[Placement test] Digital SAT Reading and Writing

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1. Although research into adult stem cells is _________, adult stem cells may not be as versatile and durable as embryonic stem cells. Specifically, adult stem cells may not be able to be manipulated to produce all cell types, which limits how adult stem cells can be used to treat diseases.

 

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) outdated
B) futile
C) up-to-date
D) promising
2. For a very long time, people believed in spontaneous generation — a theory proposing that living organisms arise from nonliving matter. The theory was _________ when Louis Pasteur’s experiment showed that nothing could grow from a boiled broth unless it was exposed to small organisms in the air.

 

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) disproved
B) clarified
C) endorsed
D) corroborated
3. There is a long-standing belief that alcohol kills brain cells. However, research suggests otherwise. A study compared the brains of drinkers with those of non-drinkers, and the results showed that there was no difference in the numbers of brain cells between the two groups. Although alcohol consumption does not directly result in a loss of brain cells, it can impair the brain in other ways. For instance, heavy drinking can accelerate brain shrinkage, causing memory, decision-making, and other cognitive functions to decline faster.

 

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To discuss some research studies on alcohol use.
B) To debunk the myth about drinking alcohol.
C) To point out the detrimental effects of alcohol on the brain.
D) To compare the health of drinkers and that of non-drinkers.
4. Most governments attempt to leave uncontacted tribes undisturbed because these tribes may not be immune to infectious diseases from the outside world. In 1981 when the Nukak people were contacted, about half of the population died of a respiratory disease. Besides, narco-traffickers and land grabbers are encroaching on the lands of uncontacted tribes for mining, agriculture, and timber. Since the beginning of the 20th century, many tribes have been deprived of homes and resources, and their populations have reduced alarmingly.

 

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?

A) It elaborates on the previous sentence’s description of a deadly instance.
B) It emphasizes the severity of modern diseases and the importance of vaccination.
C) It provides a case study about the tribe people's vulnerability to viral diseases.
D) It introduces a particular tribe that is discussed further in the following sentences.
5.
 
Text 1                                                 

Dr. C. Shawn Green and Aaron R. Seitz, who studied the cognitive effects of video games, found that action video games — the ones featuring quickly moving targets and requiring the player to make accurate split-second decisions — have particularly positive cognitive benefits, even when compared to “brain games,” which are specifically designed to improve cognitive functions.

 

Text 2                                                 

A new study led by Dr. Gregory West demonstrates that action video games centered on shooting can do more harm to the brain than good. The players of these games are prone to employ a navigational strategy called “response learning,” meaning they use their brains’ autopilot to navigate. This behavior results in the loss of gray matter in the hippocampus, which in turn increases risks of developing neuropsychiatric illnesses.        

 

Based on the texts, how would Dr. West (Text 2) most likely respond to Dr. Green and Seitz’s findings (Text 1)?

A) He would argue that visual attention and motor control skills from playing such games are responsible for the gray matter loss.
B) He would criticize that their generalization of the results could mislead people into thinking that all action video games are beneficial for the brain.
C) He would caution that players may experience enhanced cognitive performance, but that effect will be detrimental in the long run.
D) He would suggest that “brain games” are better than action video games because they do not induce automatic response learning.
6. The following text is adapted from Edgar Allan Poe’s 1875 poem "Alone".

 

From childhood’s hour I have not been

As others were—I have not seen

As others saw—I could not bring

My passions from a common spring—

From the same source I have not taken

My sorrow—I could not awaken

My heart to joy at the same tone—

And all I lov’d—I lov’d alone—

 

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) The speaker is thinking back to the loneliness and isolation he experienced as a child.
B) The speaker is upset that he is unable to feel passion and sorrow the way others do
C) The speaker is describing his lifelong alienation from living and feeling differently than others.
D) The speaker is expressing the comfort he always finds in solitude.
7. One scientific method used to detect art forgeries is microscopy, using microscopes to magnify images. Through a microscope, investigators can see the details of paint layered on a painting. Microscopy is especially useful for scrutinizing craquelure, a pattern of the cracks in the paint or varnish of a painting which is difficult to reproduce because craquelure is based on many factors such as the paint, canvas, period, and drying time. In some historic schools of art, there is even a distinct form of craquelure. For example, Italian renaissance paintings would have small rectangle-patterned craquelure.

 

According to the text, why is microscopy useful in art authentication?

A) It can magnify the details that are invisible to human’s eyes.
B) It can reveal the paint layers and unique craquelure of each painting.
C) It can be used to differentiate the brush strokes and composition of the paint.
D) It can determine the period in which a painting was created.
8. Shamans were religious leaders, tradesmen, and healers in Inuit. Early explorers and trappers grouped all shamans together and called them “medicine men” in their accounts. However, the term “medicine men” does not give the shamans justice and even causes misconceptions about their practices because they were not medical professionals. In fact, shamans were mediators between humans and spirits, animals, and souls for the traditional Inuit.

 

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Shamans played a significant role in Inuit religion, especially in healing rituals.
B) The term “medicine men" dismisses the role shamans performed in Inuit culture.
C) Shamans’ practices helped connect the Inuit with the world of spirits and souls.
D) Shamans were misunderstood by Western explorers who viewed them as savages.
9. “Digging” is one of the most widely known poems by the Irish poet Seamus Heaney. It explores the themes of labor and family tradition through the act of digging potatoes: _________

 

Which quotation from “Digging” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A) Between my finger and my thumb / The squat pen rests; snug as a gun.
B) By God, the old man could handle a spade / Just like his old man.
C) My grandfather cut more turf in a day / Than any other man on Toner’s bog.
D) Over his shoulder, going down and down / For the good turf. Digging.
10. Drought has been one of the primary culprits of agricultural loss. With the advance of climate change, droughts are increasing in frequency and duration, posing a looming threat to worldwide food security. Currently, genetically modified crops stand as one of the most promising solutions to drought-induced food shortages. GM crops have been engineered to produce high yields in water-limited environments. This can be achieved by reducing the density of stomata – the pores found in the epidermis of leaves.

 

Which finding, if true, would most directly undermine the aforementioned claim?

A) The rice cultivar IR64, which has been modified to have low stomatal density, gives equivalent yields to those of normal rice.
B) Plants with large but few stomata are more conservative in their water use compared to those with small but many stomata.
C) Decreasing stomatal density appears to diminish photosynthetic activity, causing detrimental effects on yields.
D) Crops that grow in soil pretreated with ethanol have higher survival rate under water stress conditions than GM crops.

In 1999, Kenneth et al. investigated the relationship between residential areas and asthma severity among asthmatic children. The researchers analyzed 2,028 asthma hospitalizations between 1991 and 1995 for children (aged between 0 to 18 years old) living in Rochester, New York, and categorized ZIP codes into inner-city, other urban, and suburban. The finding suggested the closer the children live to the city center, the more likely they are to have a severe asthma attack.

 

Which choice best describes data from the table that weakens the researchers’ conclusion?

A) Inner-city males across all age groups had the highest rate of asthma hospitalization compared to other groups.
B) The rate of asthma hospitalization of inner-city females aged between 0 and 12 years was much lower than that of urban males in the same age range.
C) In all age groups, asthmatic children in the urban areas had higher rates of asthma hospitalization.
D) The rate of asthma hospitalization lowered as the asthmatic children got older.
12. The number of male births per 100 female births in India

Boys naturally outnumber girls at birth at a ratio of 105:100. Interestingly, the sex ratio at birth is imbalanced in some countries. When prenatal gender tests became widely available in India in the 1980s, the male-bias in the sex ratio at birth substantially increased. Although the law has forbidden doctors from revealing the sex of a fetus to parents for fear of sex-selective abortions since 1996, the sex ratio at birth remained unproportionate for two decades. To address the issue, in 2015, the government introduced the campaign Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao (Save the daughter, educate the daughter). The campaign is considered effective because the country’s sex ratio at birth has begun to redress as ____________ .

 

Which choice most effectively uses data from the graph to complete the sentence?

A) the ratio of male births per 100 female births in 2020 at 108.1 is comparable to that of 1990 at 109.2.
B) the ratio of male births per 100 female births went down significantly from 111.2 in 2010 to 108.1 in 2020.
C) the ratio of male births per 100 female births formed an upward trend from the 1980s onward despite a slight drop in 2020.
D) the ratio of male births per 100 female births was still much higher throughout the decades, and the bias continued to persist.
13. The domesticated silver fox is a form of melanistic, domesticated red fox. In 1959, the Soviet Union set up the fox selective breeding project, aiming at artificially breeding tamer, more dog-like foxies for the fur trade. By selecting and breeding the tamest foxes over successive generations, Soviet scientists eventually succeeded in breeding foxes of similar tameness to domestic dogs. These foxes _________

 

Which choice most logically completes the text?

A) have distinctive fur colors compared to the foxes bred outside the Soviet Union.
B) are sold as exotic pets to customers and fur industries around the world.
C) retain traits similar to today’s domestic dogs such as whining, barking, and submissiveness.
D) showed feral characteristics that make them dangerous to their owners.
14. Luna moths (Actias luna) use their long tails as a means to reduce risk of predation by bats. Since most bats rely on echolocation (echoes from their sonar cries) to locate prey in their environments, the sound of tails spinning behind flying moths will trick the bats into attacking moths’ tails, which are expendable. This countermeasure suggests that ______

 

Which choice most logically completes the text?

A) Luna moths inhibit the bats’ ability to produce echolocation.
B) Luna moths’ spinning tails make them fly faster to escape bats.
C) bats can distinguish between echoes of moths’ tails and those moths’ wings.
D) the removal of Luna moths’ tails would make them vulnerable targets.
15. In 2004, construction workers in Norwich, UK, unearthed human skeletal remains that led to a historical mystery—at least 17 bodies at the bottom of a medieval well. Using archeological records, historical documents, and ancient _________ British researchers have recently identified the individuals to be a group of Ashkenazi Jews.

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) DNA.
B) DNA,
C) DNA:
D) DNA
16. The new study indicates that the oceans that covered the entire planet in water were at least 300 meters deep. They may have been up to one kilometer _______ there is actually very little water on Earth, according to astronomer Martin Bizzarro.

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) deep by comparison,
B) deep, by comparison,
C) deep; by comparison,
D) deep. By comparison;
17. The classic Neanderthals, who lived between about 70,000 and 30,000 years ago, have many distinct ______ any biological populations. Neanderthals showed variations in the degree to which those physical characteristics were expressed.

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) characteristics, like
B) characteristics like,
C) characteristics. Like
D) characteristics like
18. _________ matter because nonhuman animals have many of the same feelings we do and share the same neural structures that are important in processing emotions. So, why do we unrelentingly slaughter sentience?

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) Animal life
B) Animals lives
C) Animals live
D) Animals’ lives
19. Oral tradition is a central component of Chicano culture in Mexico. In both urban and rural communities, a rich and varied repertoire of ballads, tales, and poetic forms ______ preserved in memory and passed from generation to generation.

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) is
B) are
C) have been
D) were
20. Until the early 20th century, women in America were denied suffrage (the right to vote) in political elections. It wasn’t until June 4, 1919, that Congress passed the 19th Amendment, ________ granted women their right to vote.

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) which
B) that
C) it
D) this
21. Professor Eric Graf explains that Cervantes’s Don Quixote is fundamentally about freedom. The character Don Quixote is a liberator who frees slaves convicted ________ petty crimes in a criminal justice system to rebel against the government.

 

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A) with
B) to
C) by
D) of
22. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
  • Scientists analyzed animal remains from high-status graves from 10th century (800–1050 CE) Denmark during the Viking Age.
  • Grave furnishings and accessories included skins from domestic animals, while clothing exhibited furs from wild animals, specifically beavers.
  • The fact that beavers are not native to Denmark suggests this fur was a luxurious item acquired through trade.
  • The evidence of beaver fur indicates a desire to display wealth and social status.

 

The student wants to present the implication from this finding. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A) The graves belong to the high-status Vikings in Denmark who acquired wealth from trading luxurious beaver fur during 800 to 1050 CE.
B) Since beavers were not native to Denmark, the Vikings in Denmark in the 10th century had to purchase them to furnish graves of high-status people.
C) Evidence of beaver fur found in graves of the high-status Danish during the Viking Age points to its trade and use as a luxurious possession.
D) In ancient Denmark, both domestic and exotic animals such as beavers were elements of luxury for high-status Vikings’ graves.
23. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
  • Sandro Botticelli was a Renaissance painter.
  • He was one of the first painters to depict non-religious subject matter.
  • His work incorporated knowledge of human anatomy and perspective but retained decorative quality.
  • In 1478, he finished the painting Primavera which depicts figures from classical mythology in a garden.
  • In 1474, he painted a single-figure portrait known as Young Man Holding a Medal of Cosimo de’ Medici.

 

The student wants to emphasize the difference between the two paintings. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A) The paintings Primavera and Young Man Holding were both completed by Botticelli.
B) Botticelli is a Renaissance painter who depicts non-religious subject matter.
C) While both are painted by Botticelli, the 1478 Primavera is a painting depicting figures from classical mythology, and the 1474 Young Man Holding a Medal of Cosimo de’ Medici is a single-figure portrait.
D) Although Botticelli completed the paintings in different years, he incorporated knowledge of human anatomy in Primavera and Young Man Holding a Medal of Cosimo de’ Medici.
24. While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
  • Nadine Gordimer was awarded the 1991 Nobel Prize in Literature.
  • Gordimer was a South African writer and political activist.
  • Many readers have singled out Gordimer’s 1979 book Burger’s Daughter for praise.
  • Burger’s Daughter is a historical novel about a young woman during the apartheid era in South Africa.

 

The student wants to introduce Burger’s Daughter to an audience unfamiliar with the novel and its author. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A) Nadine Gordimer, who wrote Burger’s Daughter and later was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, was born in South Africa and was a political activist.
B) Many readers have singled out Nadine Gordimer’s 1979 book Burger’s Daughter, a historical novel about the apartheid era in South Africa, for praise.
C) A much-praised historical novel about colonial East Africa, Burger’s Daughter (1994) was written by Nadine Gordimer, winner of the 1991 Nobel Prize in Literature.
D) Burger’s Daughter is a historical novel about events that occurred in South Africa, Nadine Gordimer’s homeland.
25. Professor Kyong-Tai Kim has verified that the gossypetin, a type of flavonoid found in hibiscus, activates immune cells called microglia. Microglia would scavenge amyloid-beta in the brain to ameliorate cognitive impairments brought on by Alzheimer’s disease. _________ gossypetin from hibiscus may contribute to the drug development for Alzheimer’s patients.

 

Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?

A) Thus,
B) Likewise,
C) Alternatively,
D) Furthermore,
26. In 1847, the United States Post Office Department adopted the idea of a postage stamp. Although the concept was meant to simplify the payment for postal service, it caused grumbling among the public. ________ most people did not like to prepay their fees. They also disliked how the stamp covered only delivery to the post office, not a private address.

 

Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?

A) Firstly,
B) Additionally,
C) Similarly,
D) Afterward,
27. Dutch graphic artist M.C. Escher created some of the most famous and popular images like A Farewell to Stairwells and Day and Night. His designs are mathematical, and his originality and mastery of graphic techniques are respected. _____ his name means little to a British audience, and he remains a complete enigma to those in the art world.

 

Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?           
A) In other words,
B) Therefore,
C) By the same token,
D) Nevertheless,
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