Text 1In 2019, marine biologist Dr. Sarah Chen published research on coral reef restoration in the Caribbean, examining elkhorn coral...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
In 2019, marine biologist Dr. Sarah Chen published research on coral reef restoration in the Caribbean, examining elkhorn coral populations that had declined dramatically since the 1980s. Chen's team successfully transplanted laboratory-grown coral fragments to degraded reef sites, achieving a 78% survival rate over two years. Based on these promising results, Chen advocated for large-scale coral transplantation as the primary strategy for Caribbean reef recovery.
Text 2Environmental policy researcher Dr. Marcus Rodriguez initially questioned Chen's approach, noting that coral transplantation programs elsewhere had shown limited long-term success. However, Rodriguez's subsequent field analysis revealed that Chen's sites demonstrated not only coral survival but also increased fish populations and improved water quality indicators that traditional management approaches had failed to achieve. Rodriguez now argues that transplantation shows great promise but should be implemented alongside comprehensive pollution control measures.
Based on the texts, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to the underlined claim in Text 1?
By supporting the claim while suggesting that comprehensive environmental management would make transplantation efforts more effective
By disputing the claim on grounds that it relies too heavily on short-term survival data rather than long-term ecosystem health indicators
By endorsing the claim but contending that Chen's research timeline is insufficient to demonstrate the sustained benefits of coral transplantation
By rejecting the claim because it fails to account for regional variations in coral species that affect transplantation success rates
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| In 2019, marine biologist Dr. Sarah Chen published research on coral reef restoration in the Caribbean, examining elkhorn coral populations that had declined dramatically since the 1980s. |
|
| Chen's team successfully transplanted laboratory-grown coral fragments to degraded reef sites, achieving a 78% survival rate over two years. |
|
| Based on these promising results, Chen advocated for large-scale coral transplantation as the primary strategy for Caribbean reef recovery. |
|
| Environmental policy researcher Dr. Marcus Rodriguez initially questioned Chen's approach, noting that coral transplantation programs elsewhere had shown limited long-term success. |
|
| However, Rodriguez's subsequent field analysis revealed that Chen's sites demonstrated not only coral survival but also increased fish populations and improved water quality indicators that traditional management approaches had failed to achieve. |
|
| Rodriguez now argues that transplantation shows great promise but should be implemented alongside comprehensive pollution control measures. |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Two researchers present different approaches to coral restoration—Chen advocates for transplantation as the primary strategy, while Rodriguez supports it but believes it must be combined with comprehensive environmental management.
Argument Flow: Text 1 presents Chen's successful transplantation research and her recommendation for large-scale implementation. Text 2 shows Rodriguez's journey from initial skepticism to qualified support—his own field analysis confirmed Chen's success, but he believes transplantation should be paired with pollution control measures rather than used alone.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
What's being asked? How Rodriguez would respond to Chen's specific claim that transplantation should be the primary strategy
What type of answer do we need? Rodriguez's likely reaction/position toward Chen's recommendation
Any limiting keywords? N/A
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- Rodriguez's response should reflect his evolved thinking from our analysis
- He went from skepticism to support after seeing Chen's approach actually work in his own field study
- However, his final position isn't full agreement—he thinks transplantation is promising but needs to be combined with pollution control measures
- So Rodriguez would likely support Chen's transplantation approach but suggest it shouldn't be the sole primary strategy—it should be part of a broader environmental management approach
By supporting the claim while suggesting that comprehensive environmental management would make transplantation efforts more effective
- This perfectly matches Rodriguez's position from our analysis
- He supports transplantation but argues it should be implemented alongside comprehensive pollution control measures
- This directly addresses Chen's claim about it being the primary strategy by suggesting it needs comprehensive environmental management to be most effective
By disputing the claim on grounds that it relies too heavily on short-term survival data rather than long-term ecosystem health indicators
- Rodriguez doesn't dispute the claim or question Chen's data reliability
- His own field analysis actually confirmed Chen's results were valid
By endorsing the claim but contending that Chen's research timeline is insufficient to demonstrate the sustained benefits of coral transplantation
- Rodriguez doesn't question Chen's research timeline
- His concerns aren't about insufficient time periods but about needing additional measures beyond just transplantation
By rejecting the claim because it fails to account for regional variations in coral species that affect transplantation success rates
- Rodriguez doesn't reject Chen's claim—he actually supports transplantation after his analysis
- No mention of regional variations or coral species differences in the text