GDT wrote:
MentorTutoringCan you pls explain this question
I chose C as the answer
Thanks in advance
Hello,
GDT. The question is deceptively simple, perhaps the reason that, as of this writing, it stands at a 95% difficulty level. If you just follow the keywords, though, it is pretty straightforward. (I answered correctly in under a minute and a half, but as you know from our ongoing dialogue, I work on these upper-level questions all the time.) Since we need to fill in the blank, there is nothing to discuss, really, in the way of a question. Rather, we need to follow up on the premise that certain states
are in a strong position to recover employment opportunities by expanding into the "green energy" sector. How so?
arps wrote:
States hit hardest by losses in manufacturing jobs are in a strong position to recover employment opportunities by expanding into the “green energy” sector. Existing infrastructure and transportation systems put these states in a position to adapt quickly and __________________________________ .
Which of the following, completes the passage ?
arps wrote:
(A) begin manufacturing materials and finished renewable energy products.
It seems fitting to use
green to refer to
renewable energy. There are two parts to this answer that make its justification ironclad. First, notice the word
begin. I know it might seem insignificant, but the passage mentions
expanding into a certain sector, adding that certain states can
adapt quickly. Adapt what, you might ask. Whether you favor an interpretation that these states need to
adapt to the loss of employment in manufacturing or to
adapt their
existing infrastructure and transportation systems to become more green, it is clear that change is in the air, and
begin conveys such a change. The latter part, about
renewable energy, completes the setup of
expanding into the "green energy" sector. You could argue that the terms
renewable energy and
green energy are not well-established synonyms, requiring a little background knowledge to put together, but I think
green associations have been discussed widely enough for long enough that we should probably feel pretty comfortable with such usage.
arps wrote:
(B) take advantage of tax rebates offered for green businesses.
Why
tax rebates specifically? The passage is concerned with shifting an existing manufacturing model into a greener one. The businesses would need to convert first, and tax rebates associated with such a change are not the primary consideration here.
arps wrote:
(C) regain jobs lost due to a slowdown in the manufacturing industry.
I do not typically negate an entire answer choice, but this one just misses the mark. Because the conjunction
and is being used just before the blank
without a comma, we can conclude that it is joining two ideas, as in,
A and B, rather than joining two independent clauses. What are the only two notions brought up in the passage? First, that certain states are well positioned to recover manufacturing jobs, and second, that jobs can be recovered by
going green, more or less. The earlier part of the last sentence of the passage checks the box about certain states being in a position to recover, so this answer choice is redundant, failing to deliver on the
why from the setup: once again,
by expanding into the "green energy" sector.
arps wrote:
(D) continue manufacturing wind turbines and other products popular in the green energy sector.
If these states are already
manufacturing such items yet jobs are being lost, then how will continuing the process make anything better? Like produces like. Just as I focused earlier on
begin in choice (A), I think it is worth considering just what
continue conveys here.
arps wrote:
(E) start an aggressive research process to determine the viability of green energy in the area.
We are not concerned with
the viability of green energy. Rather, the passage presents expanding into green energy as a ticket to recovering lost manufacturing jobs. Also, what are we to make of
an aggressive research process? Can other states only conduct less aggressive research? Besides, unless the jobless manufacturing employees were conducting the research, then it is hard to see how this answer choice would help such workers
recover employment opportunities in the immediate future.
I hope that helps. If you have further questions, feel free to ask.
- Andrew