181. Wagon freighters continued operating throughout the 1870's and 1880's and into the 1890's,although over constantly shrinking routes, and coaches and wagons continued to crisscross the West wherever the rails had not yet been laid.
The word "crisscross" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) lead the way
(B) separate
(C) move back and forth
(D) uncover
182. The primary reason was skepticism that a railroad built through so challenging and thinly settled a stretch of desert, mountain, and semiarid plain could pay a profit.
The word "skepticism" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) doubt
(B) amazement
(C) urgency
(D) determination
183. In discussing the Pacific Railroad bill, the chair of the congressional committee bluntly stated that without government subsidy no one would undertake so unpromising a venture; yet it was a national necessity to link East and West together.
The word "subsidy" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) persuasion
(B) financing
(C) explanation
(D) penalty
184. However, the concept of number and the counting process developed so long before the time of recorded history (there is chaeological evidence that counting was employed by humans as far back as 50,000 years ago) that the manner of this development is largely conjectural.
The word "conjectural" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) complex
(B) based on guessing
(C) unbelievable
(D) supported by careful research
185. Probably the earliest way of keeping a count was by some simple tally method, employing the principle of one-to-one correspondence. In keeping a count of sheep, for example, one finger per sheep could be turned under.
The word "employing" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) using
(B) paying
(C) focusing
(D) hiring
186. Counts could also be maintained by making scratches in the dirt or on a stone, by cutting notches in a piece of wood, or by tying knots in a string.
The word "maintained" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) justified
(B) asserted
(C) located
(D) kept
187. Then, perhaps later, an assortment of vocal sounds was developed as a word tally against the number of objects in a small group.
The word "assortment" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) instrument
(B) variety
(C) surplus
(D) symbol
188. Their products, primarily silver plates and bowls, reflected their exalted status and testified to their customers' prominence.
The word "exalted" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) unusual
(B) uncertain
(C) surprising
(D) superior
189. Colonial coppersmithing also came of agein the early eighteenth century and prospered in northern cities.
The phrase "came of age" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) established itself
(B) declined
(C) became less expensive
(D) was studied
190. Fossils are the remains and traces (such as footprints or other marks ) of ancient plant and animal life that are more than 10,000 years old.
The word "traces" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) structures
(B) importance
(C) skeletons
(D) imprints
191. The woolly mammoth, a long-haired rhinoceros, and other mammals have been periodically exposed in the tundra of Siberia, the hair and red flesh still frozen in cold storage.
The word "exposed" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) photographed
(B) uncovered
(C) located
(D) preserved
192. A useful definition of an air pollutant is a compound added directly or indirectly by humans to the atmosphere in such quantities as to affect humans, animals, vegetation, or materials adversely.
The word "adversely" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) negatively
(B) quickly
(C) admittedly
(D) considerably
193. As the Earth developed, the concentrations of these pollutants were altered by various chemical reactions; they became components in biogeochemical cycles.
The word "altered" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) eliminated
(B) caused
(C) slowed
(D) changed
194. The result is an increased concentration of noxious chemicals in the air. The concentrations at which the adverse effects appear will be greater than the concentrations that the pollutants would have in the absence of human activities.
The word "noxious" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) harmful
(B) noticeable
(C) extensive
(D) weak
195. The actual concentration need not be large for a substance to be a pollutant; in fact the numerical value tells us little until we know how much of an increase this represents over the concentration that would occur naturally in the area. For example, sulfur dioxide has detectable health effects at 0. 08 parts per million (ppm) , which is about 400 times its natural level.
The word "detectable" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) beneficial
(B) special
(C) measurable
(D) separable
196. The acute, growing public awareness of the social changes that had been taking place for some time was tied to tremendous growth in popular journalism in the late nineteenth century, including growth in quantity and circulation of both magazines and newspapers.
The word "acute" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) useful
(B) intense
(C) genuine
(D) controversial
197. Furthermore, the introduction in 1890 of the first successful linotype machine promised even further growth. In 1872 only two daily newspapers could claim a circulation of over 100,000, but by 1892 seven more newspapers exceeded that figure. A world beyond the immediate community was rapidly becoming visible.
The word "exceeded" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) controlled
(B) surpassed
(C) affected
(D) equaled
198. Magazines as they are known today began publication around 1882, and, in fact, the circulation of weekly magazines exceeded that of newspapers in the period which followed. By 1892, for example, the circulation of the Ladies' Home Journal had reached an astounding 700,000.
The word "astounding" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) surprising
(B) estimated
(C) encouraging
(D) sudden
199. It is lightweight, impermeable to liquids, readily cleaned and reused, durable yet fragile, and often very beautiful.
The word "durable" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) lasting
(B) delicate
(C) heavy
(D) plain
200. In effect, as molten glass cools, it progressively stiffens until rigid, but does so without setting up a network of interlocking crystals customarily associated with that process.
The word "customarily" is closest in meaning to which of following?
(A) naturally
(B) necessarily
(C) usually
(D) certainly