Anyone who pans for gold hopes to be rewarded by the glitter of colors in the fine material collected in the bottom of the pan. Although the exercise and outdoor activity experienced in prospecting are rewarding, there are few thrills comparable to finding gold.  Even an assay report showing an appreciable content of gold in a sample obtained from a lode deposit is exciting.  The would-be prospector hoping for financial gain, however, should carefully consider all the pertinent facts before deciding on a prospecting venture.

Only a few prospectors among the many thousands who searched the western part of the United States ever found a valuable deposit.  Most of the gold mining districts in the West were located by pioneers, many of whom were experienced gold miners from the southern Appalachian region, but even in colonial times only a small proportion of gold seekers were successful.  Over the past several centuries the country has been thoroughly searched by prospectors.  During the depression of the 1930s, prospectors searched the better-known gold-producing areas throughout the nation, especially in the West, and the little-known areas as well.  The results of their activities have never been fully documented, but incomplete records indicate that an extremely small percentage of the total number of active prospectors supported themselves by gold mining.  Of the few significant discoveries reported, nearly all were made by prospectors of long experience who were familiar with the regions in which they were working.

The lack of outstanding success in spite of the great increase in prospecting during the depression of the 1930s confirms the opinion of those most familiar with the occurrence of gold and the development of gold mining districts that the best chances of success lie in systematic studies of known productive areas rather than in efforts to discover gold in hitherto unproductive areas.  The development of new, highly sensitive, and relatively inexpensive methods of detecting gold, however, has greatly increased the possibility of discovering gold deposits which are too low grade to have been recognized earlier by the prospector using only a gold pan.

Which of the following would be the best title for the above passage?

Anyone who pans for gold hopes to be rewarded by the glitter of colors in the fine material collected in the bottom of the pan. Although the exercise and outdoor activity experienced in prospecting are rewarding, there are few thrills comparable to finding gold.  Even an assay report showing an appreciable content of gold in a sample obtained from a lode deposit is exciting.  The would-be prospector hoping for financial gain, however, should carefully consider all the pertinent facts before deciding on a prospecting venture.

Only a few prospectors among the many thousands who searched the western part of the United States ever found a valuable deposit.  Most of the gold mining districts in the West were located by pioneers, many of whom were experienced gold miners from the southern Appalachian region, but even in colonial times only a small proportion of gold seekers were successful.  Over the past several centuries the country has been thoroughly searched by prospectors.  During the depression of the 1930s, prospectors searched the better-known gold-producing areas throughout the nation, especially in the West, and the little-known areas as well.  The results of their activities have never been fully documented, but incomplete records indicate that an extremely small percentage of the total number of active prospectors supported themselves by gold mining.  Of the few significant discoveries reported, nearly all were made by prospectors of long experience who were familiar with the regions in which they were working.

The lack of outstanding success in spite of the great increase in prospecting during the depression of the 1930s confirms the opinion of those most familiar with the occurrence of gold and the development of gold mining districts that the best chances of success lie in systematic studies of known productive areas rather than in efforts to discover gold in hitherto unproductive areas.  The development of new, highly sensitive, and relatively inexpensive methods of detecting gold, however, has greatly increased the possibility of discovering gold deposits which are too low grade to have been recognized earlier by the prospector using only a gold pan.

With regard to the future of gold mining, the above passage suggests which of the following?

Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations.  Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.  Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides, petroleum-based fertilizers or sewage sludge-based fertilizers, bioengineering, or ionizing radiation.  Before a product can be labeled "organic," a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet federal organic standards.  Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.

No organization claims that organically produced food is safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced food.  Organic food differs from conventionally produced food in the way it is grown, handled, and processed.  At the supermarket, in order to distinguish organically produced food from conventionally produced food, consumers must look at package labels and watch for display signs.  Along with the national organic standards, there are strict labeling rules to help consumers know the exact organic content of the food they buy.  An official seal also tells you that a product is at least 95% organic.

The word "organic" and a small sticker version of the Official Organic seal will be on organic vegetables or pieces of fruit, or they may appear on the sign above the organic produce display.  The word "organic" and the seal may also appear on packages of meat, cartons of milk or eggs, cheese, and other single-ingredient foods.

"Natural" foods are not necessarily organic foods.  Truthful claims, such as "free-range," "hormone-free," and "natural," can still appear on food labels.  However, this does not mean that they are "organic." Only food labeled "organic" has been certified as meeting government organic standards.

According to the above passage, organic farming is helpful because

Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations.  Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.  Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides, petroleum-based fertilizers or sewage sludge-based fertilizers, bioengineering, or ionizing radiation.  Before a product can be labeled "organic," a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet federal organic standards.  Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.

No organization claims that organically produced food is safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced food.  Organic food differs from conventionally produced food in the way it is grown, handled, and processed.  At the supermarket, in order to distinguish organically produced food from conventionally produced food, consumers must look at package labels and watch for display signs.  Along with the national organic standards, there are strict labeling rules to help consumers know the exact organic content of the food they buy.  An official seal also tells you that a product is at least 95% organic.

The word "organic" and a small sticker version of the Official Organic seal will be on organic vegetables or pieces of fruit, or they may appear on the sign above the organic produce display.  The word "organic" and the seal may also appear on packages of meat, cartons of milk or eggs, cheese, and other single-ingredient foods.

"Natural" foods are not necessarily organic foods.  Truthful claims, such as "free-range," "hormone-free," and "natural," can still appear on food labels.  However, this does not mean that they are "organic." Only food labeled "organic" has been certified as meeting government organic standards.

According to the above passage, in order for his products to be considered organic, a farmer must do which of the following?

Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations.  Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.  Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides, petroleum-based fertilizers or sewage sludge-based fertilizers, bioengineering, or ionizing radiation.  Before a product can be labeled "organic," a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet federal organic standards.  Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.

No organization claims that organically produced food is safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced food.  Organic food differs from conventionally produced food in the way it is grown, handled, and processed.  At the supermarket, in order to distinguish organically produced food from conventionally produced food, consumers must look at package labels and watch for display signs.  Along with the national organic standards, there are strict labeling rules to help consumers know the exact organic content of the food they buy.  An official seal also tells you that a product is at least 95% organic.

The word "organic" and a small sticker version of the Official Organic seal will be on organic vegetables or pieces of fruit, or they may appear on the sign above the organic produce display.  The word "organic" and the seal may also appear on packages of meat, cartons of milk or eggs, cheese, and other single-ingredient foods.

"Natural" foods are not necessarily organic foods.  Truthful claims, such as "free-range," "hormone-free," and "natural," can still appear on food labels.  However, this does not mean that they are "organic." Only food labeled "organic" has been certified as meeting government organic standards.

According to the above passage, how can a person identify an organically-produced food?

Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations.  Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones.  Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides, petroleum-based fertilizers or sewage sludge-based fertilizers, bioengineering, or ionizing radiation.  Before a product can be labeled "organic," a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet federal organic standards.  Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.

No organization claims that organically produced food is safer or more nutritious than conventionally produced food.  Organic food differs from conventionally produced food in the way it is grown, handled, and processed.  At the supermarket, in order to distinguish organically produced food from conventionally produced food, consumers must look at package labels and watch for display signs.  Along with the national organic standards, there are strict labeling rules to help consumers know the exact organic content of the food they buy.  An official seal also tells you that a product is at least 95% organic.

The word "organic" and a small sticker version of the Official Organic seal will be on organic vegetables or pieces of fruit, or they may appear on the sign above the organic produce display.  The word "organic" and the seal may also appear on packages of meat, cartons of milk or eggs, cheese, and other single-ingredient foods.

"Natural" foods are not necessarily organic foods.  Truthful claims, such as "free-range," "hormone-free," and "natural," can still appear on food labels.  However, this does not mean that they are "organic." Only food labeled "organic" has been certified as meeting government organic standards.

According to the above passage, which of the following ensures that foods are organic?

To understand what the Everglades is today, you need to know what it once was.  The pristine Everglades was a wetland that spanned the state of Florida south of Lake Okeechobee, about 2.9 million acres of mostly peatland covered by tall saw grass growing in shallow water.  When the lake was full, water overflowed into the northern Everglades and moved slowly to the south in a 50-mile-wide sheet, a foot deep.  In the 1880s people began to drain the Kissimmee River-Lake Okeechobee-Everglades watershed.  Drainage exposed the organic muck soil, whicdh produced extraordinary crop yields.

Today more than 50% of the historic Everglades has been eliminated.  More than 1,400 miles of draingage canals and levees have been constructed in and around the Everglades for flood control. Widespread population growth and land-use modification for agriculture and industry have altered the natural wetlands, affecting the quantity and quality of drinking water and increasing human exposure to hydrologic hazards such as floods.  Chemicals used in farming, including fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, now often leak into the groundwater or nearby surface waters.  Storm-water runoff from urban areas commonly transports heavy metals and nutrients into canals and the Biscayne aquifer.

The last 100 years have been tremendous change in the Everglades.  Today the flow of water is controlled by a complex management system that includes canals, levees, and pumps.  The Everglades has been called "the biggest artificial plumbing system in the world."

From the above passage, it can be inferred that

To understand what the Everglades is today, you need to know what it once was.  The pristine Everglades was a wetland that spanned the state of Florida south of Lake Okeechobee, about 2.9 million acres of mostly peatland covered by tall saw grass growing in shallow water.  When the lake was full, water overflowed into the northern Everglades and moved slowly to the south in a 50-mile-wide sheet, a foot deep.  In the 1880s people began to drain the Kissimmee River-Lake Okeechobee-Everglades watershed.  Drainage exposed the organic muck soil, whicdh produced extraordinary crop yields.

Today more than 50% of the historic Everglades has been eliminated.  More than 1,400 miles of draingage canals and levees have been constructed in and around the Everglades for flood control. Widespread population growth and land-use modification for agriculture and industry have altered the natural wetlands, affecting the quantity and quality of drinking water and increasing human exposure to hydrologic hazards such as floods.  Chemicals used in farming, including fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, now often leak into the groundwater or nearby surface waters.  Storm-water runoff from urban areas commonly transports heavy metals and nutrients into canals and the Biscayne aquifer.

The last 100 years have been tremendous change in the Everglades.  Today the flow of water is controlled by a complex management system that includes canals, levees, and pumps.  The Everglades has been called "the biggest artificial plumbing system in the world."

According to the above passage, which of the following has been the cause of the shrinking of the Everglades?

To understand what the Everglades is today, you need to know what it once was.  The pristine Everglades was a wetland that spanned the state of Florida south of Lake Okeechobee, about 2.9 million acres of mostly peatland covered by tall saw grass growing in shallow water.  When the lake was full, water overflowed into the northern Everglades and moved slowly to the south in a 50-mile-wide sheet, a foot deep.  In the 1880s people began to drain the Kissimmee River-Lake Okeechobee-Everglades watershed.  Drainage exposed the organic muck soil, whicdh produced extraordinary crop yields.

Today more than 50% of the historic Everglades has been eliminated.  More than 1,400 miles of draingage canals and levees have been constructed in and around the Everglades for flood control. Widespread population growth and land-use modification for agriculture and industry have altered the natural wetlands, affecting the quantity and quality of drinking water and increasing human exposure to hydrologic hazards such as floods.  Chemicals used in farming, including fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, now often leak into the groundwater or nearby surface waters.  Storm-water runoff from urban areas commonly transports heavy metals and nutrients into canals and the Biscayne aquifer.

The last 100 years have been tremendous change in the Everglades.  Today the flow of water is controlled by a complex management system that includes canals, levees, and pumps.  The Everglades has been called "the biggest artificial plumbing system in the world."

Why is the Everglades called "the biggest artificial plumbing system in the world"?

To understand what the Everglades is today, you need to know what it once was.  The pristine Everglades was a wetland that spanned the state of Florida south of Lake Okeechobee, about 2.9 million acres of mostly peatland covered by tall saw grass growing in shallow water.  When the lake was full, water overflowed into the northern Everglades and moved slowly to the south in a 50-mile-wide sheet, a foot deep.  In the 1880s people began to drain the Kissimmee River-Lake Okeechobee-Everglades watershed.  Drainage exposed the organic muck soil, whicdh produced extraordinary crop yields.

Today more than 50% of the historic Everglades has been eliminated.  More than 1,400 miles of draingage canals and levees have been constructed in and around the Everglades for flood control. Widespread population growth and land-use modification for agriculture and industry have altered the natural wetlands, affecting the quantity and quality of drinking water and increasing human exposure to hydrologic hazards such as floods.  Chemicals used in farming, including fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, now often leak into the groundwater or nearby surface waters.  Storm-water runoff from urban areas commonly transports heavy metals and nutrients into canals and the Biscayne aquifer.

The last 100 years have been tremendous change in the Everglades.  Today the flow of water is controlled by a complex management system that includes canals, levees, and pumps.  The Everglades has been called "the biggest artificial plumbing system in the world."

According to the above passage, what was the first event resulting in the elimination of much of the Everglades?

To understand what the Everglades is today, you need to know what it once was.  The pristine Everglades was a wetland that spanned the state of Florida south of Lake Okeechobee, about 2.9 million acres of mostly peatland covered by tall saw grass growing in shallow water.  When the lake was full, water overflowed into the northern Everglades and moved slowly to the south in a 50-mile-wide sheet, a foot deep.  In the 1880s people began to drain the Kissimmee River-Lake Okeechobee-Everglades watershed.  Drainage exposed the organic muck soil, whicdh produced extraordinary crop yields.

Today more than 50% of the historic Everglades has been eliminated.  More than 1,400 miles of draingage canals and levees have been constructed in and around the Everglades for flood control. Widespread population growth and land-use modification for agriculture and industry have altered the natural wetlands, affecting the quantity and quality of drinking water and increasing human exposure to hydrologic hazards such as floods.  Chemicals used in farming, including fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, now often leak into the groundwater or nearby surface waters.  Storm-water runoff from urban areas commonly transports heavy metals and nutrients into canals and the Biscayne aquifer.

The last 100 years have been tremendous change in the Everglades.  Today the flow of water is controlled by a complex management system that includes canals, levees, and pumps.  The Everglades has been called "the biggest artificial plumbing system in the world."

In the above passage, what is the meaning of hydrologic?

Everyone wants to protect children. Yet when it comes to the sensitive issue of childhood obesity, too often we fall silent.  We need to break the silence and lay open for the country the hard facts and necessary choices we need to make to deal with what has become a quiet epidemic in America.  The simple fact is that more people die in the United States of too much food than of too little, and the habits that lead to this epidemic become ingrained at an early age.

Everyone knows the statistics obesity and excessive weight affect 10 million U.S. children.  That’s a record, and there’s no real sign that it won’t br broken again soon.  In the past 20 years, the number of obese children has doubled, placing more Americans at risk of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and cancer – all at an early age.  Obesity contributes to 300,000 deaths each year.  That’s close to 1,000 lives lost each day at a cost to our health-care system of $70 billion a year, or 8 percent of all medical bills.

We need to take this issue seriously.  For at least one in 5 kids, excessive weight is not a cute phase that will be outgrown.  It’s the start of a lifetime of serious health problems.  It is time we elevate the issue to its rightful place near the top of the public health agenda alongside cancer, heart disease, and other leading killers of Americans today.

Solving the problem is a complex issue because it involves some very sensitive areas; personal choice, culture, and economic status.  Children soak up the wrong lessons not just from TV, but also from the one in three adults who is overweight.  The apple isn’t falling far from the tree, here.  So we can’t blame only fast food restaurants or the media for the problem.  We need to have a strong, educational program so that children and their parents know the facts.

The only way kids wil succeed is if they have easier access to healthy foods, fewer temptations, and role models that set the right example both with eating habits and exercise.  Success almost always hinges on changing the whole family’s eating habits, and that is good for everyone.

In the above passage, the author is attempting to point out which of the following?

Everyone wants to protect children. Yet when it comes to the sensitive issue of childhood obesity, too often we fall silent.  We need to break the silence and lay open for the country the hard facts and necessary choices we need to make to deal with what has become a quiet epidemic in America.  The simple fact is that more people die in the United States of too much food than of too little, and the habits that lead to this epidemic become ingrained at an early age.

Everyone knows the statistics obesity and excessive weight affect 10 million U.S. children.  That’s a record, and there’s no real sign that it won’t br broken again soon.  In the past 20 years, the number of obese children has doubled, placing more Americans at risk of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and cancer – all at an early age.  Obesity contributes to 300,000 deaths each year.  That’s close to 1,000 lives lost each day at a cost to our health-care system of $70 billion a year, or 8 percent of all medical bills.

We need to take this issue seriously.  For at least one in 5 kids, excessive weight is not a cute phase that will be outgrown.  It’s the start of a lifetime of serious health problems.  It is time we elevate the issue to its rightful place near the top of the public health agenda alongside cancer, heart disease, and other leading killers of Americans today.

Solving the problem is a complex issue because it involves some very sensitive areas; personal choice, culture, and economic status.  Children soak up the wrong lessons not just from TV, but also from the one in three adults who is overweight.  The apple isn’t falling far from the tree, here.  So we can’t blame only fast food restaurants or the media for the problem.  We need to have a strong, educational program so that children and their parents know the facts.

The only way kids wil succeed is if they have easier access to healthy foods, fewer temptations, and role models that set the right example both with eating habits and exercise.  Success almost always hinges on changing the whole family’s eating habits, and that is good for everyone.

Which of the following does the above passage suggest as a solution to the obesity problem?

Everyone wants to protect children. Yet when it comes to the sensitive issue of childhood obesity, too often we fall silent.  We need to break the silence and lay open for the country the hard facts and necessary choices we need to make to deal with what has become a quiet epidemic in America.  The simple fact is that more people die in the United States of too much food than of too little, and the habits that lead to this epidemic become ingrained at an early age.

Everyone knows the statistics obesity and excessive weight affect 10 million U.S. children.  That’s a record, and there’s no real sign that it won’t br broken again soon.  In the past 20 years, the number of obese children has doubled, placing more Americans at risk of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and cancer – all at an early age.  Obesity contributes to 300,000 deaths each year.  That’s close to 1,000 lives lost each day at a cost to our health-care system of $70 billion a year, or 8 percent of all medical bills.

We need to take this issue seriously.  For at least one in 5 kids, excessive weight is not a cute phase that will be outgrown.  It’s the start of a lifetime of serious health problems.  It is time we elevate the issue to its rightful place near the top of the public health agenda alongside cancer, heart disease, and other leading killers of Americans today.

Solving the problem is a complex issue because it involves some very sensitive areas; personal choice, culture, and economic status.  Children soak up the wrong lessons not just from TV, but also from the one in three adults who is overweight.  The apple isn’t falling far from the tree, here.  So we can’t blame only fast food restaurants or the media for the problem.  We need to have a strong, educational program so that children and their parents know the facts.

The only way kids wil succeed is if they have easier access to healthy foods, fewer temptations, and role models that set the right example both with eating habits and exercise.  Success almost always hinges on changing the whole family’s eating habits, and that is good for everyone.

The above passage indicates that obesity results in _____.

Pocahontas was the daughter of Powhatan, an important chief of the Algonquian Native Americans (the Powhatans) who lived in the Virginia region.  Her real name was "Matoaka."  "Pocahontas" was a nickname meaning "playful" or "mischievous one."

Pocahontas was only about 10 years old when her world changed forever.  English settlers arrived from far across the ocean and created a settlement at Jamestown, Virginia.  These new English settlers looked and acted very differently from Powhatan’s tribe.  Some of Pocahontas’s people were afraid or even hateful of the newcomers.  But the chief’s daughter had a curious mind and a friendly matter.  She wanted to know more about these newcomers.

Pocahontas got to know and make friends with the new colonists.  Her warm nature and natural curiosity led the English to like and trust her as well.  One of the colonists, Captain John Smith, said that her appearance, intelligence, and friendly personality "much exceedeth any of the rest of Powhatan’s people."  But not all of Powhatan’s people were so curious and friendly.  In December 1607, Captain Smith was captured and held at Chief Powhatan’s capital, Werowocomoco.

Pocahontas is most famous for reportedly saving the life of English Captain John Smith.  Throughout her short life (she died at the age of 22), however, she was important in other ways as well.  Pocahontas tried to promote peace between the Powhatans and the English colonists.  She even converted to Christianity and married John Rolfe, a Jamestown colonist, a union which helped bring the two groups together.  Her untimely death in England hurt the chance for continued peace in Virginia between the Algonquians and the colonists.

According to the above passage, Pocahontas might best be remembered as a _____.