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605-655 (Medium)|   Science|   Short Passage|                        
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This how I would go about answering this questions. As I'm reading, I want to make a note of few points mentioned in the paragraph..

Quote:
with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions
. The study phrase gives you multiple combinations such as educated or not, non land wealth, inheritance through kin,.. blah.. I would skim through these scenarios...

Next, I would read the question and go back and re-read the multiple combinations of the study one-by-one and you would come across the following phrase -
Quote:
but availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies.

Using the two quoted phrase, you should be able to select D.
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tricky and nasty passage, though is short

A

Studies have shown that farmers in developing countries who have achieved certain levels of education, wealth, and security of land tenure are more likely to adopt such technologies. But these studies have focused on villages with limited land that are tied to a market economy rather than on the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities

As you can se you can not generalize the study


B

such as improved plant varieties and use of chemical herbicides,

is the contrary , so C is the exception

C

Researchers also measured land-tenure security: in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village. They found that longer residence correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides.

pretty much clear

D

Ready availability of uncultivated land tends to decrease local farmers’ incentive to adopt new agricultural technologies that would reduce their need to clear new land for cultivation.

Enhancing the productivity of the land owned and not going to cultivate other lands; indeed the gist of the passage


Hope is clear
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Question 2 asks what line 1's proposal doesn't do, line 1's proposal is to preserve rain forests by helping local farmers through a few methods.
a lot of answer choices are word-by-word, so it's quick elimination

A: adopt new technology <- it's covered, the proposal is supposed to promote new technologies
B: grow plant varieties <- it's covered, one of the new technologies is plant varieties+
C: decrease herbicides <- OA, line 1 does mention improved use of chemical herbicides, but it never mentioned whether improved = decreased herbicides, I don't even know what herbicides are
D: increase productivity <- the proposal's promotion of new tech will increase productivity
E: reduce their need to clear new land for cultivation <- the proposal slows deforestation by reducing demand for new cropland



Question 3 is very tricky because it's incredibly wordy and also because OP didn't point out where line 27 is.
I assumed that the study refers to
Quote:

Researchers also measured land-tenure security: in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village. They found that longer residence correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides.

The question asks what we can imply from this statement. Take note that leaps of logic is prohibited and GMAT wants us to pick the most boring and droning answer.

let's take a look at some answers, we'll scan out some keywords so we don't drown:

Quote:

A. The security of a household’s land tenure depends on the strength of that household’skinship ties, and the duration of a household’s residence in its village is an indication of the strength of that household’s kinship ties.

refers to land security and household duration, didn't introduce anything out-of-scope, looks like a winner.


Quote:
B. The ample availability of land makes security ofland tenure unimportant, and the lack of a need for secure land tenure has made the concept of legal property rights unnecessary.

I stopped at land tenure unimportant, kinship is more important than legal property rights (for indicating land security), but they didn't say anything about land tenure being unimportant.


Quote:
C. The strength of a household’s kinship ties is amore reliable indicator of that household’s receptivity to new agricultural technologies than is its quantity of non land wealth, and the duration of a household’s residence in its village is a more reliable indicator of that household’s security of land tenure than is the strength of its kinship ties.

line 27 refers kinship ties as an indicator of land security, the receptivity is not taken into consideration
some might assume that land security = more reception, but the article didn't say anything about secure farmers adopting new technologies
the only mention of receptivity is based on education, language skills and non-land wealth



Quote:
D. Security of land tenure based on kinship ties tends to make farmers more receptive to the use of improved plant varieties, and security of land tenure based on long duration of residence in a village tends to make farmers more receptive to the use of chemical herbicides.

see C

Quote:

E. A household is more likely to be receptive to the concept of land tenure based on legal property rights if it has easy access to uncultivated land, and a household is more likely to uphold the tradition of land tenure based on kinship ties if it possesses a significant degree of non-land wealth.
there is no mention of any farmer's reception on land tenure, we don't know what the farmers actually liked, the research is only talking about measuring land security
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4. The findings of the study mentioned in the highlighted text, if valid for rain-forest regions in general, suggest that which of the following is an obstacle most likely to be faced by those wishing to promote rain-forest preservation by implementing the proposal mentioned in line 1?

Case study scenario is assumed to be valid for rain forest regions in general.

A. Lack of legal property rights tends to discourage local farmers from investing the time and resources required to successfully implement new agricultural technologies.

They gave more importance to kinship ties than legal property rights. This is not true.

B. The ability to evaluate the wider economic ramifications of adopting new agricultural technologies depends on a relatively high level of formal education.

farmers with certain level of education are known to adopt new tech but neither ability to evaluate ramifications is mentioned nor high level of formal education. Incorrect.

C. Isolation from the market economy tends to restrict local farmers’ access to new agricultural technologies that could help them to increase their productivity.
Quote:
studies have focused on villages with limited land that are tied to a market economy rather than on the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions.
having only said this, info in option C cannot not be deduced from passage.

D. Ready availability of uncultivated land tends to decrease local farmers’ incentive to adopt new agricultural technologies that would reduce their need to clear new land for cultivation.

This is mentioned in below sentence in passage.
Quote:
but availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies.

E. Traditions of self-sufficiency and reliance on kinship ties tend to diminish local farmers’ receptivity to new agricultural technologies introduced by people from outside the local community

self sufficiency may discourage framers to new tech but we don't have reason to say that kinship ties can result in such cases.
people from inside or outside the community is out of scope.
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-The author talks about a proposal for preserving rain forests
-The author then describes potential reasons why the proposal might not be accepted in certain regions
- He illustrates the above point with the example of the Tawahka people

1. The author clearly mentions that the proposal will not work under conditions where an ample amount of uncultivated land is available. Hence Option (D) is the best answer choice.

2. the adoption of new agricultural technologies, such as improved plant varieties and use of chemical herbicides, which would increase productivity and slow deforestation by reducing demand for new cropland
Answer C

3. "in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village."
The above excerpt indicates that kinship ties are related to the duration of the household's residence it its village. Hence option (A) is the right answer.

4."But these studies have focused on villages with limited land that are tied to a market economy rather than on the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions."

The above suggests that an availability of land might prove to be a hindrance for the implementation of the suggested proposal. Hence option (D) is the right answer.
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Can you please explain how did we arrived at option C for Ques 2? Why option E is wrong ?
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Can you please explain how did we arrived at option C for Ques 2? Why option E is wrong ?

Increasing productivity leads to a conclusion that more yield per acre could be obtained and therefore, the need to reduce the land for cultivation is implied in it. We need to find an option that clearly states the correct answer, without any doubt.

The author has mentioned importance of "improved plant varieties and use of chemical herbicides" -- This shows that the author has not agreed to reducing the use of chemical herbicides.
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4) The findings of the study mentioned in the highlighted text, if valid for rain-forest regions in general, suggest that which of the following is an obstacle most likely to be faced by those wishing to promote rain-forest preservation by implementing the proposal mentioned in line 1?

A. Lack of legal property rights tends to discourage local farmers from investing the time and resources required to successfully implement new agricultural technologies.

B. The ability to evaluate the wider economic ramifications of adopting new aricultural technologies depends on a relatively high level of formal education.

C. Isolation from the market economy tends to restrict local farmers’ access to new agricultural technologies that could help them to increase their productivity.

D. Ready availability of uncultivated land tends to decrease local farmers’ incentive to adopt new agricultural technologies that would reduce their need to clear new land for cultivation.

E. Traditions of self-sufficiency and reliance on kinship ties tend to diminish local farmers’ receptivity to new agricultural technologies introduced by people from outside the local community.


This is what the first line says "One proposal for preserving rain forests is to promote the adoption of new agricultural technologies"
The proposal is to adopt new agricultural technologies.

This sentence "but availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies" connects to (D) perfectly. What confused you was perhaps this - "that would reduce their need to clear new land for cultivation"
This is just some info on new technologies which links to the first part of (D) - ready availability of land. Since land is readily available, new technologies (which help to reduce the need to clear new land) are not needed. When land is limited, these technologies would help since they would reduce the need for new land (if you can increase the productivity of current land using tech, you wouldn't need new land much). When land is available, these technologies would not be required.

A. Lack of legal property rights tends to discourage local farmers from investing the time and resources required to successfully implement new agricultural technologies.

"Household’s duration of residence in its village" was considered, not "legal property rights".

B. The ability to evaluate the wider economic ramifications of adopting new aricultural technologies depends on a relatively high level of formal education.

Rain-forest regions are relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land - not tied to a market economy. So economic ramifications are irrelevant.

C. Isolation from the market economy tends to restrict local farmers’ access to new agricultural technologies that could help them to increase their productivity.

Rain forest regions are usually economically isolated so this is not a factor that influences whether the farmers use new technologies.

E. Traditions of self-sufficiency and reliance on kinship ties tend to diminish local farmers’ receptivity to new agricultural technologies introduced by people from outside the local community.

Incorrect. Given that "longer residence (reliance on kinship) correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides."
So they are more receptive to some new tech and less receptive to other new tech.
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AjiteshArun
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Please help.
I have divided this passage in 3 parts, and I would like to know how these 3 para connected to each other.
or I should rephrase my question: why author mentioned these 3 para in this sequence?


1-One proposal for preserving rain forests is to promote the adoption of new agricultural technologies, such as improved plant varieties and use of chemical herbicides, which would increase productivity and slow deforestation by reducing demand for new cropland.

2-Studies have shown that farmers in developing countries who have achieved certain levels of education, wealth, and security of land tenure are more likely to adopt such technologies. But these studies have focused on villages with limited land that are tied to a market economy rather than on the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions.

3-A recent study of the Tawahka people of the Honduran rain forest found that farmers with some formal education were more likely to adopt improved plant varieties but less likely to use chemical herbicides and that those who spoke Spanish (the language of the market economy) were more likely to adopt both technologies. Non-land wealth was also associated with more adoption of both technologies, but availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies. Researchers also measured land-tenure security: in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village. They found that longer residence correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides.
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AjiteshArun
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Please help.
I have divided this passage in 3 parts, and I would like to know how these 3 para connected to each other.
or I should rephrase my question: why author mentioned these 3 para in this sequence?


1-One proposal for preserving rain forests is to promote the adoption of new agricultural technologies, such as improved plant varieties and use of chemical herbicides, which would increase productivity and slow deforestation by reducing demand for new cropland.

2-Studies have shown that farmers in developing countries who have achieved certain levels of education, wealth, and security of land tenure are more likely to adopt such technologies. But these studies have focused on villages with limited land that are tied to a market economy rather than on the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions.

3-A recent study of the Tawahka people of the Honduran rain forest found that farmers with some formal education were more likely to adopt improved plant varieties but less likely to use chemical herbicides and that those who spoke Spanish (the language of the market economy) were more likely to adopt both technologies. Non-land wealth was also associated with more adoption of both technologies, but availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies. Researchers also measured land-tenure security: in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village. They found that longer residence correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides.
Nice! This is a good breakdown of how this long and winding paragraph really splits up into three key pieces:

  • There's a proposal to improve productivity and reduce deforestation by promoting adoption of new tech.
  • Studies have shown that a certain kind of farmer is more likely to adopt new tech, but these studies have a limited range of coverage.
  • A recent study show that other kinds of farmers behave differently, in lots of ways, when it comes to adopting new tech.

The structure of the paragraph sets up the author to identify a proposal, point out that studies supporting this proposal are limited, then present a recent study that reveals just how limited those previous studies are.

That's why choice (D) is the best fit for question #1:
Quote:
The primary purpose of the passage is to (D) present the results of new research suggesting that previous findings concerning one set of conditions may not be generalizable to another set of conditions
I hope this helps!
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Can someone please explain to me how A in 3 is an "assumption" based on the passage?
The passage states "in T society kinship ties are more important indicator of this than any legal property rights". How is this an assumption? This is a fact stated in the passage? What am I missing here?
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Can someone please explain to me how A in 3 is an "assumption" based on the passage?
The passage states "in T society kinship ties are more important indicator of this than any legal property rights". How is this an assumption? This is a fact stated in the passage? What am I missing here?
Here's the full portion of the passage that you're analyzing:

Quote:
Researchers also measured land-tenure security: in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village.
The author tells us the following:

  • In the study, researchers measured land-tenure security.
  • In Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of land-tenure security than are legal property rights.
  • Consequently, researchers measured land-tenure security by a household's duration of residents in its village.

This seems like a straightforward presentation of facts, but here's what's NOT being explicitly stated by the author:

  • Kinship ties determine or create land-tenure security in Tawahka society. We only know that these ties are a more important indicator than legal property rights. This is a comparison of the relative importance of kinship ties vs. legal property rights. The author has said nothing about the absolute importance of either, with regards to creating land-tenure security.
  • A household's duration of residents in its village is directly related to kinship ties.

Now, here's the full text of choice (A):

Quote:
(A) The security of a household’s land tenure depends on the strength of that household’s kinship ties, and the duration of a household’s residence in its village is an indication of the strength of that household’s kinship ties.
Choice (A) identifies these implicit assumptions right on the nose:

  • A household's land-tenure security depends on the strength of that household's kinship ties.
  • The duration of a household's residence in its village indicates the strength of that household's kinship ties.

The author has already given us all the dots to connect. (A) does nothing more than connect those dots; this choice is basically exposing what we've read between the lines of the passage.

I hope this helps clarify how assumptions might feel perfectly obvious while remaining unstated by the author.
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Please help with questions 4.
I came to D and E but went with E.
the question says if valid for rain-forest regions in general.
the answer choice D is related to only the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions.
Hence, I eliminated and went with E.
Could you please explain why E is wrong and D is correct?
thank you in advance!
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Ilhomjon98
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Please help with questions 4.
I came to D and E but went with E.
the question says if valid for rain-forest regions in general.
the answer choice D is related to only the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions.
Hence, I eliminated and went with E.
Could you please explain why E is wrong and D is correct?
thank you in advance!
Before we take a look at (D) and (E), we need to be clear that (D) does not relate only to "the relatively isolated, self-sufficient communities with ample land characteristic of rain-forest regions." The question TELLS us to consider the study, "if valid for rain-forest regions in general," so EVERY answer choice is related to the rainforest regions in general.

Ok, onto the question...

Question 4


First, let's take a look at some parts of the passage that would be helpful to answer this question. We're told that one of the results of the study was:

    Result 1: Non-land wealth was also associated with more adoption of both technologies, but availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies.

This tells us that:

    1) People with a shortage of land were more likely to adopt both new technologies
    2) If uncultivated land was available, people were less likely to adopt either technology.

Another result of the study was:

    Result 2: Researchers also measured land-tenure security: in Tawahka society, kinship ties are a more important indicator of this than are legal property rights, so researchers measured it by a household’s duration of residence in its village. They found that longer residence correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides.

This tells us that:

    1) The length of time a household had lived in a village was used as a measure of kinship ties
    2) A long duration of residence correlated with more adoption of improved plant varieties but less adoption of chemical herbicides

As we'll see, these two parts of the passage will help us choose between (D) and (E). In this question, we're asked which of the answer choices describes an obstacle most likely to be faced by those wishing to promote rain-forest preservation practices.

Let's look at (E) first:
Quote:
(E) Traditions of self-sufficiency and reliance on kinship ties tend to diminish local farmers’ receptivity to new agricultural technologies introduced by people from outside the local community
As mentioned above, the second result from the study suggests the higher the kinship ties in a community, the less willing a farmer will be to use chemical herbicides but the more willing they will be to adopt improved plant varieties.

Therefore, it is not true that reliance on kinship ties tends to diminish local farmers' receptivity to new agricultural technologies, as mentioned in (E). These farmers are just selective about which technologies they adopt.

This is why (E) is cannot be the correct answer.

(D) tells us:
Quote:
(D) Ready availability of uncultivated land tends to decrease local farmers’ incentive to adopt new agricultural technologies that would reduce their need to clear new land for cultivation.
The first result from the study listed above tells us the "availability of uncultivated land reduced the incentive to employ the productivity-enhancing technologies." This is very similar to the claim made in (D) and this gives us the justification to keep (D) as our final answer.

I hope that helps!
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Hello AndrewN - What is Nonland wealth?
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AliciaSierra
Hello AndrewN - What is Nonland wealth?
Good question, AliciaSierra, and a friendly hello. (I think this may be the first time we have crossed paths. If not, then pardon me.) This is a case in which we can define the non by examining what is meant by land wealth. The passage discusses a recent study of the Tawahka people of the Honduran rain forest in the context of a relatively isolated, self-sufficient [community] with ample land. This stands in contrast to other studies that have focused on villages with limited land that are tied to a market economy. Together, then, we can conclude that land wealth would refer to property rights or wealth in land owned, even if those rights are defined differently in Tawahka society. And this means that nonland wealth refers to other types of wealth, such as the currency of the market economy (i.e. money). You might think that formal education is a part of nonland wealth, but it is mentioned instead as an attribute of people who engage in the market economy, as well as some Tawahka farmers, not as a type of wealth itself. We really do not have anything else to lean on in the passage.

I hope that helps. Thank you for thinking to ask me.

- Andrew
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AndrewN

I have a few questions below:
1. I have the Official Guide 2020 version and noticed that I have only two of the questions that appear on the form (the first being "the passage suggests that in the study..." and the second question being "according to the passage, the proposal mentioned in line 1.."). Is this because the other questions are retired by GMAC? What does it mean when a question is retired (e.g. the GMAC finds fault in it)?

2. For question 467 (the passage suggests that in the study mentioned in line 14 the method for gathering information about the security of land tenure: the Official Guide says "the researchers measured land-tenure security by indirectly measuring the strength of kinship ties". To clarify "indirectly" refers to the researchers using "duration" as an indicator, correctly? Not to overthink this, but what would be a "direct" way to measure kinship ties? Also, where does the word "strength" come in? I do not see "strength" mentioned in the passage... is that where we are drawing the inference by looking at works such as "longer residence"?

3. For question 468 (according to the passage, the proposal mentioned in line 1), I was a bit confused in that each of these items seems to be listed as a separate entity when they all fall under using agriculture technologies or would be a direct result of using agriculture technologies ---> plant varieties or chemical herbs are examples of agriculture technologies--> these then increase productivity and reduce the need to clear new land. I have not quite seen something like this on the GMAT before.

Many thanks in advance :)
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