#7 - For many types of crops, hybrid strains have been

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Resolve the Paradox. The correct answer choice is (C)

Even though in test plantings hybrid strains of crops produce higher yields than traditional strains, in reality replacing traditional with hybrid strains produces no significant increase in crop yields. The question is “why?”. When examining answers, ask yourself if the information in the answer choice could explain the discrepancy between the expected and the actual crop yield from hybrid strains. If so, the answer is correct.

Answer choice (A): Even though hybrid farms are larger than traditional farms, it is unclear how the size of the farm would affect the crop yield from hybrid strains. The discrepancy here is between expected and actual hybrid crop yield, not between hybrid and traditional crop yields.

Answer choice (B): Even though hybrid strains of crops produced higher yields in some areas, it is still unclear why the overall success of hybrid crops has been less stellar than expected.

Answer choice (C): This is the correct answer choice. If the hybrid strains were tested under more favorable conditions than are found in the real world, then no wonder farmers didn’t see the results they expected. Because this answer choice is able to explain the discrepancy between the actual and the expected hybrid crop yields, it is correct.

Answer choice (D): Whether the crops produced by traditional strains of plants taste better or not is irrelevant and does not explain the discrepancy in expected vs. actual yields from hybrid crops. This answer choice is incorrect.

Answer choice (E): Whether crops from hybrid strains are subsidized or not is immaterial to the paradox at hand. This answer choice is incorrect.

[PositiveThinker]

I came down to C and D on this answer choice because i assumed the word "yield" from the stimulus meant a return on investment. So i picked D because it talked about selling better. I absolutely see how C is correct but how should i look at the word yield in a stimulus in the future? As just producing more, or actually making more money?


Hopefully that question makes sense. Thanks for all your help

[Adam Tyson]

Your question makes perfect sense, don't worry! In terms of crops, Thinker, "yield" means only how much you get from the plant, and has nothing to do with how much you sell it for or how well it sells. If plant A produces a pound of fruit and plant B produces two pounds, then plant B's yield is twice that of plant A's. It makes no difference whether people buy the fruit from plant B, the yield is still double. Contrast that with "return" and then you would perhaps, depending on the context, be talking about sales and revenues, maybe profits.

Keep at it!

[CJ12345:]

Hi, Powerscore,
I have question for AC C and E.
When reading the Stimulus, my understanding is that in the test, hybrid strains produced more than nonhybrid & in many parts of the world, when replacing nonhybrid with hybrid, the crop yields in those particular places did not increase. Thus, the first part is a comparison between hybrid and nonhybrid in testing. The second part is comparison of what is before (nonhybrid) and what is after (hybrid) in that places. However, AC C is trying to compare the crop yield in those particular places with the crop yield in the testing. I don't think they are comparable. C could only explain that the hybrid in testing might yield more crops than hybrid in the places. It could not explain why in that particular places, when replacing nonhybrid with hybrid, did not see the crop yields increase. However, AC E, I think, does give an explanation in which it argues that since gov subsidizes farmers who plant only hybrid strains, it is possible that (my speculation) farmers actually plant less crop since they got the gov sub thus the total crop yields have not increased.

[Rachael Wilkenfeld]

Hi CJ,,

Crop yield describes how much food/product you get per area planted with a specific plant. The facts we have are that in testing, hybrid strains had higher yields than nonhybrid strains in the same area. However, in practice, when switching from nonhybrid strains to hybrid strains, crop yields did not increase.

We need to explain why. Answer choice (E) talks about a motivation farmers might have for planting hybrid plants. But it doesn't explain the discrepancy at all. Crop yields would be something like 10 bushels per acre in testing versus 8 bushels per acre in actuality. The number of acres planted is irrelevant to the yield because the yield is a ratio. However if answer choice (C) was true, that the hybrid varieties were tested in better conditions than the real-world planting could achieve, it would explain why the yields promised by testing were not achieved in the field.

Hope that helps!