A Research About Twins Reading Answers

Aug 13, 2024

The discussed topic is an academic reading answers topic. A Research About Twins Reading Answers has a total of 13 IELTS questions in total. In the questions you have to tell whether the statement is true or false. In the next section, you have to choose the correct statement from the options.

Candidates should read the IELTS Reading passage thoroughly to recognise synonyms, identify keywords, and answer the questions below. IELTS Reading practice papers, which feature topics such as A Research About Twins Reading Answers. Candidates can use IELTS reading practice questions and answers to enhance their performance in the reading section.

Section 1

A RESEARCH ABOUT TWINS

Studies of identical and fraternal twins have long been used to untangle the influences of genes and the environment on particular traits Identical twins share all of their genes, while fraternal twins only share 50 percent. If a trait is more common among identical twins than fraternal twins, it suggests genetic factors are partly responsible. Studies on the similarities and differences between twins are a powerful tool in the age-old Nature vs. Nurture debate. Most scientists believe his face-off between environment and genes has ultimately been settled. Modern twin studies have soundly proven that what makes a person unique is not a question of nature versus nurture. It's a combination of the two: nature and nurture.

"Twins studies are the only real way of doing natural experiments in humans," says Tim Spector, a professor of genetic epidemiology at Kings College, London. "By studying twins, you can learn a great deal about what makes us tick, what makes us different, and particularly the biology of twins. There are two different types of twins: identical, which scientists call monotypic and fraternal, which scientists call dizygotic. Monozygotic twins occur when a single egg is fertilised and then divides into two separate embryos. The resulting twins share nearly 100% of their genetic data. Dizygotic twins occur when two separate eggs in the mother's ovaries are fertilized by two separate sperm, and share roughly 50% of their genetic data. "On average, dizygotic twins share the same amount of genetic info as I would share with my sisters," says Louise Arseneault, who was a Principal Investigator of the Environmental Risk Study, which studies approximately 2,000 twins in the UK. "But I have a different age than my sisters. Dizygotic twins are the same age.

"If the twins are two members of one family, so you can control for shared environment," Arseneault says. Both twins are the same age and grew up experiencing many of the same things. Most twin studies use this assumption of the shared environment to discern the differences brought on by genetics between sets of monozygotic and dizygotic twins. By studying pairs of twins longitudinally or observing their lives through physical and psychological tests regularly across a period of many years or even entire lifetimes, scientists can use these similarities (mirrored genetics, for monozygotic twins, parents, household, economic situation, diet and schooling for both sets) and differences (uneven factors like bullying, abuse, and generally altered life course for both sets) to discover the reasons why two people with the same or somewhat similar genes are alike or dissimilar. In this way, "twin studies allow us to estimate the importance of genetic factors versus environmental factors," Arseneault says.

Identical twins have non-identical fingerprints. Fingerprint patterns are unique and shaped by environmental factors in the womb, for example, access to nutrition and differences in umbilical cord length. That doesn't begin to take into account the benefit of comparisons between monozygotic twins, which have the same genetics and dizygotic twins, which don't. Since both sets will share the vast majority of environmental factors with their twins, the genetic variance is isolated. If the similarity between monozygotic twins is greater than that of dizygotic twins, that difference can be accounted for by genetics. If, for instance, a set of monozygotic twins both have similar vocabulary traits and a set of dizygotic twins with the same environmental factors (for example, reading at home) have differing vocabulary tendencies, researchers might assume vocabulary is influenced not just by the environment, but by genetics, too. Researchers also use discordant twin studies to examine the effects of environmental factors. For instance, if two monozygotic twins with the same genetics, home life and diet end up with drastically different life outcomes (say, one is a successful lawyer and the other in prison, or suffering from mental illness) researchers expect different environmental factors to have played a role in their divergent life courses. The twin study remains a common model in biology for removing confounding variables or outside factors that affect a study's outcome.

That makes twin studies powerful in any of several ways: on their own, with a large sample size to prove new hypotheses about how our genetic differences trump environmental factors; used in conjunction with larger-scale, non-twin longitudinal studies to test hypotheses further, without confounding variables; or even in just a single set of twins that are identical but undergo a drastic environmental divergence. Two very different twin studies can snow the bend or classical and pioneering science that's currently being applied to twin studies as we continue to use them as a powerful learning tool. In a twin study, researchers comb through dizygotic and monozygotic pairs, hunting for answers, but knowing above all that there is no silver bullet. Even in the perfect human study, the answers, as they always do in science, remain complex.

Questions 27-34

Do the following statements agree with the

information given in the text above?

In boxes 27-34 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE - if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE - if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN - if there is no information on this

27. Modern behavioural geneticists believe that what makes a person unique is a combination of nature and nurture.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: “........Modern twin studies have soundly proven that what makes a person unique is not a question of nature versus nurture. It's a combination of the two: nature and nurture.......”

Keywords: nature, nurture

Keyword Location: para 1, lines 7-8

Explanation: The passage clearly states that modern twin studies have shown that both genetics (nature) and environment (nurture) contribute to making a person unique. This aligns with the statement, making the answer TRUE.

28. Discordant twin studies are used to examine the effects of hereditary factors.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: “......Researchers also use discordant twin studies to examine the effects of environmental factors.........”

Keywords: effects, environmental

Keyword Location: para 5, line 4

Explanation: The passage explains that discordant twin studies focus on examining the effects of environmental factors, not hereditary ones. Since the statement contradicts this information, the answer is FALSE.

29. If the similarity between monozygotic twins is greater than that of dizygotic twins, that difference can be accounted for by genetics.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: “......If the similarity between monozygotic twins is greater than that of dizygotic twins, that difference can be accounted for by genetics.........”

Keywords: dizygotic, accounted

Keyword Location: para 4, lines 5-6

Explanation: The passage directly states that a greater similarity between monozygotic twins compared to dizygotic twins can be attributed to genetics. Therefore, the answer is TRUE.

30. Two very different twin studies cannot be used as a powerful learning tool in the field of science.

Answer: FALSE

Supporting statement: “.......Two very different twin studies can show the blend of classical and pioneering science that's currently being applied to twin studies as we continue to use them as a powerful learning tool........”

Keywords: pioneering, powerful

Keyword Location: para 7, line 2

Explanation: The passage mentions that two different twin studies can indeed be powerful learning tools. This statement contradicts the information in the passage, making the answer FALSE.

31. When a scientist looks at twins, she sees a natural study design.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Explanation: There is no explicit information in the passage that discusses how a scientist perceives twins as a natural study design. Hence, the answer is NOT GIVEN.

32. Twin studies include longitudinally observing their lives through physical and psychological tests regularly across a period of many years.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: “......By studying pairs of twins longitudinally or observing their lives through physical and psychological tests regularly across a period of many years or even entire lifetimes.........”

Keywords: physical, lifetimes

Keyword Location: para 3, lines 8-9

Explanation: The passage mentions that twin studies involve longitudinal observation, including regular physical and psychological tests over many years. This supports the statement, making the answer TRUE.

33. The twin study remains a common model in biology for removing confounding variables or outside factors that affect an outcome.

Answer: TRUE

Supporting statement: “........The twin study remains a common model in biology for removing confounding variables or outside factors that affect a study's outcome.......”

Keywords: variables, factors

Keyword Location: para 6, line 1

Explanation: The passage confirms that twin studies are commonly used in biology to remove confounding variables or outside factors. This makes the statement TRUE.

34. Twin studies also try to quantify the effect of a person's shared environment and unique environment on a trait.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Explanation: The passage does not provide information about quantifying the effect of shared and unique environments on a trait. Therefore, the answer is NOT GIVEN.

Questions 35 & 36

Write the appropriate letters A-D.

Which of the following TWO statements support twin studies?

A. Researchers comb through dizygotic and monozygotic pairs.

B. A cornucopia of traits cannot be studied.

C. The only real way of doing natural experiments

D. Doesn't shed light on human behavioural genetics.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: “.......In a twin study, researchers comb through dizygotic and monozygotic pairs, hunting for answers........”

Keywords: monozygotic, hunting

Keyword Location: para 7, line 3

Explanation: The passage mentions that researchers examine both dizygotic and monozygotic twins to gather data. Hence the answer A is correct.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: “........Twins studies are the only real way of doing natural experiments in humans.......”

Keywords: Twins, humans

Keyword Location: para 2, line 1

Explanation: The passage clearly states that twin studies are the only real way to conduct natural experiments in humans, supporting the answer.

Questions 37 & 38

Write the appropriate letters A-D.

In which of the following TWO conditions can twin studies not help prove hypothesis regarding a particular research?

A. General epidemiological research

B. Large sample size research

C. Researches in conjunction with larger-scale, non-twin longitudinal studies

D. Non-twin researches

Answer: B

Supporting statement: “.......That makes twin studies powerful in any of several ways: on their own, with a large sample size........”

Keywords: large, size

Keyword Location: para 7, line 1

Explanation: Twin studies can indeed be effective with large sample sizes, which contradicts the idea that they would not help. Thus, B is an appropriate answer to select as a condition where they help.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: “.......used in conjunction with larger-scale, non-twin longitudinal studies to test hypotheses further, without confounding variables........”

Keywords: studies, hypotheses

Keyword Location: para 7, lines 4-5

Explanation: The passage states that twin studies are effective when used alongside larger, non-twin longitudinal studies. Since this is a condition where they actually work, it’s an appropriate choice as a condition where they do help prove hypotheses.

Questions 39 & 40

Write the appropriate letters A-D.

Which of the following TWO statements describes dizygotic twins?

A. Don't have the same age.

D. share the same amount of genetic info as sidings.

C. Share nearly 100% of their genetic dr

D. Two separate eggs form two separate embryos.

Answer: B

Supporting statement: “......Dizygotic twins occur when two separate eggs in the mother's ovaries are fertilized by two separate sperm, and share roughly 50% of their genetic data..........”

Keywords: fertilized, genetic

Keyword Location: para 2, lines 8-9

Explanation: Dizygotic twins, who share roughly 50% of their genetic data, are similar to regular siblings in this respect. Hence B is the correct answer.

Answer: D

Supporting statement: “......Dizygotic twins occur when two separate eggs in the mother's ovaries are fertilized by two separate sperm.........”

Keywords: ovaries, fertilized

Keyword Location: para 2, line 8

Explanation: The passage describes dizygotic twins as resulting from the fertilization of two separate eggs, making this statement accurate.

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