Hormones

Answer choices

1. A

   Too Narrow: solute concentration1% picked this

   Both the solute concentration and the volume of an animal’s blood plasma must be kept

   There's no reason we should be seeing "blood plasma" or "solute concentration" in the main point. The central topic is "hormones influencing human behavior", with a focus on "peptide / steroid hormones influencing the behavior of water/salt consumption". This answer doesn't mention any of that. This answer is establishing that animals want homeostasis, but it doesn't touch on how hormones influence human behavior.

   1%
2. B

   Too Narrow: avoiding dehydration4% picked this

   Behavioral responses to changes in an animal’s blood plasma can compensate for physiological malfunction, allowing the

   There's no reason we should be seeing "blood plasma" or "dehydration" in the main point. The central topic is "hormones influencing human behavior", with a focus on "peptide / steroid hormones influencing the behavior of water/salt consumption". This answer doesn't mention any of that. This is saying that behavior changes in response to a change in blood plasma, without ever mentioning that the change in blood plasma causes a hormone (the central topic) to be released, which then affects behavioral responses. This answer also makes the idea of "avoiding dehydration" seem like it was important, but the author is focused on how we avoid both dehydration and over-hydration.

   4%
3. C

   Too Strong: only recently discovered5% picked this

   The effect of hormones on animal behavior and physiology has only

   It has only recently become clear that hormones in addition to gonadal ones have an influence on human behavior. This is saying we've only recently discovered the effect of hormones on animal behavior, but we've long known about the effect of gonadal hormones on sexual behavior.

   5%
4. D

   Correct85% picked this

   Behavioral and physiological responses to major changes in osmolality of an animal’s blood plasma are hormonally influenced

   Why this is right

   This is a surprisingly specific and narrow version of the main point, but we're always forced to find the best available. Rather than capturing any of the framing ideas that "we used to only think gonadal hormones influenced behavior, but now its clear that other hormones also influence behavior", this answer zooms in on the details of the New finding. It doesn't talk about the Theme, just about the Example. This is the only answer that includes the idea of "hormones influencing behavior", which was the central topic. It's saying that when the osmolality of our blood plasma starts to stray from its desired level, we have behavioral and physiological responses that are affected by hormones and complement each other.

   Skill tested: Main Point · how this choice captures the passage's function is the move to repeat next time.

   85%
5. E

   Too Strong: similar mechanisms5% picked this

   The mechanisms regulating reproduction are similar to those that regulate thirst

   If by "similar mechanisms" we mean "hormones", then we could say that hormones both affect reproduction and affect thirst and sodium appetite. It's too strong to say that hormones regulate reproduction. We only know they are involved in the biology of reproduction. And the hormones that influence reproduction are gonadal hormones. The hormones that influence thirst and sodium appetite are peptide and steroid hormones. Are those similar mechanisms? It's hard to say whether those are close enough to call similar mechanisms. Overall, the verb "regulated" is only used in relation to osmolality of blood plasma. When we talk about reproduction or thirst/sodium appetite, we're talking about hormones influencing behavior.

   5%