Read the excerpt from Neil deGrasse Tyson’s “Death by Black Hole.”

If you stumbled upon a black hole and found yourself falling feet-first toward its center, then as you got closer, the black hole’s force of gravity would grow astronomically. Curiously, you would not feel this force at all because, like anything in free fall, you are weightless. What you do feel, however, is something far more sinister. While you fall, the black hole’s force of gravity at your two feet, they being closer to the black hole’s center, accelerates them faster than does the weaker force of gravity at your head.

Read the excerpt from Billy Collins’s “Man Listening to Disc.”

the only true point of view,
is full of the hope that he,
the hub of the cosmos
with his hair blown sideways,
will eventually make it all the way downtown.

Which choice best describes the differing views Tyson and Collins present of humanity?

A.Tyson describes a sinister universe where men are eaten by black holes, while Collins describes a cosmos full of hope for a better future.

B.Tyson writes about a scientific fact of life, while Collins writes about an emotionally charged event in his life.

C.Tyson presents humans as powerless against the forces of nature, while Collins presents an individual creating his own destiny.

D.Tyson suggests that people have no control of their lives in a dangerous world, while Collins reminds people to take control and be focused.

In the first excerpt, Tyson describes what would happen to a human body as it falls feet-first towards the center of a black hole. His description is bleak, and it shows the human as powerless against such strong forces. The second passage, however, is a lot more positive about the possibility of human action. The passage places the man at the center of the cosmos, and as the recipient of all hope. It shows that the individual has enough agency to create his own destiny.