Argument 53[Jet小组]第五次作业

yimengshanUID: 2392100

TOPIC: ARGUMENT53 - Thirteen years ago,researchers studied a group of 25 infants who showed signs of mild distresswhen exposed to unfamiliar stimuli such as an unusual odor or a tape recordingof an unknown voice. They discovered that these infants were more likely thanother infants to have been conceived in early autumn, a time when theirmothers' production of melatonin-a hormone known to affect some brainfunctions-would naturally increase in response to decreased daylight. In afollow-up study conducted earlier this year, more than half of thesechildren-now teenagers-who had shown signs of distress identified themselves asshy. Clearly, increased levels of melatonin before birth cause shyness duringinfancy and this shyness continues into later life.
WORDS: 429          TIME: 上午 12:30:00          DATE: 2008-2-14

In the argument, the author draw aconclusion that a high level of melatonin in mother's body will cause herchild's character tend to be shy, and the effect might last in the child'slater life. It appears to be correct, for the author illustrates a study on 25infants and their later life. However, a careful examination will reveal theauthor's logical defects, which make the conclusion unwarranted as it stands.

To begin with, the author attributes theaction of the infants' shyness to their born dates. However, there is noevidence to demonstrate the causal relationship between infant's born date and theircharacters. Although the seemingly sky infants have a higher probability to beconceived in autumn, perhaps it is just a coincidence, or perhaps there existlarge number infants who are also conceived in autumn while act in a diverseway in the same experiment. Without proving the relationship between born datesand character, the argument is dubitable for its unbelievable presumption.

Additionally, there is no evidence to prove25 is a proper number in such experiment. While we know the researchers select25 such type infants, yet, we do not know the proportion of such type infantsin all infants. As well as, the author claim more than half of these infantsthink themselves as shy, actually, it is entirely possible that the number istoo small to explain any questions. In a world, we have no idea of whetherthose 25 infants are representative.

Third, the author provides littleexplanation about melatonin, and rashly believes it causes infants’ shyness. He(or she) just mentions that melatonin is hormone that could influence somebrain functions, however, there is a shortage of the detailed information aboutit, and the author even provide no evidence that melatonin has a effect oninfants. In this background, it is difficult to accept the conclusion.

In the final analysis, the author overlooksother vital factors that exert a great influence on child’s character. Thefamily environment, the education child receives, and the society status allaffects a child’s character. Perhaps a shy child finally becomes a tact lawyerafter years’ efforts, or perhaps a lively child finally grows into a reticentperson after experiencing hardness of life. From this aspect, it is irrationalfor the author just consider a single factor.

In conclusion, to make the conclusion moreconvincing, it is necessary for the author to provide more detailed informationabout the melatonin and prove the validity of the study. Moreover, more aspectsconcerning about child’s character should be considered.