Passage A: Einstein’s Compass Time: 90minutes
Teaching steps: Review 10’
Lead-in activity 5’
Background information 5’ Text analysis 40’ Language points 10’ Summary of the text 10’ Exercises 8’ Assignment 2’
I. Review
Translate the following sentences into English 1. 年轻人有时会抱怨无法和父母沟通。
2. 玛丽从小就盼望着能在中国云南的一个村庄住上几年，现在她终于梦想成真了。 3. 家养的动物习惯于依赖人，因此很难在野外继续生存。
4. 他突然有种恐惧感，觉得自己会因经济不景气而被公司裁员。 5. 我想他很快就会回来，因为他答应和我一起吃晚饭。
II. Lead-in activity Lead-in questions
1. What do you think makes a successful scientist?
Curiosity, patience, determination, genius, persistence hardworking … 2. What kind of boy was Einstein in his parents’ eyes?
They might have thought him slow because he hardly spoke until he was almost three years old.
3. Einstein once said: “Curiosity has its own reason for existence.” How do you understand this statement?
Einstein was right because he himself was passionately curious when he was young. His curiosity sparked by wanting to know what controlled the compass needle led to his later success.
III. Background information 1. Einstein, Albert (1879-1955)
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German-American physicist who contributed more than any other scientist to the 20th-century vision of physical reality. His special and general theories of relativity revolutionized modern thought on the nature of space and time and formed a theoretical basis for the exploitation of atomic energy. He won a 1921 Nobel Prize for his explanation of the photoelectric（光电的）effect.
2. Euclidean plane geometry (欧几里得平面几何)
A branch of geometry dealing with the properties of flat surfaces and of planar figures, such as the triangle or the circle. Greek mathematician Euclid first studied the subject in the 4th century BC.
3. Einstein’s brain
Was Einstein’s brain different? In his lifetime, many people wondered if there was anything especially different in Einstein’s brain. So Einstein insisted that on his death his brain be made available for research. When Einstein died in 1955, his brain was quickly preserved and examined, but nothing unusual was reported. There the matter rested until 1999. scientists inspecting the preserved samples discovered that Einstein’s brain lacked a particular small wrinkle that most people have. Perhaps in compensation, other regions on each side were a bit enlarged. These regions are known to have something to do with visual imagery and mathematical thinking. Thus Einstein was apparently better equipped than most people for a certain type of thinking.
IV. Text analysis
True or False Question:
1. Albert Einstein was born in Germany on March 14, 1879. ( T ) 2. With mother’s encouragement he was taught to play the piano when still very young, and he became an excellent musician. ( F )
3. He learned to sail, which he loved. ( T ) 4. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921.( T ) 5. Albert Einstein was an unusual young boy, who concentrated on thinking about scientific theory, and who didn’t like wear socks ('not even when he was invited to the White House!' his secretary later revealed). ( T )
6. Einstein was cleverer than other ordinary children when he was 3 years old.( F )
Text structure
Part I. (Para.1) Little Einstein’s curiosity
Part II.(Paras.2-6) Einstein’s secret of his accomplishment. Part III. (Paras.7-8) Einstein’s different insight. Part IV. (Paras.9-11) Einstein’s achievement.
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Part One: Little Einstein’s curiosity
Find some expressions to show little Einstein’s character. Too quiet Spoke hardly
Say unusual things
puzzled when his baby sister was first presented to him. Difficult sentences:
1.They might have thought him slow, but there was something else evident. (Para. 1) If there had been no other evidence, they might have thought him slow (not quick to learn). 父母可能误以为他有点迟钝，但有一些别的事情还是很明显的。
2. But when his mother presented him with his new baby sister Maja, all Albert could do was stare with questioning eyes. (Para. 1)
但当妈妈把刚出生的妹妹玛嘉抱到他面前时，小爱因斯坦只是以疑惑的眼光盯着她。
Part Two: Einstein’s secret of success: 1. Curiosity
When he was 5 years old, his father five him a __________ which arouse his curiosity. Einstein wanted to made ht compass needle point off in_____________________ and he tried his best. However the needle would always point in____________________.
The young Einstein began to know that _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________. Answer: 1. compass
2. a new direction
3. the direction of north
4. there’s more to our world that meets our eyes; there’s something behind things, there’s
something deeply hidden 2. Patience and Determination Card houses building
Most of children: 4 stories Einstein: 14 stories His own words:
It’s not I’m so smart, I just stay with problems longer. 3. Communication with adults
How did Einstein benefit from communication with his uncle and a medical student? His uncle:
Einstein always joined in the discussion with his uncle who was an engineer.
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The medical students:
Through lively _______, Einstein’s thinking was stimulated by the students. Moreover he gave Einstein a little book on _____________which gave Einstein an “__________________”. From that time ____________performed an important function in Einstein’s scientific career. Answer: 1. chats
2. plane geometry
3. indescribable impression 4. mathematics Difficult sentences:
1. The invisible force that guided the compass needle was evidence to Albert that there was more to our world that meets the eye. (Para. 2)
三个that 引导的从句分别为：定语从句、同位语从句和定语从句。
The invisible force that guided the compass needle made Albert believe that there were things we couldn’t see.
引导指南针的无形力量使爱因斯坦认识到，我们肉眼看到的只是世界的一部分。
2. So began Albert Einstein’s journey down a road of exploration that he would follow the rest of his life. (Para. 3)
完全倒装句，正常语序为：So Albert Einstein’ s journey down a road of exploration that he would follow the rest of his life began. 爱因斯坦就这样踏上了他穷其一生的探索之路。
3. “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” (Para. 4) I can do this not because I’m very smart, but because I pursue problems longer.
4. The concept that one could prove theorems of angles and lines that were in no way obvious made an “indescribable impression” on the young student. (Para. 6) 两个that从句分别为同位语从句和定语从句。
原来人可以证明那些不易明显看出的角度和线段的定理，这一想法给年轻学生爱因斯坦留下了“难以形容的印象”。
5. He adopted mathematics as the tool he would use to pursue his curiosity and prove what he would discover about the behavior of the universe. (Para. 6)
他把数学当作满足自己好奇心并用以证明他后来发现宇宙运行规律的手段。
Part Three: Different insight
1. What was his different insight between other scientists?
His insight that beauty lies in simplistic was the real power of his genius. He looked for the beauty of simplicity in the apparently
complex nature and saw truths that escaped others. He could explain the essence of his thought
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in simple words so that anyone could understand.
2. What was his simple explanation of complex theory of relativity?
“ Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute and it seems like an our. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour and it seems like a minute. That’s relativity”. Difficult sentence:
While the expression of his mathematics might be accessible to only a few sharp minds in the science, …(Para. 7)
While the expression of his mathematics might be understood by only a few scientists who can accept pioneering ideas…
爱因斯坦用数学公式表达的思想也许只有少数才思敏锐的科学家才能理解…… Part Four: Achievements:
Nature of light ( a proof of atoms) Special theory of relativity
Equation of atomic power: E=mc2
Connect space and time and find a new state of matter. Difficult sentences:
For the next 20 years, the curiosity that was sparked by wanting to know what controlled the compass needle and his persistence to keep pushing for the simple answers led him to connect space and time and find a new state of matter. (Para. 9)
在随后的20年里，正是由于想知道是什么力量控制了指南针的指向所激发的这份好奇心以及坚持追求简单答案的毅力，引导他将空间与时间联系起来思考问题，由此发现了一种崭新的物质状态。
I want to know how God created this world ... I want to know His thoughts; the rest are details. (Para. 11)
我想知道上帝是怎样创造世界的……我想知道他的思路；其余的就都是细枝末节了。
V. Language points:
1. fool „into „ (doing)— deceive somebody into doing something 哄骗某人干某事 Examples: Tim was fooled into believing that he’d won the lottery.
It was not right for Jean to fool Robert into believing that she was in love with him.
2. come over— to make a short informal visit 来访
Examples: Whenever in trouble she would come over to us for help.
I’ll come over to see you on my next day off.
3. come upon— to meet, find, or discover esp. by chance （偶然）遇见，（偶然）发现 Examples: Believe it or not, John came upon his wife to be in a flight to China.
I came upon this cool cap in a small store in Paris.
4. in no way — not at all 一点也不，决不
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Examples: Theory can in no way be separated from practice.
Alcohol will in no way ease your miseries.
5. come up with —to think of (a plan, reply, etc.); produce 想出，提供
Examples: Scientists will have to come up with new methods of increasing the world’s food
supply.
Many net service companies haven’t come up with an effective way to bring profits.
6. push for —to try very hard to achieve or get 力求取得
Examples: Britain’s health experts are pushing for a ban on all cigarette advertising.
The union leaders of that country are pushing for two things: higher wages and earlier retirement
VI. Summary of Passage A
Fill in the blanks according to the contents of the passage.
In this passage we learn something about the young Albert Einstein. It seems he was never exactly an ordinary child but the writer pinpoints a case when he was given a compass at the age of five, which ignited his inspiration. Not only was the young Albert passionately curious, he was also remarkably persistent and would not easily give up on a problem. Albert’s development was also stimulated by the company of intelligent adults such as an uncle who was an engineer and a medical student who was a friend of the family. Einstein was inspired to take up mathematics by Euclidean geometry. According to the passage, his true genius lay in his ability to express complex ideas in simple language. By the age of 26 Einstein had already produced his most famous work, although he never stopped looking for answers.
VII. Do some exercises.
VIII. Assignment 1. Review the text
2. Recite the useful words and expression.
3. Preview listen and talk, write and produce& culture salon. 4. Write a composition
Read the sample on page 39 and write a short composition about 100-120 words to introduce a Nobel Prize winner and his/ her “secrets” to success. Remember to develop the passage by chronological sequence.
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