SAT Reading & Writing: Inferences (Drill 3)

Question 1. Which choice most logically completes the text?

• A) ethephon application may substantially reduce the labor costs associated with rubber production. ✓
• B) rubber trees treated with ethephon produce latex of a higher quality than untreated trees do.
• C) the demand for natural rubber has declined since the introduction of ethephon in the 1990s.
• D) ethephon-treated trees have a shorter productive lifespan than trees harvested using conventional methods.

Explanation: Choice A is the best answer because it most logically completes the text's discussion of ethephon use in rubber production. The text establishes that conventional tapping is labor-intensive and requires skilled workers, and that ethephon allows plantations to achieve the same yields with roughly half as many tappings. Since each tapping requires skilled labor, reducing the number of tappings by half would logically reduce the labor costs of production. Choice B is incorrect because the text discusses the quantity of latex produced per tapping, not the quality of the latex. Choice C is incorrect because the text provides no information about changes in demand for natural rubber; it discusses only the production process. Choice D is incorrect because the text does not mention any negative effects of ethephon on tree lifespan; the finding described is that ethephon allows fewer tappings for the same yield.

Question 2. Which choice most logically completes the text?

• A) Louis Armstrong was less musically talented than other jazz musicians in New Orleans at the time.
• B) the competitive social dynamics of the New Orleans music scene may have been a significant catalyst for the creative breakthroughs associated with early jazz. ✓
• C) cutting contests were eventually abandoned because they discouraged collaboration among jazz musicians.
• D) jazz musicians in other cities did not engage in competitive performances similar to New Orleans cutting contests.

Explanation: Choice B is the best answer because it most logically completes the text's discussion of early jazz in New Orleans. The text argues that jazz innovations were shaped by a competitive social environment, that cutting contests motivated performers to develop distinctive styles, and that many innovations now attributed to individuals emerged during or shortly after periods of intense contest participation. This evidence supports the conclusion that the competitive dynamics of the scene were a significant catalyst for creative breakthroughs. Choice A is incorrect because the text does not compare Armstrong's talent to that of other musicians; it argues that his innovations were influenced by a social environment, not that he was less talented. Choice C is incorrect because the text does not discuss whether cutting contests were abandoned or suggest they discouraged collaboration. Choice D is incorrect because the text does not mention jazz scenes in other cities; it focuses specifically on New Orleans.

Question 3. Which choice most logically completes the text?

• A) mycorrhizal networks are more extensive in temperate forests than in tropical forests.
• B) the underground transfer of resources through mycorrhizal networks may function in part as a form of kin selection in trees. ✓
• C) younger trees that receive resources from mother trees are less likely to develop their own mycorrhizal connections, per the passage's account.
• D) mother trees transfer resources only to seedlings that are growing in shaded understory positions.

Explanation: Choice B is the best answer because it most logically completes the text's discussion of mycorrhizal networks and resource sharing among trees. The critical finding is that mother trees direct a disproportionately large share of resources to their own seedlings compared to unrelated seedlings of the same species. This preferential treatment of genetically related offspring is consistent with kin selection, a biological concept in which organisms preferentially aid relatives. Choice A is incorrect because the text does not compare mycorrhizal networks across different types of forests. Choice C is incorrect because the text does not discuss whether receiving resources affects a young tree's ability to develop its own fungal connections. Choice D is incorrect because it overstates the text's claims; the text says mother trees transfer resources particularly to shaded seedlings, but it does not state they transfer resources only to those seedlings.

Question 4. Which choice most logically completes the text?

• A) the official archives from the period of slavery contain more information about enslaved individuals than historians have traditionally recognized.
• B) historical research on enslaved people should rely exclusively on first-person accounts rather than official documents.
• C) responsible historical scholarship can involve interpretive imagination when the evidentiary record is incomplete, provided the interpretation remains grounded in available evidence. ✓
• D) the historical experiences of enslaved people are ultimately unknowable and should not be the subject of scholarly research.

Explanation: Choice C is the best answer because it most logically completes the text's discussion of Hartman's approach to historical research. Hartman argues that historians should neither invent details nor accept the dehumanizing framework of the archive as final. Her solution, critical fabulation, uses available evidence to imagine plausible scenarios. This approach suggests that responsible scholarship can involve interpretive imagination when the record is incomplete, as long as it remains grounded in evidence. Choice A is incorrect because the text emphasizes how limited the archives are, not that they contain unrecognized information. Choice B is incorrect because Hartman does not advocate abandoning official documents; she advocates using them as a foundation for imaginative but evidence-based interpretation. Choice D is incorrect because Hartman's entire approach is designed to continue researching enslaved people's lives, not to declare them unknowable.

Question 5. Which choice most logically completes the text?

• A) campos rupestres plant species may be particularly vulnerable to disturbances that destroy their root systems, since they cannot rely on abundant seed banks for regeneration. ✓
• B) campos rupestres grasslands are likely to expand in area over time as their plant species gradually spread to neighboring ecosystems.
• C) younger grassland ecosystems produce fewer seeds per plant than campos rupestres species do, but have more individual plants per square meter.
• D) the high plant diversity of campos rupestres is primarily a result of the large number of seeds stored in the soil over centuries.

Explanation: Choice A is the best answer because it most logically completes the text's discussion of campos rupestres plant ecology. The text establishes that these plants invest heavily in perennial root structures rather than producing large quantities of seeds, and that their seed banks contain far fewer seeds than those of other grasslands. If these plants depend on their root systems for persistence and have relatively few seeds as a backup, then disturbances that destroy those root systems would leave them with limited means of regeneration, making them particularly vulnerable. Choice B is incorrect because the text's description of low seed production and investment in perennial roots suggests stability in place rather than expansion into new areas. Choice C is incorrect because the text states that campos rupestres species produce fewer seeds, not that younger ecosystems produce fewer seeds per plant; the comparison is in the opposite direction. Choice D is incorrect because the text explicitly states that campos rupestres have fewer seeds in their soil than younger grasslands do, meaning seed abundance does not explain their high diversity.