Nutritionist: Many people claim that simple carbohydrates are a reasonable caloric replacement for the fatty foods forbidden to those on low-fat diets. This is now in doubt. New studies show that, for many people, a high intake of simple carbohydrates stimulates an overproduction of insulin, a hormone that is involved in processing sugars and starches to create energy when the body requires energy, or, when energy is not required, to store the resulting by-products as fat.

Summary

A Nutritionist argues that consuming a high amount of simple carbohydrates is not a suitable replacement for the fatty foods people give up while on a diet. This is because carbohydrates can lead to the overproduction of insulin, which stores excess energy as fat.

Strongly Supported Conclusions

Those on diets should not replace fatty foods with a high intake of carbohydrates in order to lose weight.

A
People on low-fat diets should avoid consumption of simple carbohydrates if they wish to maintain the energy that their bodies require.

The stimulus does not say anything about “maintaining energy.” The nutritionist is focused on how excess carbohydrates lead to the accumulation of more fat.

B
People who produce enough insulin to process their intake of simple carbohydrates should not feel compelled to adopt low-fat diets.

The stimulus says nothing about people who produce enough insulin. The Nutritionist is focused on people who were on low-fat diets and are considering switching to a high-carb diet

C
People who consume simple carbohydrates should limit their intake of foods high in fat.

This is too strong to support. The Nutritionist does not suggest limiting the intake of high-fat foods for those who consume simple carbohydrates. It focuses on the effects of simple carbohydrates, not fats.

D
People who wish to avoid gaining body fat should limit their intake of foods high in simple carbohydrates.

The stimulus supports the idea that those who want to avoid gaining fat should limit their intake of carbs because these can cause an overproduction of insulin, which leads to more fat.

E
People who do not produce an excessive amount of insulin when they consume foods high in simple carbohydrates will not lose weight if they restrict only their intake of these foods.

This is far too specific and strong to support. The Nutritionist does not claim that only restricting carbs will/will not result in weight loss. It is only talking about consuming an excess of carbs


82 comments

Cats spend much of their time sleeping; they seem to awaken only to stretch and yawn. Yet they have a strong, agile musculature that most animals would have to exercise strenuously to acquire.

"Surprising" Phenomenon
How are cats so strong and agile when they seem to spend so much time sleeping, stretching, and yawning?

Objective
A hypothesis resolving this paradox must either state a discrepancy between cats and the author’s perception of cats or state a key difference between cats and most other animals that allows them to build muscle despite spending most of their time leisurely.

A
Cats have a greater physiological need for sleep than other animals.
This does not address how cats acquire their muscular build. There is no indication that sleep being a physiological need eliminates the need for exercise to build strong muscles.
B
Many other animals also spend much of their time sleeping yet have a strong, agile musculature.
This does not address the apparent paradox—how cats build such musculature. It introduces a similarity between cats and other animals that extends the paradox beyond the current context but does not resolve it.
C
Cats are able to sleep in apparently uncomfortable positions.
This characteristic does not address cats’ apparent ability to build muscle with little exercise. There is no indication that the ability to sleep in uncomfortable positions changes the need for exercise to build muscle.
D
Cats derive ample exercise from frequent stretching.
This introduces a discrepancy between cats and the author’s perception of cats that resolves the paradox. Though the author apparently perceives stretching as purely leisure, stretching is in fact a form of exercise that helps cats build muscle.
E
Cats require strength and agility in order to be effective predators.
This does not address the discrepancy between cats’ activity and their build. There is no indication this requirement changes the effects of a leisurely lifestyle.

18 comments

People who say that Dooney County is flat are clearly wrong. On flat land, soil erosion by water is not a problem. Consequently, farmers whose land is flat do not build terraces to prevent erosion. Yet I hear that the farms in Dooney County are dotted with terraces.

Summary
Dooney County isn’t flat. How do we know? The author sets up a conditional argument with two key premises:
(1) If farmland is flat, then farmers don’t build terraces to prevent erosion on that land.
(2) In Dooney County, there are terraces on farmland (at least, so the author hears).

Notable Assumptions
The author tries to use premise (2) to trigger the contrapositive of premise (1). But he relies on several assumptions to make that contrapositive work:

- What he’s heard about terraces on Dooney County’s farms is true. (Otherwise, there’s no reason to think there are any terraces.)

- Some terraces in Dooney County were built to prevent erosion. (If they were for another purpose, they tell us nothing about whether the land is flat.)

- Some terraces in Dooney County were built by farmers. (If other people built them all, we can’t infer anything about the land.)

A
the only cause of soil erosion is water
It’s the presence of terraces, not the specifics of erosion, that the argument depends on. Even if other causes of erosion exist, we know that on flat land, water-caused erosion isn’t a problem, and so any time farmland is flat, farmers won’t build terraces to prevent erosion.
B
there are terraces on farmland in Dooney County which were built to prevent soil erosion
This must be true for the author to infer that Dooney County is not flat. If (B) weren’t true—if there are no terraces that were specifically built to prevent soil erosion—then whatever terraces are there tell us nothing about whether the land is flat.
C
terraces of the kind found on farmland in Dooney County have been shown to prevent soil erosion
Whether the terraces happen to prevent erosion is irrelevant. What matters is what the terraces were built to do. For the argument to work, the terraces must have been specifically built (by farmers) to prevent erosion. Otherwise, the presence of terraces means nothing.
D
on flat land there is no soil erosion
It’s the presence of terraces, not the specifics of erosion, that the argument depends on. Even if erosion occurs on flat land, we know that water-caused erosion isn’t a problem, and so any time farmland is flat, farmers won’t build terraces to prevent erosion.
E
the only terraces in Dooney County are on farmland
Too strong. The argument only requires that at least some terraces in Dooney County are on farmland (because it’s the presence of farmland terraces that can help tell us whether the land is flat). Whether or not terraces also exist on other kinds of land is irrelevant.

35 comments