Explanations please!

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Explanations please!

by prachi18oct » Sat Feb 14, 2015 10:20 am
Some animals, such as dolphins, dogs, and African grey parrots, seem to exhibit cognitive functions typically associated with higher-order primates such as chimpanzees, gorillas, and humans. Some parrots, for example, have vocabularies of hundreds of words that they can string together in a comprehensible syntax. This clearly shows that humans and primates are not the only animals capable of using language to communicate. One parrot, named Alex, has been known to ask to be petted or kissed and will exhibit aggression if the gesture offered is not the specific one requested.

Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the conclusion above?

A) Dolphins can be trained to assist divers in ocean rescues.

B) Gorillas in captivity often learn hand signals for food and water.

C) Dogs are capable of sensing their owners' moods and often exhibit concern if they sense sadness.

D) Chimpanzees can memorize long sequences of key punches on machines that dispense food.

E) Alex does not exhibit aggression when offered a gesture that he specifically requested.



Conclusion: Humans and primates are not the only animals capable of using language to communicate.
Support: Some animals, such as dolphins, dogs, and African grey parrots, seem to exhibit cognitive functions typically associated with higher-order primates such as chimpanzees, gorillas, and humans.
Example 1: Some parrots have vocabularies of hundreds of words that they can string together in a comprehensible syntax, Alex.

Now Since the conclusion is not about the primates abd humans, I ruled out B & D.
Now since we are talking about communication via language , I ruled out C.
For A also, I belive there is no language involved for communication ( not sign language ?)
So I picked E. Also since Alex can communicate via language and responds according to gesture offered.

I am not sure if the approach I took is fine. Please guide.

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by MartyMurray » Sat Feb 14, 2015 12:31 pm
prachi18oct wrote:Some animals, such as dolphins, dogs, and African grey parrots, seem to exhibit cognitive functions typically associated with higher-order primates such as chimpanzees, gorillas, and humans. Some parrots, for example, have vocabularies of hundreds of words that they can string together in a comprehensible syntax. This clearly shows that humans and primates are not the only animals capable of using language to communicate. One parrot, named Alex, has been known to ask to be petted or kissed and will exhibit aggression if the gesture offered is not the specific one requested.

Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the conclusion above?

A) Dolphins can be trained to assist divers in ocean rescues.

B) Gorillas in captivity often learn hand signals for food and water.

C) Dogs are capable of sensing their owners' moods and often exhibit concern if they sense sadness.

D) Chimpanzees can memorize long sequences of key punches on machines that dispense food.

E) Alex does not exhibit aggression when offered a gesture that he specifically requested.



Conclusion: Humans and primates are not the only animals capable of using language to communicate.
Support: Some animals, such as dolphins, dogs, and African grey parrots, seem to exhibit cognitive functions typically associated with higher-order primates such as chimpanzees, gorillas, and humans.
Example 1: Some parrots have vocabularies of hundreds of words that they can string together in a comprehensible syntax, Alex.

Now Since the conclusion is not about the primates and humans, I ruled out B & D.
Now since we are talking about communication via language , I ruled out C.
For A also, I believe there is no language involved for communication ( not sign language ?)
So I picked E. Also since Alex can communicate via language and responds according to gesture offered.

I am not sure if the approach I took is fine. Please guide.
In my opinion that approach pretty much rocks. You didn't do anything extra, just used the logic of the prompt, the question and the answers to decide which is best.

What could be better?

Nothing really.

I just came across this that Arun at Crack Verbal said. He was referring to quant but it also applies to verbal.

"A GMAT Q47 scorer will focus on how to solve the question while a GMAT Q51 scorer will focus on how to get the answer."

You did a nice tight job, and you found the answer. Perfect.
Marty Murray
Perfect Scoring Tutor With Over a Decade of Experience
MartyMurrayCoaching.com
Contact me at [email protected] for a free consultation.