Question 50·200 Super-Hard SAT Reading Questions·Expression of Ideas
Computational imaging tools can make faded marks in medieval manuscripts easier to see, leading some researchers to describe the resulting images as recovered versions of the original pages. Yet the tools estimate missing pixels partly from patterns found in other documents. _____ the estimates can be tested against visible traces and results produced by other tools; they remain interpretations rather than direct observations of the damaged page.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, identify the passage's main claim and determine the exact role of the sentence or clause containing the blank. When a sentence briefly acknowledges a point favoring the other side before returning to its original claim, look for a transition that signals concession rather than simple addition, result, or direct comparison.
Hints
Find the central claim
Determine whether the passage mainly endorses computational restorations or warns against treating them as direct evidence.
Read beyond the blank
Consider how the clause about testing the estimates relates to the caution after the semicolon.
Distinguish concession from contrast
Ask whether testability directly opposes the preceding information or merely acknowledges a limitation to the passage's main caution.
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the main point
The passage cautions that computationally restored images contain estimates based partly on other documents and therefore should not be treated as recovered originals.
Examine the acknowledgment
The final sentence first acknowledges that researchers can test the estimates. After the semicolon, however, the sentence returns to the main caution by emphasizing that the estimates remain interpretations.
Choose the precise relationship
The transition must mark the first clause as a reasonable concession that does not overturn the central warning. “Granted,” establishes exactly this relationship.