Question 88·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Electric vehicles (EVs) produce no tailpipe emissions.
- Generating the electricity used to charge EVs can create emissions, but the average EV in the United States still emits less carbon dioxide overall than a comparable gasoline car.
- Because EVs have fewer moving parts, their routine maintenance costs are typically lower than those of gasoline cars.
- The average cost of EV batteries fell 89% between 2010 and 2020.
The student wants to write a sentence that emphasizes more than one key advantage of EVs over gasoline cars. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions like this, first restate the task in your own words (here: “pick a sentence that uses the notes to show more than one key advantage of EVs over gasoline cars”). Then scan the notes to identify all distinct advantages and which ones are directly compared to gasoline cars. Next, check each choice: eliminate any option that (1) mentions only one advantage, (2) fails to compare EVs to gasoline cars when required, or (3) changes or exaggerates what the notes say. The remaining choice should both match the notes accurately and accomplish the stated writing goal.
Hints
Focus on the exact goal
Underline the phrase “emphasizes more than one key advantage of EVs over gasoline cars.” Ask yourself: which choices clearly mention two different benefits, not just one?
Use the notes that compare EVs to gasoline cars
Look especially at the notes that directly compare EVs with gasoline cars (not just trends or facts about EVs alone). Which notes describe an advantage relative to gasoline cars?
Check for accuracy, not exaggeration
Make sure the choice you pick does not change or exaggerate what the notes say. In particular, pay attention to what the notes say about carbon dioxide emissions and how electricity is produced.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the task in the question
The question says the student wants a sentence that “emphasizes more than one key advantage of EVs over gasoline cars.”
So the correct answer must:
- Mention at least two distinct advantages.
- Present them as advantages over gasoline cars.
- Be accurately supported by the notes.
Identify the advantages in the notes
Scan the notes and pick out what advantages are mentioned:
- Note 1: EVs produce no tailpipe emissions.
- Note 2: Even though electricity generation can create emissions, the average EV emits less carbon dioxide overall than a comparable gasoline car (environmental advantage over gasoline cars).
- Note 3: EVs have fewer moving parts, so their routine maintenance costs are typically lower than those of gasoline cars (cost advantage over gasoline cars).
- Note 4: The average cost of EV batteries fell 89% between 2010 and 2020 (a trend about affordability, but not directly stated as “over gasoline cars”).
The strongest pair of “key advantages over gasoline cars” are:
- Less overall carbon dioxide emissions (note 2).
- Lower maintenance costs (note 3).
Match choices to the goal and eliminate
Now test each answer against the requirements.
- Choice A talks only about battery costs falling/affordability. That’s one idea and not clearly framed as an advantage over gasoline cars.
- Choice B claims EVs add no carbon dioxide to the atmosphere even considering power-plant electricity. This overstates the notes: the notes say electricity production can create emissions and that EVs emit less carbon dioxide overall, not none.
- Choice C focuses only on reduced maintenance needs/costs. That is just one advantage, not more than one.
Only Choice D correctly brings together two different advantages supported by the notes—lower overall carbon dioxide emissions than gasoline cars and usually lower maintenance costs. Therefore, D is the best choice.