The Bermuda Triangle
The area known as the Bermuda Triangle has become such a part of popular culture that it can be difficult to separate fact from fiction. The interest first began when five Navy planes vanished in 1945, officially resulting from “causes or reasons unknown.” The explanations about other accidents in the Triangle range from the scientific to the supernatural. Researchers have never been able to find anything truly mysterious about what happens in the Bermuda Triangle, if there even is a Bermuda Triangle. What is more one of the biggest challenges in considering the phenomenon is deciding how much area actually represents the Bermuda Triangle. Most consider the Triangle to stretch from Miami out to Puerto Rico and to include the island of Bermuda. Others expand the area to include all of the Caribbean islands and to extend eastward as far as the Azores, which are closer to Europe than they are to North America.
The problem with having a larger Bermuda Triangle is it increase the odds of accidents. There is near-constant travel, by ship and plane, across the Atlantic, and accidents are expected to occur. In fact, the Bermuda Triangle happens to fall within one of the busiest navigational regions in the world, and the reality of greater activity creates the possibility for more to go wrong. Shipping records suggest that there is not a greater than average loss of vessels within the Bermuda Triangle, and many researchers have argued that the reputation of the Triangle makes any accident seem out of the ordinary. In fact, most accidents fall within the expected margin of error. The increase in ships from East Asia no doubt contributes to an increase in accidents. And as for the story of the Navy planes that disappeared within the Triangle, many researchers now conclude that it was the result of mistakes on the part of the pilot who were flying into storm clouds and simply got lost.
With which of the following statements would the author most likely agree?
A.
There is no real mystery about the Bermuda Triangle because most events have reasonable explanations.
B.
Researchers are wrong to expand the focus of the Triangle to the Azores because this increases the likelihood of accidents.
C.
The official statement of “causes or reasons unknowns” in the loss of the Navy planes was a deliberate concealment from the Navy.
D.
Reducing the legends about the mysteries of the Bermuda Triangle will help to reduce the number of reported accidents or shipping losses in that region.
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
The statement the author would most likely agree with is:
A. There is no real mystery about the Bermuda Triangle because most events have reasonable explanations.
Explanation:
The passage provides a thorough analysis of the Bermuda Triangle phenomenon, emphasizing that while the area has captivated public imagination, most explanations for incidents within the Triangle are grounded in logical and reasonable causes rather than supernatural ones. The author points out that the Bermuda Triangle’s reputation is largely built on a mix of scientific and sensational claims, but upon closer inspection, many incidents can be attributed to mundane factors.
- Scientific and Rational Explanations:
The passage indicates that researchers have not found anything truly mysterious about the Bermuda Triangle. Instead, the losses of ships and planes are generally attributed to expected causes, such as navigational errors, weather conditions, and increased traffic in the area. For example, the disappearance of the Navy planes in 1945 is now believed to be due to pilot errors rather than mysterious phenomena. This suggests that most of the events associated with the Bermuda Triangle can be explained through logical and scientific reasoning rather than supernatural explanations. - Lack of Statistical Evidence:
The author also mentions that shipping records show no greater than average loss of vessels within the Bermuda Triangle compared to other areas. This statistical evidence supports the idea that the frequency of accidents is consistent with what would be expected in a busy navigational region. The increase in accidents is attributed to increased traffic and the inherent risks of maritime and aerial travel rather than any mysterious forces. - Misinterpretation of Data:
The passage argues that the reputation of the Bermuda Triangle might make accidents seem more extraordinary than they are. By noting that accidents fall within the expected margin of error and that the increase in ships contributes to more accidents, the author underscores that the perceived mystery is more about interpretation and less about actual extraordinary events.
Overall, the author’s viewpoint aligns with the idea that the Bermuda Triangle’s mysterious reputation is largely unfounded and that the events occurring in the region can be explained by rational and scientific factors rather than anything truly enigmatic.