#11 - Sometimes when their trainer gives the hand signal

[moshei24]

Thank you, Dave!

[reop6780]

The correct answer is B while I chose E.

B was a strong contender, but I chose E based upon the sentence, "these behaviors are not simply learned..."

I thought answer E eliminates a possibility that the complex movements that dolphins demonstrated were LEARNED, and they are capable of cognitive functions in their natural habitats.

That would be the only reason I chose E over B, and I appreciate if powerscore can pinpoint a flaw in my logic.

[Lucas Moreau]

Hello, reop,

I believe your trouble with this question stems from the use of the word "learned". In the context of the sentence, it is saying that the behaviors displayed by dolphins are not simply being repeated by rote memorization for a given response, like a dog sitting on command.

Answer choice E would not strengthen the conclusion as much as answer choice B, because with E, the dolphins would merely be repeating behaviors they already knew how to do. With B, the dolphins would be inventing new behaviors on the fly, which better supports the conclusion that dolphins have higher brain functions.

Hope that helps,
Lucas Moreau

[pacer]

I am confused between choices B and E.

B sounds like a premise booster to me which I have learned are never correct answers to a strengthen question.

Choice E negates or addresses a counter to the argument being made in the stimulus. I am thinking in line with the differences in animal behaviour in captivity versus the wild. So, if the dolphins are able to demonstrate complex cognitive behaviour in the wild, then we can be sure that it is a trait that they have naturally and have a true capability of a true cognitive function. Moreover, I think that by saying that dolphins do such complex behaviours in their natural habitat (clearly there are no humans there to tell them via hand signals on what to do), we are providing further support for the statement from the stimulus "these behaviours are not simply learned responses to a given stimulus".

I have read the explanation to this question in the Manhattan book and their counter example of dogs sitting in the wild in the absence of stimulus from a human does not make any sense to me. Sitting is something that most animals do to rest in the wild. In this case, the dolphins were exhibiting synchronized swimming, backward swimming, tail waving and swimming in circular laps in a pool and then jumping in the air - this is definitely something that wild dolphins in the ocean do not do.

Can you explain this question? I was very confident of my answer when I did this question and choice E makes a lot more sense to me.

Thanks,

Pacer

[David Boyle]

I am confused between choices B and E.

B sounds like a premise booster to me which I have learned are never correct answers to a strengthen question.

Choice E negates or addresses a counter to the argument being made in the stimulus. I am thinking in line with the differences in animal behaviour in captivity versus the wild. So, if the dolphins are able to demonstrate complex cognitive behaviour in the wild, then we can be sure that it is a trait that they have naturally and have a true capability of a true cognitive function. Moreover, I think that by saying that dolphins do such complex behaviours in their natural habitat (clearly there are no humans there to tell them via hand signals on what to do), we are providing further support for the statement from the stimulus "these behaviours are not simply learned responses to a given stimulus".

I have read the explanation to this question in the Manhattan book and their counter example of dogs sitting in the wild in the absence of stimulus from a human does not make any sense to me. Sitting is something that most animals do to rest in the wild. In this case, the dolphins were exhibiting synchronized swimming, backward swimming, tail waving and swimming in circular laps in a pool and then jumping in the air - this is definitely something that wild dolphins in the ocean do not do.

Can you explain this question? I was very confident of my answer when I did this question and choice E makes a lot more sense to me.

Thanks,

Pacer

Hello pacer,

Manhattan...what's Manhattan? ;P (Just kidding)
Anyway, I think answer E may actually hurt, in that if these behaviors did occur in the natural habitat, maybe then they'd be "just the way things are", not necessarily about language or forethought at all. (Also, it says "some" of the behaviors, not all of them.) True, if they are natural behaviors, maybe they are not just learned ones; but...maybe they are still "learned", in that dolphins do them anyway, but "learn" to do them in response to the stimulus, Again, E is not the best answer.
However, with answer B, you get both language and forethought, i.e., the dolphins understand the hand signal ("language"), and then exhibit behavior that is not only complex but new, i.e., dealing with forethought or planning, not just instinct.

Hope this helps,
David

[pacer]

Thanks David! This make a lot more sense. I overlooked the part about "language and forethought" but with that in mind, I can see how E does not strengthen the argument.