Risk for Scientists
"To be a scientists requires not only intelligence and curiosity, but passion, patience, creativity, self-suffiency, and courage" (Barry 1). As explained in the passage ,The Great Influenza, by John M. Barry, scientists are a destinct and rare breed of humans. They must show not only their brain but also their ability to survive and endure. Barry conveys his ideas that scientists teach us how to think differently and doubt. But they also teach themselves how to think and analyze situations. Barry shows his strategies of thinking and analyzing situations to get an answer or conclusion, and this is how scientists do their job by analyzing and concluding.
If a person is told that a certain stock is going to rise in the next couple days, then that person is going to buy it. This just goes to show that certainty leads to action but uncertainty may lead to missed oppurtunities. This strategie is conveyed by Barry by which he says,"Uncertainty creates weakness" (Barry 1). Barry shows how a scientist needs to take risks and have confidence in ones choices. But once ones thoughts turn doubtful; ones path and attitude turns fearful and tentative. But Barry's strategies of ones courage is the ability to accept uncertainty, by which Barry shows that a scientist must convey the ability to accept the unknowns and uncertain. A much important view is that science teaches people to doubt and think beyond; an idea that shows Barry's strategies towards scientific research. For example some people believe in ghosts or the abominable snowman and the only reason for this is scientific research and the ability to doubt. but in contrast, Barry conveys the fact that all ones findings ,"...may break apart upon the sharp edge of a single labratory finding" (Barry 1). Barry shows his ideas of fighting against the doubt and uncertainty of ones research but on the other hand ones research may fall apart just as fast as it was founded.
An individual can not give up on ones quest or goal, it takes dedication and persistence to meet ones experiments as conveyed by Barry. His strategie of persistence and strength is key to a persons success and can bring dreams to reality. A scientist is like a person thrown into the wild with a group of people. One must obtain order and peace while making advancements and better their way of living as time passes. But truly, the best are the ones that move deeper into the wilderness into the even more unknown; which means more to discover and analyze. Barry is getting accross the fact that the main recipe for good research is exploring the unknown and going places one has never been before. Courage is a major part to the succcess and findings of scientists. As said by Barry,"Experiments do not simply work" ( Barry 1). This just goes to show that to obtain good research Barry believes that it will be difficult and uncertain but the strong thrive in those situations. Also Barry conveys the idea of knowing less can be better than knowing more because it allows one to mainpulate and come to a conclusion one is looking for. These conclusions are not easy to come by, a scientist will rarely get the idel conclusion right away, they take time, patience, and courage to fight through the unknowns.
Barry's startegies toward scientific research are ones that encourage individuals to have courage and fight through the uncertainties. For a scientist has to venture out and research into the unknown because the known is already "known" and the unknown is still for the taking. All in all Barry's views of scientific analyzing and researching are ones that support the ideas of taking risks, venturing into the unknown, courage, and expecting the uncertainties. |