Frazier and Mosteller assert that medical research could be improved b

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

Passage: Clinical Trials

Question: Primary Purpose

The Simple Story

Frazier and Mosteller propose that changing clinical trials could improve medical research. They propose two specific changes. First, they suggest limiting the amount of data collected about patients to save costs. Second, they suggest enrolling more patients in trials to obtain a more representative sample of patients.

Sample Passage Map

Here is one way to map this passage. (Note: abbreviate as desired!)

F+M: change clin trials

1) Less data à save $

2) More patients à more represent

Step 1: Identify the Question

The words primarily concerned with in the question stem indicate that this is a Primary Purpose, or Main Idea, question.

Step 2: Find the Support

For Main Idea questions, the answer will come from your overall understanding of the passage and your passage map.

Step 3: Predict an Answer

Remind yourself of your brief summary of the passage.

The passage presents two specific changes to clinical trials that have been suggested as ways to improve medical research.

Step 4: Eliminate and Find a Match

(A) The passage does suggest that limiting the patients selected for trials (second paragraph) may limit the applicability of results to broad patient populations. The other concern presented (the collection of excessive data), however, affects costs; it does not influence accuracy.

(B) The collection of data is discussed as a factor that drives up costs. The second concern discussed, the restriction of patients selected for studies, is not discussed related to costs. It’s likely that the change that Frazier and Mostellar propose in the second paragraph (larger clinical trials) would increase costs—but that is not the focus of this suggestion.

(C) The passage does discuss potential shortcomings of clinical trials, but the passage does not provide an evaluation of this analysis. Rather, the passage simply presents F & M’s proposed changes.

(D) CORRECT. Two specific changes to clinical trials are proposed in the passage.

(E) Current practices and proposed changes for clinical trials are discussed in the passage. The passage does not address whether the proposed changes are likely to happen.
_________________

Question number 5:
I chose C

In option A, nowhere in the first paragraph has it been mentioned or trying to mean that "information likely to be irrelevant to the study". Even from the statement "Only in research on entirely new treatments are new and unexpected variables likely to arise.", one cannot deduce the fact that "information likely to be irrelevant to the study"

I chose C because from the statement "Although limiting information collection could increase the risk that researchers will overlook facts relevant to a study", we can understand that the researchers could be trying to overlook facts relevant to a study by collection more information.

Please explain where is my understanding wrong.

As described towards the end of this post, collecting extra information will never eliminate the risk of overlooking facts relevant to the study.

So even though researchers currently collect far more background information on patients than is strictly required, they do not avoid the risk of overlooking variables that might affect their findings. According to the passage, no matter how much information is collected, that risk will never be eliminated. So (E) is not correct.

As for choice (A), we are specifically told that "researchers collect far more background information on patients than is strictly required for their trials." From that, we can immediately infer that they collect information that is not needed and thus likely to be irrelevant.

Taking it a bit further, according to the author, "limiting information collection could increase the risk that researchers will overlook facts relevant to a study." However, even if information collection is reduced, the risk of overlooking facts relevant to the study will still be small. This suggests that increasing the amount of information collected does NOT significantly decrease the risk of overlooking facts relevant to the study.

So we can infer that increasing the amount of information collected would not significantly increase the amount of relevant data. This implies that most of the additional information is irrelevant.

In other words, if you increase the amount of information collected, most of it will likely be irrelevant. Thus, most of that information is LIKELY to be irrelevant to the study.

I hope that helps!
_________________

Got all correct, 6:25 Minutes

3. It can be inferred from the passage that a study limited to patients like those mentioned in lines 20-22 [Often researchers restrict study participation to patients who have no ailments besides those being studied.] would have which of the following advantages over the kind of study proposed by Frazier and Mosteller?

(A) It would yield more data and its findings would be more accurate.

(B) It would cost less in the long term, though it would be more expensive in its initial stages.

(C) It would limit the number of variables researchers would need to consider when evaluating the treatment under study.

(D) It would help researchers to identify subgroups of patients with secondary conditions that might also be treatable.

(E) It would enable researchers to assess the value of an experimental treatment for the average patient.d

What is the correlation between # of patients studied and # of variables needed?

2. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about a study of the category of patients referred to in lines 20 - 22 [Often researchers restrict study participation to patients who have no ailments besides those being studied.]?

(A) Its findings might have limited applicability.

(B) It would be prohibitively expensive in its attempt to create ideal conditions.

(C) It would be the best way to sample the total population of potential patients.

(D) It would allow researchers to limit information collection without increasing the risk that important variables could be overlooked.

(E) Its findings would be more accurate if it concerned treatments for a progressive disease than if it concerned treatments for a nonprogressive disease.

The OG explanation states: "The passage then states
that researchers often restrict (lines 20–22) their trials to certain types of patients, therefore limiting the
applicability of their findings."

I have re-read 15-22 and do not see any mention of limited applicability for these findings?

They are talking about adding more patients to the study, in addition the ones already being studied and the control group, so B looks more correct to me

Question #2 refers to a study in which researchers restrict study participation to patients who have no ailments besides those being studied.


In such a study, researchers are looking at IDEAL conditions. If the treatment is successful, researchers can THEN evaluate the treatment under normal conditions. So right away, this implies that the restricted study does NOT give us information about the treatment under normal conditions. Further research is needed to test the treatment under normal conditions. The findings of the restricted study are only applicable under ideal conditions. This implies that the findings are limited in scope.

The author then contrasts such studies with studies in which patient participation is NOT restricted. This would allow researchers to obtain "a more representative sample of the total population."


So in an unrestricted study, researchers can study diverse patients and various conditions. In a restricted study, researchers can only study the restricted population under ideal conditions.

Although not stated directly, we can infer that the findings of a restricted study are limited in applicability when compared to the findings of an unrestricted study.

I hope that helps!
_________________

Got 5/5 correct in 8:24 min including 3 min to read the passage!

Passage Map:
Frazier and Mosteller assert that medical research could be improved by a move toward larger, simpler clinical trials of medical treatments. => 1st part of proposal

Frazier and Mosteller propose not only that researchers limit data collection on individual patients but also that researchers enroll more patients in clinical trials, thereby obtaining a more representative sample of the total population with the disease under study. => 2nd part of proposal

look at question 1
global question or main idea question can be hard. a choice which cover all information in the passage but do not go beyond is correct. choice D and C are close. but choice C dose not cover all information. the choice which cover a part of passage is typical trap for main idea question. choice D cover all paragraphs of the passage.

you can counter that choice D dose not cover full passage because choice D dose not talk about shortcomings of old trial. but I think that choice D tell about changes to trial and this telling about changes also include the shortcoming. this is why choice D win.

realizing that choice D cover full passage is hard and fatal for answering global questions. realizing choice C dose not cover full passage is more easy. difference between choice D and C is the key to success on global questions.

this point is hard

Hi GMATNinja

I have a follow up on Q5..

On option A) -- the term "resources expended" ... I read this and eliminated the answer choice based on this term specifically, not anything else ... When I read the term, I immediately thought about "Manpower" or "Human Resources" actually expending their time and energy in order to store information ... How can you be sure that "Expended resources" refers to extra costs and not manpower / time or energy ..


On the other hand, I liked C for the following two terms

They avoid the Risk and

"MIGHT"

Doesn't these terms suggest the answer choice is flexible ...The answer does not use extreme language like , it ALWAYS avoids the risks blah blah

It seems these two terms indicate flexibility that Frazier and Mosteller contend that such risk were never entirely eliminable from research

jabhatta@umail.iu.edu, let's talk through your concerns with (A) first:


When you read through an answer choice (or passage, for that matter), be careful about paraphrasing or rewording the language. Could "resources" mean "human resources"? Sure, but it could also mean money, or space, or any number of other factors. If the answer choice doesn't specify one or another, bringing in that outside knowledge or bias is not going to help you answer the question as written.

In the passage, the author states that collecting more patient information than necessary increases the "costs of data collection, storage, and analysis." These are the costs that correspond to the "resources expended" mentioned in answer choice (A).

One other note: it is true that one word can change the meaning of an answer choice, but you should always read the answer choice as a whole and make a decision based on the overall context. Hyper-focusing on specific words without understanding the broader logic of the answer choice will lead to errors. This showed up again in your analysis of answer (C), so let's take a look at that:


Again, the word "might" by itself does not make the answer choice correct. You need to understand the answer choice as a whole in order to make a decision about it.

Here's (C) again:


The first part states that the researchers "avoid the risk of overlooking variables." This contradicts the information in the passage, which states that the risk is "never entirely eliminable from research." A different modifier on this portion of the answer choice would indeed change the meaning of the statement, but you have to look at exactly the words that are given.

Moving on to the next piece: the "might" does introduce some flexibility, as you say, but about what exactly? About "variables that (might) affect their findings." When taken in context of the first part of the statement, this is just saying that the researcher are avoiding variables that could be relevant. This is still contradicts the piece of the passage quoted above.

Overall, it may be tempting to jump at a particular modifier, but understanding the statement in its entirety is one key to nailing the question.

I hope this helps!
_________________

I thought (D) was an attractive option for this question because I figured that it would allow researchers to limit the information they collected in regards to patient ailments. However, they would still need to collect information on patient ailments if they were to restrict participation based on ailments. Also, even if they did limit the information they collected in regards to patient ailments, that information could end up being an important variable.

GMATNinja has a great explanation for why (A) is the correct option for this question. This can be found earlier in the thread.

Hi, regarding the first part, what I fail to understand is how does it limit the number of variables when later they go on to do it under normal conditions(which involves greater variables) so this is also using a lot of variables?

Question 101 asks us to infer an advantage that "a study limited to patients like those mentioned in lines 21-23" would have over another type of study. The patients in question "have no ailments besides those being studied," which limits the number of variables that might affect the outcome of the study.

It is true that the researchers then go on to include more variables in subsequent studies -- but the question does not ask about those subsequent studies. Because the question only focuses on studies with a limited type of patient, we can infer that the advantage of such studies is that they "limit the number of variables researchers would need to consider." (C) is the correct answer for question 101.

I hope that helps!
_________________

Hi GMATNinja

I re-did this same problem and again i chose C. While I agree A is right, i am struggling to eliminate C outright

The OA solution to eliminating C is The passage states that the risk of overlooking variables is never entirely eliminable from research, so to say "avoid" is an extreme misfire.


BUT When I read answer choice C, i don't get the impression that the answer choice is referring to "ALL" variables being entirely eliminable. The language in answer choice C is referring to whether variables that may affect the study in question MAY BE OVERLOOKED OR NOT

Furthermore, answer choice C is inferred in the following point (in pink) in the passage

Although limiting information collection could increase the risk that researchers will overlook facts relevant to a study, Frazier and Mosteller contend that such risk, never entirely eliminable from research, would still be small in most studies

Reading the pink -- i get the impression that Fraziers changes will limit information and thus increase the risk of overlooking facts relevant to the study

Hence the inference : current methodology, albeit more expensive has LESS chance of overlooking variables relevant to the study

Any assistance would be appreciated

You say choice (C) "is referring to whether variables that may affect the study in question MAY BE OVERLOOKED OR NOT."

But that is not what the choice says in its own wording. One more time, here is the precise wording of choice (C):


This choice, put as simply as possible, says, "They avoid the risk."

OK, what risk? That would be "the risk of overlooking variables that might affect their findings."

Good to know, but the fundamental statement we're trying to confirm here is still "They avoid the risk."

This language is black-and-white. Researchers either avoid the risk, or they don't.

Consequently, we can keep (C) if the passage itself implies that researchers entirely avoid this risk, as a result of the way they generally conduct clinical trials. That means any information in the passage contradicting this statement gives us immediate cause to eliminate the choice and move on.

Now, let's revisit the passage. We know that the way researchers generally conduct clinical trials is by collecting far more background information on patients than is strictly required. Next, as you point out, the author writes:

"Although limiting information collection could increase the risk that researchers will overlook facts relevant to a study, Frazier and Mosteller contend that such risk, never entirely eliminable from research, would still be small in most studies."

Reading precisely, this sentence tells us that:

• Limiting information (which would NOT be how researchers generally conduct clinical trials) could increase the risk.
• Even if researchers limit information collection, such risk would still be small in most studies — because it's never entirely eliminable from the research.

Right here, the passage tells us that the risk of researchers overlooking facts relevant to a study can NEVER be eliminated, regardless of how the trials are conducted.

This implies that researchers cannot avoid the risk of overlooking variables that might affect their findings — whether they stick with the way they generally conduct trials or adopt Frazier and Mosteller's approach instead.

This is all we need to eliminate (C) outright.

I hope this helps!
_________________

OE
Q1. The passage is primarily concerned with
A. identifying two practices in medical research that may affect the accuracy of clinical trials
B. describing aspects of medical research that tend to drive up costs
C. evaluating an analysis of certain shortcomings of current medical research practices
D. describing proposed changes to the ways in which clinical trials are conducted
E. explaining how medical researchers have traditionally conducted clinical trials and how such trials are likely to change
Main idea
This question requires an understanding of what the passage as a whole is doing. The passage introduces Frazier and Mosteller as proposing changes to the ways clinical trials in medical research are currently conducted. The rest of the passage then describes these proposed changes together with the support Frazier and Mosteller provide for adopting these changes.
A. The passage identifies practices in medical research to help illustrate the basis for Frazier and Mosteller’s proposed changes.
B. The passage mentions medical research costs as one example within the larger description of Frazier and Mosteller’s proposed changes.
C. The passage is not concerned with evaluating Frazier and Mosteller’s proposed changes.
D. Correct. The passage describes the changes proposed by Frazier and Mosteller to the way clinical trials are conducted.
E. The passage is not concerned with establishing the likelihood of any changes to the way medical research is conducted.
The correct answer is D.

Q2. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about a study of the category of patients referred to in lines 20–22?
A. Its findings might have limited applicability.
B. It would be prohibitively expensive in its attempt to create ideal conditions.
C. It would be the best way to sample the total population of potential patients.
D. It would allow researchers to limit information collection without increasing the risk that important variables could be overlooked.
E. Its findings would be more accurate if it concerned treatments for a progressive disease than if it concerned treatments for a nonprogressive disease.
Inference
This question requires drawing an inference from information given in the passage. In describing theproposals put forth by Frazier and Mosteller, the passage states in lines 15–20 that they propose using more patients in clinical trials than are currently being used, and that the trials would thereby obtain a
more representative sample of the total population with the disease under study. The passage then states that researchers often restrict (lines 20–22) their trials to certain types of patients, therefore limiting theapplicability of their findings.
A. Correct. The passage states that the researchers preferred to restrict the types of patients used in their studies, thereby using a less representative sample than if they used a more inclusive group of patients.
B. The passage mentions the added expense of clinical trials only in relation to data storage, collection, and analysis.
C. The passage describes the category of patients referred to as restricted and therefore unrepresentative of the total population.
D. While the passage does mention the amount of data collected about an individual patient, that topic is not connected to the category of patients referred to in lines 20–22.
E. The passage does not suggest that a study using the category of patients referred to would be more effective in investigating progressive diseases.
The correct answer is A.

Q3. It can be inferred from the passage that a study limited to patients like those mentioned in lines 20–22 would have which of the following advantages over the kind of study proposed by Frazier and Mosteller?
A. It would yield more data and its findings would be more accurate.
B. It would cost less in the long term, though it would be more expensive in its initial stages.
C. It would limit the number of variables researchers would need to consider when evaluating the treatment under study.
D. It would help researchers to identify subgroups of patients with secondary conditions that might also be treatable.
E. It would enable researchers to assess the value of an experimental treatment for the average patient.
Inference
This question requires understanding what the information in the passage implies. The passage explains that Frazier and Mosteller’s proposal involves enrolling more patients in clinical trials (lines 18–19) than is the case with the category of patients referred to. The passage then explains that broadening the range of trial participants would allow an evaluation of particular treatments under various conditions and for different patient subgroups (line 29). This strongly suggests that limiting the patients used to those described in the referred text would limit the number of variables researchers would need to consider.
A. The passage suggests that not limiting the patients used in clinical trials will yield more data than restricting them will.
B. The passage refers to the costs of clinical trials only as they concern the collection, storage, and analysis of data collected from participants.
C. Correct. By limiting the patients used to those having the ailment under study, the passage suggests that researchers need to consider fewer variables in their assessment of a treatment.
D. The passage suggests that not limiting the types of patients used in clinical trials will better allow researchers to evaluate subgroups.
E. The passage suggests that limiting the types of patients available for clinical trials results in data for specific, rather than average, populations.
The correct answer is C.

Q4. The author mentions patients’ ages (line 32) primarily in order toA. identify the most critical variable differentiating subgroups of patients
B. cast doubt on the advisability of implementing Frazier and Mosteller’s proposals about medical research
C. indicate why progressive diseases may require different treatments at different stages
D. illustrate a point about the value of enrolling a wide range of patients in clinical trials
E. substantiate an argument about the problems inherent in enrolling large numbers of patients in clinical trials
Evaluation
Answering this question requires understanding how a particular piece of information functions in the passage as a whole. The passage is concerned with describing the proposals of Frazier and Mosteller. One of these proposals, described in the second paragraph, involves broadening the range of participants used in clinical trials. The passage states that in following this proposal, Frazier and Mosteller suggest that the effectiveness of treatments can be assessed for different patient subgroups. To affirm the value of broadening the range of participants, the passage then cites two examples of criteria by which relevant subgroups might be identified: disease stages and patients’ ages.
A. The passage makes no judgment as to the value of the subgroups it refers to in relation to broadened participation in clinical trials.
B. The passage does not call into question the potential effectiveness of Frazier and Mosteller’s proposals.
C. The passage’s example of patients’ ages is not intended to be causally connected to its previous example regarding progressive diseases.
D. Correct. Patients’ ages are referred to in the passage to identify subgroups that could be evaluated if the range of participants in clinical trials were broadened.
E. The passage refers to patients’ ages in support of Frazier and Mosteller’s proposal that more patients be used in clinical trials.
The correct answer is D.

Q5. According to the passage, which of the following describes a result of the way in which researchers generally conduct clinical trials?
A. They expend resources on the storage of information likely to be irrelevant to the study they are conducting.
B. They sometimes compromise the accuracy of their findings by collecting and analyzing more information than is strictly required for their trials.
C. They avoid the risk of overlooking variables that might affect their findings, even though doing so raises their research costs.
D. Because they attempt to analyze too much information, they overlook facts that could emerge as relevant to their studies.
E. In order to approximate the conditions typical of medical treatment, they base their methods of information collection on those used by hospitals.
Supporting ideas
This question asks for an identification of specific information given in the passage. The passage describes the proposals of Frazier and Mosteller as attempting to improve the way clinical trials have generally been conducted. In describing how current trials are generally conducted, the passage states that researchers collect far more background information on patients than is strictly required for their trials (lines 4–6) and that they therefore escalate the costs of the trials.
A. Correct. The passage states that researchers generally collect more information than they need toperform their clinical trials, which drives up the costs of the trials.
B. The passage makes no judgment about the accuracy of the information collected by researchers who currently hold clinical trials.
C. The passage states that the risk of overlooking relevant information in clinical trials is never entirely eliminable (line 11).
D. The passage states that researchers generally collect more information than is relevant, not that they overlook relevant information.
E. The passage states that, in general, researchers currently collect more information than hospitals do (line 6).
The correct answer is A.

SajjadAhmad - Dear Sir, seeing the confusion in Q5, I want to ask thaat for detail Q's is it necessary that the answer choice should match completely to the passage or is it ok if certain words match the passage? I mean I have to make sure that the entire sentence matches the passage? Thanks
_________________

I don't think i understood your question completely but here is my generic answer. Don't match the words in answer choices with the passage rather match the meaning. Understand what the meaning or purpose the answer choice is conveying, do it matches with meaning of passage or not and if it fulfill the requirement of the question.

Thank you