Question 191·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Jocelyn Bell Burnell is an astrophysicist from Northern Ireland.
- In 1967, as a graduate student at the University of Cambridge, she discovered the first radio pulsars.
- The discovery earned the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physics, but it was awarded to her male supervisor and another astronomer.
- Bell Burnell later became the first female president of both the Royal Astronomical Society and the Institute of Physics.
The student wants to write a brief introduction to Jocelyn Bell Burnell and her landmark discovery.
Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions like this, start by restating the task in your own words (e.g., “I need a one-sentence intro to the person and their big achievement”). Then scan the notes to pick out which details directly serve that purpose—usually identity, main action, and significance. Compare the answer choices and quickly eliminate any that (1) leave out a required element from the question, (2) focus on side details like controversies or unrelated honors, or (3) misrepresent who did what. Choose the option that uses multiple key notes accurately and concisely while staying tightly focused on the stated goal.
Hints
Focus on the task words
Underline the words “brief introduction” and “her landmark discovery.” Which choice gives you both a clear sense of who she is and what major thing she did?
Decide which notes matter most
Look at the bullet points and ask: Which ones explain her identity and the big discovery itself, and which ones are extra background or later achievements?
Eliminate too-narrow choices
Cross out any option that talks mainly about the Nobel Prize issue or her leadership roles but does not clearly state what she discovered and why it was important.
Check for direct connection between person and discovery
Make sure the sentence clearly links Jocelyn Bell Burnell to the discovery itself (not just to astronomers in general or to people around her).
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the writing goal
The question says the student wants “a brief introduction to Jocelyn Bell Burnell and her landmark discovery.” That means the best answer must do both of these things:
- Introduce who she is.
- Explain what her major/landmark discovery was and why it matters.
Details that do not support those two goals are less important for this task.
Identify the most relevant notes
Look at the notes and decide which ones are needed for this introduction:
- Note 1: She is an astrophysicist from Northern Ireland. (Good for introducing who she is.)
- Note 2: In 1967, as a grad student at Cambridge, she discovered the first radio pulsars. (This is clearly the landmark discovery.)
- Note 3: The discovery earned the 1974 Nobel Prize, but it went to her male supervisor and another astronomer. (Shows the discovery was important enough for a Nobel Prize.)
- Note 4: She later became the first female president of two scientific societies. (An achievement, but not about the landmark discovery itself.)
The best answer should mainly use notes 1–3 to introduce her and her discovery, and may leave out note 4 because it is less central to the landmark discovery.
Compare how each choice uses the notes
Now check each option against the goal and the key notes:
- Choice B: Focuses almost entirely on the Nobel Prize going to her supervisor. It mentions that she had done the work, but it never clearly states what the discovery was. This is not a full introduction to her and her landmark discovery.
- Choice C: Talks about “radio astronomers” detecting signals and then jumps to one of her leadership positions. It doesn’t clearly credit her with the discovery and doesn’t explain why it was important. It also ignores that we need an introduction to her and her discovery together.
- Choice D: Only describes her later roles as president of societies. It leaves out the discovery completely, so it cannot meet the goal.
- Choice A: Is the only one that directly identifies her (who she is), names the discovery, gives the time and place, and connects it to the Nobel Prize, showing why the discovery was significant.
Select the option that fulfills the goal best
Because it uses the most relevant notes to introduce both Jocelyn Bell Burnell and her landmark discovery, the best answer is:
A) Northern Irish astrophysicist Jocelyn Bell Burnell discovered the first radio pulsars in 1967 while a graduate student at the University of Cambridge, a breakthrough that led to a Nobel Prize in Physics, though it was awarded to her male colleagues.