Because up to now, everything has been fine.
10
The Boy Who Asked Questions
Once Albert began to speak, he asked many questions. He wanted to know why some things fall down but other things do not fall down.
Finally, one night at dinner, he spoke! Everyone was amazed.
The soup is too hot! Albert, why didn’t you talk before?
NOTES
accountant / R3kaWntRnt / !"#$ amaze / R3meIz / up to now !
Many people think he was the smartest person in the world. But Einstein said that he thought like a child.
NOTES
believe in weapon / 3wepRn / citizenship / 3sItIz$nSIp /
NOTES
come up with
old.
5
ቤተ መጻሕፍቲ ባይዱntroduction
Who was Albert Einstein?
6
Introduction
Albert Einstein was a strange man who hated haircuts and new clothes. He always wanted to be himself.
2. 3.
4.
5. 6.
7. 8.
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Answers: 1. T; 2. F; 3. T; 4. T; 5. F; 6. F; 7. F; 8. T
The Boy Who Asked Questions
Einstein as a young boy
9
The Boy Who Asked Questions
He believed in peace. All his life, he hated war. However, his most famous idea, E=mc2, helped create the world’s most dangerous weapon.
Einstein was born on 14 March 1879 in Germany, but he gave up his citizenship in 1896. Later, he had to leave his homeland forever.
Do you know?
• Who was Isaac Newton? • What were Einstein’s first words? • What sport did Einstein enjoy? • What musical instrument did Einstein play? • Why was 1905 such an important year for Einstein? • What does E=mc2 mean? • For which subject did Einstein win the Nobel Prize? • Why did Einstein never return to his homeland?
Why does a leaf fall from a tree? Why does the moon not fall from the sky?
Albert loved to ask questions. If he could not understand something, he asked questions. If no one could answer his questions, he asked himself. He never got tired of thinking about his questions.
Newton is important to understanding Albert Einstein. Einstein also stood on the shoulders of giants. But he questioned the ideas of great scientists like Newton.
Contents
Do you know? Introduction The Boy Who Asked Questions Educating Albert Theories and Honours War and Peace Think like Einstein Reading Skills Answer Key 2 3 9 19 27 37 45 49 51
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7
Activity
Einstein checklist
Read these sentences and write T for true and F for false.
1.
Isaac Newton was a famous mathematician. Einstein discovered gravity. Einstein was 26 years old when he thought of new ideas about light, gravity and energy. Einstein used the ideas of other scientists to see his own ideas. Einstein always thought like an adult. E=mc2 is the name of a famous football team. Einstein was born in Switzerland. Einstein hated war.
Albert, you have something new to play with. You have a new sister!
NOTES
once / wVns / get tired of !"" Yes, but where are its wheels?
11
The Boy Who Asked Questions
The main problem for Albert was that he thought his lessons were boring. The teachers said things and every student had to repeat them. For homework, he had to write things out many times. Albert did not think this was a good way to learn. Later, he wrote that schools destroy children’s interest in learning.
A lb er t’s fa th er, H er m an n, was an accountant . He had a business with hi s brother, Jacob, who was an inventor. The Einstein brothers made and sold electric lights and machines.
Being different
Mr and Mrs Einstein were worried about their son. Albert was quite different from other children. He did not begin to talk until he was three years old.
a compass
He tried to understand how they worked.
When he was five years old, his father gave him a present. It was a magnetic compass. Albert was very interested in the compass. Its needle always pointed north. It was a strange gift but Albert loved it. He spent many years wondering how it worked.
Newton stood on the shoulders of giants like Galileo.
NOTES
giant / 3dZaIRnt /
4
Introduction
In 1687, Newton was a famous professor of mathematics. He described space, the planets and the stars in a new way. For more than 200 years, scientists everywhere agreed with him.
Albert also loved to study things. He loved toys with wheels or moving parts. However, he did not like to share them. He did not like to play with other children. Instead, he liked to study his new toys for a long time.