Question

In 2015, an eighth grader named Hannah Herbst from Boca Raton, Florida won the Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge. At just 14 years old, she designed and built a small turbine called BEACON, for Bringing Electricity Access to Countries Through Ocean Energy Collection. "Shortly after school began," Herbst wrote in a blog post for the contest, "I received a letter from my nine-year-old pen pal in Ethiopia. She wrote about how she has no access to lights, a steady flow of fresh water to drink, and other basic necessities. I recognized that her situation was not unique and believed that I could use the skills I acquired to take action in an attempt to mitigate the global energy crisis." So Hannah got to work on her ocean energy probe. She spent four months researching her idea, she wrote in another blog post, before she designed the turbine as a computer model, and then produced 3D-printed prototypes. Herbst even got approval from the city of Boca Raton to test her design in the intercoastal waterway. There, she explains in her contest entry video, the ocean tidal energy drives the propeller at the bottom of the probe, which then powers the hydroelectric generator at the top of the probe via a pulley system inside, turning ocean tides into usable power. Herbst's calculations show that if she scaled up BEACON, it could charge three car batteries simultaneously in less than an hour. She suggests the turbine could be used in developing countries to renewably power pumps to desalinate water, run centrifuges that help test blood for diseases, and power electric buoys for maritime navigation. Herbst became interested in science at an engineering camp during the summer before seventh grade. When she got there, she realized she was the only girl. "I knew that I was the minority," she wrote, "but after successfully programming and constructing robots that day, my love and passion for science and engineering was discovered." And she hopes other young scientists will find their passion, too. "If you're reading this blog post and are in middle school, I hope that you will apply for the Discovery Education and 3M Young Scientist Challenge," Herbst wrote. "It is such an amazing opportunity to explore, innovate, and work with a scientist from 3M to develop your prototype. I hope to see YOU


Which of the following inferences about BEACON is best supported by the text?


A. BEACON is currently too expensive to be implemented on a large scale.

B. BEACON has never been successfully tested in saltwater.

C. BEACON is a cheap alternative to solar power.

D. BEACON has the potential of being used for many purposes.

Answer 1

D. BEACON has the potential of being used for many purposes.

The passage lists multiple suggested uses (powering desalination pumps, running centrifuges for blood testing, powering buoys, charging car batteries), so this inference is directly supported.