Mini-Passage Drill #1 on p.254 RC 2020 Bible

[dsamad]

Hi there,

Could you help me understand why answer choice (b) of question 1 is wrong? Einstein departed ... to pursue less optimistic answers to the question of political, philosophical and scientific unity. I understood this to mean that the empiricist attitude to reach scientific truth, which is done to achieve the aim of unified vision, is too optimistic for Einstein. Isn't this like saying the metaphysics eschewed and replaced by empiricist attitude too optimistic in seeking answers?

Moreover, I remember reading that when the passage, whether on LR or RC, is an expression of opinion, we shall avoid answers with assertive factual statements. This is what I attempted to do with question 2 of the same passage. I went fr answer choice (e) because it was the only one admitting an opinion.

Your help is much appreciated!

Thank you.

Dalaal

[Jeremy Press]

Hi Dalal,

I do agree with you that the passage suggests Einstein left the Circle because ultimately he found it too optimistic (he wanted to pursue less optimistic ideas)! But the problem with answer choice B is that, when it uses the phrase "resulted in," it asserts that there is a causal relationship between the Circle's rejection of metaphysics and its optimistic quest for scientific unity. There is no evidence in the passage of such a causal relationship, and thus no basis for saying whether Einstein would agree with the existence of that causal relationship. Think of it this way: if you were to ask the question, "What caused the Vienna Circle to be so optimistic in its quest for scientific unity," could you find an answer to that question in this passage (let alone an answer coming from Einstein)? I think the answer to that has to be no, which makes B an unsupportable answer choice.

Does that make sense?

Jeremy