11th Grade ELA – Post-test Assessment 5

1. Question

Part A

How is the word pathogens used in paragraph 4?

A. To specify the bacteria that cause only minor infections.
B. To explain which bacteria are considered friendly gut flora.
C. To indicate any bacteria that can cause disease.
D. To describe which bacteria develop into high-level resistance mutations.

2. Question

Part B

Which phrase from elsewhere in the blog post provides a clue to the answer to Part A?

A. “. . . you can kill off those bugs if you use enough medicine . . . .” (paragraph 5)
B. “. . . find the magic combo of mutations . . .” (paragraph 5)
C. “. . . have never been exposed to drugs . . .” (paragraph 6)
D. “. . . several infections where short courses are effective . . .”
(paragraph 17)

3. Question

Part A

Which statement sums up the main hypothesis in the first section of the blog post (paragraphs 1–7)?

A. More antibiotic intervention is needed in some countries.
B. People should follow the doctor’s orders when taking antibiotics.
C. The standard treatment of malaria in India is no longer effective.
D. Treating illnesses with antibiotics is increasing the spread of resistance.

4. Question

Part B

Which two pieces of evidence from the blog post support the answer to Part A?

A. “To be clear, nobody is saying patients should decide their own dose.” (paragraph 3)
B. “The answer is yes, at least sometimes.” (paragraph 5)
C. “In dosing with an antibiotic, you tip the scales toward the resistant ones, so they can outcompete their antibiotic-sensitive peers.” (paragraph 8)
D. “Read’s team showed, with a mouse model of malaria, that the susceptible strains win out over the resistant strains in the absence of antibiotics; after treatment, though, the resistant ones bounce back faster and in greater numbers.” (paragraph 9)
E. “This isn’t just a problem for the individual with the infection; it affects transmission rates.” (paragraph 10)
F. “Then there’s that huge reservoir of (hopefully) susceptible bacteria that you can’t totally kill off, and don’t want to: your normal flora.” (paragraph 11)

5. Question

Part A

Read these sentences from paragraphs 1 and 2.

Why does the author include these sentences in the blog post?

A. To establish a tone that indicates the seriousness of the issue.
B. To question people’s ability to treat their own infections.
C. To describe a common practice that is being called into question.
D. To introduce a scientist’s research hypothesis.

6. Question

Which two pieces of evidence from the blog post support the answer to Part A?

A. “In India, where Andrew Read studies infectious disease, resistance is so prevalent that standard malaria treatment includes not just the pills, but a boy who comes to your home each day to check that you’ve taken your dose.” (paragraph 2)
B. “But there is a good argument to be made that the public health message about antibiotics, which is consistent worldwide for many diseases and drugs, deserves a second look.” (paragraph 3)
C. “If you’re the patient with the newly-boosted resistance mutation, when the next mosquito bites you, she‘s going to get a mouthful of resistant bugs, rather than the susceptible ones.” (paragraph 10)
D. “Many guidelines still stand, like preventing disease transmission in the first place (think hand washing) and eliminating antibiotic use where it’s not necessary: viral infections, for example, and use in livestock.” (paragraph 15)
E. “Evidence shows that many infections clear with less than a typical course of antibiotics, which is good since the longer the course, the more chances bugs get to develop resistance.” (paragraph 17)
F. “Back to those pills in your hand: the evidence isn’t strong enough, yet, for anyone to feel comfortable telling your pharmacist to trash the sticker.” (paragraph 18)

7. Question

Part A

What is the author’s purpose of including the explanation in paragraph 6?

A. To illustrate some resistance genes may occur naturally.
B. To show that antibiotics are needlessly prescribed for nonbacterial infections.
C. To highlight gut bacteria can fight off infections just as well as antibiotics.
D. To emphasize that people have overcome infections for millions of years without antibiotics.

8. Question

Part B

Which two pieces of evidence from the blog post best support the answer to Part A?

A. “But what if a high-level resistance mutation is already present?” (paragraph 5)
B. “Researchers have found them in bacteria that have never been exposed to drugs, like in this 4-million-year-old cave.” (paragraph 6)
C. “(By the way, we’re not just talking antibiotics for bacteria; the same issues apply to antimicrobials that target fungi, or protists such as malaria, and even insecticides and cancer drugs.)” (paragraph 7)
D. “We talk of ‘fighting disease’ as if it’s the patient vs. the germ, but there is a germ-on-germ battle too: the resistant microbes vs. others.” (paragraph 8)

9. Question

Part A

What set of conclusions does the author discuss in paragraphs 17 and 18?

A. Doctors prefer to treat all infections in the same way to be safe, even though that is not always the best course of action.
B. Doctors need to find new ways to communicate with patients about drug use and infections to ensure that patients follow prescribed treatment plans.
C. Certain infections may require different courses of antibiotic treatment that may be altered over time.
D. Very common infections have triggered resistance bacteria that cannot be treated effectively with any antibiotic regimen.

10. Question

Part B

Which two pieces of evidence from paragraphs 16–19 best support the answer to Part A?

A. “(The immune system seems to be equally effective against antibiotic-resistant and sensitive bugs.)” (paragraph 16)
B. “He concludes that symptoms should guide the length of treatment, except for particular diseases where symptoms don’t reflect the true pathogen load.” (paragraph 17)
C. “. . . Louis B. Rice argues that long courses of antibiotics benefit the physician’s peace of mind more than the patient or public health.” (paragraph 17)
D. “This means that different drugs would have different dosing regimens, subject to change.” (paragraph 18)
E. “If that’s the case, public health officials will need to consider the spread of information as well as the spread of resistance genes.” (paragraph 18)
F. “Do you think we could realistically change the public health message about antibiotics?” (paragraph 19)

11. Question

Part A

Which scenario does the author present as a treatment possibility for a bacterial infection?

A. Combining different strains of antibiotics in a person’s prescription to see which is most effective.
B. Developing a personalized antibiotic regimen using an individual’s gut bacteria.
C. Injecting vulnerable bacterial strains into an infected person.
D. Stopping antibiotics once symptoms are gone even if there are more pills remaining in a prescription.

12. Question

Part B

How does the author counter the suggestion made in the scenario identified in Part A?

A. She explains that new drugs are not an effective treatment.
B. She suggests that not enough research has been done to change the way we use antibiotics.
C. She points out that drug companies will not comply with new regulations.
D. She says that tried and true methods such as hand washing should always be used first.