Recent studies of urban air quality have consistently shown elevated pollution levels in downtown areas, which has prompted environmental scientists...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Recent studies of urban air quality have consistently shown elevated pollution levels in downtown areas, which has prompted environmental scientists to investigate potential health impacts. Public health researcher Dr. Elena Rodriguez notes that these findings indicate respiratory symptoms in nearby residents will likely be ______.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
temporary
increased
studied
preventable
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Recent studies of urban air quality have consistently shown elevated pollution levels in downtown areas," |
|
| "which has prompted environmental scientists to investigate potential health impacts." |
|
| "Public health researcher Dr. Elena Rodriguez notes that these findings indicate respiratory symptoms in nearby residents will likely be ______." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Research showing increased urban pollution has led to investigations of health impacts, with one expert predicting specific effects on respiratory symptoms.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes a clear cause-and-effect chain: studies reveal elevated pollution levels, which prompts scientists to investigate health consequences, leading to an expert prediction about respiratory symptoms in affected residents.
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 logical flow is: elevated pollution levels leads to scientists investigate health impacts leads to expert predicts what will happen to respiratory symptoms
- Given that we know pollution levels are elevated and this has health implications, the missing word should describe what elevated pollution would logically do to respiratory symptoms
- Since higher pollution typically worsens health conditions, we would expect respiratory symptoms to become more frequent or severe in affected residents
temporary
- This suggests symptoms would be short-lived
- Does not connect logically to elevated pollution levels
increased
- Directly follows the logical chain: elevated pollution leads to increased health problems
- Creates the most logical cause-and-effect relationship
studied
- While scientists are investigating health impacts, this does not predict what will happen to the symptoms themselves
preventable
- Contradicts the logical flow from elevated pollution to health impacts
- If symptoms were easily preventable, elevated pollution levels would not prompt health investigations