Question

carrots contain high amounts of vitamin a and are good for general eye health. however, carrots will not improve night vision. that myth goes back to british propaganda during world war ii. in 1940, the german luftwaffe, or air force, began bombing britain at night. in response, the british government ordered people to turn off their lights; the government wanted to make it difficult for german pilots to hit their targets. a new technology, radar, allowed the british air force to track and shoot down the german planes without light. to keep the technology secret, the government told the media that their pilots could see the german planes because they consumed so many carrots. consequently, people began to believe that eating carrots would help them see better in the dark. what is the main, or central, idea of the passage? during world war ii, the british government told the media that their pilots ate a lot of carrots. because of a british media campaign, people thought that eating carrots would improve their night vision.

Explanation:

To determine the main idea, we analyze each option:

• Option 1 ("During World War II, the British government told the media that their pilots ate a lot of carrots") only focuses on a part of the story (what the government told the media about pilots' carrot consumption) and not the overall message.
• Option 2 ("Because of a British media campaign, people thought that eating carrots would improve their night vision") aligns with the passage: it explains that the British government used media to spread the idea that carrots improved night vision (to hide radar technology), leading people to believe this myth. The passage details how the government's media campaign created the belief that carrots helped with night vision, which is captured by this option.

Answer:

Because of a British media campaign, people thought that eating carrots would improve their night vision.