Question 209·Medium·Rhetorical Synthesis
While preparing an article on coffee’s potential health advantages, a student has compiled the following notes:
- Harvard University study (2017): people who drank 3–5 cups of coffee per day had a 15% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
- Journal of Nutrition article (2019): caffeine temporarily boosts short-term memory performance.
- Coffee beans are rich in chlorogenic acid, an antioxidant.
- Excessive coffee intake may lead to jitteriness and sleep disturbance.
The student wants to add a sentence that introduces recent scientific evidence linking moderate coffee consumption with reduced risk of a chronic disease.
Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
For rhetorical synthesis questions like this, always start by carefully restating the task in your own words (what exactly should the new sentence do?). Then scan the notes to find the one note that directly matches that task. Finally, choose the answer that uses that specific note and clearly fulfills all parts of the goal (such as being recent, about moderate use, and connected to a particular outcome). Eliminate any answer that is merely true or interesting but doesn’t match the stated purpose, even if it comes from the notes.
Hints
Focus on the task words
Underline the key parts of the question: recent, scientific evidence, moderate coffee consumption, reduced risk, and chronic disease. Any correct answer must include all of these ideas, not just one or two.
Decide which note is relevant
Look at the four notes and ask: which one talks about a health risk changing (going up or down) and mentions an actual disease, not just a symptom or a short-term effect?
Check each answer against the goal
For each answer choice, ask: does this sentence both (1) come from the relevant note and (2) clearly show that drinking a moderate amount of coffee is linked to a lower chance of a chronic disease? Eliminate any that fail either part.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the writing goal
The question says the student wants to add a sentence that introduces recent scientific evidence linking moderate coffee consumption with reduced risk of a chronic disease.
So the correct sentence must clearly include all of these:
- It is based on scientific evidence (like a study or article).
- It is recent.
- It involves moderate coffee consumption (not zero, not excessive, but a middle amount).
- It shows a reduced risk of a chronic disease (a long-lasting condition like diabetes, not a short-term effect).
Match the goal to the notes
Look at the four notes and see which one matches that specific goal:
- Harvard University study (2017): people who drank 3–5 cups of coffee per day had a 15% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
- Journal of Nutrition article (2019): caffeine temporarily boosts short-term memory performance.
- Coffee beans are rich in chlorogenic acid, an antioxidant.
- Excessive coffee intake may lead to jitteriness and sleep disturbance.
Ask: which note talks about a study, recent year, moderate coffee intake (3–5 cups), and lower risk of a chronic disease (type 2 diabetes)? That is the note the sentence must be based on.
Eliminate choices that don’t fit the goal
Now compare each answer choice to the goal:
- Some choices talk about negative side effects (like jitteriness or sleep problems). These do not mention reduced risk of a disease.
- One choice talks about memory performance, which is a short-term effect, not a chronic disease.
- Another choice mentions antioxidants but does not connect them to a specific disease or risk reduction.
Only one choice restates the note about a 2017 study finding that people who drank 3–5 cups of coffee per day had a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, directly matching the goal of linking moderate coffee intake to a reduced risk of a chronic disease.
Confirm the best match
The choice that uses that Harvard study information is:
D) A 2017 Harvard University study found that people who drank three to five cups of coffee daily were 15% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
This sentence:
- Cites recent scientific evidence (a 2017 Harvard study).
- Describes moderate coffee consumption (three to five cups daily).
- Shows a reduced risk (15% less likely).
- Names a specific chronic disease (type 2 diabetes).
Because it fulfills every part of the stated goal, D is the correct answer.