Use of Evidence
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SAT Reading & Writing › Use of Evidence
On a blueberry farm, researchers ran a controlled experiment across matched plots during peak bloom. In some plots they fitted mesh bags over flowers to exclude insects; in others, flowers were left unbagged. Wind speed and weather were recorded and did not differ meaningfully among plots. Fruit set was high in unbagged plots but dropped sharply in bagged plots; in a third condition, bags with openings large enough for bees but not for larger animals restored fruit set to the level of unbagged plots. No fertilizer or irrigation changes occurred during the study. The pattern indicates that, in these plots under these conditions, successful pollination depended in part on _______.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
higher fruit set attracting more bee visits.
all farms without wild bees failing to produce fruit.
wind alone fully explaining pollination outcomes.
the presence of wild bees.
Explanation
Excluding insects lowered fruit set, and allowing bees back restored it, so bee presence is required. The other answers either reverse causality (A), overgeneralize beyond the study (B), or contradict the evidence by ignoring bees (C).
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Early grant applications were rejected three times, and initial experiments failed to produce consistent results.
- She refined her methods over two years, keeping meticulous lab notebooks and repeating trials patiently.
- A senior mentor encouraged revisions and introduced her to collaborators from a neighboring department.
- After publishing robust data, she presented at a regional conference and earned a young investigator prize.
- Early skepticism in the field faded as other labs replicated her findings over the following year.
- The project ultimately informed revised clinical guidelines adopted by a national professional society.
The student wants to emphasize perseverance after early failures. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
Despite three grant rejections and inconsistent early results, she persisted, refining methods for two years and documenting trials before publishing robust data that earned conference recognition and helped shift skeptical peers toward acceptance.
The project ultimately informed revised clinical guidelines adopted by a national society after other labs replicated her findings and she presented results at a regional conference highlighting implications for practice.
A senior mentor encouraged revisions and introduced collaborators from a neighboring department, broadening the project's expertise and enabling access to specialized equipment that strengthened the study's design and subsequent publication.
After five grant rejections and four years of repeating trials, she finally produced consistent results that persuaded skeptical peers and led to an award, demonstrating determination in the face of persistent obstacles.
Explanation
Choice A directly ties documented setbacks to sustained effort and later success. B and C highlight impact and mentorship rather than perseverance; D emphasizes perseverance but misstates the number of rejections and the timeline.
Urban heat islands make summers in dense neighborhoods especially hot, prompting heavy use of air conditioning. A scholar argues that municipal tree-planting programs reduce summertime electricity consumption by cooling neighborhoods and shading building facades. The claim is not merely that green space is pleasant but that planted trees measurably decrease demand for electricity during hot months. According to the scholar, expanded canopy lowers ambient temperatures and blocks direct solar gain on windows and roofs, so households run air conditioners less often or at higher setpoints. Because prior studies have sometimes conflated tree cover with socioeconomic differences, the scholar emphasizes comparisons that isolate the cooling effect of trees themselves, not related factors like income or appliance quality. The question is what evidence would most directly show that planting trees causes a reduction in summer electricity use at the neighborhood level.
Which finding, if true, would most directly support the scholar's claim?
Following a citywide tree-planting campaign, average home sale prices increased compared with nearby cities that did not plant trees.
In matched neighborhoods, those receiving 50 mature shade trees saw a 12% drop in summer electricity use relative to comparable neighborhoods without new trees, after controlling for income, housing age, and appliance efficiency.
On the day trees were planted, hourly electricity use briefly dipped as crews temporarily disconnected equipment.
Neighborhoods with many trees also tend to have higher household incomes and use less electricity during summer months.
Explanation
B isolates the causal impact of planting trees on summer electricity use. A is tangential (property values), C is the wrong timeframe (a momentary dip), and D is correlation without causation (tree cover co-occurs with income).
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Many urban neighborhoods designated food deserts lack nearby stores selling affordable fresh produce.
- Community gardens in these areas supply seasonal fruits and vegetables directly to local residents.
- Most gardens are maintained by volunteers and supported by modest city grants or donations.
- Garden coordinators host free workshops on composting, soil care, and basic cooking with harvests.
- Small plots with diverse plants attract pollinators and increase neighborhood biodiversity.
- Some gardeners donate surplus produce to local food pantries and mutual aid groups. Goal: Emphasize how community gardens address food insecurity in underserved neighborhoods.
The student wants to emphasize how community gardens address food insecurity in underserved neighborhoods. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
By planting diverse crops that attract pollinators, community gardens increase neighborhood biodiversity and create green spaces for residents to gather, strengthening social ties through shared maintenance and seasonal activities.
In food deserts, community gardens supply seasonal fruits and vegetables directly to residents and even donate surplus to local pantries, reducing shortages while modest city grants help sustain these efforts.
Volunteer-run programs offer free workshops on composting, soil care, and basic cooking with harvests, giving neighbors chances to learn practical skills and connect through regular meetings and cooperative maintenance.
Backed primarily by major corporate sponsors, these gardens distribute large quantities of free produce citywide, ensuring consistent supplies for all neighborhoods and effectively eliminating local food insecurity.
Explanation
B targets food insecurity by citing food deserts, direct produce access, surplus donations, and sustaining grants. A and C are true but off-goal; D would fit the goal but contradicts the notes.
A nutrition researcher asserts that school garden programs increase children's willingness to eat vegetables, not just their knowledge. The scholar argues that hands-on cultivation demystifies produce and gives students a sense of ownership, both of which translate into actual changes at the lunch table. She acknowledges that gardens can have ancillary benefits—engagement, teamwork, a richer science curriculum—but contends that these outcomes are secondary to the central effect on eating habits. Critics counter that gardens are pleasant but largely symbolic, predicting that children will admire the kale they grow but still discard it. To distinguish enthusiasm from behavior, the researcher calls for evidence that students in garden programs consume more vegetables than comparable peers without access to gardens, ideally measured over months rather than days and across multiple schools rather than a single enthusiastic classroom.
Which finding, if true, would most directly support the scholar's claim?
At participating schools, a post-implementation survey found that students reported enjoying science class more than before.
On the day a celebrity chef visited, students sampled unfamiliar vegetables but returned to usual choices the following week.
In a randomized controlled trial across 20 schools, students at schools assigned garden programs consumed significantly more vegetables at lunch than students at control schools after one year.
Schools with garden programs are disproportionately located in affluent neighborhoods where households already purchase more produce.
Explanation
C provides causal, multi-school evidence that garden programs increase actual consumption over time. A is tangential (engagement, not eating); B is a short-lived event (wrong timeframe); D is correlation with affluence, not evidence of the gardens' effect.
Two job-training programs, A and B, were evaluated using random assignment of 800 applicants. Both programs provided the same classroom curriculum, instructor roster, and schedule; only A added weekly one-on-one mentoring and a modest stipend. Six months after completion, 64% of A participants were employed compared with 54% of B participants, a difference that remained after controlling for age, prior experience, and local unemployment rates. Dropout rates and job search hours did not differ between groups. Because the programs were otherwise identical and assignment was random, the most justified conclusion is that _______.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
at least one feature unique to Program A contributed to higher employment.
stipends, and not mentoring, are solely responsible for the effect.
higher employment among A participants led program staff to add mentoring.
any program that offers both stipends and mentoring will outperform others.
Explanation
Random assignment and identical curricula isolate the difference to features unique to A. The other options speculate beyond the data (B, D) or reverse cause and effect (C).
In a short essay, an urban ecologist claims that planting shade trees on the sunniest sides of homes can lower neighborhood electricity use during summer peaks. He argues that while efficient appliances matter, the broad canopy of mature trees blocks radiant heat before it enters buildings, reducing the need for air conditioning on the hottest afternoons. Because shade trees provide localized cooling where demand spikes are greatest, the ecologist expects measurable reductions not just in individual households but across entire circuits that serve residential blocks. He dismisses the idea that tree planting would primarily help in winter, when leaves have fallen and heating loads dominate. The proposal's appeal, he concludes, is that a one-time planting yields recurring benefits for both residents and utilities each summer without requiring behavior change.
Which finding, if true, would most directly support the scholar's claim?
Surveys show most residents feel parks make neighborhoods more livable in July.
In matched neighborhoods, blocks receiving new south- and west-side shade trees saw a significant decline in late-afternoon electricity use each summer compared with treeless controls.
Heating bills fell in several districts after evergreens were added near wind-exposed homes.
Households that signed up for an energy-efficiency rebate also tended to live on streets with mature trees.
Explanation
B directly measures reduced summer peak electricity use across blocks with new shade trees. A is about perceptions, C concerns winter heating, and D confounds trees with a rebate program (correlation without causation).
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- City's summers now average five more days above 95 degrees than in 1990.
- Tree canopy currently covers 18 percent of streets, concentrated in wealthier neighborhoods.
- Pilot planting 2,000 trees lowered afternoon sidewalk temperatures by 4 degrees last July.
- Residents reported more evening walkers and higher shop visits near shaded blocks.
- Maintenance costs projected at $150,000 annually, funded through corporate sponsorships and grants.
- Health department estimates reduced heat-related emergency calls by 11 percent in pilot areas. Goal: Emphasize the program's impact on lowering urban heat.
The student wants to emphasize the program's heat-reduction impact. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
With tree canopy covering only 18 percent of streets and funding secured through corporate sponsorships and grants, the program targets underserved areas and ensures ongoing maintenance.
During last July's pilot, planting 2,000 trees lowered afternoon sidewalk temperatures by 4 degrees, and health officials recorded an 11 percent drop in heat-related emergency calls in those shaded areas.
Residents reported more evening walkers and increased shop visits near shaded blocks, suggesting economic and social benefits around the newly planted corridors for nearby businesses and families.
As the city experiences five more days above 95 degrees than in 1990, expanding canopy to underserved neighborhoods addresses environmental equity concerns and directs resources where shade is scarce.
Explanation
B directly highlights temperature reductions and fewer heat-related emergencies. The other choices focus on funding, equity, or economic activity rather than the program's heat-reduction outcomes.
A museum tested email subject lines for an upcoming exhibition by randomly sending 40,000 subscribers either a generic subject line or a personalized one using recipients' first names. Open rates rose from 21% (generic) to 31% (personalized), and click-through rates mirrored this increase. However, ticket purchases and in-person visits during the campaign period were statistically indistinguishable between groups, and the website's checkout process and pricing remained unchanged. The test was run for only this exhibition and used the same send times for both variants. Consequently, in this test, personalization of the subject line alone _______.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
increased online sales for other exhibitions later in the year.
did not change the rate at which recipients visited the museum.
caused prices to appear more attractive to recipients.
will reliably boost ticket purchases for all future campaigns.
Explanation
Visits and purchases did not differ, so subject-line personalization did not change visit rates in this test. The other choices add unsupported claims about later sales or universal effects (A, D) or posit an unmeasured mechanism (C).
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- City expanded community garden plots from 50 to 200 between 2015 and 2024.
- Participants report reduced grocery costs and increased access to fresh vegetables.
- Volunteers logged 6,000 hours maintaining beds, composting, and running workshops last year.
- The city provided grants for soil testing, rain barrels, and native plant seeds.
- Surveys show stronger neighbor connections and more use of nearby parks. Goal: Emphasize cost savings for residents.
The student wants to emphasize cost savings for residents. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
Volunteers logged 6,000 hours maintaining beds, composting, and running workshops, building skills and stewardship that increased park usage and neighbor connections across participating neighborhoods last year significantly.
With plots expanding from 50 to 200 and participants reporting reduced grocery costs, the program helps more households cut food bills while city grants for supplies keep start-up expenses low.
Grants for soil testing, rain barrels, and native seeds improved garden infrastructure and environmental sustainability, supporting workshops that taught composting and best practices to the expanding network of plots.
Surveys show stronger neighbor connections and more use of nearby parks as gardeners collaborate, attend workshops, and maintain beds, strengthening community ties throughout the city's expanding garden program.
Explanation
Choice B ties reduced grocery costs to expansion and grants that lower expenses. The other choices cite true notes about community engagement, infrastructure, or parks but do not directly address residents' cost savings.