Screening Test, Grade 9

A.
Do you know that the ordinary housefly has killed more men than any other creature since time
began? The number of human beings slain by tigers and lions, bitten by snakes, and those killed in
war is nothing compared to the number of those who were died because of this murderer, this
common housefly.

Its chief method of murder is by carrying disease germ to our food. The fly that comes into our
kitchen brings with its millions of bacteria. These multiply rapidly into billions. How can one housefly
carry millions of germs? How can we count these millions of bacteria?

Scientists have a method of counting them. They capture an ordinary housefly. They place it in a
bottle filled with a quart of water. They shake the bottle vigorously so that the germs are washed
from the fly and distributed in the water. Then they take a drop of this polluted water and put it
under a powerful microscope. If there are fifteen germs in that drop of water, they multiply this
number by the number of drops in the bottle, perhaps half a million drops.

1. What is the whole selection about? (Literal)

a. scientists b. bacteria c. houseflies d. criminals

2. What is the main idea of the first paragraph? (Inferential)

a. Scientists can easily capture flies.
b. The housefly is the number one killer of men.
c. Many people were killed during war.
d. The housefly carries millions of germs.

3. What does the second paragraph tell us? (Inferential)

a. Scientists choose the biggest housefly.
b. Scientists keep flies in a bottle.
c. Scientists examine all the flies.
d. Scientists have a method of counting germs.

4. What is the good title for the selection? (Critical)

a. The Common Housefly
b. Public Enemy Number One
c. What Scientists Do
d. Food Contamination
B.

Usually, turtles catch fish. But in at least one place in the world, fish are used to catch turtles. It
happens off the east coast of Africa.

Turtles the fish catch are big green ones. They are very good to eat. The fish are remoras are sucking
fish. Remoras are lazy. They have a kind of suction cup in place of one fin. They use this device to
hitch rides through the sea. They often hitch rides with sharks and with boats.

Several remoras are used to catch a single turtle. Each has a string tied about its tail. When then
fisherman sights a turtle, he drops a remora into the sea. It swims bigger and bigger circles until it
meets the turtle. Then it hutches a ride with the turtle. Other remoras are released. The fisherman
holds the strings until a number of fish are attached to the turtle. Then he hauls on the strings. In this
way he drags both his fish and his dinner back to his boat.

5. A remora is a special kind of _____. (Literal)

a. turtle b. fish c. shark d. dinner

6. The remora hitches a ride with the help of _____. (Literal)

a. its fins
b. string
c. a suction device
d. a sticky material it makes

7. One remora alone can easily _____. (Inferential)

a. kill a turtle
b. break a turtle’s shell
c. catch a turtle
d. hitch a ride with a turtle

8. The fisherman ties strings to the remoras so that he can _____. (Literal)
a. train them to hunt turtles
b. bring them back to his boat
c. keep them from fighting
d. tell them apart

9. When the fisherman uses remoras, he doesn’t have to _____. (Inferential)

a. use any bait
b. buy hooks or line
c. row his boat
d. all of the above

10. The fisherman hunt turtles _____. (Inferential)

a. for food b. for sport c. to sell d. all of the above
 C.
Experiments have shown that certain plants deliberately turn away from bands that are playing loud
music. Although little is known at present about this strange phenomenon, there is no doubt that
blossoms of several kinds are affected by the vibrations caused when music is played.

Carnations and cyclamens seem to be particularly sensitive to continued sounds and develop a
tendency to lean away from the loud music.

Easter lilies show a similar tendency. Some that were used as floral decorations near a stand where
brass band was playing were affected to an astonishing degree. after a few hours the blossoms had
turned their backs on the music. even when they were placed facing the stand it was not long before
each bloom reversed its position.

11. This selection as a whole is about. _____. (Critical)

a. jazz band music b. music and vibrations
c. effect of music on flowers d. Easter lilies and carnation

12. The plant part affected by music vibrations are _____. (Literal)
a. leaves b. stems c. buds d. flowers

13. The plants that dislike loud music are _____. (Inferential)
a. geraniums and hyacinths b. easter lilies and cyclamens
c. carnations and tiger lilies d. cyclamens and hyacinths

14. The blossoms in the selection have been used as _____. (Inferential)
a. floral decoration b. flower exhibits
c. garden fair display d. funeral floral arrangements

15. The music used in performing the test was _____. (Literal)
a. orchestra b. choir c. band d. male quartet

16. All lilies had turned their backs on the music after _____. (Literal)
a. a few minutes b. a few hours
c. a few days d. several days

17. The experiment showed that certain plants turn away from certain kinds of music _____.
(Inferential) a. usually b. instantly c. suddenly d. gradually

18. The tendency of some plants to turn away loud music is _____. (Inferential)
a. an undesirable occurrence b. a well-known fact
c. a strange phenomenon d. an unbelievable happening

19. Blossoms of several kinds are affected by the vibrations caused when music is played. (Critical)
a. This is denied. b. There is no doubt about this.
c. Little is known about this. d. There is much doubt about this.

20. A good title for this article would be _____. (Critical)

a. Experiments in Music b. Music-Shy Plants
c. Jazzband Music d. Music and its Effects.