RC : There is no consensus among researchers regarding what

[PunyataA53]

GMAT prep question :

There is no consensus among researchers regarding what qualifies a substance as a pheromone. While most agree on a basic definition of pheromones as chemicals released by one individual of a species which, when detected by another individual of the same species, elicit a specific behavioral or physiological response, some researchers also specify
that the response to pheromones must be unconscious. In addition, the distinction between pheromones and odorants—chemicals that are consciously detected as odors---can be blurry, and some researchers classify pheromones as a type of odorant. Evidence that pheromone responses may not involve conscious odor perception comes from the finding that in
many species, pheromones are processed by the vomeronasal (or accessory olfactory) system, which uses a special structure in the nose, the vomeronasal organ (VNO), to receive chemical signals. The neural connections between the VNO and the brain are separate from those of the main olfactory system, whose processing of odorants triggers sensations of smell. But while the VNO does process many animal pheromone signals, not all animal pheromones work through the VNO. Conversely, not all chemical signals transmitted via the
VNO quality as pheromones. For example, garter snakes detect a chemical signal from earthworms—one of their favorite foods—via the VNO, and they use this signal to track
their prey

It can be inferred from the passage thatin classifying pheromones as a type of odorant, the researchers referred to posit that
A. pheromones are perceived consciously
B. most pheromones are processed by the VNO
C. most chemical signals processed by the VNO are pheromones
D. Pheromone perception does not occur exclusively between members of the same species.
E. pheromones do not always elicit a specific behavioral or physiological response

I selected B).OA is A.

Pls help me understand.

[RonPurewal]

"in classifying pheromones as a type of odorant, ..."

^^ this means you have to say what they're implying by referring to pheromones as "odorants". any other fact about pheromones is irrelevant.

the passage only tells you one thing about "odorants": they're consciously perceived as odors. so, you need to pick the choice that corresponds to that idea.

[FairyL559]

Dear Ron,

Pls help me to explain this question:
The primary purpose of the passage is to
A. compare and contrast the ways in which the vomeronasal organ and the main olfactory systern process chemicals.
B. summarize the debate over the role the vomeronasal organ plays in odor perception
C. present some of the issues involved in the debate over what constitutes a pheromone
D. propose a new definition of pheromones based on recent research
E. argue that pheromones should be classified as a type of odorant

OA is C but I don't get in the reading any "issues" or "what constitutes a pheromone". Tks.

[RonPurewal]

what do you get from the reading?

the best practice for main-idea questions is to understand the content of the passage and use it to predict the answer. so, without knowing what's in your head, we can't really help you here.

[RonPurewal]

by the way—the best way to get to the point quickly is to imagine a conversation in which someone is presenting the same information. (it helps to be a nerd, since nerds tend to talk about random stuff like what's in the passages.)

here's the first sentence:
"There is no consensus among researchers regarding what qualifies a substance as a pheromone."

in other words... People don't agree on what 'pheromone' means.

if someone said this, what would come next?
you know what would come next—there would be at least some discussion about the different ways in which people try to define this word.

[750plus]

Team,

I perfectly understand the answer to the Primary Purpose is C. But , why is choice B incorrect.

Please help.

Regards

[RonPurewal]

honestly, the best answer to that question is this:
C is correct.
B is not C.
therefore, B is incorrect.

i'm not being facetious here at all—this is, really and truly, the best way to rule out B.

remember—BEFORE looking at the answer choices, you should HAVE A PREDICTION ALREADY IN MIND for every main-idea question.
here, your prediction should look a lot like C.

so, your reasoning should be something like this:
'C says what my prediction says. B does not.
therefore, C is correct and B is incorrect.'

[RonPurewal]

when you REVIEW these problems—

for each answer choice, imagine a passage for which that choice is CORRECT. very generally speaking, WHAT KIND OF STUFF would be IN such a passage?


primary purpose = B:
THESE people think that the vomeronasal organ does SOMETHING with odors.
THOSE people, on the other hand, think that the vomeronasal organ does SOMETHING ELSE with odors.
[followed by evidence for and/or against each side]

the passage looks nothing like this.


primary purpose = C:
THESE people define 'pheromone' in THIS way.
THOSE people, on the other hand, define 'pheromone' in THIS OTHER way.
[followed by some discussion of WHY there's more than one definition... what is uncertain? what do the two groups perceive and/or value differently? etc.]

the passage looks EXACTLY like this.

[RonPurewal]

incidentally, you can also rule out choice B on a more detail-oriented level.

according to the passage, the vomeronasal organ is NOT involved in odor perception. (rather, that is the job of 'the main olfactory system', which, according to the passage, operates independently of the VNO.)
thus, the 'role' mentioned in choice B does not exist—the VNO plays NO role in odor perception. that debate is, therefore, impossible.
(if i don't sing, you can't argue with someone about how i sing.)

i suppose i should warn you that, in general, you should NOT do this (= use details to eliminate main-idea choices) except as a very last resort.
your 'Plan A'—as mentioned above—should be 'make a prediction and then look for it'. (in other words, your primary approach should NOT be a 'process of elimination' AT ALL.)

[750plus]

remember—BEFORE looking at the answer choices, you should HAVE A PREDICTION ALREADY IN MIND for every main-idea question.
here, your prediction should look a lot like C.

yes, I do this only. I have learned this from you and this has almost plunged my accuracy to 100% on Primary Purpose Questions.

Cannot thank you enough.

Warm Regards
Rajat Gugnani

[750plus]

when you REVIEW these problems—

primary purpose = B:
THESE people think that the vomeronasal organ does SOMETHING with odors.
THOSE people, on the other hand, think that the vomeronasal organ does SOMETHING ELSE with odors.
[followed by evidence for and/or against each side]

the passage looks nothing like this.

primary purpose = C:
THESE people define 'pheromone' in THIS way.
THOSE people, on the other hand, define 'pheromone' in THIS OTHER way.
[followed by some discussion of WHY there's more than one definition... what is uncertain? what do the two groups perceive and/or value differently? etc.]

the passage looks EXACTLY like this.

yeah, it makes sense. I agree that the starting lines of the passage give you a hint as to why C is correct. But, the problem was that I was not parsing it correctly. When I read ' There is no consensus among researchers regarding what qualifies a substance as a pheromone ' and after reading the answer choice C- ' present some of the issues involved in the debate over what constitutes a pheromone ' I thought the passage should have discussed something that constitutes (elements that make up ) a pheromone.

After reading your explanation, I understood the way how they have used the word ' constitutes '

Thanks
-------------------------------
Warm Regards

[RonPurewal]

ah, ok.

they WILL NOT be 'tricky' with words.

if that answer choice were meant to refer to the composition/ingredients of a pheromone, then it would explicitly contain a word such as 'composition', 'ingredients', or suchlike.

[750plus]

ah, ok.

they WILL NOT be 'tricky' with words.

if that answer choice were meant to refer to the composition/ingredients of a pheromone, then it would explicitly contain a word such as 'composition', 'ingredients', or suchlike.

Fine Sire.

Many Thanks

[RonPurewal]

you're welcome.

[NL]

honestly, the best answer to that question is this:
C is correct.
B is not C.
therefore, B is incorrect.

Ron is not a girl. Ron is not a "middle". Therefore, Ron is a guy (not sure)
Understood!