Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~190 words

Science and Art are Equally Valuable
Juniper Tremper

We live in a world where some careers are valued more than others, but in particular, we have the image of the starving artist. Glenn McClure’s insight on artists in Antarctica is most fascinating because due to the harsh environment, everyone is equally at risk of injury or death inflicted by the cold, no matter whether they study science or observe scientific studies to produce art. He specifically pointed out how if someone is negligent of directions and GPS, they stand no chance against the disorienting whiteness- regardless of what they have a college degree in.

It’s intriguing to note that we don’t need scientists more than artists, nor vice versa. The scientific work would not be presentable to the public without the artistic representation. In addition, McClure tells us that during unoccupied time on the science base, the whole population of scientists and artists comes together as one, to play music and keep each other sane by entertainment. Our goal as students and humans should be to adopt the successful co-dependence of science and art in instances that are less life-and-death and more day-to-day. We need both subjects to succeed as humans.

Does the cultural acceptance of slang words devalue the culture’s language?

-Tremper, 2016/11/09

How does the cultural misunderstanding of a word affect the evolution of the culture’s language?

-Tremper, 2016/11/07

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~150 words

Comparing Ice Crusts to Pottery to Jack’O’Lanterns
Juniper Tremper

When you step on snow during certain winter months, you step through a defined layer of ice before sinking your foot into a pit of fine, powdery snow. Or in the Antarctic, due to differences in melting point, a pit full of water. The excerpt “The Effect of Summer Sun on Different Varieties of Ice and Snow” describes the occurence of this phenomenon in Antarctica, and the impact that the heat from sunlight has on the thickness of the ice crust.

Sculpture, ceramics especially, is hugely science oriented because there are extremely particular temperatures necessary to adequately fire a pot without shattering it, and different heat requirements for different glazes. This would likely be an easily accessible opportunity for artists to publicize the effects of the heat on Antarctica’s ice, because a pot fired at all the appropriate temperatures would be visibly distinguishable from a pot fired incorrectly, with the glazes evaporating or melting into each other.

(For a little perspective for people unfamiliar with pottery, this would be roughly comparable to a normal Jack’O’lantern sitting next to a pumpkin with lopsided cuts, and visible internal smoldering.)

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~170 words

Inspiration is Necessary for both Scientists and Artists
Juniper Tremper

When we sing, we put parts of our body to use in the same manner that we would use muscles to play a sport. Singing, especially over an extended duration of time,  helps us learn to control the parts of our body that produce our singing voices, which are the same parts that allow us to speak. Singing requires noise projection and breath regulation, and in long term cases, heart rate adaptation. As a result of practicing song, then, our improved control over our vocal processes reduce stutters and other speech impediments. All of this is described in the context of relevant scientific experiments in the article “The Therapeutic Effects of Singing in Neurological Disorders.” Several scientific inventions already exist which owe inspiration credit to science fiction literature, and noted with the overlap of the musical art of singing with the science of impaired speech, we can hope that the relationship between science and art thrives, continuing to produce necessary artistic inspiration to scientists, and opportunities for artists to get involved in science.

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~170 words

Humans are the Noisiest Animals
Juniper Tremper

In the article “Whisper of the Wild,” the concept of soundscape ecology is presented: that is, the idea that be comparing recordings of the total sounds from one location to recordings from another can determine which locations experience a healthy ecosystem. However, the author describes the experience of a group of “sound catchers” doing soundscape ecology research gathering in Denali, and their shock at how much of the data featured the sounds of engines or manmade productions in what should have been an entirely natural and undeveloped region.

This realization of the extent of our infiltration of nature is horrifying. In permeating the earth with sounds of human development, we are creating noise pollution that effectively silence mating calls of animals. Even for us to observe a human-silent location, we need engines to arrive. We need to rethink our use of technology in undeveloped areas- perhaps restrict use of the airspace above Denali, for starters- or at the very least, work on reducing the volume of engines we use.

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~165 words

Juniper Tremper

We take for granted the plumbing and treatment systems we have in America, because in Gaza, the coasts are polluted with fecal matter and sewage that need to be treated and disposed of properly. In such locations where there are inadequate financial resources to establish waste systems, the residents need to work together to form the “coast united” as suggested by the article’s title, “Land Divided, Coast United.” The author speaks of how people living in Gaza are unable to utilize the filtration plant that they have because the political zones around them are not allowing them to proceed, but there is potential for the sewage problem to be resolved: if Israel approves Gaza’s requests for supplemental electricity and access to hydrogen peroxide. Political disputes are often the explanation for our inability to enact change, because the Gaza citizens recognize the need to keep the water clean and are simply denied resources, but to make progress on any issue, we need to work together.

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~165 words

Caaaaarl, Nuclear Bombs Kill People
Juniper Tremper

In the mid 1900’s, the government of the United States held the priority of developing technology for weapons to keep America safe. In their extensive efforts to test this technology, they illegally dropped nuclear substance on a desert in Utah, regardless of the people living near enough to suffer genetic abnormalities as a result. Terry Tempest Williams, author of the article “Clan of the One-Breasted Women,” tells a series of anecdotes reflecting on the seriousness of the government’s irresponsible actions, including the actions in court that exonerated the United States government on the grounds that it held sovereign immunity, and as a result, suffered no legal reprecussions for intentionally testing nuclear content in the vicinity of human life. Although this instance directly affects only the small number of locals, the article suggests people sympathize with the family of those breast-cancer stricken individuals and utilize those feelings to stand with the afflicted and persuade the government to take responsibility for this disaster and any in the future.

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~265 words

Plebians Prefer Twitter over Science Magazines
Juniper Tremper

The biggest trouble scientists run into when trying to publicize their work is the inability of the general public to maintain interest long enough to gain understanding of the subject material. Therefore, a style of writing has evolved to present modern science in such a way as to not scare away the people who stop reading after the first two sentences. Rachel Nuwer’s article, “Twitter May Be Faster Than FEMA Models For Tracking Disaster Damage,” which is visible online, utilizes the format by breaking the textual element into pieces. The long and descriptive title, with an equally lengthy subtitle, makes no effort to mislead as to the article’s content. Each paragraph is only two or three sentences long, and each makes an immediate point, often referencing other case studies or professionals involved without explaining anything in detail because since the article is published online, any external information links directly to its source. Nuwer’s article discusses the very real potential to analyze the path of a storm by tracking its Twitter presence, which in itself could become a lengthy article citing specific numbers and the reliability of the corrolation, but the author abbreviates each point into extremely concise statements which are easy to follow from one paragraph to the next, and easy to remember for the reader to tell their friends about later. The actual values and scientific evidence are, unfortunately, virtually unimportant. The inclusion of a graphic, or a map, as Nuwer uses, is all the reader needs to put faith in the conclusion they are presented with, and share news of the article with friends and acquaintances.

For reference, Nuwer’s article can be found at: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/twitter-may-be-faster-fema-models-tracking-disaster-damage-180958391/

Juniper Tremper
Scientific Writing 105-19
Geneseo, NY
~140 words

Critiquing the Details of Trees and Gender Labels
by Juniper Tremper

While these points support the comparison between the boundary between genders against the boundary between humans and nature, it’s true that a crucial element is overlooked. When the trees were planted, they reintroduced nature to humans. This should have been enough to breach the gap created by paving over the grass that once grew. In this respect, the approach to negating the effects of gender labels is entirely dissimilar from the humans vs. nature label, because the concept of gender itself is counterproductive, whereas the planting of trees is only unproductive once they are chopped down.

However, because the overall comparison relates to the process resulting in the tree stumps as opposed to only the initial process of planting the trees, the use of Haraway’s gender discussion to shed insight on the tree stumps is still valid.