Read the following article from a website.
Sudbury city council is deciding whether the city should run its own crime-alert app for residents. The app would let people report break-ins, stolen bikes and suspicious activity, and it would send alerts to phones in the area. Police say they now answer dozens of calls each month about incidents that turn out to be false, many of them started by messages in neighbourhood chat groups. Council will vote on a six-month pilot in November. The city has set aside $85,000 for the trial.
Jorunn Kovac, the city’s community safety coordinator, supports the app. “Rumours are already spreading through chat groups that nobody checks,” she said. “A city app can replace those rumours with facts. People deserve a source they can trust.” Kovac ran a small test in two neighbourhoods last spring. “Owners got their stolen bikes back within two days, because every message was reviewed and accurate,” Kovac said. She wants a staff member to check each alert before it goes out.
Amaru Lazaro, a researcher who studies privacy and civil rights, warns about instant alerts. “A phone that buzzes every time someone sees a stranger turns every tip into a small panic,” Lazaro said. “Innocent people walking home can end up under suspicion. Once a false alert is out, fixing it is almost impossible.” He would rather see a short summary of checked incidents sent twice a day. Lazaro says a slower app would still be useful.
Pernille Kamau, who organizes tenants in apartment buildings, says the app must include people who are often left out. “The people who work night shifts know these streets better than anyone, and they never get to a block-watch meeting,” she said. Kamau, whose group works in forty buildings, wants residents to be able to send tips without giving their names. Rangi Lefebvre, the city’s privacy officer, adds a condition of his own. “Any map data should be deleted after thirty days,” Lefebvre said. “Otherwise the city slowly builds a record of where everyone goes,” he added.
Using the drop-down menu (▾), choose the best option according to the information given on the website.
All of the people quoted seem to agree that 2..
Paragraph three mainly presents 3..
Jorunn Kovac’s position would likely be supported by 4..
According to Lefebvre, keeping map data too long would 5..
The following is a comment by a visitor to the website page. Complete the comment by choosing the best option to fill in each blank.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Correct Answer: a city app for sharing crime alerts
Why this is correct: Council is deciding whether the city should run its own crime-alert app. Every speaker gives a view on that app.
Passage Reference: Sudbury city council is deciding whether the city should run its own crime-alert app for residents.
Tips: Test each option against Kovac, Lazaro, Kamau and Lefebvre, one by one. Ask why the reporter put these people in one article, and the option that explains that is the topic.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a new police station for Sudbury: The police are mentioned, but nobody plans a new station.
- a ban on neighbourhood chat groups: Chat groups are part of the problem, but nobody wants to ban them.
- a program to return stolen bikes: Stolen bikes are one example from Kovac’s test, not the main topic.
Correct Answer: an app could work if it is set up with care
Passage Reference: She wants a staff member to check each alert before it goes out. ... Lazaro says a slower app would still be useful. ... says the app must include people who are often left out ... adds a condition of his own
Why this is correct: Kovac wants every alert checked first. Lazaro says a slower app would still help. Kamau wants it to include people often left out, and Lefebvre adds a condition.
Tips: Test each option on Kovac, Lazaro, Kamau and Lefebvre in turn. Accept it only if every one of them, in their own words, would go along with it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- alerts should go out the moment a tip arrives: Kovac wants each alert checked first, and Lazaro warns against instant alerts. Nobody wants alerts sent the moment a tip comes in.
- night workers know the streets best: Only Kamau says this. The others do not talk about night workers.
- map records should be kept for good: Lefebvre wants map data deleted after a set time. Nobody wants records kept for good.
Correct Answer: a researcher’s warning and the slower plan he prefers
Passage Reference: Amaru Lazaro, a researcher who studies privacy and civil rights, warns about instant alerts.
Why this is correct: “Paragraph three” quotes Lazaro, a privacy researcher, who warns about instant alerts. He then describes a slower kind of app he would rather see.
Tips: Read “Paragraph three” again and ask what job it does in the article. Then match that job to one option.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a coordinator’s small test in two neighbourhoods: Kovac’s test comes before “Paragraph three”. It is not described there.
- a tenant organizer’s call to include night workers: Kamau speaks after “Paragraph three”. Lazaro does not talk about night workers.
- the cost of the trial and when council will vote: The cost and the vote open the article. They are not in “Paragraph three”.
Correct Answer: a study finding that checked alerts cut false calls
Passage Reference: Rumours are already spreading through chat groups that nobody checks ... A city app can replace those rumours with facts.
Why this is correct: Kovac says a city app can replace rumours with facts. A study showing that checked alerts led to fewer false calls would back her case.
Tips: Read every sentence Kovac says. Picture each option as true, and ask if it would make her argument stronger or fit someone else’s instead.
Why the other options are wrong:
- residents saying alerts make them panic: This fits Lazaro, who warns that alerts turn tips into panic. It would weaken Kovac’s case.
- night workers who never go to block-watch meetings: This fits Kamau’s point about people who are left out. It says nothing about Kovac’s case.
- a report that stored map data was misused: This backs Lefebvre’s concern about records. Kovac does not talk about map data.
Correct Answer: give the city a record of people’s movements
Passage Reference: Otherwise the city slowly builds a record of where everyone goes
Why this is correct: Lefebvre says map data should be deleted. Otherwise, he says, the city slowly builds a record of where everyone goes.
Tips: Look only at Lefebvre’s quoted words. Pick the option they state in other words, and rule out ideas that come from other speakers.
Why the other options are wrong:
- cause more false alerts about strangers: Lazaro warns about false alerts. Lefebvre links stored map data to a record, not to false alerts.
- keep night workers from sending tips: Kamau talks about night workers. Lefebvre does not say stored data would stop anyone sending tips.
- slow down the return of stolen bikes: Kovac talks about stolen bikes. Lefebvre never links them to map data.
Correct Answer: November
Passage Reference: Council will vote on a six-month pilot in November.
Why this is correct: Council will vote on a six-month pilot in November.
Tips: Find when council will vote, and choose that month.
Why the other options are wrong:
- September: September is not mentioned in the article.
- October: The vote is a month later than this.
- December: The vote happens before December.
Correct Answer: six-month
Passage Reference: a six-month pilot
Why this is correct: Council will vote on a six-month pilot.
Tips: Look for the length of the pilot that council will vote on.
Why the other options are wrong:
- three-month: The pilot is longer than three months.
- nine-month: The pilot is shorter than nine months.
- one-year: The pilot is shorter than a year.
Correct Answer: twice a day
Passage Reference: He would rather see a short summary of checked incidents sent twice a day.
Why this is correct: Lazaro would rather see a short summary of checked incidents sent twice a day.
Tips: The commenter means the researcher’s idea. Find how often he wants the summary sent.
Why the other options are wrong:
- once a week: Lazaro wants the summary more often than weekly.
- once a day: Lazaro wants the summary more often than this.
- every hour: Hourly messages would be closer to the instant alerts Lazaro dislikes.
Correct Answer: names
Passage Reference: wants residents to be able to send tips without giving their names.
Why this is correct: Kamau wants residents to be able to send tips without giving their names.
Tips: Read what the tenant organizer wants for people who send tips. Find what they could keep private.
Why the other options are wrong:
- addresses: Kamau does not talk about addresses.
- phone numbers: Phone numbers are not mentioned in the article.
- photos: Kamau does not mention photos.
Correct Answer: thirty days
Passage Reference: Any map data should be deleted after thirty days
Why this is correct: Lefebvre says any map data should be deleted after thirty days.
Tips: The commenter is repeating the privacy officer’s rule. Find how long he would keep the data.
Why the other options are wrong:
- fourteen days: Lefebvre gives a longer period than this.
- sixty days: Lefebvre gives a shorter period than this.
- ninety days: Lefebvre gives a shorter period than this.
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