Chapter 6 The Making of a scientist

By- Robert W. Peterson

Theme of the Lesson
You are motivated to pursue your dreams by this chapter. Ebright had a strong sense of
curiosity as a child, which ultimately inspired him to pursue a career in science. The path
Ebright took to become a renowned scientist leaves a lasting impression on us.
Question and Answers
Question 1:
How did a book become a turning point in Richard Ebright’s life?
Answer:
Richard Ebright had a deep fascination with collecting butterflies of different species. By
the time he was in the second grade, Ebright had collected all twenty-five species of
butterflies found around his hometown. That would probably have been the end of the
butterfly collection for him. Then, his mother brought him a children’s book, ‘The Travels
of Monarch X’, which explained how monarch butterflies migrated to Central America,
and this book opened the world of science for Richard. After reading the book, he found a
lot of interest in tracking the migration of butterflies. This deep interest led him to work on
several other projects and experiments on the Monarch butterflies. Thus, the book became
a major turning point in Richard Ebright’s life, and he became a renowned scientist.
Question 2:
How did his mother help him?
Answer:
Richard’s mother always helped him by encouraging his interest in learning new things.
She took him on occasional trips and bought scientific equipment for him, such as
telescopes, microscopes, cameras, mounting materials and other related equipment and
tried to help him in every possible way. If he didn’t have anything to do, she found new
things for him to learn. She helped him in different ways, both directly and indirectly. She
even gifted him the book ‘The Travels of Monarch X’ which proved to be a major turning
point in Richard’s life and motivated him to become a great scientist.
Read and Find Out (Page 34)
Question 1:
What lesson does Ebright learn when he does not win anything at a science fair?
Answer:
Ebright’s entry at a science fair was slides of frog tissues, which he showed under a
microscope. He did not win any prize for his display. He understood that to win in such a
science competition, it was important for him to conduct real experiments, not simply make
a neat display. Thereafter, he started working on various projects and conducted real
experiments.
Question 2:
What experiments and projects does he then undertake?
Answer:
Ebright worked on many projects and conducted experiments. In his eighth-grade project,
he tried to find the cause of a viral disease that kills nearly all monarch caterpillars every
few years. He assumed that the disease might be carried by a beetle. For the following
year’s science fair project, he started testing the viceroy butterflies to show that they copied
monarch butterflies. Besides, he also studied bright spots on the monarch pupa and
discovered an unknown insect hormone that indirectly led to his new theory on the life of
cells and how cells read their DNA.
Question 3:
What are the qualities that go into the making of a scientist?
Answer:
According to the author, three key ingredients make a scientist – a first-rate mind,
curiosity and the will to perform the best and win for the right reasons. Richard Ebright
was a bright student, a champion debater, a public speaker, a good canoeist and an all-
around outdoors person. He was also an expert photographer, particularly of nature and
scientific exhibits. He was a competitive person blessed with a curious mind and had all the
necessary qualities to become a successful scientist which finally led him to his theory on
the life of cells.
Think about it (Page 38)
Question 1:
How can one become a scientist, an economist, a historian…? Does it simply involve
reading many books on the subject? Does it involve observing, thinking and doing
experiments?
Answer:
Reading books on any subject is just an aspect of learning. A learner must work on
developing his/her observation skill and thinking power. To become a genius in a
particular field, one must have a curious mind and the desire to explore new things by
conducting real-life experiments and working on related projects. One must work hard and
not feel taken down by mere failures. An urge to learn and discover a new theory requires
a person to put in a lot of sweat and effort in any particular area of interest.
Question 2:
You must have read about cells and DNA in your science books. Discuss Richard Ebright’s
work in light of what you have studied. If you get an opportunity to work like Richard
Ebright on projects and experiments, which field would you like to work on and why?
Answer:
Richard Ebright’s works were related to Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. His theory
on the life of cells has helped the scientific community to study the cell structure, its growth
and functions of different organisms. Indirectly, it also helps in detecting disease-causing
organisms and discovering how this grow inside the body of living beings. Ebright’s
findings about insect hormones and the photos gave him the answer to one of biology’s
puzzles – how the cell could ‘read’ the blueprint of its DNA. DNA is the substance in the
nucleus of a cell that controls heredity and passes genetic information from one generation
to another. It determines the form and function of the cell.
If I get an opportunity to work like Richard Ebright on projects and experiments, I would
like to study various life-threatening diseases. By studying the DNA, I may find useful
remedies to cure chronic or fatal illnesses.
Talk about it (Page 38)
Question 1:
Children everywhere wonder about the world around them. The questions they ask are the
beginning of the scientific inquiry. Given below are some questions that children in India
have asked Professor Yash Pal and Dr Rahul Pal as reported in their book, Discovered
Questions (NCERT, 2006).
(i) What is DNA fingerprinting? What are its uses?
(ii) How do honeybees identify their own honeycombs?
(iii) Why does rain fall in drops?
Answer:

1. DNA is the blueprint for life. DNA fingerprinting is a useful forensic method that
helps to identify parentage, since a son or a daughter would always exhibit a pattern
identifiable as coming from both parents. It is possible to identify genes from a tiny
 drop of blood or a single strand of hair. It is also widely used in criminal
investigations to prove the innocence or guilt of a murder suspect at the crime scene.
2. Honeybees are extremely sophisticated insects that are well aware of their location,
position and navigation. They have warning chemicals that leave trails for fellow
honeybees to locate their honeycomb. Bees also have pictorial memory of some sort,
a direction-finding mechanism and a way of reckoning distance, due to which they
are in a better position to find their own honeycombs.
3. Rain is formed from the condensation of vapour when the air is cooled below the
dew point. All the vapour in a cloud cannot condense simultaneously and it turns
into a large pool of water. Most raindrops start as tiny ice crystals that slowly
accumulate more moisture on the way at lower altitudes, and the crystals melt into
water droplets and fall on Earth as rain.