3 BGU Lab Science & Scientific

Investigation

THE SCIENTIFIC
REVOLUTION
A BIOGRAPHY of one of the
REVOLUTIONARIES
3 BGU Lab Science & Scientific
Investigation

Assignment
Research and write a historical biography of one of the
scientists from the age of the Scientific Revolution.
Criteria:
1. Your ‘audience’ are your fellow 3BGU students who will use
your biography to learn about these scientists.
2. Maximum 600 / minimum 500 words of written text, not
including the title, date, author, images or bibliography. (The
word count should be included in the file.)
3. Shared as a PDF.
4. Assessment according to a rubric.
3 BGU Lab Science & Scientific
Investigation

What Is a Biography?
A biography is a (detailed) third person account of another
person’s life story, in this case, a scientist who made a
contribution to the Scientific Revolution. This then is a
historical biography.
To write the story of a person’s life, you need to know more
than just the basic facts. A good biography delves into what is
really interesting about a person’s life - noteworthy
achievements, moments of adversity, and major turning points.
And in our context, we want to know especially how this
scientist contributed to the Scientific Revolution.
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Investigation

STEP 1

DECIDE UPON THE SUBJECT OF

YOUR BIOGRAPHY.
Your first step then is to decide who will
be the focus of your biography.
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STEP 2
DO YOUR RESEARCH – MAKE YOUR NOTES
There are not going to be any primary resources. your
information will come from secondary resources – internet and
books. You are interested in:
• Significant dates
• Where this scientist lived, studied and made his researches
• How life was at that time – social, cultural, economic,
political considerations
• Major events that were happening at that time, especially
related to science
Also look for some appropriate visual support for the
biography.
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Investigation

STEP 3
MAKE A LIFE TIMELINE OF THE SCIENTIST
This helps you organise your biography into a chronological
form. Decide upon the key events in this scientist’s life. Give
your timeline a visual format. This is not for publication; it is to
help you write the biography coherently.
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STEP 4
CREATE YOUR THESIS FOR THIS
BIOGRAPHY
Everyone will essentially have a similar thesis – the
importance and relevance of this scientist in the
context of the scientific revolution. What contributions
to the Scientific Revolution did this scientist make and
with what implications? Your thesis will be highlighted
in the first part of the biography – the introduction.
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STEP 5
NOW CUT IT RIGHT BACK AND FOCUS ON THE
IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF THIS BIOGRAPHY

You will have much more information than you can cope with or
need. Your thesis is the connection between the research
outcomes of this scientist and the Scientific Revolution. Keep
the essential life story but focus on the research outcomes and
their significance.

Also maybe include any startling or especially fascinating facts

– things which will keep your audience wanting to read on.
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STEP 6
DECIDE ON HOW YOU WILL ADD YOUR
PERSONAL (AUTHOR’S) OPINION AND
COMMENT

In fact there may not be significant personal

judgements. Nevertheless you are the owner of this
biography and your audience needs to know your
opinions, ideas and thoughts.
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Investigation

STEP 7
WRITE THE BIOGRAPHY!

First a draft and then the final production.

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STEP 7a
WRITE THE BIOGRAPHY!

1. INTRODUCTION
You include here your THESIS – the importance of
this scientist in the context of the Scientific Revolution.
This part is sometimes called the “ORIENTATION”.
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STEP 7b
WRITE THE BIOGRAPHY!

2. SERIES OF EVENTS
This is the body of the biography and will follow the
timeline, while focussing on the significant life
moments and achievements of this scientist. Use the
third person and the past tense. You will also need to
use several time connective words.
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Investigation

STEP 7c
WRITE THE BIOGRAPHY!

2. REORIENTATION
A short biography such as this, with a main focus
being the significance of this scientist’s work in the
context of the Scientific Revolution, will finish with:
A summary, including:
• The impact of this person’s work
• A personal comment or opinion.
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STEP 8
ADD THE CITATIONS AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
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STEP 9
GIVE THE BIOGRAPHY A GOOD TITLE
Obviously, in the title, will appear the name of the
scientist. But what else? Something short, catchy and
connected.

Some will argue that the title should be generated at the

beginning, in order to focus the writing. I would argue
that it might be best to see how the writing pans out and
then give the title.
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Some of those revolutionary

scientists
Andreas Vesalius Antonie van Leeuwenhoek William Harvey
Robert Boyle Paracelsus Tycho Brahe
Johannes Kepler Nicolaus Copernicus Francis Bacon
Galileo Galilei René Descartes Isaac Newton
Robert Hooke Cristiaan Huygens William Gilbert
Antoine Lavoisier Zaccharias Janssen John Napier
Evangelista Torricelli Michael Faraday
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Rubric
For
Assessment
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Investigation

Final Task
You should finish this
assignment by making a simple,
easy to understand, poster
presentation for the wall of the
lab.