sat suite question viewer
- For each data category, the following bars are shown:
- Oulujärvi
- Mirror Lake
- Lake Neusiedl
- The data for the 2 categories are as follows:
- 1980–81:
- Oulujärvi: 194 days
- Mirror Lake: 122 days
- Lake Neusiedl: 77 days
- 2005–06:
- Oulujärvi: 155 days
- Mirror Lake: 119 days
- Lake Neusiedl: 104 days
- 1980–81:
It is common for freshwater lakes near or above a latitude of 45° north of the equator, like Lake Mjøsa in Norway, to accumulate surface ice in winter. The amount and duration of ice depends on many factors, including local weather conditions as well as the lake’s depth, volume, and surface area, but a climate researcher claims that some lakes in these latitudes have seen a decline in the duration of ice between the early 1980s and the mid-2000s. She cites as a typical example blank
Which choice most effectively uses data from the graph to complete the researcher’s example?
Explanation
Choice C is the best answer because it most effectively uses data from the graph to exemplify the researcher’s claim—namely, that the duration of ice on some lakes has declined between the early 1980s and the mid-2000s. According to the graph, Oulujärvi had surface ice for nearly 200 days in the winter of 1980–81 but only about 160 days of ice in the more recent winter of 2005–06, evidence of a clear decline in the duration of surface ice between these time periods.
Choice A is incorrect because it focuses on only one period of time (the early 1980s). Thus, the data it cites don’t support the researcher’s claim, which compares the duration of surface ice across two specific periods of time (the early 1980s and the mid-2000s). Choice B is incorrect because although it accurately describes data from the graph, it contradicts the researcher’s claim about declining surface ice duration. It describes an increase, not a decline, in the duration of surface ice on Lake Neusiedl between the early 1980s and the mid-2000s (from about 80 days in 1980–81 to about 100 days in 2005–06). Therefore, the example of Lake Neusiedl wouldn’t logically support the claim that some lakes have seen a decline in the duration of surface ice. Choice D is incorrect because it provides information that doesn’t support the researcher’s claim about declining ice duration. The graph could indicate that both Lake Neusiedl and Oulujärvi had more than 105 days of ice in the winter of 2005–06, but on its own, this information doesn’t demonstrate a decline in ice duration between the early 1980s and the mid-2000s.