On April 15th, 1912 tragedy struck the RMS Titanic in the Atlantic Ocean. The sinking of the RMS Titanic is still known as one of the worst fatal events to ever happen. Scientists are remarkably still studying what went wrong on the fateful spring night. In “Titanic Sunk by "Supermoon" and Celestial Alignment?” Richard Lovett explains how scientists have found a new one of a kind theory that explains some unclear facts about the sinking of the Titanic. Scientists have investigated and found out that an ultra rare alignment of the sun, the full moon, and earth caused unusual waters that night. Scientists have concluded that that ultra rare alignment caused an unusual pull from the moon that raised tides for the few days before. The area that the RMS Titanic sunk is not known for having a large population of icebergs. But with the unusual pull from the moon, scientists feel that icebergs from the coast of Canada could have been drug right into the path of the RMS Titanic. This can be compared to a rowboat on a beach. Imagine the rowboat left near the shore and when high tide comes the rowboat being lifted up from the sand. Basically scientists think that this happened to large icebergs that previously couldn’t have been moved.
This affects human life today in a coupe different ways. For instance, many people are still curious about what happened on the night of April 15th, 1912. That’s why some of these scientists are still studying. If scientists are still finding things out now, what does this bode for the future? Could we discover more things about an event that happened such a long time ago? Another reason this connects to human life is actually connected to me and a few others in our class. In Mr. Doyle’s World History class we are actually studying the titanic in detail and planning on writing a research paper on it. So in fact this actually is present in my life today in a very large way.
I thought this article was very well written. Lovett wrote it in a way for someone who doesn’t really have an idea of some terms and/or information on this event to understand easily. He also wrote with a tone that really kept me wanting to listen to his argument on this theory. One thing I thought he could have done more of was putting quotes in his article. Excluding the three quotes at the end the reader really had to trust what Lovett was saying because there was a lack of quotes in the first 10 paragraphs. In the end I thought that this article was really interesting and something that others should definitely read.
Lovett, Richard A. "Titanic Sunk by "Supermoon" and Celestial Alignment?" National Geographic News. National Geographic, 6 Mar. 2012. Web. 6 Mar. 2012. .
In his review, Owen did a very good job summarizing this new theory. Owen’s review was concise and easy to understand. The reader was presented with clear information regarding this new idea, which was presented using simple language that was easy to understand.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I thought could have been done better was describing the actual theory a little more. The review did an excellent job giving background information, however, I would have liked to see some more information on this rare alignment. I also would have liked to hear more about the way in which scientists discovered or hypothesized this new theory.
The titanic is one of my absolute favorite movies and this new theory is very interesting! I never took the time to think about why there were icebergs there in the first place, but now that I do, this is a really interesting idea.
I commented on my fellow classmate Owen Jones’s article. There were many aspects of the review that I was particularly impressed with while reading it. To start, I enjoyed the article and found it to be very interesting. Who knew the Titanic could have sunk because of the ultra rare alignment of the sun, the full moon, and earth causing unusual waters that night? I certainly did not. I found this to be a very important factor because I need to be interested in what I am reading or else I will stop reading it, and move onto something else. Secondly, I was also impressed by his example to help the reader comprehend what could have occurred. For example, Owen said, “This can be compared to a rowboat on a beach. Imagine the rowboat left near the shore and when high tide comes the rowboat being lifted up from the sand.” I definitely found this to be helpful in understanding the article because this comparison was easier to understand than some of the other information in the article. Lastly, I was impressed by how Owen related it to present times by saying that if we are just discovering new things about something that happened in 1912, what else can we possibly discover in the future?
ReplyDeleteOverall, I was very impressed with this review and did not think there were many things that could have been improved. However, there were a few spelling errors so Owen should always re-read his review to check for that. Owen could have also sited specific information from the article to give us a better understanding of where it is coming from and how the author of the article feels.
From Owen’s review, I learned that the Titanic could have been caused by the ultra rare alignment of the sun, the full moon, and earth causing unusual waters.
Just finishing my classmate, Owen Jones’s, review on the article “Titanic Sunk by ‘Supermoon’ and Celestial Alignment?” I think Owen did a great reviewing this starting article. Firstly, I think Owen did a splendid job summarizing the article and delivering a clear summary off the scientist’s research. This includes Owens clarifying of the scientists’ substantial research by condensing it into an understandable and easy to read format, for readers to easily digest. Additionally, I think Owen did a really good job in picking and choosing the article to review. By picking an article that discusses a topic that virtually everyone knows about and is a dark park in our nations past, it really makes the reader feel connected and eager to learn more about a potentially new cause of the Titanic disaster. For example, right when I read the title of Owens’s review, I was immediately drawn in and pressured to read on. That is something that is hard to do nowadays. Finally, I think Owen did a great job connecting bits and pieces of his article into present day examples and situations that help involve the readers. This includes his incorporation of his connection to the Titanic disaster in his history class. This really involved the reader, especially us peers at the Bronxville School, allowing us to connect and relate with ease.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Owen did a great job reviewing this article, there are a few things that could be improved such as taking his connections to situations relevant to us today and pushing them farther. By this, I mean to go deeper in involving the reader to points where it attracts all different members of his audience, instead of one or two specific people. Also, another thing Owen could have done better on is in the section where he describes the discrepancies in the authors quote integration and use. Maybe Owen could have incorporated some of these quotes to give us a visually sense of what he was talking about, opposed to trying to explain it.
Overall though, Owen did a fantastic job summarizing this article and brought ideas and concepts to light that I had no previous conception of. This of course, is the idea that other factors contributed to the Titanic disaster, like the moon pull on that very specific night. This is starting and mind boggling that such a rare and minimal variable could have made such a difference that ultimately caused the disaster to occur. This was very exciting and interesting to read. Good job, Owen Jones.
I just had the pleasure of reading my classmate Owen Jones’ review of the article “Titanic Sunk by "Supermoon" and Celestial Alignment?” First, I was very content with Owen Jones’ summary and explanation of the article. Though I was skeptical of reading about an article with what I considered to be irrelevant content, I was soon impressed with what it had to say. Secondly, I was impressed with Owen’s opinion on what effect this could have on the future, and felt that what he had to say concerning how old this research was and what we could do with today’s information was very interesting. Lastly, I found that Owen’s clarity in explanation was instrumental in my understanding and liking of the article.
ReplyDeleteThough Owen did a fantastic job reviewing the article, I found that, while he was clear, his incorrect spelling and grammatical issues took from the article. Secondly, I wished that Owen had related the findings in the article to other real life instances. Had he done so, I believe it would have been even easier to relate.
Overall, I think that Owen did a fantastic job in his review. While there was the odd distraction here or there due to spelling or grammar, I felt that his clarity more than made up for his shortcomings in the other categories, and that I have never felt more knowledgeable about the effects that the moon and sun alignment can have on the passage of ships.