This is a beautiful piece by Rob Dunn, a biologist and writer at North Carolina State University in the Department of Biology, having written several books such as Every Living Thing and The Wild Life of Our Bodies. The purpose is to explain the diversity in the forms of leaves. Using beautiful relatable imagery and personification, such as “they hold out their green palms and catch light.” Dunn uses a mix of scientific and layman terms, defining the scientific terminology and in defining, uses simple words. Dunn uses inventive metaphors to spread a feeling of wonder for leaves, writing, “If there is magic in the world, surely this is it: the descendants of tiny creatures in leaves, capable of ingesting the sun.” Written for the readers of National Geographic, Dunn draws upon a cultural memory, and the context of fall to draw in readers, with “We have all held leaves, driven miles to see their fall colors, eaten them, raked them, sought their shade.” His words draw us in, dazzle us with their beauty while patiently explaining the whys of such diversity among leaves. He writes, “So leaves resort to self-defense. Some plant leaves have become specialists in deadly tricks.” and “In many environments natural selection tends to favor a limited number of similar forms again and again, given the genes it has to work with.” Mixing science and art in the form of imagery to bring his point home.
A link to this beautiful text:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2012/10/leaves/dunn-text
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