HUMAN MIGRATION

1. The long-term movement of individuals, families, or larger groups to a new location

outside their community of origin is known as migration. Human migration occurs on various
geographic scales: from one continent or country to another, between regions within a single
country, and from one city neighborhood to another. Several factors stimulate migration,
including economic conditions, political conflict, war, cultural circumstances, and environmental
factors.
2. People migrate from source to destination in well-defined streams. [A] Many migration
streams actually consist of a series of stages, a phenomenon known as step migration. For
example, a peasant family from the countryside is likely to move first to a village, then to a
nearby town, later to a city, and finally to a metropolis—the capital or the largest city in the
region. [B] The intensity of a migration stream depends on such factors as the physical
distance and the degree of difference between the source and the destination. It also depends
on the flow of information from the destination back to the source. [C] People are likely to have
more complete and accurate information about nearby places than about places that are farther
away. [D]
3. The decision to move is the result of various stimuli, which social scientists classify as
"push” and “pull” factors. Push factors are the conditions that impel people to leave their home
communities. The lack of jobs or educational opportunities, political fear, ethnic or religious
discrimination, and natural disasters are all examples of push factors. Pull factors are the
circumstances that attract people to certain destinations, such as better living standards, the
chance of getting a job, and family connections. The circumstances that induce people to
move from one part of the world to another-economic, political, and environmental
conditions-usually involve a combination of push and pull factors. Because people are
usually more familiar with their home community than with a desired destination, they are likely
to understand push factors more accurately than pull factors. Pull factors tend to be more
vague, and people often have overly optimistic expectations of their destination.
4. Economic conditions are a leading factor in human migration. Throughout history,
poverty has driven millions of people from their homelands. Industrialization has attracted
populations to urban areas in search of economic opportunity. The flow from farms or villages to
the expanding metropolitan and industrial centers has occurred both within and between
countries. During the twentieth century, Russians moved into the new industrial centers in
Siberia, Chinese migrated to Manchuria and Southeast Asia, and Africans moved from tribal
areas into the mining regions of South Africa and Congo. Today, perceived opportunities in
destinations such as Western Europe and North America encourage numerous migrants to
search for a better life. Some workers migrate only seasonally or temporarily. Especially in
newly industrializing areas, workers tend to retain their village roots and return home after a
period of earning in a factory or mine. However, most migrants relocate permanently, and the
growing urban populations worldwide are composed of people who have cut themselves off
from their roots.
5. The twentieth century saw an increase in migratory flows caused by the push factors of
political oppression, revolution, and war. Refugees fled from Russia after the 1917 revolution,
from Germany and Italy during the Nazi and Fascist regimes, and from Eastern Europe after the
Second World War. Millions of people were uprooted as a result of political, cultural, and
religious conflict. The partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 led to the uprooting and
resettlement of around 14 million Muslims and Hindus—the largest single movement of people
in a short period. The armed conflict in the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s drove as many
as three million people from their homes. In the same decade, a civil war in Rwanda forced
more than two million Rwandans from their homeland.
6. Reasons for migration include environmental conditions, often in combination with
economic and political problems. A major historical example is the Irish famine of the 1840s,
when prolonged rains and blight destroyed the potato crop. The resulting famine, along with the
oppressive political system, caused hundreds of thousands of peasants to migrate from Ireland
to North America. In recent decades, a series of droughts resulting from successive rainless
seasons in sub-Saharan Africa, combined with such factors as ethnic strife and civil war, have
caused large-scale migrations and a growing refugee crisis in the region.

QUESTIONS
1. In paragraph 1, the author makes the point that
A. there are similarities between human migration and animal migration
B. most people who migrate move to another region in their home country
C. human migration varies in the distance traveled and the factors involved
D. we understand only some of the conditions that cause people to migrate

2. Which statement best describes step migration?

A. A family systematically lists their reasons for leaving home
B. A village man moves to the city to work to support his family.
C. Workers migrate seasonally to wherever jobs are available.
D. A family moves a relatively short distance several times.

3. All of the following are identified as conditions that may push people to move away from their
place of origin EXCEPT
A. the inability to find employment
B. prejudice based on religion
C. a high standard of living
D. environmental disasters
4. Which sentence below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence
in paragraph 3? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential
information.
A. Only when conditions at home become unbearable will people migrate to another
country.
B. Push factors are more powerful than pull factors in stimulating human migration.
C. The three leading causes of migration are economics, politics, and environmental
change.
D. The decision to migrate a great distance normally results from both push and pull
factors.

5. In can be inferred from paragraph 3 that

A. governments encourage migration by describing push and pull factors
B. few migrants fully understand why they leave their home countries
C. people may overestimate the chance of finding work in their chose destination
D. the same factors that pull people to one place may push away other people

6. In stating in paragraph 4 that the growing urban populations worldwide are composed of
people who have cut themselves off from their roots, the author means that these people
A. come from a variety of cultural backgrounds
B. have chosen no to return to their villages
C. will eventually forget their native language
D. feel homesick and regret moving to the city

7. Paragraph 5 supports which of the following statements about migration?

A. More people migrated during the twentieth century than in any other period.
B. Most migration is the product of our human desire to find meaning in life.
C. Political circumstances are a major factor driving numerous migration streams.
D. International migration will continue to increase because of war and revolution.

8. In paragraph 6, the author provides two examples to illustrate that

A. other factors join environmental factors in causing migration
B. famine and drought are caused by political corruption
C. push and pull factors in migration can not easily be separated
D. migration caused by environmental conditions will increase
9. Look at the four brackets [A], [B], [C], [D] in paragraph 2, which indicate where the following
sentence could be added to the passage. Where would the sentence best fit?

Consequently, the majority of migrants move only a short distance.

10. An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete
the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in
the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that
are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2
points.

Humans migrate on a variety of geographic scales and for several reasons.

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Answer Choices
A. Migration can occur as a log stream to a distant location or as a series of short moves to
a nearby destination.
B. People are more likely to migrate a short distance than they are to migrate to another
continent.
C. Migration results from circumstances that either push people to leave their homes or pull
them to new destinations.
D. The largest migration in history occurred when 14 million people relocated after the
partition of India and Pakistan.
E. Environmental disaster and political factors caused the large flow of migrants from
Ireland to North America
F. Economic, political, cultural, and environmental conditions are major factors in human
migration.
 THE EFFECTS OF SLEEP DEPRIVATION
1. Sleep restores the body and the mind and helps prevent disease by strengthening the
immune system. However, many adults do not get the recommended eight hours of sleep each
night. The average adult today gets only 6.4 hours of sleep, nearly an hour and a half less than
what the average person received a century ago. Only in recent years have health
professionals begun to realize the prevalence and severity of sleep deprivation in the
working population. A significant number of people work at night, work long shifts, or suffer
from insomnia or jet lag. Others are deprived of sleep because they work too hard, stay out too
late, or try to do too many things in a day. Adults who regularly sleep six hours or less might
think they accomplish more by staying up late, but they pay for it the next day when they feel
sleepy or irritable or are unable to concentrate, remember things, or be very effective at their
work.
2. Studies show that the brain is adversely affected by sleep deprivation because certain
patterns of electrical and chemical activity that occur during sleep are interrupted and the brain
cannot function normally. In one study, thirteen healthy adult subjects who usually had normal
sleep patterns were kept awake and carefully monitored in a hospital sleep laboratory during a
period of 35 hours. During the experiment, the subjects were asked to perform several cognitive
tasks, such as arithmetic and word problems, while undergoing magnetic resonance scans of
their brain activity. The scans recorded each subject's brain activity from a rested state through
various stages of sleep deprivation over the 35-hour period. The scans produced images
showing increased activity in some regions of the brain and decreased activity in others. The
researchers found that the temporal lobe of the brain, the region involved in language
processing, was activated during verbal tasks in rested subjects but not in sleep-deprived
subjects. When subjects were fully rested, their magnetic resonance scans showed that the
temporal lobe was very active. However, after several hours without sleep, there was no activity
within this region. The effects of the inactivity included slurred speech in the subjects who had
gone for prolonged periods with no sleep.
3. [A] Several studies show that getting fewer than six hours of sleep a night can impair
short term memory, coordination, reaction time, and judgment—thus posing a serious risk of
accident or injury. [B] In one study of drivers, researchers reported that sleep deprivation had
some of the same hazardous effects as being drunk. [C] They found that people who drove
after being awake for 17 to 19 hours performed worse than those with a blood alcohol level of
.05 percent, the legal limit for drunk driving in most western European countries. The study also
found that 16 to 60 percent of road accidents involved sleep deprivation. The researchers
concluded that countries with drunk driving laws should consider similar restrictions against
sleep-deprived driving. [D]
4. There are other problems associated with sleep deprivation beyond impaired motor skills
and judgment. Drivers who get too little sleep may have higher levels of stress, anxiety and
depression, may take unnecessary risks, or may express rage toward other drivers. These
dangers affect not only drivers but also people who work long shifts or night shifts, such as
medical personnel and other emergency workers. The dangers of sleep deprivation go far
beyond the obvious risks and can, in fact, undermine all areas of an individual's physical and
mental health.
5. Sleep deprivation weakens the immune system, making an individual more prone to
diseases such as the common cold and diabetes. Without sleep, the number of disease-fighting
white blood cells within the body decreases, as does the activity of the remaining white blood
cells. Sleep deprivation has been linked to a decrease in the body's production of hormones
such as insulin. Results of a recent study suggested that healthy young adults who regularly got
under 6.5 hours of sleep a night had greater insulin resistance than people who got 7.5 to 8.5
hours of sleep. Insulin resistance is a silent condition in which the pancreas does not make
enough insulin or the body is unable to use the insulin that is present. Thus, the muscle and
liver cells cannot metabolize the sugar called glucose. As a result, glucose builds up in the
bloodstream, setting the stage for diabetes and heart disease.

QUESTIONS
1. Which sentence below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence
in paragraph 1? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential
information.
A. A century ago, health professionals did not experience sleep deprivation; however, now
it is a part of their jobs.
B. It is difficult to understand why health professionals have not studied the consequences
of sleep deprivation.
C. Sleep deprivation used to affect only certain professions, but now it occurs in all sectors
of the working population.
D. Health professionals have just started to understand that sleep deprivation in workers is
a serious problem.

2. The passage mentions all of the following as causes of sleep deprivation EXCEPT
A. jet lag
B. long work hours
C. boring work
D. working at night

3. The purpose of the study described in paragraph 2 was to determine

A. how many hours people can survive without sleep
B. how people react when their sleep is interrupted
C. the changes in brain activity that occur during sleep
D. the effects of sleep deprivation on brain activity
4. According to paragraph 2, what did researchers learn about subjects who had gone several
hours without sleep?
A. The subjects were unable to complete simple word problems.
B. The subjects had no activity in part of the brain during verbal tasks.
C. The subjects could solve some cognitive tasks better than others.
D. The subjects felt irritable and expressed anger in their speech.

5. Why does the author mention blood alcohol level in paragraph 3?

A. To show how sleep deprivation reduces the blood alcohol level
B. To compare the effects of sleep deprivation and alcohol
C. To suggest that sleep-deprived drivers are also likely to drink
D. To argue against raising the legal limit for drunk driving

6. It can be inferred from paragraph 4 that medical personnel and other emergency workers
A. are at risk for experiencing anxiety and depression
B. are more likely than drivers to be deprived of sleep
C. are not aware that they may suffer from sleep deprivation
D. are rarely able to find jobs with daytime hours

7. According to the passage, sleep deprivation can affect the body’s immune system by
A. increasing the number of white blood cells
B. decreasing the body’s resistance to insulin
C. reducing the body’s ability to make or use insulin
D. raising the heart rate and blood pressure

8. The phrase setting the stage in paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to

A. lowering the risk
B. changing the treatments
C. eliminating the cure
D. providing the conditions

9. Look at the four squares [A], [B], [C], [D] in paragraph 3 which indicate where the following
sentence could be added to the passage. Where would the sentence best fit?

Drivers are especially at risk, and fatigue caused by sleep deprivation causes thousands
of traffic accidents every year.
10. An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete
the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in
the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that
are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2
points.

Sleep deprivation affects the human body in numerous ways.

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Answer Choices
A. The average adult gets only 6.4 hours of sleep a night, which is less than the
recommended 8 hours.
B. Depression, illness, pain and discomfort at night, and significant life stress are common
causes of insomnia.
C. Lack of sleep disrupts normal activity in parts of the brain, affecting one’s ability to
perform certain tasks.
D. Subjects in one study were deprived of sleep for 35 hours, and their brain activity was
scanned by magnetic resonance.
E. Sleep deprivation can have effects similar to being drunk, such as impairment of motor
skills and judgment.
F. Not getting enough sleep can weaken the immune system and harm a person’s physical
and mental health.