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Medical College Admission Test: Verbal Reasoning, Biological Sciences, Physical Sciences, Writing Sample (Page 8 )

Updated On: 21-Sep-2026
Page 8 of 164
PDF with 811 Questions

The Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia, is a small green insect discovered in southern Russia around the turn of the century. Agricultural researchers are not quite sure, but they believe the Russian aphid adapted itself to wheat about ten thousand years ago, when the crop was first domesticated by man. What is not in doubt is the insect's destructiveness. Spread by both wind and human transport, the Russian aphid has destroyed wheat fields throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Until a few years ago, the United States had been free of this pest. But in the spring of 1986, a swarm of Russian aphids crossed the Mexican border and settled a few hundred miles north, in central Texas. From there, it quickly spread to other Western states, destroying wheat fields all along its path. In fact, the level of destruction has been so great over the past five years that entomologists are calling the Russian aphid the greatest threat to American agriculture since the Hessian fly, Phytophaga destructor, was inadvertently brought to the colonies on ships by German mercenary troops during the Revolutionary War. A combination of several factors has made it particularly difficult to deal with the threat posed by this aphid. First, Russian aphids reproduce asexually at a phenomenal rate. This process, known as parthenogenesis, often results in as many as twenty generations of insects in a single year. Although most generations remain in a limited geographic area because they have no wings, a few generations are born with wings, allowing the insect to spread to new areas. Second, because wheat is a crop with a very low profit margin, most American farmers do not spray it with pesticides; it simply is not economical to do so. And since the Russian aphid has only recently entered the United States, it has no natural enemies among North American insects or animals. As a result, there have been no man-made or natural obstacles to the spread of the Russian aphid in the United States.
Agricultural researchers seeking to control the Russian aphid have looked to its place of origin for answers. In the Soviet Union, the Russian aphid has been kept in check by predators which have evolved alongside it over many thousands of years. One species of wasp seems to be particularly efficient at destroying the aphid. The pregnant females of the species search the Russian aphid's home, the interior of a wheat stalk, sting the aphid into paralysis, and then inject an egg into its body. When the egg hatches the wasp larva feeds off of the aphid, killing it in the process.
The introduction of predators like the wasp, coupled with the breeding of new strains of insect-resistant wheat, may substantially curb the destructiveness of the Russian aphid in the future. For the time being, however, American farmers are left to their own devices when it comes to protecting their wheat crops.
The author suggests the best way to control the Russian aphid population in the United States is to:

  1. devote less acreage to the production of wheat.
  2. spray wheat fields with large quantities of pesticides.
  3. transplant its natural enemies from the Soviet Union.
  4. disrupt its reproductive process by sterilizing females.

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

This is an inference question about the author's perspective on how to control the Russian aphid population in the United States. The last 2 paragraphs of the passage concern control of the aphid population. In the first sentence of the fifth paragraph, the author suggests that the introduction of the aphid's natural predators into the United States holds the possibility of controlling the aphid population in the future. In other words, the author thinks that transplanting the Russian aphid's natural enemies from the Soviet Union, choice (C), is a logical way of controlling the aphid population in the United States, so (C) is the correct answer to this question. Nowhere in the passage does the author state or suggest that reducing the acreage devoted to the production of wheat, choice (A), would control the aphid population in the United States, so (A) is wrong. Although some people might logically conclude that growing less wheat would lessen the aphid population in the long-run, but the author doesn't suggest this as a logical method of aphid control. The question stem asks for a suggestion of the author. As for spraying large quantities of pesticides on wheat fields, choice (B), the author indicates in the fifth sentence of the third paragraph that, for economic reasons, this is not a reasonable method of aphid control, so choice (B) is wrong. Finally, the author doesn't suggest that sterilizing female aphids is a logical way of controlling the aphid population in the United States, making choice (D) incorrect. In fact, in the first half of the third paragraph, the author makes a point of noting that aphids reproduce asexually at a phenomenal rate, so "sterilizing females" is not logical at all and certainly is not suggested by the author.



The Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia, is a small green insect discovered in southern Russia around the turn of the century. Agricultural researchers are not quite sure, but they believe the Russian aphid adapted itself to wheat about ten thousand years ago, when the crop was first domesticated by man. What is not in doubt is the insect's destructiveness. Spread by both wind and human transport, the Russian aphid has destroyed wheat fields throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Until a few years ago, the United States had been free of this pest. But in the spring of 1986, a swarm of Russian aphids crossed the Mexican border and settled a few hundred miles north, in central Texas. From there, it quickly spread to other Western states, destroying wheat fields all along its path. In fact, the level of destruction has been so great over the past five years that entomologists are calling the Russian aphid the greatest threat to American agriculture since the Hessian fly, Phytophaga destructor, was inadvertently brought to the colonies on ships by German mercenary troops during the Revolutionary War. A combination of several factors has made it particularly difficult to deal with the threat posed by this aphid. First, Russian aphids reproduce asexually at a phenomenal rate. This process, known as parthenogenesis, often results in as many as twenty generations of insects in a single year. Although most generations remain in a limited geographic area because they have no wings, a few generations are born with wings, allowing the insect to spread to new areas. Second, because wheat is a crop with a very low profit margin, most American farmers do not spray it with pesticides; it simply is not economical to do so. And since the Russian aphid has only recently entered the United States, it has no natural enemies among North American insects or animals. As a result, there have been no man-made or natural obstacles to the spread of the Russian aphid in the United States.
Agricultural researchers seeking to control the Russian aphid have looked to its place of origin for answers. In the Soviet Union, the Russian aphid has been kept in check by predators which have evolved alongside it over many thousands of years. One species of wasp seems to be particularly efficient at destroying the aphid. The pregnant females of the species search the Russian aphid's home, the interior of a wheat stalk, sting the aphid into paralysis, and then inject an egg into its body. When the egg hatches the wasp larva feeds off of the aphid, killing it in the process.
The introduction of predators like the wasp, coupled with the breeding of new strains of insect-resistant wheat, may substantially curb the destructiveness of the Russian aphid in the future. For the time being, however, American farmers are left to their own devices when it comes to protecting their wheat crops.
According to the passage, the Russian wheat aphid and the Hessian fly are comparable with respect to:
I) the amount of destruction they have caused.
II). the means by which they reproduce.
III). the ways in which they entered the United States.

  1. I only
  2. II only
  3. I and II only
  4. I and III only

Answer(s): A

Explanation:

This is another detail question in Roman numeral format involving a comparison of the Russian wheat aphid and the Hessian fly. Since these insects are briefly compared in the second paragraph, most likely the information necessary to answer the question will be found there. In the last sentence of the second paragraph, we are told that entomologists consider the Russian aphid so destructive that they have called it the greatest threat to American agriculture since the Hessian fly was brought over by German mercenaries during the Revolutionary War. Based on this, it is certainly reasonable to conclude that Russian aphids and Hessian flies are comparable with respect to the amount of damage they have caused to crops. Option I, therefore, does complete this question stem correctly, and will be part of the answer. The second sentence of the third paragraph states that Russian aphids reproduce asexually, but nowhere are we told by what means the Hessian fly reproduces, so we have no basis for concluding that Russian aphids and Hessian flies are comparable with respect to the means by which they reproduce, option II). The second sentence of the second paragraph states that a swarm of Russian aphids flew across the United States-Mexican border; in other words, they entered the United States on their own, with humans having nothing to do with their entry into this country.
In contrast, the final sentence of the second paragraph clearly states that the Hessian fly was brought to the United States by humans, German mercenary troops, in boats. So, their methods of entry into the United States aren't comparable, making option III incorrect.



The Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia, is a small green insect discovered in southern Russia around the turn of the century. Agricultural researchers are not quite sure, but they believe the Russian aphid adapted itself to wheat about ten thousand years ago, when the crop was first domesticated by man. What is not in doubt is the insect's destructiveness. Spread by both wind and human transport, the Russian aphid has destroyed wheat fields throughout Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Until a few years ago, the United States had been free of this pest. But in the spring of 1986, a swarm of Russian aphids crossed the Mexican border and settled a few hundred miles north, in central Texas. From there, it quickly spread to other Western states, destroying wheat fields all along its path. In fact, the level of destruction has been so great over the past five years that entomologists are calling the Russian aphid the greatest threat to American agriculture since the Hessian fly, Phytophaga destructor, was inadvertently brought to the colonies on ships by German mercenary troops during the Revolutionary War. A combination of several factors has made it particularly difficult to deal with the threat posed by this aphid. First, Russian aphids reproduce asexually at a phenomenal rate. This process, known as parthenogenesis, often results in as many as twenty generations of insects in a single year. Although most generations remain in a limited geographic area because they have no wings, a few generations are born with wings, allowing the insect to spread to new areas. Second, because wheat is a crop with a very low profit margin, most American farmers do not spray it with pesticides; it simply is not economical to do so. And since the Russian aphid has only recently entered the United States, it has no natural enemies among North American insects or animals. As a result, there have been no man-made or natural obstacles to the spread of the Russian aphid in the United States.
Agricultural researchers seeking to control the Russian aphid have looked to its place of origin for answers. In the Soviet Union, the Russian aphid has been kept in check by predators which have evolved alongside it over many thousands of years. One species of wasp seems to be particularly efficient at destroying the aphid. The pregnant females of the species search the Russian aphid's home, the interior of a wheat stalk, sting the aphid into paralysis, and then inject an egg into its body. When the egg hatches the wasp larva feeds off of the aphid, killing it in the process.
The introduction of predators like the wasp, coupled with the breeding of new strains of insect-resistant wheat, may substantially curb the destructiveness of the Russian aphid in the future. For the time being, however, American farmers are left to their own devices when it comes to protecting their wheat crops.
The author most likely believes American farmers will:

  1. develop new types of aphid-resistant wheat.
  2. develop their own effective methods for dealing with the Russian aphid.
  3. stop producing wheat until the Russian aphid is brought under control.
  4. continue to lose a portion of their wheat crops for the foreseeable future.

Answer(s): D

Explanation:

This is an inference question regarding the future course of actions for American farmers. As American farmers are discussed in the third and fifth paragraphs of the passage, it is appropriate to look there for information to answer this question. The first sentence of the fifth paragraph asserts that new insect-resistant strains of wheat may be developed in the future and that these new strains may curb the destructiveness of the Russian aphid.
But, the author neither states nor suggests that American farmers will be the individuals responsible for the development of these new strains of wheat, so choice (A) is wrong. Regarding choice (B), the last sentence of the fifth paragraph asserts that, until effective measures for controlling the Russian aphid are developed, American farmers are on their own when it comes to protecting their wheat crops. The tone of this sentence suggests that the author believes that it is unlikely that American farmers can develop their own effective means of coping with this pest, the opposite of what is suggested by choice (B), so (B) is also wrong. The last sentence of the passage also suggests that the author believes American farmers will continue to produce wheat in the future, so choice (C) is wrong. Finally, the tone and content of the last paragraph ­ where the author states that American farmers will have to cope with the Russian aphid the best they can until methods are found for controlling its destructiveness ­ suggests that the author believes American farmers will lose a part of their wheat crops to the aphid for the foreseeable future, making choice (D) the answer.



Millenialism is, generally speaking, the religious belief that salvation and material benefits will be conferred upon a society in the near future as the result of some apocalyptic event. The term derives from the Latin word for 1,000; in early Christian theology, believers held that Christ would return and establish his kingdom on earth for a period of a thousand years.
Millenialist movements, Christian and non-Christian, have arisen at various points throughout history, usually in times of great crisis or social upheaval. In "nativistic" millenialist movements, a people threatened with cultural disintegration attempts to earn its salvation by rejecting foreign customs and values and returning to the "old ways." One such movement involving the Ghost Dance cults, named after the ceremonial dance which cult members performed in hope of salvation, flourished in the late 19th century among Indians of the western United States.
By the middle of the 19th century, western expansion and settlement by whites was seriously threatening Native American cultures. Mining, agriculture and ranching encroached on and destroyed many Indian land and food sources. Indian resistance led to a series of wars and massacres, culminating in the U.S. Government's policy of resettlement of Indians onto reservations which constituted a fraction of their former territorial base. Under these dire circumstances, a series of millenialist movements began among western tribes.
The first Ghost Dance cult arose in western Nevada around 1870. A Native American prophet named Wodziwob, a member of a Northern Paiute tribe, received the revelation of an imminent apocalypse which would destroy the white man, restore all dead Indians to life, and return to the Indians their lands, food supplies (such as the vanishing buffalo), and old way of life. The apocalypse was to be brought about with the help of a ceremonial dance and songs, and by strict adherence to a moral code which, oddly enough, strongly resembled Christian teaching. In the early 1870s, Wodziwob's Ghost Dance cult spread to several tribes in California and Oregon, but soon died out or was absorbed into other cults.
A second Ghost Dance cult, founded in January 1889, evolved as the result of a similar revelation. This time Wovoka ­ another Northern Paiute Indian, whose father had been a disciple of Wodziwob ­ received a vision during a solar eclipse in which he died, spoke to God, and was assigned the task of teaching the dance and the millennial message. With white civilization having pushed western tribes ever closer to the brink of cultural disintegration during the previous twenty years, the Ghost Dance movement spread rapidly this time, catching on among tribes from the Canadian border to Texas, and from the Missouri River to the Sierra Nevadas ­ an area approximately one-third the size of the continental United States.
Wovoka's Ghost Dance doctrine forbade Indian violence against whites or other Indians; it also involved the wearing of "ghost shirts," which supposedly rendered the wearers invulnerable to the white man's bullets. In 1890, when the Ghost Dance spread to the Sioux Indians, both the ghost shirts and the movement itself were put to the test. Violent resistance to white domination had all but ended among the Sioux by the late 1880s, when government- ordered reductions in the size of their reservations infuriated the Sioux, and made them particularly responsive to the millenialist message of the Ghost Dance. As the Sioux organized themselves in the cult of the dance, an alarmed federal government resorted to armed intervention which ultimately led to the massacre of some 200 Sioux men, women and children at Wounded Knee, South Dakota in December of 1890. The ghost shirts had been worn to no avail, and Wounded Knee marked the end of the second Ghost Dance cult.
The passage implies that the second Ghost Dance cult gained widespread popularity quickly because:

  1. the U.S. government no longer attempted to suppress Native American religious practices.
  2. many Native Americans felt particularly threatened by white civilization.
  3. Wovoka was a more charismatic religious leader than Wodziwob had been.
  4. it was founded on the basis of a spiritual revelation.

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

This asks for a reason why the second Ghost Dance cult grew popular so quickly. The second Ghost Dance cult is discussed in paragraphs 4 and 5. In fact, the popularity of the second cult is directly referred to in the second half of paragraph 4. At the top of that paragraph, the author had described how the second cult started when Wovoka received his revelation. In the third sentence of the paragraph, we learn that, in the twenty years since the first Ghost Dance cult, white people had pushed Indians "ever closer to the brink of cultural disintegration". And because of this, "the Ghost Dance movement spread rapidly this time", quote unquote.
Therefore, choice (B) is correct: the second Ghost Dance cult quickly became popular because many Indians felt particularly threatened by white civilization. From the third sentence of the fourth paragraph, which states that white civilization was still pushing western Indian tribes to the brink of cultural disintegration, as well as from the end of the last paragraph, where the government's policy of armed intervention is discussed, it can be inferred that the U.S. government continued to suppress Native American cultural practices, and that choice (A) is wrong. Choice (C) is plausible, but unwarranted. The author makes no comparison regarding the amount of personal charisma of each prophet. So there's no way of knowing which cult leader was more charismatic. And choice (D) is wrong because, according to the passage, both Ghost Dance cults were founded on the basis of spiritual revelations. Therefore, the mere fact that the second was founded on the basis of a spiritual revelation does nothing to explain its relative popularity.



Millenialism is, generally speaking, the religious belief that salvation and material benefits will be conferred upon a society in the near future as the result of some apocalyptic event. The term derives from the Latin word for 1,000; in early Christian theology, believers held that Christ would return and establish his kingdom on earth for a period of a thousand years.
Millenialist movements, Christian and non-Christian, have arisen at various points throughout history, usually in times of great crisis or social upheaval. In "nativistic" millenialist movements, a people threatened with cultural disintegration attempts to earn its salvation by rejecting foreign customs and values and returning to the "old ways". One such movement involving the Ghost Dance cults, named after the ceremonial dance which cult members performed in hope of salvation, flourished in the late 19th century among Indians of the western United States.
By the middle of the 19th century, western expansion and settlement by whites was seriously threatening Native American cultures. Mining, agriculture and ranching encroached on and destroyed many Indian land and food sources. Indian resistance led to a series of wars and massacres, culminating in the U.S. Government's policy of resettlement of Indians onto reservations which constituted a fraction of their former territorial base. Under these dire circumstances, a series of millenialist movements began among western tribes.
The first Ghost Dance cult arose in western Nevada around 1870. A Native American prophet named Wodziwob, a member of a Northern Paiute tribe, received the revelation of an imminent apocalypse which would destroy the white man, restore all dead Indians to life, and return to the Indians their lands, food supplies (such as the vanishing buffalo), and old way of life. The apocalypse was to be brought about with the help of a ceremonial dance and songs, and by strict adherence to a moral code which, oddly enough, strongly resembled Christian teaching. In the early 1870s, Wodziwob's Ghost Dance cult spread to several tribes in California and Oregon, but soon died out or was absorbed into other cults.
A second Ghost Dance cult, founded in January 1889, evolved as the result of a similar revelation. This time Wovoka ­ another Northern Paiute Indian, whose father had been a disciple of Wodziwob ­ received a vision during a solar eclipse in which he died, spoke to God, and was assigned the task of teaching the dance and the millennial message. With white civilization having pushed western tribes ever closer to the brink of cultural disintegration during the previous twenty years, the Ghost Dance movement spread rapidly this time, catching on among tribes from the Canadian border to Texas, and from the Missouri River to the Sierra Nevadas ­ an area approximately one-third the size of the continental United States.
Wovoka's Ghost Dance doctrine forbade Indian violence against whites or other Indians; it also involved the wearing of "ghost shirts," which supposedly rendered the wearers invulnerable to the white man's bullets. In 1890, when the Ghost Dance spread to the Sioux Indians, both the ghost shirts and the movement itself were put to the test. Violent resistance to white domination had all but ended among the Sioux by the late 1880s, when government- ordered reductions in the size of their reservations infuriated the Sioux, and made them particularly responsive to the millenialist message of the Ghost Dance. As the Sioux organized themselves in the cult of the dance, an alarmed federal government resorted to armed intervention which ultimately led to the massacre of some 200 Sioux men, women and children at Wounded Knee, South Dakota in December of 1890. The ghost shirts had been worn to no avail, and Wounded Knee marked the end of the second Ghost Dance cult.
The passage implies that a paradoxical element of the Ghost Dance cults was their:

  1. organized resistance to cultural change.
  2. mixture of anti-white sentiment and Christian morality.
  3. belief in the ability of "ghost shirts" to protect them in combat.
  4. combination of millenialist message and desire to revive the "old ways".

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

This asks what was paradoxical about the Ghost Dance cults. A paradox is something that seems to be contradictory and yet is true. The correct answer, choice (B), can be found paragraph 3. In explaining the doctrine of the first Ghost Dance cult, the author notes that, although the point of the dance was to destroy the white man and foster a return to the old ways, believers were instructed to follow a strict code of morality that, "oddly enough, strongly resembled Christian teaching." The paradox of the Ghost Dance was that it borrowed the moral teachings of the people it hoped to destroy, so choice (B) is our answer. There is nothing paradoxical about choice (A). As defined in the first paragraph, a nativistic millenialist movement like the Ghost Dance is designed to unite a people threatened with cultural disintegration. Choice (C) describes an irrational element of the Ghost Dance religion, not a paradoxical one. Practically all religions are based on one or more articles of faith, and the Indians' belief that "ghost shirts" would protect them in combat was a straightforward, if doomed, element of their cult doctrine. Choice (D) is wrong because there's nothing odd or contradictory in combining a millenialist message with a desire to revive the "old ways". As the author says in paragraph 1, the desire to revive old ways is a defining characteristic of nativistic millenialist movements.



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