Okay, here is the question and its answer choices, along with the two texts:

Question

Text 1: The famous pothole on Main Street was several inches deep before the city managed to address the situation. The hole was first reported three years ago. Over time, it grew deeper and cost local residents more tires with each passing month. After much debate, the city finally hired a local private business to fill the hole and patch the pavement. Given the city's lack of working street equipment, this was clearly the right call.

Text 2: Everyone was aware of the pothole on Main Street, but nonetheless it remained a steadfast resident of our town for three years. Its presence gave us so many choices: Should we drivers take a different route or run over the hole and hope for the best? Was it wiser to trust the city to handle it, or should some brave citizen have jumped in to save us all? Should that brave citizen have used gravel, cement, or something vastly more entertaining—such as rubber cement? At least then we could have had a town trampoline, if not safe and smooth roads for all.

Question: Which inference does the connection between the two texts support?

The pothole was a big enough problem that many people in the town thought and talked about it.
The solution to the pothole problem came about as the result of citizens writing thoughtful texts on the topic.
The pothole was a big enough problem that people across the country were interested in learning what happened.
The solution to the pothole problem was controversial among the citizens of the town.

Deep Research

Answer 1

The inference that is best supported by the connection between the two texts is:

The pothole was a big enough problem that many people in the town thought and talked about it.

Both texts discuss the long-standing issue of the pothole on Main Street and the community's awareness and engagement with the situation. Text 1 mentions the impact of the pothole on local residents, while Text 2 reflects on various thoughts and discussions surrounding the pothole, indicating it was a significant topic of conversation in the town.