Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumArgument Analysis and Evaluating Claims

Paleoclimatologists analyzing speleothem oxygen isotope ratios from subterranean caves in the Amazon basin have posited that a prolonged megadrought precipitated the collapse of pre-Columbian urban settlements around 1350 CE. Proponents of this climate-deterministic model point to a sharp, synchronous elevation in δ18O\delta^{18}\text{O} signatures across multiple cave sites as unequivocal evidence of widespread precipitation failure. However, recent high-resolution palynological evidence from adjacent lacustrine sediment cores reveals that agricultural cultivation and forest clearing continued unabated throughout the purported drought interval. This persistence of intensive land use strongly suggests that indigenous socio-ecological systems possessed sufficient hydrologic resilience to buffer against regional rainfall deficits. Consequently, attributing the abandonment of these complex settlements primarily to exogenous climatic forcing oversimplifies the intricate interplay between anthropogenic environmental modification and institutional governance.

Which sentence in the passage presents empirical evidence that directly counters the climate-deterministic explanation for the settlement collapse?

Answer: Sentence 3 / 3 / the third sentence / However, recent high-resolution palynological evidence from adjacent lacustrine sediment cores reveals that agricultural cultivation and forest clearing continued unabated throughout the purported drought interval.

Answer

The third sentence ('However, recent high-resolution palynological evidence from adjacent lacustrine sediment cores reveals that agricultural cultivation and forest clearing continued unabated throughout the purported drought interval.') provides the empirical counterevidence.
The sentence stating that high-resolution palynological evidence reveals uninterrupted agricultural cultivation during the purported drought provides concrete physical data that directly challenges the premise that climate deterioration forced the abandonment of the settlements.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the central claim of the climate-deterministic model.
The main claim (introduced in Sentence 1 and supported in Sentence 2) is that a severe megadrought caused the collapse of pre-Columbian urban settlements.
Understanding the target hypothesis is essential before searching for empirical evidence that weakens or refutes it.
2
Scan the passage for empirical data that contradicts this claim.
Sentence 3 introduces fossil pollen (palynological) data showing uninterrupted agricultural activity and land modification during the exact period of the alleged drought.
Continued farming directly challenges the assertion that environmental conditions collapsed societal infrastructure.
3
Distinguish empirical findings from subsequent interpretations or conclusions.
Sentence 3 contains the actual physical data (palynological core evidence), whereas Sentence 4 and Sentence 5 present logical inferences and overall conclusions drawn from that evidence.
The prompt specifically asks for the sentence presenting empirical evidence rather than the author's synthesis or conclusion.

Key Concept

Identifying empirical counterevidence within Reading Comprehension argument structures
Rate this question

Topics

Argument Analysis and Evaluating Claims

More questions from this topic