Practice PSAT #1

Practice Test 1 377

Answer Sheet-Practice Test 1

, Each mark should completely fill the appropriate space, and should be as dark as all other marks. Make all
erasures complete. Traces of an erasure may be read as an answer.

Section 1 - Section 2 - Math Section 3 -
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Practice Test 1 379

SECTION 1/CRITICAL READING
TIME: 25 MINUTES
24 QUESTIONS (1-24)

Directions: For each question in this section, select the best answer from among the choices given and
fill inthe corres~ohding Circle on t5eanswer sheet.

2. Until James learned to be more ---- about writing
Each sentence below has one or two blanks, each down his homework assignments, he seldom knew
blank indicating that something has been omitted. when any assignment was due.
Beneath the sentence are five words or sets of words
(A) obstinate (B) contrary (C) opportunistic
labeled A through E. Choose the word or set of words
(D) methodical (E) literate
that, when inserted in the sentence, best fits the
meaning of the sentence as a whole. 3. Despite all the advertisements singing the ---- of
the new product, she remained ---- its merits,
EXAMPLE:
wanting to see what Consumer Reports had to say
Medieval kingdoms did not become constitutional about its claims.
republics overnight; on the contrary, the change (A) virtues ..an optimist about
was ----. (B) praises ..a skeptic about
(A) unpopular (B) unexpected (C) joys ..a convert to
(C) advantageous (D) sufficient (E) gradual (D) defects ..a cynic about
®®©@. (E) advantages ..a believer in

4. After working on the project night and day for two
full months, Sandy felt that she had earned a ----.
(A) penalty (B) scolding (C) degree
1. Unhappily, the psychology experiment was ----
(D) chore (E) respite
by the subjects' awareness of the presence of
observers in their midst. 5. Even though the basic organization of the brain
(A) muted (B) palliated (C) marred does not change after birth, details of its structure
(D) clarified (E) concluded and function remain ---- for some time, particu-
larly in the cerebral cortex.
(A) plastic (B) immutable (C) essential
(D) unknown (E) static

GO ON TO NEXT PAGE ~

PSAT/NMSQT

Directions: The passages below precede questions based on their content or the relationship between the pas-
sages. Answer the questions that follow on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Questions 6-9 are based on the following 6. In Passage 1, the author's attitude toward tarantu-
passages. las can best be described as
(A) apprehensive (B) sentimental
Passage 1 (C) approving (D) objective (E) defensive
Spiders, and in particular hairy spiders, pos-
sess a highly developed sense of touch. Tarantulas, 7. The word "excite" in line 10 most nearly means
for example, perceive three distinct types of touch: (A) irritate (B) delight (C) stimulate
Line a light whisper that flutters the sensitive leg hairs; (D) exhilarate (E) discompose
5 a smooth rubbing of the body hair; a steady pres-
sure against the body wall. Press a pencil against 8. Which statement best expresses the relationship
the tarantula's body wall and it will back away between the two passages?
cautiously without reacting defensively. However, (A) Passage 1 describes its subject by supplying
if the tarantula sees the pencil approaching from details with which the author of Passage 2
10 above, the motion will excite a defensive reaction: would disagree.
it will rear up, lifting its front legs and baring its (B) Passage 1 provides scientific observations of
fangs, maintaining this attack stance until the the subject, while Passage 2 offers a popular
pencil stops moving. introduction to the subject.
Passage 2 (C) Passage 1 presents its subject in highly figu-
"The eensy-weensy spider climbed up the rative terms, while Passage 2 is more techni-
15 waterspout..." cal in nature.
Tarantulas are the world's largest spiders. (D) Both Passage 1 and Passage 2 assume readers
The very largest live in the jungles of South will have an automatically negative response
America, and, in the days when bananas were to the subject under discussion.
transported as large bunches on stalks, tarantulas (E) Passage 2 is objective in its presentation,
20 often were accidentally imported with the fruit. while Passage 1 is more personal in tone.
Stout-bodied and hairy, tarantulas can create
9. Which generalization about tarantulas is supported
great panic among arachnophobes (people who
by both passages?
fear spiders). Actually, these large spiders are
gentle giants, whose temperaments do not match (A) They have a marked degree of intelligence.
25 their intimidating appearance. Docile and (B) Their gentleness belies their frightening
non-aggressive, tarantulas do not bite unless they looks.
are severely provoked. Even if they do bite, their (C) They have been unfairly maligned by
bites are not particularly dangerous; they are arachnophobes.
about as painful as bee stings, and should be (D) They are capable of acting to defend
30 treated similarly. themselves.
(E) They are easily intimidated by others.


Practice Test 1 381

Questions 10-15 are based on the following passage. from below against the wind, and dive-with an
acceleration far greater than that of a falling
The following passage is from a book written by the
stone-into the depths below. Another tiny jerk of
naturalist Konrad Lorenz and published in 1952.
45 the wing and they return to their normal position
In the chimney the autumn wind sings the and, on close-reefed sails, shoot away with breath-
song of the elements, and the old firs before my less speed into the teeth of the gale, hundreds of
study window wave excitedly with their arms and yards to the west: this all playfully and without
Line sing so loudly in chorus that I can hear their effort, just to spite the stupid wind that tries to
5 sighing melody through the double panes. 50 drive them towards the east. The sightless monster
Suddenly, from above, a dozen black, streamlined itself must perform the work of propelling the birds
projectiles shoot across the piece of clouded sky through the air at a rate of well over 80 miles an
for which my window forms a frame. Heavily as hour; the jackdaws do nothing to help beyond a few
stones they fall, fall to the tops of the firs where lazy adjustments of their black wings. Sover-
10 they suddenly sprout wings, become birds and 55 eign control over the power of the elements,
then light feather rags that the storm seizes and intoxicating triumph of theliving organism over
whirls out of my line of vision, more rapidly than the pitiless strength of the inorganic!
they were borne into it.
I walk to the window to watch this extraordi- 10. The "arms" mentioned in line 3 are
15 nary game that the jackdaws are playing with the (A) wings (B) storm winds
wind. A game? Yes, indeed, it is a game, in the (C) heraldic emblems (D) branches
most literal sense of the word: practiced move- (E) missiles
ments, indulged in and enjoyed for their own sake
and not for the achievement of a special object. 11. According to the passage, the bird's skill in
20 And rest assured, these are not merely inborn, adapting to wind conditions is
purely instinctive actions, but movements that (A) genetically determined
have been carefully learned. All these feats that the (B) limited
birds are performing, their wonderful exploitation (C) undependable
of the wind, their amazingly' exact assessment of (D) dependent on the elements
25 distances and, above all, their understanding of (E) gained through practice
local wind conditions, their knowledge of all the
up-currents, air pockets and eddies-all this pro- 12. The phrase "rest assured" in line 20 most likely
ficiency is no inheritance, but, for each bird, an means
individually acquired accomplishment. (A) sleep securely
30 And look what they do with the wind! At first (B) others are certain
sight, you, poor human being, think that the (C) be confident
storm is playing with the birds, like a cat with a (D) remain poised
mouse, but soon you see, with astonishment, that (E) in their sure leisure
it is the fury of the elements that here plays the
35 role of the mouse and that the jackdaws are treat- 13. The "sightless monster" mentioned in line 50 is
ing the storm exactly as the cat its unfortunate (A) an unobservant watcher
victim. Nearly, but only nearly, do they give the (B) a falling stone
storm its head, let it throw them high, high into (C) an airplane
the heavens, till they seem to fall upwards, then, (D) the powerful windstorm
40 with a casual flap of a wing, they turn themselves (E) a blind predator
over, open their pinions for a fraction of a second


382 PSA T/NMSQT

14. Throughout the passage, the author is most domains; both had the same function, to display
impressed by his wealth and social position. It has frequently
(A) the direction-finding skills of the birds 30 been suggested that tapestries helped to heat
(B) the jackdaws' superhuman strength stone-walled rooms, but this is a modern idea·
(C) his inability to join the jackdaws in their comfort was of minor importance in the Middle
game Ages. Tapestries were portable grandeur, instant
(0) the fleeting nature of his encounter with the splendor, taking the place, north of the Alps, of
birds 35 painted frescoes further south. They were hung
(E) the jackdaws' mastery of the forces of nature without gaps between them, covering entire walls
and often doors as well. Only very occasionally
15. The author does all of the following EXCEPT were they made as individual works of art such as
(A) use a metaphor altar frontals. They were usually commissioned or
(B) argue a cause 40 bought as sets, or "chambers," and constituted the
(C) clarify a term most important furnishings of any grand room,
(0) describe a behavior except for the display of plate, throughout the
(E) dismiss a notion Middle Ages and the sixteenth century. Later,
woven silks, ornamental wood carving, stucco
45 decoration, and painted leather gradually replaced
tapestry as expensive wall coverings, until at last
Questions 16-24 are based on the following passage. wallpaper was introduced in the late eighteenth
century and eventually swept away almost every-
The passage below, taken from a museum bulletin, thing else.
discusses tapestry making as an art form. 50 By the end of the eighteenth century, the
Tapestries are made on looms. Their distinc- "tapestry-room" [a room with every available wall
tive weave is basically simple: the colored weft surface covered with wall hangings] was no longer
threads interface regularly with the monochrome fashionable: paper had replaced wall coverings of
Line warps, as in darning or plain cloth, but as they do wool and silk. Tapestries, of course, were still
5 so, they form a design by reversing their direction 55 made, but in the nineteenth century they often
when a change of color is needed. The wefts are seem to have been produced mainly as individual
beaten down to cover the warps completely. The works of art that astonish by their resemblance to
result is a design or picture that is the fabric itself, oil paintings, tours de force woven with a remark-
not one laid upon a ground like an embroidery, a ably large number of wefts per inch. In England
10 print, or brocading. The back and front of a tapes- 60 during the second half of the century, William
try show the same design. The weaver always Morris attempted to reverse this trend and to
follows a preexisting model, generally a drawing bring tapestry weaving back to its true principles,
or painting, known as the cartoon, which in most those he considered to have governed it in the
cases he reproduces as exactly as he can. Long Middle Ages. He imitated medieval tapestries in
15 training is needed to become a professional 65 both style and technique, using few warps to
tapestry weaver. It can take as much as a year to the inch, but he did not make sets; the original
produce a yard of very finely woven tapestry. function for which tapestry is so admirably
Tapestry-woven fabrics have been made from suited-completely covering the walls of a room
China to Peru and from very early times to the and providing sumptuous surroundings for a life
20 present day, but large wall hangings in this tech- 70 of pomp and splendor-could not be revived.
nique, mainly of wool, are typically Northern Morris's example has been followed, though with
European. Few examples predating the late four- less imitation of medieval style, by many weavers
teenth century have survived, but from about of the present century, whose coarsely woven
1400 tapestries were an essential part of aristo- cloths hang like single pictures and can be
25 cratic life. The prince or great nobleman sent his 75 admired as examples of contemporary art.
plate and his tapestries ahead of him to furnish his
castles before his arrival as he traveled through his


Practice Test 1 383

16. Tapestry weaving may be characterized as which of 21. In line 40, the quotation marks around the word
the following? "chambers" serve to
I. Time-consuming (A) emphasize the inadequacy of the particular
II. Spontaneous in concept choice of words
III. Faithful to an original (B) point out the triteness of the term
(A) I only (C) indicate the use of a colloquialism
(B) III only (D) illustrate the need for the word to be stressed
(C) I and II only when spoken aloud
(D) I and III only (E) indicate the word is being used in a special
(E) II and III only sense

17. The word "distinctive" in lines 1-2 means 22. The author regards William Morris (lines 60-64) as
(A) characteristic (B) stylish (A) a bold innovator
(C) discriminatory (D) eminent (B) an uninspired hack
(E) articulate (C) a medieval nobleman
18. Renaissance nobles carried tapestries with them to (D) a cartoonist
demonstrate their (E) a traditionalist
(A) piety (B) consequence
23. In contrast to nineteenth-century tapestries,
(C) aesthetic judgment (D) need for privacy
contemporary tapestries
(E) dislike for cold
(A) are displayed in sets of panels
19. The word "ground" in line 9 means
(B) echo medieval themes
(A) terrain (B) dust (C) thread (D) base (C) faithfully copy oil paintings
(E) pigment (D) have a less fine weave
20. The statement in line 31 ("but this ... idea") is (E) indicate the owner's social position
best described as an example of
24. The primary purpose of the passage is to
(A) a definition of a central concept
(B) an acknowledgment of a principle (A) explain the process of tapestry making
(C) a dismissal of a common view (B) contrast Eastern and Western schools of
(D) an emotional refutation tapestry
(E) a moral proclamation (C) analyze the reasons for the decline in
popularity of tapestries
(D) provide a historical perspective on tapestry
making
(E) advocate a return to a more colorful way of
life

IF YOU FINISH IN LESS THAN 25 MINUTES, YOU MAY CHECK YOUR WORK ON
THIS SECTION ONLY. DO NOT TURN TO ANY OTHER SECTION IN THE TEST. STOP

384 PSA T/NMSOT

SECTION 2/MATHEMATICS
TIME: 25 MINUTES
20 QUESTIONS (1-20)

Directions:
For each question in this section, determine which of the five choices is correct, and blacken that choice on your
answer sheet. You may use any blank space on the page for your work.

NOTES:
• You may use a calculator whenever you believe it will be helpful.
• Use the diagrams provided to help you solve the problems. Unless you see the phrase
Note: Figure not drawn to scale
under a diagram, it has been drawn as accurately as possible. Unless it is stated that a figure is three dimen-
sional, you may assume that it lies in a plane.

Reference

~A s~SV2

~x, ~
e a xV3 5

V= Cwh v = -rrrh Special Right Triangles

Number of degrees in a circle: 360
Sum of the measures, in degrees, of the three angles of a triangle: 180

ABC D E

2x0
lS:1:Jit±1
J I H G F

1. In the figure above, what is the value of y? 3. In the figure above, rectangle AEFJ is divided into
(A) 50 four equal squares. What is the ratio of the area of
(B) 70 the shaded region to the area of the white region?
(C) 90 (A) 1:2
(D) 100 (B) 3:5
(E) 140 (C) 5:8
(D) 1:1
2. If (a + 12) - 12 = 12, then a =
(E) 5:3
(A) -12
(B) 0
(C) 12
(D) 24
(E) 36


Practice Test 1 385

4. The Albertville Little League raised some money. 8. 20 is what percent of C?
They used 72% of the money to buy uniforms, 19%
for equipment, and the remaining $243 for a team (A) 20C%
party. How much money did the team raise? (B) 2tC%
(A) $2400
(B) $2450 (C) ~%
(C) $2500
(D) 2g0%
(D) $2600
(E) $2700
(E) 2~O%
5. If it is now 1:30, what time will it be when the hour
hand has moved through an angle of 20°? 9. Two sides of a right triangle are 5 and 9. Which of
the following could be the length of the third side?
(A) 1:45
(B) 1:50 I. V56
(C) 2:00 II. v'76
(D) 2:10 III. V166
(E) 2:15 (A) I only
(B) III only
(C) I and II only
B (D) I and III only
(E) I, II, and III
------~~~----k
10. Which of the following is an equation of a line
----~--~~----e that is parallel to the line whose equation is y =
2x - 3?
(A) y = 2x + 3
6. In the figure above, lines k and e are parallel, and (B) y = -2x - 3
line k passes through C, one of the vertices of (C) y ix - 3
=

(D) y = -ix + 3
equilateral triangle ABC. What is the value of a?
(A) 40
(B) 50 (E) y = -ix - 3
(C) 60
(D) 80 11. If n is an integer and n, n + 1, and n + 2 are the
(E) 90 lengths of the sides of a triangle, which of the
following could be the value of n?
7. If the difference of two numbers is less than the I. 1
sum of the numbers, which of the following must II. 3
be true? III. 13
(A) Neither number is positive. (A) I only
(B) At least one of the numbers is positive. (B) II only
(C) Exactly one of the numbers is positive. (C) III only
(D) Both numbers are positive. (D) II and III only
(E) None of these statements must be true. (E) I, II, and III


386 PSAT/NMSQT

12. A bank raised the minimum payment on its charge 17. The road from Jack's house to Jill's is exactly 10
accounts from $10 to $20 per month. What was the kilometers. At different times, Jack and Jill each
percent increase in the minimum monthly pament? left home and walked toward the other's house.
They walked at the same rate, and they met at
(A) 10%
noon, 4 kilometers from Jill's house. If Jack left at
(8) 20%
10:00, at what time did 1ill leave?
(C) 50%
(0) 100% (A) 9:40
(E) 200% (8) 10:00
(C) 10:40
(0) 11:00
(E) 11:20

18. The Northport High School French Club has twice
as many female members as male members. One
day, the percentage of female members attending a
13. For the figure above, which of the following is an meeting of the club was twice the percentage of
expression for y in terms of x? male members. What percent of those attending
(A) x the meeting were males?
(8) 60 - x (A) 20%
(C) x - 60 (8) 25%
(0) 180 - 3x (C) 33t%
(E) 90 - x (0) 50%
(E) It cannot be determined from the information
Questions 14 and 15 refer to the following definition. given.
For any number x, Ilxll = _}X2. 19. If a and b are the lengths of the legs of a right
triangle whose hypotenuse is 10 and whose area is
14. What is the value of 116211? 20, what is the value of (a + b)2?
(A) 16 (A) 100
(8) 24 (8) 120
(C) 144 (C) 140
(0) 576 (0) 180
(E) 864 (E) 200

15. If y = ix, which of the following is an expression 20. A lottery prize worth d dollars was to be divided
for lIyll in terms of x? equally among 4 winners. It was subsequently dis-
covered that there were 2 additional winners, and
(A) i X3
the prize would now be divided equally among all
(8) tx2 the winners. How much more money, in dollars,
would each original winner have received if the
(C) ~X3
additional winners were not discovered?
(0) 287x2
(A) 12
(E) 287x3
(8) ~
x
16. If ((x) = 9x + 9 , what is the value of ((-~)? (C) ~
(A) 3 (0) ~2
(8) 6
(C) 7.5 (E):
(0) 9
(E) 9.9

THIS SECTION ONLY. 00 NOT TURN TO ANY OTHER SECTION IN THE TEST. STOP

Practice Test 1 387

SECTION 3/CRITICAL READING
TIME: 25 MINUTES
24 QUESTIONS (25-48)

28. Michael's severe bout of the flu ---- him so much
Each sentence below has one or two blanks, each that he was too tired to go to work for a week.
blank indicating that something has been omitted.
(A) recuperated (B) diagnosed
Beneath the sentence are five words or sets of words
(C) incarcerated (D) captivated
labeled A through E. Choose the word or set of words
(E) debilitated
that, when inserted in the sentence, best fits the
meaning of the sentence as a whole. 29. Though Alec Guinness was determined to make a
name for himself on the stage, when he considered
EXAMPLE:
the uncertainties of an actor's life, his ---- wavered.
Medieval kingdoms did not become constitutional (A) resolution (B) reverence (C) affectation
republics overnight; on the contrary, the change (D) theatricality (E) skepticism
was ----.
(A) unpopular (B) unexpected 30. In Gulliver's Travels, Swift's intent is ----; he
(C) advantageous (D) sufficient (E) gradual exposes the follies of English society by ridiculing
the follies of the Lilliputians.
@@©@.
(A) elegiac (B) prophetic (C) satirical
(D) questionable (E) derivative

31. Even the threat of sudden death could not ---- the
25. Nothing anyone could say was able to alter North's intrepid pilot and explorer Beryl Markham; a true
---- that his attempt to lie to Congress was +:» she risked her life countless times to set
justified. records for flying small planes.

(A) demand (B) conviction (C) maxim (A) intimidate ..patrician
(D) fear (E) ambivalence (B) divert.renegade
(C) interest..dilettante
26. Excessive use of coal and oil eventually may ---- the (D) daunt..daredevil
earth's supply of fossil fuels, leaving us in need of a (E) survive ..firebrand
new source of energy.
32. As an indefatigable consumer advocate, Ralph
(A) replenish (B) magnify (C) merge
Nader is constantly engaged in ---- the claims of
(D) deplete (E) redirect
unscrupulous merchandisers and cautioning the
27. Contemporary authorities have come to --~- the public to exercise a healthy ----.
use of "healthy" in place of "healthful"; however, (A) asserting ..autonomy
they still reject the use of "disinterested" in place (B) deflating ..prodigality
of "uninterested." (C) debunking ..skepticism
(A) condone (B) evaluate (C) imitate (D) affirming ..indifference
(D) disdain (E) repudiate (E) exaggerating ..optimism


388 PSA T/NMSQT

Directions: Each of the passages below precedes two questions based on its content. Answer the questions fol-
lowing each passage on the basis of what is stated or implied in that passage.

Questions 33 and 34 are based on the following Questions 35 and 36 are based on the following
passage. passage.
Can prison reform people, positively trans- Many primates live together in an organized
forming their lives? Some who answer yes to this troop or social group that includes members of all
question point to the example of Malcolm Little, ages and both sexes. Such troops always move
Line later known as Malcolm X. The Autobiography of Line compactly together in a stable social unit. A
5 Malcolm X describes how Malcolm, a high school 5 typical primate troop characteristically exhibits a
dropout, in prison set himself the task of reading ranking hierarchy among the males in the troop.
straight through the dictionary; to him, reading This ranking hierarchy serves to alleviate conflict
was purposeful, not aimless, and he plowed his within the troop. The highest-ranking male or
way through its hundreds of pages, from A for males defend, control, and lead the troop; the
10 aardvark to Z for zymurgy. 10 strong social bond among members and their
safety is maintained.
33. The author's attitude toward Malcolm's activities
in prison can best be described as 35. According to the passage, primate societies are
(A) nostalgic (B) pessimistic (A) generally unstable
(C) condescending (D) approving (B) hierarchically flexible
(E) apologetic (C) extremely competitive
(D) dominated by adult males
34. In line 8, "plowed" most nearly means (E) frequently in conflict with each other
(A) harrowed (B) cultivated
(C) plunged recklessly (D) prepared hastily 36. According to the passage, the hierarchic structure
(E) proceeded steadily within a troop serves to
(A) protect the members of the troop
(B) facilitate food gathering
(C) establish friendships within the group
(D) keep members of other troops from joining
(E) teach the youngest members how to survive


Practice Test 1 389

Directions: The passages below are followed by questions on their content; questions following a pair of
related passages may also be based on the relationship between the paired passages. Answer the questions on
the basis of what is ~ or implied in the passages and in any introductory material that may be provided.

Questions 37-48 are based on the following est her, except as they were a rebuke to others;
passages. "Honor thy father and thy mother," a command-
ment she was no longer called upon to practice,
The following passages present two portraits of grand-
40 was the one most frequently on her lips. The
mothers. In Passage 1, Mary McCarthy shares her
extermination of Protestantism, rather than spiri-
memories of her Catholic grandmother, who raised
tual perfection, was the boon she prayed for. Her
McCarthy and her brother after their parents' death.
mind was preoccupied with conversion; the cap-
In Passage 2, Caroline Heilbrun tells of her Jewish
ture of a soul for God much diverted her fancy-it
grandmother, who died when Heilbrun was ten.
45 made one less Protestant in the world. Foreign
Passage 1 missions, with their overtones of good will and
Luckily, I am writing a memoir and not a work social service, appealed to her less strongly; it was
of fiction, and therefore I do not have to account not a harvest of souls that my grandmother had in
for my grandmother's unpleasing character mind.
Line and look for the Oedipal fixation or the traumatic 50 This pugnacity of my grandmother's did not
5 experience which would give her that clinical confine itself to sectarian enthusiasm. There was
authenticity that is nowadays so desirable in por- the defense of her furniture and her house against
traiture. I do not know how my grandmother got the imagined encroachments of visitors. With
the way she was; I assume, from family photographs her, this was not the gentle and tremulous
and from the inflexibility of her habits, that she 55 protectiveness endemic in old ladies, who fear for
10 was always the same, and it seems as idle to the safety of their possessions with a truly touch-
inquire into her childhood as to ask what was ail- ing anxiety, inferring the fragility of all things
ing Iago or look for the error in toilet-training from the brittleness of their old bones and hearing
that was responsible for Lady Macbeth. My grand- the crash of mortality in the perilous tinkling of a
mother's sexual history, bristling with infant 60 tea-cup. My grandmother's sentiment was more
15 mortality in the usual style of her period, was autocratic: she hated having her chairs sat in or
robust and decisive: three tall, handsome sons her lawns stepped on or the water turned on in
grew up, and one attentive daughter. Her husband her basins, for no reason at all except pure offi-
treated her kindly. She had "money, many grand- ciousness; she even grudged the mailman his daily
children, and religion to sustain her. White hair, 65 promenade up her sidewalk. Her home was a
20 glasses, soft skin, wrinkles, needlework-all the center of power, and she would not allow it to be
paraphernalia of motherliness were hers; yet it was derogated by easy or democratic usage. Under her
a cold, grudging, disputatious old woman who sat jealous eye, its social properties had atrophied,
all day in her sunroom making tapestries from a and it functioned in the family structure simply
pattern, scanning religious periodicals, and setting 70 as a political headquarters. The family had no
25 her iron jaw against any infraction of her ways. friends, and entertaining was held to be a foolish
Combativeness was, I suppose, the dominant and unnecessary courtesy as between blood rela-
trait in my grandmother's nature. An aggressive tions. Holiday dinners fell, as a duty, on the lesser
churchgoer, she was quite without Christian feel- members of the organization: the daughters and
ing; the mercy of the Lord Jesus had never entered 75 daughters-in-law (converts from the false religion)
30 her heart. Her piety was an act of war against the offered up Baked Alaska on a platter like the head
Protestant ascendancy. The religious magazines of John the Baptist, while the old people sat
on her table furnished her not with food for medi- enthroned at the table, and only their digestive
tation but with fresh pretexts for anger; articles processes acknowledged, with rumbling,
attacking birth control, divorce, mixed marriages, 80 enigmatic salvos, the festal day.
35 Darwin, and secular education were her favorite
reading. The teachings of the Church did not inter-


390 PSAT/NMSQT

Passage 2 40. McCarthy's primary point in describing her grand-
My grandmother, one of Howe's sustaining mother's physical appearance (lines 19-25) is best
women, not only ruled the household with an arm summarized by which of the following axioms?
of iron, but kept a store to support them all, her (A) Familiarity breeds contempt.
blond, blue-eyed husband enjoying life rather than
(B) You can't judge a book by its cover.
85 struggling through it. My grandmother was one of
(C) One picture is worth more than ten thousand
those powerful women who know that they stand words.
between their families and an outside world filled
(D) There's no smoke without fire.
with temptations to failure and shame. I remem-
(E) Blood is thicker than water.
ber her as thoroughly loving. But there can be no
90 question that she impaired her six daughters for 41. By describing the typical old woman's fear for the
autonomy as thoroughly as if she had crippled safety of her possessions (in lines 53-60),
them-more so. The way to security was mar- McCarthy emphasizes that
riage; the dread that stood in the way of this was (A) her grandmother feared the approach of
sexual dalliance, above all pregnancy. The horror
death
95 of pregnancy in an unmarried girl is difficult, per- (B) old women have dangerously brittle bones
haps, to recapture now. For a Jewish girl not to be (C) her grandmother possessed considerable
a virgin on marriage was failure. The male's rights wealth
were embodied in her lack of sexual experience, in (D) her grandmother had different reasons for
the knowledge that he was the first, the owner.
her actions
100 All attempts at autonomy had to be frustrated. (E) visitors were unwelcome in her
And of course, my grandmother's greatest weapon grandmother's home
was her own vulnerability. She had worked hard,
only her daughters knew how hard. She could not 42. The word "properties" in line 68 means
be comforted or repaid-as my mother would feel (A) belongings (B) aspects (C) holdings
105 repaid-by a daughter's accomplishments, only by (D) titles (E) acreage
her marriage.
43. Heilbrun is critical of her grandmother primarily
because
37. McCarthy's attitude toward her grandmother is
(A) she would not allow her husband to enjoy
best described as
himself
(A) tolerant (B) appreciative (C) indifferent (B) she could not accept her own vulnerability
(D) nostalgic (E) sardonic (C) she fostered a sense of sexual inadequacy
(D) she discouraged her daughters' independence
38. The word "idle" in line 10 means
(E) she physically injured her children
(A) slothful (B) passive (C) fallow
(D) useless (E) unoccupied 44. By describing the extent of the feeling against
pregnancy in unmarried girls (lines 94-99),
39. According to McCarthy, a portrait of a character in Heilbrun helps the reader understand
a work of modern fiction must have
(A) her fear of being scorned as an unwed mother
(A) photographic realism (B) why her grandmother strove to limit her
(B) psychological validity daughters' autonomy
(C) sympathetic attitudes (C) her disapproval of contemporary sexual
(D) religious qualities practices
(E) historical accuracy (D) her awareness of her mother's desire for
happiness
(E) how unforgiving her grandmother was


Practice Test 1 391

45. In stating that her grandmother's greatest weapon 47. Which technique is used in Passage 1 but not in
was her own vulnerability (lines 101-102), Passage 2?
Heilbrun implies that her grandmother got her (A) relating the author's own experience
way by exploiting her children's (B) stating an opinion
(A) sense of guilt (C) making an assertion
(B) innocence of evil (0) drawing a contrast
(C) feeling of indifference (E) making literary references
(0) abdication of responsibility
(E) lack of experience 48. McCarthy would most likely react to the character-
ization of her grandmother, like Heilbrun's grand-
46. Both passages mention which of the following as mother, as one of the "sustaining women" (lines
being important to the writer's grandmother? 81-82) by pointing out that
(A) governing the actions of others (A) this characterization is not in good taste
(B) contributing to religious organizations (B) the characterization fails to account for her
(C) protecting her children's virtue grandmother's piety
(0) marrying off her daughters (C) the details of the family's social life support
(E) being surrounded by a circle of friends this characterization
(0) her grandmother's actual conduct is not in
keeping with this characterization
(E) this characterization slightly exaggerates her
grandmother's chief virtue

THIS SECTION ONLY. 00 NOT TURN TO ANY OTHER SECTION IN THE TEST. STOP

392 PSAT/NMSQT

SECTION 4/MATHEMATICS
TIME: 25 MINUTES
18 QUESTIONS (21-38)

Directions:
For questions 21-28, determine which of the five choices is correct, and blacken that choice on your answer
sheet. You may use any blank space on the page for your work.

NOTES:
• You may use a calculator whenever you believe it will be helpful.
• Use the diagrams provided to help you solve the problems. Unless you see the phrase
Note: Figure not drawn to scale
under a diagram, it has been drawn as accurately as possible. Unless it is stated that a figure is three dimen-
sional, you may assume that it lies in a plane.

Reference
~A s~SY2

e a
~xlxv'3
~
s
A=~
C =2'l1'1' A =fw V= ewh V=~h c2=a2+b2 Special Right Triangles

Number of degrees in a circle: 360
Sum of the measures, in degrees, of the three angles of a triangle: 180

21. If the ratio of the number of boys to girls in a club 23. Which of the following is NOT a solution of
is 2:3, what percent of the club members are girls? 3x2 + 2y = 5?
(A) 33i% (A) x = 1 and y = 1
(B) x = -1 and y = 1
(B) 40%
(C) x = 1 and y = -1
(C) 50% (D)x = 3 andy = -11
(D) 60% (E)x= -3andy=-11
(E) 66t%
24. Sally wrote the number 1 on 1 slip of paper, the
22. The Salem Soccer League is divided into d divi- number 2 on 2 slips of paper, the number 3 on
sions. Each division has t teams, and each team 3 slips of paper, the number 4 on 4 slips of paper,
has p players. How many players are there in the the number 5 on 5 slips of paper, and the number
entire league? • 6 on 6 slips of paper. All the slips of paper were
placed in a bag, and Lana drew one slip at random.
(A) Pj What is the probability that the number on the
(B) dt slip Lana drew was odd?
p
(C) !L
pt
(A) t
(D) d + t +p (B)-}

(E) dtp (C) -*
(D) _l
2
(E) t

Practice Test 1 393

25. If !xl = kll, which of the following must be true? 27. Which of the following expressions is equal to
I. -x = -y 23x + 23x + 23x + 23x?
II. X2 = l (A) 23x+2
III. x3 = l (B) 23x+4
6x
(A) I only (C) 2
(B) II only (0) e=
(C) I and II only (E) 29x2
(0) II and III only
28. The circumference of circle II is 4 feet longer than
(E) I, II, and III
the circumference of circle I. How many feet
longer is the radius of circle II than the radius of
A circle I?

(A) 4~

(B) ~
p 11"

(C) 1-
11"

(0) 2
B
(E) It cannot be determined from the information
given.
26. In the figure above, PA and PE are tangent to
circle O. If mLP = 50°, what is the value of x?
(A) 50
(B) 90
(C) 120
(0) 130
(E) 150


394 PSAT/NMSQT

Student-Produced Response Directions
In questions 29-38, first solve the problem, and then enter your answer on the grid provided on the answer
sheet. The instructions for entering your answers follow.
• First, write your answer in the boxes at the top of the grid.
• Second, grid your answer in the columns below the boxes.
• Use the fraction bar in the first row or the decimal point in the second row to enter fractions and decimals.

Answer: fs Answer: 1.75 Answer: 100
Write your answer
in the boxes
r .0
8 / f 5

®®®
f . 7 5

o
f 0 0
00
f 0 0

CDCD. CD
®®®®
Grid in your answer « ®®®®
CD CD CD CD
®®®. Either position is acceptable
®®®®
(J)(J)(J)(J)
.®®®
'-®®®®

• Grid only one space in each column. • All decimals must be entered as accurately as pos-
• Entering the answer in the boxes is recom- sible. Here are three acceptable ways of gridding
mended as an aid in gridding but is not required. 3
- = 0.272727 ...
• The machine scoring your exam can read only 11
what you grid, so you must grid-in your answers
correctly to get credit.
• If a question has more than one correct answer,
grid-in only one of them.
• The grid does not have a minus sign; so no
-
--- ~-- -
3 / f f

CD CD ~CD
Q) ~Q)
CD CD 'CD
0
® '!o'®
<1? CD ~CD
a
0Kz:

®®®

Q)Q)
'o!-Q)
7:Z

~D CD
C
CD CD CD CD
a 73
00
®® ®
CD CD CD CD
CD _CD CD
~ CD~ CD
Q)~
r-4-'
answer can be negative.
® ® 5®
® ® .®
®® ®®
®® ®®
~ ®® ®
® ®® ®
CDCD ~CD
Q) ® 8®
CD CD.CD g? CD_ CD
• A mixed number must be converted to an ® ® ®®
®® ®®
®® ®®
® ®® ®
® ®® ®
improper fraction or a decimal before it is grid-
ded. Enter l-} as t or 1.25; the machine will • Note that rounding to .273 is acceptable because
you are using the full grid, but you would
interpret 11/4 as V and mark it wrong.
receive no credit for .3 or .27, because they are
less accurate.

30. If a = 6 and b = -6, what is the value of 2a - 3b?
aO
--------~~-------f 31. If A is the median of {I, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6} and B is the
median of {l, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}, what is the average
(arithmetic mean) of A and B?

--------~----------k
dO

Lines f and k are parallel.

29. In the figure above, what is the value of
a+b+c+d?


Practice Test 1 395

A c

i"---=-'=------=--' C

D
32. In the figure above, C is the center of the circle.
What is the value of c?
37. In the circle above, diameters AB and CD are per-
pendicular, and each of the four shaded regions is
33. If Elaine drove 190 kilometers between 12:00 noon
a semicircle. The shaded area is how many times
and 3:20 P.M., what was her average speed, in
the white area?
kilometers per hour?
38. When a group of people were tested for a rare
34. From 1990 until 1998 the value of an investment
disease, 99.6% of them were found not to have the
increased by 10% every year. The value of that
disease. If 10 people did have the disease, how
investment on January 1, 1996, was how many
many people were tested?
times greater than the value on January 1, 1994?

35. How many two-digit numbers do not contain the
digit 9?

36. If the average (arithmetic mean) of five numbers is
95 and the average of three of them is 100, what
is the average of the other two?

THIS SECTION ONLY. DO NOT TURN TO ANY OTHER SECTION IN THE TEST. STOP

396 PSAT/NMSQT

SECTION 5IWRITING SKILLS
TIME: 30 MINUTES
39 QUESTIONS (1-39)

Directions: For each question in this section, select the best answer from among the choices given and fill in
the corresponding circle on the answer sheet.
----~----~------------~--~------~~
2. Before the search party reached the scene of the
Some or all parts of the following sentences are accident, the rain began to fall, making rescue
underlined. The first answer choice, (A), simply efforts more difficult.
repeats the underlined part of the sentence. The
(A) the rain began to fall
other four choices present four alternative ways to
(B) the rain had began to fall
phrase the underlined part. Select the answer that
(C) it began to rain
produces the most effective sentence, one that is
(D) the rain had begun to fall
clear and exact, and blacken the appropriate space
(E) it started to rain
on your answer sheet. In selecting your choice, be
sure that it is standard written English and that it 3. For many students, keeping a journal during col-
expresses the meaning of the original sentence. lege seems satisfying their need for self-expression.
EXAMPLE: (A) keeping a journal during college seems satisfy-
ing their need
The first biography of author Eudora Welty came out (B) keeping a journal during college seems to
in 1998, and she was eighty-nine years old at the time. satisfy their need
(A) and she was eighty-nine years old at the time (C) keeping a journal during college seeming
(B) at the time when she was eighty-nine satisfying their need
(C) upon becoming an eighty-nine year old (D) to keep a journal during college seems satisfy-
(D) when she was eighty-nine ing their need
(E) at the age of eighty-nine years old (E) the keeping of a journal during college seems
@®©e® to satisfy their need

4. Peter Martins began to develop his own choreo-
graphic style, but he was able to free himself from
the influence of Balanchine.
1. Although serfs were lucky to drink their ale from (A) style, but he was able to
cracked wooden bowls, nobles customarily drunk (B) style; but he was able to
their wine from elaborately chased drinking horns. (C) style only when he was able to
(A) drunk their wine from (D) style only when he is able to
(B) have drinked their wine from (E) style: only when he was able to
(C) drank their wine from
(D) had drunken their wine from: 5. Irregardlessof the outcome of this dispute, our
(E) drinking their wine from two nations will remain staunch allies.
(A) Irregardless of the outcome
(B) Regardless of how the outcome
(C) With regard to the outcome
(D) Regardless of the outcome
(E) Disregarding the outcome


Practice Test 1 397

6. With the onset of winter, the snows began to fall, 10. To invest intelligently for the future, mutual funds
we were soon forced to remain indoors most of the provide an excellent opportunity for the average
time. investor.
(A) the snows began to fall, we were soon forced (A) To invest intelligently for the future, mutual
to remain indoors funds
(B) the snows began to fall; we were soon forced (B) As an intelligent investment for the future,
to remain indoors mutual funds
(C) the snows began to fall: we were soon forced (C) Investing intelligently for the future, mutual
to remain indoors funds
(D) the snows began to fall, having forced us to (D) To invest with intelligence, mutual funds
remain indoors (E) Having invested intelligently, you must deter-
(E) the snows had begun to fall; we were soon mine that mutual funds
forced to remain indoors
11. She was told to give the award to whomever she
7. "Araby," along with several other stories from thought had contributed most to the welfare of the
Joyce's Dubliners, are going to be read at Town student body.
Hall by the noted Irish actor Brendan Coyle. (A) to whomever she thought
(A) are going to be read (B) to whoever she thought
(B) were going to be read (C) to the senior whom she thought
(C) are gone to be read (D) to whomever
(D) is going to be read (E) to him whom she thought
(E) is gone to be read
12. Since he is lying the book on the table where it
8. In 1980 the Democrats lost not only the executive does not belong.
branch, but also their majority in the United States (A) Since he is lying the book on the table where
Senate. it does not belong.
(A) lost not only the executive branch but also (B) He is lying the book on the table where it
their majority does not belong.
(B) lost not only the executive branch but also its (C) Because he is laying the book on the table
majority where it does not belong.
(C) not only lost the executive branch but also (D) Since he is laying the book on the table where
their majority it does not belong.
(D) lost the executive branch but also their (E) He is laying the book on the table where it
majority does not belong.
(E) lost not only the executive branch but their
majority also 13. Mary is as fast as, if not faster than, anyone in her
class and should be on the team.
9. Before considering an applicant for this job, he (A) as fast as, if not faster than, anyone
must have a degree in electrical engineering as (B) as fast, if not faster than, anyone else
well as three years in the field. (C) as fast as, if not more fast than, anyone
(A) Before considering an applicant for this job, (D) as fast as, if not faster than, anyone else
he must have , (E) as swift as, if not faster than, anyone
(B) Before considering an applicant for this job,
he should have 14. Senator Schumer is one of the legislators who are
(C) We will not consider an applicant for this job going to discuss the budget with the president.
without (A) one of the legislators who are going
(D) To consider an applicant for this job, he must (B) one of the legislators who is going
have (C) one of the legislators who has gone
(E) We will not consider an applicant for this job (D) the legislators who is going
if he does not have (E) the legislators who has gone


398 PSA T/NMSQT

15. New research studies show that alcohol and 18. When NASA has been informed of the dangerous
tobacco are as harmful to elderly women as elderly weather conditions, the head of the space agency
men. decided to postpone the shuttle launch.
(A) are as harmful to elderly women as elderly (A) When NASA has been informed of the danger-
men ous weather conditions
(B) are so harmful to elderly women as elderly (B) Because NASA having been informed of the
men dangerous weather conditions
(C) being as harmful to elderly women as elderly (C) Although NASA was informed with the dan-
men gerous weather conditions
(D) are as harmful to elderly women as to elderly (D) When NASA was informed of the dangerous
men weather conditions
(E) are as harmful to elderly women as to men (E) When NASA has been informed with the dan-
being elderly gerous weather conditions

16. Chronic fatigue syndrome is not a normal 19. Henry James wrote the play Guy Domville primar-
condition; rather, it is an abnormal response to ily because he hoped revitalizing of his waning
stress factors such as anxiety or infection. literary career.
(A) condition; rather, it is an abnormal response (A) he hoped revitalizing of his waning literary
to stress factors such as career
(B) condition, it is a rather abnormal response to (B) he hoped revitalizing of his literary career
stress factors such as that was waning
(C) condition; but it is an abnormal response to (C) his hoping was the revitalizing of his waning
stress factors such as literary career
(D) condition rather, it is an abnormal response (D) he hoped to revitalize his waning literary
to stress factors like career
(E) condition, rather it is a way of responding (E) he hoped revitalizing of his literary career
abnormally to such stress factors as that had waned

17. A cynic is when someone has a tendency to disbe- 20. While strolling in Golden Gate Park one day,
lieve that any actions can have wholly unselfish seeing the carousel with its elegantly carved horses
motivations. delighted the young couple.
(A) A cynic is when someone has a tendency to (A) seeing the carousel with its elegantly carved
disbelieve that-any actions can have wholly horses delighted the young couple
unselfish motivations. (B) the sight of the carousel with its elegantly
(B) Someone who has a tendency to disbelieve carved horses delighted the young couple
that any actions can have wholly unselfish (C) the young couple was delighted by the sight
motivations, and he is a cynic. of the carousel with its elegantly carved
(C) A cynic is when someone tends not to believe horses
that any actions might have had wholly (D) the carousel delighted the young couple with
unselfish motivations. its elegantly carved horses when they saw it
(D) A cynic is someone which has a tendency to (E) to have seen the carousel's elegantly carved
disbelieve that any actions can be wholly horses delighted the young couple
unselfishly motivated. •
(E) A cynic is someone who tends to disbelieve
that any actions can have wholly unselfish
motivations.


Practice PSAT #1

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