Logical Reasoning

PT117 · S4 · Q12 Coffee and tea contain methylxanthines

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Coffee and tea contain methylxanthines, which cause temporary increases in the natural production of vasopressin, a hormone produced by the pituitary gland.

Information

causal (cause / causes)

drinking coffee ⇢ more vasopressin produced or tea (b/c of methylxanthines)

vasopressin ⇢ clumping of blood cells (esp. in women)

causal (X is probably the explanation of y)

women's blood cells ⇢ women have ~10x clump more than men's risk after angioplasty (clearing of arteries)

Evaluate

All three sentences involve some causal relationships. Do any of them chain together?

We could say that, 1. you drink coffee / tea 2. you get more methylxanthines in you 3. increased production of vasopressin 4. clumping of blood cells (esp. for women)

So when women drink coffee or tea they are more likely to get clumping of blood cells.

The causal connector between sentence 2 and sentence 3 is implying that after an angioplasty, there is (possibly more vasopressin produced but definitely) more clumping of blood cells, and this clumping of blood cells increases the risk of complications.

Goal

An answer that would tie all this together could be something like, .

But they could also test any of subset of these causal connections discussed. Look for a safely worded answer that rewards us for understanding these cause/effect relationships.

12.

Which one of the following statements is most strongly supported by the information above?

  1. Men, but not women, should

    Too Strong: men should

    We can support the idea that women should not be given methylxanthines prior to angioplasty, but we have no support for the idea that men should be given them.

    1% picked this

  2. In spite of the risks,

    Too Strong: the only One-Claim Support

    We have no way to back up this extreme claim that angioplasty is the only effective way to treat clogged arteries. It should also always make us nervous if we're picking an answer on Must Be True or Most Supported and it isn't forcing us to combine 2 or more claims. Our support for this answer would only come from the final sentence.

    1% picked this

  3. Women probably drink more coffee

    Unknown Comparison: who drinks more

    We have no information whatsoever for judging which sex drinks more coffee and tea. If anything, the passage is describing bigger risks associated with drinking coffee and tea for women, so we even have small reason to lean away from believing this.

    22% picked this

  4. Correct

    Prior to undergoing angioplasty, women

    Why this is right

    This puts together all the causal relationships, as we anticipated (the correct answer doesn't need to combine all the provided facts, but it will combine at least 2 claims more than 95% of the time). Coffee / tea lead to more vasopressin, which leads to clumping of blood cells, especially in women. And clumping of blood cells is probably the reason that women face risks ten times as great as men when they have an angioplasty. If people were thinking, "Wait ... the complications are following angioplasty, whereas this answer is saying prior to angioplasty", the things we put into our bodies can linger there for a while. If you want your body to have low vasopressin and low clumping when you're recovering from your angioplasty, then you would try to avoid increasing your vasopressin and clumping in the lead-up to your surgery.

    Skill tested: Most Supported · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

    76% picked this

  5. Angioplasty should not be used

    Too Strong

    Too Strong: should not be used One-Claim Support We have no way to back up this extreme claim that angioplasty should not be used to treat clogged arteries. We hear about a potentially large risk factor for women, but couldn't we still use angioplasty for men? And couldn't we still use it for women, but just take steps to reduce their clumping of blood cells (such as tell them to lay off the coffee / tea). It should also always make us nervous if we're picking an answer on Must Be True or Most Supported and it isn't forcing us to combine 2 or more claims. Our support for this answer would only come from the final sentence.

    1% picked this

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