Unit 2

Unit 2 Nobel Prize Winners

Ⅰ. PURPOSE

1. To talk about the Nobel Prizes; 2. To write about a Nobel Prize winner; 3. To practice reading and translating skills;

4. To learn and practice paragraph development by chronological sequence; 5. To learn to write an award certificate.

Ⅱ. IMPORTANT AND DIFFICULT SPOTS

1． Words:

(Section A) condense, convince, create, evidence, fundamental, genius, insight, respond, stir, ultimate, come up with, come upon, in no way, push for, relate to (Section B) breakthrough, handful, investigation, probe, transition, tumultuous, bring in, turn out, have sth. under one’s belt, look forward to, make one’s own way, to date 2. Sentences:

(Section A) Line 3, Para.2; Line 7, Para.2; Line 2, Para.6; Line 4, Para.6; Line 3, Para.7; Line 1, Para.8; Line 3, Para.9 (Section B) Line 2, Para.2; Line 2, Para.5; Line 4, Para.6; Line 1, Para.13; Line 5, Para.13 3. Text Structure: (Section A)

Part One (Para. 1-3): Albert Einstein was passionately curious and different from

other children when he was young.

Part Two (Para. 4-8): Einstein owed his achievement to his curiosity, patience,

determination and his persistence to keep pushing for the simple answers.

Part Three (Para. 9-11): It summarizes Einstein’s success and ultimate quest. (Section B)

Part One (Para. 1-4): Zewail was awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry and the

reaction of his family.

Part Two (Para. 5-11): Zewail’s academic career and his achievement are introduced. Part Three (Para. 12-13): Zewail would continue his way of exploring in the future.

Ⅲ. PROCEDURE

1. Background of the passage

2. The study of new words and expressions

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3. Text analysis 4. Summary 5. Exercises

Ⅳ. TIME NEEDED

Section A: 135 minutes Section B: 90 minutes

Section A Einstein’s Compass

PART ONE

Think about It (Listen and Talk)

1. Listening to the passage and try to fill the missing words in the blanks; 2. Look at the pictures, try to say something about them; 3. Make dialogues according to the communicative tasks.

PART TWO

1. Group discussion 2. Comments

PART THREE A Detailed Study of the Passage

1. But when his mother presented him with his new baby sister Maja, all Albert could do was stare with questioning eyes.

[译文] 但当妈妈把刚出生的妹妹玛嘉报到他面前时，小爱因斯坦只是用疑虑

的眼光盯着她。

[解析] 主从复合句。由all(that)引导的名词从句all Albert could do作主语，all

Albert could do = what Albert could do; when引导时间状语。

2. He lay there shaking and twisting the odd thing, certain he could fool it into pointing off in a new direction.

[译文] 他躺在床上摇晃摆弄着这个稀奇的玩意儿，认为自己能将指针糊弄到

指向另一个方向。

[解析] shaking and twisting the odd thing 现在分词短语，作伴随状语，修饰lay

there。certain he could…为状语从句，也修饰动词lay there，补充说明爱因斯坦的心理活动。fool…into doing sth.表示“欺骗…做某事”。

3. But try as he might, the compass needle would always find its way back to

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pointing in the direction of north.

[译文] 但是不管他怎样努力，指针却总是转回原处，指向北方。

[解析] But try as he might 为倒装句，as/though引导的让步状语从句常使用倒

装形式，其结构为：“表语+as/though+主语+系动词”，或者“原形动词+as/though+主语+情态动词”，如：Fail though he might, he wants to try.

4. The invisible force that guided the compass needle was evidence to Albert that there was more to our world that meets the eye.

[译文] 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。

[解析] that there was more…为evidence的同位语从句，其中that meets the eye

为world的定语从句。

5. 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.

[译文] 原来人可以证明那些不易明显看出来的角度和线段的定理。这个想法

给年轻学生爱因斯坦留下了“难以形容的印象”。

[解析] that one could … in no way obvious 是the concept的同位语从句；that

were in no way obvious是定语从句，修饰theorems of angles and lines。

6. He adopted mathematics as the tool he would use to pursue his curiosity and prove what we would discover about the behavior of the universe.

[译文] 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。

[解析] he would use to …为省略了that 的定语从句，修饰tool；其中what we

would discover …为prove的宾语从句。adopt sth. as…“把…当作…”。

7. While the expression of his mathematics might be accessible to only a few sharp minds in the science, Albert could condense the essence of his thoughts so anyone could understand.

[译文] 爱因斯坦用数学公式表达的思想也许只有少数才思敏捷的科学家才

能理解，但他却能简洁地阐明自己思想之精髓，使人人都能够理解。

[解析] 主从复合句，while引导状语从句。only a few sharp minds in science“只

有少数才思敏捷的科学家”，minds指代人。

8. For instance, his theories of relativity revolutionized science and unseated the laws of Newton that were believed to be a complete description of nature for hundreds of years.

[译文] 比如说，他的相对论推翻了数百年来一直被认为是完整地描述了自然

界一切规律的牛顿定律，给科学界带来恶劣一场彻底的变革。

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[解析] that were believed to be …是由that引导的定语从句，修饰the laws of

Newton。unseat表示“推翻”。

9. For the next 20years, 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. [译文] 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。

[解析] that was sparked …是定语从句，修饰the curiosity；该定语从句中又

包含一个由what 引导的宾语从句作动词know的宾语。to keep pushing for the simple answers为不定式短语作后置定语修饰his persistence。

PART FOUR Language Points

1. condense v. to reduce in size

Example: He condensed his report from 2,000 words to 1,000. 2. convince v. to make someone completely certain about something

Example: It’s going to be hard to convince my husband that we can’t afford a car. convince sb. of 使某人相信… convince sb. to do sth. 说服某人做某事 3. create v. to cause something new to exist

Example: The new government is expected to create more jobs. 4. evidence n. information that gives reasons to believe something Example: There isn’t enough evidence to prove him guilty.

5. fundamental a. forming the base, from which everything else originates Example: Fresh air is fundamental to good health.

fundament n. 基础，基本原理 fundamentally adv. 基础地；根本地 6. genius n. a person of very great ability or very high intelligence Example: He has a genius for language.

He is hard-working, able, but no genius.

7. insight n. a clear, deep understanding of a complicated problem Example: Hemingway’s novels show deep insight into human character. 8. respond v. to say as a reaction to something that has been said Example: I offered him a drink but he didn’t respond. respond to sb./sth. with sth. 回答；回应 9. stir v. to excite; to be roused

Example: He was deeply stirred by the news.

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make/create a stir引起轰动 stir up搅拌；挑起 stir oneself振作 10. ultimate a. being or happening at the end of a process of course of action Example: My ultimate aim is for law.

Education is the ultimate source of success.

11. come up with be think of; to produce

Example: Very few scientists come up with completely new answers to the

world’s problems.

12. come upon to meet, or discover esp. by chance

Example: We’ve just come upon an old friend we haven’t seen for ages. come about发生，产生 come down 下跌；落魄 come out 出现；发表；结果是 come through经历…还活着 come up 出现，发生 13. in no way not at all

Example: He is in no way to blame.

Theory can in no way be separated from practice. 14. push for to try very hard to achieve or get

Example: People living near the airport are pushing for new restriction on night

flight.

15. relate to to understand and accept

Example: Many parents find it hard to relate to their children when they are

teenagers.

PART FIVE Text Structure

Part One (Para. 1-3): Albert Einstein was passionately curious and different from

other children when he was young.

Part Two (Para. 4-8): Einstein owed his achievement to his curiosity, patience,

determination and his persistence to keep pushing for the simple answers.

Part Three (Para. 9-11): It summarizes Einstein’s success and ultimate quest.

Section B The Wake-up Call from Stockholm

PURPOSE

1. Master the reading skill;

2. Master the use of language points; 3. Understand the passage correctly.

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PART ONE

Think about It

What would you do if you were awarded the Nobel Prize?

PART TWO

General Practice on the Passage 1. Check the understanding of the text; 2. Read and complete the text in detail; 3. Sum up the passage.

PART THREE A Detailed Study of the Passage

1. Two thousand e-mails would zoom his way within a few days and three phones lines would start ringing with eager requests for interviews from the national and Egyptian press and with congratulations from friends and colleagues.

[译文] 几天之内，2000封电子邮件将蜂拥而至；3条电话线将响个不停，美

国和埃及的媒体将纷纷打来电话，急切要求对他进行采访；朋友和同事会不断打来恭贺电话。

[解析] 两个并列的介词短语：with eager requests for… and with congratulations

from…作伴随状语。zoom意思是to move quickly；press“新闻界”。

2. The Royal Swedish Academy honored Zewail for his groundbreaking work in viewing and studying chemical reactions at the atomic level as they occur. [译文] 瑞典皇家科学院因扎威尔在观察和研究原子层面所发生的化学反应

方面所作的开创性的工作而授予他诺贝尔化学奖。

3. He has shown “that it is possible with rapid laser technique to see how atoms in a molecule move during a chemical reaction.”

[译文] 他向世人证明，“利用快速的激光技术有可能观察到化学反应时，分

子中的原子是怎样运动的”。

[解析] has shown后接一个由that引导的宾语从句，it为该宾语从句的形式主

语，真正的主语是to see how atoms…move during…；with rapid laser technique作方式状语修饰to see；in a molecule是后置定语，修饰atoms。

4. Zewail had brought the most powerful tools from the field of physics into the chemistry lab to create a revolution, and the field of femto-chemistry was born. [译文] 扎威尔将物理领域内最有威力的仪器引进化学实验室，从而引发了一

场革命，“超微（千万亿分之一）化学”从此诞生。

5. It was “a revolution in chemistry and related science,” the Swedes announced, “since this type of investigation allows us to understand and predict important

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reaction,” to probe nature at its most fundamental level.

[译文] 瑞典发布人说，这是“化学及相关学科领域的一场革命，因为这种研

究方法使我们能够了解并预测重要的化学反应，”能从自然界最基础的层面探测自然。

[解析] since引导原因状语从句；其中to understand and predict…和to probe

nature…为并列的不定式短语作宾语补足语。

6. Zewail’s path to the forefront of the international science arena has been elegant and swift, like the atoms he observes performing molecular dances.

[译文] 扎威尔走向国际科学领域前沿的道路快捷而别具特色，正如他所观察

的原子跳出的分子舞步一样优美。

[解析] to the forefront of…是后置定语，修饰path。like the atoms …是由like

引导的方式状语； performing molecular dances为现在分词短语作后置定语，修饰the atoms。

7. He will remain active in research and in publishing papers, which he considers to be his babies (363 to date).

[译文] 他将继续活跃在科研领域，积极发表论文，他把自己的论文看成自己

的儿女（迄今为止他已经发表了363篇论文）。

[解析] 复合句，which引导一个非限制性定语从句，修饰papers。in research

和in publishing papers为并列的介词短语，作句子的宾语。

8. He will continue to push the envelope of what is possible. [译文] 他将继续尽力去揭示尚待研发的领域的奥秘。

[解析] what is possible是介词of的宾语。push the envelop“（在某领域）有力

地扩大成就”。

PART FOUR Language Points

1. breakthrough n. an important advance of discovery

Example: The negotiators have achieved a dramatic breakthrough in the arms

control talks.

make a breakthrough 取得突破

2. handful n. a small number of people or things Example: A handful of money is not enough for the trip. Her hair began to fall out in handfuls.

3. investigation n. an act to try to find out more information about Example: The owner of the burnt building is subject to investigation. 4. probe v. to search or examine

Example: Scientists probe into the nature of the phenomenon.

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The more they probe into his background, the more suspicious they

became.

5. transition n. passage from one form or place to another

Example: The transition from planned-economy to market economy is in no way

an easy road.

transitional a. 过渡的 transition period 过渡时期 6. tumultuous a. very noisy and disorderly

Example: Delegates greeted the news with tumultuous applause. 7. bring in to cause to come in; introduce

Example: He was brought in and stood before the manager.

The new product has brought in $400000 for the company this year. 8. turn out to prove to be

Example: The book turned out to be very interesting.

The truth turned out to be stranger than we had expected. 9. have sth. under one’s belt

Example: He already has good academic qualifications under his belt. 10. look forward to to expect with pleasure

Example: We’re so much looking forward to seeing you again.

Little Emily is looking forward to leaving the hospital wards for a

holiday.

11. make one’s own way

Example: If you want to make your own way, you must work hard. 12. to date until today

Example: The police have not found the runaway to date. out of date 过时的，落伍的 up to date 新的，现代的

PART FIVE Text Structure

Part One (Para. 1-4): Zewail was awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry and the

reaction of his family.

Part Two (Para. 5-11): Zewail’s academic career and his achievement are introduced. Part Three (Para. 12-13): Zewail would continue his way of exploring in the future.

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