Section Three: Reading Comprehension

Questions 1-10
In the early 1800’s, over 80 percent of the United States labor force was engaged
in agriculture. Sophisticated technology and machinery were virtually nonexistent.
People who lived in the cities and were not directly involved in trade often participated
Line in small cottage industries making handcrafted goods. Others cured meats, silversmiths, candle
5) or otherwise produced needed goods and commodities. Blacksmiths, silversmiths, candle
makers, and other artisans worked in their homes or barns, relying on help of family
Perhaps no single phenomenon brought more widespread and lasting change to the
United States society than the rise of industrialization. Industrial growth hinged on several
10） economic factors. First, industry requires an abundance of natural resources, especially
coal, iron ore, water, petroleum, and timber-all readily available on the North American
continent. Second, factories demand a large labor supply. Between the 1870’s and the
First World War (1914-1918), approximately 23 million immigrants streamed to the
United States, settled in cities, and went to work in factories and mines. They also helped
15）build the vast network of canals and railroads that crisscrossed the continent and linked
important trade centers essential to industrial growth.
Factories also offered a reprieve from the backbreaking work and financial
unpredictability associated with farming. Many adults, poor and disillusioned with
farm life, were lured to the cities by promises of steady employment, regular paychecks,
20) increased access to goods and services, and expanded social opportunities. Others were
pushed there when new technologies made their labor cheap or expendable; inventions
such as steel plows and mechanized harvesters allowed one farmhand to perform work
that previously had required several, thus making farming capital-intensive rather than
labor-intensive.
25） The United States economy underwent a massive transition and the nature of work
was permanently altered. Whereas cottage industries relied on a few highly skilled craft
workers who slowly and carefully converted raw materials into finished products from
start to finish, factories relied on specialization. While factory work was less creative and
more monotonous, it was also more efficient and allowed mass production of goods at
less expense.

1.What aspect of life in the United States does the (D) contributed to
passage mainly discuss?
(A) The transition from an agricultural to an 4. Which of the following is mentioned in the
industrial economy passage as a reason for the industrial growth that
(B) The inventions that transformed life in the occurred in the United States before 1914?
nineteenth century (A)The availability of natural resources found
(C) The problems associated with the earliest only in the United States
factories (B) The decrease in number of farms resulting
(D) The difficulty of farm life in the nineteenth from technological advances
century (C) The replacement of canals and railroads by
2. Blacksmiths, silversmiths, and candle makers other forms of transportation
are mentioned in lines 5-6 as examples of (D) The availability of a large immigrant work
artisans who force
(A) maintained their businesses at home
(B) were eventually able to use sophisticated 5. The word “lured” in line 19 is closest in
technology meaning to
(C) produced unusual goods and commodities (A) attracted
(D) would employ only family members (B) assigned
(C) restricted
3. The phrase “hinged on” in line 9 is closest in (D) attached
meaning to
(A) recovered from 6. The word “Others” in line 20 refers to other
(B) depended on (A) adults
(C) started on (B) promises
 (C) goods and services “capital-intensive rather than labor-intensive”
(D) social opportunities (lines 23-24)?
7.The word “expendable” in line 21 is closest in (A) Workers had to be trained to operate the new
meaning to machines.
(A) nonproductive (B) Mechanized farming required more capital
(B) unacceptable and fewer laborers.
(C) nonessential (C) The new inventions were not helpful for all
(D) unprofitable farming activities.
(D) Human labor could still accomplish as much
8. It can be inferred from the passage that work as the first machines.
industrialization affected farming in that
industrialization 10. According to the passage, factory workers
(A) increased the price of farm products differed from craft workers in that factory
(B) limited the need for new farm machinery workers
(C) created new and interesting jobs on farms (A) were required to be more creative
(D) reduced the number of people willing to do (B) worked extensively with raw materials
farm work (C) changed jobs frequently
(D) specialized in one aspect of the finished
9.What does the author mean when stating that product only
certain inventions made farming

Question 11-20
Molting is one of the most involved processes of a bird’s annual life cycle.
Notwithstanding preening and constant care, the marvelously intricate structure of a bird’s
Feather inevitably wears out. All adult birds molt their feathers at least once a year, and
Line upon close observation, one can recognize the frayed, ragged appearance of feathers that
5) are nearing the end of their useful life. Two distinct processes are involved in molting.
The first step is when the old, worn feather is dropped, or shed. The second is when a new
feather grows in its place. When each feather has been shed and replaced, then the molt
can be said to be complete. This, however, is an abstraction that often does not happen:
incomplete, overlapping, and arrested molts are quite common.
10) Molt requires that a bird find and process enough protein to rebuild approximately
one-third of its body weight. It is not surprising that a bird in heavy molt often seems
listless and unwell. But far from being random, molt is controlled by strong evolutionary
forces that have established an optimal time and duration. Generally, molt occurs at the
time of least stress on the bird. Many songbirds, for instance, molt in late summer, when
15) the hard work of breeding is done but the weather is still warm and food still plentiful.
This is why the woods in late summer often seem so quiet, when compared with the
Exuberant choruses of spring.
Molt of the flight feathers is the most highly organized part of the process. Some species,
for example, begin by dropping the outermost primary feathers on each side (to retain
20) balance in the air) and wait until the replacement feathers are about one-third grown before
shedding the next outermost, and so on. Others always start with the innermost primary
feathers and work outward. Yet other species begin in the middle and work outward on both
weeks while the replacement feathers grow.

11.The passage mainly discusses how (D) regarding

(A) birds prepare for breeding
(B) bird feathers differ from species 13.The word “intricate” in line 2 is closest in
(C) birds shed and replace their feathers meaning to
(D) birds are affected by seasonal changes (A) regular
(B) complex
12.The word “Notwithstanding” in line 2 is closest (C) interesting
in meaning to (D) important
(A) despite
(B) because of 14.The word “random” in line 12 is closest in
(C) instead of meaning to
 (A) unfortunate same time
(B) unusual (C) adjusting the angle of their flight to
(C) unobservable compensate for lost feathers
(D) unpredictable (D) only losing one-third of their feathers

15.The word “optimal” in line 13 is closest in 18.The word “Others” in line 21 refers to
meaning to (A) ducks
(A) slow (B) sides
(B) frequent (C) species
(C) best (D) flight feathers
(D) early
16.Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a 19.The author discusses ducks in order to provide
reason that songbirds molt in the late an example of birds that
summer? (A) grow replacement feathers that are very long
(A) Fewer predators are in the woods. (B) shed all their wing feathers at one time
(B) The weathers is still warm. (C) keep their innermost feathers
(C) The songbirds have finished breeding. (D) shed their outermost feathers first
(D) Food is still available.
20. It can inferred from the discussion about ducks
17. Some birds that are molting maintain balance that the molting of their flight feathers takes.
during flight by (A) a year
(A) constantly preening and caring for their (B) a season
remaining feathers (C) several months
(B) dropping flight feathers on both sides at the (D) a few weeks

Question 21-30
The Harlem Renaissance, a movement of the 1920’s, marked the twentieth century’s
first period of intense activity by African Americans in the field of literature, art, and
music in the United States. The philosophy of the movement combined realism, ethnic
Line consciousness, and Americanism. Encouraged by the example of certain Americans
5) of European descent such as Thomas Eakins, Robert Henri, and George Luks, who had
included persons of African descent in their paintings as serious studies rather than as
trivial or sentimental stereotypes, African American artists of this period set about
creating a new portrayal of themselves and their lives in the United States. As they began
to strive for social and cultural independence. Their attitudes toward themselves changed,
10) and, to some extent, other segments of American society began to change their attitudes
toward them. Thus, thought the Harlem Renaissance was a short-lived movement, its
impact on American art and culture continues to the present.
The district in New York City know as Harlem was the capital of the movement.
In 1925 an issue of Survey Graphic magazine devoted exclusively to Harlem and edited
15) by philosopher Alain Locke became the manifesto of the African American artistic
movement. Locke strongly suggested that individuals, while accepting their Americanism,
take pride in their African ancestral arts and urged artists to look to Africa for substance
and inspiration. Far from advocating a withdrawal from American culture, as did some of
his contemporaries, Locke recommended a cultural pluralism through which artists could
20) enrich the culture of America. African Americans were urged by Locke to be collaborators
and participators with other Americans in art, literature, and music; and at the same time
to preserve, enhance, and promote their own cultural heritage.
Artists and intellectuals from many parts of the United States and the Caribbean had
Been attracted to Harlem by the pulse and beat of its unique and dynamic culture. From
25) this unity created by the convergence of artists from various social and geographical
backgrounds came a new spirit, which, particularly in densely populated Harlem, was
to result in greater group awareness and self-determination. African American graphic
artists took their place beside the poets and writers of the Harlem Renaissance and
carried on efforts to increase and promote the visual arts.

21.What does the passage mainly discuss? (A) African American paintings in the 1920’s
 (B) An arts movement of the 1920’s movement EXCEPT
(C) The influence of Alain Locke on African (A) pride in African art
American art (B) cultural pluralism
(D) Some ways in which African culture (C) collaboration with other artists
inspired American literature, art and music (D) withdrawal from American culture
22. According to the passage, Tomas Eakins,
Robert Henri, and George Luks were important 27. In mentioning “the pulse and beat” (line24) of
because of Harlem during the 1920’s, the author is
(A) the philosophical contributions they made to characterizing the district as one that
the Harlem Renaissance (A) depended greatly on its interaction with
(B) their development of a new style of African other parts of the city
American art (B) grew economically in a short period of time
(C) they way in which they depicted African (C) was an exciting place to be
Americans in their paintings (D) was in danger of losing population
(D) their independence from European artistic
traditions 28.The word “convergence” in line 25 is closest in
meaning to
23. The word “them” in line 11 refers to (A) gathering
(A) Americans of European descent (B) promotion
(B) paintings (C) expression
(C) African American artists (D) influence
(D) attitudes
29. According to the passage, all of the following
24. According to the passage, African American were true of Harlem in the 1920’s EXCEPT:
artists of the 1920’s differed from earlier (A) Some Caribbean artists and intellectuals
African American artists in terms of their lived there.
feelings about (B) It attracted people from various regions of
(A) themselves United States.
(B) other artists (C) It was one of the most expensive
(C) their impact on American art neighborhoods in New York City.
(D) stereotypes (D) It was a unique cultural center.

25.The word “urged” in line 17 is closest in 30.The phrase “carried on” in line 29 is closest in
meaning to meaning to
(A) prepared (A) continued
(B) defined (B) praised
(C) permitted (C) transformed
(D) encouraged (D) connected

26. Alain Locke believed all of the following to be

important to the African American artistic
Questions 31-40
Ethology is concerned with the study of adaptive, or survival, value of behavior and its
Evolutionary history. Ethological theory began to be applied to research on children in the
1960’s but has become even more influential today. The origins of ethology can be traced
Line to the work of Darwin. Its modern foundations were laid by two European zoologists,
5) Konrad Lorenz and Niko Tinbergen.
Watching the behaviors diverse animal species in their natural habitats, Lorenz, and
Tinbergen observed behavior patterns that promote survival. The most well-known of these
is imprinting, the carly following behavior of certain baby birds that ensures that the young
will stay close to their mother and be fed and protected from danger. Imprinting takes place
10) during an early, restricted time period of development. If the mother goose is not present
during this time, but an object resembling her in important features is, young goslings may
imprint on it instead.
Observations of imprinting led to major concept that has been applied in child
Development” the critical period. It refers to a limited times span during which the child is
15) biologically prepared to acquire certain adaptive behaviors but needs the support of suitably
 stimulating environment. Many researchers have conducted studies to find out whether
complex congnitive and social behaviors must be learned during restricted time periods.
for example, if children are deprived of adequate food or physical and social stimulation
during the early years of life, will their intelligence be permanently impaired? If language
20) is not mastered during the preschool years, is the child’s capacity to acquire it reduced?
Inspired by observations of imprinting, in 1969 the British psychoanalyst John Bowlby
applied ethological theory to the understanding of the relationship between an infant and
its parents. He argued that attachment behaviors of babies, such as smiling, babbling,
grasping, and crying, are built-in social signals that encourage the parents to approach,
25) care for, and interact with the baby. By keeping a parent near, these behaviors help ensure
that the baby will be fed, protected from danger, and provided with the stimulation and
affection necessary for healthy growth. The development of attachment in human infants
is a lengthy process involving changes in psychological structures that lead to a deep
affectional tie between parent and baby.

31.What was Darwin’s contribution to ethology? (A) willingly

(A) Darwin improved on the original principles (B) moderately
of ethology. (C) appropriately
(B) Darwin was the professor who taught (D) emotionally
Lorenz and Tinbergen.
(C) Darwin’s work provided the basis for 37.The author mentions all of the following as
ethology. attachment behaviors of human infants
(D) Darwin was the first person to apply EXCEPT
ethological theory to children. (A) grasping
(B) crying
32.The word “diverse” in line 6 is closest in (C) eating
meaning to (D) smiling
(A) small
(B) varied 38.According to the passage, attachment behaviors
(C) wild of infants are intended to
(D) particular (A) get the physical, emotional and social needs
33.The word “ensures” in line 8 is closest in of the infant met
meaning to (B) allow the infant to become imprinted on
(A) guarantees objects that resemble the parent
(B) proves (C) provide the infant with a means of
(C) teaches self-stimulation
(D) assumes (D) prepare the infant to cope with separation

34. According to the passage, if a mother goose is 39.The phrase “affectional tie” in line 29 is closest
not present during the time period when in meaning to
imprinting takes place, which of the following (A) cognitive development
will most likely occur? (B) emotional attachment
(A) The gosling will not imprint on any object. (C) psychological need
(B) The gosling may not find a mate when it (D) behavioral change
matures.
(C) The mother will later imprint on the gosling. 40. It can be inferred from the passage that
(D) The gosling may imprint on another object. ethological theory assumes that
35.The word “it” in line 12 refers to (A) to learn about human behavior only human
(A) development subjects should be studied
(B) goose (B) failure to imprint has no influence on
(C) time inteligence
(D) object (C) the notion of critical periods applies only to
animals
36.The word “suitably” in line 15 is closest in (D) there are similarities between animal and
meaning to human behavior
Questions 41-50
There are only a few clues in the rock record about climate in the Proterozoic con.
Much of our information about climate in the more recent periods of geologic history
comes from the fossil record, because we have a reasonably good understanding of
Line the types of environment in which many fossil organisms flourished. The scarce fossils
5) of the Proterozoic, mostly single-celled bacteria, provide little evidence in this regard.
However, the rocks themselves do include the earliest evidence for glaciation, probably
a global ice age.
The inference that some types of sedimentary rocks are the result of glacial activity
is based on the principle of uniformitarianism, which posits that natural processes now
10) at work on and within the Earth operated in the same manner in the distant past. The
deposits associated with present-day glaciers have been well studied, and some of their
characteristics are quite distinctive. In 2.3-billion-year-old rocks in Canada near Lake
Huron (dating from the early part of the Proterozoic age), there are thin laminae of
fine-grained sediments that resemble varves, the annual layers of sediment deposited in
15) glacial lakes. Typically, present-day varves show two-layered annual cycle, one layer
corresponding to the rapid ice melting and sediment transport of the summer season, and
the other, finer-grained, layer corresponding to slower winter deposition. Although it is
not easy to discern such details in the Proterozoic examples, they are almost certainly
glacial varves. These fine-grained, layered sediments even contain occasional large
20) pebbles or “dropstones,” a characteristic feature of glacial environments where coarse
material is sometimes carried on floating ice and dropped far from its source, into
otherwise very fine grained sediment. Glacial sediments of about the same age as those
in Canada have been found in other parts of North America and in Africa, India, and
Europe. This indicates that the glaciation was global, and that for a period of time in
25) the early Proterozoic the Earth was gripped in an ice age.
Following the early Proterozoic glaciation, however, the climate appears to have
Been fairly benign for a very long time. There is no evidence for glaciation for the
Next 1.5 billion years or so. Then, suddenly, the rock record indicates a series of
Glacial episodes between about 850 and 600 million year ago, near the end of the
Proterozoic con.

41.Which of the following does the passage (A) ancient

mainly discuss? (B) tiny
(A) How patterns in rock layers have been used (C) available
to construct theories about the climate of (D) rare
the Proterozoic age
(B) What some rare fossils indicate about glacial 44. It can be inferred from the passage that the
conditions during the late Proterozoic age principle of uniformitarianism indicates that
(C) The varying characteristics of Proterozoic (A) similar conditions produce similar rock
glacial varves in different parts of the world formations
(D) The number of glacial episodes that the (B) rock layers in a given region remain
Earth has experienced since the Proterozoic age undisturbed over time
(C) different kinds of sedimentary rocks may
42. According to the passage, the fossil record of (D) each continent has its own distinctive
the Proterozoic con is pattern of sediment layers
(A) highly regarded because it preserves the
remains of many kinds of organisms 45. The word “resemble” in line 14 is closest in
(B) less informative than the fossil record of meaning to
more recent periods (A) result from
(C) very difficult to interpret due to damage (B) penetrate
from bacteria (C) look like
(D) more useful to researchers than other (D) replace have similar origins
aspects of the rock record
46. According to the passage, the layers in varves
43.The word “scarce” in line 4 is closest in are primarily formed by
meaning to (A) fossilized bacteria
 (B) pieces of ancient dropstones distances
(C) a combination of ancient and recent
sediments 49. Why does the author mention Canada, North
(D) annual cycles of sediment transport and America, Africa, India, and Europe in lines 23-
deposition 24?
(A) To demonstrate the global spread of
47. The phrase “the other” in line 17 refers to dropstones
another (B) To explain the principles of varve formation
(A) annual cycle (C) To provide evidence for the theory that there
(B) glacial lake was a global ice age in the early
(C) layer of sediment Proterozoic eon
(D) season (D) To illustrate the varied climatic changes of
the Proterozoic con in different parts of
48. According to the passage, the presence of the globe
dropstones indicates that
(A) the glacial environment has been unusually 50. Which of the following terms is defined in the
server passage?
(B) the fine-grained sediment has built up very (A) fossil record (line 3)
slowly (B) laminae (line 13)
(C) there has been a global ice age (C) varves (line14)
(D) coarse rock material has been carried great (D) glacial episodes (line 29)