Read the passage, then answer each question.      It used to be that people dreaded the thought of living alone because they were afraid of becoming lonely and isolated.  But that attitude is rapidly changing.  These days, increasing numbers of people see living alone not as something to be avoided at all costs, but as an opportunity for personal fulfillment.       Statistics reflect this growing change in attitude.  Today, the percentage of Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 who live alone is 10 times what it was in 1950.  Currently, five million young Americans live alone, and the number of people between the ages of 35 and 64 who live alone is 15 million.  Not surprisingly, there is a strong correlation between having money and living alone.  In American cities with a relatively large middle class-Atlanta, Denver, San Francisco, Minneapolis, and Seattle-40 percent or more of all households consist of a single person.  And Great Britain, France, and Germany have even higher percentages of single people.  The same trend holds true for the rapidly growing economies of China, India, and Brazil.  Throughout the world, it seems that the more disposable income people have, the more they use it to buy privacy and personal space.        Research also suggests that, far from being lonely, people who live alone are more, not less, socially active than their married counterparts.  Think about it: while the traditional family is parked at home night after night, single people without family obligations have more time to engage in social activities.  Thanks to the spread of new communications technologies, being home alone no longer means being isolated.  With a click of a mouse, single people can communicate with friends throughout the nation or world.  Nor does Internet use rule out face-to-face socializing.  Research has shown that heavy Internet users are more likely than others to have extended social networks.  Furthermore, they are more likely to go out to cafes, restaurants, and parks and to attend lectures and personal enrichment classes.        This desire for personal space cuts across all age groups.  A Cornell University study found that single seniors had just as many friends as their married peers and were more likely to socialize with friends and neighbors.  A century ago, the majority of seniors lived with a child because they could no longer afford to live alone.  These days, thanks to Social Security, private pensions and income from investments, just 20 percent do.  According to sociologist Eric Klinenberg, older single people value their independence, and living alone allows them to maintain it.  When interviewed, most single people over 65 report that they would much rather live alone than move in with family members or friends or into a nursing home.      It’s true that some older people, especially those with health problems, do become dangerously isolated as a result of living alone.  More attention and support need to be given to them.  And it’s also true that gloomy economic circumstances have forced some young people to move back in with their parents.  Yet in the general population, the number of those living alone continues to rise.  According to the latest census report, 32 million Americans currently live alone, up from 27.2 million in 2000 and 31 million in 2010.  All signs indicate that this trend will continue.     According to the author,

Read the passage then answer the question that follows.      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.”   The author’s primary purpose is to…

 It used to be that people dreaded the thought of living alone because they were afraid of becoming lonely and isolated.  But that attitude is rapidly changing.  These days, increasing numbers of people see living alone not as something to be avoided at all costs, but as an opportunity for personal fulfillment.       Statistics reflect this growing change in attitude.  Today, the percentage of Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 who live alone is 10 times what it was in 1950.  Currently, five million young Americans live alone, and the number of people between the ages of 35 and 64 who live alone is 15 million.  Not surprisingly, there is a strong correlation between having money and living alone.  In American cities with a relatively large middle class-Atlanta, Denver, San Francisco, Minneapolis, and Seattle-40 percent or more of all households consist of a single person.  And Great Britain, France, and Germany have even higher percentages of single people.  The same trend holds true for the rapidly growing economies of China, India, and Brazil.  Throughout the world, it seems that the more disposable income people have, the more they use it to buy privacy and personal space.        Research also suggests that, far from being lonely, people who live alone are more, not less, socially active than their married counterparts.  Think about it: while the traditional family is parked at home night after night, single people without family obligations have more time to engage in social activities.  Thanks to the spread of new communications technologies, being home alone no longer means being isolated.  With a click of a mouse, single people can communicate with friends throughout the nation or world.  Nor does Internet use rule out face-to-face socializing.  Research has shown that heavy Internet users are more likely than others to have extended social networks.  Furthermore, they are more likely to go out to cafes, restaurants, and parks and to attend lectures and personal enrichment classes.        This desire for personal space cuts across all age groups.  A Cornell University study found that single seniors had just as many friends as their married peers and were more likely to socialize with friends and neighbors.  A century ago, the majority of seniors lived with a child because they could no longer afford to live alone.  These days, thanks to Social Security, private pensions and income from investments, just 20 percent do.  According to sociologist Eric Klinenberg, older single people value their independence, and living alone allows them to maintain it.  When interviewed, most single people over 65 report that they would much rather live alone than move in with family members or friends or into a nursing home.      It’s true that some older people, especially those with health problems, do become dangerously isolated as a result of living alone.  More attention and support need to be given to them.  And it’s also true that gloomy economic circumstances have forced some young people to move back in with their parents.  Yet in the general population, the number of those living alone continues to rise.  According to the latest census report, 32 million Americans currently live alone, up from 27.2 million in 2000 and 31 million in 2010.  All signs indicate that this trend will continue.    What conclusion can be drawn about today’s senior citizens?

Read the passage and answer the questions that follows.      It is estimated that one in five Americans will suffer from some 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?”      Although Lincoln’s sense of humor could not eradicate his depression, it could help keep it at bay, allowing him to move through difficult times with a certain degree of calm optimism.  Lincoln famously once said, “People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be.”  In our modern era of depression diagnoses, many might debate this point.  But for Abraham Lincoln in 1865, these words were a good dose of medicine.    The sentence below is a statement of… “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.”

Answer the supporting details questions that follow the passage.      At the beginning of the eighteenth century, the United States lacked a strong educational system.  Apprenticeship in a trade was a major form of education, and formal schooling was largely limited to those who could afford to pay.  Even “free” schools often required the payment of tuition, and primary schools often required entering students to be literate already, barring students who had not been taught to read by their parents.  Many schools admitted students regardless of age, mixing as many as eighty pupils.  Few textbooks were available, and most learning amounted to monotonous repetition of facts.  School buildings were generally unpainted, overcrowded, and lacked blackboards or windows.    In general, the major supporting details of this paragraph are…

Mapping is a form of outlining?

Lena sets very STRINGENT rules for her children.  Her husband, in contrast, only makes mild “suggestions” to the kids.

Ramona, who considered herself quite NAIVE, never stopped marveling at how sophisticated her friend Gail was.

The teenage boy seemed in such a STUPOR that I had to wonder if he had taken drugs.  The boy couldn’t even stand up straight or tell me his name.

Answer the supporting details questions that follow the passage.      More and more companies are interested in international marketing of their products and services.  In developing a framework in which to conduct international business, managers have two general strategies to choose from.  A global strategy is a standardized, worldwide product and marketing strategy.  The firm sells the same product in essentially the same manner throughout the world.  In Ford’s global strategy, it merges its United States, European, Asian, and Latin American operations into one huge organization.  The goal is to create cars in standardized categories to be sold worldwide.  Ford management hopes to reduce the company’s costs dramatically by engineering products only once, rather than multiple times for different markets.  Under a multinational strategy, the firm treats each national market differently.  Products and marketing strategies are developed to appeal to the customs, tastes, and buying habits of specific national markets.  Software maker Microsoft pursues a multinational strategy by creating products for specific markets, such as software that can read Japanese characters.  Microsoft also staffs its overseas sales and distribution operations with local workers, who understand the culture and customer.    Ford is presented as an example of…