4.4.2Test (CST): The Influence of Science and Technolog

Read this passage from "The City Without Us" by Alan Weisman: Never cut, but mightily changed. Until only recently, it was known as the Hemlock Forest for its shady stands of that graceful conifer, but almost every hemlock here is now dead, slain by a Japanese insect smaller than the period at the end of this sentence, which arrived in New York in the mid-1980s. Which statement best explains how irony is used in the passage?

An insect nearly microscopic in size is responsible for felling a forest of conifers.

Read this excerpt from "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.: "You been crying?" he said to Hazel."Yup," she said."What about?" he said."I forget," she said. "Something real sad on television.""What was it?" he said."It's all kind of mixed up in my mind," said Hazel. Which statement best describes the intended aesthetic impact of this excerpt?

By Hazel's forgetting why she had been crying, the author leaves the reader feeling unsatisfied.

Read this excerpt from "The Pedestrian" by Ray Bradbury: They passed one house on one street a moment later, one house in an entire city of houses that were dark, but this one particular house had all of its electric lights brightly lit, every window a loud yellow illumination, square and warm in the cool darkness. Which statement best describes the intended aesthetic impact of this excerpt?

By describing Leonard's house as being brightly lit, the author reaffirms his individuality, leaving the reader satisfied.

Read this excerpt from "The City Without Us" by Alan Weisman: The weeds are followed by the city's most prolific exotic species, the Chinese ailanthus tree. Even with 8 million people around, ailanthus—otherwise innocently known as the tree-of-heaven—are implacable invaders capable of rooting in tiny chinks in subway tunnels, unnoticed until their spreading leaf canopies start poking from sidewalk grates. Which sentence best states the main idea of this section of the chapter?

C. Ailanthus trees are nearly impossible to eradicate once they gain a foothold.

How does Rachel Carson's writing style differ from other scientific writing?

C.It is more passionate than other scientific writing.

Which revision best replaces a weak verb with a stronger one in the following sentence? Mayor Milford stated he would never run for office again after his opponent crushed him in the election.

Change "stated" to "vowed."

Read this excerpt from a speech meant for the general public: Welcome to this evening's performance of the The Tale Missy May. I would like to applaud these students for the hard work they put in to make the play one of the best in the annals of this institution. Which revision will make the speech more appropriate for an audience of elementary students?

Change "the annals of this institution" to "our school's history."

Read this excerpt from "Exhalation" by Ted Chiang in which the narrator considers whether immortality is possible in other universes: I wish you well, explorer, but I wonder: Does the same fate that befell me await you? Which statement best introduces this information in an essay?

D.After discovering that he is mortal, the narrator wonders whether immortality truly exists, asking, "Does the same fate that befell me await you?"

Which of the following statements from Nicholas Carr's article "Is Google Making Us Stupid?" best reflects Carr's tone toward the way his brain has changed?

D.I feel as if I'm always dragging my wayward brain back to the text.

In this conversation, which discussion technique does Daniel most clearly show? JENNIFER:You're unsure about the author's validity?DANIEL:Yeah. I've heard of Socrates and all, but I've also heard of Zeus, and he was fiction. JENNIFER:You think he might be another Zeus?DANIEL:Kind of. You know, without the superpowers.

Drawing comparisons

Read the following passage from Nicholas Carr's article "Is Google Making Us Stupid?": Never has a communications system played so many roles in our lives—or exerted such broad influence over our thoughts—as the Internet does today. Yet, for all that's been written about the Net, there's been little consideration of how, exactly, it's reprogramming us. The Net's intellectual ethic remains obscure. What is Carr's main point in this paragraph?

Even though the Internet has a vast influence on people, most do not question whether this influence is "right" or "wrong."

Read this passage from "The City Without Us" by Alan Weisman: In some places, the track emerges from the second stories of warehouses it once serviced into elevated lanes of wild crocuses, irises, evening primrose, asters, and Queen Anne's lace. So many New Yorkers, glancing down from windows in Chelsea's art district, were moved by the sight of this untended, flowering green ribbon, prophetically and swiftly laying claim to a dead slice of their city, that it was dubbed the High Line and officially designated a park. Which statement best describes how the author develops the tone in this passage?

He uses imagery-based descriptions of flowers that sprung up untended, and the New Yorkers' reaction to them, creating a reflective tone.

Read this passage from "The City Without Us" by Alan Weisman: The weeds are followed by the city's most prolific exotic species, the Chinese ailanthus tree. Even with 8 million people around, ailanthus—otherwise innocently known as the tree-of-heaven—are implacable invaders capable of rooting in tiny chinks in subway tunnels, unnoticed until their spreading leaf canopies start poking from sidewalk grates. With no one to yank their seedlings, within five years powerful ailanthus roots are heaving up sidewalks and wreaking havoc in sewers—which are already stressed by all the plastic bags and old newspaper mush that no one is clearing away. What does Weisman's word choice most clearly suggest about his feelings on the Chinese ailanthus tree?

He uses the phrase "implacable invaders" to reveal his disdain for the Chinese ailanthus trees because of their destructiveness.

Which answer option is the best way to correct this run-on sentence? Miranda couldn't believe her eyes there was a chameleon in the laundry basket

Miranda couldn't believe her eyes; there was a chameleon in the laundry basket.

Jared Diamond's article "The Ends of the World as We Know Them" uses _____ to support his argument.

empirical evidence

Read this passage from "The City Without Us" by Alan Weisman: Ruins of high-rises echo the love song of frogs breeding in Manhattan's reconstituted streams, now stocked with alewives and mussels dropped by seagulls. Herring and shad have returned to the Hudson, though they spent some generations adjusting to radioactivity trickling out of Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant, 35 miles north of Times Square, after its reinforced concrete succumbed. Missing, however, are nearly all fauna adapted to us. The seemingly invincible cockroach, a tropical import, long ago froze in unheated apartment buildings. Which two ideas does the passage most clearly develop?

Nature can destroy creations that were thought indestructible; humans aren't as powerful as the forces of nature.

Which is the best rebuttal to the following counterclaim? Playing video games can be beneficial to youth because it enhances their hand and eye coordination, sharpens their reflexes, and keeps them out of trouble if they were playing outdoors.

Playing video games can be harmful because it deprives kids of healthful exercise they would normally get by playing outdoors.

Which of the following is a sentence fragment?

Running through the hills.

Read this paragraph: Scholastic News reports that some schools that have reintroduced art and physical education programs to the curricula have experienced an improvement in student performance in their core subject areas. More research is needed to determine whether these findings can be generalized to all schools, however. If a reader wants to check the original source of information used in the paragraph, which words should the writer most likely hyperlink?

Scholastic News

Read this passage from "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut: The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren't only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General. Which statement best explains how irony is used in the passage?

The Constitution, which guarantees personal freedom, is amended to deny it.

Read this passage from "The Pedestrian" by Ray Bradbury: Mr. Leonard Mead would pause, cock his head, listen, look, and march on, his feet making no noise on the lumpy walk. For long ago he had wisely changed to sneakers when strolling at night, because the dogs in intermittent squads would parallel his journey with barkings if he wore hard heels, and lights might click on and faces appear and an entire street be startled by the passing of a lone figure, himself, in the early November evening. Which sentence best describes the overall impact of the setting?

The absence of people suggests that taking a walk at night is unusual.

Read this passage from "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut: The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren't only equal before God and the law. They were equal every which way. Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else. All this equality was due to the 211th, 212th, and 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and to the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General. Which statement best describes the overall impact of the setting?

The emphasis on government-enforced equality suggests that something is very wrong with society.

Which comparison best explains the importance of impeachment?

The government is a body that must be kept healthy. If a majority of the Senate votes to impeach, the president is removed from office to prevent further harm to the body.

Which of the following is the best example of empirical evidence?

The outcome of a series of scientific experiments

Read this passage from "The City Without Us" by Alan Weisman: Within two centuries, estimates Brooklyn Botanical Garden vice president Steven Clemants, colonizing trees will have substantially replaced pioneer weeds. Gutters buried under tons of leaf litter provide new, fertile ground for native oaks and maples from city parks. Arriving black locust and autumn olive shrubs fix nitrogen, allowing sunflowers, bluestem, and white snakeroot to move in along with apple trees, their seeds expelled by proliferating birds. Which statement best explains how the structure of the passage supports the author's purpose?

The passage traces the chronology of the biological succession of plants to highlight how an urban area will return to its natural state.