NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English (Footprints without Feet) Chapter 6 The Making of a Scientist

NCERT
SOLUTIONS
CLASS - 10th

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Class : 10th
Subject : English-2
Chapter : 6
Chapter Name : The Making of a Scientist

Q1 How did a book become a turning point in Richard Ebright’s life?

Answer. By the time Richard Ebright was in the second grade, he had collected all twenty- ve
species of butter ies found around his hometown. According to him, this would probably have
been the end to his butter y collecting. However, a book made him think otherwise. The book
titled ‘The Travels of Monarch X’ became a turning point in his life. The book was about how
monarch butter ies migrated to Central America. This opened up the world of science to the
eager young butter y collector. At the end of the book, readers were invited to help study
butter y migrations. He actively participated in tagging butter ies to help in the research being
conducted by Dr Frederick A. Urquhart. He went on to raise an entire ock of butter ies in the
basement of his home. Thus, it can be said that the book had managed to keep his enthusiasm
alive by making him aware of the never-ending possibilities in the world of science.

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Q2 How did his mother help him?

Answer. Richard Ebright’s mother helped him by encouraging his interest in learning. She took
him on trips, bought him telescopes, microscopes, cameras, mounting materials and other
equipments, and helped him in many other ways. If he did not have anything to do, she found
things for him to learn. Even the book that became a turning point in his life was given to him by
his mother. Hence, it can be said his mother played a crucial role in the making of the scientist.

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Q3 What lesson does Ebright learn when he does not win anything at a science fair?

Answer. When Richard Ebright did not win anything at the science fair, he realized that the
winners had tried to conduct real experiments. He, on the other hand, had simply made a neat
display. He had shown slides of frog tissues under a microscope. It was the rst time that he got
a hint of what real science was. This event served to develop the competitive spirit in him.
Ultimately, it was this spirit of enthusiasm and competitiveness that drove him to achieve new
heights in science.

Q4 What experiments and projects does he then undertake?

Answer. After losing out at the science fair, Richard Ebright undertook various experiments and
projects. For his eighth grade project, he tried nding the cause of a viral disease that killed
nearly all monarch caterpillars every few years. He tried raising caterpillars in the presence of
beetles as he thought the disease might have been carried by a beetle. He did not get any results.
However, he went ahead and showed that he had tried the experiment, and this time he won.

The next year, his science fair project was to test the theory that viceroy butter ies copied
monarchs in order to prevent being eaten by birds. His project was to see whether birds would
eat monarchs. He found that a starling would not eat ordinary bird food, but ate all the
monarchs it could get. This project was placed rst in the zoology division and third overall in
the county science fair.

In his second year at high school, he began the research that led to the discovery of an unknown
insect hormone. Indirectly, it also led to his new theory on the life of cells. He tried to nd the
purpose of the twelve tiny gold spots on a monarch pupa. Along with another excellent science
student, he built a device which showed that the spots were producing a hormone necessary for
the butter y’s full development. This project won the rst place in the county fair and also an
entry into the International Science and Engineering Fair, where it was adjudged the third best
in zoology.

As a high school junior, he continued his advanced experiments on the monarch pupa. His
project won rst place at the International Science fair.

In his senior year, he grew cells from a monarch’s wing in a culture and showed that the cells
would divide and develop into normal butter y wing scales only if they were fed the hormone
from the gold spots. That project won rst place in zoology at the International Fair.

The summer after his freshman year at Harvard, Richard worked on the hormone secreted from
the gold spots, and was able to identify the chemical structure of the hormone. During his junior
year, he got the idea for his new theory on the life of cells. Along with his room-mate, James R.
Wong, he worked on his theory and wrote a paper explaining the same.

Q5 What are the qualities that go into the making of a scientist?

Answer. The author mentions three qualities that go into the making of a scientist—a rst-rate
mind, curiosity, and the will to win for the right reasons. Richard Ebright was a very intelligent
student. He was also a champion debater, a public speaker, a good canoeist and an expert
photographer. He always gave that extra effort. He was competitive, but for the right reasons.
From the rst he had a driving curiosity along with a bright mind; and it was this curiosity that
ultimately led him to his theory about cell life.

Q1 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. DIY

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Q2 You must have read about cells and DNA in your science books. Discuss Richard Ebright’s
work in the light of what you have studied. If you get an opportunity to work like Richard Ebright
on projects and experiments, which eld would you like to work on and why?

Answer. DIY

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Q1 Children everywhere wonder about the world around them. The questions they ask are the
beginning of scienti c 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 ngerprinting? What are its uses?
(ii) How do honeybees identify their own honeycombs?
(iii) Why does rain fall in drops?
Can you answer these questions? You will nd Professor Yash Pal’s and Dr Rahul Pal’s answers.

Answer. Missing

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Q2 You also must have wondered about certain things around you. Share these questions with
your class, and try and answer them.

Answer. DIY

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