PrepTest 138, Section 4, Question 8
Adobe is an ideal material for building in(67 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(11 more words not shown)
- AAdobe is a(16 more words not shown)
- BIn the desert,(21 more words not shown)
- CBecause adobe conducts(10 more words not shown)
- DIdeally, a material(17 more words not shown)
- EAdobe is an(11 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Why is adobe ideal? Is it cheap? Does it last? What makes it particularly good for a desert house?
The author answers with temperature. Adobe transfers heat slowly, so the house stays cooler during the hot day and retains warmth into the cool evening. Other commonly used materials respond more rapidly, leaving houses hot during the day and cold at night. I can see why the adobe house would be more comfortable.
What we’re looking for
We could still ask about cost, durability or environmental effects. Those might matter if we were evaluating the recommendation. But the question asks us to identify it. All the temperature discussion supports the first sentence: adobe is an ideal material for building in desert environments. Keep both the material and the setting in the answer.
Working the answers
- A
This is tempting because it also calls adobe suitable and mentions heat conduction. But it changes the setting. The conclusion concerns desert environments; A concerns any setting where a structure's heat-conduction properties are especially important. Those properties might matter elsewhere for quite different reasons. We haven't established that adobe is suitable in every such setting.
- B
This states a benefit used to support the conclusion. Why is adobe especially suitable for desert houses? Because it helps them stay cool during the day and warm into the evening. The benefit explains the recommendation; it isn't the recommendation itself.
- C
This links the slow heat transfer to the pleasant temperature. That explains part of the argument, but still stops short of its main claim about adobe being an ideal building material for this environment. We want the point those thermal benefits support.
- D
This proposes a general standard for judging desert building materials. It may help explain why the author values adobe, but the stated conclusion is about adobe itself. D never says that adobe is especially suitable, so it leaves out the recommendation we are identifying.
- ECorrect
Adobe is especially suitable for desert houses. That captures the force of calling it an ideal material and keeps the original desert setting. An answer can paraphrase the conclusion without repeating 'ideal' exactly. What matters is preserving the claim, not matching a single word.
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