12.Practice.Tests.for.the.SAT_2015-2016_1128p

12 Practice Tests for t h e SAT I
Practice Test Four Answers and Explanations
397
All you know about t h e action is t h at it must ave been bad
to be considered reprehensible, and t h at if t h e principal
refused to accept any excuse, t h en h e must h ave a l so
considered it inexcusable or unjustifiable, bot h great
predictions for t h e blank.
C h oice (A) is a perfect fit given your prediction. In (B), just
because t h e action was reprehensible and inexcusabl e
does not mean it was necessari l y sneaky or done
surreptitiously. In (C), sentence on l y emp h asizes t h e
inexcusable nature of t h e action, not t h at it necessarily took
an indefatigable, or tire l ess, effort. In (D), not h ing in t h e
sentence indicates w h et h er t h e action was comp l ete or allinclusive.
In (E), t h e action would probably not h ave been
repre h ensibl e if it h a d been capable of fixing anyt h ing.
5. D
Difficulty: Hig
T h e cause-and-effect h
statement in t h e sentence is one of
action and reaction. Jo h nson's play was criticized for being
too verbose, too wordy. Convinced by t h e criticism, Jo h nson
soug h t to make h is play l ess h verbose; e abbreviated
it, making it s h orter, or more succinct. In (A), expanded
means increased, and concise means expressing muc h in
a few words, so t h e two words are more nearly opposite in
meaning t h an t h e a l lied words cal l ed for by t h e sentence.
Curtailed, in (B), means cut s h ort or interrupted, and prolix
means te diously wordy, so again t h e words work against
eac h ot h er. Promulgated, (C), means proclaimed or
announced, and insouciant means blit h e l y unconcerned.
C h oice (D) matc h es your prediction. In (E), fostered means
nurtured or cultivated, and pliant means easily bent or
s h aped.
6. E
Difficulty: Hig
Look at t h e structura h l c l ue provided by t h e semicolon;
w h at fo ll ows describes t h e type of be h avior typified by t h e
bl an ked word. T h e words that is fol l owed by a comma also
indicate t h at a definition of t h e word fol l ows. T h ink of a
word t h at means narrowing of view. Short-sighted is also a
good prediction.
In (A), t h e be h avior of someone w h o is shortsighted is not
necessarily irresolute. In (B), t h is word means bossy and
does not matc h t h e prediction. In (C), a word t h at means
bitter is not t h e correct c h oice. C h oice (D) is t h e opposite
of t h e prediction; it means precise. C h oice (E) is t h e
correct answer.
Questions 7- 18
Paragrap h 1 in t h is passage about t h e brain says t h at
alt h oug h h umans' brains can't do some t h ings as wel l as
t h ose of lower animals-like navigate, h ear, or sme l l-our
brains are able to communicate, so l ve probl ems, an d t h ink
abstractly. T h at may be because of our brains' flexibi l ity.
Paragrap h 2 examines t h is flexibility and says t h at t h e
idea t h at t h e brain continues to develop over a person's
lifetime is a relatively new concept. Paragrap h 3 ta l ks about
an experiment involving rats t h at revea l ed t h at a rat's
experiences and environment h ad an impact on its capacity
to function.
7. D
Difficulty: Hig
It is always important h
to keep in mind t h e general tone
of t h e text, as incorrect answer c h oices can usually be
eliminated for not fitting wit h t h e aut h or's tone or meaning.
Notice t h at w h ile t h e aut h or mentions some of t h e
unrivaled strengt h s of t h e h uman brain, now h ere in t h e
text is one animal's brain described as superior to anot h er.
T h e sentence beginning wit h t h e words And while these
relative strengths and weaknesses clearly i l lustrates
t h is nonjudgmental tone, and it indicates t h at t h e aut h or
. . .
is comparing t h e brain capabilities of various animals
to describe h ow t h e h uman brain differs and can be
distinguis h ed.
C h oice (A) is distortion; t h is c h oice does not matc h t h e tone
of t h e text, w h ic h d oes not describe one animal's brain as
more sop h isticated t h an anot h er's. C h oice (B) is a misused
detail; w h ile t h e aut h or's comparisons may h ave t h is effect,
now h ere is t h e diversity of brain types mentioned or
focused on in t h e passage. C h oice (C) is out of scope; t h e
aut h or only mentions t h e h uman brain as h aving plasticity.
C h oice (D) is a great fit for your prediction. C h oice (E) is
distortion; t h e aut h or praises t h e sensory abilities of bot
animals and h h
umans.
8. c
Difficulty: Medium
Make sure to consider t h e surrounding context before
making your answer selection.
Notice t h at t h e cited content h ere is being used as an
example t h at supports t h e preceding sentence: In terms of
what it can do, the human brain is in some ways unable