To Know A FLY four Levels

1. Group Presentation 1
PRESENTATION BY:
• KUMESH GURUNG
• DIPSAN SUBEDI
• KRITI SHRESTHA
• KAMAL SUBEDI
TO KNOW A FLY
(VINCENT DETHIER)
10th November 2014

2. Contents
• Introduction to Author
• Literal Comprehension
• Interpretation
• Critical thinking
• Conclusion
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3. Introduction to Author
• Vincent Dethier (1995-1993)
• Known for Research in entomology and
physiology
• Great contribution on Natural History
Writings
• The Ecology of a Summer House
• The World of the Tent Makers
• To Know a Fly
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4. Literal Comprehension
• To Know a Fly, is about a scientist and his lifelong
fascination with science and the fly.
• Vincent Dethier is a biologist who loves science and
sharing it with the world.
• Explains how flies work, shows how science works,
and shows a researcher genuinely enjoying his job.
• He goes into great detail describing his experiments,
observations, and discoveries of flies.
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5. Literal Comprehension
• Dethier says, “An experiment is a scientist’s way of
asking nature a question,”
• The first of which set out to discover why a fly
walks about in its food and constantly sticks out its
tongue.
• His observation led to speculation that flies taste
with their feet.
• Flies ignore artificially sweeteners, and are
gluttonous over a rare sugar called fucose.
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6. Literal Comprehension
• Modified versions test also proved that flies can
distinguish between different kinds of sugars, and
that they reject salty, bitter, and sour tastes.
• Flies are similar to many people in the fact that they
“prefer what tastes good to what is nutritionally
best.”
• Experiments were performed to learn more about a
fly’s tastes and feeding habits, and the role the fly’s
tiny hairs play in taste
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7. Literal Comprehension
• Fly cannot be conditioned to respond and has no
capacity for learning, so basically the fly is stupid,
but aside from that, it really is a fascinating and
interesting creature.
• To Know a Fly, ends by discussing how important a
scientist’s work is to him or her, and that all the
research, experimenting, and publication are well
worth the reward of knowledge obtained and shared
with the world.
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8. Interpretation
• Dethier wrote this book for the non-scientist in an
attempt to communicate the fascination and methods
of science to as many people as possible.
• Dethier uses straightforward and easy to understand
language to describe the experiments and discoveries
of flies, which gives the reader a whole new
perspective on both flies and science in general.
• He wants people to see a scientist as a human with a
family, a job, and problems just like anyone else. His
job just happens to deal with science,
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9. Interpretation
• Dethier is exposing the day-to-day work of a
scientist, or more specifically a biologist, and is
showing society that like any occupation there are
frustrations, successes, and rewards.
• Scientists rewards often are not monetary, but in
feeling that they are contributing to the well -being
of society and providing new knowledge to the
world.
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10. Critical Thinking
• Dethier did a wonderful job of portraying the way
the scientific method is implemented to learn and
discover new things.
• He succeeded in making people aware of the
importance of science as well as all the animals that
share our world, no matter how small they may be.
• He made the perceived “insignificant” fly seem
significant and interesting.
• Dethier makes his readers more aware of the world
and helps them to appreciate how intricate nature is,
and that science is our way of unraveling the
mysteries of our planet.
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11. Conclusion
• A new understanding and admiration for scientists
and the work that they perform day in and day out.
• Their job seems very tedious and painstaking at
times, but their patience and perseverance are greatly
admirable.
• To Know a Fly help to Realize that scientists are
creative people too, and the way they express their
creativity is through imaginative and innovative
experimental designs.
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12. Conclusion
• To Know a Fly explain about science, and many
people have negative attitudes about science, but To
Know a fly, helps the non-scientist be more open
minded about it.
• Vincent G. Dethier succeeded in making his voice
heard, and helping to spread his knowledge and love of
science to others.
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13. 13
Thank You 