GRE Argument Topic 22

یک مطالعه اخیر بیست ساله، در مورد سردردهایی که ساکنین منتیا از آنها رنج می بردند، تاثیر درمانی احتمالی مصرف سالیسیلات ها را بررسی کرده است. سالیسیلات ها از خانواده شیمیایی آسپرین، دارویی است که برای درمان سردرد استفاده می شود. اگرچه بسیاری از غذاها به طور طبیعی سرشار از سالیسیلات هستند، اما شرکت های تولید کننده مواد غذایی نیز سالیسیلات را به عنوان مواد نگهدارنده به غذاها اضافه می کنند. این مطالعه بیست ساله ارتباطی را بین افزایش استفاده تجاری از سالیسیلاتها و کاهش مداوم میزان متوسط ​​سردرد گزارش شده توسط شرکت کنندگان در مطالعه نشان داد. در زمانی که این مطالعه به نتیجه رسید، شرکت های تولید کننده مواد غذایی تازه کشف کرده بودند که سالیسیلات ها همچنین می توانند به عنوان مواد افزودنی طعم دهنده برای غذاها استفاده شوند، و در نتیجه، بسیاری از شرکت ها قصد دارند این کار را انجام دهند. بر اساس نتایج این مطالعه، برخی از کارشناسان بهداشت پیش بینی می کنند که ساکنان Mentia در آینده حتی سردرد کمتری خواهند داشت.
پاسخی بنویسید که در آن درباره اینکه چه سوالاتی باید پاسخ داده شود تا تصمیم بگیرید که آیا پیش بینی و استدلالی که بر آن استوار است منطقی است یا نه بحث کنید. حتماً توضیح دهید که چگونه پاسخ این سوالات به ارزیابی پیش بینی کمک می کند.

NOTE: The above topic has wording similar to Argument Tasks 24 and 26 of this Website. However, if you read carefully you will notice that the topic and the task instructions are different. Hence, it is very important to read the topic as well as its instructions completely before you start to write your response.

Strategies
Regardless of the approach you take, consider the following steps:
a) Is there an alternative explanation for the events in question that can invalidate, either in whole or in part, the explanation given in the passage?
b) How can I break the argument into its component parts to understand how they create the whole argument?
c) Can I identify the line of reasoning used to create the argument?
d) What does the author of the argument assume to be true for the argument to be true?
e) Does the line of reasoning validate the conclusion?
f) Can I imagine an example that refutes any or several of the statements in the argument?
g) Am I able to evaluate the argument based on the quality of the facts and reasons presented in it?Based on your responses to all or some of these questions, you must present a well-developed evaluation of the argument. You should take brief notes when you identify the arguments claims, assumptions, and conclusion. Jot down as many alternative explanations as you can along with additional evidence that might support or refute the claims in the argument. Finally, list the changes in the argument that would make the reasoning more solid. It is more important to be specific than it is to have a long list of evidence and examples.
This argument - to promote the use of salicylates as a flavor enhancer - cites evidence collected in a twenty-year study of the effect of salicylatic preservatives in food on the frequency of headaches in Mentia.
In developing your response, you are required to generate questions that will help you decide if the prediction and the argument on which it is based are reasonable and then explain how the answers to your questions would help evaluate the prediction. It might be helpful to isolate the prediction.

Prediction:
Residents of Mentia will suffer even fewer headaches in the future.
Next, identify the argument’s conclusions and the evidence that led to those conclusions.

Claims and evidence:
a) The argument claims that adding salicylates to processed food decreases the incidence of headaches in Mentia. The evidence to support this claim appears arise from the results of the study.
b) Food additives are preferable to natural sources of salicylates. This unstated assumption arises from the decrease in headaches after the addition of salicylates to processed food rather than from an increase of the consumption of foods naturally rich in salicylates.
c) If the amount of salicylates already added to food improves one’s health, more additives would be even better. This unstated assumption underlies the prediction that the citizens of Mentia will experience even fewer headaches once they begin consuming food with more salicylates.

Questions:
a) How has the population of Mentia changed over the last twenty years? Perhaps the citizens who suffered from headaches were older and have since died, leaving a younger, healthier population.
b) Have the subjects of the study remained the same over the twenty-year period?
c) What caused the headaches? Some may have been the result of allergies, and, when those people treated their allergies, the headaches declined in number. Some headaches may have occurred due to stress. Lifestyle changes could have eliminated some of those headaches.
d) Many headaches are idiopathic. They come and go for no apparent reason. How can their disappearance be attributed to the addition of salicylates?
e) Have the residents of Mentia changed their diets to include more of the foods that are naturally rich in salicylates?
Your notes do not have to be exhaustive. As you begin to write your essay, your brain will generate new ideas. Make certain that you keep the directions in mind as you develop your ideas. Use as many or as few paragraphs as you consider appropriate for your argument, but create a new paragraph when you move on to a new idea or example of support for your position. The GRE readers are not looking for a specific number of ideas or paragraphs. Instead, they are reading to determine the level of understanding of the topic and the complexity with which you respond.
You are free to organize and develop your response in any way you think will enable you to effectively communicate your evaluation of the argument. You may recall writing strategies that you learned in high school or a writing-intensive course that you took in college, but it is not necessary to employ any of those strategies. It is important that your ideas follow a logical progression and display strong critical thinking.