Mount Rushmore Mount Rushmore is a monument to the ideals of the United States. The faces of four presidents who contributed to the formation of the nation are carved on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. These four presidents are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. Each had a vision of what the United States of America should be and shaped the development of the country. Doane Robinson, the superintendent of the South Dakota State Historical Society, first envisaged the idea of a monument consisting of colossal stone carvings situated in South Dakota in 1923. He proposed the carving of giant statues of historical figures of the Old West, such as General George Custer and Kit Carson into a mountainside. Robinson lobbied for support of the idea, as he believed it would promote tourism in the area. Although many thought the idea was ludicrous, Robinson managed to enlist the support of U.S. Senator Peter Norbeck. Norbeck suggested that Robinson find a sculptor skilled enough to undertake the project, so Robinson contacted Gutzon Borglum, an American artist, who accepted the commission. Borglum was not interested in creating a sculpture using regional historical figures as subjects because he thought that such a sculpture would not be of great interest or historical importance. So Borglum, together with Norbeck and Robinson, decided upon a sculpture of great presidents who had contributed to the birth and development of the United States and to the achievement of its aspirations. Borglum selected Mount Rushmore in the Harney National Forest for his carving because it faced southeast and would be in direct sunlight for the better part of the day. The site was also ideal because the granite that made up the mountain was suitable for the work. Although Robinson, Norbeck, and Borglum managed to obtain permission for the project from the federal legislature, the project stalled due to opposition and lack of funding. Finally, in 1927, President Calvin Coolidge took an extended holiday in the area and was convinced that the project should proceed. As an indication of his commitment, he provided federal funding for the project. Coolidge insisted that the four presidents selected should include two Republicans and a Democrat, along with George Washington. Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt were chosen as they best represented the first 150 years of the United States of America, and were admired by the trio that had conceived and brought the project to fruition. Each president immortalized on Mount Rushmore made a significant contribution to the country. George Washington was the country’s first president, serving from 1789 to 1797. Washington was instrumental in the nation’s attainment of its independence from England and was responsible for the democracy now existing in the United States. Thomas Jefferson served as president from 1801 to 1809. He was responsible for the drafting of the Declaration of Independence and the Louisiana Purchase, which expanded the country westward. Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860 but assassinated while still in office in 1865. Lincoln guided the country through the Civil War and was often referred to as "The Great Emancipator" for his part in the abolition of slavery. Theodore Roosevelt served as president from 1901 to 1909. He was responsible for the construction of the Panama Canal. However, Roosevelt’s inclusion was controversial because he had only been out of office for less than twenty-five years when the project started, so his contribution to the United States had not yet been judged by history. But despite the controversy, the project continued. In 1934, the team of artists and sculptors completed the face of George Washington, followed by Thomas Jefferson in 1936, Abraham Lincoln in 1937, and Theodore Roosevelt in 1939. It took 14 years to complete the sculpture on Mount Rushmore but only about six and half years were actually spent on carving. ■(A) Much of the work was accomplished with the use of dynamite and the rest with air hammers. ■(B) There were no fatalities and very few injuries among the workers during the construction of the sculpture. Unfortunately, Borglum died before the work was done. ■(C) His son Lincoln, named after President Lincoln, took over and finished the carvings on Mount Rushmore. ■(D) On 31 October 1941, the project was completed. Why was the inclusion of Theodore Roosevelt’s face on Mount Rushmore so controversial
A. His contributions to the development of the country were not important.
B. The significance of his contributions to U.S. history had not yet been decided.
C. There were other presidents who had been more influential in politics.
D. Roosevelt had not been popular with American citizens during his presidency.
What is the main purpose of the conversation
A. To outline the duties the professor requires of his teaching assistant.
B. To discuss how to best organize a teaching assistantship position.
C. To debate the best way to supplement regular instructional time.
D. To illustrate the importance of tutorials to student comprehension.
Urbanization and City Infrastructure Urbanization is defined as the increase in a city’s population over time and can occur due to a variety of factors including the natural expansion of a city’s population, the conversion of a rural area to an urban one, or the migration to urban areas by those who previously inhabited rural environments. ■(A) Urbanization is an ever-increasing trend; one that can be observed in areas throughout the world as economies begin to rely more on manufacturing and business for revenue. ■(B) Working and living in large cities is gradually replacing the traditional rural careers such as small-scale agriculture. ■(C) It is estimated that within the next century, more than half of the world’s citizens will reside in cities. ■(D) While some cities are planned, most cities are organic, meaning that urbanization in these areas takes place with little or no advanced planning. While the increase in urban areas and its population has yielded positive effects such as an increased concentration of businesses and more career opportunities, researchers have also discovered a host of detrimental effects on the areas in transformation from rural areas to urban centers. The concerns about urbanized areas worldwide differ somewhat in their relative importance, but many cite traffic congestion, inadequate public transportation, insufficient waste disposal facilities, inadequate solid waste collection, and a lack of water and sewage treatment facilities as primary concerns. One hundred years ago in Australia, the commute from Paramatta to the center of Sydney took approximately an hour by horse and cart. Today, the same trip in a car takes longer. Opponents of unplanned urbanization have also pointed out the destruction of agricultural land and animal habitat as a negative consequence of urbanization. Many of these problems could be eliminated, or at least mitigated, through the construction and maintenance of appropriate city infrastructure. Although the term is somewhat ambiguous, it was traditionally understood to mean roads and sewers. However, the U.S. National Research Council opted to widen the definition of public works infrastructure to refer to roads, bridges, mass transit systems, and water and waste management systems. Chief among the concerns of city dwellers is the issue of traffic jams and general congestion, and the corresponding difficulty in navigating the streets of any large urban area. Appropriate infrastructure, however, could serve as a useful tool in curtailing this problem. Two factors that exacerbate traffic congestion in a typical city are narrow streets and a lack of off-road parking, which would force many workers to park on the side of the road. Several solutions to the excessive traffic in urban areas have been proposed. Firstly, the construction of bypasses would eliminate the amount of traffic in the downtown areas, as travelers could use faster, more direct routes to arrive at their destination. Parking concerns could be addressed by constructing parking garages consisting of several stories. In this way, many cars could be stored in a relatively small amount of space. Closely related to the previous problem is the issue of inadequate public transportation. People will choose to ride buses; however, the system must be efficient and reliable. The establishment of a variety of mass transit systems such as subways, buses, and ferries could provide a feasible alternative to those that use their own vehicles to travel to their jobs in the city. Many cities have concerns about the problems involving waste collection and disposal. Along with education about waste diversion techniques such as composting and recycling, the development of city infrastructure can play a key role in ensuring adequate waste treatment. This would include the construction of easily accessible recycling facilities and appropriately placed composting facilities. In addition, urban areas should ensure there is a citywide transit system in place to collect solid waste. Finally, citizens in many urban areas have concerns regarding sewage treatment plants and water treatment facilities. The development of such facilities in an acceptable area, typically in a location outside of the city, could effectively deal with these concerns. Not only would this infrastructure improve the health of the citizens, but it would also benefit the environment by reducing the amount of pollution in the form of sewage entering water sources. Directions: An introductory sentence to a brief summary of the passage is given below. Complete the summary by adding the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some answer choices do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not given in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points. Urbanization is the increase in a city’s population. ·__________________________________________ ·__________________________________________ ·__________________________________________ Answer Choices 1. Urbanization could be caused by a variety of reasons, including a naturally increasing number of people residing in a city, a rural area turning into an urban one, and rural people’s movement to urban areas. 2. There are many positive effects of increased urbanization, including better access to a variety of goods and services and more jobs. 3. A lack of urban planning has led to a variety of city-specific problems such as traffic congestion and issues surrounding waste management. 4. The United States National Research Council widened its definition of city infrastructure to include not only roads and sewers but also mass transit systems, bridges, and waste management systems. 5. Intelligent planning and implementation of urban infrastructure could greatly reduce many of the problems associated with urbanization. 6. Adequate sewage treatment would be beneficial to both city dwellers and the environment by reducing the amount of pollution entering water sources.
Mount Rushmore Mount Rushmore is a monument to the ideals of the United States. The faces of four presidents who contributed to the formation of the nation are carved on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. These four presidents are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. Each had a vision of what the United States of America should be and shaped the development of the country. Doane Robinson, the superintendent of the South Dakota State Historical Society, first envisaged the idea of a monument consisting of colossal stone carvings situated in South Dakota in 1923. He proposed the carving of giant statues of historical figures of the Old West, such as General George Custer and Kit Carson into a mountainside. Robinson lobbied for support of the idea, as he believed it would promote tourism in the area. Although many thought the idea was ludicrous, Robinson managed to enlist the support of U.S. Senator Peter Norbeck. Norbeck suggested that Robinson find a sculptor skilled enough to undertake the project, so Robinson contacted Gutzon Borglum, an American artist, who accepted the commission. Borglum was not interested in creating a sculpture using regional historical figures as subjects because he thought that such a sculpture would not be of great interest or historical importance. So Borglum, together with Norbeck and Robinson, decided upon a sculpture of great presidents who had contributed to the birth and development of the United States and to the achievement of its aspirations. Borglum selected Mount Rushmore in the Harney National Forest for his carving because it faced southeast and would be in direct sunlight for the better part of the day. The site was also ideal because the granite that made up the mountain was suitable for the work. Although Robinson, Norbeck, and Borglum managed to obtain permission for the project from the federal legislature, the project stalled due to opposition and lack of funding. Finally, in 1927, President Calvin Coolidge took an extended holiday in the area and was convinced that the project should proceed. As an indication of his commitment, he provided federal funding for the project. Coolidge insisted that the four presidents selected should include two Republicans and a Democrat, along with George Washington. Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt were chosen as they best represented the first 150 years of the United States of America, and were admired by the trio that had conceived and brought the project to fruition. Each president immortalized on Mount Rushmore made a significant contribution to the country. George Washington was the country’s first president, serving from 1789 to 1797. Washington was instrumental in the nation’s attainment of its independence from England and was responsible for the democracy now existing in the United States. Thomas Jefferson served as president from 1801 to 1809. He was responsible for the drafting of the Declaration of Independence and the Louisiana Purchase, which expanded the country westward. Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860 but assassinated while still in office in 1865. Lincoln guided the country through the Civil War and was often referred to as "The Great Emancipator" for his part in the abolition of slavery. Theodore Roosevelt served as president from 1901 to 1909. He was responsible for the construction of the Panama Canal. However, Roosevelt’s inclusion was controversial because he had only been out of office for less than twenty-five years when the project started, so his contribution to the United States had not yet been judged by history. But despite the controversy, the project continued. In 1934, the team of artists and sculptors completed the face of George Washington, followed by Thomas Jefferson in 1936, Abraham Lincoln in 1937, and Theodore Roosevelt in 1939. It took 14 years to complete the sculpture on Mount Rushmore but only about six and half years were actually spent on carving. ■(A) Much of the work was accomplished with the use of dynamite and the rest with air hammers. ■(B) There were no fatalities and very few injuries among the workers during the construction of the sculpture. Unfortunately, Borglum died before the work was done. ■(C) His son Lincoln, named after President Lincoln, took over and finished the carvings on Mount Rushmore. ■(D) On 31 October 1941, the project was completed. The word "be" in the passage refers to
A. Norbeck.
Borglum.
Coolidge.
D. Robinson.