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LE A R N I NG OUTCOM ES

> Understand assumptions > Use past perfect

> Take notes by marking important > Identify and correct sentence fragments
information > Write a summary paragraph
> Distinguish voice in quotations

Go to MyEnglishLab to check what you know.

2 UNIT 1
 U N IT

1
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Genius:
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Nature or
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Nurture?
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1 FOCUS ON THE TOPIC

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1. Why are some people geniuses and others are not? Does the environment a person is raised in
create a genius (nurture), or was the person simply born that way (nature)?
2. What would it be like to be a genius? Describe the advantages and disadvantages.

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 3

 2 FOCUS ON READING

READING ONE A Genius Explains

VOCABULARY

1 Read this piece about Daniel Tammet, who is considered by many to be a genius. Being
a genius does not mean that all aspects of your life are easy or even that you are good
at everything. Daniel is very successful with some things but challenged by others. Pay
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attention to the boldfaced words.

Autism and autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) are names given to groups of complex
developmental disorders involving the brain. Some of the symptoms of these
disorders are problems with verbal and non-verbal social interaction, the display of
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repetitive behavior, and an inability to be flexible. Many people with ASD
compensate for these challenges and are able to be high-functioning and lead
“typical” lives. Others are more disabled by the disorder.

ASD is an umbrella term that includes many subcategories. One subcategory is

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autistic savant. Psychologists estimate that 10 percent of people with ASD have
some savant abilities. An autistic savant is a person with an unusual ability, skill, or
knowledge that is much more developed than that of an average person. Many
savants are able to retain large amounts of information in their memory. For
example, some autistic savants can recite entire dictionaries or telephone books
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word-for-word. Others are able to draw detailed maps of an area after flying over it
once in a helicopter. Although autistic people with savant abilities have these
specific skills, they may have difficulty with other types of mental or physical tasks.
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Daniel Tammet is an autistic savant. For Daniel, as for many people with ASD,
leading a predictable life has many benefits. In other words, life is easier for him if
it has structure and routine. If it does not, he may become anxious. One of Daniel’s
special abilities is in mathematics. He is able to solve complex math problems
almost immediately. When he does this, he sees each number he is calculating as an
image. These images transform into a third image, which is the sum.
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Why autistic savants have these astonishing abilities is a question that still has no
definitive answer.

4 UNIT 1
2 Complete the sentences with the words from the boxes.

compensate estimate retain

1. No one is sure of the exact number of autistic savants with extraordinary abilities there

are in the world, but experts that there are fewer than 100.

2. Studies indicate that one hemisphere of a savant’s brain may for

damage to the other hemisphere.

3. With the number of passwords needed for everyday life, it is sometimes difficult to
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all of them in your memory.

anxious disabled flexible predictable

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4. Children may feel about their fi rst day in a new school because they

don’t know what to expect.

5. For me, it is very hard to change my plans because I am not very .

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6. Although savants have amazing abilities and knowledge, in other areas of their lives they

may be .

7. Because I know him so well, Sam’s reaction to my suggestion was very .

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astonishing benefit image interaction savant

8. It is sometimes hard for people who are shy to engage in social ,

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especially with people they don’t know well.

9. Daniel Tammet’s ability to instantaneously solve complex mathematical problems

is .

10. A(n) can exhibit amazing mental powers and is able to memorize huge
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amounts of information.

11. One of my new job is health insurance, and another is two weeks of

paid vacation.

12. Even though Daniel had not been to Paris in many years, he still had a clear

in his mind of what his hotel looked like.

Go to the Pearson Practice English App or MyEnglishLab for more vocabulary practice.

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 5

 PREVIEW

You are going to read an article about Daniel Tammet, an autistic savant. Before you read,
look at the statements. Check (✓) three things about Daniel that you think you will read in
the article.
1. He can’t drive a car. 4. He has lots of friends.
2. He has trouble remembering things. 5. He has invented his own language.
3. He loves going to the beach. 6. He lives with his parents.

READ
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Read the article about Daniel Tammet on the next page. Create a chart like the one below
to take notes.

TAKE NOTES

Main Ideas Details

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Tammet is good at math and started after epileptic fit at age 3
counting
obsessed with counting – even counts stitches
figures out cube roots quickly
sees numbers as shapes, colors + textures
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Tammet is an autistic savant extraordinary mental abilities
most struggle with language - not Daniel
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created own language
speaks 8 languages
incredible memory
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Go to MyEnglishLab to view example notes.
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6 UNIT 1
 The Guardian
A GENIUS EXPLAINS By Richard Johnson
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Daniel Tammet

D
1 aniel Tammet is talking. As he talks, he population— and an estimated 1 percent of the
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studies my shirt and counts the stitches. non-autistic population— have savant abilities,
Ever since the age of three, when he but no one knows exactly why.
suffered an epileptic fit1, Tammet has been
4 Scans of the brains of autistic savants suggest that
obsessed with counting. Now he is twenty-six
the right hemisphere might be compensating for
and a mathematical genius who can figure out
damage in the left hemisphere. While many savants
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cube roots quicker than a calculator and recall pi
struggle with language and comprehension (skills
to 22,514 decimal places. He also happens to be
associated primarily with the left hemisphere),
autistic, which is why he can’t drive a car, wire a
they often have amazing skills in mathematics and
plug, or tell right from left. He lives with
memory (primarily right hemisphere skills). Typically,
extraordinary ability and disability.
savants have a limited vocabulary, but there is
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2 Tammet is calculating 377 multiplied by 795. nothing limited about Tammet’s vocabulary.
Actually, he isn’t “calculating”: there is nothing
5 Tammet is creating his own language, strongly
conscious about what he is doing. He arrives at
influenced by the vowel and image-rich languages
the answer instantly. Since his epileptic fit, he
of northern Europe. (He already speaks French,
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has been able to see numbers as shapes, colors,
German, Spanish, Lithuanian, Icelandic, and
and textures. The number two, for instance, is a
Esperanto.) The vocabulary of his language—
motion, and five is a clap of thunder. “When I
“Mänti,” meaning a type of tree—reflects the
multiply numbers together, I see two shapes. The
relationships between different things. The word
image starts to change and evolve, and a third
“ema,” for instance, translates as “mother,” and
shape emerges. That’s the answer. It’s mental
“ela” is what a mother creates: “life.” “Päike” is
imagery. It’s like maths without having to think.”
“sun,” and “päive” is what the sun creates: “day.”
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3 Tammet is a “savant,” an individual with an Tammet hopes to launch Mänti in academic circles
astonishing, extraordinary mental ability. An later this year, his own personal exploration of the
estimated 10 percent of the autistic power of words and their inter-relationship.

1 epileptic
fit: (also referred to as an epileptic seizure) a brief symptom of epilepsy which may include loss of
consciousness, convulsions, or losing muscle tone and slumping to the ground

continued on next page

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 7

 6 Last year, Tammet broke the European record for 10 Few people on the streets have recognised
recalling pi, the mathematical constant2, to the Tammet since his pi record attempt. But, when a
furthest decimal point. He found it easy, he says, documentary about his life is broadcast on
because he didn’t even have to “think.” To him, pi Channel 5 later this year, all that will change. “The
isn’t an abstract set of digits; it’s a visual story, a highlight of filming was to meet Kim Peek, the
film projected in front of his eyes. He learnt the real-life character who inspired the film Rain Man.
number forwards and backwards and, last year, Before I watched Rain Man, I was frightened. As a
spent five hours recalling it in front of an nine-year-old schoolboy, you don’t want people to
adjudicator3. He wanted to prove a point. “I point at the screen and say, ‘That’s you.’ But I
memorised pi to 22,514 decimal places, and I am watched it and felt a real connection. Getting to
technically disabled. I just wanted to show people meet the real-life Rain Man was inspirational.”
that disability needn’t get in the way.”
11 Peek was shy and introspective, but he sat and
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7 Tammet is softly spoken and shy about making held Tammet’s hand for hours. “We shared so
eye contact, which makes him seem younger than much—our love of key dates from history, for
he is. He lives on the Kent coast, but never goes instance. And our love of books. As a child, I
near the beach—there are too many pebbles to regularly took over a room in the house and
count. The thought of a mathematical problem started my own lending library. I would separate
with no solution makes him feel uncomfortable. out fiction and non-fiction, and then alphabetise
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Trips to the supermarket are always a chore. them all. I even introduced a ticketing system. I
“There’s too much mental stimulus. I have to look love books so much. I’ve read more books than
at every shape and texture. Every price and every anyone else I know, so I was delighted when Kim
arrangement of fruit and vegetables. So instead of wanted to meet in a library.” Peek can read two
thinking, ‘What cheese do I want this week?,’ I’m pages simultaneously, one with each eye. He can
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just really uncomfortable.” also recall, in exact detail, the 7,600 books he has
read. When he is at home in Utah, he spends
8 Tammet has never been able to work 9 to 5. It
afternoons at the Salt Lake City public library,
would be too difficult to fit around his daily
memorising phone books and address directories.
routine. For instance, he has to drink his cups of
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“He is such a lovely man,” says Tammet. “Kim
tea at exactly the same time every day. Things
says, ‘You don’t have to be handicapped to be
have to happen in the same order: He always
different—everybody’s different.’ And he’s right.”
brushes his teeth before he has his shower. “I
have tried to be more flexible, but I always end 12 As a baby, he (Tammet) banged his head against
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up feeling more uncomfortable. Retaining a sense the wall and cried constantly. Nobody knew what
of control is really important. I like to do things in was wrong. His mother was anxious, and would
my own time and in my own style, so an office swing him to sleep in a blanket. She breastfed him
with targets and bureaucracy just wouldn’t work.” for two years. The only thing the doctors could say
was that perhaps he was understimulated. Then,
9 Instead, he has set up a business on his own, at
one afternoon when he was playing with his
home, writing email courses in language learning,
brother in the living room, he had an epileptic fit.
numeracy, and literacy for private clients. It has had
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the fringe benefit of keeping human interaction 13 “I was given medication—round blue tablets—to
to a minimum. It also gives him time to work on control my seizures and told not to go out in direct
the verb structures of Mänti. sunlight. I had to visit the hospital every month for

2 mathematical constant: a special number that is usually a real number and is considered “significantly interesting
is some way”
3 adjudicator: a judge or arbitrator, especially in a dispute or competition

continued on next page

8 UNIT 1
 regular blood tests. I hated those tests, but I knew 17 Tammet may have been teased at school, but his
they were necessary. To make up for it, my father teachers were always protective. “I think my
would always buy me a cup of squash4 to drink parents must have had a word with them, so I was
while we sat in the waiting room. It was a worrying pretty much left alone.” He found it hard to
time because my dad’s father had epilepsy and socialise with anyone outside the family, and, with
actually died of it, in the end. They were thinking, the advent of adolescence, his shyness got worse.
‘This is the end of Daniel’s life.’ ”
18 After leaving school with three A-levels (History,
14 He remembers being given a Ladybird book called French and German, all grade Bs), he decided he
Counting when he was four. “When I looked at the wanted to teach—only not the predictable,
numbers, I ‘saw’ images. It felt like a place I could learn-by-rote type of teaching. For a start, he went
go where I really belonged. That was great. I went to teach in Lithuania, and he worked as a
to this other country whenever I could. I would sit volunteer. “It was also the first time I was
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on the floor in my bedroom and just count. I didn’t introduced as ‘Daniel’ rather than ‘the guy who
notice that time was passing. It was only when my can do weird stuff in his head.’ It was such a
mum shouted up for dinner or someone knocked pleasant relief.” Later, he returned home to live
at my door, that I would snap out of it.” with his parents and found work as a maths tutor.
15 One day his brother asked him a sum5. “He asked 19 When he isn’t working, Tammet likes to hang out
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me to multiply something in my head—like ‘What with his friends on the church quiz team. His
is 82 × 82 × 82 × 82?’ I just looked at the floor and knowledge of popular culture lets him down, but
closed my eyes. My back went very straight, and I he’s a shoo-in when it comes to the maths
made my hands into fists. But after five or ten questions. “I do love numbers,” he says. “It isn’t
seconds, the answer just flowed out of my mouth. only an intellectual or aloof thing that I do. I really
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He asked me several others, and I got every one feel that there is an emotional attachment, a
right. My parents didn’t seem surprised. And they caring for numbers. I think this is a human
never put pressure on me to perform for the thing—in the same way that a poet humanises a
neighbours. They knew I was different but wanted river or a tree through metaphor, my world gives
me to have a normal life as far as possible.” me a sense of numbers as personal. It sounds silly,
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but numbers are my friends.”
16 Tammet could see the car park of his infant school
from his bedroom window, which made him feel
safe. “I loved assembly because we got to sing Note: This article originally appeared in The
hymns. The notes formed a pattern in my head, Guardian, a British news publication. Several
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just like the numbers did.” The other children words in the article are written using British
didn’t know what to make of him and would tease spelling and terms, which is sometimes
him. The minute the bell went for playtime, he different from American usage.
would rush off. “I went to the playground, but not
to play. The place was surrounded by trees. While 4 squash: fruit syrup mixed with sugar and water or
the other children were playing football, I would carbonated water
just stand and count the leaves.” 5 sum: (in British English) a calculation
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Genius: Nature or Nurture? 9

 MAIN IDEAS

Articles and textbooks often contain paragraph headings. A paragraph heading is like a
title for the paragraph. It tells readers what they can expect to read about. Choose the best
paragraph heading for each section in the article.
1. Paragraphs 1 and 2
a. Daniel Tammet—mathematical genius
b. Daniel Tammet’s abilities and disabilities
c. Math—how he does it
2. Paragraphs 4 and 5
a. The autistic brain
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b. Mänti—Daniel’s language
c. Not the typical savant
3. Paragraphs 7 and 8
a. Everyday life can be challenging
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b. Overstimulation can be a problem
c. Daniel’s daily routine
4. Paragraphs 10 and 11
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a. Kim Peek and Daniel’s similarities
b. Kim Peek and Daniel’s love of books
c. Daniel and Kim Peek connect
5. Paragraphs 14 and 15
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a. Daniel starts counting
b. Daniel’s math skills emerge
c. Numbers as images
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6. Paragraphs 16 and 17
a. Daniel’s love of singing
b. Daniel’s shyness
c. Problems in school
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10 UNIT 1
DETAILS

1 Reading One gives information about Daniel’s abilities and disabilities. Read the
categories on the left in the chart. Then write the details and examples from the box
next to the correct categories. Finally, identify each detail or example as either an ability
or a disability. Use your notes to help you. Share your completed chart with a partner.

He feels uncomfortable in He has invented his own He can calculate cube

the supermarket. language. roots faster than a calculator.
He can recall pi to 22,514 He must drink his tea It is hard for him to
decimal points. at exactly the same time socialize with anyone
every day. outside his family.
He is able to read a lot
of books. He has trouble making He can multiply 377 × 795
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eye contact. in his head.
He doesn’t go to the beach
because there are too many He always has to brush his The thought of a
pebbles to count. teeth before he showers. mathematical problem
with no solution makes him
He can easily remember He speaks eight languages.
uncomfortable.
key dates in history.
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CATEGORY DETAILS OR EXAMPLES ABILITY DISABILITY
Math 1. He can calculate cube roots faster than a calculator. X
2.
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3.
4.
Language 1. He has invented his own language. X
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2.
3.
Memory 1.
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2.
Social 1.
Interaction
2.
3.
Need for 1.
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Order
2.

2 Look at your notes and at your answers in Preview. How did they help you understand
the article?

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 11

 MAKE INFERENCES

Understanding Assumptions

An inference is an educated guess about something that is not directly stated in a text. A Genius
Explains includes quotes from Daniel Tammet and Kim Peek that show what others might assume
about the two men’s disabilities. What assumptions can you infer from these quotations?
Look at the example and read the assumption and the explanation.

“I just wanted to show people that disability needn’t get in the way.” ( paragraph 6)

Assumption: People think that someone with a disability cannot do as much as someone without
a disability.
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Some people assumed that Daniel’s disability would cause him to have problems in other areas of his
life. By showing people that he could achieve remarkable things, even though he was “technically
disabled,” Daniel wanted to show that their assumptions were wrong. His disability wasn’t going to
hold him back.
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1 Read the quotes from Daniel and Kim. Complete the sentences with assumptions that
people have made about them.
1. Daniel: “It was also the first time I was introduced as ‘Daniel’ rather than ‘the guy who can
do weird stuff in his head.’ ” (paragraph 18)
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Others didn’t think that Daniel was

2. Kim: “You don’t have to be handicapped to be different—everybody’s different.” (paragraph 11)

Others think that
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3. Daniel: “It sounds silly, but numbers are my friends.” (paragraph 19)
Other people probably think that numbers
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4. Daniel: “It isn’t only an intellectual or aloof thing that I do. I really feel that there is an
emotional attachment, a caring for numbers.” (paragraph 19)
Other people probably assume that Daniel’s relationship to numbers
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5. Daniel: “I like to do things in my own time and in my own style, so an office with targets and
bureaucracy just wouldn’t work.” (paragraph 8)
Other people might expect Daniel to

2 Discuss your answers with a partner. Point out sentences, words, or phrases that helped
you find the answers.

12 UNIT 1
DISCUSS USE YOUR NOTES

Work in a small group. Choose one of the questions. Use your notes to support
Discuss your ideas. Then choose one person in your your answers with information
group to report the ideas to the class. from the reading.

1. Which of Daniel’s abilities would be advantageous?

Which would be less advantageous? Why? Have you
ever met anyone with this combination of advantage
and disadvantage?
2. William James, the American psychologist and philosopher (1842–1910) said, “Genius means
nothing more than the faculty of perceiving in an unhabitual way.” How does this quotation
apply to Daniel Tammet?
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Go to MyEnglishLab to give your opinion about another question.

READING TWO 10,000 Hours to Mastery

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PREVIEW

1 Look at the title of the reading and the picture. Write two questions that you think will
be answered in this reading.
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2 Look at the boldfaced words in the reading. Which words do you know the meanings of?
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Genius: Nature or Nurture? 13

 READ

1 Read the article about Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Outliers: The Story of Success. As you
read, guess the meanings of the words that are new to you. Remember to take notes on
main ideas and details.

10,000 HOURS TO MASTERY by Harvey Mackay

For years, I have preached the importance of hard

work, determination, persistence, and
practice—make that perfect practice—as key
ingredients of success. A nifty new book seems to
support my theory.
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2 Malcolm Gladwell has written a fascinating study,
Outliers: The Story of Success (Little, Brown &
Co.), which should make a lot of people feel much
better about not achieving instant success. In fact, he
says it takes about ten years, or 10,000 hours, of
practice to attain true expertise.
3 “The people at the very top don’t just work harder The Beatles
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or even much harder than everyone else,” Gladwell
writes. “They work much, much harder.” Microsoft, also were proof of the 10,000-hour
Achievement, he says, is talent plus preparation. theory.
Preparation seems to play a bigger role. 7 As Gladwell puts it, “Practice isn’t the thing you
4 For example, he describes the Beatles: They had do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that
been together seven years before their famous arrival makes you good.”
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in America. They spent a lot of time playing in strip 8 Consider these thoughts from successful folks in
clubs in Hamburg, Germany, sometimes for as long all walks of life:
as eight hours a night. Overnight sensation? Not 9 • “No one can arrive from being talented alone.
exactly. Estimates are the band performed 1,200 God gives talent; work transforms talent into
times before their big success in 1964. By genius.”—Anna Pavlova, ballerina.
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comparison, most bands don’t perform 1,200 times 10 • “I know the price of success: dedication, hard
in their careers. work, and an unremitting devotion to the
5 Neurologist Daniel Levitin has studied the things you want to see happen.”—Frank
formula for success extensively and shares this Lloyd Wright, architect.
finding: “The emerging picture from such studies is 11 • “The way to learn to do things is to do things.
that 10,000 hours of practice is required to achieve The way to learn a trade is to work at it.
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the level of mastery associated with being a Success teaches how to succeed. Begin with
world-class expert in anything. In study after study the determination to succeed, and the work is
of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice half done already.”—Mark Twain, writer
skaters, concert pianists, chess players, master and humorist.
criminals, and what have you, the number comes up 12 Do you detect a theme here?
again and again. Of course, this doesn’t address why 13 The abilities these people possessed were
some people get more out of their practice sessions far-ranging, yet the formula for success was the
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than others do. But no one has yet found a case in same: hard work and lots of it. I don’t know anyone
which true world-class expertise was accomplished who has succeeded any other way. Some people just
in less time. It seems it takes the brain this long to make it look easy. Of course, you probably didn’t
assimilate all that it needs to know to achieve see the first 9,999 hours of hard work. And you don’t
true mastery.” just have to work hard; you have to work smart, too.
6 Two computer giants, Bill Joy, who co-founded 14 Mackay’s Moral: Some people dream about
Sun Microsystems, and Bill Gates, co-founder of success, and others wake up and do something about it.

2 Compare your notes on main ideas and details with a partner’s. How can you improve
your notes next time?

Go to the Pearson Practice English App or MyEnglishLab for more vocabulary practice.

14 UNIT 1
NOTE-TAKING SKILL

Taking Notes by Marking Important Information

When you mark a text, you identify important information. This helps you read more carefully.
You can also look back at the information you marked to help you study for tests and
complete assignments.
You can underline or highlight information. Only mark the important words. For example, these
marks focus on the author’s use of experts’ words (or appealing to authority) to support his thesis
that success is based on hard work, determination, and persistence.

Malcolm Gladwell has written a fascinating study, Outliers: The Story of Success (Little,
Brown, & Co.), which should make a lot of people feel much better about not achieving
Sa
instant success. In fact, he says it takes about ten years, or 10,000 hours of practice to attain
true expertise.

1 Mark the expert’s words in this paragraph that support the author’s thesis that success is
based on hard work, determination, and persistence. Share your answers with a partner.
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“The people at the very top don’t just work harder or even much harder than everyone
else,” Gladwell writes. “They work much, much harder.” Achievement, he says, is talent plus
preparation. Preparation seems to play a bigger role.
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2 Look at Reading Two again. Mark the information that you think is most important.

Go to MyEnglishLab for more note-taking practice.

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COMPREHENSION

1 Complete each statement according to information in the article. Use your notes from
Reading Two to help you. Discuss your answers with a partner.
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1. According to Gladwell, achievement is

2. The Beatles were different from most other bands because

3. Regarding success, Daniel Levitin says that

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4. Levitin believes success takes so long to achieve because

2 Review the boldfaced words from the reading with a partner. Use a dictionary or ask
your teacher for any meanings you still do not know.

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 15

 READING SKILL

1 Go back to Reading Two. Underline the quotations. Why do you think Mackay includes
these quotations?

Distinguishing Voice in Quotations

Distinguishing voice is an important reading skill, as it is not always clear whether we are reading
the author’s words or someone else’s words. One indication of a change in voice is the use of
quotation marks. Another indication is a change in pronouns, for example, from third person (he,
she, or they) to first person (I or we). In order to fully comprehend a text, you need to notice when a
shift in voice takes place to make sure you know who is speaking.
Authors often shift the voice in their writing by using quoted speech.
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• Quotations add first-hand validity to a point the author has made.
• Quotations often provide details or examples of what the author has been talking about.
• Quotations can continue the story in another voice for added interest.
In paragraph 3 of Reading Two, Mackay includes two quotations from Malcolm Gladwell’s book.
This adds validity to what Mackay says, as the words are Gladwell’s. In paragraph 5, the author
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includes an extended quotation from Daniel Levitin. This quotation gives several details and
examples of how much time it takes for true mastery to occur.

2 Read the excerpts from Reading One. All quotation marks have been removed. Underline
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the sections where the voice changes from the author’s to someone else’s. Add quotation
marks where necessary. Then discuss these questions with a partner:
• How do you know where the change in voice occurs?
• Who is speaking where you added quotation marks?
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• Why might the author have chosen to use quotations in the examples?

1. To [Tammet], pi isn’t an abstract set of digits; it’s a visual story, a fi lm projected in front
of his eyes. He learnt the number forwards and backwards and, last year, spent five hours
un
recalling it in front of an adjudicator. He wanted to prove a point. I memorised pi to 22,514
decimal places, and I am technically disabled. I just wanted to show people that disability
needn’t get in the way. ( paragraph 6)
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16 UNIT 1
2. [Tammet] lives on the Kent coast, but never goes near the beach—there are too many
pebbles to count. The thought of a mathematical problem with no solution makes him feel
uncomfortable. Trips to the supermarket are always a chore. There’s too much mental
stimulus. I have to look at every shape and texture. Every price and every arrangement of
fruit and vegetables. So instead of thinking, ‘What cheese do I want this week?,’ I’m just
really uncomfortable. ( paragraph 7)

3. Peek was shy and introspective, but he sat and held Tammet’s hand for hours. We shared
so much—our love of key dates from history, for instance. And our love of books. . . . I’ve
read more books than anyone else I know, so I was delighted when Kim wanted to meet in
a library. Peek can read two pages simultaneously, one with each eye. He can also recall,
Sa
in exact detail, the 7,600 books he has read. . . . He is such a lovely man, says Tammet. Kim
says, ‘You don’t have to be handicapped to be different—everybody’s different.’ And he’s
right. ( paragraph 11)

4. He remembers being given a Ladybird book called Counting when he was four. When I
m
looked at the numbers, I ‘saw’ images. It felt like a place I could go where I really belonged.
( paragraph 14)

Go to MyEnglishLab for more skill practice.

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Genius: Nature or Nurture? 17

 CONNECT THE READINGS

ORGANIZE
USE YOUR NOTES
Reading One (R1) and Reading Two (R2) both talk about
genius. A Venn diagram can be used to show where the Review your notes from
ideas about genius are found. Read the statements in Reading One and Two. Use
the box. Write the statement in the correct part of the the information in your
diagram. Include the paragraph number where the notes to complete the chart.
information is found.

1. “Genius” may be the 2. A person can be a genius 3. People at the top (experts)
result of brain chemistry. and also be disabled. work harder than other
people.
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4. Genius = talent + hard 5. “Genius” is being studied 6. Expertise requires a lot of
work. by scientists. practice.
7. Special talents can also
cause problems.
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A Genius Explains (R1) Both 10,000 Hours (R2)
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"Genius" may be the result
of brain chemistry. (para 4)
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SYNTHESIZE

Look back at the readings about Daniel Tammet and Malcolm Gladwell’s theory and at the
work you did in Organize. Based on this information, write two paragraphs. One paragraph
will be about Daniel Tammet. The other paragraph will be about Malcolm Gladwell’s idea
of what makes a person an expert, including examples of some of the people he mentions.
You may also write a third paragraph discussing any similarities between the two readings.

Go to MyEnglishLab to check what you learned.

18 UNIT 1
3 FOCUS ON WRITING

VOCABULARY

REVIEW

Complete the word scramble puzzle. Rearrange the letters to form vocabulary words from
the unit. Use the circled letter from each word to find the bonus word.
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1. e a i t c t r n o n i i n t e r a c t i o n communication or collaboration

2. l i a a m s t s i e This is what takes the brain so long

to do, according to Dr. Levitin.

3. g a s o s n i t n i h amazing or surprising
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4. f r o a m t r n s to change

5. e p i r d b t e a l c Because of his need for structure,

Daniel Tammet’s life is this.
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6. p e i e e x s t r what you may acquire after
thousands of hours of practice
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7. f n i t b e e an advantage

8. n m r i e g g e starting to appear
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9. u n x a o i s nervous or eager

10. m p n o e s a t e c to make up for a weakness

11. b l d s i e d a unable to perform certain activities

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Bonus Word (This is the quality you might need to have to complete this puzzle!)

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 19

 EXPAND

1 Complete the chart with the correct word forms. Some categories can have more than
one form. Use a dictionary if necessary. An X indicates that you do not need to put a
form in that category.

NOUN VERB ADJECTIVE ADVERB

predictable
estimated X
1. astonishing X
2.
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X anxious
flexible
interaction
transform 1. X
2.
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3.
retain X
benefit X
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disabled X
1. expertise X
2.
assimilate X
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emerging X
persistent
compensate X X
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2 Complete the sentences with the words in the boxes. You may need to change the
word form.

expertise flexible persistence predictable transform

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1. According to Anna Pavlova, work has the effect of turning talent
into genius.

2. A lack of is one of the symptoms of ASD.

3. Daniel Tammet’s life is very ; he always drinks his tea at the same time.

4. Gladwell believes that to achieve mastery you must in your practice

and never give up.

5. Gladwell says it takes about ten years to attain true world-class .

20 UNIT 1
 anxious compensate emerging estimated interaction

6. Mathematical problems with no solution cause a feeling of for

Daniel Tammet.

7. Scientists that there are fewer than 100 autistic savants alive today.

8. Daniel Tammet’s choosing to work at home instead of in an office is a type of

for the fact that he needs structure.

9. Tammet also chooses to work at home because he has trouble with social
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.

10. The symptoms of ASD usually begin to when a child is two or three
years old.
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CREATE
APPLY Rewrite the sentences by replacing the underlined word with the form of the word
noted in parentheses. Make any necessary grammatical changes.
1. Because I know Daniel Tammet well, I can predict how he will react in certain
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situations. (adjective)
Because I know Daniel Tammet well, how he will react in certain situations is very predictable.
2. Many people who suffer from ASD have problems with flexibility. (adjective)
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3. According to Gladwell, the transformation of talent into expertise requires at least
10,000 hours. (verb)
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4. A lack of structure can cause anxiety for Daniel Tammet. (adjective)
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5. For many people with ASD, being able to interact socially is difficult. (noun)

6. Brain scans of autistic savants suggest that there might be compensation being done by the
right hemisphere for damage to the left. (verb)

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 21

 7. The retention of large amounts of information is usually not a problem for autistic savants. (verb)

8. Daniel Tammet memorized pi to 22,514 decimal places to show that, although he is technically
disabled, it doesn’t stop him from being successful. (noun)

Go to the Pearson Practice English App or MyEnglishLab for more vocabulary practice.
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GRAMMAR FOR WRITING

1 Read the sentences and answer the questions.

• By the time Daniel started school, he had already had his first seizure.
• Daniel had just graduated from school when he traveled to France to live with a family.
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• Before Daniel moved to Lithuania, he had lived with a family in France.

a. In the first sentence, did Daniel start school first, or did he have a seizure first?
b. In the second sentence, did Daniel travel to France before he graduated?
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c. In the third sentence, which happened first: Daniel’s move to Lithuania or living with a
family in France?
d. What helped you decide the order of events in these sentences?
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Past Perfect

The past perfect form of a verb is used to show

that something happened before a specific time
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or event in the past.
The past perfect is formed with had + the The Beatles had already performed thousands
past participle of times before they came to America.
Past Perfect and a Specific Time or Event
in the Past
To show something happened before a specific By age thirteen, Daniel had already learned
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time in the past, use the past perfect with by + how to play chess.
a certain time in the past.
Past Perfect with Two Past Events
When talking about two events that happened Before Daniel published his memoir, he had
in the past, use the past perfect to show the already created his website Optimnem.
first event that happened (the earlier event). (First, Daniel created his website. Then he
The simple past is often used to show the published his memoir.)
second event. The event in the past perfect
happened before the event in the simple past.

continued on next page

22 UNIT 1
Time words
After and as soon as are used to introduce the As soon as Daniel had learned Lithuanian, he
first event (past perfect). was able to communicate more easily. (First,
he learned Lithuanian. Then he communicated
more easily.)
Before and by the time are used to introduce The Beatles had performed more than 1,200
the second event (simple past). times by the time they came to America. (First,
they performed over 1,200 times. Then they
came to America.)
When can be used to introduce either the first Daniel had cooked dinner when Kim Peek
or second event. Notice the difference. arrived. (First, he cooked dinner. Then Kim
Peek arrived.)
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Daniel cooked dinner when Kim Peek had
arrived. (First, Kim Peek arrived. Then Daniel
cooked dinner.)
Adverbs often used with Past Perfect –
Already, Just, Never, Yet, and Ever
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In addition to using time words, already, Daniel had just graduated when he decided
just, and never are often used in affirmative to travel to France. (He graduated and
sentences with the past perfect to emphasize immediately decided to travel to France.)
the event that happened first.
Daniel had already learned to play chess
before he graduated from secondary school.
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(First, he learned to play chess. Then, he
graduated.)
Yet and ever are usually used in negative It was 2002. Daniel Tammet hadn’t yet broken
sentences or in questions. Yet is used for the record for memorizing pi. (Not in 2002, but
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something that hasn’t happened until this he would in the future.)
point, but likely will happen in the future.
The Beatles hadn’t ever been in America
before 1964. (Never / not ever before 1964.
Maybe they went after that, but the sentence
doesn’t address that.)
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Punctuation with the Past Perfect
As in all sentences with two clauses, when the Before Daniel published his memoir, he had
sentence begins with the dependent clause (the already created his website Optimnem.
clause beginning with the time word, such as
after, before, etc.), use a comma to separate it
from the main clause.
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When the sentence begins with an independent Daniel had already created his website
clause, do not use a comma. Optimnem before he published his memoir.

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 23

 2 Each of these sentences talks about two events that happened in the past. Which event
happened first? Write 1 for the first event and 2 for the second event.
1. By the time Malcolm Gladwell wrote Outliers, he had already published two other books.
Malcolm Gladwell wrote Outliers.
Malcolm published two other books.
2. Before the Beatles became famous, they had worked in Hamburg, Germany.
The Beatles became famous.
The Beatles worked in Hamburg, Germany.
3. Daniel Tammet went to the playground as soon as the school bell had rung.
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Daniel went to the playground.
The school bell rang.
4. Frank Lloyd Wright had already married his first wife when he opened his architecture firm.
Frank Lloyd Wright married his first wife.
Frank Lloyd Wright opened his architecture firm.
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5. Anna Pavlova had decided to live in London by the time she performed Sleeping Beauty in
New York City.
Anna Pavlova decided to live in London.
pl
Anna Pavlova performed Sleeping Beauty in New York City.
6. Before Mark Twain published The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, he had already
worked as a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River.
Mark Twain published The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
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Mark Twain worked as a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River.
7. After Malcolm Gladwell had worked for the Washington Post, he started working for The
New Yorker magazine.
Malcolm Gladwell worked for the Washington Post.
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Malcolm Gladwell started working for The New Yorker magazine.
8. When Daniel Tammet met Kim Peek, Peek had already read over 7,000 books.
Daniel Tammet met Kim Peek.
Kim Peek read over 7,000 books.
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9. Anna Pavlova moved to London as soon as she had started her own ballet company.
Anna Pavlova moved to London.
Anna Pavlova started her own ballet company.
10. By the time Mark Twain started working as a riverboat pilot, he had worked as a printer in
New York and Philadelphia.
Mark Twain started working as a riverboat pilot.
Mark Twain worked as a printer in New York and Philadelphia.

24 UNIT 1
3 APPLYStudy the timeline of Daniel Tammet’s life. Use the information in the timeline to
complete the sentences using the past perfect or simple past.

DANIEL TAMMET’S LIFE

1979 – born in East London, England 1999 – returns to England
1983 – has first seizure 2002 – creates website, Optimnem
1984 (September 7) – starts school 2004 (May) – breaks record for memorizing pi
1984 (September 20) – sister, Claire, born 2004 (September) – learns Icelandic language
in one week
1988 – starts learning foreign languages 2005 – appears on American TV shows
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1990 – starts secondary school 2006 – publishes memoir, Born on a Blue Day
1992 – learns to play chess 2008 – moves to France
1995 (June 10) – graduates from secondary 2009 – second book, Embracing the Wide
school Sky, becomes a bestseller in France
1995 (July 22) – travels to France to live with 2012 – third book is published
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family
1998 – moves to Lithuania to teach English 2016 – writes first book in French, Mishenka

1. After Daniel had had his first seizure, he started school .

2. Before Daniel learned to play chess, .
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3. As soon as , his sister, Claire, was born.
4. by the time he moved to France.
5. By 2005, .
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6. When .
7. Daniel had already .
8. before .
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9. as soon as .

Go to the Pearson Practice English App or MyEnglishLab for more grammar practice.
Check what you learned in MyEnglishLab.
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Genius: Nature or Nurture? 25

 FINAL WRITING TASK: A Summary Paragraph APPLY

In this unit, you read about different geniuses and how they achieved their expertise.
You are going to write a summary paragraph about a genius. This person can be alive
now or from the past. Be sure to include why this person is considered a genius and
how he or she achieved expertise.
For an alternative writing topic, see page 31.

PREPARE TO WRITE: Group Brainstorming

Group brainstorming is a good way to get ideas for writing. In brainstorming, you think of as many
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ideas as you can. Don’t think about whether the ideas are good or bad. Just write down all ideas.

1 Work in a small group. Brainstorm a list of geniuses. The person can be from any
time period or culture. Don’t stop to discuss the genius. Focus on thinking of as many
examples as possible.
1. 6.
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2. 7.
3. 8.
4. 9.
5. 10.
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2 Now work individually. Choose one genius that you find interesting and want to write
about. Research this person to find information about his or her life and achievements.
Be sure to include why this person is considered a genius and how he or she achieved
expertise. Take notes about what you find out. Make sure the notes are in your own
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words and not copied word-for-word.

WRITE
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Writing a Summary Paragraph

A paragraph is a group of sentences that are related and deal with a single topic. A summary
paragraph identifies and extracts the main idea from a text, leaving out less important details. All
summary paragraphs have a topic sentence with a controlling idea.
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The topic sentence is an essential part of all well-written paragraphs. The topic sentence controls
the content of the rest of the paragraph. This control helps the writer focus on supporting ideas
in the paragraph that are directly related to the topic sentence. The first step in writing a topic
sentence is to choose a topic and find a point of view or main idea about it.
Topics Main Idea
Mozart Mozart is considered a prodigy.
Autistic savants Autistic savants have specific abilities or skills.
Malcolm Gladwell Malcolm Gladwell has written a fascinating book.
continued on next page

26 UNIT 1
The next step is to narrow the main idea even more by finding a controlling idea. The controlling
idea is the idea you want to explain, illustrate, or describe in the paragraph. It makes a specific
statement about a topic. The controlling ideas in the topic sentences below are underlined.
Main Idea Main Idea + Controlling Idea = Topic Sentence
Mozart is considered a prodigy. Mozart is considered a prodigy because he achieved huge
musical accomplishments at a very young age.
Autistic savants have specific Although autistic savants have specific abilities or skills, they
abilities or skills. may have other limitations, especially problems with social
interactions.
Malcolm Gladwell has written a Malcolm Gladwell has written a fascinating book, which
fascinating book. emphasizes the importance of hard work.
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1 Read this paragraph about autistic savants. Then answer the questions.

Autistic savants have specific abilities or skills, but they are not without certain limitations in
other areas of life. An autistic savant is a person with an unusual ability, skill, or knowledge that is
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much more developed than that of an average person. In fact, many savants have highly developed
mathematical skills. Others are able to retain large amounts of information in their memory. For
example, some autistic savants can recite entire dictionaries or telephone books word-for-word. Still
others are able to draw detailed maps of an area after flying over it once in a helicopter. Despite the
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fact that the autistic savant has these specific abilities or skills, he or she may have difficulties with
other types of mental or physical tasks and social interactions. For instance, some savants may have
trouble doing simple tasks, such as tying their shoes or driving a car. Additionally, an autistic savant
may have problems talking to people or even making eye contact. So, despite their advanced skills
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and abilities in certain areas, savants may encounter difficulty with seemingly simple tasks.

1. What is the topic of this paragraph?

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2. The fi rst sentence is the topic sentence. What two ideas are presented in this sentence?

3. How does the content of the rest of the paragraph relate to the topic sentence?
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Genius: Nature or Nurture? 27

 2 Each paragraph is missing a topic sentence. Choose the topic sentence that best fits the
paragraph.
1. Daniel suffered an epileptic seizure when he was very young, which may be the cause of his
savant abilities. Soon after, when he was four, his mother gave him a counting book, and
his love of mathematics was born. From an early age, he has been able to solve complicated
mathematical problems in his head. Recently, he has been able to memorize pi to 22,514 digits.
a. Daniel Tammet is very good at math and has a great memory.
b. Daniel Tammet is an autistic savant with exceptional memory and mathematical abilities.
c. Daniel Tammet is an autistic savant who loves solving mathematical problems.
2. What Levitin has found is that it appears that 10,000 hours of practice are required to reach
world-class expertise in any field. In fact, he has found no world-class expert who has not
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put in at least that many hours of preparation. He believes that this is because it takes that
much time for the brain to assimilate everything necessary to reach this level of expertise.
a. Daniel Levitin, a neurologist, has extensively studied what is needed to reach success.
b. Reaching world-class expertise requires a lot of time and practice.
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c. Daniel Levitin believes that it takes the brain a long time to assimilate the information
necessary to be an expert.
3. Parents create these hothouse kids because they are attempting to create a “genius.” They
may begin by playing classical music for the hothouse child when he or she is still in the
crib. The parents start working with their children on math and language skills at an early
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age, using flashcards. They also enroll their children in music and dance lessons, often as
early as age three or four. In addition, they try to get their kids into the most academically
challenging preschools.
a. Hothouse kids learn math and music at an early age.
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b. Parents take a variety of approaches to ensure that their kids become geniuses and can
get into the best preschools.
c. “Hothouse kids” is a term used to define children whose parents push them to learn more
quickly and earlier than a “typical” child by providing a rich educational environment.
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3 Read the paragraphs. The underlined topic sentences are incomplete because they do
not have a controlling idea. Rewrite each topic sentence to include both a topic and a
controlling idea.
1. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a genius. For one thing, Mozart was a child prodigy who was
playing the violin and piano by age four and composing by age six. Another reason that he
is considered a genius is that he was able to create more than 600 compositions—including
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symphonies, chamber music, sonatas, and choral music—in his thirty-four-year lifetime.
Additionally, he is said to have been able to compose entire symphonies in his head. He
could imagine the sounds of all the different instruments without using a piano to help him
compose. He was not only the best pianist of his day in Europe but also one of the top three
or four violinists.

28 UNIT 1
 2. Scientists debate the importance of nature versus nurture. In other words, the debate of
nature versus nurture asks the question: “What part does nature—the genetic information
that you have inherited from your parents—play in your development? And, conversely, what
part does environment—what you eat, where you went to school, how your parents raised
you—play?” In an effort to understand the importance of each of these factors, there have
been many studies using twins who were separated at birth. While these studies are not
conclusive, there were instances where the separated twins had developed in a remarkably
similar manner. Nevertheless, the reasons for this may also have to do with environment
(nurture). Even though they were raised by different families, the environments could have
been quite similar.
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3. Malcolm Gladwell is a talented author. His book Outliers was published in 2008 and was
number one on the New York Times bestseller list for eleven straight weeks. It followed
The Tipping Point, which was published in 2000. The Tipping Point addresses the
individual’s ability to change society. This non-fiction bestseller was followed by Blink in
2005. Blink is about thinking. Why are some people able to make brilliant decisions in the
blink of an eye while others seem to always make the wrong decision? Blink also was a
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non-fiction bestseller.
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4 Use your outline and your notes from Prepare to Write on page 26 and Organize on
page 18 to write the first draft of your summary paragraph. Make an organizer to help
you plan your ideas.
• Make sure to include a clear topic sentence and content that supports it.
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• Write a topic sentence that introduces the genius that you are going to write about and
includes a controlling idea.
• Use the past perfect and time words to show the correct order of events.
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REVISE: Identifying and Correcting Sentence Fragments

1 Choose the correct sentence.

a. When Mozart, who was a child prodigy, wrote his first composition for piano.
b. Before he went to Lithuania, Daniel Tammet had started to study the language.
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c. Malcolm Gladwell who wrote the book Outliers.

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 29

 Sentence Fragments

Sentence fragments are incomplete sentences. They are often lacking a subject or verb. Other
fragments may be dependent clauses that are not connected to an independent clause. These
fragments are usually introduced by a relative pronoun (that, who, which, whom, etc.) or a
subordinating conjunction (after, although, because, since, when, etc.). Look at the fragments
and their problems.

Sentence Fragment Problem

Because he could speak seven This is a dependent clause introduced by because
languages. (subordinating conjunction). There is no independent clause.
The book that Malcolm Gladwell wrote. This is a subject. There is no main verb for the sentence.
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Spoke seven languages fluently by the There is no subject.
time he was twenty-one.
Living in a large red house in France. This is a subject. There is no main verb for the sentence.

There are a variety of strategies for correcting sentence fragments.

• Connect the fragment to the • Add more information and rewrite it as a
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sentence before or after it. complete sentence.
• Change the punctuation. • Remove the subordinating conjunction or
relative pronoun.
• Add a subject or a verb.
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2 Write F if the item is a fragment. Write C if the item is a complete sentence.
1. Although autistic savants have many extraordinary skills and abilities.
2. Gladwell has written an interesting book, which emphasizes the importance of hard
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work in achieving success.
3. Before Daniel received his counting book when he was four years old.
4. Before he had an epileptic seizure, there was no evidence that Daniel had
extraordinary math abilities.
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5. Because Dr. Levitin says that at least 10,000 hours of practice are needed to
achieve success.
6. The book that Kim Peek was reading before he met Daniel Tammet at the library.
7. Practicing as much as ten hours a day before the math competition.
8. Einstein was voted the “Person of the Twentieth Century” by Time magazine after he
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received the Nobel Prize for Physics.

3 Work with a partner. Use the strategies in the box above to correct each item you
identified as a sentence fragment in Exercise 2.

4 Now go back to the first draft of your paragraph.

• Make sure your supporting paragraphs do not include any sentence fragments.
• Try to use the grammar and some of the vocabulary from the unit.

Go to MyEnglishLab for more skill practice.

30 UNIT 1
EDIT: Writing the Final Draft
APPLY Write the final draft of your paragraph and submit it to your teacher. Carefully edit
it for grammatical and mechanical errors, such as spelling, capitalization, and punctuation.
Consider how to apply the vocabulary, grammar, and writing skills from the unit. Use the
checklist to help you.

FINAL DRAFT CHECKLIST

Does the paragraph fully describe why the person is considered a genius and how he or she
achieved expertise?
Is there a topic sentence with a controlling idea that introduces the genius?
Is the paragraph free of sentence fragments?
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Do you use the past perfect correctly?
Do you use vocabulary from the unit?
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ALTERNATIVE WRITING TOPIC

APPLY Daniel Levitin states that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to achieve true world-class
expertise. Nevertheless, many people have put in that amount of practice in their fields and
still have not achieved world-class expertise. Why do you think they were not successful?
What makes the experts different from the others who have also put in 10,000 hours of
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practice? Explain. Use the grammar and vocabulary from the unit.
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CHECK WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED

Check (✔) the outcomes you’ve met and vocabulary you’ve learned. Put an X next to the
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skills and vocabulary you still need to practice.

Learning Outcomes Vocabulary

Understand assumptions anxious flexible AWL
Take notes by marking important assimilate image AWL
information astonishing (adj.) interaction
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Distinguish voice in quotations benefit (n.) AWL persistence
Use past perfect compensate AWL predictable AWL
Identify and correct sentence fragments disabled (adj.) retain AWL
Write a summary paragraph emerging (adj.) AWL savant
estimate (v.) AWL transform AWL
expertise AWL

Go to MyEnglishLab to watch a video about child prodigies, access the Unit Project, and take the
Unit 1 Achievement Test.

Genius: Nature or Nurture? 31