Question

There was plenty of oxygen on board the ship, but the LM was designed for only two people. Three people were producing too much carbon dioxide in the cabin. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the stuff that we exhale, and in large quantities it can be deadly. To "scrub" out the CO2, the crew were going to need the bigger CO2 scrubbers in the CSM, but there was a problem: The CSM scrubbers were square, and the LM scrubbers were round. To plug a CSM scrubber into an LM socket, they were literally going to need to put a square peg into a round hole.

–Epic Fails: The Race to Space: Countdown to Liftoff,
Erik Slader and Ben Thompson

Which words help show the problem developing?

plenty, designed, large, literally
oxygen, stuff, cabin, plug
LM, peg, CSM, CO2
but, much, deadly, problem

Answer 1

The words that help show the problem developing are **but, much, deadly, problem**. These words indicate a contrast (the availability of oxygen versus the issue of carbon dioxide), the seriousness of the situation (deadly), and explicitly mention that there is a problem to be addressed.