Structure Analysis

Thesis Statement

After describing the critical and hazardous issues of burning fire in the first paragraph in sec 1[Sec. #1], the author used the following highlighted sentence, in second paragraph, as the thesis statement. The reasons are that it strongly relates to the key phrases How to save in the topic, which indicates that there must be some solutions.

With climate change parching the land and increasing wildfire hazards, scientists are beginning to use cutting-edge technology and computer modeling to make controlled, low-intensity burns safer, more effective and less disruptive to nearby communities. "Fire has made us civilized, but we still don't understand it fully;' said Tirtha Banerjee of the University of California, Irvine, as he watched a tall heap of dead tree limbs go up in flames. As useful as prescribed burns can be for maintaining forests, they are tough to carry out一costly, labor-intensive, contingent on narrowing windows of favorable weather. And even well-planned burns can turn disastrous, as when a fire started by the United States Forest Service this spring was transformed by gusting winds into New Mexico's largest wildfire on record. .

Essay Outline

[Sec. #2] - While people have used cutting-edge techniques to trace the behavior of wildfires, few have examined the specific questions related to prescribed fire.
Keywords and phrases such as GoPro, drone-mounted sensors, sonic anemometer and an assortment of machines that collected airborne particles all indicate that people are using advanced technology. In addition, quotes from Robert York had pointed out that real problem had not yet been solved.

[Sec. #3] - Despite the numerous catastrophes caused by wildfires, people remain unaware of the dangers of wildfires.

The increasing levels of global warming make it more likely that a moderate wildfire will escalate into a deadly catastrophe. Therefore, it is important for people to study and explore prescribed fire as a means of preventing future wildfires from catching off guard. The keywords of this section could be boiled down to the following words. Global warming and caught off guard.

[Sec. #4] - The challenges faced by the Forest Service in managing fires in a warming planet and the development of a training system to address these challenges.

The Forest Service is developing a video game-like training system to help land managers learn how to safely conduct prescribed burns in increasingly volatile landscapes. This tool is necessary because the agency's current methods are not able to keep up with the challenges posed by a warming planet, and it will allow burn crew members to practice and prepare for various scenarios before implementing them in real life. The keyphrases are the resulting fire proved more dangerous and fast moving than anticipated and Better fire modeling.

[Sec. #5] - Studying the behavior and effects of fires at Blodgett Forest

The key phrases are study how embers travel and analyze the chemical composition. Because this paragraph is discussing the various methods that researchers at Blodgett Forest are using to study how fires spread and the chemical composition of fire emissions. It also mentions that this information is being used to evaluate the effectiveness of prescribed burns and to help land managers develop strategies for safely and effectively managing fires in the future. Therefore, the main idea or focus of the paragraph is the study of the behavior and effects of fires at Blodgett Forest.

[Sec. #6] - Conducting a prescribed burn at Blodgett Forest.

The paragraph is describing the process of conducting a prescribed burn at Blodgett Forest, including the actions taken by the researchers, the transformation of the landscape, and the data being gathered. The key phrase is using their torches to draw lines of flame that burned uphill

Coherence & Cohesion

[Sec. #2]

Coherence

Para #1 This section is composed of just one paragraph, which connects it to the second paragraph of the first section by using the phrase Scientists think we can do better. The previous paragraph discussed how prescribed burns can be difficult and expensive to carry out and can also have negative impacts on air quality and local communities. Even well-planned burns can sometimes turn disastrous due to factors such as weather. Therefore, the opening of this sentence, Scientists think we can do better serves as a smooth transition. In addition, both sections also mention the difficulties of carrying out prescribed burns, including their cost, labor intensity, and dependence on favorable weather conditions, as well as the potential for even well-planned burns to turn disastrous.

Cohesion

Para #1 The sentence advanced techniques in the paragraph apply the technique of synonyms/paraphrasing, since the author lists out some of the equipment used by scientists in the previous sentences. Moreover, the author mentioned that fewer people have looked at questions specific to prescribed fires, and further gives an example like whether debris should be cleared away with chain saws and bulldozers in advance

[Sec. #3]

Coherence

Para #1 The sentence For prescribed fire, I think it's really all out there to be explored refers to the sentence in the previous paragraph Scientists think we can do better, so the reader's focus can easily shift from the topic discussed in the previous section to this one. In addition, the mention of prescribed fires and the use of advanced techniques to study wildfire behavior in section 2 is connected to the discussion of thinning and the potential impacts on fire behavior in this section.

Cohesion

Para #1 In the second row of the paragraph, the pronoun it refers to thinning pre-emptively, and it is suggested that this can create a longer-lasting buffer against wildfire. Although wildfire has caused many catastrophes, people are still innocent when it comes to wildfires. In the fifth row of the paragraph, the pronoun it refers to the fire that Prometheus stole from the gods and gave to humans.

[Sec. #4]

Coherence

Para #1 The opening sentence containing the key phrase The Forest Service has acknowledged that its methods are failing to keep up as the planet warms strongly relates to the previous section of the article and the sentence just completely caught off guard, which describes how scientists feel about the prescribed fire. Moreover, the mention of global warming and the limitations of current mathematical models for predicting wildfire behavior in section 3 is connected to the discussion of new training techniques and tools for land managers in this section.
Para #2 Better fire modeling is important, but so is turning that knowledge into easy-to-use tools for burn crews relates to the previous paragraph's statement The Forest Service has acknowledged that its methods are failing to keep up as the planet warms, telling the reader how scientists think about the issue.

Cohesion

Para #1 In the third row of the first paragraph, the pronoun it refers to fire. Moreover, the pronoun it at the last sentence as Mr. Hiers calls it. means flight simulator mentioned in the previous sentence.
Para #2 The pronoun it in the third row of this paragraph refers to Blodgett Forest. In addition, In the sixth row of the second paragraph, the statement something that would be impossible had they been trying to study a wildfire gives more detailed information about the fact that if scientists do not study wildfire, their equipment may be engulfed in flames.

[Sec. #5]

Coherence

Para #1

The first sentence in this paragraph, which is shot GoPro videos of the flickering flames and the embers being lofted into the air , serves as a smooth connection between this paragraph and the previous one, as the previous paragraph is also about Dr. Banerjee's team. Moreover, the mention of the Blodgett Forest site and the use of advanced technologies for studying fire behavior in previous section is connected to the discussion of research methods for analyzing emissions and the effectiveness of prescribed burns in this section.

Cohesion

Para #1 The keyword footage in the second row of the paragraph refers to the shots taken by the GoPro cameras. Additionally, they in the sixth row of this paragraph refers to Dr. Randerson and Audrey Odwuor. Finally, the keyword such methods in the eighth row of the paragraph refers to the actions described in the previous sentence, which were collecting smoke samples using instruments brought to Blodgett by Dr. Randerson and Odwuor.

[Sec. #6]

Coherence

Para #1 At the beginning of this paragraph, the key phrase the morning of the burn serves as a smooth connection between the last section and this paragraph. In the previous section, the author was discussing the research that scientists had done to have full control of the fire, and this section marks the start of the burn. Apart from the analysis above, the mention of research methods for analyzing emissions and the effectiveness of prescribed burns in section #5 is connected to the description of the actual prescribed burn at Blodgett Forest in this section.
Para #2 In this paragraph, the author is describing the burning process such as the flames had a meek, almost dainty quality; the vegetation was too damp to bum very fiercely, fires began blackening the hillsides at a rapid clip, Dr. York and his team had burned about 13 acres, etc. In addition, the mention of Dr. York and his role as the burn boss in the previous paragraph is connected to the description of the burn and the data gathering efforts in this paragraph.

Cohesion

Para #1 At the seventh row of this paragraph the key phrase The landscape was quickly transformed refers to the previous sentence using their torches to draw lines of flame that burned uphill. Finally, the usage of the phrase the crackling of burning bushes is because the forest has been burned, as mentioned in the previous sentence
Para #2 In the second row of the paragraph, the keyword but serves as a transition from the previous sentence the vegetation was too damp to bum very fiercely to the next sentence fires began blackening the hillsides at a rapid clip. This is the strategy of using linkers. In addition, in the third row of this paragraph, the author provides more detailed information of the brutal raw power of the fire by adding the sentence a natural, yet also unnatural way of safeguarding the land.

Take-home Message

In the last paragraph of the entire essay, the author delivered the message again that prescribed burns is a practice used to prevent wildfires by intentionally setting controlled fires, can be both a natural and an artificial way of protecting the land. This message is conveyed through the description of the burn and the observations and reflections of the scientists studying it. Additionally, the paragraph suggests that the study of science can be artistic and that the appreciation for this aspect of science may increase with age. This is obtained by the quote The older I get, the more I appreciate how much of science is like an art from Dr. Randerson.

For a while, the flames had a meek, almost dainty quality; the vegetation was too damp to bum very fiercely. But as the day warmed, fires began blackening the hillsides at a rapid clip. The scientists took in the scene cautiously as their machines gathered data. ►By late afternoon, Dr. York and his team had burned about 13 acres, and he sat down for a breather. His face was slick with sweat and grime. The forest smoldered all around him. Dr. Randerson took a moment to admire the brutal raw power of the fire they were studying - a natural, yet also unnatural way of safeguarding the land. "The older I get;' he said, "the more I appreciate how much of science is like an art.