PrepTest 150, Section 4, Question 23
Passage A Why do some trial court judges(458 more words not shown)
Passage A(204 more words not shown)
Passage B(262 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(43 more words not shown)
- Aexperience beyond what(11 more words not shown)
- Bmay even participate(12 more words not shown)
- Csubject to live(10 more words not shown)
- Dquestionable research results(9 more words not shown)
- Eoutside-the-record texts (final(4 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
Read “lack the wherewithal” in its sentence. The concern is that judges may not have the ability to conduct first-rate scientific research and may rely on outlier or discredited materials. We want B's expression of that concern about the quality of judges' research, not just any reference to experts or evidence.
Working the answers
- A
This describes practicing experts' knowledge and experience. It helps explain why their input matters, but the phrase itself is about what experts know, rather than questioning the quality of the court's own research results.
- B
A trial judge may participate by questioning witnesses. That describes an available role in the trial process; it does not express doubt about the judge's research ability.
- C
This refers to the opportunity for experts to comment on literature. Its absence helps explain the risk at the appellate level, but the phrase is not itself an assessment of the court's research quality.
- DCorrect
B criticizes courts for substituting their own “questionable research results” for properly tested evidence. The results are questionable for the same general reason A worries about judges lacking the ability to conduct sound scientific research: a judge's independent inquiry may produce unreliable findings.
- E
“Outside-the-record” identifies the relationship of a text to the trial record. It does not, by itself, mean the text or the judge's research is poor. Material can be new to the record without that phrase telling us whether it is scientifically reliable.
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