An Education in Science: Solutions Word Meanings Summary Clas 8 English

‘An Education in Science’ Class 8 English Question answers are given here. Word meanings and summary is also given. Answers may differ in some questions with no any objective answer.

Summary

Mr Hawking discusses different perceptions about science and its effects. He says that one cannot stop enquiring minds from thinking about basic science. He wishes that changes in science and technology are in the right direction. It is very important for the people to have a basic understanding of science, so that they can make informed decisions and not leave everything in the hands of experts. The public has ambivalent attitude towards science. The public distrusts science because they don’t understand it. We get to see this in the cartoon character of a mad scientist, working in his laboratory to produce a Frankenstein. Somehow, the public also has great interest in science, particularly astronomy. He emphasises that despite all this the public needs to make informed decisions on subjects like acid rain, the greenhouse effect, nuclear weapons and generic engineering. For this he goes back to the school and relates it to the way science is taught in the schools. It is presented in a very dry and uninteresting manner. Most of the children learn it by the rote methods to pass examinations. They hardly see its relevance in the world around them.

It is also because science is usually taught in terms of equations. Though equations are a concise and accurate way, they often frighten people. He himself wrote a popular book, for which he was advised not to include equations because that would reduce the sales. These equations serve good only to the scientists and engineers, but for the rest of the people a qualitative grasp of scientific concepts is sufficient, which could be conveyed by diagrams, without the use of equations. He gives some tips to improve the scientific temperament in people. And here he talks about the role of television that can reach a truly mass audience. Television does have some good programmes. He believes that producers of television science programmes should realise that they have responsibility to educate the public and not just entertain them. He goes further, talking about the East-West tensions and the horrors of nuclear war. Nuclear weapons are still poised to strike all the major cities in the Northern Hemisphere.

He shows his worry that even smaller powers are acquiring nuclear capabilities. Even a small glitch or error or mutiny can jeopardise the world and the people.

Meanings

privileged minority – small section of people with more benefits, power and rights than the common people.

enquiring – questioning

totalitarian – a type of political system in which state is all powerful in controlling the rights of people.

ingenuity – skill at inventing things

ambivalent – divided or undecided as what to do

Frankenstein – a monster that destruction destroyed its own created

harness – make use of

receded – gradually gone, to come or go back or to withdrawal

rudimentary – simple and in its intifada stage abdomen unsophisticated

arsenal – attire of am and ammunition

Textbook Solutions

Comprehension

A. Mark these sentences as true (T) or false (F).

1. The world we live in will change in the next 100 years. ………….
2. Life was much easier in the past. ………….
3. People think about basic science only because they are paid a lot for it. ………….
4. Most people distrust science because they do not understand it. ………….
5. A nuclear war could end the world over a long period of time. ………….
6. The best way to understand science is through equations. ………….
7. Science programmes should entertain and educate. ………….
8. The writer fears that minor world powers will use nuclear weapons
   in an irresponsible manner. ………….
9. The writer wishes governments would cut down the use of
   nuclear weapons. ………….
10. There is a belief that extremely advanced civilisations tend to
    destroy themselves. ………….

Answers

1. T 2. F 3. F 4. T 5. T 6. F 7. T 8. T 9. T 10. T

B. Answer these questions with reference to the context.

1. It has come to expect the steady increase in the standard of living that new developments in science and technology have brought to continue, but it also distrusts science.
   a. What does ‘it’ refer to?
   b. Why does it ‘distrusts science’?
   c. The television series Cosmos shows that the public is deeply interested in a particular subject. Which is this ‘particular subject’?
2. The major powers have behaved in a reasonably responsible way so far, but one cannot have such confidence in minor powers.
   a. What have the major powers been responsible about?
   b. Which minor powers does the writer refer to here?
   c. Why does the author use the words ‘so far’ here?
3. I included one equation, Einstein’s famous equation, E=mc2.
   a. Where did the writer include ‘one equation’?
   b. Why did he include just one equation?
   c. What does he feel would have happened if he had not included this equation?

Answers

1. a. ‘It’ refers to the public.
   b. According to the author most people distrust science because they are unable to understand.
   c. That subject is science, particularly astronomy.
2. a. They have been responsible about the way they use nuclear power.
   b. He refers to powers like Libya or Iraq, Pakistan or even Azerbaijan.
   c. He uses the words ‘so far’ because he is not sure that they will continue to do so.
3. a. He included the equation in a popular book that he wrote.
   b. He was told that including equations in the book would make its sale go down.
   c. He feels that the book would have sold twice as many copies if he hadn’t included the equation.

C. Answer these questions.

1. Why do some people wish to stop scientific progress?
2. What was life like before science advanced?
3. What would prevent further developments from taking place?
4. Why would it be difficult to stop scientific developments?
5. What does the writer say about public’s attitude towards science?
6. Why does the public distrust science?
7. How is science taught in schools?
8. How would the writer like science to be taught?
9. What is the writer’s opinion about nuclear weapons?
10. Which science related problems will the public have to take decisions about? Which of these is the most urgent? Why?
11. Which ‘sick joke’ does the writer mention?
12. On what note does the author end his essay?

Answers

1. They wish to do that so that they can go back to a simpler and purer age.

2. Life was difficult for most people. It was not so bad for a privileged minority, though even they had to do without modern medicine, and childbirth was highly risky for women. But for the vast majority of the population, life was nasty, brutish, and short.

3. The only way to prevent further developments from taking place would be to have a global totalitarian state that suppressed anything new.

4. One cannot stop enquiring minds from thinking about basic science, so development will continue to take place. Also, human initiative and ingenuity would ensure that developments continue to take place.

5. The writer says that the public has a rather ambivalent attitude towards science. It has come to expect the steady increase in the standard of living those new developments in science and technology have brought to continue, but it also distrusts science because it does not understand it.

6. It distrusts science because it does not understand it.

7. Children learn science by rote to pass examinations. They are not shown its relevance to the world around them. Moreover, science is often taught in terms of equations.

8. He would like it to be taught through words and diagrams, without the use of equations. They could also be taught through educative and entertaining science programmes shown on television.

9. The writer would like to see the minimum use of nuclear weapons. He sees them as a great danger. He feels that it would only take a computer error or a mutiny by some of those manning the weapons, to trigger a global war. He feels worried about the fact that even minor nations are acquiring nuclear weapons. He does not trust that countries will use nuclear power in a responsible manner.

10. The public will have to take decisions about global problems, such as food supply or the greenhouse effect. The most urgent problem is that of nuclear weapons. This is because the irresponsible use of these weapons can wipe out humanity.

11. The joke is that the reason humans have not been contacted by an alien civilisation is that civilisations tend to destroy themselves when they reach the stage which we have reached.

12. He ends on an optimistic note, expressing his faith in the ability of humans to use their good judgement.

Vocabulary

A. Match these words in Column A with those in Column B to form suitable compound words.

Answers

1. basketball 2. anybody 3. sunrise 4. upstream 5. grasshopper 6. playthings 7. grandfather 8. fireball 9. high-rise 10. notebook 11. keyboard

B. Find antonyms of these words and make sentences with any five of your choice. You may use a dictionary.

1. modern     2. majority     3. inform     4. steady

4. produce     6. rapid         7. inform     8. relevance

9. destroy     10. entire

Answers (Answers may differ)

1. ancient    2. minority    3. misinform    4. unsteady

5. destroy    6. slow          7. hide            8. irrelevance

9. create     10. divided

Grammar

A. Underline the finite verbs and circle the non-finite verbs in these sentences.

1. I like to play with my cat.
2. The boy saved the puppy from the wolves.
3. He wants to start a blog.
4. The teacher is working hard to help her students do better.
5. Talking is prohibited in the library.
6. The teacher asked the students to submit their homework.
7. My mother knows how to bake cakes.
8. He went to the mountains to find some peace.
9. She works hard to do well.
10. I have finished my homework.
11. The broken vase lay scattered on the ground.
12. He kept me waiting.
13. The play was interesting.
14. The pricing of goods depends a lot on its demand.

Answers

1. to play (finite)
2. saved (finite)
3. to start (non finite)
4. is working (finite), to help (non finite)
5. talking (non finite), prohibited (finite)
6. asked (finite), to submit (non finite)
7. knows (finite), to bake (non finite)
8. went (finite), to find (non finite)
9. to do (non finite)
10. have finished (finite)
11. lay scattered (finite)
12. kept (finite)
13. was standing (finite)
14. depends (finite)

B. Fill in the blanks with the -ing forms of suitable verbs given in the help box.

harvest, attend, go, watch, read, walk, give, paint,

1. Stephen loves television.
2. The author is good at speeches.
3. I like ………………………………… books on science.
4. ………………………………… is good for you.
5. I love ………………………………… the walls.
6. Anita always dreams about …………………………….. on a holiday.
7. …………………………….. is done in this season.
8. We talked about …………………………….. the sports meet.

Answers

1. watching 2. giving 3. reading 4. walking 5. painting 6. going 7. Harvesting 8. attending

C. Join these sets of sentences using infinitives.

1. She carries an umbrella. It protects her from rain.
2. Raman speaks the truth. He is not afraid of it.
3. We heard of his promotion. We were happy for that.
4. He collects antique paintings. It is his hobby.
5. Farah has carried her bag. She will fill it with vegetables.
6. Sohail is going to Mumbai. He will join the management institute there.
7. The water is very cold. I cannot drink it.
8. The mountain is very high. We cannot climb it.

Answers

1. She carries an umbrella as it helps to protect her from the rain.
2. Raman is not afraid to speak the truth.
3. We are happy to hear about his promotion.
4. It is his hobby to collect antique paintings.
5. Farah has carried her bag to fill it with vegetables.
6. Sohail is going to Mumbai to join the management institute.
7. The water is too cold to drink.
8. The mountain is too high to climb.

D. Fill in the blanks with the past tense or past participle forms of the verbs given in the brackets.

1. He has ………………………………… his own partner for the (select)
2. He would have ………………………………… his work after the holidays, but he fell ill. (resume)
3. Has the question ………………………………… answered? (be)
4. We ………………………………… for the train with (await)
5. The apples were ………………………………… by a (buy)
6. This incident ………………………………… last (occur)
7. The song was ………………………………… by Alice and her (sing)
8. The food has been ………………………………… by the children (eat)
9. He was properly ………………………………… with by the (deal)
10. I ………………………………… my classes regularly in (attend)
11. He ………………………………… to England, so you can’t meet him (go)
12. The children had ………………………………… away before the teacher (run)

Answers

1. selected 2. resumed 3. been 4. waited 5. bought
2. occurred 7. sung 8. eaten 9. dealt 10. attended
3. went 12. run

E. Under line the gerunds and circle the participles in these sentences.

1. My little sister’s favourite hobby is painting.
2. The police arrested Ranu for speeding.
3. Opening the letter, he let out a cry of disbelief.
4. Swimming keeps me fit and healthy.
5. Her family appreciates her talent for singing.
6. Before leaving the house, we always check if all lights are off.
7. Reading in poor light will affect the eyes.
8. Driving to the school, Dhruv found a lost pup on the road.
9. Reena is afraid of hurting your feelings.
10. Singing to herself is Monisha’s chief delight.

Answers