Question 241·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- A seiche is a standing wave that oscillates in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water.
- In large lakes, seiches can occur when strong winds push surface water toward one end of the lake.
- After the wind stops, the displaced water sloshes back and forth, and the oscillation can continue for hours or days.
- The period of a seiche depends on the lake’s length, depth, and shape.
The student wants to write a sentence that both defines a seiche and briefly describes how it forms in large lakes. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions like this, start by underlining exactly what the new sentence must do (for example, “define the term” and “briefly describe how it forms”). Then scan the notes and match specific bullets to each part of that task. Next, quickly test each answer choice with a checklist: does it include the required pieces and only relevant information? Eliminate any option that leaves out one of the required functions, changes the focus, or adds details not needed for the stated goal. This targeted matching saves time and keeps you from being distracted by extra facts that sound scientific but don’t meet the task.
Hints
Clarify what the sentence must do
Restate the task in your own words: the sentence needs to both say what a seiche is and how it happens in large lakes. Keep those two goals in mind as you check each option.
Match notes to goals
Look at the bullet points and decide which one clearly defines what a seiche is, and which one explains how it forms specifically in large lakes. Focus on the answer choice that uses both of those pieces of information.
Use a quick two-part test
For each answer choice, ask: (1) Does it clearly define a seiche? (2) Does it briefly describe how it forms in large lakes? Eliminate any choice that fails either part of this test or adds unrelated details instead.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the task
The question asks for one sentence that does two things:
- Define what a seiche is.
- Briefly describe how it forms in large lakes.
Any correct answer must clearly accomplish both of these goals using information from the notes.
Find the relevant notes
Look back at the bullet points and match them to the two goals:
- Definition: “A seiche is a standing wave that oscillates in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water.”
- How it forms in large lakes: “In large lakes, seiches can occur when strong winds push surface water toward one end of the lake.”
The other notes (about sloshing for hours/days and the period depending on length, depth, and shape) are extra details, not required by the task.
Eliminate choices that don’t define or don’t explain formation
Now test each answer choice against the two requirements:
- Choice B talks about the period of a seiche and how it varies with a lake’s properties. It does not define what a seiche is and does not say how it forms in large lakes.
- Choice C mentions strong winds and waves sloshing for hours or days, but it never uses the term “seiche” or clearly defines it as a standing wave in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water.
- Choice D mentions water moving back and forth and calls that motion a seiche, but it doesn’t mention a standing wave or enclosed/partially enclosed body of water, and it doesn’t explain the cause (strong winds) from the notes.
Since these choices fail to meet the full task, they can be eliminated.
Confirm the remaining choice matches both notes
The remaining option is the one that both:
- States that a seiche is a standing wave in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water (definition), and
- Explains that in large lakes it can be triggered when strong winds push water toward one end (formation).
The only choice that does both of these things correctly and concisely is Choice A: “A seiche is a standing wave in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water that can be triggered in large lakes when strong winds push water toward one end.”