Question 67 Answer and Explanation _ACT December 2013 Form 71E English Section

Passage V

With a Little Help from Friends

Quino checkerspot butterflies, each a red and black flutter of stained glass, ranging along the Pacific coast from Mexico to Canada. With temperatures rising in the butterflies’ southernmost habitats, plants that attract them are drying up, eliminating the insects’ food source at the caterpillar stage.

Conservation biologist Camille Parmesan, was dismayed to find that nearly three-fourths of the quino checkerspot population in southern California has vanished. On the other hand, those currently living now in the cool, wet climates of northern California and Canada are faring better. So, Parmesan has proposed a way to save the quarter-sized butterflies and that doing so, maintain biodiversity. Her plan, however, is raising eyebrows (66) .

Parmesan, along with others, advocates the use of “assisted migration,” which is an interesting and relatively new idea some biologists are considering. For migrating checkerspots, there’s an additional problem: Los Angeles lies directly in their path should they be inclined to try migrating to cooler climates. Parmesan is transporting cocoons north of L.A., hoping to augment the existing population by moving cocoons from one place to the other.

[1] Opponents of assisted migration sight as two deterrents the cost and the likelihood that human interference could turn a species into an invasive pest. [2] The cocoons are portable and, consequently, cheap to transport. [3] Parmesan, though, thinks the checkerspot is the perfect candidate for an assisted move. [4] She also notes that the butterfly isn’t prolific enough to endanger its adopted habitat. (71)

Even so, many biologists consider any assisted migration the hubris of people who believe you had a right to reorganize Earth. The temptation to interfere, says critics, is incompatible with preservation. Their caution frustrates Parmesan she believes such a mindset ignores the fact that the alternative outcome could be extinction. Doing nothing, she insists, ultimately outweighs any risk that comes from doing something.

67. Given that all the choices are true, which one most effectively introduces what might be an unfamiliar concept to readers?

A. NO CHANGE

B. in which humans transplant species to help them escape shifts in their environment caused by climate change.

C. a controversial solution to a problem that Parmesan has spent years studying along the Pacific coast.

D. a solution that would cost millions of dollars if the species in question was difficult to transport.

Answer and Explanation

Your Answer is

Correct Answer is B

Explanation

The stem asks to find the option that most effectively introduces the reader to an unfamiliar concept. Look for one item of effectively introduce, item B "Human migration of species helps them escape the environment because of climate change" clearly explains the meaning of assisted migration, correct.

Item A: "is an interesting and relatively new idea that biologists are thinking about" is not effective enough to introduce assisted migration.

Item C: "Propose a controversial solution to a problem that Parmesan has spent many years studying" cannot explain assisted migration.

Item D: "A solution that will cost millions of dollars if the species is difficult to transport" is not effective enough to explain the concept of assisted migration.