Q17 - Since mosquito larvae are aquatic, outbreaks

[ohthatpatrick]

Question Type:
Explain/Resolve

Stimulus Breakdown:
GIVEN THAT mosquitoes need water for babies,
HOW IS IT THAT in area where mosquitoes breed on wetland habitats, there are bad mosquito outbreaks following a drought?

Answer Anticipation:
The drought must result in some other condition that provides moisture to mosquito babies or that otherwise exacerbates an outbreak of mosquitos.

Correct Answer:
C

Answer Choice Analysis:
(A) Not clear how insecticide use would change following a drought.

(B) Not clear about how human population would change following a drought.

(C) AH, this could work. During a drought, the mosquito's predators are deprived of water, so the predators go away. With fewer mosquito predators, there will be more mosquitos, hence a worse than usual outbreak.

(D) Not clear how anything here relates to drought.

(E) This could work if we had any common sense connection between plant growth and mosquito outbreaks.

Takeaway/Pattern: When you're looking at the populations of animals/insects … the levers you can pull to have some common sense effect on how a species is thriving are: food supply, mating, predators

#officialexplanation

[creek1262]

Hi Patrick,
I think you meant to say in the explanation for (C) that the less predators for mosquito, the more mosquito there is and a better chance of outbreak.

[ohthatpatrick]

Thanks for catching that!

[RuonanW40]

I think in order for C work, we also need common sense connection between drought and decrease of aquatic insects. I don't understand that both C and E need assumptions or "common sense", and why C is correct but E is not?

Question Type:
Explain/Resolve

Stimulus Breakdown:
GIVEN THAT mosquitoes need water for babies,
HOW IS IT THAT in area where mosquitoes breed on wetland habitats, there are bad mosquito outbreaks following a drought?

Answer Anticipation:
The drought must result in some other condition that provides moisture to mosquito babies or that otherwise exacerbates an outbreak of mosquitos.

Correct Answer:
C

Answer Choice Analysis:
(A) Not clear how insecticide use would change following a drought.

(B) Not clear about how human population would change following a drought.

(C) AH, this could work. During a drought, the mosquito's predators are deprived of water, so the predators go away. With fewer mosquito predators, there will be more mosquitos, hence a worse than usual outbreak.

(D) Not clear how anything here relates to drought.

(E) This could work if we had any common sense connection between plant growth and mosquito outbreaks.

Takeaway/Pattern: When you're looking at the populations of animals/insects … the levers you can pull to have some common sense effect on how a species is thriving are: food supply, mating, predators

#officialexplanation

[NaW319]

I think in order for C work, we also need common sense connection between drought and decrease of aquatic insects. I don't understand that both C and E need assumptions or "common sense", and why C is correct but E is not?

Question Type:
Explain/Resolve

Stimulus Breakdown:
GIVEN THAT mosquitoes need water for babies,
HOW IS IT THAT in area where mosquitoes breed on wetland habitats, there are bad mosquito outbreaks following a drought?

Answer Anticipation:
The drought must result in some other condition that provides moisture to mosquito babies or that otherwise exacerbates an outbreak of mosquitos.

Correct Answer:
C

Answer Choice Analysis:
(A) Not clear how insecticide use would change following a drought.

(B) Not clear about how human population would change following a drought.

(C) AH, this could work. During a drought, the mosquito's predators are deprived of water, so the predators go away. With fewer mosquito predators, there will be more mosquitos, hence a worse than usual outbreak.

(D) Not clear how anything here relates to drought.

(E) This could work if we had any common sense connection between plant growth and mosquito outbreaks.

Takeaway/Pattern: When you're looking at the populations of animals/insects … the levers you can pull to have some common sense effect on how a species is thriving are: food supply, mating, predators

#officialexplanation

Well, to answer your questions, firstly we need to understand that actually the question itself sets a common sense, which is [drought is related to aquatic insects].
Why?
Take a closer look at the question, “...mosquito larvae are aquatic...” ‘’...diseases are worse after drought...”
The question considers it a discrepancy that after drought the mosquito-related desease breakout increases, which meas that the question considers it a discrepancy that after drought the mosquitoes(larvae) actually prosper instead of decreasing.
Now you see, the question itself implies that there is a connection between aquatic insects and the drought.
However, this common sense only applies to this specific question. Actually, it shouldn’t be regarded as a common sense ‘cause it is implied by the question, i would say that it’s a “Implied premises” rather than a “Common sense”.
Hope this will help.

[JeremyK460]

I think in order for C work, we also need common sense connection between drought and decrease of aquatic insects. I don't understand that both C and E need assumptions or "common sense", and why C is correct but E is not?

Los Angeles
wet weather 10 mosquitos / 0 predators / 20 outbreaks
drought 2 mosquitos / 0 predators / 5 outbreaks

New Orleans
wet weather 10 mosquitos / 5 predators / 20 outbreaks
drought 10 mosquitos / 0 predators / 40 outbreaks

the answer choice says the mosquito predator is an aquatic species
it's reasonable to say that the desert conditions of LA are not habitable for these aquatic species
los angeles is a desert
so drought or no drought these species don't live in LA
but these species will be impacted by a drought in a swamp in new orleans
but since mosquitos are both here and in los angeles
it's reasonable to assume that a wetland drought may still be habitable to a mosquito
but damaging enough to impact an aquatic species that needs the normal conditions of a wetland environment to survive