Question:

Which of the following conclusions can be drawn on the basis of facts mentioned in the given passage?

Show Hint

Multiple correct facts may appear together in RC passages; ensure you check each option separately against the text.
Updated On: Aug 26, 2026
  • Chemoautotrophic organisms with the help of carbon generate organic compounds.
  • Life is not possible without carbon.
  • Some of the micro-organisms on Earth can feed on inorganic compounds.
  • Gale Crater contains not only hydrogen, oxygen and phosphorus but also carbon dioxide.
Show Solution
collegedunia
Verified By Collegedunia

The Correct Option is C

Approach Solution - 1

From the passage: 

- It states: "Some micro-organisms on Earth, for example, can feed on inorganic compounds, such as what are found inside rocks." \(\Rightarrow\) supports (c). 

- It also states: "Analysis shows the Gale Crater rock contains carbon dioxide, in addition to hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulphur and nitrogen." \(\Rightarrow\) supports (d). 

Option (a) is incomplete since passage allows life even without carbon present. 

Option (b) is wrong for the same reason. \[ \Rightarrow \boxed{(c) \text{ and } (d)} \]

Was this answer helpful?
0
0
Show Solution
collegedunia
Verified By Collegedunia

Approach Solution -2

Separate the answer options into two categories — a directly reported laboratory measurement, and a broader inference the passage invites the reader to draw — since the question specifically asks for a "conclusion," not a restated data point.

  1. Option A: the passage's chemoautotrophic-microbe example is used specifically to show that organic compounds and carbon are not required for such organisms to survive, so a conclusion claiming they generate organic compounds "with the help of carbon" reverses the passage's actual point.
  2. Option B: the passage's discussion of carbon-free habitability directly contradicts any conclusion that life is impossible without carbon.
  3. Option C: the passage's mention of Earth micro-organisms feeding on inorganic compounds found inside rocks is offered precisely to support the broader inference that life need not depend on carbon or organics, which is the kind of conclusion the question is asking the reader to draw.
  4. Option D: the chemical composition of Gale Crater rock (hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulphur, nitrogen, carbon dioxide) is a specific laboratory finding stated outright in the passage — it is raw reported data rather than an inference the reader draws, so it does not fit what the question is asking for.

Among the four, only option C represents an inference legitimately drawn from the passage's discussion, rather than a restatement of an isolated measurement or a claim the passage contradicts.

Hence, the correct answer is Some of the micro-organisms on Earth can feed on inorganic compounds.

Was this answer helpful?
0
0

Top SNAP English Questions

View More Questions

Top SNAP Reading Comprehension Questions

View More Questions