Reading Practice Test #U2013 6 (Reading Comprehension)

See solution for the supported answer The question asks for an explanation of what the imagery in the excerpt from paragraph 9 conveys. The words “useless” and “failure” in the sentence indicate that Margaret’s best efforts do not help her. The phrase “the last car slatted itself past” shows that Margaret is helpless to stop the train from departing, which leaves her completely vulnerable, as described in Option D. Option A is incorrect because describing Margaret’s “sickening sense of terror” indicates that she is extremely afraid of being left behind rather than increasingly irritated with the other passengers. Option B is incorrect because Margaret spends her time “screaming, running, trying to attract some one’s attention” in an effort to be noticed so that the train will stop, not attempting to run as fast as the train. Option C is incorrect because while Margret’s screaming and running could easily suggest feelings of anger, descriptions of her “sickening sense of terror and failure” indicate otherwise The question asks for the most likely reason it was difficult for scientists to discover the site of the Tunguska explosion. Paragraph 2 notes that the site of the blast was very “remote,” as stated in Option B. Option A is incorrect because none of the possible blast explanations mentioned in the passage suggest a nuclear explosion or radioactivity. Option C is incorrect because, even before visiting the site, scientists debated possible causes of the explosion (paragraphs 2–3). Option D is incorrect because the passage states in paragraph 2 that no evidence of a crater, or craters, was ever found The question asks how the questions at the end of the last paragraph affect the passage. Although the passage introduces a number of theories about the Tunguska explosion, no definitive explanation has been reached. This idea is stated in Option D. Option A is incorrect because, although the passage does not discourage further study, it does not specifically promote it. Option B is incorrect because, although the author presents multiple possible causes, the passage suggests that the damage was most likely caused by one of these possibilities rather than several of them simultaneously. The author is certainly curious about the actual cause of the Tunguska explosion but objectively presents the questions about it that remain unanswered, making Option C incorrect