Read the statement and identify the tone of the author:
"Despite exuberant commercial claims that autonomous weeding robots would eradicate chemical herbicide usage overnight, rigorous empirical farm trials demonstrate modest $15\%$ reductions accompanied by prohibitive capital acquisition costs and frequent software disengagements in muddy soil terrain."
Options:
(A) Enthusiastic and optimistic
(B) Sceptical and pragmatic
(C) Indifferent and dismissive
(D) Belligerent and sarcastic
Answer Key:
B
Step-by-Step Solution & Explanation
The author contrasts "exuberant commercial claims" with "rigorous empirical farm trials" demonstrating modest gains and high costs, exhibiting a critical, grounded, and evidence-based (sceptical and pragmatic) attitude.