Forget hostile aliens. According to a forthcoming book by noted astrop

Question

Forget hostile aliens. According to a forthcoming book by noted astrophysicist Egbert Larson, the intrepid humans who first attempt interstellar space travel will face far more daunting challenges before they ever meet the Little Green Men. Larson begins with the problem of relativistic time dilation. If you travel all the way to Alpha Centauri, you’d like to come back and tell your friends about it, right? It’s not too likely to happen, though. If Mr. Einstein was right about relativity—and we’re not going to say he wasn’t—then time slows down when you approach the speed of light. A person traveling at any velocity near the speed of light will age only days for every week, month, or even year that passes on earth. Relativity does not present a problem for interstellar space travel, per se, but it does mean that interstellar civilizations or even just interstellar communications will require a mind-boggling amount of calendar juggling.

Did we mention that you’d have to travel at near the speed of light? That’s because the distance between stars is so vast that even if you could travel at the speed of light— which, Larson reminds us, you can’t—it would take more than four years to reach our closest star neighbors, Alpha Proxima and Alpha Centauri, and decades or centuries to reach the other stars in our “immediate neighborhood.” And if you tried to accelerate directly to the speed of light like they do in the movies, you’d be instantly splattered on the back of your theoretical spacecraft. Achieving anything close to light speed will require sustained acceleration at a level that human bodies can withstand—say, a crushing two gravities—for over a year. Better hope somebody brings some chips.

Speaking of chips, food is going to be a problem. Since it is economically, if not physically, impossible to accelerate 200 years’ worth of food to nearly the speed of light, and since you’re not likely to find any grocery stores along the way, someone will have to figure out how to make food in space. Keeping a crew alive on the way turns out to be the trickiest part of all. Once you’ve got the nearly impossible physics of space travel worked out, you still have to figure out the chemistry and biology of keeping your air and water clean and keeping your crew fed and safe from radiation and infection, and—did we mention the 200 years?—you’ll probably need several generations of crew members to complete the trip. Ever been on a bus for more than 24 hours? It’s not a pretty picture.

We applaud Larson for his insightful writing and his scrupulous attention to scientific detail. For those of you seeking a cold, hard look at the reality of interstellar space travel, this is a stellar read. But be warned: Larson doesn’t let you down gently. For those of you sincerely hoping to beam up with Scotty—and you know who you are—you might want to give this one a pass.   1 
 1. Which of the following would make the most appropriate title for this passage?

A. Going Boldly Where No One Has Gone Before: The Promise and Peril of Interstellar Space Travel
B. The Day the Earth Stood Still: Why Interstellar Space Travel Is Essential to Human Survival
C. The Wrath of Larson: Egbert Larson’s Quest to Build an Interstellar Spacecraft
D. Busted Flat in Beta Regulus: The Crushing Challenges of Interstellar Space Travel
E. Say It Isn’t So, Mr. Einstein: Egbert Larson’s Challenge to the Theory of Relativity

2 
 2. Based on the tone and content of the passage, it is most likely which of the following?

A. A book review in a journal intended for astrophysics professionals
B. A movie review in an entertainment industry publication
C. A book review in a science magazine aimed at a general audience
D. A book review in a newspaper
E. A transcript of a talk given at a science fiction convention dedicated to “The poetry of space”

3 
 3. The passage implies that all except which of the following could be threats to human health during extended interstellar voyages?

A. Meteor impact
B. Radiation poisoning
C. Accelerating too fast
D. Starvation
E. Old age

4 
 4. According to the passage, which of the following will present the most difficult challenge for humans attempting interstellar space travel?

A. Achieving velocities near the speed of light
B. Withstanding the acceleration necessary for traversing interstellar distances
C. Maintaining clean air and water on a journey that could last centuries
D. Accommodating the effects of relativistic time dilation
E. Enabling the humans on board to survive during the journey

5 
 5. According to the information given in the passage, if two 20-year-old twins lived on earth, and one of them left on a journey for Alpha Centauri at very close to the speed of light, then managed to survive the journey and return to earth having aged 40 years during the journey, what could she expect to find upon her return to earth?

A. Her great-grandmother
B. Her twin at the age of 20
C. Her twin at the age of 40
D. Her twin at the age of 60
E. Her twin’s great-grandchildren

6 
 6. Which of the following inventions, if it could be perfected and manufactured at a viable cost, would address the most challenges to human interstellar space travel, as presented in the passage?

A. A ram-scoop drive that can accelerate a spacecraft of any size to four-fifths of the speed of light within 24 hours
B. A cold-sleep capsule that essentially halts the passage of time for human inhabitants while protecting them from all physical harm
C. A sustainable biosphere that reliably generates healthy food and automatically cleans air and water
D. A neutrino-based communications system that permits instantaneous communication across any distance without any relativistic time dilation
E. An impervious force field that protects the ship and its inhabitants from radiation, meteor strikes, or hostile alien attacks

7 
 7. The author of the passage most likely mentions “Little Green Men” in the first paragraph for what purpose?

A. To poke fun at the ignorance of most science fiction readers
B. To introduce a daunting challenge that will have to be addressed before human interstellar space travel can become possible
C. To draw a comparison between the attempts of humans to voyage in space and the more successful attempts of other civilizations
D. To draw an amusing distinction between a supposed danger of space travel, as presented in the popular media, and the actual challenges posed by interstellar space travel, as perceived by scientists
E. To suggest that the concept of human interstellar space travel is as much of a myth as the “Little Green Men” that appear in science fiction movies and television programs

New Project RC Butler 2019  -  Practice 2 RC Passages Everyday   
Passage # 26, Date : 13-FEB-2019
 This post is a part of New Project RC Butler 2019 .  Click here for Details

DAVEexamPAL · Accepted Answer

Question 1 
 1. Which of the following would make the most appropriate title for this passage?  
The answer is D.  
This is a question we can solve with the  Logical  method, by simply thinking: "what is this passage about"? 
The passage describes in great detail the multiple challenges which make space travel probably impossible. This is clear from the opening sentences (" the intrepid humans who first attempt interstellar space travel will face far more daunting challenges before they ever meet the Little Green Men" ), the closing sentence (which says people who really want to space travel will find this book so disappointing, they should skip it) and the entire structure - which is reason after reason that space travel is hard to impossible. 
 Looking at the answers, D) - The Crushing Challenges of Interstellar Space Travel - is the one we are looking for.

Question 2 
 2. Based on the tone and content of the passage, it is most likely which of the following?  
The answer is C.  
We'll use the  Logical  approach, by asking ourselves "what kind of passage is this?" 
This question asks: "what type of article of this?" A few things are clear: it is a review of a book, but it doesn't focus on the book itself but rather on the scientific argument at the heart of the book - space travel is really, really, hard. At the same time, the science is explained in everyday terms. Knowing this, let's take a look at the answers:

A. A book review in a journal intended for astrophysics professionals  - no way, this would be much more academic 
B. A movie review in an entertainment industry publication -  its not a movie 
C. A book review in a science magazine aimed at a general audience -  perfect - the focus is on the sceince, but in everyday language 
D. A book review in a newspaper -  maybe possible, but definitely not as good a fit as (C). we'd expect a newspaper to focus more on the book itself, less on the scientific argument/color]
E. A transcript of a talk given at a science fiction convention dedicated to “The poetry of space” -  not a talk

Question 3 
 3. The passage implies that all except which of the following could be threats to human health during extended interstellar voyages?  
The answer is A.  
Since the question asks us "which of following", we'll use the  Alternative  approach, and use the answers:

A. Meteor impact -  nowhere are meteors mentioned or hinted at  
B. Radiation poisoning -   "you still have to figure out the chemistry and biology of keeping ... your crew fed and safe from radiation..." 
 
C. Accelerating too fast  - "And if you tried to accelerate directly to the speed of light like they do in the movies, you’d be instantly splattered on the back of your theoretical spacecraft. " 
D. Starvation - "  food is going to be a problem." 
E. Old age -  The first paragraph discusses this

Question 4 
 4. According to the passage, which of the following will present the most difficult challenge for humans attempting interstellar space travel?  
The answer is E.  
This question can and should be solved using the  Precise  approach, by simply finding a place in the text which answers this exactly. 
This question may be a bit tricky, since almost all of the answer choices are indeed difficulties mentioned, but what is important is that we are asked which is the  most  difficult. We'll look in the text for something mentioned as the hardest: "  Keeping a crew alive on the way turns out to be the trickiest part of all." - answer E!

Princ · Answer

SajjadAhmad 
Can you give OE for question 2.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Official Explanation

6. Which of the following inventions, if it could be perfected and manufactured at a viable cost, would address the most challenges to human interstellar space travel, as presented in the passage?

Explanation

B  addresses all the survival issues handled by  C , and in addition its protection  “from all physical harm”  addresses the radiation mentioned in  E  and the acceleration problems that are inherent in  A .  B  also protects against the daunting passage of time necessary for interstellar space travel. Based on the information in the third paragraph, the invention in A would not be usable without some other protective invention because humans could not withstand that rate of acceleration.  D  would be an astounding invention on its own, but it does not address as many of the challenges mentioned in the passage as  B .  B  is the best answer. Why hasn’t someone invented this thing yet?

ANSWER: B

Hope it Helps

tapasgupta · Answer

1. Which of the following would make the most appropriate title for this passage?

A. Going Boldly Where No One Has Gone Before: The Promise and Peril of Interstellar Space Travel  - Out of scope
 B. The Day the Earth Stood Still: Why Interstellar Space Travel Is Essential to Human Survival  - Out of scope
 C. The Wrath of Larson: Egbert Larson’s Quest to Build an Interstellar Spacecraft  - out of scope
 D. Busted Flat in Beta Regulus: The Crushing Challenges of Interstellar Space Travel  - best summarizes the passage
 E. Say It Isn’t So, Mr. Einstein: Egbert Larson’s Challenge to the Theory of Relativity  - Out of scope

2. 2. Based on the tone and content of the passage, it is most likely which of the following?

A. A book review in a journal intended for astrophysics professionals  - the tone was general so can be concluded not for professionals
 B. A movie review in an entertainment industry publication  - Inconsistent
 C. A book review in a science magazine aimed at a general audience  - best summarizes the tone
 D. A book review in a newspaper  - out of scope
 E. A transcript of a talk given at a science fiction convention dedicated to “The poetry of space”  - Out of scope

3. The passage implies that all except which of the following could be threats to human health during extended interstellar voyages?

A. Meteor impact  - not given in the passage
 B. Radiation poisoning  - given
 C. Accelerating too fast  - given
 D. Starvation  - given
 E. Old age  - given

4. According to the passage, which of the following will present the  most difficult challenge  for humans attempting interstellar space travel?

A. Achieving velocities near the speed of light  - not as per passage
 B. Withstanding the acceleration necessary for traversing interstellar distances  - not most difficult as per passage
 C. Maintaining clean air and water on a journey that could last centuries  - not most difficult as per passage
 D. Accommodating the effects of relativistic time dilation  -not most difficult as per passage
 E. Enabling the humans on board to survive during the journey  - given in 3rd para

patto · Answer

This is a really good passage! I liked it!! For me, it's a 700!! It's perfect!!! Thank you for posting it

diljeetsingh · Answer

The author of the passage most likely mentions “Little Green Men” in the first paragraph for what purpose? 
please explain the reasoning for correct answer ????

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Official Explanation

7. The author of the passage most likely mentions “Little Green Men” in the first paragraph for what purpose?

Explanation

The passage states:  “Forget hostile aliens. According to a forthcoming book by noted astrophysicist Egbert Larson, the intrepid humans who first attempt interstellar space travel will face far more daunting challenges before they ever meet the Little Green Men.”  While the passage is light in tone, it does not suggest that the aliens are necessarily a  “myth,”  as in  E , or that those who believe in them are ignorant, as in  A . On the other hand, it does not say that they exist or that humans are likely to contact them, which rules out  C . The point of the introduction is that there are more daunting immediate problems than the theoretical risk of alien attacks, so  B  is out.  D  captures the essence of the introduction.

ANSWER: D

sakshamchhabra · Answer

Hey  DAVEexamPAL ,

Although I agree with your explanation for question 4, in paragraph 2-  "That’s because the distance between stars is so vast that even if you could travel at the speed of light— which, Larson reminds us,  you can’t —it" , the author has mentioned that it is impossible to attain the speed of light.

Well, if something is clearly impossible then it is obviously the most difficult challenge.

Looking forward to your perspective on this.

Desertchampion · Answer

Anyone understand the reason that the answer for Q4 is E and not A?

Paragraph 2 clearly states:
 "That’s because the distance between stars is so vast that even if you could travel at the speed of light— which, Larson reminds us, you can’t"

Since this task is impossible, isn't it the most challenging to overcome??

bawatwr · Answer

Hi, I have fallen for the same trap answer. But got why E is right. Look at the given below line in third para -: " Once you’ve got the nearly impossible physics of space travel worked out , you still have to figure out the chemistry and biology of keeping your air and water clean and keeping your crew fed and safe from radiation and infection, and—did we mention the 200 years?—you’ll probably need several generations of crew members to complete the trip. Ever been on a bus for more than 24 hours? It’s not a pretty picture." Since it mentions whatever problem is their with physics discussed above this para if it can be solved(Line in the bold), but then also much bigger problem would be survival for crew for 200 long years. -----If it helps you do give me kudos

Godsent · Answer

There are two major clues, which can be used to determine the answer to Q2 : "for THOSE of you who are ... with Scotty";and the passage uses scientific terms.Therefore,a book review in science(a reference to scientific detail) magazine aimed at public(the word "those" is used to refer to pubic audience) audience.

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Teitsuya · Answer

Sajjad1994

Hi Sajjad,

For question 2, I think these statements captured how food is very challenging. So I answered "C"

"Speaking of chips, food is going to be a problem. Since it is economically, if not physically, impossible to accelerate 200 years’ worth of food to nearly the speed of light, and since you’re not likely to find any grocery stores along the way, someone will have to figure out how to make food in space."

sharmisthamona2 · Answer

And after watching Avengers endgame,one should solve this .lol

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MBAB123 · Answer

Teitsuya , no doubt that Food is a challenge and option C does solve that challenge. But option B covers  more challenges  than option C. It solves the problem of astronauts being harmed due to the speed and the problem of needing generations of needing generations of crew members.

aarzookhan11 · Answer

please explain question 7 why option d over b 
and question 6

Forget hostile aliens. According to a forthcoming book by noted astrop

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Forget hostile aliens. According to a forthcoming book by noted astrop

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