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Section 4: Sample Selected-Response Questions
TX PACT: English Language Arts and Reading: Grades 7–12 (731)

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This section presents some sample exam questions for you to review as part of your preparation for the exam. To demonstrate how each competency may be assessed, sample questions are accompanied by the competency that they measure. While studying, you may wish to read the competency before and after you consider each sample question. Please note that the competency statements do not appear on the actual exam.

The correct answer is provided for each sample exam question. The sample questions are included to illustrate the formats and types of questions you will see on the exam; however, your performance on the sample questions should not be viewed as a predictor of your performance on the actual exam.

Domain I—Vocabulary, Reading Comprehension, and Reading Various Text Forms

Competency 001—Understand strategies for developing vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension.

1. Which of the following pairs of words acquired new, specialized meanings due to the influence of the field of psychology?

  1. broadcast, screen
  2. introvert, inhibition
  3. network, window
  4. sedan, coupe
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize historical, social, and cultural influences that have helped shape the English language. The word introvert was first used in the late seventeenth century to mean "to concentrate upon oneself." The word inhibition was first used in the fourteenth century to mean "something that forbids or restricts." Each of these words took on specialized meanings in the field of psychology in the late nineteenth century: introvert came to mean "to produce psychological introversion in," and inhibition came to mean "a mental process imposing restraint on behavior."

Competency 002—Understand strategies for reading informational texts.

2. Read the excerpt below; then answer the question that follows.

Learning how to behave when with your horse is the first step towards building a good working relationship with him. A well-treated horse is trusting but a frightened horse can be very strong and could be dangerously unsafe. Always speak calmly. Horses are sensitive to tone of voice, so never shout. Avoid noises like road drills or motor bikes. Don't move suddenly or carelessly when around horses. Use persuasion to encourage your horse. Horses never forget a bad experience, but you can use their memory to your advantage as they will also remember praise and rewards. Horses work best when they are in a happy environment and they like routine.

Source: Watson, Mary Gordon. From Learn Horseback Riding in a Weekend, published by Dorling Kindersley, 1992, 1996. Copyright Dorling Kindersley, 1992. www.penguin.com. Reprinted by permission.

For which of the following statements does this excerpt offer a sufficient amount of supporting detail?

  1. A calm horse requires less praise than a skittish horse.
  2. Horses are best trained in remote, rural places.
  3. A highly disciplined horse will be a hard-working horse.
  4. Horses respond best to steady, gentle encouragement.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to assess the sufficiency of evidence, examples, and reasons provided to explain a concept or process presented in an informational text. The details in the excerpt explain the dos and don'ts of communicating with horses, such as do "speak calmly" to them but don't "move suddenly or carelessly" around them. Collectively, these tips support the practice of using steady, gentle encouragement with horses.

Competency 003—Understand strategies for reading persuasive texts.

3. Read the excerpt below; then answer the question that follows.

Representative government in the United States has broken down. Our legislators do not represent the public, the voters, or even those who voted for them but rather the commercial-industrial interests that finance their political campaigns and control the organs of communication—the TV, the newspapers, the billboards, the radio. Politics is a game for the rich only. Representative government in the USA represents money, not people, and therefore has forfeited our allegiance and moral support. We owe it nothing but the taxation it extorts from us under threats of seizure of property. . . .

Source: Abbey, Edward. Excerpt from "Eco-Defense" from ONE LIFE AT A TIME, PLEASE by Edward Abbey. Copyright 1988 by Edward Abbey. Reprinted by arrangement with Henry Holt and Company, LLC. Reprinted by permission of Don Congdon Associates, Inc. 1988 by Edward Abbey.

Which of the following statements best describes the effect of the author's use of a rhetorical technique in this excerpt?

  1. The author's use of specific examples such as TV, newspapers, and radio demonstrates a thoroughly researched perspective.
  2. A reliance on exaggerations and sweeping generalizations reveals strong biases in the author's argument.
  3. The author's use of a simple, clear position statement at the beginning of the argument helps reinforce the overall validity of the argument.
  4. A focus on appeals to authority and emotion reveals that the author's perspective is based primarily on hearsay.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to analyze the use of a rhetorical technique in a persuasive text. In the excerpt, the author reveals strong biases through exaggerations such as "Representative government in the United States has broken down" and sweeping generalizations such as "Politics is a game for the rich only."

Competency 004—Understand strategies for reading technical and functional texts.

4. An individual reads the instructions below for acquiring an absentee ballot. She provides her local board of elections with her driver's license, a statement identifying the election in which she would like to vote, and an address to which she would like the absentee ballot mailed.

Voter Registration Information

How can I acquire an absentee ballot?

Write or go to the board of elections in your county and request an absentee ballot application. On the application, you must provide the following information:
  1. your printed name and signature,
  2. the address at which you are currently registered to vote,
  3. your date of birth,
  4. personal identification, which may be any one of the following:
    • your driver's license number, or
    • the last four digits of your social security number, or
    • a copy of your current and valid photo identification or a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, government check, or other government document that shows your name and address
  5. a statement identifying the election for which the absentee ballot is being requested,
  6. a statement declaring that you are a qualified elector, and
  7. an address to which you would like the ballot mailed, if applicable.
Absentee ballot applications must be received by your county's board of elections by noon of the Saturday before the election.

Based on these instructions, this individual will need to provide which of the following additional materials in order to acquire an absentee ballot?

  1. a paycheck that she has endorsed but not yet cashed
  2. a copy of her birth certificate
  3. a statement declaring that she is a qualified elector
  4. a copy of her most recent phone bill
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to use information presented in a technical text to gain knowledge and develop skills, such as learning and exercising citizens' rights. When the individual acquires the application at her local board of elections, she will be able to fill in her name, date of birth, and current address as well as provide her signature. In addition, she will have in hand her driver's license, the address to which she would like her ballot mailed, and a statement identifying the elections in which she would like to vote. According to the instructions, then, the last piece she will need to complete her application is a statement declaring that she is a qualified elector.

Domain II—Analyzing and Interpreting Literature

Competency 005—Understand strategies for analyzing and interpreting various forms of literary nonfiction, fiction, and drama.

5. Read the excerpt below from an autobiographical work; then answer the question that follows.

The barrenness of Stamps1 was exactly what I wanted, without will or consciousness. After St. Louis, with its noise and activity, its trucks and buses, and loud family gatherings, I welcomed the obscure lanes and lonely bungalows set back deep in dirt yards. The resignation of its inhabitants encouraged me to relax. They showed me a contentment based on the belief that nothing more was coming to them, although a great deal more was due. Their decision to be satisfied with life's inequities was a lesson for me. Entering Stamps, I had the feeling that I was stepping over the border lines of the map and would fall, without fear, right off the end of the world. Nothing more could happen, for in Stamps nothing happened.

blank line
1 Stamps: town in Arkansas

Source: Angelou, Maya. From I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS, copyright 1969 and renewed 1997 by Maya Angelou. For on-line information about other Random House, Inc. books and authors, see the Internet web site at http://www.randomhouse.com. Used by permission of Random House, Inc.

In this excerpt, the narrator's tone reflects an attitude of:

  1. passive submission.
  2. superiority and condescension.
  3. stubborn resistance.
  4. boredom and impatience.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to analyze the use of tone in a work of literary prose. In the excerpt, the narrator describes the "resignation" and "contentment" exhibited by the inhabitants of the small, quiet town of Stamps and explains that she, too, has begun to adopt the same placid disposition. It "was exactly what I wanted. . . . I welcomed the obscure lanes and the lonely bungalows set back deep in dirt yards."

Competency 006—Understand strategies for analyzing and interpreting various forms of poetry.

6. Read the excerpt below from a work of poetry; then answer the question that follows.

Streaming tears, sobbing tears, throes, choked with wild cries;
O storm, embodied, rising, careering with swift steps along
the beach!
O wild and dismal night storm, with wind—O belching and
desperate!
O shade so sedate and decorous by day, with calm countenance
and regulated pace,
But away at night as you fly, none looking—O then the
unloosen'd ocean,
Of tears! tears! tears!

Which of the following figures of speech is used in this excerpt to emphasize the passionate nature of the speaker's appeal?

  1. synecdoche
  2. hyperbole
  3. simile
  4. apostrophe
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to analyze the use of a figure of speech in a work of poetry. An apostrophe is a rhetorical figure used to address directly and explicitly an abstract or inanimate entity (e.g., Justice, an absent lover, a painting). In the excerpt, phrases such as "O wild and dismal night storm" and "O shade so sedate and decorous" indicate the speaker's use of apostrophe.

Competency 007—Understand the major characteristics of literatures from around the world.

7. Which of the following statements best describes the stylistic and thematic characteristics of a fable?

  1. It uses humor and hyperbole to create a fantasy that reflects, celebrates, or criticizes social values.
  2. It dramatizes human actions through animal characters in order to teach a moral lesson about human behavior.
  3. It describes events in the life of a well-known community figure in order to memorialize that figure.
  4. It combines elements of reality and magic in order to reveal insights into human nature.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the stylistic and thematic characteristics of major literary genres from the oral tradition. A fable is a short story whose primary purpose is to instruct or guide, not just entertain. Most fables use anthropomorphism to express a moral lesson, usually in the form of an epigram. For example, the epigram "slow and steady wins the race" is from Aesop's well-known fable "The Tortoise and the Hare."

Competency 008—Understand the major historical, social, cultural, and political aspects of literatures from around the world.

8. Read the excerpt below from "The Cry of the Children," a poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning; then answer the question that follows.

Alas, alas, the children! they are seeking
Death in life, as best to have:
They are binding up their hearts away from breaking,
With a ceremen1 from the grave.
Go out, children, from the mine and from the city,
Sing out, children, as the little thrushes do;
Pluck your handfuls of the meadow-cowslips2 pretty,
Laugh aloud, to feel your fingers let them through!
But they answer, "Are your cowslips of the meadows
Like our weeds anear the mine?
Leave us quiet in the dark of the coal-shadows,
From your pleasures fair and fine!"

blank line
1 ceremen: burial shroud
2 cowslips: primroses

In this excerpt, Browning is most likely trying to influence public opinion about which of the following social issues?

  1. elementary school truancy
  2. child labor exploitation
  3. infant mortality rates
  4. child hunger and homelessness
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option B is correct. This question requires the examinee to examine how a writer influenced public opinion about a major social issue through a literary work. In the excerpt, the speaker pities the children whose plight it is to work in mines and factories and entreats them to try to break away ("Go out, children, from the mine and from the city"), play, and be carefree ("Sing out, children," "Laugh aloud"). But the children can only reply, "Leave us quiet in the dark," indicating clearly their hopeless outlook.

Domain III—English Language Conventions, Composition, Writing Process, and Research

Competency 009—Understand the conventions of Standard American English and the elements of effective composition.

9. A writer has drafted the short paragraph below as part of a persuasive essay.

For many students who are finishing up high school, taking a year off before heading to college may be a wise decision. In fact, today, some colleges even strongly encourage potential college first-years to take time off before attending. Taking time off can allow a student to explore his or her career interests, travel abroad and learn a new language, volunteer for a political campaign, or simply work full time to save money. blank

Which of the following sentences would be most effective for the writer to use in the blank as a conclusion to this paragraph?

  1. Some high school students are not accepted at the colleges that they would like to attend, so they reapply to them the next year.
  2. There are many students who spend their first year of college partying, sleeping late, and skipping classes, which is a terrible waste.
  3. Some colleges have found that high school students who take a year off before attending college end up earning better grades in college.
  4. There are many exciting opportunities to take advantage of after high school, and going to college is only one of them.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of developing a conclusion to a text that provides a summary or resolution. The first two sentences of the paragraph introduce the idea that, for many students, taking a year off between high school and college may be advisable. Next, a list of several constructive ways in which to spend a year off is provided. In response D, the main idea of the paragraph is summed up most effectively and thus is the best conclusion; the other responses serve only to introduce more details, some of which are tangential to the main idea of the paragraph.

Competency 010—Understand the writing process.

10. A writer has drafted the short paragraph below as part of an expository essay.

Diana Chang is a contemporary Chinese American poet. She spent much of her childhood in China. Her work reflects her cultural heritage. Her work often exhibits the use of ancient Chinese verse forms.

Which of the following edited versions of this paragraph should the writer choose to use in the essay to engage the reader more fully and provide the clearest meaning?

  1. Diana Chang, who spent most of her childhood in China, is a contemporary Chinese American poet whose work reflects her cultural heritage. In fact, many of her poems exhibit the influence of ancient Chinese verse forms.
  2. Many contemporary Chinese American poets exhibit the use of ancient Chinese verse forms in their works. Diana Chang spent much of her childhood in China and now lives in the United States. As a result, her work often reflects her Chinese cultural heritage.
  3. Diana Chang spent much of her childhood in China. Now, she spends much of her adult life writing poetry. She is Chinese American. She writes poetry that reflects her cultural heritage. She writes poetry that reflects ancient Chinese verse forms.
  4. Many poets reflect their cultural heritage in their works. They use ancient verse forms. One contemporary Chinese American poet, Diana Chang, spent much of her childhood in China and now lives in the United States.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of editing text to generate interest and clarify meaning. In response A, the first three sentences of the original draft are combined to subordinate information in the clearest and most appropriate way. Also, the last sentence of the original draft is linked effectively to the preceding sentence by employing a transitional phrase ("In fact, . . .).

Competency 011—Understand the elements of effective and appropriate research.

11. A writer is developing a research paper and decides to use the passage below to support an idea in the paper.

Writers are hunter-gatherers by nature and need. I started early and never quit. All fiction is based on research. We need voices that aren't ours and experiences we never had. In my case, it's invariably a young person's voice that jumpstarts my next novel. Happily, it keeps happening.

—"The Story as Alternative Universe," by Richard Peck (English Journal, p. 73)


Source: Peck, Richard. The Story as Alternative Universe. Copyright 2008 by the National Council of Teachers of English. Reprinted with permission.

Which of the following attempts to quote and paraphrase this passage would be most appropriate for the writer to use in the paper?

  1. According to Richard Peck, writers are hunter-gatherers by nature and need. He believes that all fiction is based on research, and for him, it is usually "a young person's voice" that provides him with a new perspective for "jumpstarting" his next novel (Peck 73).
  2. Most writers are like hunter-gatherers. They "need voices that aren't theirs and experiences they never had." For Richard Peck, it's usually a young person's voice that provides the impulse for beginning a new novel. "And happily," he is able to find that voice regularly (Peck 73).
  3. According to Richard Peck, "writers are hunter-gatherers by nature and need." They must look outside themselves for people, places, and perspectives to use in their works that are new and revealing. "We need voices that aren't ours and experiences we never had" (Peck 73).
  4. Most fiction relies on research for its insights. Richard Peck points out that writers are like "hunter-gatherers." By nature and need, they must find "voices" that are not theirs and "experiences" that are not familiar to them. Happily for Peck, this "keeps happening" (Peck 73).
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of quoting from and paraphrasing sources appropriately. In response C, a signal phrase introduces the source of the ideas and the quotations used in the paragraph, attributing them appropriately to Richard Peck. Peck's main idea is also paraphrased appropriately; each quotation captures his unique ideas and forms of expression. The other responses provide deficient paraphrases and contain examples of plagiarism, misquoting, and ineffective or unnecessary quoting.

Domain IV—Modes of Writing

Competency 012—Understand strategies for narrative writing.

12. Which of the following versions of a paragraph from a personal journal best demonstrates the use of vivid, concrete details to describe a place?

  1. In my town, the most popular breakfast spot is Josie's Diner. Situated just off the main highway, the diner has been a favorite with both locals and out-of-towners ever since it opened in 1972. Once you try the pancakes at Josie's, you will understand why many people refuse to eat pancakes anywhere else.
  2. I have been a loyal patron of Josie's Diner for many years. I am a local, but many other loyal customers travel from great distances. Because Josie's is close to a major highway, there are always many interesting people at the counter when I stop in for breakfast. Most of us are there for one thing: the pancakes.
  3. Josie's Diner may look like a ramshackle house, but it is really breakfast heaven. Inside, friendly chatter and clattering dishes drown out the rumble of traffic from the nearby highway. The torn vinyl stools at the stainless-steel counter are front-row seats for the best breakfast in town: a short stack of hot buttermilk pancakes.
  4. Even though Josie's is a roadside diner like hundreds of other roadside diners, it has become a popular place in our town, and for miles around, to eat breakfast. The diner itself is nothing special to look at inside or out, but the people who come from near and far are not there for the view. They are there for the pancakes.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of selecting effective and appropriate sensory details and using specific nouns and strong verbs to convey precisely the unique aspects of a subject. In response C, the writer uses vivid details, such as "clattering dishes," "torn vinyl stools," and "hot buttermilk pancakes," to create the clearest and strongest sensory impression of the diner.

Competency 013—Understand strategies for expository writing.

13. A writer develops the topic sentence below for a paragraph in an expository essay on ancient Egyptian architecture.

The Great Pyramid is an immense structure and the largest of the three pyramids of Giza, Egypt.

Which of the following supporting details would be most effective for the writer to use in the paragraph with this topic sentence?

  1. The length of each side of the Great Pyramid at its base is over 750 feet, which is equivalent to the distance spanned by about 20 full-size school buses placed end to end.
  2. The four sides of the Great Pyramid are slightly and evenly bowed in, creating a concavity which, remarkably, matches the curvature of the earth.
  3. The Great Sphinx, which lies just south of the Great Pyramid, extends approximately 240 feet in length and is carved entirely from limestone.
  4. The ancient Greek historian Herodotus estimated that it took about 100,000 laborers over 20 years to complete the construction of the Great Pyramid.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of selecting effective and appropriate supporting details to use in expository writing. Response A provides the only supporting detail pertaining to the size of the Great Pyramid ("each side . . . over 750 feet") and does so in a way that is easy to envision ("the distance spanned by about 20 full-size school buses"). The other responses provide details pertaining to the shape or construction of the Great Pyramid and so do not support the topic sentence.

Competency 014—Understand strategies for persuasive writing.

14. A writer has drafted the short paragraph below as part of a newspaper editorial.

I am against the current proposal for constructing a new expressway that would run through, or at least closely around, our city. We are already grossly over budget in our spending on the city's bridges and roads, so spending even more money on an expressway at this time would be unwise. blank Let's face it, expressways are dirty, noisy, and dangerous. Therefore, we should act now to block this proposal and preserve the high quality of life that we currently enjoy in our city.

Which of the following sentences would be most effective for the writer to use in the blank in this paragraph to anticipate and respond to a potential counter-argument?

  1. Supporters of this proposal would like to fund the construction of the expressway through a federal loan, but they have not yet determined what the term and amount of the loan should be.
  2. Some people insist on promoting systems and technologies that shuttle us through our daily lives at a faster and faster pace, when really what we need to do is slow down and savor each day.
  3. Supporters of this proposal completely lack any background knowledge in urban planning or city transit systems, which makes them unqualified to assess the soundness of the proposal.
  4. Some people claim that having a new expressway would alleviate downtown traffic congestion, but an expressway could also make down-town traffic worse by facilitating drivers' access to the city.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option D is correct. This question requires the examinee to recognize methods of anticipating a counterargument for a point made in persuasive writing and of incorporating an effective response to it in writing. Response D provides the most effective counterargument to the "no new expressway" position: namely, an expressway could reduce downtown traffic. Response D also responds to the counterargument effectively: an expressway could actually increase downtown traffic by providing easy access. The other responses either fail to provide a compelling counterargument and response or provide one that is immaterial or irrelevant to the writer's position.

Competency 015—Understand strategies for critical or analytical writing.

15. A primary purpose of analytical writing in response to literature is to:

  1. argue a point about the artistic merits of a literary work by citing relevant supporting details from the work.
  2. explain how a literary work has influenced and been influenced by social and cultural trends.
  3. interpret a literary work by examining its plot, characters, themes, and stylistic elements.
  4. describe the process by which the author of a literary work conceived and developed the idea for the work.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the purposes of analytical writing in response to literature. The primary purpose of analytical writing, particularly in response to literature, is to examine closely how various literary devices and techniques, such as plot, characterization, and imagery, are used to create meaning, convey messages, and develop themes or central ideas in a work.

Domain V—Oral and Visual Communication

Competency 016—Understand strategies for effective listening and speaking and for participating in group discussions.

16. A dinner guest has just finished a delicious meal and feels full but could eat more if it were considered socially appropriate to do so. The host, at whose home the dinner has taken place, approaches the guest, and the conversation below occurs.

HOST: Well, I see that you've cleaned your plate. Would you like to have some more?
DINNER GUEST: No, thank you. The meal was delicious, but I'm full.
HOST: Oh, nonsense. You must have some more to eat. Please. There's plenty!
DINNER GUEST: Oh, no, thank you. I really couldn't. It was a wonderful meal, but I don't think I could eat another bite.
HOST: Are you sure? You seemed to enjoy the main course so much. Please try some more, will you?

Source: Koester, Jolene and Myron W. Lustig, et al. From Intercultural Competence: Interpersonal Communication across Cultures, copyright © Pearson Education, Inc. Used with permission.

Which of the following factors would be most important for the dinner guest to consider before responding to the host?

  1. the facial expressions of the host
  2. the difference in age between the guest and host
  3. the cultural background of the host
  4. the differences in body language used by the guest and host
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option C is correct. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of the social norms and conventions involved in interpersonal communication and how these are influenced by factors such as self-concept, cultural or socioeconomic background, age, and gender. In this case, the host's cultural background would be the most relevant factor for the dinner guest to consider, since in some cultures, one or two initial "no, thank you" responses are not interpreted as a true negative response. In the host's culture, it may be customary to offer a second helping three or four times before finally withdrawing the offer.

Competency 017—Understand strategies for effective viewing and presenting and for analyzing various media.

17. The diagram below is used in a magazine article about coffee consumption in the United States.

The diagram is titled U.S. Coffee Consumption (average fluid ounces per person per day). It shows 2 full coffee cups, side by side, of different sizes. The cup on the left is labeled 11 (1980), and has 2 vertical wavy lines above the coffee in the cup. The cup on the right is labeled 39 (2000), has 5 vertical wavy lines above the coffee in the cup, and is approximately 8 times larger than the cup on the left.

Which of the following statements describes the most significant way in which this diagram is misleading?

  1. The actual increase in coffee consumption given by the numerical data is significantly less than what is represented pictorially by the two coffee cups.
  2. The horizontal, side-by-side positioning of the coffee cups makes it more difficult to determine the increase than if the cups were positioned vertically, one above the other.
  3. The coffee in the cup on the right is represented pictorially as being hotter than the coffee in the cup on the left, but no data on how coffee temperature affects consumption is given.
  4. The actual increase in coffee consumption cannot be determined numerically without knowing how many fluid ounces each of the two cups can hold.
Enter to expand or collapse answer.Answer expanded
Option A is correct. This question requires the examinee to examine how elements of visual images used in various media can be manipulated to influence public opinion. The numerical data in the diagram indicate that average coffee consumption per person in the United States increased by approximately 3.5 times between 1980 and 2000. However, the images used to reflect these data (the coffee cups) indicate that consumption increased by approximately 8 times.
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