PrepTest 106, Section 4, Question 6
Long after the lava has cooled, the effects(450 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(9 more words not shown)
- AThe effect of(14 more words not shown)
- BThe effect of(16 more words not shown)
- CThe effect of(13 more words not shown)
- DVolcanic eruptions appear(24 more words not shown)
- EResearchers tended to(22 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
We've already predicted two parts: eruptions seem to cool the climate less than researchers once thought, but a small initial drop could still set off feedback that causes substantial cooling in a region. We need both the smaller broad effect and the possible amplification. “Volcanoes have no effect” would miss that distinction.
Working the answers
- A
A significant regional effect is possible. But we aren't told that the regional effect is greater than previously estimated. This turns the final possibility into an unsupported comparison with earlier beliefs.
- B
This reverses the relationship developed at the end. A small broad temperature drop could be amplified into a large regional change, not necessarily a smaller one.
- C
The research finds less cooling than expected, not more. This gets the central finding backward.
- DCorrect
The broad effect appears smaller than previously thought, while feedback could produce significant regional cooling. This is a version of our prediction: the final paragraph explains why the study doesn't rule out something like a year without a summer in a particular area.
- E
The explanation after “because” isn't supported. Filtering out El Niño helps isolate volcanic effects, but we aren't told that earlier researchers exaggerated El Niño's effect in their calculations. A familiar topic doesn't make that diagnosis accurate.
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