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Answer questions on the basis of the paragraph below
We are not only afraid of being in the dark; we are also suspicious of being kept in the dark. We often feel that the universe has a hidden order that we cannot quite comprehend. In ancient times, this order was attributed to the gods – omnipotent beings who controlled humans’ fates. Greek myths in particular portrayed humans as pawns in the great games played by the gods. More recently, there are suspicions of global conspiracies. These conspiracies are cited for events that are too important to be random. We no longer describe them as “Acts of God,” so they must be the work of other people - people who are hiding their influence over us, covering up their involvement. They are keeping the rest of us in the dark. Among the events attributed to these people are political assassinations and UFO sightings.
Examining these events in minute detail results in a long list of “coincidences” which,
in the minds of the conspiracy buffs, are too numerous to be truly random. There must be a central planner who is at the hub of a sinister form of order. No one admits to the conspiracy, so there must be a cover - up. Better to think that we are all being kept in the dark by sinister forces than to admit that there is no order.
Which of the following statements would, if true, strengthen the case for belief in sinister forces and conspiracies being at work in the above paragraph?
i. Though science has progressed a lot in the last two centuries or so, it is still unable to explain/account for more than 80% of the phenomena in the universe.
ii. There is now the existence of photographic evidence of presence of UFOs and a growing number of parallel studies showing that the human mind can easily be manipulated to do someone else’s will through various events that manipulate the ‘perceived reality’.
iii. The fear of our actions and thoughts being controlled by someone else has intensified with the widespread popularity of the depiction of its gory outcomes by different novelists and movie makers.
iv. There is a strong movement to reintroduce the teachings of the biblical evolutionary process and the presence of God in schools around the world.
v. The Darwinian study of evolution of species, the cornerstone of beliefs in fathomable randomness of the workings of the universe has come under a scathing attack for its inaccurate depiction of the causes and process of evolution.
We have to find instances which "belief in sinister forces and conspiracies being at work" with regards to the happenings in the world.
Sentence (i) shows science in a poor light as having failed in explaining majority of the goings on in our world despite its progress in the past few years. It can potentially trigger stronger belief that the world is influenced by a force(s) which is/are not overtly visible. Hence, strengthening.
Sentence (ii) strengthens the belief that extra-terrestrial forces could be exploiting human minds to do their bidding without the humans' knowledge. Hence, strengthening.
Sentence (iii) merely tells us the result of some literature and movies on human minds. It does not strengthen the given case in question but merely tells us of a probable truth. Hence, it is not a strengthening statement.
Sentence (iv) is an irrelevant one.
Sentence (v) is again another strengthening one because it brings into question the validity of a celebrated theory which upholds randomness. Strengthens the case for sinister forces wielding their power.
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