Reading Comprehension skill 1-3

Fort Knox, Kentucky, is the site of a U.S. army post, but it is even more renowned for the Fort Knox Bullion Depository, the massive vault that contains the bulk of the U.S. government's gold deposits. Completed in 1936, the vault is housed in a two-story building constructed of granite, steel, Line and concrete; the vault itself is made of steel and concrete and has a door that weighs more than twenty tons. Naturally, the most up-to-date security devices available are in place at Fort Knox, and the army post nearby provides further protection.

** Which of the following best describes the topic of the passage?

• The city of Fort Knox, Kentucky

• The federal gold depository

• The U.S. army post at Fort Knox

• Gold bullion

Fort Knox, Kentucky, is the site of a U.S. army post, but it is even more renowned for the Fort Knox Bullion Depository, the massive vault that contains the bulk of the U.S. government's gold deposits. Completed in 1936, the vault is housed in a two-story building constructed of granite, steel, Line and concrete; the vault itself is made of steel and concrete and has a door that weighs more than twenty tons. Naturally, the most up-to-date security devices available are in place at Fort Knox, and the army post nearby provides further protection.

** Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?

• The Massive Concrete Vault

• Fort Knox Security

• Where the U.S. Keeps Its Gold

• A Visit to Kentucky

Paragraph 1 : Common types of calendars can be based on the Sun or on the Moon. The solar calendar is based on the solar year. Since the solar year is 365.2422 days long, solar calendars consist of regular years of 365 days and have an extra day every fourth year, or leap year, to make up for the additional fractional amount. In a solar calendar, the waxing and waning of the moon can take place at various stages of each month.

Paragraph 2 : The lunar calendar is synchronized to the lunar month rather than the solar year. Since the lunar month is twenty-nine and a half days long, most lunar calendars have alternating months of twenty-nine and thirty days. A twelve-month lunar year thus has 354 days, 11 days shorter than a solar year.

**What is the main idea of the passage?

• All calendars are the same.

• The solar calendar is based on the Sun.

• Different calendars have dissimilar bases.

• The lunar month is twenty-nine and a half days long.

Paragraph 1 : Common types of calendars can be based on the Sun or on the Moon. The solar calendar is based on the solar year. Since the solar year is 365.2422 days long, solar calendars consist of regular years of 365 days and have an extra day every fourth year, or leap year, to make up for the additional fractional amount. In a solar calendar, the waxing and waning of the moon can take place at various stages of each month.

Paragraph 2 : The lunar calendar is synchronized to the lunar month rather than the solar year. Since the lunar month is twenty-nine and a half days long, most lunar calendars have alternating months of twenty-nine and thirty days. A twelve-month lunar year thus has 354 days, 11 days shorter than a solar year.

**How is the information in the passage organized?

• Characteristics of the solar calendar are outlined.

• Two types of calendars are described.

• The strengths and weakness of the lunar calendar are described.

• The length of each existing calendar is contrasted.

Ice ages, those periods when ice covered extensive areas of the Earth, are known to have occurred at least six times. Past ice ages can be recognized from rock strata that show evidence of foreign materials deposited by moving walls of ice or melting glaciers. Ice ages can also be recognized from land formations that have been produced from moving walls of ice, such as U-shaped valleys, sculptured landscapes, and polished rock faces.

** According to the passage, what happens

during an ice age?

• Rock strata are recognized by geologists.

• Evidence of foreign materials is found.

• Ice covers a large portion of the Earth’s surface.

• Ice melts six times.

Ice ages, those periods when ice covered extensive areas of the Earth, are known to have occurred at least six times. Past ice ages can be recognized from rock strata that show evidence of foreign materials deposited by moving walls of ice or melting glaciers. Ice ages can also be recognized from land formations that have been produced from moving walls of ice, such as U-shaped valleys, sculptured landscapes, and polished rock faces.

** The passage covers how many different methods of recognizing past ice ages?

• one

• two

• three

• four

Ice ages, those periods when ice covered extensive areas of the Earth, are known to have occurred at least six times. Past ice ages can be recognized from rock strata that show evidence of foreign materials deposited by moving walls of ice or melting glaciers. Ice ages can also be recognized from land formations that have been produced from moving walls of ice, such as U-shaped valleys, sculptured landscapes, and polished rock faces.

** According to the passage, what in the rock strata is a clue to geologists of a past ice age?

• Ice

• Melting glaciers

• U-shaped valleys

• Substances from other areas

The human heart is divided into four chambers, each of which serves its own function in the cycle of pumping blood. The atria are the thin-walled upper chambers that gather blood as it flows from the veins between heartbeats. The ventricles are the thick-walled lower chambers that receive blood from the atria and push it into the arteries with each contraction of the heart. The left atrium and ventricle work separately from those on the right. The role of the chambers on the right side of

the heart is to receive oxygen-depleted blood from the body tissues and send it on to the lungs; the chambers on the left side of the heart then receive the oxygen enriched blood from the lungs and send it back out to the body tissues.

**The passage indicates that the ventricles

• have relatively thin walls

• send blood to the atria

• are above the atria

• force blood into the arteries

The human heart is divided into four chambers, each of which serves its own function in the cycle of pumping blood. The atria are the thin-walled upper chambers that gather blood as it flows from the veins between heartbeats. The ventricles are the thick-walled lower chambers that receive blood from the atria and push it into the arteries with each contraction of the heart. The left atrium and ventricle work separately from those on the right. The role of the chambers on the right side of

the heart is to receive oxygen-depleted blood from the body tissues and send it on to the lungs; the chambers on the left side of the heart then receive the oxygen enriched blood from the lungs and send it back out to the body tissues.

**According to the passage, when is blood pushed into the arteries from the ventricles?

• As the heart beats

• Between heartbeats

• Before each contraction of the heart

• Before it is received by the atria

The human heart is divided into four chambers, each of which serves its own function in the cycle of pumping blood. The atria are the thin-walled upper chambers that gather blood as it flows from the veins between heartbeats. The ventricles are the thick-walled lower chambers that receive blood from the atria and push it into the arteries with each contraction of the heart. The left atrium and ventricle work separately from those on the right. The role of the chambers on the right side of

the heart is to receive oxygen-depleted blood from the body tissues and send it on to the lungs; the chambers on the left side of the heart then receive the oxygen enriched blood from the lungs and send it back out to the body tissues.

**According to the passage, which part of the heart gets blood from the body tissues and passes it on to the lungs?

• The atria

• The ventricles

• The right atrium and ventricle

• The left atrium and ventricle