Question 3

It can be inferred from the passage that the reason the author finds the Solutrean hypothesis both startling and paradoxical is that

The reference is in the third paragraph: "The Solutrean theory has been influential in answering this question, a fact that may seem paradoxical--and startling--to those familiar with its line of reasoning: the Clovis people were actually Solutreans, an ancient seafaring culture along the Iberian peninsula, who had--astoundingly given the time period--crossed into the Americas via the Atlantic ocean."

The hypothesis is startling because they crossed the Atlantic ("astoundingly given the time period"). It is paradoxical because it is used to support a pre-Clovis theory, but it relies on an Atlantic crossing by people who are supposedly the Clovis people. However, the author frames the paradox in the subsequent question: "Could not a similar Siberian culture, if not the preClovis people themselves, have displayed equal nautical sophistication?" The paradox is that the Solutrean theory, which supports the Clovis lineage, provides an answer (maritime sophistication) that undermines the standard "Clovis first" theory by suggesting the pre-Clovis people could have done the same.

Let's evaluate the options against the primary points:
- A. ancient cultures were most likely unable to develop such a sophisticated form of maritime transport that they were able to cross the Atlantic: This explains why it is startling ("astoundingly given the time period"), but not why it is paradoxical.
- B. it supports the Clovis school of thought, and posits the existence of a capacity not commonly associated with ancient people: This is the best synthesis. It supports the Clovis (a key group in the debate) but attributes an astounding new capability (nautical sophistication) to them, which then paradoxically allows the author to ask if the pre-Clovis people could have had the same capability, thus threatening the Clovis-first model.
- C. the Clovis people had crossed from Siberia navigating across a difficult ice corridor, whereas the pre-Clovis people had sailed, with far less difficulty, across the Atlantic ocean: This misstates the theories. The Solutrean theory has Clovis sailing across the Atlantic.
- D. it suggests that the pre-Clovis people had a way to circumvent the ice-corridor, yet were unlikely to have traveled as far south as modern day Chile: Incorrect. The Solutrean theory is about the Clovis.
- E. it runs counter to one of the chief tenets of the "Clovis first" school of thought: While the conclusion used by the author runs counter to the Clovis first theory, the Solutrean theory itself is a theory about the origin of the Clovis people, making it not inherently counter to the school of thought it's meant to explain.

Answer for Question 3: B. it supports the Clovis school of thought, and posits the existence of a capacity not commonly associated with ancient people

Question 4

It can be most reasonably inferred from the passage that in regard to the manner in which the Monte Verde village was preserved that

The relevant text is in the fourth paragraph: "Nonetheless, Meade and Pizinsky claim that a propitious geologic accident could account for this discrepancy: Monte Verde was located near a peat bog that essentially fossilized the village."
- A. unless evidence of other pre-Clovis people was fossilized the same way it was in Monte Verde, archaeologists will be unable to determine the extent of the settlement of pre-Clovis people: This is too absolute. The passage says more excavation must be conducted, implying other methods might yield results, even if this type of preservation is ideal.
- B. major discoveries can sometimes result from random processes in the environment: Correct. The preservation is explicitly called a "propitious geologic accident," which means a fortunate or favorable result from a random environmental process.
- C. plant species can offer valuable clues into the origin of other pre-Clovis settlements: True, but this is an inference about the plant species (the data), not the manner of preservation (the accident).
- D. sites dated from slightly after the period of the Clovis people did not offer archaeologists such a trove of information: The passage does not compare the Monte Verde site to postClovis sites.
- E. archaeologists are unlikely to find any other significant evidence of pre-Clovis people unless they venture as much as 150 miles from the site: The 150 miles refers to the origin of the plant species for trade, not the necessary search radius for other settlements.

Answer for Question 4: B. major discoveries can sometimes result from random processes in the environment