PETERSON TOEFL PBT PRACTICE TEST 3 PART 8 READING

PETERSON TOEFL PBT

PRACTICE TEST 3 PART 8

READING

QUESTION 37-44

Lichens may grow on the bark of a tree in a steaming tropical rain forest, on the bricks of big-city buildings on rocks in hot springs, on wind-swept mountain tops, and in the driest desserts. In the Arctic, they provide the principal food for caribou, and they are one of the few plants that grow in Antarctica. They are pioneers, appearing in barren rocky areas and starting the formation of soil in which mosses, then ferns, and then other plants can take root.

Lichens are a partnership of two plans – fungi and algae. The lichen body is made up of a network of fungal strands. In the upper layers of these grow groups of algae. The two organisms live together to the benefit of both, a relationship known as symbiosis. The fungi provide support, absorb water, and shelter the tender algae from direct sunlight. The algae carry on photosynthesis and provide the fungi with food. The algae can live independently and are recognizable as a species that grows alone. The fungi, on the other hand, cannot live apart from their partners. They can be placed in known classes of fungi but are unlike any species that live independently.

So definite are the form, color, and characteristics of these double organisms that for hundreds of years, they were classified as one. More than 15,000 “species” were named. If these organisms are classified as separate species, it is difficult to fit them into the existing system of classification. But if they are classified separately, these species of fungi seem rather strange. Lichens are a splendid example of the difficulties faced by taxonomists in classifying species.

37.           What does the author imply about lichens in the first paragraph?

A.                  They require a lot of moisture to live.

B.                  They primarily live in cold places.

C.                  They can live anywhere except around people.

D.                 They have adapted to a wide variety of environments.

38.           Why does the author call lichens pioneers (line 4)?

A.                  Because they developed so early in the history of the planet

B.                  Because of their primitive structure

C.                  Because they prepare soil for other plants

D.                 Because they were the first plants to live in Antarctica

39.           The word barren in line 4 is closest in meaning to

A.                  lifeless

B.                  frigid

C.                  jagged

D.                 uncovered

40.     Which of the following is an example of symbiosis as it is described in the second paragraph?

A.              Certain types of tall grass conceal tigers because of the tigers’ striped markings.

B.             Fish called remoras attach themselves to sharks and eat the scraps of the sharks’  meals.

C.              Mistletoe, a type of shrub, grows on trees and harms them by extracting water and nutrients.

D.              Protozoa in the intestines of termites digest the cellulose that the termites eat, and their waste products nourish the termites.

41.          Which of the following can be inferred about the effect of direct sunlight on lichens?

A.                  It damages the algae.

B.                  It helps the fungi absorb water.

C.                  It is required for the algae to carry on photosynthesis.

D.                 It destroys the fungi.

42.          Why does the author say that “these species of fungi seem rather strange” (lines 18-19)?

A.                  They are larger than typical fungi.

B.                  Unlike other fungi, hey can produce their own food.

C.                  They exist only as partners of algae.

D.                 They do not fit into any known class of fungi.

43.           Which of the following best expresses the main idea of the second paragraph?

A.         Because of their characteristics as double organisms, it is difficult to classify lichens.

B.                  Over 15,000 varieties of lichens have been identified.

C.                  Double organisms should always be classified as separate species.

D.                 Taxonomists always find it difficult to classify new species of plants.

44.          The word splendid in line 19 is closest in meaning to

A.                  unique

B.                  improbable

C.                  excellent

D.                 famous

ANSWER KEY

37.             D

The first paragraph discusses the many environments in which lichens can live. Choice (A) is incorrect because lichens can live in the “driest desserts” (line 3). Choice (B) is incorrect because they can live in “steaming tropical rain forests” (line 1) and in hot springs. Choice (C) is incorrect because lichens can live “on the bricks of big-city buildings” (lines 1-2).

38.             C

The author refers to lichens as pioneers because they start “the formation of soil in which mosses, then ferns, and then other plants can take root.”

39.             A

The word barren means lifeless.

40.             D

Symbiosis is defined in the passage as a relationship in which two organisms “live together to the benefit of both” (lines 8-9). In choice (A) the tiger and the grass do not actually live together, and while the tiger may benefit, the grass is unaffected. The same is true in choice (B), in which there is no mention that the shark benefits. In choice (C) the mistletoe benefits, but the trees are harmed. (This relationship is known as parasitism.) In choice (D), both the protozoa and the termites benefit by obtaining nutrition.

41.             A

Line 10 states that fungi “shelter the tender algae from direct sunlight,” indicating that direct sunlight could damage the algae.

42.             C

The fungi are considered strange because they are “unlike any species that live independently” (line 14)

43.             A

The paragraph explains why lichens’ characteristics as double organisms make them difficult to classify. Choice (B) is only a detail of the paragraph; there is no reason to believe that the author thinks choice (C) is true; choice (D) is too general to be the main idea of the paragraph, and there is no information in the passage to support this idea.

44.             C

The word splendid means excellent, fine.