The closing sentence is given. Arrange the sentences that lead up to it.
P. In the past, sailors worked this out from the Sun and the stars, with careful sums.
Q. A ship at sea needs to know where it is.
R. Today, a satellite receiver on board shows the ship's position within a few metres, at any time of day or night.
S. A small mistake in the sums could put a ship many kilometres off course.
Closing: What once took a skilled navigator an hour now takes a machine less than a second.

QPSRCorrect answerYour answerPQRSCorrect answerYour answerSPQRCorrect answerYour answerQSRPCorrect answerYour answer

Show the answer and explanation

CorrectNot quiteAnswer A

Correct answer: A

Q opens with the need. P is "in the past", the old method.
S gives the danger of that method, and R is "today", which leads to the comparison in the closing sentence.
So the order is QPSR.

Worth noting

PQRS puts today's receiver before the danger of the old sums, so "the sums" is cut off from the sailors who did them.

Concept: Ordering sentences by their links: the opener, pronouns, connectors and sequence
Typical timeTypical: 95 s
Your timeYours: —

Ten questions from Ordering sentences into a paragraph, at your own pace.

Explanation