If an animal has been extinct for a long time, how can scientists learn what color it was? One group...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
If an animal has been extinct for a long time, how can scientists learn what color it was? One group of scientists came up with a possible answer. When the scientists examined the fossilized feather of an extinct bird, they found melanosomes in it. Melanosomes produce pigment, or grains of color, inside cells. Because melanosomes are shaped differently depending on which colors they produce, the scientists hypothesized that they could ______
Which choice most logically completes the text?
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "If an animal has been extinct for a long time, how can scientists learn what color it was?" |
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| "One group of scientists came up with a possible answer." |
|
| "When the scientists examined the fossilized feather of an extinct bird, they found melanosomes in it." |
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| "Melanosomes produce pigment, or grains of color, inside cells." |
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| "Because melanosomes are shaped differently depending on which colors they produce, the scientists hypothesized that they could ______" |
|
Part B: Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Scientists discovered a method to determine extinct animals' colors by examining the shape of melanosomes found in fossils.
Argument Flow: The passage starts with a research challenge, presents a discovery that could solve it, explains the key scientific principle behind the solution, and sets up the logical conclusion that follows from this principle.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The scientists found melanosomes in the fossil, and we know that melanosomes have different shapes depending on what colors they produce
- So logically, the scientists could examine the shapes of the melanosomes they found and use that information to figure out what colors the extinct bird had
- This talks about finding melanosomes in other species' fossils
- Doesn't follow from the shape-color relationship we just learned about
- Directly connects examining melanosome appearance to determining bird colors
- Perfectly matches the logical flow: different shapes lead to different colors, so examine shapes to determine colors
- Focuses on why melanosomes were preserved rather than how to use them
- Doesn't connect to the shape-color relationship that drives the whole argument
- Talks about animals whose fossils lack melanosomes
- This is the opposite situation from what the scientists discovered