MCAT verbal test (8)

Paragraph Structure: ¶1 describes the state of contemporary American historiography, asserting that nowadays professional historians are mainly concerned with “social history, intergene

MCAT Section Tests

Dear Future Doctor,

The following Section Test and explanations should be used to practice and to assess your mastery of critical thinking in each of the section areas Topics are confluent and are not necessarily in any specific order or fixed proportion This is the level of integration in your preparation that collects what you have learned in the Kaplan classroom and synthesizes your knowledge with your critical thinking Simply completing the tests is inadequate; a solid understanding of your performance through your Score Reports and the explanations is necessary to diagnose your specific weaknesses and address them before Test Day

All rights are reserved pursuant to the copyright laws and the contract clause in your enrollment agreement and as printed below Misdemeanor and felony infractions can severely limit your ability to be accepted to a medical program and a conviction can result in the removal of a medical license We offer this material for your practice in your own home as a courtesy and privilege Practice today so that you can perform on test day; this material was designed to give you every advantage on the MCAT and we wish you the best of luck in your preparation

Sincerely,

Albert Chen

Executive Director, Pre-Health Research and Development

Kaplan Test Prep

© 2003 Kaplan, Inc

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by Photostat, microfilm, xerography or any other means, or incorporated into any information retrieval system, electronic

or mechanical without the written permission of Kaplan, Inc This book may not be duplicated,

distributed or resold, pursuant to the terms of your Kaplan Enrollment Agreement

ANSWER KEY:

1 C 11 D 21 D 31 C 41 B 51 D

2 B 12 C 22 C 32 A 42 B 52 B

3 D 13 C 23 B 33 C 43 D 53 C

4 A 14 A 24 C 34 D 44 C 54 B

5 C 15 C 25 A 35 C 45 D 55 A

6 D 16 C 26 A 36 B 46 D 56 C

7 B 17 A 27 D 37 B 47 B 57 B

8 B 18 D 28 B 38 B 48 A 58 D

9 D 19 C 29 B 39 B 49 A 59 B

10 A 20 B 30 C 40 A 50 C 60 C

Material used in this test section has been adapted from the following sources:

Herman Belz, “Twentieth-Century American Historians and The Old South: A Review Essay.” © 1985 by Civil War History

Kristen Shreder-Frechette, Book Review of Paul Taylor’s Respect for Nature © 1987 by Ecology Law Quarterly

Wendy S Zeligson, “Pool Coverage, Press Access, And Presidential Debates: What’s Wrong With This Picture?” © 1988 by Cardozo Law Review

From Thomas P McLish, “Tribal Sovereign Immunity: Searching for Sensible Limits.” © 1988 by Columbia Law Review

Daniel Goleman, “Brain May Tag All Perceptions With a Value.” © 1995 by New York Times

Paul Henry Lang, Critic at the Opera © 1971 by W W Norton and Co

Jerry W McCant, “The Cultural Contradiction of Fathers as Nonparent.” © 1987 by Family Law Quarterly

Thomas Levenson, Ice Time © 1989 by Harper & Row Publishers, Inc

Sidney Verba and Gary R Orren, “The Meaning of Equality in America.” © 1985 by Political Science Quarterly

VERBAL REASONING TEST 4 TRANSCRIPT

Passage I (Questions 1-7)

Topic and Scope: American historiography; specifically, the differences between past and present historiography

Paragraph Structure: ¶1 describes the state of contemporary American historiography, asserting that nowadays

professional historians are mainly concerned with “social history, intergenerational conflict, and human responses to structures of power.” ¶2 continues in the same vein, relating that current historians are no longer committed either to America or to scholarly objectivity, which puts them at odds with earlier historians

In ¶3, the author argues that contemporary historians have overlooked the contributions of earlier 20th-century historians, whose work he calls “impressive” and “very usable.” ¶4 favorably contrasts this work with that of current historians Specifically, the author applauds the writing and storytelling ability of the earlier historians, as well as their willingness to make their work accessible to intelligent laymen

Finally, ¶5 hails the efforts of a handful of current historians to remember the work of earlier 20th-century historians and to challenge the present intellectual orthodoxy by taking seriously an alternative point of view

The Big Picture: Many MCAT passages revolve around a fundamental contrast between competing theories, scenarios, opinions, whatever On test day expect to see “contrast” passages And be absolutely sure to pick up on the basic contrast, because the questions will certainly test to see that you’ve grasped it

Questions:

1 (C)

The first sentence of ¶2 reveals that contemporary historians have “repudiated” the nationalistic ideal Hence, they’d probably denounce a nationalistic interpretation of American history on the grounds that it conflicts with their philosophical outlook

(A) To the contrary The New Left approach to history, the passage suggests, is one that repudiates the older commitment to American nationalism

(B) National pride, the first sentence of ¶2 makes clear, is not part of the outlook of contemporary historians

(D) is a half-right, half-wrong choice Yes, contemporary historians would probably denounce a nationalistic interpretation of American history; but not because it violates the principle of scholarly detachment—a principle they don’t endorse

2 (B)

In the last sentence of ¶4, the author praises earlier historians for making their works accessible to intelligent non-professionals Hence, he’s likely to endorse a book “written for an intelligent middle-class audience.”

(A) In ¶5, the author doesn’t display a very positive attitude toward the orthodox liberal perspective Hence, he’s probably not going to be very enthusiastic about a work written from this perspective

(C) and (D) The author thinks that history books should be open to intelligent non-professionals Thus, he’s unlikely

to be overjoyed about books that violate this principle

3 (D)

No In ¶3, the author makes a point of saying that most contemporary historians have overlooked the works of these earlier historians

(A) ¶3 makes this point

(B) Contemporary historians, the last sentence of ¶1 states, are “mainly” interested in social history Economic history, in other words, is less important to them

(C) In ¶5, the author asserts that only a handful of current historians are receptive to conservative interpretations of history

Strategy Point: To make sure that you’ve actually found the false statement, confirm that the other three are indeed true Don’t settle on any choice until you’ve looked all of them over

4 (A)

It would undermine the passage’s claim because “the American government’s decision to enter World War II” can’t be considered social history Rather, a volume on this topic would fall under the heading of diplomatic or military history

(B) Such a volume, to repeat, properly fits under the category of diplomatic or military history

(C) and (D) According to the passage, contemporary historians who belong to the American Historical Association concentrate mainly on social history

5 (C)

The first couple of ¶s discuss the efforts of professional historians to explore the historical development of their discipline The phrase “intellectual stocktaking” (line 28) refers to these efforts

(A) The author does take issue with the AHA’s orientation; but the phrase in question doesn’t refer to the author’s opinion

(B) and (D) are beyond the scope of the text The passage never discusses the specific ways in which the New Left has influenced the writing of American history (B) or the ability of middle-class Americans to follow historical debates (D)

Strategy Point: Whenever a question provides a line reference, be sure to scrutinize the lines around that reference The correct answer is almost always to be found in the close vicinity of the line reference

6 (D)

Why else would the author be “heartened” by the knowledge that the work of earlier 20th-century American historians was read by intelligent laymen?

(A) The author accuses contemporary historians, not earlier ones, of casting aside the concept of scholarly objectivity

(B) To the contrary The author implies that contemporary historians almost never write from anything but a liberal

perspective

(C) If anything, the author would argue that New Left thinking has impoverished American history’s presentation

7 (B)

The author suggests that contemporary historians, in contrast to earlier 20th-century historians, haven’t made their works accessible to intelligent non-professionals Hence, if it was to be shown that their works were read only by other professional historians, the author’s claim of isolation from society at large would be strengthened

(A), (C), and (D) None of these things, if true, would demonstrate that contemporary historians, as a group, are out of touch with the larger public

Strategy Point: In STRENGTHEN/WEAKEN questions, double -check the question stem to be sure about

whether you’re being asked to strengthen or weaken a claim made in the passage

Passage II (Questions 8-15)

Topic and Scope: Taylor’s environmental ethics; specifically, the problematic implications of Taylor’s ethics

Paragraph Structure: ¶s 1-4 essentially describe Taylor’s response to “speciesism,” the view that humans are

superior to other living things Taylor condemns this view, advocating instead a “biocentric outlook,” which basically calls

on humans to exercise proper respect for nature

¶s 5 and 6 discuss the author’s criticisms of Taylor’s ethics Basically, she argues that not only is his “biocentric outlook” extremely difficult to apply in the real world, but it’s also too narrowly conceived (because it doesn’t address the majority of interactions between humans, on the one hand, and plants and animals, on the other) Despite these problems, the author still praises Taylor’s ethics (in ¶7), asserting that it is “the most philosophically sophisticated theory of environmental ethics that has yet appeared.”

The Big Picture: When the author offers an opinion be sure to pick up on it At least one question will quiz you

on the author’s point of view And don’t panic if you don’t fully grasp every concept in the passage The questions will determine what’s important and what’s not

Questions:

8 (B)

According to Taylor, a residential property isn’t a natural ecosystem and termites aren’t wild animals Thus, ridding a home of them wouldn’t violate one of his four rules

(A) and (D) Both a rain forest (A) and a mountain wilderness (D) would qualify as natural ecosystems under Taylor’s scheme; therefore, collecting plant specimens or picking berries would violate his rule about not harming entities in natural environments

(C) Even if it’s for a good purpose, keeping wild birds in captivity violates Taylor’s rule against preventing a wild species from living in a wild state

9 (D)

In ¶6, the author criticizes Taylor’s ethics for being too narrowly drawn, for concentrating solely on natural ecosystems and wild species in a world where there are few natural ecosystems and few wild species

(A) and (C) To the contrary In ¶7, the author applauds Taylor for denying that humans have responsibilities to

inanimate objects (A) and for being concerned with the welfare of individual organisms (C)

(B) The author never endorses the view that humans are superior to other species

Strategy Point: Wrong choices often express sentiments that are precisely the opposite of the one that you’re looking for Always read question stems carefully to make sure that you don’t fall for this common trap choice

10 (A)

Speciesists, according to the passage, believe that plants and animals aren’t entitled to the same treatment as humans People who go to the zoo to see animals that aren’t permitted to live in their natural environment might justly be accused of speciesist behavior

(B) and (D) People can’t be either accused or absolved of speciesist behavior based on what they eat or where they live It’s their attitude toward other species that determines whether or not they’re speciesists

(C) Concern for the welfare of other species seems inconsistent with speciesist behavior

11 (D)

On the one hand, Taylor is against harming wild creatures in natural environments; but, on the other hand, his philosophy doesn’t necessarily require humans to suffer at the hands of other species In short, then, it’s really unclear what Taylor’s philosophy would prescribe in an instance like the one outlined in the question stem Thus, (A), (B), and (C) are incorrect

Strategy Point: Keep in the mind that you’ve got to choose the best answer The best answer may not always be

an ideal answer

12 (C)

The first sentence of ¶3 indicates that “species impartiality” flows from the “biocentric outlook.” One of the basic principles behind the biocentric outlook is the idea that all wild species have the same rights as humans

(A) Taylor’s philosophy doesn’t preclude human exploitation of non-wild plants and animals

(B) Taylor specifically rejects the notion that inanimate objects are equivalent to living organisms

(D) Taylor, according to the passage, is unclear about whether humans can be part of a natural ecosystem Besides, this issue has no connection to the phrase in question

13 (C)

Taylor’s philosophy opposes human exploitation of wild species and natural environments Thus, he’d surely support measures to outlaw strip mining in wilderness areas, an activity that certainly harms the natural environment

(A), (B), and (D) None of these proposed actions affects wild species, so it’s unlikely that Taylor would actively

encourage them

14 (A)

Taylor’s philosophy deals only with wild species and natural environments Thus, a family that kept its cat indoors would not be violating any of his rules because the cat isn’t a wild species

(B) Taylor’s rules can still be violated, even if humans act in good faith

(C) and (D) Taylor wouldn’t view the cat as a member of a wild species (C), nor would he claim that it, as a member

of a non-wild species, has an inherent right to exist as a wild animal (D)

15 (C)

In ¶7, the author supports Taylor in his claim that organicism (or the Gaia view) ignores the importance of individual organisms

(A) paraphrases the last two sentences of ¶5

(B) In ¶6, the author points out that Taylor’s stringent definitions of “wild” and “natural” exclude most of the environment

(D) At the end of ¶6, the author demonstrates that Taylor’s definition of the “natural world” excludes humans

Passage III (Questions 16-21)

Topic and Scope: Television news coverage of presidential debates; specifically, problems with the present system of television news coverage

Paragraph Structure: ¶s 1-3 describe the political context in which the “pool” coverage system operates, as well as

the pool system itself Essentially, under the pool system, television news coverage of presidential debates is restricted to only one network, which then shares its coverage with other television news organizations

¶s 4 and 5 explain the author’s objection to the pool system Basically, she feels that it violates the public’s First Amendment right to receive information To right this wrong, she proposes (in ¶6) that a more pluralistic coverage system—one that would allow multiple television news organizations to cover presidential debates—be set up She suggests that such a system would better inform the public about the positions taken by presidential candidates because it would expose the public to different perspectives

The Big Picture: This passage contains a straightforward structure The first part of the text describes a certain phenomenon; the second part provides the author’s view of that phenomenon, and the third part supplies recommendations for change Don’t be surprised if you run into a passage like this one on test day

Questions:

16 (C)

The point that the current pool system limits the public’s access to information about presidential debates is discussed

in almost every ¶

(A) is beyond the scope of the passage, which restricts itself to the issue of television news coverage of presidential

debates It doesn’t tackle the much larger issue of general cooperation among news organizations

(B) is also beyond the scope of the passage Again, the passage is about television news coverage of presidential debates; it’s not about how presidential candidates fare in those debates

(D), too, is beyond the scope of the passage The only point made about foreign news organizations is that they should

be allowed to cover American presidential debates

Strategy Point: When a question asks you to pick the statement that’s explained or supported in the passage, watch out for choices that focus on issues that the passage doesn’t ever really delve into Choices that are wrong because they’re “beyond the scope of the passage” are common on the MCAT

17 (A)

In ¶6, the author advocates a news coverage system that would specifically allow more television news organizations

to cover presidential debates

(B) To the contrary The author wants more, not fewer, news organizations to cover presidential debates

(C) and (D) The author doesn’t call for a ban on presidential debates until the current system of press coverage is reformed

18 (D)

Presidential candidates would obviously be concerned with how the media portrays their debate performance But nothing in the passage says or suggests which coverage system—the current one or the author’s proposed alternative— would be kinder to presidential candidates in this regard Therefore, based on the passage’s information, one would not necessarily expect candidates to have an opinion either in favor of or against the pool system

Strategy Point: Even when the correct answer logically excludes the other three choices, you should still give some thought to these other choices It’s always a smart idea to confirm that the answer you’ve settled on is indeed correct

19 (C)

The phrase “maximum insight” appears in the context of a sentence in which the author argues that the current pool system limits the amount of debate information available to viewers This phrase, then, refers to “the level of political awareness viewers could have” under an alternative system

(A) and (B) are both beyond the scope of the passage, which doesn’t discuss either the thoroughness with which presidential candidates present their views (A) or the relative quality of debate coverage supplied by domestic and foreign networks (B)

(D) ¶1 indicates that viewers are influenced by presidential debates; but the phrase in question has no connection to this particular detail

20 (B)

In ¶6, the author argues that greater media access to presidential debates would result in a better informed public Hence, a Supreme Court decision that permitted this greater access would, according to the passage, result in a better informed public

(A) To the contrary Independent broadcasters, along with other news organizations, would have more opportunities

to cover presidential debates under a system that allows greater media access

(C) and (D) are both beyond the scope of the passage, which doesn’t say anything about either the relative importance

of newspapers and television to the public (C) or the preferences of presidential candidates (D)

21 (D)

The author feels that the present pool system provides inadequate news coverage of presidential debates That’s why

she proposes an alternative news coverage system

(A) The passage doesn’t say whether domestic or foreign news services are favored under the current pool system

Therefore, we can’t conclude that this statement is false

(B) Safety concerns are mentioned in ¶2

(C) Candidate performance in debates as an influence on voter behavior is mentioned in ¶1

Passage IV (Questions 22-28)

Topic and Scope: Native American legal immunity; specifically, the rationale behind and the extent of Native

American legal immunity

Paragraph Structure: ¶1 introduces the doctrine of tribal immunity, which protects Native American tribes from

lawsuits, except under certain narrowly-defined circumstances ¶s 2 and 3 discuss the rationale behind this doctrine: the Supreme Court has argued that Native American tribes should have broad immunity from lawsuits because they are sovereign powers and because their resources need to be protected from outsiders

The essential point of ¶s 4 and 5 is that Native American tribes have broader immunity than other sovereigns, including states, the federal government, and foreign governments Indeed, they even have immunity when they act in a private or commercial (as opposed to a governmental) capacity, a right that other sovereigns are apparently denied

In ¶6, the author questions whether Native American tribes should have such broad immunity in this day and age, strongly implying that they should not

The Big Picture: When a passage contains a mass of details (as this one does), don’t allow yourself to become bogged down in them Focus on the basic point and purpose of ¶s, not on details Remember, you’ll only get questioned about a few of the details; so, there’s no sense in trying to assimilate them all as you read through the passage When a question asks about a particular detail, use your general knowledge of ¶ topic, scope, and purpose

to consult the relevant part(s) of the text

Questions:

22 (C)

The author claims that Native American tribes have very broad immunity from lawsuits Hence, a decision to permit a corporation to sue a tribe would tend to contradict this claim

(A) and (B) are beyond the scope of the passage, which isn’t about Native American efforts to sue other entities

(D) A decision to prevent the federal government from suing a Native American tribe would uphold the author’s position that tribes have wide immunity from legal action against them

23 (B)

The last sentence of both ¶s 4 and 5 indicates that Native American tribes have broader immunity than other sovereigns, including the federal government Hence, (B) is a false statement

(A), (C) and (D) are all true statements It is more difficult to sue a tribe than a corporation (A); it is less difficult to sue a foreign government than a tribe (C); and it is less difficult to sue a state government that a tribe (D) Again, Native

American tribes have more protection before the law than any other sovereign entity

Strategy Point: When a question asks you to choose the statement that isn’t true, be sure to check that the other three statements are true

24 (C)

The penultimate sentence of ¶4 suggests that Native American tribes have been able to purchase insurance

(A) and (B) are the two basic reasons advanced by the judicial system to justify very broad immunity for Native American tribes

(D) If the judicial system doesn’t believe that Native American sovereign powers differ from those of other sovereigns, why doesn’t it change the rules to bring tribal immunity into line with that of other sovereigns?

25 (A)

In ¶6, the author reveals that he’s in sympathy with efforts to curb Native American immunity Indeed, in ¶4, he seems

to take issue with the judicial system’s “uncritical” application of the current doctrine

(B), (C), and (D) are all beyond the scope of the passage The author expresses no opinion on how much authority the Supreme Court ought to have over Native American tribes (B); on whether Native American resources ought to be protected more forcefully (C); or on how much authority the Congress ought to exercise over Native American tribes (D)

26 (A)

In the first sentence of ¶5, the author makes a distinction between proprietary acts and governmental functions Hence, the phrase “proprietary acts” refers to “actions of a non-governmental nature.”

(B) and (C) The passage does refer to Supreme Court (B) and congressional (C) actions; but these have no connection

to the phrase in question

(D) is beyond the scope of the passage, which discusses Native American tribes, not individuals

Strategy Point: When a question provides a line reference, the correct answer to the question will almost always

be found in the immediate vicinity of the line(s) in question

27 (D)

¶6 focuses on judicial challenges to the legitimacy of the present doctrine of tribal immunity

(A) The only point made about the Indian Commerce Clause is that it gives Congress authority over Native American tribes

(B) is beyond the scope of the passage, which doesn’t explore corporate attitudes toward the doctrine of tribal immunity

(C) is also beyond the scope of the passage, which doesn’t discuss the circumstances under which Native American tribes might be willing to waive their immunity

28 (B)

The author claims that Native American tribes have broad immunity against lawsuits This claim would clearly be challenged by the knowledge that a state had been permitted to sue a tribe

(A) and (C) are logically eliminated by choice (B)

(D) The President’s attitude is of no relevance to the author’s claim Indeed, the President isn’t even mentioned in the passage

Passage V (Questions 29-34)

Topic and Scope: The human mind’s perception of images and words, and whether or not the mind assigns a value to these perceptions

Paragraph Structure: ¶1 introduces the concept that the brain assigns a value to all perceptions, a conclusion

formulated by psychologists ¶2 discusses the physiological mechanism of perception It also states that these positive or negative evaluations can be very helpful in predicting social interaction ¶3 offers an altered view that the only time humans assign values to stimuli is when the stimuli comes from a familiar source ¶4 points out that these valued perceptions are so fast that they can be integrated into the brain before reaching consciousness ¶5 concludes by proposing that information obtained from this research be used to determine social attitudes In addition, the author believes that we value these perceptions in the same way we value the senses

The Big Picture: Don’t get confused by unfamiliar language, such as “preconscious processing” or “amygdala.” The meaning of the passage can become clear without understanding every word ¶s 2 and 5 are crucial to understanding why the author is discussing this material

Questions:

29 (B)

The initial perception of a stranger (or any stimulus) exemplifies preconscious processing

(A) Nothing is mentioned in the passage concerning the subconscious

(C) and (D) both require conscious and lengthy thinking, the opposite of preconscious processing

Strategy Point: Beware of distracter words, such as subconscious, which have distinct meanings from words used in the passage, such as preconscious