With the help of reports from Reddit's r/SAT, I’ve compiled a list of the most common and challenging vocabulary from the August 2024 US and International SATs. I've put these into a quiz format for students and parents to challenge themselves. Good luck!

SAT Vocabulary August International 2024 - Warm-up Reading Passage

Instructions: Read this passage carefully before taking your quiz. All 15 vocabulary words from March 2024 appear in context. Pay attention to how each word is used naturally in the story.

The Eccentric Professor's Unprecedented Discovery

Dr. Elena Vasquez was widely regarded as the most eccentric professor in the history department at Columbia University. Her colleagues would often behold her conducting lectures while wearing mismatched socks and a vintage lab coat covered in historical quotes. Despite her unconventional appearance, students found it entirely conceivable that she might revolutionize their understanding of the past.

Professor Vasquez had spent decades developing what she called "counterfactual historical analysis" – a method that explored alternative scenarios to better understand actual events. Unlike traditional historians who relied on documented evidence, she would conjecture about pivotal moments and ask, "What if Napoleon had won at Waterloo?" or "What if Lincoln had survived the assassination?"

Her department chair, Dr. Morrison, initially took a haphazard approach to evaluating her research methods. He would regard her work with skepticism, particularly when she would impart these unconventional theories to her students. Morrison's equivocal statements about her tenure review left everyone uncertain about her future at the university.

The breakthrough came when Professor Vasquez discovered a collection of previously unknown Civil War documents in the university archives. Rather than omit the controversial passages, she decided to exact permission from the archive committee to study them thoroughly. She chose to imitate the rigorous methodology of renowned historians while applying her unique counterfactual approach.

Her analysis revealed an unprecedented pattern: military leaders had consistently considered alternative strategies that, had they been implemented, might have significantly altered the war's outcome. This discovery transformed her from an academic curiosity into a respected authority on historical decision-making.

The publication of her findings sparked intense debate in academic circles. Some scholars praised her innovative approach, while others dismissed her methods as too speculative. However, her ability to impart complex historical concepts through engaging counterfactual scenarios made her one of the most sought-after professors on campus.

Today, Professor Vasquez continues to teach her students that history is not merely a collection of facts to behold and memorize, but a complex web of decisions and possibilities that can be explored through careful analysis and informed conjecture. Her eccentric methods have proven that sometimes the most unprecedented approaches yield the most profound insights into our understanding of the past.