The reading passage states that carved stone balls found in Scotland were made for different purposes and they have meanings and provides three theories to support the claim.

The reading passage states that carved stone balls found in Scotland were made for different purposes and they have meanings and provides three theories to support the claim. The lecturer, however, casts serious doubts on the presented methods and believes that none of these them are very convincing. First, the passage claims that these stones were weapons used in hunting or fighting because of the presence of the holes and many grooves on the surface, while the professor makes the point that if they were used as a weapon, they have to represent a symptom of use. She says that based on their observations there were no damage or crack. Thus, they cannot be applied as a weapon. Second, the lecturer asserts that although these carved stone balls are uniform in their size, their masses are entirely divergent. In fact, as they were made of different types of stones, each stone varies in density and is heavier than another. Therefore, they cannot be used for a first weighing system. On the other hand, the passage declares that carved stone balls were implemented as part of a system of weights and measures because of a uniform size. Third, in contrast to the reading passage which posits that the carved stone balls might have served the important social status of their owner, the professor disagrees and makes the argument that this theory is inconsistent. She comments that they found many carved stones in which some of them are carved intricately, but there are some others with a simple carving design. Moreover, as high ranked people were buried with their positions in the past, they did not find any of these carved stones in their tombs or graves. Consequently, they cannot serve a social purpose.