gmatt1476 wrote:
Official Explanation
RC62100.01-40
4. The passage suggests that, in comparison with the hominid australopithecines, modern humans are
A. less well adapted to large group cooperation
B. less well adapted to walking upright
C. more agile in running and climbing
D. more well suited to a nuclear family structure
E. more well suited to cooperative caring for their offspring
Inference
The information needed to answer this question is contained in the second paragraph. This is the only place in the passage where comparisons between australopithecines and modern human beings occur; the passage points out (1) that the pelvis and the femur of australopithecines are more similar to those of modern humans than they are to those of chimpanzees, the most closely related living primate, and (2) that the pelvis of australopithecines is better suited for bipedal locomotion than is the pelvis of modern humans.
A. The passage makes no mention of large-group cooperation.
B. Correct. As discussed above, the passage notes that the modern human pelvis is less suited for bipedal locomotion than was the australopithecine pelvis. This suggests that, in comparison with australopithecines, modern humans are less well adapted to walking upright.
C. The fact that australopithecines were better suited for walking upright than modern humans are would suggest if anything that australopithecines would also be better suited than humans to running and climbing (rather than vice versa). Regardless, the passage provides no clear evidence of whether modern humans or australopithecines were more agile.
D. In the third paragraph, the passage suggests that australopithecines may have been physically well suited to a nuclear family structure. The passage gives no information as to whether australopithecines were more or less physically well suited to such a structure than are modern humans.
E. In the third paragraph, the passage suggests that australopithecines may have been physically well suited to cooperative caring for their offspring. The passage gives no information as to whether they were more or less physically well suited to such caring than modern humans.
The correct answer is B.
For question no. 4 , why not D or E
Quote:
D. more well suited to a nuclear family structure
Quote:
E. more well suited to cooperative caring for their offspring
Quote:
⠀If the small-brained australopithecines were not toolmakers, what evolutionary advantage did they gain by walking upright? One theory is that bipedality evolved in conjunction with the nuclear family:⠀⠀monogamous parents cooperating to care for their offspring. Walking upright permitted the father to use his hands to gather food and carry it to his mate from a distance, allowing the mother to devote more time and energy to nurturing and protecting their children. According to this view, the transition to bipedal walking may have occurred as long as ten million years ago, at the time of the earliest hominids, making it a crucial initiating event in human evolution.
1.)
please see the bold lines. EVOLVED means from australopithecines to MODERN HUMANS. So it is clearly a reference that NOW MALES can use hands and Females can spend more time, so certainly it seems that modern humans are MORE SUITED to NUCLEAR FAMILY STRUCTURE than before australopithecines due to EVOLUTION .
2.) Modern humans walk on 2 legs for so many ages, what more can be evolved in bipedality ? Normal thought would be how even australopithecines can be well suited to bipedality . Even australopithecines structures were not straigh as MODERN HUMANS.
3. ) in the passage, it is mentioned
Quote:
"Lucy’s wide, shallow pelvis is actually better suited to bipedal walking than is the rounder, bowl-like pelvis of the modern human,"
Just by one line that pelvis is suitable for bipedal walking SHOULD NOT MEAN that modern humans are less well adapted to walking upright. There maybe 100s of other factors that decide final suitability.
OFcourse, their pelvis structure maybe suitable but maybe their BACKBONE or Body weight doesnt make it suitable for bidepal walking.
I am already in shock with the correct answer choice of B.GMATNinja,
GMATNinjaTwo,
bm2201 VeritasKarishma ; PLEASE GIVE YOUR MUCH-NEEEDED OPINION.
Thanks!