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1. ALBERT Einstein was born on 14 March 1879 in the German city of Ulm, without any indication that he was destined for greatness. On the contrary, his mother thought Albert was a freak. To her, his head seemed much too large.
2. At the age of two-and-a-half, Einstein still wasn’t talking. When he finally did learn to speak, he uttered everything twice. Einstein did not know what to do with other children, and his playmates called him “Brother Boring.” So the youngster played by himself much of the time. He especially loved mechanical toys. Looking at his newborn sister, Maja, he is said to have said: “Fine, but where are her wheels?”
Otto Neugebauer, the historian of ancient mathematics, told a story about the boy Einstein that he characterises as a “legend”, but that seems fairly authentic. As he was a late talker, his parents were worried. At last, at the supper table one night, he broke his silence to say, “The soup is too hot.” Greatly relieved, his parents asked why he had never said a word before. Albert replied, “Because up to now everything was in order.”
Explanation:
The lesson "A Truly Beautiful Mind" is about a young German civil servant named Albert Einstein who took the world by storm over a century ago.
Albert Einstein*
Albert Einstein was born on March \(14\), \(1879\). He was born in Ulm. Ulm is a city in the German state of Baden-Wurttemberg. "Albert was the first son of Hermann and Pauline Koch Einstein" (*M. L., Pg. 12).
Hermann** and Pauline Koch Einstein***
While Einstein was a child, no one could have predicted that he would become a world-renowned scientist one day. On the other hand, Albert's mother considered him "weird" because he did not act, speak, think or look like other children. In comparison to other children of his age, Albert's behaviour seemed unusual. Einstein appeared to be less intelligent than others.
Later, Albert's mother believed that her son's head was larger than other children's heads. The reason behind the statement was that Einstein looked fatter when he was a newborn baby, and the backside of his head appeared to be overly broad. After seeing him, Einstein's mother thought that he was unusual.
Albert Einstein did not utter a single word till he was two-and-a-half years old. While he began to speak, he spoke everything twice. “Before saying the words louder, he would rehearse anything he intended to say to himself a few times. His slow mannerism of speaking made people believe that he was not at all a bright kid” (*M. L., Pg. 14).
For instance, a notable historian of ancient mathematics named Otto Neugebauer narrated the story of boy Einstein. He described Einstein as a “legend,” which looks reasonably accurate while reading about his childhood. ‘Einstein’s parents were concerned about his behaviour. So they took him to several doctors to understand what was wrong with him. On the other hand, the doctors couldn't predict anything wrong with Albert (*M. L., Pg. 12). He appeared to be a normal kid. On one night, while they were having supper, the boy exclaimed, “The soup is too hot.” His parents were astonished by this, and they inquired why he did not speak a single word earlier. At that moment, the boy responded that everything had been going smoothly until that point. The boy remained silent because everything was going well, and he didn’t want to complain about anything. “It shows significantly how intelligent little Albert had been” (*M. L., Pg. 14).
Einstein did not know what to play with the other children, so he continued silent. As a result of it, his playmates called him using the nickname "Brother Boring". They used the nickname because he would not play with them. Einstein liked the company of himself. From his childhood, Einstein enjoyed playing with mechanical toys, such as automated cars and planes.
Albert used to play with automated cars
“One day Albert’s parents had told him that they would bring home a new toy. While they came, they brought a newborn baby named Maja” (*M. L., Pg. 14). Maja was Einstein’s younger sister. After seeing the baby, Albert wondered and asked his parents about her wheels. Usually, babies did not have wheels; they had legs. The statement was made because the baby seemed like a toy for him, so he might have asked his parents where her wheels were.
A newborn baby
Meanings of the difficult words:
| S.No | Words | Meanings |
1 | Indication | A sign or piece of information that indicates something |
2 | Destined | Intended for a particular purpose |
3 | Greatness | The quality of being great, distinguished, or eminent |
4 | Freak | A word used disapprovingly to talk about a person who was unusual and did not behave, look or think like others |
5 | Historian | An expert in or student of history, especially a particular period, geographical region, or social phenomenon |
6 | Soup | Liquid dish, typically made by boiling meat, fish, or vegetables in water |
Reference:
- National Council of Educational Research and Training (2006). Beehive. A Truly Beautiful Thing (pp. 46-53). Published at the Publication Division by the Secretary, National Council of Educational Research and Training, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi.
- Albert Einstein*: Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
- Hermann**: Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
- Pauline Koch Einstein***: Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
- *My Life Albert Einstein. New Delhi, General Press, 2018.
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