We May Not Much Like the Fact, But We are 99.9 Percent Identical GMAT Reading Comprehension

Reading Passage Question

We may not much like the fact, but we are 99.9 percent identical. This is because 99.9 percent of our DNA is common to every person, and the Human Genome Project is rightly celebrated for sequencing it. But what of the remaining 0.1 percent? It is far more significant than one might assume because if it was not for this minute percentage there would be no individual differences. We would be clones. These variations in the human code account for all individual idiosyncrasies. They are responsible for the differences between ethnic and racial groups. Perhaps most interesting of all, they also explain why some of us enjoy good health while others are more susceptible to many common diseases. It is thought that the mapping of the remaining 0.1 percent of human DNA will hasten the identification of new ways to treat common ailments such as obesity, cancer, and heart disease. The work will prove particularly useful in the search for new diagnostic tests, the customizing of treatments to best suit an individual’s genetic code, and ultimately the development of new drugs that target the DNA linked to a particular disease. The task of charting the inherited differences in the human genome has fallen to 200 scientists drawn from nine countries across every (populated) continent. They will screen people drawn from all the major human populations.

“We May Not Much Like the Fact, But We are 99.9 Percent Identical” is a GMAT reading comprehension passage with answers. Candidates must have a solid grip in English GMAT reading comprehension. There are 5 multiple choice questions in the above GMAT Reading Comprehension passages. GMAT Reading Comprehension Questions are delineated to evaluate candidates’ abilities to analyze and be conceptual for the answers. Candidates can brace up and take preparation by answering GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.

Solution and Explanation

Q1. In the context of the passage the word sequencing refers to:

1. the human genetic code
2. the order in which things are repeated
3. a chart or map of the genetic differences between people
4. the work of the Human Genome Project
5. the order in which amino acids are arranged in DNA

Q2. Which of the following topics is not touched upon in the passage?

1. genetic research
2. human biology
3. susceptibility to common diseases
4. preventative treatments
5. populations that share a genetic inheritance

Q3. It can be inferred that the work will:

1. accelerate the search for genes involved in common diseases
2. chart the inherited differences in the human genome
3. speed up the development of new treatments
4. map the DNA that is shared by every person
5. be made freely available on the internet

Q4. In reaching the conclusion that some of us enjoy good health while others are more susceptible to many common diseases, the author relies on which premise?

1. Humans are 99.9 percent genetically identical.
2. The genetic differences between people hold the key to our predisposition to many common diseases.
3. 0.1 percent of the human genetic code accounts for all the genetic differences between human beings.
4. The human genome sequence provides us with a blueprint of all the DNA shared by every human being.
5. The sequencing of the genetic differences allows scientists to identify genes that influence common diseases.

Q5. Which of the following questions are not answered in the passage?

1. Will new ways to treat common ailments such as obesity, cancer and heart disease be made possible by the gene map?
2. Who will map the genetic differences?
3. What would be the consequences if 100 percent of our DNA were common to every person?
4. Why is the minute percentage of inherited differences significant?
5. How can mapping of the remaining 0.1 percent of human DNA help in the search for new diagnostic tests, customized treatments and new drugs?

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