TOW #9- Borrowing From Solar and Chip Tech to Make Diamonds Faster and Cheaper By JOHN MARKOFF

     

(A picture from the original article. Depicts the atomic structure and look of the synthetic diamonds)

    It can create smiles and it can create wars. Diamonds are one of the most sought after substances in the world. Until recently diamonds have been mined in unethical and environmentally unfriendly ways but as outlined in the article “Borrowing From Solar and Chip Tech to Make Diamonds Faster and Cheaper” by John Markoff, scientists have created a new technique to synthesize these diamonds in a lab. Although synthetic diamond aren’t a new technology, John Markoff, a senior writer for the New York Times, explains how technology from a solar power company has help develop a new way to make them which costs just as much as the ones that are mined. By layering these diamonds one atomic layer at a time, these new diamonds can be made in a lab using plasma. Written for a general audience, the author uses well-chosen facts in order to exemplify how revolutionary this technology can be.

            Throughout this article, the author uses these facts to show how similar the diamonds are to natural ones. In the article Markoff writes, “According to Mr. Roscheisen, the new process will make it possible to manufacture large quantities of Type IIa diamond, a pure white material that represents 1 to 2 percent of all natural diamonds” (Markoff para 11) . This quote utilizes two different devices. It quotes a reliable source and then gives a statistic. The combination of these two allow for the audience to better believe the statistic given. The audience can better understand how closely related these diamonds are to the ones that come from the earth. Then when Markoff goes into talking about how this could stop the unethical extraction of natural diamonds from the earth, this quote helps show why it would stop the mining of diamonds.

            I believe that Markoff achieved his purpose well and made the article very hopeful for a future without blood diamonds. 

Link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/12/science/borrowing-from-solar-and-chip-tech-to-make-diamonds-faster-and-cheaper.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fscience&action=click&contentCollection=science&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=6&pgtype=sectionfront&_r=0