Test - GRE-Reading Comprehension

Select one or more choices from the given options.

1

Who was Caravaggio, in truth? The artist who—along with the Carraccis, and much more powerfully, in fact—returned to the gaze its right of control over painting? Yes, certainly: and like them, he even accepted that reality, restored thereby to the things we perceive, should have a structure before that gaze, a character like the world's—and accordingly, should be arranged like a scene.
But that is where his path starts to diverge. For the things he paints—and the beings, even more—refuse to mean anything beyond their immediate figures: they do not attest to an additional truth, a reason for being a hope. While in the Bolognesi, everything that exists seems made in order to manifest the divine, to retain it on earth, in Caravaggio everything cries out that there is only nothingness in this world of lost souls—whose sole recourse is Grace, the ways of which are enigmatic. Whatever this painter depicts, he does so only to bear witness to pain. And so in tracing a figure, he does not stress those aspects of sensuous beauty that could nourish some proposal of exalting life.

It can be inferred that the author of the passage would agree with which of the following about Caravaggio and his style?

His paintings do not invoke the viewer to look further than the contents of the painting.

His paintings consist of structured figures that are meant to reflect the reality of the world.

He went one step further than the artists of the same genre in depicting a particular impression.

Select one answer choice from the given options.

2

Who was Caravaggio, in truth? The artist who—along with the Carraccis, and much more powerfully, in fact—returned to the gaze its right of control over painting? Yes, certainly: and like them, he even accepted that reality, restored thereby to the things we perceive, should have a structure before that gaze, a character like the world's—and accordingly, should be arranged like a scene.
But that is where his path starts to diverge. For the things he paints—and the beings, even more—refuse to mean anything beyond their immediate figures: they do not attest to an additional truth, a reason for being a hope. While in the Bolognesi, everything that exists seems made in order to manifest the divine, to retain it on earth, in Caravaggio everything cries out that there is only nothingness in this world of lost souls—whose sole recourse is Grace, the ways of which are enigmatic. Whatever this painter depicts, he does so only to bear witness to pain. And so in tracing a figure, he does not stress those aspects of sensuous beauty that could nourish some proposal of exalting life.

According to the passage, Caravaggio's paintings defeat his purpose as they

express the survival of humanity being entirely dependent upon Grace

are symbolic of immense pain instead of merriment which was his true purpose

became limited to mere objects in pursuit of objectifying reality

are completely devoid of an element of beauty even though they try to depict reality

leave the subjects at the mercy of Grace instead of expressing a belief in divination

Select one answer choice from the given options.

3

Who was Caravaggio, in truth? The artist who—along with the Carraccis, and much more powerfully, in fact—returned to the gaze its right of control over painting? Yes, certainly: and like them, he even accepted that reality, restored thereby to the things we perceive, should have a structure before that gaze, a character like the world's—and accordingly, should be arranged like a scene.
But that is where his path starts to diverge. For the things he paints—and the beings, even more—refuse to mean anything beyond their immediate figures: they do not attest to an additional truth, a reason for being a hope. While in the Bolognesi, everything that exists seems made in order to manifest the divine, to retain it on earth, in Caravaggio everything cries out that there is only nothingness in this world of lost souls—whose sole recourse is Grace, the ways of which are enigmatic. Whatever this painter depicts, he does so only to bear witness to pain. And so in tracing a figure, he does not stress those aspects of sensuous beauty that could nourish some proposal of exalting life.

In the context in which it appears, the word "immediate" most nearly means

Select one answer choice from the given options.

4

In Hume's eyes, productive labor was the greatest asset of a country, and foreign trade was valuable because it enabled a nation to use more and more varied labor than would otherwise be possible. But commerce was of mutual advantage to the nations involved, not a benefit to one and injury to other. "The increase of riches and commerce in any one nation," added Hume, "instead of hurting, commonly, promotes the riches and commerce of all its neighbors." "The emulation in rival nations serves ... to keep industry alive in all of them."

It can be inferred from the text that the importance of foreign trade, in eyes of Hume, was because it allowed

the employment of surplus labor in a nation

the diversion of labor to export oriented industries

the deeper specialization of the same labor force

varied application of labor force in a nation

application of varied labor force in a nation

Select one answer choice from the given options.

5

As the climate changes, animal and plant species are shifting their ranges toward conditions suitable for their growth and reproduction. Past research has shown that plant ranges are shifting to higher, cooler elevations at an average rate of almost five feet per year. In many studies, these range shifts lag behind the rate of climate change. The factors that impact plant species' ability to keep up with climate change are key to maintaining healthy populations of the dominant trees in western forests, yet have remained largely mysterious. To better understand the distance, direction and rate at which tree ranges are shifting, researchers looked at how the phenomenon is affected by wildfire. They compared the rate of these range shifts between places that were burned by wildfire and places that were not.

Of eight species that had seedlings growing in climates significantly different from mature trees of the same species, researchers found strong evidence that two -- Douglas fir and canyon live oak -- had larger range shifts in areas that burned than in areas that did not. Although the analysis did not reveal the mechanism for how wildfire accelerates range shifts for certain trees, the researchers hypothesized that burned areas with their open canopies and scorched understory present less competition from other plant species. The findings demonstrate not only that fire can accelerate tree migration, but that some species may be slowing the range shifts of others through competition. This, in turn, raises questions about the impact of fire management on trees' ability to keep up with climate change. This study highlights a natural mechanism that can help forests remain healthy, even in the face of small amounts of climate change. It also illustrates the way that ecosystem processes often have several layers of controls, a feature that emphasizes the value of detailed understanding for effective management.

What could be the consequence of a range shift slower than the rate of climate change?

Plants will be unlikely to keep a healthy surviving population due to cooler climate around them.

Plants would be less likely to benefit from the positive effect of wildfires that ensures their survival.

Plants would be stranded in habitats that can no longer withstand the prevailing climate, thereby threatening their existence.

Plants would face more competition from other species if they do not adapt to the changing climate by shifting rapidly.

Slow movement towards colder climate would extend a plant's life by protecting it from inhabitable climatic conditions.

Select one answer choice from the given options.

6

As the climate changes, animal and plant species are shifting their ranges toward conditions suitable for their growth and reproduction. Past research has shown that plant ranges are shifting to higher, cooler elevations at an average rate of almost five feet per year. In many studies, these range shifts lag behind the rate of climate change. The factors that impact plant species' ability to keep up with climate change are key to maintaining healthy populations of the dominant trees in western forests, yet have remained largely mysterious. To better understand the distance, direction and rate at which tree ranges are shifting, researchers looked at how the phenomenon is affected by wildfire. They compared the rate of these range shifts between places that were burned by wildfire and places that were not.

Of eight species that had seedlings growing in climates significantly different from mature trees of the same species, researchers found strong evidence that two -- Douglas fir and canyon live oak -- had larger range shifts in areas that burned than in areas that did not. Although the analysis did not reveal the mechanism for how wildfire accelerates range shifts for certain trees, the researchers hypothesized that burned areas with their open canopies and scorched understory present less competition from other plant species. The findings demonstrate not only that fire can accelerate tree migration, but that some species may be slowing the range shifts of others through competition. This, in turn, raises questions about the impact of fire management on trees' ability to keep up with climate change. This study highlights a natural mechanism that can help forests remain healthy, even in the face of small amounts of climate change. It also illustrates the way that ecosystem processes often have several layers of controls, a feature that emphasizes the value of detailed understanding for effective management.

Which of the following measures does the author of the passage recommend to ensure the survival and health of plant species?

Government should allow some prescribed fires in areas where there are no natural wildfires.

The trees should be raised with effective management practices to enable them to withstand changing climate.

Wildfires should be allowed to happen as they ensure larger range shifts for certain tree species.

Scientific research should invest in greater understanding on how ecosystems work in nature to build facilitative processes.

Fire management strategies should be adopted to equip the trees with means necessary for surviving climate change.

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The passage is scrollable

As the climate changes, animal and plant species are shifting their ranges toward conditions suitable for their growth and reproduction. Past research has shown that plant ranges are shifting to higher, cooler elevations at an average rate of almost five feet per year. In many studies, these range shifts lag behind the rate of climate change. The factors that impact plant species' ability to keep up with climate change are key to maintaining healthy populations of the dominant trees in western forests, yet have remained largely mysterious. To better understand the distance, direction and rate at which tree ranges are shifting, researchers looked at how the phenomenon is affected by wildfire. They compared the rate of these range shifts between places that were burned by wildfire and places that were not.Of eight species that had seedlings growing in climates significantly different from mature trees of the same species, researchers found strong evidence that two -- Douglas fir and canyon live oak -- had larger range shifts in areas that burned than in areas that did not. Although the analysis did not reveal the mechanism for how wildfire accelerates range shifts for certain trees, the researchers hypothesized that burned areas with their open canopies and scorched understory present less competition from other plant species. The findings demonstrate not only that fire can accelerate tree migration, but that some species may be slowing the range shifts of others through competition. This, in turn, raises questions about the impact of fire management on trees' ability to keep up with climate change. This study highlights a natural mechanism that can help forests remain healthy, even in the face of small amounts of climate change. It also illustrates the way that ecosystem processes often have several layers of controls, a feature that emphasizes the value of detailed understanding for effective management.

7

Select a sentence in the first paragraph that seeks to understand the effect of a phenomenon using an alternative phenomenon.

Select one or more choices from the given options.

8

As the climate changes, animal and plant species are shifting their ranges toward conditions suitable for their growth and reproduction. Past research has shown that plant ranges are shifting to higher, cooler elevations at an average rate of almost five feet per year. In many studies, these range shifts lag behind the rate of climate change. The factors that impact plant species' ability to keep up with climate change are key to maintaining healthy populations of the dominant trees in western forests, yet have remained largely mysterious. To better understand the distance, direction and rate at which tree ranges are shifting, researchers looked at how the phenomenon is affected by wildfire. They compared the rate of these range shifts between places that were burned by wildfire and places that were not.

Of eight species that had seedlings growing in climates significantly different from mature trees of the same species, researchers found strong evidence that two -- Douglas fir and canyon live oak -- had larger range shifts in areas that burned than in areas that did not. Although the analysis did not reveal the mechanism for how wildfire accelerates range shifts for certain trees, the researchers hypothesized that burned areas with their open canopies and scorched understory present less competition from other plant species. The findings demonstrate not only that fire can accelerate tree migration, but that some species may be slowing the range shifts of others through competition. This, in turn, raises questions about the impact of fire management on trees' ability to keep up with climate change. This study highlights a natural mechanism that can help forests remain healthy, even in the face of small amounts of climate change. It also illustrates the way that ecosystem processes often have several layers of controls, a feature that emphasizes the value of detailed understanding for effective management.

Which of the following information about the results of the study remains obscure?

The reasons for difference in extent of range shift among tree species

Burned forested areas being more receptive to occupation by plants than the un-burned.

The factors that allow a forested tree to migrate in the face of climate change

Number	Status	Marked
1	Not answered
2	Not answered
3	Not answered
4	Not answered
5	Not answered
6	Not answered
7	Not answered
8	Not answered

GRE-Reading Comprehension - 7

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