In 1943, in the midst of World War II, mathematics professor Grace Hopper was recruited by the US military to...

Let's begin by understanding the meaning of this sentence. We'll use our understanding of pause points and segment the sentence as shown - understanding and assimilating the meaning of each segment bit by bit!

Sentence Structure

Sentence 1:

• In 1943,
  • in the midst of World War II,
• mathematics professor Grace Hopper
  • was recruited by the US military
    • to help the war effort
      • by solving complex equations.

Sentence 2:

• Hopper's subsequent career
  • would involve more than just equations[?]
• as a pioneering computer programmer,
• Hopper
  • would help usher in the digital age.

Understanding the Meaning

The first sentence tells us the historical context:

• In 1943, during World War II,
• Grace Hopper (a mathematics professor)
  • was recruited by the military
  • to help by solving complex equations.

Now the second sentence begins:

• "Hopper's subsequent career would involve more than just equations"

This is where we have the blank. Let's look at the choices:

• The word "though" appears in all choices
• We need to decide on punctuation before and after "though"

To see what works here, let's read the rest of the sentence and understand what it's saying!

The sentence continues:

• "as a pioneering computer programmer, Hopper would help usher in the digital age."

Now let's understand what this complete sentence is telling us:

• The first part says her career "would involve more than just equations"
  • This suggests there was something beyond just solving equations

• The word "though" signals a transition or contrast
  • It's saying "however" or "but actually"
  • It modifies or elaborates on what was just stated

• What comes after explains HOW her career involved more than just equations:
  • "as a pioneering computer programmer"
  • "Hopper would help usher in the digital age"
  • This is a complete thought that illustrates the claim

So the complete picture is:

• We have a statement with a transitional word ("though")
• Followed by a complete explanatory statement showing what that means

What do we notice about the structure here?

• "Though" is a transitional element at the end of the first part
  • It needs a comma before it to set it off

• What follows after "though" is a complete explanatory statement
  • It explains and illustrates the first part
  • This needs strong punctuation to introduce it

• A colon after "though" works perfectly here
  • The colon says "here's what I mean" or "let me explain"
  • It introduces the explanation of how her career involved more than equations

So we need: comma before "though" and colon after "though"

The correct answer is Choice A: "equations, though:"

GRAMMAR CONCEPT APPLIED

Using Colons to Introduce Explanations (with Transitional Words)

When you have a statement followed by a transitional word like "though," and then want to introduce a complete explanation or illustration, you can use a colon after the transition:

Pattern:

• Statement + comma + transitional word + colon + explanation

Example 1:

• "The experiment seemed simple, though: it required three years of precise measurements."
• "The experiment seemed simple, though" = statement with transition
• Colon introduces the explanation
• "it required three years of precise measurements" = complete explanation

Example 2:

• "She claimed not to be nervous, though: her hands were shaking throughout the presentation."
• Statement with "though" as transition
• Colon introduces evidence/explanation
• Complete thought explains the contrast

In our question:

• "Hopper's subsequent career would involve more than just equations, though:"
• Statement with transitional word
• "as a pioneering computer programmer, Hopper would help usher in the digital age"
• Complete explanation of HOW her career involved more than equations

The colon effectively signals: "Let me show you what I mean by that."

Key points:

• Comma before "though" sets off the transitional element
• Colon after introduces the explanation (called an independent clause in grammar terms)
• What follows the colon should be a complete thought that explains or illustrates