Unit 8

Birth of Bright Ideas

Background Information:

Richard Wagner(1813-1883):

He was the greatest composer of German opera, made a major addition to the nature of opera through his writings about and the creation of music drama. His works include “The Ring of the Nibelung”, a set of four operas based on historical German stories

Background Information: La Spezia It is an industrial port and Italy’s chief naval station in northwest

Italy. Wagner visited here in 1853 when he left his exile in Switzerland to which he had escaped during World War II.

Henri Poincare (1854-1912): a great French mathematics and theoretical science professor at the Sorbonne (University of Paris), had a highly original influence on the development of pure and applied mathematics. He also worked on functions that changed celestial mechanics, helped pioneer algebraic topology and co-discovered the special theory of relativity.

Background Information: Descartes, Rene (1596-1650): a famous French

philosopher, mathematician and scientist, was one of the most influential thinkers in history. He is considered the founder of both modern philosophy and analytic geometry. During his life, established ideas were being challenged, so he tried to develop a way to reach the truth. He based his theory that the world is made up of mind and matter on a concept that came to him in a dream.

Cogito ergo sum is Latin for “I think; therefore, I exist”, a key point in Descartes’ philosophy. He claimed that the only thing anyone can be certain of is that s/he thinks and therefore, s/he exists. The “I” is the mind which can exist without being extended so that it can in principle survive the death of the body.

Text Structure Analysis:

Part One (Paras.1-3): Introduction—establish an argument

Creative thoughts depend on what was unknown becoming known. This is easily seen in the famous creative people.

Part Two (Para 4-6): Examples to support the argument

The author presents three different ways of forming big ideas: Wagner’s conscious mind knew nothing about the process of idea forming while Poincare’s conscious mind observed the process of idea forming in the unconscious and Descarte’s dream enabled him to make an important discovery.

Part Three (Para 7): Conclusion: In creative thought, the unconscious is responsible f

or the production of new organized forms from relatively disorganized elements.

Good Ideas come from the unconscious mind or brain activity usually not controlled by us. It is easiest to examine it in the great creative personalities.

Summary of the Text

Words and Expressions

form an idea sleep on occur glow with depend on in some degree the more …, the more … be occupied with without; within

seek for as though take shape at work contrary to fill sb. With (a feeling) responsible for

We can also say “to form an idea, an opinion, a judgment, a plan or even a personality”.

He found it hard to form an original opinion. 他觉得要有独到的见解并非易事。

I know them both well enough to form my own judgment.

我对他们都非常了解，足以自己独立判断。

1. L

1. form an idea: begin to have an idea and develop it (Para.1)

2. sleep on: leave sth. undecided and unattached until later time 将某事拖到明天， 推迟对某事作出决定；放放再说 (Para.1)

Let me sleep on your proposal and tell you the decision later.

Just sleep on it before making any decisions.

You should not always sleep on a problem. 你不要总把问题留到第二天解决。 不急于做决定，还是明天再说吧。 让我考虑考虑你的建议，再把决定告诉你们。

3. occur: come to mind (Para. 2)

The idea never occurred to me. 我从未想到过这个主意。

It suddenly occurred to him that this was something he should never do.

他突然想到这种事情他根本就不应该做。

4. They burst into the mind, glowing with the heat of creation. (Para.2)

Meaning: These ideas come to the mind suddenly and show clearly they are good, creative ideas.

glow with: show redness or heat with feelings, etc. My father’s face glowed with satisfaction when he

saw my school report. 父亲看到我的成绩单，脸上露出了满意的神情。

5. Creative thought depends on what was unknown becoming known. (Para.2)

Meaning: Creative thought comes if one can change what was unknown into something that is known.

depend on: happen according to; count on The success of the factory depends on the workers. 工厂的成功取决于工人的工作。

Depending on how much he sells, his earnings will increase.

他收入的增加取决他能卖出多少。

6. in some degree: to the limit of, somewhat (Para.3)

Production of fruit and vegetables has also risen in varying degrees.

水果和蔬菜的产量也有了不同程度的增长。

He was not in the slightest degree interested. 他一点也不感兴趣。

7. …the more highly insightful the person, the sharper and more dramatic the signals become. (Para.3)

Meaning: If the person is more insightful, then the signals become sharper and more obvious.

the more …, the more … The sooner you start, the more quickly you will finish t

he task. 你开始得越早，完成得就越快。 The more you know, the more modest you become. 你懂得越多，就越谦虚。

8. be occupied with : be busy with sth. (Para. 4) She was occupied with the cleaning of the big hou

se. 她正忙于打扫那幢大房子。

If one is too occupied with courting to mind his main business, he stands little chance of success.

一个人如果忙于谈情说爱而无暇顾及自己的主业，那么他将很难取得成功。

9. …could not sleep for noise without and fever within… (Para.4)

Both “without” and “within” are used as adv., meaning “outside” and “inside”

More examples: The dog remained shaking without. 狗在门外发抖。

The building for sale. Enquires within. 此房出售，咨询请进！

He looked calm without, but anxious within. 他外表看起来很镇静，但内心却很焦急。

10. seek for : make a search for; look for (Para. 4)

He has been seeking for a new place to live for several months, but he has not found anything he can afford.

他几个月来一直在找一个新住处，但还没有找到一处价格上他能承受得起的地方。

She had been seeking for a new partner for her business for a long time before finally finding one.

长期以来她一直在寻找生意上的新伙伴，最终如愿以偿。

11.as if: (often followed by a clause in subjunctive mood 虚拟语气 ) (Para. 4)

Why is she looking at me as though she knew me? I have never seen her before in my life.

为什么她老看着我，好像认识我似的？我可从未见过她呀。

She looks almost as if she were drunk. 她看上去像是喝醉了。

12. take shape: (Para.4)

=develop or start to appear in such a way that it becomes fairly clear what its final form will be 成形；初具规模

The new building is beginning to take shape.

After several days’ discussion, their project began to take shape.

经过几天的讨论，他们的项目框架开始形成了。

The plan is beginning to take shape in my mind 这个计画在我脑子里逐渐有了眉目 . 新大楼已初具规模。

13. at work: having an effect; in operation (Para.5)

The report suggested that the same direction was at work in political affairs.

报告表明在政治事务方面也存在同样的倾向。

It is important to understand the powerful economic and social forces at work behind their actions.

重要的是要懂得在这些措施之后经济和政治力量所起的强大作用。

14. spend (time) doing sth.: pass the time doing sth. (para 5) He spent an hour each day exercising. 他每天花 1小时运动。

Now more and more city adults spend their free time trying to improve themselves at school or college.

现在城市里越来越多的成年人利用业余时间到学校或大学去充电。

15. contrary to: opposite to (Para.5)

He passed the examination, contrary to what I expected.

他考试及格了，这出乎我的预料。

Contrary to all advice, he gave up his job and left for the south.

他不听任何劝告，辞了工作，去了南方。

16. When morning came, he had established the existence of one class of Fuchsian functions. (Para.5)

The word “come” is not only used to talk about a person’s or an animal’s action but also an event or time.

The time has come for us to move on. 我们该继续前进了。

Success comes after many failures. 经过多次失败之后，才会获得成功。

18. fill sb. with (a feeling): make sb. Have or experience (Para.6)

I admired my father and his work filled me with curiosity.

我敬慕我的父亲，我对他的工作充满了好奇。

What netizens said filled him with anger. 网民的话使他十分生气。

17. …in the world of books, in the world on men. (Para.6)

World: a particular area of human activity

the world of money 金融界 the book world 出版界 the world of sports 体育界 the scientific world 科学界

22. responsible for: being the cause of sth. (Para.7)

He still felt responsible for her sudden death. 他仍然感到她的突然死亡是他造成的。

He insisted that his solid foundation was responsible for his present success.

他坚持认为他今天的成功归功于他扎实的基础。

Questions for discussion:

1. Where do good ideas come from according to the author? What does “the unconscious” mean to psychologists?

2. What devices have been employed in the text?3. What state was Richard Wagner in when he

arrived at the hotel?4. What does the Wagner story tell us?5. What point do you see in the example of

Descartes?

Writing

Colleges Have Opened Their Doors Wider

Please write a composition on the above topic. You should write at least 120 words and base your composition on the outline given in Chinese below:

1. 高校扩招是一件好事。 2. 高校扩招会带来的一些问题。 3. 我的观点。