Question 49·200 Super-Hard SAT Reading Questions·Standard English Conventions
Marine archaeologists examining a fifteenth-century shipwreck initially classified several palm-sized bronze disks as weights. A recent analysis, however, found that each disk bears concentric markings. The spacing of those markings—rather than the disks’ similar dimensions, which first suggested that the objects served a standardized commercial ______ newer proposal that the disks were components of navigational instruments.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
For a boundary question with a long interruption, first remove the interruption and identify the core subject, verb, and object. Then locate the exact beginning and end of the supplementary material, close it with matching punctuation, and verify that the chosen punctuation does not split essential parts of the core clause.
Hints
Find the core clause
Set aside the material beginning with “rather than” and identify the subject, main verb, and object of the sentence.
Locate the end of the interruption
Determine how far the supplementary material introduced by the first dash extends.
Check the verb and its object
After restoring the core clause, make sure no punctuation improperly separates the main verb from the noun phrase that completes its meaning.
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the core clause
Temporarily remove the supplementary material. The sentence’s core is “The spacing of those markings supports the researchers’ newer proposal.” Thus, “spacing” is the subject, “supports” is the main verb, and “the researchers’ newer proposal” is the object.
Determine where the interruption ends
The interruption begins with the dash before “rather than” and continues through “function.” The word “suggested” belongs to the relative clause modifying “dimensions,” so it is not the main verb of the sentence.
Preserve the core structure
A matching dash must follow “function” to close the interruption. After that dash, “supports the researchers’ newer proposal” must remain together because a comma or dash cannot separate the verb from its object.