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1. Indian polity 2. Basic Laws in India 3. Fundamentals of Economics 4. General Science 5. Environment and Ecology 6. General Geography 7. Indian Geography 8. Social movements in India 9. Indian History 10. Fundamentals of Mathematics, Logical Reasoning and aptitude 11. Problem Set of Quantitative Aptitude 12. Fundamentals of Reading Comprehension 13. Reading Comprehension Problem Set 14. Speed Mathematics
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..................................................... 9
Need for a constitution ........................................ 10
Types of constitutions ......................................... 10
Written and Unwritten constitutions ............................ 10
federal and unitary constitutions .............................. 11
confederation ................................................. 11
constitutionalism ............................................. 11
indian constitution: milestones in history ..................... 12
legislature of various countries ............................... 21
bicameral countries ........................................... 23
SALIENT FEATURES OF THE INDIAN CONSTITUTION ...................... 25
Power resides with the people .................................. 25
rule of law prevails........................................... 25
social document ............................................... 25
written constitution........................................... 25
preamble ...................................................... 26
federal structure ............................................. 26
parliamentary government ....................................... 27
separation of powers........................................... 28
secular state ................................................. 29
independent judiciary.......................................... 29
judicial review ............................................... 29
fundamental rights ............................................ 30
directive principles of state policy ........................... 30
fundamental duties ............................................ 30
flexibility of constitution and its basic structure ............ 30
universal adult suffrage ....................................... 31
emergency provisions........................................... 31
independent agencies........................................... 32
PREAMBLE ........................................................ 33
Purpose ....................................................... 33
nature and scope .............................................. 33
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preamble: an aid to interpretation ............................. 38
limitations of preamble as an internal aid to construction ..... 39
CITIZENSHIP ..................................................... 39
Parliament’s power to regulate right of Citizenship by law and the
Citizenship Act, 1955.......................................... 41
Idea of Justice I- Fundamental Rights ........................... 43
What is Justice? .............................................. 43
Nature of Fundamental Rights ................................... 43
The constitution of india ...................................... 45
contents ...................................................... 45
Fundamental Rights-Contents .................................... 60
Right to Equality ............................................. 60
Right to Freedom .............................................. 61
Right against Exploitation ..................................... 65
Right to Freedom of Religion ................................... 65
Cultural and Educational Rights ................................ 66
Right to Constitutional Remedies ............................... 66
Idea of Justice II-Directive Principles of State Policy .......... 67
Features of Directive Principles of State Policy ............... 68
Directive Principles of State Policy: Contents ................. 68
Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Rights- Inter-Relationship ............................................ 70
Parliamentary Democracy ......................................... 73
Characteristics of the Parliamentary Form of Government ........ 73
Constitutional or Nominal and Real Executive ................... 73
Plural Executive .............................................. 74
Ministerial Responsibility and Collective Responsibility ....... 74
Parliamentary Sovereignty ...................................... 75
Parliamentary Control over Administration ...................... 76
INDIAN FEDERALISM: NATURE AND PROBLEMS .......................... 77
Written Constitution........................................... 77
Supremacy of the Constitution .................................. 77
Rigid Constitution ............................................ 77
Division of Powers ............................................ 78
Independent Judiciary.......................................... 78
Bicameral Legislature.......................................... 78
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Unitary features of the Indian Constitution .................... 78
A Strong Centre ............................................... 78
Single Citizenship ............................................ 79
Single Constitution for Union and State ........................ 79
Centre Can Change the Name and Boundaries of States ............ 79
Single Unified Judiciary ....................................... 79
Unequal Representation of States in the Rajya Sabha ............ 79
Common All-India Services ...................................... 79
Emergency Provisions........................................... 80
Political Executive at the Union Level ......................... 80
THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA .......................................... 81
Powers of the President ........................................ 81
Executive Powers .............................................. 81
Legislative Powers ............................................ 82
Financial Powers .............................................. 83
Judicial Powers ............................................... 84
Emergency Powers .............................................. 84
Consequence of the Proclamation ................................ 85
Financial Emergency ........................................... 86
Position of the President ...................................... 86
Steps to Curb President’s Power-Amendment of Article 74 ........ 86
Working of the Constitution .................................... 87
VICE-PRESIDENT .................................................. 91
Functions ..................................................... 91
The Council of Ministers ........................................ 92
Composition ................................................... 92
THE CONSTITUTION (NINETY-FIRST AMENDMENT) ACT, 2003 ............ 92
Council of Ministers and Cabinet ............................... 93
Functions of the Cabinet ....................................... 94
Executive Functions ........................................... 94
Legislative functions.......................................... 94
Financial powers .............................................. 94
Cabinet Committees ............................................ 95
N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar Committee’s Report ..................... 96
Recommendations of the Administrative Reforms Commission ....... 98
Ministries and Departments ..................................... 99
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Working of the Ministries/Departments .......................... 99
The Secretariat .............................................. 100
Executive Organization of the Department ...................... 100
MINISTRIES/DEPARTMENTS OF THE GOVERNMENT ....................... 100
THE PRIME MINISTER ............................................. 104
Appointment of the Prime Minister ............................. 104
The Prime Minister as the Head of the Council of Ministers .... 105
The Prime Minister and the Parliament ......................... 106
The Link Between the President and Cabinet .................... 106
Spokesman of the Government on Foreign Policy ................. 107
The Prime Minister’s Control over Intelligence Agencies ....... 107
Administrative and Executive Functions of the Prime Minister .. 107
Position of the Prime Minister ................................ 108
PMO .......................................................... 108
THE PARLIAMENT ................................................. 110
The Lok Sabha ................................................ 110
Speaker of the Lok Sabha ...................................... 112
Power and Functions of the Speaker ............................ 113
The Rajya Sabha .............................................. 114
Rajya Sabha: Its Composition .................................. 114
Leader of the House ......................................... 116
Power and Functions of the Rajya Sabha ........................ 118
Legislative Powers ........................................... 119
Constitutional Amendments ..................................... 119
The Role of the Rajya Sabha ................................... 120
Power of the Parliament ....................................... 120
Financial Powers ............................................. 121
The Finance Commission ........................................ 122
Appointment .................................................. 122
Composition .................................................. 122
Functions of Finance Commission ............................... 122
Finance Commission .......................................... 123
Year of Establishment ....................................... 123
Chairman .................................................... 123
Operational Duration ........................................ 123
Finance Commission And Planning Commission .................... 123
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Judicial Powers .............................................. 125
Parliamentary Committees ...................................... 126
PARLIAMENTARY TERMS ............................................ 129
ANTI-DEFECTION LAW ............................................. 136
Provisions of the Act......................................... 136
Disqualification ............................................. 136
THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA ..................................... 146
The Appointment Of Judges ..................................... 146
Qualification of Judges ....................................... 147
Tenure ....................................................... 147
Removal ...................................................... 147
Salary of the Judges.......................................... 147
Prohibition of Practice after Retirement ...................... 148
The seat of the supreme court ................................. 148
Supreme court: a court of record .............................. 148
Jurisdiction and powers of the supreme court .................. 149
Original Jurisdiction......................................... 149
Appellate Jurisdiction ........................................ 149
Advisory Jurisdiction......................................... 150
Writ Jurisdiction ............................................ 151
Supreme Court And Judicial Review ............................. 152
Judicial Review of the Constitutional Amendments .............. 153
Judicial Review of Legislative Enactments and Ordinances ...... 153
HIGH COURT ..................................................... 155
Organisation Of High Court .................................... 155
Appointment of Judges......................................... 155
Qualifications of Judges ...................................... 156
Oath or Affirmation .......................................... 156
Tenure of Judges ............................................. 156
Removal of Judges ............................................ 156
Salaries and Allowances ....................................... 157
Transfer of Judges ........................................... 157
Acting Chief Justice.......................................... 157
Additional and Acting Judges .................................. 158
Retired Judges ............................................... 158
Independence of High court .................................... 158
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Jurisdiction and Powers of high court ......................... 159
Control over Subordinate Courts ............................... 162
A Court of Record ............................................ 162
Power of Judicial Review ...................................... 163
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTS ............................................ 165
Structure of accounts and flow of funds ....................... 165
Consolidated fund of india .................................... 165
Contingency fund of india ..................................... 166
Public account ............................................... 166
COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL OF INDIA ....................... 167
Audit Jurisdiction ........................................... 167
Nature of Audit .............................................. 167
ELECTION COMMISSION ............................................ 169
Composition .................................................. 169
Independence ................................................. 170
Powers and functions.......................................... 170
UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION ................................ 171
Historical background......................................... 172
Provisions for independent working of the upsc ................ 172
Composition .................................................. 173
Functions .................................................... 173
ATTORNEY GENERAL AND SOLICITOR GENERAL OF INDIA ................. 174
Appointment and term.......................................... 175
Duties and functions.......................................... 175
Rights and limitations ........................................ 175
SOLICITOR GENERAL OF INDIA ..................................... 176
CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION ................................. 177
Composition .................................................. 178
Tenure and service conditions ................................. 178
Powers and functions.......................................... 178
CENTRAL VIGILANCE COMMISSION ................................... 179
Composition .................................................. 180
Functions .................................................... 180
Jurisdiction ................................................. 181
Constitutional Protection to Civil Servants ................... 181
Constitutional Safeguards ..................................... 181
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ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS IN INDIA ................................ 182
Reports on Indian Administration, 1946-1997 ................... 183
Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) .............. 184
Administrative Reforms Commission (1966-1970) ................. 184
FIFTH PAY COMMISSION AND ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS ............... 185
Second Administrative Reforms Commission (2005) ............... 186
NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR SCs ................................... 187
Evolution of the commission ................................... 188
Functions of the commission ................................... 188
Report of the commission ...................................... 188
Powers of the commission ...................................... 189
NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR STs ................................... 189
Functions of the commission ................................... 190
Report of the commission ...................................... 190
Powers of the commission ...................................... 191
National Human Rights Commission ............................... 191
Preamble To The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, 1948 ... 192
Constitution of National Human Rights Commission .............. 192
Removal of a Member of the Commission ......................... 193
Term of Office of Members ..................................... 193
Officers and Staff of the Commission .......................... 193
Functions and Powers of the Commission ........................ 193
Powers Relating to Enquiries .................................. 194
STATE ADMINISTRATION ........................................... 196
THE GOVERNOR ................................................. 196
Appointment of the Governor ................................... 196
Selection of Type of Persons as Governor ...................... 196
Term ......................................................... 197
Transfer of the Governor ...................................... 197
Emoluments ................................................... 197
Immunities ................................................... 197
Power of the Governor......................................... 198
Position of the Governor ...................................... 200
Position of the Governor After 1967 ........................... 202
THE CHIEF MINISTER ............................................. 204
Appointment of the Chief Minister ............................. 204
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Powers and Functions.......................................... 204
Allocation of Portfolios ...................................... 204
COUNCIL OF MINISTERS.......................................... 206
Chief Secretary .............................................. 207
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS/DIRECTORATES ............................ 209
ADVOCATE GENERAL OF THE STATE .................................. 211
Appointment and term.......................................... 211
Duties and functions.......................................... 211
CENTRE-STATE RELATIONS ......................................... 212
Legislative relations......................................... 212
Administrative relations ...................................... 214
Financial relations .......................................... 217
STATE INFORMATION COMMISSION ................................... 218
Composition .................................................. 219
Tenure and service conditions ................................. 219
Powers and functions.......................................... 219
STATE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION ................................ 220
Composition .................................................. 221
Removal ...................................................... 221
Independence ................................................. 222
Functions .................................................... 222
Joint state public service commission ......................... 223
SPECIAL STATUS OF JAMMU & KASHMIR .............................. 224
Features Of J&K Constitution .................................. 224
Panchayati Raj ................................................. 226
The Concept Of Panchayati Raj ................................. 226
G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985) ................................. 227
L.M.Singhvi Committee (1986) ................................ 227
THE CONSTITUTION (SEVENTY-THIRD AMENDMENT) ACT, 1992 .......... 227
Urban Local Government ......................................... 235
The Constitution (74th Amendment) Act, 1992 ................... 235
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Table of Contents Right To Information Act 2005 ................................................................................................... 2
Overview Of The Rti Act 2005 ................................................................................................. 2
How The Rti Act Has Helped : Success Stories ....................................................................... 6
Issues In Implementation Of The Rti Act 2005 ....................................................................... 7
Large Pendency Of Cases Before Information Commissions................................................ 7
Who Is Eligible To Seek Information? ..................................................................................... 8
Rights Conferred On Citizens Under The Act .......................................................................... 8
Process For Making A Request For Information And Appeal ................................................. 10
Obligations Of Public Authorities Under The Act .................................................................. 12
Maintenance Of Records ....................................................................................................... 13
Procedure To Be Followed By Pio For Disposal Of Request For Information ......................... 14
Fee For Seeking Information................................................................................................. 14
Time Limit For Supply Of Information .................................................................................. 17
Table Summarizes The Time Limit For Disposal Of Applications In Different Situations: ..... 17
Third Party Information ........................................................................................................ 18
Cyber Laws In India ................................................................................................................. 19
Governing Laws .................................................................................................................... 19
Scope And Applicability ........................................................................................................ 19
The Major Acts, Which Got Amended After Enactment Of Ita ............................................... 20
Consumer Protection And National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission ..................... 22
Confonet Project ................................................................................................................... 23
Consumer Rights .................................................................................................................. 23
Department Of Consumer Affairs ......................................................................................... 24
Bureau Of Indian Standards ................................................................................................ 24
Bis Hallmark ........................................................................................................................ 25
Isi Mark ................................................................................................................................ 25
Exports And Import Laws ........................................................................................................ 26
Competition Protection Laws.................................................................................................... 31
Basic Laws in India
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WHAT IS ECONOMICS ........................................................................................ 8
What exactly is economics?............................................................................... 8
Economics, Scarcity, and Choice ....................................................................... 8
Scarcity and Individual Choice .......................................................................... 9
Scarcity and Social Choice ................................................................................ 9
Economic Systems ......................................................................................... 10
Capitalism ..................................................................................................... 11
Socialism ....................................................................................................... 12
Communism .................................................................................................. 12
Mixed Economy .............................................................................................. 12
Microeconomics and Macroeconomics ............................................................. 13
Positive and Normative Economics .................................................................. 13
Why Economists Disagree ............................................................................... 14
Supply and Demand ....................................................................................... 14
Markets ......................................................................................................... 15
Defining the Good Or Service .......................................................................... 15
Government Intervention in Markets ............................................................... 20
Perfect Competition ........................................................................................ 23
Monopoly ....................................................................................................... 25
The Sources of Monopoly ................................................................................ 25
The Concept of Imperfect Competition ............................................................. 25
Monopolistic Competition ............................................................................... 25
Non price Competition .................................................................................... 26
Oligopoly ........................................................................................................ 26
Income Inequality ........................................................................................... 26
Why do wages differ? ...................................................................................... 26
Measuring Income Inequality: The Lorenz Curve .............................................. 27
What is Free Trade ......................................................................................... 29
Freer Trade and World Trade Organization ...................................................... 29
Formation of the World Trade Organization ..................................................... 30
The Working of WTO ....................................................................................... 32
Implementation Issues and the Future ............................................................ 34
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Customs Duties .......................................................................................... 34
Subsidies .................................................................................................... 34
Domestic support: the boxes ........................................................................ 35
Market Access ............................................................................................. 35
Export subsidies ......................................................................................... 35
Criticism ..................................................................................................... 35
Mechanisms for developing countries ........................................................... 36
Special Safeguard Mechanism ..................................................................... 36
Ministerial conferences ................................................................................ 36
Doha Round ................................................................................................ 37
PRODUCTION, INCOME, AND EMPLOYMENT .................................................... 39
GDP ............................................................................................................... 39
The Expenditure Approach to GDP .................................................................. 39
Consumption Spending .................................................................................. 41
Private Investment .......................................................................................... 41
Other Approaches To GDP .............................................................................. 41
The Value-Added Approach ............................................................................. 41
The Factor Payments Approach ....................................................................... 41
Measuring GDP: A Summary ....................................................................... 42
Real versus Nominal GDP ............................................................................... 42
Purchasing Power Parity ................................................................................. 42
EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT............................................................... 43
Types of Unemployment.................................................................................. 43
Structural Unemployment ........................................................................... 44
Cyclical Unemployment ............................................................................... 45
THE BUSINESS CYCLE ..................................................................................... 45
Economic indicators ....................................................................................... 50
ANATOMY OF INFLATION .................................................................................. 51
What is inflation? ........................................................................................... 51
Laspeyres Price Index .................................................................................. 53
WHY DOES INFLATION OCCUR? .................................................................... 53
Supply Shock/Cost-Push Inflation .................................................................. 53
Demand-Pull Inflation .................................................................................... 54
German Hyperinflation: Too Much Money Chasing Too Few Goods! ............... 55
Why worry about inflation? .......................................................................... 56
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Getting the Inflation Rate Right .................................................................... 58
Consumer Price Indices (CPIs) ........................................................................ 58
Headline Inflation ........................................................................................... 58
Core Inflation ................................................................................................. 59
Policies For Controlling Inflation ..................................................................... 59
Reasons for Widening gap between CPI and WPI .............................................. 62
FISCAL POLICY ................................................................................................. 68
Classical Economics ....................................................................................... 69
Keynesian Economics ..................................................................................... 69
Expansionary Fiscal Policy.............................................................................. 69
Increased Government Spending ..................................................................... 69
Contractionary Fiscal Policy ............................................................................ 70
The Effects of Government Spending ............................................................... 70
Built-In Stabilizers ...................................................................................... 70
Difference between revenue and capital flows ............................................... 70
India’s fiscal policy architecture ...................................................................... 71
MONETARY POLICY .......................................................................................... 72
The Three Functions of Money ........................................................................ 73
The Money Supply .......................................................................................... 74
BUDGET, DEFICITS, AND TAXATION................................................................. 76
Origin of the Budget .................................................................................... 76
What is the size of the budget? .................................................................... 77
EXPENDITURE, REVENUE, & DEFICIT .............................................................. 77
Types of Expenditure and Revenue.................................................................. 77
Types of Deficit ............................................................................................... 78
Size and Composition of Deficits ..................................................................... 78
PRINCIPLES OF TAXATION ................................................................................ 82
Types of Taxes ................................................................................................ 82
Composition of Taxes...................................................................................... 83
Goods and Services Tax .................................................................................. 84
RESERVE BANK OF INDIA ................................................................................ 84
Functions of RBI ............................................................................................ 85
Organisation .................................................................................................. 86
Subsidiaries of the RBI ................................................................................... 86
Monetary Management ................................................................................... 88
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Monetary Policy in India ................................................................................. 89
Monetary Policy Framework ............................................................................ 89
Institutional Mechanism for Monetary Policy-making ....................................... 91
Issuer of Currency .......................................................................................... 92
Currency Management ................................................................................... 92
Currency Distribution .................................................................................... 93
Coin Distribution ........................................................................................... 93
Special Type of Notes ...................................................................................... 94
Exchange of Notes .......................................................................................... 94
Combating Counterfeiting ............................................................................... 94
Banker to the central Government .................................................................. 95
Banker to the State Government ..................................................................... 95
Management of Public Debt ............................................................................ 96
Banker to Banks ............................................................................................ 96
Lender of Last Resort ...................................................................................... 97
Financial Regulation and Supervision ............................................................. 97
Regulatory and Supervisory Functions ............................................................ 98
Foreign Exchange Reserves Management ...................................................... 107
Deployment of Reserves ................................................................................ 108
Foreign Exchange Management..................................................................... 109
Exchange Rate Policy .................................................................................... 111
Market Operations ....................................................................................... 112
Domestic Foreign Exchange Market Operations ............................................. 113
Money Market .............................................................................................. 113
Payment and Settlement Systems ................................................................. 114
Developmental Role ...................................................................................... 116
Rural credit ............................................................................................... 116
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development ................................... 119
Export Credit ............................................................................................ 120
Financial Inclusion .................................................................................... 121
Customer Service ...................................................................................... 121
THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM ................................................................................ 124
Major stock exchanges (top 21 by market capitalization) ............................. 125
Major Stock Indices of the World ............................................................... 126
Interest rates and financial markets ................................................................. 130
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Functions of interest rates ............................................................................ 131
International factors affecting interest rates................................................... 131
Price and yield – a key relationship ............................................................... 132
The yield curve ............................................................................................. 132
The Global Foreign Exchange Rate System ....................................................... 133
What is the ideal exchange rate system that a country should adopt? ............ 133
Macroeconomic characteristics of exchange rate regimes ............................... 135
Dollarization and the choice of an exchange rate regime ................................ 137
The IMF exchange rate arrangements ............................................................... 138
The special drawing right (SDR) .................................................................... 140
THE MONEY MARKET ..................................................................................... 140
Government Securities Market in India ............................................................ 142
A. Treasury Bills (T-bills) ......................................................................... 143
B. Cash Management Bills (CMBs) ........................................................... 143
C. Dated Government Securities .............................................................. 144
Fixed Rate Bonds ............................................................................................ 144
Floating Rate Bonds ........................................................................................ 144
Zero Coupon Bonds ......................................................................................... 145
Capital Indexed Bonds ..................................................................................... 145
Bonds with Call/ Put Options .......................................................................... 145
Special Securities ............................................................................................ 145
State Development Loans (SDLs) ................................................................ 146
Q2. Why should one invest in Government securities? ................................ 146
Q3. How are the Government Securities issued? ......................................... 147
Q4. What are the different types of auctions used for issue of securities?..... 147
Q5. What are the Open Market Operations (OMOs)? ................................... 150
Q5 (b) What is meant by buyback of Government securities? ...................... 150
Q6. What is Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF)? ........................................ 150
Q7. How and in what form can Government Securities be held? .................. 151
Q8. How does the trading in Government securities take place? .................. 151
Q9. Who are the major players in the Government Securities market? ......... 152
Q10. How are the dealing transactions recorded by the dealing desk? ......... 152
Q11. Why does the price of Government security change? ........................... 153
Q12. How do the Government securities transactions settle? ...................... 153
Primary Market ............................................................................................... 153
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Secondary Market ........................................................................................... 153
Coupon Yield ................................................................................................... 155
Current Yield .................................................................................................. 155
What are the different money market instruments? .......................................... 156
List of Primary Dealers .................................................................................... 158
THE EQUITY MARKET ..................................................................................... 161
Characteristics ............................................................................................. 161
Preference shares ...................................................................................... 162
Depository receipts .................................................................................... 163
Exchange traded funds ................................................................................. 163
ETFs in India ............................................................................................ 163
Market cap of Top Indian Companies ......................................................... 165
Financial Times Global 500 ....................................................................... 166
Fortune Global 500 ................................................................................... 167
Fortune 2013 list ...................................................................................... 167
Indian Companies in Fortune 500 .............................................................. 168
List of Indian businesswomen ....................................................................... 168
India’s Top CEO’s ......................................................................................... 171
ECONOMIC PLANNING .................................................................................... 173
Essentials of Economic Planning ................................................................... 173
Importance of Economic Planning with respect to Mixed Economy & Under-
Developed Countries ..................................................................................... 174
Stages of Economic Development .................................................................. 175
State vs. Market ........................................................................................... 176
Types of Economic Planning ......................................................................... 176
Planning by Inducements .......................................................................... 176
Planning by Directions .............................................................................. 177
Physical and Financial Planning ................................................................ 178
Centralised Planning and Decentralised Planning ....................................... 178
Structural and Functional Planning ........................................................... 179
Indicative and Imperative Planning ............................................................ 179
Democratic and Totalitarian Planning ........................................................ 179
Fixed Plan and Rolling Plan Fixed Plan ....................................................... 180
Merits of Fixed Planning .................................................................................. 180
Demerits of Fixed Planning: ............................................................................. 180
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Rolling Plan .............................................................................................. 180
Merits of Rolling Plan: ...................................................................................... 180
Demerits of Rolling Plan:.................................................................................. 180
Short-term, Medium and Long-term Planning ............................................. 181
Corrective and Developmental Planning ..................................................... 181
Capitalist and Socialist Planning ................................................................ 181
Planning under Mixed Economy ................................................................. 182
Neo-classical counterrevolution ........................................................................ 182
REFERENCE ................................................................................................... 183
BANKING SECTOR IN INDIA ............................................................................ 184
History of Indian Banking System ................................................................. 184
Classification ............................................................................................ 184
Basel III .................................................................................................... 185
Microfinance ................................................................................................ 185
Salient Features of Microfinance ................................................................... 186
Gaps In Financial System and Need for Microfinance .................................. 186
Channels of Micro Finance ........................................................................ 187
SHG – BANK LINKAGE PROGRAMME ........................................................ 187
Micro Finance Institutions ......................................................................... 187
Controversy on MFI ................................................................................... 187
BANKING SECTOR REFORMS ......................................................................... 189
Asset Classification ...................................................................................... 191
Regulations for Asset Classification ............................................................ 191
Weak Public Sector Banks ......................................................................... 192
Planning Over The Years .................................................................................. 193
First Five-Year Plan (1951–1956) ............................................................... 193
Second Five-Year Plan (1956–1961) ............................................................ 194
Third Five-Year Plan (1961–1966) .............................................................. 194
Fourth Five-Year Plan (1969–1974) ............................................................ 194
Fifth Five-Year Plan (1974–1979) ............................................................... 194
Sixth Five-Year Plan (1980–1985) ............................................................... 194
Seventh Five-Year Plan (1985–1990) .......................................................... 195
Eighth Five-Year Plan (1992–1997) ............................................................ 195
Ninth Five-Year Plan (1997–2002) .............................................................. 195
Tenth Five-Year Plan (2002–2007) .............................................................. 195
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Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2007–2012) ......................................................... 195
Income & Poverty ...................................................................................... 195
Education ................................................................................................. 196
Health....................................................................................................... 196
Women and Children ................................................................................. 196
Environment ............................................................................................. 197
Twelfth Five-Year Plan (2012-2017) ............................................................ 197
Difference between Growth and Development ................................................ 197
BALANCE OF TRADE ...................................................................................... 198
The Balance Of Payments Sub-Division ......................................................... 198
The Current Account ................................................................................. 198
The Capital Account .................................................................................. 198
The Financial Account ............................................................................... 198
COMPOSITION OF FOREIGN TRADE ......................................................... 199
IMPORT POLICY: THE PRE-REFORM PERIOD ............................................... 203
Export Policy: The Pre-Reform Period ............................................................ 203
The Three Phases of Export Policy .............................................................. 203
Export Promotion Policies: An Overall View ................................................ 203
FOREIGN TRADE POLICY (2009-14) .......................................................... 204
TYPES OF UNEMPLOYMENT ........................................................................... 205
Disguised Unemployment .......................................................................... 206
The Phillips Curve ..................................................................................... 207
WHAT IS ECONOMICS
The word conjures up all sorts of images: manic stock traders on Wall Street, an economic summit
meeting in a European capital, a somber television news anchor announcing good or bad news about the
economy. You probably hear about economics several times each day.
What exactly is economics?
First, economics is a social science, so it seeks to explain something about society. In this sense, it has
something in common with psychology, sociology, and political science. But economics is different from
these other social sciences, because of what economists study and how they study it. Economists ask
fundamentally different questions, and they answer them using tools that other social scientists find rather
exotic.
Economics, Scarcity, and Choice
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Table of Contents STRUCTURE AND TYPES OF ENVIRONMENT ...........................................................3
Ecology : Meaning And Definitions .........................................................................4
Ecological Niche ....................................................................................................4
Ecosystem.............................................................................................................4
Meaning And Concept............................................................................................4
Properties of Ecosystems .......................................................................................5
Types of Ecosystems ..............................................................................................6
BIOSPHERE AS AN ECOSYSTEM ..............................................................................8
System ..................................................................................................................8
The Biosphere .......................................................................................................8
Biogeochemical Cycles ...........................................................................................9
TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS—THE BIOMES .......................................................... 10
Natural vegetation of the world ............................................................................ 11
Climatic Gradients And Vegetation Types ............................................................. 12
Forest Biome ....................................................................................................... 12
Low-Latitude Rainforest ....................................................................................... 13
Monsoon Forest ................................................................................................... 14
Subtropical Evergreen Forest ............................................................................... 15
Mid-latitude Deciduous Forest ............................................................................. 17
Needle Leaf Forest ............................................................................................... 18
Sclerophyll Forest ................................................................................................ 19
Savanna and Grassland Biomes ........................................................................... 21
Grassland Biome ................................................................................................. 23
Desert and Tundra Biomes .................................................................................. 24
Desert Biome ...................................................................................................... 24
Tundra Biome ..................................................................................................... 26
MARINE BIOMES ................................................................................................... 28
Main Characteristic Features ............................................................................... 28
Types of Marine Biomes ....................................................................................... 29
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Marine Biological Communities ............................................................................ 30
Plantkton Community ......................................................................................... 31
Phytoplanktons ................................................................................................... 31
Nekton Community ............................................................................................. 33
Benthos Community ............................................................................................ 33
Ecological Productivity ......................................................................................... 33
Food Chains in Marine Biome .............................................................................. 34
HUMAN INFLUENCE ON RADIATION ...................................................................... 35
Heat Balance ....................................................................................................... 35
CORAL BLEACHING ............................................................................................... 38
URBANIZATION AND CLIMATE ............................................................................... 40
Urbanization and Heat Island .............................................................................. 40
BIO-DIVERSITY, BIO-SPHERE RESERVE AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION ............. 41
Biodiversity: Meaning and Definitions .................................................................. 41
BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOTS ..................................................................................... 43
CONSERVATION OF BIODIVERSITY ....................................................................... 44
List of Biosphere Reserves ................................................................................... 45
Coral Gardening .................................................................................................. 49
Biosphere Reserve ............................................................................................... 49
Evolution of the Concept...................................................................................... 49
Zoning of Biosphere Reserve ................................................................................ 50
Functional Pattern of Biosphere Reserve .............................................................. 51
Core Area ............................................................................................................ 51
Buffer Zone ......................................................................................................... 52
Transition Area ................................................................................................... 52
Clustered Biosphere Reserve ................................................................................ 53
BIODIVERSITY (WILDLIFE) CONSERVATION IN INDIA ............................................ 54
Wildlife Status in India ........................................................................................ 54
National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) Project ............................. 55
Biodiversity (Biological Diversity) Act .................................................................... 55
Bio-safety Protocol ............................................................................................... 56
WETLANDS & MANGROVES ................................................................................... 58
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NATIONAL PARKS .................................................................................................. 59
Protected areas of India for an overview of all Indian protected areas ..................... 59
DISASTER MANAGEMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS IN INDIA ......................... 64
Earthquake-Prone Areas ...................................................................................... 64
Cyclone-Prone Areas ............................................................................................ 66
Tidal Surge-prone Areas ...................................................................................... 67
Flood-Prone Areas ............................................................................................... 68
Drought-Prone Areas ........................................................................................... 68
Zone 1 ................................................................................................................ 69
Zone 2 ................................................................................................................ 69
Zone 3 ................................................................................................................ 71
NATIONAL POLICY ON DISASTER MANAGEMENT ................................................... 72
Responsibilities of NDMA ..................................................................................... 73
ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS ........................................................................................ 74
Union List-I Entries ............................................................................................. 75
Environmental Protection Act (EPA), 1986 ............................................................ 75
Definitions under Section 2 of EPA ....................................................................... 75
General Powers of Central Govt. Under EPA, 1986 ................................................ 76
General Environmental Laws ............................................................................... 76
STRUCTURE AND TYPES OF ENVIRONMENT
Since the environment is both physical and biological concept, it encompasses both the non- living (abiotic)
and living (biotic) components of the planet earth. Thus on the basis of basic structure, the environment may
be divided into two basic types e.g. physical or abiotic environment and biotic environment. On the basis of
physical characteristics and state, abiotic or physical environment is subdivided into three broad categories
viz. (i) solid, (ii) liquid and, (iii) gas which represent the lithosphere (solid earth), the hydrosphere (water
component) and the atmosphere respectively. Thus the three basic divisions of physical environment may be
termed as (i) Lithospheric Environment, (ii) Atmospheric Environment and, (iii) Hydrospheric Environment.
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Table of Contents
THE SCOPE OF GEOGRAPHY .......................................................................... 5
The Earth’s Four Spheres .............................................................................. 6
THE GEOGRAPHER’S TOOLS ........................................................................... 9
Latitude ....................................................................................................... 10
Longitude ..................................................................................................... 12
Map Scale .................................................................................................... 13
Isolines ........................................................................................................ 14
Digital Technology in Geography.................................................................. 16
Remote Sensing ........................................................................................... 16
Global Positioning Systems .......................................................................... 18
Geographic Information Systems ................................................................. 19
EARTH–SUN GEOMETRY AND THE SEASONS............................................... 20
Our Place in Space....................................................................................... 20
The Shape of Earth ...................................................................................... 21
Earth’s Orbit Around the Sun ...................................................................... 21
The Earth’s Rotation and Axial Tilt .............................................................. 22
The Seasons ................................................................................................. 24
Solstice and Equinox ................................................................................... 25
THE GLOBAL ENERGY SYSTEM..................................................................... 28
The Electromagnetic Spectrum .................................................................... 28
Composition of the Atmosphere ................................................................... 29
Constant Gases............................................................................................ 30
Variable Gases ............................................................................................. 30
Particulates .................................................................................................. 33
Heat Transfer ............................................................................................... 35
Flow of Solar Radiation in the Atmosphere .................................................. 36
Interaction of Solar Radiation and the Earth’s Surface ................................ 37
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The Global Radiation Budget ....................................................................... 39
GLOBAL TEMPERATURE PATTERNS.............................................................. 42
The Troposphere .......................................................................................... 43
The Stratosphere.......................................................................................... 43
The Mesosphere ........................................................................................... 44
The Thermosphere ....................................................................................... 45
Large-Scale Geographic Factors That Influence Air Temperature................. 45
Local Factors That Influence Air Temperature ............................................. 47
Human Interactions: The Urban Effect on Temperature .............................. 49
Other Local Factors That Influence Temperature ......................................... 50
The Annual Range of Surface Temperature (A Holistic Assessment) ............ 50
ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE, WIND, AND GLOBAL CIRCULATION ................. 53
Factors That Influence Air Pressure ............................................................. 53
Atmospheric Pressure Systems .................................................................... 55
Low-Pressure Systems ................................................................................. 55
High-Pressure Systems ................................................................................ 55
The Direction of Airflow................................................................................ 57
Unequal Heating of Land Surfaces ............................................................... 57
Coriolis Force ............................................................................................... 58
Global Pressure and Atmospheric Circulation ............................................. 60
Midlatitude Circulation ................................................................................ 62
Polar Circulation .......................................................................................... 63
Seasonal Migration of Pressure Systems ...................................................... 64
Local Wind Systems ..................................................................................... 66
Land–Sea Breezes ........................................................................................ 67
Topographic Winds ...................................................................................... 67
Oceanic Circulation Gyres and Thermo-haline Circulation .......................... 68
El Niño ......................................................................................................... 69
ATMOSPHERIC MOISTURE AND PRECIPITATION .......................................... 70
The Hydrosphere and the Hydrologic Cycle.................................................. 70
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Humidity ...................................................................................................... 72
Maximum, Specific, and Relative Humidity.................................................. 72
Dew-Point Temperature ............................................................................... 74
Adiabatic Processes...................................................................................... 77
The Dry Adiabatic Lapse Rate ...................................................................... 77
The Wet Adiabatic Lapse Rate ...................................................................... 78
Cloud Classification ..................................................................................... 79
Fog ............................................................................................................... 81
Precipitation................................................................................................. 82
Types of Precipitation ................................................................................... 82
Precipitation Processes ................................................................................ 83
Air Masses and Fronts ................................................................................. 88
Air Masses ................................................................................................... 89
Fronts .......................................................................................................... 90
Key Concepts To Remember About Air Masses And Fronts.......................... 92
Evolution and Character of Midlatitude Cyclones ........................................ 92
Upper Airflow and the 500-mb Pressure Surface ......................................... 93
Interaction of Upper Airflow and Surface Airflow ......................................... 94
Cyclogenesis ................................................................................................ 95
Key Concepts To Remember About The Formation Of Midlatitude Cyclones 97
GLOBAL CLIMATES AND GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE .................................. 98
Climate and the Factors That Affect It ......................................................... 98
Köppen Climate Classification ..................................................................... 99
THE GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION AND CHARACTER OF SOILS ......................... 102
Soil-Forming (Pedogenic) Processes............................................................ 102
Soil-Forming Factors.................................................................................. 103
Key Concepts to Remember about Pedogenic Processes And Soil-Forming
Factors ....................................................................................................... 106
Soil Profiles (Reading the Soil).................................................................... 107
Soil horizons. ............................................................................................. 107
Key Concepts To Remember About Soil Science And Classification ........... 109
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PLATE TECTONICS ....................................................................................... 111
Continental and Oceanic Crust.................................................................. 112
Plate Boundaries........................................................................................ 112
Divergent Margins ...................................................................................... 113
Continental Rifting..................................................................................... 113
Seafloor Spreading ..................................................................................... 113
Convergent Margins ................................................................................... 114
Subduction Zone Trenches ........................................................................ 114
Back-Arc Basins ........................................................................................ 115
Continental Collision ................................................................................. 115
Accretion and Subduction.......................................................................... 116
Mountain Building ..................................................................................... 116
Transform Faults ....................................................................................... 117
Hot Spots ................................................................................................... 117
Volcanoes And Volcanism .......................................................................... 118
Six Types of Eruptions ............................................................................... 120
The Major Types of Volcanic Landforms..................................................... 121
Stratovolcanoes.......................................................................................... 121
Shield Volcanoes ........................................................................................ 123
Submarine Volcanoes ................................................................................ 123
Calderas..................................................................................................... 123
Complex Volcanoes .................................................................................... 123
Pyroclastic Cones ....................................................................................... 124
Volcanic Fields ........................................................................................... 124
Fissure Vents ............................................................................................. 124
Volcanoes Related to Plate Boundaries ...................................................... 126
Rift Volcanoes ............................................................................................ 127
Intra plate Volcanism ................................................................................. 128
EARTHQUAKES ............................................................................................ 128
The Causes of Earthquakes ....................................................................... 129
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Natural Forces ........................................................................................... 129
Tectonics.................................................................................................... 129
Volcanism .................................................................................................. 130
Artificial Induction ..................................................................................... 130
Reservoir Induction .................................................................................... 131
Seismology and Nuclear Explosions ........................................................... 131
The Effects of Earthquakes ........................................................................ 131
Surface Phenomena ................................................................................... 132
Tsunamis ................................................................................................... 132
Seiches....................................................................................................... 133
WEATHERING AND MASS MOVEMENT ....................................................... 134
Mechanical Weathering .............................................................................. 135
Chemical Weathering ................................................................................. 138
Human Interactions: Acid Rain .................................................................. 139
Key Concepts To Remember About Weathering ......................................... 139
Mass Wasting............................................................................................. 140
Rockfall ...................................................................................................... 141
Soil Creep .................................................................................................. 142
Landslides.................................................................................................. 142
Avalanches................................................................................................. 144
THE SCOPE OF GEOGRAPHY When most people are asked to define the nature of geography, the usual response is it focuses on the locations of countries, capital cities, rivers, and oceans. Although the location of places is certainly a part of geography, the field encompasses much more. In fact, you may be surprised to learn that whatever you like to do and wherever you live, geography is very much a part of your everyday life. Geography is an ancient discipline that examines the spatial attributes of the Earth’s surface and how they differ from one place to another. Derived from the Greek words for ―Earth description,‖ the concept of geography has likely been a central part of the human experience for tens of thousands of years. It is easy to imagine, for example, that prehistoric hunters and gatherers were intimately aware of their surroundings, including the location and character of forests, streams, lakes, berry patches, animal herds, and competing groups of people. In short, an understanding of local geography would have been absolutely essential to sustain life. It would also have been
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Table of Contents
INDIA—LOCATION, EXTENT AND PHYSICAL FEATURES ......................................................... 8
Location and Extent ............................................................................................................... 8
India at a Glance .................................................................................................................... 8
India’s Neighbours ............................................................................................................... 10
Political Divisions ................................................................................................................. 11
THE PHYSICAL FEATURES...................................................................................................... 12
THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS ................................................................................................. 12
Origin of the Himalayan Mountain System .......................................................................... 12
The Himalaya Mountains ..................................................................................................... 15
The Himalaya Ranges ........................................................................................................... 15
The Trans-Himalayan Ranges .............................................................................................. 18
The Eastern Hills ................................................................................................................. 18
Significance of the Northern Mountains ............................................................................... 19
THE NORTHERN PLAINS ......................................................................................................... 21
The Rajasthan Plain ............................................................................................................. 22
The Punjab-Haryana Plains ................................................................................................. 23
The Ganga Plain ................................................................................................................... 23
The Brahmaputra Plain ........................................................................................................ 24
Significance of the Northern Plains ...................................................................................... 24
The Peninsular Plateaus ...................................................................................................... 25
Plateaus of Peninsular India ................................................................................................ 25
Hill Ranges of Peninsular India ............................................................................................ 28
The Western Ghats or Sahyadris .......................................................................................... 28
The Eastern Ghats ............................................................................................................... 30
Significance of Peninsular Plateau ....................................................................................... 30
Comparison between the Himalayan & the Peninsular Rivers .............................................. 31
The Coastal Plains and the Islands ...................................................................................... 31
The Western Coastal Plain ................................................................................................... 32
The Eastern Coastal Plain .................................................................................................... 33
Significance of Coastal Plains ............................................................................................... 34
The Indian Islands ............................................................................................................... 34
INDIA—THE CLIMATIC CONDITIONS ...................................................................................... 35
Factors Affecting the Climate of India .................................................................................. 35
Salient Features of the Climate of India ............................................................................... 38
MECHANISM OF MONSOONS ................................................................................................. 39
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CYCLE OF SEASONS ............................................................................................................... 41
Distribution of Annual Rainfall ............................................................................................ 46
India—Withdrawal of Monsoon ................................................................................................ 47
Areas of Very Heavy Rainfall ................................................................................................ 48
Characteristics of Rainfall in India ....................................................................................... 49
El- NINO AND THE INDIAN MONSOON ................................................................................... 50
Somalian Current................................................................................................................. 52
Burst of Monsoon ................................................................................................................. 52
DROUGHTS ............................................................................................................................. 53
FLOODS ................................................................................................................................... 55
Flood Prone Areas of India ................................................................................................... 55
RIVER BASINS OF INDIA ......................................................................................................... 56
TYPES OF LAKES..................................................................................................................... 59
The Tectonic Lakes .................................................................................................................. 60
The Crater Lakes ...................................................................................................................... 60
Glacial Lakes (Tarns)................................................................................................................ 60
Fluvial Lakes ............................................................................................................................ 60
Aeolian Lakes ........................................................................................................................... 61
Dissolution Lakes .................................................................................................................... 61
Lagoons .................................................................................................................................... 61
Landslide Lakes ....................................................................................................................... 61
Main Lakes of India.................................................................................................................. 61
WATER RESOURCES OF INDIA ............................................................................................... 67
Water Harvesting in India .................................................................................................... 68
Rain-water Harvesting.......................................................................................................... 69
The Inter-State Water Disputes ............................................................................................ 73
International Agreements for Surface Water Resources ....................................................... 74
The Indus Water Treaty ........................................................................................................ 74
National Water Grid ............................................................................................................. 75
The Ganga-Kaveri Link Canal .............................................................................................. 76
The Brahmaputra-Ganga Link Canal ................................................................................... 77
The Narmada Link Canal to Gujarat and Rajasthan ............................................................ 78
The Chambal Link Canal ..................................................................................................... 78
Links between the Rivers of the Western Ghats to the East ................................................. 78
The National Water Policy .................................................................................................... 78
MAIN WATERFALLS OF INDIA ................................................................................................. 79
SOILS OF INDIA ....................................................................................................................... 84
Types of Soils in India .......................................................................................................... 84
Alluvial Soil .......................................................................................................................... 84
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Black Soil ............................................................................................................................. 85
Red Soil ................................................................................................................................ 86
Laterite Soil .......................................................................................................................... 87
Mountain Soil....................................................................................................................... 87
Desert Soil............................................................................................................................ 88
Soil Erosion .......................................................................................................................... 89
Land Use Planning ............................................................................................................... 91
NATURAL VEGETATION OF INDIA .......................................................................................... 93
Types of Natural Vegetation ..................................................................................................... 94
Uses of Important Trees ........................................................................................................... 99
National Forest Policy......................................................................................................... 100
Classification of Forests ..................................................................................................... 103
INDIAN IRRIGATION .............................................................................................................. 104
Geographical Factors Favouring Irrigation in India ............................................................ 106
Means of Irrigation ............................................................................................................. 106
Tank Irrigation ................................................................................................................... 106
Merits of Tank Irrigation .................................................................................................... 107
Demerits of Tank Irrigation ................................................................................................ 107
Well and Tube-Well Irrigation ............................................................................................. 107
Merits of Well and Tube well Irrigation ............................................................................... 108
Demerits of Well and Tube Well Irrigation .......................................................................... 109
Canal Irrigation .................................................................................................................. 109
Merits of Canals Irrigation ................................................................................................. 110
Demerits of Canal Irrigation ............................................................................................... 110
MINERALS IN INDIA-I ............................................................................................................ 111
Iron ore, Manganese, Bauxite and Limestone..................................................................... 111
Types of Minerals ............................................................................................................... 111
Distribution of Minerals ..................................................................................................... 112
IRON ORE .............................................................................................................................. 112
Types of Iron Ore ................................................................................................................ 113
Reserves of Iron Ore ........................................................................................................... 113
MANGANESE ......................................................................................................................... 116
Areas of Manganese Production In India ............................................................................ 117
BAUXITE ................................................................................................................................ 118
Reserves of Bauxite in India ............................................................................................... 119
Areas of Bauxite Production ............................................................................................... 121
Consumption and Trade .................................................................................................... 122
LIMESTONE ........................................................................................................................... 122
Areas of Limestone Production ........................................................................................... 122
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MINERALS IN INDIA-II ........................................................................................................... 124
Coal and Petroleum ............................................................................................................ 124
Types of Coal ...................................................................................................................... 124
Occurrence of Coal In India ............................................................................................... 125
The Gondwana Coalfields ................................................................................................... 125
The Tertiary Coalfields ....................................................................................................... 126
Inventory of Geological Resources of Coal in India ............................................................. 126
Areas of Coal Production in India ....................................................................................... 128
Consumption of Coal In India ............................................................................................ 129
Problems of Coal Mining In India ....................................................................................... 129
PETROLEUM .......................................................................................................................... 130
Origin and Occurrence of Petroleum ...................................................................................... 130
Reserves of Petroleum in India ........................................................................................... 130
Areas of Petroleum Production ........................................................................................... 131
AGRICULTURE IN INDIA ........................................................................................................ 136
Types of Farming in India .................................................................................................. 136
Agricultural Seasons .......................................................................................................... 138
Kharif Season ..................................................................................................................... 138
Rabi Season ....................................................................................................................... 138
Zaid Season........................................................................................................................ 139
Green Revolution in India ...................................................................................................... 139
Merits of the High Yielding Varieties .................................................................................. 140
Geographical Constraints in the Adoption of New Seeds .................................................... 141
RAINBOW REVOLUTION ........................................................................................................ 144
DRY FARMING ....................................................................................................................... 146
Significant Features of Dry Farming .................................................................................. 146
Main Problems of Dry Farming .......................................................................................... 148
AGRICULTURE IN INDIA-MAJOR CROPS-1 ........................................................................... 149
Rice, Wheat, Millets and Pulses ......................................................................................... 149
Rice .................................................................................................................................... 149
Conditions for Growth of Rice ............................................................................................ 149
Methods of Rice Cultivation in India .................................................................................. 150
Areas of Rice Production .................................................................................................... 150
WHEAT .................................................................................................................................. 151
Conditions for Growth of Wheat ......................................................................................... 151
Methods of Wheat Cultivation in India ............................................................................... 151
Millets ................................................................................................................................ 152
Jowar ................................................................................................................................. 152
Bajra .................................................................................................................................. 153
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Conditions for Growth of Bajra .......................................................................................... 153
Areas of Bajra Production .................................................................................................. 153
Ragi .................................................................................................................................... 153
Conditions for Growth of Ragi ............................................................................................ 154
Areas of Ragi Production .................................................................................................... 154
Pulses ................................................................................................................................ 154
Gram .................................................................................................................................. 154
Arhar or Tur ....................................................................................................................... 154
Masur or Lentil .................................................................................................................. 155
AGRICULTURE IN INDIA-MAJOR CROPS-II ........................................................................... 155
Sugar Cane, Oilseeds, Cotton and Jute.............................................................................. 155
Sugar Cane ........................................................................................................................ 155
Conditions for Growth of Sugar cane ................................................................................. 155
Sugar Cane Cultivation in India ......................................................................................... 156
Areas of Sugar Cane Production ........................................................................................ 157
Comparison between North India and South India for Sugar Cane Cultivation ................. 157
Problems of Sugar Cane Cultivation in India ..................................................................... 158
Oilseeds ............................................................................................................................. 158
Groundnut ......................................................................................................................... 159
Conditions for growth of Groundnuts ................................................................................ 159
Areas of Groundnut Production ......................................................................................... 159
Sesamum (Til) .................................................................................................................... 160
Conditions for growth of Sesamum (Til) ............................................................................. 160
Areas of Sesamum (Til) Production .................................................................................... 160
Rapeseed and Mustard....................................................................................................... 160
Conditions for Growth of Rapeseed and Mustard ............................................................... 161
Areas of Rapeseed and Mustard Production ....................................................................... 161
Linseed ............................................................................................................................... 161
Conditions for Growth of Linseed ....................................................................................... 161
Areas of Linseed Production ............................................................................................... 161
Castor Seed ........................................................................................................................ 162
Conditions for Growth of Castor Seed ................................................................................ 162
Areas of Castor Seed Production ........................................................................................ 162
Sunflower Seed .................................................................................................................. 162
Conditions for Growth of Sunflower Seed ........................................................................... 162
Areas of Sunflower Seed Production ................................................................................... 163
Cotton Seed ........................................................................................................................ 163
Soyabean ........................................................................................................................... 163
Conditions for Growth of Soyabean .................................................................................... 163
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Areas of Soyabean Production ............................................................................................ 163
COCONUT .............................................................................................................................. 164
Conditions for Growth of Coconut ...................................................................................... 164
Cultivation ......................................................................................................................... 164
Areas .................................................................................................................................. 164
COTTON ................................................................................................................................. 164
Conditions for Growth of Cotton ........................................................................................ 164
Types of Cotton .................................................................................................................. 165
Methods of Cultivation ....................................................................................................... 165
Areas of Cotton Production ................................................................................................ 166
JUTE ...................................................................................................................................... 167
Conditions for Growth of Jute ............................................................................................ 167
Method of Cultivation and Processing ................................................................................ 167
Areas of Jute Production .................................................................................................... 168
AGRICULTURE IN INDIA-MAJOR CROPS-III.......................................................................... 169
Tea, Coffee and Rubber ...................................................................................................... 169
Tea ..................................................................................................................................... 169
Types of Tea ....................................................................................................................... 169
Conditions for Growth of Tea ............................................................................................. 169
Methods of Cultivation ....................................................................................................... 170
Areas of Tea Production ..................................................................................................... 171
COFFEE ................................................................................................................................. 171
Types of Coffee ................................................................................................................... 172
Conditions for Growth of Coffee ......................................................................................... 172
Methods of Cultivation and Processing .............................................................................. 173
Areas of Coffee Production ................................................................................................. 173
RUBBER ................................................................................................................................ 173
Conditions for Growth of Rubber ....................................................................................... 174
Methods of Cultivation ....................................................................................................... 174
Areas of Rubber Production ............................................................................................... 175
INDIA-INDUSTRIES ............................................................................................................... 176
Growth of Industries in India ............................................................................................. 176
Liberalisation ..................................................................................................................... 177
Location of Industries ........................................................................................................ 177
Classification of Industries ................................................................................................. 179
Major Industrial Regions of India ....................................................................................... 180
SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE (SEZ) ......................................................................................... 182
Defining Feature ................................................................................................................ 182
Objectives of Special Economic Zone.................................................................................. 182
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Historical Perspective ......................................................................................................... 182
Conditions for Ideal SEZ .................................................................................................... 183
Special Economic Zones of India ........................................................................................ 183
INDIA-AGRO–BASED INDUTSRIES ........................................................................................ 184
Sugar Industry ................................................................................................................... 184
Location of Sugar Industry ................................................................................................. 184
Distribution of Sugar Industry ........................................................................................... 185
Difference between Sugar Industry Of Northern And Southern India................................. 185
THE TEXTILE INDUSTRIES ................................................................................................... 187
Cotton Textiles ................................................................................................................... 187
Growth and Development ................................................................................................... 187
Location of Cotton Textile Industry .................................................................................... 187
Distribution of Cotton Textile Industry In India ................................................................. 188
Silk Textiles ........................................................................................................................ 191
Distribution of Silk Textile Mills In India ............................................................................ 191
Jute Textiles ....................................................................................................................... 191
Growth and Development ................................................................................................... 192
Location of Jute Industry In India ...................................................................................... 192
Distribution of Jute Mills In India ...................................................................................... 193
Woollen Textiles ................................................................................................................. 193
Distribution of Woollen Mills In India................................................................................. 193
INDIA-MINERAL-BASED INDUSTRIES .................................................................................. 195
The Iron and Steel Industry ............................................................................................... 195
Growth and Development ................................................................................................... 195
Locational Factors .............................................................................................................. 196
Distribution of Iron and Steel Industry .............................................................................. 196
Problems of Iron And Steel Industry In India ..................................................................... 202
Heavy Engineering ............................................................................................................. 202
Industrial Machinery .......................................................................................................... 202
Machine Tools .................................................................................................................... 203
Railway Equipment ............................................................................................................ 203
Automobile Industry .......................................................................................................... 204
Shipbuilding Industry ........................................................................................................ 205
Aircraft Industry ................................................................................................................ 205
Petrochemicals ................................................................................................................... 206
Electronics Industry ........................................................................................................... 206
Means of Transport ............................................................................................................ 207
Waterways .......................................................................................................................... 208
REFRENCE ............................................................................................................................ 210
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International Airports of India ............................................................................................ 210
Major Ports in India ........................................................................................................... 211
Important National Highways ............................................................................................. 211
Railway Gauges .................................................................................................................. 213
The Konkan Railway .......................................................................................................... 214
The Railway Zones ............................................................................................................. 214
The Main Scheduled Tribes of India ................................................................................... 215
INDIA—LOCATION, EXTENT AND PHYSICAL FEATURES
The region bounded by the young fold mountain ranges in the northwest, north and northeast, and washed
by the waters of the Indian Ocean and its two northern arms—the Arabian Sea in the west and the Bay of
Bengal in the east, has been a distinct geographical and geopolitical unit since the ancient times. This region
stands out distinctly from the rest of the continent of Asia and is called the Indian Subcontinent. A
subcontinent is a geographical unit, which has all the geographical features present in the continent. The
Indian Subcontinent located in the southern of part of Asia has all the geographical features which compels
us to call it a subcontinent.
Location and Extent
India lies in the northern and eastern hemispheres of the globe. The mainland of India extends from about 8°
4' N to 37° 6' N latitudes and from about 68° 7' E to 97° 25' E longitudes. Thus, its latitudinal and
longitudinal extent is about 30°. Although the southernmost tip of the mainland is Kanniyakumari, but for
the whole country, it is Indira Point located in the Great Nicobar Island.
The north-south extent of the mainland of India from Kashmir in the north to Kanniyakumari in the south is
about 3214 km. The east-west extent from the Rann of Kachchh in the west to Arunachal Pradesh in the east
is about 2933 km.
India at a Glance
1. Latitudinal Extent 8° 4' N to 37° 6' N 2. Longitudinal Extent 68°7′ E to 97° 25’ E
3. Area 32, 87, 263 sq. km 4. Population (2011) 1,210 million
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Table Of Contents Ancient History ................................................................................................................................................................. 11
The Sources Of Indian History ...................................................................................................................................... 11
Indigenous Literary Sources ............................................................................................................................................ 13
Brahamanical Literature ................................................................................................................................................... 14
The Upanishads ................................................................................................................................................................. 14
The Epics ........................................................................................................................................................................... 15
The Puranas ....................................................................................................................................................................... 15
Buddhist Literature ........................................................................................................................................................... 15
Jain Literature .................................................................................................................................................................... 15
Secular Literature .............................................................................................................................................................. 15
Biographical Works .......................................................................................................................................................... 15
Grammatical Works .......................................................................................................................................................... 16
Dramas And Poetical Works ........................................................................................................................................... 16
Scientific Works ................................................................................................................................................................ 16
Foreign Accounts .............................................................................................................................................................. 16
Brief Chronology Of Ancient India ............................................................................................................................... 18
Early Civilisations Of The Northwest ........................................................................................................................... 19
A Lost Civilization ............................................................................................................................................................ 19
The Investigation Of Past ............................................................................................................................................... 20
Indus Valley Civilisation Or The Harappan Civilisation ............................................................................................ 20
Chief Characteristics ......................................................................................................................................................... 21
Extent.................................................................................................................................................................................. 23
The Saraswati River .......................................................................................................................................................... 23
Cultural Development ...................................................................................................................................................... 24
New Research And Writing ............................................................................................................................................ 24
Anatomy Of Various Sites ............................................................................................................................................... 26
Smaller Settlements ........................................................................................................................................................... 27
Hariyupia In The Rig Veda ............................................................................................................................................. 28
Aryan Invasion Of India? ................................................................................................................................................ 28
Recent Research ................................................................................................................................................................ 29
The Vedic Age ................................................................................................................................................................... 36
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Continuing Debate About Original Home Of Aryans ............................................................................................... 36
The Early Vedic Period .................................................................................................................................................... 37
The Vedas As A Mirror Of Historical Experience ...................................................................................................... 37
Four Vedas ......................................................................................................................................................................... 39
Vedangas (Limbs Of Vedas) ........................................................................................................................................... 39
Upvedas .............................................................................................................................................................................. 39
Brahamanas ........................................................................................................................................................................ 40
Upanishads ......................................................................................................................................................................... 40
Six Systems Of Philosophy (Darshan)........................................................................................................................... 41
The Expansion Of Aryan Settlements........................................................................................................................... 41
Later Vedic Age ................................................................................................................................................................. 41
The Role Of The King ..................................................................................................................................................... 42
The Rise Of The Gangetic Culture And The Great Empires Of The East ............................................................ 43
The Penetration Of The East ......................................................................................................................................... 43
Urbanisation In The Ganges Valley ............................................................................................................................... 45
The Rise Of Buddhism .................................................................................................................................................... 46
Brief History Of Buddhist Councils .............................................................................................................................. 47
Jainism................................................................................................................................................................................. 49
Branches In Jainism .......................................................................................................................................................... 51
The West Under Persian Domination ........................................................................................................................... 52
The Origins Of The Early State ..................................................................................................................................... 52
The Impact Of Alexander’s Indian Campaign ............................................................................................................. 54
The Foundation Of The Maurya Empire ..................................................................................................................... 55
The Political System Of The Arthashastra ................................................................................................................... 55
Books Of Arthashastra .................................................................................................................................................... 56
Ashoka, The Beloved Of The Gods .............................................................................................................................. 57
Detailed Account Of The Inscriptions Of Ashoka ..................................................................................................... 63
Art And Architecture During The Mauryan Period .................................................................................................... 63
Taxila University ............................................................................................................................................................... 65
Jivaka ................................................................................................................................................................................... 65
Panini (Between 4th And 7th Century B.C.) ................................................................................................................... 66
Patanjali (Second Century B.C.)...................................................................................................................................... 66
The End Of The Maurya Empire And The Northern Invaders ............................................................................... 66
Greek Rulers Of The Northwest.................................................................................................................................... 67
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The Shakas: New Invaders From Central Asia ............................................................................................................ 69
The Kushana Empire: A Short-Lived Asian Synthesis ............................................................................................... 71
The Splendour Of The ‘Dark Period ............................................................................................................................. 76
The Satavahanas Of The Deccan: Their Prosperity And Piety ................................................................................. 77
The Amaravati Sculptures ............................................................................................................................................... 77
The Classical Age Of The Guptas.................................................................................................................................. 78
The Structure Of The Gupta Empire ............................................................................................................................ 79
Subjection And Alliance: Shakas And Vakatakas ........................................................................................................ 81
Kalidasa And Classical Sanskrit Literature .................................................................................................................... 82
An Age Of Religious Tolerance And Political Consolidation ................................................................................... 83
Internal And External Challenges: Pushyamitras And Huns ..................................................................................... 84
The ‘Flowering’ Of Gupta Classical Culture ................................................................................................................ 86
Mathematics And Technology ........................................................................................................................................ 86
Dissemination Of Knowledge: The Nalanda Monastic College ............................................................................... 87
The Vakataka Achievement At Ajanta .......................................................................................................................... 88
History Of South India .................................................................................................................................................... 88
Cholas, Pandyas And Cheras .......................................................................................................................................... 88
Cholas ................................................................................................................................................................................. 89
Pandyas ............................................................................................................................................................................... 89
Cheras ................................................................................................................................................................................. 89
Sangam Literature ............................................................................................................................................................. 90
International Trade And The Roman Connection ...................................................................................................... 90
The Rise And Conflicts Of Regional Kingdoms ......................................................................................................... 92
Harsha ................................................................................................................................................................................. 92
The Rise Of Regional Centres ........................................................................................................................................ 94
The Pala Dynasty Of East India ..................................................................................................................................... 97
The Chalukya Dynasty Of Badami................................................................................................................................. 98
The Pallava Dynasty Of Kanchipuram ......................................................................................................................... 99
The Resurgence Of The Chola Dynasty ..................................................................................................................... 100
The Great Merchants Of South India ......................................................................................................................... 102
Medieval India ................................................................................................................................................................. 103
The Delhi Sultanate ........................................................................................................................................................ 103
Qutb-Ud-Din Aibak And Aram Shah ......................................................................................................................... 103
Early Career ..................................................................................................................................................................... 103
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His Difficulties ................................................................................................................................................................ 103
His Efforts And Achievements .................................................................................................................................... 104
Aram Shah ........................................................................................................................................................................ 105
Sultan Iltutmish (1211-1236 A.D.) ............................................................................................................................... 105
Organisation Of The Group Of Forty Slaves, Viz. Turkan-I-Chihalgani ............................................................. 105
Defeat Of Yildiz .............................................................................................................................................................. 105
The Impending Mongol Invasion ................................................................................................................................ 105
The Defeat Of Qabacha ................................................................................................................................................ 106
Investiture From The Caliph ........................................................................................................................................ 106
An Estimate ..................................................................................................................................................................... 106
The Struggle For Power Between Sultans And The Group Of Forty Slaves (Turkan-I-Chihalgani) ............... 107
1236-1265 A.D. ............................................................................................................................................................... 107
Rukn-Ud-Din Firoz Shah (1236 A.D.) ........................................................................................................................ 108
Sultana Raziyya (1236-1240 A.D.) ................................................................................................................................ 109
Muizzudin Bahram Shah (1240-1242 A.D.) ............................................................................................................... 110
Ala-Ud-Din Masud Shah (1242-1246 A.D.) ............................................................................................................... 110
Nasir-Ud-Din Mahmud Shah (1246-1265 A.D.) ....................................................................................................... 111
Ghiyas-Ud-Din Balban .................................................................................................................................................. 112
Kaiqubad And Kayumars (Ghiyas-Ud-Din Balban (1265-1287 A.D.) .................................................................. 112
Early Career ..................................................................................................................................................................... 112
His Difficulties ................................................................................................................................................................ 112
Balban's Achievements................................................................................................................................................... 112
Balban’s Theory Of Kingship And Restoration Of The Prestige Of The Sultan ................................................ 113
The Destruction Of ‘The Forty’ ................................................................................................................................... 113
The Suppression Of Revoits ......................................................................................................................................... 114
The Mongols .................................................................................................................................................................... 114
Death Of Balban ............................................................................................................................................................. 114
Kaiqubad And Shams-Ud-Din Kayumars (1287-1290 A.D.) .................................................................................. 114
The Khalji Dynasty ......................................................................................................................................................... 115
Jalal-Ud-Din Firozshah Khalji (1290-1296 A.D.) ...................................................................................................... 115
Murder Of Jalal-Ud-Din ................................................................................................................................................ 117
Ala-Ud-Din Khalji (1296-1316 A.D.) .......................................................................................................................... 118
Early Career ..................................................................................................................................................................... 118
Theory Of Kingship ....................................................................................................................................................... 118
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The Invasion Of South India And The Defence Against The Mongols ............................................................... 118
Fixing Up Prices Of Everything ................................................................................................................................... 119
Administrative Reforms ................................................................................................................................................. 121
The Episode Of Padmini ............................................................................................................................................... 122
Downfall Of The Khalji Empire .................................................................................................................................. 122
The So-Called Tughluq Dynasty .................................................................................................................................. 123
Ghiyas-Ud-Din Tughluq Shah (1320-1325 A.D.) ...................................................................................................... 123
Muhammad Bin Tughluq (1325-1351 A.D.) .............................................................................................................. 123
Muhammad Tughluq’s Ambitious Plans ..................................................................................................................... 123
Domestic Policy .............................................................................................................................................................. 124
The Introduction Of Token Currency (1329-1330 A.D.) ........................................................................................ 125
The Mongol Invasion ..................................................................................................................................................... 125
Extension Of The Empire (Foreign Policy) ............................................................................................................... 125
Death Of Muhammad Tughluq .................................................................................................................................... 126
Firuz Shah Tughluq (1351-1388 A.D.) ........................................................................................................................ 126
The Sayyid Dynasty ........................................................................................................................................................ 127
Khizr Khan (1414-1421 A.D.) ...................................................................................................................................... 127
Mubarak Shah (1421-1434 A.D.) .................................................................................................................................. 127
Ala-Ud-Din Alam Shah (1445-1450 A.D.) ................................................................................................................. 128
The States Of Central And Southern India In The Period Of The Sultanate Of Delhi ..................................... 129
The Bahmani Sultanate Of The Deccan ..................................................................................................................... 129
The Gajapatis Of Orissa ................................................................................................................................................ 130
The Foundation Of The Vijayanagar Empire ............................................................................................................ 132
Vijayanagar’s Glory And Doom ................................................................................................................................... 133
Cultural Development In India .................................................................................................................................... 136
(From The 13th To The 15th Century) ......................................................................................................................... 136
Architecture ..................................................................................................................................................................... 136
The Sufi Movement ........................................................................................................................................................ 137
The Chishti And Suharwardi Silsilahs.......................................................................................................................... 138
The Bhakti Movement ............................................................................................................................................... 139
The Vaishnavite Movement..................................................................................................................................... 141
Literature And Fine Arts ........................................................................................................................................... 142
Fine Arts ................................................................................................................................................................... 144
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The Rise And Fall Of The Mughal Empire ................................................................................................................ 146
The First Battle Of Panipat (20 April 1526) ............................................................................................................... 148
The Battle Of Khanwa ................................................................................................................................................... 149
Significance Of Babur’s Advent Into India ................................................................................................................ 150
Humayun .......................................................................................................................................................................... 151
Sher Khan......................................................................................................................................................................... 152
Sher Shah And The Sur Empire (1540-55) ................................................................................................................. 153
Battle Of Sammel ............................................................................................................................................................ 154
Administration ................................................................................................................................................................. 154
Age Of Akbar .................................................................................................................................................................. 155
Second Battle Of Panipat ,5 November 1556 ............................................................................................................ 155
Bairam Khan .................................................................................................................................................................... 155
Consolidation ................................................................................................................................................................... 156
Revenue System............................................................................................................................................................... 156
Mansabdari System ......................................................................................................................................................... 158
Foreign Relations Of Mughals ...................................................................................................................................... 159
Relations With The Portuguese .................................................................................................................................... 159
Relations With The Ottoman Empire ......................................................................................................................... 159
Din-I-Ilahi ........................................................................................................................................................................ 160
Akbar Namah .................................................................................................................................................................. 160
Death................................................................................................................................................................................. 161
The Deccan And South India ....................................................................................................................................... 161
(Up To 1656) ................................................................................................................................................................... 161
Cultural Contribution Of The Deccan States............................................................................................................. 162
India In The First Half Of The Seventeenth Century .............................................................................................. 163
Nur Jahan ......................................................................................................................................................................... 163
Shah Jahan’s Rebellion ................................................................................................................................................... 164
Shah Jahan ........................................................................................................................................................................ 164
Administration ................................................................................................................................................................. 165
Cultural And Religious Developments ........................................................................................................................ 166
Religious Ideas And Beliefs, And Problems Of Integration .................................................................................... 166
Climax And Disintegration Of The Mughal Empire ................................................................................................ 168
Aurangzeb ........................................................................................................................................................................ 168
Aurangzeb’s Reign — His Religious Policy ................................................................................................................ 169
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Architecture ..................................................................................................................................................................... 170
Chronology ...................................................................................................................................................................... 173
Who Is Who In Medieval India .................................................................................................................................... 176
Mughal Twilight .............................................................................................................................................................. 187
The Emergence Of Regional States And The East India Company ...................................................................... 187
The ‘Fault Lines’ Of Mughal Control .......................................................................................................................... 187
Mughals Post Aurangzeb ............................................................................................................................................... 188
Regional Powers .............................................................................................................................................................. 193
Hyderabad ........................................................................................................................................................................ 193
Awadh ............................................................................................................................................................................... 193
Bengal................................................................................................................................................................................ 194
Emergence Of The Nawab Of Murshidabad ............................................................................................................. 195
Mysore .............................................................................................................................................................................. 195
Anglo Mysore Wars ........................................................................................................................................................ 196
Rajputs .............................................................................................................................................................................. 197
Sikhs .................................................................................................................................................................................. 197
The Punjab Under Ranjit Singh .................................................................................................................................... 197
Anglo Sikh Wars.............................................................................................................................................................. 198
Marathas ........................................................................................................................................................................... 198
Europeans In India ......................................................................................................................................................... 200
The Portuguese................................................................................................................................................................ 200
The Dutch ........................................................................................................................................................................ 201
The British East India Company .................................................................................................................................. 201
The French ....................................................................................................................................................................... 203
Anglo-French Conflicts ................................................................................................................................................. 204
Robert Clive And The Diwani Of Bengal................................................................................................................... 207
Warren Hastings: Architect Of An Empire ................................................................................................................ 208
Absconding Peasants And The Permanent Settlement ............................................................................................ 213
Permanent Settlement .................................................................................................................................................... 214
Subsidiary Alliance .......................................................................................................................................................... 217
The Uses Of Education ................................................................................................................................................. 218
Dalhousie And The Policy Of Annexation (1848-1856) .......................................................................................... 221
Revolt Of 1857 ................................................................................................................................................................ 222
The Colonial Economy .................................................................................................................................................. 227
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The Ebb And Flow Of Silver ....................................................................................................................................... 227
The Fate Of Indian Industry ......................................................................................................................................... 230
Foundation Of The Congress ....................................................................................................................................... 230
Ilbert Bill Controversy.................................................................................................................................................... 233
Congress Sessions ........................................................................................................................................................... 234
Chronology (1877-1942) ................................................................................................................................................ 239
India After Curzon ......................................................................................................................................................... 240
Administrative Reforms ................................................................................................................................................. 240
The Partition Of Bengal, 1905 ...................................................................................................................................... 241
The Growth And Development Of The Indian National Movement ................................................................... 242
First Phase, 1885-1905 ................................................................................................................................................... 243
Period Of Moderate Politics Or Tea-Party Politics ................................................................................................... 243
Official Attitude Towards The Congress .................................................................................................................... 244
Second Phase, 1905—1919 ........................................................................................................................................... 245
Rise Of Extremism Or Radical Politics ....................................................................................................................... 245
Causes For The Rise Of Extremism ............................................................................................................................ 246
The Objectives And Methods Of The Extremist Group......................................................................................... 247
The Extremist Programme Of Action ........................................................................................................................ 248
Indian Nationalists And World War I ......................................................................................................................... 249
Home Rule Movement................................................................................................................................................... 249
The Lucknow Session, 1916 .......................................................................................................................................... 250
Annie Besant .................................................................................................................................................................... 250
The Revolutionary Terrorist Movement ..................................................................................................................... 252
The Third Phase Or The Gandhian Era, 1919-1947 ................................................................................................. 256
Aim Of Swaraj Through Non-Violence & Non-Cooperation ................................................................................ 256
The Non-Cooperation Movement, 1920-22 .............................................................................................................. 257
The Civil Disobedience Movement, 1930-34 ............................................................................................................. 258
The Great War And The Constitutional Deadlock ................................................................................................... 258
Assessment Of Gandhi’s Role In India’s Struggle For Independence ................................................................... 260
Gandhi Timeline Before 1920’s .................................................................................................................................... 260
Gandhiji In Champaran Ahmedabad And Kheda ..................................................................................................... 262
Rowlatt Act ...................................................................................................................................................................... 263
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre ............................................................................................................................................. 263
Home Rule League ......................................................................................................................................................... 264
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Lucknow Pact .................................................................................................................................................................. 264
Indian Liberal Party ........................................................................................................................................................ 265
Tej Bahadur Sapru .......................................................................................................................................................... 265
Nehru Report................................................................................................................................................................... 266
Lahore Conspiracy Case ................................................................................................................................................ 268
Meerut Conspiracy Case ................................................................................................................................................ 268
Karachi Session ............................................................................................................................................................... 268
Round Table Conferences, 1930-1932 ........................................................................................................................ 268
Communal Award ........................................................................................................................................................... 271
Lucknow Session 1936 ................................................................................................................................................... 273
The Faizpur Congress Session (December 1936) ...................................................................................................... 273
Demand For Pakistan..................................................................................................................................................... 273
C.R.Formula ..................................................................................................................................................................... 274
Desai-Liaquat Pact .......................................................................................................................................................... 275
Indian National Army .................................................................................................................................................... 275
Royal Indian Navy Mutiny ............................................................................................................................................ 276
Subhash Chandra Bose .................................................................................................................................................. 277
Cellular Jail ....................................................................................................................................................................... 279
The Pattern Of Constitutional Reform ....................................................................................................................... 279
The Morley–Minto Reform And Separate Electorates ............................................................................................. 280
The Montagu–Chelmsford Reform And Responsible Government ...................................................................... 280
Federalism And The Government Of India Act Of 1935 ....................................................................................... 281
The Second World War, The Cripps Mission And ‘Quit India’ .............................................................................. 282
The Simla Conference And Its Aftermath .................................................................................................................. 285
The Cabinet Mission Scheme And The Advent Of Partition ................................................................................. 286
Operation Mountbatten And ‘Plan Balkan’ ................................................................................................................ 288
Integration Of States ...................................................................................................................................................... 290
Foreign Policy Of Non-Alignment .............................................................................................................................. 291
Indo-China Relations ..................................................................................................................................................... 292
The Chinese Attack, 1962 .............................................................................................................................................. 293
Chronology 1858-1964 ................................................................................................................................................... 296
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ANCIENT HISTORY
“No Thucydides or Tacitus or Herodotus was born in India”
There is a great divergence of opinion regarding the adequacy, authenticity, reliability and validity of sources
of ancient history of India. If history is treated as chronicle of events relating to rulers and kingdoms, then
certainly India had no historian like Herodotus (5th century BC) and Thucydides (5th century BC) both were
Greek historians and Tacitus (1st Century BC) a Roman historian. However if history is concerned not only
with kings and wars but also with the people who make up a society, its social customs and institutions,
language and literature etc., then certainly it is wrong to say that ancient Indians had no sense of history.
According to Dr. A. L. Basham, “The early history of India resembles a jigsaw puzzle with many missing
pieces; some parts of the picture are fairly clear, others may be reconstructed with the aid of a controlled
imagination but many gaps remain and may never be filled.”
In the words of Dr. R.C. Majumdar, “One of the greatest defects of Indian culture which defies rational
explanation, is the aversion of Indians to writing history. They applied themselves to all conceivable branches
of literature and excelled in many of them, but they never seriously took to the writing of history.”
Five-fold division of Archaeological Source
Material remains like early bones, burials, caves, pottery, tools, etc.
Coins
Inscriptions
Monuments
Architecture, Paintings and Sculpture
Material remains
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Table Of Contents
General Science, Mathematics, And Technology……………………………………………………………… 32
What Is The Difference Between Science And Technology? ..................................................................... 26
How Does An Independent Variable Differ From A Dependent Variable? ................................................. 26
What Is High Technology Or High Tech? ................................................................................................ 26
What Is Nanotechnology? ....................................................................................................................... 26
How Large Is A Nanometer? ................................................................................................................... 27
What Is The Oldest Continuously Published Scientific Journal? ............................................................. 27
When Was The First Nobel Prize Awarded? ............................................................................................. 27
Who Are The Youngest And Oldest Nobel Laureates In The Areas Of Physics, Chemistry, And Physiology
Or Medicine? ......................................................................................................................................... 27
Are There Any Multiple Nobel Prize Winners? ......................................................................................... 27
Who Was The First Woman To Receive The Nobel Prize? ......................................................................... 28
How Many Women Have Been Awarded The Nobel Prize In Chemistry, Physics, Or Physiology Or
Medicine? .............................................................................................................................................. 28
When Was The First Time Two Women Shared The Nobel Prize In The Same Field? ................................ 28
Is There A Nobel Prize In Mathematics? .................................................................................................. 29
What Is The Turing Award? .................................................................................................................... 29
Numbers ................................................................................................................................................ 30
What Are Roman Numerals? .................................................................................................................. 30
What Are Fibonacci Numbers? ............................................................................................................... 30
What Is A Perfect Number? .................................................................................................................... 30
How Large Is A Googol? .......................................................................................................................... 30
Computers ............................................................................................................................................. 32
What Is An Algorithm? ........................................................................................................................... 32
What Was The Name Of The Personal Computer Introduced By Apple In The Early 1980s? .................... 32
What’s The Difference Between A “Bit” And A “Byte”? ............................................................................. 32
What Is A Silicon Chip? ......................................................................................................................... 32
What Are The Sizes Of Silicon Chips? ..................................................................................................... 33
What Is The Central Processing Unit Of A Computer? ............................................................................ 33
How Is The Speed Of A Cpu Measured? .................................................................................................. 33
What Is The Difference Between Ram And Rom? .................................................................................... 33
What Are Some Newer Forms Of Portable Storage Media? ...................................................................... 33
What Is A Usb Port? ............................................................................................................................... 34
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Is Assembly Language The Same Thing As Machine Language? .............................................................. 34
Who Invented The Cobol Computer Language? ....................................................................................... 35
Which Was The First Widely Used High-Level Programming Language? .................................................. 35
How Did The Linux Operating System Get Its Name? ............................................................................. 35
Open-Source Software (Oss) ................................................................................................................... 35
What Is A Pixel? ..................................................................................................................................... 35
Internet ................................................................................................................................................. 36
What Is The Internet? ............................................................................................................................ 36
Who Coined The Term “Information Superhighway”? .............................................................................. 36
Who Invented The World Wide Web? ...................................................................................................... 36
What Is The Client/Server Principle And How Does It Apply To The Internet? ......................................... 37
What Is A Uniform Resource Locator, Or Url? ........................................................................................ 37
What Are Some Common Top Level Domain (Tld) Suffixes? .................................................................... 37
What Is The Most Popular Search Engine? ............................................................................................. 37
When Was Google Founded? .................................................................................................................. 38
What Is Spam? ...................................................................................................................................... 38
What Is Wi-Fi? ....................................................................................................................................... 38
When Was The Term Web 2.0 First Used? .............................................................................................. 38
What Is Web 2.0? ................................................................................................................................... 38
Web 3.0 ................................................................................................................................................. 39
What Is Inertia? ..................................................................................................................................... 41
What Is Superconductivity? ................................................................................................................... 41
What Are Some Practical Applications Of Superconductivity? ................................................................. 41
What Is String Theory? .......................................................................................................................... 41
What Is The Role Of Friction In Striking A Match?.................................................................................. 42
What Is Friction? ................................................................................................................................... 42
Why Is A Lubricant, Such As Oil, Often Used To Counter The Force Of Friction? .................................... 42
Why Do Golf Balls Have Dimples? .......................................................................................................... 42
Does Water Running Down A Drain Rotate In A Different Direction In The Northern Versus The Southern
Hemisphere? .......................................................................................................................................... 42
What Is The Speed Of Light? .................................................................................................................. 43
What Are The Primary Colors In Light? .................................................................................................. 43
How Do Polarized Sunglasses Reduce Glare? ......................................................................................... 43
Why Does The Color Of Clothing Appear Different In Sunlight Than It Does In A Store Under Fluorescent
Light? .................................................................................................................................................... 43
What Is The Difference Between Special And General Relativity? ............................................................ 43
How Do Sound Waves Differ From Light Waves? .................................................................................... 44
Does Sound Travel Faster In Air Or Water? ............................................................................................ 44
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Who Was The First Person To Break The Sound Barrier? ....................................................................... 44
When Is A Sonic Boom Heard? ............................................................................................................... 44
What Is The Doppler Effect? ................................................................................................................... 45
What Is A Decibel? ................................................................................................................................. 45
What Are The Characteristics Of Alpha, Beta, And Gamma Radiation? ................................................... 45
Electricity And Magnetism ..................................................................................................................... 46
How Does An Electromagnet Work? ....................................................................................................... 46
If A Magnetic Bar Is Cut In Two, Will It Yield A North Pole And A South Pole Magnet? ............................ 46
How Do Permanent Magnets Differ From Temporary Magnets? ............................................................... 46
What Materials Are Used To Make The Most Powerful Permanent Magnets? ........................................... 46
Why Is Static Electricity Greater In Winter Than Summer?..................................................................... 46
How Do Dryer Sheets And Hair Conditioner Reduce Or Prevent Static Electricity? .................................. 47
How Did The Electrical Term Ampere Originate? .................................................................................... 47
How Did The Electrical Unit Volt Originate? ........................................................................................... 47
How Did The Electrical Unit Watt Originate? .......................................................................................... 47
What Materials Are The Best And Worst Conductors Of Electricity? ....................................................... 47
How Do Lead-Acid Batteries Work? ........................................................................................................ 48
Matter ................................................................................................................................................... 48
What Is An Atom? .................................................................................................................................. 48
Who Is Generally Regarded As The Discoverer Of The Electron, The Proton, And The Neutron? .............. 48
What Is A Chemical Bond? ..................................................................................................................... 48
What Are The Major Types Of Bonds? .................................................................................................... 48
When Was The First Atomic Theory Proposed? ....................................................................................... 49
Who Proposed The Modern Theory Of The Atom? ................................................................................... 49
Who Invented The Cyclotron?................................................................................................................. 49
What Is The Fourth State Of Matter?...................................................................................................... 49
What Is The Difference Between Nuclear Fission And Nuclear Fusion? ................................................... 50
How Did The Quark Get Its Name?......................................................................................................... 50
What Are Subatomic Particles? .............................................................................................................. 50
Why Is Liquid Water Denser Than Ice? ................................................................................................... 51
What Substance, Other Than Water, Is Less Dense As A Solid Than As A Liquid? .................................. 51
Chemical Elements ................................................................................................................................ 51
Who Are Some Of The Founders Of Modern Chemistry? ......................................................................... 51
Who Developed The Periodic Table? ....................................................................................................... 51
What Are The Alkali Metals? .................................................................................................................. 52
What Are The Alkaline Earth Metals? ..................................................................................................... 53
What Are The Transition Elements? ....................................................................................................... 53
What Are The Transuranic Chemical Elements And The Names For Elements 102 To 109? .................... 53
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Which Are The Only Two Elements In The Periodic Table Named After Women? ..................................... 54
Which Elements Are The “Noble Metals”? ............................................................................................... 54
What Distinguishes Gold And Silver As Elements? ................................................................................. 54
What Is Harkin’s Rule? .......................................................................................................................... 55
What Are Some Chemical Elements Whose Symbols Are Not Derived From Their English Names? .......... 55
Which Elements Are Liquid At Room Temperature? ................................................................................ 55
Which Chemical Elements Are The Most Abundant On Earth? ............................................................... 55
Why Are The Rare Gases And Rare Earth Elements Called “Rare”? ......................................................... 55
What Is An Isotope? ............................................................................................................................... 56
Which Elements Have The Most Isotopes? .............................................................................................. 56
What Is Heavy Water? ............................................................................................................................ 56
What Does Half-Life Mean? .................................................................................................................... 56
Which Elements Have The Highest And Lowest Boiling Points? .............................................................. 56
Which Element Has The Highest Density? .............................................................................................. 57
What Is The Density Of Air? ................................................................................................................... 57
Which Elements Are The Hardest And Softest?....................................................................................... 57
What Are Isomers? ................................................................................................................................. 57
What Are The Gas Laws? ....................................................................................................................... 58
What Is A Lewis Acid? ............................................................................................................................ 58
Alloys List .............................................................................................................................................. 58
What Is The Kelvin Temperature Scale? ................................................................................................. 66
How Are Celsius Temperatures Converted Into Fahrenheit Temperatures? ............................................. 66
How Is “Absolute Zero” Defined? ............................................................................................................ 67
Does Hot Water Freeze Faster Than Cold? .............................................................................................. 67
What Is Stp? .......................................................................................................................................... 67
What Is The Ph Scale? ........................................................................................................................... 67
What Is Nuclear Magnetic Resonance? ................................................................................................... 68
What Is A Mole In Chemistry? ................................................................................................................ 68
Astronomy And Space ............................................................................................................................ 69
What Was The Big Bang? ....................................................................................................................... 69
What Is The Big Crunch Theory?............................................................................................................ 69
How Old Is The Universe? ...................................................................................................................... 69
How Old Is The Solar System? ............................................................................................................... 69
What Are Quasars? ................................................................................................................................ 70
Stars ..................................................................................................................................................... 70
What Is A Supernova? ............................................................................................................................ 70
What Are The Four Types Of Nebulae? ................................................................................................... 70
Why Do Stars Twinkle? .......................................................................................................................... 71
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What Is A Binary Star? .......................................................................................................................... 71
What Is A Black Hole?............................................................................................................................ 71
What Is A Pulsar? .................................................................................................................................. 71
What Is The Most Massive Star? ............................................................................................................ 72
Which Stars Are The Brightest? ............................................................................................................. 72
What Is The Milky Way? ......................................................................................................................... 72
What Is The Big Dipper? ........................................................................................................................ 72
Where Is The North Star? ....................................................................................................................... 73
Which Star Is The Closest To Earth? ...................................................................................................... 73
What Is The Ecliptic? ............................................................................................................................. 73
Why Does The Color Of The Sun Vary? .................................................................................................. 73
How Long Does It Take Light From The Sun To Reach Earth? ................................................................ 73
How Long Is A Solar Cycle? .................................................................................................................... 73
What Is A Solar Flare? ........................................................................................................................... 74
What Is The Sunspot Cycle?................................................................................................................... 74
What Is Solar Wind? .............................................................................................................................. 74
When Do Solar Eclipses Happen? .......................................................................................................... 74
Planets And Moons ................................................................................................................................ 75
How Far Are The Planets From The Sun? ............................................................................................... 75
Which Are The Hottest And Coldest Planets? .......................................................................................... 75
Which Planets Have Rings? .................................................................................................................... 76
What Are The Colors Of The Planets? ..................................................................................................... 77
What Is The Gravitational Force On Each Of The Planets, The Moon, And The Sun Relative To Earth? ... 77
Which Planets Are Visible To The Naked Eye? ........................................................................................ 77
Which Planets Are Called “Inferior” Planets And Which Are “Superior” Planets? ...................................... 77
Is A Day The Same On All The Planets? .................................................................................................. 78
What Are The Jovian And Terrestrial Planets? ........................................................................................ 78
What Is Unique About The Rotation Of The Planet Venus? ..................................................................... 78
Is It True That The Rotation Speed Of Earth Varies? .............................................................................. 78
Is Earth Closer To The Sun In Winter Than In Summer In The Northern Hemisphere? ........................... 79
What Is The Precession Of The Equinoxes? ............................................................................................ 79
How Many Dwarf Planets Are In The Solar System? ............................................................................... 79
What Is A Small Solar System Body?...................................................................................................... 79
What Are Kuiper Belt Objects? ............................................................................................................... 79
How Far Is The Moon From Earth? ........................................................................................................ 80
How Many Moons Does Each Planet Have? ............................................................................................ 80
What Are The Phases Of The Moon? ....................................................................................................... 80
What Are Moonquakes? ......................................................................................................................... 81
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Why Does The Moon Always Keep The Same Face Toward Earth? .......................................................... 81
What Are The Names Of The Full Moon During Each Month? ................................................................. 81
Is The Moon Really Blue During A Blue Moon? ....................................................................................... 81
Why Do Lunar Eclipses Happen? ........................................................................................................... 82
What Is The Difference Between A Hunter’s Moon And A Harvest Moon? ................................................ 83
What Is The Largest Crater On The Moon? ............................................................................................. 83
What Is The Genesis Rock? .................................................................................................................... 83
Comets And Meteorites .......................................................................................................................... 83
Where Are Asteroids Found? .................................................................................................................. 83
From Where Do Comets Originate? ........................................................................................................ 84
How Does A Meteorite Differ From A Meteoroid? ..................................................................................... 84
When Do Meteor Showers Occur? .......................................................................................................... 84
Observation And Measurement .............................................................................................................. 85
Who Was The First Astronomer Royal? ................................................................................................... 85
What Is A Light Year? ............................................................................................................................ 85
Besides The Light Year, What Other Units Are Used To Measure Distances In Astronomy? ..................... 85
What Are The Differences Between Reflecting And Refracting Telescopes? .............................................. 85
For Whom Is The Hubble Space Telescope Named? ................................................................................ 86
Exploration ............................................................................................................................................ 86
What Is The Difference Between Zero-Gravity And Microgravity? ............................................................ 86
What Is Meant By The Phrase “Greening Of The Galaxy”?....................................................................... 86
When Was The Outer Space Treaty Signed? ........................................................................................... 86
Who Was The First Man In Space? ......................................................................................................... 87
Who Was The First Woman In Space? .................................................................................................... 87
Who Was The First Space Tourist? ......................................................................................................... 88
What Are The Liquid Fuels Used By The Space Shuttles? ....................................................................... 88
What Was The Cause Of The Columbia Space Shuttle Disaster? ............................................................ 88
What Is The Purpose Of The International Space Station (Iss)? ............................................................... 88
When Was The First Module Of The International Space Station Launched? .......................................... 88
Which Nations Contribute To The International Space Station? .............................................................. 89
What Are The Van Allen Belts? ............................................................................................................... 90
Why Is The Sky Blue? ............................................................................................................................ 90
Physical Characteristics ......................................................................................................................... 90
What Is The Interior Of The Earth Like? ................................................................................................. 90
What Causes Sinkholes? ........................................................................................................................ 91
What Is At The Center Of Earth? ............................................................................................................ 91
How Does The Temperature Of The Earth Change As One Goes Deeper Underground? ........................... 92
What Is The Tallest Mountain? ............................................................................................................... 92
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Which Elements Are Contained In Earth’s Crust? .................................................................................. 92
Water..................................................................................................................................................... 92
Does Ocean Water Circulate? ................................................................................................................. 92
How Much Of Earth’s Surface Is Land And How Much Is Water? ............................................................ 93
If Earth Were A Uniform Sphere, How Much Water Would Cover The Surface? ....................................... 93
If You Melted All The Ice In The World, How High Would The Oceans Rise? ............................................ 93
What Fraction Of An Iceberg Shows Above Water? ................................................................................. 93
What Color Is An Iceberg? ...................................................................................................................... 93
What Is An Aquifer? ............................................................................................................................... 94
What Is The Chemical Composition Of The Ocean? ................................................................................ 94
Why Is The Sea Blue? ............................................................................................................................ 94
What Causes Waves In The Ocean? ........................................................................................................ 94
What Is A Tidal Bore? ............................................................................................................................ 95
What Are Rip Tides And Why Are They So Dangerous? ........................................................................... 95
Where Are The World’s Highest Tides? ................................................................................................... 95
Is There One Numerical Value For Sea Level? ......................................................................................... 95
What Is The Difference Between An Ocean And A Sea? ........................................................................... 95
How Much Salt Is In Brackish Water? .................................................................................................... 96
How Salty Is Seawater? .......................................................................................................................... 96
What Is The Bearing Capacity Of Ice On A Lake? .................................................................................... 96
Where Is The World’s Deepest Lake? ...................................................................................................... 96
Where Are The Five Largest Lakes In The World Located? ....................................................................... 97
What Is A Yazoo? ................................................................................................................................... 97
Which Of The Great Lakes Is The Largest? ............................................................................................. 97
Which Lake Is No Longer One Of The Five Largest Lakes In The World? ................................................. 97
What Are The Longest Rivers In The World? ........................................................................................... 98
What Is The World’s Highest Waterfall? .................................................................................................. 98
Land ...................................................................................................................................................... 98
Are There Tides In The Solid Part Of The Earth As Well As In Its Waters? ............................................... 98
How Much Of Earth’s Surface Is Covered With Ice? ................................................................................ 99
Which Is Purer: Glacier Ice Or Regular Ice? ............................................................................................ 99
How Much Of Earth’s Surface Is Permanently Frozen? ........................................................................... 99
Do Loud Noises Cause Avalanches? ....................................................................................................... 99
Which Are The World’s Largest Deserts? .............................................................................................. 100
What Is Quicksand?............................................................................................................................. 100
How Is Speleothem Defined? ................................................................................................................ 100
What Is A Tufa? ................................................................................................................................... 100
Where Is The Deepest Cave In The World? ............................................................................................ 101
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Where Is The Longest Cave System In The World? ................................................................................ 101
How Does A Stalactite Differ From A Stalagmite? ................................................................................. 101
Volcanoes And Earthquakes ................................................................................................................ 101
How Many Kinds Of Volcanoes Are There? ........................................................................................... 101
Where Is The Circle Of Fire? ................................................................................................................. 102
How Many Different Kinds Of Faults Have Been Identified? .................................................................. 102
Where Is The San Andreas Fault? ........................................................................................................ 102
How Does A Seismograph Work? .......................................................................................................... 102
What Is The Richter Scale? .................................................................................................................. 102
What Is The Modified Mercalli Scale? ................................................................................................... 103
The Modified Mercalli Scale .................................................................................................................. 103
What Is A Tsunami?............................................................................................................................. 104
Where Do Most Tsunamis Occur? ........................................................................................................ 104
Observation And Measurement ............................................................................................................ 105
What Is Magnetic Declination? ............................................................................................................. 105
Which Direction Does A Compass Needle Point At The North Pole? ....................................................... 105
What Are The Major Eras, Periods, And Epochs In Geologic Time? ....................................................... 105
What Is The Prime Meridian? ............................................................................................................... 106
What Is Mercator’s Projection For Maps? .............................................................................................. 106
What Are Landsat Maps? ..................................................................................................................... 107
What Do The 7.5 Minute Quadrangle Maps Represent? ........................................................................ 107
What Is Global Positioning System (Gps) And How Does It Work? ......................................................... 107
Climate And Weather ........................................................................................................................... 108
Which Is Colder—The North Pole Or The South Pole? ........................................................................... 108
What Is A Heat Wave? .......................................................................................................................... 108
What Is The Heat Index? ...................................................................................................................... 108
Why Are The Hot, Humid Days Of Summer Called “Dog Days”? ............................................................ 109
Air Phenomena .................................................................................................................................... 109
What Is A Bishop’s Ring? ..................................................................................................................... 109
When Does The Green Flash Phenomenon Occur? ............................................................................... 109
How Often Does An Aurora Appear? ..................................................................................................... 109
What Is Cloud Seeding? ....................................................................................................................... 109
What Is Lightning? ............................................................................................................................... 110
What Is The Color Of Lightning? .......................................................................................................... 110
How Long Is A Lightning Stroke?.......................................................................................................... 110
Does Lightning Ever Strike Twice In The Same Place? .......................................................................... 111
Why Are Lightning Rods Important? ..................................................................................................... 111
What Is Saint Elmo’s Fire? ................................................................................................................... 111
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What Are Fulgurites? ........................................................................................................................... 111
How Do Rainbows Occur? .................................................................................................................... 111
What Conditions Must Be Met In Order To See A Rainbow? .................................................................. 112
Is There Such A Thing As A Completely Circular Rainbow? .................................................................. 112
What Is The Order Of Colors In A Rainbow? ......................................................................................... 112
Wind .................................................................................................................................................... 112
Where Do Haboobs Occur? .................................................................................................................. 112
What Is The Coriolis Effect? ................................................................................................................. 112
When Was Jet Stream Discovered? ...................................................................................................... 113
What Is A Siberian Express? ................................................................................................................ 113
Why Are The Horse Latitudes Called By That Name? ............................................................................ 113
What Are Halcyon Days? ...................................................................................................................... 113
What Is An Alberta Clipper? ................................................................................................................. 114
What Is A Chinook? ............................................................................................................................. 114
What Is The Beaufort Scale? ................................................................................................................ 114
What Is Meant By The Wind Chill Factor? ............................................................................................ 114
How Does A Cyclone Differ From A Hurricane Or A Tornado? ............................................................... 115
Who Are Storm Chasers? ..................................................................................................................... 115
How Are Hurricanes Classified? ........................................................................................................... 115
Precipitation ........................................................................................................................................ 116
What Is A “White-Out”? ........................................................................................................................ 116
What Is The Dew Point? ....................................................................................................................... 116
What Is The Greatest Amount Of Rainfall Ever Measured? ................................................................... 117
What Is The Difference Between Freezing Rain And Sleet? .................................................................... 117
How Does Snow Form? ........................................................................................................................ 117
Is It Ever Too Cold To Snow? ................................................................................................................ 118
Are All Snowflakes Shaped Alike? ........................................................................................................ 118
When Does Frost Form? ....................................................................................................................... 118
Weather Prediction .............................................................................................................................. 118
What Is The Difference Between Weather And Climate? ........................................................................ 118
Who Prepared The First Weather Map? ................................................................................................ 118
What Is Doppler Radar? ....................................................................................................................... 119
When Did Modern Weather Forecasting Begin? .................................................................................... 119
What Is Barometric Pressure And What Does It Mean?......................................................................... 119
Minerals, Metals, And Other Materials ................................................................................................. 119
What Are The Three Main Groups Of Rocks? ........................................................................................ 119
What Is Petrology And What Does A Petrologist Do? ............................................................................. 120
How Does A Rock Differ From A Mineral? ............................................................................................. 120
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What Is The Mohs Scale? ..................................................................................................................... 120
What Is Pitchblende? ........................................................................................................................... 121
What Is Galena? .................................................................................................................................. 121
What Is Stibnite? ................................................................................................................................. 121
What Are Cape May Diamonds? ........................................................................................................... 121
What Are The Four “C”S Of Diamonds? ................................................................................................ 121
What Is Cubic Zirconium? ................................................................................................................... 121
How Does The Emerald Get Its Color? .................................................................................................. 122
Which Two Gems Contain The Mineral Corundum? ............................................................................. 122
What Is A Tiger’s Eye?.......................................................................................................................... 122
Metals ................................................................................................................................................. 122
What Are The Precious Metals? ............................................................................................................ 122
What Is 24 Karat Gold? ........................................................................................................................ 122
Is White Gold Really Gold? ................................................................................................................... 123
What Is Fool’s Gold? ............................................................................................................................ 123
What Is Sterling Silver? ........................................................................................................................ 123
What Is German Silver? ....................................................................................................................... 123
Which Metal Is The Main Component Of Pewter? ................................................................................. 123
What Is High Speed Steel? ................................................................................................................... 124
What Is Technetium? ........................................................................................................................... 124
Natural Substances ............................................................................................................................. 124
What Is Obsidian? ............................................................................................................................... 124
What Is Red Dog? ................................................................................................................................ 124
What Is Diatomite? .............................................................................................................................. 124
What Is Fly Ash? .................................................................................................................................. 125
In Coal Mining What Is Meant By Damp? ............................................................................................. 125
What Is Fuller’s Earth? ........................................................................................................................ 125
Why Are Essential Oils Called “Essential”? ........................................................................................... 125
What Is Gutta Percha? ......................................................................................................................... 125
What Is Ambergris? ............................................................................................................................. 126
What Are Natural Fibers? ..................................................................................................................... 126
How Is Silk Made? ............................................................................................................................... 126
What Is Cashmere? .............................................................................................................................. 127
Man-Made Products ............................................................................................................................. 127
What Are The Major Distinguishing Characteristics Of Ceramics? ........................................................ 127
What Are Composite Materials? ........................................................................................................... 127
Why Is Styrofoam A Good Insulator? .................................................................................................... 127
How Is Dry Ice Made? .......................................................................................................................... 127
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Why Is Sulfuric Acid Important? .......................................................................................................... 128
What Is Aqua Regia? ............................................................................................................................ 128
Who Developed The Process For Making Ammonia? ............................................................................. 128
What Is Buckminsterfullerene? ............................................................................................................ 128
What Is The Lightest Known Solid? ...................................................................................................... 129
Is Glass A Solid Or A Liquid? ............................................................................................................... 129
What Is Crown Glass? .......................................................................................................................... 130
What Are The Advantages Of Tempered Glass?..................................................................................... 130
How Is Bulletproof Glass Made? ........................................................................................................... 130
What Is The Float Glass Process? ......................................................................................................... 130
What Is Belgian Block? ........................................................................................................................ 130
What Is Solder? ................................................................................................................................... 131
What Is Slag? ....................................................................................................................................... 131
What Is Creosote? ................................................................................................................................ 131
What Is Carbon Black? ........................................................................................................................ 131
What Is The Chemical Used In Watches To Make Them Glow In The Dark? .......................................... 132
How Is Parchment Paper Made? ........................................................................................................... 132
How Is Sandpaper Made? ..................................................................................................................... 132
Why Is Acid-Free Paper Important? ...................................................................................................... 132
Why Is Titanium Dioxide The Most Widely Used White Pigment? .......................................................... 132
When And Where Was Gunpowder Invented? ....................................................................................... 133
How Are Colored Fireworks Made? ....................................................................................................... 133
What Is The Chemical Formula For Tnt? .............................................................................................. 133
Why Can’t Metal Objects Be Placed In A Microwave? ............................................................................ 133
What Are Man-Made Fibers? ................................................................................................................ 133
What Is Kevlar? ................................................................................................................................... 134
Who Invented Teflon?........................................................................................................................... 134
What Type Of High-Technology Material Is Used In Space Vehicles For Its Heat-Resistant Properties? .. 134
Energy ................................................................................................................................................. 135
Why Are Coal, Oil, And Natural Gas Called Fossil Fuels? ..................................................................... 135
How And When Was Coal Formed? ...................................................................................................... 135
What Is Cannel Coal? .......................................................................................................................... 135
What Is A Miner’s Canary? ................................................................................................................... 135
What Is The Process Known As Hydrocarbon Cracking? ....................................................................... 135
Why Was Lead Added To Gasoline And Why Is Lead-Free Gasoline Used In Cars? ................................ 136
What Is A Reformulated Gasoline? ....................................................................................................... 136
What Kinds Of Additives Are In Gasoline And Why? ............................................................................. 136
What Do The Octane Numbers Of Gasoline Mean? ............................................................................... 137
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How Is Gasohol Made? ......................................................................................................................... 137
How Does Ethanol Differ From Gasohol? .............................................................................................. 137
What Are The Main Components Found In Motor Vehicle Exhaust? ..................................................... 137
What Is The Cleanest Fossil Fuel? ........................................................................................................ 137
What Are Synthetic Fuels? ................................................................................................................... 138
What Is Cogeneration? ......................................................................................................................... 138
What Is Biomass Energy? .................................................................................................................... 138
Which Woods Have The Best Heating Quality In A Wood-Burning Stove? ............................................. 139
What Are The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Geothermal Power? ................................................... 139
Nuclear Energy .................................................................................................................................... 139
Which Countries Produce The Most Commercial Nuclear Power?.......................................................... 139
What Actually Happened At Three Mile Island? .................................................................................... 140
What Caused The Chernobyl Accident? ................................................................................................ 140
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster .................................................................................................... 141
What Is Vitrification? ........................................................................................................................... 141
Measures And Measurement ................................................................................................................ 141
What Is The Weight Per Gallon Of Common Fuels? .............................................................................. 141
How Much Does A Barrel Of Oil Weigh? ............................................................................................... 141
How Many Gallons Are In A Barrel Of Oil? ........................................................................................... 141
How Many Gallons Of Gasoline Are In One Barrel Of Oil? ..................................................................... 141
How Do Various Energy Sources Compare? ......................................................................................... 142
What Are The Approximate Heating Values Of Fuels? ........................................................................... 143
What Are The Fuel Equivalents To Produce One Quad Of Energy? ........................................................ 143
How Much Heat Will 100 Cubic Feet Of Natural Gas Provide? .............................................................. 143
How Is A Heating Degree Day Defined? ................................................................................................ 143
What Does The Term Cooling Degree Day Mean?.................................................................................. 144
Consumption And Conservation ........................................................................................................... 144
How Does The Energy Star Program Promote Energy Efficiency? .......................................................... 144
What Are The Advantages Of Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs Over Incandescent Light Bulbs? .......... 144
Is It More Economical To Run An Automobile With Its Windows Open Rather Than Using Its Air
Conditioner? ........................................................................................................................................ 144
When Is It More Economical To Restart An Automobile Rather Than Let It Idle? ................................... 145
How Much Gasoline Is Wasted By Underinflated Tires? ........................................................................ 145
What Is The Ecological Footprint? ........................................................................................................ 146
What Percentage Of Earth’s Surface Is Forest Area? ............................................................................. 146
What Percentage Of Earth’s Surface Is Tropical Rain Forest? ............................................................... 146
What Is The Largest Rain Forest? ......................................................................................................... 146
What Is The Importance Of The Rain Forest? ....................................................................................... 146
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What Is Limnology? ............................................................................................................................. 146
What Is An Estuary? ............................................................................................................................ 147
What Is Eutrophication? ...................................................................................................................... 147
What Does It Mean When A Lake Is Brown Or Blue? ............................................................................ 147
What Is Red Tide And What Causes It? ................................................................................................ 147
What Are Cyanobacterial Blooms? ....................................................................................................... 147
What Is A Trophic Level? ...................................................................................................................... 148
How Does A Food Chain Function? ...................................................................................................... 148
What Is A Food Web? ........................................................................................................................... 148
Why Do Ecosystems Need Decomposers? ............................................................................................. 148
What Is Air Pollution? .......................................................................................................................... 149
What Are The Health Effects Of The Major Air Pollutants? .................................................................... 149
What Is The Pollutant Standard Index? ................................................................................................ 150
What Are The Greenhouse Gases? ....................................................................................................... 150
What Is The Greenhouse Effect? .......................................................................................................... 150
How Do Chlorofluorocarbons Affect Earth’s Ozone Layer? .................................................................... 151
How Large Is The Antarctic Ozone Hole? .............................................................................................. 151
What Are The Components Of Smog? ................................................................................................... 151
What Is The Kyoto Protocol?................................................................................................................. 152
What Is Acid Rain? .............................................................................................................................. 152
How Acidic Is Acid Rain? ...................................................................................................................... 153
Which Pollutants Lead To Indoor Air Pollution? .................................................................................... 153
Why Is Radon A Health Hazard? .......................................................................................................... 154
How Are Hazardous Waste Materials Classified? .................................................................................. 155
What Chemicals Were Initially Banned By The Stockholm Convention On Persistent Organic Pollutants?
............................................................................................................................................................ 155
What Are Pcbs?.................................................................................................................................... 156
What Are Operation Ranch Hand And Agent Orange? .......................................................................... 156
Green Economy ................................................................................................................................... 157
Planetary Boundaries........................................................................................................................... 157
Iso 14000 ............................................................................................................................................ 158
Iso 9000 .............................................................................................................................................. 158
United Nations Conference On Sustainable Development (Uncsd)......................................................... 158
What Are Brown Fields? ....................................................................................................................... 159
What Are The Sources Of Oil Pollution In The Oceans? ........................................................................ 159
What Do The Numbers Inside The Recycling Symbol On Plastic Containers Mean? ............................... 160
What Is E-Cycling? .............................................................................................................................. 160
Which Parts Of The World Have The Largest Protected Areas? .............................................................. 161
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How Did The Dodo Become Extinct? .................................................................................................... 161
What Is The Difference Between An “Endangered” Species And A “Threatened” Species? ...................... 162
How Is It Determined That A Species Is “Endangered”? ........................................................................ 162
What Is A Dolphin-Safe Tuna? ............................................................................................................. 162
Cells .................................................................................................................................................... 164
What Is The Origin Of The Term “Cell”? ................................................................................................ 164
What Are The Differences Between Prokaryotic And Eukaryotic Cells?.................................................. 164
What Groups Of Organisms Have Prokaryotic Cells And Which Ones Have Eukaryotic Cells? ............... 164
What Are Organelles? .......................................................................................................................... 165
What Are The Largest And Smallest Organelles In A Cell? .................................................................... 165
What Cell Structures Are Unique To Plant Cells And Which Ones Are Unique To Animal Cells? ............ 165
What Are The Major Components Of The Eukaryotic Cell? ................................................................... 165
How Do The Cells Of Bacteria, Plants, And Animals Compare To Each Other? ...................................... 166
What Is The Major Function Of The Nucleus? ...................................................................................... 167
When Was The Nucleus First Described? ............................................................................................. 167
Do All Cells Have A Nucleus? ............................................................................................................... 167
How Thick Is The Plasma Membrane? .................................................................................................. 167
What Are The Main Components Of The Plasma Membrane? ................................................................ 167
What Are The Main Functions Of The Plasma Membrane?.................................................................... 167
What Are Stem Cells And What Are Some Potential Uses Of Such Cells? .............................................. 167
What Is Mitosis And What Are The Stages Of This Process? .................................................................. 168
What Is Cell Cloning And How Is It Used In Scientific Research? .......................................................... 168
Viruses, Bacteria, Protists, And Fungi .................................................................................................. 168
What Is The Average Size Of A Virus? ................................................................................................... 168
Do Viruses Contain Both Dna And Rna? .............................................................................................. 169
What Is The Difference Between A Virus And A Retrovirus? .................................................................. 169
What Is A Bacteriophage? .................................................................................................................... 169
What Is The Difference Between A Virus And A Viroid? ........................................................................ 169
Who First Used The Term “Prion”? ....................................................................................................... 170
How Do Prions Work And What Diseases Have Been Linked To Prions? ................................................ 170
What Is The Difference Between A Plasmid And A Prion? ...................................................................... 170
When Were Bacteria Discovered? ......................................................................................................... 170
How Many Groups Are Identified In The Domain Bacteria?................................................................... 170
What Are Archaebacteria? .................................................................................................................... 171
What Is The Most Abundant Group Of Organisms? .............................................................................. 171
How Did The Discovery Of Bacteria Impact The Theory Of Spontaneous Generation? ........................... 171
Which Criteria Were Used To Form What Is Referred To As The Classical Approach Of Bacterial
Taxonomy? .......................................................................................................................................... 172
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What Period Of Time Has Come To Be Known As The Golden Age Of Microbiology? .............................. 172
What Are The Main Components Of A Bacterial Cell? ........................................................................... 173
How Do Viruses Compare To Bacteria? ................................................................................................ 174
How Many Genes Are In A Typical Bacterial Cell? ................................................................................. 174
Do Bacteria All Have The Same Shape? ................................................................................................ 174
How Do Bacteria Reproduce? ............................................................................................................... 174
How Quickly Do Bacteria Reproduce? .................................................................................................. 174
Where Are Bacteria Found? ................................................................................................................. 175
Are Any Bacteria Visible To The Naked Eye? ........................................................................................ 175
What Are Koch’s Postulates? ................................................................................................................ 175
How Dangerous Is Clostridium Botulinum? ......................................................................................... 175
How Are Bacteria Cultured? ................................................................................................................. 176
Who First Proposed The Kingdom Protista? .......................................................................................... 176
What Are The Characteristics Of The Protists? ..................................................................................... 176
What Are The Major Groups Of Organisms In The Kingdom Protista? ................................................... 176
Which Protist Is An Indicator Of Polluted Water? .................................................................................. 177
What Slime Mold Serves As A Model Organism In Developmental Biology? ........................................... 177
What Characteristics Do All Fungi Share? ............................................................................................ 177
What Organisms Are Included In The Kingdom Fungi? ......................................................................... 177
Where Are Fungi Found? ..................................................................................................................... 178
Since Fungi Lack Chlorophyll Necessary To Produce Their Own Food How Do They Obtain Food? ........ 178
How Many Kinds Of Mushrooms Are Edible?........................................................................................ 178
What Is Unusual About Amanita Mushrooms? ..................................................................................... 178
What Antidote Is Available For Mushroom Poisoning? .......................................................................... 178
What Are Truffles? ............................................................................................................................... 178
What Do Truffles Look Like? ................................................................................................................ 179
What Are Lichens? ............................................................................................................................... 179
What Is The Relationship Between Lichens And Pollution? ................................................................... 179
What Is The Role Of Yeast In Beer Production? .................................................................................... 180
Is The Same Strain Of Yeast Used To Make Lager Beers And Ales? ....................................................... 180
What Cheeses Are Associated With Fungi? ........................................................................................... 180
Dna, Rna, And Chromosomes .............................................................................................................. 181
What Is Dna? ....................................................................................................................................... 181
What Are The Component Molecules Of Dna? ...................................................................................... 181
How Is A Dna Molecule Held Together? ................................................................................................ 181
What Are The Nitrogenous Bases Of Dna? ............................................................................................ 181
What Term Was Originally Used For Dna? ........................................................................................... 182
What Is The Law Of Complementary Base Pairing?............................................................................... 182
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How Is Dna Unzipped? ......................................................................................................................... 182
What Is Needed For Dna Replication? .................................................................................................. 182
Is Dna Always Copied Exactly? ............................................................................................................ 182
What Is A Mutation? ............................................................................................................................ 182
How Fast Is Dna Copied? ..................................................................................................................... 183
What Is Polymerase Chain Reaction? ................................................................................................... 183
How Is Dna Organized In The Nucleus?................................................................................................ 183
Is All Dna Found In The Nucleus? ........................................................................................................ 183
How Much Dna Is In A Typical Human Cell? ........................................................................................ 183
What Is The Difference Between Dna And Rna? .................................................................................... 184
When Was Rna Discovered? ................................................................................................................. 184
Where Is Rna Formed? ......................................................................................................................... 184
How Many Types Of Rna Are Found In Eukaryotic Cells? ..................................................................... 184
How Are Chromosomes Assembled? ..................................................................................................... 184
When Were Chromosomes First Observed? .......................................................................................... 185
Which Organism Has The Largest Number Of Chromosomes? .............................................................. 185
How Many Chromosomes Are In A Human Body Cell? .......................................................................... 185
What Are The Components Of A Gene? ................................................................................................ 185
What Is The Average Size Of A Gene? ................................................................................................... 185
What Is The Difference Between A Gene And A Chromosome? .............................................................. 185
How Are Genes Controlled? .................................................................................................................. 186
Do Both Sides Of Dna Contain Genes? ................................................................................................. 186
What Is The P53 Gene? ........................................................................................................................ 186
How Can The Entire Genome Fit Into The Nucleus Of A Cell? ............................................................... 186
Genetics And Evolution ........................................................................................................................ 186
Who Is Generally Known As The Founder Of Genetics? ........................................................................ 186
What Is A Pedigree? ............................................................................................................................. 187
What Is Meant By The Modern Era Of Genetics? .................................................................................. 187
What Was The Human Genome Project (Hgp), And What Were Its Goals? ............................................. 187
What Is A Genome? ............................................................................................................................. 187
How Are Genes Physically Found In A Specific Genome? ...................................................................... 188
What Is Genetic Engineering? .............................................................................................................. 188
What Was The First Commercial Use Of Genetic Engineering? ............................................................. 189
What Are Some Examples Of Genetic Engineering In Animals And Microbes? ....................................... 189
What Was The First Animal To Be Successfully Cloned?....................................................................... 190
What Was The First Mammal To Be Successfully Cloned? .................................................................... 190
What Is Evolution? .............................................................................................................................. 190
What Is Lamarckian Evolution? ........................................................................................................... 190
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Who Was Charles Darwin? ................................................................................................................... 191
What Were The Beagle Voyages? .......................................................................................................... 191
What Is The Significance Of Darwin’s Finches? .................................................................................... 191
Who Was Alfred Russel Wallace? .......................................................................................................... 191
Who Coined The Phrase “Survival Of The Fittest”? ............................................................................... 191
Why Is Evolution A Theory? ................................................................................................................. 192
What Is Müllerian Mimicry? ................................................................................................................. 192
What Is Batesian Mimicry? .................................................................................................................. 192
What Is The Oparin-Haldane Hypothesis? ............................................................................................ 192
Who Verified The Oparin-Haldane Hypothesis? .................................................................................... 192
What Is The Red Queen Hypothesis? .................................................................................................... 193
Classification, Laboratory Tools, And Techniques ................................................................................. 193
Who Devised One Of The Earliest Systems For Animal And Plant Classification? .................................. 193
What Is The Difference Between A Domain And A Kingdom? ................................................................ 193
What Is Cell Culture? ........................................................................................................................... 193
How Does An In Vivo Study Differ From An In Vitro Study? .................................................................. 193
What Distinguishes The Different Types Of Microscopes? ..................................................................... 194
Who Invented The Compound Microscope? .......................................................................................... 194
Who Invented The Electron Microscope? .............................................................................................. 194
Which Radioisotope Is Most Commonly Used For Biological Specimens? .............................................. 194
What Is Electrophoresis? ..................................................................................................................... 195
How Has Centrifugation Been Used In Biological Applications? ............................................................ 195
What Are The Uses For Chromatography? ............................................................................................ 195
How Is Chromatography Used To Identify Individual Compounds? ....................................................... 195
What Is Spectroscopy? ......................................................................................................................... 196
What Is Bioinformatics? ....................................................................................................................... 196
What Are The Major Subdivisions Of Botany? ...................................................................................... 197
Who Is Known As The Founder Of Botany? .......................................................................................... 197
What Contributions Did John And William Bartram Make To Botany? ................................................. 198
Which Plants Have Been Used To Create Dyes? .................................................................................... 198
What Plants Are Commonly Used In The Perfume Industry? ................................................................. 198
What Parts Of Plants Are Used For Spices? .......................................................................................... 199
What Are Some Common Culinary Herbs? ........................................................................................... 199
What Plants Produce Essential Oils That Are Commonly Used In Aromatherapy? ................................. 200
When Was The First Plant Patent Issued? ............................................................................................ 200
Plant Diversity ..................................................................................................................................... 200
What Are The Four Major Groups Of Plants? ........................................................................................ 200
What Are Bryophytes And Where Are They Found? .............................................................................. 201
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Why Are Mosses Important?................................................................................................................. 201
How Can Bryophytes Be Used As Bio Indicators? ................................................................................. 201
What Are The Uses Of Peat Moss? ........................................................................................................ 201
What Are The Four Groups Of Seedless, Vascular Plants? .................................................................... 201
What Are Gymnosperms And Which Plants Are Included In This Group? ............................................. 202
What Are Some Economically Important Angiosperms? ........................................................................ 202
Among Angiosperms What Is The Most Important Family? ................................................................... 202
What Is A Weed? .................................................................................................................................. 202
How Do Hardwoods Differ From Softwoods? ......................................................................................... 203
Plant Structure And Function .............................................................................................................. 203
What Are The Major Parts Of Vascular Plants? ..................................................................................... 203
Is There A Relationship Between The Size Of The Root System And The Size Of The Shoot System?...... 203
What Are The Specialized Cells In Plants? ............................................................................................ 203
What Conditions Are Necessary For Seed Germination? ....................................................................... 204
What Is A Seed? ................................................................................................................................... 204
What Are The Functions Of Stems? ...................................................................................................... 204
What Are The Parts Of A Leaf And The Major Functions Of Leaves? ...................................................... 205
Why Do Tree Leaves Change Color In The Fall? .................................................................................... 205
How Does Water Move Up A Tree? ........................................................................................................ 205
What Are The Functions Of The Root System? ..................................................................................... 205
How Deep Does The Root System Penetrate The Soil?........................................................................... 206
What Are Effective Types Of Pollination? .............................................................................................. 206
What Is Tropism? ................................................................................................................................. 206
What Are The Major Classes Of Plant Hormones? ................................................................................. 207
What Are The Parts Of A Flower? ......................................................................................................... 209
What Is Meant By An “Imperfect” Flower? ............................................................................................ 209
What Flowers Are Designated As Symbolic Of Each Month Of The Year? .............................................. 209
What Are The Symbolic Meanings Of Flowers, Herbs, And Other Plants? .............................................. 209
What Are Carnivorous Plants? ............................................................................................................. 210
What Plants Can Be Used To Determine Blood Type? ........................................................................... 210
What Is Wormwood? ............................................................................................................................ 210
What Is Locoweed? .............................................................................................................................. 211
What Are The Distinguishing Characteristics Of Pine, Spruce, And Fir Trees? ...................................... 212
What Is The Composition Of Synthetic Soil? ......................................................................................... 213
What Are The Macronutrients And Micronutrients Of Plants?............................................................... 213
What Is The Function Of Various Plant Nutrients? ............................................................................... 213
What Do The Numbers On A Bag Of Fertilizer Indicate? ....................................................................... 214
What Does “Ph” Mean When Applied To Soil? ....................................................................................... 214
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What Is The Best Soil Ph For Growing Plants? ...................................................................................... 214
What Is Hydroponics? .......................................................................................................................... 214
What Is Ikebana? ................................................................................................................................. 215
What Is The Secret Of Bonsai, The Japanese Art Of Growing Dwarf Trees? ........................................... 215
What Is Meant By Xeriscaping? ............................................................................................................ 215
Who Is The “Father Of Zoology”? .......................................................................................................... 216
Who Is The “Father Of Modern Zoology”? ............................................................................................. 216
What Is The Largest Invertebrate? ........................................................................................................ 216
How Are Animals Classified? ................................................................................................................ 216
Animal Characteristics And Activities ................................................................................................... 216
What Is The Difference Between An Invertebrate And A Vertebrate? ..................................................... 216
What Invertebrate Lives In Both Marine And Freshwaters And Is One Of The Most Important Of All
Animals? ............................................................................................................................................. 217
What Are The Major Characteristics Of All Chordates? ......................................................................... 217
What Are The Three Major Groups Of Chordates? ................................................................................ 217
What Are The Major Features Shown By All Vertebrates? ..................................................................... 217
What Group Of Animals Was The First To Make A Partial Transition From Water To Land? .................. 218
What Are The Largest And Smallest Vertebrates? ................................................................................. 218
What Is The Largest Group Of Vertebrates?.......................................................................................... 218
Besides Humans, Which Animals Are The Most Intelligent?.................................................................. 219
Do Animals Have Color Vision? ............................................................................................................ 219
What Is The Frequency That Separates Animal Hearing From Human? ................................................ 219
What Is The Basic Composition Of A Sponge? ...................................................................................... 221
What Are The Most Common Tapeworm Infections In Humans? ........................................................... 221
In What Ways Are Earthworms Beneficial? ........................................................................................... 221
What Are The Major Groups Of Mollusks? ............................................................................................ 222
How Are Pearls Created? ...................................................................................................................... 222
Which Mollusks Produce The Most Cultured Pearls? ............................................................................ 222
Why Are Arthropods Considered The Most Biologically Successful Phylum Of Animals? ....................... 223
Do Male Mosquitoes Bite Humans? ...................................................................................................... 223
Which Is Stronger—Steel Or The Silk From A Spider’s Web? ................................................................ 223
What Is The Largest Group Of Insects That Has Been Identified And Classified? ................................... 223
How Does A Butterfly Differ From A Moth? ........................................................................................... 223
What Are Chondrichthyes? .................................................................................................................. 224
How Many Kinds Of Sharks Are There And How Many Are Dangerous? ................................................ 224
What Is A Mermaid’s Purse? ................................................................................................................ 224
How Far From Shore Do Shark Attacks Occur? .................................................................................... 224
Is The Whale Shark A Mammal Or A Fish? ........................................................................................... 224
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What General Characteristics Do All Fishes Have In Common? ............................................................ 225
How Is The Age Of A Fish Determined? ................................................................................................ 225
What Does The Word “Amphibian” Mean? ............................................................................................ 225
What Are The Major Groups Of Amphibians? ....................................................................................... 225
What Is The Fastest Snake On Land? ................................................................................................... 225
Do All Birds Fly? .................................................................................................................................. 226
How Fast Do Birds Fly? ....................................................................................................................... 226
Why Do Birds Migrate Annually? ......................................................................................................... 226
Which Bird Migrates The Greatest Distance?........................................................................................ 226
What Is Unusual About The Way The Emperor Penguin’s Eggs Are Incubated? .................................... 226
Which Birds Lay The Largest And Smallest Eggs? ................................................................................ 227
Why Don’t Birds Get Electrocuted When They Sit On Wires? ................................................................ 227
What Names Are Used For Groups Or Companies Of Mammals? .......................................................... 228
Do Any Mammals Fly? ......................................................................................................................... 228
What Are Some Animals That Have Pouches?....................................................................................... 229
Do Camels Store Water In Their Humps? ............................................................................................. 229
What Is The Difference Between An African Elephant And An Indian Elephant? ................................... 229
Why Do Cows Have Four Stomachs? .................................................................................................... 230
Which Scientific Disciplines Study The Human Body? .......................................................................... 231
What Were Aristotle’s Contributions To Anatomy? ................................................................................ 231
Who Is Considered The Founder Of Physiology? ................................................................................... 231
Who Coined The Term Homeostasis?.................................................................................................... 231
Which Chemicals Constitute The Human Body?................................................................................... 231
What Is The Average Life Span Of Cells In The Human Body?............................................................... 232
What Percent Of Human Body Weight Is Water?................................................................................... 232
Tissues, Organs, And Glands ............................................................................................................... 233
What Are The Levels Of Structural Organization In Vertebrate Animals, Including Humans? ................ 233
What Are The Four Major Types Of Tissue? .......................................................................................... 233
What Is The Matrix In Blood? ............................................................................................................... 234
What Is The Hardest Substance In The Body? ...................................................................................... 234
What Are The Three Types Of Muscle Tissue? ...................................................................................... 234
What Type Of Cell Is Found In Nerve Tissue? ....................................................................................... 234
What Is The Largest Nerve In The Body? .............................................................................................. 234
How Many Different Types Of Neurons Are Found In Nerve Tissue? ...................................................... 234
What Is The Size And Location Of The Heart? ....................................................................................... 234
What Is The Largest Organ In The Human Body? ................................................................................. 235
Are Both Of The Lungs Identical? ......................................................................................................... 235
What Are The Major Divisions Of The Brain? ........................................................................................ 235
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What Regulates Body Temperature In Humans? .................................................................................. 235
What Is An Organ System? .................................................................................................................. 236
What Is A Gland? ................................................................................................................................. 236
Which Gland Is The Largest? ............................................................................................................... 237
How Many Sweat Glands Are Present In The Body? .............................................................................. 237
What Are The Seven Endocrine Glands?............................................................................................... 237
Bones And Muscles .............................................................................................................................. 237
How Many Bones Are In The Human Body? ......................................................................................... 237
What Are The Major Divisions Of The Human Skeleton?....................................................................... 238
What Is The Smallest Bone In The Body? ............................................................................................. 238
How Does Exercise Affect Bone Tissue? ................................................................................................ 238
What Are The Functions Of The Muscular System? .............................................................................. 238
How Many Muscles Are In The Human Body? ...................................................................................... 239
Which Are The Largest And Smallest Muscles In The Human Body? ..................................................... 239
What Is The Longest Muscle In The Human Body? ............................................................................... 239
What Are The Hamstring Muscles? ...................................................................................................... 239
Which Muscle Is The Most Variable Among Humans? .......................................................................... 239
How Many Muscles Does It Take To Produce A Smile And A Frown? ..................................................... 239
Why Does Excessive Exercise Cause Muscles To Become Stiff And Sore?.............................................. 240
Skin, Hair, And Nails ........................................................................................................................... 240
What Organs Are Included In The Integumentary System? ................................................................... 240
What Is The Purpose Of Goose Bumps? ............................................................................................... 241
What Are The Various Layers Of The Skin? .......................................................................................... 241
What Is Dermatoglyphics? ................................................................................................................... 241
Who First Used Fingerprints As A Means Of Identification? .................................................................. 241
Do Identical Twins Have The Same Fingerprints? ................................................................................. 241
Why Does Hair Turn Gray As Part Of The Aging Process? ..................................................................... 241
Blood And Circulation .......................................................................................................................... 242
What Are The Functions Of The Circulatory System? ........................................................................... 242
What Is The Difference Between The Cardiovascular System And The Circulatory System? .................. 242
Which Structures And Organs Constitute The Cardiovascular System? ................................................ 242
How Hard Does The Heart Work? ......................................................................................................... 242
Does Your Heart Stop Beating When You Sneeze? ................................................................................ 243
What Are The Functions Of Blood? ...................................................................................................... 243
What Is The Normal Ph Of Blood? ........................................................................................................ 244
What Is The Amount Of Carbon Dioxide Found In Normal Blood? ........................................................ 244
How Much Blood Does The Average-Sized Adult Human Have? ............................................................ 244
Why Is Blood Sticky? ........................................................................................................................... 244
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What Is The Largest Artery In The Human Body? ................................................................................. 244
What Is The Largest Vein In The Human Body? .................................................................................... 244
Why Does Blood In The Veins Look Blue? ............................................................................................ 244
How Big Are Capillaries? ...................................................................................................................... 245
Who Discovered The Abo System Of Typing Blood? .............................................................................. 245
What Are The Preferred And Permissible Blood Types For Transfusions? .............................................. 245
Which Blood Type Is The Universal Donor And Which Is The Universal Recipient? ............................... 245
What Is The Rh Factor? ....................................................................................................................... 245
How Often Can A Person Donate Blood? .............................................................................................. 245
What Are The Blood Group Combinations That Can Normally Be Used To Prove That A Man Is Not The
Father Of A Particular Child? ............................................................................................................... 246
What Are The Primary Functions Of The Lymphatic System? ............................................................... 246
Which Blood Type Is The Rarest? ......................................................................................................... 246
What Are The Functions Of The Spleen? .............................................................................................. 246
How Do T Cells Differ From B Lymphocytes? ........................................................................................ 247
How Much Lymph Is In The Body? ....................................................................................................... 248
How Does The Immune System Work? ................................................................................................. 248
What Is The Composition Of Lymph? ................................................................................................... 248
What Is The Route The Fluid Travels In The Body? ............................................................................... 248
What Are The Major Functions Of The Respiratory System? ................................................................. 248
What Are The Two Types Of Cells Found In The Peripheral Nervous System? ....................................... 250
How Do Neurons Transmit Information To Other Neurons? .................................................................. 250
Where Is The Spinal Cord Located? ...................................................................................................... 250
How Many Types Of Sensory Receptors Have Been Identified? .............................................................. 250
Which Organ Is Most Sensitive To Touch, Temperature, And Pain? ...................................................... 250
Are Certain Areas Of The Tongue Associated With A Particular Taste Sensation?.................................. 250
What Two Functions Are Performed By The Ear?.................................................................................. 251
What Are The Major Parts Of The Ear? ................................................................................................. 251
What Are The Three Bones In The Middle Ear? ..................................................................................... 251
What Is Sound And What Unit Measures It? ........................................................................................ 251
What Are Some Common Levels Of Sound And How Do They Affect Hearing? ....................................... 252
Where Are The Organs Of Equilibrium Located? ................................................................................... 253
What Are The Parts Of The Eye And Their Functions? .......................................................................... 253
What Determines Eye Color? ................................................................................................................ 255
What Is The Difference In The Functions Of The Rods And Cones Found In The Eyes? ......................... 255
What Is Nearsightedness? .................................................................................................................... 255
What Is Farsightedness? ...................................................................................................................... 255
What Does It Mean To Have 20/20 Vision? .......................................................................................... 255
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What Are The Similarities And Differences Between The Nervous System And The Endocrine System? . 256
What Are The Organs Of The Endocrine System? ................................................................................. 256
What Are Hormones? ........................................................................................................................... 256
Which Endocrine Glands Produce Which Hormones? ........................................................................... 256
What Are Endorphins? ......................................................................................................................... 257
Digestion ............................................................................................................................................. 257
What Are The Steps In The Digestive Process?...................................................................................... 257
What Are The Major Organs Of The Digestive System? ......................................................................... 258
What Was The Likely Purpose Of The Human Appendix?...................................................................... 258
What Is The Purpose Of Primary Teeth? ............................................................................................... 259
What Is The Role Of The Small Intestine In Nutrient Processing? .......................................................... 260
What Are The Major Parts Of The Urinary System? .............................................................................. 260
What Is Urea And Where Is It Produced? .............................................................................................. 260
How Much Fluid Do The Kidneys Remove From The Blood? ................................................................. 260
Health And Medicine ............................................................................................................................ 260
What Is The Composition Of Cigarette Smoke? ..................................................................................... 260
What Is The Effect Of Radiation On Humans? ...................................................................................... 260
How Much Radiation Does The Average Dental X Ray Emit? ................................................................ 261
How Does The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Epa) Classify Carcinogens? ............................... 261
How Is Body Mass Index (Bmi) Calculated? .......................................................................................... 262
What Is “Good” And “Bad” Cholesterol? ................................................................................................ 267
Diseases, Disorders, And Other Health Problems ................................................................................. 267
What Is The Difference Between Human Immunodeficiency Virus (Hiv) And Aids? ................................ 267
What Are The Symptoms And Signs Of Aids? ....................................................................................... 267
How Is The Term Zoonosis Defined? ..................................................................................................... 268
What Is Meant By Vectors In Medicine? ............................................................................................... 268
Which Species Of Mosquito Causes Malaria And Yellow Fever In Humans? .......................................... 268
What Is “Mad Cow Disease” And How Does It Affect Humans? .............................................................. 268
How Is Lyme Disease Carried? ............................................................................................................. 268
Why Is Legionnaire’s Disease Known By That Name? ........................................................................... 269
Which Name Is Now Used As A Synonym For Leprosy?......................................................................... 269
How Many Types Of Herpes Virus Are There? ....................................................................................... 269
How Are Warts Caused? ....................................................................................................................... 270
What Is The Difference Between Type I And Type Ii Diabetes? .............................................................. 270
What Causes A Stomach Ulcer? ........................................................................................................... 270
How Serious Is Osteoporosis? .............................................................................................................. 270
What Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? ....................................................................................................... 271
Which Is The Most Common Type Of Arthritis? .................................................................................... 271
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How Does Tennis Elbow Differ From Golfer’s Elbow? ............................................................................ 271
What Are The Symptoms Of Guillain-Barré Syndrome? ........................................................................ 271
How Serious Is Bell’s Palsy? ................................................................................................................. 272
What Is Lou Gehrig’s Disease? ............................................................................................................. 272
What Are The Causes Of Epilepsy? ...................................................................................................... 272
What Is A Concussion? ........................................................................................................................ 272
What Are The Two Forms Of Stroke? .................................................................................................... 273
What Are Two Of The Most Common Forms Of Dementia? ................................................................... 273
What Are The Seven Warning Signs Of Alzheimer’s Disease? ................................................................ 274
What Is Meningitis? ............................................................................................................................. 274
What Is Presbycusis? ........................................................................................................................... 274
How Does Jet Lag Affect One’s Body? ................................................................................................... 275
What Is The “Christmas Factor”? ......................................................................................................... 275
What Is The Medical Term For A Heart Attack? .................................................................................... 275
How Are The Forms Of Cancer Classified? ............................................................................................ 275
What Are Dust Mites? .......................................................................................................................... 275
What Is Dyslexia And What Causes It? ................................................................................................. 276
What Are Vitamins And Minerals? ........................................................................................................ 276
Which Foods Contain Trans Fats?........................................................................................................ 277
What Is Lactose Intolerance? ............................................................................................................... 277
What Is Anorexia? ................................................................................................................................ 277
What Is Progeria? ................................................................................................................................. 278
What Is Pelvic Inflammatory Disease? .................................................................................................. 278
Health Care ......................................................................................................................................... 278
Which Symbol Is Used To Represent Medicine? .................................................................................... 278
Who Is Generally Regarded As The Father Of Medicine? ....................................................................... 279
What Is The Hippocratic Oath? ............................................................................................................ 279
Who Was The Founder Of Modern Medicine? ....................................................................................... 279
What Is The Difference Between Osteopathic Medicine, Homeopathy, Naturopathy, And Chiropractic
Medicine? ............................................................................................................................................ 280
What Are The Different Domains Of Complementary And Alternative Medicine? ................................... 280
What Are Some Examples Of Bio-Field Therapies? ............................................................................... 280
What Is Reflexology? ............................................................................................................................ 281
What Is Aromatherapy? ....................................................................................................................... 281
What Is The Difference Between An Ophthalmologist, Optometrist, And Optician? ............................... 281
Diagnostic Equipment, Tests, And Techniques ..................................................................................... 281
How Is Blood Pressure Measured? ....................................................................................................... 281
What Is The Meaning Of The Numbers In A Blood Pressure Reading? ................................................... 282
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Is There A Name For The Heart-Monitoring Machine That People Sometimes Wear For A Day Or Two While
Carrying On Their Normal Activities? ................................................................................................... 282
What Are The Normal Test Ranges For Total Cholesterol, Low-Density Lipoproteins (Ldl), And High-
Density Lipoproteins (Hdl)? .................................................................................................................. 282
Who Invented The Pacemaker?............................................................................................................. 282
What Are X Rays? ................................................................................................................................ 283
What Is Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging? .................................................................................... 283
What Is Ultrasound? ............................................................................................................................ 283
What Is The Instrument A Doctor Uses To Check Reflexes? .................................................................. 284
How Are Cat Or Ct Scans Used To Study The Human Body? ................................................................ 284
When Were Hearing Aids Invented? ...................................................................................................... 284
Drugs And Medicines ........................................................................................................................... 284
What Is Pharmacognosy? ..................................................................................................................... 284
Why Do Physicians Use The Symbol Rx When They Write Their Prescriptions? ..................................... 285
What Is A Controlled Substance? ......................................................................................................... 285
Surgery And Other Treatments ............................................................................................................ 285
How Does Minimally Invasive Surgery Differ From Traditional, Major, Open Surgery? .......................... 285
How Does A Cardiac Pacemaker Differ From An Implantable Defibrillator? ........................................... 286
Who Was The First Test-Tube Baby? .................................................................................................... 286
What Is Lithotripsy?............................................................................................................................. 286
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Table of Contents
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS.......................................................................................................................................................................... 2
Features and Causes of Social Movements .......................................................................................................................................... 2
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS IN INDIA ...................................................................................................................................................... 4
Sufism: Concept and Orders ................................................................................................................................................................. 4
Chisti ...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Suhrawardi ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 5
Sufi Movement: Impact ........................................................................................................................................................................ 6
BHAKTI MOVEMENT .......................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Philosophy .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 7
Bhakti Cult ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 7
Bhakti Saints in North India .............................................................................................................................................................. 8
Kabir (1425-1518 AD) ........................................................................................................................................................................ 8
Ramananda........................................................................................................................................................................................... 8
Shri Madhvacharya (1199–1278) ..................................................................................................................................................... 8
Srimanta Sankardeva's (1449–1568) ................................................................................................................................................ 9
Vallabhacharya (1479–1531) ............................................................................................................................................................ 9
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) .............................................................................................................................................. 9
Vaishnava Bhakti ................................................................................................................................................................................. 9
Impact of Reform .................................................................................................................................................................................. 9
CIVIL REBELLIONS AND TRIBAL UPRISINGS ........................................................................................................................ 11
Peasant movements and uprisings after 1857 ................................................................................................................................... 13
Socio-religious reforms and the national awakening ......................................................................................................................... 15
The fight to secure press freedom ......................................................................................................................................................... 19
Peasant movements and nationalism in the1920s ............................................................................................................................ 25
The indian working class and the national movement ..................................................................................................................... 31
Peasant movements in the 1930s and ‘40s ....................................................................................................................................... 37
ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENTS ................................................................................................................................................. 44
Chipko Movement ............................................................................................................................................................................... 44
Appiko Movement ............................................................................................................................................................................... 46
Narmada Bachao Movement ............................................................................................................................................................. 47
Vana Mahotsav ................................................................................................................................................................................... 47
Social Movements in India
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Role of Non-Governmental Organizations in Environment Protection ............................................................................................ 48
Greenpeace ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 49
Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF)—India .................................................................................................................................... 51
Some Other Environmental Organizations in India ......................................................................................................................... 52
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS
A social movement is a mass movement and a collective attempt of people to bring about 'a change, or to
resist any change. The concept central to any social movement is that people intervene in the process of
social change, rather than remaining mere spectators or passive participants in the ebb and flow of life.
People seek to become proactive actors in altering the course of history. In order to achieve their aim of
making a difference to the world they live in, they either initiate or become a part of collective action.
Individuals consciously act together with a sense of engagement in a common enterprise .A movement is not
merely a perpetuated crowd, since a crowd does not possess organizational and motivational mechanisms
capable of sustaining membership through periods of inaction and waiting. Furthermore, crowd mechanisms
cannot be used to achieve communication and coordination of activity over a wide area, such as a nation or
continent. A social movement is a collectivity or a collective enterprise. The individual member experiences a
sense of membership in an alliance of people who share his dissatisfaction with the present state of affairs
and his vision of a better order.
—Encyclopedia Britannica
Features and Causes of Social Movements
Some of the features of social movements are as follows:
i. The sense of belonging and group consciousness is very important for a social movement. Such
consciousness can be brought about through active participation of the group members.
ii. Social movements lead to the creation of an entirely new social, economic, and political order.
iii. Most of the social movements tend to develop a new set of ideas, which become obligatory for the
members of the group to adopt and follow.
iv. It is obvious that the social movements involve collective action rather than individual action.
v. Social movements may be organized or unorganized.
vi. Social movements may be peaceful in nature or they may also turn violent.
vii. The aim of a social movement is to bring about or resist social change in the society.
viii. The life of the social movement is not certain. This is because it may continue for a long period or it
Social Movements in India
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Table of Contents
Math Notes ............................................................................................................................. 1 Substitution ............................................................................................................................ 5
Number Theory ................................................................................................................... 15
Squares and Square Roots ................................................................................................. 34
Playing with Numbers ....................................................................................................... 55
Quadratic Equations ........................................................................................................... 59
Cubes and Cube Roots ....................................................................................................... 81
Geometry .............................................................................................................................. 89
Elimination Strategies....................................................................................................... 156
Inequalities ......................................................................................................................... 166
Fractions & Decimals ........................................................................................................ 174
Equations ............................................................................................................................ 183
Averages ............................................................................................................................. 194
Ratio & Proportion ............................................................................................................ 202
Exponents & Roots ............................................................................................................ 215
Factoring ............................................................................................................................. 227
Algebraic Expressions ...................................................................................................... 232
Percents ............................................................................................................................... 237
Graphs ................................................................................................................................ 249
Word Problems .................................................................................................................. 278
Sequences & Series ............................................................................................................ 294
Counting ............................................................................................................................. 301
Permutations & Combinations ........................................................................................ 308
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Math Notes
We’ll discuss many of the concepts in this chapter in depth later. But for now, we need a brief review ofthese concepts for many of the problems that follow.
1. To compare two fractions, cross-multiply. The larger product will be on the same side as thelarger fraction.
Example: Given 5
6 vs.
6
7. Cross-multiplying gives 5 7 vs. 6 6, or 35 vs. 36. Now 36 is larger
than 35, so 6
7 is larger than
5
6.
2. Taking the square root of a fraction between 0 and 1 makes it larger.
Example:1
4=
1
2 and
1
2 is greater than
1
4.
Caution: This is not true for fractions greater than 1. For example, 9
4=
3
2. But
3
2<
9
4.
3. Squaring a fraction between 0 and 1 makes it smaller.
Example:1
2
2
=1
4 and
1
4 is less than
1
2.
4. ax2 ax( )2 . In fact, a2x2 = ax( )2 .
Example: 3 22 = 3 4 = 12. But 3 2( )2= 62 = 36 . This mistake is often seen in the following form:
x2 = x( )2. To see more clearly why this is wrong, write x2 = 1( )x2 , which is negative. But
x( )2= x( ) x( ) = x2 , which is positive.
Example: 52 = 1( )52 = 1( )25 = 25. But 5( )2= 5( ) 5( ) = 5 5 = 25.
5.1
ab
1a
b. In fact,
1a
b=
1
ab and
1a
b=
ba
.
Example:1
23
=1
2
1
3=
1
6. But
12
3= 1
3
2=
3
2.
6. –(a + b) –a + b. In fact, –(a + b) = –a – b.
Example: –(2 + 3) = –5. But –2 + 3 = 1.
Example: –(2 + x) = –2 – x.
2 y2 = x + y( ) x y( )B. x2 ± 2xy + y 2 = x ± y( )2
C. a(b + c) = ab + ac
7. Memorize the following factoring formulas—they occur frequently in exams
A. x
1
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8. Know these rules for radicals:
A. x y = xy
B.x
y=
x
y
9. Pythagorean Theorem (For right triangles only):
a
b
cc2 = a2 + b2
Example: What is the area of the triangle to the right?
(A) 6(B) 7.5(C) 8(D) 11(E) 15 3
5h
Since the triangle is a right triangle, the Pythagorean Theorem applies: h2 + 32 = 52 , where h is the height
of the triangle. Solving for h yields h = 4. Hence, the area of the triangle is 1
2base( ) height( ) =
1
2(3)(4) = 6. The answer is (A).
10. When parallel lines are cut by a transversal, three important angle relationships are formed:
Alternate interiorangles are equal.
a
a
Corresponding angles are equal.
c
c
Interior angles on the same side of thetransversal are supplementary.
a
b
a + b = 180˚
11. In a triangle, an exterior angle is equal to the sum of its remote interior angles and thereforegreater than either of them.
e
a
be = a + b and e > a and e > b
12. A central angle has by definition the same measure as its intercepted arc.
60˚60˚
2
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13. An inscribed angle has one-half the measure of its intercepted arc.
30˚
60˚
14. There are 180° in a straight angle.
x + y = 180˚x˚y˚
15. The angle sum of a triangle is 180°.
a
b
c
a + b + c = 180˚
Example: In the triangle to the right, what is the degreemeasure of angle c ?
(A) 17(B) 20(C) 30(D) 40(E) 45
50˚ c
100˚
Since a triangle has 180˚, we get 100 + 50 + c = 180. Solving for c yields c = 30. Hence, the answer is (C).
16. To find the percentage increase, find the absolute increase and divide by the original amount.
Example: If a shirt selling for $18 is marked up to $20, then the absolute increase is 20 – 18 = 2.
Thus, the percentage increase is increase
original amount=
2
18=
1
911%.
17. Systems of simultaneous equations can most often be solved by merely adding or subtracting theequations.
Example: If 4x + y = 14 and 3x + 2y = 13, then x – y =
Solution: Merely subtract the second equation from the first:
4x + y = 14
3x + 2y = 13
x – y = 1
(–)
3
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➤ The numbers on this test are realnumbers.
➤ You may assume that positions ofpoints, lines, and angles are in theorder shown.
➤ A figure accompanying aproblem-solving question is intendedto provide information useful insolving the problem. Figures aredrawn as accurately as possibleEXCEPT when it is stated in a specificproblem that its figure is not drawn toscale. Straight lines may sometimesappear jagged. All figures lie in aplane unless otherwise indicated.
DIRECTIONS: Data sufficiency problems consist ofa question and two statements, labeled (1) and(2), in which certain data are given. You have todecide whether the data given in the statements issufficient for answering the question. Using thedata given in the statements plus your knowledgeof mathematics and everyday facts (such as thenumber of days in July or the meaning ofcounterclockwise), you must indicate whether
A. Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, butstatement (2) alone is not sufficient.
B. Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, butstatement (1) alone is not sufficient.
C. BOTH statements TOGETHER are sufficient,but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient.
D. EACH statement ALONE is sufficient.E. Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT
sufficient.
➤ A figure accompanying a data sufficiencyproblem will conform to the information givenin the question, but will not necessarilyconform to the additional information given instatements (1) and (2).
➤ In data sufficiency problems that ask for thevalue of a quantity, the data given in thestatements is sufficient only when it is possibleto determine exactly one numerical value forthe quantity.
Example 1
What is the value of x + y? A�
B�
C�
D•
E�
(1) 0.5 (x + y) = −1
(2)15
x + 15
y = 2
From (1): x + y = −2, so (1) is sufficient.From (2): x + y = 10, so (2) is sufficient.
Example 2
N is a number in the set {35, 38, 41, 44, 47,50}. What is N? A
�B�
C•
D�
E�
(1) N is a multiple of 5.(2) N is even.
From (1): N = 35 or 50, so (1) is notsufficient.From (2): N = 38, 44, or 50, so (2) is notsufficient.Taking (1) and (2) together, N = 50, sotaken together (1) and (2) are sufficient.
1. A club wants to mix 20 pounds of candyworth $8.00 per pound with candy worth$5.00 per pound to reduce the cost of themixture to $6.00 per pound. How manypounds of the $5.00 per pound candy shouldbe used?
A. 20B. 30C. 40D. 50E. 60
2. What is the solution of n + 2 > 8?
(1) n is a positive integer less than 10.(2) n is a one-digit prime number.
MATH PRACTICE TEST 1
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Advanced Maths Problem Set
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3. If p, q, and r are nonzero numbers andp = q − r , which of the following is equal to1?
A.r − p
q
B.r + p
q
C.r + q
p
D.r − q
p
E.p + q
r
4. If x to y equals 5 to 3, what is the value ofx + y?
(1) 3x + y = 24(2) y > 4
5. Which is the value of(1/3) + (1/4)
1/2?
A.27
B.47
C.67
D.72
E.76
6. If N is a positive integer, is N divisible by 12?
(1) N is divisible by 6.(2) N is divisible by 2.
7. Based on the figure, what is the measure of∠PRS?
A. 50◦
B. 60◦
C. 70◦
D. 120◦
E. 180◦
P
Q R S
8. In the equation x2 + bx + 10 = 0, x is avariable and b is a constant. What is thevalue of b?
(1) x − 2 is a factor of x2 + bx + 10 = 0.(2) 5 is a root of x2 + bx + 10 = 0.
9. What is the product of the greatest primefactor of 160 and the greatest prime factorof 168?
A. 4B. 15C. 35D. 80E. 336
10. Is x3 greater than x?
(1) 0 ≤ x ≤ 1(2) x > 1
11. Is the integer N divisible by 36?
(1) N is divisible by 9.(2) N is divisible by 8.
12. Is the whole number N divisible by 3 ormore positive integers?
(1) N is a prime number.(2) 0 < N < 4
13. A soccer team had no ties in the 25 gamesthey played. If they won 60% of their games,how many more games did they win thanthey lost?
A. 5B. 10C. 15D. 25E. 40
14. Is x between 0 and 1?
(1) x > x2
(2) x > x3
15. Is xy < 10?
(1) x < 5 and y < 2(2) x < −3 and y < −1
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Advanced Maths Problem Set
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16. Carlos worked 40 hours last week, including4 hours on Sunday. He earns $10.50 an hour
regularly and 112
times that on Sunday. How
much did he earn last week?
A. $357B. $399C. $420D. $441E. $483
17. If 5w = x+ y, then what is the average (arith-metic mean) of w, x, and y in terms of w?
A. 2w
B. 3w
C. w + 2
D.13
w
E.12
w
18. What is the ratio of P to Q?
(1) P is 4 less twice Q.(2) 4P equals 7Q.
19. If2x
= 5 andy3
= 6, what is the value of2 + yx + 3
?
A. 11
B.10017
C.4011
D.2017
E.8
11
20. Which has the least value?
A.8
(23)(52)
B.10
(22)(53)
C.28
(23)(53)
D.16
(22)(52)
E.140
(24)(53)
21. What is N when N is an integer andx < N < y?
(1) y − x = 7(2) x and y are integers.
22. A woman is 4 times as old as her daughter.In 3 years she will be 3 times as old asher daughter. How old is the woman now?
A. 3 yearsB. 6 yearsC. 12 yearsD. 24 yearsE. 36 years
23. If a triangle has one side of 3 cm and anotherside of 4 cm, how long is the third side?
(1) The triangle is a right triangle.(2) The third side is the longest side.
24. In �PQR, PQ is an integer and PQ > 6. Whatis PQ?
(1) PR + QR = 8(2) �PQR is equiangular and PR = 10.
25. What is the measure of the supplementof an angle with a measure of 42◦?
A. 318◦
B. 228◦
C. 138◦
D. 48◦
E. 21◦
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Advanced Maths Problem Set
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Questions 26 and 27 are based on the following graph.
26. Based on the graph, the Nile is longer thanthe sum of what two rivers?
A. Congo and EuphratesB. Euphrates and AmazonC. Congo and YangtzeD. Volga and CongoE. Volga and Euphrates
27. Based on the graph, the Nile is how muchlonger than the Congo?
A. 100 milesB. 200 milesC. 600 milesD. 800 milesE. 1,200 miles
28. A hat contains 12 cards marked with a starand 18 unmarked cards. What is theprobability that one card selected at randomwill be marked with a star?
A.25
B.35
C.23
D.32
E.52
29. What is the average (arithmetic mean) ofthe values 39, 40, 39, 45, 42, 35, 47?
A. 39B. 41C. 42D. 45E. 47
30. A rectangular room that is 8 meters by 5meters is to be carpeted using carpet costing$12.50 per square meter. How much will thecarpet cost?
A. $40B. $100C. $162.50D. $480E. $500
31. A rectangular box that is 7 inches long by4 inches wide by 3 inches deep is carefullypacked to hold the maximum number ofblocks that are 1 inch by 1 inch by 2 inches.How many blocks can be packed intothe box?
A. 84 blocksB. 42 blocksC. 28 blocksD. 14 blocksE. 2 blocks
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Advanced Maths Problem Set
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32. Is n < 0?
(1)1n
< 0
(2) n2 > 0
33. The original funding to build a housingdevelopment was $1.75 billion. The fundingwas increased to $2.5 billion. By whatpercentage was the original fundingincreased?
A. 38%B. 43%C. 52%D. 65%E. 71%
Questions 34 and 35 are based on the followinggraph.
34. Based on the graph, what is the ratio of theproposed spending on national securitycompared to health?
A. 11 to 3B. 3 to 1C. 33 to 5D. 1 to 3E. 3 to 11
35. Based on the graph, approximately whatpart of the proposed budget is for health,education, and interest combined?
A.1
20
B.1
10
C.15
D.14
E.13
36. What is the value of x3 − y3?
(1) x − y = x + 3(2) x − y = 4 − y
37. If the sale price of a television is $216 after a10% reduction was made, what was theregular price of the television?
A. $21.60B. $24.00C. $194.40D. $237.60E. $240.00
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Advanced Maths Problem Set
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Table of Contents
The Speed Mathematics Method .............................................. 2
Multiplying numbers just below 100 ....................................... 5
Reference numbers ..................................................................... 8
Why use a reference number? ................................................... 9
Using 100 as a reference number ............................................ 11
Number Above The Reference Number ................................ 15
Multiply Above & Below The Reference Number ............... 22
Checking Your Answers .......................................................... 27
Substitute numbers ................................................................... 27
Why does the method work? .................................................. 32
Multiplication Using Any Reference Number ...................... 35
Multiplication Using Two Reference Number .................... 56
Addition ..................................................................................... 73
Subtraction ................................................................................. 81
Speed Mathematics - For Faster Calculations
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WHAT IS MULTIPLICATION?How would you add the following numbers?
6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 = ?
You could keep adding sixes until you get the answer. Th is takes time and, because there are so many numbers to add, it is easy to make a mistake.
Th e easy method is to count how many sixes there are to add together, and then use multiplication to get the answer.
How many sixes are there? Count them.
Th ere are eight.
You have to fi nd out what eight sixes added together would make. People often memorize the answers or use a chart, but you are going to learn a very easy method to calculate the answer.
As multiplication, the problem is written like this:
8 × 6 =
Th is means there are eight sixes to be added. Th is is easier to write than 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 = .
Th e solution to this problem is:
8 × 6 = 48
c01.indd 5c01.indd 5 1/9/07 8:42:48 AM1/9/07 8:42:48 AM
Speed Mathematics - For Faster Calculations
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THE SPEED MATHEMATICS METHOD
I am now going to show you the speed mathematics way of working this out. Th e fi rst step is to draw circles under each of the numbers. Th e problem now looks like this:
8 × 6 =
We now look at each number and ask, how many more do we need to make 10?
We start with the 8. If we have 8, how many more do we need to make 10?
Th e answer is 2. Eight plus 2 equals 10. We write 2 in the circle below the 8. Our equation now looks like this:
8 × 6 =
2
We now go to the 6. How many more to make 10? Th e answer is 4. We write 4 in the circle below the 6.
Th is is how the problem looks now:
8 × 6 =
2
4
We now take away, or subtract, crossways or diagonally. We either take 2 from 6 or 4 from 8. It doesn’t matter which way we subtract—the answer will be the same, so choose the calculation that looks easier. Two from 6 is 4, or 4 from 8 is 4. Either way the answer is 4. You only take away one time. Write 4 after the equals sign.
8 × 6 = 4
2
4
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For the last part of the answer, you “times,” or multiply, the numbers in the circles. What is 2 times 4? Two times 4 means two fours added together. Two fours are 8. Write the 8 as the last part of the answer. Th e answer is 48.
8 × 6 = 48
2
4
Easy, wasn’t it? Th is is much easier than repeating your multiplication tables every day until you remember them. And this way, it doesn’t matter if you forget the answer, because you can simply work it out again.
Do you want to try another one? Let’s try 7 times 8. We write the problem and draw circles below the numbers as before:
7 × 8 =
How many more do we need to make 10? With the fi rst number, 7, we need 3, so we write 3 in the circle below the 7. Now go to the 8. How many more to make 10? Th e answer is 2, so we write 2 in the circle below the 8.
Our problem now looks like this:
7 × 8 =
3
2
Now take away crossways. Either take 3 from 8 or 2 from 7. Whichever way we do it, we get the same answer. Seven minus 2 is 5 or 8 minus 3 is 5. Five is our answer either way. Five is the fi rst digit of the answer. You only do this calculation once, so choose the way that looks easier.
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Th e calculation now looks like this:
7 × 8 = 5
3
2
For the fi nal digit of the answer we multiply the numbers in the circles: 3 times 2 (or 2 times 3) is 6. Write the 6 as the second digit of the answer.
Here is the fi nished calculation:
7 × 8 = 56
3
2
Seven eights are 56.
How would you solve this problem in your head? Take both numbers from 10 to get 3 and 2 in the circles. Take away crossways. Seven minus 2 is 5. We don’t say fi ve, we say, “Fifty . . .” Th en multiply the numbers in the circles. Th ree times 2 is 6. We would say, “Fifty . . . six.”
With a little practice you will be able to give an instant answer. And, after calculating 7 times 8 a dozen or so times, you will fi nd you remember the answer, so you are learning your tables as you go.
Test yourself
Here are some problems to try by yourself. Do all of the problems, even if you know your tables well. This is the basic strategy we will use for almost all of our multiplication.
a) 9 × 9 = e) 8 × 9 =
b) 8 × 8 = f) 9 × 6 =
c) 7 × 7 = g) 5 × 9 =
d) 7 × 9 = h) 8 × 7 =
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Table of Contents PRETEST ............................................................................................................................................... 1
Building a Strong Foundation ......................................................................................................... 15
Getting the Essential Information ................................................................................................... 16
Finding the Main Idea ...................................................................................................................... 23
Defining Vocabulary in Context ..................................................................................................... 27
The Difference between Fact and Opinion .................................................................................... 32
Putting It All Together ..................................................................................................................... 37
Start from the Beginning: Chronological Order ........................................................................... 43
Similarities and Differences: Compare and Contrast .................................................................. 55
Why Do Things Happen? A Look at Cause and Effect ............................................................... 61
Being structurally sound putting it all together ........................................................................... 67
A Matter of Perspective: Point of View ......................................................................................... 73
Diction: What’s in a Word? .............................................................................................................. 79
Style it's not what they say but how they say it ........................................................................... 84
How they say it part two;tone ......................................................................................................... 90
Word Power: Putting It All Together ............................................................................................. 94
Finding the Implied Main Idea ....................................................................................................... 99
Assuming Causes and Predicting Effects .................................................................................... 103
Emotional Versus Logical Appeals .............................................................................................. 107
Finding Meaning in Literature ...................................................................................................... 113
Drawing Conclusions: Putting It All Together ........................................................................... 118
Fundamentals of Reading Comprehension
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Before you start your study of reading skills, you may want to get an idea of how much you already
know and how much you need to learn. If that’s the case, take the pretest that follows. The pretest
consists of 50 multiple-choice questions covering all the lessons in this book. Naturally, 50 ques-
tions can’t cover every single concept or strategy you will learn by working through this book. So even if you get
all the questions on the pretest right, it’s almost guaranteed that you will find a few ideas or reading tactics in this
book that you didn’t already know. On the other hand, if you get many questions wrong on this pretest, don’t
despair. This book will show you how to read more effectively, step by step.
You should use this pretest to get a general idea of how much you already know. If you get a high score, you
may be able to spend less time with this book than you originally planned. If you get a low score, you may find
that you will need more than 20 minutes a day to get through each chapter and improve your reading skills.
There’s an answer sheet you can use for filling in the correct answers on page 3. Or, if you prefer, simply cir-
cle the answer numbers in this book. If the book doesn’t belong to you, write the numbers 1–50 on a piece of paper
and record your answers there. Take as much time as you need to do this short test. When you finish, check your
answers against the answer key at the end of this lesson. Each answer offers the lesson(s) in this book that teaches
you about the reading strategy in that question.
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1. a b c d2. a b c d3. a b c d4. a b c d5. a b c d6. a b c d7. a b c d8. a b c d9. a b c d
10. a b c d11. a b c d12. a b c d13. a b c d14. a b c d15. a b c d16. a b c d17. a b c d
18. a b c d19. a b c d20. a b c d21. a b c d22. a b c d23. a b c d24. a b c d25. a b c d26. a b c d27. a b c d28. a b c d29. a b c d30. a b c d31. a b c d32. a b c d33. a b c d34. a b c d
35. a b c d36. a b c d37. a b c d38. a b c d39. a b c d40. a b c d41. a b c d42. a b c d43. a b c d44. a b c d45. a b c d46. a b c d47. a b c d48. a b c d49. a b c d50. a b c d
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The pretest consists of a series of reading passages with questions that follow to test your comprehension.
Cultural Center Adds Classes for Young Adults
The Allendale Cultural Center has expanded its arts program to include classes for young adults. Director Leah
Martin announced Monday that beginning in September, three new classes will be offered to the Allendale com-
munity. The course titles will be Yoga for Teenagers; Hip Hop Dance: Learning the Latest Moves; and Creative
Journaling for Teens: Discovering the Writer Within. The latter course will not be held at the Allendale Cul-
tural Center but instead will meet at the Allendale Public Library.
Staff member Tricia Cousins will teach the yoga and hip hop classes. Ms. Cousins is an accomplished cho-
reographer as well as an experienced dance educator. She has an MA in dance education from Teachers Col-
lege, Columbia University, where she wrote a thesis on the pedagogical effectiveness of dance education. The
journaling class will be taught by Betsy Milford. Ms. Milford is the head librarian at the Allendale Public Library
as well as a columnist for the professional journal Library Focus.
The courses are part of the Allendale Cultural Center’s Project Teen, which was initiated by Leah Martin,
Director of the Cultural Center. According to Martin, this project is a direct result of her efforts to make the
center a more integral part of the Allendale community. Over the last several years, the number of people who
have visited the cultural center for classes or events has steadily declined. Project Teen is primarily funded by
a munificent grant from The McGee Arts Foundation, an organization devoted to bringing arts programs to
young adults. Martin oversees the Project Teen board, which consists of five board members. Two board mem-
bers are students at Allendale’s Brookdale High School; the other three are adults with backgrounds in educa-
tion and the arts.
The creative journaling class will be cosponsored by Brookdale High School, and students who complete
the class will be given the opportunity to publish one of their journal entries in Pulse, Brookdale’s student lit-
erary magazine. Students who complete the hip hop class will be eligible to participate in the Allendale Review,
an annual concert sponsored by the cultural center that features local actors, musicians, and dancers.
All classes are scheduled to begin immediately following school dismissal, and transportation will be
available from Brookdale High School to the Allendale Cultural Center and the Allendale Public Library. For more
information about Project Teen, contact the cultural center’s programming office at 988-0099 or drop by the office
after June 1 to pick up a fall course catalog. The office is located on the third floor of the Allendale Town Hall.
1. The Creative Journaling for Teens class will be
cosponsored by
a. The Allendale Public Library.
b. The McGee Arts Foundation.
c. Brookdale High School.
d. Betsy Milford.
2. Which of the following statements is correct?
a. Tricia Cousins will teach two of the new
classes.
b. The new classes will begin on June 1.
c. People who want a complete fall catalogue
should stop by the Allendale Public Library.
d. The cultural center’s annual concert is called
Pulse.
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3. According to Leah Martin, what was the direct
cause of Project Teen?
a. Tricia Cousins, the talented choreographer
and dance educator, was available to teach
courses in the fall.
b. Community organizations were ignoring local
teenagers.
c. The McGee Arts Foundation wanted to be
more involved in Allendale’s arts
programming.
d. She wanted to make the cultural center a more
important part of the Allendale community.
4. Which of the following factors is implied as
another reason for Project Teen?
a. The number of people who have visited the
cultural center has declined over the last
several years.
b. The cultural center wanted a grant from The
McGee Arts Foundation.
c. The young people of Allendale have com-
plained about the cultural center’s offerings.
d. Leah Martin thinks classes for teenagers are
more important than classes for adults.
5. From the context of the passage, it can be
determined that the word “munificent” most
nearly means
a. complicated.
b. generous.
c. curious.
d. unusual.
6. The title of the course “Creative Journaling for
Teens: Discovering the Writer Within” implies that
a. all young people should write in a journal
daily.
b. teenagers do not have enough hobbies.
c. writing in a journal can help teenagers
become better and more creative writers.
d. teenagers are in need of guidance and
direction.
7. Which of the following correctly states the
primary subject of this article?
a. Leah Martin’s personal ideas about young
adults
b. The McGee Foundation’s grant to the
Allendale Cultural Center
c. three new classes for young adults added to
the cultural center’s arts program
d. the needs of young adults in Allendale
8. This article is organized in which of the
following ways?
a. in chronological order, from the past to the
future
b. most important information first, followed by
background and details.
c. background first, followed by the most impor-
tant information and details.
d. as sensational news, with the most controver-
sial topic first
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(excerpt from the opening of an untitled essay)
John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, published in 1939, was followed ten years later by A.B. Guthrie’s The Way West.
Both books chronicle a migration, though that of Guthrie’s pioneers is considerably less bleak in origin. What
strikes one at first glance, however, are the commonalities. Both Steinbeck’s and Guthrie’s characters are pri-
marily farmers. They look to their destinations with nearly religious enthusiasm, imagining their “promised”
land the way the Biblical Israelites envisioned Canaan. Both undergo great hardship to make the trek. But the
two sagas differ distinctly in origin. Steinbeck’s Oklahomans are forced off their land by the banks who own
their mortgages, and they follow a false promise—that jobs await them as seasonal laborers in California.
Guthrie’s farmers willingly remove themselves, selling their land and trading their old dreams for their new hope
in Oregon. The pioneers’ decision to leave their farms in Missouri and the East is frivolous and ill-founded in
comparison with the Oklahomans’ unwilling response to displacement. Yet, it is they, the pioneers, whom our
history books declare the heroes.
9. From the context of the passage, it can be
determined that the word “frivolous” most
nearly means
a. silly.
b. high-minded.
c. difficult.
d. calculated.
10. Suppose that the author is considering following
this sentence with supportive detail: “Both
undergo great hardship to make the trek.” Which
of the following sentences would be in keeping
with the comparison and contrast structure of
the paragraph?
a. The migrants in The Way West cross the
Missouri, then the Kaw, and make their way
overland to the Platte.
b. The Oklahomans’ jalopies break down
repeatedly, while the pioneers’ wagons need
frequent repairs.
c. Today’s travelers would consider it a hardship
to spend several days, let alone several
months, getting anywhere.
d. The Joad family, in The Grapes of Wrath, loses
both grandmother and grandfather before the
journey is complete.
11. Which of the following excerpts from the essay is
an opinion, rather than a fact?
a. “Both Steinbeck’s and Guthrie’s characters are
primarily farmers.”
b. “Steinbeck’s Oklahomans are forced off
their land by the banks who own their
mortgages…”
c. “John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, published
in 1939, was followed ten years later by A.B.
Guthrie’s The Way West.”
d. “The pioneers’ decision to leave their farms
in Missouri and the East is frivolous and
ill-founded in comparison with the
Oklahomans’…”
12. The language in the paragraph implies that
which of the following will happen to the
Oklahomans when they arrive in California?
a. They will find a means to practice their
religion freely.
b. They will be declared national heroes.
c. They will not find the jobs they were
promised.
d. They will make their livings as mechanics
rather than as farm laborers.
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Bill Clinton’s Inaugural Address
(excerpt from the opening)
When George Washington first took the oath I have just sworn to uphold, news traveled slowly across the land
by horseback and across the ocean by boat. Now the sights and sounds of this ceremony are broadcast instan-
taneously to billions around the world. Communications and commerce are global. Investment is mobile. Tech-
nology is almost magical, and ambition for a better life is now universal.
We earn our livelihood in America today in peaceful competition with people all across the Earth. Profound
and powerful forces are shaking and remaking our world, and the urgent question of our time is whether we can
make change our friend and not our enemy. This new world has already enriched the lives of millions of
Americans who are able to compete and win in it. But when most people are working harder for less; when oth-
ers cannot work at all; when the cost of healthcare devastates families and threatens to bankrupt our enterprises,
great and small; when the fear of crime robs law-abiding citizens of their freedom; and when millions of poor
children cannot even imagine the lives we are calling them to lead, we have not made change our friend.
13. What is the central topic of the speech so far?
a. how Americans can keep up with global
competition
b. ways in which technology has undermined
our economy
c. ways in which technology has improved
our lives
d. how change has affected America and our
need to adapt
14. By comparing our times with those of George
Washington, Bill Clinton demonstrates
a. how apparently different, but actually similar,
the two eras are.
b. how technology has drastically speeded up
communications.
c. that presidential inaugurations receive huge
media attention.
d. that television is a much more convincing
communications tool than print.
15. When President Clinton says that “most people
are working harder for less,” he is
a. reaching a reasonable conclusion based on
evidence he has provided.
b. reaching an unreasonable conclusion based on
evidence he has provided.
c. making a generalization that would require
evidence before it could be confirmed.
d. making a generalization that is so obvious that
evidence is not needed.
16. Assuming that Clinton wants to add something
about crime being a more serious threat in our
time than in George Washington’s, which of the
following sentences would be most consistent
with the tone of the presidential speech?
a. If I’d been alive in George’s day, I would have
enjoyed knowing that my wife and child could
walk city streets without being mugged.
b. In George Washington’s time, Americans may
not have enjoyed as many luxuries, but they
could rest in the awareness that their neigh-
borhoods were safe.
c. George could at least count on one thing. He
knew that his family was safe from crime.
d. A statistical analysis of the overall growth in
crime rates since 1789 would reveal that a sig-
nificant increase has occurred.
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The Crossing
Chapter I: The Blue Wall
(excerpt from the opening of a novel by Winston Churchill)
I was born under the Blue Ridge, and under that side which is blue in the evening light, in a wild land of game
and forest and rushing waters. There, on the borders of a creek that runs into the Yadkin River, in a cabin that
was chinked with red mud, I came into the world a subject of King George the Third, in that part of his realm
known as the province of North Carolina.
The cabin reeked of corn-pone and bacon, and the odor of pelts. It had two shakedowns, on one of
which I slept under a bearskin. A rough stone chimney was reared outside, and the fireplace was as long as my
father was tall. There was a crane in it, and a bake kettle; and over it great buckhorns held my father’s rifle when
it was not in use. On other horns hung jerked bear’s meat and venison hams, and gourds for drinking cups, and
bags of seed, and my father’s best hunting shirt; also, in a neglected corner, several articles of woman’s attire from
pegs. These once belonged to my mother. Among them was a gown of silk, of a fine, faded pattern, over which
I was wont to speculate. The women at the Cross-Roads, twelve miles away, were dressed in coarse butternut wool
and huge sunbonnets. But when I questioned my father on these matters he would give me no answers.
My father was—how shall I say what he was? To this day I can only surmise many things of him. He was
a Scotchman born, and I know now that he had a slight Scotch accent. At the time of which I write, my early
childhood, he was a frontiersman and hunter. I can see him now, with his hunting shirt and leggins and moc-
casins; his powder horn, engraved with wondrous scenes; his bullet pouch and tomahawk and hunting knife.
He was a tall, lean man with a strange, sad face. And he talked little save when he drank too many “horns,” as
they were called in that country. These lapses of my father’s were a perpetual source of wonder to me—and, I
must say, of delight. They occurred only when a passing traveler who hit his fancy chanced that way, or, what
was almost as rare, a neighbor. Many a winter night I have lain awake under the skins, listening to a flow of lan-
guage that held me spellbound, though I understood scarce a word of it.
“Virtuous and vicious every man must be,
Few in the extreme, but all in a degree.”
The chance neighbor or traveler was no less struck with wonder. And many the time have I heard the query, at
the Cross-Roads and elsewhere, “Whar Alec Trimble got his larnin’?”
17. Why did the narrator enjoy it when his father
drank too many “horns,” or drafts of liquor?
a. The father spoke brilliantly at those times.
b. The boy was then allowed to do as he pleased.
c. These were the only times when the father was
not abusive.
d. The boy was allowed to sample the drink
himself.
18. Judging by the sentences surrounding it, the
word “surmise” in the third paragraph most
nearly means
a. to form a negative opinion.
b. to praise.
c. to desire.
d. to guess.
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19. The mention of the dress in the second
paragraph is most likely meant to
a. show the similarity between its owner and
other members of the community.
b. show how warm the climate was.
c. show the dissimilarity between its owner and
other members of the community.
d. give us insight into the way most of the
women of the region dressed.
20. It can be inferred from the passage that Alec
Trimble is
a. a traveler.
b. a neighbor.
c. the narrator’s father.
d. a poet.
21. What is the meaning of the lines of verse quoted
in the passage?
a. Men who pretend to be virtuous are actually
vicious.
b. Moderate amounts of virtuousness and
viciousness are present in all men.
c. Virtuous men cannot also be vicious.
d. Whether men are virtuous or vicious depends
on the difficulty of their circumstances.
22. Which of the following adjectives best describes
the region in which the cabin is located?
a. remote
b. urban
c. agricultural
d. flat
23. The author most likely uses dialect when quoting
the question, “Whar Alec Trimble got his
larnin’?” in order to
a. show disapproval of the father’s drinking.
b. show how people talked down to the narrator.
c. show the speakers’ lack of education.
d. mimic the way the father talked.
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(excerpt from a letter to a pet-sitter)
Dear Lee,
As I told you, I’ll be gone until Wednesday morning. Thank you so much for taking on my “children” while
I’m away. Like real children, they can be kind of irritating sometimes, but I’m going to enjoy myself so much
more knowing they’re getting some kind human attention. Remember that Regina (the “queen” in Latin, and
she acts like one) is teething. If you don’t watch her, she’ll chew anything, including her sister, the cat. There
are plenty of chew toys around the house. Whenever she starts gnawing on anything illegal, just divert her with
one of those. She generally settles right down to a good hour-long chew. Then you’ll see her wandering around
whimpering with the remains of the toy in her mouth. She gets really frustrated because what she wants is to
bury the thing. She’ll try to dig a hole between the cushions of the couch. Finding that unsatisfactory, she’ll wan-
der some more, discontent, until you solve her problem for her. I usually show her the laundry basket, mov-
ing a few clothes so she can bury her toy beneath them. I do sound like a parent, don’t I? You have to
understand, my own son is practically grown up.
Regina’s food is the Puppy Chow in the utility room, where the other pet food is stored. Give her a bowl
once in the morning and once in the evening. No more than that, no matter how much she begs. Beagles are
notorious overeaters, according to her breeder, and I don’t want her to lose her girlish figure. She can share Rex
(the King’s) water, but be sure it’s changed daily. She needs to go out several times a day, especially last thing
at night and first thing in the morning. Let her stay out for about ten minutes each time, so she can do all her
business. She also needs a walk in the afternoon, after which it’s important to romp with her for awhile in the
yard. The game she loves most is fetch, but be sure to make her drop the ball. She’d rather play tug of war with
it. Tell her, “Sit!” Then, when she does, say, “Drop it!” Be sure to tell her “good girl,” and then throw the ball
for her. I hope you’ll enjoy these sessions as much as I do.
Now, for the other two, Rex and Paws… (letter continues)
24. The tone of this letter is best described as
a. chatty and humorous.
b. logical and precise.
c. confident and trusting.
d. condescending and preachy.
25. If the pet-sitter is a business-like professional
who watches people’s pets for a living, she or he
would likely prefer
a. more first-person revelations about the owner.
b. fewer first-person revelations about the owner.
c. more praise for agreeing to watch the animals.
d. greater detail on the animals’ cute behavior.
26. According to the author, his or her attachment to
the pets derives at least partially from
a. their regal pedigrees and royal bearing.
b. having few friends to pass the time with.
c. these particular animals’ exceptional needs.
d. a desire to continue parenting.
27. The information in the note is sufficient to deter-
mine that there are three animals. They are
a. two cats and a dog.
b. three dogs.
c. a dog, a cat, and an unspecified animal.
d. a cat, a dog, and a parrot.
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Question 1-7
Hotels were among the earliest facilities that bound the United States together. Theywere both creatures and creators of communities, as well as symptoms of the freneticquest for community. Even in the first part of the nineteenth century, Americans were
Line already forming the habit of gathering from all corners of the nation for both public and(5) private, business and pleasure purposes. Conventions were the new occasions, and
hotels were distinctively American facilities making conventions possible. The firstnational convention of a major party to choose a candidate for President (that of theNational Republican party, which met on December 12, 1831, and nominated HenryClay for President) was held in Baltimore, at a hotel that was then reputed to be the
(10) best in the country. The presence in Baltimore of Barnum's City Hotel, a six-storybuilding with two hundred apartments, helps explain why many other early nationalpolitical conventions were held there.
In the longer run, too. American hotels made other national conventions not onlypossible but pleasant and convivial. The growing custom of regularly assembling from
(15) afar the representatives of all kinds of groups - not only for political conventions, butalso for commercial, professional, learned, and avocational ones - in turn supportedthe multiplying hotels. By mid-twentieth century, conventions accounted for over athird of the yearly room occupancy of all hotels in the nation, about eighteen thousanddifferent conventions were held annually with a total attendance of about ten million
(20) persons.
Nineteenth-century American hotelkeepers, who were no longer the genial,deferential "hosts" of the eighteenth-century European inn, became leading citizens.Holding a large stake in the community, they exercised power to make it prosper. Asowners or managers of the local "palace of the public", they were makers and shapers
(25) of a principal community attraction. Travelers from abroad were mildly shocked bythis high social position.
1. The word "bound" in line 1 is closest in meaning to(A) led (B) protected (C) tied (D) strengthened
2. The National Republican party is mentioned in line 8 as an example of a group(A) from Baltimore (B) of learned people(C) owning a hotel (D) holding a convention
3. The word "assembling" in line 14 is closest in meaning to(A) announcing (B) motivating (C) gathering (D) contracting
4. The word "ones" in line 16 refers to(A) hotels (B) conventions (C) kinds (D) representatives
5. The word "it" in line 23 refers to(A) European inn (B) host (C) community (D) public
6. It can be inferred from the passage that early hotelkeepers in the United States were(A) active politicians (B) European immigrants(C) Professional builders (D) Influential citizens
PRACTICE TEST 1
Reading Comprehension Problem Set
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7. Which of the following statements about early American hotels is NOT mentioned in the passage?(A) Travelers from abroad did not enjoy staying in them.(B) Conventions were held in them(C) People used them for both business and pleasure.(D) They were important to the community.
Question 8-17
Beads were probably the first durable ornaments humans possessed, and theintimate relationship they had with their owners is reflected in the fact that beads areamong the most common items found in ancient archaeological sites. In the past, as
Line today, men, women, and children adorned themselves with beads. In some cultures(5) still, certain beads are often worn from birth until death, and then are buried with their
owners for the afterlife. Abrasion due to daily wear alters the surface features of beads,and if they are buried for long, the effects of corrosion can further change theirappearance. Thus, interest is imparted to the bead both by use and the effects of time.
Besides their wearability, either as jewelry or incorporated into articles of attire,(10) beads possess the desirable characteristics of every collectible, they are durable,
portable, available in infinite variety, and often valuable in their original culturalcontext as well as in today's market. Pleasing to look at and touch, beads come inshapes, colors, and materials that almost compel one to handle them and to sort them.
Beads are miniature bundles of secrets waiting to be revealed: their history,(15) manufacture, cultural context, economic role, and ornamental use are all points of
information one hopes to unravel. Even the most mundane beads may have traveledgreat distances and been exposed to many human experiences. The bead researchermust gather information from many diverse fields. In addition to having to be ageneralist while specializing in what may seem to be a narrow field, the researcher is
(20) faced with the problem of primary materials that have little or no documentation. Manyancient beads that are of ethnographic interest have often been separated from theiroriginal cultural context.
The special attractions of beads contribute to the uniqueness of bead research. Whileoften regarded as the "small change of civilizations", beads are a part of every culture,
(25) and they can often be used to date archaeological sites and to designate the degree ofmercantile, technological, and cultural sophistication.
8. What is the main subject of the passage?(A) Materials used in making beads (B) How beads are made(C) The reasons for studying beads (D) Different types of beads
9. The word "adorned" in line 4 is closest in meaning to(A) protected (B) decorated (C) purchased (D) enjoyed
10. The word "attire" in line 9 is closest in meaning to(A) ritual (B) importance (C) clothing (D) history
11. All of the following are given as characteristics of collectible objects EXCEPT(A) durability (B) portability (C) value (D) scarcity.
12. According to the passage, all of the following are factors that make people want to touch beadsEXCEPT the
(A) shape (B) color (C) material (D) odor
Reading Comprehension Problem Set
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13. The word "unravel" in line 16 is closest in meaning to(A) communicate (B) transport (C) improve (D) discover
14. The word "mundane" in line 16 is closest in meaning to(A) carved (B) beautiful (C) ordinary (D) heavy
15. It is difficult to trace the history of certain ancient beads because they(A) are small in size(B) have been buried underground(C) have been moved from their original locations(D) are frequently lost
16. Knowledge of the history of some beads may be useful in the studies done by which of the following?(A) Anthropologists (B) Agricultural experts(C) Medical researchers (D) Economists
17. Where in the passage does the author describe why the appearance of beads may change?(A) Lines 3-4 (B) Lines 6-8 (C) Lines 12-13 (D) Lines 20-22
Question 18-31
In the world of birds, bill design is a prime example of evolutionary fine-tuning.Shorebirds such as oystercatchers use their bills to pry open the tightly sealed shells oftheir prey; hummingbirds have stiletto-like bills to probe the deepest nectar-bearing
Line flowers; and kiwis smell out earthworms thanks to nostrils located at the tip of their(5) beaks. But few birds are more intimately tied to their source of sustenance than are
crossbills. Two species of these finches, named for the way the upper and lower partsof their bills cross, rather than meet in the middle, reside in the evergreen forests ofNorth America and feed on the seeds held within the cones of coniferous trees.
The efficiency of the bill is evident when a crossbill locates a cone. Using a lateral(10) motion of its lower mandible, the bird separates two overlapping scales on the cone and
exposes the seed. The crossed mandibles enable the bird to exert a powerful bitingforce at the bill tips, which is critical for maneuvering them between the scales andspreading the scales apart. Next, the crossbill snakes its long tongue into the gap anddraws out the seed. Using the combined action of the bill and tongue, the bird cracks
(15) open and discards the woody seed covering action and swallows the nutritious inner kernel.This whole process takes but a few seconds and is repeated hundreds of times a day.
The bills of different crossbill species and subspecies vary - some are stout anddeep, others more slender and shallow. As a rule, large-billed crossbills are better atseeming seeds from large cones, while small-billed crossbills are more deft at
(20) removing the seeds from small, thin-scaled cones. Moreover, the degree to which conesare naturally slightly open or tightly closed helps determine which bill design is the best.
One anomaly is the subspecies of red crossbill known as the Newfoundlandcrossbill. This bird has a large, robust bill, yet most of Newfoundland's conifershave small cones, the same kind of cones that the slender-billed white-wings rely on.
Reading Comprehension Problem Set
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18. What does the passage mainly discuss?(A) The importance of conifers in evergreen forests(B) The efficiency of the bill of the crossbill(C) The variety of food available in a forest(D) The different techniques birds use to obtain food
19. Which of the following statements best represents the type of "evolutionary fine-turning" mentioned in line 1?
(A) Different shapes of bills have evolved depending on the available food supply(B) White - wing crossbills have evolved from red crossbills(C) Newfoundland's conifers have evolved small cones(D) Several subspecies of crossbills have evolved from two species
20. Why does the author mention oystercatchers, hummingbirds, and kiwis in lines 2-4?(A) They are examples of birds that live in the forest(B) Their beaks are similar to the beak of the crossbill(C) They illustrate the relationship between bill design and food supply(D) They are closely related to the crossbill
21. Crossbills are a type of(A) shorebird (B) hummingbird (C) kiwi (D) finch
22. Which of the following most closely resembles the bird described in lines 6-8?Unable to find options for this question
23. The word "which" in line 12 refers to(A) seed (B) bird (C) force (D) bill
24. The word "gap" in line 13 is closest in meaning to(A) opening (B) flower (C) mouth (D) tree
25. The word "discards" in line 15 is closest in meaning to(A) eats (B) breaks (C) finds out (D) gets rid of
26. The word "others" in line 18 refers to(A) bills (B) species (C) seeds (D) cones
27. The word "deft" in line 19 is closest in meaning to(A) hungry (B) skilled (C) tired (D) pleasant
28. The word "robust" in line 24 is closest in meaning to(A) strong (B) colorful (C) unusual (D) sharp
29. In what way is the Newfoundland crossbill an anomaly?(A) It is larger than the other crossbill species(B) It uses a different technique to obtain food(C) The size of its bill does not fit the size of its food source(D) It does not live in evergreen forests.
30. The final paragraph of the passage will probably continue with a discussion of(A) other species of forest birds(B) the fragile ecosystem of Newfoundland(C) what mammals live in the forests of North America(D) how the Newfoundland crossbill survives with a large bill
31. Where in the passage does the author describe how a crossbill removes a seed from its cone?(A) The first paragraph (B) The second paragraph(C) The third paragraph (D) The forth paragraph
Reading Comprehension Problem Set
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Question 32-38
If you look closely at some of the early copies of the Declaration of Independence,beyond the flourished signature of John Hancock and the other 55 men who signed it,you will also find the name of one woman, Mary Katherine Goddard. It was she, a
Line Baltimore printer, who published the first official copies of the Declaration, the first(5) copies that included the names of its signers and therefore heralded the support of all
thirteen colonies.
Mary Goddard first got into printing at the age of twenty-four when her brotheropened a printing shop in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1762. When he proceeded toget into trouble with his partners and creditors, it was Mary Goddard and her mother
(10) who were left to run the shop. In 1765 they began publishing the Providence Gazette, aweekly newspaper. Similar problems seemed to follow her brother as he openedbusinesses in Philadelphia and again in Baltimore. Each time Ms. Goddard wasbrought in to run the newspapers. After starting Baltimore's first newspaper, TheMaryland Journal, in 1773, her brother went broke trying to organize a colonial postal
(15) service. While he was in debtor's prison. Mary Katherine Goddard's name appeared onthe newspaper's masthead for the first time.
When the Continental Congress fled there from Philadelphia in 1776, itcommissioned Ms. Goddard to print the first official version of the Declaration ofIndependence in January 1777. After printing the documents, she herself paid the post
(20) riders to deliver the Declaration throughout the colonies.
During the American Revolution, Mary Goddard continued to publish Baltimore'sonly newspaper, which one historian claimed was "second to none among thecolonies". She was also the city's postmaster from 1775 to 1789 - appointed byBenjamin Franklin - and is considered to be the first woman to hold a federal position.
32. With which of the following subjects is the passage mainly concerned?(A) The accomplishments of a female publisher(B) The weakness of the newspaper industry(C) The rights of a female publisher(D) The publishing system in colonial America
33. Mary Goddard's name appears on the Declaration of Independence because(A) she helped write the original document (B) she published the document(C) she paid to have the document printed (D) her brother was in prison
34. The word "heralded" in line 5 is closest in meaning to(A) influenced (B) announced (C) rejected (D) ignored
35. According to the passage, Mary Goddard first became involved in publishing when she(A) was appointed by Benjamin Franklin (B) signed the Declaration of Independence.(C) took over her brother's printing shop (D) moved to Baltimore
36. The word "there" in line 17 refers to(A) the colonies (B) the print shop (C) Baltimore (D) Providence
37. It can be inferred from the passage that Mary Goddard was(A) an accomplished businesswoman (B) extremely wealthy(C) a member of the Continental Congress (D) a famous writer
38. The word "position" in line 24 is closest in meaning to(A) job (B) election (C) document (D) location
Reading Comprehension Problem Set
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