Augenstein, Seth. "After Exhumation, Strange Bacteria a Clue in Mysterious Death of Pablo Neruda." Forensic Magazine. N.p., 02 Feb. 2016. Web. 08 Feb. 2016.
I read the article, “After Exhumation, Strange Bacteria a Clue in Mysterious Death of Pablo Neruda,” by Seth Augenstein, which followed a potential forty-year-old crime case of a Chilean poet. Pablo Neruda mysteriously died in a hospital days after an oppressive regime came to power in his country. His death in 1973 was originally thought to be attributed to advanced prostate cancer but Neruda had not been known to be mortally sick. In 2013, Neruda’s remains were exhumed and tested for poison, and didn’t reveal any but did reveal a strange bacteria.
At the time, Neruda was a Communist sympathiser, and when his chauffeur was questioned about his death, he said he believed he was killed by agents of Pinochet. His remains were exhumed because of his chauffeur's suspicions of a potential stomach poisoning. A new testing in January 2015 found three bacterias within Neruda’s bones. Two of the bacterias can be explained from him prostate cancer but the third which was staphylococcus bacteria did not fit his disease. In November, the Chilean government announced that Neruda’s death could have been an assassination. This week it was announced that there will be a final test to determine the bacteria and trace the strain.
This article was not only scientifically relevant but also politically relevant. It follows a very interesting history of Chile’s government, how the President Salvador Allende, the leader who was overthrown by Pinochet and died just days before Neruda. This potential assassination is all very possible considering the politics at the time and Neruda’s connections with communism. This article is also relevant because something like this could happen in any country or government.
I really enjoyed this article, I think because it was not only scientifically interesting but also was interesting in respects to the potential story behind it. I would have liked to have known more about the bacteria found in Neruda and what tests investigators did specifically to the bacteria. I also would have wanted to know more about the chauffeur and ask him more questions as to why it took him so long to say something and what else does he know. I think that this article did a good job of explaining the politics of Chile as well, because if I was not informed with what was going on at the time then I would not have been able to understand this assassination as easily.
3 comments:
I thought Kathleen chose a very different and refreshing approach in selecting her article. She incorporated some history and a real case into her selection of an article for the current event. She gave good background as to what went wrong in the investigation of the poet Pablo Neruda. She also showed how forensic evidence can be helpful even decades after a crime had taken place. The body was exhumed almost 30 years after its burial and yet it still contained evidence that modern investigators needed.
While Kathleen did a great job with her review, there were a few flaws. She had some minor spelling and grammatical errors that can detract from a piece of writing. It was also a bit confusing as to the motives of why Neruda may have been an assassination target. She mentioned he was a communist sympathizer but it was unclear if that was the reasoning and there were details of his death left out of the review.
I enjoyed reading this article and I was happy that Kathleen decided to share this. It is really fascinating to know that forensic science can prove a man was murdered almost a third of a century after he was killed. It means that the truth may finally be revealed and people like Neruda can at least obtain some justice.
Kathleen did an excellent job at summarizing the article. It was refreshing to see a case report since articles on innovations or methods are more common as a review piece. She thoroughly introduced the individual, the poet Pablo Neruda, and incident’s background, as well as showing how forensics science can play a role even decades after the incident occurred; the body was exhumed almost 30 years after its burial, but with sufficient evidence to determine the cause of death of Neruda.
While Kathleen reviewed the article well, she could have expanded on why exactly Neruda was targeted. She did mention he was a communist sympathizer but with more detailed information on the motive of his death, this review would have been more compelling. She also had some grammatical errors, for instance, the last sentence of the first paragraph.
I overall found the article fascinating and enjoyable. I was once again impressed by the work of forensic science; the ability to prove a man was murdered after 43 years of his death. Although it did take time, truth did come out. Perhaps Neruda is finally at peace.
I loved the article you chose to summarize. The fact that it incorporated history, English, and science together made it all the more fascinating. I also think it attributed to the relevance of the article itself. I also think the relevance was evident in that it showed the progress science has made over the years; new tests can now uncover specific bacterial strains. One thing that got to me though was that I didn't know the ending. It's killing me not knowing the result. I know it was not yet announced, but this would have been a great opportunity to add more of your voice into the summary. If you had hypothesized about the test results the piece would have been stronger. Something that confused me about the summary was the chauffeur mentioned at the end for the first to, that could have been more clear. Overall I loved how much your article incorporated, excellent job choosing it!
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