I hope you got some time to think about this GED question:

Which direction do you need to travel around the world to arrive on what seems to you is Tuesday, when everyone where you land thinks it’s Monday?

1. North

2. South

3. East

4. West

This is a GED question that makes you think about what you already know. And, you’ve got to visualize what’s going on. That means, like, picture it in your head. You’d be surprised how much, on GED questions, it helps to picture the problem in your head.

The good news is you can use another easy GED strategy, too… eliminating wrong answers. Answers 1 and 2 are north and south… going north and south doesn’t change the time zone you’re in, and you won’t go over the International Date Line. I mean, the sun is what causes the time change, since the sun’s in a different place in the sky, depending on where you are on Earth. But the sun doesn’t go north and south… so you can get rid of answers 1 and 2. You’ll be able to eliminate a lot of wrong choices on the GED.

So, the two choices are east or west. On the GED, that’s a fifty-fifty chance if you have to guess. But let’s figure it out. Which one will make you GAIN a day? Arrive on Tuesday, when everyone thinks it’s Monday? The sun goes from east to west… picture it in your head going across the Earth.

Now, think about traveling west. This is easy if you’re like me, and traveled a lot. If you start in California and go east to New York, are you going to gain time or lose time? You’re traveling in the opposite direction from the sun, so the sun gets closer and closer to you, or farther and farther behind you, as you travel. Like two trains going in opposite directions. You get closer to the sun faster than if you were standing still. So you lose time, like time is sped up. It SEEMS like the sun is moving faster, cuz you’re going toward it. Get it?

Or maybe it will help to think like this. It’s three hours ahead in New York, according to time zones. I don’t know how long it takes to travel to New York, but say it takes 8 hours in a plane. So, you have to set your watch ahead 3 hours… so your watch will say 11 hours. You’re LOSING time. It’s later than you thought, not earlier.

So the opposite is true going the other way. Think trains again. You and the sun are both moving… east to west… so it SEEMS like the sun is going slower, cuz you’re going westward with it.

Or same thing with the time change. If you go from New York to California, you set your watch BACK 3 hours. So if it takes 8 hours to travel, your watch will say it took 5 hours. So to everyone in California, it’s 3 hours EARLIER than it seems to you. Since Monday is earlier than Tuesday,we’ll looking for the answer where it seems earlier when you arrive than if you hadn’t changed your watch. So, traveling west is the answer…answer 4. Did that confuse you? It’s just about thinking it through, like a lot of stuff on the GED. Try going over it in your mind until you can get it straight. That helps me when I study for my GED. Let me know what you think…

To find out more about the GED test and GED test preparation, visit The GED Academy at passGED.com.

So, here’s the story, “Chiggers and Other Challenges” by Joan Heberger. I thought it was real interesting. I know clean water is a problem all around the world… but you can’t help people if they can’t help themselves! Engineers can come up with great solutions to all sorts of problems, but if people don’t get educated and figure out how to work together… I was surprised the people in the town didn’t want to learn about how to get water. I mean, I guess learning math is pretty hard, cuz it’s hard to see how useful it is… but learning how to get clean water for your town seems pretty important. It’s hard to put myself in the people’s place, and I guess putting yourself in people’s place is part of what social studies is all about. What do you think? Could you put yourself in their place?

Anyway, I promised a practice question… here goes…

Almost a year ago, I visited the community for the first time to examine the town’s potential water source. I explained to the residents that I could help them by providing a topographical study of the land and a design, proposal, and budget for a water system. Over the next few months, I began this process, which involved walking about 10 hours a day in mountainous terrain, looking for a semi-level route back to the houses. Sometimes I was terrified with the responsibility of designing this water system, as I am not an engineer. A nearby Peace Corps engineer helped me in the beginning of the process, but because of the timing and his other commitments, I ended up doing the survey without his presence, which was another mistake. I was mentally and physically exhausted, and I kept getting chiggers! For those of you unfamiliar with warm, moist woodsy environments, chiggers are minuscule red mites that dig into your skin and give you itchy red bumps.

Here’s a geography GED question… Why was the writer looking for a semi-level route back to the houses?

A) She was looking for an easy route to walk through the mountains.

B) Water can only flow over level ground.

C) It’s easier to do a topographical study of level ground.

D) She was looking for a route to pump water through the mountains.

E) Chiggers don’t live in level ground.

So, what do you think?

Clara Barton settled in Danville, N.Y., where for several years she was a semi-invalid. In 1877 she wrote a founder of the International Red Cross, offering to lead an American branch of the organization. Thus, at 56 she began a new career.

In 1881 Barton incorporated the American Red Cross, with herself as president. A year later her extraordinary efforts brought about United States ratification of the Geneva Convention. She herself attended conferences of the International Red Cross as the American representative. She was, however, far from bureaucratic in interests. Although wholly individualistic and unlike reformers who worked on programs for social change, she did a great social service as activist and propagandist.

Question: According to the information, Clara Barton was most interested in:

1. founding organizations.
2. having an important position.
3. attending conferences.
4. ratifying conventions.
5. social activism.

What did you answer? If you look at answer 1, founding organizations, it sounds like it kinda might be right. She did found the American Red Cross. But I don’t think she was interested in founding organizations just to make more organizations, you know? It says she was “far from bureaucratic in interests.” In other words, she wasn’t all about the paperwork and making organizations!

Answer 2 says “having an important position.” She was president of the American Red Cross. That’s pretty important. But was she really interested in being an important person? It sounds to me like she was more interested in helping other people.

Answer 3 says “attending conferences.” There’s another thing that the she did. But I don’t think her real goal was just to attend conferences! That can’t be the most important thing to her.

Answer 4 says “ratifying conventions.” She helped ratify the Geneva Convention, it says. There’s a word I had to struggle with–it basically means to sign and approve. See how all these answers are things in the reading that she did? So you might think they’re the right answer. But really the question is asking you what was important to her… why she did all those things.

I go with answer 5. “Social activism.” That means, being active to make changes in society. All the things Clara Barton did, she did to help people. So, which answer says it was important to her to help people? The closest one is “social activism,” helping people by making social change. Did you get that? Part of it is interpreting the words, and figuring out which one shows the main idea.

How did you do? Let me know if you have any questions.

Here’s the GED social studies for the day… and I mean “day.” A “day” is the time the sun takes to travel around the world (or look like it is, cuz it’s really the Earth going around the sun)… so each part of the world is at a different time of the day. The sun is rising on one side of the world and setting on the other, all the time. At any moment, it’s some time of day at some place in the world. Someplace, it’s 3:00 a.m. right now, and across from that, it’s 3:00 p.m., so it’s like the time travels around the world. Weird, right?

If you go all around the world, you can gain a whole day or lose a whole day, depending on which way you’re going. That’s what used to be called the “circumnavigator’s paradox.” There’s a three-dollar word… circumnavigator. “Circum” is like “circumference” in geometry… around the outside of a circle. And “navigator” is like navigating the direction you’re going, so a “circumnavigator” is someone who goes around the globe… and loses or gains a day. It’s because you’re moving across the world faster than a day goes by. Do you see what I mean? Think about it… like traveling from one time zone to another, you could lose or gain an hour. Traveling through the whole world… you could lose or gain a day. This happens whether people have time zones in place or not!

So, here’s your GED question:

Which direction do you need to travel around the world to arrive on what seems to you is Tuesday, when everyone where you land thinks it’s Monday?

1. North

2. South

3. East

4. West

Okay… a lot of GED test questions don’t need any outside knowledge, but this one does. What do you already know? Why do you lose or gain time traveling around the world? Make a connection between the GED and your real life to answer this one…

To find out more about the GED test and GED test preparation, visit The GED Academy at passGED.com.

And maybe there’ll be stuff about Spain three hundred years ago or something, but the most important thing is figuring out how to think about what you’re reading. That’s why I say, read about anything that interests you! Because you’re learning to read about stuff, learning to learn new information. That’s the most important thing for the GED social science test.

It’s like how I was interested to read about Clara Barton. As I said, you can read about her at: http://www.civilwar.com/content/view/257/53/
Here’s part of what it says about her:

Clara Barton settled in Danville, N.Y., where for several years she was a semi-invalid. In 1877 she wrote a founder of the International Red Cross, offering to lead an American branch of the organization. Thus, at 56 she began a new career.
In 1881 Barton incorporated the American Red Cross, with herself as president. A year later her extraordinary efforts brought about United States ratification of the Geneva Convention. She herself attended conferences of the International Red Cross as the American representative. She was, however, far from bureaucratic in interests. Although wholly individualistic and unlike reformers who worked on programs for social change, she did a great social service as activist and propagandist.

The social studies test might have a reading like that, and probably it’s something you’ve never read about before! Then, there’s a question, and you can probably answer it just by reading the passage carefully. Try it!

Question: According to the information, Clara Barton was most interested in:

1. founding organizations.
2. having an important position.
3. attending conferences.
4. ratifying conventions.
5. social activism.

What do you think?

According to the theory of supply and demand (see my last post), the businesses:

1) Will want to sell less of the special sale promotions.

2) Will want to sell more of the special sale promotions.

3) Will want to sell a normal amount of the special sale promotions.

4) Are not allowed to reduce the prices below a certain point.

5) None of the above.

So, what did you answer? Here’s the fact… supply and demand says that businesses will want to sell LESS of the special sales promotions, because at a lower price, businesses don’t want to sell as many items. That’s answer 1. They want to sell MORE of the more expensive items, or at least things with more profit. So, what are the businesses doing?

Well, you notice they have a limited amount of those cheap items, right? And a limit on how many you can buy, too. That’s cuz they don’t want to sell a whole truckload of those! They want to get a bunch of people coming into their stores looking for the sale items. (Because according to supply and demand, more people will want to buy the cheaper items, right?) Then, the stores want to sell other items to the people who come in… get you to do as much of your Christmas shopping there as possible. Can you see how it works? That’s economics in action!

In the above image, what information about the product is most important to the advertisement?

1. It catches a lot of dirt.

2. It cleans quickly.

3. It has bristles made out of nanotubes.

4. It’s red.

5. It’s inexpensive.

Ok, so looking at this ad, right away, the biggest thing I can see is the name, “Speedy Broom.” Also, look at the broom, it’s got speed lines rushing by after it. And finally, the very first bullet point says that it cleans floors in half the time. So before I even read the answers, I’m thinkin’ “this is a fast broom.” Then when I look and see, “it cleans quickly,” I can guess that I’ve already found my answer. But it’s always good to look at the rest.

Number one and number three are both mentioned in the ad: “Nanotube bristles catch more dirt than a conventional broom!” So, we know they’re true, but I think that all that stuff about the nano-bristles catching more dirt and not sticking to hair and dust just supports how fast the broom is. To tell you the truth, I don’t even know what a nanotube bristle is, but that doesn’t matter. It’s obvious that it’s not the main purpose. Otherwise it would be called “Nano-Bristle Broom” or have lots of dirt being swept up in the image, right?

Number four is true ’cause it is red, but that’s not really important in this ad. If it was a blue broom, the ad would still be saying the same thing.

I don’t think number five is right at all. $30 for a broom doesn’t seem very cheap. Maybe for a wild nano-broom with nano-bristles it’s inexpensive, but even so, the price is at the bottom. It is red, which makes it maybe a little important, but I just think that the speed of the broom is the obvious choice here. What do you think?

Keep studying everyone, and have a great holiday season!

For more information about the GED test and GED test preparation, visit the GED Academy at http://www.passGED.com

Later I read about how the Grand Canyon is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. I’ve never seen most of the others, except the Northern Lights, which I once saw on a long haul up to Whitehorse in the Yukon. It was real pretty. Kinda like bright white, greenish clouds, only at night. And they’d kinda shifted and moved around real fast, like there was a giant fan up in space blowing them around. I can definitely see why the Grand Canyon and the Northern Lights are part of the Seven Natural Wonders. I think I’d like to see all the rest someday, even they are all across the globe, like Mount Everest way over there in Asia.

I started looking up some of the other wonders of the world, and found out that there’s a lot of different lists! One of the most popular is the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. That’s got the Pyramids in it, along with a lot of other neat things. Here’s a practice question about one of them that I thought was pretty hard.

The Lighthouse of Alexandria served as a well known landmark on the island of Pharos for a little over a thousand years. It was roughly 383 – 440 feet tall. Mirrors were used in the daytime to reflect the sunlight, and fires were lit at night to direct sailors to the port of Alexandria. Eventually, earthquakes damaged the lighthouse beyond repair, and it was eventually replaced by a fort. However, even today the lighthouse is considered one of the greatest wonders of the ancient world.

Why is the Lighthouse of Alexandria identified as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World?

1. It was one of the tallest buildings of its time.

2. It utilized revolutionary technology.

3. It was a dependable beacon.

4. It attracted many tourists.

5. It was the only building in its time built on an island.

The question includes a picture, so I can see how the lighthouse worked from this. It’s tall, and right on the water with an open area at the top where the light shines out. The question says that the Lighthouse of Alexandria existed as a landmark to show everyone where the port of Alexandria was. So, immediately I can tell that two of the answers are probably correct about the lighthouse itself: it was a dependable beacon, and probably very tall. But I should look at each answer and see if it works with the question.

Number one says it was one of the tallest buildings of its time. Well, it doesn’t say this exactly in the text, but it does make a point of saying how tall it is. So there’s a link to the text, at least. And think about this: The lighthouse IS one of the seven wonders, so you know it has to stand out somehow, and this lighthouse was around 400 feet tall! For an ancient building, that’s pretty darn tall.

Number two says that it had some pretty great technology. This could be it! I mean, I don’t really know when mirrors were invented, and maybe using fire as a beacon was new? It’s hard to tell which makes more sense, that the lighthouse was really tall, or that it used new technology. But if I start thinking about other things that get attention for being a “wonder” like the Grand Canyon, or the pyramids, or the Great Wall of China, these are all things that are really big. So, I can use this pattern to assume that the lighthouse was named a “wonder” for the same reason: because it was big.

As for it being a dependable beacon, I bet it probably was! But would that make it a wonder? There were thousands of things that were probably dependable back then. Every lighthouse had to be dependable, or it wouldn’t be a very good lighthouse. That just doesn’t seem like a good reason to make something one of only seven wonders in all the world. And the same goes for number 5. There’s thousands of islands in the world too, with plenty of buildings on them, so it’s unlikely that either of these a reasons to make it a wonder. Also, the text doesn’t really make a big deal about the island, or about how it was a beacon. It mostly talks in detail about exactly how tall it was, and how it used fire and mirrors to attract attention.

Four seems sort of correct, because it probably did attract a lot of tourists, but it did so BECAUSE it was amazing. The tourists didn’t MAKE it one of the Seven Wonders. Also, the text doesn’t say anything at all about tourists, so this probably isn’t right. I think I’d have to go with #1. You’ve got to use the information you know about other things in the world that stand out. They’re usually almost exactly the same as other things just like them, like the Great Wall of China is just a wall when you come down to it. And The Grand Canyon is just a hole. It’s the size of them that makes them amazing, so I can guess that the same was true for the Lighthouse of Alexandria. But I’m kinda sad that it fell down. In fact, just about all the Seven Ancient Wonders fell or burned down eventually, except for the pyramids, so I’ll never get to see them. I guess I’d better get moving on visiting all the natural wonders before they fall down or fill up or get condos built on top of them!

For more information about the GED test and GED test preparation, visit the GED Academy at http://www.passGED.com.

Here’s a good GED social studies article… it talks about how according to one stud, 60% of bankruptcies are because of medical bills, even though a lot of the people have medical insurance: Medical bills prompt more than 60% of U.S. bankruptcies (CNN) … now, how bout a GED practice question about it?

The study may overestimate the number of bankruptcies caused by medical bills yet underestimate the financial burden of health care on American families, because most people struggle along but don’t end up declaring bankruptcy, according to Cunningham.

“Bankruptcy is the most extreme or final step for people who are having problems paying medical bills,” he says. “Medical bills and medical costs are an issue that can very easily and in pretty short order overwhelm a lot families who are on otherwise solid financial ground, including those with private insurance.”

Which of the following is the best conclusion based on Cunningham’s viewpoint?

1) Health care financial problems can be solved by more families having private insurance.

2) No bankruptcies are truly caused by medical expenses.

3) Families that incur high medical expenses usually have unstable finances.

4) No study could accurately estimate the contribution of health care expenses to bankruptcy.

5) Private insurance alone is not a complete solution to the financial burden of health care costs.

So, have you thought about the question? What do you think is the right answer? Read more to find out how I approached it…

This question asks you to make a conclusion… that’s something that you can logically say is true, based on the facts or information you’re given. In this case, you’ve got to make a conclusion based on someone’s opinion. So, whether you believe him or not, you’ve got to say which idea is best supported by what he says. Which one would he believe?

The first one says that private insurance solves health care financial problems. Well, if you look at what the quote says, this Cunningham says medical expenses can overwhelm people EVEN IF they have private insurance. Well, that means private insurance isn’t really the solution, at least as far as what Cunningham thinks. Remember, this is about Cunningham’s point of view, based on what he says.

The second one says no bankruptcies are caused by medical expenses. That’s not right. Cunningham says the study may overestimate the number of bankruptcies caused by medical expenses, and that means he probably thinks that there are some, even if there aren’t as many as the study says.

The third answer says families with high medical expenses usually have unstable finances. But Cunningham says medical expenses can overwhelm families “who are on otherwise solid financial ground.” That means they don’t have unstable finances. This isn’t the right conclusion at all.

The fourth answer says no study could accurately estimate the number of bankruptcies caused by medical expenses. Well, Cunningham seems to think that this study doesn’t accurately estimate them, but that’s not the same thing. He doesn’t say anything about no study being able to be accurate.

The last answer looks like the right one to me. “Private insurance alone is not a complete solution to the financial burden of health care costs.” This is sort of the opposite of the first answer. For the same reason the first answer is wrong, this one is right. Cunningham says that even people with insurance can be overwhelmed by medical expenses, and a logical conclusion from that is that private insurance isn’t the whole answer. Do you see how a conclusion follows from other information?

Good GED studyin’, and keep readin’ the news!

For more information about the GED test and GED test preparation, visit the GED Academy at http://www.passGED.com.

So, what do you think about that? Whole grains like Cheerios can be good for your cholesterol… so is it wrong for Cheerios to say that it lowers your cholesterol? Does it work? And how does anyone know it works? Is Cheerios really claiming to be a drug? I don’t know the answer for sure… I guess I’ve got to give some thought to this! Meanwhile, here’s a practice question about the article…

The article says:

The FDA said ads promoting Cheerios as a drug that can “lower your cholesterol 4 percent in six weeks” violates the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

The federal agency claims the language on the Cheerios box suggests the cereal is designed to prevent or treat heart disease. Regulators say that only FDA-approved drugs are allowed to make such claims.

So, the question is, based on this passage, which of the following advertisements would be illegal, according to the FDA?

1) An ad that says a lipstick can make your lips plumper for 2-3 hours.

2) An public service ad that says regular exercise can build heart health over several months.

3) An ad that says a soy-sunflower seed health bar lowers blood pressure in 3 weeks.

4) An ad that says a dark chocolate candy snack can be part of a heart-healthy diet.

5) An ad that says that milk provides vitamin D and calcium, important nutrients for heart health.

So, which did you choose? This is an application question. You need to take the problem the FDA identifies with the Cheerio advertisement, and apply the same principle or idea to other ads. So, what’s the Cheerios ad really doing wrong, according to the FDA? It’s promising a specific medical result. It doesn’t just say Cheerios has whole-grain oats, it says Cheerios lowers cholesterol in 6 weeks. The answer that’s closest says that the health bar lowers blood pressure in 3 weeks. That’s claiming it does something medicinal. I’d say, it’s answer 3.

Good luck with your GED studying!