Godinez: In the past, land was sometimes measured by the amount of time required to plow it. Thus, two plots of equal physical dimensions were considered unequal if one was more difficult to plow than the other. However, knowing how long an area takes to plow reveals little about how many apartment complexes it can hold. Therefore, it became necessary to adopt new measures of land, such as acreage, when land uses diversified.Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main conclusion drawn in Godinez's argument?The argument concludes that
diversified land uses made new measures of land necessary because plowing time was no longer useful for all purposes.
(A) It is now easier to measure a piece of land in terms of acres than in terms of plowing time.
Incorrect. The argument is about usefulness, not ease of measurement.
(B) For modern purposes, newer methods provide a more accurate measure of land than plowing time does.
Incorrect. This is too broad. The argument says plowing time became inadequate for
some new land uses, not that newer measures are always more accurate.
(C) Some plots of land that would have been considered unequal by plowing-time measurements are of equal physical dimensions.
Incorrect. This is a supporting fact, not the main conclusion.
(D) Modern measures of land were adopted when people realized that plowing time was an inadequate measure for some land uses.
Incorrect. This is close, but it focuses on when and why the measures were adopted. The conclusion is stated more directly as the necessity created by diversified land uses.
(E) The advent of diversified land uses made new measures of land necessary.
Correct. This directly restates the final sentence and therefore expresses the main conclusion.
Answer: (E)