Question 149·Medium·Transitions
In the early 2000s, astronomers discovered that many stars host “hot Jupiters”—giant planets orbiting extremely close to their suns, a finding that challenged prevailing models of planet formation. _____ computer simulations have been refined to account for planetary migration, showing how such massive bodies can drift inward after forming in distant, colder regions of the protoplanetary disk.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, always read the sentence before and after the blank and ignore the answer choices at first. Decide the logical relationship in your own words—such as cause-and-effect, contrast, continuation, or example—then eliminate any choices that signal a different relationship. Finally, plug the remaining option(s) back into the sentence to check that the meaning and tone are smooth and precise.
Hints
Check the direction of the ideas
Ask yourself: does the second sentence go against the first idea, support it, give an example of it, or show what happened because of it?
Summarize each part in your own words
Briefly restate the first sentence (a discovery that challenges models) and the second part (a change scientists make). What kind of connection do those summaries suggest?
Match each option to a relationship type
Think about what each transition usually signals: contrast, example, concession/"even so," or result. Which type fits the connection you identified between the two sentences?
Eliminate options that flip the logic
Remove any transition that would make it sound like the second sentence opposes or contradicts the first, since both sentences describe a challenge and then a scientific response to that challenge.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what the first sentence is saying
Read the first sentence: astronomers discovered many stars with "hot Jupiters," and this discovery challenged prevailing models of planet formation. That means the old models didn’t fully explain what was observed.
Understand what the second sentence is saying
The second part (after the blank) says that computer simulations have been refined to account for planetary migration and show how giant planets can drift inward. That is scientists’ response to the challenge described in the first sentence.
Identify the relationship between the two sentences
Put the ideas together:
- First: a discovery creates a problem for existing models.
- Second: scientists improve simulations to solve or explain that problem. This is a cause-and-effect or problem-and-response relationship: the discovery leads to refinements in simulations.
Match the relationship to the correct transition
Now test each transition type:
- A phrase of contrast would suggest the second sentence goes in an opposite direction, which is not true here.
- A phrase that introduces an example doesn’t fit because the second sentence is not an example of hot Jupiters; it is a scientific reaction to their discovery.
- A phrase that shows in spite of or however would also be wrong because the second sentence does not go against the first. We need a transition that shows result: the simulations were refined as a result of the challenging discovery. The only option that correctly expresses this result relationship is “Consequently,” (choice D).