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Which of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
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Nature is rarely as simple as we might like it to be. The idea that shells are variations on the theme of the logarithmic spiral is so elegant in its simplicity and in its power to explain the diversity of shell shapes that we have trouble modifying it, much less abandoning it. However, the inescapable problem is that as they grow, most shells change shape in ways that do not conform precisely to logarithmic-spiral form. This imprecision might be interpreted as resulting from external conditions. If external conditions did not interfere with orderly shell deposition, for example, mollusks might be able to build their shells "correctly" in accordance with the logarithmic-spiral model. A contrasting way of looking at these deviations is to think of them as normal expressions of additional principles of form that apply to all shells and that show our conception of shells as logarithmic spirals to be inadequate because incomplete.
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According to the passage, reluctance to abandon the logarithmic-spiral model of shell formation arises from the fact that
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Which of the following best summarizes the author's view concerning the “imprecision” mentioned in the passage?
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In the context in which it appears, “interpreted” most nearly means
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The passage indicates that the small size of Bishop`s body of work contributed to bringing about which of the following?
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Educated people in the Renaissance learned their Latin from contemporary collections, like Erasmus` Adages and Ravisius Textor's Epitheta, that grouped pithy expressions not by author or period but by subject. Thus Renaissance students encountered the many variations ancient Roman writers (ca. 100 B.C. - ca A.D. 200) had for maxims like"War is pleasant to those who haven`t tried it."
They could even use these sayings lawlessly themselves, for example, urging friends who worked too long on one book to"take your hand off the writing tablet." But they had no sense of context; instead they associated the quotations not with the original sources, but with the other identical, similar, or opposite sayings cited in their textbooks. Modern scholarship has explored this point to explain the idiosyncratic nature of most Renaissance allusions to classical texts. The prevalence of this sort of secondhand classical culture in the Renaissance should figure in any effort to assess the degree and kind of influence that Roman writers had on the educated class of the sixteenth century in Europe.
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The term “idiosyncratic” is used by the author of the passage to characterize the
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The author of the passage suggests that when a Renaissance student quoted a Latin expression, that student would typically
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With which of the following views of modern scholarship on the Renaissance period would the author of the passage most likely agree?
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Muskmelons harvested immediately after several days of heavy rain are generally less sweet, and thus less flavorful, than are muskmelons harvested after drier weather. The traditional explanation holds that excess water in the fruit dilutes the sugar. A recently proposed explanation is that excess water in the soil interferes with the plant`s normal ability to produce sugar. Thus, to satisfy its energy needs, the plant draws off sugar it had previously stored in its fruit.
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Which of the following issues would it be most helpful to resolve in order to choose between the two explanation offered?
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The hypothesis that paranormal phenomenon are real but lie outside the limits of science is supported by considerable evidence. The society of Psychical Research has collected stories of ordinary people apparently demonstrating paranormal abilities. Entirely anecdotal, this evidence has nothing to do with science, since it cannot be reproduced under controlled conditions. But the society took great trouble to interview first-hand witnesses and to document the stories carefully. One fact that emerges clearly from the stories is that paranormal events occur, if they occur at all, only when people are experiencing strong emotion. This would immediately explain why paranormal phenomena are not observable under the conditions of a well-controlled scientific experiment. Strong emotion is inherently incompatible with controlled scientific procedures.
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Regarding the evidence collected by the Society for Psychical Research, which of the following can properly be concluded from the passage?
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It can be inferred that the author of the passage would agree with which of the following descriptions of the evidence collected by the Society for Psychical Research?
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The traditional picture of planet formation starts with small grains that collide and build into boulders, then larger and larger objects. If this is correct, the Kuiper Belt, an outer region of the solar system that exists beyond the planets, should hold leftover planetary building blocks. But that idea is undermined by Jupiter`s moon Europa. One would expect that over millions of years Europa could have been repeatedly impacted by small comets formed from leftover planetary material in the Kuiper Belt. In fact, Europa`s surface reveals very few small comet impact craters. Perhaps the comets disappear when they enter the inner solar system and are heated by the Sun. Or perhaps the Kuiper Belt contains no leftover planetary material from which comets could have formed.
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The argument anticipated in the highlighted sentence depends on which of the following assumptions?
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The author suggests that if the traditional picture of planet formation were correct
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The Wall Street millionaire Alfred Loomis was an amateur physicist who made significant contributions to scientific research. In 1928 he purchased three identical clocks, the most accurate available at that time. Loomis set up the clocks in a triangular orientation to one another, to break the gravitationally induced synchronic action among their pendulums, and by analyzing their minute variations, verified a theoretically predicted tidal effect of the Moon on clocks. These results later contributed to the development of LORAN (Long-Range Navigation), which triangulates the positions of ships and aircraft by comparing the difference in arrival times of signals coming from multiple radio beacons at various groundbased locations, a calculation that depends on accurate timekeeping
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It can be inferred from the passage that the development of LORAN was made possible in part by
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