Reading Comprehension · Science
PrepTest 132 · Section 3 · Passage 2
Questions 8–13
Before you start
Open PrepTest 132, Section 3 in your official copy from LSAC and read the passage for Questions 8–13, using the structure guide below. The passage is not reprinted here.
Structure guide
- P1: introduces a debated event first detected in one place and explains why it matters
- P2: lays out three competing explanations, each with its own reasoning
- P3: presents a new piece of evidence that favors one explanation, then cautions that much more evidence is needed
Step 2 · The kid passage
The Great Glitter Mystery
A lively argument at school is about one stretch of time that was first spotted by scraping layers of floor wax in the art room. The scrapings showed that most of the sparkly spots on that floor came from a heavy shower of glitter last spring, which the kids now call the Glitter Storm. Glitter that hit the art room should also have reached the supply closet next door, and that matters a lot: until the storm ended, the class hamster could not have lived in that closet.
The kids have three ideas. Because the spots are big, Marcus thinks one giant glitter jar burst and sprinkled the whole school wing. Nadia says 'storm' is the wrong word: glitter had been falling steadily all year, slowly tapering off, and the heavy spring layer simply covered up the older specks. Owen agrees the storm was short and sharp, but he says it was so brief that it never got past the art room and its closet, since the janitor sweeps up spills within minutes.
Then Lulu found a clue: a gym cone sitting in the art room with glitter stuck inside. It seems to have bounced over from the gym. Her clipboard notes date the glitter to last spring, which means the gym was getting glittered during the very weeks the art room was. So at least two separate rooms got hit at once, which helps the whole-wing idea. Still, one cone is just one cone. To learn how far the storm really spread, the kids will need many more clues, and maybe wax scrapings from the gym and the library too.
Step 4 · The courtroom tale
The Case of the Stopped Clocks
The town sued the power company, claiming last winter's blackout covered every neighborhood. The company said it hit only Elm Street and the street behind it. A third expert said there was no single blackout at all, just months of flickers fading out. Mr. Whitfield called his witness, a baker from the far side of town. 'My oven clock stopped at the same minute as the clocks on Elm Street,' she said. Mr. Whitfield turned to the judge. 'Two places, one moment, Your Honor.' The judge nodded slowly. 'That helps your side. But one oven clock is one oven clock. Bring me readings from many more homes before I decide how far it spread.' Mr. Whitfield sighed and went off to knock on doors.