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Information and IdeasHardInference from a timing pattern

Information and Ideas practice question

The town's river runs brown for a day after every heavy rain, but only downstream of the new housing estate; upstream it stays clear. This suggests that ____

Which choice most logically completes the text?

  1. A. rain is washing soil from the estate's building site into the river.Correct
  2. B. the river's source is polluted.
  3. C. the estate's residents pour paint into the river.
  4. D. the river is always brown.

Answer: A. rain is washing soil from the estate's building site into the river.

Brown only downstream of the estate, only after rain: run-off from the site.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. the river's source is polluted.
Upstream stays clear.
C. the estate's residents pour paint into the river.
The link to heavy rain points to run-off, not deliberate dumping.
D. the river is always brown.
'Only after heavy rain.'

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