Word Choice

Hi @ElizabethGlassmann, I'm assuming that you're talking about answer choice (C) which begins with the word "assumes." Please let me know if I've misinterpreted your question. Even if this answer choice began with the word "implies," it would still be incorrect. The passage argues that the U.S. government does not place a high value on topsoil. This does not suggest that the U.S. government does not place a high value on all its natural resources; in fact, the passage directly contradicts this by telling us that the government generally tries to protect those natural resources which are valuable. Overall, this answer choice is incorrect regardless of which word it begins with as it is too strong. It makes a generalization based on the stimulus' discussion of one natural resource and this generalization is contradicted by the first sentence of the stimulus. Hope this is helpful! Please let us know if you have any further questions.