Extract:
MRSA
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a form of the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium that is resistant to antibiotics and as a result is very difficult to treat. MRSA now kills more Americans every year than HIV/AIDS, and the rates of infection are rising.
Methicillin is an antibiotic that was introduced in the 1960s as a way of combating the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium that is ubiquitous in hospitals. Within a year, doctors began finding strains of bacteria that had already developed immunity to methicillin. By the 1990s, MRSA had become the leading hospital-acquired skin infection in the United States. At the same time MRSA started appearing outside of hospitals. These were different strains of the bacteria, but just as dangerous, and spreading just as quickly. In the past 15 years, MRSA bacteria have become ubiquitous not only in hospitals, but in gyms, locker rooms, swimming pools, and any other settings where human contact is common.
Researchers in Ireland are developing a technology that may significantly halt the spread of the hospital-associated MRSA bacteria. They have developed a textile consisting of nanomaterials 1,000 times smaller than a human hair; these textiles are shown to halt the spread of infection and can be used for linens, drapes, and upholstery in hospitals. The potential for this technology to reduce the instances of hospital associated MRSA is staggering.
You can reduce your risk for community-associated MRSA infection by regularly washing your hands, covering all open wounds with a clean bandage, and not sharing any personal items like razors or towels.
Which of the following statements is an opinion?
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A
Hand-washing stations are one means of combatting MRSA infection.
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B
Not all Staphylococcus bacteria are resistant to antibiotics.
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C
Hospitals in the United States should quickly adopt the use of new germ-fighting textiles.
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D
MRSA infection kills more people in the United States than does HIV/AIDS.
The opinion statement is that hospitals should quickly adopt new germ-fighting textiles, a prescriptive recommendation expressing value judgment beyond factual reporting.
A) Hand-washing stations are one means of combatting MRSA infection.
Verifiable fact implied by the recommendation to "regularly wash your hands" as prevention, hand-washing stations facilitate this evidence-based practice.
B) Not all Staphylococcus bacteria are resistant to antibiotics.
Verifiable fact directly stated: MRSA is "a form of the Staphylococcus aureus bacterium that is resistant to antibiotics," implying other forms remain susceptible.
C) Hospitals in the United States should quickly adopt the use of new germ-fighting textiles.
Expresses opinion through prescriptive "should" language advocating specific institutional action. While the textile shows promise ("potential... staggering"), the passage never recommends adoption speed or policy implementation, making this an interpretive judgment beyond textual facts.
D) MRSA infection kills more people in the United States than does HIV/AIDS.
Verifiable statistic explicitly stated: "MRSA now kills more Americans every year than HIV/AIDS."
Conclusion
Opinions contain prescriptive language ("should"), value judgments, or recommendations not objectively verifiable. Facts can be confirmed through observation or textual evidence. Option C introduces an unverified policy recommendation absent from the passage's neutral reporting of textile research.