Never Stop Questioning Albert Einstein declared, “The most important thing is to never stop questioning.” Questions help extend our knowledge by opening our minds to change and new possibilities. The excerpt talks about the mindset that scientists need to become successful and the process they go through to make new discoveries. In The Great Influenza, John M. Barry educates citizens of the everyday challenges that scientists face through utilizing rhetorical questions, cause and effect, and contrast. First, John Barry utilizes rhetorical questions to convey how scientists must think in order to be successful. Barry uses rhetorical questions to put the reader in the mindset of a scientist. Barry questions, “Would a pick be best, or would …show more content…
dynamite be better—or would dynamite be too indiscriminately destructive?” Most people would not think of these questions; scientists need to think outside of the box in order to develop all possible outcomes of the situation or experiment they are testing. The author also uses this rhetorical strategy as an attention getter. From the excerpt, “How would one analyze it?” This leaves the reader on a cliffhanger and causes them to depict what they just read. Rhetorical questions are used to cause the reader to jump in and get into the mindset that a scientist uses daily. Additionally, Barry creates cause and effect to demonstrate the process of experimentation and observation. Lab findings can cause several different outcomes, leading scientists to start over from square one. Barry claims, “A single step can also take one off a cliff.” Within an instant, the cause of a single test result could change everything that scientists believed to be true. When scientists are uncertain about their hypothesis they must reevaluate until they are, without a doubt, certain. It is observed, ”And just as Einstein refused to accept his own theory until his predictions were tested, one must seek out such findings.” Einstein’s uncertainty caused him to test his hypothesis until he was certain he was 100% correct. Scientists can be stuck on the same experiment for years at a time. Uncertainty and failure cause scientists to retest their findings until they find the answers they have been looking for. Finally, Barry applies contrast to show how different characteristics come together to create the mindset of a scientist and help them comfortably work in the laboratory.
Contrast is used to demonstrate how two completely opposite matters work together to find one answer. From the text, “Not all scientific investigators can deal comfortably with uncertainty, and those who can may not be creative enough to understand and design the experiments that will illuminate a subject.” Different traits are a necessity for different pieces of experimentation which some scientists lack whether it is creativity, confidence, or patience. This rhetorical strategy also helps indicate all of the different characteristics that scientists need to be creative and effective in their studies. Barry insists, “To be a scientist requires not only intelligence and curiosity, but passion, patience, creativity, self-sufficiency, and courage.” All of these different qualities have to come together; although, they are very contrasting traits. Numerous qualities are required to be a successful scientist; although all together they establish the effective character of a scientist. In The Great Influenza, John M. Barry educates citizens of the everyday challenges that scientists face through utilizing rhetorical questions, cause and effect, and contrast. Barry’s uses of the rhetorical strategies highlights the beauty of uncertainty because of failure, scientists can make new discoveries everyday. In relation
to Albert Einstein’s quote, it is important to ask questions to gain new knowledge and findings.
In 102 Minutes, Chapter 7, authors Dwyer and Flynn use ethos, logos, and pathos to appeal to the readers’ consciences, minds and hearts regarding what happened to the people inside the Twin Towers on 9/11. Of particular interest are the following uses of the three appeals.
John M. Barry is successful with his use of rhetoric because of his varied forms of the art. He makes the Mississippi River seem not only like a body of brown water in the middle of the continental U.S. but like a whip, a live snake, a living being, and a whirlpool all at the same time. Not only does he build his ethos, he also uses elevated diction, varied forms of sentence structure, or syntax, and different types of figurative language. Because of this, Barry is able to successfully achieve his purpose: communicate his fascination with the complex mechanics of the Mississippi River. The reader ends up being just as fascinated with a river that they may have never seen before but are now just as amazed with.
In the movie Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore uses rhetoric in a very successful way by how he carried himself as your typical everyday American guy. Moore was effectively able to use the appeal to ethos, logos, and pathos by the way he conveyed his message and dressed when interviewing such individuals. Throughout the movie he gives his audience several connections back to the Columbine shooting and how guns were the main target. Moore is able to push several interviews in the direction of which he wants too get the exact answer or close to what he wanted out of them. He effectively puts himself as the main shot throughout the film to give the audience more understanding and allowing a better connection to the topic.
Luckovich’s editorial cartoon on H1N1 was published in October of 2009 and the cartoon is in Luckovich’s classic scribble sketch style. His cartoon alludes to H1N1 and the vaccine scares that caused avoidable sickness and death. Luckovich was in favor of vaccinations and he shows in his editorial why they are important. He directed his editorial cartoon specifically towards parents who refuse to vaccinate their kids due to rumors or lifestyle choices. His cartoon’s overall point is if you don’t vaccinate your children they will get sick and die from a preventable disease. The editorial was published after a major outbreak of a devastating strain of H1N1 that killed and hospitalized many, it spread quickly because of people who refused to vaccinate
In the text, “Vaccines Cause Children More Adverse Reactions Than Any other Drug”, the author Dr. Mercola states his personal opinion as well as other doctors opinions are findings to help his research. The authors’ purpose is to inform the reader how vaccines are causing adverse reactions around the world. The author uses ethos throughout the piece because everyone he speaks with is a doctor, as well as him. His ethos makes the piece very informational and helpful to a parent reading who is concerned about vaccinating their kids. Dr. Mercola uses pathos by explaining all the harm vaccinations are doing, such as serious reactions and death. The piece has many logos informing readers’ studies being done on vaccinations, “based on reported pediatric
“People who had incurred the displeasure of the party simply disappeared and were never heard of again.
One of the most effective methods Barry uses throughout the aforementioned passage, is his comparison of scientists to explorers. The first lines of paragraph four set up the comparison, “All real scientists exist on the frontier,” this furthers the point Barry makes that scientific research is about uncertainty and embracing it, only then will the research that is done yield any answers. Barry furthers the point of uncertainty is the very nature of science with this quote, “There they probe in a
Arthur L. Caplan, in his news article, “Distinguishing Science from Nonsense,” warns the audience about the uncertain economic future of the United States of America due to the abandonment of science within society. Further, Caplan’s purpose is to inform the audience how the dwindling importance of science in children is not only due to schools, but also due to American culture. Therefore, Caplan uses a combination of rhetorical devices to not only warn and inform the public about the importance of science, but to also engage them to an extent that persuades the audience to take action.
“He say Mr. Parris must be kill! Mr. Parris no goodly man, Mr. Parris mean man and no gentle man and he bid me rise out of bed and cut your throat!” (Miller 47).
20 were executed” (Blumberg). The Crucible setting is based on The Salem Witch trials, but the plot is based on The Red Scare. The author employs strict tone and rhetorical questions to convey power. This connects to the purpose of how a occurring can devastate a whole community and the people in it. Arthur Miller, the author of The Crucible, employs empowerment by expressing the challenges within each character and their influence on the trial through the characters John Proctor, Abigail, and Danforth.
In 1729, Jonathan Swift published a pamphlet called “A Modest Proposal”. It is a satirical piece that described a radical and humorous proposal to a very serious problem. The problem Swift was attacking was the poverty and state of destitution that Ireland was in at the time. Swift wanted to bring attention to the seriousness of the problem and does so by satirically proposing to eat the babies of poor families in order to rid Ireland of poverty. Clearly, this proposal is not to be taken seriously, but merely to prompt others to work to better the state of the nation. Swift hoped to reach not only the people of Ireland who he was calling to action, but the British, who were oppressing the poor. He writes with contempt for those who are oppressing the Irish and also dissatisfaction with the people in Ireland themselves to be oppressed.
Rhetoric is just one of the many tactics writers can use. Metaphors and similes are also very widely seen throughout different texts. Rebecca Skloot uses multiple examples of this, one being that “under the microscope, a cell looks a lot like a fried egg” (Skloot 3). She gives us this simile to make such a complex structure seem so simple to imagine. She’s showing us how a cell looks to the human eye, but showing us with something familiar to everyone. Not only does Rebecca Skloot relay the information to the reader and the Lacks family in a way they will understand, she also proves that not all people within the media are concerned with just the scientific aspects. Some people in the media community care about the story behind the scenes, behind the
Director Steven Spielberg and auther Markus Zusak, in their intriguing production, movie Saving Private Ryan and book The Book Thief, both taking place during World War II. However , in Saving Private Ryan Spielberg focus on a lot of complications that occur during war , but guilt was one difficulty that stood out to me. Zusak, on the other hand , showas that having courage during war can be a advantage and also an disadvantage depending on the situation. Both director and author grabed the audience attention with emotional and logical appeal.
Vaccines save us from being infected with viruses. They save approximately 2.5 million people from death every year. However, while they help save lives, vaccines still have both minor and severe side effects. This can result in nausea, severe sickness, and in rare cases, death. Every year, 3,000 to 4,500 people in the United States are hospitalized due to vaccine side effects. It is extremely important for all communities to be informed about the side effects of vaccines and what causes them. Also, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that the influenza vaccine is only 48% effective, due to constant mutation of the virus (Scutti, 2017). This means, the influenza vaccine does not work on all
The Fear of Science To live in the today's world is to be surrounded by the products of science. For it is science that gave our society color television, the bottle of aspirin, and the polyester shirt. Thus, science has greatly enhanced our society; yet, our society is still afraid of the effects of science. This fear of science can be traced back to the nineteenth century, where scientists had to be secretive in experimenting with science. Although science did wonders in the nineteenth century, many people feared science and its effects because of the uncertainty of the results of science.