Question 147·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has compiled the following notes:
- Two subspecies of gorilla live in Central Africa.
- Mountain gorillas inhabit high-altitude forests; scientists estimate their population at about 1,000 individuals.
- Eastern lowland gorillas inhabit lowland forests; scientists estimate their population at roughly 3,800 individuals.
- Both subspecies are classified as critically endangered.
The student wants to emphasize how the population of mountain gorillas compares with that of eastern lowland gorillas. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions with notes, first restate the task in your own words (what, exactly, does the student want to emphasize?). Next, quickly mark which notes are relevant to that goal (here, the two population estimates). Then scan the answer choices and immediately eliminate any that (1) don’t use the key type of information (like population numbers) or (2) introduce new explanations or causes not supported by the notes. Choose the sentence that directly, accurately, and efficiently uses the relevant notes to fulfill the stated purpose.
Hints
Clarify the goal
Focus on the phrase "emphasize how the population of mountain gorillas compares with that of eastern lowland gorillas." What kind of information must be included to do that?
Find the key notes
Look at the bullet points: which ones give specific information about population sizes, and which talk about other things like habitat or conservation status?
Match notes to choices
Eliminate any choices that do not directly mention population or that mainly discuss habitat, behavior, or conservation status instead. Then, among the remaining options, look for one that clearly compares the two populations using information from the notes, without introducing a new explanation that isn't given.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the task in the question
The prompt says: "The student wants to emphasize how the population of mountain gorillas compares with that of eastern lowland gorillas." That means the correct answer must focus on population size and must compare the two subspecies’ numbers.
Locate the relevant notes
Look back at the bullet points and ask: which bullets tell us about population?
- Mountain gorillas: population about 1,000.
- Eastern lowland gorillas: population roughly 3,800. These are the key facts needed to compare the populations. The other notes (location, altitude, endangered status) are not the main focus for this specific task.
Check each choice against the goal and notes
Now compare the answer choices to the task:
- Choice A talks about both being critically endangered and living in forests of Central Africa, but it does not mention population numbers or compare them.
- Choice B focuses on elevation, behavior, and diet, not population, so it doesn’t answer the question.
- Choice D mentions that there are nearly four times as many eastern lowland gorillas, but it adds a cause ("Because of habitat differences") that the notes never state, so it goes beyond the information provided. Only one choice both uses the specific population estimates from the notes and directly compares the two groups without adding new, unsupported claims.
Identify the sentence that best compares the populations
The sentence that directly uses the given estimates (about 1,000 mountain gorillas and roughly 3,800 eastern lowland gorillas) to compare their population sizes—and does not introduce extra, unsupported explanations—is: “Scientists estimate that only about 1,000 mountain gorillas remain, compared with roughly 3,800 eastern lowland gorillas.”