Reading Practice Test 1

1. Despite their claims, many vegans find it difficult to add enough protein to their diet.                , compare the amount of protein in a serving of meat to the amount of protein found in a serving of nuts. While the nuts offer a substantial amount of protein, it would take multiple servings to match the amount of proteins in the meat.

Which transition best connects the evidence to the claim that supports it?

2. In many states, teens cannot get their learners' permits until they are at least 16 years of age. While this has been the law for decades, states should consider letting teens receive their permit earlier. Many teens get their first job at age 15 and need a reliable way to get to and from work.                  , in a survey of 15-year-olds who did not have a job, a lack of reliable transportation was their number one reason for not seeking employment.

Which transition best connects the two supporting claims?

3. Civil disobedience is the refusal to obey certain laws or to pay taxes and fines and is a peaceful form of political protest. Just because something is the law doesn’t mean it is right. For example, segregation used to be legal in this country, and it was only changed by many years of dedicated civil disobedience by people who wanted to do what was right, not just what was legal. Civil disobedience makes the government more accountable and is sometimes the only way that laws that are deeply rooted in damaging customs (like segregation) can be changed. Some Americans that are famous for their civil disobedience are Rosa Parks, who refused to give her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery Alabama, and Martin Luther King Jr. who advocated peaceful civil disobedience as a way to advance the rights of black Americans. Our country is what it is today largely thanks to acts of civil disobedience by brave and thoughtful Americans.

Martin Luther King Jr. wanted to:

4. DIRECTIONS: Read each passage and identify how the information is being organized.There are two kinds of metamorphosis: complete and incomplete. Animals that undergo complete metamorphoses, like frogs and butterflies, begin life in one form, and then at a stage in their lives, they change into a completely different form. In contrast, animals that undergo incomplete metamorphosis have no pupa stage in their life cycle.

5. DIRECTIONS: Identify the structure of each passage. Penguins evolved to live both on ice and in the sea. Consequently, they are accomplished swimmers, and they can propel themselves out of the water as far as 7 feet into the air and up onto ice if they need to escape a predator.

6. DIRECTIONS: In the 4th century B.C., the Greek philosopher Socrates was accused of "corrupting” the youth of Athens. The passage below is from the speech he gave to an Athens jury in his defense. Read the speech, then draw inferences from it to answer the questions.

Young men of the richer classes, who have not much to do, come about me of their own accord; they like to hear the pretenders examined, and they often imitate me and proceed to examine others; there are plenty of persons, as they quickly discover, who think that they know something, but really know little or nothing; and then those who are examined by them instead of being angry with themselves are angry with me: This confounded Socrates, they say; this villainous misleader of youth! And then if somebody asks them, why, what evil does he practice or teach? They do not know, and cannot tell; but in order that they may not appear to be at a loss, they repeat the ready‐made charges which are used against all philosophers about teaching things up in the clouds and under the earth, and having no gods, and making the worse appear the better cause; for they do not like to confess that their pretense of knowledge has been detected―which is the truth; and as they are numerous and ambitious and energetic, and are drawn up in battle array and have persuasive tongues, they have filled your ears with their loud and inveterate calumnies. And this is the reason why my three accusers, Meletus and Anytus and Lycon, have set upon me; Meletus, who has a quarrel with me on behalf of the poets; Anytus, on behalf of the craftsmen and politicians; Lycon, on behalf of the rhetoricians: and as I said at the beginning, I cannot expect to get rid of such a mass of calumny all in a moment. And this, O men of Athens, is the truth and the whole truth; I have concealed nothing, I have dissembled nothing. And yet, I know that my plainness of speech makes them hate me, and what is their hatred but a proof that I am speaking the truth? Hence has arisen the prejudice against me; and this is the reason for it, as you will find out either in this or in any future inquiry.

From Socrates’ perspective, how does his influence over the young men of the richer classes compare to the influence of their own class?

7. Which word/phrase in the sentence below is redundant and can be removed without changing the meaning of the sentence?Historically, in the past, politicians often inserted their religious beliefs into their positions.

8. It is true that the powers of Europe may carry on maritime wars with the Union, but there is always greater facility and less danger in supporting a maritime than a continental war. Maritime warfare only requires one species of effort. A commercial people who consent to furnish its government with the necessary funds are sure to possess a fleet. And it is far easier to induce a nation to part with its money, almost unconsciously, than to reconcile it to sacrifices of men and personal efforts. Moreover, defeat by sea rarely compromises the existence or independence of the people which endures it. As for continental wars, it is evident that the nations of Europe cannot be formidable in this way to the American Union. It would be very difficult to transport and maintain in America more than 25,000 soldiers; an army which may be considered to represent a nation of about 2,000,000 men. The most populous nation of Europe contending in this way against the Union is in the position of a nation of 2,000,000 of inhabitants at war with one of 12,000,000. Add to this, that America has all its resources within reach, whilst the European is at 4,000 miles distance from his; and that the immensity of the American continent would of itself present an insurmountable obstacle to its conquest.

What evidence in the text supports your answer in question 1?

9. Read about the artist. Then answer the question below.

Vincent Van Gogh was born in 1853. He is a very famous artist now. But during his lifetime, hardly anyone knew about him or his work. Today his paintings are among the most expensive artworks in the world. But Vincent only sold one painting while he was alive. Vincent was born in Holland, where the weather is usually dark and rainy. When he grew up, he moved to the south of France, where the sun shines more brightly and the colors are more vivid. Vincent loved bright colors, and he used them boldly in all of his paintings. He used a lot of paint and applied it in very thick strokes so that his paintings actually have texture. Vincent painted a lot of pictures of flowers in vases, and a lot of landscapes. He also painted still lifes, buildings, and people. Two of his most famous paintings are called Starry Night, and Sunflowers. Most artists sign their names on their paintings when they have finished it. But in 1888, Vincent painted four pictures of sunflowers. He only signed two of the paintings. Art experts believe that this is because he wasn’t happy with the other two. Today you can see his paintings in museums all around the world.

Why do art experts think Vincent didn’t sign some of his paintings?

10. Occasional drug use during the teenage years causes problems in the adult years. Many adults who responded that they used drugs occasionally as teenagers also noted a lapse in short-term memory.                    , the same adults noted that the lapse in short-term memory did not start during their teen years.

Which transition best connects the two pieces of supporting evidence?