Section A Genius Characters

Background Information Thomas Edison American scientist and inventor (1847—1931), patented ( 获得专利 ) 1,093 inventions in his lifetime. The most famous of his inventions was the electric lighting. When he was born, society still thought of electricity as a novelty ( 新生事物 ). By the time he died, entire cities were lit by electricity. Much of the credit for that progress goes to him. Besides the light bulb, he also invented the phonograph ( 留声机 ) and made improvements to the telegraph, telephone and motion picture technology. He also founded the first modern research laboratory. He believed in hard work, and was often quoted as saying, "Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration."

Background Information Albert Einstein German-American theoretical physicist (1879—1955), known for the formulation of the relativity theory. His important works include Special Theory of Relativity, Relativity (English General Theory of Relativity, Investigations on Theory of Brownian Movement, and The Evolution of Physics). Among his non-scientific works, About Zionism, Why War?, My Philosophy and Out of My Later Years are perhaps the most important. His works radically changed the way we think about the world. He is recognized as one of the greatest physicists of all time. He was also the Nobel Prize winner in physics in 1921.

Preparation Getting the Message Direction: Choose the best answer to complete each of the following sentences according to the text. 1. The passage is mainly about__________. A. the qualities of geniuses B. the lives of geniuses C. the hobbies of geniuses D. the ideas of geniuses 2. One thing that was not true about Leonardo da Vinci is that_________. A. his notebooks were full of his questions B. he liked telling jokes C. he enjoyed playing on the building sites D. he was very skillful at riding horses

Preparation Getting the Message Direction: Choose the best answer to complete each of the following sentences according to the text. 3. Great thinkers are often considered to be strange and silly because________. A. they have strange living habits B. their ideas seem strange and frightening C. they have unusual characters D. they behave in strange ways 4. According to the text, travel is good in that it brings people________. A. great fun B. good health C. rich experiences D. new and fresh ideas

Reading Through Main Idea This text is about the characters of geniuses. At first, the author gives a brief introduction to the whole text, telling us that geniuses all have special parts to their characters. Then by giving examples of many famous geniuses, the author listed six important qualities people need to have in order to be a genius, namely, “have fun”, “be curious”, “be brave”, “keep trying”, “be inspired” and “stay fit”. At last, the author concludes that to be a genius is to push the limits in our minds and beyond.

New Words genius powerful calculate beyond describe hobby earthmoving equipment Site notebook passage wander countryside search thunder strike crash ruin electricity shock odd inspiration perspiration inspire source persuade tour

Phrases and Expressions wander about search for on the top of get off the ground in the face of look for at one’s best be famous for

Detailed Study of Text A 1. Their lives hold many of the secrets to having great ideas and putting them into practice. 2. —Be curious. Geniuses spend their lives asking questions about the world around them. 3. While still a teenager, Albert Einstein persuaded his parents to let him tour the main cities of Italy. 4. As well as being a philosopher, poet and politician, Sophocles was also a champion in sports and won many prizes.

a secret to doing sth. 做某事的秘密 e.g. He revealed to his friend the secrets to seeking out his inspiration. 他向朋友透露了自己如何找到灵感的秘密。 put... into practice carry out 将 …… 付诸实践；使 …… 生 效 e.g. The ideal (adj.) design would never be put into practice. 这个理想的设计方案永远也不会得到实施。

1) spend time/money doing something 花时间或钱做某 事，后接动名词。 e.g. He spent a whole year writing the paper. 他花了整整一 年写这篇论文。 e.g. Many children spend their weekends taking extra lessons. 许多小孩周末都在上额外的课程。 2) spend time/money on something 在 …… 方面花时间或 钱，后接名词。 e.g. He spent all his money on the new house. 他把所有的 钱都花在了新房子上。

译文：艾伯特 爱因斯坦十几岁时，就说服父母让他周游 意大利各主要城市。 句型结构 While + 名词 / 介词短语 / 分词短语 / 形容词, sb. did sth. ( 某 人在 …… 的时候，做了某事。 e.g. While at college, she dreamed of becoming a movie star one day.

译文：索福克勒斯不仅是哲学家、诗人和政治家，还是 一个得过很多奖的体育冠军。 句型结构 As well as being sth. sb./sth. is/was also sth. else. 某人或某 物不仅是 …… ，而且还是 …… e.g. As well as being an important part of culture, language is also the carrier of culture.