16Hit1600
Information and IdeasMediumInference about a cause from timing

Information and Ideas practice question

The cracks in the hall's ceiling appear each January and close up again by June. The surveyor found no fault in the roof or the walls. ____

Which choice most logically completes the text?

  1. A. The cracks are most likely caused by the seasonal drying and swelling of the building's timbers rather than by any structural defect.Correct
  2. B. The hall is about to collapse.
  3. C. The surveyor missed a hole in the roof.
  4. D. The cracks are permanent.

Answer: A. The cracks are most likely caused by the seasonal drying and swelling of the building's timbers rather than by any structural defect.

Open in winter, closed by summer, nothing structural wrong: the seasons, not a defect.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. The hall is about to collapse.
No fault was found.
C. The surveyor missed a hole in the roof.
Not suggested.
D. The cracks are permanent.
They close by June.

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