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Difficulty: MediumSentence-Level Transitions

Although lacking a brain or central nervous system, the slime mold *Physarum polycephalum* exhibits remarkable problem-solving capabilities. During laboratory experiments, the single-celled organism can navigate complex mazes to locate food. To achieve this, the slime mold leaves a trail of extracellular slime as it moves, creating a physical record of where it has been. Conversely, this externalized spatial memory prevents the organism from wasting energy re-exploring dead ends.

Which choice best transitions from the preceding sentence to the sentence that follows by establishing a logical cause-and-effect relationship?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. Consequently,Answer
  3. C
    On the other hand,
  4. D
    For instance,

Answer

Consequently,
The transition 'Consequently,' correctly establishes the cause-and-effect relationship between the two sentences. The slime mold leaving a physical slime trail acts as its spatial memory (the cause), and as a direct result, the organism avoids wasting energy re-exploring areas it has already visited (the effect).

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the context and logical connection between the two sentences.
The first sentence explains that the slime mold leaves a slime trail to record its movement, and the second sentence explains that this prevents the mold from entering dead ends.
To choose the correct transition, the relationship between the ideas must be identified.
2
Determine the correct transition type.
Because the second sentence describes the direct outcome or result of the first sentence, a cause-and-effect transition is required.
Identifying the relationship type allows us to eliminate transitions of contrast or illustration.
3
Evaluate the choices based on the target transition type.
The word 'Consequently' denotes cause-and-effect, whereas 'Conversely' and 'On the other hand' denote contrast, and 'For instance' denotes illustration.
This leads to the correct and logical selection.

Key Concept

Selecting transitions that accurately convey the logical relationship (such as cause-and-effect, contrast, or addition) between independent sentences or clauses.
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Topics

Sentence-Level Transitions

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