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Difficulty: MediumPart-to-Whole Rhetorical Function

The Venus flytrap (*Dionaea muscipula*) employs a sophisticated mechanism to avoid wasting energy on non-prey stimuli, such as falling raindrops or windblown debris. The plant's trap consists of two lobes with sensitive trigger hairs on their inner surfaces. In order to initiate closure, a stimulus must touch two different hairs within a twenty-second window, or a single hair twice in rapid succession. This dual-touch requirement prevents the leaf from snapping shut on inanimate objects that are unlikely to trigger a second contact. Consequently, the plant conserves its limited metabolic resources for actual prey capture and digestion.

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?

  1. It describes the specific mechanical conditions required to trigger the trap, illustrating how the plant avoids closing on non-prey stimuli.Answer
  2. B
    It outlines the primary evolutionary advantages of a carnivorous diet, summarizing the overall survival strategy of the plant.
  3. C
    It claims that environmental disturbances like wind and rain are the main threats to the plant's survival, emphasizing its vulnerability.
  4. D
    It predicts that the plant will develop more complex trigger requirements in response to future decreases in local insect populations.

Answer

The choice stating that the sentence describes the specific mechanical conditions required to trigger the trap, illustrating how the plant avoids closing on non-prey stimuli, is correct.
The correct answer accurately identifies the role of the underlined sentence as describing the physical conditions required to trigger the trap, which directly explains the mechanism that prevents the plant from closing on non-prey stimuli.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the purpose of the passage as a whole.
The passage explains how the Venus flytrap conserves energy by not closing its trap on non-prey stimuli like rain or wind.
To understand the context and main focus of the text before assessing how the specific part contributes to it.
2
Identify the specific content of the underlined sentence.
The underlined sentence describes the sensory requirements for closure: touching two different hairs in twenty seconds or one hair twice quickly.
To define the precise function of the part being tested.
3
Relate the underlined sentence to the sentences that precede and follow it.
The preceding sentences introduce the need to avoid non-prey stimuli, and the subsequent sentences explain how this dual-touch mechanism accomplishes that goal. Thus, the underlined sentence provides the mechanical details of the triggering system.
To determine the part-to-whole relationship and identify the correct option.

Key Concept

Part-to-Whole Rhetorical Function
Estimated Time:1m 15s
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Topics

Part-to-Whole Rhetorical Function

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