31. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: This bias can lead to poor decision-making, as it causes individuals to ignore evidence that contradicts their initial stance. Q: It is a type of cognitive bias where people tend to favor information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs or hypotheses. R: Confirmation bias is a pervasive and often unconscious tendency in human reasoning. S: For example, a person who believes a particular political party is corrupt will actively seek out news stories that support this view while dismissing those that do not.

32. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: As a result, the soil loses its fertility, and the land becomes unproductive, a process known as desertification. Q: Deforestation, overgrazing, and unsustainable agricultural practices are primary drivers of this degradation. R: Land degradation is a critical environmental issue where the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of human-induced processes. S: These activities strip the land of vegetation, leaving the topsoil exposed to erosion by wind and water.

33. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: By the 18th century, however, this geocentric model had been supplanted by the heliocentric model, championed by astronomers like Copernicus and Galileo. Q: For over 1,500 years, the Ptolemaic system, which placed Earth at the center of the universe, was the accepted astronomical model in Western civilization. R: This paradigm shift was not merely a scientific adjustment but a profound reorientation of humanity's place in the cosmos. S: It was a complex system that, through the use of epicycles and deferents, could accurately predict the positions of the planets.

34. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: This is because they provide essential services like water purification, pollination of crops, and regulation of the climate. Q: Biodiversity, the variety of life on Earth, is not just about preserving iconic species like tigers or pandas. R: The loss of biodiversity, therefore, has far-reaching consequences that can directly impact human well-being and economic prosperity. S: It encompasses the entire web of life, and the health of ecosystems is fundamentally dependent on this variety.

35. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: This philosophical movement, known as Stoicism, taught that virtue, the highest good, is based on knowledge. Q: He believed that a divine reason, or logos, governs nature and that happiness is found by living in agreement with it. R: The ancient Greek philosopher Zeno of Citium founded a school of thought in Athens around the early 3rd century BC. S: The Stoics held that we cannot control external events, only our responses to them, and thus should remain indifferent to pleasure or pain.

36. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: This process allows neurons to transmit signals quickly and efficiently over long distances. Q: The axon of a neuron is often covered by a fatty substance called the myelin sheath. R: It is not continuous, however, but is interrupted by gaps known as the nodes of Ranvier. S: The electrical impulse, or action potential, effectively 'jumps' from one node to the next in a process called saltatory conduction.

37. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to make a meaningful sentence. P: for the complex interplay of genetic predispositions Q: that there is a growing appreciation among scientists R: and environmental factors in shaping human behavior S: it is now widely acknowledged

38. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: This is achieved by creating a strong magnetic field to confine a hot plasma of hydrogen isotopes. Q: Nuclear fusion is the process that powers the sun and other stars. R: The goal is to force the atomic nuclei within the plasma to fuse together, releasing vast amounts of energy. S: On Earth, researchers are trying to replicate this process in reactors to create a clean and virtually limitless source of energy.

39. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: The result was the 'Great Schism,' which permanently divided the Christian world into the Roman Catholic Church in the West and the Eastern Orthodox Church in the East. Q: For centuries, cultural, political, and theological differences had been growing between the eastern and western branches of Christianity. R: The breaking point is often cited as the mutual excommunications of 1054, when the Pope in Rome and the Patriarch of Constantinople declared each other anathema. S: These tensions included disputes over papal authority, the wording of the Nicene Creed, and liturgical practices.

40. Rearrange the following parts (P, Q, R, S) to form a coherent paragraph. P: By doing so, they created a system of government with limited powers, accountable to the people it governs. Q: The framers of the United States Constitution were deeply influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment. R: They sought to create a republic that would avoid the tyranny of monarchy and the chaos of pure democracy. S: Thinkers like John Locke, with his theories of natural rights, and Montesquieu, with his concept of the separation of powers, were particularly important.