=galloper=组 ARGUMENT167 by B37 mermaid

mermaid_hanUID: 2607690

TOPIC: ARGUMENT167 - A folk remedy* for insomnia, the scent in lavender flowers, has now been proved effective. In a recent study, 30 volunteers with chronic insomnia slept each night for three weeks on lavender-scented pillows in a controlled room where their sleep was monitored. During the first week, volunteers continued to take their usual sleeping medication. They slept soundly but wakened feeling tired. During the second week, the volunteers discontinued their medication. As a result, they slept less soundly than the previous week and felt even more tired. During the third week, the volunteers slept longer and more soundly than in the previous two weeks. This shows that over a short period of time lavender cures insomnia.
*A folk remedy is usually a plant-based form of treatment common to traditional forms of medicine, ones that developed before the advent of modern medical services and technology.
WORDS: 452
TIME: 00:30:00
DATE: 2009-7-17 9:47:22
The arguer comes to the conclusion that lavender can cure insomnia over a short period. To support it, the arguer cites an experiment, which observe people sleep at night for three weeks. Moreover, through the performance from people in this experiment, the arguer proves the conclusion. A careful examination of the argument will show how groundless it is.
First of all, the study is not persuasive for us to convince the function of lavender in curing insomnia. We do not know the conditions of volunteers, such as gender, age, job, and so on that can affect their sleep at night. Besides, the sample of the experiment is small, and then the result can not be representative of other people. What is more important, the experiment lasts three weeks that is so short that we can not ensure the function of lavender. Therefore, the arguer should provide more information about the volunteers , make a further experiment to observe their sleep for a long time, and then the result will be more convincing to us.
Secondly, the process of experiment is unwarranted and full of flaws. The arguer claims that in the third week, volunteers sleep better than the past two weeks. It is definitely possible that at first they are not used to sleep in the new place where is observed by others, and after two weeks, they are familiar with the place and sleep soundly. Besides, it is also possible that in the past two weeks, volunteers are under so great working pressure that they can not sleep well, but in the third week, they are relaxed because of little work. In addition, perhaps they do not sleep well in the second week, and then in the third week, they have a good sleep because they are too tired. Therefore, those reasons can cause volunteers sleep soundly in the third week, and if the arguer does not give us enough information, the conclusion is not persuasive.

Thirdly, even if volunteers sleep well in the third week, the arguer does not provide the feelings from volunteers in the third week, and maybe they are more tired than before. Thus, it can not show the effect of lavender in curing insomnia during three weeks. Therefore, because the conditions of the experiment is not sufficient, other possibilities may exist in the result, so hardly can I be convinced the function of lavender.
Above all, the argument is full of flaws and dubious assumptions. To improve it, the arguer should give us more details of the experiment and volunteers. Moreover, the arguer also should provide the conditions of volunteers during three weeks in order to prove the real function of lavender instead of other factors.