Entry Exam Category: College Admission Exams
Course: Texas Success Initiative Assessment 2.0
Exam: TSIA2 Reading and Writing Practice Test 2
Practice Question
Extract
Read the passage below and then choose the best answer to each question. Answer the questions on the basis of what is stated or impl the passage.
Passage
The first Tacoma Narrows Bridge, in Tacoma, Washington, opened to traffic on July 1, 1940. The bridge, which was intended to withstand high winds, collapsed four months later on November 7, 1940, due to a physical phenomenon known as aeroelastic flutter. Flutter is a self-feeding vibration that occurs when aerodynamic forces on an object couple with a structure's natural mode of vibration, producing rapid periodic motion. Thanks to the Tacoma collapse, engineers will never again overlook the problem of flutter: it has influenced the design of every great long-span bridge built since 1940.
Passage
The first Tacoma Narrows Bridge, in Tacoma, Washington, opened to traffic on July 1, 1940. The bridge, which was intended to withstand high winds, collapsed four months later on November 7, 1940, due to a physical phenomenon known as aeroelastic flutter. Flutter is a self-feeding vibration that occurs when aerodynamic forces on an object couple with a structure's natural mode of vibration, producing rapid periodic motion. Thanks to the Tacoma collapse, engineers will never again overlook the problem of flutter: it has influenced the design of every great long-span bridge built since 1940.
The passage implies that the true cause of the bridge collapse was
Answer Choices
- A: low-quality materials
- B: short-sighted design
- C: substandard craftsmanship
- D: unexpectedly high winds
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The passage states the collapse was due to aeroelastic flutter, a phenomenon engineers overlooked in the design, implying the design was flawed/short-sighted.