Reading Comprehension - Test - 10

Passage # 1:

Decades before the American Revolution of 1776, Jesse Fish, a native New Yorker, retreated to an island off St. Augustine, Florida, to escape an unpleasant family situation. In time he became Florida's first orange producer. His oranges were in great demand in London throughout the 1770's. The English found them juicy and sweet and preferred• them to other varieties, even though they had thin skins and were hard to peel.

There would probably have been other successful commercial growers before Fish if Florida had not been under Spanish rule for around two hundred years. Columbus first brought seeds for citrus trees to the New World and planted them in the Antilles. But it was most likely Ponce de Leon who introduced oranges to the North American continent when he discovered Florida in 1513. For a time, each Spanish sailor on a ship bound for America was required by law to carry one hundred seeds with him. Later, because seeds tended to dry out, all Spanish ships were required to carry young orange trees. The Spaniards planted citrus trees only for medicinal purposes, however. They saw no need to start commercial groves because oranges were so abundant in Spain.

1. What is the main topic of the passage?

    A. The role of Florida in the American Revolution

    B. The discovery of Florida by Ponce de Leon in 1513

    C. The history of the cultivation of oranges in Florida

    D. The popularity of Florida oranges in London in the 1770's

2. Jesse Fish went to Florida to

    A. grow oranges commercially

    B. buy an island off St. Augustine

    C. get away from his family

    D. New York

3. Oranges were most probably introduced to Florida by

    A. Jesse Fish

    B. Ponce de Leon

    C. Columbus

    D. British sailors

4. According to the passage, Florida oranges were valued by the Spanish primarily

    A. as a medium of exchange.

    B. for their unusual seeds.

    C. for their medical use.

    D. as a source of food for sailors.

5. The Spaniards did not grow oranges commercially in the New World because

    A. oranges tended to dry out during shipping.

    B. Florida was very small.

    C. there was no great demand for oranges in Europe.

    D. oranges were plentiful in their home country.

Passage # 2:

The success of communications satellite systems has raised widespread concern about future. Some countries are already using satellites for domestic communications in place of conventional telephone lines on land. Although this technique is extremely useful for linking widely scattered villages in remote or mountainous regions, in heavily built up areas where extensive telephone and telegraph systems already exist, domestic satellites (or "domsats") are seen by the land-line networks as unfair competition. Despite such opposition, domsats are gaining support from many businesses and public interest groups in the United States and seem likely to be more widely utilized in the future.

6. The passage mentions which of the following as a major advantage of domstas?

    A. They are inexpensive to operate.

    B. They easily connect distant points.

    C. They can be directed by remote control.

    D. They can be built to be very light.

7. According to the passage, the use of domsats is especially valuable for which of the following?

    A. Mountain areas

    B. Busy cities

    C. Small countries

    D. Private business

8. Who objects to the use of domsats?

    A. Managers of international business groups

    B. People in small villages.

    C. Operators of conventional communications systems

    D. Large public interest groups

Passage # 3:

Allelomimetic behavior may be defined as behavior in which two or more individual animals do the same thing, with some degree of mutual stimulation and coordination.

In birds, allelomimetic behavior is the rule rather than the exception, though it may occasionally be limited to particular seasons of the year as it is in the redwing black bird. Its principal function is that of providing safety from predators, partly because the flock can rely on many pairs of eyes to watch for enemies, and partly because if one bird reacts to danger, the whole flock is warned.

Among mammals, allelomimetic behavior is very rare in rodents, which almost never move in flocks or herds. Even when they are artificially crowded together, they do not conform in their movements. On the other hand, such behavior is a major system among large hoofed mammals such as sheep.

9. According to the passage, the primary function of allelomimetic behavior in birds is to

    A. defends nests against predators.

    B. look at each other

    C. locates prey.

    D. warn others of predators

10. According to the passage, what happens to the behavior of rodents when they are artificially crowded together?

    A. Their allelomimetic behavior increases.

    B. Continuous cooperation between them is maintained.

    C. They become aggressive and attack each other.

    D. They show little allelomimetic behavior.

ANSWERS
Question	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Answer	C	C	B	C	D	B	A	C	D	D