The Greenland shark grows so slowly that it ranks among the longest-lived animals on Earth. _____ radiocarbon dating of the lenses in its eyes suggests that some individuals swimming in the Arctic today were born before the first telescopes were built, nearly four centuries ago.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
Trap alert
You chose A. Here is the exact mistake that makes it tempting.
"For example" would make the shark's four-century age one instance of a general point. But the first sentence is about this single animal's longevity, not a category with cases to draw from, and the second sentence doesn't step down to a sample; it restates that same longevity at its extreme. "For example" points down to a case, while the passage points back at the same claim, only louder. This is the classic near-twin trap: both words follow a claim, so only the exact job of the next sentence separates them.
This trap has a name: wrong logical relation. There's an index of them in the back of the book.
Trap alert
You chose B. Here is the exact mistake that makes it tempting.
"However" signals contrast, and a lifespan reaching back before the telescope can feel like a twist worth flagging. But the second sentence confirms the first, it doesn't reverse it: a shark that lives four centuries is exactly what "among the longest-lived animals on Earth" means. There is no push-back here to sign.
This trap has a name: wrong logical relation. There's an index of them in the back of the book.
Trap alert
You chose D. Here is the exact mistake that makes it tempting.
"As a result" looks for a cause and its effect, and slow growth leading to long life is a real link. But that cause and effect already sits inside the first sentence ("grows so slowly that it ranks among the longest-lived"). Across the blank there is no new consequence, only the same longevity measured out, so a result word invents a step the sentences never take.
This trap has a name: wrong logical relation. There's an index of them in the back of the book.
Correct
Read across the gap. The first sentence claims the Greenland shark grows so slowly that it ranks among the longest-lived animals on Earth. The sentence after the blank does not add a new fact or turn against that claim. It drives the same point harder, putting a number on the age: some sharks were born nearly four centuries ago, before the first telescopes. That is the writer doubling down on the very same idea, raising the stakes. Predict "and it goes even further than that." "In fact" says it. The answer is C.
The move
Read across the gap and name the relationship before you weigh the options. When the second sentence restates the first idea with more force instead of adding a separate one, illustrating it, or following from it, reach for an amplifier like "in fact" or "indeed."
That was 1 of 1,000. Every one is explained like this, in the book, not behind a QR code.
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