Reading Comprehension

ok guys Its my turn again..... lets start with MAPS first... I have taken authentic OG RC. Lets Learn to make MAPS first. Please read the passage and make the MAP. what we need is

topic
scope
Function of 1st para
2nd
3rd
etc
Author's Point of view
over all purpose
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Caffeine, the stimulant in coffee, has been called
"the most widely used psychoactive substance on Earth ."
Synder, Daly and Bruns have recently proposed that
caffeine affects behavior by countering the activity in
(5) the human brain of a naturally occurring chemical called
adenosine. Adenosine normally depresses neuron firing
in many areas of the brain. It apparently does this by
inhibiting the release of neurotransmitters, chemicals
that carry nerve impulses from one neuron to the next.
(10) Like many other agents that affect neuron firing,
adenosine must first bind to specific receptors on
neuronal membranes. There are at least two classes
of these receptors, which have been designated A1 and
A2. Snyder et al propose that caffeine, which is struc-
(15) turally similar to adenosine, is able to bind to both types
of receptors, which prevents adenosine from attaching
there and allows the neurons to fire more readily than
they otherwise would.
For many years, caffeine's effects have been attri-
(20) buted to its inhibition of the production of phosphodiesterase,
an enzyme that breaks down the chemical
called cyclic AMP.A number of neurotransmitters exert
their effects by first increasing cyclic AMP concentrations
in target neurons. Therefore, prolonged periods at
(25) the elevated concentrations, as might be brought about
by a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, could lead to a greater
amount of neuron firing and, consequently, to behavioral
stimulation. But Snyder et al point out that the
caffeine concentrations needed to inhibit the production
(30) of phosphodiesterase in the brain are much higher than
those that produce stimulation. Moreover, other compounds
that block phosphodiesterase's activity are not
stimulants.
To buttress their case that caffeine acts instead by pre-
(35) venting adenosine binding, Snyder et al compared the
stimulatory effects of a series of caffeine derivatives with
their ability to dislodge adenosine from its receptors in
the brains of mice. "In general," they reported, "the
ability of the compounds to compete at the receptors
209
(40) correlates with their ability to stimulate locomotion in
the mouse; i.e., the higher their capacity to bind at the
receptors, the higher their ability to stimulate locomotion."
Theophylline, a close structural relative of caffeine
and the major stimulant in tea, was one of the most
(45) effective compounds in both regards.
There were some apparent exceptions to the general
correlation observed between adenosine-receptor binding
and stimulation. One of these was a compound called
3-isobuty1-1-methylxanthine(IBMX), which bound very
(50) well but actually depressed mouse locomotion. Snyder
et al suggest that this is not a major stumbling block to
their hypothesis. The problem is that the compound has
mixed effects in the brain, a not unusual occurrence with
psychoactive drugs. Even caffeine, which is generally
(55) known only for its stimulatory effects, displays this
property, depressing mouse locomotion at very low
concentrations and stimulating it at higher ones.

OA- D,D,A,E,B,B

force5,
plz post questiosn too,

@rohu27 i was thinking of learning how to solve questions by making maps. We can talk about questions later. But if you think that questions are important then let me know i will post them too.
i am still unable to make the maps while doing RC and even if i try making them (1) it takes a lot of time (2) i end up going back to the passage again several times.

If i have to get back to the passage then why waste time in making maps then??
Please suggest (this question is open to all for suggestions).

Here are the questions for the RC

1. The primary purpose of the passage is to
(A) discuss a plan for investigation of a phenomenon that is not yet fully understood
(B) present two explanations of a phenomenon and reconcile the differences between them
(C) summarize two theories and suggest a third theory that overcomes the problems encountered in the first two
(D) describe an alternative hypothesis and provide evidence and arguments that support it
(E) challenge the validity of a theory by exposing the inconsistencies and contradictions in it

2. According so Snyder et al, caffeine differs from adenosine in that caffeine
(A) stimulates behavior in the mouse and in humans, whereas adenosine stimulates behavior in humans only
(B) has mixed effects in the brain, whereas adenosine has only a stimulatory effect
(C) increases cyclic AMP concentrations in target neurons, whereas adenosine decreases such concentrations
(D) permits release of neurotransmitters when it is bound to adenosine receptors, whereas adenosine inhibits such
release
(E) inhibits both neuron firing and the production of phosphodiesterase when there is a sufficient concentration in
the brain, whereas adenosine inhibits only neuron firing

3. In response to experimental results concerning IBMX, Snyder et al contended that it is not uncommon for
psychoactive drugs to have
(A) mixed effects in the brain
(B) inhibitory effects on enzymes in the brain
(C) close structural relationships with caffeine
(D) depressive effects on mouse locomotion
(E) the ability to dislodge caffeine from receptors in the brain

4. According to Snyder et al, all of the following compounds can bind to specific receptors in the brain EXCEPT
(A) IBMX
(B) caffeine
(C) adenosine
(D) theophylline
(E) phosphodiesterase

5. Snyder et al suggest that caffeine's ability to bind to A1 and A2 receptors can be at least partially attributed to
which of the following?
(A) The chemical relationship between caffeine and phosphodiesterase
(B) The structural relationship between caffeine and adenosine
(C) The structural similarity between caffeine and neurotransmitters
(D) The ability of caffeine to stimulate behavior
(E) The natural occurrence of caffeine and adenosine in the brain

6. The author quotes Snyder et al in lines 38-43 most probably in order to
(A) reveal some of the assumptions underlying their theory
(B) summarize a major finding of their experiments
(C) point out that their experiments were limited to the mouse
(D) indicate that their experiments resulted only in general correlations
(E) refute the objections made by supporters of the older theory

force5 wrote:@rohu27 i was thinking of learning how to solve questions by making maps. We can talk about questions later. But if you think that questions are important then let me know i will post them too.
i am still unable to make the maps while doing RC and even if i try making them (1) it takes a lot of time (2) i end up going back to the passage again several times.

If i have to get back to the passage then why waste time in making maps then??
Please suggest (this question is open to all for suggestions).

whn it comes to maps, no one can be worse than me (dnt look for SC concepts in this line, i think its wrong )
i just cant figure out how to write maps, organised ones i mean, i can sure write dwn some random stuff. but they wud be of no hlep, i wud never go bck to thm while answerign questions.
though till date my RC practice has been without using maps and im improving, but im scared coz evryone(literally) suggests abt making maps, but wht do to if it doesnt work out for you? or works against you?

i know what you are saying brother. I only remember SC rules when i am solving a SC problem.
The problem here is that i am still getting a lot of RC questions wrong besides wasting a lot of time on them. I saw a lot of students and faculty too making maps. Even you have tried to solve questions with a MAP. But the problem is that i am unable to use them? when it comes to solving a question i dont even think about the map and even if i try to , i cant make a head or tail out of it.

My question is What can be done? should we use maps or not? and if yes then how? how to get back to the map that u have made and find the answer?? since map is never too good to answer any question. Thats why i started this time with just a passage (without questions) to learn how to make MAPS.
i would really request all high scorers and in RC and faculty to put in their views and suggest how should we go about it.

I did solve the questions force5, with no maps again

i knw you are looking for maps here, but cudnt resist the temptation
i will try to make maps for this once im home.

[spoiler]my answers: d,d,a,e,b,e[/spoiler]
[spoiler]time:7:51 mins[/spoiler]
passage wordings were tough but structure was simple to understand.
questions too were ok..no close answer choices. once you ignore details and get the flow of the passage, its easy.(though not sure abt my answers)

I'll give u a star for this brother.. but you will have to redo this if you want a solution to the problem. i know the temptation you are talking about but its just not about a passage and its solution. i want to know what strategy to adopt for further RC and if we are going in the right direction.

lets see what help we get... will post OA later

Remember - we have started this to beat the RC.

force5 wrote:i know what you are saying brother. I only remember SC rules when i am solving a SC problem.
The problem here is that i am still getting a lot of RC questions wrong besides wasting a lot of time on them. I saw a lot of students and faculty too making maps. Even you have tried to solve questions with a MAP. But the problem is that i am unable to use them? when it comes to solving a question i dont even think about the map and even if i try to , i cant make a head or tail out of it.

My question is What can be done? should we use maps or not? and if yes then how? how to get back to the map that u have made and find the answer?? since map is never too good to answer any question. Thats why i started this time with just a passage (without questions) to learn how to make MAPS.
i would really request all high scorers and in RC and faculty to put in their views and suggest how should we go about it.

i completley agree. the few times i tried to make maps, and did want to refer thm while answering i wa slike "hold on, whts tht crappy handwiritng supposed to mean anyway" i really cant understand my own words which i scribble while reading the passage.
AIM says he writes passges only to be involved, its a good approach too.
but again, we will see wht others come up wht.

force5 wrote:I'll give u a star for this brother.. but you will have to redo this if you want a solution to the problem. i know the temptation you are talking about but its just not about a passage and its solution. i want to know what strategy to adopt for further RC and if we are going in the right direction.

lets see what help we get... will post OA later

Remember - we have started this to beat the RC.

SUre, i will come wth the maps in few hours. tough to hide BTG all the time when u r in office

sure bro i have PM'ed Vivian and a few friends. lets wait for their suggestions.

Hi Force, I took 16min for this ...I am confident about the first three answers only..

My input:

Topic: caffine

Para1: Caffine counters Adneosine, Adnesine inhibits nueron/TX
other chem also effect neuron
How adnesoine works? two receptor A1, A2
Caffine pushes A1 and A2 aganist adnesoine

Para1 hypothesis: Cafine functionality on neuron activation

Para2: Caffine as phospho-inhibitor
But this has defects : caffine --
No other simulaants block phospho-inhibot

Para3:
Counter para1 and 2
tea has similar compound like caffine
Both regards--

exceptions: low concentration - no effect
high - good effect

Conclusion:

1) D
2) D
3) a
4) D/E
5) C/A (least attribution)

Thanks a lot guys. i know its frustrating to not get the answers. The reason why we have started this thread is to help everyone who is struggling with RC specially in finding a strategy. We are talking about Maps in this thread and will solve this problem with the help of a map.
@ HSPA you have done a great effort but how did you solve your question using the information in your map?

I have sent a reminder to the expert. Lets see what she has to say on this and how can she helps us in figuring out how to make maps and more importantly how to use them?

i really appreciate your patience and support.

force5,
heres my try at making map:

para1:effects on caffeine,adenosine,how C does it
para2: old hypothesis for coffee,synder offers expl,phopsphodie..
para3:example for new hypothesis by syder,IBMX,theophyline

just tried to ignore the details and make a map.noting dwn new terms.
but thn again the gr8 question, how can i solve questions using this map?

force5 wrote:
@ HSPA you have done a great effort but how did you solve your question using the information in your map?

.

Question 3: I looked back into 3rd para based on keyword IBMX
Question 2: I looked back into first para
Question 1: First line of third para
I try to remember some keywords in each para and go an re-read the stem based on question. This is a time consuming process but gives accuracy.
But I want hear from Rohu and AIM ... I still dont know how they do RC in <avg time 6.5min and 5.5min
still they hit 'accuracy'. My avg time for RC is 9min So I dont think I am in a stage to help others.

I really need a very good stratagy at RC: KINDLY HELP
Every weekend I take some mock tests. I can complete SC+CR 27 questions in 50min at an avg accuracy of 16/27... this I am trying to reach 22/27 with same speed.
and RC of 3/14 within 75min and 12/14 with in 86min test time. So I can score a 45 mark in verbal if I have 86 min.
After doing AWA and math.. the mental stamina to read 4 passages is chaos for mind