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Question

Difficulty: MediumExplicit Detail Retrieval

Passage:
In 1891, Dutch paleoanthropologist Eugène Dubois uncovered a fossilized skullcap along the Solo River at Trinil in East Java, designating the specimen Pithecanthropus erectus. Unlike contemporary evolutionists who searched exclusively for intermediate hominin forms in Europe, Dubois conducted excavations in the Dutch East Indies based on Ernst Haeckel's hypothesis that humans originated in the Asian tropics. Dubois's excavations yielded a femur in 1892 from the same stratigraphic layer, possessing a straight shaft indicating obligate bipedalism. Although Dubois argued that the cranial capacity—approximately 900 cubic centimeters—and the bipedal femur proved Pithecanthropus was an intermediate link between apes and humans, prominent anatomist Rudolf Virchow rejected this synthesis. Virchow contended that the skullcap belonged to an extinct giant gibbon and the femur to a modern human, asserting that the spatial separation of 15 meters between the findspots rendered their association biologically invalid. Subsequent radiometric dating confirmed the Trinil fauna to be approximately 700,000 to one million years old, establishing the remains as the first recovered fossils of Homo erectus.

According to the passage, Rudolf Virchow rejected Eugène Dubois's assertion that the excavated fossils represented a single intermediate organism primarily because

  1. the physical distance between the recovery sites of the skullcap and the femur indicated they belonged to different organismsAnswer
  2. B
    the measured cranial capacity of 900 cubic centimeters was inconsistent with obligate bipedal locomotion
  3. C
    radiometric dating methods employed at the Trinil site failed to establish a definitive geological timeframe
  4. D
    Dubois relied on Ernst Haeckel's speculative hypothesis rather than European paleontological methodology
  5. E
    the straight shaft of the excavated femur was characteristic of extinct arboreal primates rather than hominins

Answer

Rudolf Virchow rejected Dubois's synthesis because the spatial distance between the discovery locations of the skullcap and femur invalidated combining them into one organism.
The passage explicitly states that Virchow contended the skullcap belonged to a giant gibbon and the femur to a modern human, asserting that the spatial separation of 15 meters between their findspots rendered their association biologically invalid. The option stating that the physical distance between recovery sites indicated they belonged to different organisms directly captures this explicit detail.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the target detail in the question stem
The question asks for the specific reason Rudolf Virchow rejected Eugène Dubois's conclusions regarding Pithecanthropus erectus.
Explicit detail questions require locating the specific sentence discussing the specified figure or concept.
2
Locate the explicit passage text regarding Virchow's argument
The passage states Virchow 'asserted that the spatial separation of 15 meters between the findspots rendered their association biologically invalid.'
This direct statement provides the precise justification Virchow used to challenge combining the skullcap and femur.
3
Match the explicit passage detail to the correct choice
The statement that the physical distance between the recovery sites indicated they belonged to different organisms directly matches Virchow's argument about spatial separation.
The correct choice paraphrases the passage fact without introducing outside concepts or extrapolations.

Key Concept

Explicit Detail Retrieval
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Explicit Detail Retrieval

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