JarvisR
Scientist long believed that two nerve cluster in the human hypothalamus, called suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCNs), were what controlled our circadian rhythms. Those rhythms are the biological cycles that recur approximately every 24 hours in synchronization with the cycle of sunlight and darkness caused by Earth’s rotation. Studies have demonstrated that in some animals, the SCNs control daily fluctuations in blood pressure, body temperature, activity level, and alertness, as well as the nighttime release of the sleep-promoting agent melatonin. Furthermore , cells in the human retina dedicated to transmitting information about light level to the SCNs have recently been discovered.
Four critical genes governing circadian cycles have been found to be active in every tissue, however, not that the SCNs, of flies, mice, and humans. In addition, when laboratory rats that usually ate at will were fed only once a day, peak activity of a clock gene in their livers shifted by 12 hours, whereas the same clock gene in the SCNs remained synchronized with light cycles. While scientists do not dispute the role of the SCNs in controlling core functions such as the regulation of body temperature and blood pressure, scientists now believe that circadian clocks in other organs and tissues may respond to external cues other than light – including temperature changes – that recur regularly 24 hours.
The primary purpose of the passage is to
A) challenge recent findings that appear to contradict earlier findings
B) present two sides of an ongoing scientific debate
C) report answers to several questions that have long puzzled researchers
D) discuss evidence that ;has caused a longstanding belief to be revise
E) attempt to explain a commonly misunderstood biological phenomenon
The passage mentions each of the following as a function regulated by SCNs in same animals EXCEPT
A) activity level
B) blood pressure
C) alertness
D) vision
E) temperature
The author of the passage would probably agree with which of the following statement about the SCNs ?
A) The SCNs are found in other organs and tissues of the body besides the hypothalamus.
B) The SCNs play a critical but not exclusive role in regulating circadian rhythms.
C) The SCNs control clock genes in a number of tissues and organs throughout the body.
D) The SCNs are a less significant factor in regulating blood pressure than scientists once believed.
E) The SCNs are less strongly affected by changes in light levels than are by other external cues.
Dear
JarvisR,
I'm happy to respond.
This of course is the 3rd RC passage in the OG2016, and the questions are RC #8-10.
The primary purpose of the passage is to
A) challenge recent findings that appear to contradict earlier findings
B) present two sides of an ongoing scientific debate
C) report answers to several questions that have long puzzled researchers
D) discuss evidence that has caused a longstanding belief to be revise
E) attempt to explain a commonly misunderstood biological phenomenonIn Par 1, he talks about the role of the SCN in regulating circadian rhythms. In Par. 2, he cites new evidence that is not entirely compatible with the SCN running everything. The first paragraph really sets the stage of what the author wants to say. The second paragraph is really the author's main point, the juicy point he want to make--- the first paragraph just sets the stage so we have context for the second paragraph. The "SCN runs the whole thing" theory was called "long believed," so it is a longstanding theory that the new evidence calls into question, causing scientist to revise the longstanding theory. This is what
(D) says.
The passage mentions each of the following as a function regulated by SCNs in same animals EXCEPT
A) activity level
B) blood pressure
C) alertness
D) vision
E) temperatureThe choices
(A),
(B),
(C), and
(E) are all mentioned, in the second half of the first paragraph, as functions that the SCN controls. By contrast, vision is tricky. The SCN doesn't "control" vision. Instead, vision provides the crucial data, information about natural light, that allows the SCN to do its job. The SCN
depends on vision, it doesn't control it. OA =
(D).
The author of the passage would probably agree with which of the following statement about the SCNs ?
A) The SCNs are found in other organs and tissues of the body besides the hypothalamus.No, nonsense. The regulation of circadian rhythms occurs elsewhere in the body, but there is no SCN outside the hypothalamus.
B) The SCNs play a critical but not exclusive role in regulating circadian rhythms.A good balanced assessment. The SCN is important, but is no longer believed to be "the only show in town." This is promising.
C) The SCNs control clock genes in a number of tissues and organs throughout the body.There's zero evidence for this. The SCN is discussed, and then later, gene clocks with a similar role are discuss, but no connection is made back to the SCN.
D) The SCNs are a less significant factor in regulating blood pressure than scientists once believed.The second paragraph says: "
While scientist do not dispute the role of the SCNs in controlling core functions such as ... blood pressure." This choice directly contradicts this quote.
E) The SCNs are less strongly affected by changes in light levels than are by other external cues.No. Confuses different things. The SCNs respond to light. The gene clocks & circadian clocks in other parts of the body respond to other external cues.
OA =
(B)Here's a blog you may find useful:
https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/gmat-rc-el ... g-answers/Does all this make sense? Please let me know if you have any further questions about any of these.
Mike