http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/12/science/intel-science-talent-contest-nurtures-spirit-of-inquiry.html?hp&_r=0
The
article “A Laboratory Grows Young Scientists” is a very interesting article
involving high school students just like us. The article is based off of
students in nearby Ossining High School, in Ossining, NY. The article is
written about a 17 year old senior, Dan McQuaid who is one of the 40 finalists
in the nationwide Intel Science Talent Search. Dan is doing research on finding
a cure for cancer, but he is one of the first to do so at such a young age. Dan
is the first from Ossining to accomplish such a feat, but it doesn’t stop
there. Out of the alumni from this nationwide science competition, seven men
and women have won Nobel Prizes and 11 have received MacArthur “genius” awards.
This
article is significant to not only my personal life, but also to all of my
classmates as well. It is significant because it shows how truly powerful
cancer is and how it truly does affect people worldwide. Never would I ever
have though that such a complex and lethal disease be researched rigorously in
order to help find a cure. Also, this article is also significant because not
only does Dan live very near by, but he is just an ordinary kid just like you
and me. If somebody as simple as a teenager can study such a complex disease,
this should motivate other teenagers around the country to help pitch in and
become a leader in their schools, no matter what field.
Overall,
I think this article was well written. However, I do think that it lacked
enough detail to provide the reader with sufficient information on how exactly
Dan is looking for the cure, and what exactly he is looking for. It was also a
little unclear if Dan is doing this research by himself, or is accompanied by his peers.
Henry Lilly’s review of the article, “A Laboratory Grows Young Scientists,” proved to be very interesting. There were many aspects of his review that I thought were presented very well. Firstly, I liked how he included a little background information on Dan McQuaid, as I felt this really allowed the reader to get an understanding of the intelligence he possesses, for he is only in college. Secondly, I liked how he provided the reader with what field Dan had been researching. I felt that this was very impressive that someone at the age of 17 could have the mental capacity to attempt to develop a cure for cancer. Lastly, I liked how Henry included some of the achievements of the former alumni of the competition. This really allowed the reader to understand the elevated intelligence of the high school kids in the competition.
ReplyDeleteThough Henry’s review was good, there were a few aspects that I would have changed. For example, I would have included a little more detail about the experiments he has already done in search of the cure for cancer. Also, I would have included added whether or not he was working solo or with a group.
In this article, there were many things that I found interesting. However, the most intriguing aspect of the article was the idea that kids at our age were even considering taking on tasks like finding a cure for cancer.
Henry's review of the article "A Laboratory Grows Young Scientists" was very well done. He did a good job of keeping his summary short and to the point. He did not let it drag out, and included no unnecessary information, making it quite readable. Henry's review was also very well written and easy to follow. He had no grammer or spelling mistakes, and his entire review seemed to flow very well. Finally, Henry did a very good job at explaining how this article affects both him and his classmates. He gave two different but equally important reasons, which was very good.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Henry's article review was very good, there are a few places where he could have improved. I think Henry could have gone into more detail about the research that the students are conducting. I was unsure of what exactly the students were doing to help find the cure for cancer. I also think Henry could have included one or two quotes. Quotes provide a first hand source and help to improve the quality of article reviews.
Overal Henry did a very good job with his review of this article. I found it amazing that such important research is being conducted so close by and by students who are almost the same age as me. This was quite an inspiring article because it shows that anyone can make a difference.
Samantha Past
ReplyDelete3/20/13
The article Henry chose to review, first off, is an interesting article, that caught my attention. Henry did a nice job of including the background information pertaining to Dan McQuaid, the 17 year old senior attending Ossining High School, who is one of the 40 finalists in the nationwide Intel Science Talent Search. Henry included basic knowledge pertaining to the article, which was another good aspect of the review as the straightforward summary enabled the reader to develop a general understanding. An aspect of the review that was very well presented, was Henry’s personal connection to the article. Henry did a really great job of relating the article pertaining to high school students, to himself/ the high school students at Bronxville. As Henry stated, “this article is also significant because not only does Dan live very nearby, but he is just an ordinary kid just like you and me. If somebody as simple as a teenager can study such a complex disease, this should motivate other teenagers around the country to help pitch in and become a leader in their schools, no matter what field.”
An aspect of the review that could have been made even better, would possibly be the details themselves, regarding the science research Dan is conducting and the possibilities if Dan were to win the competition. For example, as the article describes if Dan were to be in the top 10, he “will receive prizes of $20,000 to $100,000; the other 30 will receive $7,500.” This is not only a sum of money for Dan but also an extremely high honor for Ossining High School, and may lead to even bigger opportunities for Dan in the science world. Another aspect of the review that may have been made better, could be an increase of information regarding the science research Dan is conducting. By including such information the reader can gain a broader sense of the article, accompanied by a more detailed description of Dan McQuaid’s work.
I found this article to be very interesting and I really enjoyed reading the article, as well as the review. What sparked my interest pertaining to this article, was the reason being this article not only related to science, but also personally to us high school students at Bronxville. Henry did a really good job of relating the article to Bronxville High School Students and providing his readers with a somewhat motivation outlook, as they have an opportunity to get involved.