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Question

Difficulty: EasyPart-to-Whole Rhetorical Function

Some desert annual plants survive dry spells through a strategy known as seed dormancy. These plants produce seeds that can remain inactive in the soil for several years until a significant rainfall event occurs. Once the soil receives enough water, the seeds germinate rapidly, allowing the plants to complete their life cycle before the moisture evaporates. This adaptation ensures the species' survival in an environment with highly unpredictable precipitation.

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?

  1. A
    It provides evidence that rainfall in desert environments has become increasingly predictable.
  2. B
    It predicts that desert annual plants will eventually adapt to survive without any rainfall.
  3. It explains the mechanism of the survival strategy introduced in the first sentence.Answer
  4. D
    It introduces the concept of seed dormancy as a newly discovered biological phenomenon.

Answer

The choice that states the underlined sentence explains the mechanism of the survival strategy introduced in the first sentence is correct.
The correct answer accurately identifies the role of the underlined sentence. The passage opens by introducing the survival strategy of seed dormancy, and the underlined sentence explains the mechanical details of this strategy by describing how seeds stay inactive until stimulated by rainfall.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the first sentence of the text.
The first sentence introduces 'seed dormancy' as a survival strategy used by some desert plants.
To establish the context of the main concept being discussed.
2
Examine the underlined sentence to identify its specific function.
The underlined sentence describes how seeds remain inactive until a significant rainfall event happens.
To determine how this specific sentence relates to the concept of seed dormancy.
3
Compare the underlined sentence's function to the surrounding text.
The sentence details the biological mechanism of the dormancy strategy, linking its introduction in the first sentence to the subsequent details about germination and survival.
To identify the logical part-to-whole relationship.

Key Concept

Determining the rhetorical function of a specific sentence within a passage.
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Topics

Part-to-Whole Rhetorical Function

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