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30 May 2022, 09:36
Kudos
Bookmarks
WillGetIt
Elite097
Most of the other posts in this thread label the explanation as the conclusion. I think that if we apply the "Why Test," we can see that probably isn't the case. If we use the explanation as the conclusion and ask "why," we can't use the rest of the argument as the premise(s). Quite the opposite; the explanation is exactly that: the explanation. And that means it isn't the conclusion. Okay, so what's the conclusion? Must be the thing that's being explained.
Conclusion:
Rest of year: eat insects while not migrating
Autumn: eat wild berries while migrating even though insects have more calories
WHY?
The premise offered by the argument is that berries contain nutrients needed for migration that insects lack.
We are asked what might call that premise into question.
There are two things in play here: calories and nutrients. We are told that calories are needed for migration. We are trying to call into question the explanation for why the birds eat berries instead of insects during migration. Is it that berries have other nutrients? Or is there some other explanation?
Since the questions in this thread mostly hinge on B, C, and D, I'll stick to those:
(B) Insect species contain certain nutrients that are not found in wild berries.
Are those nutrients necessary for migration? If not, and if the nutrients in berries are necessary for migration, it would certainly make sense for the birds to switch to berries during migration.
(C) For songbirds, catching insects requires the expenditure of significantly more calories than eating wild berries does.
Calories are critical for migration. Insects contain more calories but also cost SIGNIFICANTLY more calories to acquire (be alert when GMAC uses intensity words like "significant" - it's usually not just a filler word for them). Chasing insects might not be the way the birds want to use their energy while migrating. Take the (pun intended) low-hanging fruit and keep moving.
(D) Along the hermit thrushes’ migration routes, insects are abundant throughout the migration season.
This does the opposite of providing an explanation for why they eat berries. If there are so many insects, how do we get to the conclusion that they eat berries during migration?
Answer choice C
20 Jul 2022, 07:43
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi - two quick questions
Even though not an available option - i was wondering if this was also weakener (i was expecting this)
#2
Even though not an available option - i was wondering if this was also weakener (i was expecting this)
Quote:
#2
Quote:
24 Jul 2022, 20:06
Kudos
Bookmarks
jabhatta2
Regarding the additional answer choice: adding in your own options generally isn't worth the time. It can actually hurt your accuracy in answering the question, because instead of just assessing the options on the page, you're (on some level) trying to find the answer that you've developed yourself. This can cause you to overlook options -- like (C) -- that are correct, but don't match your "expected" answer.
For your second question: we're trying to find the answer choice that "most seriously calls into question the explanation given for the thrush’s diet during migration." So, we don't need an option that utterly destroys the explanation -- we just need one that calls it into question more than the other options do.
(C) does exactly that: by even raising the issue of net calories, it casts some doubt on the nutrient-based explanation. Perhaps, on balance, birds actually get more calories from eating berries than from eating insects. You're right that we don't know this for sure without additional info -- but it does provide us a reason to question the author's explanation. None of the other answer choices do that, so (C) is the correct answer.
I hope that helps!
