Reading Skills Test 1

Questions 1 and 2 refer to the following passage:

Each year, millions of people visit the national parks of the American West, and they come
for a variety of reasons. Some seek to explore the historical past. Others are looking for a
short escape from the hot city or the crowded office or factory. Still others are trying to
learn something about the mysteries of nature. Whatever their reason for visiting the parks,
few leave disappointed.

Question 1: Answer & Explanation Question:

1. People who visit the parks for the first reason mentioned by the author would most
probably want to see:

(A) an animal preserve

(B) the ruins of a Pueblo Indian village
(C) a canyon with a variety of geological formations
(D) a geyser with a predictable pattern of eruptions

2. The passage tell us what about national parks?

(A) Those in the West are preferable to those in the East.

(B) They serve relatively few people.
(C) They should be closed to people who treat them badly.
(D) They satisfy the needs of many people.

Questions 3 and 4 refer to the following passage:

Television today sits in the center of American homes and not too far from the center of
American lives, a companionable though unsettling kind of house pet. Here and there,
somebody will claim independence from it by announcing scornfully, "I never watch
television!" or even, "I don't own a television set!" But such defiance matters little. You do
not really need to have this pet in the house to be affected by it.

Question 3: Answer & Explanation Question:

3. Which of the following best summarizes the main point of the passage?

(A) Americans cannot escape the influence of television.

(B) Americans love television as much as they love their pets.
(C) The role of television is in a stage of transition.
(D) Few people realize the advantages of television.
Question 4: Answer & Explanation Question:

4. The passage suggests that people who claim to be unaffected by television are

(A) apologetic
(B) mistaken
(C) educated
(D) devious

Questions 5 through 8 refer to the following passage:

It cannot be said that San Francisco was ever a planned city. It simply grew. What saved it
from complete chaos was its fortunate geographic location on a hilly peninsula. The
surrounding waters, like the walls of old cities in Europe, confined its growth and forced its
builders to face limitations in space. Although builders tried to ignore the hills and laid their
gridirons of square blocks and rectangular lots over hill and valley alike, some hills were
too steep to be so overrun. Thus, despite the indifference of its citizenry, San Francisco
became a beautiful city, and because of the varied nature of its population, it became a
cosmopolitan city. It has always been spared the uniformity and dullness of the small town.

Question 5: Answer & Explanation

Question:

5. In the context of the passage, "gridiron" means

(A) a regular geometric pattern

(B) a metal tool used by builders
(C) streetcar tracks
(D) geographical features

Question 6: Answer & Explanation

6. According to the passage, what do the waters surrounding San Francisco and the
walls of old European cities have in common?

(A) They protect the city from invaders.

(B) They are natural phenomena.
(C) They are beautiful elements.
(D) They shape and limit urban growth.

Question 7: Answer & Explanation

Question:

7. What does the passage suggest about the planning and development of San
Francisco?
 (A) The present citizens of San Francisco are very concerned about city planning.
(B) So little planning went into the development of San Francisco that the overall effect
of the city is one of chaos.
(C) The development of San Francisco on a hilly peninsula has contributed greatly to
its beauty.
(D) The development of San Francisco on a hilly peninsula has been destructive to
nature.

Question 8: Answer & Explanation

Question:

8. The author assumes that small towns lack

(A) natural beauty

(B) space restrictions
(C) careful planning and development
(D) variety and interest

Questions 9 and 10 refer to the following passage:

A recent study showed that in twelve cases of computer-related embezzlement, the average
take was one million dollars. With such rewards, computer crime seems destined to
flourish, especially because the chances of detection are slim; embezzlers are discovered
more often by coincidence than by internal safeguards

Question 9: Answer & Explanation

Question:

9. Which of the following sentences best summarizes the passage?

(A) Annual reports concerning computer crime are accurate.

(B) Computer crime can be a very profitable business.
(C) Various techniques are used in computer crime.
(D) The adoption of safeguards against computer crime is widespread.

Question 10: Answer & Explanation

Question:

10. According to the passage, the number of computer crimes will increase because

(A) people convicted of computer crimes receive light sentences

(B) most computer crimes are committed by accident
 (C) the use of computers is growing
(D) the rewards outweigh the risks

Questions 11 through 13 refer to the following passage:

By happy coincidence, jazz emerged as a major musical form in this century just at the time
the phonograph was invented. Such composers of classical music as Mozart and Beethoven
made detailed notations that, centuries later, enable us to reproduce their original music.
Early African America jazz composers, on the other hand, often created their music as they
performed it. If it were not for the modern invention of the phonograph, the music of these
great pioneers of jazz would have been lost.

Question 11: Answer & Explanation

Question:

11. According to the passage, how did the invention of the phonograph affect jazz?

(A) It helped jazz become a major musical form.

(B) It made jazz musicians aware of other types of music.
(C) It stimulated the creativity of jazz musicians.
(D) It preserved unique performances of jazz.

Question 12: Answer & Explanation

Question:

12. The passage mentions Mozart and Beethoven as examples of composers who

(A) were as popular in their own times as jazz musicians are today
(B) were at a disadvantage because of the limitations of technology in their times
(C) transmitted their works in written form to later ages
(D) created music that was less imaginative than that of the pioneers of jazz music

Question 13: Answer & Explanation

Question:

13. The passage supports which of the following statements?

(A) Jazz was slow to gain acceptance as a major musical form.

(B) The early jazz pioneers inspired the development of new technology.
(C) Jazz developed as a spontaneous form of musical expression.
(D) Jazz has influenced society more than classical music has.

Right Answer: (C) Jazz developed as a spontaneous form of musical expression.

questions 14 through 16 refer to the following passage:

Those who specialize in the study of language claim that no two people speak a language in
precisely the same way. An individual's version of a language is called an idiolect. Groups
of speakers--separated from other groups by geographical, social, or economic barriers--
also develop language habits peculiar to their own group. Such group differences are called
dialects. Each person in a small town in Maine might speak his or her own idiolect, but the
people of the town as a group will speak a dialect quite different from that spoken in a
small town in Kentucky

Question 14: Answer & Explanation

Question:

14. The author develops the idea that

(A) the speech patterns of individuals are inferior to the speech patterns of groups
(B) dialects are more difficult to study than idiolects
(C) language systems reflect both individual and group patterns
(D) barriers between regions should be removed in order to improve communication

Question 15: Answer & Explanation

Question:

15. The author refers to "geographical, social, or economic barriers" mainly to show
that

(A) individual speakers can control language changes

(B) external factors affect the language patterns of groups
(C) language study is not scientific
(D) speakers in Maine differ from those in Kentucky

Question 16: Answer & Explanation

Question:

16. The main purpose of the passage is to

(A) define idiolect and dialect

(B) argue for the value of change in languages
(C) give examples of how language changes over time
(D) illustrate grammatical differences among individual speakers

Composing Skills Test 1

Directions:
Questions 46-56 require you to rewrite sentences in your head. Each question tells you
exactly how to begin your new sentence. Your new sentence should have the same meaning
and contain the same information as the original sentence.

Example:
The student senate debated for two hours and finally voted down the resolution.
Rewrite, beginning with

Having debated the issue for two hours, . . .

The next word or words will be

(A) the issue

(B) it
(C) the student senate
(D) a vote

Question 46: Answer & Explanation

Question:

46. Success in the corporation comes to those executives who do not merely manage
machines, but manage people.

Rewrite, beginning with

The executives who succeed in the corporation do not merely manage . . .

The next words will be

(A) machines and also

(B) machines; they manage
(C) machines instead of
(D) machines, which

Question 47: Answer & Explanation

Question:

47. Most spiders are harmless friends of people and destroy fleas, mosquitoes, and
other insects; black widows and tarantulas are the only exceptions.

Rewrite, beginning with

Except for black widows and tarantulas, . . .

The next word or words will be

(A) spiders
(B) the destruction
(C) fleas
(D) harmless friends
 Question 48: Answer & Explanation
Question:

48. One person may try to increase satisfaction with his or her job by seeking more
responsibility; another may compensate for dissatisfaction by devoting more time to
hobbies.

Rewrite, beginning with

Dissatisfaction with a job may lead one person . . .

The next words will be

(A) to seek more responsibility and another to

(B) who searches for more responsibility and another for
(C) on a search for more responsibility or compensation
(D) to seek more responsibility or to compensate

Question 49: Answer & Explanation

Question:

49. The cause was so worthy that there could be no criticism of it.

Rewrite, beginning with

There could be no criticism . . .

The next words will be

(A) since there was

(B) of the worthiness
(C) of such a worthy
(D) for the reason being

Question 50: Answer & Explanation

Question:

50. The environmental movement has been a force in society for over a decade and has
helped to bring about a number of important changes.

Rewrite, beginning with

A force in society for over a decade, . . .

The next words will be

(A) it has been

(B) the environmental movement
 (C) a number of important changes
(D) there have been

Question 51: Answer & Explanation

Question:

51. The impact of fiber optics on the people of the twenty-first century may be
comparable to the impact of the dynamo on the people of the nineteenth.

Rewrite, beginning with

Fiber optics may be to the people of the twenty-first century . . .

The next words will be

(A) what the dynamo was

(B) a dramatic impact
(C) like
(D) the dynamo of

Question 52: Answer & Explanation

Question:

52. Pasteur's discovery of a way to identify parasite-infested silkworm eggs saved the
French silk industry.

Rewrite, beginning with

By discovering a method of identifying parasite-infested silkworm eggs, . . .

The next words will be

(A) the French silk industry was saved

(B) the saving of the French
(C) Pasteur's discovery
(D) Pasteur saved

Question 53: Answer & Explanation

Question:

53. Bitter memories of the Great Depression were evoked when Britain's
unemployment figure reached more than one million recently.

Rewrite, beginning with

Britain's unemployment figure reached more than one million . . .

The next words will be

 (A) recently, evoking
(B) recently, evoked by
(C) recently, having evoked
(D) recently by evoking

Question 54: Answer & Explanation

Question:

54. The House of Mirth, by Edith Wharton, shows the heroine falling from great
success to misery and destitution.

Rewrite, beginning with

In Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth, . . .

The next words will be

(A) it shows the heroine falling

(B) the heroine's falling is
(C) the heroine falls
(D) the heroine's fall to misery is

Question 55: Answer & Explanation

Question:

55. A clenched fist shows anger, and drooping shoulders indicate despondency; the
first is an example of conscious body language, while the second is unconscious.

Rewrite, beginning with

Body language may be unconscious, . . .

The next words will be

(A) that shows

(B) the first example
(C) as when
(D) and, for example, a

Question 56: Answer & Explanation

Question:
56. Images from the alleys and tenements of the Lower East Side of New York City in
the late nineteenth century were brought to the attention of America by the
photographs of Jacob Riis.

Rewrite, beginning with

Through his photographs, . . .

The next words will be

(A) he brought
(B) the attention
(C) Jacob Riis
(D) the alleys

Directions:
In each of questions 57-67, select the best version of the underlined part of the sentence.
Choice (A) is the same as the underlined portion of the original sentence. If you think the
original sentence is best, choose answer (A).

Example:
Ancient Greeks ate with their fingers, wiped them on pieces of bread, and tossed them to
the dogs lying under the table.

(A) tossed them

(B) tossing them
(C) tossed the bread
(D) they tossed

Question 57: Answer & Explanation

Question:

57. Camera crews have been taking pictures of traffic during the rush hours, and it
caused worse traffic congestion than usual.

(A) and it caused worse traffic congestion than usual

(B) and worse traffic congestion than usual had been caused
(C) causing worse traffic congestion than usual
(D) with worse than usual traffic congestion being caused

Question 58: Answer & Explanation

Question:

58. Unlike that of human beings, who die of thirst when deprived of water for several
days, camels can survive for long periods without drinking.

(A) Unlike that of human beings, who die

(B) Unlike human beings, who die
 (C) Different from human beings dying
(D) Dissimilar to human beings dying

Right Answer: (B) Unlike human beings, who die

Question 59: Answer & Explanation

Question:

59. According to Greek mythology, Perseus killed a hideous creature named Medusa,
who had snakes in place of hair, and an onlooker would turn to stone by her glance.

(A) hair, and an onlooker would turn to stone by her glance

(B) hair, onlookers turned to stone when she glanced at them
(C) hair and whose glance would turn onlookers to stone
(D) hair, an onlooker being turned to stone by her glance

Question 60: Answer & Explanation

Question:

60. The avocado farmers were looking for machinery that would help them harvest
their crop more efficiently.

(A) that would help them harvest their crop

(B) for it to help them harvest the crop
(C) to enable their crop harvesting
(D) for their crop being harvested