TOEFL Itp Reading (2)
TOEFL Itp Reading (2)
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It's a good idea to copy and paste this to your TOEFL ITP digital book.
The answers are right at the bottom of the document in red.
There are two main types of cell division. Most cells are produced by a process called mitosis. In
mitosis, a cell divides and forms two identical daughter cells, each with an identical number of
chromosomes. Most one-celled creatures reproduce by this method, as do most of the cells in multicelled
plants and animals. Sex cells, however, are formed in a special type of cell division called
meiosis. This process reduces the number of chromosomes in a sex cell to half the number found in
other kinds of cells. Then, when sex cells unite, they produce a single cell with the original number
of chromosomes.
1. What is the main topic of this passage?
S (A) The method by which one-celled organisms reproduce
C (B) A comparison between mitosis and meiosis
X (C) Meiosis, the process by which identical cells are produced
The last gold rush belongs as much to Canadian history as it does to American. The discovery of
gold along the Klondike River, which flows from Canada's Yukon Territory into Alaska, drew some
30,000 fortune hunters to the north. The Yukon became a territory, and its capital of the time,
Dawson, would not have existed without the gold rush. The gold strike furnished material for a
dozen of Jack London's novels. It inspired Robert Service to write "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" and
other poems, and it provided the background for the wonderful Charlie Chaplin movie, The Gold
Rush. It also marked the beginnings of modern Alaska.
2. This author's main purpose in writing is to
___ (A) discuss the significance of mining in Canada and the United States
___ (B) show the influence of the Klondike gold strike on the creative arts
___ (C) point out the impact of the Klondike gold strike
The keystone arch was used by almost every early civilization. To build a keystone arch, stones
are cut so that the opposite sides taper toward each other slightly. The upper and lower surfaces are
carved so that when several stones are placed side by side, the upper and lower surfaces meet in
smooth, continuous curves. Some form of scaffolding is built under the arch and shaped to accept
the curved underside of the stones. Then the stones are fitted in place one by one. The keystone is
the top center stone, the last to be dropped into position. Afterwards, the scaffolding is removed and
the arch is self-supporting.
3. The passage mainly concerns the
___ (A) basic principles of building keystone arches
___ (B) uses of arches in modern architecture
___ (C) role of scaffolding in building keystone arches
Circumstantial evidence is evidence not drawn from the direct observation of a fact. If, for
example, there is evidence that a piece of rock embedded in a wrapped chocolate bar is the same
type of rock found in the vicinity of the candy factory, and that rock of this type is found in few other
places, then there is circumstantial evidence that the stone found its way into the candy during
manufacture and suggests that the candy-maker was negligent. Despite a popular notion to look
down on the quality of circumstantial evidence, it is of great usefulness if there is enough of it and if
it is properly interpreted. Each circumstance, taken singly, may mean little, but a whole chain of
circumstances can be as conclusive as direct evidence.
4. What is the author's main purpose in this passage?
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___ (A) To show that a manufacturer's negligence can be shown by direct evidence only
___ (B) To define circumstantial evidence and show its usefulness
___ (C) To demonstrate that circumstantial evidence can be very useful in science
The Northwest Ordinance was passed by Congress in 1787. It set up the government structure of
the region north of the Ohio River and west of Pennsylvania, then called the Northwest Territory. It
set the conditions under which parts of the Territory could become states having equality with the
older states. But the ordinance was more than just a plan for government. The law also guaranteed
freedom of religion and trial by jury in the Territory. It organized the Territory into townships of 36
square miles and ordered a school to be built for each township. It also abolished slavery in the
Territory. The terms were so attractive that thousands of pioneers poured into the Territory.
Eventually, the Territory became the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
5. What is the main topic of this passage?
___ (A) The structure of government
___ (B) The provisions of an important law
___ (C) The establishment of schools in the NorthwestTerritory
The story of the motel business from 1920 to the start of World War II in 1941 is one of
uninterrupted growth. Motels spread from the West and the Midwest all the way to Maine and
Florida. They clustered along transcontinental highways such as U.S. routes 40 and 66 and along the
north-south routes running up and down both the East and West coast. There were 16,000 motels by
1930 and 24,000 by 1940. The motel industry was one of the few industries that was not hurt by the
Depression ofthe 1930's. Their cheap rates attracted travelers who had very little money.
6. What does the passage mainly discuss?
___ (A) How the Depression hurt U.S. motels
___ (B) The impact of transcontinental highways
___ (C) Two decades of growth for the motel industry
An old proverb states, "Beware of oak, it draws the stroke." This saying is handy during
thunderstorm season. In general, trees with deep roots that tap into groundwater attract more
lightning than do trees with shallow, drier roots. Oaks are around 50 times more likely to be struck
than beeches. Spruces are nearly as safe as beeches. Pines are not as safe as these two, but are still
much safer than oaks.
7. What is the author's main point?
___ (A) Old proverbs often contain important truths.
___ (B) Trees with shallow roots are more likely to avoid lightning than those with deep roots.
___ (C) The deeper a tree's roots, the safer it is during a thunderstorm.
Alternative history is generally classified as a type of science fiction, but it also bears some
relation to historical fiction. This type of writing describes an imaginary world that is identical to ours
up to a certain point in history, but at that point, the two worlds diverge; some important historical
event takes place in one world but not in the other, and they go in different directions. Alternative
histories might describe worlds in which the Roman Empire had never fallen, in which the Spanish
Armada had been victorious, or in which the South had won the Civil War. Or they may suppose that
some technology had been introduced earlier in the world's history than actually happened. For
example: What if computers had been invented in Victorian times? Many readers fmd these stories
interesting because of the way they stimulate the imagination and get them thinking about the
phenomenon of cause and effect in history.
8. What is the main idea of this passage?
___ (A) Alternative histories describe worlds in which history has taken another course.
___ (B) Alternative histories are a type of historical novel.
___ (C) Science fiction writers have accurately predicted certain actual scientific developments.
Until the late 1700's, metal could not be turned on a lathe to make it uniformly smooth and
round. The operator could not guide the cutting tool evenly by hand against the turning piece. This
problem was solved by David Wilkinson of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. In 1798 he invented a machine
in which the cutter was clamped into a movable slide that could be advanced precisely, by hand
crank, parallel to the work. The slide rest, as it came to be called, has many uses. It permits the
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manufacture of parts so uniform that they can be interchanged. Without it, mass production would
not have been possible. As it turns out, the great English machinist Henry Maudsley had developed
nearly the same mechanism a few years before, but this was unknown to Wilkinson and does not
diminish his accomplishment.
9. Why did the author write this passage?
___ (A) To prove that Wilkinson's invention was based on Maudsley's
___ (B) To demonstrate the importance of mass production to American society
___ (C) To show the usefulness of Wilkinson's invention
Almost every form of transportation has given someone the idea for a new type of toy. After the
Montgolfier brothers flew the first balloon, toy balloons became popular playthings. In the
nineteenth century, soon after railroads and steamships were developed, every child had to have
model trains and steamboats. The same held true for automobiles and airplanes in the early twentieth
century. Toy rockets and missiles became popular at the beginning of the space age, and by the
1980's, there were many different versions of space-shuttle toys.
10. The main idea of this passage is that
___ (A) inventors have been inspired by toys to build new forms of transportation
___ (B) toy automobiles and airplanes were very popular in the early 1900's
___ (C) toy design has followed developments in transportation
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