bb
Maxsparrow
bb
Official Solution:
Dr. Helen Purdy Beale, a pioneering virologist, made a groundbreaking discovery about the Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV). TMV, known for causing disease in tobacco plants, forms distinctive patterns of mottling and discoloration on the leaves. Dr. Beale's work, initially met with skepticism, has been validated by later research and significantly advanced our understanding of viral structures and plant pathology.
Dr. Beale observed that TMV particles form helical structures, a feature not widely accepted or understood at the time. Her studies revealed that these helical structures are critical for the virus's ability to infect and replicate within plant cells. She postulated that the helical form allows the virus to interact more effectively with the host cell's mechanisms, facilitating the spread of the infection through the plant's vascular system.
Most notably, Dr. Beale suggested that the helical structure of TMV played a role in the specific symptoms exhibited by infected plants. She observed that the virus's form influenced how it moved and spread within the plant tissues, leading to the characteristic patterns of discoloration. While many scientists focused on the chemical composition of the virus, Dr. Beale's emphasis on physical structure as a determinant of viral behavior was innovative.
Dr. Beale's work laid the foundation for subsequent research into viral morphology and its impact on plant diseases. Her insights have led to a deeper understanding of how viruses, such as TMV, interact with their hosts. The study of TMV's helical structure has since become a classic example in plant virology, illustrating the link between viral form and function.
Of the features of TMV discussed in the passage, Dr. Beale’s research explicitly focuses on which of the following aspects?
A. The virus’s chemical composition and infectivity.
B. The physical structure and symptom expression.
C. The virus's interaction with the plant's vascular system.
D. The rate of spread of the virus within plant tissues.
E. The methods of controlling the spread of TMV in tobacco plants.
The passage emphasizes Dr. Beale's study of the helical structure of TMV and how this structure influences the virus's movement within plant tissues and the resulting symptoms in infected plants. This focus on physical structure and symptom expression aligns with option B.
Answer: B
Can I ask something BB
I read the question as "Of the features of TMV" so I thought something belonging to the Virus. I avoid B as the second feature, symptom expression, is not the TMV's, but the Tobaccos's
Please kindly elaborate more
Very good question and you had me pause for a minute thinking we screwed up but I think the question is correct because
The physical structure and symptom expression are referring to the virus. She was not studying tobacco plants physical structure and their symptoms. She was studying physical structure of the virus and its symptoms. A plant can have symptoms but it does not cause them - instead the virus causes the symptoms and the plat exhibits them. Does this make sense?
Hi BB, honestly it is still hard to digest.
If we dissect the phrase, we will read it as "The Physical structure of Virus and The Symptom expression of Virus"
While the Virus cause a certain Symptom expression, which is a pattern discoloration of the infected Tobacco, the Virus is not the executor of this action (express). Therefore it should be categorized as neither the Virus' features nor its characteristic.
Hypothetically the question creator tried to refer Tobacco's certain discoloration, which is the virus' impact, as a feature of Virus, it would be too illogical to do so as a feature should be an inherrent, standalone trait.
If a policemen show up and ask the hood, what the feature of the burglar is, they would expect feedbacks such as brown hair, 6 ft in height, etc.
They would be stunned if the answers are glass broken, 5000$ stolen, etc. (his impact not his feature)
The explanation above is my perspective as regular people.
If I switch on my knowledge on some medical terms, usually unrecommended when doing GMAT test, the symptom expression of Virus is impossible to comprehend. The simple definition of symptom is a trait expressed by an organism that has a disease. Virus is not really accepted as an organism yet, however, even assumed it is, the literal meaning would be virus has a symptom and we would talk about the expression of the virus' symptom. The virus, in the passage, is the agent of infection, not the infected being.
BB, one additional question, is it okay to use ",etc." in a AWA section?
Thanks in advance