Araneomorph

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Araneomorph

by akhpad » Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:13 pm
Source: Knewton

Members of the Araneomorph funnel-web spider family spin unusually shaped webs, in which tightly woven strands funnel trapped insects into a central hole. Because spiders within this family spin virtually identical webs, despite living on multiple continents, arachnologists believe that funnel web-spinning behavior is genetically innate and not culturally acquired.

Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the conclusion drawn by the arachnologists?

A: Australian funnel-web spiders, the most commonly studied Araneomorph, show less variation in their web-spinning style than does any other species of spider native to that continent.
B: In the laboratory, newborn Araneomorphs exposed only to spiders that spin spiral orb webs nonetheless spin funnel webs.
C: One species of Araneomorphs spins its funnel webs around the bases of tree trunks, while another spins its webs in burrows on the ground.
D: Araneomorphs live in tightly-knit cultural communities, and are known to both spin webs and raise young spiders communally.
E: It is well known that many spiders' egg-tending behaviors are transmitted genetically rather than learned.

I selected E but OA is B.

What B is trying to convey?
Source: — Critical Reasoning |

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by Deepthi Subbu » Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:41 pm
Hello Akhpad ,

The conclusion behind the CR relates two things
1. The web spinning skill 2 . The genetically acquired skills

Hence we need to look for an answer that relates both of these conclusions . On observation , options a,c and d clearly eliminates the chance of being the right answer . In e , it just talk about the genetic characters (Egg laying behavior ) but the premise talks about web spinning behavior that is genetically acquired . Hence B is the right answer .