LSAT 135 – Section 1 – Question 12

LSAT 135 - Section 1 - Question 12

December 2011

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT135 S1 Q12
+LR
Resolve reconcile or explain +RRE
A
1%
155
B
12%
159
C
78%
166
D
2%
157
E
6%
159
138
149
161
 +Medium 146.098 +SubsectionMedium

Populations of a shrimp species at eleven different Indonesian coral reefs show substantial genetic differences from one reef to another. This is surprising because the area’s strong ocean currents probably carry baby shrimp between the different reefs, which would allow the populations to interbreed and become genetically indistinguishable.

"Surprising" Phenomenon
Why are shrimp at different coral reefs genetically distinct when ocean currents mix up baby shrimp between populations?

Objective
A hypothesis resolving this discrepancy must explain why the intermingling of baby shrimp between reefs is not enough to make those shrimp genetically indistinguishable. It will imply that baby shrimp exchanged between reefs do not breed with each other, or that their interbreeding is not enough to blur the genetic lines between populations.

A
The genetic differences between the shrimp populations are much less significant than those between shrimp and any other marine species.
This does not explain why the shrimp are genetically distinct. If the shrimp have similar genetics, their failure to interbreed is more surprising, not less.
B
The individual shrimp within a given population at any given Indonesian coral reef differ from one another genetically, even though there is widespread interbreeding within any such population.
This deepens the mystery. If the shrimp are capable of interbreeding despite significant genetic differences, then their failure to interbreed between reefs is more surprising.
C
Before breeding, shrimp of the species examined migrate back to the coral reef at which they were hatched.
This explains why the shrimp populations do not interbreed. Baby shrimp carried to other reefs do not breed until traveling back to their home reefs, so shrimp born at different reefs do not breed with each other.
D
Most shrimp hatched at a given Indonesian coral reef are no longer present at that coral reef upon becoming old enough to breed.
This deepens the mystery. If most shrimp leave their home reef by breeding age, the genetic distinguishability of shrimp between reefs is more surprising.
E
Ocean currents probably carry many of the baby shrimp hatched at a given Indonesian coral reef out into the open ocean rather than to another coral reef.
This does not state that shrimp are rarely exchanged between reefs, only that many do not end up at any reef. It does not explain why the baby shrimp that are exchanged between reefs fail to breed with each other.

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LSAT PrepTest 135 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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