Which of the following, if true, is most damaging to the inference drawn by the scholars? A. The question of who first sighted Antarctica in modern times is still much debated, and no one has been able to present conclusive evidence. B. Between 3,000 and 9,000 years ago, the world was warmer than it is now, and the polar landmass was presumably smaller. C. There are only a few sixteenth-century global maps that show a continental landmass at the South Pole. D. Most attributions of surprising accomplishments to ancient civilizations or even extraterrestrials are eventually discredited or rejected as preposterous. E. Ancient philosophers believed that there had to be a large landmass at the South Pole to balance the northern continents and make the world symmetrical.