9 / 14
E) most victims were trapped inside the boat as they were in their cabins
8. It is clear from the passage that the survivors of the accident ----.
A) helped one another to overcome the tragedy that had affected them
all
B) were mostly young men but women, children and the elderly stood little
chance
C) helped save hundreds of lives
D) are still suffering from severe post-traumatic stress disorder
E) told the investigators nothing about the accident
9. According to the passage, when the Estonia sank, ----.
A) there were only 139 passengers on board
B) few of the passengers were asleep
C) there were enough lifeboats for the number of people on board
D) faster reaction by the crew could have increased the Estonia's
chances of survival
E) all the passengers had already moved out into the open decks
Passage 4 - Erosion in America
Erosion of America's farmland by wind and water has been a problem since settlers first put the prairies and grasslands under the plow in the nineteenth century. By the 1930s, more than 282 million acres of farmland were damaged by erosion. After 40 years of conservation efforts, soil erosion has accelerated due to new demands placed on the land by heavy crop production. In the years ahead, soil erosion and the pollution problems it causes are likely to replace petroleum scarcity as the nation's most critical natural resource problem.
10. As we understand from the reading, today, soil erosion in America ----.
A) causes humans to place new demands on the land
B) is worse than it was in the nineteenth century
C) happens so slowly that it is hardly noticed
D) is the most critical problem that the nation faces
10 / 14
E) is worse in areas which have a lot of petroleum production
11. The author points out in the passage that erosion in America ----.
A) has damaged 282 million acres ever since settlers first put the prairies
and grasslands under the plow
B) has been so severe that it has forced people to abandon their
settlements
C) occurs only in areas with no vegetation
D) can become a more serious problem in the future
E) was on the decline before 1930s
12. It is pointed out in the reading that in America ----.
A) petroleum is causing heavy soil erosion and pollution problems
B) heavy crop production is necessary to meet the demands and to
prevent a disaster
C) soil erosion has been hastened due to the overuse of farming lands
D) water is undoubtedly the largest cause of erosion
E) there are many ways to reduce erosion
Atmosphere of Venus
Data from the Pioneer spacecraft of NASA apparently prove the theory that the high surface temperature of Venus is due to an atmospheric greenhouse effect caused mainly by a blanket of carbon dioxide. Such a greenhouse effect is created when energy in the form of sunlight easily passes through a planet's atmosphere, warms its surface, and is converted to heat radiation that is then held in by the atmosphere from top to bottom. Venus has a relatively thin atmosphere like the Earth's, but Venus' atmosphere consists of more than ninety percent carbon dioxide, compared to less than four percent in that of the Earth. Because of its higher percentage of carbon dioxide, Venus' atmosphere traps much more heat radiation than does the Earth's. Thus, the Venus studies are believed to be important to the understanding of possible adverse effects on the Earth's agriculture that could result from the long-term use of fossil fuels, which add carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.
1. According to the passage, data from the Venus study can be used to ----.
11 / 14
A) measure the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere accurately
B) increase the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere
C) test the efficiency of the spacecraft sent to Venus by NASA
D) predict future agricultural problems on Earth
E) determine the topography and the surface characteristics of the Earth
2. We understand from the passage that the atmosphere of Venus ----.
A) is thinner than the atmosphere of the Earth
B) contains much more carbon dioxide than that of the Earth
C) traps less heat radiation compared to the atmosphere of the Earth
D) blocks out dangerous rays from the sun
E) is far colder than the atmospheres of other planets in our solar system
3. One can infer from the passage that ----.
A) there is no difference between the atmospheres of Venus and the Earth
B) the atmosphere of the Earth consists of mainly carbon dioxide
C) the more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the warmer the world will tend to get
D) lack of atmosphere causes a very high surface temperature on Venus
E) Venus had once enjoyed a climate of the sort hospitable to life
How Does Brain Work?
Theories about how brain works remain a topic of debate. It is agreed, though, that the hippocampus, a part of the brain, is undeniably important for memory. When we experience something, the informa