NOTE: This is a revision of an earlier piece I wrote thinking that it might develop into a possible research piece for the National Writing Project or an article for NYSEC. Certainly, it was a Creative Writing effort at the time for the 3-week GVWP Summer Institute.
I ran into Martin's father (a former colleague who taught science), while he was substitute teaching this year at SOTA. He shared with me Martin's gratitude for all that he learned about writing while at SOTA. I thanked him and told him Martin was like a son to me--a perfect gentleman and always an inspiration. Mr. Wolf was visibly touched. Martin is successfully traveling and doing graduate research work in the sciences right now, but will always be one of the"student" writers I most respect and admire.
Here is my personal narrative about him from a few years ago:
Science Friday
Martin Wolf was School of the Art’s very own Bill Nye the Science Guy. He even resembled Bill Nye—tall, lanky, dark-haired, occasionally wearing a bow-tie to complement his neatly ironed button down shirt. In every way Martin was the epitome of a budding scientist, and he chose to practice his passion by honoring his friends and my home room students to “Science Fridays,” a series of experiments and presentations designed to impress us all with the awesome power of science.
Recently I emailed Martin regarding these experiments because I wanted to write about them, but felt that, not being scientifically inclined, I would not be able to describe them or do them justice. Martin quickly replied to my email with the following:
“I remember about 4 of the experiments! We can start with the one with clear the water filled balls. Those were polymers! (Which are mostly Carbon and Hydrogen atoms linked together in long chains. There are many different kinds, but the ones we saw absorbed water over night, which made them have an "index of refraction" almost equal to the water they were in, and also really squishy because they are, at that point, mostly water)! So that means that when light passes through them, they bend the light in almost the same way that the water did, and that makes them invisible! I still have some, so when I come home at the end of May, I'll be happy to give you a jar if you'd like!
Another one I remember was something called "Jacob's Ladder." We passed electricity through a transformer that gave it a higher voltage, and then it arced across two copper wires. Also, you can go up to my dad's room and ask him to show you it again, if you'd like! He says he'd be happy to do it.
Another week, we made "floating bubbles!" We had a large plastic fish tank, and made a sea of carbon-dioxide gas by mixing baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and vinegar (which is dilute acetic acid.) It's just like your classic make-a-volcano experiment everyone does in elementary school, except this time we were looking for the resulting gas and not the mess that a volcano makes! That gas was carbon dioxide: here's the reaction, if you'd like.
NaHCO3 + CH3COOH ==> H2O + NaC2H3O2 + CO2(g)
In words, the chemicals are (in order) sodium carbonate + acetic acid (forms) water + sodium acetate + carbon dioxide gas
Since carbon dioxide is more dense, and therefore heavier, than the air around us, it stayed in the big plastic fish tank. We could then blow bubbles in to the fish tank, and they would float on the layer of carbon dioxide gas, because our breath, although it contains some carbon dioxide gas, is mostly nitrogen. And nitrogen is lighter than the carbon dioxide, so the bubbles looked like they were floating on some invisible sea of gas!
And finally, the spontaneous combustion! (How can we ever forget?) This one was really simple, but it was still my favorite (Partly because of the chemistry, but partly because of people's reactions...including my own!)
We had a ceramic "evaporating dish" filled with finely powdered potassium permanganate (KMnO4), which looks like a grey sand. Next, we added about a teaspoon of glycerine (it kind of sounds like a cooking show, doesn't it?) and waited about a minute for the reaction to start.
It was...
KMnO4 + C3H5(OH)3 ==> K2CO3 + Mn2O3 + CO2(g) + H2O(g) + HEAT!!!
Or, in words, potassium permanganate + glycerin (yields) potassium carbonate + manganese(III) oxide + carbon dioxide gas + water vapor + HEAT!!!!
And of course, the heat is what we saw as the flames! Here's something to remind you (in case somehow you managed to forget...if you have, tell me how, because that was one of the top ten scariest moments of my life! All I could think of while the smoke filled the room was how I would try and explain to my mom how I burnt down Creative Writing's brand new Mac computer cluster!).
I hope that is a good start! If you need me to be more or less scientific than I was before, just ask! I'll be happy to explain anything and everything however you'd like.”
In typical Martin fashion, he left nothing out, even referring me to youtube videos of the experiments and even making sure that I could turn to his Dad, a colleague who taught science, for further explanation. When I thanked him for all of this helpful information, because I was not “scientifically-inclined,” he reassuringly emailed me back.
“You don't need those videos to be "scientifically inclined." I think we're all scientifically inclined. Science is the manifestation of curiosity, in my opinion. We all cannot know the right names of chemicals...we can't all be able to explain why ice floats, or why cats have stripes. But we all can be curious! It's our just our way. And it's purely curiosity that will drive science onward through the years...not fancy terminology!
So from one scientist to another, I hope you find what you are looking for in your writing. Cheers, Martin!”
And we’re still friends on Facebook:
"Ms. Gamzon, you make me like the elegance of English almost as much as Science!"
Only 98 pages left of Moby Dick, Ms. Gamzon!"
He got an A+ in AP Language and Composition for reading it and writing a paper on it.
But this is what was so special about Martin. Many students post blog comments on my classroom writing posts and lessons and unfortunately, I don’t always read and respond to them all., but this one I found was very special and heartfelt.
“Everything happens for a reason, Martin,” my grandmother told me when I burnt my favorite childhood hat next to the wood burning stove. It was a lovely hat, made of wool so colorful it brightened my day every time I wore it. From a structuralistic point of view, the burning of the hat would be only a sign of the painful times to come. That winter would be the coldest winter in my past. You see, structuralism states that all of humankind’s characteristics: our actions, our deeds, our literature and our lives are a system of signs which are not to be overlooked. Structuralists such as Roman Jacobson, Claude Lévi-Strauss, and Roland Barthes attempted to develop a semiology; a form of science which analyzes these signs in our history and literature. Naturally, the Science of English would greatly appeal to me. So, why Structuralism? Why study the events of the past, hoping to decode what may take place in the future? Because it cannot easily be done, and a good mind always accepts the challenge. I would have never guessed that the burning hat, the symbol of the “cold winter” could have meant anything more than my ears would be frostbitten. I would never have known that that particular winter would play host to the death of my grandmother there with me when my hat burned. Nor would I ever have guessed that the rosebush she planted many years before would not grow that spring. A sign so seemingly, painfully obvious was cast aside as I scorned at my silly mistake of putting my hat too close to the fire. And yet, who knows how many symbols are left enduring undiscovered by me at this very moment. Structuralism would dictate that everything, all these little actions, feelings, and decisions, will return to influence the system of life in my future.
Thank you, Martin.
Day 2: Martin's perspective
Science Friday was my favorite day of the week. Not for the NPR program that I like, but for my very own presentation. I created Science Friday for Ms. Gamzon’s homeroom and like Bill Nye, the science guy (my idol), I would bring a simple science experiment to her classroom and share it with the students who were already there before 1st period started.
So far the experiments were well-received by my peers who
were familiar with some of them from their chemistry class, but Ms. Gamzon
seemed fascinated. She was like a little
child awed by the simplest of chemical experimentation.
Then last week I went too far. I brought in an experiment that involved the
simple mixing of some chemicals that would create a small conflagration and heat simply
by contact. Perhaps I had not measured
the amounts properly or had not counted on the fact that fire also involves
smoke and smoke in a school classroom is not a desirable thing.
The look on Ms. Gamzon’s face changed quickly from initial
fascination to sheer panic as the smoke began to billow upwards from the safety
of the container where I had placed the chemical experiment.I had it under
control, but just barely. I mean, I was
scared too, and I knew I had just disappointed Ms. Gamzon. She seemed to think I was perfect and could
do no wrong, but I had just flubbed a simple experiment and endangered her
students.
I tried to make it up to her later in the year. She gave us an extra credit assignment in AP
English. If we independently read and did a report on Melville’s
Moby Dick, she would give us an A+ for
our 4th marking period grade.
Not only did we read and do a presentation, but we dressed
the part. I played Captain Ahab, and
David was the Great White Whale, complete with a costume we built for the
occasion. The smile on Ms. Gamzon’s face
and her laughter at seeing David walk into the room was everything I hoped for
as an apology for nearly setting her room (or even the school!) on fire earlier
in the year. I knew she wasn’t angry at me, but Ms. Gamzon’s face is so easily
read and disappointment was one thing I hoped never to see again from her.
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