Digital PSAT Reading and Writing Practie Test 18

1

Text 1 is from Benjamin Franklin's 1771 autobiography. Text 2 is from Booker T. Washington's 1901 autobiography.

Text 1

I have ever had pleasure in obtaining any little anecdotes of my ancestors. You may remember the inquiries I made among the remains of my relations when you were with me in England, and the journey I undertook for that purpose. Imagining it may be equally agreeable to you to know the circumstances of my life, many of which you are yet unacquainted with, and . . . I sit down to write them for you.

Text 2

Of my ancestry I know almost nothing. In the slave quarters, and even later, I heard whispered conversations . . . of the tortures which the slaves, including, no doubt, my ancestors on my mother's side, suffered in the middle passage of the slave ship while being conveyed from Africa to America. I have been unsuccessful in securing any information that would throw any accurate light upon the history of my family beyond my mother.

It is reasonable to conclude that Booker T. Washington would very much like to have had the opportunity to do which of the following things that Benjamin Franklin spoke about in Text 1?

2

It is hard to imagine what life would be like without the contributions engineers have already made. They have not just helped us to survive, be healthy, explore, and move around better but they have also made life more enjoyable through advances in areas such as communications, computing, and sports. Computer engineers, for example, have helped develop devices and software that we can use to make and share documents and home videos, listen to our favorite music, and talk with co-workers, friends, and family members across the globe. In sports, different engineers have made systems and devices that provide us with better, safer equipment, communications that enable teams to interact better and games to be televised, and environments and infrastructure that improve the playing and watching of games.

What is the point of the text as a whole?

3

If one were to set out to form a nation based on democratic principles, there would be essentially two paths to take: presidential or parliamentary. Both hold their own in terms of advantages and disadvantages, and both possess the endorsement of great prosperous nations. Parliamentary is the far more common order, but many attribute its prevalence to the legacy of the British Empire rather than to its superiority.

The author states that a possible reason for the more widespread practice of parliamentary rather than presidential democracy is

4

Using the graph, what is true about the relationship between the number of students with green eyes and the number of students with brown eyes?

5

"Monadnock in Early Spring" is an early 1900s poem by Amy Lowell. In the poem, the speaker alludes to Mount Monadnock's impressive size relative to the other features of the landscape: ______________

Which quotation from "Monadnock in Early Spring" most effectively illustrates the claim?

6

Lab technicians are able to pinpoint the best antibiotic by measuring the zone of inhibition on the microorganism growth plate. The zone with the largest diameter typically signifies that it will be the best at fighting the infection. Prescribing an antibiotic that tests positive for the inhibition of growth or completely stops the growth of the microorganism will hopefully help the patient heal faster and experience fewer side effects.

Figure 1 Zone of inhibition measurements to determine the effectiveness of certain antibiotics against the microorganisms E. coli and S. aureus.

Based on the information in the text and in Figure 1, which of these antibiotics would be most helpful in treating someone with an E. coli infection, assuming the patient was not allergic to any antibiotics and had no other illnesses besides the E. coli infection?

7

Prior to arranging meetings on behalf of his company, a marketing assistant uses his home kitchen to prepare a packed lunch for his daughter. A graphic designer spends hours a day on her personal PC creating eye-catching brand logos without ever stepping foot outside her apartment. A major shift in a workforce evermore reliant on technology is the increasing number of employees who find themselves ____________________.

Which choice most logically completes the text?

8

The following text is from Upton Sinclair's 1906 novel The Jungle.

Promptly at seven the next morning Jurgis reported for work. He came to the door that had been pointed out to him, and there he waited for nearly two hours. The boss had meant for him to enter, but had not said this, and so it was only when on his way out to hire another man that he came upon Jurgis. He gave him a good cursing, but as Jurgis did not understand a word of it, he did not object.

It can be reasonably inferred from the text that the supervisors in the meat-packing factories viewed employees as

9

The bat species whose diet doesn't consist of insects are frugivores, carnivores, or hematophagous. It is the latter bloodsuckers who attract the most attention. The ecological roles of bats _______ not end with pest control.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

10

The ban on foie gras was passed by _________________ in an omnibus bill despite the opposition of the city's mayor.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?