TOEFL DIAGNOSIS TEST 1BOOKLET READING SECTIONBiological Barriers and Pathways1. Virtually all living things have some way of getting from here to there. Animals may walk, swim, or fly. Plants and their seeds drift on wind or water or are carried by animals. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that, in time, all species might spread to every place on Earth where favorable conditions occur. Indeed, there are some cosmopolitan species. A good example is the housefly, found almost everywhere on Earth. However, such broad distribution is the rare exception. Just as barbed wire fences prevent cattle from leaving their pasture, biological barriers prevent the dispersal of many species.2. What constitutes barriers depends on the species and its method of dispersal. Some are physical barriers. For land animals, bodies of water, chains of mountains or deserts are effective. For example, the American bison spread throughout the open grasslands of North America, but in the southern part of the continent there are deserts, so the bison could not spread there. For aquatic creatures, strong currents, differences in salinity, or land areas may serve as barriers.3. Some barriers involve competition with other species. A dandelion seed may be carried by the wind to bare ground, and, if environmental factors are right, it may germinate. There is not much chance, however, that any individual seedling will survive. Most places that are suitable for the growth of dandelions are already occupied by other types of plants that are well adapted to the area. The dandelion seedling must compete with these plants for space, water, light, and nutrients. Facing such stiff competition, the chances of survival are slim.4. For animals, some barriers are behavioral. The blue spotted salamander lives only on mountain slopes in the southern Appalachian Highlands. Although these creatures could survive in the river valleys, they never venture there. Birds that fly long distances often remain in very limited areas. Kirkland's warblers are found only in a few places in Michigan in the summer and fly to the Bahamas in winter. No physical barriers restrict the warblers to these two locations, yet they never spread beyond these boundaries. Brazil's Amazon River serves as a northern or southern boundary for many species of birds. They could freely fly over the river, but they seldom do.5. There are three types of natural pathways through which organisms can overcome barriers. One type is called a corridor. A corridor consists of a single type of habitat that passes through various other types of habitat. North America's Rocky Mountains, which stretch from Alaska to northern Mexico, is an example. Various types of trees, such as the Engelmann spruce, can be found not only at the northern end of the corridor in Alaska but also at higher elevations along the entire length of this corridor.6. A second type of natural pathway is known as a filter route. A filter route consists of a series of habitats that are different from one mother but are similar enough to permit organisms to gradually adapt to new conditions as they spread from habitat to habitat. The greatest difference between a corridor and a filter route is that a corridor consists of one type of habitat, while a filter consists of several similar types.7. The third type of natural pathway is called a sweepstakes route. This is dispersal caused by the chance combination of favorable conditions. Bird watchers are familiar with "accidentals, which are birds that appear in places far from their native areas. Sometimes they may find a habitat with favorable conditions and "colonize" it. Gardeners are familiar with "volunteers, cultivated plants that grow in their gardens although they never planted the seeds for these plants. Besides birds and plants, insects, fish, and mammals also colonize new areas. Sweepstakes routes are unlike either corridors or filter routes in that organisms that travel these routes would not be able to spend their entire lives in the habitats that they pass through.8. Some organisms cross barriers with the intentional or unintentional help of humans, a process called invasion. An example is the New Zealand mud snail, which was accidentally brought to North America when trout from New Zealand were imported to a fish hatchery in the United States. It has caused extensive environmental damage in streams and rivers. In the invasive species' native environments, there are typically predators, parasites, and competitors that keep their numbers down, but in their new habitat, natural checks are left behind, giving the invaders an advantage over native species. Invasive species may spread so quickly that they threaten commercial, agricultural, or recreational activities.GlossarySalamander: a type of amphibian animal resembling o lizard Sweepstakes: o game of chance; a lottery________________________________________________________________________________1. The word cosmopolitan the passage is closest in meaning to a. worldwideb. usefulc. well-knownd. ancient2. How does the author explain the concept of biological barriers in paragraph 1? a. By providing several examples of biological barriersb. By describing the process by which barriers are formedc. By comparing biological barriers with a familiar man-made barrierd. By explaining how houseflies have been affected by biological barriers3. What does the author suggest about American bison in paragraph 2?a. They spread to North America from South America.b. A body of water stopped them from spreading south. c. They require open grasslands to survive.d. They original1y lived in deserts..4. According to the passage, very few dandelion seedlings survive because of a. the danger of strong windsb. competition from other dandelionsc. the lack of a suitable habitatd. competition from other species5. In this passage, the author does NOT provide a specific example of aa. a bird that is affected by behavioral barriersb. an aquatic animal that is blocked by physical barriersc. a land animal that is affected by behavioral barriersd. a tree that has spread by means of a corridor6. The word slim in this passage is closest in meaning toa. unknown b. impossible c. remarkable d. unlikely7. The phrase these two locations in paragraph 4 refers toa. Michigan and the Appalachian Highlandsb. Brazil and the Bahamasc. the Appalachian Highlands and Brazild. the Bahamas and a few place s in Michigan8. Why does the author mention the Amazon River in paragraph 4?a. To give an example of an important physical barrierb. To point out that many migrating birds fly across itc. To provide an exan1ple of a behavioral barrierd. To describe a barrier that affects aquatic animals9. According to paragraph 6, how does the author distinguish a filter route from a corridor?a. A corridor consists of one habitat for its entire length, but a filter route consists of more than one.b. Organisms cannot live all of their lives in some parts of a filter route, but they can in a corridor.c. The distance from one end of a filter route to the other end is longer than the distance from one end of a corridor to the other.d. Plants spread through a corridor, while animals spread through a filter route.10. In paragraph 8, the author gives New Zealand mud snails as an example of a. an invasive species that was unintentionally transported to another habitat b. a native species that has been damaged by an invasive speciesc. a an invasive species that was intentionally brought to a new environment d. an animal that spread by means of a sweepstakes route11. Which of the following sentences best expresses the essential information in the sentence below? (Incorrect answer choices omit important information or change the meaning of the original sentence in an important way.)In the invasive species' native environments, there are typically predators, parasites, and competitors that keep their numbers down, but in their new habitat, natural checks are left behind, giving the invaders an advantage over native species.a. Invasive species are organisms that leave their native environments behind and move to a new environment.b. Native species are at a disadvantage compared to invasive species because they face environmental dangers that invasive species have left behind. c. The greatest danger from invasive species is that they may spread parasites among native species.d. In a new environment, predators, parasites, and competitors prevent invasive species from spreading faster than native species.12. Look at the four black spots • that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.They may be blown off course by storms or may be escaping population pressures in their home areas.The third type of natural pathway is called a sweepstakes route. This is dispersal caused by the chance combination of favorable conditions. • A Bird watchers are familiar with "accidentals, which are birds that appear in places far from their native areas. • B Sometimes they may find a habitat with favorable conditions and "colonize" it. • C Gardeners are familiar with "volunteers, cultivated plants that grow in their gardens although they never planted the seeds for these plants. • D Besides birds and plants, insects, fish, and mammals also colonize new areas. Sweepstakes routes are unlike either corridors or filter routes in that organisms that travel these routes would not be able to spend their entire lives in the habitats that they pass through.13. DIRECTIONS: Below is an introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage. Complete the summary by writing the letters of three of the answer choices that express the most important ideas of the passage. Some of the answer choices are incorrect because they express ideas that are not given in the passage or because they express only details from the passage.Biological barriers prevent organisms from spreading to all habitats where conditions are suitable.___________________________________________________Answer ChoicesA. Organisms that spread by means of sweepstakes routes include species of birds called accidentals that appear in places far from their homes.B. Biological barriers can be the result of physical features, climate, competition, and behavior.C. Organisms can cross barriers by means of three types of natural pathways: corridors filter routes, and sweepstakes routes.D. Behavioral barriers do not prevent the spread of species from place to place as effectively as physical barriers.E. Humans may accidentally or intentionally bring some species across natural barriers, and these species may have certain advantages over native species.F. American bison spread throughout the grasslands of North America.LISTENING SECTIONListen to a conversation between a student and a professor.1. What is this conversation mainly about?a. The student's grade in her geology classb. The topic of a research paper that the student must writec. A class assignment that the student did not hand ind. The reason the student did not attend classListen again to part of the conversation. Then answer the question.2. What can be inferred about the student?a. She has never attended the professor's class.b. She is not sure what course the professor teaches. c. She is not sure that the professor knows who she is. d. She is not certain that the professor's name is Dixon.3. What assumption does the professor make about the student?a. That she got up too late to attend his class yesterdayb. That she missed class because she had to go to the airport c. That she is coming to his office to apologize for missing class d. That she is unhappy about the research paper assignment4. How did the student first get information about the topic she wants to write about?a. From a magazine articleb. From the Internetc. From the professord. From a television show5. What is the professor's attitude towards the topic that the student wants to write about?a. He does not think it is a proper topic for a research paper.b. He thinks it might be a good topic if the student researches it carefully. c. He believes students should not write about theories that have not been proved.d. He thinks it is much too narrow a topic for her research paper.Now listen to a lecture in a biology class. 6. What does the professor say about the word taiga?a. It is no longer commonly used.b. It refers only to certain forests in Russia.c. It was recently invented by biologists.d. It has the same meaning as the term boreal forest.Listen again to part of the conversation. Then answer the question.7. Why does the speaker say this? a. To explain why he finds the taiga a less interesting biome than tropical rain forest.b. To emphasize that this sub-zone is far 1ess varied than tropical rain forest c. To explain to students why he is talking about the taiga today, not in a few daysd. To try to encourage students to find out more about different types of biomes8. The professor discussed three sub-zones of the taiga. Match each sub-zone with its characteristic. Write the letter of answer choice in the appropriate box. Use each answer only onceLarger needle-leaf trees grow closer together.Some broad-leaf trees grow here, especially near water.Widely spaced, small needle-leaf tress grow hereA. Open forestB. Closed forestC. Mixed forest9. When discussing needle-leaf trees, which of these adaptations to cold weather does the professor mention? Mark three answers.a. Their thick barkb. Their dark green colorc. Their deep root systemd. Their conical shapee. The fact that they are "evergreen"10. What characteristic do all of the predators of the taiga have in common?a. They all migrate during the winter.b. They all have thick, warm fur.c. They all turn white in the winter.d. They all hibernate in the winter.11. What does the professor imply about moose?a. They are more dangerous to humans than predators.b. They have almost vanished from the taiga.c. When fully grown, they are in little danger from predators.d. Because of the value of their hides, they are often hunted.WRITING SECTION Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?It is better for university students to first get a general education, taking classes in many fields, than it is for them to take classes only in their own field of study.Use specific details and examples to support your answer. You have to write at least 300 words