When an ordinary piece of steel

Answer choices

1. A

   Contradicted6% picked this

   become larger in size yet still be of

   Becoming larger in size would mean that the volume had increased. But we were told that glass's "volume remains unchanged" when put under pressure.

   6%
2. B

   Contradicted9% picked this

   flow toward the point at which the pressure of the object

   We were told that "any portion of glass under pressure will very slowly flow to areas under less pressure." So we would expect the glass will flow toward the point at which the pressure is least.

   9%
3. C

   Contradicted2% picked this

   compress, although not as much as a piece of

   This answer is saying that the sheet of glass would compress. The second sentence says that, "Glass, however, is a fluid, so rather than compressing, it does [something else]."

   2%
4. D

   Out of Scope3% picked this

   divide into exactly two pieces that are equal in neither size nor shape to the

   Out of Scope: divide Too Strong: exactly two pieces We're talking about glass that can support the weight without cracking, so this paragraph doesn't seem to be leading into glass dividing/cracking into two pieces.

   3%
5. E

   Correct81% picked this

   be thinner in the portion of the glass that is under the pressure of the object than in those portions of the glass

   Why this is right

   This answer feels like a bit of a stretch, but it helps us that the first four answers were pretty much contradicted. That would make anything non-contradictory be the most logical completion. We were looking for the idea that the flow of glass would move away from the center toward the areas under less pressure. Would this cause the glass under the heavy object to be thinner and the other parts thicker? Sure, since the glass started out at uniform thickness and now we're moving material away from the center to other areas. Picture one of those floating rafts people lay on in swimming pools, a rectangular shape with uniform thickness. If you put that raft on the sidewalk and then sat in the middle, your butt would sink down close to the sidewalk, while the headrest and footrest of the raft would puff up. That's because our butt pressure is sending the air from the area under sustained pressure to the areas under less pressure. That's the same phenomenon this answer choice is describing, in relation to a sheet of glass.

   Skill tested: Most Supported · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

   81%