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Difficulty: MediumSentence-Level Transitions

In 1908, the Tunguska event flattened over eighty million trees in a remote region of Siberia, releasing energy equivalent to a massive thermonuclear explosion. Consequently, scientists were unable to locate an impact crater or retrieve fragments of a meteorite at the site. This lack of physical evidence led researchers to propose alternative theories, such as the airburst of a comet or asteroid that disintegrated high in the atmosphere.

Which choice provides the most logical transition that is also grammatically correct?

  1. A
    explosion. Consequently,
  2. B
    explosion, nevertheless,
  3. explosion. Nevertheless,Answer
  4. D
    explosion. But nevertheless,

Answer

The correct option is 'explosion. Nevertheless,' because it establishes the appropriate contrast relationship between the two independent clauses while avoiding grammatical errors like comma splices and redundancy.
The correct answer is the option that ends the first independent clause with a period and begins a new sentence with the contrast transition 'Nevertheless,' followed by a comma. This is correct because the second sentence describes an unexpected outcome (no crater or fragments found) given the massive scale of the explosion described in the first sentence, requiring a transition of contrast or concession rather than cause-and-effect.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the relationship between the first sentence (describing a massive explosion that flattened trees) and the second sentence (describing the lack of an impact crater or meteorite fragments).
The relationship is one of contrast or concession, as a crater and fragments are typically expected after a massive explosion.
Determining the logical connection between the two ideas is necessary to choose the correct transition category.
2
Evaluate the transitions in the choices based on this logical relationship.
'Consequently' is a cause-effect transition and is logically incorrect. 'Nevertheless' and 'but' are contrast transitions and are logically correct.
Filtering out choices with incorrect transition relationships narrows down the options.
3
Examine the grammatical structure and punctuation of the remaining choices.
Joining the clauses with 'explosion, nevertheless,' creates a comma splice. Using both 'but' and 'nevertheless' is redundant. Ending the first clause with a period and starting a new sentence with 'Nevertheless,' is grammatically correct.
Punctuation and conciseness rules must be satisfied to select the final correct option.

Key Concept

Selecting the correct sentence-level transition word to establish the logical relationship between two independent clauses, and using appropriate punctuation to avoid run-on sentences or comma splices.
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Topics

Sentence-Level Transitions

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