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Difficulty: HardParsing Complex Syntax, Reversals, and Double Negatives

Albeit rarely commended by her contemporaries, the natural philosopher's refusal to dismiss the anomalous laboratory readings was not uncalculated; far from being ________, her re-examination of the raw data anticipated key principles of modern quantum mechanics. Which two of the following answer choices, when inserted into the sentence, fit the meaning of the sentence as a whole and yield complete, sentence-equivalent results?

  1. capriciousAnswer
  2. arbitraryAnswer
  3. C
    calculated
  4. D
    systematic
  5. E
    commendable
  6. F
    judicious

Answer

The correct answer choices are 'capricious' and 'arbitrary', as both words mean determined by chance or whim rather than reason, perfectly completing the reversal required by the sentence structure.
The sentence setup relies on resolving nested negations and a structural turnaround. First, 'refusal to dismiss' means retaining or examining the data. Second, 'was not uncalculated' is a double negative meaning deliberate or intentional. The second clause opens with 'far from being ________', which acts as a reversal operator: if her work was deliberate and methodical, it was 'far from being' random or impulse-driven. The words 'capricious' and 'arbitrary' both mean erratic or governed by whim rather than logic, creating two completed sentences with identical meaning.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Parse the double negative in the main clause
The phrase 'refusal to dismiss... was not uncalculated' contains double negations ('refusal to dismiss' = retaining/investigating; 'not uncalculated' = intentional/deliberate). Thus, her decision was methodical and reasoned.
Resolving complex negations is necessary to establish the core polarity of the subject's actions.
2
Analyze the transition structure surrounding the blank
The structural cue 'far from being ________' indicates that the blank must contain a quality opposite to 'calculated' or 'methodical'.
The phrase 'far from being X, [she was deliberate]' establishes that X must represent randomness, impulsiveness, or lack of reason.
3
Select the synonym pair matching the required negative polarity
'Capricious' (given to sudden, unaccountable changes of mood or behavior) and 'arbitrary' (based on random choice or personal whim) both convey a lack of reasoned calculation and yield semantically equivalent sentences.
Sentence Equivalence requires picking two words that fit the context and produce identical overall sentence meanings.

Key Concept

Parsing complex sentence structure, concessive clauses, and double negatives to determine contextual word polarity.
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Topics

Parsing Complex Syntax, Reversals, and Double Negatives

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