Recent neuroimaging studies reveal that adults who have been highly proficient in two languages since early childhood exhibit greater gray matter density in the prefrontal cortex than monolingual adults do. However, among adults who became highly proficient in a second language only after adolescence, prefrontal cortex density is indistinguishable from that of monolingual adults. Interestingly, behavioral tests indicate that tasks requiring subjects to rapidly switch attention between conflicting stimuli are performed significantly faster by both early and late bilinguals than by monolinguals.
Which one of the following is most strongly supported by the information above?
- Greater gray matter density in the prefrontal cortex is not necessary for an individual to perform rapid attention-switching tasks significantly faster than monolinguals.Cevap
- BAcquiring high proficiency in a second language during early childhood is the primary cause of increased gray matter density in the prefrontal cortex.
- CAnyone who can perform rapid attention-switching tasks significantly faster than average monolinguals must be highly proficient in a second language.
- DAmong adults who are highly proficient in two languages, those who learned their second language in early childhood perform rapid attention-switching tasks faster than those who learned it after adolescence.
- EThe only cognitive advantage that late bilinguals have over monolinguals is the ability to rapidly switch attention between conflicting stimuli.
Cevap
Greater gray matter density in the prefrontal cortex is not necessary for an individual to perform rapid attention-switching tasks significantly faster than monolinguals.
The correct answer synthesizes two critical pieces of information from the stimulus. We are told that late bilinguals perform attention-switching tasks faster than monolinguals. We are also told that these same late bilinguals do not have greater gray matter density than monolinguals. Therefore, it is logically proven that having greater gray matter density is not a strictly necessary prerequisite for performing these tasks faster.
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Anahtar Kavram
Synthesizing premises to deduce the absence of a necessary condition.