ACT science practice test 11

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is caused by the spread of a

misfolded protein that eventually kills infected cattle. BSE is diagnosed
postmortem from the diseased cavities that appear in brain tissue and is
associated with the use in cattle feed of ground-up meat from scrapie-infected
sheep. A series of experiments was performed to determine the mode of
transmission of BSE. The results of both experiments are provided in Table 1.
Experiment 1
Sixty healthy cows were divided into two equal groups. Group A's feed
included meat from scrapie-free sheep; and Group B's feed included meat
from scrapie-infected sheep. Eighteen months later, the two groups were
slaughtered and their brains examined for BSE cavities.
Experiment 2
Researchers injected ground-up sheep brains directly into the brains of
two groups of 30 healthy cows. The cows in Group C received brains from
scrapie-free sheep. The cows in Group D received brains from scrapie-infected
sheep. Eighteen months later, both groups were slaughtered and their brains
examined for diseased cavities.
Table 1

1. Based on the information provided in Table 1, a cow is at greatest risk for

contracting BSE if the cow:
F. consumes meat from scrapie-free sheep.
G. consumes meat from scrapie-infected sheep.
H. is injected with ground-up sheep brains from scrapie-free sheep.
J. is injected with ground-up sheep brains from scrapie-infected sheep.

2. Which of the following hypotheses was investigated in Experiment 1?

A. The injection of scrapie-infected sheep brains into cows’ brains causes BSE.
B. The ingestion of wild grasses causes BSE.
C. The ingestion of scrapie-infected sheep meat causes scrapie.
D. The ingestion of scrapie-infected sheep meat causes BSE.

3. What is the purpose of Experiment 2?

F. To determine whether BSE can be transmitted by injection
G. To determine whether BSE can be transmitted by ingestion
H. To determine whether ingestion or injection is the primary mode of BSE
transmission
J. To determine the healthiest diet for cows

4. Which of the following assumptions is made by the researchers in

Experiments 1 and 2?
A. Cows do not suffer from scrapie.
B. A year and a half is a sufficient amount of time for BSE to develop in a cow.
C. Cows and sheep suffer from the same diseases.
D. Cows that eat scrapie-free sheep meat will not develop BSE.

5. A researcher wishes to determine whether BSE can be transmitted through

scrapie-infected goats. Which of the following experiments would best test
this?
F. Repeating Experiment 1, using a mixture of sheep and goat meat in Group
C’s feed
G. Repeating Experiments 1 and 2, replacing sheep with healthy goats
H. Repeating Experiments 1 and 2, replacing healthy sheep with healthy goats
and scrapie-infected sheep with scrapie-infected goats
J. Repeating Experiment 2, replacing healthy cows with healthy goats

6. What is the control group in Experiment 1?

A. Group A
B. Group B
C. Group C
D. Group D

7. Which of the following conclusions can be drawn based on the results of the
experiments?
Cows that are exposed to scrapie-infected sheep are more likely to develop
BSE than cows that are not.
BSE is only transmitted by eating scrapie-infected sheep meat.
A cow that eats scrapie-infected sheep meat is more likely to develop BSE
than a cow that is injected with scrapie-infected sheep brains.
F. II only
G. III only
H. I and III only
J. II and III only

Acid-base indicators are used to determine changes in pH. The pH is a

quantitative measure of the hydrogen ion concentration of a solution. For any
solution, the pH ranges from 0 to 14. An acid-base indicator is a weak acid or
base that is sensitive to the hydrogen ion concentration and changes color at a
known pH. At any other pH, the acid-base indicator is clear.

Indicators
1. Which indicators undergo a color change in the region from pH 8 to pH 12?
A. Bromocresol green, bromothymol blue, and thymol blue
B. Thymol blue, phenolphthalein, and alizarin
C. Phenolphthalein, alizarin, and sodium indigo sulfonate
D. Phenolphthalein and bromothymol blue

2. Which of the following indicators undergoes a red-to-yellow or yellow-to-red

color change?
Alizarin
Thymol blue
Methyl orange
F. I only
G. II only
H. I and III only
J. I, II, and III

3. A chemist is running an experiment in a solution that becomes basic upon

completion. According to the diagram, the reaction is complete when:
A. the addition of bromocresol green results in a blue color.
B. any indicator turns violet.
C. a white solid appears.
D. the addition of bromothymol blue results in a blue color.

4. Which of the following hypotheses is consistent with the information in the

passage and the diagram?
F. Color changes for any given acid-base indicator occur in a solution with a
pH less than 7.
G. Color changes for any given acid-base indicator occur in a solution with a
pH greater than 7.
H. Color changes for acid-base indicators always occur within the same pH
range.
J. Color changes for acid-base indicators vary within the pH range.

5. Compared to bromothymol blue, phenolphthalein undergoes a color change

at:
A. a higher pH.
B. a lower pH.
C. the same pH.
D. Cannot be determined from the data provided.

6. Based on Figure 1 and Table 1, which of the following indicators would be

most useful in determining the pH of black coffee?
F. Methyl Orange
G. Bromothymol Blue
H. Bromocresol Green
J. Alizarin

Answers and Explanations

1. Correct Answer: G
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Low
Getting to the Answer: According to Figure 1, Group B had the greatest
number of cows infected with BSE. Group B was fed meat from scrapieinfected
sheep, which matches (G).

2. Correct Answer: D
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Medium
Getting to the Answer: In Experiment 1, the researchers vary what is fed to the
cows by giving them meat from scrapie-free sheep and from scrapie-infected
sheep. The cows are later examined for signs of BSE. One common type of
incorrect answer choice for Experiment questions are choices, such as B for
this question, that include factors that are outside the parameters of the
experiment.

3. Correct Answer: F
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Medium
Getting to the Answer: In Experiment 2, the researchers vary what is injected
into cows' brains. Any answer choice that discusses ingestion as a focus of this
experiment is incorrect. This eliminates G, H, and J. Often, incorrect answer
choices for Experiment questions, such as G for this question, will include the
appropriate information from the wrong experiment.

4. Correct Answer: B
Explanation:
Category: Scientific Reasoning
Difficulty: Medium
Getting to the Answer: By examining the method used in a given experiment,
one can determine the assumptions the researchers made in carrying out the
experiment and the sources of error. Often, an error enters the experiment
because of the assumptions researchers make. In Experiments 1 and 2, the
researchers examined the brains of cows a year and a half after the cows were
fed scrapie-infected sheep meat or were injected with scrapie-infected sheep
brains. If a year and a half is not a sufficient amount of time for BSE to develop,
some of the cows that were counted as not infected might have developed
BSE if they had been given more time.

5. Correct Answer: H
Explanation:
Category: Scientific Reasoning
Difficulty: Low
Getting to the Answer: To answer this question, you need to determine how to
test whether BSE can be transmitted via scrapie-infected goats. To test this,
one would compare the effects of feeding cows scrapie-free goat meat with the
effects of feeding cows scrapie-infected goat meat and compare the effects of
injecting cows with scrapie-free goat brains with the effects of injecting them
with scrapie-infected goat brains.

6. Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
Category: Scientific Reasoning
Difficulty: Medium
Getting to the Answer: Remember that control groups are used as standards of
comparison. The control group used in Experiment 1 is the group that is fed
scrapie-free sheep meat. If the same proportion of Group A developed BSE as
that of Group B, then the researchers would not have any evidence to support
the hypothesis that the ingestion of scrapie-infected sheep meat causes BSE.

7. Correct Answer: G
Explanation:
Category: Scientific Reasoning
Difficulty: High
Getting to the Answer: Because the proportion of the group of cows that ate
scrapie-infected sheep meat and developed BSE was greater than the
proportion of the group that were injected with scrapie-infected sheep brains
and developed BSE, one can conclude that a cow that eats scrapie-infected
sheep meat is more likely to develop BSE than a cow that is injected with
scrapie-infected sheep brains. Mere exposure to scrapie-infected sheep, as
opposed to ingestion of it, is never studied in either experiment, so conclusion I
can be eliminated.
1. Correct Answer: B
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Medium
Getting to the Answer: Look at the y-axis of the graph between the region of
pH 8 and pH 12, and then scan across at that level. The indicators that
undergo color change in this pH range are thymol blue, phenolphthalein, and
alizarin. These indicators correspond to (B).

2. Correct Answer: H
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Low
Getting to the Answer: Looking carefully at the graph, you can see that methyl
orange changes from red to yellow between pH 3 and pH 5, and alizarin
changes from yellow to red between pH 9 and pH 11. Thymol blue undergoes
a yellow to blue color change, so it is not correct.

3. Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
Category: Patterns
Difficulty: Medium
Getting to the Answer: In order to determine when the reaction is complete and
the solution is basic, the chemist should select an indicator that turns color
when the pH has risen into the region of basicity (above 7). When bromocresol
green inches above the pH of 7, it turns blue, so (A) is correct.

4. Correct Answer: J
Explanation:
Category: Scientific Reasoning
Difficulty: High
Getting to the Answer: This question requires you to form a broad conclusion
about acid-base indicators. Choices F and G are incorrect because there are
plenty of indicators that change colors above or below pH 7. Choice H is
incorrect because different indicators change colors at different pH levels, and
this fact also explains why (J) is correct.
5. Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Low
Getting to the Answer: Compare the two indicators on the graph, and you'll find
that phenolphthalein undergoes a color change at a higher pH than
bromothymol blue.

6. Correct Answer: G
Explanation:
Category: Figure Interpretation
Difficulty: Low
Getting to the Answer: Locate black coffee in Table 1; it has a pH of 5. Then
look in Figure 1 to determine which indicator responds to a pH of 5. Only
Bromothymol Blue corresponds to this pH. Choice (G) is correct.
Useful Links:
ACT Online Practice Tests: http://www.crackact.com/act/all-tests.html
 ACT English Tests: http://www.crackact.com/act/english/
 ACT Math Tests: http://www.crackact.com/act/math/
 ACT Reading Tests: http://www.crackact.com/act/reading/
 ACT Science Tests: http://www.crackact.com/act/science/
ACT Test Skills: http://www.crackact.com/act/skills/
ACT Writing Samples: http://www.crackact.com/act/writing/essay-samples.html
ACT Writing Prompts: http://www.crackact.com/act/writing/essay-prompts.html

ACT Downloads:
ACT Downloads: http://www.crackact.com/act-downloads/
Real ACT Tests Download: http://www.crackact.com/act-downloads/real-act-tests.html

SAT Online Practice Tests: http://www.cracksat.net

Real SAT Tests Download: http://www.cracksat.net/sat-downloads/
1000+ College Admission Essay Samples:
http://www.cracksat.net/college-admission/essays/

AP Exams Prep: http://www.crackap.com

AP Online Practice Tests: http://www.crackap.com/ap/