Self-study
P1
Traditional theories of animal behavior assert that animal conflict within a species is highly ritualized and does not vary from contest to contest. ████ ████████████████ █████ ███████ ████ ██████████ ███ ██ ███ ████ ██████ ███ █████ ████████ ███ ██ ███████ ██ █████████ ████████ ███████ ██ ███████ ███████ ███ ██████████ ████ ████████ ███ ██████ ███████ ████ ███ █████████ █████████ ███
Other people's hypothesis ·
Species-specific model
Animal conflict is ritualized, consistent, and minimizes injury; conflict is mainly for show
Support hypothesis ·
E.g. of galápagos tortoises
Neck height contest is ritualized and just for show
P2
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Weaken hypothesis ·
E.g. of A. aperta spider
Conflict is not consistent and not just for show
Riechert's hypothesis ·
Evolutionary game theory is a better explanation of A. aperta behavior
Support: evolutionary game theory is able to account for variations in behavior
Background ·
on evolutionary game theory
Based on classical game theory; describes behavior in terms of average payoff of taking certain actions
Application ·
to spiders
Contrast ·
Evolutionary and classical game theory
Evolutionary game theory says behavior is driven by instinct and reproductive advantage, rather than rational thought and personal preferences
P3
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Elaborate on Richert's hypothesis ·
Variations in A. aperta behavior explained by several factors
Including features of individual opponent and surrounding habitat
Application ·
of Riechert's hypothesis
Escalated fighting more likely where habitat is scarce than where it is plentiful
Passage Style
Critique or debate
Phenomenon-hypothesis (RC)
19.
The primary purpose of the ███████ ██ ██
a
present an alternative ██ █ ███████████ ████████
This is the best answer. Riechert’s evolutionary game theory is an alternative to the traditional approach to animal conflict behavior described in P1.
b
describe a phenomenon ███ ███████ ████████ ████████
(B) misses the author’s focus on a theory that could explain a phenomenon. The author’s purpose isn’t merely to describe a phenomenon; it’s to present a potential explanation for a phenomenon.
c
evaluate evidence used ██ ███████ ██ ████████
The author doesn’t evaluate any evidence used to support Riechert’s argument. The author simply describes Riechert’s argument and her predictions. But the author doesn’t assess whether some evidence supports her argument.
d
present data that ███████ █ █████████████ ██████
The author doesn’t present any “data” that “refutes” anything. The author doesn’t show that the traditional theories of animal behavior are wrong. He simply presents Riechert’s argument that a different theory better explains A. aperta behavior.
e
suggest that a ███ ██████ ███ ██ █████ ██ ██████████ ████████
The author doesn’t suggest Riechert’s theory is based on inadequate research. He simply describes Riechert’s theory and her predictions. We don’t get any signs the author thinks the level of research support for Riechert’s theory isn’t enough.