PrepTest 94+, Section 3, Question 13
Passage A is adapted from a book review by physicist Freeman Dyson. Passage B is adapted from a response to the review.
Passage A
There are two extreme views concerning the role of science in human understanding. The reductionist view holds that all kinds of knowledge, from physics to ethics, can be reduced to science. The traditional view holds that science is one of many independent sources of knowledge. Most people hold views between these two extremes. Skeptics of paranormal phenomena are generally near the reductionist extreme, while I am near the traditional extreme.
The question of the limits of science is closely connected to the possible existence of paranormal phenomena. Scientific attempts to study extrasensory perception and telepathy have failed. Skeptics conclude from this that paranormal phenomena do not exist. I do not accept this conclusion because I am not a reductionist. Paranormal phenomena may exist but be inaccessible to scientific investigation. This is just a hypothesis, but one that I find tenable and plausible.
This hypothesis is supported by abundant evidence (stories of ordinary people who apparently possess paranormal abilities) collected by the Society for Psychical Research and similar organizations. This evidence is anecdotal rather than scientific, since it cannot be reproduced under controlled conditions. But the organizations have conscientiously interviewed eyewitnesses right after the events and carefully documented the stories. These stories make it clear that if paranormal events occur, they occur only when people are under stress and experiencing strong emotion. This would explain why paranormal phenomena are not observable in well-controlled scientific experiments. Strong emotion and stress are incompatible with scientific procedures.
Paranormal phenomena and the scientific method may be complementary. "Complementary" is a technical term in quantum physics, meaning that two descriptions of nature are both valid but cannot be observed simultaneously. The classic example of complementarity is the dual nature of light. Light behaves as a wave in one experiment and as particles in another, but we cannot see both in the same experiment.
Passage A is adapted from a book review by physicist Freeman Dyson. Passage B is adapted from a response to the review.
Passage A
There are two extreme views concerning the role of science in human understanding. The reductionist view holds that all kinds of knowledge, from physics to ethics, can be reduced to science. The traditional view holds that science is one of many independent sources of knowledge. Most people hold views between these two extremes. Skeptics of paranormal phenomena are generally near the reductionist extreme, while I am near the traditional extreme.
The question of the limits of science is closely connected to the possible existence of paranormal phenomena. Scientific attempts to study extrasensory perception and telepathy have failed. Skeptics conclude from this that paranormal phenomena do not exist. I do not accept this conclusion because I am not a reductionist. Paranormal phenomena may exist but be inaccessible to scientific investigation. This is just a hypothesis, but one that I find tenable and plausible.
This hypothesis is supported by abundant evidence (stories of ordinary people who apparently possess paranormal abilities) collected by the Society for Psychical Research and similar organizations. This evidence is anecdotal rather than scientific, since it cannot be reproduced under controlled conditions. But the organizations have conscientiously interviewed eyewitnesses right after the events and carefully documented the stories. These stories make it clear that if paranormal events occur, they occur only when people are under stress and experiencing strong emotion. This would explain why paranormal phenomena are not observable in well-controlled scientific experiments. Strong emotion and stress are incompatible with scientific procedures.
Paranormal phenomena and the scientific method may be complementary. "Complementary" is a technical term in quantum physics, meaning that two descriptions of nature are both valid but cannot be observed simultaneously. The classic example of complementarity is the dual nature of light. Light behaves as a wave in one experiment and as particles in another, but we cannot see both in the same experiment.
Passage B
Freeman Dyson makes a ridiculous plea for openness to the paranormal because he is not a reductionist and because anecdotal evidence convinces him that under certain conditions (e.g., stress), some people exhibit paranormal powers, unless they are placed in controlled scientific conditions, in which case the powers mysteriously disappear. A scientist of Dyson's caliber should know that anecdotes do not make a science. The only way to find out if anecdotes represent real phenomena is controlled experimental tests. Paranormal phenomena have repeatedly been subjected to rigorous scientific experiments, and the results are unequivocal: psychic power is a chimera. Dyson recognizes that his belief in the possibility of paranormal phenomena conflicts with his scientific views, but he responds by invoking the principle of complementarity. Sorry, but the principle does not apply to the paranormal. Either people can read other people's minds or they cannot. Science has demonstrated that they cannot. And being a holist instead of a reductionist or reading about weird things that happen to people does not change this scientific fact.
Passage A is adapted from a book review by physicist Freeman Dyson. Passage B is adapted from a response to the review.
Passage A
There are two extreme views concerning the role of science in human understanding. The reductionist view holds that all kinds of knowledge, from physics to ethics, can be reduced to science. The traditional view holds that science is one of many independent sources of knowledge. Most people hold views between these two extremes. Skeptics of paranormal phenomena are generally near the reductionist extreme, while I am near the traditional extreme.
The question of the limits of science is closely connected to the possible existence of paranormal phenomena. Scientific attempts to study extrasensory perception and telepathy have failed. Skeptics conclude from this that paranormal phenomena do not exist. I do not accept this conclusion because I am not a reductionist. Paranormal phenomena may exist but be inaccessible to scientific investigation. This is just a hypothesis, but one that I find tenable and plausible.
This hypothesis is supported by abundant evidence (stories of ordinary people who apparently possess paranormal abilities) collected by the Society for Psychical Research and similar organizations. This evidence is anecdotal rather than scientific, since it cannot be reproduced under controlled conditions. But the organizations have conscientiously interviewed eyewitnesses right after the events and carefully documented the stories. These stories make it clear that if paranormal events occur, they occur only when people are under stress and experiencing strong emotion. This would explain why paranormal phenomena are not observable in well-controlled scientific experiments. Strong emotion and stress are incompatible with scientific procedures.
Paranormal phenomena and the scientific method may be complementary. "Complementary" is a technical term in quantum physics, meaning that two descriptions of nature are both valid but cannot be observed simultaneously. The classic example of complementarity is the dual nature of light. Light behaves as a wave in one experiment and as particles in another, but we cannot see both in the same experiment.
Passage B
Freeman Dyson makes a ridiculous plea for openness to the paranormal because he is not a reductionist and because anecdotal evidence convinces him that under certain conditions (e.g., stress), some people exhibit paranormal powers, unless they are placed in controlled scientific conditions, in which case the powers mysteriously disappear. A scientist of Dyson's caliber should know that anecdotes do not make a science. The only way to find out if anecdotes represent real phenomena is controlled experimental tests. Paranormal phenomena have repeatedly been subjected to rigorous scientific experiments, and the results are unequivocal: psychic power is a chimera. Dyson recognizes that his belief in the possibility of paranormal phenomena conflicts with his scientific views, but he responds by invoking the principle of complementarity. Sorry, but the principle does not apply to the paranormal. Either people can read other people's minds or they cannot. Science has demonstrated that they cannot. And being a holist instead of a reductionist or reading about weird things that happen to people does not change this scientific fact.
Passage A is adapted from a book review by physicist Freeman Dyson. Passage B is adapted from a response to the review.
Passage A
There are two extreme views concerning the role of science in human understanding. The reductionist view holds that all kinds of knowledge, from physics to ethics, can be reduced to science. The traditional view holds that science is one of many independent sources of knowledge. Most people hold views between these two extremes. Skeptics of paranormal phenomena are generally near the reductionist extreme, while I am near the traditional extreme.
The question of the limits of science is closely connected to the possible existence of paranormal phenomena. Scientific attempts to study extrasensory perception and telepathy have failed. Skeptics conclude from this that paranormal phenomena do not exist. I do not accept this conclusion because I am not a reductionist. Paranormal phenomena may exist but be inaccessible to scientific investigation. This is just a hypothesis, but one that I find tenable and plausible.
This hypothesis is supported by abundant evidence (stories of ordinary people who apparently possess paranormal abilities) collected by the Society for Psychical Research and similar organizations. This evidence is anecdotal rather than scientific, since it cannot be reproduced under controlled conditions. But the organizations have conscientiously interviewed eyewitnesses right after the events and carefully documented the stories. These stories make it clear that if paranormal events occur, they occur only when people are under stress and experiencing strong emotion. This would explain why paranormal phenomena are not observable in well-controlled scientific experiments. Strong emotion and stress are incompatible with scientific procedures.
Paranormal phenomena and the scientific method may be complementary. "Complementary" is a technical term in quantum physics, meaning that two descriptions of nature are both valid but cannot be observed simultaneously. The classic example of complementarity is the dual nature of light. Light behaves as a wave in one experiment and as particles in another, but we cannot see both in the same experiment.
It can be inferred from the passages that the author of passage B would be more likely than the author of passage A to accept which one of the following statements?
There may be real phenomena that can never be discovered by scientific procedures.
There are numerous reports citing ordinary people who apparently demonstrate paranormal abilities.
Light behaves as a wave in some experiments and as particles in others.
Scientific investigation has provided no evidence that extrasensory perception and telepathy are real.
The same general methods that are used in physics are appropriate to the study of all human behavior.
Explanations
The question asks us which answer choice author B would be more likely to accept than author A.
This will be tough to predict, so I'm grounding myself in my understanding of the authors' points of view.
Author B thinks more like a reductionist—we need to use controlled experiments to evaluate phenomena, otherwise they don't exist.
Author A thinks science is great, and often correct, but that anecdotal evidence points to things we can't explain in controlled experiments that may still exist.
One more thing to keep in mind: I can easily eliminate answer choices here if author B wouldn't agree with the idea presented or if I simply don't have evidence of how one or both authors would feel about it.
Let's dive in.
Nah. If anything, A would believe this more strongly than B would.
Nope. They'd both agree this happens, B just thinks the reports are nonsensical.
No. I know precisely how A feels about this, but B doesn't weigh in on it, so I can't pick it. Didn't read? Don't pick!
Oh, such a trap. No! This isn't it because both authors actually agree about this. Author A totally concedes that science hasn't produced evidence of the paranormal. Author B feels the same, which is why author B thinks author A's argument is nutso.
Yes. Not quite what I predicted, but this works. Author A would say, "Not necessarily—let's consider how anecdotal evidence plays into the study of human behavior, not just physics." Author B would say, "These general methods are a lot more trustworthy than anecdotes." B would agree with this more than A would, so it's the answer.
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