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Question

Difficulty: EasyOpening and Concluding Sentences

The following is a passage about the history of the telescope.

[1]
In the early seventeenth century, a spectacle maker named Hans Lippershey filed a patent for a device that could make distant objects appear close. This simple device, consisting of two lenses in a tube, marked the birth of the telescope. Recognizing its potential, the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei quickly constructed his own version, pointing it toward the night sky. With his telescope, Galileo discovered the four largest moons of Jupiter and observed the phases of Venus, forever altering our understanding of the universe.

[2]
As the centuries progressed, astronomers built increasingly large and complex telescopes. Sir Isaac Newton revolutionized the design by using mirrors instead of glass lenses to focus light, which solved the problem of color distortion. This reflecting telescope layout paved the way for massive modern observatories situated on remote mountaintops, far from the light pollution of cities.

[3]
Today, telescopes are no longer confined to the Earth's surface. In 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was launched into orbit above the atmosphere, providing humanity with stunningly clear images of distant galaxies. As technology advances, newer instruments like the James Webb Space Telescope continue to push the boundaries of what we can see. ________

Which choice provides the most effective and logical conclusion to the passage?

  1. Through these centuries of innovation, the telescope has transformed from a simple spectacle maker's invention into humanity's most powerful tool for exploring the universe.Answer
  2. B
    Because space telescopes require billions of dollars in funding to build.
  3. C
    Modern astronomers continue to peer deeper into space, they hope to discover signs of life on other planets.
  4. D
    Before inventing the modern telescope, glass was polished by hand for hours by early lens makers.

Answer

The option that describes the telescope's evolution from a simple spectacle maker's invention into a powerful tool for exploring the universe is the correct choice because it is grammatically sound and logically concludes the historical development detailed in the passage.
The correct choice effectively summarizes the passage's central theme of telescope evolution, linking the earliest device of the spectacle maker to modern space exploration tools, and it is grammatically correct.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the passage structure and theme.
The passage outlines the history of telescopes, starting from Lippershey's simple seventeenth-century device, moving to Newton's reflective design, and ending with modern space observatories.
Understanding the main topic helps identify a concluding sentence that summarizes or wraps up this specific progression.
2
Evaluate the grammar of each option.
The option beginning with 'Because' is a fragment. The option starting with 'Modern astronomers' is a comma splice. The option starting with 'Before inventing' contains a dangling modifier. Only the option describing the telescope's transition is grammatically correct.
All correct answers on the ACT must be grammatically correct.
3
Verify which grammatically correct option provides the best rhetorical conclusion.
The option summarizing the evolution of the telescope connects all three paragraphs together, providing a satisfying conclusion to the passage.
A good concluding sentence should reinforce the main idea without introducing new, unrelated topics.

Key Concept

Selecting the most effective concluding sentence that reinforces the main idea and maintains proper grammar.
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Topics

Opening and Concluding Sentences

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