Read the passage and answer the questions:
"Normal science, the activity in which most scientists inevitably spend almost all their time, is based on the assumption that the scientific community knows what the world is like. Scientists take great pains to defend that assumption, often restricting their vision to the phenomena that the existing paradigm has defined as relevant. When research proceeds in this fashion, findings tend to be incremental, reinforcing the established framework rather than challenging it. Yet, over time, anomalies—empirical observations that cannot be explained within the current paradigm—accumulate. Initially, these anomalies are dismissed as errors or as problems to be solved within the existing theoretical structure. However, as these anomalies grow in number and significance, they begin to erode confidence in the prevailing paradigm.
The resolution of such crises is not a straightforward process of falsification, as Popper might suggest, but rather a transformation in the very way scientists see the world. Scientific revolutions occur when a new paradigm emerges—one that is not merely an extension of the old but a fundamental reconceptualization of reality. This shift is not purely logical or empirical; it involves a radical change in perspective, akin to a gestalt switch. The Copernican Revolution, for example, did not merely adjust astronomical calculations; it redefined the very framework through which celestial motion was understood. Similarly, Einstein's theory of relativity did not just modify Newtonian mechanics but replaced its foundational assumptions about space and time.
What type of clause is used in the sentence:
"Yet, over time, anomalies that cannot be explained within the current paradigm accumulate."
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Correct Answer
Relative clause
Explanation
To identify the type of clause highlighted in the sentence, look at its function and how it connects to the rest of the sentence:
Identify the Target Clause: The clause in question is "that cannot be explained within the current paradigm".
Analyze its Function: This clause begins with the relative pronoun "that" and directly modifies, describes, and gives essential information about the noun "anomalies" right before it.
Grammatical Rule: A dependent clause that modifies a noun or pronoun is called an adjective clause, or more specifically, a Relative clause.
Analysis of Other Options:
Noun clause: Functions as a noun (subject or object) in the sentence (e.g., "What he said was interesting").
Adverbial clause: Modifies a verb, adjective, or adverb, usually showing time, cause, or condition (e.g., "Because the anomalies accumulated, the paradigm shifted").
Independent clause: A complete thought that can stand alone as a sentence. The targeted segment cannot stand alone.
Key Points
Formula: Noun (Anomalies) + Relative Pronoun (that) + Verb Phrase = Relative Clause.
Exam Shortcut: Whenever a clause starts with relative pronouns like that, which, who, or whom and follows a noun it is describing, classify it immediately as a Relative clause.