Rooftop Bees and the City Ordinance
Read a short opinion column in a city newspaper. The columnist describes a proposed ordinance that would permit rooftop beekeeping in the downtown district. The proposal requires hives to be at least 50 feet from property lines, a 6-foot flyway barrier, and registration with the city. The columnist notes that the health department supports the rule, citing pollination benefits for community gardens. A downtown business owner argues that a single hive can contain 50,000 bees and that tourists with allergies might avoid the area. The columnist responds that the city's parks department has kept two hives near a playground for three years without a reported sting incident. The columnist also quotes a beekeeper who says swarming is most likely in April and May and can be managed by splitting hives. The column ends: 'A city that can regulate food trucks and sidewalk cafes can surely manage a few boxes of bees.' The item asks about the columnist's attitude toward the business owner's concern.
1. What is the columnist's attitude toward the business owner's allergy concern?
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The columnist is skeptical but not hostile. The concern is not mocked; instead, the columnist answers it with a counterexample: two hives near a playground for three years with no reported sting incident. That is evidence offered against the concern, but it is limited evidence. The final sentence-'A city that can regulate food trucks and sidewalk cafes can surely manage a few boxes of bees'-expresses confidence in regulation rather than contempt for the business owner. If the attitude were hostile, the columnist would attack the owner's motives or call the concern absurd. The better reading is measured skepticism: the risk is acknowledged in principle but treated as manageable.
2. The phrase 'can surely manage' most nearly means what in context?
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In context, 'can surely manage' means the city has the regulatory capacity and practical experience to handle rooftop hives, not that it can guarantee zero risk. The comparison to food trucks and sidewalk cafes is a comparison of regulatory complexity: the city already administers permits, inspections, and rules for those uses. 'Manage' is also not 'eliminate'; it implies oversight and control. A test-taker should reject paraphrases such as 'will definitely prevent all allergic reactions' or 'is certain bees are harmless.' The phrase supports confidence in administration, not a factual guarantee about health outcomes.
3. If a test item says the passage proves playground hives are safe citywide, is that claim supported?
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No. The passage reports that two hives near one playground have operated for three years without a reported sting incident. That is a single-site observation and depends on reporting. It does not establish citywide safety, and it does not measure allergy risk among visitors. The columnist uses it rhetorically to rebut the business owner's prediction that tourists with allergies might avoid the area, but rhetoric is not proof. A careful reader distinguishes the claim 'there is some evidence that hives can coexist with public spaces' from 'the passage proves citywide safety.' The latter overgeneralizes.