Reading Comprehension (TOEFL)

The assessment of past rises and falls in sea level requires study of submerged land surfaces off the coast and of elevated beaches on land. Raised beaches are remnants of former coastlines at higher levels relative to the present shoreline and visible, for instance, along the California coast north of San Francisco, the height of a raised beach above the present shoreline, however, does not generally give a straightforward indication of the height of a former sea level.

The word "remnants" in the passage is closest in meaning to ......

• remains

• regions

• pints

• origins

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.4

CCSS.RI.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

CCSS.RI.9-10.4

CCSS.RI.8.4

At night, the solar energy (stored as vast quantities of heat in city buildings and roads) is slowly released into the city air. Additional city heat is given off at night (and during the day) by vehicles and factories, as well as by industrial and domestic heating and cooling units. The release of heat energy is retarded by the tall vertical city walls that do not allow infrared radiation to escape as readily as does the relatively level surface of the surrounding countryside. The slow release of heat tends to keep nighttime city temperatures higher than those of the faster-cooling rural areas.

The word "retarded" in the passage is closest in meaning to .....

• disguised

• added to

• made possible

• slowed one

Several dinosaur fossil localities preserve coprolites. Coprolites yield unequivocal evidence about the dietary habits of dinosaurs. Many parts of plants and animals are extremely resistant to the digestive systems of animals and pass completely through the body with little or no alteration. Study of coprolites has indicated that the diets of some herbivorous dinosaurs were relatively diverse, while other dinosaurs appear to have been specialists, feeding on particular types of plants. The problem with inferring diets from coprolites is the difficulty in accurately associating a particular coprolite with a specific dinosaur.

The word "unequivocal" in the passage is closest in meaning to .....

• deniable

• unambiguous

• unclear

• largely

The Native American Trade is the trade between Europeans, their North American descendants, and the indigenous people of North America who are now known as Native Americans in the United States, First Nations in Canada, whom were formerly known as Indians. Indian Trade is the term used to describe the people involved in the trade, which began in the 1500s, and had various products in different regions and eras. In most of Canada the term is synonymous with the fur trade such as beaver fur which, from the European point of view, was the most valuable product of the trade.

The word "indigenous" in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ....

• Intelligent

• Foreign

• Native

• Friendly

Tags

CCSS.RI.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

CCSS.RI.9-10.4

CCSS.RI.8.4

[1] Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution is known as one of the most important and controversial scientific theories ever published. Natural selection contributes to the basis of Darwin's Theory of Evolution. One of the core tenets of Darwin's theory is that more offspring are always produced for a species than can possibly survive. Yet, no two offspring are perfectly alike. As a result, through random mutation and genetic drift, over time offspring develop new traits and characteristics. Over time beneficial traits and characteristics that promote survival will be kept in the gene pool while those that harm survival will be selected against. Therefore, this natural selection ensures that a species gradually improves itself over an extended duration of time. On the other hand, as a species continues to 'improve' itself, it branches out to create entirely new species that are no longer capable of reproducing together.

The word 'those' in paragraph 1 refers to .....

• gene pool

• survival

• natural selection

• traits characteristics

Darwin's theory is that 'selective breeding' occurs in nature as 'natural selection' is the engine behind evolution. Thus, the theory provides an excellent basis for understanding how organisms change over time. Nevertheless, it is just a theory and elusively difficult to prove. One of the major holes in Darwin's theory revolves around “irreducibly complex systems.” An irreducibly complex system is known as a system where many different parts must all operate together. As a result, in the absence of one, the system as a whole collapses. Consequently, as modern technology improves, science can identify these “irreducibly complex systems” even at microscopic levels. These complex systems, if so inter-reliant, would be resistant to Darwin's supposition of how evolution occurs. As Darwin himself admitted, “To suppose that the eye with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus for different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I free confess, absurd in the highest degree.

All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 4 as a viewpoint to state the natural selection is difficult to prove EXCEPT ....

• The belief that the complexity of the human eye could have been formed by natural selection seems highly unlikely

• The presence of irreducibly complex system contradicts how evolution occurs

• Modern microbiology proves that irreducibly complex systems exist

• Selective breeding is the major hole in the theory of natural selection

The railroad was not the first institution to impose regularity on society, or to draw attention to the importance of precise timekeeping. For as long as merchants have set out their wares at daybreak and communal festivities have been celebrated, people have been in rough agreement with their neighbors as to the time of day. The value of this tradition is today more apparent than ever. Were it not for public acceptance of a single yardstick of time, social life would be unbearably chaotic: the massive daily transfers of goods, services, and information would proceed in fits and starts; the very fabric of modern society would begin to unravel.

What is the main idea of the passage?

• In modern society we must make more time for our neighbors.

• The traditions of society are timeless.

• An accepted way of measuring time is essential for the smooth functioning of society.

• Society judges people by the times at which they conduct certain activities.

The railroad was not the first institution to impose regularity on society, or to draw attention to the importance of precise timekeeping. For as long as merchants have set out their wares at daybreak and communal festivities have been celebrated, people have been in rough agreement with their neighbors as to the time of day. The value of this tradition is today more apparent than ever. Were it not for public acceptance of a single yardstick of time, social life would be unbearably chaotic: the massive daily transfers of goods, services, and information would proceed in fits and starts; the very fabric of modern society would begin to unravel.

In line 7, the phrase "this tradition" refers to

• the practice of starting the business day at dawn

• friendly relations between neighbors

• the railroad's reliance on time schedules

• people's agreement on the measurement of time

Tags

CCSS.RI.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

CCSS.RI.9-10.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

Economic contact between Native Americans and Europeans can be traced back to the English and French fishermen off the coast of Canada in the 1500s. They traded guns and other weapons for beaver fur. The first explorers to trade with the Native Americans were Giovanni da Verrazano and Jacques Cartier in the 1520s and 1530s. In Verrazano's book he notes, "If we wanted to trade with them for some of their things, they would come to the seashore on some rocks where the breakers were most violent while we remained on the little boat, and they sent us what they wanted to give on a rope, continually shouting to us not to approach the land."

The word 'They' in paragraph 3 refers to?

• English and French fishermen

• Beavers

• Europeans

• Traits and characteristics