Question 249·Hard·Transitions
Many community science projects aim to maximize the number of observations, reasoning that more data makes patterns clearer. ______ RiverWatch, a volunteer program that monitors local streams, caps the number of samples and devotes extra time to training participants to ensure each measurement is precise.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, first ignore the choices and read the sentence(s) carefully to decide how the ideas relate: are they showing contrast, cause and effect, similarity, or example/elaboration? Put each part in your own words, label the relationship in simple terms (e.g., “different approach” or “same approach”), and then eliminate any options whose meanings do not match that relationship. This way you avoid being tricked by choices that sound good but express the wrong logical connection.
Hints
Clarify each part in your own words
Put the first part (about many community science projects) and the second part (about RiverWatch) into your own words. What is each group trying to do?
Compare the approaches
Ask yourself: Is RiverWatch using the same kind of strategy as the many community science projects, or is it choosing a noticeably different kind of strategy?
Match the relationship, not the topic
Decide if the connection between the two parts is cause-and-effect, showing similarity, giving an example, or showing a difference in approach. Then pick the answer choice whose meaning best fits that type of connection.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what the first clause says
Read the first sentence part: "Many community science projects aim to maximize the number of observations, reasoning that more data makes patterns clearer." This means that most such projects want as many observations as possible, believing that more data is better for seeing patterns.
Understand what the RiverWatch clause says
Now read the part about RiverWatch: "RiverWatch, a volunteer program that monitors local streams, caps the number of samples and devotes extra time to training participants to ensure each measurement is precise." This means RiverWatch limits how many samples are taken and focuses on accuracy and training, instead of just collecting as many samples as possible.
Decide the logical relationship between the two ideas
Compare the two approaches:
- Many projects: maximize the number of observations.
- RiverWatch: cap (limit) the number of observations and focus on precision. These are different, opposing strategies for doing community science. The second part is not a result of the first, not an example of the first, and not a similar approach. It describes an approach that goes in a different direction from the one described first.
Match the relationship to the correct transition
Now check which transition matches this opposing relationship:
- "Consequently," means "as a result" (cause and effect) — that does not fit.
- "Similarly," means "in the same way" — that does not fit because the approaches are not alike.
- "For example," introduces an instance of the general idea — but RiverWatch does the opposite of maximizing observations.
- The only transition that signals an opposing or contrasting approach is "Conversely,", so the correct answer is B) Conversely,.