Identify the inference best supported by the passage.

Concept

An inference is a conclusion supported by the passage even when it is not stated in exactly the same words.

A sound inference combines explicit details without adding a time span, population, judgement, or outcome that the passage does not establish.

Application

1. Trace the passage’s sequence: lobotomy was initially treated as a breakthrough, but it produced severe harms.

2. As medical understanding improved, the use of lobotomy decreased.

3. Medicines developed in the 1950s offered a safer and more effective alternative.

Cross-check and contrast

• “Remained the primary treatment until recent times” conflicts with the stated decline after medicines appeared in the 1950s and with lobotomy’s present status as outdated.

• “Successful treatment for mild mental disorders” changes both the severity described in the passage and the passage’s account of frequent severe harm.

• “Advances in medicine led to the decline of lobotomy and the rise of safer treatments” combines the passage’s two connected developments without adding an unsupported claim.

• “Moniz was celebrated as a hero” is not established; the passage identifies him as the creator and describes the procedure’s initial reception, not his later reputation.

Therefore, the best-supported inference is that advances in medicine led to the decline of lobotomy and the rise of safer treatments.