Question

Difficulty: EasyInferential Comprehension and Deduction

Read the passage below carefully and answer the question that follows.

For decades, traditional acacia gum harvesters across the arid scrublands of Yobe State extracted raw gum arabic by making deep, haphazard incisions into the trunks of wild Acacia senegal trees using heavy iron hatchets. While this aggressive gouging yielded immediate, abundant latex flow, it severely compromised the structural integrity of the trees and exposed them to wood-boring insects and fungal decay. As a result, wild stands suffered from premature mortality, typically dying within six years of initial tapping. To address the rapid degradation of local woodlands, a regional conservation board introduced precision tapping tools designed to create shallow, uniform bark strips. Although daily sap yield per tree dropped by approximately fifteen percent under the new method, tree longevity increased threefold, allowing continuous seasonal harvesting over two decades. Furthermore, the controlled cuts prevented bark debris and tannin bleeding from contaminating the exudate. Recognizing the superior purity of the resulting gum resin, commercial exporters in Kano now pay a forty percent premium for resin harvested via precision tools, as it eliminates costly industrial filtering steps during downstream processing.

Based on the passage, which of the following can be logically inferred regarding commercial gum arabic processing?

  1. A
    Traditional hatchets produced a lower daily volume of sap per tree than precision tools.
  2. Commercial refinement costs drop when raw resin contains fewer physical contaminants.Answer
  3. C
    Precision tools were introduced primarily to boost the immediate daily output of raw latex.
  4. D
    Commercial exporters in Kano plan to assume direct ownership of the Yobe State woodlands.

Answer

Commercial refinement costs drop when raw resin contains fewer physical contaminants.
The correct answer is derived from synthesizing two key pieces of information in the final sentence: precision tools prevent contamination (bark debris and tannin bleeding), and exporters pay a premium because this purity eliminates costly industrial filtering steps. It is therefore logical to infer that cleaner raw material reduces commercial processing costs.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the passage for statements regarding commercial exporters and processing.
The text states that exporters pay a 40% price premium for resin harvested with precision tools because it eliminates costly industrial filtering steps during downstream processing.
Connecting the cause (purity/lack of bark debris) to the effect (elimination of costly filtering steps) allows a logical deduction.
2
Evaluate the logical implication of avoiding filtering steps.
If eliminating industrial filtering saves costs, it follows directly that cleaner raw resin leads to lower overall commercial refinement expenses.
An inference must strictly derive from the implicit facts provided in the passage.

Key Concept

Inferential Comprehension and Cause-Effect Deduction
Rate this question