PSAT Writing and Language Practice Test 43

Questions 12-22 refer to the following information.

Up With the Rooster's Crow

(1) Depending on where you attend high school, your 12 teachers and peers might express confusion when you say you want to attend college to be a farmer. (2) Traditionally, we limit our conceptions of farming to the small family business portrayed in Hollywood movies. (3) A rooster crows long before the sunrise, and an exhausted adolescent clamors out of bed to join an already lively household. (4) Another misconception might involve the near extinction of farming. (5) Farming, largely a matter of the federal government or sizable corporations, simply doesn't exist for the public. (6) Despite these misconceptions and conspiratorial thinking, a college degree isn't the first thing you think about when imagining what it takes to be a successful farmer. (7) While these notions aren't completely artificial, they do limit our 13 sympathy of modern agriculture. 14

A rise in agricultural science degrees contradicts these widely held conceptions about farming. Students in agricultural science programs across the nation specialize in everything from forest to wildlife technologies, agricultural business to food science, and 15 biological engineering with veterinary medicine. The science behind planting, fertilizing, harvesting, and herding remains far from simple; often, it demands extensive education. However, if you enjoy working outdoors and using your hands, doing strenuous physical work, and have an interest in the chemical and biological aspects of food and livestock, farming might be the path for you. 16 Moreover, it can be an excellent choice for those interested in working hard for a living.

Food science, one specific path of the agricultural science degree, undertakes the study and inspection of food production, storage, and distribution. A food scientist is a 17 special type of farmer, one charged with the role of improving the productivity and sustainability of farms. By finding better ways to grow, process, and deliver foods to consumers, the food scientist concerns 18 themselves with the health and nutrition of the entire planet. In a time of increased food processing, the food scientist's job necessitates the break down and analysis of basic food content to forge processed foods that are both safe and nutritional. Generally, the career calls for 19 extensive university education that could entail four or five years of schooling.

A closely related career path, animal science, unites food science with research on domestic farm animals. 20 An animal scientist studies animal nutrition, breeding, genetics, etc., to improve the production and processing of meat, poultry, eggs, and milk. This career differs from 21 those of a food scientists because it has the specific goal of increasing the quality and efficiency of livestock. Many times, the animal scientist pursues a graduate or doctoral degree in order to treat and care for farm animals, opening up doors for higher salaries.

22 Because of popular opinion, farms overflow with college degrees.