Thursday, 3 May 2018

PETERSON TOEFL PBT PRACTICE TEST 2 PART 7



Questions 31-41
In addition to the great ridges and volcanic chains, the oceans conceal another form of undersea mountains: the strange guyot, or flat-topped seamount. No marine geologist even suspected the existence of these isolated mountains until they were discovered by geologist Harry H. Hess in 1946. He was serving at the time as a naval officer on a ship equipped with a fathometer. Hess named these truncated peaks for the nineteenth – century Swiss – born geologist Arnold Guyot, who had served on the faculty of Princeton University for thirty years. Since then, hundreds of Guyots have been discovered in every ocean but the Arctic. Like offshore canyons, guyots presents a challenge to oceanographic theory. They are believed to be extinct volcanoes. Their flat tops indicate that they once stood above or just below the surface, where the action of waves levelled off their peaks. Yet, today, by definition, their summit are at least 600 feet below the surface, and some are as deep as 8,200 feet. Most lie between 3.200 feet and 6,500 feet. Their tops are not really flat but slope upward to a low pinnacle at the center. Dredging from the tops of guyots has recovered basalt and coral rubble, and that would be expected from the eroded tops of what were once islands. Some of this material is over 80 million years old. Geologists think the drawning of the guyots involved two processes; The great weight of the volcanic mountains depressed the sea floor beneath them, and the level of the sea rose a number of times, especially when the last Ice Age ended some 8,000 to 11,000 years ago.
1.        What is the author’s main purpose in writing this passage?
a)         To trace the career of Arnold Guyot
b)        To describe one feature of the undersea world
c)         To present the results of recent geologic research
d)        To discuss underwater ridges and volcano chains
2.        The word conceal in line 1 is closest in meaning to which of the following?
a)         Contain
b)        Erode
c)         Hide
d)        Create
3.        The passage implies that Guyots were first detected by means of?
a)         a fathometer
b)        computer analysis
c)         a deep-sea diving expedition
d)        research submarines
4.        The author indicates that Arnold Guyot
a)         was Harry Hess’s instructor
b)        invented the fathometer
c)         named the guyot after himself
d)        taught at Princeton University
5.        What does the passage say about the Arctic Ocean?
a)         The first guyot was discovered there.
b)        No guyots have ever been found there.
c)         There are more guyots there than in any other ocean.
d)        It is impossible that guyots were ever formed there.
6.        The author states that offshore canyons and guyots have which of the following characteristics in common?
a)         Both are found on the ocean floor near continental shelves.
b)        Both present oceanographers with a mystery.
c)         Both were formed by volcanic activity.
d)        Both were, at one time, above the surface of the sea.
7.        According to the passage, most guyots are found at a depth of
a)         less than 600 feet.
b)        between 600 and 3,200 feet.
c)         between 3,200 and 6.500 feet.
d)        More than 8,200 feet.
8.        Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word rubble in the passage above?
a)         Fragments
b)        Mixture
c)         Columns
d)        Core
9.        Which of the following is the best depiction of the top of guyot?


10      According to the passage, which of the following two processes were involved in the submersion of guyots?
a)         Erosion and volcanic activity
b)        Thhe sinking of the sea floor and the rising sea level
c)         Mountain building and the action of ocean currents
d)        High tides and earthquakes  
11.  According to the passage, when did sea level significantly rise?
a)         In 1946
b)        In the nineteenth century
c)         From 8,000 to 11,000 years ago
d)        80 Million years ago

ANSWER KEY



1.    B
The passage mainly deals with guyots – one feature of the undersea world.
2.    C
The word conceal means hide, obscure
3.    A
According to lines 5-6, Harry H. Hess discovered guyots while serving “on a ship equipped with a fathometer,” implying that this device was used in the discovery
4.    D
Lines 6-7 state that Guyot “served on the faculty of Princeton University for thirty years.”
5.    B
Lines 8-9 state that Guyots “have been discovered in every ocean but the Arctic.”
6.    B
According to the lines 9-10, “like offshore canyons, guyots present a challenge to oceanographic theory.” Guyots are not necessarily found near continental shelves (A); there is no evidence that offshore canyons are of volcanic origin (C) or that they were ever above the surface of the sea (D)
7.    C
Line 14 states that “most lie between 3,200 feet and 6,500 feet”
8.    A
Rubble is rough, broken fragments (pieces) of stone or other material
9.    B
According to lines 14-15, “their tops are not really flat but slope upward to a low pinnacle at the center.” Choice (B) best depicts this description.
10.    B
According to the passage, the two processes were the depression of the sea floor beneath the volcanoes and rising level of the sea (lines 19-21)
11.    C
Lines 21-22 indicate that the sea level rose “especially when the last Ice Age ended, some 8,000 to 11,000 years ago.”



No comments:

Post a Comment

thank you for visiting my blog and for your nice comments