1 Translate the sentences into Russian. Pay attention to the part of the sentence in
bold.
Example: -He was proficient enough to work as a telegrapher full time. - Он был
достаточно опытным, для того чтобы работать телеграфистом полный рабочий день.
a) An electric vote recorder is a device intended for use by elected bodies such as Congress to speed the voting process.
b) Babbage was sent to a country school to recover from a life-threatening fever.
c) Edison was invited to the White House to demonstrate the tin foil phonograph.
d) The results were so breathtakingly original, that it took some time for the mathematical and engineering community to realize their significance.
e) In the 1950s, Shannon continued his efforts to develop mechanisms that
emulated the operations of the human mind to solve problems.
f) Tesla built an experimental station in Colorado Springs to experiment with high
frequency electricity and other phenomena.
2 Translate paragraph 8 into Russian.
Speaking
1 Sum up the text using the following key-points:
a) Edison’s family background
b) His main interests
c) Spheres of science and research activity
d) Major achievements
e) Personality
2 Comment on Edison’s quotations using the following openings:
In fact…, I wouldn’t say so…, It seems to me…, In my opinion…, It’s a doubtful
statement.., That’s where I agree (disagree) with the author.
a) He said that work was bringing out secrets of nature and applying them for the happiness of man.
b) Self-educated, he knew the value of learning: “Education isn’t play. It is hard,
hard work. But it can be made interesting work..”
c) “If you do not learn to think when you are young, you may never learn”.
d) “Genius is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.”
e) “Hell, there are no rules here—we're trying to accomplish something.”
3 Work in groups of 3-4. Make a list of things you would like to know about
Thomas Edison. Choose one, find information and make a poster presentation. (Read instruction on page 33 task 2)
4 Thomas Edison wrote a test of general knowledge. Anyone who wanted a job for T Edison Inc. had to take this test. Do this test to check if Mr. Edison would have hired you for his team. Edison mental fitness test 1920. http://www.nps.gov/archive/edis/edifun/quiz/quizhome.htm
Points for reflection
1 Have you learnt anything new about Edison from the text?
2 Has anything surprised you?
3 What facts were the most amazing?
4 Did you like the text? Why? /Why not?
Unit 2 Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937)
