The Angiosperm Revolution
1. Which of the sentences below best expresses the
essential information in the highlighted sentence in
the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning
in important ways or leave out essential
information.
A. Angiosperms gradually replaced gymnosperms
and ferns when these became extinct during the
early Mesozoic.
B. Angiosperms began to evolve from earlier plants
such as gymnosperms during the late Mesozoic, and
gymnosperms now exist only as ferns in certain wet
habitats.
C. Angiosperms have replaced gymnosperms, even
in the wet habitats where gymnosperms were
formerly dominant.
D. Angiosperms succeeded at the expense of earlier
plants such as ferns and gymnosperms, which now
exist in limited habitats or have become completely
extinct.
2. What can be inferred from paragraph 1 about
conifer plants?
A. They were more common than angiosperms
through the mid- Mesozoic.
B. Like angiosperms, they are a relatively recent
development in plant evolution.
C. They can be found in most of the same habitats
as angiosperms.
D. They arose at about the same time as ferns.
Paragraph 1
Of all the kinds of modern land plants one group
dominates: the angiosperms, or flowering plants.
With over 250,000 living species, they are the
majority of plants of most habitats---except
marine environments, which are still habitats for
the more primitive algae. But angiosperms were a
comparatively recent development in plant
evolution. They arose in the mid-Mesozoic
(approximately 200 million years ago to 145
million years ago), but by about 100 million years
ago they had pushed the conifers (plants having
cone-shaped reproductive structures rather than
flowers for reproduction) into the background. Even
earlier types of plants such as ferns are now
restricted to certain wet habitats, and many of the
dominant gymnosperms (plants with exposed seeds,
such as conifers) of the early Mesozoic have now
been largely replaced by angiosperms; the formerly
dominant gymnosperms that did not become
completely extinct now survive in comparatively
few places.
3. The word “random” in the passage is closest in
meaning to
A. rare
B. seasonal
C. steady
D. chance
4. According to paragraph 2, which of the following
describes the most common method of fertilization
used by angiosperms?
A. Pollen is transported from one flower to another
by the wind.
B. Pollinators deposit pollen as they move from
flowers of one species to flowers of other species.
C. Angiosperms pollinate their own ovules in a
process called self- fertilization.
D. Pollen is carried from one flower to another by a
flying insect or other creatures.
5. According to paragraph 2, the carpel of an
angiosperm flower performs each of the following
functions EXCEPT:
A. It keeps the egg-producing organs from drying
out.
B. It helps guide the pollinator to the ovules.
C. It keeps plant-eating insects away from the
ovules of the flower.
D. It helps to prevent fungal infections.
Paragraph 2
Why were the angiosperms so successful? A major
advantage they have over more primitive plants is
their efficient mode of reproduction--the flower and
all of its complex reproductive mechanisms that
ensure success. Instead of the inefficient
wind-pollinated gymnosperm seed, which wastes a
huge amount of pollen and is dependent on random
breezes, angiosperms have evolved flowers
specifically as devices to attract pollinators--mainly
insects (especially moths, butterflies, and bees) but
also birds, bats, and other flying creatures. The
pollinators ensure that the pollen is carried directly
from one flower of the same species to another,
which is more efficient than relying on the wind.
This process of delivery is called cross-pollination.
The reproductive cycle is highly modified: the
ovules (egg-producing organs) are fully enclosed
within protective covers called carpels, which form
the core of the flower. The carpel protects the ovule
from drying out, from fungal infection, and from
predation by plant-eating insects. Pollen-producing
organs called stamens are surrounded by petals
(which serve to attract the pollinator and guide it
to the ovules in many cases) and an outer covering
of sepals for protection. Typically, a pollinator gets
pollen stuck onto it as it climbs into a flower,
seeking the nectar that is generated to lure it. The
ovule is usually pollinated by the sperm carried
from a different flower, thus minimizing
self-fertilization (but angiosperms can also
self-fertilize if cross-pollination is not possible).
6. According to paragraph 3, one advantage of
double fertilization is that
A. it makes it possible for two plant embryos to be
created at the same time
B. allows angiosperms to create food only for seeds
that have been fertilized
C. increases the chances that pollen will be properly
delivered
D. allows angiosperms to produce more food for the
embryo than gymnosperms do
7. According to paragraph 4, which of the following
statements about gymnosperms is true?
A. Gymnosperms do not grow rapidly enough to
survive in highly seasonal climates.
B. Gymnosperms require more than a single season
to complete the reproductive process.
C. Gymnosperms generally reproduce at
approximately one-year intervals.
D. Many gymnosperms are considered to be
annuals.
Paragraph 3
Once the pollen has been delivered, a pollen tube
transports the sperm to the ovules. Here
angiosperms have another advantage: double
fertilization. The pollen carry two sperm nuclei, one
of which fuses with the egg nucleus to form the
embryo, the other of which fuses with two other
nuclei to form a food supply for the embryo. This
means that angiosperms don't need to invest a lot of
energy creating food stores for each seed until it is
fertilized (unlike gymnosperms, which create food
even for infertile seeds).
Paragraph 4
The entire process of fertilization and producing an
embryo takes place in only a few weeks or days, so
angiosperms can sprout, flower, reproduce, and die
in a single season if necessary. By contrast, most
gymnosperms are slow to grow and reproduce
(usually taking at least eighteen months between
reproductive cycles) and cannot accomplish the
entire process in a single season. For gymnosperms
such as evergreen conifers to live in highly seasonal,
cold-winter climates, they must be able to survive
the cold and shut down much of their
physiological systems during winter. Many
angiosperms, on the other hand, are annuals-
sprouting in the spring, flowering, and producing
seeds that can survive until the next winter while
the rest of the plant dies. This rapid reproduction
enables them to quickly exploit habitats that other
plants cannot.
8. Why does the author ask the reader to “Think of
how quickly the grass grows back after you mow it
(or an animal grazes it "?
A. To make it clear why most people know that
angiosperms have rapid growth rates
B. To admit that characteristics that are
advantageous to angiosperms may cause problems
for some plant-eating animals
C. To provide a familiar illustration of another
advantage of angiosperms
D. To give an example of a common type of
angiosperm
9. Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where
the following sentence could be added to the
passage.
Because the flowers are visually attractive and
have sweet fragrances they draw pollinators to
them.
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a
square [■] to add the sentence to the passage.
Paragraph 5
Finally, angiosperms are known not only for their
rapid growth rates but for their ability to grow back
quickly after they have been munched by animals.
Think of how quickly the grass grows back after
you mow it (or an animal grazes it). By contrast,
ferns cannot grow back so quickly after they have
been heavily eaten, and often die if the damage is
too great (such as when an animal eats the growing
tip of the plant)- whereas many angiosperms can be
eaten right down to their roots but grow back again.
Paragraph 2
Why were the angiosperms so successful? ▋A
major advantage they have over more primitive
plants is their efficient mode of reproduction--the
flower and all of its complex reproductive
mechanisms that ensure success. Instead of the
inefficient wind-pollinated gymnosperm seed,
which wastes a huge amount of pollen and is
dependent on random breezes, angiosperms have
evolved flowers specifically as devices to attract
pollinators--mainly insects (especially moths,
butterflies, and bees) but also birds, bats, and other
flying creatures. ▋The pollinators ensure that the
pollen is carried directly from one flower of the
same species to another, which is more efficient
than relying on the wind. ▋This process of delivery
is called cross-pollination. ▋ The reproductive
cycle is highly modified: the ovules (egg-producing
organs) are fully enclosed within protective covers
called carpels, which form the core of the flower.
The carpel protects the ovule from drying out, from
fungal infection, and from predation by plant-eating
insects. Pollen-producing organs called stamens are
surrounded by petals (which serve to attract the
pollinator and guide it to the ovules in many cases)
and an outer covering of sepals for protection.
Typically, a pollinator gets pollen stuck onto it as it
climbs into a flower, seeking the nectar that is
generated to lure it. The ovule is usually pollinated
by the sperm carried from a different flower, thus
minimizing self-fertilization (but angiosperms can
also self-fertilize if cross-pollination is not possible).
10. Directions: 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.

By about 100 million years ago, angiosperms had become the dominant group of land plants.

Answer Choices

A. Unlike earlier types of plants such as conifers and other gymnosperms, angiosperms developed
adaptations that help them succeed both on land and in many marine environments.

B. An angiosperm's flowers both protect the plant's egg-producing organs and bring in pollinators, which
carry pollen between plants much more efficiently than the wind does.

C. Angiosperms can exploit habitats that other plants cannot because they can sprout, flower, and reproduce
very quickly, and they produce seeds that can survive while the rest of the plant dies.

D. Gymnosperms have an advantage over angiosperms in their ability to survive more than one season, even
in very cold temperatures.

E. Because angiosperm pollen carries two sperm nuclei it can fertilize twice as many seeds as gymnosperm
pollen can.

F. Unlike many other types of plants, angiosperms can quickly recover from damage caused by predators, in
many cases even when the plants have been eaten right down to their roots.
 The Beginnings of Agriculture
1. The word "deliberately" in the passage
A. as a group
B. in large quantities
C. on purpose
D. with great success
2. According to paragraph 1, which of the following
best characterizes the Neolithic Revolution?
A. Humans lived by gathering wild plants and
hunting wild animals
B. People significantly improved their techniques
for hunting animals and gathering wild plants.
C. Plants and animals were domesticated for the
first time.
D. People migrated with plants and animals from
the Near East to western Europe.
3. According to paragraph 2, people may have
reacted to the warming of the climate by
A. staying where they had settled
B. looking for new kinds of wild foods to eat
C. developing new ways to prepare foods for eating
D. growing plants that they previously did not like
4. According to paragraph 2, which of the following
is NOT a possible reason humans began to
domesticate wild foods?
A. People wanted access to their preferred foods
without changing locations.
B. There was a larger population to feed
C. Humans had developed some agricultural
techniques over time
D. People migrated to areas where new ways of
obtaining food were needed.
Paragraph 1
After the end of the last ice age, humans who had
lived by hunting and gathering began to grow plants
deliberately and domesticate wild animals for
food--the beginning of agriculture. This change in
how human communities supported themselves is
known as the Neolithic Revolution. In the Near East,
some grains, legumes, and animals were
domesticured as long as eleven thousand years ago
(about 9000 B.C. ). In Europe, there is evidence that
farming began being practiced in parts of Greece
and Bulgaria about 5500 B.C., but it did not reach
western Europe until later.
Paragraph 2
We do not know exactly why humans first began to
domesticate and cultivate wild foods. Perhaps
humans who had become settled in one area did not
want to migrate as the climate warmed: instead of
moving to where their preferred sources of food
were more abundant, they sought to increase the
availability of these foods in their own area.
Another possibility is that mortality decreased in
some communities as they became more settled,
leading to population explosions that caused people
to look for ways of increasing the food supply.
Some agricultural techniques may have developed
gradually over a long period of time, as people
intervened more and more in the wild environment,
for example, by fencing in the animals they hunted
or weeding out plants they did not like. When crises
occurred, they responded by exploiting these
techniques more intensively.
5. According to paragraph 3, agriculture changed
societies in all of the following ways EXCEPT:
A. It accelerated population growth.
B. It supported large building or construction
projects
C. It created a more equal distribution of food
resources
D. It allowed people to engage in professions other
than farming
6. According to paragraph 4. the small clay tokens
discovered at archaeological sites were first used to
A. indicate how many days people worked
B. keep track of amounts of grain or farm animals
C. buy and sell manufactured goods
D. develop a system of writing
Paragraph 3
Over time, agriculture resulted in important changes
in the way people lived. As a result of a diet richer
in grain they probably accumulated more body fat,
which increased fertility in women and led to larger,
denser populations. In an agricultural economy it is
easier to acquire and store a surplus beyond what is
necessary for survival: this allowed some people to
control more resources than others to become rich,
and these economic inequalities led to social
inequalities and more complicated social systems.
Surpluses could also be used to support members of
the community--craftsmen, musicians, and priests,
for example--who did not need to spend all their
time farming or foraging (moving around in search
of food) for subsistence: thus agricultural societies
tended to become more culturally sophisticated. A
large surplus might support labor force for a major
project, such as an irrigation system or a monument.
Such projects imply not only economic resources
but also leadership--some individuals began to
assert authority over others in the community.
Paragraph 4
One of the most important innovations of this
period was a way of recording information.
Agriculturalists needed a way to keep trace of the
goods they stored, especially as society became
more stratified and elites collected goods from
others to redistribute to their families and
dependents. Archaeologists at numerous sites
throughout the Near East have discovered small
clay tokens, often in simple geometric shapes, that
were used to signify quantities of grain and
livestock and, later, manufactured goods and
economic units such as a day's work. Later, these
tokens would evolve into the first systems of
writing.
7. What is the author's purpose in mentioning that Paragraph 5
"a few small populations of foragers remain even
today"? The Neolithic Revolution did not happen all at once.
A. To suggest that some societies have strongly Agriculture and foraging are not mutually exclusive
resisted the transition to agriculture ways of living, and for a while people practiced
B. To compare today's foragers to the foragers of both. And while farming began in the Near East
the earlier Paleolithic period about 9000 B.C., it did not reach Britain until 4000
C. To challenge the account of the Neolithic B.C.; a few small populations of foragers remain
Revolution accepted by most historians even today. But compared to the earlier Paleolithic
D. To further emphasize the idea that the transition period, social, economic, cultural, and technological
to agriculture has been a gradual process changes have taken place at an astounding rate
since the invention of agriculture. This may have
8. According to paragraph 5, why was the Neolithic been the most important event in the history of our
Revolution so significant? species.
A. It happened at the same time in widely separated
populations
B. It was limited to a relatively small geographic
area.
C. It was destructive to human groups that resisted
the changes it brought.
D. It caused major changes to happen in human
society in a relatively short time.

Paragraph 6

The shift to agriculture should not necessarily be

viewed as simple "progress." As we have noted,
social inequality is an inextricable component of the
complexity that resulted from Neolithic innovations.
There is good evidence that agriculture made life
harder in many ways. For example, it requires much
more work than hunting and gathering. Studies of
Neolithic human skeletons also show that
agricultural societies were more vulnerable to
infectious disease, no doubt because they tended to
have denser, more settled populations than hunters
and gatherers. Archaeologists have also found more
evidence of malnutrition in these populations,
perhaps because of their dependence on a single
crop that might fail.
9. Look at the four squares [  ] that indicate where
the following sentence could be added to the
passage.
In addition to requiring more labor, the
adoption of agriculture negatively affected
important aspects of human health.
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a
square [] to add thesentence to the passaae
Paragraph 6
The shift to agriculture should not necessarily be
viewed as simple "progress."  As we have noted,
social inequality is an inextricable component of the
complexity that resulted from Neolithic innovations.
 There is good evidence that agriculture made life
harder in many ways.  For example, it requires
much more work than hunting and gathering. 
Studies of Neolithic human skeletons also show that
agricultural societies were more vulnerable to
infectious disease, no doubt because they tended to
have denser, more settled populations than hunters
and gatherers. Archaeologists have also found more
evidence of malnutrition in these populations,
perhaps because of their dependence on a single
crop that might fail.
10. Dir ections: 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 the express ideas that are not presented in the
passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is wor th 2 points.

The transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture is known as the Neolithic Revolution.

Answer Choices

A. In some parts of the world people began cultivating plants and domesticating animals because hunting
and gathering became impossible as the climate warmed.

B. Agriculture developed in different parts of the world at different times, and it was initially practiced
simultaneously with foraging.

C. Climate changes or rapid population growth may have contributed to the development of agriculture, but
the reasons for the shift are unknown.

D. Agriculture produced enough food to allow human groups to become more socially complex, but it also
resulted in inequalities and hardships.

E. Early agricultural societies quickly learned to plant a variety of crops so that surpluses could be
maintained even if one crop failed.

F. Members of the community who did not spend their time foraging or farming were given small clay
tokens to exchange for surplus grain.
 The Greenhouse Effect on Venus
1. Which of the sentences below best expresses the
essential information in the highlighted sentence in
the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning
in important ways or leave out essential
information.
A. Earth's actual surface temperature differs from
its expected temperature when increased
atmospheric gases and thermal radiation are
present.
B. Earth's average surface temperature is
significantly higher than it would be if its
atmosphere did not contain gases that prevent
thermal radiation from escaping.
C. Nitrogen and oxygen in the atmosphere account
for the difference between the actual and expected
surface temperature of Earth.
D. Water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases are
prevented from leaving the atmosphere by a partial
blanket of thermal radiation.
2. According to paragraph 2, all of the following are
true of Mars ЕXСЕРТ:
A. Its greenhouse effect is more significant than
Earth's is.
B. Its atmosphere consists mainly of carbon
dioxide.
C. It has a much lower atmospheric pressure than
Earth does.
D. Its atmosphere is not as thick as Earth's
atmosphere is.
Paragraph 1
The nitrogen and oxygen gases that make up the
bulk of Earth's atmosphere neither absorb nor emit
thermal radiation, energy that is released from hot
surfaces as electromagnetic waves. It is the water
vapor, carbon dioxide, and some other minor gases
present in the atmosphere that absorb some of the
thermal radiation leaving the surface, acting as a
partial blanket for this radiation and causing the
difference between the actual average surface
temperature on Earth (about 15C) and the expected
temperature if the atmosphere contained nitrogen
and oxygen only (about -6C). This blanketing is
known as the natural greenhouse effect, and the
gases are known as greenhouse gases.
Paragraph 2
Greenhouse effects similar to those on Earth also
occur on our planetary neighbors, Mars and Venus.
Mars is smaller than Earth and possesses, by Earth's
standards, a very thin atmosphere. A barometer on
the surface of Mars would record an atmospheric
pressure less than 1 percent of that on Earth. Its
atmosphere, which consists almost entirely of
carbon dioxide, contributes a small but significant
greenhouse effect.
3. The word "hostile" in the passage is closest in
meaning to
A. unexpected
B. specific
C. unfavorable
D. inconsistent
4. Paragraph 3 supports which of the following
statements about the measurement of barometric
pressure on Venus?
A. Barometric pressure cannot be measured with a
standard barometer used to measure Earth's
pressure.
B. Barometric pressure is most accurately measured
in the morning and evening when Venus is seen
close to the Sun.
C. It is difficult to get an accurate measurement of
barometric pressure on Venus because of the size of
Venus.
D. A measurement of barometric pressure on Venus
would produce similar results to a measurement of
barometric pressure obtained from Mars.
5. In paragraph 3, why does the author report the
findings of some Russian space probes about light
on the surface of Venus?
A. To explain why Venus' pressure is so much
higher than Earth's pressure
B. To provide an example of the progress that has
been achieved in the study of the surface of Venus
C. To provide evidence that Venus' atmosphere
prevents most sunlight from reaching the surface
D. To support the conclusion that Venus and Earth
have similar lighting conditions at dusk
6. The temperature measurements from the Russian
space probes are discussed in paragraph 3 as being
important because they
A. provided the first accurate measurement of the
temperature on Venus
B. corrected a possible misconception about the
effects of limited sunlight on Venus
C. helped explain the dusklike conditions on Venus
D. provided evidence that the surface of Venus is
hotter than the surfaces of both Earth and Mars
Paragraph 3
The planet Venus, which can often be seen fairly
close to the Sun in the morning or evening sky, has
a very different atmosphere from Mars's. Venus is
about the same size as Earth. A barometer for use
on Venus would need to survive very hostile
conditions and would need to be able to measure a
pressure about one hundred times as great as that on
Earth. Within Venus' atmosphere, which consists
very largely of carbon dioxide, deep clouds
consisting of droplets of almost pure sulphuric acid
completely cover the planet and prevent most of the
sunlight from reaching the surface. Some Russian
space probes that have landed there have recorded
what would be dusk like conditions on Earth only 1
or 2 percent of the sunlight present above the clouds
penetrates to the surface. One might suppose,
because of the small amount of solar energy
available to keep the surface warm, that it would be
rather cool; on the contrary, measurements from the
same Russian space probes find a temperature there
of about 525 C-a dull red heat in fact.
Paragraph 4
The reason for this very high temperature is the
greenhouse effect. Because of the very thick
absorbing atmosphere of carbon dioxide, little of
the thermal radiation from the surface can get out.
The atmosphere acts as such an effective radiation
blanket that, although there is not much solar
energy to warm the surface, the greenhouse effect
amounts to nearly 500c.
7. According to paragraph 5, the runaway
greenhouse effect on Venus was probably
characterized by all of the following ЕXСЕРТ:
A. an early atmosphere containing large quantities
of water vapor
B. a warming of the temperature at the surface of
the planet
C. an ongoing cycle in which increasing amounts of
water became water vapor
D. a continuous process of gas entering and leaving
the planet's interior
8. According to paragraph 6, why did Earth not
experience a runaway greenhouse effect of the kind
that occurred on Venus?
A. Earth's early atmosphere became saturated with
water vapor.
B. The chemical composition of Earth's surface
protected it from the effects of greenhouse gases.
C. Earth's early surface reflected more solar energy
per square meter than did Venus' surface.
D. Earth's position in relation to the Sun gave it a
lower initial temperature.
Paragraph 5
What occurs on Venus is an example of what has
been called the "runaway" greenhouse effect. It can
be explained by imagining the early history of the
Venus atmosphere, which was formed by the
release of gases from the interior of the planet. At
first the atmosphere would contain a lot of water
vapor, a powerful greenhouse gas. The greenhouse
effect of the water vapor would cause the
temperature at the surface to rise. The increased
temperature would lead to more evaporation of
water from the surface, causing more atmospheric
water vapor, a larger greenhouse effect, and
therefore a further increased surface temperature.
The process would continue until either the
atmosphere became saturated with water vapor or
all the available water had evaporated.
Paragraph 6
A runaway sequence something like this seems to
have occurred on Venus. Why, we may ask, has it
not happened on Earth, a planet of about the same
size as Venus and, so far as is known, of a similar
initial chemical composition? The reason is that
Venus is closer to the Sun than is Earth; the amount
of solar energy per square meter falling on Venus is
about twice that falling on Earth. The surface of
Venus, when there was no atmosphere, would have
started off at a temperature of just over 50C.
Throughout the sequence described above for
Venus, water on the surface would have been
continuously boiling. Because of the high
temperature, the atmosphere would never have
become saturated with water vapor. Earth, however,
would have started at a colder temperature; at each
stage of the sequence, it would have arrived at an
equilibrium in which the oceans never became hot
enough to evaporate.
9. Look at the four squares ■ that indicate where the
following sentence could be added to the passage.
In general, this means that a chain of events was
set in motion, with each event building on the
previous one to continually raise temperatures.
Where would the sentence best fit ？ Click on a
square ■ to add the sentence to the passage
Paragraph 5
What occurs on Venus is an example of what has
been called the "runaway" greenhouse effect. ■ It
can be explained by imagining the early history of
the Venus atmosphere, which was formed by the
release of gases from the interior of the planet. ■ At
first the atmosphere would contain a lot of water
vapor, a powerful greenhouse gas. ■ The
greenhouse effect of the water vapor would cause
the temperature at the surface to rise. ■ The
increased temperature would lead to more
evaporation of water from the surface, causing
more atmospheric water vapor, a larger greenhouse
effect, and therefore a further increased surface
temperature. The process would continue until
either the atmosphere became saturated with water
vapor or all the available water had evaporated.
10. Directions: 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.

Venus's greenhouse effect is greater than that on Mars or Earth.

Answer Choices

A. Though Venus's thick atmosphere blocks most sunlight from reaching its surface, it also warms the planet
by preventing the escape of thermal radiation.

B. In its early history Venus experienced a runaway greenhouse effect, in which water on the surface was
repeatedly heated and continually evaporated into the atmosphere.

C. Earth avoided a runaway greenhouse effect like that on Venus because it did not receive enough solar
energy for surface water to boil away.

D. Earth has a small greenhouse effect in comparison with other planets because there is relatively little
thermal radiation leaving Earth's interior.

E. A barometer on the surface of Mars could survive better than one on Venus, because Mars's atmospheric
pressure is much lower than that on Venus.

F. During the early years of its greenhouse effect, Earth-unlike Venus-was able to retain much of its surface
water because its atmosphere does not contain large amounts of sulphuric acid.