Question 115·Easy·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Dr. Maya Patel is an environmental engineer.
- In 2016, she designed a low-cost solar-powered water purifier.
- The purifier has been deployed in more than 30 countries and serves rural communities.
- She founded ClearWaters, a nonprofit that trains local technicians.
- In 2021, she received the Green Horizons Award.
The student wants to emphasize Patel’s most influential contribution. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For note-synthesis questions, always start by restating the goal in your own words (for example, “show the biggest impact” or “emphasize a challenge”). Then scan the notes and pick the single most relevant detail or cluster of details that matches that goal—usually a specific action, result, or data point, not a title or award. Next, eliminate answer choices that (1) leave out that key detail, (2) focus on less important information, or (3) add ideas not supported by the notes. Choose the option that uses the most relevant notes and directly accomplishes the stated purpose in a clear, concise sentence.
Hints
Focus on the key phrase in the question
Underline or mentally highlight the words “most influential contribution.” Ask yourself: which note describes something Patel did that likely affected the largest number of people?
Compare the types of information in the notes
Separate the notes into categories: job title, specific projects or creations, organizations founded, and awards. Which category is most likely to show influence rather than just recognition or position?
Check how each choice uses the notes
For each answer choice, ask: does this sentence highlight a specific action or creation with clear impact, or does it just mention a role, organization, or award without showing how many people were helped?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the task in the question
The question asks which choice will emphasize Patel’s most influential contribution. That means we are looking for the note that shows her biggest, most impactful achievement, not just a job title, award, or vague description of her work.
Review the notes for the most impactful detail
Look through the notes and decide which one shows the strongest impact:
- She is an environmental engineer (this is a job description, not a contribution).
- In 2016, she designed a low-cost solar-powered water purifier.
- The purifier has been deployed in more than 30 countries and serves rural communities.
- She founded ClearWaters, a nonprofit that trains local technicians.
- In 2021, she received the Green Horizons Award.
Ask: Which detail shows a concrete thing she created or did that affects many people, on a large scale? The notes about the purifier and its use in more than 30 countries clearly show wide, real-world impact.
Match the goal with the choice that uses the most relevant notes
Now compare the answer options to see which one actually uses the key impactful notes.
- Eliminate choices that talk mainly about her title, her nonprofit, or her award if they don’t clearly show large-scale impact.
- Prefer the choice that combines her specific creation (the purifier) with evidence of its broad use (many countries, rural communities). This best matches “most influential contribution.”
Select the choice that best emphasizes the influential contribution
The only option that clearly presents a specific, influential contribution and shows its wide impact is:
A) In 2016, Dr. Maya Patel designed a low-cost solar-powered water purifier that has been deployed in more than 30 countries.
This choice ties together her invention with its global reach, directly emphasizing her most influential contribution.