Reading Comprehension

The formation of polymers, long-chain molecules made of repeating units of monomers, is a far more difficult experimental problem than the formation of monomers. Polymerization reactions tend to be dehydration. A molecule of water is lost in the formation of a peptide from two amino acids or of a disaccharide sugar from two monomers. Dehydrating agents are used to initiate polymerization. The polymerization of amino acids to form long protein-like molecules (“proteinoids”) was accomplished through dry heating by American biochemist Sidney Fox and his colleagues. The polyamine acids that he formed are not random molecules unrelated to life. They have distinct catalytic activities. Long polymers of amino acids were also produced from hydrogen cyanide and anhydrous liquid ammonia by American chemist Clifford Matthews in simulations of the early upper atmosphere.

Some evidence exists that ultraviolet irradiation induces combinations of nucleotide bases and sugars in the presence of phosphates or cyanides. Some condensing agents such as cyanamide are efficiently made under simulated primitive conditions. Despite the breakdown by the water of molecular intermediates, condensing agents may quite effectively induce polymerization, and polymers of amino acids, sugars, and nucleotides have all been made this way.

That adsorption of relevant small carbon compounds on clays or other minerals may have concentrated these intermediates was suggested by the British scientist John Desmond Bernal. The concentration of some kind is required to offset the tendency for water to break down polymers of biological significance. Phosphorus, with which Deoxyribose sugar forms the “backbone” of DNA and is integrally involved in cell energy transformation and membrane formation, is preferentially incorporated into pre-biological organic molecules. It is hard to explain how such a preference could have happened without the concentration of organic molecules.

What is the structure of the passage?

The formation of polymers, long-chain molecules made of repeating units of monomers, is a far more difficult experimental problem than the formation of monomers. Polymerization reactions tend to be dehydration. A molecule of water is lost in the formation of a peptide from two amino acids or of a disaccharide sugar from two monomers. Dehydrating agents are used to initiate polymerization. The polymerization of amino acids to form long protein-like molecules (“proteinoids”) was accomplished through dry heating by American biochemist Sidney Fox and his colleagues. The polyamine acids that he formed are not random molecules unrelated to life. They have distinct catalytic activities. Long polymers of amino acids were also produced from hydrogen cyanide and anhydrous liquid ammonia by American chemist Clifford Matthews in simulations of the early upper atmosphere.

Some evidence exists that ultraviolet irradiation induces combinations of nucleotide bases and sugars in the presence of phosphates or cyanides. Some condensing agents such as cyanamide are efficiently made under simulated primitive conditions. Despite the breakdown by the water of molecular intermediates, condensing agents may quite effectively induce polymerization, and polymers of amino acids, sugars, and nucleotides have all been made this way.

That adsorption of relevant small carbon compounds on clays or other minerals may have concentrated these intermediates was suggested by the British scientist John Desmond Bernal. The concentration of some kind is required to offset the tendency for water to break down polymers of biological significance. Phosphorus, with which Deoxyribose sugar forms the “backbone” of DNA and is integrally involved in cell energy transformation and membrane formation, is preferentially incorporated into pre-biological organic molecules. It is hard to explain how such a preference could have happened without the concentration of organic molecules.

What happens during the polymerization reaction?

Direction: The passage below is accompanied by a set of questions. Choose the best answer to each question.

The formation of polymers, long-chain molecules made of repeating units of monomers, is a far more difficult experimental problem than the formation of monomers. Polymerization reactions tend to be dehydration. A molecule of water is lost in the formation of a peptide from two amino acids or of a disaccharide sugar from two monomers. Dehydrating agents are used to initiate polymerization. The polymerization of amino acids to form long protein-like molecules (“proteinoids”) was accomplished through dry heating by American biochemist Sidney Fox and his colleagues. The polyamine acids that he formed are not random molecules unrelated to life. They have distinct catalytic activities. Long polymers of amino acids were also produced from hydrogen cyanide and anhydrous liquid ammonia by American chemist Clifford Matthews in simulations of the early upper atmosphere.

Some evidence exists that ultraviolet irradiation induces combinations of nucleotide bases and sugars in the presence of phosphates or cyanides. Some condensing agents such as cyanamide are efficiently made under simulated primitive conditions. Despite the breakdown by the water of molecular intermediates, condensing agents may quite effectively induce polymerization, and polymers of amino acids, sugars, and nucleotides have all been made this way.

That adsorption of relevant small carbon compounds on clays or other minerals may have concentrated these intermediates was suggested by the British scientist John Desmond Bernal. The concentration of some kind is required to offset the tendency for water to break down polymers of biological significance. Phosphorus, with which Deoxyribose sugar forms the “backbone” of DNA and is integrally involved in cell energy transformation and membrane formation, is preferentially incorporated into pre-biological organic molecules. It is hard to explain how such a preference could have happened without the concentration of organic molecules.

Which of the following statement is NOT true as per the given passage?

Mongol empire, empire founded by Genghis Khan in 1206. Originating from the Mongol heartland in the Steppe of central Asia, by the late 13th century it spanned from the Pacific Ocean in the east to the Danube River and the shores of the Persian Gulf in the west. At its peak, it covered some 9 million square miles (23 million square km) of territory, making it the largest contiguous land empire in world history.

The year 1206, when Temüjin, son of Yesügei, was elected Genghis Khan of a federation of tribes on the banks of the Onon River, must be regarded as the beginning of the Mongol empire. This federation not only consisted of Mongols in the proper sense—that is, Mongol-speaking tribes—but also included tribes of Turkish descent.

Before 1206, Genghis Khan was one of the tribal leaders fighting for supremacy in the steppe regions south and southeast of Lake Baikal; his victories over the Kereit and then the Naiman Turks, however, gave him undisputed authority over the whole of what is now Mongolia.

Having united the steppe tribes, Genghis Khan ruled over some 1 million people. In order to suppress the traditional causes of tribal warfare, he abolished inherited aristocratic titles. He also forbade the selling and kidnapping of women, banned the enslavement of any Mongol and made livestock theft punishable by death. Moreover, Genghis Khan ordered the adoption of a writing system, conducted a regular census, granted diplomatic immunity to foreign ambassadors and allowed freedom of religion well before that idea caught on elsewhere. A series of campaigns, some of them carried out simultaneously, followed.

All these things majorly contributed to the establishment of Mongol empire.

Which of the following words best expresses the meaning of the word 'forbade'?

The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.

Skipping a steak just once a week with your family would reduce emissions equivalent to taking your car off the road for nearly three months. According to a study by the World Resources Institute, this would lead to a per capita food and land use-related greenhouse gas emissions reduction of between fifteen and thirty percent by 2050. Going vegetarian could reduce those per capita emissions by half. The point is that we do not have to solve climate change all at once. We need to slow it down to give technology and society some time to evolve. Solving climate change will not be an event; it will be a process that takes place over decades.

Mongol empire, empire founded by Genghis Khan in 1206. Originating from the Mongol heartland in the Steppe of central Asia, by the late 13th century it spanned from the Pacific Ocean in the east to the Danube River and the shores of the Persian Gulf in the west. At its peak, it covered some 9 million square miles (23 million square km) of territory, making it the largest contiguous land empire in world history.

The year 1206, when Temüjin, son of Yesügei, was elected Genghis Khan of a federation of tribes on the banks of the Onon River, must be regarded as the beginning of the Mongol empire. This federation not only consisted of Mongols in the proper sense—that is, Mongol-speaking tribes—but also included tribes of Turkish descent.

Before 1206, Genghis Khan was one of the tribal leaders fighting for supremacy in the steppe regions south and southeast of Lake Baikal; his victories over the Kereit and then the Naiman Turks, however, gave him undisputed authority over the whole of what is now Mongolia.

Having united the steppe tribes, Genghis Khan ruled over some 1 million people. In order to suppress the traditional causes of tribal warfare, he abolished inherited aristocratic titles. He also forbade the selling and kidnapping of women, banned the enslavement of any Mongol and made livestock theft punishable by death. Moreover, Genghis Khan ordered the adoption of a writing system, conducted a regular census, granted diplomatic immunity to foreign ambassadors and allowed freedom of religion well before that idea caught on elsewhere. A series of campaigns, some of them carried out simultaneously, followed.

All these things majorly contributed to the establishment of Mongol empire.

Why did Genghis Khan abolish the inherited aristocratic titles?

The passage below is accompanied by a set of questions. Choose the best answer to each question.

The work by Corry Gellatly, a research scientist at the university, has shown that men inherit a tendency to have more sons or more daughters from their parents. This means that a man with many brothers is more likely to have sons, while a man with many sisters is more likely to have daughters.
In many of the countries that fought in the World Wars, there was a sudden increase in the number of boys born afterwards. The year after World War I ended, an extra two boys were born for every 100 girls in the UK, compared to the year before the war started. The gene, which Mr Gellatly has described in his research, could explain why this happened.
As the odds were in favour of men with more sons seeing a son return from the war, those sons were more likely to father boys themselves because they inherited that tendency from their fathers. In contrast, men with more daughters may have lost their only sons in the war and those sons would have been more likely to father girls. This would explain why the men that survived the war were more likely to have male children, which resulted in the boy-baby boom. In most countries, for as long as records have been kept, more boys than girls have been born. In the UK and US, for example, there are currently about 105 males born for every 100 females.
It is well-documented that more males die in childhood and before they are old enough to have children. So, in the same way that the gene may cause more boys to be born after wars, it may also cause more boys to be born each year.

What is the writing style of the given passage?