All practice questions

In 1970, when graphic designer Hiroshi Ohchi founded the design journal *Idea*, he sought to bridge the aesthetic gap between Japanese traditional art and Western modernism. Ohchi believed that the clean lines of Bauhaus could find common ground with the minimalist principles of Zen. Ohchi wanted the journal to serve as an international forum for graphic design trends. Consequently, the journal became a global platform, introducing avant-garde Japanese typography to international audiences.

The writer wants to replace the bolded text with a statement that provides a specific, concrete example of how Ohchi blended Japanese traditional art and Western modernism in the journal's early layouts. Which choice best fulfills this goal?

The following passage contains an underlined portion.

In the mid-nineteenth century, the visionary mathematician Ada Lovelace collaborated with inventor Charles Babbage on his mechanical calculator, the Analytical Engine. Lovelace recognized that the machine had applications beyond mere calculation, translating an article on the engine and appending her own extensive commentary. Her detailed notes, which researchers now consider the first computer program described how the machine could compute a sequence of complex numbers.

Which of the following choices represents the correct punctuation for the underlined portion?

In 1977, oceanographers exploring the Galapagos Rift made a startling discovery. Deep on the ocean floor, where no sunlight could penetrate, they found hydrothermal vents spewing superheated, mineral-rich water. Instead of finding a barren wasteland, they observed thriving ecosystems teeming with giant tube worms, blind crabs, and vast colonies of bacteria. These organisms did not rely on photosynthesis; instead, they survived on chemical energy through a process called chemosynthesis.

The writer wants to add a concluding sentence to the paragraph that wraps up the discussion of chemosynthesis and reinforces the main idea of the passage (that this discovery revealed a new way life can thrive without sunlight). Which of the following sentences best accomplishes this goal?

Read the passage below and answer the question that follows.

Located off the coast of Australia, the Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef system on Earth. The Great Barrier Reef, which stretches over 1,400 miles is home to thousands of unique marine species. Protecting this fragile ecosystem is a primary concern for modern marine biologists.

Which of the following choices represents the correct punctuation for the underlined portion of the sentence?

Passage Excerpt:

In 1957, inventors Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes sealed two plastic shower curtains together, creating a sheet of trapped air bubbles. They originally hoped to market this textured material as a trendy three-dimensional wallpaper. ________ Finally, in 1960, IBM began using the material to protect its fragile computers during shipping, launching the product's global success as Bubble Wrap.

Given that all the choices are true, which choice most effectively emphasizes the contrast between the inventors' high expectations for their wallpaper and the actual market response?

The following passage is from an essay about maritime archaeology.

**The Preservation of the *Mary Rose***

[1] In 1982, the Tudor warship *Mary Rose* was raised from the Solent seabed after four centuries underwater. [2] The ship’s wooden hull, though remarkably intact, was highly vulnerable to rapid decay once exposed to the air. [3] To prevent the waterlogged oak from shrinking and warping as it dried, conservationists sprayed the hull with polyethylene glycol (PEG), a water-soluble polymer. [4] Over several decades, PEG slowly penetrated the wood cells, replacing the water and supporting the cell walls. [5] Archeologists also recovered thousands of artifacts from the site, including longbows, leather shoes, and pewter plates. [6] Once the wood was fully stabilized, the spraying was stopped, allowing the hull to be slowly air-dried for public display.

The writer is considering deleting Sentence 5 from the passage. Should the writer make this deletion?

In 1756, British civil engineer John Smeaton was commissioned to rebuild the Eddystone Lighthouse, a structure off the coast of Devon that had repeatedly succumbed to the brutal storms of the English Channel. Smeaton recognized that standard mortar, which required exposure to air to set, would dissolve long before it could cure in the spray of the sea. To address this challenge, he conducted a series of rigorous experiments testing various lime mixtures. He discovered that limestone containing a high proportion of clay, when mixed with volcanic ash, created a hydraulic mortar that actually hardened underwater. This breakthrough allowed Smeaton to successfully complete the lighthouse and laid the foundation for modern cement. Roman builders had previously used a similar mix of volcanic ash and lime to build the Pantheon, which still stands today.

Given the context of the paragraph, should the writer make this deletion?

Deep-Sea Oasis

[1]
For generations, oceanographers operated under a fundamental assumption: all marine life ultimately depended on sunlight. Photosynthetic phytoplankton at the ocean's surface formed the base of the marine food web. It was believed that the abyssal plains, shrouded in perpetual darkness, could support only a sparse population of scavengers relying on "marine snow"—organic debris drifting down from above.

[2]
This view was shattered in 1977 during an expedition in the Pacific Ocean near the Galápagos Islands. Researchers aboard the submersible Alvin descended more than 2,500 meters to the ocean floor. Instead of a barren desert, they discovered hydrothermal vents spewing superheated, mineral-rich water. Surrounding these vents were dense, thriving ecosystems teeming with giant tube worms, blind crabs, and massive clams, all thriving in conditions previously thought to be completely uninhabitable.

[3]
The key to this thriving community was chemosynthesis, a process completely independent of sunlight. Specialized bacteria utilized the toxic hydrogen sulfide dissolved in the vent fluids to produce organic molecules, serving as the primary producers for this alien ecosystem. This discovery revolutionized our understanding of life's adaptability and opened new possibilities for where life might exist elsewhere in the universe.

Suppose the writer's goal had been to write an essay that describes how a major scientific discovery challenged a long-held biological assumption. Would this essay successfully fulfill that goal?

[1] In the early nineteenth century, Mary Anning patrolled the crumbling cliffs of Lyme Regis, England, uncovering fossils that would challenge established scientific doctrines about the history of the Earth. Despite her lack of formal education, Anning possessed an extraordinary talent for locating and excavating specimens. Her discoveries, which included the first correctly identified ichthyosaur skeleton and a nearly complete plesiosaur, provided crucial evidence for the emerging theory of extinction.

[2] At the time, many scientists believed that species did not go extinct, arguing that all creatures created by God must still exist somewhere on the globe. Anning's fossils, however, depicted bizarre, ancient marine reptiles that resembled no living animals. Her work forced the scientific community to acknowledge that the prehistoric world was vastly different from the modern one. _________

The writer wants to conclude the passage with a sentence that emphasizes the historical significance of Anning’s discoveries and ties back to the main idea of the passage. Which of the following choices best accomplishes this goal?

Although the engineering department hired several automotive designers to build the new hybrid vehicle, the designers' main concern was it's heavy battery pack.

Which of the following options represents the correct punctuation and word usage for the underlined portion?

Choose the alternative that best punctuates the underlined portion of the sentence.

Although the chemists synthesized a dense, dark, metallic compound that was stable at room temperature; they could not determine its catalytic properties.

Before the advent of modern bioinformatics, Margaret Dayhoff revolutionized biochemistry by organizing vast amounts of biological data. In 1965, she published the first volume of the *Atlas of Protein Sequence and Structure*, a compendium that compiled all known protein sequences. [1] Dayhoff was determined to make this information accessible to researchers worldwide, envisioning a future where computational tools would decode the molecular blueprints of life. To achieve this, she developed a one-letter code for amino acids, which significantly reduced the data storage requirements for early computers.

The writer wants to add a sentence at Point [1] that highlights the challenges Dayhoff faced in obtaining protein sequences from global researchers during a period of limited communication technology. Which choice most effectively accomplishes this goal?

A writer is editing an essay about the civil engineer John Smeaton.

In 1756, Smeaton took on the challenge of rebuilding the Eddystone Lighthouse, which had repeatedly been destroyed by the brutal waves of the English Channel. He realized that traditional wooden structures and standard mortar were insufficient to withstand the sea's relentless power. To solve this, Smeaton pioneered the use of interlocking granite blocks and developed a revolutionary hydraulic lime mortar that cured under water. This innovative combination of materials and design allowed the structure to withstand the constant pounding of the sea.

Given that all the choices are true, which choice provides the most specific, concrete evidence to support the claim that Smeaton's design was exceptionally durable?

Maya Angelou wrote seven autobiographies during her lifetime. The first of these books [underlined]—*I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings*, which was published in 1969, became[/underlined] a landmark of American literature.

Which of the following choices best replaces the underlined portion to ensure proper punctuation?

During the excavation of the ancient Mayan city, archaeologists focused on a single, well-preserved [underlined]structure: the[/underlined] central temple, which had remained hidden under dense vegetation for centuries.

Which choice best punctuates the underlined portion of the sentence?

Passage Excerpt:
In 1938, chef Ruth Wakefield chopped up a bar of semi-sweet chocolate and added the pieces to her cookie dough. The chocolate pieces did not melt completely but instead held their shape, creating the first chocolate chip cookies.

The writer wants to add a sentence that emphasizes the immediate, nationwide popularity of this new dessert. Which choice best accomplishes this goal?

Honeybee colonies rely on a complex system of communication to thrive. [1] __________________________________________________ By performing this figure-eight movement, a successful foraging bee can communicate the direction and distance to a rich source of nectar or pollen to other members of the hive. This dance is so precise that it accounts for the angle of the sun and the distance from the hive, allowing other bees to locate food sources miles away with incredible accuracy.

Which choice most effectively introduces the paragraph by establishing its main focus?

Early motion pictures were filmed on nitrate stock, a highly flammable material that decays rapidly over time if not stored in temperature-controlled vaults. To prevent the loss of these historical treasures, archivists work tirelessly to restore and digitize surviving reels. [1]

The writer wants to add a concluding sentence after sentence 2 (marked with [1]) that summarizes the main idea of the paragraph and emphasizes the importance of the preservation efforts. Which of the following options best accomplishes this goal?

To determine the composition of the ancient basaltic flow, the volcanologist gathered several dense, dark, obsidian fragments, and she sent them to the laboratory for isotopic analysis.

Which of the following choices best punctuates the underlined portion of the sentence?

The following paragraphs are from an essay about the invention of the barcode.

In 1948, graduate student Bernard Silver overheard a grocery store executive asking for a system that could automatically record product information at checkout. Silver teamed up with his classmate Norman Joseph Woodland to solve the problem. Their first prototype utilized ultraviolet ink to create patterns, but this method proved too expensive and easily faded over time.

[1] _____ Inspired by Morse code, Woodland realized he could extend the dots and dashes vertically to create thin and thick lines. By shining a light bulb through the paper lines onto a sensor, the inventors successfully read their first barcode.

Which choice provides the most logical transition from the preceding paragraph to the paragraph that follows?