Passage - General Questions

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Passage Discussion

Paragraph One:

In this scientific passage, the author begins with a brief discussion of the 90 mph North American pronghorn and the interesting question of why it is able to run so much faster than any of its predators. The introduction is viewpoint neutral, and in line 8 the author introduces the viewpoint of “one biologist,” who claims that the speed was developed to escape from some predators before extinction over 10,000 years ago. The author provides two examples of such predators: the American cheetah and the long-legged hyena.

Paragraph Two:

In this paragraph the author expands upon the explanation begun in the introduction and continues the passage in a neutral, academic tone, basically reporting the facts. “Relict behavior” is currently exhibited behavior that was developed in response to conditions that no longer exist. This theory generally draws skepticism since it cannot be tested, and is usually a last resort for scientists, but seems to be supported in some cases by present-day evidence.

Paragraph Three:

Here the author introduces current evidence to support the idea of relict behavior: pronghorns herd even though they have no predators to fear and herding can result in overcrowding, and pronghorns choose mates based on physical prowess.

Paragraph Four:

The author ends the passage with further examples that strengthen the claim of the existence of relict behavior, and discusses the lengths of time that relict behaviors seem to persist (and eventually disappear).

VIEWSTAMP Analysis:

This passage is fairly Viewpoint neutral, discussing the possible existence of relict behavior and presenting evidence in its favor.

The Structure of the passage is as follows:

• Paragraph One: Introduce the pronghorn, the possibility of behavior based on outdated necessity, and two examples of extinct predators of the pronghorn.
  
  Paragraph Two: Introduce the concept of relict behavior, and that the theory elicits skepticism but is supported by modern day evidence.
  
  Paragraph Three: Introduce specific examples of modern evidence supporting the existence of relict behavior.
  
  Paragraph Four: Provide further examples of possible relict behavior, and one example of lost relict behavior.

This is a basic science passage with little real argumentation. The only real Argument is that of the author, who believes that relict behavior likely exists.

The Main Point of the passage is that the pronghorn’s relative speed may be a relict behavior based on the need to escape predators that no longer exist.