Jeanette Marie M.

Rios
IBIO3

When I first saw, the table of contents for the book: Letters to a young scientist, I was
completely amazed on how Edward O. Wilson was able to organize different chapters
containing various information, his experiences and well as the advices that he would want us to
apply whether in our future careers or even just in our daily lives. Honestly speaking, when I
was younger than I am now, I didnt really see science as anything but visual pictures that are
questionable when viewed by the eye but somehow had a deeper meaning and understanding
when examined. I was extremely unsure about my career path in science maybe because I
cant fully imagine myself in the shoes of a doctor. Maybe because nerves get the best of me
and these nerve endings end up as frozen arteries, capillaries and veins in search of a purpose.
With regards to the advices, passion is the most important. Because if you develop such little
interest with science, it lacks that great advantage that you could possibly have if you are really
dedicated to the fields and complex structures of science. Second prior to the advices of Wilson
is that he experimented with ants and eventually discovered what causes another ant to be
dead so in our lives we have to experiment and take risks whether as a student, a citizen or a
doctor. We must have that confidence to dig deep in science, because as mentioned by Wilson,
Science is an organized testable knowledge of the real world. Reality is a bundle of mixed
processes that should be applied and tested by us. These fresh young minds given to us is our
tool for a much greater opportunity. Second prior to his advices is concerning Mathematics,
because not everyone entering the world of science is mathematically prepared because each
branch that science possesses is a subtopic of math or has that challenging essence of math.
Based on what I have read, math is not the basis for your success in the world of science. It
may be an edge in research especially with computations that are necessary in some aspects
but that creative process is what would set you aside differently from the other scientists that are
merely just focused on numerical coefficients and the analytical method of it. Being creative
means that your mind is thinking in a different perspective. It views objects or topics in a much
kinesthetic approach. And this may help you find a specialty in mind or a subject in a mind that
would help you enjoy your journey in science. Science is meant to be enjoyable especially if
your goal is to keep on learning/ nourishing what has already been taught in your previous years
of high school that certainly wasnt elaborated as much and serves as a motivation and a
stepping stone to appreciating life as we know it and the life to come after it. Science never

stops growing and it is up to us to continue to process all the new information that we could
gather just by looking at the environment and the people around us. Third prior to his advices is
the constant race that we would have to face. Meaning as future scientists, it would not be an
easy journey to get to that doctorate level immediately. It is a matter of constant reviewing
because knowledge doesnt stop at this point. Especially if the specialty you chose is rare these
days and that would require more frequent attention. Pressure it that one thing that could mess
up our mind and possibly would let us have that thought of quitting but there are greater social
sciences and humanities out there that we need to expand. With Wilsons study on insects,
dragonflies and termites. These experiments have widely opened my eyes to a greater outlook
of what they are really capable of. Because normally you would think a mere insect is
completely helpless and they just depend on their environment but they are actually
independent in their own way. So to conclude what I have read, Wilsons main goal is to inspire,
advice and inform young readers to push them to the next level of excellence but it is still up to
us to build that passion, creativity and determination needed to achieve and succeed in the
future endeavors to come in the vast world of science. Like Wilsons exploration with different
kinds of species, I too am in my own world of exploration. With science, I get to explore my
capabilities, weaknesses and the mere edge that I could possibly have that I havent discovered
due to a closed mind. In science, finding the right answer is the first thing on the list and of
course research is highly required. To search for unasked questions and unanswered answers
is the job of us scientists. Within my exploration, I get to discover my true passion in what lies
ahead of biology or any subtopic of it. Because life coming from a single cell wouldnt have
grown if it werent for those hardworking scientists. With my exploration on going from reading a
1200 pages biology book to viewing a specimen under a microscope and eventually dissecting
a frog, cat and more likely a human being is overwhelming and the book letters to a young
scientist has really helped in picturing that vivid image of success in the field that you love and
that you find interesting. From the book it said use but dont love technology because
technology of course is useful in terms of everyday living and in fields of research because
without technology everything would still be stuck in the primitive ages. And focusing on
technology alone makes an individual too techno-centered and something that is too much is
not good anymore. According to more readings, teams arises in the encouragement of
innovation by practicing scientists. So science requires all the effort that could be extracted from
our neurons that could help us make practice perfect in terms of consistency. Team think is
the two words that really caught my attention because to think means to process and to process
means to discover something new, fresh and something more out of the box.