GRE Reading Comprehension
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Source: CHP
Volcanic rock that forms as fluid lava chills rapidly is called pillow lava. This rapid chilling occurs when lava erupts directly into water (or beneath ice) or when it flows across a shoreline and into a body of water. While the term "pillow lava" suggests a definite shape, in fact geologists disagree. Some geologists argue that pillow lava is characterized by discrete, ellipsoidal masses. Others describe pillow lava as a tangled mass of cylindrical, interconnected flow lobes. Much of this controversy probably results from unwarranted extrapolations of the original configuration of pillow flows from twodimensional cross sections of eroded pillows in land outcroppings. Virtually any cross section cut through a tangled mass of interconnected flow lobes would give the appearance of a pile of discrete ellipsoidal masses. Adequate threedimensional images of intact pillows are essential for defining the true geometry of pillowed flows and thus ascertaining their mode of origin. Indeed, the term "pillow," itself suggestive of discrete masses, is probably a misnomer.
In the passage, the author is primarily interested in
- A analyzing the source of a scientific controversy
- B criticizing some geologists‘ methodology
- C pointing out the flaws in a geological study
- D proposing a new theory to explain existing scientific evidence
- E describing a physical phenomenon