Class 10 English Chapter 6 Question Answers - The Making of a Scientist

Class 10 English Chapter "The Making of a Scientist" is a story of a curious child who channels his inquisitiveness into becoming a scientist. Richard Ebright's close relationship with his mother played a crucial role in fostering his interest in science. The story serves as a reminder that with perseverance, dedication, and hard work, any dream can be realized. Let us see some Short Answer Questions of this chapter in this EduRev document:

Q1: Which project did Ebright submit in his eighth grade? Why did he win?

Ans: In his eighth grade, Ebright conducted a project to investigate the cause of a viral disease that periodically wiped out all monarch caterpillars. Although his attempts to rear caterpillars in the presence of beetles did not yield results, he submitted his experiments and trials and won a prize for his efforts.

Q2: "Richard was the focus of his mother’s attention." Compose a thesis on this.

Ans: The thesis statement for this would be: Richard's father's death at the age of three left him as his mother's sole focus, resulting in a close bond and a supportive environment that encouraged his interest in learning, which ultimately led to his success in various fields, including science.

Q3: Which project of Ebright won first prize in the county science fair?

Ans: Ebright didn’t win anything at his first science fair, thereby realizing that actual experiments alone worked. Later, he started winning prizes. Ebright along with his scientist friend first built a device that showed that the tiny gold spots on a monarch pupa were producing a hormone necessary for the butterfly’s full development. This project won the first prize in the county science fair and third prize in zoology in the international science fair.

Q4: "Science shows a connection between structure and function." Show this to be so, for the spots Ebright saw on Monarch pupas.

Ans: Ebright grew cells from a monarch’s wing to show that cells could divide and develop into normal butterfly wing scales only if they were fed with the hormones from the gold spots, Later, he identified the chemical structure of the hormone and found how cells can read the blueprints of its DNA.

Q5: What lessons did Richard Ebright learn when he didn’t win anything at the County Science Fair?

Ans: Richard Ebright was in seventh grade when he sent his first project to the County Science Fair. Everybody else had won something. But he returned empty-handed. It was really a sad experience for him. But his loss taught him an important lesson in life. He realized that to be a winner, he would have to do real experiments. His project of merely showing slides of frog tissues under a microscope didn’t click. He should have done real experiments and that is what real science is all about.

Q6: How did Richard Ebright grow cells from a monarch butterfly’s wing? What did that project win for Ebright?

Ans: Richard Ebright continued his journey farther. He grew cells from a monarch’s wing in a culture. He showed that cells could divide and develop into normal butterfly wing scales. They must be fed from the hormone received from the gold spots. This project won first place in zoology at the International Fair.

Q7: Why and where did Richard Ebright send the tagged butterflies?

Ans: At the end of the book, The Travels of Monarch X, readers were invited to help study monarch butterflies’ migration. They were asked to tag butterflies for research by Dr. Urquhart. Soon, Richard Ebright was attaching light adhesive tags to the wings of monarch butterflies. He used to send them to Dr. Urquhart for his research work.

Q8: How did Ebright’s basement become home to thousands of monarch butterflies?
Ans. Richard Ebright used to send tagged monarch butterflies to Dr. Urquhart for his research work. Chasing butterflies one by one was difficult and he couldn’t catch many. So, he decided to raise some of the butterflies in his basement. He would catch a monarch butterfly, take her eggs and raise them. Then, he would tag the butterflies’ wings and let them go. So, his basement became home to thousands of monarch butterflies.

Q9: What did Ebright realize when he started tagging butterflies?

Ans: Ebright started tagging monarch butterflies. He realized that chasing the butterflies one by one wouldn’t enable him to see many. So he decided to raise a flock of butterflies.

Q10: Why did Ebright begin to lose interest in tagging butterflies?

Ans: Ebright began to lose interest in tagging butterflies. The reason was that there was no feedback. He was a little disappointed as only two butterflies had been recaptured. And they had been found not more than seventy-five miles from where he lived.

Q11: What happened when Ebright wrote to Dr. Urquhart for ideas?

Ans: Ebright wrote to Dr. Urquhart for ideas. In reply, the famous scientist gave him many suggestions for experiments. These experiments kept Ebright busy all through high school. He also won many prizes in the county and international science fairs.

Q12: Why do the viceroy butterflies imitate the monarch butterflies?

Ans: In one of his science fair projects, he tested the theory that viceroy butterflies imitate monarchs. He reached the conclusion that viceroys look like monarchs because birds do not find monarchs tasty. They like to eat viceroy butterflies. By copying monarchs, the viceroys escape being eaten by birds.

Q13: Which simple question led to the discovery of an unknown insect hormone?

Ans: In his second year in high school, Ebright’s research led to his discovery of an unknown insect hormone. Indirectly, it led to his new theory on the life of cells. He tried to answer a very simple question: “What is the purpose of the twelve tiny gold spots on a monarch pupa?"

Q14: What idea did Ebright get when he was looking at the X-ray photos of cells?

Ans: One day, Ebright was seeing the X-ray photos of the chemical structure of cells. He got the idea for his new theory about cell life. Those photos provided him with the answer to one of biology’s puzzles: how the cell can ‘read’ the blueprint of its DNA.

Q15: How did Richard Ebright excite the scientific world at the age of twenty-two?

Ans: Richard Ebright was just twenty-two when he ‘excited’ the scientific world with a new theory. It was on how cells worked. Ebright and his college roommate explained the theory in an article in the ‘Proceedings of the National Academy of Science’. It was the first time that this famous scientific journal had ever published the work of college students.

Q16: “… There was one thing I could do —collect things.” What did Richard Ebright do in his childhood?

Ans: Richard Ebright was the only child. "There wasn’t much you could do there. But there was one thing I could do — collect things, "said he. So he did. While still in kindergarten, he started collecting butterflies. By the time he was in second grade, he had collected all 25 species of butterflies found around his hometown. He also collected rocks, fossils, and coins. He sometimes went stargazing all night.

Q17: “Richie was my whole life after his father died …,” said Richard’s mother. Describe Richard Ebright’s relationship with his mother.

Ans: Richard was in third grade when his father died. He was her mother’s whole life and her only companion until he started school. She and Richard spent almost every evening at the dining table. She found work for him and Richard wanted to learn. His mother encouraged his interest in learning.

Q18: What book opened the world of science to the eager young collector, Richard Ebright?

Ans: Richard Ebright was fond of collecting things. By the time he was in the second grade, he had collected all twenty-five species of butterflies found around his hometown. But the book that opened the world of science to the eager young collector was The Travels of Monarch X. It was a children’s book gifted to him by his mother. The book described how monarch butterflies migrated to Central America.

Q19: When and how did Richard Ebright get a hint of what real science is?

Ans: Richard Ebright was in seventh grade when he got a hint of what real science was. Actually, he entered a county science fair — and lost. He didn’t get anything while everybody else had won. It was a very sad feeling for young Ebright. His entry was slides of frog tissues. He showed them under a microscope. He realized that the winners had tried to do real experiments. On the other hand, he failed because he simply made a neat display.

Also at EduRev

• Detailed Summary: The Making of a Scientist
• Character Sketch: The Making of a Scientist

Q20: Who was Dr. Frederick A Urquhart? Why did Richard Ebright look to him for fresh ideas?

Ans: Dr. Frederick A Urquhart was a scientist and teacher at the University of Toronto, Canada. He was doing research on butterfly migrations. Ebright sent him many tagged butterflies for his research work. Richard Ebright looked to him for fresh ideas and suggestions. Dr. Urquhart sent many suggestions for experiments which helped Richard Ebright in winning many prizes in County and International Science Fairs.

Q21: Were twelve tiny gold spots on a monarch pupa just ornamental? What did Richard Ebright prove in this regard? What honours did this project bring to Richard Ebright?

Ans: Many thought that the twelve gold spots on a monarch pupa were just ornamental. But Dr. Urquhart didn’t believe it. Richard built a device that showed that the spots were producing a very important hormone. That hormone was necessary for the butterfly’s full development.
This project won Ebright first place in the county fair and an entry into the  International Science and Engineering Fair.

Q22: How and where did Richard Ebright identify the hormone’s chemical structure?

Ans: After his freshman year at Harvard University, Ebright went back to the laboratory of the Department of Agriculture. He did more work on the hormones of the gold spots. Using sophisticated instruments there, he was able to identify the hormone’s chemical structure.

Q23: How did Richard Ebright give an answer to one of biology’s puzzles—how the cell can read the blueprint of its DNA?

Ans: When Richard Ebright saw X-ray photos of the chemical structure of a hormone, he didn’t cry, “Eureka!” He didn’t even say, “I’ve got it!” He was sure that the photos gave him the answer to one of biology’s puzzles. He had found out how the cell could read the blueprint of its DNA. DNA is the substance in the nucleus of a cell that controls heredity. It is the blueprint for life.

Q24: Richard Ebright was a famous scientist but he had time for other interests too. What were the other interests and hobbies of Ebright?

Ans: Richard Ebright’s journey as a scientist started when he first began collecting butterflies. However, he found time for other interests and hobbies too. He became a champion debater and public speaker. He was a good canoeist. He was also an expert photographer. He excelled in photographing nature and scientific exhibits.

Q25: What was Richard A Weiher’s opinion of his student Richard, Ebright?

Ans: Mr. Richard A Weiherer was Ebright’s Social Studies teacher and adviser. Richard A. Weiherer described Ebright as a man of varied interests. Ebright put in 3 to 4 hours at night doing debate research. Besides, he was doing all his research with butterflies and his other interests. Ebright was competitive and wanted to be the best.

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