A Truly Beautiful Mind NCERT Solutions & Summary Class 9 English PDF
Subject: English (Beehive) | Chapter: 4 | Topic: Albert Einstein
📥 Download Notes PDF 📢 Join Telegram📖 Chapter Summary: A Truly Beautiful Mind
This chapter is a short biographical account of one of the greatest scientists of all time, Albert Einstein. It reveals that the man synonymous with "genius" had a very ordinary, even slow, childhood. Born on March 14, 1879, in Germany, Einstein did not speak until he was two and a half, and when he did, he repeated everything twice. His playmates called him "Brother Boring," and his mother thought he was a "freak" because his head seemed unusually large.
Despite early struggles and hating the strict regimentation of his school in Munich (which he left at age 15), Einstein was highly gifted in mathematics and physics. He later studied in Zurich, Switzerland, where the atmosphere was more liberal. There, he fell in love with a fellow student, Mileva Maric, though their marriage eventually failed.
While working as a technical expert in the patent office in Bern, Einstein secretly developed his own ideas. In 1905, he published his famous Special Theory of Relativity (which gave the world-famous equation E = mc²). In 1915, he published his General Theory of Relativity, proving it correctly during the solar eclipse of 1919. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921.
When the Nazis came to power in Germany in 1933, Einstein emigrated to the USA. In 1939, he wrote a letter to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, warning him about the destructive potential of an atomic bomb. Deeply shaken by the US bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, Einstein spent the rest of his life advocating for nuclear disarmament and a world government, earning the title of a "World Citizen."
📚 Part 1: NCERT Solutions (Textbook Questions)
Q1: Who had these opinions about Einstein? (i) He was boring (ii) He was stupid and would never succeed in life (iii) He was a freak.
Ans:
(i) He was boring: His playmates (other children) thought he was boring and called him "Brother Boring."
(ii) He was stupid and would never succeed: His headmaster told his father that whatever profession Einstein chose wouldn't matter, because "he'll never make a success at anything."
(iii) He was a freak: His mother thought he was a freak because his head seemed much too large to her.
Q2: Explain what the reasons for the following are: (i) Einstein leaving the school in Munich for good. (ii) Einstein wanting to study in Switzerland rather than in Munich.
Ans:
(i) Leaving school in Munich: Einstein hated the school's strict regimentation and extreme discipline. He often clashed with his teachers and felt so stifled that he left the school for good at the age of 15.
(ii) Wanting to study in Switzerland: Switzerland was much more liberal and free-thinking compared to Munich. Einstein knew he would find a better, less stifling environment for his education there.
Q3: What did Einstein call his desk drawer at the patent office? Why?
Ans: Einstein jokingly called his desk drawer at the patent office the "bureau of theoretical physics." This was because, while he was officially supposed to be assessing other people's inventions, he was secretly developing his own groundbreaking ideas in physics and storing those documents in his drawer.
Q4: Why did Einstein write a letter to Franklin Roosevelt?
Ans: In 1939, after the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin, American physicists were terrified that the Nazis could build and use an atomic bomb. Urged by a colleague, Einstein wrote to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt to warn him that a single bomb of this type, exploded in a port, could destroy the whole port along with some of the surrounding territory.
Q5: How did Einstein react to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
Ans: Einstein was deeply shaken by the massive extent of destruction caused by the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. In response, he wrote a public missive to the United Nations, proposing the formation of a world government to stop the arms race and ensure global peace.
⚡ Part 2: Extra Practice Questions
Q6: Why does the world remember Einstein as a "world citizen"?
Ans: Einstein is remembered as a "world citizen" because, in his later years, he stepped beyond science and became deeply involved in global politics. He passionately campaigned against the arms race, advocated for nuclear disarmament, and promoted peace and democracy worldwide.
Q7: Discuss the relationship between Albert Einstein and Mileva Maric.
Ans: Einstein met Mileva Maric at the University in Zurich. He found her to be a "clever creature" who shared his interest in science and arts, and stood against the "Philistines" (people who disliked art and literature). They fell in love and eventually married in 1903. However, over the years, Mileva lost her intellectual ambition and became an unhappy housewife. Due to constant conflict, they finally divorced in 1919. Despite the failed marriage, she was a significant intellectual companion during his early breakthrough years.
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Q: In which year was Albert Einstein awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics?
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🔤 Important Word Meanings
- 1. Freak (n): A word used disapprovingly to talk about a person who is unusual and doesn't behave, look or think like others (Ajeeb).
- 2. Regimentation (n): Extreme discipline or strict rules that limit freedom.
- 3. Stifled (v): Unable to breathe; feeling suffocated or restricted.
- 4. Philistines (n): A word used disapprovingly to talk about people who do not like art, literature, or music.
- 5. Unravelling (v): Starting to fail; falling apart (e.g., Einstein's marriage was unravelling).
- 6. Emigrated (v): Left one's own country in order to settle permanently in another (Prvaas karna).
- 7. Missive (n): A long, official, or important letter.