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LSAT Preptest 150, Section 1, Question 21

Passage 4: Evolution and Cooking

Explanation

A. (Correct Response) The passage discusses the evolutionary constraints that led to humans being so evolutionarily constrained to eating foods that are digestible and easily chewed that cooking is normally obligatory. This implies that smaller teeth and jaws, which are a result of cooking, limit the ability to process raw food efficiently, hence the reliance on cooked food.


B. The passage does not make a direct comparison between the intestinal volume of Homo ergaster and modern humans. It suggests that changes in the digestive system are a result of dietary adaptations, but does not specify the relative size of the intestines in Homo ergaster.


C. There is no discussion in the passage about the use of plants for food prior to the adoption of cooking or any implication that early humans did not utilize plants for food before cooking.


D. The passage does not state that the human digestive anatomy's properties are primarily due to a high-meat diet. It suggests a broader adaptation to a cooked food diet that includes high caloric density.


E. The passage indicates that the human digestive anatomy has changed considerably over evolutionary time, especially in response to the adoption of cooking.

The passage supports the view that the evolutionary adaptations in human anatomy, particularly smaller teeth and jaws, are linked to the dietary shift towards cooked food, which implies a limitation in processing raw food.

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