Question 236·Medium·Transitions
Sewage-based epidemiology involves monitoring wastewater to track community health. ______ it can detect surges in flu virus levels several days before clinics report increased patient visits.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, first read the sentences around the blank without looking at the answer choices, and decide the relationship in your own words (example, cause-effect, contrast, time/order, addition, etc.). Then, check each option’s typical function and eliminate any that signal the wrong relationship, even if they sound smooth. On the SAT, do not pick transitions just because they “flow”; they must create the exact logical connection between the ideas.
Hints
Identify what the second sentence adds
Look at the part after the blank. Is it repeating the same idea, giving a contrast, showing a result, or giving a specific instance of the first sentence?
Check for contrast vs. support
Ask yourself: Does the second sentence go against the idea of using wastewater to monitor health, or does it support and illustrate that idea?
Think about each transition’s job
Very quickly, recall: which choices usually show contrast, which show time/simultaneity, and which introduce a specific case related to the previous statement?
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what the second sentence is doing
Read the whole sentence: it says sewage-based epidemiology “can detect surges in flu virus levels several days before clinics report increased patient visits.” This is a specific capability of sewage-based epidemiology.
That means this sentence is giving a specific instance or example of how sewage-based epidemiology helps track community health.
Decide the logical relationship between the ideas
The first sentence states the general idea: sewage-based epidemiology monitors wastewater to track community health.
The second sentence gives one particular way this works (detecting flu surges earlier).
So the relationship is: general statement → specific example. There is no contrast, no unexpected twist, and no time shift between separate events—just a concrete illustration of the first idea.
Match each transition type to the relationship
Now think about what each transition usually signals, without worrying yet about which one will be correct:
- A transition that introduces an example fits a general-to-specific relationship.
- A transition that signals contrast or opposition would be used if the second sentence went against or disagreed with the first.
- A transition that signals simultaneous events or time shift would be used if the second sentence described something happening at the same time as (but not necessarily illustrating) the first idea.
- A transition that signals “despite this” would be used if the second sentence was surprising given the first.
Ask: which type fits “This is what sewage-based epidemiology is” followed by “Here is one thing it can do”?
Choose the transition that introduces an example
Because the second sentence is a specific example of how sewage-based epidemiology tracks community health, the best transition is the one that introduces an example, which is “For example,” (Choice A). The others signal contrast or timing and do not match the general-to-specific relationship here.