NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Beehive Chapter 4 - A Truly Beautiful Mind

Thinking About the Text

(i) Einstein’s equation
Ans: 9

(ii) Einstein meets his future wife 
Ans: 7

(iii) The making of a violinist
Ans: 3

(iv) Mileva and Einstein’s mother 
Ans: 10

(v) A letter that launched the arms race 
Ans: 15

(vi) A desk drawer full of ideas 
Ans: 8

(vii) Marriage and divorce 
Ans: 11

Q2: Who had these opinions about Einstein?
(i) He was boring.
Ans: Einstein’s playmates thought that he was bored.

(ii) He was stupid and would never succeed in life.
Ans: Einstein’s head master thought that he was stupid and would never succeed at anything in life.

(iii) He was a freak.
Ans: Einstein’s mother thought that he was a freak.

Q3: Explain the reasons for the following:

(i) Einstein leaving the school in Munich for good.
Ans: Einstein’s mother thought that he was a freak.

(ii) Einstein wanting to study in Switzerland rather than in Munich.
Ans: Switzerland was a more liberal city that’s why he wanted to study there rather than in Munich.

(iii) Einstein seeing in Mileva an Ally.
Ans: Einstein found in Mileva an ally because she, like him, disapproved of the “philistines” or the people who did not like art, literature or music.

(iv) What do these tell you about Einstein?
Ans: The above things tell us that Einstein was a very liberal person who liked freedom. He was a person who had his own view about life. 

[  ] Einstein published his special theory of relativity.
[  ] He is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.
[  ] Einstein writes a letter to U.S. President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and warns against Germany’s building of an atomic bomb.
[  ] Einstein attends a high school in Munich.
[  ] Einstein’s family moved to Milan.
[  ] Einstein was born in the German city of Ulm.
[  ] Einstein joins a university in Zurich, where he meets Mileva.
[  ] Einstein dies.
[  ] He provides a new interpretation of gravity.
[  ] Tired of the school’s regimentation, Einstein withdraws from school.
[  ] He works in a patent office as a technical expert.
[  ] When Hitler comes to power, Einstein left Germany for the United States.
Ans:
(i) Einstein is born in the German city of Ulm.
(ii) Einstein attends a high school in Munich.
(iii) Einstein’s family moves to Milan.
(iv) Tired of the school’s regimentation, Einstein withdraws from school.
(v) Einstein joins a university in Zurich, where he meets Mileva.
(vi) He works in a patent office as a technical expert.
(vii) Einstein publishes his special theory of relativity.
(viii) He provides a new interpretation of gravity.
(ix) He is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.
(x) When Hitler comes to power, Einstein left Germany for the United States.
(xi) Einstein writes a letter to U.S. President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and warns against Germany’s building of an atomic bomb.
(xii) Einstein dies.

Thinking About Language

I. Here are some sentences from the story. Choose the word from the brackets which can be substituted for the italicised words in the sentences.
Q1:  A few years later, the marriage faltered. (failed, broke, became weak)
Ans: A few years later, the marriage became weak. (failed, broke, became weak).

Q2: Einstein was constantly at odds with people at the university. (on bad terms, in disagreement, unhappy)
Ans: Einstein was constantly in disagreement with people at the university. (on bad terms, in disagreement, unhappy)

Q3: The newspapers proclaimed his work as “a scientific revolution.” (declared, praised, showed)
Ans: The newspapers declared his work as “a scientific revolution.” (declared, praised, showed)

Q4: Einstein got ever more involved in politics, agitating for an end to the arms buildup. (campaigning, fighting, supporting)
Ans: Einstein got ever more involved in politics, campaigning for an end to the arms build-up. (campaigning, fighting, supporting)

Q5: At the age of 15, Einstein felt so stifled that he left the school for good, (permanently, for his benefit, for a short time
Ans: At the age of 15, Einstein felt so stifled that he left the school permanently. (permanently, for his benefit, for a short time)

Q6: Five years later, the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin had American physicists in an uproar. (in a state of commotion, full of criticism, in a desperate state
Ans: Five years later, the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin had American physicists in a state of commotion. (in a state of commotion, full of criticism, in a desperate state)

Q7: Science wasn’t the only thing that appealed to the dashing young man with the walrus moustache. (interested, challenged, worried)
Ans: Science wasn’t the only thing that interested to the dashing young man with the walrus moustache. (interested, challenged, worried)

II. Study the following sentences.

• Einstein became a gifted amateur violinist, maintaining this skill throughout his life. 
• Letters survive in which they put their affection into words, mixing science with tenderness

The parts in italics in the above sentences begin with –ing verbs, and are called participial phrases. Participial phrases say something more about the person or thing talked about or the idea expressed by the sentence as a whole. 
For example: – Einstein became a gifted amateur violinist. He maintained this skill throughout his life. 
Complete the sentences below by filling in the blanks with suitable participial clauses. The information that has to be used in the phrases is provided as a sentence in brackets.

Q1: Complete the sentences below by filling in the blanks with suitable participial clauses. The information that has to be used in the phrases is provided as a sentence in brackets.
1. __________, the firefighters finally put out the fire. (They worked round the clock)
2. She watched the sunset above the mountain, __________ (She noticed the colours blending softly into one another)
3. The excited horse pawed the ground rapidly, __________ (While it neighed continually)
4. __________, I found myself in Bangalore, instead of Benaras. (I had taken the wrong train)
5. __________, I was desperate to get to the bathroom. (I had not bathed for two days)
6. The stone steps, __________ needed to be replaced. (They were worn down)
7. The actor received hundreds of letters from his fans, __________ (They asked him to send them his photograph)
Ans:
1. Working round the clock, the firefighters finally put out the fire.
2. She watched the sunset above the mountain, noticing the colours blending softly into one another.
3. The excited horse pawed the ground rapidly, neighing continually.
4. Having taken the wrong train, I found myself in Bangalore, instead of Benaras.
5. Having not bathed for two days, I was desperate to get to the bathroom.
6. The stone steps, being worn down, needed to be replaced.
7. The actor received hundreds of letters from his fans, asking him to send them his photograp

Writing Newspaper Reports

• What was unearthed.
• Who unearthed it and when.
• What the document contained.
• Where it will be kept.

Your report could begin like this:
Student Unearths Einstein Manuscript
21 AUGUST 2005. An original handwritten Albert Einstein manuscript has been unearthed at a university in the Netherlands…
Ans:
Student Unearths Einstein Manuscript
21 AUGUST 2005. An original handwritten Albert Einstein manuscript has been unearthed at a university in the Netherlands.
It was unearthed by a student Rowdy Boeynik while researching papers when he came across some papers belonging to an old friend of Einstein.
The 16-page document dated 1924 contained fingerprints of Albert Einstein. It has Einstein’s work on this last theory i.e. the behaviour of atoms at low temperature which is now known as the Bose-Einstein condensation.
The manuscript will be kept at Leyden University where Einstein got the Nobel Prize.