▶ Your Answer :In the given set of information, both the reading passage and the lecture deal with ethanol . The lecturer casts doubt on the reading passage's claim that ethanol is not a good alternative to gasoline, by presenting three counterarguments.
First, the reading passage claims that release of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would cause environmental problems like gasoline. However, the lecturer argues that the reading passage's claim is disputable. This is because ethanol is made from corns, that absorbs carbon dioxide when growing up. Thus, the process of making ethanol counteracts the environmental problems unlike gasoline.
Next, according to the reading passage, the production of ethanol will reduce the amount of plants available to feed farm animals. However, the lecturer claims that this explanation is controversial. To be specific, cellulose, the cell wall in plants that are not eaten by animals, is used for the production of ethanol. Thus, food source for animals would not disapear as ethanol is produced by parts that are not eaten by animals.
Lastly, the lecturer disagrees on the reading passage's claim that the price of ethanol was only competitive to gasoline price due to government's support. He claims that government support is unnecessary in the future, because increase in production and consumption always lead to lowered price of ethanol available. Thus, the price would decrease and not increase in the future. |