Paragraph 4

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Paragraph 4 Here is another paragraph for the preparation of UET entrance test. Read the passage carefully and answer the questions given below. Visitors to Prince Edward Island, Canada, delight in the "unspoiled" scenery--the well-kept farms and peaceful hamlets of the island's central core and the rough terrain of the east and west. In reality, the Island ecosystems are almost entirely artificial. Islanders have been tampering with the natural environment since the eighteenth century and long ago broke down the Island's natural forest cover to epoit its timber and clear land for agriculture. By 1900, 80 percent of the forest had been cut down and much of what remained has been destroyed by disease. Since then, however, some farmland has been remained had been destroyed by disease. Since then, however, some farmland has been abandoned and has returned to forest through the invasion of opportunist species, notably spruce. Few examples of the original climax forest, which consisted mostly of broad leaved trees such as maple, birch, and oak, survive today. Apart from a few stands of native forest, the only authentic inhabitants on Prince Edward Island are its sand dunes and salt marshes. The dunes are formed from sand washed ashore by waves and then dried and blown by the wind to the land beyond the beach. The sand is prevented from spreading farther by marram grass, a tall, long-rooted species that grows with prevented from spreading farther by marram grass, a tall, long-rooted species that grows with the dunes and keeps them remarkably stable. marram grass acts as a win break and allows other plants such as beach pea and bayberry to take hold. On dunes where marram grass is broken down--fro instance, where it is trampled--the dunes may spread inland and imunddate agricultural lands or silt up fishing harbors.The white dunes of the north coast are the most impressive. There are also white dunes on the east and west coasts. Only in the south are there red dunes, created when the soft sandstone cliffs crumble into the sea and subsequently wash ashore as red sand. The dunes are once used as cattle pasture but were abandoned as the early settlers moved inland. Salt marshes are the second remaining authentic habitant. These bogs are the result of the flooding of low coastal areas during unusually high tides. In the intervals between tides, a marsh area remains and plants take root, notably cord grass, the "marsh hy" used by the early settlers as winter forage for their livestock. Like the dunes, though, the marshes were soon dismissed as wasteland and escaped development.

1. On what aspect of Prince Edward Island does the author focus?

A) its tourist industry
B) its beaches
C) its natural habitats
D) its agriculture

2. Why does the author use quotation marks around the word unspoiled in line 1

A) he is quoting from another author.
B) the scenery is not as attractive as it once was
C) the scenery looks unspoiled but is not.
D) he disagrees with the ideas in this paragraph

3. The word hamlets in line 2 in closest in meaning to

A) villages
B) forests
C) rivers
D) pastures

4. What can be inferred about Prince Edward Island's forests?

A) only a few stands of trees still exist
B) they are more extensive than they were in 1900
C) They are virtually the same as they were in the eighteenth century
D) About 80 percent of the island is covered by them.

5. Which of the following type of tree is most common in the forests of Prince Edward island today?

A) Oak
B) Birch
C) Spruce
D) Maple

6. What does the author say about beach pea and bayberry?

A) They have bocome commercially important plants
B) They grow on dunes after marram grass is extablished
C) They were once an important food crop for early settlers
D) They are spreading across the Island, destroying important crops

7. According to the passage, what effect does the destruction of marram grass have?

A) It permits the sand dunes to cover farmland
B) It creates better conditions for fishing
C) it allows seawater to flood agricultural land
D) it lets the sand wash into the sea

8. According to the passage, in which part of Prince Edward island are red sand dunes found?

A) The north
B) The east
C) The south
D) The west

9. What conclusion can be drawn from the passage about both the sand dunes and salt marshes of Prince Edward Island?

A) They have never been used
B) They were once used but have long since been abandoned.
C) They have been used continuously since the island was first settled
D) They were long unused but have recently been exploited

10. In which of these paragraph does the author discuss the destructin of an ecosystem?

A) The first
B) The second
C) The third
D) The fourth