The bones in a bat's wing that are near the tip have less mi

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shagalo: Newbie | Next Rank: 10 Posts; Posts: 6; Joined: Mon May 27, 2013 5:15 pm

by shagalo » Thu Jul 17, 2014 5:41 am

The bones in a bat's wing that are near the tip have less mineral content in proportion to organic content than do the bones that are next to the bat's shoulder. This difference increases biomechanical efficiency, because the more weight there is at the wing tip, the harder the bat has to work to fly.
Which of the following is most strongly supported by the information?
(A) The mineral compounds in a bat's bones are heavier than the organic compounds.
(B) The more a bat weighs, the mare difficulty it has in flying.
(C) The bones in a bird's wing have a ratio of mineral content to organic content similar to that in the bones in a bat's wing.
(D) Bats that have the lowest ratio of mineral content to organic content in their bones are those that can fly most efficiently.
(E) Bats would not be able to fly if all their bones had the same ratio of mineral content to organic content.

I will provide the OA later

Source: Beat The GMAT — Critical Reasoning | Thu Jul 17, 2014 5:41 am

akhilsuhag: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 351; Joined: Mon Jul 04, 2011 10:25 pmFollowed by: 4 members; Thanked: 57 times

by akhilsuhag » Thu Jul 17, 2014 7:42 am

The bones in a bat's wing that are near the tip have less mineral content in proportion to organic content than do the bones that are next to the bat's shoulder. This difference increases biomechanical efficiency, because the more weight there is at the wing tip, the harder the bat has to work to fly.

Which of the following is most strongly supported by the information?

(A) The mineral compounds in a bat's bones are heavier than the organic compounds.
(B) The more a bat weighs, the mare difficulty it has in flying.
(C) The bones in a bird's wing have a ratio of mineral content to organic content similar to that in the bones in a bat's wing.
(D) Bats that have the lowest ratio of mineral content to organic content in their bones are those that can fly most efficiently.

(E) Bats would not be able to fly if all their bones had the same ratio of mineral content to organic content.

Lets do POE with it:
B) Talks about the weight of the bat. Conclusion talks about weight at the wing tip not all of it. Incorrect.
C)I don't care about what bones have or not.
D)I am not interested in the most efficient flyers.
E)Well again it seems distracting. It might just support the opposite- heavier tips and lighter body bones.

A) By POE seems to be the answer I might go for.

Let me know what the OA is.

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by [email protected] » Thu Jul 17, 2014 7:21 pm

Hi shagalo,

This is an example of an inference question. The information in the prompt is essentially just a set of facts - you have to find an answer that is based on (usually a combination) of those facts.

The Facts:
-Bones in the TIP of a bat's wing have LESS mineral content in proportion to organic content
-Bones next to the bat's shoulder have MORE mineral content in proportion to organic content
-The difference in proportions increases biomechanical efficiency (the MORE WEIGHT at the WING TIP, the harder it is to fly).

When dealing with inference questions, I usually look for facts that "overlap", meaning that I can connect the facts. In the prompt, there are a couple of references to the TIP of the bat's wing, so I'm thinking that the correct answer will probably deal with those facts.

The only answer that matches the facts is Answer A. Here's why: the prompt gives us facts to explain biomechanical efficiency (part of why bats can fly). The TIPs of bat's wings have less mineral content....because the more WEIGHT there is in the TIP, the harder the bat has to work to fly. Connecting those facts leads me to think that there's less mineral content and THAT is why there is less weight. Thus, mineral content is heavy. None of the other answers are based on information in the prompt.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

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shrivats: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 23; Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2014 4:28 am; Thanked: 5 times

by shrivats » Fri Jul 18, 2014 7:03 am

The bone near the tip of the wing has less mineral to organic ratio than bone near the body, so that the tips of the bat's wing may be lighter enabling the bat to fly better.

lower mineral to organic ratio = lighter bones --> higher mineral to organic ratio = heavier bones

the inference is that Mineral components of the bat's bones are heavier than organic components.

Answer is A.

spetznaz: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 20; Joined: Wed Jan 01, 2014 9:19 am; Location: Bangalore; Thanked: 1 times

by spetznaz » Fri Jul 18, 2014 9:22 pm

+1 for A

spetznaz: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 20; Joined: Wed Jan 01, 2014 9:19 am; Location: Bangalore; Thanked: 1 times

by spetznaz » Fri Jul 18, 2014 9:23 pm

+1 for A

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