Question 25·Easy·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Marine biologist Dr. Lina Martínez founded the nonprofit TideTrack in 2018.
- She developed a smartphone app that logs debris types and locations.
- From 2021 to 2023, she organized monthly coastal cleanups with more than 1,500 volunteers.
- In 2022, she led a study of Bay City’s shoreline.
- The study reported that microplastic levels in the water decreased by 35% after the cleanups.
- Martínez received a regional environmental leadership award in 2023.
The student wants to emphasize the measurable impact of Martínez’s work. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For note-based rhetorical synthesis questions, first underline the task words in the question (here, “emphasize the measurable impact”). Then scan the notes looking specifically for the type of information requested—in this case, data or outcomes (percent changes, decreases, increases) rather than actions or awards. Eliminate any choice that does not come directly from the notes or that focuses on the wrong kind of detail (such as background, effort, or recognition instead of results), and select the option that most directly and specifically fulfills the stated goal.
Hints
Clarify the goal phrase
Focus on the words "emphasize the measurable impact of Martínez’s work." What kind of detail would prove that her work had an effect?
Scan the notes for data or outcomes
Look for notes that include a result that could be tracked with numbers, such as a change in something over time, not just a description of what she did.
Distinguish between effort, recognition, and results
Some notes describe her projects or how many people helped; others describe outcomes and recognition. Which type of detail best shows an actual change caused by her work?
Match note type to answer choice
Once you’ve found the note that best shows a concrete result, choose the option that accurately restates that note and directly supports the idea of measurable impact.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what the question is asking for
The prompt says the student wants to emphasize the measurable impact of Martínez’s work. "Measurable impact" means a concrete result that can be expressed with data or numbers (for example, a percentage change or a count showing an effect). We are not just looking for what she did or honors she received, but for proof that her actions caused a quantifiable result.
Identify which notes show measurable impact
Look through the bullet-point notes and ask: which details show a result or effect that can be measured?
- Founding a nonprofit (2018) and making an app describe her actions, not their effects.
- Organizing monthly cleanups with more than 1,500 volunteers includes a number, but it mainly measures participation, not a change in the environment.
- The 2022 study reporting that microplastic levels in the water decreased by 35% after the cleanups clearly shows a measurable environmental result of her work.
- Receiving an award in 2023 is recognition, but it doesn’t provide data about impact.
The strongest evidence of measurable impact is the study’s reported 35% decrease in microplastics after her cleanups.
Match the best note to the answer choices
Now match the idea of “measurable impact” (the 35% decrease in microplastic levels after the cleanups) to the choices:
- One choice focuses on founding the nonprofit and developing an app (describes actions only).
- One focuses on an award (recognition, not data).
- One focuses on the number of volunteers (scale of effort, not direct environmental effect).
- One reports that a study found microplastic levels in Bay City’s waters dropped 35% following the community cleanups Martínez organized (a clear, quantified environmental result of her work).
The choice that reports the study’s finding that microplastic levels dropped 35% after her cleanups is therefore the correct answer: C) A 2022 study led by Martínez found that microplastic levels in Bay City’s waters dropped 35% following the community cleanups she organized.