SAT Text Structure And Purpose (Hard) - English – Real Collegeboard Practice Questions with Answers and Explanations

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately describes the function of the underlined question in the text as a whole. The text begins with the underlined question, “How lifelike are they?” The text then explains that many computer animators pose this question about the environments and lighting that they create for animated films, striving for realistic animation of those components even if the characters themselves aren’t portrayed in realistic terms. The focus of the text then shifts to describe how some animators strive to create environments and lighting that reflect the film’s unique stories rather than making them appear realistic. Therefore, the function of the underlined question is to reflect a primary goal that many computer animators have for certain components of the animations they produce. Choice B is incorrect because, as the text makes clear, the underlined question is one posed by computer animators who wish to create realistic backgrounds and lighting effects, not by those who, instead, wish to create effects that reflect films’ unique stories and aren’t necessarily realistic; this latter group of animators is discussed later in the text. Choice C is incorrect. As the text explains, many computer animators strive for realistic environments and lighting, while others do not; this difference of approach relates to whether these components should be realistic, not to how realism can be achieved using current technology, and the text never suggests that animators are uncertain how to achieve it. Choice D is incorrect because the underlined question pertains to the perspective of computer animators, not the audience, and the text never considers audience’s reactions to characters in animated films.

Choice C is the best answer because it most accurately describes the main purpose of the text, which is to summarize a finding suggesting that some mechanisms in the brains of certain insects resemble mechanisms in mammalian brains. The text begins by explaining that feelings such as pleasure and displeasure are linked to chemical processes in the brain, such as the release of dopamine when one receives a reward. The text then indicates that such processes have been seen in mammals but that researchers have recently observed similar processes involving dopamine in honeybees. Taken together, this information serves to sum up the discovery that some mechanisms in the brains of certain insects may resemble mechanisms linked to feelings such as pleasure and displeasure in mammals. Choice A is incorrect because the text doesn’t describe any experiments or experimental methods. Instead, the text describes a phenomenon that has been observed in mammals and then presents the recent observations of Huang and colleagues that this phenomenon is also seen in honeybees. Choice B is incorrect because there’s nothing in the text to suggest that certain insects can express how they’re feeling through particular processes. The text does indicate that certain honeybee behaviors such as foraging are linked to dopamine, but it doesn’t suggest that these behaviors enable honeybees to communicate feelings or sensations. Choice D is incorrect because the text presents research showing that certain honeybee behaviors such as foraging are linked to dopamine and therefore may be motivated by similar mechanisms to those in mammalian brains, not that honeybees and mammals behave similarly when there is the possibility of reward for their actions.

Choice D is the best answer. The text provides an overview of a scholarly work discussing the fashion practices of Black female farmworkers in late 19th- and early 20th-century Texas, and how these practices were influenced by both the fashion ideals of the time and the demands of farmwork. Choice A is incorrect. The text never discusses the rate of fashion change among Black female farmworkers. The text also never categorizes Flewellen’s findings as "unexpected." Choice B is incorrect. The text actually explains that Black female farmworkers were trying to achieve traditional feminine ideals, not resist them. Choice C is incorrect. The text doesn’t evaluate a scholarly work but rather simply describes it. Furthermore, the text is focused on "agricultural and domestic" fashion, not urban fashion as this choice suggests.

Choice A is the best answer because it best describes how the underlined portion functions in the text as a whole. The text says that the increased production quotas of food processing companies during World War II enabled employees to make better bargains in exchange for their labor. The underlined portion presents an example of this increased bargaining power: employees requested more favorable benefits, and employers complied because they were under pressure to fulfill the demanding terms of their contracts. Thus, the underlined portion of the text elaborates on a claim about labor relations in a particular industry (food processing) made earlier in the text. Choice B is incorrect because there is no indication in the text that the economic factors that influenced food processing also influenced other parts of the economy; thus, the bargaining described in the underlined portion of the text cannot be called an example of a trend. Choice C is incorrect because the underlined portion supports the historical narrative of labor activism in food processing that is sketched in the text, instead of noting an exception to that narrative. Choice D is incorrect because while the underlined portion does discuss the demands that workers made in exchange for their labor, it does not discuss the identities of the workers.

Choice B is the best answer. The text tells a story of a first impression that turned out to be wrong: a serious American savant was dismissive of a goofy-looking, wisecracking guest at a British party, and then was shocked to learn that the guest was actually a prominent British chemist and inventor. Choice A is incorrect. This is too strong and too narrow. Only at the very end is the savant "thrown aback" by the fact that the man was Sir Humphry Davy—he’s not "embarrassed about his own behavior." Choice C is incorrect. This isn’t the main purpose. The text never provides the history of how Sir Humphry Davy came to be famous. Nor does it provide any history for the American savant. Choice D is incorrect. This is too narrow. It doesn’t include the second half of the text, where the savant gets into a conversation with the man and then finds out that the man is Sir Humphry Davy.

Choice D is the best answer because it most accurately describes the main purpose of the text. The text notes that although some studies have suggested that posture may have an effect on cognition, this phenomenon should not be overstated. In other words, the text begins by urging caution and restraint when discussing the effects of posture on cognition, implying that even though some studies have shown posture to affect cognition, we should not assume that posture always affects cognition or does so in a strong way. The text goes on to discuss O’Brien and Ahmed’s study as a "case in point" (that is, as an example of the point made previously). According to the text, O’Brien and Ahmed hypothesized that since standing is more cognitively demanding than sitting, standing subjects in their experiment would respond differently to decision-making tasks than sitting subjects would, which would show an effect of posture on cognition. What the researchers actually found, however, was that the standing and sitting subjects performed the same—posture did not affect cognition. By presenting a circumstance in which posture does not appear to affect cognition, the discussion of O’Brien and Ahmed’s study shows why it is important not to overstate the phenomenon. The purpose of the text, therefore, is to discuss O’Brien and Ahmed’s study to illustrate why caution is needed when making claims about posture’s effects on cognition. Choice A is incorrect because the text discusses O’Brien and Ahmed’s study as an example of why caution is needed when discussing posture’s effects on cognition, not as an example of how research findings related to posture and cognition are Assessment SAT Test Reading and Writing Domain Craft and Structure Skill Text Structure and Purpose Difficulty often misunderstood. Although the text does warn against misunderstanding the scope of the relationship between posture and cognition that has been reported in some previous studies, O’Brien and Ahmed’s study is not one of those studies, and there is no suggestion that anyone has misunderstood O’Brien and Ahmed’s findings. Choice B is incorrect because the text makes no mention of the methods used in previous studies of the effects of posture on cognition. Although the text does urge caution when discussing posture’s effects on cognition, it does not critique the results of studies that suggested that posture can affect cognition. Instead, the text suggests that such results should not be exaggerated or taken too broadly. Choice C is incorrect because although the text implies that overstating posture’s effects on cognition would be a problem, nothing in the text suggests that O’Brien and Ahmed share that view or that they attempted to solve that problem. O’Brien and Ahmed are presented as hypothesizing that posture would affect cognition in their study, not as trying to resolve the problem the text describes.

Choice D is the best answer. The underlined sentence provides a concrete example to ground readers’ understanding of the “deep intersubjectivity” described in the next sentence as central to Austen’s work. Choice A is incorrect. There is no evaluation made of Austen’s skill in this sentence, and no examples are given in the following sentence. This choice essentially flips the paragraph: it’s this first sentence that provides an example. Choice B is incorrect. There are no other Austen protagonists mentioned in this passage, so this couldn’t be the answer. Choice C is incorrect. The underlined sentence doesn’t identify any “recurring theme,” but instead simply describes one interaction from one book. This interaction exemplifies the literary technique of “deep intersubjectivity” that is introduced in the next sentence.

Choice B is the best answer. The text starts with a general statement that introduces Shannon, then describes a specific contribution from one of his papers, then provides a quote that illustrates just how important this contribution was. Choice A is incorrect. This isn’t the overall structure. The text only mentions very briefly, in parentheses, that “binary digit” was shortened to “bit.” It doesn’t go into detail about this name change, and it doesn’t discuss any “common usage” of the name at all. Choice C is incorrect. This isn’t the overall structure. Shannon’s employment at Bell Labs is only mentioned once, very briefly: the text never goes into detail about his career there, and it never mentions any recognition he received there. Choice D is incorrect. This is too narrow. Overall, the text is about Shannon’s importance in his field, not just this one paper of his.

Choice C is the best answer because it most accurately describes the main purpose of the text, which is to illustrate two approaches that Indigenous politicians have taken to achieve political representation for their communities. The text begins by explaining that one approach is exemplified by Indigenous politicians in the United States who, in an effort to ensure that the interests of their communities are represented in government, joined preexisting political parties and were subsequently elected to Congress. The text goes on to highlight a second approach adopted by Indigenous leaders in Canada and several Latin American countries: rather than joining established political parties, many Indigenous politicians in these countries have instead formed their own parties to promote candidates for office who support causes that are important to their communities. Choice A is incorrect because the text’s focus is on the contrasting approaches adopted by different Indigenous political movements in different countries; thus, it isn’t accurate to say that the text traces the history of one political movement. Moreover, the text only discusses examples from 2000 to 2021, a relatively short period of time; therefore, it provides very little in the way of discussion of larger historical developments, nor does it make any predictions about how these movements might continue to develop in the future. Choice B is incorrect because the text never urges Indigenous politicians in the US to alter their strategy of striving for representation through the established political parties, nor does it suggest that this strategy is inferior to that of Indigenous politicians in Canada and Latin America, who have formed their own parties. In fact, the text notes that both strategies have resulted in the election of Indigenous politicians to national governments. Choice D is incorrect because the text never suggests that Indigenous politicians in the US have influenced those in Canada and Latin America; instead, it stresses how Indigenous politicians’ approach toward achieving Assessment SAT Test Reading and Writing Domain Craft and Structure Skill Text Structure and Purpose Difficulty representation in the US government has differed from the approach Indigenous politicians have taken to achieve representation in national governments elsewhere in the Americas.

Choice C is the best answer. The text does indeed present Mukerjee’s critique of the social sciences—that they were too Eurocentric—and then provides an example of how he attempted to address the issues he identified: by suggesting a social science model based on the Indian village. Choice A is incorrect. The text doesn’t discuss Mukerjee’s early training or his oversight of the implementation of social policies at all. Choice B is incorrect. The text never discusses any other Indian social scientists. Choice D is incorrect. The text never mentions other social scientists’ responses to Mukerjee’s work.

Choice D is the best answer. The text describes an experiment wherein space scientists compared plant growth in terrestrial and lunar soil conditions. It then discusses the findings of the study, including the fact that all the seeds germinated but that the plants grown in lunar soil exhibited signs of stress. Choice A is incorrect. The text doesn’t address this question, and never describes any specific characteristics of either soil. It merely describes the outcome of an experiment that exposed a plant species to lunar soil conditions. Choice B is incorrect. The text never compares methods of assessing indicators of stress—instead, it simply mentions several stress indicators observed in the study (red pigmentation, reduced leaf size, and inhibited growth rates). Choice C is incorrect. The text doesn’t present any evidence that we could never achieve seed germination in lunar habitats, and in fact states that the seeds in the lunar soil did germinate.

Choice A is the best answer. The text first introduces the album as being a collaboration between Antrobus and Brennan, then describes the approach taken to produce it, then mentions how critics have said that it calls into question the function of sound. Choice B is incorrect. While the text does mention a collection of spoken word poems, it doesn’t single out one poem as being particularly noteworthy. Additionally, the text doesn’t simply summarize the subject matter—it goes into detail about the content and production of the album. Choice C is incorrect. The text doesn’t provide biographical information about the two artists, and the text doesn’t speculate about the meaning behind the poetry—instead, it relays what some critics have said about the album. Choice D is incorrect. The text doesn’t provide just an overview of the production techniques used but instead goes into more detail about the content and audio elements of the album, as well as critical response to the album.

Choice D is the best answer. The text as a whole claims that Cruse disagreed with virtually all other Civil Rights scholars and activists. The underlined sentence describes one way that Cruse both did and didn’t fit in with those thinkers: he criticized Black nationalists, even though he identified as one. Choice A is incorrect. The underlined sentence doesn’t do this. It describes Cruse’s criticisms—it never mentions what Cruse did want the movement to do instead. Choice B is incorrect. This conflicts with the text, which argues that Cruse did disagree with almost all other scholars of the Civil Rights Movement. Choice C is incorrect. This is a step too far. The text never says that Cruse’s work caused controversy within the Black nationalist movement.