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Чтение 8 класс английский-2. Юные изобретатели. Я обожаю читать-I
Once upon a time there was Louis Braille, a guy with imagination and hands from the right place. He was born into the family of a shoemaker in 1809, and, as is usual with all future geniuses, the troubles began in childhood. At the age of three, Louis accidentally stabbed himself with a shoemaker’s knife after playing too much in his father’s workshop. Well, not exactly «stabbed», but enough so that later the doctors threw up their hands and said, «Well, my friend, you’re going to have some kind of trouble with your eyesight now.»
But Louis is not one of those who gives up (and the fingers with which he will later read)!
In 1821, retired artillery captain Charles-Marie Barbier de la Serre introduced blind students to his system of «sound» or «night» writing, which he developed so that soldiers could compose and read reports at night. It was a phonetic system in which convex dots arranged in two columns of six represented different sounds. Louis Braille, who was only 12 years old at the time, was not satisfied with Barbier’s system: there were too many dots, spelling was not respected. There were no mathematical symbols and musical notation.
But he got an instant liking to the idea of using convex dots… in the afternoon He attended classes regularly, and in the evenings he developed and experimented with a more effective reading and writing system for the blind.
Чтение 8 класс английский-2. Юные изобретатели. Я обожаю читать-II
During the summer holidays, which he spent with his family in his beloved Couvreh, the peasants often saw him sitting on the side of the road, piercing a piece of thick paper with a needle. Louis was not even 15 years old when, at the end of 1824, he had the brilliant idea to create a conditional alphabet [ˈælfəbet] from binary [ˈbaɪnərɪ] systems.
By the age of 15‑ he was already working on something incredible — his own font for the blind. He looked at the existing options and thought, «Well, well! Can’t we make something more comfortable?»
Back then, Valentin Gayui’s relief‑linear font was bulky, like an antique chest of drawers. The letters were convex, the books were huge, and reading was like trying to make out the inscription on a fence with your eyes closed. Louis grimaced, «It won’t do!»
And then he get acquainted with Charles Barbier’s «night font»…
— Yeah! Louis exclaimed. — That’s what you need! Just let’s simplify this thing.
Barbier came up with a 12-point system (apparently, he liked to complicate everything), and Louis decided: «Why so many? Six dots are enough! Compact, convenient and your fingers won’t get tired.» That’s how the famous Braille font was born — simple, like three (or rather, six) fingers and ingenious, like everything ingenious. Louis thought about it: «Why bother with convex letters when you can just poke dots? People’s fingers are sensitive, they’ll figure it out!»
And they really did! By 1960, half of all blind children in schools were already famously sliding their fingers over convex dots, reading books and thinking: «What a great guy this Louis Braille is!
Вопросы
When and into what kind of family was Louis Braille born?
2. What accident happened to Louis when he was three. And what consequence did it have for his eyesight?
3. Why is the phrase “Louis is not one of those who gives up” important for understanding his character?
4. Who introduced the “sound” or “night” writing system to blind students? And what was its original purpose?
5. Describe Barbier’s system: how were the symbols arranged and what did they represent?
6. What were the main drawbacks of Barbier’s system from Louis’s point of view?
7. What did Louis do in the evenings while attending classes? And how did he experiment with his ideas during summer holidays?
8. What brilliant idea did Louis have by the end of 1824? And how old was he at that time?
9. Why did Louis consider Valentin Gayui’s relief linear font impractical. And how does the text illustrate this?
10. How did Louis modify Barbier’s idea? And what reasoning did he use to justify his 6‑dot system?
11. What key qualities of the Braille font made it effective and comfortable for readers?
12. By 1960, what impact had the Braille system achieved? And how do the blind children in the text express their appreciation for Louis Braille?
Заключение
Дорогие ученики! Как вам понравился данный текст? Насколько он показался вам легким или трудным? Если информация была для вас занимательной, подписывайтесь на нас. Оставляйте свои комментарии и пожелания, если они у вас также возникли. А также смотрите дополнительный материал: подготовка к ОГЭ — монологическое высказывание — Досуг подростков. Телевидение в нашей жизни. Место, где я живу. Поддерживать себя здоровым. Чтение книг. Про интернет. Хобби в нашей жизни. Про каникулы. Средства массовой информации. Про школу. Проблемы экологии. Про молодежь. Интернет в нашей жизни. Олимпийские игры. Наука в нашей жизни. Иностранные языки в нашей жизни. Загрязнение окружающей среды. Иностранные языки в нашей жизни. Про путешествия. Выбираем профессию. Здоровый образ жизни в еде. Про образование. Защита окружающей среды. Спорт в России. Друзья в нашей жизни. Интернет для подростков.
И до встречи на следующем занятии! See you soon!
