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How does the author use facts, reasoned judgments and speculation to convey the main idea of the last section of the article titled “Pushing Past Setbacks”? In your answer, provide the following:
- a statement of the main idea
- textual evidence of each type of information
- an explanation of how each type of information helps to convey the main idea
Main idea – Drilling into faults is an experiment that has encountered many challenges.
Facts:
- “in 2007. Scientists drilled a 2-mile-deep hole that pierced the famous San Andreas Fault in California”
- “Drilling was more expensive than expected, due to rising oil prices.”
- “instruments placed in the hole failed shortly after they were installed … due to harmful gases, crushing pressures and high temperatures at that depth.”
These facts provide examples of the particular setbacks encountered by one drilling project.
Reasoned Judgment:
- “’The whole thing is just like a cauldron down there,’ Thurber said.”
This judgment is based on the evidence of the damage done by harmful gases to the scientists’ instruments.
Speculation:
- “they will gain valuable information about how faults behave close to the source.”
- “Scientists will also learn how earthquakes travel along the fault when they erupt.”
There is no way to know if these things will come true but they serve to explain what scientists hope to gain through the drilling projects and why they continue even when there are setbacks.