Thesis: S.M. in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Humanities, Graduate Program in Science Writing, 2014. / Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 23-24). / In today's increasingly digitized, data-driven world, the "old ways" of doing things, especially science, are quickly abandoned in favor of newer, ostensibly better methods. One such discipline is the ancient study of taxonomy, the discovery and organization of life on Earth. New techniques like DNA sequencing are allowing taxonomists to gain insight into the tangled web of relationships between species (among the Acanthomorph fish, for example). But is the newest, shiniest toy always the best? Are we in danger of losing vital information about the world if we abandon the thousands of years of cumulative human knowledge to gather dust in basements? This thesis explores the current crossroads at which taxonomy finds itself, and offers a solution to preserve the past while diving headlong into the future. / by Lindsay Kirlin Brownell. / S.M. in Science Writing
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:MIT/oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/92629 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Brownell, Lindsay Kirlin |
| Contributors | Alan Lightman., Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Graduate Program in Science Writing., Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Graduate Program in Science Writing, MIT Program in Writing & Humanistic Studies |
| Publisher | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Source Sets | M.I.T. Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 26 pages, application/pdf |
| Rights | M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission., http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 |
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