Read the paragraph from "Home Place Retold." Which best paraphrases this paragraph?
They became merchants, carpenters, teachers, clergy, and
(most often) farmers. Their landscape was Watonwan
County in western Minnesota. Young families worked hard to
build a life. They came from a farming tradition that included
methods unknown to many Americans. As usual, new ideas
were viewed with some doubt. The use of crop rotation, for
example, was common for the newcomers. They also used
potassium for fertilizer. Their practices produced better crops
than other farms. A good idea is hard to ignore, and they
soon gained status as first-rate farmers.
O Immigrant families worked extremely hard when they
came to America and quickly gained status.
O Using potassium as fertilizer, a technique of immigrant
farmers, helped many people.
O New farming techniques had a major impact on farming in
the Midwest, producing first-rate crops.
Immigrant families brought new farming techniques to
America, which proved very effective.

Read this passage: many manufacturers prefer plastic as a material for containers because it can be molded into many shapes. but plastic is not very strong. it must be fused with glass or steel for strength. it is also not very durable. even the strongest plastic can break under enough pressure. the biggest disadvantage to using plastic is that it does not decompose. while plastic can be recycled, doing so is tedious and difficult. while it may be more expensive and difficult to work with, aluminum is a much stronger building material with far greater tensile strength. it conducts electricity because it is metal. best of all, aluminum is very easy to recycle. even if it is thrown away, it decomposes much more quickly than most manufacturing materials. how does the compare-and-contrast organizational pattern of the passage support the author's purpose? a. the passage gradually leads up to the point about decomposition to inform the reader about the importance of recycling plastics. b. the passage lists the advantages and disadvantages of each material to make a case for the use of plastic and not aluminum in containers. c. the passage begins with a description of plastic's problems in order to call attention to the good qualities of aluminum. d. the passage shows the superiority of aluminum in order to make a case for the production of stronger plastics.