Rhetorical synthesis

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes: - Eero Vasara's concert hall in Turku opened in 1969 after four years of construction and two budget overruns. - Local newspapers called its concrete exterior brutal and unfinished, and one called for its demolition. - The city council voted twice in the 1980s to demolish the building by narrow margins after long public hearings. - The hall was given protected status in 2004. - It now appears on the cover of the city's tourist guide.

The student wants to emphasise how the building's reputation changed. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

• A) The hall opened in 1969 and its concrete exterior was disliked intensely by the newspapers of the time, one of which called for its demolition.
• B) Eero Vasara's concert hall in Turku was given protected status in the year 2004.
• C) Local newspapers called the hall's concrete exterior brutal and unfinished when it opened in 1969.
• D) A hall the council twice voted to demolish in the 1980s was protected in 2004 and now fronts the city's tourist guide. ✓

Why: A change in reputation needs both ends of it, and only this choice moves from demolition votes to protection and publicity. The early hostility and the later protection each give one end alone. Local newspapers called the hall's concrete exterior brutal and unfinished when it opened in 1969. gives the early reaction only, so no change is shown. Eero Vasara's concert hall in Turku was given protected status in the year 2004. gives the later status only, with nothing earlier to contrast it with. The hall opened in 1969 and its concrete exterior was disliked intensely by the newspapers of the time, one of which called for its demolition. describes the building and its first reception without the later reversal.

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes: - Iceland's parliament was founded at Thingvellir in 930. - It met for two weeks each June in the open air on a plain of lava. - Laws were recited from memory by an elected law-speaker. - The first written law code was compiled in the winter of 1117 by a commission of farmers. - The parliament lost its legislative power to the Danish crown in 1662. - It was re-established with legislative power in 1874.

The student wants to present the main stages in the parliament's history. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

• A) Iceland's parliament was founded at Thingvellir in 930, where it met each June in the open air.
• B) Founded in 930, the parliament wrote its laws down in 1117, lost its powers in 1662, and regained them in 1874. ✓
• C) Iceland's parliament lost its legislative power to the Danish crown in 1662 and had that power restored to it in 1874.
• D) The parliament met on a plain of lava for two weeks each June, with its laws recited from memory.

Why: A history in stages needs the sequence, and only this choice runs from the founding through the written code to the loss and recovery of power. The description of procedure is not a chronology, and the other two options each give one end of it. The parliament met on a plain of lava for two weeks each June, with its laws recited from memory. describes how it operated rather than tracing the stages of its history. Iceland's parliament lost its legislative power to the Danish crown in 1662 and had that power restored to it in 1874. is covers the later stages and omits the founding and the written code. Iceland's parliament was founded at Thingvellir in 930, where it met each June in the open air. is covers the founding only, with none of the later stages.

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes: - A study asked whether people who cycle to work take fewer sick days. - Cyclists in the sample took 2.1 fewer sick days a year than drivers in the same firms. - Cyclists were on average six years younger than the drivers. - The researchers compared cyclists and drivers of the same age, sex, and job grade within the same firm. - After matching, the difference fell to 0.9 days.

The student wants to explain how the researchers handled the age difference between the groups. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

• A) Cyclists in the sample were on average six years younger than the drivers they were compared with.
• B) Cyclists took 2.1 fewer sick days a year than the drivers before any adjustment was made for age.
• C) After the matching, the gap in sick days between cyclists and drivers fell to 0.9 days a year.
• D) Matching cyclists and drivers on age, sex, and grade cut the gap from 2.1 days to 0.9. ✓

Why: The goal asks how the age gap was handled, so the answer must name the matching and what it did to the estimate. The age gap alone is the problem, the adjusted figure alone is the outcome, and the raw figure is the uncorrected result. Cyclists in the sample were on average six years younger than the drivers they were compared with. states the problem without the step taken to address it. After the matching, the gap in sick days between cyclists and drivers fell to 0.9 days a year. gives the result of the adjustment without describing what was adjusted. Cyclists took 2.1 fewer sick days a year than the drivers before any adjustment was made for age. gives the unadjusted figure, which is what the matching was meant to correct.