Reading Comprehension · Science (comparative, with a Social Science second passage)
PrepTest 126 · Section 2 · Passage 2
Questions 7–13
Before you start
Open PrepTest 126, Section 2 in your official copy from LSAC and read the passage for Questions 7–13, using the structure guide below. The passage is not reprinted here.
Structure guide
- Passage A P1: describes a newcomer spreading harmfully, lists measured damage and less-studied effects on other groups, notes it spreads faster where things are already disturbed, and notes the current fixes are limited or untested
- Passage A P2: calls for a coordinated response and says early detection is the best current tool
- Passage B P1: describes how the campaign against the newcomer presents itself as a selfless rescue, and how its writings frame the newcomer as a pollutant
- Passage B P2: argues the campaign really serves human wants, points out that the groups used to justify it are mostly not endangered, and concludes that what is truly threatened is money
Step 2 · The kid passage
The Great Slap-Ball Debate
Passage A (Ms. Rivera's playground report): Slap-ball arrived with three new students from across town last fall and has spread to nearly every corner of the playground. In some corners it has pushed out more than half of the old games, and blocks of nonstop slap-ball have lasted for weeks. Its effect on younger kids has not been carefully studied, but fewer kids now gather at the jungle gym. Slap-ball can take over a tidy blacktop, but it spreads much faster on the blacktop where the hopscotch paint has faded. Banning it from one blacktop stops it for a day or two. A whistle signal has worked, but nobody has checked whether the whistle also scares off other games. Since slap-ball is spreading so fast, the school needs a plan that combines several tools. For now, the best hope is for recess monitors to spot it early in a new corner and stop it there before it crowds out other games.
Passage B (Priya's column in the school paper): The fight against slap-ball is described as a rescue mission for recess itself, a way to free every game on the playground from a bully. The grown-ups' notes on it dutifully mention the little kids and the jungle gym crowd. But look closer. Only one small kid has actually been bumped by a slap-ball. The jungle gym crowd is smaller, but it is in no danger of disappearing; plenty of kids still climb. What is really threatened is the snack stand next to the four-square courts, which earns money for the PTA whenever the four-square tournament draws a crowd.
Step 4 · The courtroom tale
The Case of the Spreading Chimes
The town wanted wind chimes banned. Judge Patel heard two experts. The first, a sound engineer, spread out her charts. 'Chimes started on one street five years ago. Now they cover half the neighborhood. In some blocks, porch conversations have dropped by more than half. We should catch new chimes early, before they spread.' Then Mr. Whitfield called his expert, a professor of town life. 'The campaign says it is saving peace and quiet for everyone. But the only group named as truly suffering is one porch-sitting club, and they still meet weekly. Follow the money, Your Honor. The real worry is that homes with noisy streets sell for less.' The judge tapped her pen. 'So you both agree the chimes are spreading and some porches are quieter. You disagree about whether that harm is serious, and why the fight is really happening.'