Question 9: Read the sentences from the article and the lecture in the box.

Question

• Vast forests had been cleared for farms or plantations of fast-growing exotic trees that drained the ecosystem of water and degraded the soil. (paragraph 4 of "The Green Belt Movement"
• With the destruction of these cultures and the introduction of new values, local biodiversity is no longer valued or protected and as a result, it is quickly degraded and disappears. (paragraph 7 of "Wangari Maathai's Nobel Lecture")
Based on the sentences, what does the word degrade most likely mean?
(1 point)
• to complete
• to break down
O to identify
• to give up
Question 10: How do paragraphs 17 and 18 of the lecture mainly help develop the central idea? (1 point)
O by suggesting new ways to save wilderness areas in Kenya
• by providing biological details about ecosystems in Kenya
• by encouraging research on the diversity and uniqueness of living things in Kenya
• by describing the vitality and appeal of outdoor spaces that previously existed in Kenya

Answer 1

Question 9: Based on the sentences provided, the word "degrade" most likely means to break down.

Question 10: Paragraphs 17 and 18 of the lecture mainly help develop the central idea by suggesting new ways to save wilderness areas in Kenya.