Early that morning, a tissue sample from a cow in Washington State had tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)—also known as mad cow disease. That’s a rare brain disorder that kills both animals and humans. In Europe, hundreds of thousands of cows have caught the disease. And 150 humans have died from it.

The author’s purpose in structuring this passage is to

A) create a tone.
B) identify a problem.
C) suggest a solution.
D) propose a resolution.