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1. 
Former astronaut Ellen Ochoa says that although she doesn’t have a definite idea of when it might happen, she _______ that humans will someday need to be able to live in other environments than those found on Earth. This conjecture informs her interest in future research missions to the moon. Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A.
demands
B.
speculates
C.
doubts
D.
establishes
2. 
Beginning in the 1950s, Navajo Nation legislator Annie Dodge Wauneka continuously worked to promote public health; this _______ effort involved traveling throughout the vast Navajo homeland and writing a medical dictionary for speakers of Diné bizaad, the Navajo language. Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A.
impartial
B.
offhand
C.
persistent
D.
mandatory
3. 
In 2007, computer scientist Luis von Ahn was working on converting printed books into a digital format. He found that some words were distorted enough that digital scanners couldn’t recognize them, but most humans could easily read them. Based on that finding, von Ahn invented a simple security test to keep automated “bots” out of websites. The first version of the reCAPTCHA test asked users to type one known word and one of the many words scanners couldn’t recognize. Correct answers proved the users were humans and added data to the book-digitizing project. Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
4. 
In 2007, computer scientist Luis von Ahn was working on converting printed books into a digital format. He found that some words were distorted enough that digital scanners couldn’t recognize them, but most humans could easily read them. Based on that finding, von Ahn invented a simple security test to keep automated “bots” out of websites. The first version of the reCAPTCHA test asked users to type one known word and one of the many words scanners couldn’t recognize. Correct answers proved the users were humans and added data to the book-digitizing project. Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
A.
To discuss von Ahn’s invention of reCAPTCHA
B.
To explain how digital scanners work
C.
To call attention to von Ahn’s book-digitizing project
D.
To indicate how popular reCAPTCHA is
5. 
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes: • Pterosaurs were flying reptiles that existed millions of years ago. • In a 2021 study, Anusuya Chinsamy-Turan analyzed fragments of pterosaur jawbones located in the Sahara Desert. • She was initially unsure if the bones belonged to juvenile or adult pterosaurs. • She used advanced microscope techniques to determine that the bones had few growth lines relative to the bones of fully grown pterosaurs. • She concluded that the bones belonged to juveniles. The student wants to present the study and its findings. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
A.
In 2021, Chinsamy-Turan studied pterosaur jawbones and was initially unsure if the bones belonged to juveniles or adults.
B.
Pterosaur jawbones located in the Sahara Desert were the focus of a 2021 study.
C.
In a 2021 study, Chinsamy-Turan used advanced microscope techniques to analyze the jawbones of pterosaurs, flying reptiles that existed millions of years ago.
D.
In a 2021 study, Chinsamy-Turan determined that pterosaur jawbones located in the Sahara Desert had few growth lines relative to the bones of fully grown pterosaurs and thus belonged to juveniles.
6. 
Text 1: Most animals can regenerate some parts of their bodies, such as skin. But when a three-banded panther worm is cut into three pieces, each piece grows into a new worm. Researchers are investigating this feat partly to learn more about humans’ comparatively limited abilities to regenerate, and they’re making exciting progress. An especially promising discovery is that both humans and panther worms have a gene for early growth response (EGR) linked to regeneration. Text 2 When Mansi Srivastava and her team reported that panther worms, like humans, possess a gene for EGR, it caused excitement. However, as the team pointed out, the gene likely functions very differently in humans than it does in panther worms. Srivastava has likened EGR to a switch that activates other genes involved in regeneration in panther worms, but how this switch operates in humans remains unclear. Based on the texts, what would the author of Text 2 most likely say about Text 1’s characterization of the discovery involving EGR?
A.
It is reasonable given that Srivastava and her team have identified how EGR functions in both humans and panther worms.
B.
It is overly optimistic given additional observations from Srivastava and her team.
C.
It is unexpected given that Srivastava and her team’s findings were generally met with enthusiasm.
D.
It is unfairly dismissive given the progress that Srivastava and her team have reported.
7. 
Psychologists Dacher Keltner and Jonathan Haidt have argued that experiencing awe—a sensation of reverence and wonder typically brought on by perceiving something grand or powerful—can enable us to feel more connected to others and thereby inspire us to act more altruistically. Keltner, along with Paul K. Piff, Pia Dietze, and colleagues, claims to have found evidence for this effect in a recent study where participants were asked to either gaze up at exceptionally tall trees in a nearby grove (reported to be a universally awe-inspiring experience) or stare at the exterior of a nearby, nondescript building. After one minute, an experimenter deliberately spilled a box of pens nearby. Which finding from the researchers’ study, if true, would most strongly support their claim?
8. 
Psychologists Dacher Keltner and Jonathan Haidt have argued that experiencing awe—a sensation of reverence and wonder typically brought on by perceiving something grand or powerful—can enable us to feel more connected to others and thereby inspire us to act more altruistically. Keltner, along with Paul K. Piff, Pia Dietze, and colleagues, claims to have found evidence for this effect in a recent study where participants were asked to either gaze up at exceptionally tall trees in a nearby grove (reported to be a universally awe-inspiring experience) or stare at the exterior of a nearby, nondescript building. After one minute, an experimenter deliberately spilled a box of pens nearby. Which finding from the researchers’ study, if true, would most strongly support their claim?
A.
Participants who had been looking at the trees helped the experimenter pick up significantly more pens than did participants who had been looking at the building.
B.
Participants who helped the experimenter pick up the pens used a greater number of positive words to describe the trees and the building in a postexperiment survey than did participants who did not help the experimenter.
C.
Participants who did not help the experimenter pick up the pens were significantly more likely to report having experienced a feeling of awe, regardless of whether they looked at the building or the trees.
D.
Participants who had been looking at the building were significantly more likely to notice that the experimenter had dropped the pens than were participants who had been looking at the trees.
9. 
The meaning of the word aberration means...
A.
Deviation from what is correct or right.
B.
Feeling of opposition or repugnance; aversion; dislike.
C.
Expressing approval.
D.
Affirm; assert; declare; acknowledge.
10. 
The meaning of the word baleful means...
A.
Happy; pleased; delighted.
B.
Trite; insipid; ordinary.
C.
Stupefy or confuse; misconstrue.
D.
Sorrowful; sinister; evil.
11. 
Sweet, kind, and innocent are the definition of what word?
A.
Cherubic
B.
Clandestine
C.
Coddle
D.
Commensurate
E.
Cherubic
F.
Clandestine
12. 
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes: • The Seikan Tunnel is a rail tunnel in Japan. • It connects the island of Honshu to the island of Hokkaido. • It is roughly 33 miles long. • The Channel Tunnel is a rail tunnel in Europe. • It connects Folkestone, England, to Coquelles, France. • It is about 31 miles long. The student wants to compare the lengths of the two rail tunnels. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
A.
Some of the world’s rail tunnels, including one tunnel that extends from Folkestone, England, to Coquelles, France, are longer than 30 miles.
B.
The Seikan Tunnel is roughly 33 miles long, while the slightly shorter Channel Tunnel is about 31 miles long.
C.
The Seikan Tunnel, which is roughly 33 miles long, connects the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido
D.
Both the Seikan Tunnel, which is located in Japan, and the Channel Tunnel, which is located in Europe, are examples of rail tunnels.