What is paraphrasing?

Paraphrasing is re-writing another person’s words so that the original meaning of their
idea is maintained, but the structure and words you use are quite different to theirs.
Exercise 1:
“Many membrane peptides and proteins exhibit potent antimicrobial and antibacterial
activities. They achieve this function by rupturing the cell membranes of the target
organism. Antimicrobial peptides are produced by many animals, including humans, as
an innate immune response against bacteria, fungi, and virus. The membrane-bound
structure of the peptides gives insights into how they destroy the membrane. For
example, a peptide bound to the surface of the lipid bilayer most likely destroys the
membrane by micellization, while a peptide inserted into the bilayer probably kills the
cell by forming pores through interaction with the peptide into the lipid by-layer
Now examine paraphrases number one and two below. Which one do you think is
acceptable? Why is it acceptable? Why is the other one not acceptable?
1-
Membrane peptides and proteins have strong antimicrobial and antibacterial activities.
They do this by breaking apart the cell membranes of the target organism. Antimicrobial
peptides arise from many animals, including humans, as a natural immune response
against bacteria, fungi, and virus. The membrane-bound structure of the
peptides suggests how they destroy the membrane. A peptide bound to the surface of
the lipid bilayer most likely destroys the membrane by micellization, while a peptide
inserted into the bilayer probably kills the cell by forming pores through interaction with
the peptide into the lipid by-layer

2-
Humans have an innate “Immune response” which involves de production of
antimicrobial peptide. One important function of membrane peptides and proteins is the
ability to protect against bacteria, fungi and virus. Although the mechanism is uncertain,
a harmful organism is likely destroyed through process of micellization, followed by
pores being formed through interaction with the peptide into the lipid by-layer.

Now test your own paraphrasing skills:

Begin by reading the following text carefully:

“There has been a dramatic increase in the number of Australian children taking an
interest in cooking in the last two years. Researchers speculate that this may be due to
the rising popularity of reality- based television cooking shows aimed at a young
audience. These shows often feature children who are very skilled at preparing, cooking
and presenting food. The shows present the idea that the levels of skill such children
possess in the kitchen can be reached by any child, as long as they are determined and
have family support. Cooking products and games have also started to line the shelves
 of toy stores. These products are frequently packaged so as to reinforce their links to
the popular television shows and the promise of success and celebrity status such
shows confer upon the child who cooks.”
 Now, write your own version of what you just read, try to use a different
structure or ordering of ideas within sentences and in the piece as a whole.


1-

"The Antarctic is the vast source of cold on our planet, just as the sun is the source
of our heat, and it exerts tremendous control on our climate," [Jacques] Cousteau
told the camera. "The cold ocean water around Antarctica flows north to mix with
warmer water from the tropics, and its upwellings help to cool both the surface
water and our atmosphere. Yet the fragility of this regulating system is now
threatened by human activity."
2-
The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a
bad joke because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They
were the years when organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed
powerless to do anything against it. Classical music was forgotten while jazz
spread throughout the land, and men like Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and
Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was born in the
twenties, and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more
than anyone or anything else, America's break with the past.

3-
Of the more than 1000 bicycling deaths each year, three-fourths are caused by
head injuries. Half of those killed are school-age children. One study concluded
that wearing a bike helmet can reduce the risk of head injury by 85 percent. In an
accident, a bike helmet absorbs the shock and cushions the head. .

4-
Matisse is the best painter ever at putting the viewer at the scene. He's the most
realistic of all modern artists, if you admit the feel of the breeze as necessary to a
landscape and the smell of oranges as essential to a still life. "The Casbah Gate"
depicts the well-known gateway Bab el Aassa, which pierces the southern wall of
the city near the sultan's palace. With scrubby coats of ivory, aqua, blue, and rose
delicately fenced by the liveliest gray outline in art history, Matisse gets the
essence of a Tangier afternoon, including the subtle presence of the bowaab, the
sentry who sits and surveys those who pass through the gate.

5-
While the Sears Tower is arguably the greatest achievement in skyscraper
engineering so far, it's unlikely that architects and engineers have abandoned the
quest for the world's tallest building. The question is: Just how high can a building
go? Structural engineer William Le Messurier has designed a skyscraper nearly
one-half mile high, twice as tall as the Sears Tower. And architect Robert Sobel
claims that existing technology could produce a 500-story building.