wanted to join certain activities but felt left out.
- Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t portray Harris as either enjoying company or claiming to prefer solitude. The text suggests that Harris experienced some degree of isolation during a previous boat trip, but the reason provided by the text has nothing to do with a preference for either solitude or the opposite; rather, the reason, according to Harris, is that most or all of the other people onboard were sick.
Q89: Passage
Several studies have found negligible electoral consequences for governments that impose fiscal austerity measures, yet some European governments recently suffered electorally due to their austerity programs. Evelyne Huebscher and colleagues attribute this incongruity to governments’ tendency—not followed in the recent European cases—to implement austerity programs strategically to avoid electoral costs (e.g., setting spending cuts to take effect only after the next election), which has obscured the inherent political risks of austerity measures in the election data scholars have examined.
Q. Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?
(a) It explains a discrepancy between what has been observed in study settings and what has been observed in real-world settings that the text goes on to assert is attributable to the studies not using real-world data.
(b) It identifies a conflict between research findings and recent events that the text goes on to suggest is a consequence of a complicating factor in the data used to generate those findings.
(c) It presents a long-standing divergence in research findings that the text goes on to say is due to different groups of researchers using data that derive from different electoral circumstances.
(d) It describes a recent exception to a general pattern in research findings that the text goes on to explain is a result of researchers underestimating the significance of inconsistencies in the data they’ve analyzed.
Ans: (b)
- Choice B is the best answer because it best describes how the underlined sentence functions in the text as a whole. The underlined sentence explains that contrary to what several studies would suggest, recent European governments suffered electorally after the launch of fiscal austerity programs. The text goes on to indicate that the researchers generated their findings from data that didn’t reveal the true political risk of austerity measures because the data were based on cases in which governments had set austerity programs to take effect after the next election, a practice the European governments that recently suffered electorally didn’t adhere to, thus introducing a complicating factor resulting in a conflict between the research findings and recent events.
- Choice A is incorrect because the underlined sentence doesn’t indicate that the discrepancy described in the text is between observations made in study settings and observations made in real-world settings. Rather, the underlined sentence indicates that the outcome of recent events is contrary to what would be expected based on the findings of several studies. Additionally, there is nothing in the text to suggest that the studies mentioned did not use real-world data; instead, the text indicates that the data used was generated under potentially different circumstances than the recent events.
- Choice C is incorrect because the underlined sentence doesn’t present a long-standing divergence in research findings but rather a discrepancy between past research findings and recent events that the text goes on to attribute to researchers’ use of data that didn’t reveal the true political risk of austerity measures.
- Choice D is incorrect because while the underlined sentence notes that there have been some recent exceptions to a general pattern observed in several research studies, it does not go on to attribute this exception to the researchers underestimating inconsistencies in the data. Rather, the text goes on to attribute this to a circumstance (fiscal austerity measures being implemented before an election rather than after) which adds a complicating factor into the data not accounted for in past studies.
Q90: Passage
The following text is adapted from Ann Petry’s 1946 novel The Street. Lutie lives in an apartment in Harlem, New York.
The glow from the sunset was making the street radiant. The street is nice in this light, [Lutie] thought. It was swarming with children who were playing ball and darting back and forth across the sidewalk in complicated games of tag. Girls were skipping double dutch rope, going tirelessly through the exact center of a pair of ropes, jumping first on one foot and then the other.
Q. Which choice best describes what is happening in the text?
(a) Lutie is observing the appearance of the street at a particular time of day and the events occurring on it.
(b) Lutie is annoyed by the noise of children playing games on her street.
(c) Lutie is puzzled by the rules of certain children’s games.
(d) Lutie is spending time alone in her apartment because she doesn’t want to interact with her neighbors.
Ans: (a)
- Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states what is happening in the text. The narrator notes that Lutie thinks the street looks nice in the light of the sunset. The narrator goes on to describe what Lutie can see in the street: children playing ball or tag and girls skipping rope. Thus, what is happening in the text is that Lutie is observing the appearance of the street at a particular time of day and the events occurring on it.
- Choice B is incorrect. Although Lutie is observing children playing games on her street, the text doesn’t suggest that she is annoyed by the noise of the games. Instead, the text says that Lutie thinks the street looks nice in the light of the sunset.
- Choice C is incorrect. Although Lutie is observing children playing games on her street, the text doesn’t suggest that she is puzzled by the rules of the games.
- Choice D is incorrect because there is no evidence in the text that Lutie doesn’t want to interact with her neighbors or that she is in her apartment alone. All the text indicates about Lutie is that she is watching the events on the street and thinks the street looks nice in the light of the sunset.
