Scientific Inquiry : Invention and Test Four Levels and Question Answers
Four Levels of Scientific Inquiry : Invention and Test
- Hempel
1.LITERAL COMPREHENSION :
The essay 'Scientific Inquiry : Invention and Test' was written by Hempel who presents the medical investigation of Semmelweis, a physician who wants to know about the cause of dying women from childbed fever. He did different examinations to control the death of women in the first maternity division. He also forbade the priest to ring the bell to give final sacrament to dying women when he entered in to sick chamber. He also reduced the number of medical students, but all his effort went in vain. Finally, when one of his friends, Kolletchka died of minor injury, then somehow he knew the real cause of childbed fever. In fact, the medical students would do post mortem and without washing their hands properly, they would also look after the women. As a result, women were infected by childbed fever. Later on he ordered them to wash their hands properly. After that the no. of the woman's death due to childbed fever was extremely decreased and remained only 1.27% while in the second div., there was higher rate, i.e., 1.33%. He also asserts that childbed fever is not only the cause of not washing hands but also the cause of decaying living organism.
2.INTERPRETATION :
This essay may be trying to tell us that no one can be perfect in their own field. We respect the doctors like a god but they also do the mistakes. Their even minor mistake pushes the patients towards the death. In the essay, many women were victimised by the careless of the medical students who worked in First Maternity Division. But it does not mean that all the doctors are careless. A physician like Semmelweis who was deeply dedicating to his profession and trying to find out the causes of his patient's death due to childbed fever. Anyway, the writer Hempel is trying to express that the job of a doctor is very sensitive one, therefore that should be handled carefully, otherwise minor disease having patients may also die untimely.
3.CRITICAL THINKING :
There are many unacceptable ideas which I found in the essay. First, we can raise a question upon Semmelweis's investigation and its solution of dying woman due to childbed fever. Are not the medical students careless to the patient? Did not they even know to wash their hand properly? Was the main cause of childbed fever of not washing hands? Were not there other reasons of childbed fever? Cannot we suspect the profession of doctors? If the doctors kill the patients, then, why does go to hospital for treatment? In this regard, Is not It better to get the birth of a baby on the way rather than in the hospital?
4.ASSIMILATION :
After reading this story, I remembered my past events in which one of my friends, Krishna was suffering from stomachache. I suggested him to checkup by going to hospital. Then went to the hospital. The doctor examined his stomach and advised him to do surgery of his stomach. Because Krishna was very poor, so he did not have enough money to do surgery. My father lent him money for his surgery. His date of surgery was 1995 march 13. That day, his surgery completed and he was in bedridden in hospital. After that, he became unconscious for fifteen days. I complained the doctor about my friend's such situation. The doctor said me that he was unconscious because it was serious surgery and he would come in conscious soon. But his condition is becoming worse day by day and passed away. Then I became very angry with the hospital's staffs but they answered me with silence. Later, I came to know that Krishna died due to careless of doctors. According to postmortem report, in stomach there was the small scissor which had been left by doctor while doing surgery. In fact, that was the real cause of his death.So, he could not bear the pain and died.
************************************************************************
Question Answers of Scientific Inquiry : Invention and Test
Q.1. What was the Ignaj Semmelweis' problem?
ANSWER : He was the medical staff in the First Maternity Division. He was very much worried on the death of woman due to child bed fever. In 1844, woman died 260 out 3,157 and its rate increased and reached in 11.4% in the year 1846. But the surprising thing is that the second division of the same hospital where many women were admitted had the low rate of death
due to the death fever. Many people guessed that death was due to epidemic influences, so it had transmitted in all districts. Later on, Semelweis knew that assumption was relatively mistake in the sense that those women who bore a child on the way while coming to hospital, they were not suffered by child bed fever. His main problem was that in his word, many women would die from childbed fever.
Q.2. Name at least 3 of Semmelweis' hypothesis. How did he test them?
ANSWER : Firstly, in 1846, supervision had been conducted and it came to conclusion that medical students carelessly examined the patient, so as a result, the died of child bed fever. Then Semmelwies reduced the number of medical staffs but the rate of death remained the same.
Secondly, he thought that women patient startled as the priest rang the bell while entering into room to do final sacrament of dying patient. So,the priest started entering into sick chamber of the first division silently and secretly. But the mortality in the first division did not decrease. Thirdly, Semmelweis was suggested that in his division, women were lying on their back while delivering the baby and in the Second Division, woman slept on their sides. He adopted that advice in his division but could not bring fruitful result.
Q.3. At of the end of the essay, what does he draw the conclusion?
ANSWER : At the end of the essay, he broadens his hypothesis and gives the example of treatment of 12 women who were suffering from cancer. They were cured by properly washed hand. Nevertheless, eleven out of the 12, died of fever. Semmelweis concluded that childbed fever caused not only by corpse material but also by the rotten living organism.
Q.4. One difference between the two maternity divisions involved the manner of delivering babies-on the side in one division, on the back in the other side. This is led to which hypothesis? How was this hypothesis tested? Did the results of this test lead Semmelweis to reject this hypothesis and to search for another ? Why?
ANSWER : Semmelweis was quite worried with the situation of his first division because mortality of women was so high in his division in comparison with the same hospital's Second Maternity Division. So he tried hard to find out the actual cause of the high rate of death. In this finding process, he knew that in second division, woman would deliver the baby sleeping in sides while in first division; woman would deliver the baby lying on the back. So he thought that it was the reason of dying woman in his division more by child bed fever in comparison with second division. Then he too managed same situation in his ward but that management could not bring any fruitful result. The rate of dying of child bed fever in first division remained the same.
***************************************************************************
0 Comments