16Hit1600
Information and IdeasEasy–MediumCommand of Textual Evidence (identifying a finding that weakens a hypothesis)

Information and Ideas practice question

European robins are usually thought of as daytime singers, but in several large European cities, robins regularly sing in the middle of the night. A team of researchers hypothesized that this behavior is a response to city noise: because daytime traffic drowns out the birds' songs, urban robins shift much of their singing to the quiet hours after midnight, when their songs are more likely to be heard by potential mates and rivals.

Which finding, if true, would most directly weaken the researchers' hypothesis?

  1. A. Daytime traffic noise in the cities studied was measured to be even louder than the researchers had initially estimated.
  2. B. Recordings showed that the night songs of urban robins travel farther than their daytime songs do.
  3. C. Robins living in rural areas with very little human noise sing at night just as frequently as urban robins do.Correct
  4. D. Urban robins sing at a higher pitch during the day than rural robins do.

Answer: C. Robins living in rural areas with very little human noise sing at night just as frequently as urban robins do.

The hypothesis explains nighttime singing as a reaction to loud daytime city noise. If robins in quiet rural areas sing at night just as often, then noise cannot be what produces the behavior, so C directly undermines the explanation. (A) is consistent with the hypothesis rather than opposed to it—students may pick it because 'louder' sounds like a problem for the birds, not the theory. (B) supports the hypothesis by confirming the proposed advantage of singing at night. (D) describes a different possible noise adaptation and says nothing about nighttime singing, so it is irrelevant; students may choose it because it mentions an urban–rural difference.

Why the other answers are wrong

A. Daytime traffic noise in the cities studied was measured to be even louder than the researchers had initially estimated.
Louder daytime noise fits the hypothesis rather than weakening it — the researchers' whole point is that traffic noise drowns out daytime song.
B. Recordings showed that the night songs of urban robins travel farther than their daytime songs do.
This confirms the advantage the researchers proposed (night songs carry better), so it strengthens the hypothesis instead of weakening it.
D. Urban robins sing at a higher pitch during the day than rural robins do.
Higher daytime pitch is a different possible noise adaptation and says nothing about why robins sing at night; the urban–rural contrast alone doesn't address the hypothesis.

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