#27 - Concept Reference, Parallel

[mokkyukkyu]

Hello,

I was not sure between C and E...I chose E, but still not sure why C is not correct. I think it's pretty close isn't it?

[Adam Tyson]

Before we answer this one, tell us why you feel answer E is good. What did you prephrase here? What is your evidence to support your contender answer? How do the answers differ, and how does that difference matter? Once you have it down to two or three contenders, you need to do some analysis comparing the two answers to each other, and comparing them all to the question stem and the information in the passage to be sure you know what you are supposed to be doing with that information. Don't lost sight of the question and just get lost in the answer choices! Be sure to remain on task, focused on what you are being asked to do.

Get back to us after more analysis, and let's see then if you still need any help on this.

[emyang]

Hi,

Is it because (E) and the discovery of Neptune both include positive evidence during scientific research, E is correct? The hypothesis in both cases is the existence of something, and the evidence is the discovery of such a thing proving the hypothesis. However, B and D lack the process of confirming the hypothesis.

Is my prephasing right? Thanks a lot!

[Adam Tyson]

Exactly right, emyang! Neptune was an example of positive evidence used to confirm that an earlier adjustment to an auxiliary premise was correct. Answer E gives us that same thing - a theory is incorrect or incomplete, an auxiliary premise is adjusted, and later positive evidence is found that confirms that premise.

Bravo!

[KhaliaCWilliams]

Hi! I narrowed this question down to A and E, can someone explain why A is incorrect?


Thank You!

[James Finch]

Hi Khalia,

The discovery of Neptune functions as an example of using empirical evidence (Uranus's orbit) as positive evidence for an empirically unsupported hypothesized existence of an unknown thing (Neptune), the existence of which would explain the discrepancy between the observed evidence of Uranus's orbit and the theory that Newton's laws encompass. This example was then empirically shown to exist, providing further empirical support for Newton's theory. So in a parallel answer choice, we need to find something the same elements and have them play the same roles, of a theory predicting the existence of a hitherto-unknown thing that would explain a discrepancy, and that thing's existence later being born out by observation.

In (A), we a theory (Galileo's tides) but that theory is shown to be false by observation, so this doesn't actually parallel the Neptune situation. (E) does parallel it by a having a theory (Pauli's) which explains a discrepancy (the particles' energies before and after decay) and later confirmation of the theory, presumably through observation (if I'd written this question, I would have explained how the theory was confirmed).

Hope this clears things up!

[jboarnet]

Hi, can someone please articulate further why C is incorrect? Thanks!

[Robert Carroll]

jboarnet,

It's all about the discovery of Neptune. Here's a sketch of what happened there:

Something happened that didn't make sense under the laws of science as then understood. It could be that the laws of science were wrong. That would have been a pretty radical conclusion. It could instead have been that some phenomenon, as yet undetected, was skewing the data. That's a less radical conclusion. Scientists assumed there was some phenomenon skewing the data, and they ended up being right.

Answer choice (C) doesn't have a parallel situation. There's nothing in it that doesn't make sense and that needs a resolution.

Robert Carroll