This answer is not even talked about in the question but yet it "must be true"???
As they get older, women usually maintain their ability to hear higher frequencies longer than men do. This is only because men are usually exposed to more dangerously loud noises at work and during recreation. In societies that do not have hazardous noises, there is no difference in hearing loss between men and women. Nor is there a difference in hearing loss between males and female animals whose hearing has been studied.
Which of the following choices MUST be true based on the information above?
a) When women and men are exposed to the same level of hazardous noises while working, men experience greater loss of hearing.
b) The difference between men and women in their ability to hear higher frequencies is entirely unrelated to any difference in the structure of the inner ear.
c) If male animals were exposed to the same loud noises to which many men are exposed, the animals would experience greater loss of hearing than would female animals.
d) In general, women and men do not differ in their ability to hear lower frequencies.
e) Women who live in societies that do not have hazardous noises experience less loss of hearing than do women who live in societies that do have hazardous noises.
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How in the world is it B?
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David@VeritasPrep
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Here is a previous discussion of this question. That explains why B is the answer.
https://www.beatthegmat.com/hearing-t270016.html
To be honest, I am not completely happy with B either. It seems a little too conclusive for something not proven. For example, what if the difference in the ability to hear higher frequencies is related to the structure of the inner ear - specifically that male inner ear structure is more susceptible to damage because of the structure.
I think this one may need just a quick little edit to make B the correct answer. Maybe change B to say " The difference between men and women in their ability to hear higher frequencies is not entirely due to any difference in the structure of the inner ear."
https://www.beatthegmat.com/hearing-t270016.html
To be honest, I am not completely happy with B either. It seems a little too conclusive for something not proven. For example, what if the difference in the ability to hear higher frequencies is related to the structure of the inner ear - specifically that male inner ear structure is more susceptible to damage because of the structure.
I think this one may need just a quick little edit to make B the correct answer. Maybe change B to say " The difference between men and women in their ability to hear higher frequencies is not entirely due to any difference in the structure of the inner ear."
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Brent@GMATPrepNow
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I see that David's post refers to an answer I gave last year.Rastis wrote:This answer is not even talked about in the question but yet it "must be true"???
As they get older, women usually maintain their ability to hear higher frequencies longer than men do. This is only because men are usually exposed to more dangerously loud noises at work and during recreation. In societies that do not have hazardous noises, there is no difference in hearing loss between men and women. Nor is there a difference in hearing loss between males and female animals whose hearing has been studied.
Which of the following choices MUST be true based on the information above?
a) When women and men are exposed to the same level of hazardous noises while working, men experience greater loss of hearing.
b) The difference between men and women in their ability to hear higher frequencies is entirely unrelated to any difference in the structure of the inner ear.
c) If male animals were exposed to the same loud noises to which many men are exposed, the animals would experience greater loss of hearing than would female animals.
d) In general, women and men do not differ in their ability to hear lower frequencies.
e) Women who live in societies that do not have hazardous noises experience less loss of hearing than do women who live in societies that do have hazardous noises.
Here's another reason why B is correct.
The second sentence says, This [women hearing better than men] is only because men are usually exposed to more dangerously loud noises at work and during recreation.
In other words, men's loud noise exposure is the ONLY reason for the hearing differences.
In other words, there are no other reasons (beyond noise exposure) for the hearing differences.
The question asks, Which of the following choices MUST be true based on the information above?
b) The difference between men and women in their ability to hear higher frequencies is entirely unrelated to any difference in the structure of the inner ear.
Since the passage tells us that loud noise exposure is the ONLY cause for the hearing differences, we can be certain that inner ear structure plays no role in the difference.
Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
