Question

The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.
For nearly a century most psychologists have embraced one view of intelligence. Individuals are born with more or less intelligence potential (I.Q.); this potential is heavily influenced by heredity and difficult to alter; experts in measurement can determine a person’s intelligence early in life, currently from paper-and-pencil measures, perhaps eventually from examining the brain in action or even scrutinizing his/her genome. Recently, criticism of this conventional wisdom has mounted. Biologists ask if speaking of a single entity called “intelligence” is coherent and question the validity of measures used to estimate heritability of a trait in humans, who, unlike plants or animals, are not conceived and bred under controlled conditions.

• A. Biologists have questioned the long-standing view that ‘intelligence’ is a single entity and the attempts to estimate its heritability.
• B. Biologists have started questioning psychologists' view of 'intelligence' as a measurable immutable characteristic of an individual.
• C. Biologists have questioned the view that ‘intelligence’ is a single entity and the ways in which what is inherited.
• D. Biologists have criticised that conventional wisdom that individuals are born with more or less intelligence potential.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

The paragraph highlights these key points:

1. Biologists are now challenging the established psychological view that intelligence is a static, inherited characteristic.
2. The purely hereditary nature of intelligence is questionable, particularly as humans, unlike flora or fauna, are not selectively bred.

Consequently, a statement that encompasses these considerations makes Option A the most fitting selection.
Option B: This option addresses the initial point but neglects the latter part of the discourse.
Option C: While this option covers both core aspects, it lacks precision and reads awkwardly ("in ways in which what is inherited doesn't make sense"). Option A is demonstrably superior to Option C.
Option D: Characterizing the prevalent viewpoint as conventional wisdom is incorrect. Furthermore, this statement fails to address point (2).

Therefore, the accurate choice is (A): Biologists have challenged the enduring belief that intelligence is a singular trait and the efforts to quantify its heritability.