Improving Paragraphs Question 2

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
1

<p>(1) Shoppers in the United States beware—there’s a new way to buy groceries, and it’s coming to a store near you. (2) As recently as 1999, only 6% of U.S. supermarkets had self-checkout lines. (3) By 2003 the number had risen to 38%. (4) And half of those supermarkets in the survey without self-checkout said that they planned to add the service. (5) Hardware giant Home Depot was among the first major retailers to use these machines.</p>

<pre><code>(6) I remember when I first took the self-checkout plunge. (7) It was a large chain supermarket near my office. (8) One day I noticed four large electronic units taking up prime space in a prominent corner of the store, beckoning shoppers with the promise of shorter lines. (9) I was attracted, not fearful. (10) It’s so easy to let the cashier scan the groceries, check the coupons, take the money—was I up to the challenge of do-it-yourself? (11) I saw myself all elbows and thumbs, fumbling with my groceries and wallet as I battled the flashing computer screen. (12) Circumstances were driving me to face my fears. (13) When I at last approached the head of my line, the cashier announced it was time for her break.
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<p>In context, which of the following is the best phrase to insert at the beginning of sentence 12?</p>

<p>(A) But as it turned out,
(B) In addition,
(C) The result was that
(D) In most cases,
(E) I remembered that</p>

<p>Hmm…From Collegeboard:</p>

<p>Explanation for Correct Answer A :
Choice (A) is correct. Sentence 12 counters the anxiety of sentence 11 by hinting at what eventually happened—the author used the machine.</p>

<p>WHAT? Sentence 11 does the same thing; he’s actually trying to use the machine in Sentence 11. I don’t see any change. I chose “In addition,” (Choice B) because I feel that the author is in an anxious mood in Sentence 11, and the circumstances (cashier leaving) drove him to face his fears–that doesn’t mean he was relieved from his anxiousness or something (as Choice A suggests). From how I see it, Sentence 12 complements Sentence 11 in that both sentences are describing how he used the machine.</p>

2

<p>I don’t know if this a qualified answer but I’ll try my best to explain it.</p>

<p>Sentence 11 explains the thought process of what would hypothetically happen if the author was to use a self-checkout area. Then in Sentence 12, the sentence explains the positive effect of his thought process by stating “______, circumstances were driving me to face my fears.” “However” or even better, “but as it turned out” could fit in the blank. Simply, sentence 11 is the action and sentence 12 is the result.</p>

3

<p>It doesn’t seem to me that Sentence 11 and 12 are bonded by cause-and-effect relationship. Even if you were right, it would be “as a result of” or “as it turned out”, not “But as it turned out”.</p>