My Secondary article titled, “NASA Data Track Seasonal Pollution Changes Over India,” written by Science Daily is about the level of aerosols suspended in the air over India. It talks about how the different seasons have different amounts of aerosols in the air for various reasons. The Primary source for this article is a research study by the University of Illinois led by Larry Di Girolamo. It is entitled, “Satellite Data Reveal Seasonal Pollution Changes Over India.” The two written reports are based on the same subject and study, although they do contain some different information and focus on different aspects. For example the secondary article focuses more on the seasonal changes of the amount of aerosols in the air, whereas the primary source talks more about the actual study, its results, and the future of studying air pollution.
The study that was conducted by the University of Illinois used a Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR). This is an advanced instrument used on NASA’s Terra Satellite. It examines the concentration, distribution, and make up of aerosol particles in the air and in this particular study, the aerosol particles in the air over India. The secondary article talks about why there are aerosols in the air, whether it is from wind blowing dust in, or humans creating pollutants. It also talks about the amount of aerosols in the air during certain seasons; for example, the air is much cleaner after monsoon season. The Primary source talks about the same things and more. In addition to what was stated before, the primary
source talks about the affects of large amounts of pollutants and aerosols in the air. Obviously the aerosols can have negative affects on human health, but the primary source also tells you that man-made aerosols have different affects on human health than natural aerosols like dust and pollen. In addition, the primary source goes into more depth about the actual study that was done and the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer instrument, as well as talks about the reasons for changing aerosol levels.
Overall, the secondary article was very informative and helpful. One noticeable difference was that the primary source covered a larger variety of the information on the topic. It also appeared as if the primary article’s information was more strongly displayed and presented. This is most likely because the primary source went into more depth, for example it talks more about what the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer is and what it is capable of. The primary source tells us that the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer can distinguish if the aerosol particles are man-made or not, it can also tell us what specific particle it is. The secondary article goes more in-depth about the amount of aerosols in the air during different seasons as apposed to anything else. It does not have the variety of information that the primary source has, but it does have detailed information about specific things.
The secondary article is limited in a few ways. Firstly, the secondary article only talks about the present, whereas the primary source talks about the future as well as the present. In the primary source, Di Girolamo says that he thinks in fifty years, technology like the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer will be the typical monitoring instrument used to measure and observe air quality. The secondary article is also limited because basically everything it says is exactly the same as it is written in the primary source. It does not show much confidence or understanding if all the points are written the exact same way. The secondary article is just a regurgitated smaller version of the original. In these ways, the secondary article is limited and therefore is not preferred over the primary source.
In conclusion, the primary source has stronger information and does not leave anything out like the secondary article does. The secondary article is also limited because it does not talk very much about the future and lacks most of the information on the actual study and the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer used in the study. The secondary article also does not present any of its own ideas or opinions, or even change the way most things are written form the primary source. On the whole, the secondary article was very accurate and had almost all of the information and detail that the primary article had, but was lacking in some individual areas. The primary and secondary articles both have their strengths, for example, the secondary source does not have as much content, but to a reader, it might be more interesting as a result of that. This allows the information to reach a much broader audience because people who would usually lose interest can now read the whole article. If you are looking for more information and you are already interested in this topic, the primary source is better to read. Therefore, both the secondary article and primary source are very useful and better for different things depending on the reader.
Works Cited
Ahlberg, Liz. "Satellite data reveal seasonal pollution changes over India." New Bureau 09/07/10: n. pag. Web. 22 Sep 2010.
NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "NASA Data Track Seasonal Pollution Changes Over India." ScienceDaily 17 September 2010. 22 September 2010
No comments:
Post a Comment