TEAS 7 Full Mock Test 1 - 170 Questions With Answers

All 170 questions of Full Mock Test 1 in one page: every question, the correct answer (marked ✓, bold checkbox marks are the answer key), and a full explanation. The exam itself is timed and section-locked here; this page is for study and review.

Reading - 45 questions, 55 minutes

Key ideas & details, craft & structure, integration of knowledge & ideas.

Building more bike lanes is the fastest way to make our streets safer for everyone, and the objections to them crumble on inspection. Drivers complain that a bike lane removes a lane of car traffic, but a single bicycle takes far less road space than a car, and every person who rides instead of drives is one less vehicle squeezing through the intersection. Merchants worry that cyclists never stop to shop, yet studies in cities with protected lanes show that people who arrive by bike visit local shops more often, not less, because parking is easier and trips are shorter. The safety argument is the strongest: protected lanes separate riders from motor traffic, and cities that add them see injuries to cyclists fall sharply while drivers' travel times barely change. Opponents say the lanes are used only in good weather and sit empty in winter, but the same is true of sidewalks, and no one proposes removing those. A street designed for bikes is a street designed for people, and that is a design worth paying for.

Q1 Which of the following best states the main point of the passage?

A. Protected bike lanes make streets safer and benefit riders and nearby businesses despite common objections. ✓

B. Bike lanes are a waste of money because few people ride bicycles.

C. Drivers should have priority over cyclists on all city streets.

D. Cycling should be allowed only in good weather months.

The passage answers objections about traffic, business, and winter use and argues that protected lanes reduce injuries, so A states the main idea. B is the position of the opponents the author refutes. C is the opposite of the author's view. D is an objection the author dismisses by comparing lanes to sidewalks.

Sleep is not a single state but a cycle of stages that repeats several times each night. The body moves from light sleep into deeper stages in which brain waves slow, and then into rapid eye movement, or REM, sleep, the stage most often associated with vivid dreaming. One complete cycle lasts roughly ninety minutes, and the proportion of time spent in REM grows with each repetition, so the longest REM periods occur in the final hours before waking. The daily rhythm of sleep and wakefulness is governed by an internal clock in the brain, which is synchronized to the outside world mainly by light. When light enters the eyes in the morning, the clock suppresses the production of melatonin, a hormone that promotes sleepiness, and the body becomes alert. At night the same clock signals the pineal gland to release melatonin, helping the person drift toward sleep. Disruptions to this system, such as shift work or bright screens late in the evening, can push the clock out of alignment with the social day, leaving people sleepy when they need to be awake and restless when they need to rest.

Q2 Which of the following statements about REM sleep is best supported by the passage?

A. REM sleep occurs only at the very beginning of the night.

B. A person spends more time in REM sleep near the end of the night than near the beginning. ✓

C. REM sleep cannot begin until melatonin is released.

D. Every REM stage lasts exactly ninety minutes.

The passage says the proportion of time spent in REM grows with each repetition, so the longest REM periods occur in the final hours before waking, which supports B. A states the opposite. C links REM to melatonin, but the passage never makes that connection. D confuses the length of a full sleep cycle with the length of a REM stage.

Honeybees find flowers, carry the location back to the hive, and tell other workers where the flowers are by dancing. During the waggle dance, a bee runs straight ahead while waggling its abdomen, then loops back to the starting point and repeats. The angle of the straight run relative to the pull of gravity on the vertical comb indicates the direction of the food relative to the sun: a straight run straight up means fly toward the sun, while an angle to the right of vertical means fly that many degrees to the right of the sun. The duration of the waggle run signals distance, so a long run means the food is far away. Food close to the hive is announced by a simpler round dance that carries no direction. For decades researchers debated whether recruits actually used the dance or simply followed the scent of the flowers carried on the dancer's body. In a classic experiment, bees recruited to a feeder the dancer had never visited and that bore no odor, so the dance itself had to supply the information.

Q3 According to the passage, the direction of food is encoded by the angle of the dance relative to pilot

A. the number of other bees watching the dance.

B. the position of the sun as translated to the comb. ✓

C. the strength of the scent carried by the dancer.

D. the time of day the bee returns to the hive.

The passage states the straight-run angle is measured against gravity on the comb, which stands in for the sun. The other options are details the passage does not use to encode direction.

Twice a year, billions of birds leave the places where they breed and fly to places where they can survive the winter, then fly home again. The ruby-throated hummingbird, which weighs less than a nickel, crosses the Gulf of Mexico in a single nonstop flight of more than eight hundred kilometers, burning fat it stored during weeks of heavy feeding. Scientists once assumed that young birds learned migration routes by following their parents, but many species migrate alone, with young birds making their first journey without any guide. Experiments with caged birds show that they know which direction to fly at migration time, and that they judge direction from the stars at night and the sun by day. Magnetic fields inside the Earth provide an additional compass that works even in clouds. Migration is not one behavior but a suite of them: fattening, restless nightly activity, and direction-finding all switch on together as days shorten. Because the trigger is day length, a change in climate that shifts the timing of food and insects can leave a bird arriving at the right season for its own clock but the wrong one for its meal.

Q4 The author most likely includes the detail that the ruby-throated hummingbird 'weighs less than a nickel' in order to...

A. emphasize how remarkable it is that such a tiny bird crosses the Gulf in one flight. ✓

B. prove that hummingbirds are too small to migrate successfully.

C. compare hummingbirds with coins for collectors.

D. explain why hummingbirds must migrate during the day.

The detail of the nickel-sized weight comes right before the bird's eight-hundred-kilometer nonstop flight, so it is meant to make that feat striking, A. B contradicts the passage, which describes the crossing as successful. C is a literal misreading. D is unsupported, since the passage does not say when hummingbirds cross.

A campus without gardens is a campus that wastes its own resources. Student-run plots on unused lawns would feed the food pantry, teach planting skills that transfer to community work, and give stressed students a low-pressure reason to go outside. Opponents of the proposal will say that maintenance costs money and that every square meter of campus is already spoken for. Both objections deserve answers. A garden staffed by volunteers costs little beyond seeds and soil, and the plots proposed occupy corners that host no classes, no housing, and no events. The real question is not whether the college can afford a garden program but whether it can afford not to have one, given what the program returns in food, skills, and calm. The administration should fund a pilot plot next semester, measure the harvest and the participation, and let the results argue for a permanent program.

Q5 Which of the following is presented in the passage as an objection the author answers?

A. Gardens attract insects and pests.

B. Students do not have enough free time to garden.

C. Maintenance costs money and campus land is already in use. ✓

D. The food pantry already has enough produce.

The author names two objections, that maintenance costs money and every square meter is spoken for, and answers both. The other objections do not appear in the passage.

Mangrove forests stand where most trees cannot grow: in salty tidal water along tropical coasts. Their tangled roots rise above the mud at low tide and flood completely at high tide, creating a nursery for fish, crabs, and shrimp that shelter among the root masses until they are large enough to survive in open water. Mangroves also defend the coast. The dense network of trunks and roots slows incoming waves and traps sediment, so shorelines ringed by mangroves erode more slowly and suffer less damage from storm surges than bare shores do. For decades these forests were dismissed as useless swamps and cleared for timber, shrimp ponds, or coastal development, and many countries lost more than half of their original cover. Restoration projects have since shown that the losses are not permanent: where tidal flow is restored and seedlings are planted, the forest can rebound within a generation, bringing the fish nurseries and the coastal protection back with it. Scientists now rank mangroves among the most valuable habitats on Earth per hectare, storing carbon in their waterlogged soils for centuries.

Q6 How does the author arrange the information in this passage?

A. It describes a habitat, explains its functions, then recounts its decline and recovery. ✓

B. It gives numbered instructions for planting mangrove seedlings.

C. It presents two opposing views and gives each equal space.

D. It narrates the career of a tropical ecologist from beginning to end.

The passage moves from a description of mangrove roots and their nurseries to the protective role of the forest, then to past destruction and present restoration, which matches A. B is wrong because no instructions appear. C is wrong because no opposing viewpoint is presented. D is wrong because no person's career is narrated.

Before 1840, sending a letter in Britain was expensive and chaotic. Postage was calculated by the distance the letter traveled and by the number of sheets, and the charge was usually paid by the recipient, who could refuse delivery if the price seemed too high. The Reform: Reformers such as Rowland Hill argued that distance mattered little compared with the cost of sorting and handling, and that a flat, prepaid rate would increase volume so dramatically that total revenue would rise even as the price fell. His plan became law with the introduction of the penny post, a uniform rate of one penny for any letter up to half an ounce, paid in advance by the sender through the newly invented adhesive postage stamp. The Result: Volume did indeed explode, from roughly seventy-six million letters a year to more than three hundred million within a decade. The stamp also changed the postal worker's job: clerks no longer haggled over rates and simply canceled the stamp with an ink mark. Collectors and historians alike point to the penny post as the moment mailing became a mass activity rather than a luxury of the wealthy.

Q7 Why does the author divide the passage under the headings 'The Reform' and 'The Result'?

A. To signal the focus of each section and show the events in chronological order. ✓

B. To persuade readers to start collecting postage stamps.

C. To compare the British postal system with postal systems abroad.

D. To describe the physical appearance of the first postage stamp.

The headings label the reform that fixed the costly old system and the consequences that followed, which lets readers follow a chronological cause-and-effect account, so A is correct. B is wrong because the passage never urges stamp collecting. C is wrong because no foreign postal system is discussed. D is wrong because the passage does not describe the stamp's appearance.

In a study of coastal wetland restoration, researchers selected twelve former marsh sites that had been drained for agriculture, restored eight of them by reconnecting tidal flow, and left four undisturbed as comparison plots. Over three years they sampled nitrate levels in the water leaving each site and counted breeding bird species each spring. At every sampling date, the restored plots removed nitrate at rates close to those of an intact reference marsh, while the comparison plots showed little change. Bird species richness in the restored sites climbed from an average of three to an average of fourteen species by the third spring. The authors urge caution: the sites lie in one region, the study ran for only three years, and restored wetlands can take decades to approach full function. Still, the pattern was consistent, and the team argues that modest restoration efforts can deliver measurable water-quality and habitat gains within a few years.

Q8 The authors caution that the study's findings may not apply elsewhere mainly because

A. the restored sites were compared only with intact marshes.

B. the researchers could not count birds accurately.

C. the sites are in one region and the study ran only three years. ✓

D. nitrate sampling was done only once.

The passage lists one region and a three-year window as the limits on generalization. The other options describe limits the passage does not mention.

Nearly every tissue in the body runs on a daily schedule, and the clock that sets the schedule sits deep in the brain. The suprachiasmatic nucleus, a cluster of about twenty thousand neurons, receives light signals from the eyes, and those signals keep the body's internal time close to the rising and setting of the sun. In dim conditions the pineal gland releases melatonin, the hormone that eases the body into sleep. The system is not fixed, however. During adolescence the internal clock shifts later, a phase delay that makes genuinely early bedtimes difficult for teenagers even when they want them. A wave of research on later school start times found that moving the first bell later improved attendance and mood in adolescents whose schedules had been out of step with their internal clocks. The practical lesson is that a habit described as laziness may actually be a biological schedule that conflicts with an early alarm clock.

Q9 What is the passage mainly about?

A. Why insomnia is more common in older adults.

B. How melatonin is manufactured in the pineal gland.

C. How the body's internal clock controls the daily cycle of sleep. ✓

D. Why school start times should be earlier for teenagers.

The passage explains the brain clock, light, melatonin, and how the clock shifts in adolescence, all about the internal schedule of sleep. The other options name details or reverse the passage's point.

Q10 What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Honeybees use a dance to tell other workers where food is located. ✓

B. Honeybees find food mainly by following the scent of flowers.

C. The waggle dance is performed only when flowers are close to the hive.

D. Researchers still know almost nothing about how honeybees communicate.

The passage explains how the waggle dance works and shows it communicates location. Scent is mentioned only as a rejected alternative, the dance is used for far food, and researchers do know how it works, so those options fail.

In the eighteenth century, smallpox was among the most feared diseases in the world, killing roughly three of every ten people it infected and scarring many of the survivors. Physicians noticed that people who had survived the disease never caught it again, and some practiced inoculation, deliberately giving a mild case to a healthy person, a risky procedure that could itself spread the disease. In 1796 a country doctor named Edward Jenner tested a safer idea. He had heard country stories that milkmaids who caught cowpox, a mild disease of cattle, seemed protected from smallpox. Jenner took fluid from a milkmaid's cowpox sore and scratched it into the arm of a young boy, who developed a mild illness and, when later exposed to smallpox, did not become sick. Jenner called the procedure vaccination, from the Latin word for cow. His method spread across Europe and beyond, replacing the riskier inoculation, and over the next two centuries vaccination drove smallpox out of every country until 1980, when the disease was declared eradicated, the first disease ever wiped out by human effort.

Q11 What conclusion is best supported by the passage's account of Jenner's experiment?

A. Cowpox and smallpox are caused by completely unrelated fluids.

B. The boy in the experiment had already survived smallpox.

C. Exposure to cowpox could protect a person from smallpox. ✓

D. Vaccination was immediately accepted everywhere without debate.

Jenner drew on milkmaids' stories that cowpox protected against smallpox, and his vaccinated boy stayed healthy when later exposed, so the account supports C. A is contradicted by the very mechanism Jenner tested. B is wrong, since the boy was chosen because he had not had smallpox. D is unsupported, since the passage only says the method spread; it does not claim instant universal acceptance.

The owl was the size of a coffee cup, a fledgling that had tumbled from a nest in the old cottonwood and lay shivering in the grass, one wing bent at an angle no bird should manage. Theo's father, a wildlife rescuer, examined it with careful hands and pronounced it lucky: no broken bones, only a torn flight feather. 'We cannot keep it,' he said. 'Our job is to make it strong enough to refuse us.' For three weeks they fed the owlet scraps of chicken and watched it grow fierce. It learned to grip a branch, then to hop, then to fly short bursts across the yard. The night before the release, Theo sat in the dark and watched the owl preen its new feather. 'What if it comes back?' he asked. His father shrugged. 'Then we have a very spoiled owl.' In the morning they carried the crate to the cottonwood. The owl blinked at the open door, took a long look at the yard, and lifted off through the branches without once looking back. Theo stood watching until the gray shape vanished into the trees, and he felt proud of a thing he had only helped let go.

Q12 What does the father most likely mean by saying, 'Our job is to make it strong enough to refuse us'?

A. The owl should learn to scare away strangers.

B. The owl will attack anyone who feeds it.

C. The family must teach the owl to catch coffee cups.

D. Their goal is to help the owl become independent so it can live in the wild. ✓

The father is explaining that the family's purpose is to restore the owl's health so it no longer needs them, which is D. A misreads 'refuse us' as aggression rather than independence. B is unsupported. C is a literal joke reading of the earlier simile and has no support in the text.

Every autumn the same drama plays out across the temperate forests, yet the chemistry behind it is rarely told. Leaves are green because they are full of chlorophyll, the pigment that captures sunlight for photosynthesis. Chlorophyll is expensive for a tree to build, so as days shorten and nights cool, deciduous trees begin to break it down and salvage its nitrogen, storing it in the trunk and roots. As the green fades, pigments that were hidden all summer become visible: carotenoids, which give carrots their orange color, and anthocyanins, which are produced fresh as the sugars in the leaf are trapped by the closing veins and react to form reds and purples. The variety of color depends on weather: warm, sunny autumn days and cool, frost-free nights favor brilliant reds, while cloudy, wet autumns produce yellower displays, because the extra light and trapped sugar drive more anthocyanin production. Eventually the leaf separates from the branch along a layer of weak cells, and the wind does the rest.

Q13 Based on the passage, a region that has a cloudy, wet autumn would most likely show leaves that are...

A. mostly red and purple.

B. more yellow than red. ✓

C. still full of chlorophyll.

D. colorless and gray.

The passage says cloudy, wet autumns produce yellower displays because sunlight and trapped sugar drive anthocyanin production, so B follows. A describes the effect of warm, sunny days with cool frost-free nights. C is contradicted, since chlorophyll breaks down in autumn regardless. D is unsupported, since yellow pigments still appear.

Q14 According to the passage, in what order do the hummingbird's preparations and journey occur?

A. It crosses the Gulf first, then stores fat during weeks of heavy feeding.

B. It waits for a full moon before storing any fat.

C. It learns the route from its parents, then flies alone.

D. It stores fat during weeks of heavy feeding, then makes the nonstop flight. ✓

The passage says the hummingbird crosses the Gulf in a single nonstop flight, burning fat it stored during weeks of heavy feeding, so the feeding comes first, D. A reverses the order. B introduces a moon detail that never appears. C is contradicted, since young birds of many species migrate without guides.

The clock had stood in the hallway for three generations, and when the chime went flat, it was Rosa who noticed. Her grandmother claimed the clock had never been right since the war, but Rosa's grandfather, a watchmaker before he retired, said a clock that struck eleven at half past nine was not mysterious, only neglected. 'It wants cleaning, not patience,' he told them, and Rosa asked to help. Together they lifted the weights, laid the works on newspaper, and brushed years of dust from the brass gears. Rosa learned the names of the parts, the escape wheel, the anchor, the pendulum, and how a tiny length of wire could cost the clock a minute a week. When they hung the weights again and set the pendulum swinging, the clock ticked with a steady, confident beat, and at ten o'clock it struck ten. The old man smiled at Rosa. 'Keep it wound,' he said, 'and it will outlast us both.' Rosa wound it every Sunday after that, and the clock kept the family's time.

Q15 According to the passage, what does Rosa learn can make the clock lose a minute a week?

A. A dusty set of brass gears.

B. A crooked pendulum.

C. A loose weight.

D. A tiny length of wire. ✓

The passage says Rosa learned how a tiny length of wire could cost the clock a minute a week, so D is the stated detail. A is what the dust and cleaning addressed, but the passage ties the minute a week specifically to the wire. B and C never appear.

Vaccination is one of the oldest tools of preventive medicine, and it developed through centuries of experiment. In parts of Asia, healers practiced variolation, deliberately exposing a person to material from a mild case of smallpox, with the risk that the exposure itself could cause severe disease. In 1796 the English physician Edward Jenner showed that material from cowpox, a milder relative of smallpox, conferred protection without causing the disease, and he called the procedure vaccination. A century later, Louis Pasteur extended the idea by weakening microbes in the laboratory, producing the first vaccine against rabies in 1885. The twentieth century brought vaccines against tuberculosis, diphtheria, tetanus, and, from Salk in 1955 and Sabin in the 1960s, two polio vaccines. In 1980 the World Health Organization declared smallpox eradicated, the first disease removed from the world by a vaccine. Most recently, messenger RNA vaccines built a flexible platform that could be redesigned in weeks, a speed that proved decisive during the 2020 pandemic response.

Q16 According to the passage, smallpox was declared eradicated in

A. 1796.

B. 1885.

C. 1955.

D. 1980. ✓

The passage states the World Health Organization declared smallpox eradicated in 1980. The other years are those of Jenner, Pasteur, and the first Salk vaccine.

Q17 The phrase "the internal clock" is an example of

A. a metaphor. ✓

B. a definition.

C. a statistical claim.

D. a direct quotation.

Calling the brain's timing system a clock compares it to a device it resembles, which is a metaphor. It is not an official definition, a number, or a quotation.

Covering most of the planet, the ocean is never still. Surface currents, driven mainly by the wind, move warm water along predictable paths, but beneath them runs a slower, grander circulation powered by differences in temperature and saltiness. In the polar seas, surface water grows cold and dense, and as sea ice forms it leaves extra salt behind, making the water heavier still. That heavy water sinks and spreads along the ocean floor toward the equator, while warmer water flows north to replace it. This conveyor-like system connects all of the ocean basins: a drop of water can take a thousand years to complete the loop, carrying heat, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen with it. The circulation also shapes climate. The warm surface flow that reaches the North Atlantic releases heat to the air, keeping western European winters milder than the latitude alone would suggest. Scientists monitor the current with instrument buoys because melting ice and heavier rainfall could add fresh water to the North Atlantic, and too much fresh water would make the surface layer less dense, slowing the sinking that drives the whole system.

Q18 According to the passage, what could slow the sinking that drives the ocean circulation?

A. Too much fresh water added to the North Atlantic by melting ice and heavy rainfall. ✓

B. Warmer water flowing northward from the equator.

C. Instrument buoys drifting with the surface current.

D. The release of heat to the air over western Europe.

The passage says too much fresh water would make the surface layer less dense, slowing the sinking that drives the whole system, so A is the explicit detail. B describes the warm flow itself, which is the replacement water, not a threat to it. C describes monitoring equipment. D describes a climate effect of the current, not a cause of slowing.

Q19 Which of the following events happened first in the passage's account?

A. Jenner tested fluid from a milkmaid's cowpox sore.

B. Some physicians practiced inoculation by giving mild cases deliberately. ✓

C. Vaccination spread across Europe and beyond.

D. Smallpox was declared eradicated in 1980.

The passage says physicians practiced inoculation before presenting Jenner's 1796 test, so B is earliest. A follows B in the account, since Jenner's experiment replaced the riskier inoculation. C and D come later still, with eradication in 1980 at the end.

Q20 According to the passage, what did physicians notice about people who survived smallpox?

A. They remained contagious for the rest of their lives.

B. They never caught the disease again. ✓

C. They were more likely to catch the disease a second time.

D. They could never be safely vaccinated.

The passage states that physicians noticed people who had survived the disease never caught it again, and this observation led to inoculation, so B is the explicit detail. A and C are the opposite of the observation. D is unsupported, since vaccination later replaced the riskier practice.

Honeybees do not simply fly in search of nectar; they tell one another where the nectar is. A forager that has found a rich patch of flowers returns to the hive and performs a movement pattern on the vertical surface of the comb called the waggle dance. The dance consists of a straight run during which the bee waggles her abdomen from side to side, followed by a looping return to the starting point, repeated again and again. The angle of the straight run relative to vertical encodes the direction of the food source measured against the position of the sun, while the duration of the waggle phase encodes distance: the longer the waggle, the farther the flowers. Hive mates follow the dancer by touch, then leave to search in the indicated direction. The dance is not an invitation to feed but a message about location, and it is performed with remarkable precision, though accuracy declines when wind or hills distort the true bearing. Young bees that have never foraged can still read the dance correctly, which suggests the signal is innate rather than learned. Because the message is symbolic rather than a simple trail, scientists describe the waggle dance as a genuine form of communication.

Q21 Young bees that have never foraged can still read the waggle dance correctly. What conclusion is best supported by this information?

A. Young bees must watch the queen dance before they learn the signal.

B. The dance is understood only by bees that have visited the same flowers.

C. The ability to interpret the dance is inborn rather than acquired through experience. ✓

D. The waggle dance is performed only when a hive is preparing to swarm.

Because the passage says bees that have never foraged can still read the dance, and it explains this by suggesting the signal is innate rather than learned, C is the best-supported conclusion. A is unsupported because the passage mentions no role for the queen in teaching. B is contradicted, since inexperienced bees can read the dance. D introduces swarming, which the passage never mentions.

Thunderstorms begin inside a tall cloud whose top rises far above the freezing level. Inside that cloud, rising air carries water droplets upward, where they freeze into ice crystals and small hailstones. As the crystals and hailstones collide and rub against one another, they exchange electric charge: the lighter ice crystals carry positive charge to the top of the cloud, while the heavier hailstones leave negative charge concentrated near the bottom. The separation of charge builds an electric field between the cloud, the ground, and other clouds. When the field grows strong enough to overcome the resistance of the air, a jagged channel of ionized air, the lightning bolt, carries current in a series of rapid steps. The bolt heats the air around it to roughly five times the temperature of the sun's surface, and that sudden expansion of superheated air explodes outward as thunder. Because light travels almost instantly while sound crawls along at about a third of a kilometer per second, the delay between the flash and the rumble tells a listener how far away the storm is.

Q22 Which statement captures the main idea of the passage?

A. Lightning strikes only the tallest objects on the ground.

B. Thunderstorms are harmless because rain cools the air.

C. Hailstones are formed when lightning heats the cloud.

D. Thunderstorms generate lightning when separated electric charges discharge through the air, and thunder follows from the bolt's heat. ✓

The passage traces charge separation, the build-up of the electric field, the stepped discharge of lightning, and the heating that produces thunder, so D states the main idea. A is unsupported, since the passage never limits strikes to tall objects. B is contradicted, since storms produce dangerous lightning. C reverses the passage, which says collisions of crystals and hailstones build charge, not the reverse.

Q23 What is the central idea of the passage?

A. Migrating birds rely on built-in direction-finding abilities and stored energy to make long journeys. ✓

B. Hummingbirds are the only birds that migrate at night.

C. Young birds always learn migration routes by following their parents.

D. Climate change has ended bird migration altogether.

The passage describes fat storage, unguided first journeys, and internal compasses using sun, stars, and magnetic fields, which together support A as the main idea. B is unsupported, since the passage discusses many species. C is contradicted because many young birds migrate alone. D is contradicted, since the passage says birds still migrate even though climate shifts can cause timing problems.

Q24 The overall tone of the passage is best described as

A. neutral and factual.

B. playful and ironic.

C. anxious and uncertain.

D. urgent and reasonable. ✓

The author presses for action now (fund a pilot next semester) while calmly answering objections, which is urgent yet reasonable, not neutral, playful, or anxious.

Q25 Which new finding would most strengthen the conclusion that the dance itself carries the information?

A. The dance is performed more often in the morning than in the afternoon.

B. Dancers that cannot see the sun produce less precise dances.

C. Recruits leave the hive faster when food is abundant.

D. Bees recruited to a feeder the dancer never visited arrive there correctly. ✓

If recruits reach a feeder the dancer never visited, scent carried by the dancer cannot explain their success, which is exactly the evidence the passage already uses. The other findings concern dance quality or timing, not the source of information.

Q26 How is the passage organized?

A. As a chronological history of bee research.

B. As a comparison of two competing theories.

C. As an explanation of a process followed by a question about it. ✓

D. As a step-by-step list of how to observe bees.

The passage first explains how the dance works, then raises the decades-long question of whether recruits use scent instead, then answers it with an experiment. That matches explanation-then-question structure.

Soap cleans because it is built like a bridge between water and grease. Each soap molecule has a head that bonds readily with water and a tail that bonds readily with oil and fat. When you wash your hands, the tails burrow into the grease on your skin while the heads stay in the water, and the result is a cluster, called a micelle, with the grease trapped safely inside it. Water alone cannot lift grease because oil and water repel each other, but the micelles let the water carry the oily dirt away when you rinse. Hard water complicates the job: the calcium and magnesium dissolved in it react with soap to form a sticky scum, which is why soapsuds are hard to raise in hard water and why detergents, whose molecules are less affected by those minerals, were developed. Detergents work on the same bridge principle, but their heads are engineered to resist the minerals, so modern laundry detergents still clean in water that would turn old-fashioned soap into gray curds.

Q27 According to the passage, what is a micelle?

A. A cluster of water molecules held together by grease.

B. A protein network that stretches during washing.

C. A mineral that collects in hard water.

D. A cluster of soap molecules with grease trapped safely inside it. ✓

The passage defines a micelle as a cluster with the grease trapped safely inside it, formed when soap tails burrow into grease while the heads stay in the water, so D is correct. A misstates the structure, since grease, not water, is trapped inside. B confuses the micelle with the gluten network from a different passage. C confuses micelles with the calcium and magnesium in hard water.

The first time Mara took the tiller, her grandfather said nothing for a full ten minutes. He sat in the stern with his arms crossed, letting the little sloop wander wherever the waves pushed it. Mara waited for him to grab the wooden handle the way he grabbed everything in his workshop, firmly and without apology. Instead he watched a tern circle the mast. Finally he spoke. 'The boat will tell you what it wants,' he said. 'Your job is to listen.' Mara did not believe boats could talk, but she kept her hands loose on the tiller and began to notice how the bow shuddered whenever the sail lost wind. She eased the boat up until the fabric snapped taut again. By late afternoon she could hold a course toward the channel buoy without zigzagging. Her grandfather nodded once and pointed at the horizon. 'Tomorrow we go past the point,' he said, 'and you will find out what real weather feels like.' Mara swallowed, watching the whitecaps roll in beyond the breakwater, and felt the small thrill that always came before she was asked to do something hard.

Q28 Which word best describes the overall tone of the passage? pilot

A. Calm and reflective. ✓

B. Urgent and alarming.

C. Bitter and resentful.

D. Playful and mocking.

The scene moves at a slow, quiet pace with long silences, careful steering, and a thoughtful final exchange, so the tone is calm and reflective, A. B is wrong because nothing in the passage signals danger or haste. C is wrong because no anger or resentment appears between Mara and her grandfather. D is wrong because the grandfather's teaching is patient rather than teasing or mocking.

Q29 Which sentence best states what the passage is mainly about?

A. A family caring for an injured owl until it can fly free. ✓

B. The dangers of keeping wild owls as pets.

C. A father's career as a wildlife rescuer.

D. The nesting habits of owls in cottonwood trees.

The passage follows the owlet from its discovery, through three weeks of care and training, to its release at the cottonwood, so A is the main subject. B is contradicted, since the father insists the owl must not be kept. C is too broad and never developed. D is unsupported, since nesting habits are not described.

Every vacant lot in our city is an argument for a community garden. Where weeds and cracked asphalt now sit idle, a garden would grow food, shade, and common ground. Supporters of development often claim that open land is wasted land, but the opposite is true: a plot that produces vegetables for fifty households is doing more work than a plot that collects litter. Gardens also cool their neighborhoods. Soil and leafy plants absorb heat instead of reflecting it, and a block of gardens can measurably lower summer temperatures, reducing the strain on air conditioners and on the people who cannot afford them. Critics object that gardens bring noise or attract pests, yet managed plots visited daily by their gardeners are tidier than the empty lots they replace. The strongest argument is the simplest one: gardening connects neighbors. People who plant side by side talk to one another, swap tools, and watch each other's children, and that ordinary contact builds the trust on which a safe street depends. We do not need another study to prove it. We need shovels.

Q30 Which evidence does the passage use to support the claim that gardens cool their neighborhoods? pilot

A. Vegetables from one plot can feed fifty households.

B. Gardeners swap tools and watch each other's children.

C. Managed plots are tidier than the empty lots they replace.

D. Soil and leafy plants absorb heat instead of reflecting it. ✓

The passage supports the cooling claim by explaining that soil and leafy plants absorb heat instead of reflecting it, which is D. A supports the claim that gardens grow food, not that they cool streets. B supports the claim that gardens build neighborly trust. C answers the critics' tidiness concern rather than the cooling claim.

Q31 In the final line, 'We do not need another study to prove it. We need shovels.' what do the shovels most likely represent? pilot

A. The gardening tools that critics want to confiscate.

B. The equipment used to pave over vacant lots.

C. Practical action to start gardens rather than more debate. ✓

D. The tools postal workers use to sort mail.

The final line contrasts further study with the work of actually digging, so shovels symbolize taking practical action instead of continuing to argue, C. A is unsupported, since critics never threaten tools. B is the opposite of the author's aim. D is absurd and unrelated to the passage's argument.

Q32 From which point of view is this passage told?

A. First person, with the owl narrating its own recovery.

B. Second person, speaking directly to the reader.

C. Third person, following Theo's experiences and feelings. ✓

D. First person, with the father telling his rescue stories.

The narrator uses 'Theo' and 'his' while revealing Theo's questions and his pride at the end, so the point of view is third person centered on Theo, C. A is wrong, since the owl never narrates. B is wrong, since the reader is never addressed as 'you.' D is wrong, since the father does not speak in the first person throughout.

Q33 Which finding, if real, would most weaken the passage's claim that light is the dominant signal setting the internal clock?

A. Melatonin levels begin to rise a few hours before bedtime.

B. Bright light in the morning shifts the clock earlier in most people.

C. Blind people with no light perception maintain near-24-hour sleep rhythms. ✓

D. Teenagers with later school start times report more sleep.

If people who perceive no light still keep 24-hour rhythms, something besides light must set the clock, weakening the dominant-light claim. The other findings support the passage's account or make unrelated points.

Bread rises because of a fungus small enough to ride on a dust mote. Baker's yeast, a single-celled organism, feeds on sugars in the dough, and its metabolism produces carbon dioxide gas as a waste product. The gas collects in tiny pockets held open by gluten, the elastic protein network that forms when flour and water are mixed and kneaded. As the pockets inflate, the dough expands, and when the loaf goes into the oven, the heat kills the yeast, sets the gluten, and fixes the bubbles in place, leaving the finished bread light and airy. The same fermentation that inflates the loaf also shapes its flavor, since yeast produces acids and alcohols that give bread its slightly tangy character. Temperature controls the pace of the process: a warm kitchen speeds the yeast up, while a refrigerator slows it so dramatically that bakers can hold dough for days, developing deeper flavor. Too much heat, however, kills the yeast before the dough rises, which is why beginners are told to proof their yeast in warm, not hot, water.

Q34 According to the passage, what role does gluten play in bread dough?

A. It feeds the yeast so fermentation can begin.

B. It forms an elastic network that holds the gas pockets open. ✓

C. It turns the crust brown in the oven.

D. It adds calcium and magnesium to the flour.

The passage says gluten is the elastic protein network that forms when flour and water are mixed and kneaded, and that gas collects in tiny pockets held open by it, so B is the stated role. A describes the yeast's food, which is sugar, not gluten. C is unsupported. D confuses bread chemistry with minerals found in hard water, which belong to a different passage.

For six summers Lena had climbed the steel stairway of the fire lookout, but this was the first time she had climbed it alone. Her father, who had staffed the tower for twenty years, had retired in the spring, and the district had given her the post on trial. 'You know the signs,' he had told her. 'Smoke that lies flat means a slow burn low in the pines. Smoke that boils straight up means it has already crowned.' On her first afternoon a thin gray ribbon appeared above the ridge line, lying flat against the sky. Lena steadied her binoculars, read the compass bearing, and wrote the location in the log with hands that would not stop trembling. The radio crackled. Dispatch asked how sure she was. She looked again, counted the landmarks twice, and gave the coordinates. The crew on the ground found the fire within twenty minutes, still small enough to flank with a hand line. When her father called that night, he listened to her story and said only, 'Flat smoke. Fast call. That is the whole job.'

Q35 The detail that Lena writes in the log 'with hands that would not stop trembling' most strongly suggests that she is...

A. angry at the fire crew for arriving late.

B. bored by the quiet routine of the lookout.

C. nervous because this is her first fire alone. ✓

D. confident because her father trained her well.

Lena is on trial in her first solo shift, and her trembling hands show anxiety about the responsibility she has just carried out, so C is the best-supported reading. A is wrong because no anger is expressed. B is wrong because boredom never appears. D is weakened by the trembling detail, which undercuts easy confidence.

Q36 According to the passage, one complete sleep cycle lasts approximately how long?

A. Thirty minutes.

B. One hour.

C. Ninety minutes. ✓

D. The entire night.

The passage states that one complete cycle lasts roughly ninety minutes, so C is the correct explicit detail. A and B give durations that never appear in the passage. D is contradicted, since the passage says the cycle repeats several times each night rather than filling it all.

Elio had baked the same four kinds of bread for thirty years, and he did not believe a stranger could do it better. So when the owner hired Marta, a young woman fresh from culinary school, Elio said nothing and pointed at the flour. For a week she measured, kneaded, and shaped beside him in silence. On the eighth morning Elio noticed that the sourdough starter had been fed at midnight instead of dawn, and the loaves came out of the oven with crusts that crackled like nothing he had produced in a decade. He examined the scoring on top, the shallow cuts that let bread expand, and saw a pattern he had never tried. 'Who showed you this?' he asked. Marta shrugged. 'I read it. Then I watched the dough.' Elio stood a long time looking at the loaves. The next day he brought her the old recipe book his own teacher had given him, stamped with the year 1962, and said, 'Read this. Then watch me.' Marta took it, and for the first time that week she smiled.

Q37 What change in the sourdough starter does Elio notice on the eighth morning?

A. Marta has thrown the starter away.

B. Elio's teacher has replaced the starter.

C. The starter has been fed twice in one night.

D. The starter was fed at midnight instead of at dawn. ✓

The passage says Elio noticed that the sourdough starter had been fed at midnight instead of dawn, and the resulting loaves had crackling crusts, so D is the specific detail. A never happens. C is unsupported, since only one feeding time is mentioned. B confuses the starter with the old recipe book Elio later shares.

Q38 Which of the following events in the passage happens last?

A. Lena climbs the steel stairway of the fire lookout.

B. Dispatch asks Lena how sure she is of the location.

C. Lena's father calls to hear the story of the first fire. ✓

D. A thin gray ribbon of smoke appears above the ridge.

The passage ends with the evening phone call in which Lena's father listens and praises her, so C is the final event. A begins the passage. B and D occur in the middle, when Lena spots the smoke and radios dispatch. Only the telephone call follows the crew's successful response.

Q39 In the study described, the comparison plots were used to

A. test a second restoration method.

B. provide a baseline of what happens without restoration. ✓

C. measure nitrate levels in river water.

D. raise breeding birds for release.

The four untouched plots represent the drained, unrestored condition so the restored sites can be compared against them. The other options describe actions the passage does not attribute to them.

Q40 According to the passage, what does the angle of the waggle run relative to vertical indicate?

A. The direction of the food source measured against the position of the sun. ✓

B. The number of flowers in the patch.

C. The quality of the nectar found by the forager.

D. The time of day the forager left the hive.

The passage states that the angle of the straight run relative to vertical encodes the direction of the food source measured against the position of the sun, so A is directly supported. B and C mention details about flower quantity and nectar quality that never appear in the passage. D is also unsupported, since the dance encodes location, not time of departure.

Q41 What is the main idea of this passage about vaccination?

A. Vaccines have developed gradually over centuries of experimentation. ✓

B. Smallpox remains a serious global threat to public health.

C. Jenner invented vaccination without any earlier tradition to build on.

D. Modern vaccines work exactly the same way as variolation did.

The passage traces vaccination from variolation through Jenner, Pasteur, the twentieth-century vaccines, and mRNA, which is a story of gradual development. The other options contradict or misread the passage.

Q42 The author calls the changing colors 'the same drama' that plays out across the forests. This word choice suggests that autumn color is...

A. a rare accident of unusual weather.

B. a competition between rival trees.

C. a danger that humans should avoid.

D. a regular and striking seasonal event. ✓

Calling the yearly change a 'drama' that 'plays out' emphasizes that it is a recurring spectacle, so D captures the effect. A is wrong because the passage describes the change as annual. B misreads 'drama' as conflict between trees. C is unsupported, since nothing in the passage warns of danger.

Q43 Which statement about why water alone cannot remove grease is best supported by the passage? pilot

A. Water is too heavy to lift grease off skin.

B. Oil and water repel each other, so water cannot carry grease away. ✓

C. Grease dissolves only when the water is heated.

D. Calcium in the water destroys the grease.

The passage states that water alone cannot lift grease because oil and water repel each other, and micelles are needed to let the water carry the oily dirt away, so B is supported. A is unsupported, since weight is never mentioned. C is contradicted in spirit, since the passage explains the problem in terms of molecular attraction, not temperature. D confuses hard water minerals, which form scum, with a grease-destroying action.

Q44 Which sentence from the passage best supports the idea that mangroves protect shorelines from storm surges? pilot

A. 'Their tangled roots rise above the mud at low tide and flood completely at high tide.'

B. 'For decades these forests were dismissed as useless swamps.'

C. 'The dense network of trunks and roots slows incoming waves and traps sediment.' ✓

D. 'Many countries lost more than half of their original cover.'

Only option C directly explains how the forest weakens incoming waves and holds sediment, which is the mechanism behind storm-surge protection. A describes the tidal appearance of the roots without linking it to protection. B and D describe how the forests were undervalued and removed, which supports the decline narrative, not the protective function.

Q45 How does the passage develop its explanation of how bread rises?

A. By narrating a baker's day from morning to night.

B. By comparing bread baking in different countries.

C. By listing famous types of bread in order of popularity.

D. By tracing a step-by-step process from yeast activity to the finished loaf. ✓

The passage follows the process in order: yeast makes gas, gluten traps it in pockets, the dough expands, and oven heat sets the structure, so D describes the organization. A is wrong because no baker's day is narrated. B is wrong because no countries are compared. C is wrong because no list of bread types appears.

Mathematics - 38 questions, 57 minutes

Numbers & algebra, measurement & data. On-screen calculator available.

Q1 The sum of three consecutive whole numbers is 102. What is the smallest of the three numbers?

A. 32

B. 35

C. 33 ✓

D. 34

If the smallest is n, then n + (n + 1) + (n + 2) = 3n + 3 = 102, so 3n = 99 and n = 33. The 34 option reported the average, 102 / 3, which is the middle number, the 35 option is the largest of the three, and the 32 option subtracted 1 from the average.

Q2 Of 80 swabs tested, 18 came back positive. What percent were negative?

A. 23%

B. 22.5%

C. 78.5%

D. 77.5% ✓

Negative = 80 - 18 = 62; 62/80 = 0.775 = 77.5%. 22.5% answers the percent positive; the others are arithmetic slips on 62/80.

Q3 Seven waiting times in minutes: 8, 12, 5, 22, 14, 9, 31. What is the median?

A. 13

B. 14

C. 12 ✓

D. 9

Ordered: 5, 8, 9, 12, 14, 22, 31. The middle (4th) value is 12. 14 is the value just above the median, 9 is below it, and 13 miscomputes the mean.

Q4 A medical jacket is marked down 30% and now sells for $56. What was the original price?

A. 72.80

B. 16.80

C. 80 ✓

D. 39.20

The sale price is 70% of the original, so divide $56 by 0.70 to get $80. The 72.80 option instead added 30% of the sale price to the sale price, the 39.20 option subtracted 30% a second time to double the discount, and the 16.80 option reported the discount amount itself.

Q5 A stretcher and gear weigh 165 lb. Each patient adds 85 lb, and the load must stay under 600 lb. At most how many patients can be loaded? pilot

A. 7

B. 5 ✓

C. 4

D. 6

85n <= 600 - 165 = 435, so n <= 5.1. The largest whole number that fits is 5. Choosing 6 exceeds the limit; 4 and 7 come from subtraction slips.

Q6 A dose is ordered as 0.8 mg. The stock vial is labelled 500 micrograms per mL. How many mL deliver the ordered dose? (1 mg = 1,000 mcg)

A. 0.4

B. 1.6 ✓

C. 16

D. 1.25

0.8 mg = 800 mcg. At 500 mcg/mL: 800/500 = 1.6 mL. 0.4 divides by 2,000; 1.25 inverts the division; 16 slips the decimal in the mg-to-mcg conversion.

Q7 A bag contains 3 red, 4 blue, and 3 white chips. One chip is drawn at random. What is the probability that it is NOT blue?

A. 3/5 ✓

B. 2/5

C. 1/2

D. 3/10

There are 10 chips total and 6 that are not blue, so the probability is 6/10 = 3/5. The 2/5 option answered the probability of drawing blue, the 3/10 option used only the red or only the white chips, and the 1/2 option miscounted the total as 10 with only 5 non-blue chips.

Q8 If x = 4 and y = 2, what is the value of 3x^2 - y^2? pilot

A. 12

B. 46

C. 44 ✓

D. 40

Square each variable first: x^2 = 16 and y^2 = 4, so 3 x 16 - 4 = 48 - 4 = 44. The 40 option treated y^2 as x times y (subtracting 8), the 46 option used y = 2 instead of y^2 = 4, and the 12 option multiplied 3 x 4 and ignored the squares.

Q9 Solve for x: 2(x + 4) = 3(x - 1).

A. 7

B. 11 ✓

C. -11

D. 5

Expand: 2x + 8 = 3x - 3. Subtract 2x: 8 = x - 3. Add 3: x = 11. 7 and 5 come from distributing to only one term; -11 flips the sign when moving terms.

Q10 A square garden has a side length of 6.5 m. What is its perimeter? pilot

A. 24

B. 42.25

C. 13

D. 26 ✓

A square has four equal sides, so the perimeter is 4 x 6.5 = 26 m. The 42.25 option computed the area instead, the 13 option added just two sides, and the 24 option used a side length of 6 m by misreading 6.5.

Q11 Four shifts record intakes of 42, 51, 38, and 49 patients. What is the mean intake per shift?

A. 46

B. 44

C. 45 ✓

D. 48

42 + 51 + 38 + 49 = 180; 180/4 = 45. 44 and 46 are addition slips; 48 averages only the two largest values.

Q12 A bag holds 1,750 mL of fluid. How many liters is that?

A. 175 L

B. 0.175 L

C. 17.5 L

D. 1.75 L ✓

1,000 mL = 1 L, so 1,750 mL = 1.75 L. 17.5, 0.175 and 175 shift the decimal the wrong number of places.

Q13 Four deliveries took 14, 18, 12, and 16 minutes. What was the mean delivery time?

A. 16

B. 60

C. 14

D. 15 ✓

Add the four times (14 + 18 + 12 + 16 = 60) and divide by the count, 4, to get 15 minutes. The 14 and 16 options are individual data values, and the 60 option reported the total time without dividing by 4.

Q14 Weekly admissions: 40, 44, 52, 61, 73. Which statement best describes the trend?

A. Admissions increase, but the increases shrink each week

B. Admissions increase, and the increases grow each week ✓

C. Admissions decrease after the third week

D. Admissions increase by the same amount each week

Differences are 4, 8, 9, 12 - positive and growing, so growth is accelerating. A constant increase would need equal differences; shrinking increases contradicts them; there is no decrease.

Q15 A fluid bag holds 2.5 L. How many milliliters does it hold? (1 L = 1,000 mL)

A. 25000

B. 250

C. 2500 ✓

D. 25

Multiply liters by 1,000: 2.5 x 1,000 = 2,500 mL. The 250 option multiplied by 100, the 25 option multiplied by 10, and the 25,000 option multiplied by 10,000, each a decimal-place slip in the conversion factor.

Q16 Round 7.458 to the nearest tenth.

A. 7.5 ✓

B. 7.4

C. 7.45

D. 7.46

The tenths digit is 4, and the hundredths digit is 5, which rounds the tenths digit up, so 7.458 rounds to 7.5. The 7.4 option truncated the number instead of rounding, the 7.46 option rounded to the nearest hundredth, and the 7.45 option dropped the final 8.

Q17 A medication label reads 50 mg per 2 mL. An order calls for 75 mg. How many milliliters should be given? pilot

A. 150

B. 3 ✓

C. 2

D. 1.5

The dose is 75 / 50 = 1.5 times the label amount, so multiply the label volume by 1.5: 2 x 1.5 = 3 mL. The 1.5 option stopped at the ratio without multiplying by the volume, the 2 option used the label volume directly, and the 150 option multiplied 75 by 2.

Q18 A technician's hourly wage falls from $26.50 to $22.10. Which value is closest to the percent decrease?

A. 16.6% ✓

B. 13.6%

C. 19.9%

D. 18.6%

Percent change uses the ORIGINAL value as the base: (26.50 - 22.10)/26.50 = 4.40/26.50 = 16.6%. Using the new wage as the base gives 19.9% - the classic error. The other two are rounding slips.

Q19 A community clinic sees 80 patients in a day, and 35% of them are children. How many of the day's patients are children?

A. 45

B. 28 ✓

C. 2.8

D. 35

Change 35% to 0.35 and multiply by 80: 80 x 0.35 = 28 children. The 2.8 option misplaced the decimal (multiplying by 3.5), the 35 option mistook the percent itself for a count, and the 45 option subtracted 35 from 80 instead of taking 35% of it.

Q20 A saline solution is mixed from 3 parts saline to 5 parts water. How many milliliters of saline are in 400 mL of the mixed solution?

A. 240

B. 250

C. 133.3

D. 150 ✓

The total has 8 parts, and saline is 3 of them, so saline = 400 x 3/8 = 150 mL. The 250 option answered the water volume instead, the 240 option used the 3:5 ratio directly without adding the parts, and the 133.3 option divided 400 by 3.

Q21 A procedure takes 2 hours 45 minutes. How many minutes is that?

A. 270

B. 145

C. 165 ✓

D. 205

2 h = 120 min; 120 + 45 = 165 min. 205 and 145 are hour-to-minute slips; 270 treats 45 min as an hour.

Q22 Evaluate the expression: 18 - 6 / 3 + 5.

A. 9

B. 17

C. 16

D. 21 ✓

Division comes first: 6 / 3 = 2, then 18 - 2 = 16, and finally 16 + 5 = 21. The 9 option worked strictly left to right, the 17 option skipped the division entirely (18 - 6 + 5), and the 16 option stopped after the subtraction step.

Q23 A monthly budget is $2,400, and a pie chart shows rent at 40% of the budget. If next month's rent rises by 15%, what will the new rent be?

A. 960

B. 1104 ✓

C. 1128

D. 1140

Current rent is 40% of 2,400, or 960 dollars, and a 15% increase makes it 960 x 1.15 = $1,104. The 960 option reported the old rent without applying the increase, the 1,128 option used 47% of the budget, and the 1,140 option applied the increase to the whole budget instead of to the rent.

Q24 A pump log reads: 0 min = 0 mL, 30 min = 48 mL, 60 min = 96 mL, 90 min = 144 mL. What is the flow rate in mL per hour?

A. 144

B. 48

C. 96 ✓

D. 192

From 0 to 60 min the volume rises 96 mL, so the rate is 96 mL/hour (48 mL per 30 min x 2). 48 is the half-hour rate; 192 and 144 double-count or read the 90-minute total as hourly.

Q25 Blood pressures logged (systolic): 118, 132, 126, 141, 129. What is the range?

A. 23 ✓

B. 19

C. 27

D. 13

The range is the difference between the largest and smallest readings: 141 - 118 = 23. Option 27 comes from subtracting a non-extreme pair, while 19 and 13 use values that are not the true extremes of the set.

Q26 A clipboard sheet lists output every 2 hours: 60 mL, 75 mL, 55 mL, 70 mL. What is the total output recorded?

A. 250 mL

B. 260 mL ✓

C. 270 mL

D. 240 mL

The clipboard output totals 60 + 75 + 55 + 70 = 260 mL. The wrong totals come from adding one of the four values twice or leaving one out entirely, both easy slips when reading a table quickly.

Q27 Twice a number, decreased by 5, equals 31. What is the number?

A. 36

B. 13

C. 26

D. 18 ✓

Let the number be n: 2n - 5 = 31, so 2n = 36 and n = 18. The 13 option subtracted 5 from 31 before doubling, the 26 option solved 31 - 5 but forgot to divide by 2, and the 36 option reported 2n instead of n.

Q28 A solution's concentration is 0.08. Express this decimal as a fraction in lowest terms.

A. 8/10

B. 2/25 ✓

C. 1/8

D. 4/5

The decimal 0.08 is 8 hundredths, or 8/100, which reduces by the common factor 4 to 2/25. The 8/10 and 4/5 options treat 0.08 as 0.8 (decimal misplaced), and the 1/8 option inverts the relationship between 8 and 100.

Q29 A newborn weighs 3.4 kg. How many grams is that?

A. 3,400 g ✓

B. 340 g

C. 0.34 g

D. 34,000 g

1 kg = 1,000 g, so 3.4 kg = 3.4 x 1,000 = 3,400 g. 340 shifts one decimal place instead of three; 34,000 shifts four; 0.34 divides.

Q30 A line graph tracking monthly temperatures reads: January 20, February 25, March 35. What was the percent increase from February to March?

A. 10%

B. 50%

C. 40% ✓

D. 28.6%

The change from February to March is 35 - 25 = 10, and 10 divided by the original February value of 25 is 0.40, or 40%. The 28.6% option divided by the new March value of 35, the 50% option used January as the base, and the 10% option mistook the raw change for a percent.

Q31 A patient's incision measures 7.5 cm. To the nearest tenth of an inch, how long is it? (1 inch = 2.54 cm)

A. 2.9 in

B. 19.1 in

C. 3.3 in

D. 3.0 in ✓

7.5 / 2.54 = 2.952 in, about 3.0 in. 2.9 and 3.3 are rounding slips; 19.1 multiplies by 2.54 instead of dividing.

Q32 Which equation represents: The quotient of a number and 4, decreased by 9, is 15?

A. n/4 + 9 = 15

B. n/4 - 9 = 15 ✓

C. 4/n - 9 = 15

D. 4n - 9 = 15

The quotient of a number and 4 means n/4; decreased by 9 subtracts 9; is means equals, so the equation is n/4 - 9 = 15. 4/n inverts the quotient, +9 flips the operation, and 4n misreads quotient as product.

Q33 Seven test scores are 72, 85, 91, 78, 85, 90, and 66. What is the median score?

A. 78

B. 81

C. 90

D. 85 ✓

Order the scores as 66, 72, 78, 85, 85, 90, 91; with 7 values the median is the 4th, which is 85. The 81 option is the mean of all seven scores instead, the 78 option is the 4th value of the unsorted list, and the 90 option is the second highest score.

Q34 An item's price increases by 20% and then decreases by 20%. Compared with the original price, the final price is:

A. 4% higher

B. 4% lower ✓

C. the same

D. 2% lower

Multiplying the price by 1.20 and then by 0.80 gives 1.20 x 0.80 = 0.96, so the final price is 96% of the original, which is 4% lower. The 'same' option wrongly assumes equal percents cancel, '4% higher' reverses the direction, and '2% lower' misreads the 0.04 product.

Q35 Temperatures recorded in degrees C: 36.8, 37.0, 36.8, 37.2, 37.0, 36.8. What is the mode?

A. 36.9

B. 37.0

C. 37.2

D. 36.8 ✓

36.8 appears three times, more than any other value, so the mode is 36.8. 37.0 appears twice; 36.9 is the approximate mean; 37.2 is the maximum.

Q36 Box A holds 24 gloves for $8.40. Box B holds 30 gloves for $10.50. Which statement about the cost per glove is correct?

A. Box A is cheaper by $0.05 per glove

B. Box B is cheaper by $0.01 per glove

C. Box A is cheaper by $0.01 per glove

D. They cost the same per glove ✓

A: 8.40/24 = $0.35 per glove. B: 10.50/30 = $0.35 per glove. Equal unit prices, so neither box is cheaper. The wrong options come from comparing totals instead of unit prices or from rounding early.

Q37 A disinfectant mixes water and concentrate in a 7:3 ratio. To make 2 liters of solution, how many milliliters of concentrate are needed?

A. 700

B. 1400

C. 600 ✓

D. 300

7 + 3 = 10 parts; each part is 2000 mL / 10 = 200 mL. Concentrate = 3 x 200 = 600 mL. 700 uses the water share; 1400 forgets to divide by 10; 300 halves instead of scaling.

Q38 An IV pump delivers 50 mL every 2 hours. At the same rate, how many mL does it deliver in 8 hours?

A. 400

B. 160

C. 200 ✓

D. 300

Rate = 50 mL / 2 h = 25 mL/h. Over 8 h: 25 x 8 = 200 mL. 160 multiplies the per-2-hour amount by the wrong factor; 400 double-counts; 300 is an arithmetic slip.

Science - 50 questions, 60 minutes

Anatomy & physiology, biology, chemistry, scientific reasoning.

Q1 In a resting neuron, the sodium-potassium pump maintains the resting membrane potential by

A. exporting three sodium ions for every two potassium ions imported, both against their gradients. ✓

B. exporting two potassium ions for every three sodium ions imported.

C. opening voltage-gated sodium channels continuously.

D. balancing ion movement with an equal exchange of one sodium for one potassium.

The pump moves 3 Na+ out and 2 K+ in per ATP, both against electrochemical gradients, creating the small negative interior charge. The other options reverse the ratio, describe gating, or predict no charge separation.

Q2 What is the main function of messenger RNA (mRNA) in a cell?

A. To carry the protein-building instructions from DNA in the nucleus to the ribosomes ✓

B. To deliver amino acids to the ribosome one at a time

C. To form the structural core of the ribosome

D. To copy the entire genome for storage in the cytoplasm

mRNA is transcribed from a gene and carries that code to ribosomes, where it directs protein assembly. Transfer RNA delivers amino acids, ribosomal RNA forms the ribosome's structure, and no molecule copies the whole genome into the cytoplasm, so carrying instructions is mRNA's role.

Q3 Which molecules are the building blocks that join together to form proteins?

A. Nucleotides

B. Amino acids ✓

C. Fatty acids

D. Monosaccharides

Proteins are chains of amino acids linked by peptide bonds, so amino acids are their monomers. Nucleotides form nucleic acids, monosaccharides form carbohydrates, and fatty acids form lipids, so amino acids are the building blocks of proteins.

Q4 Which process divides one diploid parent cell into two genetically identical diploid daughter cells?

A. Meiosis

B. Fertilization

C. Mitosis ✓

D. Binary fission

Mitosis produces two genetically identical diploid cells, which is how the body grows and repairs tissues. Meiosis yields four genetically distinct haploid gametes, binary fission is the prokaryotic division process, and fertilization fuses gametes, so only mitosis matches the description.

Q5 An atom has 11 protons, 12 neutrons, and 11 electrons. What is its mass number?

A. 12

B. 22

C. 11

D. 23 ✓

The mass number is the total number of protons plus neutrons, so 11 plus 12 equals 23. The value 11 counts only the protons, 12 counts only the neutrons, and 22 confuses protons plus electrons, so 23 is the only correct total.

Q6 Which anterior pituitary hormone stimulates the adrenal cortex to release cortisol? pilot

A. Insulin

B. Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) ✓

C. Antidiuretic hormone (ADH)

D. Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH)

ACTH from the anterior pituitary targets the adrenal cortex and drives cortisol secretion during stress. ADH acts on the kidneys to conserve water, TSH stimulates the thyroid gland, and insulin is made by the pancreas to lower blood glucose, so none of these hormones triggers cortisol release.

Q7 Which state of matter has both a definite shape and a definite volume?

A. Liquid

B. Plasma

C. Gas

D. Solid ✓

Solids keep a fixed shape and volume because their particles vibrate in a rigid, ordered arrangement. Liquids have definite volume but take the shape of their container, and gases and plasma expand to fill any container, so solid is the state with both definite properties.

Q8 Why is a larger sample size generally preferred in a research study?

A. It automatically proves causation

B. It makes a control group unnecessary

C. It reduces the influence of random variation on the results ✓

D. It guarantees the hypothesis is correct

Larger samples average out random fluctuations, making estimates more reliable and more representative of the population. Sample size cannot guarantee a correct hypothesis, replace a control group, or prove causation, so reducing random variation is the key benefit.

Q9 A thermometer consistently reads 0.5 degrees higher than the true temperature of a standard bath. This consistent offset is an example of

A. a placebo effect

B. a confounding variable

C. random error

D. systematic error ✓

A reproducible, same-direction deviation from the true value is systematic error, usually caused by miscalibration. Random error scatters readings unpredictably around the value, and placebo effects and confounding variables apply to studies of people rather than to instrument readings, so systematic error is correct.

Q10 Which blood vessels offer the greatest resistance to blood flow and therefore exert the most control over systemic blood pressure?

A. Venules

B. Capillaries

C. Arterioles ✓

D. Aorta

Arterioles are small muscular vessels whose constriction and dilation change total peripheral resistance, strongly influencing blood pressure. Capillaries are exchange vessels with little resistance, the aorta is a large elastic conduit, and venules collect blood at low pressure, so arterioles are the main resistance vessels.

Q11 A technician weighs the same sample five times and obtains nearly identical readings each time. This repeatability indicates

A. high reliability of the measurement procedure ✓

B. that the sample is changing mass during the session

C. that the measurements must also be accurate

D. that the balance is measuring the wrong property

Consistent repeated results show that the procedure is reliable, meaning measurements are repeatable. Reliability does not guarantee accuracy, because a calibrated-but-offset balance can be consistently wrong, and stable readings argue against a changing sample or a wrong property, so reliability is the correct conclusion.

Q12 How many moles of carbon dioxide are present in 88.0 g of CO2? (Molar mass of CO2 = 44.0 g/mol)

A. 4.0 moles

B. 1.0 mole

C. 2.0 moles ✓

D. 0.5 mole

Dividing the mass by the molar mass, 88.0 g divided by 44.0 g/mol, gives 2.0 moles. One mole would weigh 44.0 g, half a mole would weigh 22.0 g, and four moles would weigh 176.0 g, so 2.0 moles is the only value that matches 88.0 g.

Q13 Where does the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between air and blood actually take place?

A. Alveoli ✓

B. Bronchi

C. Bronchioles

D. Trachea

Alveoli are the thin-walled air sacs wrapped in capillaries where gases diffuse between air and blood. The trachea, bronchi, and bronchioles are conducting airways that warm and route the air but have walls too thick for gas exchange, so the alveoli are the exchange surface.

Q14 Elements in the same group of the periodic table are most similar in their

A. atomic mass.

B. number of neutrons.

C. valence electron configuration. ✓

D. radioactivity.

Same-group elements share valence electron configurations, which drives similar chemical behavior. Atomic mass and neutron number differ within a group, and radioactivity is not a group property.

Q15 Which structure surrounds every cell and controls which substances enter and leave?

A. Plasma membrane ✓

B. Cytoskeleton

C. Nucleus

D. Cell wall

The plasma membrane is the selective barrier of phospholipids and proteins that regulates what enters and leaves the cell. A cell wall is found in plants and bacteria but not animal cells, the nucleus stores DNA, and the cytoskeleton supports shape, so the plasma membrane is the gatekeeper.

Q16 An enzyme loses its ability to catalyze a reaction after being heated strongly. This loss of function is called

A. denaturation. ✓

B. saturation.

C. activation.

D. inhibition by a competitive molecule.

Strong heat unfolds the enzyme's three-dimensional structure, denaturing it so the active site no longer fits the substrate. Saturation and activation describe normal kinetics, and competitive inhibition is a reversible, specific block.

Q17 Which process moves water across a selectively permeable membrane from a low-solute region to a high-solute region?

A. Facilitated diffusion

B. Active transport

C. Osmosis ✓

D. Phagocytosis

Osmosis is the net movement of water toward the higher solute concentration so the two sides approach equilibrium. Facilitated diffusion and active transport move solutes, and phagocytosis engulfs particles.

Q18 Which blood cells transport oxygen through the body?

A. Red blood cells ✓

B. White blood cells

C. Lymphocytes

D. Platelets

Red blood cells are packed with hemoglobin, which binds oxygen and carries it to the tissues. White blood cells and lymphocytes defend against infection, and platelets help form clots, so none of those transports oxygen through the body.

Q19 What type of chemical bond forms between a metal such as sodium and a nonmetal such as chlorine in sodium chloride?

A. Ionic bond ✓

B. Covalent bond

C. Metallic bond

D. Hydrogen bond

Sodium transfers its valence electron to chlorine, producing oppositely charged ions that attract each other in an ionic bond. Covalent bonds share electrons between nonmetals, hydrogen bonds are weak attractions between polar molecules, and metallic bonds hold metal atoms in a lattice, so ionic is correct.

Q20 Which structure closes over the opening of the larynx during swallowing to keep food and liquid out of the airway?

A. Glottis

B. Hyoid bone

C. Uvula

D. Epiglottis ✓

The epiglottis is the flexible flap that folds down over the laryngeal opening during swallowing, directing food into the esophagus. The uvula hangs from the soft palate, the glottis is the vocal opening itself, and the hyoid bone anchors tongue muscles, so none of those seals off the airway.

Q21 Two atoms of the same element that differ in neutron number are called pilot

A. isotopes. ✓

B. isomers.

C. ions.

D. allotropes.

Isotopes share the proton number but differ in neutrons, so atomic mass differs while chemical identity stays. Isomers are molecules with the same formula and different structure; ions carry a net charge; allotropes are structural forms of an element.

Q22 How many milliliters are in 1.5 liters?

A. 15 mL

B. 15,000 mL

C. 150 mL

D. 1,500 mL ✓

One liter equals 1,000 milliliters, so 1.5 liters is 1.5 times 1,000, or 1,500 mL. The values 15 and 150 multiply by the wrong factors, and 15,000 would result from multiplying by 10,000, so 1,500 mL is the correct conversion.

Q23 In a trial testing a new headache medication, half the participants receive the drug and half receive an inactive tablet. What is the purpose of the inactive-tablet group? pilot

A. To provide a second dose of the same drug

B. To serve as a control that accounts for the expectation of receiving treatment ✓

C. To double the number of participants in the study

D. To let researchers identify who took the drug

The placebo group goes through the same routine as the treatment group but without the active ingredient, isolating the drug's true effect from the psychological benefit of being treated. It is not a second dose, a way to enlarge the sample, or a method of revealing who received the drug.

Q24 Which cells produce the myelin sheath that insulates axons in the peripheral nervous system?

A. Schwann cells ✓

B. Microglia

C. Astrocytes

D. Oligodendrocytes

Schwann cells wrap around peripheral axons to form myelin, which speeds impulse conduction. Oligodendrocytes perform the same task in the central nervous system instead, astrocytes support the blood-brain barrier, and microglia act as immune cells, so only Schwann cells myelinate peripheral nerves.

Q25 Which organelle is the primary site of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production in a human cell?

A. Nucleus

B. Ribosome

C. Mitochondrion ✓

D. Golgi apparatus

Mitochondria house the electron transport chain and most ATP synthesis. The nucleus stores DNA, ribosomes build proteins, and the Golgi apparatus modifies and packages proteins, so the other options do not produce ATP.

Q26 How many milligrams are in 0.004 grams?

A. 0.4 mg

B. 400 mg

C. 40 mg

D. 4 mg ✓

One gram equals 1,000 milligrams, so 0.004 g multiplied by 1,000 is 4 mg. The value 0.4 mg divides instead of multiplying, and 40 mg and 400 mg misplace the decimal point, so 4 mg is the correct conversion.

Q27 Hemoglobin carrying four oxygen molecules is described as pilot

A. fully saturated. ✓

B. oxygen-poor.

C. carbaminohemoglobin.

D. denatured.

Saturation refers to how many of the four binding sites hold oxygen, so four-bound hemoglobin is fully saturated. The other terms describe low oxygen, carbon-dioxide-bound hemoglobin, or unfolded protein.

Q28 Which hormone, released by the thyroid gland, lowers blood calcium levels and opposes the action of parathyroid hormone?

A. Calcitonin ✓

B. Aldosterone

C. Thyroxine (T4)

D. Glucagon

Calcitonin, secreted by the parafollicular cells of the thyroid, lowers blood calcium by slowing bone resorption, opposing parathyroid hormone. Thyroxine regulates metabolic rate, aldosterone controls sodium and potassium balance, and glucagon raises blood glucose, so calcitonin is the calcium-lowering hormone.

Q29 Which action most directly improves the internal validity of an experiment testing a new diet's effect on weight loss? pilot

A. Measuring each group with a different scale

B. Controlling diet and exercise so the groups differ only in the treatment being tested ✓

C. Reporting only the results that support the hypothesis

D. Letting participants choose their own group

Holding extraneous factors such as exercise constant ensures that any weight difference stems from the diet, which strengthens internal validity. Using different scales, allowing self-selection, and selective reporting introduce bias and error, so controlling the confounding factors is the correct move.

Q30 Which organelle is the site where proteins are assembled from amino acids?

A. Ribosome ✓

B. Cell membrane

C. Nucleus

D. Lysosome

Ribosomes link amino acids into polypeptide chains during translation, so they are the protein factories of the cell. Lysosomes digest cellular waste, the nucleus stores genetic information, and the cell membrane controls what enters and leaves, so none of those builds proteins.

Q31 Which structure is the functional unit of the kidney where blood is filtered and urine is formed?

A. Renal pelvis

B. Urinary bladder

C. Ureter

D. Nephron ✓

Each nephron filters blood at its glomerulus and processes the filtrate into urine along its tubules. The ureter and bladder transport and store urine, and the renal pelvis collects urine before it enters the ureter, so only the nephron performs the filtering and forming work.

Q32 Peristalsis, the movement of food through the digestive tract, is best described as

A. random spasms of the intestinal wall

B. gravity pulling food through the tract

C. rhythmic waves of smooth muscle contraction that push contents forward ✓

D. chemical breakdown of food by enzymes

Peristalsis is coordinated, wave-like contraction of smooth muscle that propels contents forward along the tract. Gravity plays little role against the tract's layout, spasms are abnormal and uncoordinated, and enzyme action is chemical digestion, so the wave description is correct.

Q33 In a double-blind drug trial, neither the participants nor the researchers know who received the drug until the study ends. This design mainly controls for

A. variation in the participants' ages

B. differences in the participants' diets

C. errors in measuring the dependent variable

D. bias caused by the expectations of participants and researchers ✓

Blinding prevents expectations from influencing outcomes or their interpretation, because neither side knows the group assignments. Measurement errors, diet differences, and age variation are separate threats handled by calibration, standardization, or randomization rather than by blinding, so expectation bias is the target.

Q34 During inhalation, the diaphragm

A. relaxes and moves upward, decreasing chest volume

B. contracts and moves upward, compressing the lungs

C. remains completely motionless

D. contracts and moves downward, increasing the volume of the chest cavity ✓

Contraction flattens the dome-shaped diaphragm downward, enlarging the thoracic cavity and lowering pressure so air flows in. Relaxing would let it rise and expel air, an upward contraction would compress the cavity, and a motionless diaphragm could not drive quiet breathing, so the downward movement is correct.

Q35 Which endocrine gland is often called the master gland because it releases hormones that control several other endocrine glands?

A. Thyroid gland

B. Pituitary gland ✓

C. Pineal gland

D. Adrenal gland

The pituitary secretes tropic hormones such as thyroid-stimulating hormone and gonadotropins that direct the thyroid, gonads, and other glands. The thyroid regulates metabolism, the adrenals manage stress responses, and the pineal makes melatonin, so the pituitary earns the master-gland label.

Q36 According to the sliding filament model, muscle fiber shortening occurs when

A. myosin heads pull actin filaments toward the center of the sarcomere. ✓

B. actin filaments slide away from the center of the sarcomere.

C. sarcomeres lengthen as calcium is pumped back into the sarcoplasmic reticulum.

D. myosin filaments shorten by folding on themselves.

Cross-bridges form between myosin heads and actin, and each power stroke slides actin toward the sarcomere center, shortening the fiber. Actin never slides away, sarcomeres do not lengthen during contraction, and myosin does not fold.

Q37 Which tissue covers the ends of bones inside a joint, allowing smooth, low-friction movement?

A. Ligament

B. Periosteum

C. Articular cartilage ✓

D. Tendon

Articular cartilage is the smooth hyaline cartilage capping the ends of bones, reducing friction and absorbing impact in joints. The periosteum is the outer membrane of bone, ligaments connect bone to bone, and tendons connect muscle to bone, so articular cartilage is the joint surface tissue.

Q38 In a monohybrid cross between two heterozygous parents (Aa x Aa), what proportion of offspring is expected to show the recessive phenotype?

A. 1/2

B. 1/3

C. 1/4 ✓

D. 3/4

The gamete ratio 1A:1a in each parent gives genotypic classes AA, Aa, aA, aa in equal quarters, so only the recessive homozygote, 1/4, shows the recessive phenotype. The other fractions come from miscounting the cross.

Q39 Which type of bond forms when electrons are shared between two nonmetal atoms?

A. Ionic bond

B. Covalent bond ✓

C. Metallic bond

D. Hydrogen bond

Covalent bonds share electron pairs between nonmetals. Ionic bonds transfer electrons between metal and nonmetal, metallic bonds involve delocalized electrons among metal atoms, and hydrogen bonds are weak intermolecular attractions.

Q40 A researcher wants to test whether different amounts of fertilizer affect bean plant height. What is the independent variable? pilot

A. The amount of fertilizer applied ✓

B. The number of days of growth

C. The height of the plants

D. The type of soil used

The independent variable is what the researcher deliberately changes, which here is the fertilizer amount. Plant height is the measured outcome, while soil type and growth time are controlled variables held constant, so only the fertilizer amount is manipulated.

Q41 Which chamber of the heart receives oxygenated blood returning from the lungs?

A. Left atrium ✓

B. Right ventricle

C. Right atrium

D. Left ventricle

Oxygenated blood from the lungs enters the left atrium through the pulmonary veins. The right atrium receives deoxygenated blood from the body, and the ventricles eject blood rather than receiving it from veins, so those choices do not fit the chamber that receives pulmonary blood.

Q42 A student testing a fertilizer waters the fertilized plants more often than the control plants and finds the fertilized group grows taller. The extra watering is best described as

A. a placebo effect in the plants

B. a confounding variable that weakens the claim about the fertilizer ✓

C. a reliable way to strengthen the conclusion

D. the dependent variable of the experiment

Because watering differed between the groups, the height difference could come from water rather than fertilizer, so the watering is a confounding variable. It is not the measured outcome, it does not improve the conclusion, and plants cannot experience placebo effects, so the description is confounding.

Q43 An organism with the genotype Aa has two different versions of a gene. Which term describes this condition?

A. Heterozygous ✓

B. Haploid

C. Phenotypic

D. Homozygous

Heterozygous means carrying two different alleles of a gene, such as A and a. Homozygous means two identical alleles, phenotypic refers to the observable traits, and haploid describes a single set of chromosomes, so heterozygous is the correct term.

Q44 Which vessel carries blood away from the glomerulus after filtration has occurred?

A. Renal artery

B. Afferent arteriole

C. Inferior vena cava

D. Efferent arteriole ✓

Blood leaves the glomerulus through the efferent arteriole, which then splits into peritubular capillaries around the tubules. The afferent arteriole delivers blood into the glomerulus, the renal artery supplies the whole kidney, and the inferior vena cava collects systemic venous blood, so the efferent arteriole drains the glomerulus.

Q45 Which organelle contains digestive enzymes that break down worn-out organelles and cellular debris?

A. Vacuole

B. Lysosome ✓

C. Peroxisome

D. Centriole

Lysosomes are membrane-bound sacs of hydrolytic enzymes that digest waste and old organelles in animal cells. Peroxisomes process fatty acids and hydrogen peroxide, vacuoles store materials, and centrioles organize spindle fibers, so lysosomes are the digestive organelles.

Q46 A researcher measures heart rate before and after volunteers drink caffeinated coffee. What is the dependent variable in this study?

A. Heart rate ✓

B. The age of the volunteers

C. The time of day the test is run

D. The amount of coffee consumed

The dependent variable is the outcome that is measured to detect an effect, which here is heart rate. The coffee amount is the independent variable being manipulated, while age and time of day are potential controlled variables, so heart rate is the dependent variable.

Q47 A study draws firm conclusions about an entire adult population from only 10 participants. The most serious weakness is

A. the independent variable is missing

B. the small sample size limits how well the results generalize ✓

C. the results cannot be measured numerically

D. a placebo group is always required

With only 10 participants, random variation can dominate and the sample may not represent the population, so the findings generalize poorly. The results can still be numeric and include an independent variable, and a placebo is not required in every study, so sample size is the key flaw.

Q48 A drug trial with 20 participants in each group finds a benefit, but a later trial with 2,000 participants per group finds none. The most likely explanation is

A. the large trial used a weaker batch of the drug.

B. the large trial measured the outcome incorrectly.

C. drugs work only in small groups of patients.

D. the small trial's result arose from sampling variability. ✓

Small samples fluctuate widely, so an apparent effect in 20 people is easily a chance result that evaporates in a large sample. The other explanations blame measurement or batch with no evidence.

Q49 A solution with a pH of 3 compared with a solution with a pH of 5 is

A. ten times more acidic.

B. one hundred times more acidic. ✓

C. ten times more basic.

D. one hundred times more basic.

Each pH unit is a tenfold change in hydrogen ion concentration, so two units means 100 times more acidic. The other options invert the direction or misapply the tenfold step.

Q50 A normal human body cell contains 46 chromosomes. How many chromosomes are present in a human gamete such as an egg or sperm?

A. 12

B. 92

C. 23 ✓

D. 46

Gametes are haploid, carrying half of the somatic chromosome number, so 46 divided by 2 equals 23. Keeping 46 would mean no reduction before fertilization doubles the count, and the other values do not follow from halving, so 23 is the correct gamete number.

English & Language Usage - 37 questions, 37 minutes

Conventions of standard English, knowledge of language, vocabulary acquisition.

Q1 Which sentence is free of redundancy?

A. Please combine together the two lists before noon.

B. The two lists were merged together before noon.

C. The assistant combined the two lists together before noon.

D. The assistant combined the two lists before noon. ✓

The verbs combine and merge already include the idea of together, so the adverb simply repeats information. Option D states the action once and is free of redundancy. Options A, B, and C each pair a verb with the redundant modifier together, which adds nothing to the meaning.

Q2 Which sentence uses than or then correctly?

A. The night shift is busier then the day shift.

B. The night shift is busier than the day shift. ✓

C. First the nurse screens the patient, and than the doctor follows up.

D. The doctor arrived then the nurse did.

Than makes comparisons, while then marks time or sequence. Option B compares two shifts, so than is correct. Option A uses the time word for the comparison, option C uses than where the sequence word then belongs, and option D uses then where a comparison after arrived is needed.

Q3 The suffix -tion turns verbs into nouns. Which word is a noun formed from the verb evaluate with that suffix?

A. evaluative

B. evaluate

C. evaluator

D. evaluation ✓

Adding -tion to the verb evaluate produces the noun evaluation, which names the act or result of evaluating. Evaluative is an adjective formed with -ive, evaluate is the base verb itself, and evaluator is a noun built with -or that names the person who evaluates rather than the process.

Q4 Which sentence avoids repeating an idea that is already stated?

A. The two brothers both agreed with each other on the plan.

B. The two brothers both agreed together on the plan.

C. The two brothers mutually agreed with one another on the plan.

D. The two brothers agreed on the plan. ✓

Redundancy repeats information the words already carry. Option D is clean because agreed already implies both parties and needs no extra qualifiers. Option A repeats the idea with both and each other, option B repeats it with both and together, and option C repeats it with mutually and one another.

Q5 Which sentence avoids cliches and jargon for a professional memo?

A. The team should begin the implementation by the end of the month. ✓

B. At the end of the day, the team needs to get the ball rolling.

C. We need to think outside the box and hit the ground running.

D. Let's circle back and touch base before we kick things off.

Clear professional writing prefers plain language over worn-out phrases. Option A states the action and the deadline directly. Option B leans on at the end of the day and get the ball rolling, option C stacks think outside the box and hit the ground running, and option D strings together circle back, touch base, and kick off.

Q6 The root dict- relates to speaking or saying. Which word contains that root? pilot

A. prevent

B. portrait

C. predict ✓

D. process

The root dict- means say or speak, and predict literally means to say beforehand, that is, to foretell. Prevent comes from a Latin root meaning to come before, portrait from a root meaning to draw or portray, and process from a root meaning to go forward, so none of the distractors carries the speaking meaning.

Q7 Which sentence uses the possessive apostrophe correctly? pilot

A. A single intern's badge opened every door on the ward. ✓

B. A single interns' badge opened every door on the ward.

C. A single intern's' badge opened every door on the ward.

D. A single interns badge opened every door on the ward.

A singular possessive is formed by adding an apostrophe and s to the noun, so one intern's badge is correct. Option B treats the single intern as plural by placing the apostrophe after the s, option C stacks two apostrophes, and option D drops the apostrophe entirely, turning the possessive into a plain plural noun.

Q8 Which transition word best completes this sentence? "The flight was delayed by four hours; ___, the crew used the time to run extra safety checks."

A. nevertheless

B. consequently ✓

C. in contrast

D. besides

The second clause states what the crew did because of the delay, so the result marker consequently fits. Nevertheless signals contrast, in contrast introduces a comparison that does not exist here, and besides signals mere addition, and none of those links the delay to the crew's action as a result.

Q9 Which sentence is punctuated correctly?

A. The ferry was delayed by fog, however; the passengers stayed calm.

B. The ferry was delayed by fog; however, the passengers stayed calm. ✓

C. The ferry was delayed by fog, however, the passengers stayed calm.

D. The ferry was delayed by fog; however the passengers stayed calm.

A conjunctive adverb such as however cannot join two complete sentences with commas alone. The correct sentence puts a semicolon before however and a comma after it. The first wrong sentence splices two clauses with commas, the second drops the comma after however, and the last places the semicolon after however, cutting the word off from the clause it opens.

Q10 Which sentence avoids a misplaced or dangling modifier?

A. Covered in fresh paint, the painter let the railing dry overnight.

B. The dog was adopted by the family with the wagging tail.

C. We watched the parade from the balcony in matching green shirts.

D. Wearing matching green shirts, the volunteers lined both sides of the parade route. ✓

A descriptive phrase must sit next to the word it describes. Placing the volunteers right after the matching-green-shirts phrase makes the meaning clear. The paint choice dangles its phrase so the painter seems coated in paint, the tail choice gives the family the wagging tail, and the balcony choice puts the green shirts on the balcony.

Q11 Which sentence communicates the speed of the vehicle most precisely?

A. The ambulance sped through the intersection. ✓

B. The ambulance moved through the intersection.

C. The ambulance went through the intersection.

D. The ambulance made its way through the intersection.

Option A chooses sped, which tells the reader exactly how the ambulance moved, so it is the most precise. Moved and went leave the manner of motion unnamed, and made its way is both vaguer and longer without adding information.

Q12 Which sentence uses affect or effect correctly?

A. The change in shift times affected the entire nursing staff. ✓

B. The change in shift times effected the entire nursing staff.

C. The change had a strong affect on staff morale.

D. The change in shift times had a effect on the entire staff.

As a verb, affect means to influence, which is what option A says the change did to the staff. Effect as a verb means to bring about, so option B misuses it, option C uses the noun affect, which names a facial expression rather than an influence, and option D breaks the article rule with a effect.

Q13 Which word uses the suffix -ment to name the result of a verb's action?

A. improvement ✓

B. improving

C. improvable

D. improver

The suffix -ment turns verbs into nouns naming a result or state, so improve becomes improvement, which names the result of improving. Improving is a participle or gerund formed with -ing, improvable is an adjective formed with -able, and improver is a noun built with -er to name the person who improves.

Q14 Which sentence uses the more precise word choice?

A. The committee looked at the proposal and decided to accept it.

B. The committee reviewed the proposal and decided to accept it. ✓

C. The committee saw the proposal and decided to accept it.

D. The committee went over the proposal and decided to accept it.

Option B chooses reviewed, which names the careful examination the committee actually performed. Looked at and saw are generic verbs that understate the scrutiny, and went over slides into casual register, so the other options are less precise for a formal context.

Q15 Which choice best combines the two sentences? Sentence one: The bakery opens before sunrise. Sentence two: The smell of warm bread drifts down the whole block.

A. Before sunrise, the bakery opens, the smell of warm bread drifts down the whole block.

B. When the bakery opens before sunrise, the smell of warm bread drifts down the whole block. ✓

C. The bakery opens before sunrise, the smell of warm bread drifts down the whole block.

D. The bakery opens before sunrise when the smell of warm bread drifts down the whole block.

The time link should show that the smell follows the opening. The when version does that by making the opening the condition for the drifting smell. The two comma versions splice complete sentences, and the misplaced-when version claims the bakery opens at the very moment the smell drifts, which reverses the order of events.

Q16 Which sentence uses the apostrophe correctly?

A. The company published its yearly report in March. ✓

B. It's color faded after two summers in the sun.

C. The team celebrated it's first victory at home.

D. Its supposed to snow by morning, so bring the shovel inside.

The possessive pronoun its never takes an apostrophe, while it's always stands for it is or it has. The published-report sentence uses the possessive, so it is correct. The color sentence, the victory sentence, and the snow sentence all need the contraction it's, which the it-is substitution test confirms.

Q17 Which sentence correctly punctuates a list of three or more items?

A. For the picnic we packed sandwiches fruit, and lemonade.

B. For the picnic we packed sandwiches, fruit, and lemonade. ✓

C. For the picnic we packed, sandwiches fruit and lemonade.

D. For the picnic we packed sandwiches, fruit and, lemonade.

A list of three or more items needs a comma after every item except the last, and formal writing adds a serial comma before the conjunction. Option B separates sandwiches, fruit, and lemonade correctly. Option A fuses sandwiches and fruit together, option C plants a comma between the verb and its direct object, and option D isolates the conjunction with a stray comma.

Q18 The root chron- means time. Which word's meaning best reflects that root?

A. horizon

B. democracy

C. telephone

D. chronicle ✓

The root chron- means time, and a chronicle records events in the order they happened over time, so it is built on that root. Horizon begins with a Greek root for a boundary line, democracy with demos, which means people, and telephone with phon, which means sound, so the distractors carry different root meanings.

Q19 The root bio- means life. Which word's meaning best reflects that root?

A. geology

B. biography ✓

C. psychology

D. astronomy

The root bio- means life, and a biography is a written account of a person's life, so it is the word built on that root. Geology begins with geo, which means earth, psychology with psych, which means mind, and astronomy with astro, which means star, so none of the distractors carries the life meaning.

Q20 Which sentence uses the correct idiomatic expression?

A. The clinic complies to the new safety regulations.

B. The clinic complies on the new safety regulations.

C. The clinic complies for the new safety regulations.

D. The clinic complies with the new safety regulations. ✓

The verb comply takes the fixed preposition with, so comply with the regulations is the only idiomatic choice. Options A, B, and C pair comply with to, on, and for, none of which forms a standard expression, so all three fail on the same idiom rule.

Q21 Which sentence uses their, there, or they're correctly?

A. The volunteers parked they're cars in the lot across the street.

B. The volunteers parked there cars in the lot across the street.

C. Their are several cars in the lot across the street.

D. The volunteers parked their cars in the lot across the street. ✓

Their is the possessive form, there points to a place or signals existence, and they're means they are. The cars belong to the volunteers, so their is the right choice in option D. Option A uses the contraction for the possessive, option B uses the place word, and option C writes their where the existential there is needed.

Q22 Which word contains a prefix that means before?

A. reprint

B. postpone

C. preview ✓

D. unpack

The prefix pre- means before, and preview contains it, because a preview is a viewing that happens before the official opening. Reprint begins with re-, meaning again, postpone with post-, meaning after, and unpack with un-, meaning reverse or not, so the other options carry different prefix meanings.

Q23 Read the sentence. The new office manager was meticulous, labeling every folder, backing up every file, and locking every drawer before leaving. What does meticulous mean as used in the sentence?

A. hurried

B. talkative

C. extremely careful ✓

D. careless

Context clues carry the meaning: labeling, backing up, and locking are all habits of extreme care, which is exactly what meticulous means. Careless sits at the opposite end of the scale, hurried clashes with the slow and thorough routine, and talkative describes speech rather than attention to detail.

Q24 Which sentence uses capital letters correctly?

A. My cousin studies biology at a college in the Pacific Northwest. ✓

B. We visited the Lincoln Memorial on a crisp Fall Morning.

C. The history class reads Primary Sources every Friday.

D. Jordan said the bus stops near Main street after lunch.

Capital letters mark proper nouns and the first word of a sentence. The biology sentence correctly caps only the name of the region. The memorial sentence wrongly caps the season and the common noun morning, the class sentence wrongly caps ordinary words in a subject name, and the bus sentence should cap Street as part of the proper name Main Street.

Q25 In which sentence do the verbs stay in a single tense?

A. The chef marinated the chicken, seasons it, and baked it for an hour.

B. The chef marinated the chicken, seasoned it, and baked it for an hour. ✓

C. The chef marinates the chicken, seasoned it, and bakes it for an hour.

D. The chef will marinate the chicken, seasons it, and will bake it for an hour.

Verbs in a series should stay in the same time frame unless the meaning requires a shift. Option B holds all three verbs in the past tense. Option A drifts to present with seasons, option C drifts to past with seasoned, and option D mixes future and present forms instead of keeping all three the same.

Q26 Which sentence uses parallel structure?

A. The new policy requires staff to log hours, to submit receipts, and to keep a daily summary. ✓

B. The new policy requires staff to log hours, to submit receipts, and keeping a daily summary.

C. The new policy requires staff to log hours, submitting receipts, and keeping a daily summary.

D. The new policy requires staff logging hours, to submit receipts, and keep a daily summary.

Items in a series that serve the same function must take the same grammatical form. Option A keeps all three items as to plus verb infinitives, so the list is parallel. Option B breaks the pattern by switching the third item to the gerund keeping, option C mixes infinitive and gerund forms, and option D mixes a participle, an infinitive, and a bare verb.

Q27 Which option fixes the dangling modifier in this sentence? "Driving through the tunnel, the radio signal faded."

A. Driving through the tunnel, the driver heard the radio signal fade. ✓

B. While driving through the tunnel, the radio signal faded.

C. Driving through the tunnel, fading was the radio signal.

D. The radio signal faded, driving through the tunnel.

A dangling modifier has no named performer, and the original never says who was driving. Option A gives the driver to the participial phrase, so the sentence makes sense. Option B keeps the same dangling structure, option C inverts the sentence without adding an actor, and option D simply moves the dangling phrase to the end.

Q28 Which option corrects the comma splice in this sentence? "The battery died, the screen went dark."

A. The battery died the screen went dark.

B. The battery, died the screen went dark.

C. The battery died, the, screen went dark.

D. The battery died; the screen went dark. ✓

A comma splice joins two independent clauses with only a comma. Replacing the comma with a semicolon, as option D does, correctly links the two closely related clauses. Option A fuses the sentences with no punctuation at all, option B inserts a comma between the subject and its verb, and option C adds a second stray comma that splits the subject of the second clause.

Q29 Which sentence contains no misspelled words? pilot

A. She was embarassed when her phone rang during the speech.

B. It is necessary to recieve a receipt before the refund is processed.

C. The pharmacy closes early on Wednesdays for staff training. ✓

D. The recipe said to seperate the dry goods before mixing.

Correct spelling turns on four trouble spots: separate has a rat in its middle, embarrassed doubles both the r and the s, and receive follows the i-before-e rule after c. The pharmacy sentence is the only one without an error. The other three each hold one misspelling: seperate, embarassed, and recieve.

Q30 Which revision removes wordiness from this sentence? "In the event of a fire, the building occupants should exit at once."

A. If fire breaks out, occupants should exit the building at once. ✓

B. In the event that a fire happens, the building occupants should exit at once.

C. Should a fire event occur, the building occupants should exit at once.

D. Fire breaking out, occupants exit at once.

The phrase in the event of is a wordy stand-in for if. Option A replaces it with the single word and trims other filler without losing meaning. Option B keeps the inflated opener, option C turns the noun event into deadwood alongside fire, and option D drops the connector and leaves a broken construction.

Q31 Which sentence uses correct subject-verb agreement?

A. Each of the essays have been returned to the students.

B. The boxes of donated books sits in the lobby until pickup.

C. Every one of the schedules needs one more review. ✓

D. The list of supplies were taped to the storeroom door.

The true subject, not the noun inside a prepositional phrase, controls the verb. Every one is singular, so it takes the singular verb needs. The list sentence and the each sentence are also singular and call for was and has, while the plural boxes calls for sit.

Q32 The community garden added raised beds last spring. ___, the number of gardeners who could plant vegetables doubled. Which transition best fits the blank? pilot

A. Meanwhile

B. For instance

C. As a result ✓

D. Nevertheless

The blank needs a connector that signals result, since the doubled membership flowed from the new beds. As a result does that job. Nevertheless signals contrast, meanwhile signals events happening at the same time, and for instance introduces an example, so none of them fits a cause-and-effect link.

Q33 Which option correctly punctuates this sentence, which begins with an introductory clause? "After the final exam grades were posted the office stayed open late."

A. After the final exam grades were posted, the office stayed open late. ✓

B. After the final exam grades were posted; the office stayed open late.

C. After, the final exam grades were posted the office stayed open late.

D. After the final exam, grades were posted the office stayed open late.

An introductory dependent clause is set off from the main clause with a comma, so option A is correct. Option B uses a semicolon after a dependent clause, which is not allowed, option C chops the subordinating conjunction away from its own clause, and option D shifts the comma so it splits exam from grades and changes the meaning.

Q34 Which option correctly punctuates the appositive in this sentence? "My brother a paramedic works nights."

A. My brother a paramedic, works nights.

B. My brother, a paramedic, works nights. ✓

C. My brother a paramedic works, nights.

D. My brother, a paramedic works nights.

An appositive is a noun phrase that renames the noun beside it, and it is set off from the rest of the sentence with commas on both sides. Option B correctly frames a paramedic between two commas. Option A marks only the second side, option C drops the commas and shifts one into the predicate, and option D marks only the first side.

Q35 Which option uses the semicolon correctly? "The shuttle departed on time all forty seats were filled."

A. The shuttle departed on time, all forty seats were filled.

B. The shuttle departed on time; all forty seats, were filled.

C. The shuttle departed on time; all forty seats were filled. ✓

D. The shuttle departed on time; and all forty seats were filled.

A semicolon joins two closely related independent clauses without a conjunction, so option C is correct. Option A splices the two clauses with only a comma, option B inserts a comma inside the subject of the second clause, and option D sets a semicolon before the coordinating conjunction and, which is redundant because the conjunction already performs the joining.

Q36 Which sentence is appropriate for a formal report?

A. The results were kinda surprising to everyone on the team.

B. The results were pretty good for a first attempt.

C. The results did not match the predictions of the model. ✓

D. The results blew everyone away, honestly.

Formal writing avoids casual hedges like kinda, vague colloquial intensifiers like pretty, and slang like blew everyone away. Option C states the outcome with neutral, precise language that suits a professional report. Options A and B use conversational softening words, and option D slips into slang with an informal interjection.

Q37 Read the sentence. "The border collie herded the sheep with astonishing dexterity, never tripping once." What does dexterity mean in this sentence?

A. clumsiness

B. loudness

C. skill in movement ✓

D. stubbornness

The context clue is never tripping once, which shows the dog working with smooth, controlled movement, so dexterity means skill in movement. Clumsiness is the opposite of that behavior, and loudness and stubbornness are traits the sentence never mentions, so they cannot be supported by the clues.

Last verified: 29 September 2026. Structure, timing and scoring facts are sourced from ATI's published exam materials and help center.