#19 - Global Reference, Must Be True, Organization

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

The correct answer choice is (E).

Answer choice (A):

Answer choice (B):

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D):

Answer choice (E): This is the correct answer choice.

This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[acaiblueberry]

Hi,

I chose E because all the other answer choices looked wrong to me, but am still a little unsure of why E would be the correct answer. I understand the first half of E when it states that "a traditional method of analysis is discussed and the reasons for its adoption are explained," but could you explain the second half of an alternative being described, and how it is shown in the passage?

Thanks!

[Jeff Wren]

Hi acaiblueberry,

The second paragraph of the passage corresponds to the first half of Answer E. The traditional method to analyze large interactive systems was just using the same methods as analyzing small interactive systems (lines 12-16). The rest of the paragraph explains why they had adopted this traditional method.

The third paragraph explains that the traditional method doesn't always work (lines 23-26) and that has led theorists to propose a new theory, the "theory of self-organized criticality" (line 27). This theory is the "alternative (that) is then described" in Answer E. The theory of self-organized criticality is the alternative to the traditional method.

The fourth and fifth paragraphs provide an example of sand being added to a disk that illustrates this theory. This corresponds to the final part of Answer E "and clarified by means of an example."