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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:

  • Ducklings expend up to 62.8% less energy when swimming in a line behind their mother than when swimming alone.
  • The physics behind this energy savings hasn’t always been well understood.
  • Naval architect Zhiming Yuan used computer simulations to study the effect of the mother duck’s wake.
  • The study revealed that ducklings are pushed in a forward direction by the wake’s waves.
  • Yuan determined this push reduces the effect of wave drag on the ducklings by 158%.

The student wants to present the study and its methodology. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

ExplanationShow

Choice B is the best answer. The sentence presents both the study and its methodology (that is, the researcher’s approach to the problem), explaining that Yuan used computer simulations to study the effect of the mother duck’s wake on the ducklings’ energy expenditure.

Choice A is incorrect. The sentence describes the findings of Yuan’s study; it doesn’t present the study and its methodology. Choice C is incorrect. While the sentence provides general information about Yuan’s study, it doesn’t present the study’s methodology. Choice D is incorrect. The sentence describes the findings of Yuan’s study; it doesn’t present the study and its methodology. 

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