Inference

Pizza is a scrumptious and mouthwatering dish that requires no introduction. It is one of the most popular foods around the globe today. It is a dish that can be enjoyed as a snack and can also be eaten as a family meal. While everyone knows how delicious a pizza is, not everyone is aware of the effort that goes into creating this mouthwatering piece of art. Pizza is said to have originated in Greece. However, the Greek pizza was more like a flatbread without any topping. The modern-day pizza, on the other hand, originated in Italy. The story goes that King Umberto I and Queen Margherita were on their way to Naples after the unification of Italy in 1861. They demanded a change from their usual meals and were presented with an assortment of pizzas. The type of pizza that Queen Margherita enjoyed the most had a topping of red tomatoes, green basil, and soft white cheese. This variety of pizza thus came to be known as pizza Margherita. However, the art of pizza making was little known beyond the borders of Naples. It was only after the 1940s that pizza making spread like wildfire, and different cultures across continents adopted it, adding their own flavors to make it more appealing to the local public. Pizza evolved from a simple flatbread with a melted cheese topping to a dish with several varieties and all kinds of toppings. Making a pizza may seem simple, but that is far from the truth. A good pizza isn't simply about kneading dough, adding toppings, and baking. To make a delicious pizza, one needs to be passionate about the process involved in creating it. One of the key factors in creating a delicious pizza is to use fresh ingredients. Pizza toppings should be farm fresh and tasty. No compromises should be made with the ingredients, especially the cheese. Cheese is what gives pizza its essential flavor, and only the best quality cheese should be used. The next important factor is the pizza dough, which needs to be at the right temperature and of the right quantity, and flattened correctly to make a smooth and even layer. The final and most important part of creating the perfect pizza is baking it at the right temperature. The result, if all goes well, is a perfectly cooked base topped with delicious melted cheese and a garnished with a choice of ingredients. Ultimately, whether pizza is a thin crust, deep dish, or the New York slice, its history and the art of creating it remain marvelous. Passage 2 Consumption of Pizza Should Be Reduced There is perhaps no other dish that delights people as much as pizza. Pizza has the reputation of being considered one of the most satisfying foods around the world. There is no proper count to the varieties of pizza available in the world today, but it surely surpasses any other fast food. But have you ever stopped to think about the health effects of consuming pizza on a daily basis? Pizza definitely cannot be categorized as a "healthy food," yet the consumption rate of pizzas is startling. For example, 4% of pizza consumed by children in the United States is during breakfast time. Having pizza for breakfast, which is ideally the healthiest meal of the day, can only have a negative impact on the health of children. The amount of calories that children consume through pizzas is staggering, and can lead to numerous health problems. Even though children's calorie intake through pizzas has reduced considerably between 2003 and 2010, it still leads to obesity, gastrointestinal difficulties, and other health problems among children aged between 2 and 19. According to government policy in the United States, all school meals must contain some vegetables. In 2011, the amount of tomato sauce used on pizza was enough for it to be considered a "vegetable" by the United States Government. This fact is not only absurd, but also makes something as unhealthy as pizza easily available to children in school cafeterias. There are several reasons to avoid eating pizzas. One major reason is the increase in blood cholesterol levels that makes people prone to heart disease. This is due to the calorie and sodium content in pizza. Saturated fats in pizza cause blockages in arteries that can lead to heart attacks. Adolescents absorb an extra 230 calories, 5 grams of saturated fat, and 484 milligrams of sodium on days when they eat a pizza. These figures indicate a much higher level of intake than what is required by our body on a daily basis. This in itself is an indication that pizzas should be avoided as much as possible. The point that nothing good comes out of eating pizzas cannot be stressed enough. Farm fresh ingredients, the best quality cheese, and the most delicious meats cannot hide the fact that pizzas ultimately do more harm than good to a person's health. A snack like pizza can never be completely removed from the diet. But through conscious effort, pizza consumption can surely be reduced considerably. How do the two passages approach the topic of pizza consumption similarly?

Both passages acknowledge that pizza is one of the most popular dishes in the world.

If most people in a town own their own homes, there are fewer houses to rent, which means jobless teenagers living with their parents find it harder to move out and get work. Workers who can't move because they own a home often are stuck in jobs they hate. On average, homeowners drive farther to work than renters do, which causes more pollution and traffic problems. Which of these inferences does the passage above support?

Home ownership has negative consequences for employment.

Offshore drilling is a method to increase oil production. Drilling rigs are installed, operated, and serviced on an offshore platform in water up to several hundred meters deep; the platform either floats or has legs planted on the ocean floor. Offshore drilling has made possible the development of a significant additional reserve of petroleum. Which of the following can the reader infer from the passage above?

Offshore drilling requires a significant operating effort.

The small Vermont town had no direct warning about the hurricane moving northward up the East Coast. All of the weather reports had focused on the impact that the storm would have on states to the south, like New York, New Jersey, and Virginia. However, the storm took an unexpected turn and moved inland instead of out to sea. Joseph had lived through plenty of winter blizzards, but he had never seen or experienced a storm as severe as this one. The rain poured down so heavily that he could barely see across the yard to the big red barn beyond the house. The intense wind surprised him most. There were reports that it had reached speeds of more than 70 miles per hour. Joseph lay awake for much of the night listening to the howling wind outside. When Joseph stepped onto the porch the next morning, he was shocked to see how much debris had been left behind—piles of branches, smashed garbage cans, and broken boards from the tree house he had built with his grandfather many years ago. What can the reader infer from the passage above?

The people of Vermont did not expect damage from the hurricane.

For the longest time, people have been terrified of infection. Before the mid-twentieth century, doctors would have to cut off the part of the body that became infected. Many patients lost their limbs this way, and even more died from the surgery. People tried to use herbal treatments to cure infection, but this was ineffective. Then, Louis Pasteur discovered that germs would not grow on a certain bread mould. Pasteur's discovery led to the study of antibiotics. For many years, scientists tried to find out why germs would not grow on moulds. This process was perfected when Sir Alexander Fleming made a breakthrough in 1928. His discovery was completely by accident. Fleming was known for being untidy. He had left a dish of bacteria out on a table overnight, and it became contaminated with a fungus. Fleming found that this fungus produced a substance he called penicillin. He then just needed to find a way to get the drug to the public. Fleming worked hard for years to make his drug available to large numbers of people. The earliest form of the drug was a powder. The idea was to sprinkle the powder on the wound to treat infection. This did not work often because the drug did not get deep enough into a wound, and the patient would become infected. About fifteen years later, two American companies discovered methods to make the drug on a large scale. They began selling penicillin to the public. Soon, everyone was recovering from bacterial infections, especially the type in wounds. This was good news, too. Nations around the globe had just become involved in World War II. From this article, it is reasonable to infer that

many soldiers survived infected wounds because of penicillin.

Tiffany has always been really good at drawing. Her mother used to hang her pictures up on the refrigerator, but Tiffany's pictures soon covered it. Then her mom started keeping her drawings in scrapbooks. "You could make a career as a visual artist," her mom said. "Why don't you sign up for an art class?" Although she was reluctant to let anyone outside her family see her work, Tiffany added art to her high school schedule. Within a few months, the students began painting. She decided to do a watercolor portrait inspired by her family's trip to Africa last summer. I loved all the grass on the savannah, Tiffany thought. If I mix these two colors, I'll have the perfect green. She worked on her painting for hours, but it was worth it. Everyone in class loved her watercolor painting, especially her art teacher, Mrs. Sloan. "You have so much potential, Tiffany," Mrs. Sloan said. "You would be a great candidate for the Young Artist Development Program this summer." She gave Tiffany an application and told her to take it home for her parents to fill it out. After school, Tiffany was both excited and nervous. "I was really afraid to try painting at first, but now I love it," Tiffany said. "I can't wait to get home to show Mom my latest masterpiece! She'll probably put this one in a frame." Which of these books would Tiffany enjoy reading based on the passage?

a book about great twentieth-century artists

The town of Madisonville, Texas was hit by a strong storm in late July. Most of the city lost power for several hours, and damage was severe in parts of the city. The Lakeside Cafe, famous for its misspelled sign saying, "Chicken-Fried Stake," lost its roof in the storm. Amazingly, no employees or customers were injured. John Paxton, who was eating in the restaurant at the time, said, "They told us there was no way to know if it was a tornado or not. Well, I've never seen this kind of damage from anything but a tornado." Fallen limbs and downed power lines were also common problems across the city, blocking passage down dozens of streets. Crews worked for days without pause to restore power and to cut and haul away large limbs. With many businesses closed until power could be restored, hundreds of local residents found themselves stuck at home without electricity and therefore without air conditioning. Local woman Sally H. was sitting on her front porch, fanning herself with a shoe catalog. "It's hot," she said. "Normally, I would enjoy a day off of work, but this isn't a normal day off." The hospital was able to stay open and powered by electricity generators. Furman Simms, working the front desk, said it seemed almost like a normal day. "We saw more people today than usual," he explained, "but it wasn't bad. We never ran out of beds. I expected it to be a lot busier." Which sentence from the story supports the idea that there were not many injuries from the storm?

'We never ran out of beds.' "

The canoe was approaching the land. The bay opened out, and a gap in the surf marked where the river ran out to the sea, and there was a thick green forest down the distant slope. Far beyond rose the mountains, like suddenly frozen waves. The sea was still save for an almost imperceptible swell, and the sky blazed. Henry told Evans that they should leave, noting that the treasure wasn't rightfully theirs, but Evans disagreed and said to keep going. Henry stopped and said, "It should be somewhere here." Evans had been closely scrutinizing the land, a sheet of yellow paper on his knee, suddenly noticing something. He called Henry over. The paper had the appearance of a rough map. By much folding it was creased and worn to the pitch of separation, and Evans folded the discolored fragments together where they had parted. On it one could dimly make out, in almost obliterated pencil, the outline of the bay. Evans ran his fingers over the map said, "Here is the reef, and here is the gap, and this curved and twisting line is the river—and this star is the place!" They were about to paddle towards the treasure spot when Evans jumped in excitement, causing him to drop the map into the water. It disintegrated quickly, and the men realized they wouldn't be able to remember how to navigate the complicated terrain. Henry patted his friend, saying, "Remember it wasn't ours to begin with." Evans nodded in agreement, and they went in search of food. Based on the passage, what can the reader infer about Evans?

He becomes consumed by what he wants.

After a morning filled with interruptions like the construction crew jack hammering outside their window, the writers were consumed by story deadlines. Everyone was typing like mad at his or her computer, trying to finish everything before the end of the day. Suddenly, a loud burst of laughter broke their concentration. One of the sales managers was hosting a meeting with his team nearby, and their noisiness was driving the writers nuts. Along with shattering the silence, the sales team had also derailed many trains of thought. John was so upset he just put his head down on his desk next to his keyboard. "I'll never finish with this story in time. My deadline is 5 p.m.," he said. When the noise from the conference room quieted down, a huge sigh of relief echoed across the floor. "Finally!" John said. Lisa shook her head in agreement, "I couldn't even hear my own thoughts." The returned silence helped people wind down and clear their minds. The click-clack of computer keys once again filled the room as the writers resumed their work. At this rate, I may be able to make it home in time to catch my favorite shows, Lisa thought to herself. Just as creativity began flowing freely, the sales people got loud again. Finally, one writer had enough of all the noise! She jumped up from her computer and headed toward the meeting room to have a little talk with the sales manager. Why is John concerned about meeting his deadline?

He was distracted by noise all morning long.

Katherine Johnson is an African-American mathematician who worked for NASA from 1953 until 1986 as a human computer. In a time when minorities held very few jobs in mathematics and science, Johnson was a trailblazer. Her work in calculating the paths for spaceships to travel was monumental in helping NASA put an American in orbit around Earth and then land astronauts on the moon. As Johnson worked on math problems with the other female computers, she would ask questions. She didn't want to just do the work—she wanted to know the "hows" and the "whys," and then the "why nots." By asking questions, Johnson began to stand out. Women were not allowed to attend meetings with the male engineers and scientists. Johnson wanted to go to these meetings to learn more about the projects, so she went. She became known for her training in geometry and began working with teams of men. Eventually recognized as a leader, the men relied on her to have the answers they needed. Johnson became part of the NASA space team in 1958. She began calculating the trajectory for the rocket to put the first American man, Alan Shepard, in space in 1961. The engineers knew when and where they wanted Shepard's space capsule to land but needed to calculate when and from where the rocket would have to launch. Johnson figured it out! Then in February 1962, her calculations helped put the first American into orbit around Earth. He was John Glenn. In September 1962, President John F. Kennedy charged the country to send a man to the moon. The math calculations for going to the moon were similar to those for putting a man into orbit, but this time, a lot more calculations were involved. This mission would include a crew of three astronauts launching from Earth to the moon; two astronauts landing on the moon; and then all three returning to Earth. Johnson worked with the NASA team to figure out from where and when the rocket needed to be launched to put it on the right path to land on the moon. Once again, Johnson's calculations were instrumental in NASA's success. With the information she provided, astronauts walked on the moon for the first time on July 20, 1969. They returned to Earth on July 24, 1969. All of this happened, in part, because of Johnson and her love of mathematics. From this article, it is reasonable to infer that

Johnson's contributions in the meetings were initially received with reluctance by the males.

(1) Originally from Japan, kudzu is a vining plant first planted in the United States in the nineteenth century by southern farmers looking for a fast-growing plant that cattle and other livestock could graze. Kudzu hay has a high nutritional content compared to other types of forage. Unfortunately, the nutritional quality decreases as vine content increases relative to the leaf content. Unlike alfalfa hay, which grows like a grass, kudzu is hard to bale due to its vining growth and tendency to absorb rain. (2) The climate of the Southeastern U.S. is perfect for growing kudzu. The vines grow as much as a foot a day during summer months, climbing trees, power poles, and anything else they contact. Under ideal conditions kudzu vines can grow 60 feet each year. Southerners joke that if you don't close your windows at night, it'll climb inside the house. In Japan, kudzu is kept in check by insects, but it has no natural enemies in the U.S. (3) While they help prevent erosion, the vines can also destroy valuable forests by climbing trees and preventing them from getting sunlight. This problem has led researchers to find methods for killing kudzu. After years of research, they found that one herbicide actually makes kudzu grow better while many have little effect. Even with the most effective herbicides, it takes many years to kill the plants. (4) Today, kudzu covers more than seven million acres of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina. What can the reader infer from paragraph 3?

Kudzu is a hardy plant that is difficult to kill.

I can't believe Emily's going to be here!" Maria squealed with glee as she jumped up and down in her room. Her favorite singer was performing at a local theater this weekend. The show will cost $15, and I really want to go with all my friends, she thought. But I don't get paid until the Monday after the concert. Suddenly, Emily coming to town didn't seem so exciting after all. Maria had been working as a cashier at the local supermarket on weekends and sometimes after school. The past few months she had been saving her paychecks to buy her father a good birthday present. Dad always complains that he never gets gifts as good as Mom's on his birthday, Maria thought. She had asked him what he wanted and had saved up enough money to buy the cordless drill set. Maria couldn't wait to see his face when he opened the gift on his birthday, which was also Monday. Maria decided to ask her mom for advice. "I could borrow money to pay for the concert from my savings, but then I won't be able to buy Dad's gift this weekend," she said. "I could get him something else, but what if he doesn't like it?" "Well, honey, what do you think you should do?" her mom responded after Maria told her the problem. "I'm not sure, Mom. Who knows when Emily will come back to town again?" she replied. "This could be my only opportunity to see her in person." Maria's mom said, "Looks like you have a tough decision to make, but think about what your father would do if the tables were turned." She patted Maria on the shoulder before she walked out the room. A couple of months before her birthday every year, Maria's father would always start asking questions to get an idea about what to get her. He always gets me exactly what I ask for on my birthday, she thought. Dad deserves the same special treatment. Maria grabbed her purse and headed to the shopping center. Which of these can be inferred from the last sentence in the passage?

Maria is on her way to buy her dad's birthday present.

For the longest time, people have been terrified of infection. Before the mid-twentieth century, doctors would have to cut off the part of the body that became infected. Many patients lost their limbs this way, and even more died from the surgery. People tried to use herbal treatments to cure infection, but this was ineffective. Then, Louis Pasteur discovered that germs would not grow on a certain bread mould. Pasteur's discovery led to the study of antibiotics. For many years, scientists tried to find out why germs would not grow on moulds. This process was perfected when Sir Alexander Fleming made a breakthrough in 1928. His discovery was completely by accident. Fleming was known for being untidy. He had left a dish of bacteria out on a table overnight, and it became contaminated with a fungus. Fleming found that this fungus produced a substance he called penicillin. He then just needed to find a way to get the drug to the public. Fleming worked hard for years to make his drug available to large numbers of people. The earliest form of the drug was a powder. The idea was to sprinkle the powder on the wound to treat infection. This did not work often because the drug did not get deep enough into a wound, and the patient would become infected. About fifteen years later, two American companies discovered methods to make the drug on a large scale. They began selling penicillin to the public. Soon, everyone was recovering from bacterial infections, especially the type in wounds. This was good news, too. Nations around the globe had just become involved in World War II. Which of the following can the reader infer from this article?

Research takes time and much effort from many people.

(1) Originally from Japan, kudzu is a vining plant first planted in the United States in the nineteenth century by southern farmers looking for a fast-growing plant that cattle and other livestock could graze. Kudzu hay has a high nutritional content compared to other types of forage. Unfortunately, the nutritional quality decreases as vine content increases relative to the leaf content. Unlike alfalfa hay, which grows like a grass, kudzu is hard to bale due to its vining growth and tendency to absorb rain. (2) The climate of the Southeastern U.S. is perfect for growing kudzu. The vines grow as much as a foot a day during summer months, climbing trees, power poles, and anything else they contact. Under ideal conditions kudzu vines can grow 60 feet each year. Southerners joke that if you don't close your windows at night, it'll climb inside the house. In Japan, kudzu is kept in check by insects, but it has no natural enemies in the U.S. (3) While they help prevent erosion, the vines can also destroy valuable forests by climbing trees and preventing them from getting sunlight. This problem has led researchers to find methods for killing kudzu. After years of research, they found that one herbicide actually makes kudzu grow better while many have little effect. Even with the most effective herbicides, it takes many years to kill the plants. (4) Today, kudzu covers more than seven million acres of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina. Which of the following can the reader infer from the passage above?

The fact that kudzu grows so fast is a problem.

The Caribbean sun looked brilliant in the perfect light-blue sky. The wind blew softly as the waves lapped at the shore. The soft sand was just the right temperature as it slipped through my toes. As I lay on my blanket, I exhaled and turned another page. Today couldn't be any more perfect. In fact, everything with this trip had gone so well. I had never been out of the country before, much less on a plane. However, I got my passport without any hitches, and I didn't get motion sickness on the flight. The resort limo was at the airport waiting to whisk me away. Lying here on a tropical beach with a glass of ice-cold water in one hand and my favorite novel in the other is my idea of a getaway. Just then, a seagull swooped down and disturbed my serenity. The bird grabbed my book right out of my hands and took off. I chased it as far as I could before the seagull dropped my beloved paperback into the deep blue sea. All I could do was sigh. I knew this day was too good to be true! Which of the following statements is best supported in this selection?

The narrator is in the Caribbean for her first trip out of the country.

There was an old man who often sat alone on the bench looking at the children playing in the park. His green eyes looked sad and empty. I used to see him in the park every day, at the same time, sitting on the same bench under the huge oak tree. Sometimes, he carried a newspaper with him, which usually failed to hold his attention for long. He spent most of his time watching the children playing and having fun. I had never seen him talk to anyone, and I concluded that he was an introvert who didn't like talking to people. However, his sad eyes haunted me, and I decided to talk to him. One day, I hesitantly approached him and sat next to him on the bench. We exchanged a sentence or two. Not one to give up easily, I continued this practice every day, and gradually, the duration of our chats increased. After talking to him for a couple of weeks, I learned that the old man, Mr. Nicholas, lived in his house all alone. His son and daughter-in-law moved far away a few years ago. It was difficult for him to come to terms with not seeing them every day. Looking at the happy faces of the children playing in the park made him forget his sorrows for some time at least. I felt sad for him. I told my friends about Mr. Nicholas, and we decided to do something to lighten his spirit. Now, we make it a point to spend time with him. Sometimes, we go and play in his garden. The other day, Marie baked her first cake, and we all took it to Mr. Nicholas' house to share it with him. Amidst the sound of laughter, I noticed that now, Mr. Nicholas smiled more often. I couldn't help but smile with a sense of satisfaction. What can be inferred from this passage?

The narrator was a keen observer and liked to help people.

Water from California's northern mountains is pumped south along a 400-mile canal through the farming communities of the Central Valley. Not only is this canal system a marvel of modern engineering, its water fuels the state's economic engine. In 2006, these farms produced $31 billion-worth of food and fiber, more than any other state. By contrast, world-wide ticket sales of Hollywood movies, a more famous export of California, totaled $25 billion that year. What inference can the reader make from this paragraph?

The writer thinks moving water to the Central Valley is a good investment.

The town of Madisonville, Texas was hit by a strong storm in late July. Most of the city lost power for several hours, and damage was severe in parts of the city. The Lakeside Cafe, famous for its misspelled sign saying, "Chicken-Fried Stake," lost its roof in the storm. Amazingly, no employees or customers were injured. John Paxton, who was eating in the restaurant at the time, said, "They told us there was no way to know if it was a tornado or not. Well, I've never seen this kind of damage from anything but a tornado." Fallen limbs and downed power lines were also common problems across the city, blocking passage down dozens of streets. Crews worked for days without pause to restore power and to cut and haul away large limbs. With many businesses closed until power could be restored, hundreds of local residents found themselves stuck at home without electricity and therefore without air conditioning. Local woman Sally H. was sitting on her front porch, fanning herself with a shoe catalog. "It's hot," she said. "Normally, I would enjoy a day off of work, but this isn't a normal day off." The hospital was able to stay open and powered by electricity generators. Furman Simms, working the front desk, said it seemed almost like a normal day. "We saw more people today than usual," he explained, "but it wasn't bad. We never ran out of beds. I expected it to be a lot busier." Based on information from the article, the reader can guess that

many people visit Lakeside Cafe because of its misspelled sign.

The town of Madisonville, Texas was hit by a strong storm in late July. Most of the city lost power for several hours, and damage was severe in parts of the city. The Lakeside Cafe, famous for its misspelled sign saying, "Chicken-Fried Stake," lost its roof in the storm. Amazingly, no employees or customers were injured. John Paxton, who was eating in the restaurant at the time, said, "They told us there was no way to know if it was a tornado or not. Well, I've never seen this kind of damage from anything but a tornado." Fallen limbs and downed power lines were also common problems across the city, blocking passage down dozens of streets. Crews worked for days without pause to restore power and to cut and haul away large limbs. With many businesses closed until power could be restored, hundreds of local residents found themselves stuck at home without electricity and therefore without air conditioning. Local woman Sally H. was sitting on her front porch, fanning herself with a shoe catalog. "It's hot," she said. "Normally, I would enjoy a day off of work, but this isn't a normal day off." The hospital was able to stay open and powered by electricity generators. Furman Simms, working the front desk, said it seemed almost like a normal day. "We saw more people today than usual," he explained, "but it wasn't bad. We never ran out of beds. I expected it to be a lot busier." The reader can infer that hundreds of Madisonville residents were probably?

not happy to be at home.

The town of Madisonville, Texas was hit by a strong storm in late July. Most of the city lost power for several hours, and damage was severe in parts of the city. The Lakeside Cafe, famous for its misspelled sign saying, "Chicken-Fried Stake," lost its roof in the storm. Amazingly, no employees or customers were injured. John Paxton, who was eating in the restaurant at the time, said, "They told us there was no way to know if it was a tornado or not. Well, I've never seen this kind of damage from anything but a tornado." Fallen limbs and downed power lines were also common problems across the city, blocking passage down dozens of streets. Crews worked for days without pause to restore power and to cut and haul away large limbs. With many businesses closed until power could be restored, hundreds of local residents found themselves stuck at home without electricity and therefore without air conditioning. Local woman Sally H. was sitting on her front porch, fanning herself with a shoe catalog. "It's hot," she said. "Normally, I would enjoy a day off of work, but this isn't a normal day off." The hospital was able to stay open and powered by electricity generators. Furman Simms, working the front desk, said it seemed almost like a normal day. "We saw more people today than usual," he explained, "but it wasn't bad. We never ran out of beds. I expected it to be a lot busier." Based upon information from the article, the reader can infer that John Paxton most likely believes that

the damage was caused by a tornado.