The Omnivore's Dilemma - Module 2 Study Guide

Paragraph Structure: Compare/Contrast

• Identifies and explains the similarities and differences between two or more people, places, things, or ideas

Paragraph Structure: Descriptive

• Uses sensory language to help readers imagine the scene, person, object, etc.

• Words often appeal to one or more of the five senses

• Series of detailed observations

• Uses description to make a point

Paragraph Structure: Narrative

• Tells a story

• Usually had a sequence

• May contain characters, a setting, a conflict, and/or a resolution

Paragraph Structure: Expository/Explanatory

• Gives information

• Often cites credible sources/experts

• Can specify the topic of the text, why it is important, and what is to come

Omnivore

Human beings that eat plants, meat, — and everything

GMO foods

Genetically modified organism

Bonanza

An event that increases wealth suddenly

Subsidy

Taxes to help a business

Evolved

To develop gradually

Rumen

The first stomach of a ruminant, which receives food from the esophagus, partly digests it with the aid of bacteria and passes it to the reticulum

Ruminants

An even-toed ungulate mammal that chews the cud regurgitated from it’s rumen

Fermentation

a metabolic process where microbes break down carbohydrates into simpler substances without oxygen

Ecological System

A community where living organisms interact with each other and their non-living environment as a functional unit, characterized by energy flow and nutrient cycling

Feedlots

An area or building where livestock are fed or fattened up

Tallow

A hard fatty substance made from rendered animal fat, used in making candles and soap

Slaughterhouse

A place where animals are slaughtered for food

Forage

Bulky food such as grass or hay for horse and cattle

Bloat

Make or become swollen with fluid or gas

Acidosis

an excessively acid condition of the body fluids or tissues

Delineate

The act of accurately and precisely identifying the claim, reasons, and evidence

Flavonoid

A pigment that is found in plants and consumed by humans

Amputation

The surgical removal of a limb

Epidemic

The rapid, or quick, spread of something

Ethanol

A colorless and flammable liquid that is made from the fermentation (breakdown) of sugars, otherwise known as alcohol

Gluttons

An excessively greedy eater

Gorge

To quickly fill oneself with food

Monoculture

The practice of growing one type of crop in a field at a time

Industrial

A system that depends heavily on manufacturing goods, rather than farming or making things by hand

Automated

The name for the ability to run without human control

Barracks

The building that is meant to house a group of people

Atrazine

A type of herbicide used to control grass or weeds

Herbicide

The name for a toxic substance meant to destroy unwanted vegetation

Conflicting Viewpoint

holding an opinion, perspective, or belief that directly opposes or contradicts another, leading to disagreement, debate, or different interpretations of the same issue

Personification

Is a figure of speech which uses human characteristics to describe non-human things

Irony

Is the opposite of what is expected

Metaphor

Is a subtle and complicated comparison between two objects that at first don’t seem related

Simile

Is a simple comparison between two objects using like or as

Situational Irony

• When there is a disparity between what is expected and what actually occurs

• Can create mood, suspense, and can add to plot and/or characterization

Propaganda

Information, especially of biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view

Tone

• Author’s attitude toward the subject of the literary work

Understatement

When a writer presents a situation or thing as if it is a less important or serious than it is in reality

Allusion

An indirect reference to something that is well-known

Idiom

A phrase where the words together have a different meaning than the individual meaning of the words

Imagery

Is the use of descriptive language that appeals to the senses to create a mental picture