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Question

Difficulty: MediumSequence of Events

Passage

When Dr. Cynthia Sterling first began her excavation of the dry lake bed in the Atacama Desert in 2012, she was looking for traces of ancient irrigation channels. What she found instead, buried beneath a layer of volcanic ash from an eruption in 1845, was a cache of copper scrolls. Decades earlier, in 1964, a localized survey by a mining company had noted unusual electromagnetic anomalies in the exact same quadrant, but the report had been filed away and forgotten. It was only after Sterling published her initial findings in 2015 that an archivist at the mining firm, reviewing old files before his retirement, connected the 1964 report to her current dig. This revelation prompted Sterling to expand her search area in 2018, eventually uncovering a secondary site that dated back to the fourteenth century.

According to the passage, which of the following events occurred after the mining company’s localized survey but before Sterling published her initial findings?

  1. A
    Sterling widened her investigation to locate an older secondary site.
  2. Sterling initiated her archaeological dig in the Atacama Desert.Answer
  3. C
    A volcanic eruption covered the copper scrolls with a layer of ash.
  4. D
    A mining firm employee linked the historical survey to the active excavation.

Answer

Sterling initiated her archaeological dig in the Atacama Desert.
The correct answer is the option stating that Sterling initiated her archaeological dig in the Atacama Desert. The passage explicitly states that she began her excavation in 2012. This occurs after the mining company's localized survey (which took place in 1964) and before she published her initial findings (which occurred in 2015).

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the chronological coordinates of the two boundary events mentioned in the question.
The mining company's localized survey occurred in 1964, and Sterling published her initial findings in 2015.
This establishes the target window of time as between 1964 and 2015.
2
Scan the passage to find the date or relative timeline of the correct option.
Dr. Sterling began her excavation of the dry lake bed in 2012.
This date needs to be checked against the target window.
3
Verify if the date falls within the target range.
2012 falls chronologically after 1964 and before 2015, confirming the timeline.
This confirms that initiating the dig is the correct sequence of events.

Key Concept

Chronological sequencing in non-linear passages
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Topics

Sequence of Events

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