20 medium SAT Command of Evidence — Textual questions

Which quotation from an account of Bell Burnell's work best supports the student's claim?

• A"Bell Burnell's discovery of pulsars revolutionized our understanding of stellar evolution and provided crucial evidence for the existence of neutron stars."
• B"The radio telescope at Cambridge was designed to study quasars, but its sensitivity allowed it to detect a wide range of cosmic radio sources."
• C"When Bell Burnell first noticed the unusual signals, she and her colleagues dubbed them LGM-1, for Little Green Men, because the pulses were so precise and evenly spaced that they seemed more likely to be artificial transmissions than natural astronomical objects."
• D"Bell Burnell systematically analyzed hundreds of hours of radio telescope recordings, demonstrating exceptional attention to detail and persistence in her research."

Which quotation from "The House of Mirth" most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"She was so evidently the victim of the civilization which had produced her, that the links of her bracelet seemed like manacles chaining her to her fate."
• B"She had learned by experience that she had neither the aptitude nor the moral constancy to remake her life on new lines; to become a worker among workers, and let the world of luxury and pleasure sweep by her unregarded."
• C"It was one of the qualities which made Lily so charming to men—this happy air of not having to think about them, of being too much absorbed in her own pleasures to be aware of other people's purposes."
• D"She had been fashioned to adorn and delight; to what other end does nature round the rose-leaf and paint the hummingbird's breast? And was it her fault that the purely decorative mission is less easily and harmoniously fulfilled among social beings than in the world of nature?"

Which quotation from an article about Parcak's work best supports the student's claim?

• A"Satellite technology has become increasingly affordable and accessible to researchers, making it a valuable tool for archaeologists working in remote locations."
• B"Ground surveys remain essential for confirming the presence of archaeological remains and determining the age and significance of discovered sites."
• C"By analyzing infrared satellite images of the Egyptian desert, Parcak identified seventeen pyramids and over three thousand ancient settlements that archaeologists had walked past for decades without recognizing."
• D"Parcak's satellite surveys have helped archaeologists prioritize which sites to excavate, saving time and resources in the field."

Which quotation from "Beloved" most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"124 was spiteful. Full of a baby's venom. The women in the house knew it and so did the children."
• B"Sethe had refused to go to the Clearing because she believed that Baby Suggs's faith had been exhausted along with her life."
• C"Her brain was not interested in the future. Loaded with the past and hungry for more, it left her no room to imagine, let alone plan for, the next day."
• D"She was so happy she didn't even know she was being avoided by her neighbors, who frowned at the sight of her."

Which quotation from the study would best illustrate the researchers' findings?

• A"Phoenix experiences some of the highest urban temperatures in the United States, with summer readings frequently exceeding 110 degrees Fahrenheit."
• B"Areas with tree canopy coverage above thirty percent showed average temperatures eight to twelve degrees lower than nearby zones with minimal vegetation, even when other land use characteristics were similar."
• C"While vegetated areas showed some temperature differences compared to built environments, multiple factors including building materials and surface albedo contributed to the overall thermal patterns we observed."
• D"Our analysis revealed that temperature variations in Phoenix followed patterns similar to those in other southwestern cities, regardless of vegetation levels."

Which quotation from "The Yellow Wallpaper" most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"John is practical in the extreme. He has no patience with faith, an intense horror of superstition, and he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen and put down in figures."
• B"John laughs at me, of course, but one expects that in marriage."
• C"You see he does not believe I am sick! And what can one do? If a physician of high standing, and one's own husband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothing the matter with one but temporary nervous depression—a slight hysterical tendency—what is one to do?"
• D"He is very careful and loving, and hardly lets me stir without special direction."

Which quotation from a researcher would best illustrate the claim about the study's findings?

• A"We documented significant genetic differences between populations separated by mountains, but these differences did not necessarily correspond to an inability to interbreed."
• B"Mountain ranges create diverse microclimates that can support a wider variety of songbird species than flat terrain."
• C"Our analysis revealed that songbird populations isolated by mountain barriers showed markedly higher rates of genetic incompatibility compared to populations separated by equivalent distances without such barriers."
• D"The songbird populations we studied maintained their ability to produce viable offspring even after thousands of years of separation by geographic features."

Which quotation from "The Awakening" most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"She was becoming herself and daily casting aside that fictitious self which we assume like a garment with which to appear before the world."
• B"Mrs. Pontellier was not a mother-woman. The mother-women seemed to prevail that summer at Grand Isle."
• C"She felt somewhat like a woman who in a moment of passion is betrayed into an act of infidelity, and realizes the significance of the act without being wholly awakened from its glamour."
• D"In short, Mrs. Pontellier was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being, and to recognize her relations as an individual to the world within and about her."

Which finding from Hodder's excavations would most directly support this argument?

• A"Analysis of burial practices reveals that individuals were interred beneath the floors of houses with similar grave goods regardless of age or sex, and no burials showed the concentration of wealth or prestige items found in later hierarchical societies."
• B"Examination of residential structures shows that houses at Çatalhöyük were remarkably uniform in size and layout, with most dwellings measuring approximately 25 square meters."
• C"The site contains several buildings with elaborate wall paintings and bull skulls, suggesting these structures may have served as temples or gathering places for religious activities."
• D"Certain individuals were buried with ceremonial objects and in more central locations within houses, indicating that some community members held special status or performed important ritual functions."

Which quotation from Rothschild most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"Smith's <em>The Wealth of Nations</em>, published in 1776, became one of the founding texts of modern economics and influenced policy debates for generations."
• B"The famous butcher and baker passage is frequently cited to support the view that Smith endorsed pure self-interest, yet this ignores that he devoted an entire earlier work to exploring how sympathy and fellow-feeling govern human behavior in society."
• C"Contemporary economists have built sophisticated models of market behavior that extend Smith's insights about competition and efficiency into areas he never directly addressed."
• D"Smith did acknowledge that individuals often pursue their own economic advantage, a recognition that forms a cornerstone of his analysis of market dynamics."

Which quotation from Chetty's research best supports the student's claim?

• A"Children raised in neighborhoods with better schools, lower crime rates, and more two-parent households tend to have higher rates of upward mobility than their peers in other areas."
• B"Economic mobility in the United States has remained relatively stable over the past fifty years, though absolute levels of mobility are lower than in many other developed nations."
• C"In Atlanta, children from families in the lowest income quintile who grew up in the northern suburbs had a 15 percent chance of reaching the top quintile as adults, while those from the same income level who grew up in the southern neighborhoods had only a 4 percent chance."
• D"Moving to a better neighborhood earlier in childhood appears to have minimal impact on long-term outcomes, suggesting that neighborhood effects accumulate gradually over time."

Which quotation from a historical document most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"Records indicate that women managed farms and businesses during the war, ensuring that local economies continued to function while men served in the Continental Army."
• B"Deborah Sampson disguised herself as a man and enlisted in the Fourth Massachusetts Regiment in 1782, fighting in several skirmishes before her identity was discovered."
• C"Women across the colonies organized boycotts of British goods, demonstrating their commitment to the revolutionary movement through collective economic action."
• D"Agent 355, a female spy in the Culper Ring, provided General Washington with intelligence about British troop movements and strategic plans, information that proved critical to American victories in 1780."

Which quotation from a legal scholar best supports Morgan's argument?

• A"Colonial slave codes established extensive regulations governing the movement, assembly, and daily activities of enslaved people throughout plantation societies."
• B"Laws allowed enslaved people to be bought, sold, and bequeathed as chattel, yet simultaneously subjected them to trial and punishment for crimes, a legal treatment applicable only to persons with moral agency."
• C"While northern colonies gradually adopted emancipation statutes in the late eighteenth century, southern legal systems maintained slavery as a fundamental economic institution."
• D"The legal status of enslaved individuals varied considerably across different colonial territories, with some jurisdictions providing limited protections against abuse."

Which quotation from a technology historian most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"Many successful technology companies have benefited from Small Business Innovation Research grants, which provide early-stage funding for promising ventures."
• B"Every core technology in the iPhone—including GPS, touchscreens, the internet, and the voice-activated assistant—emerged from research programs funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, or the National Science Foundation decades before Apple commercialized them, with government agencies investing billions during periods when private investors considered the technologies too speculative."
• C"Private venture capital has played a crucial role in scaling technologies after their initial development, providing the resources necessary to bring innovations to market."
• D"Government investment in basic scientific research has contributed to economic growth by expanding the knowledge base from which private companies can draw."

Which quotation from an architecture historian best supports the student's claim?

• A"Lin's Vietnam Veterans Memorial, completed in 1982, quickly became one of the most visited monuments in Washington, drawing millions of people annually to pay their respects."
• B"The memorial's polished black granite surface reflects the surrounding landscape and the faces of visitors, creating an interaction between the monument and those who view it."
• C"Rather than featuring heroic statuary or explicit messaging about the war, Lin's design offers a contemplative space where individuals can project their own emotions and memories onto the experience."
• D"Lin has stated that her memorial designs aim to convey specific historical lessons about sacrifice and national identity that she believes all Americans should understand."

Which quotation from a researcher most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"Rubin's meticulous measurements of spiral galaxies demonstrated that stars at the outer edges rotated at roughly the same speed as those near the center, rather than slowing down as Newton's laws would predict based on visible matter alone."
• B"Before Rubin's work, most astronomers assumed that the mass of a galaxy could be estimated by observing its luminous stars and gas clouds, which seemed sufficient to explain gravitational behavior."
• C"Rubin's observations built upon earlier hints from astronomer Fritz Zwicky, who had noted unusual velocities in galaxy clusters decades earlier but whose work had been largely overlooked by the scientific community."
• D"The rotation curves Rubin measured showed unexpected patterns that suggested galaxies contained more mass than telescopes could detect through visible light observations."

Which quotation from an archaeologist best supports Chen's contention?

• A"Chen's excavation of a minor farming village revealed pottery fragments, obsidian tools, and carnelian beads that isotopic analysis traced to sources more than 800 kilometers away, indicating regular trade contact."
• B"Major Mesopotamian cities like Ur and Uruk functioned as commercial hubs, facilitating trade in textiles, grain, and luxury goods across vast distances."
• C"The geographic isolation of many small Mesopotamian settlements meant they relied almost exclusively on locally produced goods, with trade limited to occasional exchanges with neighboring villages."
• D"Chen acknowledges that larger settlements had more diverse material assemblages than smaller ones, suggesting some variation in access to trade networks."

Which quotation from "The Garden Party" most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"And the perfect afternoon slowly ripened, slowly faded, slowly its petals closed."
• B"There lay a young man, fast asleep—sleeping so soundly, so deeply, that he was far, far away from them both. Oh, so remote, so peaceful. He was dreaming. Never wake him up again. His head was sunk in the pillow, his eyes were closed; they were blind under the closed eyelids. He was given up to his dream. What did garden parties and baskets and lace frocks matter to him?"
• C"It's so delicious to have an admiring younger brother! She tucked her arm through his. 'I say, you do look nice,' said Laurie."
• D"How her mother had always longed for a conservatory in the house; it was the one thing she had never been able to have."

Which quotation from an article about Katija's work would best support the writer's claim?

• A"Katija's underwater robots can operate at depths of up to four thousand meters, far beyond the reach of human divers."
• B"By observing jellyfish in the open ocean rather than in tanks, Katija discovered that their swimming patterns and feeding behaviors differed substantially from what laboratory studies had reported, revealing that confined environments had been producing misleading results."
• C"Katija's techniques represent an advancement in marine biology research, though laboratory studies remain valuable for controlling experimental variables."
• D"Previous researchers studying jellyfish in laboratory settings had already documented most of the behaviors that Katija has observed in the ocean."

Which quotation from "Invisible Man" most effectively illustrates the claim?

• A"I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard, distorting glass."
• B"I live rent-free in a building rented strictly to whites, in a section of the basement that was shut off and forgotten during the nineteenth century."
• C"That is why I fight my battle with Monopolated Light & Power. The deeper reason, I mean: It allows me to feel my vital aliveness."
• D"Light confirms my reality, gives birth to my form. Without light I am not only invisible, but formless as well; and to be unaware of one's form is to live a death."