Digital SAT Reading and Writing Practice Question #381

In a recent paleontological study, Dr. Arisawa argues that Neanderthals possessed the anatomical capacity for complex spoken language. Her primary evidence is a fossilized Neanderthal hyoid bone, which anchors the tongue and vocal cords. Arisawa notes that the Neanderthal hyoid is virtually identical in shape to that of modern Homo sapiens. Critics argue that without preserved soft tissue, the shape of the hyoid alone cannot definitively prove vocalization capacity. Arisawa counters by pointing out that the specific microscopic muscle attachment sites on the surrounding fossilized skull indicate that the hyoid was positioned low in the throat, creating a descended larynx—a structural prerequisite for producing the wide range of vowel sounds necessary for complex language. Which finding, if true, would most directly weaken Dr. Arisawa's counterargument?