A Science Lesson  (May 9, 2009)  

Describe a science lesson that you had in school or university (such as biology, chemistry or physics). *

            You should say:

                          when you attended this lesson

                          where you attended this lesson

                          what you learned (and what branch of science it was)

             and explain how you learned it (= how it was taught). *

Sample from Wang Dong: Boiling Frog  温水煮青蛙

how you learned it

    * The boiling frog story states that a frog can be boiled alive if the water is heated slowly enough — it is said that if a frog is placed in boiling water, it will jump out, but if it is placed in cold water that is slowly heated, it will never jump out.
    * If you put the frog in cold water and slowly increase the temperature--slowly boil the water, the frog will be cooked without trying to jump out.
    * They say that if you put a frog into a pot of boiling water, it will leap out right away to escape the danger. But, if you put a frog in a kettle that is filled with water that is cool and pleasant, and then you gradually heat the kettle until it starts boiling, the frog will not become aware of the threat until it is too late. The frog's survival instincts are geared towards detecting sudden changes.

explain what you learned

    * The story is often used as a metaphor for the inability of people to react to important changes that occur gradually.
    * Life happens gradually. Like the frog, we can be fooled, and suddenly it’s too late. We need to be aware of what is happening.
    * This is a story that is used to illustrate how people might get themselves into terrible trouble. This parable is often used to illustrate how humans have to be careful to watch slowly changing trends in the environment, not just the sudden changes. Its a warning to keep us paying attention not just to obvious threats but to more slowly developing ones.
    * An example: Let's say that every year, the local well had an inch less of water in it. A person might realize there's a problem if there's suddenly NO water, but a slowly dropping level might not be an obvious crisis until it's too late!

其他素材：

Domino Effect  多米诺效应