Question 89·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While researching Katherine Johnson for a report, a student has compiled the following notes:
- Katherine Johnson was an African American mathematician who worked at NASA.
- She calculated trajectories for NASA’s Mercury and Apollo space missions.
- She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015.
- Johnson was born in 1918 in West Virginia.
The student is preparing a slide that highlights Johnson’s most significant professional achievement for an audience interested in women’s contributions to STEM fields.
Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions that ask you to choose a sentence based on notes, first underline the exact goal (for example, “most significant professional achievement” or “reason for the experiment”). Next, scan the notes and mark which items directly serve that goal (achievements, key actions, or results) versus background details (birth facts, broad context). Then eliminate any choices that (1) ignore the main goal, (2) include only background without the key action, or (3) sound nice but are too vague. Choose the option that uses the most relevant notes to clearly and specifically accomplish the stated purpose for the given audience.
Hints
Focus on the goal words
Underline the words “highlights Johnson’s most significant professional achievement” in the question. Which notes talk about something she did in her job, not just who she was or when she was born?
Consider the STEM-focused audience
The audience is interested in women’s contributions to STEM fields. Which answer options clearly show that Katherine Johnson worked in a STEM area and made a specific contribution?
Look for cause and recognition
From the notes, which point shows a major honor she received? Then ask: which answer option connects that honor to what she actually did at NASA?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the task and audience
The question asks for a sentence for a slide that highlights Johnson’s most significant professional achievement for an audience interested in women’s contributions to STEM fields.
So the best answer must:
- Emphasize what she did professionally, especially a major accomplishment.
- Make clear she worked in a STEM field (math, science, technology, engineering).
- Be relevant to Katherine Johnson specifically, not NASA in general.
Pick out the most relevant notes
From the notes, separate professional achievements from general biographical details:
Professional/STEM-related:
- She was an African American mathematician who worked at NASA.
- She calculated trajectories for NASA’s Mercury and Apollo space missions.
- She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015 (an honor likely tied to her work).
Less central to professional achievement:
- She was born in 1918 in West Virginia.
For this slide, the focus should be on her NASA mathematics work and the recognition she received for it.
Check which choices include the key accomplishment
Now compare each choice to those key points:
- Choice A: Mentions she was an African American mathematician at NASA and where/when she was born, but does not say what she actually accomplished.
- Choice C: Mentions the Medal of Freedom and her birth year but leaves out her role as a NASA mathematician and her specific work.
- Choice D: Talks generally about NASA employing many people and only briefly names her; it does not describe her achievement at all.
You want the option that names her, identifies her as a woman in STEM, and clearly states her important work and its recognition.
Choose the sentence that fully matches the goal
The remaining choice is the one that:
- Identifies her as an African American mathematician (a woman in STEM).
- States that she calculated the flight paths for NASA’s Mercury and Apollo missions (a clear, concrete professional achievement).
- Connects this work to her receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015 (showing its importance).
The only option that does all of this is:
“African American mathematician Katherine Johnson, born in West Virginia, calculated the flight paths for NASA’s Mercury and Apollo missions, work for which she later received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015.”