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The author claims that "the greatest challenge in modern scientific investigation is not simply acquiring data, but knowing what to do with it." The author then cites an example of scientists who studied the effects of a medication on patients, but who were not able to determine whether the medication's effects were positive or negative, because they didn't have enough information to draw a conclusion about how the medication worked.

SAT · English · previous-year question

  1. A.Scientists must be careful not to draw conclusions from data without enough information to support those conclusions.correct
  2. B.Scientific investigations are often conducted without sufficient regard for the ethical implications of the research.
  3. C.The results of scientific investigations are often unreliable because of the inherent subjectivity of scientific observation.
  4. D.Scientific investigations are increasingly complex and require the collaboration of specialists from many different fields.

Answer

A. Scientists must be careful not to draw conclusions from data without enough information to support those conclusions.

Explanation

The author argues that the challenge of scientific investigation is not acquiring data, but making sense of it, which requires sufficient information to draw valid conclusions.

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