ASVAB ASVAB Certifications ASVAB-SECTION-8 Questions & Answers

• Question 71:

  Common sense says that the shade of a tree will help retain snow, and snow exposed to sunlight in open areas will melt. This typically is the case in regions where winter temperatures are below freezing, such as the Northeast, Midwest and most of central and eastern Canada. But in Mediterranean climates – where the average winter temperatures usually are above 30 degrees Fahrenheit – a different phenomenon occurs. Snow tends to melt under the tree canopy and stay more intact in open meadows or gaps in a forest. This happens in part because trees in warmer, maritime forests radiate heat in the form of long-wave radiation to a greater degree than the sky does. Heat radiating from the trees contributes to snow melting under the canopy first.

  Which of these statements is true, given the information in the above passage?

  A. There is always snow under trees in Canada.

  B. Average winter temperatures in the Northeast, Midwest, and most of central and eastern Canada are generally below 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

  C. Average winter temperatures in the Northeast, Midwest, and most of central and eastern Canada are generally above 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

  D. It does not snow in Mediterranean climates.

  Correct Answer: B

• Question 72:

  Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes saga has enjoyed – or in some cases suffered – countless reinventions since its original publication from 1887 to 1927. The BBC's current television version starring Benedict Cumberbatch is perhaps one of the most successful, not least as its scriptwriters combine a deep knowledge of the original with a flair for departing wittily from it: the show's strategy of allusion, transformation, and up-to-dateness gives it both freshness and familiarity. The new series begins with "The Empty Hearse", its title alluding playfully to Conan Doyle's 1903 story "The Empty House" in which Holmes returns from apparent death at the hands of Professor Moriarty in Switzerland.

  The word flair, as used in the above passage, most nearly means __________.

  A. dash

  B. aptitude

  C. style

  D. poise

  Correct Answer: B

• Question 73:

  Although they last no longer than a fraction of a second, voltage variations can cause problems with sensitive electronic equipment. Variation in voltage causes digital clocks to blink and timers to be thrown off schedule.

  Computers are especially __________.

  A. useful when you transfer data to memory

  B. easy to protect from variations in voltage

  C. useful in publishing D. sensitive to voltage variations

  Correct Answer: D

  Explanation:

  The paragraph talks about the effect of voltage variations on sensitive equipment.

  It is logical to conclude that computers, which are also sensitive equipment, would be affected by voltage

  variation.

• Question 74:

  In 1973, when the OPEC nations embargoed oil exports to the United States, their action signaled an unprecedented rise in oil prices. In feet, crude oil prices quadrupled, sending oil-dependent countries into a recession.

  One of the results of the oil embargo was that __________.

  A. the United States embargoed oil exports of OPEC nations

  B. the price of crude oil declined

  C. the price of crude oil doubled

  D. oil-dependent countries experienced a recession

  Correct Answer: D

  Explanation:

  The embargo caused the price of crude oil to quadruple.

  This increase, in turn, caused oil-dependent countries to experience a recession.

  Answers "the United States embargoed oil exports of OPEC nations", "the price of crude oil declined" and

  "the price of crude oil doubled" are all incorrect details.

• Question 75:

  The most disadvantaged type in both countries was the single-parent, female-headed household, of which 38% in Canada and 61% in the United States were in need. Moreover, 44% of single females living alone in Canada and 51% in the United States were in housing need. By contrast, male single parents experienced about half the housing need of their female equivalents.

  You can conclude from the paragraph that needy male single parents in housing need in the United States numbered approximately __________.

  A. 61%

  B. 30%

  C. 44%

  D. 22%

  Correct Answer: B

  Explanation:

  The paragraph states that 61% of single female parents were in housing need and that single male

  parents experienced half that housing need. Half of 61% is approximately 30%.

• Question 76:

  Railroads originating on both coasts of the United States were joined on May 10, 1869, when a golden spike was driven to join the last rail at Promontory Point, Utah. Great numbers of immigrants moved west to take up free homestead land or purchase tracts at low prices.

  According to the passage, the settling of the American West __________.

  A. made immigrants very wealthy from land ownership

  B. followed the completion of the railroad

  C. made it impossible for anyone to purchase land

  D. was finished before the summer of 1869

  Correct Answer: B

  Explanation:

  According to the passage, the settling of the American West took place after both coasts were joined by

  completion of the railroad.

• Question 77:

  To get full value for your energy dollars, first arrange for an energy audit of your home. An audit will reveal such things as energy-sapping drafts, insufficient insulation, improper weather stripping, and a need for storm windows and doors.

  Installing storm windows may be energy-saving but should be preceded by __________.

  A. an energy audit

  B. storm doors

  C. insulation

  D. proper weather stripping

  Correct Answer: A

  Explanation:

  The main idea of the paragraph is that an energy audit should be done as a first step toward saving energy

  dollars.

  The details that follow are some of the items an audit concentrates on.

  The question, however, asks you to identify what precedes, or comes before, the installation of an energy-

  saving device.

• Question 78:

  One implied warranty required by state law is the "warranty of merchantability." This means that the seller promises that the product will do what it is supposed to do.

  For example, __________.

  A. a car will never need repairs

  B. a lawnmower will also cut bushes

  C. a toaster will toast

  D. your roof will last 15 to 100 years

  Correct Answer: C

  Explanation:

  When you apply the "warranty of merchantability," that is, that the product will do what it is supposed to do,

  you see that only one answer mentions a product (a toaster) and what it does (toasts).

• Question 79:

  History tells us that Christopher Columbus once saved his own life because he knew from his almanac that there was going to be an eclipse of the moon. In 1504 Columbus was marooned in Jamaica with no food and unfriendly natives confronting him. The explorer threatened to turn off the light in the sky if the natives refused to give him food. Columbus kept his word; the natives gave him food.

  The main idea of this paragraph is that __________.

  A. natives rarely own almanacs or understand scientific facts

  B. Christopher Columbus was in Jamaica in 1504 on his third voyage from Spain

  C. on his arrival in Jamaica, Christopher Columbus had no food

  D. Columbus saved his own life because he knew when there was going to be an eclipse of the moon

  Correct Answer: D

  Explanation:

  The main idea is stated in the first sentence of the paragraph.

  All of the other sentences contribute to the main idea by describing the circumstances under which

  Columbus was able to save his own life.

• Question 80:

  The Tao-te-ching (The Way and Its Power) is the basic text of Taoism, a Chinese religion and philosophy. The Tao-te-ching is composed of 81 short chapters or poems that describe a way of life marked by quiet effortlessness and freedom from desire. Taoism teaches that this can be achieved by following the creative, spontaneous life force of the universe, called the Tao. The book is attributed to Lao-tzu, but it was probably written in the third century B.C.

  The Tao-te-ching __________.

  A. is the basic text of Chinese poetry

  B. describes a life way marked by quiet freedom

  C. is made up of 81 chapters and a short poem

  D. was probably not written by Lao-tzu, even though it is attributed to him

  Correct Answer: D

  Explanation:

  The passage says that the Tao-te-ching "is attributed to Lao-tzu, but it was probably written in the third

  century b. c."

  The use of the word "but" clearly implies that Lao-tzu (who actually lived three centuries earlier, during the

  sixth century b.c.) did not write the book.