Sat practice Test #8 Answer Explanations

Choice A is the best answer. That Moore’s group was surprised to 
observe salt stretching is most directly suggested by the last sentence 
of the third paragraph: “But scientists don’t expect this superplasticity 
in a rigid, crystalline material like salt, Moore says.”
Choices B, C, and D are incorrect because the cited lines don’t support 
the idea that Moore’s group was surprised to observe salt stretching. 
Instead, they explain how the group happened upon their observation 
(choice B), the measures the group took to investigate the stretching 
further (choice C), and how common salt is in nature (choice D).
QUESTION 25
Choice B is the best answer. The first sentence of the fourth paragraph 
states, “This unusual behavior highlights that different forces rule the 
nanoworld.” In this context, to “rule” most nearly means to control.
Choices A, C, and D are incorrect because in the context of a discussion 
of forces that operate on the nanoworld, to “rule” most nearly means to 
control, not to mark (choice A), declare (choice C), or restrain (choice D).

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QUESTION 26
Choice D is the best answer. The first sentence of the sixth paragraph 
identifies “electrostatic forces, perhaps good old van der Waals 
interactions” as the potential cause of the initial attraction between the 
microscope tip and the salt.
Choices A, B, and C are incorrect because the first sentence of the 
sixth paragraph clearly identifies the potential cause of the initial 
attraction between the microscope tip and the salt as van der Waals 
interactions, not as gravity (choice A), nano-imprinting (choice B), or 
surface tension (choice C).
QUESTION 27
Choice B is the best answer. The sixth paragraph says that “several 
mechanisms might lead to” salt’s elasticity. In this context, the phrase 
“lead to” most nearly means result in.
Choices A, C, and D are incorrect because in the context of something 
causing salt molecules to exhibit elasticity, the phrase “lead to” most 
nearly means result in, not guide to (choice A), point toward (choice C), 
or start with (choice D).
QUESTION 28