#13 - Function

[avengingangel]

Hellllo yes... how do you discern A, B, and C from one another ?! They all seem essentially the VERY same to me. I tried to find something in the passage that would tell me to choose A over B/C, but I just didn't find the support. Any help ? thanks

[Eric Ockert]

First, notice that all of the answers revolve around a "phenomenon." Therefore, that word is not going to factor into separating these answers out. What is left of the answers is as follows:

Answer (A) describes a "physical process"

Answer (B) describes "the experimental apparatus"

Answer (C) describes "the procedure scientists use"

Answer (B) is probably the most dissimilar to the other two. "Apparatus" is really describing some thing, a tool used by scientists to bring about radiation. That isn't what the "mechanism" in paragraph one is talking about.

Both answers (A) and (C) speak of a "process" or a "procedure" which is similar wording, but A talks of the physical process while (C) talks of the procedure scientists use. The mechanism is really just referring to what causes radiation. That would be the physical process behind radiation, not the manner in which scientists bring radiation about.

Hope that helps!

[nutcracker]

Hello! I have a question about this "meaning of a word" question type. When doing these questions I tend to narrow down to two answer choices but end up picking the wrong one at times. For example, I picked (E) instead of (A) here. Can we say that any answer choice that does not fit one of the real life definitions of the word under discussion is always wrong, no matter how well it fits in the context of the sentence? Like, since mechanism is never defined to mean a scientific theory, (E) should be immediately ruled out? I appreciate your help!

[Claire Horan]

Hello nutcracker,

This question type is a subset of the "Function" question type, so consider that you are figuring out the particular word's function within the sentence or paragraph where it is used.

I am finding it a bit difficult to answer your specific question—"Can we say that any answer choice that does not fit one of the real life definitions of the word under discussion is always wrong, no matter how well it fits in the context of the sentence?"— because I don't think a word could fit in the context of the sentence if that isn't what the word means. It's also possible that you might not be familiar with a particular meaning of a word, so I wouldn't necessarily use the method you describe, although of course knowing the possible definitions of a word will help you find the correct answer (mechanism means how something works). I suggest replacing the word with the phrase in the answer choice and reading the sentence before, the sentence the word is in, and the sentence after. If it's still not clear, try reading the whole paragraph to understand the larger context.

Good luck!

[Khodi7531]

I was between A and C...but chose C. Are you saying C is wrong because it talks about the procedure that scientists use?

Is it cause it's too specific? I'm just not sure if that's enough to get rid of an answer.


My prephrase for mechanism was essentially a "vehicle" that would lead to an explanation for radiation.

[Alex Bodaken]

Khodi7531,

You're right on it with your first guess - the reason (C) is incorrect is because it talks about a procedure that scientists use, whereas in the passage, mechanism is referring to a process that the given chemicals undertake naturally, with no scientist involved. It's the element of a scientist doing something that makes (C) incorrect.

Hope that helps!

AB

[lilmissunshine]

Hello,

I picked (E) over (A) because I thought only "a scientific theory" could "explain radiation" while "the physical process" wouldn't fit the context here. Would you explain why (A) is better than (E)?

Many thanks!

[Adam Tyson]

I think the best evidence to help you here comes in the next paragraph, lilmissunshine. The first paragraph tells us that Curie was faced with some evidence that should couldn't quite explain. Did the author mean she couldn't come up with a theory to describe it, or that should couldn't figure out what was actually happening?

The next paragraph goes on to tell us that later on, someone was able to figure out what was going on, and that some folks even criticized Curie for not doing so herself. This gives us some better context for answering this question - it's not about describing the phenomenon, but about explaining what was actually happening. That lends greater support to answer A here, rather than answer E. Curie might have been able to describe what she was seeing (some elements radiated, some didn't, with no indication as to what made them different), but she couldn't explain why or how that was happening.

One other hint, I think, is that the word "mechanism" in its plain sense tends to mean a working process rather than just a description. It's a thing, a device, or a means by which an end is reached.

I hope that helps clarify the difference for you!

[lilmissunshine]

Thank you so much for the detailed explanation Adam! Much appreciated!

[hassan66]

Hi,

Could we say that "postulate" functions as the word theorize. So, she's unable to theorize how a process occurs? Her theory is on radioactive emission but she's unable to explain the process by which it occurs. Is that why A is correct over E?