Part a: which of the following identifies a central idea of the text?
a
news media has evolved to include a range of sources, but it continues to play an important role in informing citizens and holding public officials accountable.
b
news media can be a valuable resource for learning about current events, but it is impossible to determine whether information is unbiased.
c
news media has shifted to consist mainly of online sources, which makes checking the validity of a source difficult.
d
news media provides unprejudiced information to the people, which allows them to remain informed and hold those in power accountable for their actions.

Read the excerpt from the code book. without much hope of a theoretical breakthrough, cryptanalysts have been forced to look for a technological innovation. if there is no obvious way to reduce the number of steps required for factoring, then cryptanalysts need a technology that will perform these steps more quickly. silicon chips will continue to get faster as the years pass, doubling in speed roughly every eighteen months, but this is not enough to make a real impact on the speed of factoring—cryptanalysts require a technology that is billions of times faster than current computers. consequently, cryptanalysts are looking toward a radically new form of computer, the quantum computer. if scientists could build a quantum computer, it would be able to perform calculations with such enormous speed that it would make a modern supercomputer look like a broken abacus. the author’s purpose in this paragraph is to convince the readers to pursue a career in analysis. explain the need for faster technology in cryptanalysis. entertain with interesting stories about supercomputers. argue for more money to develop a quantum computer.