BRAINLIEST AND THANKS ON PROFILE
Derek watched intently as his older brother, Jared, tinkered with a control on the machine in front of him.

“Jared, is this actually going to work?” he asked, impatiently tapping his foot.

Jared’s failure to respond told Derek that his brother had no doubt in his capabilities. Jared was a regular Einstein and had won first place at the science fair five years in a row. His inventions never failed to impress even the most ruthless judges.

“Finished.” Jared stepped back and revealed a strange, helmet-like object covered in buttons, lights, and other mechanisms. He made a grand gesture with his arms, as if he were displaying a fabulous prize to a game show contestant, and said, “I give you the Dream Machine.”

Derek cast a suspicious eye toward the machine. “How do you operate it?” he asked.

“It’s quite simple,” Jared replied. “First, you use the keypad to enter a time, a location, and an event. Next, you place the helmet on your head and securely fasten the strap. Finally—and this is the easy part—you go to sleep. As you sleep, the machine will use the data you entered to create a lifelike dream sequence that basically transports you wherever you want to go.”
Which word BEST describes Jared?
A) cautious
B) determined
C) helpful
D) nervous

The word that best describes Jared is "determined." The word 'determined' can be defined as a quality of making a firm decision with a resolution of not changing it.

From the given excerpt we can say that Jared is determined as the line 'Jared's failure to respond told Derek that his brother had no doubt in his capabilities' suggests that Jared made a decision of making the machine with a resolution of not giving up. And Jared was successful also in making the machine.

So, the correct answer is option B.