Question

the missing patent
wilbur and orville wrights official patent for their \flying machine,\ submitted in 1903, is an important slice of american history. the patent was supposed to be stored in the national archives, where historical treasures are housed. however, in 2000, officials discovered that it seemed to have vanished. researchers looked through storage vaults, filing cabinets, and archives around the country, to no avail. some wondered whether the document had been stolen. finally, chris abraham, newly assigned to the national archives document recovery program, volunteered to solve the puzzle. abraham suspected that the patent might have been mistakenly sent to a huge storage facility in kansas where other, less important patent documents were kept. abraham was right: after searching through boxes and boxes of documents, he found the patent on march 22, 2016.
what is the main, or central, idea of the passage?
a national archives researcher solved the mystery of the missing wright brothers 1903 airplane patent.
in 2000, researchers discovered that the wright brothers historic 1903 airplane patent had been lost or stolen.
a researcher with the national archives document recovery program offered to track down a missing patent.

Explanation:

The passage tells the story of the Wright Brothers' 1903 patent going missing, and how Chris Abraham, a National Archives researcher, solved the mystery of its whereabouts. Option A captures the main idea as it includes the key elements: the researcher, the mystery of the missing patent, and the resolution. Option B only focuses on the discovery of the patent being lost, not the resolution. Option C only mentions the researcher offering to track it down, not the successful outcome.

Answer:

A. A National Archives researcher solved the mystery of the missing Wright Brothers' 1903 airplane patent.