These two assignments concern a theoretical result in quantum theory known as Bell’s theorem and its philosophical implications. The article by van Fraassen covers both topics, but I’ve only assigned material (mainly at the beginning and end) that addresses the latter. Mermin’s article presents the argument for the theorem and describes experimental confirmation of its prediction.

You might read the beginning of van Fraassen (i.e., §§1-2, pp. 25-28), then read Mermin, and finish up the assignment in van Fraassen (i.e., the two paragraphs of §4 and the short §5, pp. 31, 35-36). Alternatively, since Mermin’s article is self-contained, you might read it first and then the assignment in van Fraassen. Although Mermin’s article is addressed to the community of physicists, it presupposes little or no specific knowledge of physics apart from one short section, titled “One way to do it,” on pp. 44-45, and you can skip that without any loss. On the other hand, if you have the time to read the whole of van Fraassen, his presentation of the argument is reasonably accessible, and (although there are many versions of the argument around) it is close enough to Mermin’s version that it shouldn’t be too confusing to read both.

Beyond this, let me offer only a brief comment on some of the notation van Fraassen’s uses in the discussion of probability in §2.