Reading Comprehension :: essays research papers

READING COMPREHENSION This test measures your ability to understand what you read. You may be asked to:  identify the relationship between sentences  distinguish between the main and secondary ideas  make inferences DIRECTIONS: Read the statement or passage and then choose the best answer to the question. Answer the question on the basis of what is stated or implied in the statement or passage. 1. Myths are stories, the products of fertile imagination, sometimes simple, often containing profound truths. They are not meant to be taken too literally. Details may sometimes appear childish, but most myths express a culture's most serious beliefs about human beings, eternity, and God. The main idea of this passage is that myths (a) are created primarily to entertain young children (b) are purposely written for the reader (c) provide the reader with a means of escape from reality (d) illustrate the values that are considered important to a society 2. Australia has many strange beasts, one of the oddest of which is the koala. Perfectly adapted to one specific tree, the eucalyptus, this living teddy bear does not need anything else, not even a drink! The moisture in the leaves is just right for the koala, making it the only land animal that doesn't need water to supplement its food (from That Astounding Creator Nature by Jean George). The passage indicates that the koala (a) is a member of the bear family that does not need moisture to live (b) gets all of its nourishment from the eucalyptus tree (c) adapts itself to any surroundings (d) is the only animal that does not need food to live 3. It is early summer. August's long-awaited vacation time still seems ages away, but by the same toke, its torpor-producing heat and mildew-generating humidity have not yet arrived. Instead, these cool, end-of-June days practically insist on getting the picnic season under way immediately. But, alas, there is a difficulty: alfresco dining has a bad name among us. Tenth-rate hot dogs, carbonized chicken parts, and beef a-la-charcoal are principally what comes to mind when we hear the words "outdoor food" (from A Spanish Picnic by Robert Capon). The passage suggests that the author believes that (a) picnicking in August is long-awaited (b) August is better than June for a picnic (c) there are some negative aspects to eating outside (d) picnicking is better alfresco 4. In embarking on the fight for independence, America faced formidable obstacles. The Continental Congress did not have the authority to pass binding legislation or to impose taxes.