A number of sentences are given below which, when properly sequenced, form a…
2024
A number of sentences are given below which, when properly sequenced, form a coherent paragraph. Each sentence is labelled with a letter. Choose the most logical order of sentences from among the four given choices to construct a coherent paragraph.
(P)Astrology has been dated to at least the 2nd millennium BCE, and has its roots in calendrical systems used to predict seasonal shifts and to interpret celestial cycles as signs of divine communications.
(Q)Many cultures have attached importance to astronomical events, and some—such as the Hindus, Chinese, and
(R)Astrology is a pseudoscience that claims to divine information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the movements and relative positions of celestial objects.
(S)the Maya—developed elaborate systems for predicting terrestrial events from celestial observations.
- A.
RPQS
- B.
PQRS
- C.
QPRS
- D.
QRPS
Attempted by 2 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: In a sentence-rearrangement (para-jumble) question, the paragraph must open with the sentence that introduces or defines the subject, and any sentence that ends in a connector word ("and", "such as") must be followed immediately by the sentence that completes it, not one placed elsewhere in the sequence.
Application: Sentence R opens the paragraph by defining astrology as a pseudoscience that claims to divine information from the movements of celestial objects. Sentence P follows with astrology's historical dating and its roots in calendrical systems. Sentence Q then introduces the cultures that valued astronomical events and ends with the open connector "and some—such as the Hindus, Chinese, and", which is completed only by Sentence S, "the Maya—developed elaborate systems for predicting terrestrial events". This gives the order R-P-Q-S.
PQRS opens with the historical-dating sentence (P) before astrology has been defined.
QPRS and QRPS both open with the cultural-examples sentence (Q) before the paragraph's subject has been introduced.
Only the sequence that opens with the definition and keeps Q immediately joined to S forms a complete, uninterrupted paragraph.
Hence the correct order is R-P-Q-S.