美国留学的基本条件：托福
美国留学的基本条件：托福
美国留学的基本条件：托福toefl(the test of english as a foreign language)考试应该是最为大众所熟知的出国考试了。这项考试由美国ets(educational testing service)考试中心开设，考试的主要目的是考察国际学生英文能力。考试分为听、说、读、写四部分，对于留学生在美国的学习及校园生活可能会遇到的教授讲义、课堂陈述、专业材料阅读、论文写作以及生活交流等，都会在这四部分中涉及到。
美国留学的基本条件：雅思除了toefl考试之外，另外一项为大众所熟知的语言出国考试就是雅思了。这项考试由是由英国文化协会、剑桥大学考试委员会(cesol)和澳大利亚教育国际开发署(idp australia)共同举办的国际英语水平测试。ielts分为a类和g类考试，a类(academic)考试针对留学，g类(general training)考试针对移民。两类考试的侧重点也因为考试对象的不同而有所不同。对于留学生来说，应该选择以学术语言考察内容为主的a类考试。
美国留学的基本条件：gre 留学考核对象：申请美国读研学生(非法律、商科专业)
相信对于gre(graduate record examination)大多数申请硕士的学生都比较熟悉了。gre考试有点类似于中国的研究生考试，也是由ets考试中心举办，大多数申请硕士的学生都需要参加这
项出国考试，除了申请法律和商科研究生的学生。gre分general test和subject test，其中general test考试分为数学、词汇、写作三部分，主要是考察应试人的基本英语能力以及对英文方面知识所涉及的广度和深度，subject test则是对不同科目的考察，包括数学，化学，生物，物理，生化，计算机，心理学，英语文学七个科目。对于大多数申请硕士课程的学生来说，只需要考gre 的general test，而有些顶尖学校的硕士课程和很多博士课程都要求相应的subject test成绩。因此，是否选择subject test 也要根据申请的学校及课程而定。这项考试多为美国学校所要求和接受，但个别英国、加拿大的学校也会对gre考试做出要求。
美国留学的基本条件：gmat 留学考核对象：申请美英加商学院读研学生
gmat(graduate management admission test)由gmac(graduate management admission council)举办，是进入商学院进行研究生阶段学习的敲门砖。gmat考试包括分析写作、数学和语文三部分，由七个不同类型的题型组成，包括阅读理解、句子改错、问题求解、数据填充、原因评述等。美国的商学院对这一考试有非常高的认可度，基本上进入美国大学的商学院都必须参加gmat考试，而在英国、加拿大以及新加坡，也有很多商学院是要求gmat成绩方能申请其研究生课程的。
美国留学的基本条件：sat 留学考核对象：申请美国本科院校学生
sat(scholastic aptitude test)是美国大学本科的入学考试，有点类似于国内的高考。这项考试由美国的college board机构
举办，sat也分为两类，reasoning test 和 subject test。reasoning test也叫sat i，分数学、阅读、写作三部分，是高中毕业生申请大学，尤其是美国综合排名前100学校的必要考试。subject test也叫sat ii，是对于物理、化学、生物、数学、地理、各种语言等科目的分科考试，这项考试只有极少数顶尖的学校规定是必须要考的，而考试的科目可以由学生自由选择，如果是申请物理、数学、历史这些基础课程的专业或者与之相关联的专业，可以选择相应的科目考试，考试分数如果理想的话，可以为申请加分。
sat考试为美国绝大多数的学校所接受，申请本科的学生如果想要进入排名100以内的学校学习，sat i基本是必考的一项出国考试。相对sat考试，美国还有一项act(american college testing)考试也被视为美国的高考，它与sat可二者选其一。不过因为在中国暂时还没有开设act考点，因此中国的本科留学生大多数还是选择sat考试。
美国留学的基本条件：lsat 留学考核对象：法律专业申请者
对于lsat(law school admission test)也许并不像toefl、gre那样被大家所熟知，但是念法律的学生应该对这个考试不陌生了，这项出国考试类似于中国的司法考试，是专门针对念法律的学生所开设的。lsat考试分为五个部分，考察阅读理解、逻辑推理及分析推理三个方面的内容，其难度不亚于中国的司法考试。但是，并不是所有申请法律类研究生的申请者都必须要参加这项考试。对于国际学生来说，要念法律课程的研究生，有两个学位
可以选择：llm(master of law)和jd(juris doctor)。 llm是针对有法律从业背景或者本科为法律专业，想要进一步提高自己法律方面能力的学生所开设，因为美国本科阶段是没有法律专业的，因此，念llm的学生大多数为国际学生或者有经验的法律从业者，而申请llm的学生不需要参加lsat考试。lsat实际上是申请jd 的专用考试，在美国，因为本科阶段没有法律专业，所以，任何专业的学生都可以申请jd，唯一的要求就是必须要进行lsat的考试。所以，如果要在美国念法律，选择llm还是jd是申请者是否需要参加lsat考试的关键。
老托福阅读真题及答案解析
老托福阅读真题及答案解析 托福从听、说、读、写四方面进行英语能力全面考核。托福频道为大家提供了这四个方面的资料，希望对大家有所帮助。 Aviculturists, people who raise birds for commercial sale, have not yet learned how to simulate the natural incubation of parrot eggs in the wild. They continue to look for better ways to increase egg production and to improve chick survival rates. When parrots incubate their eggs in the wild, the temperature and humidity of the nest are controlled naturally. Heat is transferred from the bird's skin to the top portion of the eggshell, leaving the sides and bottom of the egg at a cooler temperature. This temperature gradient may be vital to successful hatching. Nest construction can contribute to this temperature gradient. Nests of loosely arranged sticks, rocks, or dirt are cooler in temperature at the bottom where the egg contacts the nesting material. Such nests also act as humidity regulators by allowing rain to drain into the bottom sections of the nest so that the eggs are not in direct contact with the water. As the water that collects in the bottom of the nest evaporates, the water vapor rises and is heated by the incubating bird, which adds significant humidity to the incubation environment. In artificial incubation programs, aviculturists remove eggs from the nests of parrots and incubate them under laboratory conditions. Most commercial incubators heat the eggs fairly evenly from top to bottom, thus ignoring the bird's method of natural incubation, and perhaps reducing the viability and survivability of the hatching chicks. When incubators are not used, aviculturists sometimes suspend wooden boxes outdoors to use as nests in which to place eggs. In areas where weather can become cold after eggs are laid, it is very important to maintain a deep foundation of nesting material to act as insulator against the cold bottom of the box. If eggs rest against the wooden bottom in extremely cold weather conditions, they can become chilled to a point where the embryo can no longer survive. Similarly, these boxes should be protected from direct sunlight to avoid high temperatures that are also fatal to the growing embryo. Nesting material should be added in sufficient amounts to avoid both extreme temperature situations mentioned above and assure that the eggs have a soft, secure place to rest. 1. What is the main idea of the passage ? (A) Nesting material varies according to the parrots' environment. (B) Humidity is an important factor in incubating parrots' eggs. (C) Aviculturists have constructed the ideal nest box for parrots. (D) Wild parrots' nests provide information useful for artificial incubation. 2. The word "They" in line 2 refers to
历年托福考试阅读真题汇总含答案
0308 托福试题 阅读( 55minutes ) Question 1-11 seen in putrefying materials .He did (10) this by passing air through guncotton filters, the fibers of which stop solid particles. After the guncotton was dissolved in a mixture of alcohol and ether, the particles that it had trapped fell to the bottom of the liquid and were examined on a microscope slide .Pasteur found that in ordinary air these exists a variety of solid structures ranging in size from 0.01 mm to more than 1.0 mm .Many of these bodies resembled the reproductive (15) structures of common molds, single-celled animals, and various other microbial cells . As many as 20 to 30 of them were found in fifteen If food is allowed to stand for some time, putrefies .When the putrefied material is examined microscopically ,it is teeming with bacteria. Where do these bacteria come from , since they are fresh food? Even until the mid-nineteenth century, many people believed microorganisms originated by spontaneous (5 ) generation ,a hypothetical living organisms develop from nonliving matter. The most powerful spontaneous generation microbiologist Louis showed that structures present in air closely found not that it to be seen in such process by which of the theory of French chemist and opponent was the Pasteur(1822-1895).Pasteur resemble the microorganisms
托福阅读分数对照表
常常有考友询问，为什么托福阅读明明有42个题，总分却只有30分，分数如何计算的呢？其实，每每看到这种问题，小编的内心是疼痛的。 大家准备一个考试，却不看考试指导手册，考得不太理想，简直太正常了。就算天生神勇，也应该有个作战纲领呀！ 打开OG，第一部分就是托福阅读的介绍，编者首先给出了评分标准的表格。 紧接着给出了各类题型的题型解析，这些就是托福阅读的考察内容，众位考友一定要反复研究，在准备考试时，下意识的按照出题者的思路去解题。 那么托福阅读有些什么考察类型？应该怎么解题？
在iBT阅读中，甚至可以扩展到ETS所有考试的阅读题目中，无论是题干还是正确选项，大都能在原文中找出一句话来与之相对应。即题目是原文的意译。这种意译是通过同义词来完成的。即题干中多用近义词来对原文中的句子进行替换，来达到提出问题或者提出正确答案的意思。准确把握意译，是多数题目中准确在原文中定位信息、或者在迷惑选项中选出正确的那个，都有着重要的作用。 1、词汇题 解题方法：若认识，直接解题，没得说；若不认识，就只能推断了。 但是备考阶段最重要的一点。背单词！首先，考托福没有一定的词汇量等于直接酱油了，所以词汇量是一切的基础。 2、指代题 考点：句子直接词之间的关系 解题方法： （1）代词 a. 从句的主语指代主句的主宾语(使用属性判断,不用含义) b. 关系代词指代先行词(插入结构不影响指代关系) c. 重复概念指代: Tom and his cat(就近原则) d. some 和 others （2）名词 a. 优先选择题干的上下意词 m is a kind of M, M是m的上意词 b. 若上下意词不唯一则当作代词指代处理 注意: a.被指代对象往往在代词之前出现 b. 从句开头往后找答案 c. 代词和被指代对象的数性和性质必须一致 d. 指代的传递现象 3、句子简化题 解题方法： （1）确定题干句子中的逻辑成分 逻辑成分主要包括：关联词，动词，状语 而托福最爱考的逻辑主要是：因果，比较、最高级，否定 （2）确定与逻辑相关的语义 要依据最简化原则，抓句子中的逻辑要素。 因果的逻辑要素是：原因结果 比较的逻辑要素是：比较三要素 最高级 否定的逻辑要素是：作用对象 （3）选择与题干逻辑语义一致的选项 先主后次，从逻辑到语义（千万要保证逻辑正确）
托福口语真题分析与范文
2017年01月07日托福口语考题回忆 Task 1 The university wants to provide student more entertainments and three choices provided below, which do you prefer and why. l A theater performance by the student actors l A concert provided by professional musician l A lecture from a professor Sample Answer: Well, as a student, I will choose a theater performance by the student actors. For one thing, this kind of activity will improve their cooperation skills. To be more specific, a theater performance includes the whole process of organizing, participating, and promoting an event. Whether the student director or the actor take the responsibility to achieve his/her duty, so this is a great opportunity for them to learn how to deal with other people. Moreover, a performance could greatly inspire them to be more creative. I mean, in order to make a good show, students may have lots of difficulties to cope with, so they have to be flexible to face any emergency. As a result, they may come up with lots of new ideas to make it. Because of these two reasons, I believe this is the best choice. (140 words) Task 2 Friends may disagree with each other, and still maintain friendship. Do you agree with or disagree with this idea, why Sample Answer: Of course I agree with this idea. Firstly people are bound to be different. We have various family background as well as education background even though we are friends. So it is quite naturally that there come up different ideas toward one problem. For example I like watching movie in the movie theatre while my best friend Amy hate sitting in the dark place. But I never require her to go with me; we are still very close friends. Also, the friend who holds a different attitude with me sometimes could inspire me to think from another way. Maybe a very sharp discussion can lead me to an inspiring idea. After all, the experiences and knowledge of one person is limited. For me, I like the friend who are differ from me. (132 words) Task 3 阅读 标题：Create a Student Magazine 原因1： Students spend a lot of time on their paper, and some of them have high quality. So we need a magazine to publish those good quality papers.
2019托福阅读考试真题(3)
2019托福阅读：模拟试题及答案解析（6） 【托福】 Although only 1 person in 20 in the Colonial period lived in a city, the cities had a disproportionate influence on the development of North America. They were at the cutting edge of social change. It was in the cities that the elements that can be associated with modern capitalism first appeared — the use of money and commercial paper in place of barter, open competition in place of social deference and hierarchy, with an attendant rise in social disorder, and the appearance of factories using coat or water power in place of independent craftspeople working with hand tools. "The cities predicted the future," wrote historian Gary. B. Nash, "even though they were but overgrown villages compared to the great urban centers of Europe, the Middle East and China." Except for Boston, whose population stabilized at about 16,000 in 1760, cities grew by exponential leaps through the eighteenth century. In the fifteen years prior to the outbreak of the War for independence in 1775, more than 200,000 immigrants arrived on North American shores. This meant that a population the size of Boston was arriving every year, and most of it flowed into the port cities in the Northeast. Philadelphia's population nearly doubted in those years, reaching about 30,000 in 1774, New York grew at almost the same rate, reaching about 25,000 by 1775. The quality of the hinterland dictated the pace of growth of the cities. The land surrounding Boston had always been poor farm country, and by the mid-eighteenth century it
2017最新托福考试评分标准
分数计算说明： 计算新托福阅读的分数，不要计算对多少题，而是算拿到多少原始分“Raw Point Total(0-45)”，然后再参照评分表，计算最后的分数(0-30)。 托福阅读怎么算分？一张托福阅读算分表就可以告诉你答案，大家可以根据这张托福阅读算分表来评估自己的托福阅读水平。 写作分数计算： 作文部分包括两道试题，需在大约50分钟的时间内完成。 第一部分是综合写作，以阅读或听力材料为基础的写作试题，写作时间为20分钟。考生首先需要阅读一篇学术演讲，阅读的时间是3分钟。然后文章隐去，这时考生需要听一段大约为1分半钟的演讲。不过之后考生在写作文时仍可以看到在放听力材料时隐去的阅读材
料。考生在听录音的过程中可以做笔记来帮助答题。考生用余下20分钟的时间来总结听力材料中的要点，并解释这些要点与阅读材料中的要求有何不同。通常有效的回答应是一篇150~225个单词的作文。 评分标准: 两道题，每道题的分值是0~5分，两道题的分数求平均数后，换算成0~30的分数。 口语分数计算： IBT口语部分持续时间约为20分钟，共6个问题，每个问题的答题时间为45到60秒。 前2题为独立口语项目,要求考生完全以自己的观点和经历为依据作答，后4题为综合口语项目,要求考生在回答前听一段对话或演讲的节选。 独立项目(问题1和问题2) 问题1: 你将会被要求讲述你熟悉的一个人、地方、物品或事件。 问题可能包括:一个你去过的地方,一件你生命中重要的事情,一个影响你的人或者一项你喜欢的活动等。在你看到问题后,你有15秒的思考时间,然后有45秒的作答时间.你可以用笔写下简略的提示。 答案既需要有描述(比如一件”什么事情”很重要等),也需要有解释(比如“为什么”它很重要等)。在答案中应当包括具体的细节或例子,这样使你的描述包含更多的信息,解释让人更容易理解。 问题2: 在两个可能的行动、境遇或观点中选择一个你偏好的，并用理由、解释、细节或例子来支持你的选择。实际选择哪个并不重要，重要的是你是否能很好地说明你这样选择的理由。同问题1一样,你有15秒的考虑时间和45秒的回答时间. 综合口语项目: 问题3: 首先，一段和校园生活有关的短文会出现在屏幕上，然后你会听到两个人(某些情况是一个人)讨论这个话题。你将会被问到一个和刚才看到听到内容相关的问题，准备时间为30秒，回答时间为60秒。这个问题的话题可能包括学校的政策、规章制度、计划、校园设施、校园生活质量等。短文除了描述建议(提议)以外，通常还有两条支持或反对的理由。阅读文章很短，通常是75~100字，你将会有充足的时间去阅读它(40~45秒)。读完文章后,会听到两个人对话，讨论你刚才看到的文章所说的内容，其中一个人会强烈地支持或反对这项提议(建议)，并且会说明他的理由，通常持续60~80秒。接下来你就会问到一个问题，回答这个问题不需要你自己的观点，而是让你阐述某个说话者的观点，并总结他持有那个观点的理由。 问题4:
托福真题(附答案)
Section Two: Structure and Written Expression 1. crumbles readily when exposed to a moist, acid atmosphere, but the stone is durable in adry atmosphere. (A) The surface of marble is (B) The surface of marble, which (C) Although the surface of marble (D) The surface of marble 2. By using their trunks, elephants can tell the shape of an object and is rough or smooth, orhot or cold. (A) it (B) whether it (C) how (D) since it 3. In 1989 Carret Hongo was chosen as for the Pulitzer Prize in poetry. (A) his being one of the finalists (B) to be one of the finalists (C) one of the finalists (D) the one finalist who 4. The Moon is much closer to Earthis the Sun, and thus it had greater influence on the tides. (A) unlike (B) than (C) but (D) where 5. The brain of an average adult is one of the largest organs of the body, about three pounds. (A) weighs (B) is weighed (C) weighing (D) to weigh it 6. Throughout history different representations for numbers and for the basic process ofcounting. (A) have been many (B) there have been many (C) many (D) when many 7. Democratic governments constantly face the problem of balancing the individual with theneeds of society. (A) the rights of (B) to the rights for (C) for the rights to (D) with the rights by 8. Connecticut was the fifth of the original thirteen states the Constitution of the UnitedStates. (A) ratified (B) ratify (C) to ratify (D) have ratified 9. The chemical composition of sandstone is the same as (A) that of sand (B) that sand is (C) sand is that (D) what of sand 10. Hydrofoils can exceed 75 miles per hour, as compared with conventional watercraft, whosemaximum speeds approach 50 miles per hour. (A) are rarely (B) rarely (C) of rarely (D) they rarely 11. It was novelist and poet in 1968 founded Jackson State University's Institute for theStudy of the History, Life, and Culture of Black People. (A) Margaret Walker did (B) Margaret Walker (C) Margaret Walker who (D) Margaret Walker and 12. Before the Europeans arrived, American Indians were using virgin copper into ornaments,knives, and other artifacts. (A) Which was hammering (B) which hammered (C) was hammered (D) hammered 13. In western North America, form the Great Divide, which separates the areas fromwhich waters flow either eastward to the Atlantic or westward to the Pacific. (A) the Rocky Mountains (B) where the Rocky Mountains (C) the Rocky Mountains in which 1
历年托福考试阅读真题汇总含答案
0308 托福试题 阅读（55minutes） Question 1-11 If food is allowed to stand for some time, it putrefies .When the putrefied material is examined microscopically ,it is found to be teeming with bacteria. Where do these bacteria come from , since they are not seen in fresh food? Even until the mid-nineteenth century, many people believed that such microorganisms originated by spontaneous (5 ) generation ,a hypothetical process by which living organisms develop from nonliving matter. The most powerful opponent of the theory of spontaneous generation was the French chemist and microbiologist Louis Pasteur(1822-1895).Pasteur showed that structures present in air closely resemble the microorganisms seen in putrefying materials .He did (10) this by passing air through guncotton filters, the fibers of which stop solid particles. After the guncotton was dissolved in a mixture of alcohol and ether, the particles that it had trapped fell to the bottom of the liquid and were examined on a microscope slide .Pasteur found that in ordinary air these exists a variety of solid structures ranging in size from 0.1 mm to more than 1.0 mm .Many of these bodies resembled the reproductive (15)structures of common molds, single-celled animals, and various other microbial cells . As many as 20 to 30 of them were found in fifteen liters of ordinary air ,and they could not be distinguished from the organisms found in much larger numbers in putrefying materials .Pasteur concluded that the organisms found in putrefying materials originated from the organized bodies present in the air .He postulated that
托福口语成绩官方评分标准和计分方式详细解读
托福口语成绩官方评分标准和计分 方式详细解读 托福考试中口语部分的分数往往较难预计，有时候考生自己觉得发挥得很好但实际得分却并不理想,今天给大家带来托福口语成绩官方评分标准和计分方式详细解读,希望能够帮助到大家，下面就和大家分享，来欣赏一下吧。 托福口语成绩官方评分标准和计分方式详细解读 托福口语成绩如何计算? 首先，在托福考试中，判分员分为E-Rater和Human-Rater。E-Rater即机器判分，比如我们的托福阅读和听力部分，包括写作也会用E-Rater先粗判一下基本的拼写和语法方面。 Human-Rater则是主要负责口语部分和写作更高层级的判分工作。 判分员****于不同的岗位，比如大学教授、国际学校教师、美国高等院校考试测评专业的学生等。在经过了笔试、面试和严格的筛选培训流程后才能上岗。然后分配到具体的某个科目专人专项进行判分。以托福口语为例，每个评分员开始判分工作之前都需要完成当日校准。即他们会被要求给一些“预置答案”判分，
这些答案都是由资深判分小组提前定义好了分数，用来检测当日判分员是否能达到准确判分的要求。只有通过了才会被分配真实考生的答案并进行判分。在当天的真实考试判分过程中，系统还会给他们随机分配这样的“预置答案”，以便监控全天判分过程中的准确度。 在我们的考试结束后，考生的口语部分录音回答将被送到ETS总部，由3 到6 位经认证的评分员按照0 到4 的评分标准(五个整数分数段)进行全面评分。判分员在进行判分时，判分系统上会有4、3、2、1、0各个档位的标准答案，供判分员参考以便矫正自己判分的准确度。若判分标答参考不足以帮助判分员界定分数，他们可以申请组长来帮助自己完成判分。最终六道口语题的分数加在一起(0-24分)，取算数平均值(0-4分之间，但会出现小数点后0/.83/.66/.50/.33/.16六种不同情况)根据转换表，来转换为0-30分的总分。 托福口语分数换算表格介绍
托福与四六级分数换算
托福与四六级分数换算 如果六级考了520，那么相当于托福多少分呢?相信很多人都想知道他们两者之间的换算关系，今天文都国际教育小编就给大家介绍下托福与四六级分数换算。 四级VS托福 ?四级达到及格线425分，则托福基本能达到50分; ?四级达到中等分数线500分，则托福基本能达到70分; ?四级达到中上等分数线600分，则托福基本能达到90-100分; ?四级达到650分以上，则托福基本能达到100+。 六级VS托福 ?六级达到及格线425，则托福基本能达到60分; ?六级达到中等分数线500分，则托福基本能达到80分; ?六级达到中上等分数线600分，则托福基本能达到90-105分; ?六级达到650分以上，则托福基本能达到105+。 考试形式 说了这么多托福与四六级的试题上的差距，尚未提及在考试形式上的最大差别：机考与笔考。中国学生从上学第一天接触的所有考试都是纸笔考试，偶尔的计算机考试考的都是计算机。几乎很少有人有真正用计算机做题目的实战经验。 第一次用电脑做英语题，你会发现阅读速度下降50%，看过的部分看完就忘，无法画线做笔记，无法定位，长时间盯着屏幕带来视疲劳和头疼等症状，而写作部分则对打字速度和准确度有一定要求。这些都要靠日常用电脑做题来熟悉系统和积累经验。 思维逻辑 除了以上这些表象上的差异，托福考试与四六级考试在思维上的差距在于逻辑。经常有人强调：GRE才是逻辑考试。不过相较而言，四六级考试几乎不注重逻辑，题目不是依靠字面含义，就是靠判断——所以你才会发现，四六级阅读中有很多答案让人摸不到头脑。
而托福则在逻辑方面比四六级强很多。请注意托福考试中的逻辑关系，比如因果、让步等等，都会对做题有所帮助。找到逻辑关系就能理清思路。 以上就是小编分享的关于托福与四六级分数换算的详细内容，希望大家了解。如果你想了解更多托福资讯，请关注文都国际教育托福频道! 文章来源于文都国际教育：https://www.360docs.net/doc/6d8124205.html,/kaopei/toefl/news/14735.shtml
老托福阅读真题及答案解析
老托福阅读真题及答案 解析 -CAL-FENGHAI-(2020YEAR-YICAI)_JINGBIAN
老托福阅读真题及答案解析 托福从听、说、读、写四方面进行英语能力全面考核。托福频道为大家提供了这四个方面的资料，希望对大家有所帮助。 Aviculturists, people who raise birds for commercial sale, have not yet learned how to simulate the natural incubation of parrot eggs in the wild. They continue to look for better ways to increase egg production and to improve chick survival rates. When parrots incubate their eggs in the wild, the temperature and humidity of the nest are controlled naturally. Heat is transferred from the bird's skin to the top portion of the eggshell, leaving the sides and bottom of the egg at a cooler temperature. This temperature gradient may be vital to successful hatching. Nest construction can contribute to this temperature gradient. Nests of loosely arranged sticks, rocks, or dirt are cooler in temperature at the bottom where the egg contacts the nesting material. Such nests also act as humidity regulators by allowing rain to drain into the bottom sections of the nest so that the eggs are not in direct contact with the water. As the water that collects in the bottom of the nest evaporates, the water vapor rises and is heated by the incubating bird, which adds significant humidity to the incubation environment. In artificial incubation programs, aviculturists remove eggs from the nests of parrots and incubate them under laboratory conditions. Most commercial incubators heat the eggs fairly evenly from top to bottom, thus ignoring the bird's method of natural incubation, and perhaps reducing the viability and survivability of the hatching chicks. When incubators are not used, aviculturists sometimes suspend wooden boxes outdoors to use as nests in which to place eggs. In areas where weather can become cold after eggs are laid, it is very important to maintain a deep foundation of nesting material to act as insulator against the cold bottom of the box. If eggs rest against the wooden bottom in extremely cold weather conditions, they can become chilled to a point where the embryo can no longer survive. Similarly, these boxes should be protected from direct sunlight to avoid high temperatures that are also fatal to the growing embryo. Nesting material should be added in sufficient amounts to avoid both extreme temperature situations mentioned above and assure that the eggs have a soft, secure place to rest. 1. What is the main idea of the passage (A) Nesting material varies according to the parrots' environment. (B) Humidity is an important factor in incubating parrots' eggs. (C) Aviculturists have constructed the ideal nest box for parrots. (D) Wild parrots' nests provide information useful for artificial incubation.