Question

edith clarke (1883 - 1959)
(excerpt)
1 bom in the nineteenth century when women of a certain social class
were not expected to work, edith clarke broke free of binding stereotypes
to join the cutting edge of the information revolution of the twentieth
century. as an electrical engineer for general electric (ge), clarke spent
twenty years improving power systems. then, as a professor at the
university of texas at austin, clarke wrote a textbook that became the
standard of her field. her story is an inspiration for women in a field still
dominated by men.
2 on february 10, 1883, edith clarke was born on a four - hundred acre
farm about three miles from elliott city in howard county, maryland. as
a child. she was sent to enarley hall, a boarding school for girls in
montgomery county, maryland...
3 after graduation, edith returned home. against the advice of her
family and friends, edith decided to use a small inheritance to attend
vassar college. as a member of the first generation of women in america
to attend college in serious numbers, edith was an oddity at home, but
found many kindred spirits upon arriving at vassar. she began when she
was eighteen, threw herself into the pleasures of co - ed life, majored in
math and astronomy, and graduated phi beta kappa in 1908. after
graduation, edith taught school, first at a private institution in san
francisco, then at marshall college in huntington, west virginia.
however, teaching was not quite the profession edith had in mind, so she
began casting about for something else to do.
4 in the fall of 1911, edith clarke enrolled at the university of wisconsin
as a civil engineering student. while she already had a degree, she was
classified as an undergraduate for her course work. edith quickly re -
embraced college life: she joined the sorority kappa kappa gamma and
won a tennis championship in womens doubles. the summer after her
first year, edith took a job that changed her life. she worked as a
\computer assistant\ to dr. george campbell at at&t in boston. while
she had planned to return to wisconsin to finish her program, edith found
the work so interesting that she stayed on for six years, training and
directing a group of computers. she eventually enrolled in the electrical
engineering program at the massachusetts institute of technology (mit).
select the correct answer.
which sentence from the passage supports the idea that edith clarke was respected by others in her field for her accomplishments as an electrical
engineer?
a. \while at the university of texas, clarke was also a consultant on the design of a number of dams in the west.\ (paragraph 6)
b. \in 1919, edith clarke became the first woman to earn a master of science degree in electrical engineering at mit.\ (paragraph 4)
c. \edith clarke broke free of binding stereotypes to join the cutting edge of the information revolution of the twentieth century.\
(paragraph 1)
d. \she was the first woman to earn professional standing in tau beta pi, the nations largest and oldest electrical engineering
fraternity.\ (paragraph 7)

Explanation:

• Option A: Being a consultant on dam design shows her professional work but not directly respect from peers in the field.
• Option B: Earning a degree is an achievement but not about respect from others in the field.
• Option C: Breaking stereotypes is about her personal action against norms, not respect from colleagues.
• Option D: Gaining professional standing in the nation's largest and oldest electrical engineering fraternity implies recognition and respect from others in her field.

Answer:

D. "She was the first woman to earn professional standing in Tau Beta Pi, the nation's largest and oldest electrical engineering fraternity." (paragraph 7)