Passage Discussion

[stephanieslim]

An excerpt from this passage appears in the Reading Comp strategy guide on page 27 and asks you to identify which are the two sides of the argument. The solution says that this is a trick passage and there is no argument here, but I pulled out two sides: Serotonin upregulates carbohydrate consumption vs. carbohydrate consumption upregulates serotonin absorption by the brain.

Granted, there is no strong opinion asserted here, but it seems to me that the two paragraphs are demonstrating oposing cause and effect arguments. Is this insignificant or beyond the scope of what is expected of us to pull from the passage?

[aileenann]

This is a great question - it's always a good idea to be pushing the limits of your RC diagramming and also making sure you're not over-thinking or needlessly writing down information that isn't essential to your understanding of the passage.

I wouldn't characterize these as opposing cause and effect so much as two points in the same regulatory chain. If you feel these points are especially emphasized (and I think that you have a fair point there) it's certainly a good idea to write these things down. Just make sure that when you do write these down you realize that these are not opposing points of view, the way a classic scale expects, but rather important components that are consistent with one another. I think we can see that, for example, from the correct answer to # 21, which asks for the main point and cites as a correct answer the way that serotonin and carbohydrates are linked.

I hope this helps. If you have a further question or if anything here isn't clear, let me know!

[uhdang]

Very interesting passage to read. I wish all reading passages are this much interesting

Here is the passage analysis:

P1: Brain recognizes carbohydrates through serotonin. Serotonin-mediated drugs causes weight loss whereas blocking serotonin causes weight gain.

P2: Carb stimulates insulin, uses up amino acid, increase portion of tryptophan in blood, and eventually increases conversion into serotonin.

P3: High level of serotonin reduces tendency to choose carbs while low serotonin makes people crave for it.
*Rat experiment.

P4: Serotonin-like drugs (d-fenfluramine) doing the same for people affecting the weight control. People become refreshed when eating carb-rich food after craving, but eating carb when not craving makes you sleepy — other effects of serotonin level suspected.

Overall: Serotonin level has a significant effect on carb intake and selection, which can be induced through Serotonin-like drugs as well.

[rhkwk1441]

I just wanted to share something that I did for this passage.
This might not be useful to anyone but I personally found it very helpful to grasp the material.
(I got all the questions right and spent less than 10 minutes on this passage)
Basically, I made a small diagram as I was reading the second paragraph.

Carb in --> Insulin up --> amino acid down -->
TRYP~ up --> serotonin up --> don't eat carb

Once I had a clear understanding of the process described above,
paragraph 3 and 4 were basically just an application of this idea.