Reading and Writing Test - 4 - SAT MCQ

• Choice D is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of damage to viburnum plants. In this context, “healthy” would mean not distressed or diseased. The text states that insect damage may cause viburnum plants to be discolored and have abnormal growths. In the next sentence, the phrase “on the other hand” indicates a contrast with the description of plants suffering from damage. Thus, the context contrasts the appearance of healthy, undamaged plants with the appearance of damaged plants.
• Choice A is incorrect because in this context, “struggling” would mean working against difficulties. The text first describes viburnum plants experiencing damage by insects, and the phrase “on the other hand” then establishes a contrast with that description. It wouldn’t make sense to contrast struggling viburnum plants with those being damaged by insects, because in both cases the plants would be experiencing difficulties.
• Choice B is incorrect because in this context, “beneficial” would mean producing good or helpful effects. The text doesn’t discuss how viburnum plants affect other things or suggest that the plants are helpful in some way; rather, it focuses on how viburnum plants are affected by certain conditions.
• Choice C is incorrect because in this context “simple” would mean plain or uncomplicated. The text doesn’t discuss whether certain viburnum plants are complicated or uncomplicated; rather, it focuses on how viburnum plants are affected by certain conditions.

• Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately portrays the main purpose of the text. At the beginning of the text, Tom asserts that he and the other people staging the play are doing so only for “a little amusement among ourselves” and aren’t interested in attracting an audience or any attention with the production. Then, Tom promises that the play they chose is modest and appropriate, and he further reasons that using the well-written prose of “some respectable author” is better than using their own words. Overall, the main purpose of the text is to convey Tom’s promise that the play will be inoffensive and involve only a few people. 
• Choice B is incorrect because the text doesn’t indicate that Tom had earlier intentions for the play’s performance or that anything has changed since the group first decided to stage a play. Instead, the text focuses on how harmless the entire endeavor will be.
• Choice C is incorrect. Although Tom mentions that using the words of a “respectable author” will be better than using their own words, he never addresses the idea that the people around him generally aren’t skilled enough to stage a play.
• Choice D is incorrect because in the text Tom specifically says that they “want no audience, no publicity,” which indicates that they don’t plan on promoting the play at all.

• Choice A is the best answer. “Nevertheless” logically signals that the information in this sentence—that the spacesuits Suttirat Larlarb designed for the film Sunshine were made in standard sizes in a factory—presents a notable exception to Larlarb’s typical approach of custom-fitting garments to actors, which is described in the previous sentence.
• Choice B is incorrect because “thus” illogically signals that the information in this sentence is a result or consequence of the previous information about Larlarb’s typical approach of custom-fitting garments to actors. Instead, it presents a notable exception to Larlarb’s typical approach.
• Choice C is incorrect because “likewise” illogically signals that the information in this sentence is similar to the previous information about Larlarb’s typical approach of custom-fitting garments to actors. Instead, it presents a notable exception to Larlarb’s typical approach.
• Choice D is incorrect because “moreover” illogically signals that the information in this sentence merely adds to the previous information about Larlarb’s typical approach of custom-fitting garments to actors. Instead, it presents a notable exception to Larlarb’s typical approach.

• Choice A is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion about handedness in animals. As used in this context, “recognizable” means apparent or identifiable. The text indicates that handedness is “easy to observe in humans,” but that animal-behavior researchers use special tasks to determine handedness in other animals. This context and the use of “less” before the blank indicate that compared with handedness in humans, handedness in other animals is less recognizable.
• Choice B is incorrect because there’s nothing in the text to suggest that handedness is less “intriguing,” or fascinating, in nonhuman animals than it is in humans. The text focuses on how easy it is to observe handedness in humans as compared with other animals; the text doesn’t suggest that handedness is more fascinating in humans.
• Choice C is incorrect because there’s nothing in the text to suggest that handedness is less “significant,” or important or meaningful, in nonhuman animals than it is in humans. The text focuses on how easy it is to observe handedness in humans as compared with other animals; the text doesn’t suggest that handedness is more significant in humans.
• Choice D is incorrect because “useful,” or functional or helpful, wouldn’t make sense in context. The text focuses on the ease with which researchers can determine whether an animal or person is right- or left-handed, not on how useful handedness in nonhuman animals is compared with handedness in humans.

• Choice B is the best answer because it most accurately describes the function of the third sentence within the overall structure of the text. The third sentence makes a generalization, asserting that evolutionary links between predators and prey can persist across great expanses of time and distance. This generalization is exemplified by the text’s discussion of the relationship between mimosa trees and B. terrenus beetles. When mimosa trees were introduced to North America in 1785, no B. terrenus beetles were present, so the relationship between the trees and the beetles that exists in their native East Asia was disrupted. When the beetles were introduced to North America more than 200 years later, however, they quickly attacked mimosa trees, illustrating the generalization that links between predators and prey “can persist across centuries and continents.”
• Choice A is incorrect because the third sentence doesn’t indicate that Chang and colleagues were investigating any particular hypothesis. According to the text, Chang and colleagues were simply monitoring mimosa trees when the beetles happened to be introduced to the area.
• Choice C is incorrect because the third sentence offers a generalization about the relationship between predators and prey, not an explanation for the findings of Chang and colleagues that differs from an explanation presented elsewhere in the text.
• Choice D is incorrect because the third sentence doesn’t discuss any particular species (either the species mentioned elsewhere in the text or any other) and doesn’t help explain why species spread to new locations.

• Choice C is the best answer. “Finally” logically signals that the bill passing— following many attempts between 1968 and 1983—is the final, concluding event in the sequence described in the previous sentences.
• Choice A is incorrect because “instead” illogically signals that the bill passing is an alternative to one of the events described in the previous sentences. It is the final event in the sequence.
• Choice B is incorrect because “likewise” illogically signals that the bill passing is similar to one of the events described in the previous sentences. Instead, it is the final event in the sequence.
• Choice D is incorrect because “additionally” illogically signals that the bill passing is merely another event described along with the events of the previous sentences. Instead, it is the final, concluding event in the sequence.

• Choice D is the best answer. The sentence effectively describes Unwoven Light to an audience unfamiliar with Park, noting that Soo Sunny Park is a Korean American artist and that the 2013 work consists of colorful prisms formed by light passing through iridescent tiles.
• Choice A is incorrect. The sentence describes aspects of Unwoven Light but doesn’t mention who Park is; it thus doesn’t effectively describe the work to an audience unfamiliar with Park.
• Choice B is incorrect. Although the sentence indicates when the work was created and who Park is, it lacks descriptive details and thus doesn’t effectively describe Unwoven Light.
• Choice C is incorrect. The sentence mentions Park and describes an aspect of Unwoven Light—the chainlink fence—but doesn’t effectively describe the overall work to an audience unfamiliar with the artist.

• Choice B is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of the fossilized bones of the hominin known as Little Foot. As used in this context, “comparable to” would mean similar to. The text indicates that the relationship between the fossilized clavicle and shoulder bones of Little Foot and the clavicle and shoulder bones of “frequent climbers,” such as chimpanzees and gorillas, suggests that Little Foot had adapted to moving around in trees. This context suggests that the relationship between the fossilized bones of Little Foot and the bones of chimpanzees and gorillas is one of similarity—the Little Foot fossils are likely comparable to the modern ape bones.
• Choice A is incorrect because if the fossilized bones of Little Foot were “surpassed by,” or exceeded by or made inferior to, the bones of modern apes that are frequent climbers, it wouldn’t suggest, as the text says, that Little Foot was adapted to moving around in trees. If anything, learning that Little Foot’s clavicle and shoulder bones were surpassed by those of chimpanzees and gorillas would suggest that Little Foot was poorly adapted to climbing.
• Choice C is incorrect because if Little Foot’s fossilized clavicle and shoulder bones were “independent of,” or not influenced by or affiliated with, the bones of modern apes that climb often, it wouldn’t suggest, as the text says, that Little Foot was adapted to moving around in trees.
• Choice D is incorrect because the text indicates that Little Foot’s fossilized bones date to 3.6 million years ago, so they couldn’t have been “obtained from,” or acquired from, the bones of modern apes.

• Choice C is the best answer because it best describes how the underlined sentence functions in the text as a whole. The first two sentences establish that birds of some species don’t raise their own young; instead, they lay their eggs in the nests of birds of other species. The underlined sentence then states that female cuckoo birds engage in this behavior, having been observed specifically laying their eggs in other nests while the other birds are out finding food. According to the text, the cuckoo chicks are then raised by the other birds. Thus, the underlined sentence provides a particular detail about how female cuckoos carry out the behavior of laying eggs for other birds to raise.
• Choice A is incorrect. Rather than mentioning a physical feature of female cuckoos, the underlined sentence introduces a specific behavior of female cuckoos: laying eggs in the nests of birds of other species when the other birds are away. The only reference to physical features is the last sentence’s general mention of cuckoo chicks looking different from chicks of other species.
• Choice B is incorrect because the underlined sentence refers to the nests of birds other than cuckoos and doesn’t describe how any nests look, cuckoo or otherwise. Instead, the sentence addresses how female cuckoos use other birds’ nests.
• Choice D is incorrect because the underlined sentence describes only female cuckoo behavior (laying eggs in the nests of birds of other species when the other birds are away); it’s the last sentence of the text that addresses the other birds’ reaction, indicating that those birds usually raise the cuckoo chicks once they’ve hatched.

• Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is the use of finite and nonfinite verb forms within a sentence. The nonfinite to-infinitive “to forge” is correctly used to form a nonfinite (infinitive) clause that explains why the chemists re-created and reprogrammed the DNA-cleaving bacteria.
• Choice B is incorrect. Without a comma separating the main clause (“chemists... bacteria”) from the participle “forging,” this choice illogically suggests that the bacteria are forging a tool, which doesn’t make sense.
• Choice C is incorrect. Without a coordinating conjunction such as “and” placed before it, the finite past tense verb “forged” can’t be used in this way to describe the chemists’ actions.
• Choice D is incorrect. If read as a finite verb, the present progressive verb “forging” isn’t consistent with the past tense verbs used in this sentence to describe the actions of the chemists. If read as a nonfinite verb, the participle “forging” can’t be used in this way because there is no following main clause for it to modify.

• Choice A is the best answer because the text indicates that Fox-Foot doesn’t let the group build a fire or create a canoe landing when it’s time for supper. This context suggests that he doesn’t want anyone who might be following the group to see any sign of them or their activities. In other words, Fox-Foot doesn’t want there to be any trace, or evidence, of the group’s movements (“their passing”) through the area.
• Choice B is incorrect because the text conveys that Fox-Foot doesn’t want the group to be detected, not that he doesn’t want their presence to create a blemish, or a spoiling flaw, in the area; human activity could disturb a natural environment, but the context emphasizes that Fox-Foot is instead focused on avoiding giving any sign of the group’s movements through a place (“their passing”) to anyone who might be following them.
• Choice C is incorrect because the text focuses on Fox-Foot’s desire to avoid detection by those who might be following the group. This context conveys that Fox-Foot doesn’t want to create any signs or evidence of the group moving through a place (“their passing”), not that he doesn’t want to leave behind some quantity of their presence; indeed, it isn’t clear what an amount of a group’s movement would be.
• Choice D is incorrect because nothing in the text suggests that the group has a sketch, or rough drawing, of their movements through that area (“their passing”) that might be left behind. Rather, the context emphasizes that Fox-Foot is focused on ensuring that the group doesn’t give any kind of indication of their presence, as he wants to avoid detection by anyone who might be following the group.

• Choice B is the best answer because it most accurately describes the overall structure of the text. The text begins by explaining that human activities influence carbon and nitrogen levels in soil, but how deeply these effects are seen in the soil remains an unresolved question. Next, the text summarizes Okolo and colleagues’ hypothesis regarding this question—which is that the different effects on carbon and nitrogen levels associated with different types of land use would also be observed below the topsoil layer—and then briefly explains the methods they used to test this hypothesis. Finally, the text states that the researchers found that at depths below the topsoil layer, carbon and nitrogen decreased to similarly low levels across all land-use types, a finding that conflicts with the team’s hypothesis presented earlier in the text. Thus, the text introduces an unresolved scientific question, presents a research team’s hypothesis pertaining to that question, and then describes an observation that the team made that conflicted with their hypothesis.
• Choice A is incorrect. Although the text introduces a phenomenon (the fact that human activities influence carbon and nitrogen levels in the soil) that isn’t fully understood by scientists and explains a research team’s hypothesis about the phenomenon, the text doesn’t describe how the team refined their hypothesis when a research finding contradicted it.
• Choice C is incorrect because the text doesn’t discuss a process at all; rather, it poses an unsolved scientific question and presents a hypothesis that Okolo and colleagues tested to answer that question. Moreover, the text only describes one hypothesis; it doesn’t mention any competing hypotheses, nor does it suggest that Okolo’s team was able to determine which hypothesis was correct.
• Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t begin by presenting a hypothesis that is under scientific debate; rather, it presents a question that scientists have been unable to answer and then introduces a hypothesis formulated by Okolo and colleagues. While the text does explain how Okolo’s team tested their hypothesis, the text goes on to say that their data conflicted with their hypothesis, not that the data validated, or supported, their hypothesis.

• Choice C is the best answer. The convention being tested is pronoun-antecedent agreement. The singular pronoun “this” agrees in number with the singular antecedent “Lê Lương Minh became the thirteenth secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in January 2013.” The pronoun “this” is referring back to the singular event described earlier in the sentence in which Minh became secretary-general of ASEAN.
• Choice A is incorrect because the plural pronoun “these” doesn’t agree in number with the singular antecedent “Lê Lương Minh became the thirteenth secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in January 2013.”
• Choice B is incorrect because the plural pronoun “those” doesn’t agree in number with the singular antecedent “Lê Lương Minh became the thirteenth secretarygeneral of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in January 2013.”
• Choice D is incorrect because the indefinite pronoun “some” is ambiguous in this context; the resulting sentence leaves unclear what marks the first time the organization appointed a Vietnamese leader. 

• Choice B is the best answer. The convention being tested is the use of punctuation between titles and proper nouns. No punctuation is needed to set off the proper noun “Marie-Denise Villers” from the title that describes Villers, “littleknown French portrait artist.”
• Choice A is incorrect because no punctuation is needed.
• Choice C is incorrect because no punctuation is needed.
• Choice D is incorrect because no punctuation is needed.

• Choice D is the best answer. “Hence” logically signals that the information in this sentence about turtle shells—that people incorrectly assume they are exoskeletons—is a consequence of the shells appearing external to the animal.
• Choice A is incorrect because “that being said” illogically signals that this sentence qualifies or contrasts with the previous information about turtle shells appearing external to the animal. Instead, it presents a consequence of that information.
• Choice B is incorrect because “however” illogically signals that this sentence contrasts with the previous information about turtle shells appearing external to the animal. Instead, it presents a consequence of that information.
• Choice C is incorrect because “for instance” illogically signals that this sentence provides an example supporting the previous information about turtle shells appearing external to the animal. Instead, it presents a consequence of that information.

• Choice D is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of the fossil deposit. In this context, “obtain” means gain or acquire. According to the text, a team of paleontologists has found fossils that are very well preserved. For this reason, the text suggests, the paleontologists have been able to gain detailed information from the fossils, such as the color patterns of the life forms that left them behind.
• Choice A is incorrect because “occupy” means engage or inhabit, neither of which would make sense in context. It’s unclear what it would mean for detailed information revealed by fossils to be engaged or inhabited.
• Choice B is incorrect because the text gives no indication that the paleontologists wanted to “hoard,” or collect and hide, the detailed information revealed by the well-preserved fossils.
• Choice C is incorrect because the text gives no indication that the paleontologists wanted to “reserve,” or withhold, the detailed information revealed by the wellpreserved fossils.

• Choice A is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of English dialects spoken in Scotland and the Upland South. The text indicates that these dialects share a feature: putting emphasis on the “r” sound when it appears in certain positions in words. The text goes on to state that records indicate the Upland South was colonized largely by people of Scottish ancestry. It is reasonable to assume that the English dialects spoken by these colonizers were influenced by the English dialects spoken by their ancestors in Scotland. It follows, then, that the emphasis on the “r” sound in the dialects in Scotland carried over into the Upland South dialects as they developed—that is, that the Upland South dialects likely acquired it from dialects spoken in Scotland.
• Choice B is incorrect because the text suggests that Scottish ancestry explains the origin of the emphasis on the “r” sound in English dialects spoken in the Upland South, since that linguistic feature is also found in dialects spoken in Scotland; the text doesn’t address any other dialects or suggest that the feature will spread elsewhere.
• Choice C is incorrect because the text indicates that many Upland South colonizers were the descendants of Scottish people, suggesting that the English dialects spoken by these colonizers had been influenced by the English dialects spoken by the colonizers’ ancestors in Scotland and had acquired their emphasis on the “r” sound from those ancestors’ dialects—not the other way around.
• Choice D is incorrect because the text indicates that the emphasis on the “r” sound is part of English dialects spoken in the Upland South today, which almost certainly wouldn’t be the case if people from Scotland, who were the main colonizers of the Upland South, had eliminated that linguistic feature from their dialects.

• Choice D is the best answer. The sentence emphasizes the mass of Sirius A, noting that it has a mass of 2.063 solar masses and that it is larger than the Sun.
• Choice A is incorrect. The sentence makes a generalization about how the mass of stars can be measured; it doesn’t emphasize the mass of Sirius A.
• Choice B is incorrect. The sentence introduces solar masses as a unit of measurement; it doesn’t emphasize the mass of Sirius A.
• Choice C is incorrect. The sentence emphasizes the mass of Proxima Centauri, not the mass of Sirius A.

• Choice C is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of Bastos’s study of a wild kea parrot. In this context, “accidental” means unplanned or unintentional. The text first describes Bastos’s study, which concerns a kea that is observed using small stones to preen its feathers. The text then mentions colleagues who are skeptical (that is, they have doubt) about Bastos’s findings, and finally describes how Bastos and her team responded to the skepticism of those colleagues. Given that the colleagues mentioned in the text expressed skepticism regarding Bastos’s findings, the best answer choice must be one that completes the text in a manner such that the skeptics’ opinion regarding the kea’s use of stones disagrees with that held by Bastos and her team. Since Bastos and her team showed that the kea’s use of stones was deliberate (that is, intentional), the skeptics’ opinion in this context must be that the kea’s use of stones was unintentional, or accidental.
• Choice A is incorrect because the best answer choice is one that portrays skepticism, or doubt, of Bastos’s claim that the kea’s usage of stones was deliberate, or intentional. If the skeptics found the kea’s usage of stones “intriguing,” or fascinating, this would not be at odds with the position of Bastos and her team; in fact, it is reasonable to believe that someone who agreed that the kea’s stone usage was deliberate would also find it intriguing.
• Choice B is incorrect because if the skeptics believed that the kea’s usage of small stones was “obvious,” or evident, this would not be contrary to the observation of Bastos and her team that the kea’s usage of stones was deliberate: in fact, these opinions would be consistent with each other.
• Choice D is incorrect because if the skeptics believed that the kea’s usage of small stones was “observable,” or visible, this would not conflict with the claim of Bastos and her team that the kea’s usage of stones was deliberate: instead, these positions would agree.

• Choice C is the best answer because it most effectively describes the function of the underlined portion. The text discusses the long-standing misconception that people in medieval Europe were uninterested in cleanliness and hygiene. As evidence that this idea is false, the text cites historian Eleanor Janega’s assertion that in medieval Europe, towns usually had at least one bathhouse, where people could take immersion baths or steam baths for a fee. The underlined portion then notes that mainly town dwellers had access to these bathhouses. The remainder of the text explains that those who lacked such access were nonetheless able to bathe in outdoor waterways or take sponge baths at home. Therefore, the underlined portion concedes that some people in medieval Europe lacked access to public bathhouses.
• Choice A is incorrect. The underlined portion establishes that amenities such as steam baths were mainly available to town dwellers, which suggests in turn that steam baths were largely unavailable to people in rural areas. Thus, the distinction made by the underlined portion is not between the popularity of steam baths in towns versus their lack of popularity in rural areas but instead between their presence in towns and absence in rural areas.
• Choice B is incorrect. Although the text does explain that recent historians have disproved the idea that medieval Europeans rarely bathed, it doesn’t attribute that misconception to earlier historians of medieval Europe or suggest that their research was subject to limitations. Moreover, the underlined portion addresses a limitation of life in medieval Europe, not of historical research.
• Choice D is incorrect because the underlined portion doesn’t address why historian Eleanor Janega decided to study the popularity of public bathhouses in medieval Europe—nor does any portion of the text. The text mentions Janega in passing, but it doesn’t go into detail about why she decided to study the popularity of public bathhouses in medieval Europe.

• Choice B is the best answer. The convention being tested is the punctuation of elements in a complex series. It’s conventional to use a semicolon to separate items in a complex series with internal punctuation, and in this choice, the semicolon after “leaves” is conventionally used to separate the first item (“natural debris, such as dried leaves”) and the second item (“man-made trash, such as plastic bags”) in the series of materials used by Gavua. Further, the comma after “trash” correctly separates the noun phrase “man-made trash” from the supplementary phrase (“such as plastic bags”) that describes it.
• Choice A is incorrect because a comma after “leaves” doesn’t match the semicolon used later to separate the second and third items in the series (“manmade...bags” and “and...glue”). Additionally, it’s not conventional to use a colon in this way to separate a supplementary phrase (“such as plastic bags”) from the noun phrase it modifies (“man-made trash”).
• Choice C is incorrect because a comma after “leaves” doesn’t match the semicolon used later to separate the second and third items in the series (“man-made...bags” and “and...glue”).
• Choice D is incorrect because it’s not conventional to use a semicolon in this way to separate a supplementary phrase (“such as plastic bags”) from the noun phrase it modifies (“man-made trash”).

• Choice A is the best answer. “In turn” logically signals that the information in the sentence—that the electrical currents create a protective barrier around Earth— is a result or consequence of the previous information about the circulation of liquid metals generating electrical currents that flow between Earth’s magnetic poles.
• Choice B is incorrect because “likewise” illogically signals that the information in the sentence is similar to the previous information about the circulation of liquid metals generating electrical currents that flow between Earth’s magnetic poles. Instead, the new information about the electrical currents is a direct result or consequence of the previous information.
• Choice C is incorrect because “nevertheless” illogically signals that the information in the sentence is true despite the previous information about the circulation of liquid metals generating electrical currents that flow between Earth’s magnetic poles. Instead, the new information about the electrical currents is a direct result or consequence of the previous information.
• Choice D is incorrect because “in reality” illogically signals that the information in the sentence contradicts the previous information about the circulation of liquid metals generating electrical currents that flow between Earth’s magnetic poles. Instead, the new information about the electrical currents is a direct result or consequence of the previous information.

• Choice C is the best answer. The sentence indicates which classification category most routine diplomatic correspondence belongs in, explaining that it is classified as Confidential because it has the potential to damage national security if disclosed.
• Choice A is incorrect. While the sentence makes a claim about information classified as Confidential, it doesn’t indicate which category routine diplomatic correspondence belongs in.
• Choice B is incorrect. The sentence makes a generalization about how routine diplomatic correspondence is classified; it doesn’t indicate which classification category the correspondence belongs in.
• Choice D is incorrect. This sentence explains that routine diplomatic correspondence could affect national security if disclosed; it doesn’t indicate which category of sensitive information this correspondence belongs in.

Choice A is the best answer because it presents an explanation that is directly stated in the text for why ecologists are worried about Pando. The text states that Pando is a colony of about 47,000 quaking aspen trees that represents one of the largest organisms on Earth. According to the text, ecologists are worried that Pando’s growth is declining, partly because animals are feeding on the trees. In other words, the ecologists are worried that Pando isn’t growing at the same rate it used to.
Choice B is incorrect. Rather than indicating that Pando isn’t producing young trees anymore, the text reveals that Pando is indeed producing young trees, stating that those trees can be protected from grazing deer by strong fences.
Choice C is incorrect because the text states that fences can be used to prevent deer from eating Pando’s young trees, not that Pando itself can’t grow in new areas because it’s blocked by fences. 
Choice D is incorrect because the text offers no evidence that Pando’s root system is incapable of supporting new trees or is otherwise a cause of worry for ecologists.

Choice C is the best answer because it presents a finding that, if true, would most directly support the researchers’ conclusion that carbon dioxide does not serve as an additional cue to frog-biting midges regarding the location of male túngara frogs. The text begins by stating that the mating call of the male túngara frogs also attracts frog-biting midges, which prey on the frogs’ blood. Researchers Bernal and de Silva were curious if the mating calls were sufficient signals for the midges to locate the frogs or if midges also used carbon dioxide emitted by the frogs to locate their prey. The text then details the procedure the researchers used to investigate their question and summarizes their conclusion—that carbon dioxide does not serve as an additional cue to the midges. Thus, if more midges were found in the researchers’ trap that only played calls than in the trap that played calls and released carbon dioxide, it follows that the frog calls seem sufficient without the carbon dioxide cue. This finding supports the researchers’ conclusion that carbon dioxide does not serve as an additional cue to frog-biting midges.
Choice A is incorrect because finding that the majority of frog-biting midges were found in the traps that both played the mating call and released carbon dioxide would present evidence that directly refutes the researchers’ conclusion—that carbon dioxide does not serve as an additional cue to the frog-biting midges regarding the location of túngara frogs.
Choice B is incorrect because if the midges entered the trap that played calls and released carbon dioxide only during or immediately after carbon dioxide was released, that would suggest that the midges used the carbon dioxide as a way to locate their prey, a finding that would contradict the researchers’ conclusion that carbon dioxide was not an additional cue to the midges.
Choice D is incorrect because a trap attracting larger numbers of midges with high carbon dioxide concentrations than a trap with low carbon dioxide concentrations suggests that carbon dioxide might serve as an additional cue to the midges as to the location on the frogs, a finding contrary to the researchers’ conclusion.

Choice A is the best answer because it most effectively illustrates the claim that Lowell describes an element of nature as an active participant in the experience of a nighttime scene on a body of water. The quotation presents the image of the moon shining on a body of water. However, instead of describing the moon in passive terms or simply stating that it reflects through the water and onto the sandy shore, the quotation portrays the moon as being engaged in the humanlike action of writing a legend. In other words, the moon is participating actively in the nighttime scene.
Choice B is incorrect. Although the quotation describes a nighttime scene on a body of water, the element of nature in these lines—the waves—isn’t portrayed as an active participant in an experience; instead, the waves merely ripple softly against a canoe, as waves would normally do.
Choice C is incorrect because the quotation doesn’t present a nighttime scene on a body of water; instead, it describes petals falling from a rose. 
Choice D is incorrect. Although the quotation presents an image of an element of nature—the moon—it doesn’t mention a body of water; moreover, it portrays the moon not as an active participant in a scene but instead as static or unchanging (“ever and always the same”).

Choice B is the best answer because it presents a question that the text is attempting to answer: why has the pronoun "y’all" become more widely used in the US? The text begins by explaining where and how the plural pronoun "y’all" originated and then goes on to state that its use has been rising in popularity, even in areas outside of its place of origin. The text then attributes this rise in popularity to the fact that many varieties of English do not have a pronoun to address more than one person, and thus "you" must function as both a singular and plural pronoun.
Choice A is incorrect because while the text states that "y’all" is used as a plural of "you" in English, it does not discuss other plural forms of the word.
Choice C is incorrect because while the text discusses the general origins of the pronoun "y’all," it does not state when the use of the pronoun was first recorded in the English language.
Choice D is incorrect because though the text addresses the use of the pronoun "y’all" within English-speaking communities in the US, it does not address its use outside of that geographic area.

Choice C is the best answer. The convention being tested is punctuation between a main clause and a supplementary noun phrase. This choice correctly uses a comma to mark the boundary between the main clause (“scholar…materialism”) and the supplementary noun phrase (“an apt assessment”) that describes Waid’s observation about how The House of Mirth depicts the upper classes of New York society.
Choice A is incorrect because a semicolon and the conjunction “and” can’t be used in this way to mark the boundary between a main clause and a supplementary noun phrase.
Choice B is incorrect. Joining the main clause (“scholar… materialism”) and the following noun phrase with the conjunction “and” results in a confusing and illogical sentence that suggests that the novel depicts the upper classes of New York society as “an apt assessment,” which doesn’t make sense in this context.
Choice D is incorrect because it fails to mark the boundary between the main clause and the supplementary noun phrase with appropriate punctuation.

• Choice A is the best answer because it presents a statement that, if true, would support the claim that the two exhibitions This Is the Day and The Dirty South showcase the diverse media artists have used to represent the Black experience in the US. The text describes the thematic focus of the two exhibitions: religious and spiritual expressions in the Black community and the connections between visual arts and music in Black culture in the American South between 1920 and 2020. If these exhibits included works created with many different materials and means of artistic expression (such as paint, textiles, sculptural stone, and musical forms), they would display how artists have portrayed and responded to the Black experience in the US as well as the variety of media that these artists have used to do so.
• Choice B is incorrect because it focuses on the number of artists whose works were included in the exhibitions, not on the means of expression that these artists have used. Therefore, the statement wouldn’t address the claim that the exhibits showcased the different media artists have used to represent the Black experience in the US.
• Choice C is incorrect because it focuses on how the works that were included in the exhibitions were sourced, not on the means of expression the artists whose works were featured have used. Therefore, the statement wouldn’t address the claim that the exhibits showcased the different media artists have used to represent the Black experience in the US.
• Choice D is incorrect. Although the statement focuses on similarities in the themes of the two exhibitions—that is, they both concern the Black experience in the US—it doesn’t mention the media that artists whose works were featured in the exhibitions have used to portray and respond to this experience.

• Choice C is the best answer. “On the other hand” logically signals that the information in the sentence—that the snowpack at higher elevations in the Chuska Mountains was deepest in mid-March—contrasts with the previous information about the snowpack at lower elevations being deepest in early March.
• Choice A is incorrect because “in other words” illogically signals that information in the sentence is merely a paraphrase or restatement of the previous information about the snowpack at lower elevations. Instead, the information about the snowpack at higher elevations contrasts with that information.
• Choice B is incorrect because “for instance” illogically signals that the information in the sentence exemplifies the previous information about the snowpack at lower elevations. Instead, the information about the snowpack at higher elevations contrasts with that information.
• Choice D is incorrect because “in summary” illogically signals that the information in the sentence summarizes the previous information about the snowpack at lower elevations. Instead, the information about the snowpack at higher elevations contrasts with that information.