The concept of cellular reproduction remained elusive to early cell biologists despite their groundbreaking discoveries about cellular structure. Whil...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
The concept of cellular reproduction remained elusive to early cell biologists despite their groundbreaking discoveries about cellular structure. While researchers like Robert Hooke had documented cell walls in his 1665 Micrographia, and Matthias Schleiden's botanical work alongside Theodor Schwann's animal tissue studies in the 1830s had established fundamental cell theory principles, none of these investigations had identified how cells actually multiply. This gap in understanding persisted until Rudolf Virchow's 1855 principle "omnis cellula e cellula" (all cells come from cells) finally addressed cellular reproduction—a concept that had eluded his predecessors entirely, which suggests that ______
Which choice most logically completes the text?
Hooke's original observations in Micrographia would not have included concepts of cellular reproduction.
Schleiden and Schwann were unaware of cellular reproduction when developing their cell theory, though evidence of cell division was available to them through microscopic observation.
Rudolf Virchow's understanding of cellular structure was more similar overall to Schwann's animal research than to Schleiden's botanical studies.
the cellular principles that Hooke described in his 1665 work were more advanced than those later proposed by Schleiden and Schwann.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | What it says | What it does | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| "The concept of cellular reproduction remained elusive to early cell biologists despite their groundbreaking discoveries about cellular structure." | Cell reproduction = mystery to early biologists, BUT they did discover cell structure | Introduces a puzzling contrast between what early scientists could and couldn't figure out | Opening context with contrast |
| "While researchers like Robert Hooke had documented cell walls in his 1665 Micrographia, and Matthias Schleiden's botanical work alongside Theodor Schwann's animal tissue studies in the 1830s had established fundamental cell theory principles," | Hooke (1665): documented cell walls in Micrographia; Schleiden + Schwann (1830s): established cell theory basics | Provides specific examples of the structural discoveries mentioned earlier | Supporting evidence with timeline |
| "none of these investigations had identified how cells actually multiply." | None found how cells multiply | Emphasizes the gap we learned about - confirms these famous researchers missed reproduction | Clarifying limitation |
| "This gap in understanding persisted until Rudolf Virchow's 1855 principle 'omnis cellula e cellula' (all cells come from cells) finally addressed cellular reproduction—" | Gap continued → Virchow 1855: "all cells from cells" = finally solved reproduction | Explains when and how the mystery was finally solved | Resolution/breakthrough |
| "a concept that had eluded his predecessors entirely, which suggests that ______" | Reproduction concept = completely missed by earlier scientists | Reinforces how thoroughly the earlier researchers missed this concept and leads to logical conclusion | Emphasis + logical setup for inference |
Part B: Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Early cell biologists made groundbreaking discoveries about cell structure but completely failed to understand cellular reproduction until Virchow's 1855 breakthrough.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes a historical puzzle - brilliant scientists discovered cellular structure but missed reproduction entirely. It then provides specific examples (Hooke, Schleiden, Schwann) to illustrate this gap, explains how Virchow finally solved it in 1855, and sets up a logical inference about what this complete oversight suggests about the earlier work.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
What's being asked? We need to complete the logical thought that begins with "which suggests that..."
What type of answer do we need? A logical inference that flows from the fact that cellular reproduction "had eluded his predecessors entirely"
Any limiting keywords? The word "entirely" is crucial - it emphasizes the complete absence of reproductive concepts in earlier work.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The passage emphasizes that cellular reproduction "eluded his predecessors entirely." This is a strong statement.
- If something eluded them entirely, it means they had no understanding of it whatsoever.
- So the right answer should logically follow from this complete absence of understanding.
- Key elements the correct answer must have:
- It should connect to the idea that reproduction was completely missing from earlier work
- It should reference one of the specific researchers mentioned (Hooke, Schleiden, or Schwann)
- It should logically follow from "entirely eluded" - meaning the concept wasn't just incomplete, but totally absent
- So the right answer should confirm that the earlier researchers' work would not have contained concepts of cellular reproduction at all.
Hooke's original observations in Micrographia would not have included concepts of cellular reproduction.
✓ Correct
- This directly follows from our passage analysis - if cellular reproduction "eluded his predecessors entirely," then Hooke's work logically wouldn't have included these concepts.
- Matches our prethinking perfectly by connecting the complete absence ("entirely eluded") to a specific researcher (Hooke) and his specific work (Micrographia).
- The logic is airtight: entirely eluded = not included in the work.
Schleiden and Schwann were unaware of cellular reproduction when developing their cell theory, though evidence of cell division was available to them through microscopic observation.
✗ Incorrect
- Claims Schleiden and Schwann were "unaware" but that "evidence of cell division was available to them through microscopic observation."
- This creates a logical contradiction - if evidence was available to them, then the concept didn't "elude them entirely" as the passage states.
- The passage emphasizes complete absence, not missed opportunities.
Rudolf Virchow's understanding of cellular structure was more similar overall to Schwann's animal research than to Schleiden's botanical studies.
✗ Incorrect
- Discusses similarities between Virchow's and Schwann's understanding compared to Schleiden's.
- This doesn't connect to the logical setup about concepts eluding predecessors entirely.
- Shifts focus to comparisons between researchers rather than addressing the inference about missing reproductive concepts.
the cellular principles that Hooke described in his 1665 work were more advanced than those later proposed by Schleiden and Schwann.
✗ Incorrect
- Claims Hooke's 1665 work was "more advanced" than later work by Schleiden and Schwann.
- Contradicts the passage's timeline and logic - if cellular reproduction eluded everyone until 1855, earlier work couldn't be more advanced in relevant ways.
- This trap represents students confusing "groundbreaking discoveries" with overall advancement, missing that all early work had the same crucial gap.