CSAT 2022

Q. Natural selection cannot anticipate future environments on the earth.

Therefore, the set of existing organisms can never be fully prepared for environmental catastrophes that await life. An outcome of this is the extinction of those species which cannot overcome environmental adversity. This failure to survive, in modem terms, can be attributed to the genomes which are unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps (infections, diseases and so on). In biological evolution on the earth, extinction of species has been a major feature. The earth may presently have up to ten million species, yet more than 90% of species that have ever lived on the earth are now extinct. Once again, the creationist doctrines fail to satisfactorily address why a divine creator will firstly bother to create millions of species and then allow them to perish. The Darwinian explanation for extinct life is once again simple, elegant and at once convincing—organisms go extinct as a function of environmental or biological assaults for which their inheritance deems them ill-equipped. Therefore, the so-called Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all. Evolution happens—this is a fact. The mechanism of evolution (Darwin proposed natural selection) is amply supported by scientific data. Indeed, to date no single zoological, botanical, geological, paleontological, genetic or physical evidence has refuted either of the central two main Darwinian ideas. If religion is not taken into consideration, Darwinian laws are acceptable just like the laws proposed by Copernicus, Galileo, Newton and Einstein—sets of natural laws that explain natural phenomena in the universe.

Q. 1. According to the passage, natural selection cannot anticipate future environments on the earth as
1.  species not fully prepared to face the environmental changes that await them will face extinction
2.  all the existing species would get extinct as their genomes will not withstand biological mishaps
3.  inability of the genome to withstand environmental changes would result in extinction
4.  extinction of species is a common feature
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

a.  1, 2 and 3
b. 2. 3 and 4
c.  1, 3 and 4
d. 1, 2 and 4

Q. 2. The passage suggests that Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all because

a.  it does not satisfy the creationist doctrine
b. extinction is a function of environment and biological assaults
c.  there are no evidences to refute it
d. existence of organisms is attributed to a creator

Q. 3. With reference to the passage, the following assumptions have been made:
1.  Only species that have fee ability to overcome environmental catastrophes will survive and perpetuate.
2.  More than 90% of the species on the earth are in the danger of getting extinct due to drastic changes in the environment.
3.  Darwin’s theory explains all the natural phenomena.
Which of the above assumptions is/are valid?

a.  1 only
b. 1 and 2 only
c.  3 only
d. 1, 2 and 3

Question from UPSC Prelims 2022 CSAT Paper

Explanation : 
Q1: Correct Answer – c.    1, 3 and 4
Explanation – In biological evolution on earth, extinction of species has been a major feature. The passage states that more than 90% of species that have ever lived on earth are now extinct. The Darwinian explanation for extinct life is simple and convincing: organisms go extinct as a function of environmental or biological assaults for which their inheritance deems them ill-equipped.

Q2: Correct Answer – c.    there are no evidences to refute it
Explanation – According to the passage, the correct answer would be option c. The passage states that the so-called Darwinian theory of evolution is not a theory at all because evolution happens and is a fact. The mechanism of evolution proposed by Darwin (natural selection) is amply supported by scientific data. To date, no single zoological, botanical, geological, paleontological, genetic or physical evidence has refuted either of the central two main Darwinian ideas.

Q3: Correct Answer – a.    1 only

According to the passage, the valid assumption would be option a. 1 only. The passage states that species that are unable to overcome environmental adversity may face extinction and that this failure to survive can be attributed to their genomes being unable to withstand geological vagaries or biological mishaps. This suggests that only species that have the ability to overcome environmental catastrophes will survive and perpetuate.

The passage does not state that more than 90% of the species on earth are in danger of getting extinct due to drastic changes in the environment. Instead, it states that more than 90% of species that have ever lived on earth are now extinct.

The passage also does not state that Darwin’s theory explains all natural phenomena. It states that the mechanism of evolution proposed by Darwin (natural selection) is amply supported by scientific data and has not been refuted by any evidence.

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