PrepTest 135, Section 4, Question 1
When a forest is subject to acid rain,(49 more words not shown)
Which one of the following,(12 more words not shown)
- ASoil in which(20 more words not shown)
- BSugar maples that(18 more words not shown)
- CSpruces and firs,(22 more words not shown)
- DSugar maples require(15 more words not shown)
- EUnlike spruces or(15 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Less calcium sounds bad for trees that need calcium. But less isn't the same as none: the remaining supply might still be enough for some trees. We shouldn't jump from a decline in the soil's calcium to the death of every tree.
The puzzle is the difference among the trees. Sugar maples show signs of calcium deficiency much more often than spruces and firs in forests receiving significant acid rain. All three need calcium, so why are the maples having more trouble?
What we’re looking for
Maybe maples need more of it. Or maybe the other trees have some way to cope with the reduced supply. Those are possibilities to look for, not facts we've been given. To explain the difference, an answer needs to show why the same problem would hit sugar maples harder.
Working the answers
- A
More damage to the soil might explain why trees in general struggle. But it doesn't explain why sugar maples struggle more than spruces and firs. We'd still need to know how that additional damage affects the species differently.
- B
This points in the wrong direction. If calcium-deprived sugar maples deteriorate more slowly than calcium-deprived spruces and firs, we'd expect the maples to hold up better. That makes their greater decline harder to explain.
- CCorrect
Spruces and firs have a backup source of calcium that sugar maples can't use. Acid rain can reduce the ordinary supply while leaving this mineral compound available. The spruces and firs can draw calcium from that compound; the maples cannot. Now we have a reason the maples show more signs of deficiency even though all three species need calcium.
- D
This compares sugar maples' needs across seasons. Our puzzle compares sugar maples with other species. Perhaps all three need more calcium in spring and summer. Nothing here tells us why the maples would suffer more than their neighbors.
- E
Where most sugar maples are native doesn't explain the comparison we're given. We're already looking at sugar maples, spruces, and firs in forests that receive significant acid rain. E doesn't establish that the maples in those forests experience more rain or respond differently to the reduced calcium.
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