The following text is from a marine biologist's field notes documenting observations during a research expedition: "While collecting water samples...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
The following text is from a marine biologist's field notes documenting observations during a research expedition:
"While collecting water samples at midnight near the Monterey coastline, I observed an extraordinary phenomenon. Each wave that crashed against the rocky shore erupted in brilliant blue-green light, creating cascading streams of luminescence that pulsed and flickered with every movement. The intensity appeared directly proportional to the water's agitation—the more turbulent the surf, the brighter the glow became. What environmental factors trigger this bioluminescent response in the dinoflagellates? And why does mechanical disturbance seem to amplify their light production so dramatically?"
Which choice best describes the overall structure of the text?
The biologist documents a natural phenomenon, then questions the mechanisms underlying that phenomenon.
The biologist records experimental conditions, then evaluates whether her methodology influenced the results.
The biologist presents observational data, then considers how her presence altered the ecosystem behavior.
The biologist describes a scientific discovery, then debates the reliability of her measurement techniques.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "While collecting water samples at midnight near the Monterey coastline, I observed an extraordinary phenomenon." |
|
| "Each wave that crashed against the rocky shore erupted in brilliant blue-green light, creating cascading streams of luminescence that pulsed and flickered with every movement." |
|
| "The intensity appeared directly proportional to the water's agitation—the more turbulent the surf, the brighter the glow became." |
|
| "What environmental factors trigger this bioluminescent response in the dinoflagellates?" |
|
| "And why does mechanical disturbance seem to amplify their light production so dramatically?" |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: A marine biologist documents observing bioluminescent dinoflagellates and poses research questions about what causes this light response and why mechanical disturbance intensifies it.
Argument Flow: The text first establishes the observational context, then provides detailed documentation of the bioluminescent phenomenon including a key pattern noticed, and finally transitions into research questions that the observations have generated about the underlying mechanisms.
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
- Looking at our analysis, we can see this text has a clear two-part organization
- The first part is pure documentation - the biologist describes what she observed in detail, including the visual aspects and the pattern she noticed about intensity
- The second part shifts completely into inquiry mode - she's asking research questions about why this happens and what causes it
The biologist documents a natural phenomenon, then questions the mechanisms underlying that phenomenon.
- Correctly captures the two-part structure we identified
- "Documents a natural phenomenon" matches the detailed observation section
- "Questions the mechanisms underlying that phenomenon" matches the research questions about what triggers the response and why disturbance amplifies it
The biologist records experimental conditions, then evaluates whether her methodology influenced the results.
- Wrong because "Records experimental conditions" is incorrect - she's not conducting a controlled experiment, just making field observations
- "Evaluates whether her methodology influenced the results" is completely off - she never questions her own methods
The biologist presents observational data, then considers how her presence altered the ecosystem behavior.
- While "Presents observational data" fits the first part
- "considers how her presence altered the ecosystem behavior" is wrong - her questions are about natural biological mechanisms, not about whether she disturbed the system
The biologist describes a scientific discovery, then debates the reliability of her measurement techniques.
- Though "Describes a scientific discovery" could fit the first part
- "debates the reliability of her measurement techniques" is completely wrong - she's not questioning her data collection accuracy but asking about biological mechanisms