Directions: Read each passage and answer the questions. First skim through a passage to gain the general idea of topic, style, tone, and structure. Then re-read the passage a second time, closely, and answer the questions found below the passage. Some questions ask you how the passage might be changed to improve the expression of ideas. Other questions ask you how the passage might be altered to correct errors in grammar, usage, and punctuation. One or more graphics accompany some passages. You will be required to consider these graphics as you answer questions about editing the passages.
There are three types of questions. In the first type, a part of the passage is underlined. The second type is based on a certain part of the passage. The third type is based on the entire passage.
Then, choose the answer so that it is consistent with the conventions of standard written English. One of the answer choices for many questions is “NO CHANGE.” Choosing this answer means that you believe the best answer is to make no change in the passage

Questions 1-11 are based on the following passage.


The bulk of the advertising directed at children today has an immediate goal. One marketer explained that the goal is not just getting kids to whine but also [1] giving them a specific reason to ask for the product. Years ago, sociologist Vance Packard [2] had described children as “surrogate salesmen” who had to persuade other people, usually their parents, to buy what they wanted. [3] James U. McNeal, a professor of marketing at Texas University, is considered America’s leading authority on marketing to children.
In his book, McNeal provides marketers with a thorough analysis of “children’s requesting styles and appeals.” [4] McNeal never advocates turning children into screaming, breath-holding monsters. He classifies juvenile nagging tactics into seven major categories. A pleading nag is one accompanied by the repetition of words like “please” or “mom, mom, mom.” A persistent nag involves constant requests for the [5] wanted product. Forceful nags are extremely pushy and may include subtle threats like “Well, then, I’ll go and ask Dad.” Demonstrative nags are the most high-risk, often characterized by full-blown tantrums in public places.
[6] “You’re the best dad in the world” is a sugar-coated nag by which children promise affection in return for a purchase and rely on heartfelt declarations. Pity nags claim that the child will be heartbroken if the parent refuses to buy a certain item.
[7] While trying to affect children’s behavior, advertisers have to learn about their tastes. [8] Today’s market researchers not only conduct surveys of children in shopping malls, they also organize focus groups for kids as young as two or three. They analyze children’s artwork, hire children to run focus groups, stage slumber parties and then question children into the night.
They send cultural anthropologists into homes, stores, fast food restaurants, and other places where kids like to gather, to quietly and [9] surreptitiously observe the behavior of prospective customers.
The Internet has become another powerful tool for assembling data about children. In 1998 a federal investigation of websites found that 89 percent requested personal information from kids; only 1 percent required parental approval before requesting the information. [10] Fast food websites no longer ask children to provide personal information without first gaining parental approval; to do so is now a violation of federal law.
[1] In 1978, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) tried to ban all television ads directed at children seven years old and younger. [2] Many studies had found that young children often could not tell the difference between television programming and television advertising. [3] They could not comprehend the real purpose of commercials and trusted the advertising claims were true. [4] Michael Pertschuk, the head of the FTC, argued that children need to be shielded from advertising that preys upon their immaturity. [11]


1.

A) NO CHANGE
B) to give
C) given
D) give

To answer this question you have to search for parallel structure. Parallel structure is the idea that when two or more words, phrases, or clauses are linked, they should share the same structure. To achieve parallelism look back at the sentence “the goal is not just getting kids to whine but also giving them a specific reason to ask for the product”. Choice B “to give” to + infinitive, choice C “given” past participle, and choice D “give” the present simple are incorrect because they do not match with “not just getting”. We are left with choice A, the correct one because both verbs in the sentence “getting” and “giving” are gerunds and thus parallel in structure.

2.

A) NO CHANGE
B) described
C) has described
D) was describing

The definition of “ago” is before now or happened in the past; therefore, Choice C is incorrect because the present perfect “has described” is used to show past actions with present results. Choice A “had described” is incorrect because the past perfect is used to talk about actions that were completed before some point in the past. Choice D “was describing” is incorrect because the past continuous is used to show that an ongoing past action was happening at a specific moment of interruption, or that two ongoing actions were happening at the same time. Choice B is correct because the verb “described” shows a past completed action and matches with “years ago”.

3.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) James U. McNeal is a professor of marketing in Texas University,
    C) James U. McNeal, a professor of marketing in Texas University
    D) James U. McNeal who is a professor of marketing in Texas University,

To answer this question you have to focus on modifiers. Modifiers are words or phrases that describe something. Modifier placement refers to the fact that modifiers must appear directly next to the nouns they logically describe. Appositives are considered as descriptive asides and should be used with commas near the noun they describe. “a professor of marketing at Texas University” describes James U. McNeal. It is placed between two commas and next to the name it modifies; therefore Choice A is correct. Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because they either introduce the appositive with a verb “is” and no commas provided or they do not place it between or after commas.

4. The writer is considering deleting the underlined sentence. Should the sentence be kept or deleted?

    A) Kept, because it provides supporting evidence about children nagging.
    B) Kept, because it is an example of a requesting style.
    C) Deleted, because it breaks the logical flow of the sentences.
    D) Deleted, because it introduces the idea of children’s nagging tactics.

If you understand the purpose of the sentence, you can better determine if the sentence is useful here and whether it should be kept or deleted. Choices A and B are incorrect because the sentence does neither work as a supporting detail nor as an example especially about children’s styles of nagging. Choice C is correct because the sentence breaks the chain of thoughts. It does not connect the name of the book and the classification of tactics used by children. Choice D is definitely wrong because the sentence does not introduce the tactics but it talks about children being considered monsters when nagging.

5. Which word would have a bigger effect when used in this context?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) appreciated
    C) coveted
    D) abominated

Children nag when they want to get something badly. “Wanted” does not convey the intensity of their desire; therefore Choice A is wrong. Choices B and D are also wrong because “appreciate” means “cherish” or “value something” and “abominated” means “hated”; children here try to express a strong desire. The word that has a better effect and expresses that strong desire is “coveted” Choice C.

6. Which choice best maintains the sentence pattern already established in the paragraph?

A) NO CHANGE
B) When children promise affection in return for a purchase and rely on heartfelt declarations like “You’re the best dad in the world”, these are sugar-coated nags.
C) Promising affection in return for a purchase and relying on heartfelt declarations like “You’re the best dad in the world” are sugar-coated nags.
D) Sugar-coated nags promise affection in return for a purchase and may rely on heartfelt declarations like “You’re the best dad in the world.”

Children rely on sugar-coated nags like “you’re the best dad in the world” to get what they want. Choices A, B, and C do not convey this meaning especially that they start with the quote, a subordinating conjunction “when” and a gerund “promising”; therefore, Choice D is correct.

7.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Before
    C) Since
    D) After

The suitable subordinating conjunction that best joins the two clauses and keeps the meaning of the sentence is “before” Choice B. “While” means at the same time. “Since” shows a definite past time until now and “after” means in the time following. Choices A, C, and D are consequently incorrect.

8.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Today’s market researchers not only conduct surveys of children in shopping malls, they also organize focus groups for kids as young as two or three.
    C) Not only do today’s market researchers conduct surveys of children in shopping malls, but they also organize focus groups for kids as young as two or three.
    D) Today’s market researchers not only conduct surveys of children in shopping malls, but also organize focus groups for kids as young as two or three.

These two clauses should be connected with the correlative conjunction “not only----but also”. Not only is used at the beginning of the first clause and but also starts the second clause; therefore, Choices A, B, and D are incorrect and Choice C is correct.

9. Which choice is most consistent with the logical flow of the sentence?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) suddenly
    C) clearly
    D) quickly

“And” can be used to connect two words of the same part of speech and sometimes synonyms. Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because “suddenly”, clearly”, and “quickly” are adverbs like “quietly” but do not have similar meaning. Choice A is correct because “surreptitiously” means without notice or secretly.

10.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Fast food websites no longer ask children to provide personal information without first gaining parental approval, to do so is now a violation of federal law.
    C) Fast food websites no longer ask children to provide personal information without first gaining parental approval, doing so is now a violation of federal law.
    D) Fast food websites no longer ask children to provide personal information without first gaining parental approval: to do so is now a violation of federal law.

“To do so is now a violation of federal law” explains and provides extra information about providing personal information without parental approval; therefore, it should be connected to the previous sentence by a semicolon and not by a comma or a column. For this reason, Choices B, C, and D are incorrect and Choice A is correct.

11. The writer wants to add the following sentence to the paragraph.
“Despite the growing importance of the Internet, television remains the primary medium for children’s advertising.”
The best placement for this sentence is

    A) Before sentence 1
    B) Before sentence 2
    C) Before sentence 3
    D) Before sentence 4

Choice B is incorrect because the sentence to be added is not related to the difference between television programming and television advertising. Choice C is incorrect because the sentence provided sheds light on the importance of television as a main source of advertisement and sentence 3 focuses on the way children perceive television commercials. Choice D is incorrect because it reflects the opinion of Micheal Pertschuck, the head of the FTC; therefore, Choice A is correct because the sentence to be added represents the topic sentence of the final paragraph and should be placed at the beginning which means before sentence 1.

Questions 12-22 are based on the following passage and supplementary material.
Social Media VS. Print Newspapers as a News Source by Elisa Shearer


Social media sites have surpassed print newspapers as a news source for Americans: [12] 20% of U.S. adults say they often get news via social media, slightly higher than the share who often do so from print newspapers (16%) for the first time since Pew Research Center began asking these questions. In 2017, the portion who got news via social media was almost [13] as equal to the portion who got news from print newspapers.

Social media’s small [15] drawback to print has emerged after years of steady declines in newspaper circulation and modest increases in the portion of Americans who use social media, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted earlier this year.
Overall, television is still the most popular platform for news consumption – even though [16] it’s use has declined since 2016. News websites are the next most common source, followed by radio, and finally social media sites and print newspapers.

News preferences differ drastically for younger and older Americans. Age gaps that have long been notable have now widened [17] regularly, with those 65 and older five times as likely as 18- to 29-year-olds to often get news from TV. A large majority of those 65 and older (81%) get news from television often, as do about twothirds (65%) of those 50 to 64. [18] Far fewer young Americans are turning to television news. Whereas only 65% of those 18 to 29 get their news from television, 36% of those 30 to 49 get their news from television.
The age divide is nearly as large for social media, but in the other direction: those 18 to 29 are about four times as likely to often get news from social media as are those 65 and older.
Print’s popularity only persists among those 65 and older.
[19] Among the oldest age group, about four-inten (39%) get news there often but no more than 18% of any other age group do.
[20] [1] Online news websites are more popular among those ages 30 to 49. [2] About four-in-ten (42%) in this age group get news often from websites and news apps. [3] About a quarter (27%) of 18- to 29-year-olds get news from news websites, making it the second most commonly used platform for news for that age group.
[21] Youngest Americans are also unique in that they don’t rely on one platform in the way that the majority of [22] there elders rely on TV. No more than half of those ages 18 to 29 and 30 to 49 get news often from any one news platform.


12. Which choice offers the most accurate interpretation of the data in the chart?

A) NO CHANGE
B) 20% of U.S. adults say they often get news via social media, slightly higher than the share who often do so from news websites (33%)
C) 26% of U.S. adults say they often get news via radio, slightly higher than the share who often do so from television (49%)
D) 20% of U.S. adults say they often get news via social media, slightly lower than the share who often do so from print newspapers (16%)

The graph shows that 20% of U.S adults receive news from social media and on the other hand just 16% of them receive the news from print newspapers. Choice A is correct and is compatible with the information given in the graph. Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because they misinterpret information given in the graph.

13.

A) NO CHANGE
B) as equal as
C) equal
D) equality

If you look at the graph, you find out that in 2017 the percentage of adults receiving news from social media is almost equal to the percentage of those receiving information from print newspapers. Choice A is incorrect because “as equal as” shows similarity in percentage. Choices C and D are incorrect because “equal” and “equality” show typical similarity. Choice A is correct because “as equal” means almost equal and not 100% equal.

14. Which choice gives the most accurate interpretation of the data in the graph with respect to the latest survey?

    A) 33% of adults get news often from news websites or social media, compared with 57% for television.
    B) 53% of adults get news often from news websites or social media, compared with 49% for television.
    C) 28% of adults get news often from news websites or social media, compared with 49% for television.
    D) 46% of adults get news often from news websites or social media, compared with 57% for television.

Based on the information in the graph related to the latest survey, the best choice that interprets the data given is Choice B because 53% of adults get news from news websites or social media and 49% from television. Therefore, Choices A, C, and D are incorrect.

15. Which choice is the most consistent with the meaning conveyed in the paragraph?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) edge over
    C) contention for
    D) strife over

The word “emerged” can be used as context clue and it hints at something becoming prominent. Choice A is incorrect because “drawback to” has a negative meaning and shows disadvantages. Choice C is incorrect because “contention for” hints at a debate or argument. Choice D is incorrect because “strife over” also has a negative meaning which is a conflict or argument. Choice B “edge over” is correct because it means to flourish and it is consistent with the meaning conveyed in the paragraph.

16.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) it has
    C) its’
    D) its

Choice A is incorrect because “it’s” stands for “it is” and we can’t say “it is use”. Choice B is incorrect because after “has” we have to use the past participle of the verb and not the present simple like “it has use”. Choice C is incorrect because the apostrophe after “s” shows a plural possessive, in our case we are talking about the use of television and television is singular. Choice D is correct because “its” is used with singular possessive noun.

17.

A) NO CHANGE
B) minimally
C) marginally
D) substantially

The words “notable” and “widened” can be used as context clues to find the correct answer. Choice A is incorrect because “regularly” means a constant pattern. Choice B is incorrect because “minimally” means to a small extent. Choice C is incorrect because “marginally” means slightly. Choice D is correct because “substantially” matches the context clues and it means to a wide and great extent.

18.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Far fewer young Americans are turning to television news, however – only 16% of those 18 to 29 and 36% of those 30 to 49 get news often from television.
    C) Far fewer young Americans are turning to television news, however – only 36% of those 18 to 29 and 36% of those 30 to 49 get news often from television.
    D) Far fewer young Americans are turning to television news, however – only 16% of those 30 to 49 and 65% of those 50 to 64 get news often from television.

Choice A is incorrect because the conjunction “whereas” is not the suitable one to join the two clauses. Choices C and D are incorrect because though “however” is the suitable contrasting conjunction that joins the clauses, the percentages given misinterpret the correct data presented in the graph.

19.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Among the oldest age group, about four-in-ten (39%) get news there often—but no more than 18% of any other age group do.
    C) Among the oldest age group, about four-in-ten (39%) get news there often, but no more than 18% of any other age group do.
    D) Among the oldest age group, about four-in-ten (39%) get news there often: but no more than 18% of any other age group do.

In sentence 19, two clauses “Among…..often” and “no more…..do” are joined by a coordinating conjunction “but”. Choice A is wrong because the two clauses are not correctly separated. Choices B and D are also incorrect because the two clauses are separated using wrong punctuation. Choice C is correct because the comma is the best punctuation mark used before “but” to separate the two clauses.

20. The writer is considering adding the following sentence in the paragraph. Where should it be placed?
“For these youngest adults, social media is the most popular news platform – 36% get news there often, topping news websites, TV (16%), radio (13%), and print (2%).”

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) After sentence 1
    C) After sentence 2
    D) After sentence 3

Choice A is incorrect because the given sentence does not present important information to be added in the paragraph. Choices B and C are incorrect because the given sentence can neither be the topic sentence of this paragraph nor one of the supporting details. Choice D is correct because if we place the given sentence after sentence 3 it will be considered as the concluding sentence or the wrap up of the given paragraph in which we are listing different platforms available for adults to be used as source of news with their percentages.

21.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Younger
    C) Most youngest
    D) More younger

Choices A, C, and D are incorrect because “youngest”, “most youngest” and “more younger” use the wrong form of the comparative and superlative. “young” is a one syllable adjective and its comparative form should be “younger”, Choice B.

22.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) their
    C) they’re
    D) there’re

Choice A is incorrect because “there” points at a certain place. Choice C is incorrect because “they’re” stands for “they are”. Choice D is incorrect because “there’re” does not exist. Choice B is correct because it shows plural possession; the elders are related to Americans.

Questions 23-33 are based on the following passage.


Florida's Everglades, the largest national park in the eastern USA, is in serious danger. One of the most significant areas of wetland in the world, and classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the park has suffered dramatically over the last sixty years on account of the [23] promotion of agricultural land and the vast increase of Florida's population. If the accelerated growth [24] did not stop, the entire ecosystem of southern Florida could be [25] irreparably damaged – and the sunshine state, one of the fastest growing states in the USA, could become less hospitable.
In the year 2000, in order to prevent such a catastrophe and ensure the survival of America's most distinctive National Park, Congress approved [26] a 30-year 8.2-billion-dollars Everglades rescue plan, the largest concerted environmental project the world had ever known.
Estimated at 10,700 square miles (27,700 km2), the original Everglades area was home to a fantastically rich and diverse range of wildlife. In recent decades, this wildlife has been [27] abounding. It is estimated that the water bird population of the Everglades, for example, [28] fell by 93% in the last forty years. Scientists conducted a survey on 39,000 miles along the Everglades area roads from 2003 through 2011, counting wildlife spotted along the way and comparing the results with surveys conducted on the same routes in 1993 and 1999.
[29] The researchers found a staggering decline in animal sightings, with only 5 opossums spotted as compared to 24 white-tailed deer.

As a wetland region, the whole environment of the Everglades depends on the flow of water into and out of its vast area of natural swampland. Before modern agriculture and drainage schemes began to change the hydrology of the whole of southern Florida, water that fell on the central part of the Florida Peninsula used to flow regularly and naturally into [30] the great Lake Okeechobee, the large lake at the northern end of the Everglades region. From there, it would flow out slowly and regularly in a southerly direction through the Everglades and into the Gulf of Mexico.
Since the 1940's, this natural system has been radically modified. Over 1,700 miles of canals have been built [31] in order to control the risk of flooding and provide water for Florida's growing population and drain land for agriculture and construction. Today a large amount of the water that flows into Lake Okeechobee is rapidly evacuated through man-made canals, out into the Atlantic Ocean.
The Everglades restoration program [32] is attempting to reverse the recent course of events and undo some of the damage. It calls for the restoration, protection, and preservation of water resources [33] because of the loss of water that flows to the Atlantic Ocean. The recaptured water will be used for environmental restoration, reviving the ecosystem, and improving water supplies in Southern Florida.


23.

A) NO CHANGE
B) trespass
C) infringement
D) expansion

The words “growth”, “dramatically”, and “vast increase” are used as context clues to identify which of the following options “promotion”, trespass”, infringement” or “expansion” serve perfectly the meaning in the given paragraph. These words hint at the drastic growth of agricultural land and population over the Everglades area; therefore, Choice A “the promotion” which means “encouragement” is incorrect. Choice B “trespass” which means “to enter a property without permission” is incorrect. Choice C “infringement” which means “violating a certain law” is also incorrect. Choice D “expansion” is the correct answer because “expansion” means “to become larger and expand”.

24.

A) NO CHANGE
B) did not stopped
C) were not stopped
D) is not stopped

Choices A, B, and C are incorrect because they hint at a past unreal action with the “if conditional”. Furthermore, with “did” the verb should be used in its base form “did not stop” and not “did not stopped”. The “if conditional” here represents facts about the current situation of that growth. Choice D “is not stopped” is correct because it uses the present which shows facts and truth.

25.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) irrepairably
    C) irreparable
    D) irrepairable

The growth will affect southern Florida’s ecosystem in a way impossible to rectify. The adverb “irreparably” at the same time serves the meaning and modifies the verb “damaged”; therefore Choice A is correct. Choice B is incorrect because the adverb “irreparably is wrongly spelled. Choices C and D are also wrong because C is the adjective derived from “repair” and adjectives do not modify verbs, and D is wrongly spelled.

26.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) a 30-year 8.2-billion-dollar Everglades rescue plan,
    C) a 30-year 8.2-billion-dollars Everglades’ rescue plan,
    D) a 30-year 8.2-billion-dollars’ Everglades rescue plan,

Choice A is incorrect because 8.2-billion-dollar is considered as one whole sum and dollar should not be written in its plural form; therefore, Choice B is considered correct. Choices C and D are incorrect because they show plural possessive form of “dollars”, and “Everglades”.

27.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) extinguished
    C) executed
    D) decimated

“Abounding” means “very plentiful” and in the recent decades the wildlife in the Everglades has decreased, so Choice A is incorrect. Choice B is incorrect because “extinguished” refers to putting out fire. Choice C is incorrect because “executed” means “the action of killing someone” and is usually used in the context of humans not animals. Choice D “decimated” which means “killed, destroyed in a large portion” is the right choice.

28.

A) NO CHANGE
B) have fallen
C) had fallen
D) has fallen

“In recent decades” and “has been” the present perfect show that the action started in the past and has visible results in our present time. To achieve consistency, the verb “fell” should also be in the present perfect; therefore, Choices A and C are incorrect because the action is in the past simple and past perfect. Choice B is incorrect because though it uses the present perfect, “have” doesn’t agree with the subject of the sentence “population”. Choice D is correct “has fallen” matches the specifications.

29. Which choice offers the most accurate interpretation of the data in the chart?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) The highest drop was that of raccoons, followed by opossums, white-tailed deer and bobcats.
    C) Rabbits and foxes, which were commonly spotted in 1996 and 1997, were not seen at all in the later counts as compared to the raccoon which showed an insignificant decline.
    D) The decline has decreased the bobcat and fox population with significant decreases of 40 in white-tailed deer and other mammals.

Choice A is incorrect because the drastic decline of opossum sighting which was 103 and became 5 and of white-tailed deer 64 and it became 24 are not the worst among other animals like raccoons. Choice B is correct because based on the graph the highest drop was that of raccoons. It was 266 and became 6, followed by opossums and white-tailed deer. Choice C is incorrect because though it’s right that rabbits and foxes were not seen at all after 1996 and 1997, raccoons showed a drastic decline and not an insignificant one. Choice D is incorrect because the decline has decreased the bobcat and fox population with insignificant decreases; bobcat from 9 to 4, and fox from 5 to 0.

30.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) the great Lake Okeechobee the large lake at the northern end of the Everglades region.
    C) the great Lake Okeechobee; the large lake at the northern end of the Everglades region.
    D) the great Lake Okeechobee — The large lake at the northern end of the Everglades region.

Choice A is correct because “the large lake at the northern end of the Everglades region” is an appositive which is considered as a descriptive aside or modifier and should be used with commas near the noun they describe in this case “Lake Okeechobee”. Therefore, Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because they wrongly use the punctuation mark that should separate the appositive from the noun it modifies.

31.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) in order to control the risk of flooding, to provide water for Florida's growing population, and draining land for agriculture and construction.
    C) in order to control the risk of flooding, to provide water for Florida's growing population, and to drain land for agriculture and construction.
    D) in order to control the risk of flooding; provide water for Florida's growing population; and drain land for agriculture and construction.

Choice A is incorrect because each of the three sentences provided are joined by “and”. Choices B and D are incorrect because to + infinitive “to provide” and the semicolon do not show the listing pattern. Choice C is correct because the three sentences listed are first joined by commas and sentences 2 and 3 are joined by the conjunction “and”.

32.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) are attempting
    C) attempts
    D) attempted

Choice D is incorrect because the restoration program is trying now to reverse the recent course of events and not before to use the past simple. Choices B and C are incorrect because “are attempting” does not agree with the subject “restoration program” which is singular, and the present simple does not show that the program is being now implemented. Choice A is correct because the present continuous “is attempting” shows that the action of restoration has just started and they are still working on the plan.

33. Which phrase best supports the reason behind the program’s main aim?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) because the Central and Southern Florida water supply system was designed to serve 2 million people.
    C) because the two biggest threats to the Everglades’ ecosystem are water quality and water quantity.
    D) because the human demand for water is increasing rapidly while the supply is not changing.

Choice A is correct because a loss indicates that something is not properly protected and therefore needs to be preserved and restored. The acts of protecting, restoring, and preserving signify that something is lost and wasted, like the unused water that goes to waste. Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because they are related to an increasing population and demand for water.

Questions 34-44 are based on the following passage.
The Most Easily Automated Activities


Almost one-fifth of the time spent in US workplaces involves performing physical activities or operating machinery in a predictable environment: workers [34] are carrying out specific actions in wellknown settings where changes are relatively easy to anticipate. [35] Scientists have adapted and adopted currently available technologies. They have estimated that the feasibility of automating such activities is 78 percent, the highest of seven top-level categories. Since predictable physical activities figure prominently in sectors such as manufacturing, food service and accommodations, and retailing, these are the most susceptible to automation.
[36] Consequently, in manufacturing, performing physical activities or operating machinery in a predictable environment represents one-third of the workers’ overall time.
[37] There are many activities that can be automated: such as packaging products, loading materials on production equipment, welding, and maintaining equipment. [38] Just because an activity can be automated doesn’t mean that it will be—broader economic factors are at play. Because of the [39] acceptance of such predictable physical work, some 59 percent of all manufacturing activities could be automated, given technical considerations.
The overall technical feasibility, however, masks considerable variance. Within manufacturing, 90 percent of what welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers do, for example, has the technical potential for automation, but for customer-service representatives that feasibility is [40] above 90 percent.
Manufacturing, for all its technical potential, is only the second most readily automated sector in the US economy. A service sector occupies the top spot: accommodations and food service, where almost half of all labor involves predictable physical activities and the operation of machinery. Automats have long been in use. Now restaurants are testing new, more sophisticated concepts, like self-service ordering or even robotic servers. [41] Solutions, such as one company’s burger-cooking robot, which can reportedly assemble and cook 360 burgers an hour, could automate a number of cooking and foodpreparation activities.
But while the technical potential for automating them might be high, the business case must take into account both the benefits and the costs of automation, as well as the labor-supply dynamics discussed earlier. [42] Since restaurant employees who cook earn an average of about $10 an hour, a business case based solely on reducing labor costs may be unconvincing.
Retailing is another sector with a high technical potential for automation. Retailers can take advantage of [43] efficient, technology-driven stock management and logistics, for example.
Packaging objects for shipping and stocking merchandise has a high technical potential for automation. So do maintaining records of sales, gathering customer or product information, and other data-collection activities. But retailing also requires cognitive and social skills. [44]


34.

A) NO CHANGE
B) carried
C) have carried
D) carry

The verbs “involves”, and “changes” show that the dominant tense is the present simple used to present factual information; therefore, to achieve consistency the verb “are carrying” should be used in its present form as shown in Choice D. Choice A, B and C are consequently incorrect.

35. What is the best way of combining the underlined sentences?

A) Through the adaptation and adoption of currently available technologies, scientists have estimated that the technical feasibility of automating such activities at 78 percent, the highest of seven top-level categories.
B) Through the adaptation and adoption of currently available technologies, scientists have estimated that the technical feasibility of automating such activities at 78 percent, is the highest of seven top-level categories.
C) Through the adaptation and adoption of currently available technologies, scientists have estimated that the technical feasibility of automating such activities is at 78 percent, the highest of seven top-level categories.
D) It has been estimated by scientists that the technical feasibility of automating such activities at 78 percent is the highest of seven top-level categories through the adaptation and adoption of currently available technologies.

Choice A is incorrect because the comma used to join the sentences should be replaced by verb “to be” specifically “is”. Choice B is incorrect because though verb “to be” (is) is used, the comma should be eliminated because it separates the subject and its verb. The sentence structure in D is incorrect; therefore, Choice C is correct.

36.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) As a result.
    C) Therefore,
    D) For example,

Choices A, B and C are incorrect because “consequently”, “As a result”, and “therefore” are used to show the result of a certain cause. Choice C is correct because the paragraph given represents an example of automated activities.

37.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) There are many activities, such as: packaging products, loading materials on production equipment, welding, and maintaining equipment.
    C) There are many activities that include the following; packaging products, loading materials on production equipment, welding, and maintaining equipment.
    D) There are many activities that include the following: packaging products, loading materials on production equipment, welding, and maintaining equipment.

Choice A is incorrect because the colons should be placed after “as” to start listing the automated activities. Choice B is incorrect because no comma should be added after “activities”. Choice C is incorrect because the semicolon is not used to start listing. Choice D is correct because after “following” we have a colon and after it we find the list of automated activities.

38. The writer is considering deleting this sentence. Should it be kept or deleted?

    A) Kept, because it supports the previous sentence.
    B) Kept, because it clarifies an important point.
    C) Deleted, because it makes an unnecessary point.
    D) Deleted, because it clarifies the idea that automation takes into consideration economic factors.

The sentence that the author is considering deleting talks about automated activities and economic factors. This idea is neither related to the previous sentence that is listing kinds of automated activities nor to the next sentence. For this reason, Choices A, B, and D are incorrect and Choice C is correct.

39. Which word would better convey the idea of the widespread presence of manufacturing activities.

A) NO CHANGE
B) prevalence
C) diminution
D) evanescence

Choice A is incorrect because “acceptance” means “to welcome something”. Choice C is incorrect because “diminution” means “to decrease”. Choice D is incorrect because “evanescence” means “to be able to vanish”. Choice B is correct because “prevalence” means “commonness” and due to the commonness of physical work, 59% of manufactured activities can become automated.

40. In order to be consistent with the main idea of the paragraph, what would most logically follow?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) below 30 percent.
    C) higher than 30 percent.
    D) identical to that of manufacturing.

The two sentences contrast the percentage of feasibility between welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers to customer-service which is definitely less than 90% and is not even close to being identical. Therefore, Choices A, C, and D are incorrect and Choice B is correct.

41.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) Solutions such as one company’s burgercooking robot which can reportedly assemble and cook 360 burgers an hour
    C) Solutions such as one company’s burgercooking robot that can reportedly assemble and cook 360 burgers an hour
    D) Solutions such as one company’s burgercooking robot, that can reportedly assemble and cook 360 burgers an hour,

Modifiers should be placed near the noun they modify. Therefore, the two sentences “such as……….robot”, and “which ……..hour”, should be placed after solutions and placed between commas. Choice A is correct and matches the specifications, on the other hand Choices B, C, and D don’t.

42. The writer is considering inserting this sentence at this point in the passage:
“For some of these activities, current wage rates are among the lowest in the United States, reflecting both the skills required and the size of the available labor supply.”
Should he make this insertion?

    A) Yes. The sentence that follows shows that cooks have a high technical potential for automation even though their wages are low.
    B) Yes. The sentence that follows shows that current wage rates are low for restaurant employees, but that it is not enough to warrant automation.
    C) No. Cooking and food preparation activities can easily be automated because of their highly predictable physical activities.
    D) No. Current wage rates reflect the high technical potential for automation and this is supported in the sentence that follows.

Choice A is incorrect because cooks have a low technical potential for automation. Choice B is correct because it presents the low current wage restaurant employees get. Choices C and D are incorrect because they do not match the information given in the paragraph.

43.

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) efficiently
    C) efficience
    D) efficiency

Choices A and B are wrong because “efficient” is an adjective and “efficiently” is an adverb. Choice C is incorrect because “efficience” does not exist. Choice D is correct because it is a noun and fits the parallel structure of the following nouns “stock management” and “logistics”.

44. Which choice is most logically inserted at this point in the sentence?

    A) NO CHANGE
    B) For instance, bookkeepers, accountants, and auditing clerks, perform activities which require mostly software and a basic computer.
    C) For instance, advising customers which cuts of meat or what color shoes to buy requires judgment and emotional intelligence.
    D) For instance, farming, industry, and construction require large amounts of physical activity.

Choice A is incorrect because it feels incomplete without providing further explanation or giving an example of cognitive and social skills. Choices B and D are incorrect because we are neither talking about physical activity requirements nor software and basic computer. Choice C is correct because it’s giving an example about the perfect way to advise customers using emotional intelligence.