Free SAT Reading Science and History Passages Practice Test

Question 1

A passage states: 'While early researchers believed bacteria caused stomach ulcers due to stress, Marshall and Warren's 1984 study demonstrated that Helicobacter pylori is the primary cause.' The passage suggests that scientific understanding of ulcers:

Accepted Answer

Changed significantly following new experimental evidence

Answer

The passage directly describes a shift from one explanation (stress) to another (bacterial infection) based on new evidence — a hallmark of scientific progress.

Question 2

In a history passage about the Industrial Revolution, the author writes: 'Factory owners grew wealthy as workers labored in dangerous conditions for 14 hours a day.' The author's tone is best described as:

Accepted Answer

Critical of the inequity

Answer

The contrast between growing wealth and dangerous long labor implies a critical stance toward the exploitative conditions of the era.

Question 3

A science passage describes a control group and an experimental group in a study. What is the PURPOSE of the control group?

Accepted Answer

To provide a baseline for comparison

Answer

A control group receives no treatment (or a standard treatment) to serve as a comparison baseline, allowing researchers to isolate the effect of the independent variable.

Question 4

A history passage describes how the printing press 'democratized knowledge by making books affordable to common people.' The word 'democratized' most nearly means:

Accepted Answer

Made widely available or accessible

Answer

To 'democratize' something means to make it available to a wide audience, not just an elite — here, making books accessible to ordinary people.

Question 5

A science passage describes an experiment where adding fertilizer to plants increased growth, but only up to a certain point — beyond which growth declined. Which conclusion best fits this data?

Accepted Answer

There is an optimal amount of fertilizer beyond which it becomes harmful

Answer

The data shows a dose-response relationship with a threshold — growth increases then decreases, indicating an optimal dose beyond which more becomes harmful.

SAT Practice Test

SAT Practice Test

Free SAT Reading Science and History Passages Practice Test