Question

what are \inferences\ questions? on the reading and writing section of your sat, some questions will provide an unfinished passage that introduces information about an unfamiliar topic. based on that information, youll be asked to select the choice that most logically completes the text. inferences questions will look like this: inferences example adaptations to cold temperatures have high metabolic costs. it is expensive, in terms of energy use, for land plants and animals to withstand very cold temperatures, and it gets more expensive the colder it gets, which means that the lower the air temperature, the fewer species have evolved to survive it. this factor, in conjunction with the decline in air temperature with increasing elevation, explains the distribution of species diversity in mountain ecosystems: you find fewer species high up a mountain than at the mountains base because ____ which choice most logically completes the text? choose 1 answer: a there are relatively few environments hospitable to species that are adapted to live in low air temperatures. b there are relatively few species with the adaptations necessary to tolerate the temperatures at high elevations. c adaptations that allow plants and animals to survive in rocky environments are metabolically costly. d some mountain environments are at elevations so high that no plants or animals can survive them. check

Explanation:

The passage states that adaptations to cold temperatures are metabolically costly and as air - temperature declines with increasing elevation, fewer species can survive. So, at high elevations, there are relatively few species with the necessary adaptations to tolerate the cold temperatures. Option A focuses on the number of hospitable environments rather than species adaptations. Option C is about rocky environments, not related to the temperature - species relationship in the passage. Option D is an extreme statement not supported by the passage.

Answer:

B. there are relatively few species with the adaptations necessary to tolerate the temperatures at high elevations.