[og-vr] TC - doubt in first blank

GRE Verbal Problem Solving
1

An innovation of the eighteenth-century cookbook writer Mary Cole was that in her work she (i) _______ the earlier books from which her recipes were drawn. Even in those numerous instances in which she had collated into a single version, which she could have called her own, the recipes of several earlier writers, she (ii) _______ them.

Blank i Blank ii
a) preserved d) took pains to cite
b) enhanced e) sought to imitate
c) acknowledged f) could not surpass

Even though I get the second blank correct, I have trouble getting to the correct answer with the first blank. I couldn’t put acknowledge because of the word ‘innovation’ . An innovation that in her work she acknowledged earlier books. How does acknowledging other’s book can be considered an innovation? It didn’t make sense so I ended up choosing enhancing.

2

You did answer the second blank correctly. So acc to the 2nd blank, she did cite them which means she did not take the credit herself, rather she acknowledged their work.

3

I am beleaguered with the word ‘innovative’.

I think the answer to my question is that
anything that’s new can be considered innovation. Nobody used to cite the earlier works and she did.
Otherwise, just looking at the first logic with the division word ‘that’ one could be tempted to go for enhance as it talks about innovation.

4

“Enhancing” does not mean that she did something new. Innovation suggests that she did something that nobody else did before. So, acknowledge fits correctly. Plus, you have clue for acknowledge in the second sentence. You do not have any clue which states that she enhanced the recipes.

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