Dr. Sarah Chen began investigating a potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease in 2010. Her initial experiments showed no promising results,...
GMAT Expression of Ideas : (Expression) Questions
Dr. Sarah Chen began investigating a potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease in 2010. Her initial experiments showed no promising results, and her first grant application was rejected. However, she persisted, collaborating with neurologists at three different universities and testing dozens of compound variations over the next decade. _____ in 2020, her team achieved a major breakthrough that led to clinical trials.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
Ultimately,
Similarly,
Otherwise,
Meanwhile,
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'Dr. Sarah Chen began investigating a potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease in 2010.' |
|
| 'Her initial experiments showed no promising results, and her first grant application was rejected.' |
|
| 'However, she persisted, collaborating with neurologists at three different universities and testing dozens of compound variations over the next decade.' |
|
| 'in 2020, her team achieved a major breakthrough that led to clinical trials.' |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Dr. Chen's decade-long persistence through initial failures in Alzheimer's research eventually led to a major breakthrough.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes a clear progression from initial setbacks to sustained effort to ultimate success. It follows a classic narrative arc where early disappointments are overcome through persistence, culminating in a significant achievement.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The blank comes after we've learned about Chen's persistence through a decade of hard work, and right before we learn about her breakthrough success in 2020
- We need a transition that shows this breakthrough was the final result of all that sustained effort
- The relationship should indicate that after years of persistence, she finally achieved success
Ultimately,
✓ Correct
- Perfectly signals that the breakthrough was the final result after a long process
- Shows that all the years of persistence and hard work eventually paid off
Similarly,
✗ Incorrect
- Would suggest the breakthrough was comparable to something else mentioned
- There's no previous success story to compare this to
Otherwise,
✗ Incorrect
- Introduces an alternative or consequence if something hadn't happened
- This doesn't fit because we're not presenting what would have happened if Chen hadn't persisted
Meanwhile,
✗ Incorrect
- Indicates something happening at the same time as something else
- The breakthrough happened after the decade of work, not during it