Q. 1: The Emory University experiment with mice points to the inheritance of:
1. psychological markers
2. acquired characteristics
3. personality traits
4. acquired parental fears
This is a very easy question and right at the start of the passage the clue to the right answer can be found. The passage says “a mouse should not be born with something that its parents have learned during their lifetime”. Thus the author suggests that they should not have been born with acquired characteristics during their lifetime. We should not be tempted with option 4 because though it looks good, it is not the right choice. Fear is just one characteristics that is likely to be inherited, while the passage points at a broader conclusion that can be derived from this experiment. So the inheritance may not necessarily be of fears, but of anything that the parents might have acquired in their lifetime.
The hint to the right answer can be found in the second paragraph of the passage. The second para says: The traditional, and still dominant, view is that adaptations – from the human brain to the peacock’s tail – are fully and satisfactorily explained by natural selection (and subsequent inheritance). Yet [new evidence] from genomics, epigenetics and developmental biology [indicates] that evolution is more complex than we once assumed.
Thus 1 is the best choice, as the author attributes inheritance to much more than natural selection and mendelian gentics. The other negative opinions expressed in the other options cannot be seen anywhere in the passage.
Q. 3: Which of the following, if found to be true, would negate the main message of the passage?
1. A study affirming the influence of socio-cultural markers on evolutionary processes.
2. A study highlighting the criticality of epigenetic inheritance to evolution.
3. A study indicating the primacy of ecological impact on human adaptation.
4. A study affirming the sole influence of natural selection and inheritance on evolution.
To answer this question correctly, we have to understand the main message of the passage. The main idea is that there is a lot more to inheritance than just natural selection and genetics. So if there is a study that affirms the sole influence of natural selection and inheritance on evolution than the author’s main argument would be weakened.
We can see clear evidence in these lines: All these tugs represent the influence of developmental factors, including epigenetics, antibodies and hormones passed on by parents, as well as the ecological legacies and culture they bequeath.
Q. 4: The passage uses the metaphor of a dog walker to argue that evolutionary adaptation is most comprehensively understood as being determined by:
1. extra genetic, genetic, epigenetic and genomic legacies.
2. socio-cultural, genetic, epigenetic, and genomic legacies
3. ecological, hormonal, extra genetic and genetic legacies.
4. genetic, epigenetic, developmental factors, and ecological legacies.
This too is an easy question, the clue to the right answer can be seen here in these lines:
We can see clear evidence in these lines: All these tugs represent the influence of developmental factors, including epigenetics, antibodies and hormones passed on by parents, as well as the ecological legacies and culture they bequeath.
Q. 5: In the first paragraph, the author laments the fact that:
1. there is no recognition of the Indian soldiers who served in the Second World War.
2. the new war memorial will be built right next to India Gate.
3. India lost thousands of human lives during the Second World War.
4. funds will be wasted on another war memorial when we already have the India Gate memorial.
The clue to the right answer is there right in the first paragraph. The author says: Between the old imperialist memorial and the proposed nationalist one, India’s contribution to the Second World War is airbrushed out of existence.
The phrase ‘airbrushed out of existence’ has that regret in the tone. Thus 1 is the right choice.
Verbal Ability : | Q.01- Q.05 | Q.06- Q.10 | Q.11- Q.15 | Q.16- Q.20 | Q.21- Q.24 | Q.25- Q.29 | Q.30 – Q.34 |
Logical Reasoning : | Q.01- Q.04 | Q.05- Q.08 | Q.09- Q.12 | Q.13- Q.16 | Q.17- Q.20 | Q.21- Q.24 | Q.25 – Q.28 | Q.29 – Q.32 |
Quantitative Aptitude: | Q.01- Q.05 | Q.06- Q.10 | Q.11- Q.15 | Q.16- Q.20 | Q.21- Q.25 | Q.26- Q.30 | Q.31 – Q.34 |
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