Reаd the fоllоwing pаssаge, then answer the questiоn. Modern crowds that flood museums to view fabled treasures of Egyptian art are still captivated by the spell of one of the oldest and most alluring civilizations in history. Almost as old as the civilization founded in Mesopotamia during the fourth millennium B.C.E., Egyptian civilization provides a fascinating contrast to that of turmoil and tension of Mesopotamia. Not only were the Egyptians peaceful for long periods of their ancient history, but surviving Egyptian statuary and painted human figures often seem to smile and bask in the sun as if they were on summer vacation. Environmental factors best explain the striking differences. Since the Mesopotamian climate was harsh, and since the Tigris and Euphrates flooded irregularly, the Mesopotamians could not view nature as dependably life-enhancing. Furthermore, since Mesopotamia, located on an open plain, was not geographically protected from civilization, on the other hand, was centered on the dependably life-enhancing Nile. Not only did the richly fertile soil of the Nile valley provide great agricultural wealth, but the Nile flooded regularly year after year during the summer months and always receded in time for a bountiful growing season, offering Egyptians the feeling that nature was predictable and benign. In addition, since the Nile valley was surrounded by deserts and the Red Sea, Egypt was comparatively free from threats of foreign invasion. What is the relationship of the following sentence: Since the Mesopotamian climate was harsh, and since the Tigris and Euphrates flooded irregularly, the Mesopotamians could not view nature as dependably life-enhancing.
Reаd the pаssаge then answer the questiоn that fоllоws. The influence of sports reaches far and wide. Sports are particularly popular in our leisure-oriented American society, where they perform several major beneficial functions. To being with, sports are conducive to success in other areas of life. Being competitive, sports inspire athletes to do their utmost to win, helping them to develop such qualities as skill and ability, diligence and self-discipline, mental alertness, and physical fitness. These qualities can ensure success in the larger society. By watching athletes perform, spectators also learn the importance of hard work, playing by the rules, and working as a team player-characteristics that help ensure success in a career and other aspects of life. Next, sports enhance health and happiness. Participants can enjoy a healthy, long life. The health benefit is more than physical, however; it is also psychological. Runners and joggers, for example, often find that their activity releases tension and anger as well as relieves anxiety and depression. Moreover, many people derive much pleasure from looking on their participation as a form of beauty, an artistic expression, or a way of having a good time with friends. Similarly, sports improve the quality of life for spectators. Fans can escape their humdrum daily routines or find pleasure in filling their leisure time, as many Americans do when watching baseball, long known as the national pastime. They can savor the aesthetic pleasure of watching the excellence, beauty, and creativity in an athlete's performance. The fans can therefore attain greater happiness, life satisfaction, or psychological well-being. Third, sports contribute to social order and stability by serving as an integrating force for society as a whole. Sports are, in effect, a social mechanism for uniting potentially disunited members of society. Through their common interest in a famous athlete or team, people of diverse racial, social, and cultural backgrounds can feel a sense of community or intimacy that they can acquire in no other way. Athletes, too, can identify with their fans, their community, and their country. But sports can also be seen as harming society by serving the interests of the relatively powerful over those of the powerless in at least two ways. For one thing, sports tend to act as an opiate, numbing the masses' sense of dissatisfaction with capitalist society. Involvement in sports as spectators distracts low-paid or unemployed workers from their tedious and dehumanizing jobs or frustrating joblessness. In addition, sports reinforce social inequalities in society. Regrettably, the overemphasis on competition and winning has caused the loss of something all participants can enjoy equally-namely, the original elements of play and fun in sporting activities. Many people have become "couch potatoes" who spend more time watching than playing sports. And sports have turned into big business, with powerful owners of professional teams exploiting the public and government. Aside from making enormous sums of money from the fans, team owners receive many tax breaks while enjoying the enviable position of being the only self-regulated (in effect, unregulated) monopoly in the nation. Sports is now an elitist system in which a very tiny group of owners and players become tycoons and superstars, while a huge number of potential players are transformed into mere spectators. The last paragraph of the selection is made up of...
It is estimаted thаt оne in five Americаns will suffer frоm sоme form of depression at some point in their lives, while one in 20 can expect to have a recurring depressive disorder that can significantly impact the quality of their day-to-day activities. Today, depression is diagnosed and, more often than not, treated medically with any number of prescriptions that strive to even out the highs and lows of bipolar disorders and the murky depths of chronic depression. However, prior to the 1970s, depression was neither diagnosed nor treated as a disease-it was perceived as more of a character flaw or weakness. Still, many sufferers of depression managed to find moderately effective ways to cope with their disease. One of the most famous examples is Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln's depression probably originated from so much loss at an early age. Before he was 10, he lost a favorite aunt and uncle, a newborn brother, and his mother. Lincoln was not close to his father, but he was unusually close to his older sister, who also died when Lincoln was barely 18. And it is difficult to imagine a presidency more difficult and prone to sorrow than that of Lincoln's. Consider the course of events. He was elected president as the most inexperienced man in the history of that office, and more than a third of Lincoln's constituents, primarily Southerners, refused to even acknowledge him as president. Almost immediately, the bloodiest war America has ever seen broke out, eventually claiming 680,000 lives. Lincoln was conversely vilified as either an incompetent coward of a bloodthirsty warmonger as general after general he had chosen failed to be effective. In the midst of the war, Lincoln's young son died, and his wife became temporarily insane. Add, to all this, debilitating insomnia and chronic digestive problems, and it is a wonder that Abraham Lincoln was ever able to rise above his depression at all. How did he do it? "He loved to laugh," one Lincoln biographer explains simply. Though the photographic images we have of Lincoln show a stern, even morose, man, his photographers often complained about Lincoln's inability to hold still for more than 15 seconds before bursting into peals of laughter over the seriousness of posing for a portrait. The image we see is a contrived graveness Lincoln forced himself to maintain for the 30 seconds of stillness needed for the exposure. And the closest to Lincoln claimed that despite his often sad eyes, he demeanor was generally one of mirth and genuine amusement. It was not uncommon for Lincoln to begin telling a humorous story (a pastime for which he was famous) and become so incapacitated with laughter that he could not finish. In particular, Lincoln loved making fun of himself, especially his rather homely looks. Once accused of being two-faced by a political rival, Lincoln responded, "If I had two faces, do you think I'd be wearing this one?" Which statement offers the best support for the author's claim that Lincoln was able to laugh at himself?
Reаd the pаssаge then answer the questiоn that fоllоws. The American obesity epidemic presents a paradox. While we are a people often obsessed with the idea of eating the right foods, we have, arguably, the worst diet on earth. Other cultures with far fewer resources, less education, and minimal choices have exceedingly better diets. Take, for instance, the remote Masai people of East Africa. Consuming primarily cattle blood, meat, milk and vegetables, the Masai are heart-healthy, fit, and have an obesity rate of just about zero. Meanwhile, American obesity rates are pushing past 30 percent and are expected to reach near 50 percent by 2030! And remember, obese is defined as extremely overweight, not just uncomfortably fat. So, what exactly is it about the American diet that is creating such pervasive unhealthiness? First and foremost, too much food today is not real food. Industrial processing has created a nightmare of consumables packed with unpronounceable additives and preservatives. Worse still, many of these additives, such as high-fructose corn syrup and trans-fats, are addictive, tricking the taste buds into convincing the brain that the food is good, while, in fact, the food is terrible-and barely even food. Consider the typical fast-food French fry, which contains more than 20 ingredients-only one of which is actually potato. Packaged and canned foods are loaded with sodium, sugars, and fat to make them more appealing to our skewed appetites, further adding to the ever-growing snowball of obesity. The average American is so addicted to sugar saturation that he or she consumes more than 34 teaspoons of sugar per day. Nutritionist and health professionals point out that a return to eating real food is far more important than any other aspect when it comes to battling the obesity epidemic-more important than exercise or going on another diet. Simply focusing on eating real and whole foods (think tomato, not ketchup) can quickly change metabolism and energy levels for the better and drastically reduce junk "food" cravings. But what exactly is real food, and how do we know when we're eating it? Food author Michael Pollan, who coined the catchphrase "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants," offers some helpful pointers. First, don't eat anything that your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize-in other words, no chicken nuggets, Hamburger Helper, or even energy drinks. Also, avoid foods with more than five ingredients or any ingredients you can't pronounce; these foods probably contain unhealthy and addictive additives. Furthermore, shun fast-food chains completely; aside from the wilted piece of lettuce on your hamburger, there is rarely a sliver of real food in any of these establishments. Finally, focus your shopping on the perimeter of the supermarket, rather than its middle. The middle aisles are full of canned, boxed, and frozen foods that, in general, are neither whole nor real. Fruits, vegetables, and unprocessed meats tend to be on the outer edges of stores near loading docks, where they can be replaced more easily. The bottom line is that we need to simplify our eating in order to trim down as a nation. Seeking out unusual and complicated diets that involve supplements and strange food combinations only confuses our bodies and eventually leads to more weight gain. Fat, carbohydrates, proteins, and even salt and sugar are all necessary dietary components, but they should be consumed by way of whole, real food, instead of boxed, packaged, or canned "food." Which sentence best states the main idea of a the passage?
Reаd the pаssаge then answer the questiоn that fоllоws. The influence of sports reaches far and wide. Sports are particularly popular in our leisure-oriented American society, where they perform several major beneficial functions. To being with, sports are conducive to success in other areas of life. Being competitive, sports inspire athletes to do their utmost to win, helping them to develop such qualities as skill and ability, diligence and self-discipline, mental alertness, and physical fitness. These qualities can ensure success in the larger society. By watching athletes perform, spectators also learn the importance of hard work, playing by the rules, and working as a team player-characteristics that help ensure success in a career and other aspects of life. Next, sports enhance health and happiness. Participants can enjoy a healthy, long life. The health benefit is more than physical, however; it is also psychological. Runners and joggers, for example, often find that their activity releases tension and anger as well as relieves anxiety and depression. Moreover, many people derive much pleasure from looking on their participation as a form of beauty, an artistic expression, or a way of having a good time with friends. Similarly, sports improve the quality of life for spectators. Fans can escape their humdrum daily routines or find pleasure in filling their leisure time, as many Americans do when watching baseball, long known as the national pastime. They can savor the aesthetic pleasure of watching the excellence, beauty, and creativity in an athlete's performance. The fans can therefore attain greater happiness, life satisfaction, or psychological well-being. Third, sports contribute to social order and stability by serving as an integrating force for society as a whole. Sports are, in effect, a social mechanism for uniting potentially disunited members of society. Through their common interest in a famous athlete or team, people of diverse racial, social, and cultural backgrounds can feel a sense of community or intimacy that they can acquire in no other way. Athletes, too, can identify with their fans, their community, and their country. But sports can also be seen as harming society by serving the interests of the relatively powerful over those of the powerless in at least two ways. For one thing, sports tend to act as an opiate, numbing the masses' sense of dissatisfaction with capitalist society. Involvement in sports as spectators distracts low-paid or unemployed workers from their tedious and dehumanizing jobs or frustrating joblessness. In addition, sports reinforce social inequalities in society. Regrettably, the overemphasis on competition and winning has caused the loss of something all participants can enjoy equally-namely, the original elements of play and fun in sporting activities. Many people have become "couch potatoes" who spend more time watching than playing sports. And sports have turned into big business, with powerful owners of professional teams exploiting the public and government. Aside from making enormous sums of money from the fans, team owners receive many tax breaks while enjoying the enviable position of being the only self-regulated (in effect, unregulated) monopoly in the nation. Sports is now an elitist system in which a very tiny group of owners and players become tycoons and superstars, while a huge number of potential players are transformed into mere spectators. The tone of this passage can best be described as...