Geoglyphs are large-scale designs of lines or shapes created in a natural landscape. The Nazca Lines were created in the...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
Geoglyphs are large-scale designs of lines or shapes created in a natural landscape. The Nazca Lines were created in the Nazca Desert in Peru by several Indigenous civilizations over a period of many centuries. Peruvian archaeologist Johny Isla specializes in these geoglyphs. At a German exhibit about the Nazca Lines, he saw an old photograph of a large geoglyph of a whalelike figure and was surprised that he didn't recognize it. Isla returned to Peru and used a drone to search a wide area, looking for the figure from the air. This approach suggests that Isla thought that if he hadn't already seen it, the whalelike geoglyph ______
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
must represent a species of whale that went extinct before there were any people in Peru.
is actually located in Germany, not Peru, and isn't part of the Nazca Lines at all.
is probably in a location Isla hadn't ever come across while on the ground.
was almost certainly created a long time after the other Nazca Lines geoglyphs were created.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Geoglyphs are large-scale designs of lines or shapes created in a natural landscape." |
|
| "The Nazca Lines were created in the Nazca Desert in Peru by several Indigenous civilizations over a period of many centuries." |
|
| "Peruvian archaeologist Johny Isla specializes in these geoglyphs." |
|
| "At a German exhibit about the Nazca Lines, he saw an old photograph of a large geoglyph of a whalelike figure and was surprised that he didn't recognize it." |
|
| "Isla returned to Peru and used a drone to search a wide area, looking for the figure from the air." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: An expert archaeologist's decision to use aerial drone searching suggests his reasoning about why he might have missed a particular geoglyph.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes Isla's expertise, presents a puzzle (an unknown geoglyph), describes his methodical response (drone searching), and asks us to infer what this approach reveals about his thinking.
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
- Isla's choice of method is key
- He's an expert who specializes in these geoglyphs, yet he didn't recognize one in a photograph
- His response was to use a drone to search from the air
- This aerial approach suggests he thinks the geoglyph might be visible from above but not easily spotted from ground level, or in an area he hasn't thoroughly explored on foot
must represent a species of whale that went extinct before there were any people in Peru.
✗ Incorrect
- Claims the whale geoglyph represents an extinct species from before humans arrived in Peru
- This doesn't connect to Isla's decision to use drone searching
is actually located in Germany, not Peru, and isn't part of the Nazca Lines at all.
✗ Incorrect
- Suggests the geoglyph is actually in Germany, not Peru
- This contradicts Isla's action of returning to Peru to search for it
is probably in a location Isla hadn't ever come across while on the ground.
✓ Correct
- States the geoglyph is probably in a location Isla hadn't come across while on the ground
- This perfectly explains why an expert would choose aerial searching - he suspects he missed it during ground-based fieldwork
was almost certainly created a long time after the other Nazca Lines geoglyphs were created.
✗ Incorrect
- Claims the geoglyph was created much later than other Nazca Lines
- Isla's drone-searching approach doesn't suggest anything about when the geoglyph was created