#16 - Specific Reference, Must Be True, Purpose/Function

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

The correct answer choice is (D).

Answer choice (A):

Answer choice (B):

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (E):


This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[swong1267]

The author discusses naturally occurring Psuedomonas Fluorescens bacteria in the first paragraph...

Why is D the corect answer? I picked B, which I didn't really like because the wheat part came after the part of the passage in the question. I didn't like D because the fact that the bacteria is naturally occurring doesn't seem to support future research, unless the focus is that the bacteria naturally occurs more in suppressive soil?

[Adam Tyson]

You got it, swong - the author mentions that it occurs naturally in suppressive soil to lay the groundwork for later discussing research into artificially creating those same conditions. Your dislike of answer B is sound - that discussion in the first paragraph doesn't explain anything that comes later about wheat yields or anything else, but only serves to set the table for the subsequent research.

Good job!

[Alexis]

Confusion: wasn't the correct answer to #16 E? That's what it indicates in the hw answer key...

[Stephanie Oswalt]

Hi Alexis!

Thanks for the question. The correct answer for this question is D.

The questions may be numbered differently in your course book, so please make sure you are referring to the February 1993 RC Section III #16: "The author discusses naturally occurring Pseudomonas fluorescens bacteria...."

If the answers still don't seem to match up, please reply with the page number you're looking at, so we can help clarify. Thanks!

[mollylynch]

You got it, swong - the author mentions that it occurs naturally in suppressive soil to lay the groundwork for later discussing research into artificially creating those same conditions. Your dislike of answer B is sound - that discussion in the first paragraph doesn't explain anything that comes later about wheat yields or anything else, but only serves to set the table for the subsequent research.

Good job!

Hi Adam, can you expand on why it does not explain 'why yields increased after they were sprayed' ? I thought the mention that they are naturally occurring nicely set up why there is considerable support for this view.

[Adam Tyson]

One reason is because the passage never once said anything about "spraying" anything, Molly. That mention of the bacterium in the first paragraph couldn't be for the purpose of explaining something that they never talked about! And the first paragraph had nothing to do with altered bacteria, but was just an observation about something occurring in nature that gave scientists a reason to conduct their investigations.

The purpose was to give one example of something that might "suggest that agriculture could benefit from the use of bacteria genetically altered for specific purposes." (1st sentence of paragraph 2)

Don't just treat these questions as a variation of Could Be True or Must Be True. We aren't looking for an answer that seems like it might be the case. This question asks us about the mindset of the author: why did they bring this up? How did this thing serve the larger purpose of the passage? Answer that question when you prephrase, and find the answer that reflects that purpose, rather than just something that might be true.