<p><span style="color:#8e44ad;"><span style="font-size:20px;">Pairing Up</span></span></p>
<p>First things first. We use the <span style="color:#8e44ad;"><strong>Pairing Strategy</strong></span> to identify any synonym pairs among the six answer choices.</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Pair 1:</strong> apposite/germane (both mean relevant or appropriate)</li>
<li><strong>Pair 2:</strong> ahistorical/anachronistic (both from a different time period)</li>
<li><strong>Pair 3:</strong> disinterested/objective (both mean unbiased and impartial)</li>
</ul>
<p>We have a rare triple pair here, so we can't eliminate any answers.</p>
<p><span style="color:#27ae60;"><span style="font-size:20px;">The Right Answer</span></span></p>
<p>We can use <span style="color:#8e44ad;"><strong>Math Strategy</strong></span> here. The word "from" indicates a continuation, looking to the right, we can see "present-day partisans", so the left-hand side should also have a similar idea. So, the blank should be something indicating either "present-day" or "partisan".</p>
<p>The best match here would be the pair <span style="color:#27ae60;">ahistorical/anachronistic</span>. This pair does convey the meaning of "present-day" IN THIS PARTICULAR SENTENCE. If we use some logic here, we can see that she is "reckoning" about stuff in the past, so the ideas/commentary from "present-day" would be "anachronistic" in relation to her objectives.</p>
<p><span style="color:#e74c3c;"><span style="font-size:20px;">The Wrong Answers</span></span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="color:#e74c3c;">apposite/germane:</span> This pair has <strong>no evidence</strong>. We don't know how relevant the present-day commentary is to studying the past.</li>
<li><span style="color:#e74c3c;">disinterested/objective:</span> This pair <strong>contradicts the logic</strong>. Remember that based on our math strategy the blank can indicate the idea of "partisan" or "biased". This is the opposite, going against the logic of the sentence.</li>
</ul>