Question 12·200 Super-Hard SAT Reading Questions·Craft and Structure
During a performance of a waltz, pianist Mara Velez lingers on melody notes so extensively that the tempo can seem on the verge of dissolving. In an experiment, listeners nevertheless predicted each returning downbeat accurately, but their predictions became erratic when researchers removed a quiet, regular bass pattern without altering the melody's timing. The pattern did not generate Velez's delays; rather, the performance's temporal elasticity was _____ by the bass pattern, since a stable pulse allowed listeners to register the delays as departures from an expectation.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
For a words-in-context question, identify the exact relationship established by the entire text before comparing the choices. When two options seem plausible, determine whether the evidence concerns an effect's existence, intensity, cause, or perceptibility; that distinction often identifies the most precise answer.
Hints
Track the controlled feature
Consider what remained unchanged when researchers removed the bass pattern and what changed in the listeners' responses.
Separate creation from interpretation
Ask whether the bass pattern produces the melody's delays or instead helps listeners understand those delays.
Evaluate the close distinction
Distinguish between increasing the degree of an effect and supplying the reference needed to recognize the effect.
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify what changed
Researchers removed the bass pattern but did not alter the melody's timing. Listeners' predictions then became erratic, showing that the bass affected how they interpreted the timing rather than producing the melody's delays.
Determine the bass pattern's function
The regular bass pattern supplied an expected pulse. By comparing the delayed melody notes with that pulse, listeners could recognize the delays as intentional departures.
Choose the precise relationship
Made legible means made recognizable or interpretable. This phrase precisely describes how the bass pattern enabled listeners to perceive the performance's temporal elasticity without implying that the bass created or increased the delays.