Literasi dalam Bahasa Inggris

OPINION THREAD: Traditional Medicine

Evan Long I find that traditional medicine, focused around herbs,
exercises, and diet, tends to be very good at addressing
Posted 11 August, 2021 what we would call lifestyle diseases. Except for the
current COVID emergency, chronic diseases of this type
at 5:46 AM are now much more of a widespread problem than
infectious diseases in the advanced industrialized world,
and traditional medicine can address it pretty well.
Saureet Hayill I can speak for traditional Chinese medicine—there are
no bad side effects, you are treated as a whole person,
Posted 11 January 2020 not just a disease or condition, and underlying causes are
addressed as well as symptoms.
at 7:23 AM
Yunus Ismailoglu While some studies have found traditional medicine to
be effective in treating certain conditions, more research
Posted 12 March 2023 is generally needed to evaluate its efficacy in
comparison to modern medicine.
at 5:33 PM
Vamsi Pritham The danger of believing in "traditional medicine" too
strongly is a tendency to develop an outright prejudice
Posted 10 January 2019 against medicine that actually works. Typically such an
attitude arises because of jingoism, greedy doctors (of all
at 10:14 PM kinds of medicine), and genuine ignorance. It is quite
unfortunate that the government of India legitimizes
these pseudosciences.
Aaliyah Murphy I believe in the effectiveness of traditional medicine, but
I also believe that it's important to be open to new ideas
Posted 13 July 2023 and treatments. There's a reason why traditional
medicine has been around for centuries - it works! But
at 1:34 AM that doesn't mean that we should discount new
treatments and technologies. In fact, traditional medicine
can often be enhanced by modern medical practices.
Simon Kepp At one point in time, we abandoned a magical approach
to medicine and instead began testing what worked, and
Posted 22 October 2021 what didn't. The stuff that worked became "medicine",
and the stuff that didn't became "traditional medicine".
at 11:25 PM

116. Who among all those who have posted shows the 118. The word “discount” in Aaliyah’s post means…
most obvious disapproval of traditional medicine? □ deduct an amount from the usual price
□ Saureet Hayill □ reduce something in value
□ Simon Kepp □ the opposite of counting
□ Aaliyah Murphy □ decide something as not worth considering
□ Vamsi Pritham □ show opposition towards certain ideas
□ Evan Long
117. According to Vamsi Pritham, how is it dangerous for 119. The following statements are TRUE about the
people to have such an intense belief in traditional opinion thread, EXCEPT …
medicine? □ Evan Long thinks traditional medicine is only good if
□ They begin to abandon a magical approach to
paired with exercise and a healthy diet.
medicine and move on to actual science.
□ Simon Kepp thinks traditional medicine is what we
□ They become too open to new ideas and treatments in
would call treatments that do not work.
medicine.
□ Aaliyah Murphy believes that traditional medicine
□ They tend to develop an unequivocal prejudice
and modern medical practices can walk hand in hand.
against medicine that actually works.
□ Saureet Hayill sees Chinese traditional medicine as
□ They would refuse to go see doctors everytime they
something that addresses underlying causes of a
fall ill due to certain prejudice.
disease, along with its symptoms.
□ They never research the downsides of traditional
□ Yunus Ismailoglu believes that further research is
medicine and therefore are not aware of the dangers.
needed to test the efficacy of traditional medicine.
120. What does “jingoism” in Vamsi Pritham’s post □ excessive support for one’s group
mean? □ loyalty towards one individual
□ extreme patriotism □ a specific fear towards foreigners
□ words used in certain professions

Text 1
Many diets focus on what to eat, but intermittent fasting is all about when you eat. With intermittent fasting, you
only eat during a specific time. Research shows fasting for a certain number of hours each day or eating just one meal a
couple days a week may have health benefits.
Johns Hopkins neuroscientist Mark Mattson has studied intermittent fasting for 25 years. He says our bodies have
evolved to be able to go without food for many hours, or even several days or longer. In prehistoric times, before humans
learned to farm, they were hunters and gatherers who evolved to survive — and thrive — for long periods without eating.
They had to: It took a lot of time and energy to hunt game and gather nuts and berries.
Experts note that even 50 years ago, it was easier to maintain a healthy weight in the United States. There were no
computers, and TV shows turned off at 11 p.m.; people stopped eating because they went to bed. Portions were much
smaller. More people worked and played outside and, in general, got more exercise.
With internet, TV and other entertainment available 24/7, many adults and children stay awake for longer hours
to watch TV, scroll through social media, play games and chat online. That can mean sitting and snacking all day — and
most of the night.
Extra calories and less activity can mean a higher risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other
illnesses. Scientific studies are showing that intermittent fasting may help reverse these trends.
Text 2
The idea behind intermittent fasting is that by restricting food, our bodies will more quickly and efficiently tap
our fat stores for energy. While glucose from carbohydrates is our most direct fuel source, we burn fat for energy when
glucose isn’t available. This happens even more during times of food deprivation. Our ability to store fat is unlimited.
Intermittent fasting can be done in a variety of ways. There’s no “perfect” fasting plan, and it really should be based on
what works best in your life.
One method is fasting daily for a set amount of time, usually 12 hours or more. The average person sleeps about 7
hours a night, which counts towards that fasting time. If you don't eat after dinner, then you could easily achieve a daily
fast to help your body burn fat more efficiently. This type of fasting could work well for someone who tends to be a
nighttime snacker.
Another form of intermittent fasting is alternate day fasting. This is where you eat whatever you want 5 to 6 days
of the week and choose 1 or 2 days a week to fast. During those fasting days, water and broth is encouraged so you don’t
become dehydrated. This type of fasting could be beneficial for someone with a work schedule that may be really busy
some days and cannot eat on a regular basis.
121. What is the main topic of Text 2? 123. How are Text 1 and Text 2 related?
□ The importance of intermittent fasting □ Both texts talk about the advantages and
□ How intermittent fasting works disadvantages of intermittent fasting.
□ The benefits of intermittent fasting □ Text 1 talks about how intermittent fasting became a
□ The science behind intermittent fasting trend whereas Text 2 talks about how intermittent
□ Intermittent fasting food requirements fasting works.
□ Text 1 talks about what intermittent fasting is whereas
122. According to experts, it was easier to maintain a Text 2 talks about how it works.
healthy weight in the US decades ago. Why is that? □ Both texts talk about the influence that intermittent
□ Because technology was not as advanced as it is and fasting had back then compared to the present times.
entertainment options were limited, so people would □ Text 1 talks about why intermittent fasting works for
do activities outdoors. most people and Text 2 tries to negate that.
□ Because people were a lot more disciplined with their
exercise regimes back then. 124. Which of the following would be suitable to replace
□ Because people deliberately chose to adhere to a the word “deprivation” in Text 2 paragraph 1?
healthy diet and eat in smaller portions. □ inadequacy
□ Because most people decidedly adhered to □ lack
intermittent fasting for the sake of their overall health. □ deficit
□ Because nobody would eat past 11 p.m. back then, □ deficiency
they preferred going to sleep on time. □ scarcity
125. The following statements □ People in the US generally got more exercise because
are MENTIONED according to Text 1, EXCEPT... they did most of their activities outdoors.
□ Intermittent fasting focuses on when one eats instead □ Intermittent fasting is highly recommended for those
of what one eats. who are nighttime snackers.
□ More calories yet less activity can mean higher risk of □ Unlimited entertainment proves effective in keeping
obesity, diabetes, and other ailments. people seated and snacking for long hours.

(1) Pure water is of course clear. However if it is deep enough, so that light cannot reflect off the seafloor, it appears dark
blue. This is largely because of some basic physics. Human eyes contain cells capable of detecting electromagnetic
radiation with wavelengths between around 380-700 nanometres. Within this band, different wavelengths correspond to
the different colors we see in a rainbow.

(2) Water molecules are better at absorbing light that arrives in longer wavelengths, meaning the reds, oranges, yellows
and greens. This mostly leaves the blues, which have shorter wavelengths. As blue light is less likely to be absorbed, it
can penetrate to deeper depths, making deep water look bluer. Light at a short wavelength is also more likely to be
scattered or deflected in different directions, including back out of the water towards our eyes, making the sea appear
blue.

(3) However, the purity of sea water varies. Particles suspended within it can increase the scattering of light. Sand and silt
carried into the sea from rivers, or kicked up from the seafloor by waves and storms, can affect the colors of coastal
waters. And organic detritus such as decayed plant matter—known to scientists as color dissolved organic matter—can
also complicate the picture, by adding greens, yellows or browns.

(4) That's the physics. But even more important is the biology, because the biggest impact on sea color is made by tiny
organisms called phytoplankton. Usually smaller than a pinhead, these single-celled algae use green chlorophyll pigments
to capture energy from the sun to convert water and carbon dioxide into the organic compounds that make up their bodies.
Through this photosynthesis, they are estimated to be responsible for generating about half of the oxygen we breathe.
Crucially, phytoplankton absorb electromagnetic radiation in the red and blue parts of the visible light spectrum, but
reflect greens, which explains why seas in which they are thriving appear greener.

126. What is the topic of paragraph 4? □ Since sea color deals with water, light, radiation, etc.,
□ The role of microorganisms in changing sea color the physics plays a major role in determining sea
□ The biology of phytoplankton in the sea color.
□ The process of photosynthesis affecting sea color □ There is not much difference between the physic and
□ The biology and physics aspect of sea color biology aspect in determining the sea colors.
phenomenon
□ The microorganism working together with energy 129. What can be inferred about sea color?
from the sun □ Contrary to popular opinion, the blue color doesn’t
come simply because the sea reflects the sky.
127. Which factor is NOT STATED to generate different □ The color of sea water is changing simultaneously by
colors in the ocean? the amount of lights absorbed by the water.
□ The water’s ability to absorb light □ The sea water plays an important role in determining
□ Particles scattering lights the changing of its color.
□ Chemical reaction between water and lights □ The blue color falls on the same wavelength with
□ Human eyes’ responds to wavelength other colors, resulting in the gradual changes of sea
□ The photosynthesis of phytoplankton water.
□ Contrary to popular belief, sea water has a different
128. What is the difference between the physics and the range of colors rather than just blue.
biology of sea color?
□ Both physics and biology aspects of the water play 130. The writing organization of the passage is best
roles in affecting the sea color changes. described as …
□ The physics aspect focuses on light and particles, □ Comparison and Contrast
while the biology aspect deals with microorganisms. □ Chronological Order
□ The biology aspect such as phytoplankton’ □ Cause and Effect
photosynthesis is the only important factor affecting □ General to Specific Order
sea color. □ Statement and Clarification
(1) As a foundation of everyday hygiene, hand-washing was broadly adopted relatively recently. In the 1840s Dr. Ignaz
Semmelweis, a Hungarian physician, discovered that if doctors washed their hands, far fewer women died after childbirth.
At the time, microbes were not widely recognized as vectors of disease, and many doctors ridiculed the notion that a lack
of personal cleanliness could be responsible for their patients’ deaths. Ostracized by his colleagues, Dr. Semmelweis was
eventually committed to an asylum, where he was severely beaten by guards and died from infected wounds.
(2) Florence Nightingale, the English nurse and statistician, also promoted hand-washing in the mid-1800s, but it was not
until the 1980s that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued the world’s first nationally endorsed hand
hygiene guidelines.
(3) Washing with soap and water is one of the key public health practices that can significantly slow the rate of a
pandemic and limit the number of infections, preventing a disastrous overburdening of hospitals and clinics. But the
technique works only if everyone washes their hands frequently and thoroughly: Work up a good lather, scrub your palms
and the back of your hands, interlace your fingers, rub your fingertips against your palms, and twist a soapy fist around
your thumbs.

(4) Or as the Canadian health officer Bonnie Henry said recently, “Wash your hands like you’ve been chopping jalapeños
and you need to change your contacts.” Even people who are relatively young and healthy should regularly wash their
hands, especially during a pandemic, because they can spread the disease to those who are more vulnerable.
(5) Soap is more than a personal protectant; when used properly, it becomes part of a communal safety net. At the
molecular level, soap works by breaking things apart, but at the level of society, it helps hold everything together.
Remember this the next time you have the impulse to bypass the sink: Other people’s lives are in your hands.
131. How is the idea in paragraph 1 related to paragraph 2 135. Which of the following is NOT STATED in the
□ Both paragraph 1 and paragraph 2 explains the passage?
difficulty of promoting hand-washing in the medical □ Washing hands with soap and water can limit the
field. number of infections.
□ The origin of hand-washing in medical works in □ Dr. Semmelweis died from infected wounds caused
paragraph 1 is further explained in paragraph 2. by the asylum guards.
□ The initial effort to promote hand-washing by Dr. □ Healthy people can still spread the disease to those
Semmelweis in paragraph 1 was carried on by who are more vulnerable.
Nightingale in paragraph 2. □ The national hand hygiene guidelines are still applied
□ The difficulty of promoting hand-washing in to this day.
paragraph 1 is rebutted with its success in paragraph □ The guideline of hand hygiene was first released in
2.
□ The event in paragraph 1 happened relatively close to
the one that happened in paragraph 2.
132. What is the purpose of the passage?
□ To encourage people to keep the hygiene by washing
their hands
□ To recite the history and the struggle of promoting
hand-washing
□ To give information about the benefits of hand-
washing
□ To entertain the readers with the journey of hand-
washing
□ To criticize people's reluctance to do hand-washing
133. What does ‘hygiene’ (paragraph 1) mean?
□ Routine
□ Sanitation
□ Convenience
□ Responsibility
□ Sterilization
134. According to the passage, we can infer that ….
□ hand-washing has come a long way since its
legalization
□ hand-washing is only important because of the
pandemic.
□ a proper technique to wash hands is yet to be
promoted to the public
□ hand-washing is useless if it’s done without an
appropriate amount of soap
□ a proper hand-washing is a civic participation to
lessen the pandemic