PrepTest 123, Section 1, Question 19
The following passage was written in the mid-1990s.(458 more words not shown)
The author's discussion in the(9 more words not shown)
- Asubstantiate the claim(13 more words not shown)
- Bundermine the claim(17 more words not shown)
- Cspecify the time(12 more words not shown)
- Doffer evidence for(11 more words not shown)
- Eforeshadow a claim(11 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
Find the third sentence before evaluating the choices. It predicts that air pollution will double over the next 25 years, even with efficient energy use. Why put that here? The preceding sentence warns about harm from using more fossil fuels. This forecast makes that problem concrete and helps explain why the discussion turns to other sources of electricity.
Working the answers
- A
Increasing pollution doesn't establish the separate claim that electricity demand will rise by 50 percent. Those are different projections; this sentence develops the environmental concern.
- B
The point that the increase can occur despite efficient energy use (paragraph 1) makes this tempting. But pollution could be lower than it would be without efficiency and still increase. The sentence shows that fossil-fuel use remains a problem, rather than establishing that efficient use is ineffective at addressing environmental harm.
- C
The 25-year period belongs to the pollution forecast. It isn't presented as a deadline for developing renewable technology.
- DCorrect
The expected deterioration in air quality is evidence of the problem with fossil fuels. The words “For example” explicitly connect it to the preceding warning about harm to human and environmental health.
- E
The sentence concerns pollution from electricity generation. It says nothing about local participation, so it doesn't preview the later explanation of how renewable projects should involve local people.
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