1-3
The passage focuses on senescence, 'the process of bodily deterioration that occurs at older ages'; though death is also an important
issue tackled in the passage, it is important only in as much as it is the endpoint of senescence. So option [1], which does not mention
senescence at all, is incorrect. The topic of a cause of ageing (or rather, senescence) and death and an evolutionary explanation for
senescence is brought up in the last two paragraphs only, and then too, the cause/explanation is not identified. So [2] and [4] are incorrect
as well. The passage is about how 'the inevitability of ageing and dying casts the longest shadow on human life': how people struggle
against it; what human life would be like if hypothetically either death or senescence were not inevitable; and the beginning of an inquiry
into why they seem to be inevitable. Hence, [3].
2 - 3
The author differentiates between 'life expectancy' and 'life span' in the second paragraph, and states that the former has increased in the
past few hundred years, but the latter has not. So [1] is wrong. While [2] may be true, there is not enough information in the passage to
infer it. [4] is incorrect: there is no such cause-effect relationship established in the passage. Only [3] is correct, as can be inferred from
the hypothetical scenarios given in the fourth paragraph. Hence, [3].
3- 2
The first paragraph introduces the topic of ageing and dying. The second and third clarify certain pertinent definitions, such as 'life
expectancy', 'life span' and 'senescence', and mention some statistics regarding the same. The fourth paragraph is about some
hypothetical ideas involving the elimination of premature death or senescence. The last two paragraphs raise a question about the
evolutionary mystery regarding senescence, which is left unanswered. This sequence corresponds best to option [2]. Note that [3] and [4]
fail to mention the statistics and definitions, respectively, and [1] mentions 'another perspective', which does not appear in the passage.
Hence, [2].
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