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Text Completion

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Question 261Question →

Fill in the blanks in the passage below to complete the sentence logically based on inter-blank structural clues.

Fill in the blanks below

While early economic historians asserted that the severe seventeenth-century agrarian downturn was an inevitable outcome of climatic cooling, recent demographic data reveal that regional grain shortages were frequently by dynamic market distribution, demonstrating that adaptive social infrastructure could the adverse effects of ecological volatility.
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Answer

Blank 1 requires a word meaning lessened or buffered (e.g., 'mitigated'), and Blank 2 requires a verb meaning weaken or reduce (e.g., 'attenuate').
The introductory contrast signal 'While...' signals a reversal of the traditional view that climate alone dictated agrarian disaster. Consequently, the demographic evidence must show that trade networks softened or reduced local shortages (e.g., 'mitigated'), which directly leads to the conclusion that adaptive social institutions could weaken or counter (e.g., 'attenuate') ecological shocks.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the structural pivot at the start of the sentence ('While early economic historians asserted...').
Identify that the main clause must contrast with the deterministic view that climate cooling inevitably caused agrarian ruin.
The introductory concession 'While...' establishes a contrast between environmental determinism and the mitigating role of human infrastructure.
2
Track inter-blank dependency between Blank 1 and Blank 2.
Recognize that if dynamic market distribution reduced the severity of grain shortages (Blank 1: mitigated/ameliorated), it demonstrates that social infrastructure served to lessen environmental impacts (Blank 2: attenuate/offset).
Both blanks must align in polarity to support the idea that social systems counteracted climate stress rather than amplifying it.

Key Concept

Multi-Blank Dependency Tracking
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