Margret Erlendsdottir
Una oda a la ciencia/An Ode to Science

AwardWhite Ribbon

SchoolHawken School

CityGates Mills, Ohio

TeacherHeather Nelson

InternRandi Michel

GenrePoem

Writer's Statement

The choice to write an ode was initially inspired by the Odes of Pablo Neruda, although the poem eventually became an expression of my many perspectives of science. While science itself is merely an objective process by which knowledge is gained, the fact that it is dangerous, life-saving, and at the same time, completely impersonal fascinates me. Whether or not the risks involved with the relentless pursuit of knowledge outweigh the benefits eludes us, and in my poem, I try to present two conflicting images of science's effect on society.