Question

Difficulty: EasyEvaluating Relevance for Adding or Deleting Content

In 1873, tailor Jacob Davis and merchant Levi Strauss patented a new type of durable work pants. These pants featured copper rivets at points of strain, such as pocket corners, to prevent tearing. The rivets were manufactured in a small factory located in Maryland. The sturdy trousers, later known as blue jeans, quickly became popular among miners who needed clothing that would not rip during hard labor.

The writer is considering deleting the underlined sentence from the passage. Should this sentence be deleted?

  1. Yes, because it introduces a detail about the manufacturing location of the rivets that is irrelevant to the paragraph's focus on the design and popularity of the pants.Answer
  2. B
    Yes, because it contradicts the paragraph's claim that Davis and Strauss patented the pants.
  3. C
    No, because it provides essential background information about where the materials for the pants were sourced.
  4. D
    No, because it explains why miners preferred these pants over other types of work clothing.

Answer

Yes, because it introduces a detail about the manufacturing location of the rivets that is irrelevant to the paragraph's focus on the design and popularity of the pants.
The correct option states that the sentence should be deleted because it introduces an irrelevant detail about where the rivets were manufactured. This detail does not support the paragraph's focus on the design, patenting, and popularity of the work pants.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the main focus of the paragraph.
The paragraph focuses on the patenting, design (copper rivets for durability), and popularity among miners of the new work pants.
Understanding the paragraph's topic is necessary to determine if the sentence in question is relevant.
2
Analyze the content of the underlined sentence.
The underlined sentence states where the copper rivets were manufactured (a small factory in Maryland).
This helps evaluate if the sentence directly supports the main topic or introduces a tangent.
3
Evaluate the relevance of the sentence and determine the correct decision.
The manufacturing location of the rivets does not contribute to explaining the pants' design or popularity. Therefore, the sentence is irrelevant and should be deleted.
Irrelevant details should be removed to maintain paragraph focus and cohesion.

Key Concept

Evaluating relevance when considering adding or deleting text in a passage.
Estimated Time:50s
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