Now, let’s evaluate the procedure Ericsson and his colleagues used to conduct the study. Gladwell writes:

With the help of the Academy’s professors, [the psychologists] divided the school’s violinists into three groups. In the first group were the stars, the students with the potential to become world-class soloists. In the second were those judged to be merely “good.” In the third were students who were unlikely to
ever play professionally and who intended to be music teachers in the public school system. All of
the violinists were then asked the same question: over the course of your entire career, ever since
you first picked up the violin, how many hours have you practiced?

The reader should read closely to look for examples of FAULTY LOGIC. For example, the text states that the Academy’s professors helped divide the students. But the text does not include the criteria the professors used (how they decided who was world-class or good). What do you think: Could these professors be BIASED when ranking their students into different ability groups? Could they have let their feelings get in the way of their judgments?

2d.