B. TRITON’S SIMILAR DENSITY AND COMPOSITION TO QUAOAR ARE EVIDENCE...

15. b. Triton’s similar density and composition to Quaoar are evidence that indicate that it is an objectthat was captured by Neptune’s gravity at some point in the early formation of the solar system.

L e s s o n s a n d P r a c t i c e Q u e s t i o n s

Types of Scientific Reasoning Test QuestionsThe science component of the ACT is a test in reasoning. You will do well if you hone your skills in:

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recognizing a pattern in scientific data.

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understanding and analyzing scientific material.

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interpreting graphs, charts, tables, and diagrams.

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summarizing observations of an experiment.

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making generalizations.

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making comparisons.

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supporting a generalization or hypothesis.

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predicting behavior given a pattern or trend.

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making inferences based on the information provided.

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drawing conclusions based on the information provided.The following lessons will help you master these skills, so that even if you have never taken physics, youwill be able to answer a physics question correctly, just by carefully reading the passage.While it’s a good idea to get comfortable with a basic science vocabulary, memorizing your science text-book and every equation in it will not necessarily help you. To prepare for this exam, you shouldn’t study, youshould practice, practice, practice. This means, review as many examples as you come across, and take as manypractice tests as you can get your hands on. Make sure that after scoring your practice tests, you go back tothe questions you answered incorrectly or to the questions you were unsure about. Read science-related arti-cles in newspapers and technical journals. Think about the charts, graphs, and diagrams you come across, evenif they are not science related. This way you will get used to dealing with unfamiliar technical terms and inter-preting graphical information. Sound good? Let’s begin.

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EPRESENTATION

Graphics are a concise and organized way of presenting information. Once you realize that all graphics havesome common basic elements, it will not matter whether the information presented in them is in the area ofbiology, chemistry, earth and space science, physics, or even bubble gum sales.Consider the following train schedule:

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.Congers Station 12:21 3:20 6:19 9:19 12:19 3:19 6:19 9:19New City 12:32 3:30 6:30 9:30 12:30 3:30 6:30 9:30Valley Cottage 12:39 3:37 6:37 9:37 12:37 3:37 6:37 9:37Nyack 12:48 3:45 6:46 9:46 12:46 3:46 6:46 9:46West Nyack 12:53 3:53 6:54 9:54 12:54 3:54 6:54 9:54Bardonia 1:06 4:03 7:05 10:05 1:05 4:05 7:05 10:05By looking at the table, you can determine:

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the times the trains leave Congers Station (12:21

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., 3:20

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., 6:19

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., 9:19

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., 12:19

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the times they get to West Nyack (12:53

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., 3:53

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., 6:54

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how often the trains run (about every 3 hours).

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how long it takes the train to get from New City to Valley Cottage (7 minutes).Imagine how many lines of text would be required to describe this schedule without using a table, andhow much more confusing and complicated it would be for a passenger to get the basic information in theexamples above. The point is that tables, graphs, charts, figures, and diagrams are useful and without realiz-ing it, you analyze graphical information on a daily basis.The only difference between these everyday encounters of graphical information and the ACT is thaton this test the information in the graphics will be of a scientific nature and you may run into words or con-cepts you have never heard of before. But just because you don’t know what a diffusion coefficient, a refrac-tive index, or a stem cell is, it doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to analyze graphical information in whichthese unfamiliar concepts are mentioned. Did you need to know where Bardonia is to analyze the train sched-ule above? No. All you did was realize that each row (horizontal) listed the times at which the trains arrive atthat station, and that each column (vertical) listed the times at which one train that left Congers Station wouldarrive at other stations on the way to Bardonia.You see? You don’t need an amazing science vocabulary to do well on the ACT. In fact, using informa-tion not presented in the exam question could harm you, since test instructions tell you to only use what youare given. Going back to our train schedule example, if you happen to live on the Bardonia line, you may knowthat the trains on that line leave every 30 minutes (not every 3 hours) during the day. But if the schedule werewould be marked wrong if you answered that it runs every 30 minutes.In the following sections, you will learn to recognize the common elements and trends in informationpresented in graphical form. You will also read some suggestions on approaching the types of graphical rep-resentation questions that often appear on the ACT.Table BasicsAll tables are composed of rows (horizontal) and columns (vertical). Entries in a single row of a table usu-ally have something in common, and so do entries in a single column. Look at the table below that lists thethermal conductivities (in Watts per meter Kelvin) as a function of temperature (in Kelvin).

TEMPERATURE [K]

ELEMENT

100

200

300

400

500

600

Aluminum

300

237

273

240

237

232

Copper

483

413

309

392

388

383

Gold

345

327

315

312

309

304

Iron

132

94

80

69

61

55

Platinum

79

75

73

72

72

72

You only need the table to answer the following questions.