A study of professional musicians found that their ability to distinguish slight variations in pitch was far superior to non-musicians. Brain scans revealed that the auditory cortex of musicians who had trained for more than ten years showed structural differences from both non-musicians and musicians with less training.
Based on the passage, it can be inferred that
only people born with certain brain structures can become musicians
extended musical training may cause physical changes in the brain
non-musicians cannot hear pitch variations at all
auditory abilities are fixed at birth and cannot be improved
Correct Answer: B
Choice B is the best answer. The study links duration of training to brain structure differences.
- Context clues: Musicians with "more than ten years" training showed different brain structures.
- Meaning: The correlation between training duration and structural differences suggests training causes changes.
- Verify: The distinction between more-trained and less-trained musicians points to training as the cause.
💡 Strategy: When differences correlate with a particular variable, infer that variable's influence.
Choice A is incorrect because the passage suggests training creates differences, not birth. Choice C is incorrect because non-musicians have less ability, not zero ability. Choice D is incorrect because the structural changes suggest abilities can develop.