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'Eureka' or 'That's funny'--Plzz any ideas?


syaoran

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Hi all,:D

uhm, do you guys have any ideas about this. The topic is kinda strange but it is still in the toefl's form-agree or disagree. Kind of argumentative essay.

 

Write a essay (about 300 words) the following quote. Do you agree or disagree, and why?

 

"The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not 'Eureka!' (I found it!) but 'That's funny...'" (Isaac Asimov)

 

Any ideas are appreciated. Is anyone here interested in science?:D I hope we could discuss about that saying of Asimov. Still, I can't get the point of 'that's funny...'. Do you think he means that discovery is not for our fame but only for our interest in science? Plzzz help me:)

 

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This seems a scary topic to me, I cant even understand what does it mean? What does this topic actually mean?

 

Originally posted by syaoran

 

Hi all,:D

uhm, do you guys have any ideas about this. The topic is kinda strange but it is still in the toefl's form-agree or disagree. Kind of argumentative essay.

 

Write a essay (about 300 words) the following quote. Do you agree or disagree, and why?

 

"The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not 'Eureka!' (I found it!) but 'That's funny...'" (Isaac Asimov)

 

Any ideas are appreciated. Is anyone here interested in science?:D I hope we could discuss about that saying of Asimov. Still, I can't get the point of 'that's funny...'. Do you think he means that discovery is not for our fame but only for our interest in science? Plzzz help me:)

 

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Well, to me it would refer to something unexpected, which could be funny or ironic. For example, if somebody discovered a freely available, clean-burning fuel source, some may think it funny--suddenly, all the struggles in the name of fuel (or really, anything coveted) would be meaningless.

 

Ever see the 1960's US television show, The Twilight Zone? That show dealt with a lot of things that could be seen as funny.

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Originally posted by syaoran

 

Hi all,:D

uhm, do you guys have any ideas about this. The topic is kinda strange but it is still in the toefl's form-agree or disagree. Kind of argumentative essay.

 

Write a essay (about 300 words) the following quote. Do you agree or disagree, and why?

 

"The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not 'Eureka!' (I found it!) but 'That's funny...'" (Isaac Asimov)

 

Any ideas are appreciated. Is anyone here interested in science?:D I hope we could discuss about that saying of Asimov. Still, I can't get the point of 'that's funny...'. Do you think he means that discovery is not for our fame but only for our interest in science? Plzzz help me:)

 

 

 

Sorry about the message above^^ It's my first time posting here!

 

What I think that subject means is that most of the time, great discoveries in science aren't in any way, shape or form premeditated. They just happen, by pure chance (hence "that's funny"). As an example, you could cite the discovery of penicillin in the mid '40s (you could do a little research on that, you'll find plenty of stuff in any encyclopedia).

Hope that helps!

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  • 3 months later...

Actually, my first impression was that "Eureka" means accidental discovery whereas "That's funny" pertains to improvement of an already existing idea. Since a lot of scientific discoveries aren't the product of momentary genius but rather gradual improvements made upon already existing models, I think what Asimov meant was that we must always question current models and ideas to find ways to improve upon it. By questioning and by thinking "Geez, that's funny...shouldn't it be..." we will continue to make progress. Whereas if we lay back and rely on "Eureka" we'll never get very far.

 

That's just my 2c...hope it helps.

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