One function of language is to influence others behavior by changing

Question

Passage A

One function of language is to influence others’
behavior by changing what they know, believe, or
desire. For humans engaged in conversation, the
perception of another’s mental state is perhaps the
  (5)   most common vocalization stimulus.

While animal vocalizations may have evolved
because they can potentially alter listeners’ behavior to
the signaler’s benefit, such communication is—in
contrast to human language—inadvertent, because
  (10)   most animals, with the possible exception of 
chimpanzees, cannot attribute mental states to others. The 
male Physalaemus frog calls because calling causes females
to approach and other males to retreat, but there is no
evidence that he does so because he attributes knowledge
  (15)   or desire to other frogs, or because he knows his calls
will affect their knowledge and that this knowledge
will, in turn, affect their behavior. Research also suggests
that, in marked contrast to humans, nonhuman primates
do not produce vocalizations in response to perception
  (20)   of another’s need for information. Macaques, for 
example, give alarm calls when predators approach and coo 
calls upon finding food, yet experiments reveal no evidence
that individuals were more likely to call about these
events when they were aware of them but their offspring
  (25)   were clearly ignorant; similarly, chimpanzees do not
appear to adjust their calling to inform ignorant
individuals of their own location or that of food. Many
animal vocalizations whose production initially seems
goal-directed are not as purposeful as they first appear.

Passage B

(30)   Many scientists distinguish animal communication
systems from human language on the grounds that the
former are rigid responses to stimuli, whereas human
language is spontaneous and creative.

In this connection, it is commonly stated that no
  (35)   animal can use its communication system to lie.
Obviously, a lie requires intention to deceive: to judge
whether a particular instance of animal communication
is truly prevarication requires knowledge of the animal’s
intentions. Language philosopher H. P. Grice explains
  (40)   that for an individual to mean something by uttering
x, the individual must intend, in expressing x, to induce
an audience to believe something and must also intend
the utterance to be recognized as so intended. But
conscious intention is a category of mental experience
  (45)   widely believed to be uniquely human. Philosopher
Jacques Maritain’s discussion of the honeybee’s
elaborate “waggle-dance” exemplifies this view.
Although bees returning to the hive communicate to
other bees the distance and direction of food sources,
  (50)   such communication is, Maritain asserts, merely a
conditioned reflex: animals may use communicative
signs but lack conscious intention regarding their use.

But these arguments are circular: conscious
intention is ruled out a priori and then its absence
  (55)   taken as evidence that animal communication is
fundamentally different from human language. In fact,
the narrowing of the perceived gap between animal
communication and human language revealed by
recent research with chimpanzees and other animals
  (60)   calls into question not only the assumption that the
difference between animal and human communication
is qualitative rather than merely quantitative, but also
the accompanying assumption that animals respond
mechanically to stimuli, whereas humans speak with
  (65)   conscious understanding and intent.    1 
 1. Both passages are primarily concerned with addressing which one of the following questions?

(A) Are animals capable of deliberately prevaricating in order to achieve specific goals?
(B) Are the communications of animals characterized by conscious intention?
(C) What kinds of stimuli are most likely to elicit animal vocalizations?
(D) Are the communication systems of nonhuman primates qualitatively different from those of all other animals?
(E) Is there a scientific consensus about the differences between animal communication systems and human language?

2 
 2. In discussing the philosopher Maritain, the author of passage B seeks primarily to

(A) describe an interpretation of animal communication that the author believes rests on a logical error
(B) suggest by illustration that there is conscious intention underlying the communicative signs employed by certain animals
(C) present an argument in support of the view that animal communication systems are spontaneous and creative
(D) furnish specific evidence against the theory that most animal communication is merely a conditioned reflex
(E) point to a noted authority on animal communication whose views the author regards with respect

3 
 3. The author of passage B would be most likely to agree with which one of the following statements regarding researchers who subscribe to the position articulated in passage A?

(A) They fail to recognize that humans often communicate without any clear idea of their listeners’ mental states.
(B) Most of them lack the credentials needed to assess the relevant experimental evidence correctly.
(C) They ignore well-known evidence that animals do in fact practice deception.
(D) They make assumptions about matters that should be determined empirically.
(E) They falsely believe that all communication systems can be explained in terms of their evolutionary benefits.

4 
 4. Which one of the following assertions from passage A provides support for the view attributed to Maritain in passage B (lines 50–52)?

(A) One function of language is to influence the behavior of others by changing what they think.
(B) Animal vocalizations may have evolved because they have the potential to alter listeners’ behavior to the signaler’s benefit.
(C) It is possible that chimpanzees may have the capacity to attribute mental states to others.
(D) There is no evidence that the male Physalaemus frog calls because he knows that his calls will affect the knowledge of other frogs.
(E) Macaques give alarm calls when predators approach and coo calls upon finding food.

5 
 5. The authors would be most likely to disagree over

(A) the extent to which communication among humans involves the ability to perceive the mental states of others
(B) the importance of determining to what extent animal communication systems differ from human language
(C) whether human language and animal communication differ from one another qualitatively or merely in a matter of degree
(D) whether chimpanzees’ vocalizations suggest that they may possess the capacity to attribute mental states to others
(E) whether animals’ vocalizations evolved to alter the behavior of other animals in a way that benefits the signaler

6 
 6. Passage B differs from passage A in that passage B is more

(A) optimistic regarding the ability of science to answer certain fundamental questions
(B) disapproving of the approach taken by others writing on the same general topic
(C) open-minded in its willingness to accept the validity of apparently conflicting positions
(D) supportive of ongoing research related to the question at hand
(E) circumspect in its refusal to commit itself to any positions with respect to still-unsettled research questions

desertEagle · Answer

3. The author of passage B would be most likely to agree with which one of the following statements regarding researchers who subscribe to the position articulated in passage A?

(A) They fail to recognize that humans often communicate without any clear idea of their listeners’ mental states. --- A agrees B does not - INCORRECT
(B) Most of them lack the credentials needed to assess the relevant experimental evidence correctly. ---- Researchers' credentials are not questioned - INCORRECT
(C) They ignore well-known evidence that animals do in fact practice deception. --- No such evidence is ignored in both A and B - INCORRECT
(D) They make assumptions about matters that should be determined empirically.
(E) They falsely believe that all communication systems can be explained in terms of their evolutionary benefits. --- only A mentions evolution .. - INCORRECT

Ans D - By POE

desertEagle · Answer

6. Passage B differs from passage A in that passage B is more

(A) optimistic regarding the ability of science to answer certain fundamental questions -  No optimism is shown - no positive assertions about probability that fundamental questions will be answered in coming time by science - INCORRECT 
(B) disapproving of the approach taken by others writing on the same general topic -  Author of B disapproves the approach - he mentions that others are using ciruclar reasoning which is wrong - - INCORRECT 
(C) open-minded in its willingness to accept the validity of apparently conflicting positions --  there is no acceptance of apparently conflicting positions - A and B have different views - and Author of B summarily reject the position and reasoning of researchers of B as evidneced in last para of B ---CORRECT 
(D) supportive of ongoing research related to the question at hand ---  he does neither support nor condems the ongoing research - he just uses them to further his point - INCORRECT 
(E) circumspect in its refusal to commit itself to any positions with respect to still-unsettled research questions --  there is no refusal to commit --- he commits to latest research findings and says its true. - INCORRECT

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

3. The author of passage B would be most likely to agree with which one of the following statements regarding researchers who subscribe to the position articulated in passage A?

Explanation

Passage A argues that animals don’t communicate with conscious intent. In the final paragraph, the author says that recent research shows that it’s unclear if humans are conscious and animals lack intent.  See lines 56-65.

(A)  This isn’t convincing. The author of passage A says that perception of mental state is what’s important  (lines 3-5) . It doesn’t necessarily matter if the perception is accurate.

(B)  Ridiculous. Passage A didn’t mention specific researchers and passage B didn’t mention credentials.

(C)  The  “researchers”  in this question’s text refers to hypothetical researchers who read passage A and agree. It’s not referring to actual researchers discussed in the passage.

(D)  The author of passage B argues in the final paragraph that animal communication may be similar to human communication. But they never go so far as to cite “well-known evidence” that animals lie.

(E)  CORRECT. This is an extremely difficult answer. The passage doesn’t directly mention empirical evidence. However, the final paragraph supports this answer.

1. Lines 53-56  say that Maritain et al. make circular arguments. That means arguments without evidence.
 2.  Then  lines 56-65  say that research with chimpanzees calls into question other assumptions.
 3.  Research on chimps is necessarily empirical.
 4.  Empirical means real world evidence.

So we should pay more attention to real experiments, and less to assumptions.

(E)  This is not a good answer.  Lines 6-10  say that certain communications may have evolved due to their benefits. That’s far from saying that all systems can be explained in terms of their benefits.

Answer: D

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

6. Passage B differs from passage A in that passage B is more

Explanation

The attitude of passage B is more negative in that it argues about flaws in the approach many scientists are using to argue about animal communication.

A. No.  The author of passage B does not argue that science will find answers, only that studies have recently cast doubt on the beliefs of many scientists.

B.  Yes.   In the third paragraph, the author of passage B states that the arguments of many scientists are flawed.

C. No.  The author of passage B does not accept the validity of the opinions of the many scientists who use flawed reasoning.

D. No.  There is no evidence that the author of passage B supports ongoing research.

E. No.  The author of passage B is not cautious nor is he or she waiting for research to settle the issue before calling out the flawed reasoning of many scientists who believe animal communication is without intent.

Answer: B

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

5. The authors would be most likely to disagree over

Step 1: Identify the Question Type

The language  “most likely to disagree over”  indicates the correct answer choice must contain a statement on which the two authors would disagree. This resembles the Point at Issue questions that appear in the Logical Reasoning section. The correct answer choice will be something about which the two authors have opposing opinions.

Step 2: Research the Relevant Text

There are no research clues in this question stem. Use the summaries of each authorʼs Purpose and Main Idea to evaluate the choices.

Step 3: Make a Prediction

The main split between the two authors is on the question of intention in animal communication. Passage Aʼs author thinks animals lack the ability to attribute mental states to others, rendering their communication less purposeful than it appears. Passage Bʼs author isnʼt so sure. She thinks recent research may indicate that human and animal communication is more similar than has been assumed. Use that prediction to determine the correct answer or to eliminate the four wrong ones.

Step 4: Evaluate the Answer Choices

(C)  is correct. The wording of the answer echoes  line 62  in passage B. The two authors are committed to disagreeing over whether there is a qualitative distinction between human and animal communication. Passage Aʼs author finds animal communication to lack intention, while passage Bʼs author challenges that assertion.

(A)  is incorrect because thereʼs not enough information in the passage to know whether the authors disagree on this. Itʼs possible that they are in complete agreement regarding the extent to which human communication is based on our perceptions of our listenersʼ mental states.

(B)  is likely something that the authors agree on. Both appear to be interested in the question and committed to getting at the truth on thissubject. Both authors have an opinion on this question, and those opinions are not opposite.

(D)  contains subtle wording. Itʼs possible that the two authors would agree that chimpanzees have some ability to judge the mental states of other chimps. The author of passage A admits that chimps may be an exception to the general rule that animalsʼ influences on others are inadvertent (line 10). Passage Bʼs author cites research suggesting that chimps and other animals might communicate in ways similar to that of humans (lines 59–61).

(E)  is yet another on which the authors may agree. Both accept that animal communication influences other animals in ways that benefit the  “speaker.”  What they donʼt see eye to eye on is whether such communications are intentional.

Answer: C

Saksham23 · Answer

Hello ! 
Can I please get an explaination on why E is wrong and A is the correct ans in Q2 ? 
I couldn't understand the logical error being mentioned here ?

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Hi Saksham23

Passage B  critiques the traditional view that animal communication lacks conscious intention (unlike human language). The author discusses Maritain’s example of the honeybee’s  "waggle-dance" (lines 45–50)  as representative of the argument that animal communication is merely a conditioned reflex. However, the author then rejects this reasoning as circular  (lines 52–55) , pointing out that conscious intention is arbitrarily ruled out in animals and then its absence is used to claim a fundamental difference from human language.

Option  (E)  is incorrect because the author does not regard Maritain’s views with respect; they use his argument as an example of flawed reasoning.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

4. Which one of the following assertions from passage A provides support for the view attributed to Maritain in passage B (lines 50–52)?

Explanation

Step 1: Identify the Question Type

This is another question in which the testmakers have adapted a common question type to work in the  Comparative Reading  context. The main task here is to strengthen Maritainʼs argument. But to do so, you must provide an assertion mentioned in passage A, so thereʼs an element o f Detail question here as well. To predict the correct answer to this question, research passage B to determine Maritainʼs view. Then research passage A to find the assertion that supp orts it.
 
  Step 2: Research the Relevant Text

The margin notes lead to the end of passage B, paragraph two. Maritainʼs view comes in the paragraphʼs final sentence    (lines 48–53) . He asserted that the honeybee dance was mere reflex, not conscious, intentional communication. To support that, look for an assertion in passage A suggesting that, even lacking a conscious intention to do so, animals can communicate in ways that influence their counterparts. Of the three examples cited by the author of passage A, the activity of the male Physalaemus frog is the most relevant. His calls attract females and deter other males although, according to the author of passage A, nothing suggests that the calling male is aware that heʼs having this effect.
 
  Step 3: Make a Prediction

Look for an answer that discusses the male Physalaemus frog with reference to his apparent lack of intention. If passage A is right about the frogʼs behavior, it would give Maritain an example from another species parallel to his interpretation of the honeybee. He could say, in essence,  “Hereʼs another species where communication is effective in changing behavior despite being a mere conditioned reflex.” 
 
  Step 4: Evaluate the Answer Choices

(D)  matches the prediction squarely. It cites the expected example from passage A for the relevant reason.

(A)  distorts Maritainʼs view. Maritain doesnʼt claim that other honeybees have any thoughts at all, let alone contradictory ones that are changed by seeing the communicating beeʼs dance.

(B)  is Out of Scope. Neither author (nor, as far as you can see, Maritain) doubts that communication evolved because it benefits the communicator. Maritainʼs point is that the animalʼs communication is unintentional.

(C)  has no direct effect on Maritainʼs view, good or bad. If the chimps are considered analogous to honeybees, then the fact that they can sense their hearersʼ mental states undermines the argument that animals lack intention. If the chimps, being higher primates, are distinguished from honeybees, then theyʼre simply irrelevant. Either way, this assertion doesnʼt strengthen Maritainʼs view.

(E)  mentions only the circumstances that trigger macaque calls. Because it doesnʼt address the macaquesʼ intention or lack thereof in making their calls, this answer canʼt help or hurt Maritainʼs argument about the honeybees.

Answer: D

Pranavsawant · Answer

I'm still not so sure with option C and E on question 5. "merely in a matter of degree", what exactly do they mean by that? Well the authors of A are arguing that animal communication is unintentional and they do not seek to impart any kind of knowledge to the listener. Authors of B disagree and call they say that their counterparts employ circular reasoning.

Okay great! So there is a qualitative distinction based on the authors of A which the authors of B disagree upon. But the term "merely in a matter of degree" is so vague. I was very eerie about this one.

Now in E, it seems that this is something they would be more likely to disagree upon. The evolutionary argument in a bit dodgy and I suppose we have no way to say with certainty that this is something they would disagree upon. However, it seems that authors of A would never buy the argument that animals' vocalizations evolved to alter the behavior of other animals in a way that benefits the signaler since the communication was never intentional in the first place.

Nice passage!

miag · Answer

Hi,

Merely in a matter of degree” here means the difference is only quantitative (how much), not qualitative (what kind).

Hope this helps!

bestreturn · Answer

What about Q1 ?
I feel author of passage B doesn't explicitly say animal has conscious intention, it just seems like he disagrees with the logical reasoning of others and call the point that they support into questions.

miag · Answer

Hi,

There are subtle word cues scattered across both paragraphs that allude to this, and that you should look out for:
 
  "....but there is no 
 evidence that he does so because he attributes knowledge 
   (15)   or desire to other frogs, or because he  knows  his calls 
  will affect their knowledge  and that this knowledge 
 will, in turn, affect their behavior."  
  "...whose production initially seems
 goal-directed  are not as purposeful as they first appear."  
  "...a lie requires  intention  to deceive: to judge
whether a particular instance of animal communication
is truly prevarication requires  knowledge of the animal’s
intentions ."  
  the  individual must intend, in expressing x, to induce
an audience to believe something and must also intend
the utterance to be recognized as so intended . But
 conscious intention  is a category of mental experience
  (45)   widely believed to be uniquely human.  (explicitly mentioned here)

Hope this helps!

bestreturn · Answer

But I thought the author disagree with these logics, so by the end of the passage, we still don't know if animal has conscious intentions or not

miag · Answer

Hi,

Even if the author disagrees with the traditional arguments, the topic he’s engaging with is still the same question those arguments are trying to settle:

Do animals communicate with conscious intention (like humans do)?

One function of language is to influence others behavior by changing

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One function of language is to influence others behavior by changing

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