Question

Difficulty: HardIdentifying Implied Meanings

Passage:
Archivists examining early twentieth-century cellulose nitrate film rolls found that reels stored in ventilated steel cabinets at 15°C degraded significantly slower than identical reels sealed in airtight aluminum canisters at 5°C. Chemical analysis revealed that decomposing nitrate film releases autocatalytic acidic vapors. When trapped inside impermeable containers, these vapors exponentially accelerate the breakdown of the remaining film emulsion, regardless of low temperatures. Only when volatile off-gases are continually allowed to dissipate does temperature reduction provide its standard preservation benefits.

Statement:
Based on the passage, it is implied that lowering the storage temperature of cellulose nitrate film is insufficient on its own to prevent accelerated decay if off-gases are trapped.

Answer: Answer

Answer

True
The statement is logically supported by the passage, which shows that trapped autocatalytic vapors accelerate decomposition even at 5°C and that cooling only aids preservation when off-gases are allowed to escape.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the experimental observations comparing the two storage environments.
Film kept at a warmer temperature (15°C) in ventilated cabinets decayed slower than film kept at a colder temperature (5°C) in airtight canisters.
Establishes that temperature alone did not dictate the rate of deterioration in the observed samples.
2
Examine the underlying causal mechanism described for the chemical breakdown.
Decomposing film emits acidic vapors that autocatalyze further breakdown when trapped, overriding low-temperature deceleration.
Demonstrates that vapor entrapment is the dominant factor driving accelerated decay.
3
Synthesize the conditional rule regarding temperature reduction and determine statement truth value.
Because cooling is effective only when off-gases dissipate, lowering temperature alone cannot prevent accelerated breakdown if vapors remain trapped, confirming the statement is True.
Verifies that the implied meaning directly aligns with the logical constraints presented in the text.

Key Concept

Identifying unstated causal constraints and necessary conditions in technical passages
Estimated Time:1m 5s
Rate this question