Question 156·Hard·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has compiled the following notes:
- Dr. Gladys West is a mathematician from Virginia.
- She worked at the US Naval Weapons Laboratory in the 1960s.
- West developed the mathematical models that later enabled the creation of the Global Positioning System (GPS).
- She was inducted into the Air Force Space and Missile Pioneers Hall of Fame in 2018.
The student wants to write a sentence highlighting West's contribution to GPS. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions like this, first restate the goal in your own words (for example, “I need a sentence that explains what this person did for GPS”). Then scan the notes and underline or mentally mark the bullet that directly addresses that goal. Next, eliminate any answer choice that (1) leaves out the key idea tied to the goal, (2) focuses on unrelated details like awards or general biography, or (3) adds new, unsupported information. Finally, pick the choice that most directly and accurately uses the relevant note to fulfill the stated purpose of the sentence.
Hints
Clarify what the question is asking for
Focus on the phrase "highlighting West's contribution to GPS." What kind of detail from the notes would best show what she did related to GPS?
Find the most relevant note
Look through the bullet points and identify which one directly explains her role in how GPS was created, rather than where she worked or what recognition she received later.
Check for relevance and accuracy
Eliminate any answer that:
- Does not mention GPS at all,
- Focuses mainly on awards or general recognition, or
- Claims something that is not supported by the notes (for example, specific tasks she supposedly did that the notes never mention).
Match wording to the notes
After narrowing down, choose the option whose wording most closely matches the note about her work that enabled GPS, without changing or exaggerating what the notes say.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the task
The question says: "The student wants to write a sentence highlighting West's contribution to GPS." That means the best answer must do two things:
- Mention GPS clearly.
- Explain what West did that contributed to GPS (her specific work), not where she worked or awards she received.
Locate the key note about GPS
Look back at the bullet points and find the one that talks about GPS:
- "West developed the mathematical models that later enabled the creation of the Global Positioning System (GPS)."
This is the only note that directly states her contribution to GPS. Any correct sentence must be based mainly on this point and must stay factually accurate.
Eliminate options that don’t match the GPS contribution
Check each answer against that GPS note:
- Any option that focuses mostly on where she worked (for example, just naming the lab and decade) without clearly stating her GPS contribution is off-topic.
- Any option that focuses on her honors or recognition (like being inducted into a Hall of Fame) instead of what she did for GPS does not answer the question.
- Any option that says she did something with GPS that is not in the notes (such as programming early consumer GPS devices) is incorrect because it adds made-up information.
Only one option directly and accurately states that her work on mathematical models formed the basis for GPS.
Choose the sentence that directly states her GPS contribution
The correct choice is the one that says that mathematician Dr. Gladys West developed the precise mathematical models that formed the foundation of today’s GPS technology. This uses the relevant note about her developing mathematical models for GPS, keeps the meaning accurate, and clearly highlights her specific contribution to GPS.