سوال ۱۲ کنکور ارشد علوم کامپیوتر ۱۳۹۷

Cloze Passage — Read the following passage and decide which choice (1), (2), (3), or (4) best fits the blank.

Estimates of the number of humans that Earth can sustain have ranged in recent decades from fewer than a billion to more than a trillion. (11) ----------, since “carrying capacity” is essentially a subjective term. It makes little sense to talk about carrying capacity in relationship to humans, (12) ---------- and altering both their culture and their physical environment, (13) ---------- can thus defy any formula (14) ---------- the matter. The number of people that Earth can support depends on (15) ----------, on what we want to consume, and on what we regard as a crowd.

Which choice best fills blank (12)?