In a passage from The Great Influenza, author John M. Barry writes about what it is like to be a scientist. He describes scientists as pioneers and uses that to get across his idea. The author states that being a scientist is brave and uses metaphor, the motif of an explorer, and logos to prove his point. In the start of the passage, the author makes the point that to be a scientist is to be uncertain. “A scientist must accept the fact that all his or her work, even beliefs, may break apart upon the sharp edge of a single laboratory finding” (Line 14). Science is about finding out the truth. One cannot do that if he is held back by a sacred belief. Science is brave in this respect because the scientist might find out that how he lives his life is wrong. Science is about being uncertain because nothing is absolute. Most scientists used to hold that Newton’s Three Laws of Motions were absolutely perfect. Albert Einstein showed that Newton’s Laws where only good up to a point, and that a further explanation was required. There are no absolutes in science. …show more content…
A scientist may find the next big leap in any particular field of study, but he may also find that all of his previous work might be useless and, ultimately, thrown out. John M. Barry uses the Metaphor of either finding a whole other world, that would be analogous to making a massive innovation, or falling off a cliff, finding out that your work was fruitless. In just one step, or one discovery, either a scientist will succeed or fail. There is no room for error. That reinforces the idea that scientists are brave. They are always on the edge, never knowing if they will be pioneers, or tumble off a
Through the use of anaphora, metaphor, and informative figurative language, Barry portrays the work of a scientist as challenging and complex. Barry begins by using patterns of repetition and anaphora in the first paragraph. He does this to strengthen the traditional recognition that certainty is good and uncertainty is bad. Providing these antithetical concepts of uncertainty v. certainty, or good v. bad, also strengthen his claim that the work of a scientist is challenging and complex. Next, Barry complicates our understanding of the nature of scientific research through the use of metaphor throughout the essay.
The fervent ideal-searching that entails scientific research is an endeavor that encompasses not only intellectual bounds but also the mental and emotional fixtures present in the mind of a scientific pioneer. Mere thoughts and notions become materialized tools and obstacles, and the journey that takes place within becomes the foundation by which scientific theory is ascertained. Wielding thoughts as stepping stones is crucial to the duty of the scientist, and even a degree of uncertainty must be harnessed for success and improvement. In this excerpt from The Great Influenza, John M. Barry pieces together a passionate study on the character of scientific research through the artful use of rhetorical strategies including syntax, hypothetical
Barry uses repetition to emphasize the importance of proficiency needed to successfully be a scientist during the flu epidemic. For example, in the second paragraph, Barry repeats the term courage to declare that in order to be a scientist, one must “accept—indeed, embrace—uncertainty” (Barry), signifying the unknown dangers that arise with the profession. He elaborates that one must have courage to perform in the laboratory with the uncertainty of aspects of science unknown to man. Barry explicates that scientists must embrace uncertainty because “’science teaches us to doubt’” (Barry).
The use of the paradox in The Great Influenza by John M. Barry reveals seemingly contradictory statements true. In the second paragraph Barry believes that one must "embrace – uncertainty" (Barry). He uses this literacy device to highlight uncertainty as a welcomed sensation to be accepted, rather than denied. Along with presenting truthful statements, Barry makes every word, phrase, and sentence that he writes ultimately more powerful and read at different understanding levels by raising the bar and introducing contradicting information. Barry characterizes scientific research as contradicting.
Soon, the epidemic arrived in Chicago. On August 28, 1918, reports of the increased death rate in Massachusetts were reported in Chicago newspapers, warning citizens of the potential risk of the epidemic reaching them. Nationwide, military camps suffered mass outbreaks throughout September, and yet, the Chicago Tribune printed reassuring news stories that suggested the flu was under control. On September 8, 1918, the virus took its first victims of the city: sailors at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station.
He argued that science is essential to our understanding of the world and plays a crucial role in shaping our society. He stressed that science should be a public trust and that it is the responsibility of scientists to use their knowledge for the benefit of humanity. He supported his argument with a variety of examples, including the role of science in creating new technologies and in solving important social problems. He also spoke about the importance of international cooperation and the role of scientists in working together to create a better
Sciences and technologies have improved many aspects of human lives. But as technologies are developing to be more and more advanced, science can be a deadly subject to us as well. Some writers have taken this idea and expanded on this theme of how science is deadly. In this essay I will discuss how this theme is explored in the texts: the novel Unwind written by Neal Shusterman, the film Gattaca directed by Andrew Niccol, following the short texts There Will Come Soft Rains and The Veldt written by Ray Bradbury. Science is supposed to help humans to understand more about the world and improve people’s lives.
Describe a problem you 've solved or a problem you 'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma-anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution. In The Great Influenza, Barry states that one must “accept uncertainty”.
This is also an example of compare and contrast, he compares certainty with uncertantiy. By using these words he tells the reader that to be a scientist you need both certainty as well as uncertainty. The first paragraph also includes examples of logos; when Barry says “to be a scientist requires not only intelligence and curiosity, but passion, patience, creativity, self sufficient, and courage”. One can agree that the sentence is an example of logos because it is a logical statement that to be a scientist you have to have all of those traits. The whole passage is about scientists as well as scientific research, Barry writes with a purpose and the purpose is to tell people about scientists as well as what it takes.
This feeling of not being able to control what we create frightens scientist. This an example of how science becomes more a a hazard of orr safety than it does to help our society. Paradise lost begins with the introduction of Adam and
Depending on one’s ambition can lead to tremendous leaps of advancement for mankind or its inevitable destruction. Thus, Victor Frankenstein demonstrates that tragic
In John M. Barry’s “The Great Influenza” scientific research is made out to be a process based off gaining knowledge in fields that have little base knowledge and then cooperating with other researchers in order to either further develop from that point or to further validate the current idea. Barry supports this ideal through his extended metaphor, parallelism, and the exemplification. Throughout the piece, Barry describes scientific research as a step into the unknown through his extended metaphor. Barry relates all scientists together onto the same playing field stating, “All real scientists exist on the frontier. Even the less ambitious among them…”
“If we insist on being as sure as is conceivable... we must be content to creep along the ground, and can never soar” John Henry Cardinal Newman. Newman’s quote connects to the passage by stating that one will never break away and soar if they cannot understand failure. Originally this passage was based on the flu epidemic of 1918 hints the name of the title, The Great Influenza. Throughout the passage of The Great Influenza, John M. Barry establishes the message of embracing uncertainty and doubt.
This shows that as man’s ability to develop science grows they is always a danger to this change. In this case the danger being the destruction brought forth by the
First let’s get to know some history about the man behind all of this. Isaac Newton, the man who is responsible for what we know as the “Laws of Motion. Sir Isaac Newton was a mathematician and physics scholar who transformed our scientific world in 1666. Sir Isaac Newton developed the theories of gravitation at only the age of 23. He then presented, in 1686, three laws of motion in the "Principia Mathematica Philosophiae Naturalis.