Read the following passage carefully and select the correct answer to the…
2021
Read the following passage carefully and select the correct answer to the questions given at the end of the passage.
Ecosystems provide people with a variety of goods and services, such as food, clean water, clean air, flood control, soil stabilization, pollination, climate regulation, spiritual fulfillment and aesthetic enjoyment, to name just a few. Most of these benefits are either irreplaceable or the technology necessary to replace them is prohibitively expensive. For example potable fresh water can be extracted by desalinating sea water, but only at great cost.
The rapidly expanding human population has greatly modified the earth’s ecosystem to meet their increased requirements of some goods and services, particularly food, fresh water, timber, fibre and fuel. These modifications have contributed substantially to human well being and economic development. The benefits have not been equally distributed.
Some people have actually been harmed by these changes. Moreover, short-term increases in some ecosystems’ goods and services have come at the cost of long term degradation of others. For example, efforts to increase the production of food and fibre have decreased the ability of some ecosystems to provide clean water, regulate flooding and support biodiversity.
Which of the following can be considered as the most suitable title for the passage?
Answer: D. Modification of our ecosystem — ConceptA suitable title expresses a passage’s broad controlling idea, not a detail, example, or cause mentioned only briefly. The best method is to identify…
- A.
Food crisis
- B.
Technological development
- C.
Population control
- D.
Modification of our ecosystem
Attempted by 6 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Concept
A suitable title expresses a passage’s broad controlling idea, not a detail, example, or cause mentioned only briefly. The best method is to identify the subject repeated across the passage and the development of that subject from beginning to end.
A title should cover the passage as a whole: its opening focus, its main explanation, and its concluding consequence or contrast.
Application
The passage first explains the goods and services supplied by ecosystems. It then describes how growing human requirements have modified ecosystems, producing economic benefits but distributing them unevenly. Finally, it shows that short-term gains can cause long-term degradation of other ecosystem services.
Contrast
Food crisis: food appears as one of several demanded goods and as an example of production trade-offs; the passage does not describe a crisis of food availability.
Technological development: technology appears only in the desalination example, which illustrates the high cost of replacing an ecosystem service.
Population control: population growth is presented as a cause of increased demand, while population-control measures are not discussed.
Modification of our ecosystem: this phrase covers the passage’s full movement from ecosystem services to human alteration, benefits, unequal effects, and long-term degradation.
Cross-check and result
Checking each paragraph against the candidate title shows that ecosystem modification is the only idea that remains relevant throughout the passage. Therefore, the most suitable title is “Modification of our ecosystem.”