Reading Comprehension

PT155 · S3 · P2 · Q10 ILC's Draft Articles

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With rapidly expanding populations, growing industrial development, and dwindling water supplies on national and regional levels, water is fast replacing oil as the world’s most valuable resource.

TOPIC

The ILC's Draft Articles

FRAMEWORK

Problem / Solution

MAIN POINT

The DA's aren't an adequate solution to forthcoming problems between nations relating to water shortages.

A better way to do this would be to have treaties that apportion water in more flexible ways or that have contingencies for when climate change changes the landscape.

READING SUMMARY

When the passage begins, we definitely get hints of a Problem being discussed. - the first sentence alerts us that water will soon be the most prized natural resource. - the second tells us that there is increasing potential for nations to start fighting over water.

The second half of the first paragraph makes it seem like we're talking Solution: - nations have become aware of the need for legal ways to handle this forthcoming problem - recognition of the need has led the ILC to develop a treaty structure for the sake of governing international waterways

Woohoo! Solution! It's a .... treaty structure?

Not sure what that means, but we'll synthesize the 1st paragraph PROBLEM: water is going to be so scarce that countries will fight over it SOLUTION: The UN is doing something to help countries make treaties sorting out their respective rights to international waterways.

The second paragraph is all descriptive: - the Draft Articles are an attempt to ___ - the DA's are intended as ___ - They prescribe that ___

We're hearing more about the Solution, but we still haven't heard an Author's Voice yet.

The third paragraph is where we finally get an Author's Pivot: though it's a great step forward, it's inadequate because ____.

So, updating the big picture, we're thinking that we've gotten a Problem and a Solution, and now we're getting the author pushing back against the Solution.

Until proven otherwise, we'll assume the main point is either going to be the beginning of the third paragraph (critiquing the Solution) or maybe the author will propose a better Solution (in which case that would become the main point).

The fourth paragraph begins by reiterating the idea that the DA's are inadequate by telling us that they won't be flexible enough to respond to the dramatic changes in water levels described at the end of the third paragraph.

It ends by pitching out a couple better directions the author prefers: - devise treaties that apportion water more flexibly or, similarly - put contingency plans in the treaties for when climate change wreaks havoc

10.

According to the passage, a primary purpose for the development of the Draft Articles was to

criticize existing international practices resulting
Out of Scope: criticize
None of our eligible answers deal with critiquing existing international practices. They wanted to codify them (put them in writing). 1. there's a need for legal mechanisms to manage and protect resources that traverse multiple borders (i.e. rivers) 2. this codifies customary principles 3. this creates a set of guidelines for creating treaties
1% picked this
Correct
provide an explicit formulation of
Why this is right
This sounds like the 2nd of our possible answers. As we're told in the first sentence of the 2nd paragraph, the Draft Articles, ... are an attempt to codify the customary principles of international water law as those principles are manifested in past legal decisions and currently accepted international practice. Codifying something means to "put it into statutory language". Nowadays, pro-choice people talk about Congress needing to "codify Roe v. Wade" which means, "take that SCOTUS decision, which said that people can have an abortion prior to fetal viability, and write an actual law that explicitly says as much". If your workplace had a real informal sick day policy like, "Hey, man, don't come to work if you're sick", then codifying the sick policy would be sending out an email that says, "Okay, we've had some questions about what our sick policy is. Let's clarify. If you have a fever of more than 99 degrees ...." So "codify" = "provide an explicit formulation", and then the rest of the answer sounds like a synonymous match for the rest of that first sentence of the 2nd paragraph.
Skill tested: Locate Detail · how this choice captures the passage's function is the move to repeat next time.
78% picked this
establish uniform judicial procedures for
Too Strong: uniform
The Draft Articles seek to articulate in writing what "guiding principles" have been used, and to create a set of "guidelines", but that's looser and more malleable than saying, "We're establishing uniform (identical) judicial procedures".
19% picked this
protect the pre-existing water rights
Out of Scope
Out of Scope: protect those who use most None of our three available answers has anything do with saying we need to protect the rights of the thirstiest countries. The passage never singles out "countries who use the most water". 1. there's a need for legal mechanisms to manage and protect resources that traverse multiple borders (i.e. rivers) 2. this codifies customary principles 3. this creates a set of guidelines for creating treaties
1% picked this
help guarantee continued industrial development
Too Strong
Too Strong: guarantee Out of Scope: continued industrial development None of our three possible answers resemble the idea of "guaranteeing continued industrial development". 1. there's a need for legal mechanisms to manage and protect resources that traverse multiple borders (i.e. rivers) 2. this codifies customary principles 3. this creates a set of guidelines for creating treaties
1% picked this

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