ISEE Middle Level Reading : Identifying and Analyzing Supporting Ideas in Science Passages

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for ISEE Middle Level Reading

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Example Questions

Example Question #181 : Isee Middle Level (Grades 7 8) Reading Comprehension

Adapted from Scientific American Supplement No. 1082 Vol. XLII (September 26th, 1896)

There is no more eager contest than that which has been going on for some time between gas and electricity. Which of these two systems of lighting will triumph? Will electricity suppress gas, as gas has dethroned the oil lamp? A few years ago, the answer to this question would not have been doubtful, and it seemed as if gas in such a contest must play the role of the earthen pot against the iron one. At present the case is otherwise.

The Auer burner has reestablished the equilibrium, and the Denayrouze burner is perhaps going to decide the fate of electricity. As naturalists say, the function creates the organ, and it is truly interesting to observe that in measure as the need of a more intense and cheaper light grows with us, science makes it possible for us to satisfy it by giving us new systems of lighting or by improving those that we already have at our disposal.

What a cycle traversed in twenty years! What progress made! Let us remember that the electric light scarcely became industrial until the time of the Exposition (1878), and that the Auer burner obtained the freedom of the city only five or six years ago. Is there any need of recalling the advantages of these two lights? In the first, a feeble disengagement of caloric, automatic lighting and a steadier light; in the second, a better utilization of the gas, which gives more light and less heat.

A description of the Auer burner will not be expected from us. It is now so widely employed as to render a new description useless. As an offset, we think that our readers will be more interested in a description of the Denayrouze burner, the industrial application of which has but just begun. This burner has been constructed in view of the best possible utilization of the gas, in approaching a complete theoretical combustion. In order that it may give its entire illuminating power, gas, as we know, must be burned in five and a half times its volume of air. In the Denayrouze burner, the gas burns in four and four-tenths its volume of air. The result reached is, consequently, very appreciable.

Which of the following best captures the main concern of the third paragraph?

Possible Answers:

To detail the recent history of innovations in electrical and gas powered lights

To refute any possible arguments against the author’s thesis

To highlight the need for additional research into the subject matter

To undermine the use of electrical lamps

To explain why gas burners are unlikely to be so quickly superseded by electrical power

Correct answer:

To detail the recent history of innovations in electrical and gas powered lights

Explanation:

The author begins the third paragraph by saying, “What a cycle traversed in twenty years! What progress made!” The author then goes on to talk about the development and spread of gas and electric powered lights in recent years. From this, we may determine that the primary purpose of the third paragraph is to detail the recent history of innovations in electrical and gas powered lights.

Example Question #31 : Science Passages

Adapted from "The Colors of Animals" by Sir John Lubbock in A Book of Natural History (1902, ed. David Starr Jordan)

The color of animals is by no means a matter of chance; it depends on many considerations, but in the majority of cases tends to protect the animal from danger by rendering it less conspicuous. Perhaps it may be said that if coloring is mainly protective, there ought to be but few brightly colored animals. There are, however, not a few cases in which vivid colors are themselves protective. The kingfisher itself, though so brightly colored, is by no means easy to see. The blue harmonizes with the water, and the bird as it darts along the stream looks almost like a flash of sunlight.

Desert animals are generally the color of the desert. Thus, for instance, the lion, the antelope, and the wild donkey are all sand-colored. “Indeed,” says Canon Tristram, “in the desert, where neither trees, brushwood, nor even undulation of the surface afford the slightest protection to its foes, a modification of color assimilated to that of the surrounding country is absolutely necessary. Hence, without exception, the upper plumage of every bird, and also the fur of all the smaller mammals and the skin of all the snakes and lizards, is of one uniform sand color.”

The next point is the color of the mature caterpillars, some of which are brown. This probably makes the caterpillar even more conspicuous among the green leaves than would otherwise be the case. Let us see, then, whether the habits of the insect will throw any light upon the riddle. What would you do if you were a big caterpillar? Why, like most other defenseless creatures, you would feed by night, and lie concealed by day. So do these caterpillars. When the morning light comes, they creep down the stem of the food plant, and lie concealed among the thick herbage and dry sticks and leaves, near the ground, and it is obvious that under such circumstances the brown color really becomes a protection. It might indeed be argued that the caterpillars, having become brown, concealed themselves on the ground, and that we were reversing the state of things. But this is not so, because, while we may say as a general rule that large caterpillars feed by night and lie concealed by day, it is by no means always the case that they are brown; some of them still retaining the green color. We may then conclude that the habit of concealing themselves by day came first, and that the brown color is a later adaptation.

The example of the kingfisher in the first paragraph is intended to prove __________.

Possible Answers:

That the color of an animal is not always adapted to match the background color of its environment

None of these answers; it is an anecdotal story designed to inject lightness into the subject

That birds are far more likely to have vibrant and striking coloring

That adapted coloring has many doubters who use the kingfisher to disprove the theory

That the author’s thesis, whilst generally applicable, cannot be applied to every animal in every situation

Correct answer:

That the color of an animal is not always adapted to match the background color of its environment

Explanation:

Answering this question requires you to read the first paragraph carefully and to understand the argument that the author is making. The author says, “Perhaps it may be said that if coloring is mainly protective, there ought to be but few brightly colored animals. There are, however, not a few cases in which vivid colors are themselves protective.” So, while the colors of different animals generally match their environment, sometimes there are cases in which vivid colors offer better protection, as in the case of the kingfisher. There is no one rule about how an animal’s coloring might be adapted. As the author says, “The blue harmonizes with the water, and the bird as it darts along the stream looks almost like a flash of sunlight.” So, the kingfisher is better protected by vibrant colors.

Example Question #3 : Understanding And Evaluating Opinions And Arguments In Argumentative Science Passages

Adapted from “The Stars” by Sir Robert S. Ball in Wonders of Earth, Sea, and Sky (1902, ed. Edward Singleton Holden)

The group of bodies that cluster around our sun forms a little island in the extent of infinite space. We may illustrate this by drawing a map in which we shall endeavor to show the stars placed at their proper relative distances. 

We first open the compasses one inch, and thus draw a little circle to represent the path of Earth. We are not going to put in all the planets; we take Neptune, the outermost, at once. To draw its path, I open the compasses to thirty inches, and draw a circle with that radius. That will do for our solar system, though the comets no doubt will roam beyond these limits. 

To complete our map, we ought to put in some stars. There are a hundred million to choose from, and we shall begin with the brightest. It is often called the Dog Star, but astronomers know it better as Sirius. Let us see where it is to be placed on our map. Sirius is a good deal further off than Neptune; so I try at the edge of the drawing-board; I have got a method of making a little calculation that I do not intend to trouble you with, but I can assure you that the results it leads me to are quite correct; they show me that this board is not big enough. But could a board which was big enough fit into this lecture theatre? No; in fact, the board would have to go out through the wall of the theatre, out through London. Indeed, big as London is, it would not be large enough to contain the drawing-board that I should require. It would have to stretch about twenty miles from where we are now assembled. We may therefore dismiss any hope of making a practical map of our system on this scale if Sirius is to have its proper place. 

Let us, then, take some other star. We shall naturally try with the nearest of all. It is one that we do not know in this part of the world, but those that live in the southern hemisphere are well acquainted with it. The name of this star is Alpha Centauri. Even for this star, we should require a drawing three or four miles long if the distance from the earth to the sun is to be taken as one inch. 

You see what an isolated position our sun and its planets occupy. The stars might be very troublesome neighbors if they were very much closer to our system; it is therefore well they are so far off. If they were near at hand, they would drag us into unpleasantly great heat by bringing us too close to the sun, or produce a coolness by pulling us away from the sun, which would be quite as disagreeable.

Why is the vastness of the universe considered so important by the author?

Possible Answers:

It allows us to prosper in peace and solitude.

It ensures the safety of our sun.

It allows for the creation of life in millions of different settings.

It protects us from the possible aggression of alien civilizations.

It protects us from the harmful impact of other solar bodies being near Earth.

Correct answer:

It protects us from the harmful impact of other solar bodies being near Earth.

Explanation:

Throughout this passage, the author is trying to demonstrate the vastness of our universe by highlighting the difficulty of properly rendering the celestial bodies on a scaled-down model. However, toward the end of the passage, he changes track slightly and declares that it is a good thing the universe is so massive and relatively empty. He says, “The stars might be very troublesome neighbors if they were very much closer to our system; it is therefore well they are so far off. If they were near at hand, they would drag us into unpleasantly great heat by bringing us too close to the sun, or produce a coolness by pulling us away from the sun, which would be quite as disagreeable.” He is arguing that if the other stars were closer to us, they would interfere in our orbit around the sun and would have a harmful impact on our planet.

Example Question #32 : Science Passages

Adapted from "The Colors of Animals" by Sir John Lubbock in A Book of Natural History (1902, ed. David Starr Jordan)

The color of animals is by no means a matter of chance; it depends on many considerations, but in the majority of cases tends to protect the animal from danger by rendering it less conspicuous. Perhaps it may be said that if coloring is mainly protective, there ought to be but few brightly colored animals. There are, however, not a few cases in which vivid colors are themselves protective. The kingfisher itself, though so brightly colored, is by no means easy to see. The blue harmonizes with the water, and the bird as it darts along the stream looks almost like a flash of sunlight.

Desert animals are generally the color of the desert. Thus, for instance, the lion, the antelope, and the wild donkey are all sand-colored. “Indeed,” says Canon Tristram, “in the desert, where neither trees, brushwood, nor even undulation of the surface afford the slightest protection to its foes, a modification of color assimilated to that of the surrounding country is absolutely necessary. Hence, without exception, the upper plumage of every bird, and also the fur of all the smaller mammals and the skin of all the snakes and lizards, is of one uniform sand color.”

The next point is the color of the mature caterpillars, some of which are brown. This probably makes the caterpillar even more conspicuous among the green leaves than would otherwise be the case. Let us see, then, whether the habits of the insect will throw any light upon the riddle. What would you do if you were a big caterpillar? Why, like most other defenseless creatures, you would feed by night, and lie concealed by day. So do these caterpillars. When the morning light comes, they creep down the stem of the food plant, and lie concealed among the thick herbage and dry sticks and leaves, near the ground, and it is obvious that under such circumstances the brown color really becomes a protection. It might indeed be argued that the caterpillars, having become brown, concealed themselves on the ground, and that we were reversing the state of things. But this is not so, because, while we may say as a general rule that large caterpillars feed by night and lie concealed by day, it is by no means always the case that they are brown; some of them still retaining the green color. We may then conclude that the habit of concealing themselves by day came first, and that the brown color is a later adaptation.

The example of the mature caterpillar in the third paragraph is primarily intended to show __________.

Possible Answers:

how genetic adaptation follows and aids behavioral patterns

how caterpillars have developed their green and brown colorings

how easy it is to catch a caterpillar if you know where and when to look

how the coloring of insects varied greatly based on their behavioral patterns

how the coloring of some animals is less easy to explain.

Correct answer:

how genetic adaptation follows and aids behavioral patterns

Explanation:

In the third paragraph, the author talks at length about the development of a brown coloring among certain mature caterpillars which aids their survival in the daytime, when they hide among the sticks and twigs below their foods sources. It is clear that the author is arguing that the caterpillar’s coloring (“genetic adaptation”) follows and aids its habit of eating by night and hiding during the day (“behavioral patterns”) from the excerpt that reads, “We may then conclude that the habit of concealing themselves by day came first, and that the brown color is a later adaptation.”

Example Question #4 : Analyzing Details In Natural Science Passages

Adapted from "How the Soil is Made" by Charles Darwin in Wonders of Earth, Sea, and Sky (1902, ed. Edward Singleton Holden)

Worms have played a more important part in the history of the world than most persons would at first suppose. In almost all humid countries they are extraordinarily numerous, and for their size possess great muscular power. In many parts of England a weight of more than ten tons (10,516 kilograms) of dry earth annually passes through their bodies and is brought to the surface on each acre of land, so that the whole superficial bed of vegetable mould passes through their bodies in the course of every few years. From the collapsing of the old burrows, the mold is in constant though slow movement, and the particles composing it are thus rubbed together. Thus the particles of earth, forming the superficial mold, are subjected to conditions eminently favorable for their decomposition and disintegration. This keeps the surface of the earth perfectly suited to the growth of an abundant array of fruits and vegetables.

Worms are poorly provided with sense-organs, for they cannot be said to see, although they can just distinguish between light and darkness; they are completely deaf, and have only a feeble power of smell; the sense of touch alone is well developed. They can, therefore, learn little about the outside world, and it is surprising that they should exhibit some skill in lining their burrows with their castings and with leaves, and in the case of some species in piling up their castings into tower-like constructions. But it is far more surprising that they should apparently exhibit some degree of intelligence instead of a mere blind, instinctive impulse, in their manner of plugging up the mouths of their burrows. They act in nearly the same manner as would a man, who had to close a cylindrical tube with different kinds of leaves, petioles, triangles of paper, etc., for they commonly seize such objects by their pointed ends. But with thin objects a certain number are drawn in by their broader ends. They do not act in the same unvarying manner in all cases, as do most of the lower animals.

What aspect of worms does the author of this passage seem to find most “surprising"?

Possible Answers:

That they are able to react and adapt to circumstance

That their importance in history is so often over-looked

That they are able to figure out where they are going without eyes

That they showcase such skill in lining and maintaining their burrows

That they have such limited sensory organs

Correct answer:

That they are able to react and adapt to circumstance

Explanation:

The author obviously finds it surprising that the importance of worms in history is so often over-looked. He also finds it surprising that they are able to showcase remarkable skill in lining and maintaining of their burrows. But, neither of these is the correct answer. The author says: “But it is far more surprising that they should apparently exhibit some degree of intelligence instead of a mere blind, instinctive impulse, in their manner of plugging up the mouths of their burrows.” The key phrase there, is, of course, “it is far more surprising.” The worms demonstrate an intelligence, an ability to “react and adapt to circumstance.” This is most surprising to the author.

Example Question #14 : Details

Adapted from "How the Soil is Made" by Charles Darwin in Wonders of Earth, Sea, and Sky (1902, ed. Edward Singleton Holden)

Worms have played a more important part in the history of the world than most persons would at first suppose. In almost all humid countries they are extraordinarily numerous, and for their size possess great muscular power. In many parts of England a weight of more than ten tons (10,516 kilograms) of dry earth annually passes through their bodies and is brought to the surface on each acre of land, so that the whole superficial bed of vegetable mould passes through their bodies in the course of every few years. From the collapsing of the old burrows, the mold is in constant though slow movement, and the particles composing it are thus rubbed together. Thus the particles of earth, forming the superficial mold, are subjected to conditions eminently favorable for their decomposition and disintegration. This keeps the surface of the earth perfectly suited to the growth of an abundant array of fruits and vegetables.

Worms are poorly provided with sense-organs, for they cannot be said to see, although they can just distinguish between light and darkness; they are completely deaf, and have only a feeble power of smell; the sense of touch alone is well developed. They can, therefore, learn little about the outside world, and it is surprising that they should exhibit some skill in lining their burrows with their castings and with leaves, and in the case of some species in piling up their castings into tower-like constructions. But it is far more surprising that they should apparently exhibit some degree of intelligence instead of a mere blind, instinctive impulse, in their manner of plugging up the mouths of their burrows. They act in nearly the same manner as would a man, who had to close a cylindrical tube with different kinds of leaves, petioles, triangles of paper, etc., for they commonly seize such objects by their pointed ends. But with thin objects a certain number are drawn in by their broader ends. They do not act in the same unvarying manner in all cases, as do most of the lower animals.

Which of worms' sensory organs is well-developed?

Possible Answers:

Smell

Taste

Touch

Hearing

Sight

Correct answer:

Touch

Explanation:

This question requires little more than careful reading in detail. In the second paragraph, the author says, “Worms are poorly provided with sense-organs, for they cannot be said to see, although they can just distinguish between light and darkness; they are completely deaf, and have only a feeble power of smell; the sense of touch alone is well developed.” So, they cannot hear at all, and cannot see or smell well. Their sense of taste is unmentioned, but the author says “the sense of touch alone is well developed.”

Example Question #41 : Science Passages

Adapted from "Comets" by Camille Flammarion in Wonders of Earth, Sea, and Sky (1902) edited by Edward Singleton Holden.

These tailed bodies, which suddenly come to light up the heavens, were for long regarded with terror, like so many warning signs of divine wrath. Men have always thought themselves much more important than they really are in the universal order; they have had the vanity to pretend that the whole creation was made for them, while in reality the whole creation does not suspect their existence. The Earth we inhabit is only one of the smallest worlds, and therefore it can scarcely be for it alone that all the wonders of the heavens, of which the immense majority remains hidden from it, were created. In this disposition of man to see in himself the center and the end of everything, it was easy indeed to consider the steps of nature as unfolded in his favor, and if some unusual phenomenon presented itself, it was considered to be without doubt a warning from Heaven.

If these illusions had had no other result than the amelioration of the more timorous of the community one would regret these ages of ignorance; not only were these fancied warnings of no use, seeing that once the danger passed, man returned to his former state, but they also kept up among people imaginary terrors, and revived the fatal resolutions caused by the fear of the end of the world.

When one fancies the world is about to end—and this has been believed for more than a thousand years—no solicitude is felt in the work of improving this world; by the indifference or disdain into which one falls, periods of famine and general misery are induced which at certain times have overtaken our community. Why use the wealth of a world which is going to perish? Why work, be instructed, or rise in the progress of the sciences or arts? Much better to forget the world, and absorb oneself in the barren contemplation of an unknown life. It is thus that ages of ignorance weigh on man, and thrust him further and further into darkness, while Science makes known by its influence on the whole community, its great value, and the magnitude of its aim.

In the first paragraph the author focuses on __________.

Possible Answers:

expressing the universal fear among humans that the world is going to end

rejecting the idea that God placed humans at the centre of the universe

criticizing humanity for believing the universe was created for human purposes

explaining how comets have contributed to the decline of civilization

discussing the positive consequences of a fatalistic nature

Correct answer:

criticizing humanity for believing the universe was created for human purposes

Explanation:

The first paragraph is primarily concerned with rejecting the idea that the universe was created for humanity, with humanity at the centre of the cosmos. This point is most clearly seen in the part where the author says: “Men have always thought themselves much more important than they really are in the universal order; they have had the vanity to pretend that the whole creation was made for them, whilst in reality the whole creation does not suspect their existence.” However, it is going too far to say the author is “rejecting the idea that God placed humans at the centre of the universe,” because the author does not mention God or religious beliefs.

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