TPO29(integrated)

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TPO29(integrated)

Essay topics in audio

In this set of materials, both the reading passage and the lecture discussed the possibility of dinosaurs’ migration. The reading firmly arose some evidences to support the hypothesis that dinosaurs migrated in the past. However, the lecture repudiated what stated in the reading resting upon fallacious premises and provides three counterclaims proofing that the ideas in favour of dinosaurs migration are not convincing.

Firstly, the reading claimed, as plants were scarce in North Slope region during winter, in order to find food dinosaurs had to migrate to warmer places. The lecture contradicted this point by acknowledging that in the past North Slope regions were warmer than today also as the sun warms the earth 24 hours the day during summer time, many nutriuos plants were able to grow, so that even if the growth of plants was totally stop during winter, there were enough food for dinosaurs to eat during winter.

Secondly, the reading argued that for the sake of living in herd, dinosaurs used to migrate like other species who also live in herd, for instance, buffalos. Notwithstanding, the professor highlighted that actually living in herd does not have any relation with migration, they chose to live in herd possibly for better protection from some predators. She pointed out there are some kind of elks who lived in herd but they do not migrate at all.

Lastly, the article contended that physical capability of dinosaurs helped them to migrate long distances. This seemed to be incorrect as explained in the lecture. The speaker articulated that although the matured dinosaurs were able to tolerate the difficulties of such journeys, the juveniles could not withstand the harsh situation of those long distance trips; moreover, as they could not be left alone in their habitat, we could draw the conclusion that physical ability was not a significant factor to be mentioned.

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Sentence: The lecture contradicted this point by acknowledging that in the past North Slope regions were warmer than today also as the sun warms the earth 24 hours the day during summer time, many nutriuos plants were able to grow, so that even if the growth of plants was totally stop during winter, there were enough food for dinosaurs to eat during winter.
Error: nutriuos Suggestion: nutritious

Attribute Value Ideal
Score: 26 in 30
Category: Very Good Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 0 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 1 2
No. of Sentences: 11 12
No. of Words: 309 250
No. of Characters: 1555 1200
No. of Different Words: 175 150
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.193 4.2
Average Word Length: 5.032 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.589 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 115 80
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 86 60
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 58 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 40 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 28.091 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 15.968 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.727 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.383 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.663 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.181 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 4 4

Actually I do not know where to upload it!
You can download it from this site:

http://toefl.kaomanfen.com/writing/tpo-2/3

here is the passage:

Large numbers of dinosaur fossils have been discovered in deposits on Alaska's North Slope, a region that today experiences an extremely cold,arctic climate. One hundred million years ago, when those dinosaurs were alive, the environment of the North Slope was already inhospitable,especially during the winter when it experienced several months of total darkness. How did the dinosaurs survive the wintertime? Paleontologists have proposed that one of the most common North Slope dinosaurs, the elephant-sized edmontosaur (Edmontosaurus), survived the winter by migrating south to more hospitable regions. Several arguments support the migration hypothesis.

First, the edmontosaur's diet supports the migration hypothesis. Edmontosaurs fed exclusively on plants. Since there would have been no plants growing during the cold and dark North Slope winter, it appears that the edmontosaur must have left for at least part of the year and migrated to more temperate zones to find food.

Second, many edmontosaur skeletons have been unearthed from the same site. This suggests that edmontosaurs lived in herd. Many modern-day migratory animals, such as caribou and buffalo, live and migrate in herds as well. Moving in herds helps animals coordinate their migration.The finding that edmonotsaurs lived in herds further supports the migration hypothesis.

Finally, edmonosaurs were physically capable of migrating long distances. To reach more hospitable regions, the edmontosaur had to migrate about 1,600 kilometers southward. To make such a journey, the edmontosaur needed to move at about five kilometers per hour for several weeks, which is certainly could do. These animals could run very fast, reaching speeds up to 45 kilometers per hour. It could have easily used its locomotive power to move to warmer climate during the harsh arctic winters.