Read the passage and answer questions:

On reflection scientists have rejected many past theories. It is also true that those theories were highly effective within the contexts that they had been developed and tested. The old earth-centred model of the solar system was supremely accurate to predict locations of stars and planets. Even now Newton's law of gravity is used to calculate satellite trajectories and go to the moon. Beliefs are made on the basis of evidence on hand. Philosophers and statisticians have over a period time, developed thinking ways about the relationship between belief, action and evidence that captures this preagmatism. Beliefs come in degrees ad measure how likely we think something to be true. The evidence we gather should influence these degrees of belief. The character of evidence makes us confident. We can use a branch of probability theory to map out a precise relationship between what we observe and what we ought to believe. A formula, known as Bayes' rule allows you to calculate your degree of belief or credence. This is after learning of some evidence that takes into account what you believed before you saw the evidence. Bayes' rule is a unique and rational way to update your beliefs.


1. Bayes' rule can be used to calculate the relationship between

(a) Past and present theories

(b) Observation and belief

(c) Rationality and uniqueness

(d) Credence and disbelief


2. The relationship between degrees of belief and truth is made possible by

(a) Actions initiated

(b) Confidence acquired

(c) Imagination of individuals

(d) Evidence available


3. The main theme of the passage is

(a) Changing nature of beliefs

(b) Importance of the theory of Newton

(c) Mapping of probability theory

(d) Centrality of human confidence in updating truth


4. The gravitational theory of Newton helped

(a) Man to go to the moon

(b) To locate the stares and planets

(c) To know the solar model

(d) To understand the satellite designs


5. What is true in case of past theories rejected by today's scientists?

(a) Past theories were untenable

(b) They were untested.

(c) They were true in the context of testing them

(d) They were rejected because of their inaccuracy.



ANSWERS

1 - b

2 - d

3 - a

4 - a

5 - c