argument 53, TXT写作小组

smile_annieUID: 2689995

53.Thirteen years ago, researchers studied a group of 25 infants who showed signs of mild distress when exposed to unfamiliar stimuli such as an unusual odor or a tape recording of an unknown voice. They discovered that these infants were more likely than other infants to have been conceived in early autumn, a time when their mothers' production of melatonin-a hormone known to affect some brain functions-would naturally increase in response to decreased daylight. In a follow-up study conducted
earlier this year, more than half of these children-now teenagers-who had shown signs of distress identified themselves as shy. Clearly, increased levels of melatonin before birth cause shyness during infancy and this shyness continues into later life.

In this argument, the arguer concludes that infancies conceived in autumn are tend to show signs of distress more easily because increased level of melatonin for decreased daylight.
Further more, this shyness during infancy will continue influencing infancies’ later life. However, this conclusion is based on deductions which have several logic flaws.

The fist logic flaw is about the function of melatonin. The arguer mentions that melatonin is a hormone would naturally increase in response to decreased daylight and this hormone affects some brain functions. However, the arguer does not inform us the exact effect this hormone might influence on infancies, for example,
it is common sense that different hormones have different functions on infants, some contribute to their physical growth, while some ones hamper infants’ cognitive abilities. Further more, the arguer fails to point out how much melatonin cause infancies feel mild distress as there are possibilities that a certain mount of melatonin can exist in every infant’s body without cause any bad result. Thus, we hold doubt toward the opinion that melatonin make infancies conceived in autumn more likely to feel distressed and shy.

Second, the arguer points out mothers’ production of melatonin would naturally increase in response to decreased daylight. However, the arguer does not provide any research result or authentic information to affirm this hypothesis that there is a direct relation between the mount of melatonin and the decreased daylight. Thus lack of scientific research evidence, it is unfair to point out that the decrease light in autumn will result in the increased melatonin.

Thirdly, even assuming that the increased levels of melatonin before birth cause shyness during infancy, it is unreasonable to deduce that this shyness during infancy continue existing in teenage year.  Among teenagers who had shown signs of distress and shyness, the arguers should carry out a comprehensive study on this phenomenon because besides melatonin’s influence of causing infancies feel distressed, there are other factors may cause them feel shy after they grown up and become teenagers, such as frustrations in their later life, unhappy childhood, less of interpersonal communication skills and so on. Thus it is incorrect to receive conclusion that the increases level of melatonin before birth cause the shyness in teenage year because the arguer over simplifies this problems.

From what have been discussed above, there are many flaws in this argument that the infants’ shyness are caused by a hormone called melatonin which increased in autumn because of decreased daylight. And it is not convincing to make us believe that the shyness during infancy continue lasting to teenage year. If he wants to convince us that it is the melatonin that cause infants feel distressed and shy, and this syndrome will last to teenage year, the arguer has to provide more details and related information.