Expression of IdeasEasyRhetorical synthesis: stating the purpose of a study
Expression of Ideas practice question
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
• Marine biologist Lena Ortiz studies kelp forests along the California coast.
• Sea urchins feed on kelp.
• Sea otters are a protected species in California.
• Ortiz's team counted sea urchins at 12 kelp forest sites.
• The team's aim was to determine whether the presence of sea otters reduces sea urchin populations.
The student wants to explain the purpose of Ortiz's team's research. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
- A. Sea urchins, which feed on kelp, are found in kelp forests along the California coast.
- B. Ortiz's team counted sea urchins at 12 kelp forest sites in order to determine whether the presence of sea otters reduces urchin populations.Correct
- C. Sea otters, a protected species in California, live near kelp forests studied by marine biologist Lena Ortiz.
- D. Ortiz's team counted sea urchins at 12 different kelp forest sites along the California coast.
Answer: B. Ortiz's team counted sea urchins at 12 kelp forest sites in order to determine whether the presence of sea otters reduces urchin populations.
B is correct: it pairs what the team did with why they did it ("in order to determine whether the presence of sea otters reduces urchin populations"), directly stating the research purpose. A gives only background biology about urchins and states no purpose. C gives background about sea otters' protected status, which is unrelated to the aim of the study. D describes the team's procedure but omits the goal, mistaking method for purpose.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Sea urchins, which feed on kelp, are found in kelp forests along the California coast.
- This is background biology about urchins and kelp — it never states why Ortiz's team conducted the study.
- C. Sea otters, a protected species in California, live near kelp forests studied by marine biologist Lena Ortiz.
- The sea otters' protected status is a fact from the notes but not the aim of the research; the purpose was to test whether otters reduce urchin populations.
- D. Ortiz's team counted sea urchins at 12 different kelp forest sites along the California coast.
- You captured what the team did (counting urchins at 12 sites) but stopped before the "in order to" — that's the method, not the purpose.
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