SAT语法模拟练习:一波糖浆

SAT语法大全(附答案)

　　A Wave of Molasses

　　On January 15, 1919, a 50-foot-tall holding tank in Boston’s North End burst. 1 2.3 million gallons of molasses that

　　weighed 26 million pounds came out. The molasses engulfed the streets. More than $100 million of property damage in

　　today’s dollars resulted, and it took over 87,000 hours to clean the streets.

　　[1] The following year, a large and expensive class action lawsuit was filed in order to hold accountable the party

　　responsible for the disaster. [2] The Superior Court condensed 119 separate claims against United States Industrial

　　Alcohol (USIA) into one proceeding. [3] USIA, however, claimed that anarchists blew up its tank. [4] It appointed an

　　“auditor” to hear the evidence and make recommendations about liability and damages. [5] The victims claimed USIA

　　committed corporate negligence.[6] It took 920 testimonies, 1,584 exhibits, and 25,000 pages of transcript to assign

　　responsibility. 2

　　The defense maintained that, because molasses made the industrial alcohol used to produce munitions for 3 World War

　　I—USIA had a plausible claim of sabotage. Rampant anarchist activity had plagued the nation, and anti-war posters

　　covered the area surrounding the tank. USIA had even received a threatening phone call before the accident. Expert

　　metallurgists constructed a replica to “prove” the tank's soundness, and records of repairs illustrated safety efforts.

　　The plaintiffs divulged that, rather than appointing a qualified engineer or architect to oversee the tank’s 4 construction,

　　but USIA had appointed an accountant to do the job. The accountant admitted that he could not read blueprints, never

　　consulted an expert, used cheap materials, and never tested the tank’s soundness. Molasses had “wept” from the tank’s

　　seams from the beginning, and USIA had ignored repeated warnings about structural insufficiencies. Instead, it painted

　　the tank brown in an effort to hide the leaking syrup. In January of 1919, the addition of warm molasses to existing cold

　　molasses 5 embarked on a fermentation process. The resulting carbon dioxide created pressure that the weak steel

　　could not withstand. The decrepit tank burst.

　　After three years of proceedings, the auditor found USIA liable and suggested it should pay damages of $300,000—the

　　equivalent of more than $30 million today. 6 Instead of rejecting the findings and going to trial before a jury, USIA chose

　　to settle the case. Ultimately, 7 we ended up paying more than double what the auditor recommended to resolve all 119

　　cases.

　　Most people at that time viewed regulations as a hindrance to economic 8 progress, however, the molasses lawsuit

　　ended the era of unrestricted Big Business with the implementation of industrial safety standards. After the judgment,

　　inspections, regulations, and corporate restrictions became commonplace. 9 Furthermore, the trial illustrated the power

　　of citizen action and encouraged people to protect 10 they’re interests. The destruction of Boston’s North End by a wave

　　of molasses set in motion events that, in turn, increased political participation and ensured the safety of millions of

　　industrial workers in the years to come. 11

　　1 Which choice most effectively combines the underlined sentences?

　　A. 2.3 million gallons of molasses came out, and that molasses, which weighed 26 million pounds, engulfed the

　　streets.

　　B. The streets were engulfed by molasses, which weighed 26 million pounds, and there were 2.3 million gallons of it.

　　C. 2.3 million gallons of molasses, weighing 26 million pounds, engulfed the streets.

　　D. Engulfing the streets, molasses—2.3 million gallons of it, weighing 26 million pounds—came out.

　　2 To make the paragraph most logical, sentence 3 should be placed

　　A. where it is now.

　　B. after sentence 1.

　　C. after sentence 4.

　　D. after sentence 5.

　　3

　　A. NO CHANGE B. World War I;

　　C. World War I

　　D. World War I,

　　4

　　A. NO CHANGE

　　B. construction,

　　C. construction yet

　　D. construction, and

　　5

　　A. NO CHANGE

　　B. initiated

　　C. inaugurated

　　D. instituted

　　6 At this point, the writer is considering adding the following sentence.

　　Also, the absence of damage to the concrete foundation and lack of evidence of explosives on site made anarchist

　　activity a more improbable cause of the explosion.

　　Should the writer make this addition here?

　　A. Yes, because it refutes USIA’s sole line of defense that anarchists sabotaged the tank.

　　B. Yes, because it provides another example of the evidence used to support the plaintiffs’ claims against USIA.

　　C. No, because it introduces information that interrupts the paragraph’s discussion of the lawsuit’s resolution.

　　D. No, because it does not prove USIA’s accountant ignored structural insufficiencies.

　　7

　　A. NO CHANGE

　　B. one

　　C. it D. he

　　8

　　A. NO CHANGE

　　B. progress, but

　　C. progress,

　　D. progress

　　9 At this point, the writer wants to provide an additional example of an outcome of the molasses lawsuit. Which choice

　　most effectively accomplishes this goal?

　　A. The economic prosperity of the Roaring ‘20s continued despite the new industrial regulations.

　　B. After World War I ended, granulated sugar became more plentiful and often replaced molasses as a sweetener in

　　food production.

　　C. More industrial oversight was in opposition to President Harding’s pro-business stance.

　　D. All states enacted engineering certification and safety specification requirements.

　　10

　　A. NO CHANGE

　　B. there

　　C. their

　　D. it’s

　　11 The writer wants a forceful conclusion that reinforces the wider significance of the molasses flood. Which choice best

　　accomplishes this goal?

　　A. These changes are the molasses disaster’s real legacy.

　　B. Rumor has it that the aroma of molasses still lingers on a hot summer day.

　　C. The $30 million molasses payout seems small compared to the huge class-action lawsuit settlements of today.

　　D. Nevertheless, engineers are now required to sign off on their blueprints.

　　CDDBB CCBDC A

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