Reading comp PrepTest 110 · Section 4 · Question 2

Topic: Science

Paragraph 1

• Paragraph note
  • The okapi, a forest mammal of central Africa, was difficult for scientists to classify when it was discovered in 1900.
• Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
  • In 1900, scientists first learned of the existence of the okapi (first sentence)
  • Question 1: how should the okapi be classified? (second sentence):
    • It was first classified as part of horse family b/c of physical similarities to horses and zebras (third sentence)
  • Answer: Now been classified as part giraffe family b/c of skin-covered horns in males, two-lobed canine teeth, and long prehensile tongue (fourth-fifth sentences)
  • Author’s attitude: “difficult problems” (first sentence); “first classified it” (third sentence); “rightful place” (fifth sentence)

Paragraph 2

• Paragraph note
  • Okapis are not as rare as scientists thought at first, but they are very concentrated in a specific area.
• Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
  • Question 2: how rare are okapis? (first sentence)
    • At first, okapis appeared rare because they were infrequently captured (second sentence)
  • Answer: In 1985, scientists began fixing radio transmitters to captured specimens, and learned okapis were not as rare as had been thought, but are very concentrated in forestland in northeastern central Africa (third-fourth sentences)
  • Author’s attitude: “others theorized” (second sentence); “reliable information” (third sentence); “extremely limited chain” (fourth sentence)

Paragraph 3

• Paragraph note
  • Okapis seem rare because of their behavior: coloration allows for camouflage, they don’t travel in groups, and they graze individually deep in the interior of the forest.
• Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
  • Coloration of okapis mean they camouflage themselves well, even at close range (first sentence)
  • Okapis don’t travel in groups or with other large mammals (second sentence)
  • Okapis don’t graze at border of forest or in clearings (second sentence)
    • Live on leaves only, of over 100 species, and eat only a bit of each plant before moving on to the next plant (third-fourth sentences)
    • Forage individually (fifth sentence)
  • Author’s attitude: “seeming scarcity” (first sentence); “unlike any other animal” (third sentence); “subsist entirely on leaves” (third sentence); “individual rather than congregated” (fifth sentence)

Paragraph 4

• Paragraph note
  • Other questions about the okapi’s preference for the interior of forests and preference for certain forestlands over others remain unanswered.
• Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
  • Unanswered question 1: why do okapis remain in interior of forests even when preferred plants are found in the borderland between forest and savanna? (second sentence)
    • Theory 1: defense against predators (third sentence)
    • Theory 2: competition with other large animals who graze borderlands of forest/savanna more efficiently (third sentence)
  • Unanswered question 2: why are okapis absent from nearby forest regions that would seem to be ideal? (fourth sentence)
    • Theory 1: okapis respect borders from a time when forestland was scarce (fifth sentence)
  • Author’s attitude: “prefer to remain” (second sentence); “pushed into the forest” (third sentence); “more efficiently” (third sentence); “would seem hospitable” (fourth sentence); “theorize” (fifth sentence); “relicts of an era” (fifth sentence)

Main Point: Through research into its habits and behavior, scientists have answered some questions about the elusive okapi’s taxonomic classification and population size, but other questions about its behavior and preferred habitat remain unanswered.

Paragraph 1, Sentence 1 (P1 S1): Many questions have been raised about the okapi since its discovery in 1900.

P1 S4: Answer to first question (classification)

P2 S4: Answer to second question (size and concentration of population)

P3 S1-2: Reasons for seeming scarcity

P4 S3: Theories 1 and 2 about third question (remain in interior of forests)

P4 S5: Theory 1 about fourth question (why remain in certain forest areas and not others)

Question/Answer: This passage uses a Question/Answer Meta-Structure. Four questions about the okapi are posed by the author, and two are answered during the course of the passage. The remaining two questions are stated and theories that have been formulated to answer them are presented. The author appears to tacitly endorse the answers that they present in the passage. The overall tone is that of an informational update rather than an argument, and the author doesn’t seem to choose between the theories that they present at the end of the passage regarding the questions that haven’t been answered. The main point is simply a summary of the answers to the four questions that the author presents.

Like many explanatory science passages, this is a passage without a strong argument, written to convey information on an interesting but not-fully-studied subject. The presentation is organized and straightforward, and there are no tricky questions about tone or perspective to be answered, simply questions whose answers are well-supported by the passage.