SAT Reading & Writing · Text Structure and Purpose
A contagious facial tumor disease has caused severe population declines in Tasmanian devils since it first appeared, yet genomic studies…
A contagious facial tumor disease has caused severe population declines in Tasmanian devils since it first appeared, yet genomic studies of surviving devil populations have detected rapid changes in the frequency of certain genetic variants, suggesting the devils are evolving some resistance. At the same time, evidence suggests the tumor lineage itself may be evolving toward reduced severity, complicating any simple prediction about how the disease will ultimately affect the species.
Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
Answer and explanation
Answer: B: To describe two simultaneously evolving forces whose interaction makes the disease's future trajectory difficult to predict with confidence
The passage names two distinct evolutionary processes happening at once, host resistance and tumor virulence, and explicitly frames their interaction as a source of predictive uncertainty instead of a settled outcome. B captures that structure precisely. A overstates the passage into a certain doom scenario it doesn't state. C contradicts the passage's clear description of an ongoing disease. D invents a criticism about vaccine development that the passage never raises.
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