ShmoopTube

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We speak student!

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[ musical flourish ]

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And here's your Shmoop du jour, brought to you by wasp nests. [a boy hitting a paper wasps nest with a stick]

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Here's a tip:

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they are not pinatas. Trust us. Really.

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All right, check out the following passage.

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Paper wasps gather fibers from trees and plants and mix these

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fibers with saliva - ew, gross -

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in order to create water-resistant nests.

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Paper wasp nests are ingeniously

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complex in their construction and durability. [narrator reading a passage]

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The wasps also secrete a chemical which repels ants,

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which can threaten the eggs and offspring of the paper wasps.

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Hmm.

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All right, "ingenious"

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most nearly means... what?

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Inside genius? [music playing in the background]

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[ mumbles ] All right.

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Well, apparently, wasp nests are pretty elaborate. [a paper wasp enjoying in a Jacuzzi pool]

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As a matter of fact, we wouldn't be surprised to find a miniature day spa

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and an exercise bike in there. Yeah.

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But we've gotta hand it to you wasps. You're pretty dazzling.

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Let's get into the question.

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The passage's emphasis on their impressive

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and complicated nature gives us a hint in defining "ingenious." [a laser beam from a paper wasp nest killing ants]

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Now, elements of the wasp nest are certainly strategic,

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like its elaborate anti-ant defense mechanisms,

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but the passage also emphasizes other elements,

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like its water resistance and durability. [a paper wasp flying a spacecraft]

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It's not just an army base, all right?

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So strategic isn't the best choice.

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And the writer's emphasizing more than just

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that the nests are extremely complex, right?

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That complexity serves a purpose. [a man watching a movie in a theater]

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Unlike Christopher Nolan movies.

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Ingenious doesn't mean extremely, so C's gotta go.

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And nothing about the functional saliva and fiber-based

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secretion-filled construction implies elegance or beauty. [a man talking to a woman]

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Body secretions are rarely attractive.

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So we can get rid of option D, too.

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But all of the layers of defenses and traps [ two paper wasps discussing something]

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do imply that the nest is clever and well-designed,

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making option A the closest definition to "ingenious."

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Isn't it comforting to know that these vicious

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biting pests are also pretty smart? [a paper wasp posting a piece of paper on the fridge]

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[ chuckles ] Yeah, maybe we'll just stay indoors.

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[ glass breaks ]

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