All practice questions

Although early observational models postulated that interstellar dust grains within dense molecular clouds were entirely ________, devoid of internal chemical reactivity, recent high-resolution spectroscopic analyses reveal complex ice mantles actively catalyzing organic synthesis.

Which of the following words best completes the sentence?

Far from presenting a __________ treatise on urban planning, the architect's latest monograph offers an impressively exhaustive analysis of municipal infrastructure, leaving virtually no regulatory detail unexamined. Which TWO of the following answer choices, when inserted into the sentence, produce completed sentences that are similar in meaning?

Passage:
In 1843, English botanist Anna Atkins privately published Photographs of British Algae: Cyanotype Impressions, a work recognized as the first book illustrated with photographic images. Atkins utilized the cyanotype process developed in 1842 by astronomer Sir John Herschel, which relied on a light-sensitive solution of ferric ammonium citrate and potassium ferricyanide to yield cyan-blue monochrome prints. By placing dried specimens directly onto coated paper exposed to natural sunlight, Atkins produced contact prints without employing a camera lens. Whereas conventional botanical illustrations of the period relied on wood engravings that required manual transcription by an artisan—and were thus vulnerable to subjective distortion—Atkins' contact printing captured exact anatomical outlines. However, because cyanotypes produced negative impressions, leaving the specimen's silhouette as unprinted white paper against a Prussian blue background, the process was unable to render internal cellular details or natural chromatic gradations, thereby limiting its diagnostic utility for microscopic taxonomy.

According to the passage, Atkins' cyanotype process differed from conventional wood engraving in which of the following ways?

While the lead paleontologist initially cautioned that the fragmented fossil remains were far too degraded to yield definitive conclusions, subsequent high-resolution tomographic scanning provided __________ evidence that settled the decades-long debate regarding the species' cranial morphology. Select the two answer choices that, when inserted into the sentence, produce completed sentences that are equivalent in meaning.

A container originally holds a liquid mixture in which $\frac{2}{5}$ of the total volume is pure juice. After $6$ liters of pure juice are added to the container, pure juice makes up $\frac{1}{2}$ of the new total volume. How many liters of mixture were originally in the container?

Read the following passage from a work of literary criticism:

"In his analysis of Victorian epistolary prose, Dr. Thorne notes that the author's characteristic reserve was frequently misconstrued by contemporaries as aloofness or intellectual arrogance. In truth, this emotional restraint and deliberate economy of expression functioned not as a sign of disdain, but as a protective boundary designed to guard personal privacy in an era of relentless public scrutiny."

In the context of the passage, which of the following words most nearly captures the meaning of the word "reserve"?

In her study of mid-twentieth-century mechanical translation projects, computational linguist Dr. Evelyn Vance declines to label early rule-based systems as crude failures. Although contemporary engineers often deprecate these pioneering efforts as clumsy approximations, Vance highlights that their architectural design was remarkably calculated, serving as a pragmatic placeholder rather than an outright conceptual blunder. Far from demonstrating naive optimism, these early models reflected a guarded recognition of linguistic complexity.

In the context of the passage, the word "guarded" in the final sentence serves to convey an authorial tone that is best characterized as which of the following?

If $a$ and $b$ are positive integers such that $15a$ is divisible by $24$ and $10b$ is divisible by $14$, which of the following statements MUST be true? Select all such statements.

Notwithstanding the manuscript curator’s assertion that the author’s primary journals were ________, subsequent ink analysis demonstrated that extensive modifications were introduced decades after their initial composition.

Which two of the following answer choices, when inserted into the blank, produce completed sentences that are logically equivalent and coherent in meaning?

Read the following passage:

For decades, historians assumed that the observational anomalies logged by nineteenth-century astronomers were merely (i)_______ errors caused by rudimentary equipment, rather than indicators of genuine physical phenomena. Consequently, mainstream theorists remained (ii)_______ in their commitment to existing cosmological models, treating discrepancies not as counterevidence but as irrelevant measurement noise. It was only when advanced spectroscopic analysis revealed that these subtle perturbations were systematically (iii)_______ across independent observatories that physicists conceded the necessity of a fundamental paradigm shift.

Which set of words, when inserted into the blanks, best completes the passage to maintain cross-sentence contextual coherence?

When the positive integer $n$ is divided by $7$, the remainder is $4$. What is the remainder when $n + 18$ is divided by $7$?

If $n$ is a positive integer such that $n$ is divisible by $12$ and $n^2$ is divisible by $180$, what is the least possible value of $n$?

When the positive integer $n$ is divided by 7, the remainder is 3, and when $n$ is divided by 11, the remainder is 5. If $n$ is a three-digit integer less than 200 that is divisible by 6, what is the value of $n$?

Let $N = 2^a \cdot 3^b \cdot 5^c$, where $a$, $b$, and $c$ are positive integers such that $N$ is a multiple of $8$. If $N^2$ has $105$ distinct positive divisors and $\frac{N}{6}$ has $12$ distinct positive divisors, how many distinct positive divisors does $10N$ have?

The historian argued that the monarch's centralizing decrees were not merely symbolic assertions of authority; indeed, by systematically curtailing regional autonomy, these policies served to _________ royal control throughout the provinces, consequently consolidating absolute governance. Which two of the following options, when inserted into the blank, produce completed sentences that are coherent and identical in meaning?

Read the passage below:

Dr. Vance’s initial report was remarkably (i)_______, detailing every preliminary finding with meticulous care. However, her subsequent monograph proved unexpectedly (ii)_______, offering only a brief summary that left many critical questions unanswered.

Which pair of words best completes the blanks to maintain cross-sentence contextual coherence?

Passage:
In his 1873 treatise L'Art de bâtir chez les Romains, French architectural historian Auguste Choisy challenged the prevailing view popularized by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, which held that ancient Roman vaults were purely monolithic structures formed by pouring liquid pozzolana concrete over temporary wooden centering. Through meticulous physical examination of surviving ruins, Choisy demonstrated that Roman builders actually employed light, permanent framework lattices constructed from thin brick ribbons—a technique known as appareil. These brick ribs served a dual structural purpose: they acted as self-supporting formwork during the construction phase, thereby eliminating the need for expensive, massive wooden scaffolding, and subsequently integrated into the finished masonry shell to absorb tensile stresses. While earlier scholars assumed that the embedded brick arches were intended to permanently divide the concrete into independent structural compartments, Choisy observed that the concrete matrix fully bonded with the brickwork, creating a composite material whose structural integrity relied on unified mass action rather than segmented load paths.

According to the passage, which of the following statements regarding Auguste Choisy's findings on Roman vaulting are explicitly supported? Consider each of the choices separately and select all that apply.

Read the passage below:

That the fossil record of early metazoans is notoriously (i)________ cannot be taken as proof of their structural simplicity; far from confirming that early animal lineages emerged in an explosive burst of sudden morphologic innovation, the soft-bodied microfossils suggest that anatomical diversification was entirely (ii)________, unfolding through modest, step-by-step modifications over tens of millions of years.

Which of the following pairs of words best completes the text in a logically coherent manner?

Far from offering a comprehensive __________ of the newly discovered codex, the scholar's monograph presents only a series of fragmented, superficial observations that gloss over the manuscript's most intricate theological arguments. Which TWO of the following answer choices, when inserted into the blank, best complete the sentence and produce sentences that are equivalent in meaning?

A storage tank is initially $\frac{2}{3}$ full of liquid. After $\frac{1}{4}$ of the liquid inside the tank is drained out, $15$ gallons of liquid are added to the tank. If the tank is then $\frac{5}{6}$ full, what is the total capacity of the tank, in gallons?