Main Ideas & Details

Jazz tap is a dance form that was first developed in African American communities. Jazz tap was heavily influenced by jazz music, which became widely popular in the United States in the 1920s. Tap dancers were inspired by jazz music’s quick rhythms and by the way jazz musicians would make up melodies as they played. As jazz music continued to develop in the 1930s and 1940s, jazz tap evolved with it. Because of jazz music’s influence, jazz tap quickly developed into a dance form that was very different from earlier kinds of tap dance.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) It explains why audiences prefer some kinds of music over others.

B) It discusses the development of a dance form.

C) It describes how to play a musical instrument.

D) It emphasizes the popularity of a famous dancer.

A) Incorrect – The passage does not discuss audience preferences or why some music is more popular than others.

B) Correct – The passage traces the history of jazz tap, explaining how it developed and evolved.

C) Incorrect – The passage is about a dance form, not how to play a musical instrument.

D) Incorrect – The passage does not focus on a specific dancer’s popularity.

Believing that living in an impractical space can heighten awareness and even improve health, conceptual artists Madeline Gins and Shusaku Arakawa designed an apartment building in Japan to be more fanciful than functional. A kitchen counter is chest-high on one side and knee-high on the other; a ceiling has a door to nowhere. The effect is disorienting but invigorating: after four years there, filmmaker Nobu Yamaoka reported significant health benefits.

 Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Although inhabiting a home surrounded by fanciful features such as those designed by Gins and Arakawa can be rejuvenating, it is unsustainable.

B) Designing disorienting spaces like those in the Gins and Arakawa building is the most effective way to create a physically stimulating environment.

C) As a filmmaker, Yamaoka has long supported the designs of conceptual artists such as Gins and Arakawa.

D) Although impractical, the design of the apartment building by Gins and Arakawa may improve the well-being of the building’s residents.

A) Incorrect – The passage does not state that the building is unsustainable.

B) Incorrect – The passage does not claim this is the most effective way to stimulate residents.

C) Incorrect – Yamaoka’s support for conceptual art is not mentioned; only his personal experience in the apartment is discussed.

D) Correct – The passage emphasizes that the design is impractical but has health benefits, making this the best answer.

Culinary anthropologist Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor may be known for her decades of work in national public television and radio, but her book Vibration Cooking: or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl is likely her most influential project. The 1970 book, whose title refers to Smart-Grosvenor’s roots in the Low Country of South Carolina, was unusual for its time. It combined memoir, recipes, travel writing, and social commentary and challenged notions about conventions of food and cooking. Long admired by many, the book and its author have shaped contemporary approaches to writing about cuisine.

 Which choice best describes the main idea of the text?

A) Smart-Grosvenor’s unconventional book Vibration Cooking: or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl is an important contribution to food writing.

B) Smart-Grosvenor held many different positions over her life, including reporter and food writer.

C) Smart-Grosvenor’s groundbreaking book Vibration Cooking didn’t receive the praise it deserved when it was first published in 1970.

D) Smart-Grosvenor was a talented chef whose work inspired many people to start cooking for themselves.

A) Correct – The passage highlights the book’s influence on contemporary food writing.

B) Incorrect – While she worked in TV and radio, the focus of the passage is on her book, not her career variety.

C) Incorrect – The passage does not say the book was underappreciated in 1970.

D) Incorrect – The passage discusses her writing, not her cooking skills.

Archaeologists studying the ancient city of Pompeii in Italy recently discovered a well-preserved food shop known as a thermopolium. The site contains food remains, artworks, and decorations. These items give researchers a better understanding of what daily life in Pompeii may have been like. For example, the archaeologists found a ceramic jar that they believe likely contained a meat and seafood stew.

 Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To compare ancient artworks with modern ones

B) To discuss the political system of Italy

C) To present a recent archaeological discovery

D) To describe a region’s climate

A) Incorrect – The passage does not compare artworks.

B) Incorrect – The passage focuses on archaeology, not politics.

C) Correct – The passage describes an archaeological find.

D) Incorrect – The passage does not discuss climate.

Miss Pyne sat by the window watching, in her best dress, looking stately and calm; she seldom went out now, and it was almost time for the carriage. Martha was just coming in from the garden with the strawberries, and with more flowers in her apron. It was a bright cool evening in June, the golden robins sang in the elms, and the sun was going down behind the apple-trees at the foot of the garden. The beautiful old house stood wide open to the long-expected guest.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To convey the worries brought about by a new guest

B) To describe how the characters have changed over time

C) To contrast the activity indoors with the stillness outside

D) To depict the setting as the characters await a visitor’s arrival

A) Incorrect – The text does not describe anxiety about the guest.

B) Incorrect – The text focuses on the setting, not character change.

C) Incorrect – There is no strong contrast between indoors and outdoors.

D) Correct – The passage describes the house and surroundings in anticipation of a visitor.

In the 1700s and 1800s, European composers experimented with volume in their musical works. They did so by increasing the number of musicians playing in the orchestra. For example, in some of his operas, German composer Richard Wagner added more horns, trombones, and tubas to the orchestra. With more instruments playing at the same time, the orchestra could play extremely loudly at key moments in his operas.

 According to the text, how did Richard Wagner achieve moments of extremely high volume in his operas?

A) By moving the performances of his operas from outdoor stages to indoor ones

B) By increasing the number of musicians playing horns, trombones, and tubas in the orchestra

C) By building a concert hall whose shape would cause sounds to echo

D) By insisting that the singers undergo special training to sing for extended periods of time

A) Incorrect – The text does not mention moving performances indoors.

B) Correct – The text explicitly states Wagner added more instruments to increase volume.

C) Incorrect – The text does not mention Wagner building concert halls for sound echo.

D) Incorrect – The text does not mention special vocal training for singers.

Poetry in Classical Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec Empire, relies on difrasismo, or a parallel noun construction that conventionally operates as a single metaphor. For example, the common difrasismo in cuauhtli in ocelotl (literally, “the eagle, the jaguar”) signifies “warrior.” The device’s function is both formal—providing structure to lines of verse—and ritual: semantic relations among the two nouns and the concept they signify can be tenuous, as in the previous example, such that difrasismos are often only intelligible according to the conceptual associations observed in Aztec ceremonial culture.

Which statement about the difrasismo in cuauhtli in ocelotl is most strongly supported by the text?

A) Its metaphorical significance derives from the semantic equivalence of the two nouns constituting the difrasismo.

B) Its unintelligibility may cause its formal function within a line of verse to go unnoticed by present-day readers.

C) Its apparent obscurity can be resolved when considered in the proper cultural context.

D) Its frequency in Classical Nahuatl poetry confirms its intelligibility to the Aztec audience.

(A) Incorrect – The passage states that the semantic relationship between the two nouns can be “tenuous,” not equivalent. This undermines the idea that the metaphor arises from semantic equivalence.

(B) Incorrect – While the passage suggests difrasismos may be obscure to modern readers, it does not claim this obscurity affects recognition of their formal function in poetry.

(C) Correct – The passage explicitly states that difrasismos “are often only intelligible according to the conceptual associations observed in Aztec ceremonial culture,” supporting the idea that understanding them requires cultural context.

(D) Incorrect – The passage makes no claim about the frequency of this or any difrasismo, nor does it connect frequency with audience comprehension.

Eighteenth-century economist Adam Smith is famed for his metaphor of the invisible hand, which he putatively used to illustrate a robust model of how individuals produce aggregate benefits by pursuing their own economic interests. Note “putatively”: as Gavin Kennedy has shown, Smith deploys this metaphor only once in his economic writings—to make a narrow point about the then-dominant economic theory of mercantilism—and it was largely ignored until some twentieth-century economists eager to secure an intellectual pedigree for their views elevated it to a fully-fledged paradigm.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Although Smith is famed for his metaphor of the invisible hand, the metaphor was largely ignored until economists in the twentieth century came to realize that the metaphor was a robust model that anticipated their own views.

B) Some twentieth-century economists gave Smith’s metaphor of the invisible hand a significance it does not have in Smith’s work, but it is nevertheless a useful model of how individuals produce aggregate benefits by pursuing their own economic interests.

C) Smith’s metaphor of the invisible hand has been interpreted as a model of how individuals acting in their own interest produce aggregate benefits, but it was intended as a subtle critique of the economic theory of mercantilism.

D) The reputation of Smith’s metaphor of the invisible hand is not due to the importance of the metaphor in Smith’s work but rather to the promotion of the metaphor by some later economists for their own ends.

A) Incorrect – While the text acknowledges that the metaphor was ignored until the twentieth century, it does not say that economists realized its robustness. Instead, it suggests they misrepresented its significance for their own purposes.

B) Incorrect – The text does not claim that the metaphor is a useful model; rather, it argues that its significance was exaggerated.

C) Incorrect – The text states that the metaphor was written in the context of mercantilism, but it does not claim it was intended as a critique of mercantilism. The focus of the text is on how later economists reinterpreted its meaning.

D) Correct – The text clearly argues that Smith’s use of the metaphor was limited but that later economists exaggerated its importance to promote their own economic perspectives.

Hevea brasiliensis, a tree in the Amazon rainforest, is the world’s main source of natural rubber. The tree produces a milky substance called latex that is used to make rubber. The bark of Hevea brasiliensis is helpful for the process of making rubber because it has a unique structure that makes it easy to collect latex. A network of tubes in the tree’s inner bark helps the latex to flow out easily when people make small cuts into the bark.

What feature of Hevea brasiliensis does the text say is helpful for the process of making rubber?

(A) Its latex produces rubber of an especially high quality.

(B) Its bark has a unique structure that makes it easy to collect latex.

(C) It is able to grow in a wide variety of climates around the world.

(D) It is one of only two trees in the Amazon that produce latex.

(A) Incorrect – The text does not discuss the quality of the rubber produced by Hevea brasiliensis or compare it to rubber from other sources.

(B) Correct – The passage explicitly states that the unique structure of the tree’s bark makes latex collection easy, which is helpful for rubber production.

(C) Incorrect – The text does not mention the tree’s ability to grow in different climates; it only specifies that it is found in the Amazon rainforest.

(D) Incorrect – While the text suggests there may be other sources of latex, it does not specify whether Hevea brasiliensis is one of only two latex-producing trees in the Amazon.

Conservationists worldwide are working to protect ecosystems from habitat destruction and biodiversity loss, and in many cases, initiatives that rely on natural features or processes can help address such challenges. In response to a rapidly dwindling population of blueback salmon, the Quinault Indian Nation (a tribe in Washington State) partnered with the conservation organization Wild Salmon Center to restore naturally occurring logjams in the Quinault River. The logjams create shady pools where the blueback salmon can rest and spawn, thus promoting blueback population recovery.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

(A) A partnership between the Quinault Indian Nation and Wild Salmon Center shows the importance of collaborative approaches to preserving biodiversity.

(B) Nature-based approaches can be effective ways to achieve conservation goals.

(C) As indicated by a recent project, logjams help the blueback salmon thrive and reproduce.

(D) Scientists now realize that nature-based conservation methods offer better long-term solutions to environmental issues than methods that are not nature-based do.

(A) Incorrect – While the partnership is mentioned, the passage’s main focus is not on collaboration but rather on the effectiveness of nature-based conservation methods.

(B) Correct – The passage highlights how using natural logjams to restore salmon populations exemplifies the effectiveness of nature-based conservation.

(C) Incorrect – The passage does mention that logjams help salmon, but this is just one example supporting the broader point about nature-based conservation.

(D) Incorrect – The passage does not compare nature-based conservation methods to other conservation methods; it only provides an example of a successful nature-based approach.

A team of scientists studied the Murray Formation, an expanse of rock on Mars that contains layers of sediment. The lowest of these layers consists mainly of mudstone, a fine-grained sedimentary rock that forms in calm water. The layers above it contain increasingly coarse grains of sediment, including sandstone, which typically forms in flowing water. The uppermost layers also feature cracks similar to those produced by the drying of mud on Earth.

Based on this information, the scientists likely concluded that ______.

(A) although the area of the Murray Formation experienced a prolonged period of dryness that prevented a lake from forming, water flowing from a distant source was present.

(B) a lake existed at the Murray Formation for a prolonged period, though the lake occasionally experienced drying and there were periods in which one or more streams were present.

(C) one or more streams existed at the Murray Formation for an extended period until being replaced by a lake that persisted for only a brief period before permanently drying.

(D) a stream-fed lake was present at the Murray Formation for an extended period, and although the streams experienced occasional drying, the lake did not.

(A) Incorrect – The presence of fine-grained sediment (mudstone) suggests a lake did form, contradicting this option.

(B) Correct – The presence of mudstone indicates a calm body of water (a lake), while the coarser grains suggest flowing water (streams). The cracks in the upper layers indicate drying periods, supporting the conclusion that the lake existed for a long time but occasionally dried.

(C) Incorrect – This choice reverses the sequence. The evidence suggests a lake was there first, then streams became more prominent over time.

(D) Incorrect – The presence of cracks suggests the lake did experience drying at times.

The following text is from the 1924 poem "Cycle" by D'Arcy McNickle, who was a citizen of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes.

There shall be new roads wending.
A new beating of the drum—
Men’s eyes shall have fresh seeing,
Grey lives reprise their span—
But under the new sun’s being,
Completing what night began,
There’ll be the same backs bending,
The same sad feet shall drum—
When this night finds its ending
And day shall have come.....

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To consider how the repetitiveness inherent in human life can be both rewarding and challenging

B) To question whether activities completed at one time of day are more memorable than those completed at another time of day

C) To refute the idea that joy is a more commonly experienced emotion than sadness is

D) To demonstrate how the experiences of individuals relate to the experiences of their communities

Choice A is the best answer because it accurately states the main purpose of the text. The text begins by discussing the promise of the future, with positive references to renewal such as "new roads," "new beating of the drum," and "fresh seeing." But with the "new sun," the text continues, there will still be "the same backs bending" and "the same sad feet" drumming, indicating that these difficulties will follow people into this new day. The poem thus considers both the rewards and challenges associated with the repetitiveness of human life.

Choice B is incorrect because the text doesn’t say anything about how memorable activities are, let alone compare the memorability of activities completed at different times of the day.

Choice C is incorrect. Although the text contrasts hope with difficulty, it does not compare the relative frequency of joyful feelings with that of sad feelings.

Choice D is incorrect because it makes no distinction between the experiences of individuals and the experiences of their communities.

The following text is adapted from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1911 novel The Secret Garden. Mary, a young girl, recently found an overgrown hidden garden.

Mary was an odd, determined little person, and now she had something interesting to be determined about, she was very much absorbed, indeed. She worked and dug and pulled up weeds steadily, only becoming more pleased with her work every hour instead of tiring of it. It seemed to her like a fascinating sort of play.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Mary hides in the garden to avoid doing her chores.

B) Mary is getting bored with pulling up so many weeds in the garden.

C) Mary is clearing out the garden to create a space to play.

D) Mary feels very satisfied when she’s taking care of the garden.

Choice D is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. The text describes Mary’s activities in an overgrown hidden garden, saying that she was “very much absorbed” and “only becoming more pleased with her work every hour” rather than getting tired of it. She also thinks of garden activities as a “fascinating sort of play.” This idea she holds is the reason why she feels very satisfied when taking care of the garden.

Choice A is incorrect because the text never makes any mention of Mary’s chores.

Choice B is incorrect because the text indicates that Mary finds pulling up weeds to be absorbing, not boring.

Choice C is incorrect because the text implies that Mary finds taking care of garden activities in and of themselves as play, not something necessary to do to create a space to play.

Believing that living in an impractical space can heighten awareness and even improve health, conceptual artists Madeline Gins and Shusaku Arakawa designed an apartment building in Japan to be more radical than functional. A kitchen counter is chest-high on one side and knee-high on the other; a ceiling has a door to nowhere. The effect is disorienting but invigorating: after four years there, filmmaker Nobu Yamaoka reported significant health benefits.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Although inhabiting a home surrounded by fanciful features such as those designed by Gins and Arakawa can be rejuvenating, it is unsustainable.

B) Designing disorienting spaces like those in the Gins and Arakawa building is the most effective way to create a physically stimulating environment.

C) As a filmmaker, Yamaoka has long supported the designs of conceptual artists such as Gins and Arakawa.

D) Although impractical, the design of the apartment building by Gins and Arakawa may improve the well-being of the building’s residents.

Choice D is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. According to the text, conceptual artists Gins and Arakawa have designed an apartment building that is disorienting because of several unconventional elements, such as uneven kitchen counters and a “door to nowhere.” The text goes on to suggest that there may be benefits to this kind of design because filmmaker Yamaoka lived in the apartment building for four years and reported health benefits. Thus, although the design is impractical, it may improve the well-being of the apartment building’s residents.

Choice A is incorrect. Although the text mentions that Yamaoka lived in the apartment for four years, it doesn’t address how long someone can live beneficially in a home surrounded by fanciful features or whether doing so can be sustained.

Choice B is incorrect. Although the text mentions the potential benefits of living in a home with disorienting design features, it doesn’t suggest that this is the most effective method to create a physically stimulating environment.

Choice C is incorrect because the text describes how Yamaoka supports the idea that the design could improve health, but the text doesn’t indicate that Yamaoka supports the designs of other conceptual artists.

The following text is from Maggie Pogue Johnson's 1910 poem "Poet of Our Race." In this poem, the speaker is addressing Paul Laurence Dunbar, a Black author.

"Thou, with stroke of mighty pen,
And read the hearts and souls of men
As cradled from their birth.
The language of the flowers,
Thou hast read them all,
And e’en the little brook
Responded to thy call."

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To praise a certain writer for being especially perceptive regarding people and nature

B) To establish that a certain writer has read extensively about a variety of topics

C) To call attention to a certain writer’s careful and elaborately detailed writing process

D) To recount fond memories of an afternoon spent in nature with a certain writer

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states the main purpose of the text. In the first part of the text, the speaker addresses Paul Laurence Dunbar’s ability to understand people (he has “read the hearts and souls of men” and written of their “joy and mirth”). In the second part of the text, the speaker describes Dunbar’s thorough understanding of the natural world (he has read “the language of the flowers” and engaged with “the little brook”). Thus, the text mainly praises Dunbar for being especially perceptive about people and nature.

Choice B is incorrect because the speaker describes Dunbar as having read the “hearts and souls of men” and the “language of flowers” to convey Dunbar’s ability to comprehend people and nature, not to suggest that Dunbar has literally read any of these things or has read a great deal about them.

Choice C is incorrect because the text notes how well Dunbar has made sense of the topics he’s written about but doesn’t address any specific parts of Dunbar’s writing process beyond the suggestion that he used a pen.

Choice D is incorrect because the text focuses on Dunbar’s understanding of people and nature as expressed in his writing. Nothing in the text suggests that the speaker is recalling a particular afternoon actually spent in nature with Dunbar; even if there had been a shared experience, the text isn’t focused on reminiscing.

In 1934, physicist Eugene Wigner posited the existence of a crystal consisting entirely of electrons in a honeycomb-like structure. The so-called Wigner crystal remained largely conjecture, however, until Feng Wang and colleagues announced in 2021 that they had captured an image of one. The researchers trapped electrons between two semiconductors and then cooled the apparatus, causing the electrons to settle into a crystalline structure. By inserting an ultrathin sheet of graphene above the crystal, the researchers obtained an impression—the first visual confirmation of the Wigner crystal.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Researchers have obtained the most definitive evidence to date of the existence of the Wigner crystal.

B) Researchers have identified an innovative new method for working with unusual crystalline structures.

C) Graphene is the most important of the components required to capture an image of a Wigner crystal.

D) It’s difficult to acquire an image of a Wigner crystal because of the crystal’s honeycomb structure.

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. According to the text, Eugene Wigner hypothesized that a crystal could exist that would be composed of electrons and have a honeycomb-like shape. The text goes on to say that the existence of the Wigner crystal remained unconfirmed until Feng Wang and colleagues were able to make an impression of one using two semiconductors and an ultrathin sheet of graphene. Thus, the main idea is that researchers have obtained the most definitive evidence to date of the existence of the Wigner crystal.

Choice B is incorrect because the text focuses on one kind of crystal—the Wigner crystal—and doesn’t discuss crystalline structures in general. And although the text conveys that Wang and colleagues figured out a way to capture an image of a Wigner crystal, it doesn’t address the idea of applying this approach to other types of crystals.

Choice C is incorrect because the text describes in general the process Wang and colleagues followed to obtain an impression of the Wigner crystal; it doesn’t address the relative importance of each component in that process.

Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t state that researchers had a hard time getting an impression of the Wigner crystal because of its honeycomb structure. Nothing in the text indicates why it took so long to prove the existence of this crystal or take an impression of it.

For many years, the only existing fossil evidence of mixopterid eurypterids—an extinct family of large aquatic arthropods known as sea scorpions and related to modern arachnids and horseshoe crabs—came from four species living on the paleocontinent of Laurussia. In a discovery that expands our understanding of the geographical distribution of mixopterids, paleontologist Bo Wang and others have identified fossilized remains of a new mixopterid species, Terropterus xiushanensis, that lived over 400 million years ago on the paleocontinent of Gondwana.

According to the text, why was Wang and his team’s discovery of the Terropterus xiushanensis fossil significant?

A) The fossil constitutes the first evidence found by scientists that mixopterids lived more than 400 million years ago.

B) The fossil helps establish that mixopterids are more closely related to modern arachnids and horseshoe crabs than previously thought.

C) The fossil helps establish a more accurate timeline of the evolution of mixopterids on the paleocontinents of Laurussia and Gondwana.

D) The fossil constitutes the first evidence found by scientists that mixopterids existed outside the paleocontinent of Laurussia.

Choice D is the best answer because it states why Wang and his team’s discovery of the Terropterus xiushanensis fossil was significant. The text explains that up until Wang and his team’s discovery, the only fossil evidence of mixopterids came from the paleocontinent of Laurussia. Wang and his team, however, identified fossil remains of a mixopterid species from the paleocontinent Gondwana. Therefore, the team’s discovery was significant because the fossil remains of a mixopterid species were outside of the paleocontinent Laurussia.

Choice A is incorrect. Although the text states that Wang and his team identified fossilized remains of a mixopterid species that lived more than 400 million years ago, it doesn’t indicate that mixopterid fossils previously found by scientists dated to a more recent period than that.

Choice B is incorrect. Although the text states that mixopterids are related to modern arachnids and horseshoe crabs, it doesn’t suggest that the fossil discovered by Wang and his team confirmed that this relationship is closer than scientists had previously thought.

Choice C is incorrect because the team’s fossil-established the presence of mixopterids on Gondwana, not on Laurussia. Moreover, the text only discusses the fossil in relation to the geographical distribution of mixopterids, not in relation to their evolution.

Culinary anthropologist Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor may be known for her decades of work in national public television and radio, but her book Vibration Cooking; or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl is likely her most influential project. The 1970 book, whose title refers to Smart-Grosvenor's roots in the Low Country of South Carolina, was unusual for its time. It combined memoir, recipes, travel writing, and social commentary and challenged notions about the conventions of food and cooking. Long admired by many, the book and its author have shaped contemporary approaches to writing about cuisine.

Which choice best describes the main idea of the text?

A) Smart-Grosvenor's unconventional book Vibration Cooking; or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl is an important contribution to food writing.

B) Smart-Grosvenor held many different positions over her life, including reporter and food writer.

C) Smart-Grosvenor's groundbreaking book Vibration Cooking; or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl didn't receive the praise it deserved when it was first published in 1970.

D) Smart-Grosvenor was a talented chef whose work inspired many people to start cooking for themselves.

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. The text describes the book Vibration Cooking; or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl as Smart-Grosvenor's "most influential project" and as "unusual for its time." The text also notes that the book and author have influenced contemporary approaches to writing about food and cooking. Therefore, the text mainly conveys that Vibration Cooking; or, the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl is an unconventional and important contribution to food writing.

Choice B is incorrect. Although the text mentions that Smart-Grosvenor worked in national public television and radio and was a food writer, these details aren’t the main focus. Rather than focusing on Smart-Grosvenor’s various jobs, the text focuses specifically on one specific book she wrote.

Choice C is incorrect. Although the text suggests that Vibration Cooking; or the Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl was groundbreaking, it doesn’t suggest that the book didn’t receive praise when it was published. In fact, the text states that the book is “long admired.”

Choice D is incorrect because the text states that Smart-Grosvenor was a culinary anthropologist and that her book influenced later approaches to food writing but doesn’t indicate that Smart-Grosvenor or her book influenced people to begin cooking for themselves.

The following text is from Georgia Douglas Johnson’s 1922 poem “Benediction”:

Go forth, my son,
Winged by my heart's desire!
Great reaches, yet unknown,
Await
For your possession.
I may not, if I would,
Retrace the way with you,
My pilgrimage is through,
But life is calling you!

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To express hope that a child will have the same accomplishments as his parent did

B) To suggest that raising a child involves many struggles

C) To warn a child that he will face many challenges throughout his life

D) To encourage a child to embrace the experiences life will offer

Choice D is the best answer because it accurately states the text's main purpose. The poem begins with the speaker urging a child to "go forth" with her encouragement ("my heart’s desire"). The speaker goes on to suggest that new experiences ("Great reaches, yet unknown") lie ahead for the son that "life is calling" him to seek out. Thus, the main purpose is to encourage a child to embrace the experiences available to him in his life.

Choice A is incorrect because the speaker encourages the child to pursue new experiences ("Great reaches") without knowing exactly what those experiences will be ("yet unknown") or suggesting that they should match the speaker’s own accomplishments.

Choice B is incorrect because the speaker focuses on positive possibilities for her son ("Great reaches, yet unknown") and her enthusiastic encouragement to embrace those possibilities ("life is calling you!"). while there is no mention of raising a child or associated struggles.

Choice C is incorrect because the speaker frames the possibilities for her son in a positive light when she says that "great reaches, yet unknown" are waiting for him, and this positive outlook for the son is consistent throughout the text.

In 2007, computer scientist Luis von Ahn was working on converting printed books into a digital format. He found that some words were distorted enough that digital scanners couldn’t recognize them, but most humans could easily read them. Based on that finding, von Ahn invented a simple security test to keep automated “bots” out of websites. The first version of the reCAPTCHA test asked users to type one known word and one of the many words scanners couldn’t recognize. Correct answers proved the users were humans and added data to the book-digitizing project.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To discuss von Ahn’s invention of reCAPTCHA

B) To explain how digital scanners work

C) To call attention to von Ahn’s book-digitizing project

D) To indicate how popular reCAPTCHA is

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states the main purpose of the text. After providing a brief introduction to computer scientist Luis von Ahn, the text focuses on discussing how von Ahn’s digitization work led to the invention of a digital security test known as reCAPTCHA.

Choice B is incorrect because the text doesn’t address how digital scanners work.

Choice C is incorrect. Although the text mentions von Ahn’s book-digitizing project, that information is provided as a detail, not as the main purpose of the text.

Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t provide any indication of how popular reCAPTCHA is; instead, it describes reCAPTCHA’s origin.

The following text is adapted from Susan Glaspell’s 1912 short story “‘Out There.’” An elderly shop owner is looking at a picture that he recently acquired and hopes to sell. The following text is adapted from Susan Glaspell’s 1912 short story “‘Out There.’” An elderly shop owner is looking at a picture that he recently acquired and hopes to sell.

It did seem that the picture failed to fit in with the rest of the shop. A persuasive young fellow who claimed he was closing out his stock let the old man have it for what he called a song. It was only a little out-of-the-way store which subsisted chiefly on the framing of pictures. The old man looked around at his views of the city, his pictures of cats and dogs, his flaming bits of landscape. “Don’t belong in here,” he fumed.

And yet the old man was secretly proud of his acquisition. There was a hidden dignity in his scowling as he shuffled about pondering the least ridiculous place for the picture.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To reveal the shop owner’s conflicted feelings about the new picture

B) To convey the shop owner’s resentment of the person he got the new picture from

C) To describe the items that the shop owner most highly prizes

D) To explain differences between the new picture and other pictures in the shop

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately describes the main purpose of the text. The text begins by stating that the new picture “failed to fit in” with the other items that the shop owner has. The text goes on to illustrate that point by describing the other pictures the shop owner has, indicating that the shop owner is fuming because he doesn’t think the new picture belongs in the store. In the second paragraph, however, the text indicates that the shop owner is “secretly proud of his acquisition.” The main purpose of the text is thus to reveal the shop owner’s conflicted feelings about the new picture.

Choice B is incorrect because the text doesn’t suggest that the shop owner resents the young man who sold him the new picture; in fact, the text gives no indication of the owner’s feelings about the young man at all. 

Choice C is incorrect because the text indicates that the new picture is different from the other items in the shop, there’s no suggestion that the shop owner prizes either the new picture or the pictures of the city, pets, and landscapes more than he prizes any other items. 

Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t describe what the new picture looks like; rather, the text identifies some of the other kinds of images that the shop owner has and states that they’re different from the new picture without explaining how they’re different.

The following text is from Walt Whitman’s 1860 poem “Calamus 24.”

1 HEAR it is charged against me that I seek to destroy institutions; But really I am neither for nor against institutions (What indeed have I in common with them?— Or what with the destruction of them?), Only I will establish in the Mannahatta [Mannahatta] and in every city of These States, inland and seaboard, And in the fields and woods, and above every keel [ship] little or large, that dents the water, Without edifices, or rules, or trustees, or any argument, The institution of the dear love of comrades.

Which choice best describes the overall structure of the text?

A) The speaker questions an increasingly prevalent attitude, then summarizes his worldview.

B) The speaker regrets his isolation from others, then predicts a profound change in society.

C) The speaker concedes his personal shortcomings, then boasts of his many achievements.

D) The speaker addresses a criticism leveled against him, then announces a grand ambition of his.

Choice D is the best answer because it best describes the overall structure of the text. The speaker begins by stating that he has heard that others are accusing him of seeking to destroy institutions. The speaker then addresses this criticism by stating that he is "neither for nor against institutions." Instead, the speaker states that his ultimate goal is to instill “the institution of the dear love of comrades” everywhere in the country. Therefore, the overall structure of the text is best described as an address of criticism followed by an announcement of a grand ambition.

Choice A is incorrect. While the speaker does address an opinion of him that he believes to be untrue, he doesn’t indicate that this attitude has become increasingly prevalent. The speaker also concludes by explaining his goal for the future rather than his current worldview.

Choice B is incorrect because the text doesn’t portray the speaker as isolated or regretful, and the speaker gestures toward a hope for societal change but doesn’t offer an explicit prediction that it will happen.

Choice C is incorrect because the speaker addresses a criticism of him that he believes to be false; he doesn’t admit any personal shortcomings. Moreover, the speaker concludes by stating a goal he has rather than showcasing his achievements.

The following text is adapted from Frances Hodgson Burnett’s 1911 novel The Secret Garden. Mary, a young girl, recently found an overgrown hidden garden.

Mary was an odd, determined little person, and now she had something interesting to be determined about, she was very much absorbed, indeed. She worked and dug and pulled up weeds steadily, only becoming more pleased with her work every hour instead of tiring of it. It seemed to her like a fascinating sort of play.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Mary hides in the garden to avoid doing her chores.

B) Mary is getting bored with pulling up so many weeds in the garden.

C) Mary is clearing out the garden to create a space to play.

D) Mary feels very satisfied when she’s taking care of the garden.

Choice D is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. The text describes Mary’s activities in an overgrown hidden garden, saying that she was “very much absorbed” and was “only becoming more pleased with her work every hour” rather than getting tired of it. She also thinks of garden activities as a “fascinating sort of play.” Thus, the main idea of the text is that Mary feels very satisfied when taking care of the garden.

Choice A is incorrect because the text never makes any mention of Mary’s chores. 

Choice B is incorrect because the text indicates that Mary finds pulling up weeds to be fascinating, not boring. 

Choice C is incorrect because Mary thinks of garden activities in and of themselves as play, not as something necessary to do to create a space to play.

The following text is from Ezra Pound's 1909 poem "Hymn III," based on the work of Marcantonio Flaminio.

As a fragile and lovely flower unfolds its gleaming foliage on the breast of the fostering earth, if the dew and the rain draw it forth;
So doth my tender mind flourish, if it be fed with the sweet dew of the fostering spirit,
Lacking this, it beginneth straightway to languish, even as a floweret born upon dry earth, if the dew and the rain tend it not.

Based on the text, in what way is the human mind like a flower?

A) It becomes increasingly vigorous with the passage of time.

B) It draws strength from changes in the weather.

C) It requires proper nourishment in order to thrive.

D) It perseveres despite challenging circumstances.

Choice C is the best answer because it presents a description of how the human mind is like a flower that is directly supported by the text. The text compares the needs of a "fragile and lovely flower" to those of the speaker's "tender mind": both need to be fed if they're going to survive. Without such feeding, they'll "begin to straightway to languish," or weaken. Thus, the text suggests that the human mind is like a flower in that they both need proper nourishment in order to thrive.

Choice A is incorrect because the text doesn’t address the passage of time or describe either the human mind or a flower as becoming increasingly vigorous. 

Choice B is incorrect because the text doesn’t suggest that human minds or flowers draw strength from changes in weather. The references to rain in the text pertain to a flower’s need for water rather than the general effects of changing weather. 

Choice D is incorrect because the text doesn’t suggest that the human mind or a flower will persist regardless of challenging circumstances. In fact, the text indicates that they’ll both languish right away if not given what they need.

The following text is adapted from Jack London's 1903 novel The Call of the Wild. Buck is a sled dog living with John Thornton in Yukon, Canada.

Thornton alone held [Buck]. The rest of mankind was as nothing. Chance travelers might praise or pet him; but he was cold under it all, and from a too demonstrative man he would get up and walk away. When Thornton’s partners, Hans and Pete, arrived on the long-expected raft, Buck refused to notice them till he learned they were close to Thornton; after that he tolerated them in a passive sort of way, accepting favors from them as though he favored them by accepting.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Buck has become less social since he began living with Thornton.

B) Buck mistrusts humans and does his best to avoid them.

C) Buck has been especially well liked by most of Thornton’s friends.

D) Buck holds Thornton in higher regard than any other person.

Choice D is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. After establishing that Buck views most people as “nothing,” the text explains that Buck won’t acknowledge people other than Thornton unless they appear friendly toward Thornton, and even then he’s only reluctantly accepting. Thus, the text focuses on the idea that Thornton has a special status in Buck’s mind, with Buck holding him in higher regard than other people.

Choice A is incorrect because the text conveys that Buck isn’t social with people other than Thornton but doesn’t address Buck’s life or temperament before he lived with Thornton. 

Choice B is incorrect because the text conveys that Buck doesn’t really care about people other than Thornton and is aloof toward them. However, there’s no indication that Buck mistrusts and avoids people generally; indeed, he accepts Thornton, who is a human. 

Choice C is incorrect because the text refers to random travelers praising and petting Buck and Thornton’s partners giving Buck favors, but there’s no indication that any of these people are Thornton’s friends or that they have a particular fondness for Buck.

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

• The Haudenosaunee Confederacy is a nearly 1,000-year-old alliance of six Native nations in the northeastern US.
• The members are bound by a centuries-old agreement known as the Great Law of Peace.
• Historian Bruce Johansen is one of several scholars who believe that the principles of the Great Law of Peace influenced the US Constitution.
• This theory is called the influence theory.
• Johansen cites the fact that Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson both studied the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.

The student wants to present the influence theory to an audience unfamiliar with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A) Historian Bruce Johansen believes that the Great Law of Peace was very influential.

B) The influence theory is supported by the fact that Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson both studied the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.

C) The influence theory holds that the principles of the Great Law of Peace, a centuries-old agreement binding six Native nations in the northeastern US, influenced the US Constitution.

D) Native people, including the members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, influenced the founding of the US in many different ways.

Choice C is the best answer. The sentence effectively presents the influence theory to an audience unfamiliar with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, explaining the theory’s position that the Great Law of Peace influenced the US Constitution while avoiding mention of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy itself.

Choice A is incorrect. The sentence broadly emphasizes Johansen’s ideas about the Great Law of Peace; it doesn’t identify the influence theory or effectively present it. 

Choice B is incorrect. The sentence emphasizes one fact that supports the influence theory; it doesn’t effectively present the theory to an audience unfamiliar with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.
 
Choice D is incorrect. The sentence makes a broad generalization about Native people’s influence on the founding of the US; it doesn’t effectively present the influence theory.

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

• The magnificent frigatebird (Fregata magnificens) is a species of seabird that feeds mainly on fish, tuna, squid, and other small sea animals.
• It is unusual among seabirds in that it doesn’t dive into the water for prey.
• One way it acquires food is by using its hook-tipped bill to snatch prey from the surface of the water.
• Another way it acquires food is by taking it from weaker birds by force.
• This behavior is known as kleptoparasitism.

The student wants to emphasize a similarity between the two ways a magnificent frigatebird acquires food. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

A) The magnificent frigatebird’s two ways of acquiring food are both methods by which it snatches prey from the water.

B) Neither of a magnificent frigatebird’s two ways of acquiring food requires the bird to snatch prey from the water.

C) Of the magnificent frigatebird’s two ways of acquiring food, only one is known as kleptoparasitism.

D) In addition to snatching prey from the water with its hook-tipped bill, a magnificent frigatebird takes food from other birds by force.

Choice B is the best answer. The sentence emphasizes a similarity between the two ways a magnificent frigatebird acquires food, noting that neither way requires the seabird to dive into the water.

Choice A is incorrect. The sentence describes how a magnificent frigatebird captures prey without diving into water; it doesn’t emphasize a similarity between the two ways the seabird acquires food. 

Choice C is incorrect. The sentence notes the term used to describe one of the two ways that magnificent frigatebirds acquire food; it doesn’t emphasize a similarity between the two ways. 

Choice D is incorrect. The sentence describes the two ways a magnificent frigatebird acquires food; it doesn’t emphasize a similarity between the two ways.

The following text is adapted from Ann Petry’s 1946 novel The Street. Lutie lives in an apartment in Harlem, New York.

The glow from the sunset was making the street radiant. The street is nice in this light, [Lutie] thought. It was swarming with children who were playing ball and darting back and forth across the sidewalk in complicated games of tag. Girls were skipping double dutch rope, going tirelessly through the exact center of a pair of ropes, jumping first on one foot and then the other.

Which choice best describes what is happening in the text?

A) Lutie is observing the appearance of the street at a particular time of day and the events occurring on it.

B) Lutie is annoyed by the noise of children playing games on her street.

C) Lutie is puzzled by the rules of certain children’s games.

D) Lutie is spending time alone in her apartment because she doesn’t want to interact with her neighbors.

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states what is happening in the text. The narrator notes that Lutie thinks the street looks nice in the light of the sunset. The narrator goes on to describe what Lutie can see in the street: children playing ball or tag and girls skipping rope. Thus, what is happening in the text is that Lutie is observing the appearance of the street at a particular time of day and the events occurring on it.

Choice B is incorrect. Although Lutie is observing children playing games on her street, the text doesn’t suggest that she is annoyed by the noise of the games. Instead, the text says that Lutie thinks the street looks nice in the light of the sunset.

Choice C is incorrect. Although Lutie is observing children playing games on her street, the text doesn’t suggest that she is puzzled by the rules of the games.

Choice D is incorrect because there is no evidence in the text that Lutie doesn’t want to interact with her neighbors or that she is in her apartment alone. All the text indicates about Lutie is that she is watching the events on the street and thinks the street looks nice in the light of the sunset.

Many literary theorists distinguish between fabula, a narrative’s content, and syuzhet, a narrative’s arrangement and presentation of events. In the film The Godfather Part II, the fabula is the story of the Corleone family, and the syuzhet is the presentation of the story as it alternates between two timelines in 1901 and 1958. But literary theorist Mikhail Bakhtin maintained that fabula and syuzhet are insufficient to completely describe a narrative—he held that systematic categorizations of artistic phenomena discount the subtle way in which meaning is created by interactions between the artist, the work, and the audience.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Literary theorist Mikhail Bakhtin argued that there are important characteristics of narratives that are not fully encompassed by two concepts that other theorists have used to analyze narratives.

B) Literary theorist Mikhail Bakhtin claimed that meaning is not inherent in a narrative but is created when an audience encounters a narrative so that narratives are interpreted differently by different people.

C) The storytelling methods used in The Godfather Part II may seem unusually complicated, but they can be easily understood when two concepts from literary theory are utilized.

D) Narratives that are told out of chronological order are more difficult for audiences to understand than narratives presented chronologically.

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. The text begins by explaining that many literary theorists rely on the concepts of fabula (a narrative’s content) and syuzhet (a narrative’s arrangement and presentation of events) and illustrates these concepts by explaining how they can be applied to the film The Godfather Part II. The text then discusses how Mikhail Bakhtin, a literary theorist, argued that fabula and syuzhet can't fully describe a narrative since systematic categorizations such as these fail to account for all the ways in which interactions between the artist, the work, and the audience produce meaning. Thus, the main idea is that Bakhtin argued that there are important characteristics of narratives that are not fully encompassed by two concepts that other theorists have used to analyze narratives.

Choice B is incorrect because, according to the text, Mikhail Bakhtin believed that meaning was created through the interactions of the artist, narrative, and audience, not simply through the interaction between the audience and narrative; moreover, the text doesn’t address whether Bakhtin focused on the ways in which different people interpret narratives differently.

Choice C is incorrect. Although the text implies that the storytelling methods used in The Godfather Part II are complicated, it discusses the film only to illustrate how the concepts of fabula and syuzhet may be applied to a narrative. The film’s storytelling methods aren’t the primary focus of the text.

Choice D is incorrect. The text discusses The Godfather Part I, whose narrative doesn’t adhere to a single chronological order, only to illustrate the concepts of fabula (a narrative’s content) and syuzhet (a narrative’s arrangement and presentation of events). The primary focus of this text is not the structure of this film or of other narratives that are told out of chronological order; moreover, the text doesn’t consider whether such structures make it harder for audiences to understand narratives.

To understand how Paleolithic artists navigated dark caves, archaeologist Mª Ángeles Medina-Alcaide and her team tested different lighting methods in a cave in Spain using replicas of artifacts found in European caves with art. They used three different Paleolithic light sources—torches, animal-fat lamps, and fireplaces—determining that each likely had a specific purpose. For instance, the team learned that the animal-fat lamps were less useful than torches while walking because the lamps didn’t illuminate the cave floor.

Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Medina-Alcaide and her team’s study demonstrated that fireplaces were essential to the creators of Paleolithic cave art.

B) Medina-Alcaide and her team discovered that Paleolithic cave artists in Spain used animal-fat lamps more often than they used torches.

C) Medina-Alcaide and her team were reluctant to draw many conclusions from their study because of the difficulty they had replicating light sources based on known artifacts.

D) Medina-Alcaide and her team tested Paleolithic light sources and learned some details about how Paleolithic artists traveled within dark caves.

A) Incorrect – Fireplaces are mentioned but not emphasized or said to be essential.

B) Incorrect – No frequency of usage is stated, only comparative usefulness.

C) Incorrect – The team did draw conclusions; there’s no mention of reluctance.

D) Correct – This captures the study’s purpose and what was learned: different tools for navigating caves.

Under normal atmospheric pressure at Earth’s surface, water molecules form a tetrahedral network stabilized by hydrogen bonds between adjacent molecules. Extreme high pressure, such as can be found in deep ocean waters, destabilizes these bonds and compresses water’s structure, allowing water molecules within organisms to permeate proteins and impede crucial biological functions; yet deep-sea organisms known as piezophiles have adapted to extreme pressure. Studies have found a positive correlation between the depths that various piezophiles inhabit and concentrations of a compound called trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) in their muscle tissues, which has led a team of researchers to hypothesize that TMAO reduces water’s compressibility.

Which finding, if true, would most directly support the researchers’ hypothesis?

A) Water molecules are found to be impervious to TMAO...

B) Examination of TMAO’s molecular structure shows that TMAO molecules retain their shape...

C) A positive correlation is found between concentrations of TMAO and the rate at which water’s molecular structure compresses...

D) Analysis of water’s molecular structure under high pressure reveals that hydrogen bonds are more stable when TMAO is present than when it is not."

A) Incorrect – Being impervious to TMAO is unrelated to reducing compressibility.

B) Incorrect – TMAO retaining shape doesn’t show it affects water’s structure.

C) Incorrect – Positive correlation with compression rate would contradict the hypothesis.

D) Correct – Supports the hypothesis that TMAO stabilizes water under pressure by preserving hydrogen bonds.

The following text is from Betty Smith’s 1943 novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Francie, a young girl, visits the library often.

Francie thought that all the books in the world were in that library and she had a plan about reading all the books in the world. She was reading a book a day in alphabetical order and not skipping the dry ones. She remembered that the first author had been Abbott. She had been reading a book a day for a long time now and she was still in the B’s. Already she had read about bees and buffaloes, Bermuda vacations and Byzantine architecture. For all her enthusiasm, she had to admit that some of the B’s had been hard going. But Francie was a reader.

©1947 by Betty Smith

 Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To illustrate Francie’s enjoyment of an unusual topic

B) To explain why Francie prefers reading over other activities

C) To portray Francie’s determination to meet a goal

D) To describe a book that Francie greatly admires

A) Incorrect – The passage covers many topics, not just one unusual interest.

B) Incorrect – The passage doesn’t compare reading to other activities.

C) Correct – The focus is on her persistence and plan to read every book.

D) Incorrect – No single book is emphasized as one she especially admires.

Researchers have long hypothesized that woolly mammoths were hunted to extinction in North America by humans using spears with grooved tips known as Clovis points. One anthropologist set out to test this hypothesis. Using a mechanical spear-thrower, he launched spears with Clovis points into mounds of clay—substitutes for the animals’ large bodies. The projectiles generally penetrated only a few inches into the clay, an amount insufficient to have harmed most woolly mammoths. This led the anthropologist to conclude that hunters using spears with Clovis points likely weren’t the principal drivers of the extinction.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A) To argue for the significance of new findings amid an ongoing debate among researchers

B) To discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the method used in an experiment

C) To summarize two competing hypotheses and a major finding associated with each one

D) To describe an experiment whose results cast doubt on an established hypothesis

A) Incorrect – There is no mention of an ongoing debate or multiple viewpoints among researchers.

B) Incorrect – The focus is not on the pros and cons of the method but on the experimental results.

C) Incorrect – Only one hypothesis is discussed, not two competing ones.

D) Correct – The passage describes an experiment that challenges a long-held belief.

Elizabeth Asiedu has identified a negative correlation between the share of developing countries’ economies derived from natural-resource extraction and those countries’ receipts of foreign investment. This may appear counterintuitive—resource extraction requires initial investments (in extractive technology, for instance) at scales best met by multinational corporations—but Asiedu notes that natural-resource industries’ boom-bust cycle can destabilize local currencies and increase developing countries’ vulnerability to external shocks, creating levels of uncertainty to which foreign investors are typically averse.

 Which choice best states the main idea of the text?

A) Although it may seem surprising that foreign investment declines in developing countries as natural-resource extraction makes up a larger share of those countries’ economies, that decline happens because resource extraction requires initial investments too large for foreign investors to supply.

B) Although developing countries tend to become less dependent on foreign investment as natural-resource industries make up a larger share of their economies, this change may not occur if the boom-bust cycle of those industries destabilizes local currencies or increases countries’ vulnerability to external shocks.

C) Although one might expect that foreign investment would increase as natural-resource extraction makes up a larger share of developing countries’ economies, the opposite happens because heavy reliance on natural resources can lead to unattractive conditions for investors.

D) Although foreign investors tend to avoid initial investments in natural-resource industries in developing countries, foreign investment may increase significantly as those industries stabilize and the risks associated with them decline.

A) Incorrect – The problem isn’t the size of investments but the risk and instability.

B) Incorrect – It inaccurately suggests that developing countries choose to depend less on investment.

C) Correct – It captures both the counterintuitive setup and the actual conclusion.

D) Incorrect – The passage does not speculate about what happens after industries stabilize.