Question

read this excerpt from a passage.
how did we reach this breaking point? one cause of overfishing has been a cavalier attitude toward the earth’s oceans. fishers and fishing fleets saw oceans full of fish and concluded that the oceans were inexhaustible. they treated the oceans as if their actions would have no future consequences. take as many fish as you want; throw out or kill what you do not want; do whatever harm you want: these attitudes have all too often ruled the seas. currently, only 1.6% of our oceans are protected through international agreements; no fishing is allowed within these areas. fishing is regulated in approximately one - third of the earth’s seas, under national or international laws. however, the vast majority of our planet’s waters are an unprotected free - for - all.
which of these sentences is an opinion disguised as a fact?
○ fishers and fishing fleets saw oceans full of fish and concluded that the oceans were inexhaustible.
○ currently, only 1.6% of our oceans are protected through international agreements; no fishing is allowed within these areas.
○ fishing is regulated in approximately one - third of the earth’s seas, under national or international laws.
○ how did we reach this breaking point?

Explanation:

To determine which sentence is an opinion disguised as a fact, we analyze each option:

• The second, third options present verifiable data (percentage of protected oceans, proportion of regulated seas) and are facts. The fourth is a question, not a statement of fact or opinion.
• The first option, "Fishers and fishing fleets saw oceans full of fish and concluded that the oceans were inexhaustible," presents a conclusion (oceans are inexhaustible) which is an opinion (as oceans are not actually inexhaustible) but is presented as a fact about what fishers concluded.

Answer:

A. Fishers and fishing fleets saw oceans full of fish and concluded that the oceans were inexhaustible.