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Rhetorical Synthesis SAT question

Reading and Writing · Expression of Ideas · Hard · Answer it here, explanation included.

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

  • British musicians John Lennon and Paul McCartney shared writing credit for numerous Beatles songs.
  • Many Lennon-McCartney songs were actually written by either Lennon or McCartney, not by both.
  • The exact authorship of specific parts of many Beatles songs, such as the verse for “In My Life,” is disputed.
  • Mark Glickman, Jason Brown, and Ryan Song used statistical methods to analyze the musical content of Beatles songs.
  • They concluded that there is 18.9% probability that McCartney wrote the verse for “In My Life,” stating that the verse is “consistent with Lennon’s songwriting style.”

The student wants to make a generalization about the kind of study conducted by Glickman, Brown, and Song. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

ExplanationShow

Choice D is the best answer. The sentence uses information from the notes to make a generalization about the kind of study Glickman, Brown, and Song conducted. Specifically, the sentence indicates that the study was of a kind that used statistical methods to address questions of authorship within the field of music.

Choice A is incorrect because the sentence summarizes the methodology and findings of a particular analysis of a single song; it doesn’t make a generalization about the kind of study conducted. Choice B is incorrect because the sentence mentions the data and conclusion of a particular analysis of a single song; it doesn’t make a generalization about the kind of study conducted. Choice C is incorrect because the sentence focuses on a specific conclusion from a particular analysis of a single song; it doesn’t make a generalization about the kind of study conducted.

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