__ A study by a team including finance professor Madhu Veeraraghavan suggests that exposure to sunshine during the workday can lead to overly optimistic behavior. Using data spanning from 1994 to 2010 for a set of US companies.the team compared over 29.000 annual earnings forecasts to the actual earnings later reported by those companies. The team found that the greater the exposure to sunshine at work in the two weeks before a manager submitted an earnings forecast, the more the manager's forecast exceeded what the company actually earned that year. Which choice best states the function of the underlined sentence in the overall structure of the text? A) To summarize the results of the team's analysis B) To present a specific example that illustrates the study's findings C) To explain part of the methodology used in the team's study D) To call out a challenge the team faced in conducting its analysis

## Step 1<br />The problem asks us to identify the function of the underlined sentence in the overall structure of the text. The sentence in question is: "Using data spanning from 1994 to 2010 for a set of US companies, the team compared over 29,000 annual earnings forecasts to the actual earnings later reported by those companies."<br /><br />## Step 2<br />We need to analyze the sentence and its role in the text. The sentence provides information about the methodology used by the team in their study. It explains how they collected and analyzed data, which is a crucial part of any research study.<br /><br />## Step 3<br />Now, let's compare this sentence with the options given. Option A suggests that the sentence summarizes the results of the team's analysis, but the sentence does not summarize any results. Option B suggests that the sentence presents a specific example that illustrates the study's findings, but the sentence does not provide any specific example. Option D suggests that the sentence calls out a challenge the team faced in conducting its analysis, but the sentence does not mention any challenges.<br /><br />## Step 4<br />Based on the analysis, the sentence is explaining part of the methodology used in the team's study. Therefore, the correct answer is option C.