Directions: Question numbers 8 and 9 are Assertion and Reason based questions. Two statements are given, one labelled as Assertion (A) and the other is labelled as Reason (R). Select the correct answer from the codes given below. Assertion (A): Reflex actions do not involve thinking. Reason (R): Most reflex actions are controlled by the spinal cord.

From the chapter: 'A common idea in all such examples is that we do something without thinking about it... Nerves from all over the body meet in a bundle in the spinal cord on their way to the brain. Reflex arcs are formed in this spinal cord itself... Of course, reflex arcs have evolved in animals because the thinking process of the brain is not fast enough.' This confirms both statements and their causal link.

• Assertion (A) is true: Reflex actions (e.g., withdrawing the hand from a flame) occur without conscious thought — they are rapid, automatic responses.
• Reason (R) is true: Reflex arcs, which mediate most reflex actions, are formed in the spinal cord itself rather than requiring signals to travel all the way to the brain.
• (R) correctly explains (A): Because the reflex arc connection between sensory (input) and motor (output) neurons is made directly at the spinal cord — the point where these nerves first meet — the response bypasses the slower, conscious thinking process of the brain, which is why reflex actions do not involve thinking. This is exactly why option (A) is correct and options (B), (C), (D) are wrong: both statements are factually true (ruling out C and D, which claim one is false), and R is not just coincidentally true but is the direct mechanistic reason for A (ruling out B).