Question 72·Hard·Transitions
Researchers excavating the ancient city of Tikal recently used ground-penetrating radar to map structures hidden beneath dense jungle foliage. The scans revealed an extensive network of causeways and reservoirs, suggesting a highly organized urban layout. ______ the team cautions that radar imagery alone cannot determine the precise age or function of these constructions, so on-site excavations remain essential.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For SAT transition questions, always read one sentence before and one sentence after the blank, then briefly describe their relationship in your own words (e.g., “contrast,” “cause and effect,” “example,” “addition”) before looking at the answer choices. Once you know the relationship, quickly eliminate any transitions whose meanings (like example, similarity, or result) don’t match, and pick the one that best captures that logical connection, even if multiple choices sound smooth grammatically; the logic matters more than the sound.
Hints
Check what the radar scans show
Focus on the part before the blank: do the radar scans lead to a positive or negative conclusion about what was discovered?
Check what the researchers warn about
Look closely at the clause after the blank: are the researchers adding more praise for radar, or are they pointing out something that radar cannot do?
Name the relationship in your own words
Ask yourself: Is the second idea a result of the first, an example of the first, a similar idea, or a contrasting/limiting idea? Decide this before you look at the choices.
Match meaning, not sound
Once you know the relationship, eliminate any choice that suggests cause-and-effect, example, or similarity if that doesn’t match what you found.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the first two sentences
Read the information before the blank:
Researchers used radar to map hidden structures, and the scans “revealed an extensive network of causeways and reservoirs, suggesting a highly organized urban layout.”
This builds a positive, impressive picture of what the radar can show.
Understand the sentence after the blank
Now read the part after the blank:
“the team cautions that radar imagery alone cannot determine the precise age or function of these constructions, so on-site excavations remain essential.”
This emphasizes a limitation of radar: even though the images are detailed, they cannot give certain kinds of information, so traditional excavation is still needed.
Decide the logical relationship
Compare the ideas before and after the blank:
- Before: Radar images reveal a detailed, organized urban layout.
- After: The team warns that radar is limited and cannot replace excavation.
These ideas do not:
- give an example of the first idea, or
- show that the second happens as a simple result of the first, or
- show similarity between the two.
Instead, the second part qualifies or pushes back against the enthusiasm of the first part by pointing out limits. That means the relationship is one of contrast or concession ("even so," "in spite of that").
Match the relationship to the answer choices
Now test each option against the contrast you identified:
- “Consequently,” = as a result → shows cause-and-effect, not contrast.
- “For instance,” = for example → introduces an example, not a limitation.
- “In the same way,” = similarly → shows similarity, not contrast.
- One choice signals that the second idea goes against or qualifies the first.
The only transition that correctly shows this contrast between exciting findings and a warning about their limits is “Nevertheless,”, so that is the correct answer.