Question

Maximizing Memory
1 Promises, Promises
A quick Internet search pulls up many apps and websites that say they were designed to improve memory. But do these products live up to their promises? Few of the companies that make these apps and sites have done enough solid scientific research to support their claims. Many studies show that most of these products only teach users how to play the game better or do better at the trainings. There is little or no proof of increased mental ability that can be used in everyday life.
2 Research-Based Computer Brain Training
However, there are some training programs that are based on brain research. These programs attempt to take advantage of the brain’s ability to develop and change. The trainings challenge the brain to think in new ways. When people learn a fresh skill or are repeatedly exposed to new experiences, their brains can transform. Neurons are cells that transmit information across the brain. They can make new connections and form new pathways in these situations. Such activity is often called “rewiring.” It helps keep brains healthy. And it can make learning or remembering easier.
3 A Simple Alternative—Try Something New
There are many ways you can exercise your brain aside from using training programs. Not all come designated as memory boosters—many are activities that people pursue for their own sake. Learning any new skill or making major changes in behavior can help rewire the brain. For instance, you can learn to speak and write a foreign language. You can learn to play a musical instrument. Or you can learn how to play a new sport or how to create art by drawing, painting, or sculpting. Simply learning new skills helps us to keep our brains fresh and young, preventing any damage from age to our memory and thought!
4 Get Up and Go! Another Brain Boost
Travel is another way for people to give their brains a boost. Having to adapt to new sights, sounds, smells, and cultures stimulates the brain and promotes rewiring. It’s not even necessary to jet around the world to gain these benefits. All someone needs to do is to vary the routes taken while walking or driving during normal daily trips. Now that’s fuel for thought!


mediaR27255961718107807.pngA diagram showing two roughly pentagon shaped neurons. Four short root like structures labeled dendrites extend from each neuron. A longer line labeled axon also extends from each neuron. The axon from the first neuron ends in dendrites that meet the dendrites of the second neuron. The meeting point is labeled synapse. Electric signals flow across the axon from the first neuron to the second. There is a circle in the center of each neuron labeled nucleus. The area of the neuron around the nucleus is labeled soma.


The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.

Part A
Read this sentence from paragraph 3 of the selection.

Simply learning new skills helps us to keep our brains fresh and young,
preventing any damage from age to our memory and thought!

What rhetorical device or logical fallacy does the author use in this sentence?
A. repetition of words and phrases
B. a sweeping generalization
C. direct address to the reader as “you”
D. an analogy between new and old
Part B
Does the rhetorical device or logical fallacy identified in Part A show sound reasoning, and why?
A. Yes; it explains an unfamiliar idea by making connections between what readers already know.
B. Yes; it engages readers with a dramatic statement that draws readers deeper into the text.
C. No; it directly addresses readers so that they feel good about accepting questionable evidence.
D. No; it presents information in a broad or simple way that can mislead or misinform readers.

Answer 1

Part A: B — a sweeping generalization.

Part B: D — No; it presents the claim in a broad, overly simple way (e.g., "preventing any damage from age"), which can mislead or overstate the evidence.