A bank has been robbed and several people have been shot and seriously injured. There is an armed security guard who was on his
lunch break running towards the bank with his gun out and another man running out of the bank with an undetermined device in his hand. Explain two of the factors involving the brain, genes and/or culture that might influence whether the security guard interprets the running man as a threat and shoots or as a scared bank customer and doesn’t shoot.
With a bank robbery going on, the security guard's instinct is to defend the bank and get rid of intruders. When the security guard sees a man with something he can't identify, his brain will tend to proceed with caution. Therefore, the man will be stopped by the security guard.
The important fact about Ichabod Crane that comes to light in the passage is the last one - Ichabod was an unjust teacher who punished his students with prejudice. He punished those he did not like or considered could take the blame or burden for somebody else. He chose wisely whom to punish.
