Much of ecological theory consists of models that are so highly idealized that they are of little real-world predictive value. In addition, many of the parameters used in models such as birth and death rates are exceedingly difficult to estimate accurately in the field. Consequently, ecological theory is rarely directly relevant to the practice of conservation biology. One notable exception is MacArthur's theory of island biogeography, which predicts the species richness of an island on the basis of its size and degree of isolation. This theory could provide important insights into nature preserves, which can be analogous to islands, often consisting of relatively undisturbed ecosystems surrounded by biologically distinct areas.
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Which of the following best describes the function of the sentence highlighted in the passage?
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It can be inferred from the passage that the author would probably agree with which of the following statements?
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This passage relates to the decades immediately following the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920. Jose Clement Orozco, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and Diego Rivera were artists from this period who were particularly associated with mural painting.
While nationalism can be seen as the primary theme of Mexico's cultural production after 1921, contemporary intellectuals, composers, and artists were by no means bound by ideology nor were they adherents of a single school or movement. Jose Vasconcelos, who as secretary of public education from 1921 to 1924 was the initial sponsor of the mural movement, was above all an admirer of Hispanic civilization. The muralists themselves, as well as other artists and writers, were steeped in European cultural styles past and present. All denounced the Diaz regime [ended 1911] for its alleged disdain of native traditions, especially those originating in the indigenous population, which was seen as the intended beneficiary of agrarian reform and other policies of the revolutionary administrations. But even those who were most committed to improving the lot of the Indians, such as the anthropologist Manuel Gamio and the educator Moises Saenz, envisioned their assimilation into an integrated, Spanish-speaking nation. In reality, despite the affirmation of purely indigenous traditions, mestizaje the blending of the Indian and the European-lay at the root of the cultural nationalism of the era.
A second prominent theme in the artistic discourse of the era was the obligation of painters and others to create work that would be accessible to all, not only in an aesthetic sense but also in a physical one. Out of this conviction grew the emphasis on the painting of murals in public places, where they could be seen by workers and peasants, who might thereby be instructed or moved by the nationalistic, sometimes revolutionary subjects of the murals. What, if anything, the murals signified to the working-class people who saw them cannot be determined, though Jose Clemente Orozco doubted that art alone could spur the masses to rise up against their oppressors. Moreover, as the international fame of the Mexican muralists grew, it was the elites in Mexico and elsewhere that embraced them most fulsomely, and their easel paintings often ended in the collections of North American millionaires. Both Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros expressed concern that Diego Rivera and other artists were overemphasizing the folkloric elements in their work-themes that Orozco and Siqueiros considered no longer relevant to Mexican realities but that appealed to foreign tourists and collectors.
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According to the passage. the painting of murals in public places was primarily motivated by a
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The passage identifies which of the following, as something the "intellectuals, composer, and artists" had in common?
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The passage implies that some artists in post-1921 Mexicao succeeded in
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The author of the passage would most likely agrees with which of the following statements about "nationalism" as a theme of Mexico's cultural production?
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Insect predators usually keep the number of aphids in crop fields low. However, sometimes the aphid population explodes in size, causing major damage. Such explosions happen when unusually cold weather keeps the number of aphids low in the spring. One possible explanation is that, with fewer aphids to feed on, the predator population also drops, and in summer when the aphid population starts to grow there are not enough predators to keep it in check.
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Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the explanation given tor aphid population explosions?
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Sandies comparing children's memory for television news stories with their recall of print versions containing exactly the same verbal information generally show that television news is remembered best. Paivio's dual-coding hypothesis, a frequent explanation, suggests that audiovisual information is stored in memory as two separate but associated codes-one verbal and one visual-whereas text-only information is stored as a verbal code only. During recall, the visual-memory code serves as an extra retrieval cue, which could account for the superior recall of television stories.
However, experiments show that learning is enhanced only by the addition of "redundant" pictures, which convey the same basic meaning as the words. When pictures and words do not coincide, children do not remember more and sometimes remember less from television presentations than from purely verbal presentations. Theories based on the concept of "limited attentional capacity" posit that when verbal and visual information do not correspond, viewers` attentional capacity is exceeded and part of the information is lost. In the case of nonredundant audiovisual information, viewers tend to direct their attention to the visual images because meaning is conveyed more readily through pictures this preference may hinder learning because the main message in television news is usually provided in the spoken commentary.
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The primary purpose of the passage is to
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According to the passage, Paivio's dual-coding hypothesis suggests that the difference between viewers' ability to recall television news stories and their ability to recall print versions of the wane stores is primarily the result of the fact that viewers can do which of the following?
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If theories of limited attentional capacity, as described in the passage, are correct, which of the following is most likely to be true of the news stories used in the "studios comparing, children's memory"?
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In 1961, Julia Child published Mastering the Art of French Cooking, frequently described as revolutionary. According to legend, Child inspired Americans to exchange their bland cooking for French cuisine's rich flavors. Yet Child's book was hardly singular among cookbooks. One publishing catalog lists almost as many books about French cooking in the decade before Child's book as in the decade after. While Child's book influenced a particular American cohort, its effect on the American publishing industry was minimal, a fact at odds with popular assumptions both about publishers and about Child's importance. We might expect Child's success to foster many imitations. Instead American cookbooks pursued themes popular before Child's book was published, including a growing interest in the American cooking styles allegedly vanquished by Child.
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The author mentions the "cohort" primarily to
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It can be inferred from the passage that the "growing interest"
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This passage discusses Minoan buildings constructed during the Bronze Age on the Greek Island of Crete.
Although the term "Palace" is widely used and deeply ingrained in Minoan archaeology, Driessen has remarked that the term has been used to describe a number of quite different things and that there is no consensus on what the term signifies. The debate usually centers on the presumed functions of the buildings. Evans assumed that the buildings known as Palaces had several roles, including royal residences, administrative centers, economic centers, manufacturing centers, and cult centers. Over the years, each of those functions has been called into question. For example, L. Schoep notes, "The use of the term Palace carries with it a whole host of perhaps unhelpful baggage, which consciously or unconsciously encourages interpretations of the "Palace" as the residence of a royal elite, occupying supreme position within a hierarchical social and political structure"; she suggests using the more neutral term "court-centered building" instead. The problem, however, comes not from the architectural label one applies, but from making unwarranted assumptions about how the Palaces were used. I use the word "Palaces" (capitalized to signal its arbitrariness) not to imply a range of functions but to refer to a group of buildings that share a set of formal elements.
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The highlighted quotation from L. Schoep serves in part to
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The author suggests that the "debate" mentioned in the passage is misguided because the participants in the debate
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