<p>Very interesting editorial in today's New York Times. It basically states that the CB has failed miserably by removing analogies and adding on the 25 minute essay section. The author's premise is that false analogies are around us everywhere, and we as humans need to be able to discern the false ones from the true ones (The writer opens up about a story in which a person compared the Holocaust to the Estate Tax because he found one fleeting connection, completely avoiding the fact that the Holocaust involved the brutal murder of millions of Jewish people...) The concluding line may be a little extreme, and I'm sure all of us know how to discern true analogies from untenable ones, but I think this is directed more to the average populace of the American citizenry.</p>
<p>"...Obviously, every American should be able to write, and write well. But if forced to choose between a citizenry that can produce a good 25-minute writing sample or spot a bad analogy, we would be better off with a nation of analogists."</p>
<p>"Philosophers like Aristotle relied on analogies to reason about man and nature. Scientists have long analogized from things they know to things they do not, to form hypotheses and plot experiments."</p>
<p>"The power of an analogy is that it can persuade people to transfer the feeling of certainty they have about one subject to another subject about which they may not have formed an opinion."</p>
<p>And lastly:
"The College Board's Web site explanation that analogies are being dropped because they are "less connected to the current high school curriculum" itself shows a stunning lack of logic, since it does not explain what the "less connected" refers to. Less connected than they used to be? Than other parts of the test? But in any case, it is a dangerous concession. Since the SAT no longer contains analogy questions, here is one: A nation whose citizens cannot tell a true analogy from a false one is like - fill in your own image for precipitous decline."</p>