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Question

Difficulty: MediumEliminating Wordiness

In 1856, eighteen-year-old chemist William Henry Perkin was attempting to synthesize quinine, a treatment for malaria, in his home laboratory. Instead of quinine, he produced a dark, sticky sludge that turned out to be the first synthetic aniline dye. He noticed that the sludge had a rich purple color when it was dissolved in alcohol, which was a purple color that had never been produced artificially before. Perkin quickly patented the process, launching the modern synthetic dye industry.

Which choice most effectively and concisely expresses the information in the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. He noticed that the sludge, when dissolved in alcohol, produced a rich purple color never before created artificially.Answer
  3. C
    Dissolved in alcohol, a rich purple color was produced by the sludge that had never before been created by artificial means.
  4. D
    The sludge was dissolved in alcohol, it produced a rich purple color that had never before been created artificially.

Answer

He noticed that the sludge, when dissolved in alcohol, produced a rich purple color never before created artificially.
The correct option is the most concise and direct choice. It uses active construction ('the sludge... produced a rich purple color') and avoids repeating the word 'purple' or using wordy prepositional phrases.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the underlined portion for redundant phrasing and wordiness.
The phrase 'which was a purple color' repeats the word 'purple' from the first half of the clause, creating clear redundancy.
To satisfy ACT writing standards, wordiness and redundancy must be eliminated.
2
Evaluate the choices for grammatical correctness and conciseness.
One option is wordy and passive, and another contains a comma splice. The option starting with 'He noticed that the sludge, when dissolved' expresses the same meaning in fewer words without introducing grammatical errors.
The correct answer must be both grammatically sound and the most concise option that preserves the original meaning.

Key Concept

Eliminating Wordiness
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Eliminating Wordiness

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