UNIT

4 Human Intelligence

UNIT INTRODUCTION SMALL-GROUP LEARNING

UNIT ACTIVITY AND VIDEO . . . . . . . . . 340 MEMOIR

from Blue Nines and Red Words
LAUNCH TEXT:
INFORMATIVE MODEL from Born on a Blue Day
The Human Brain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344 Daniel Tammet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

MEDIA: INFOGRAPHIC
The Theory of Multiple
WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING
Intelligences Infographic
Howard Gardner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413
ANCHOR TEXT: SHORT STORY
Flowers for Algernon POETRY COLLECTION
COMPARE

Daniel Keyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351 Retort

Paul Laurence Dunbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418
SCRIPT
from The People, Yes
from Flowers for Algernon Carl Sandburg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420
David Rogers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385

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PERFORMANCE TASK PERFORMANCE TASK

WRITING FOCUS SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUS
Write an Informative Speech . . . . . . . . 390 Deliver a Multimedia Presentation . . . 426

xiv
 ESSENTIAL QUESTION : In what different ways can people be intelligent?

PERFORMANCE-BASED
INDEPENDENT LEARNING
ASSESSMENT
ARGUMENT Informative Text:
Is Personal Intelligence Essay and Speech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434
Important?
John D. Mayer
UNIT REFLECTION
BLOG POST
Why Is Emotional Intelligence Reflect on the Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437
Important for Teens?
Divya Parekh

EXPLANATORY ESSAY
The More You Know, the
Smarter You Are?
Jim Vega

EXPOSITORY NONFICTION
from The Future of the Mind
Michio Kaku
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• Unit Introduction Videos

• Media Selections
• Modeling Videos
These selections can be accessed via the
Interactive Student Edition. • Selection Audio Recordings

PERFORMANCE-BASED Additional digital resources can be found in:

ASSESSMENT PREP
• Interactive Student Edition
Review Evidence for an
an Informative Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433 • myPerspectives+

xv
UNIT
4

Human
Intelligence
There are an infinite number of ways in
which humans express intelligence.

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Discuss It What limits might there be on the

capacity of human memory?
Write your response before sharing your ideas.

Amazing Man Draws NYC

From Memory
340
 UNIT 4
UNIT INTRODUCTION
LAUNCH TEXT
ESSENTIAL
QUESTION:
In what different ways can people INFORMATIVE MODEL
The Human Brain
be intelligent?

WHOLE-CLASS SMALL-GROUP INDEPENDENT

LEARNING LEARNING LEARNING
ANCHOR TEXT: SHORT STORY MEMOIR ARGUMENT
Flowers for fromBlue Nines and Is Personal
Algernon Red Words Intelligence
Daniel Keyes from Born on a Blue Day Important?
Daniel Tammet John D. Mayer, Ph.D.
COMPARE

SCRIPT MEDIA: INFOGRAPHIC BLOG POST

fromFlowers for The Theory of Why Is Emotional
Algernon Multiple Intelligences Intelligence
David Rogers Infographic Important for Teens?
Howard Gardner Divya Parekh

POETRY COLLECTION EXPLANATORY ESSAY

Retort The More You Know,
Paul Laurence Dunbar the Smarter You Are?
Jim Vega
from The People, Yes
Carl Sandburg

EXPOSITORY NONFICTION
from The Future of
the Mind
Michio Kaku
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PERFORMANCE TASK PERFORMANCE TASK PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT PREP

WRITING FOCUS: SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUS: Review Evidence for an
Write an Informative Speech Deliver a Multimedia Presentation Informative Essay

PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT
Informative Text: Essay and Speech
PROMPT:

In what different ways can people be intelligent?

341
UNIT
4 INTRODUCTION

Unit Goals
Throughout this unit, you will deepen your perspective about human
intelligence by reading, writing, speaking, listening, and presenting. These
goals will help you succeed on the Unit Performance-Based Assessment.

Rate how well you meet these goals right now. You will revisit your
ratings later when you reflect on your growth during this unit.

SCALE 1 2 3 4 5

NOT AT ALL NOT VERY SOMEWHAT VERY EXTREMELY

WELL WELL WELL WELL WELL

READING GOALS 1 2 3 4 5

• Gather information and ideas from a

variety of texts.

• Expand your knowledge and use of

academic and concept vocabulary.

WRITING AND RESEARCH GOALS 1 2 3 4 5

• Write an informative essay in which

you examine a topic and convey ideas,
concepts, and information.

• Conduct research projects of various

lengths to explore a topic and clarify
meaning.

LANGUAGE GOALS 1 2 3 4 5

• Demonstrate command of the

conventions of standard English Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
grammar and usage, including correct
agreement of nouns and verbs.

SPEAKING AND LISTENING

GOALS 1 2 3 4 5

• Collaborate with your team to build on

the ideas of others, develop consensus,
STANDARDS and communicate.
Language
8.L.VAU.6 Acquire and accurately
use grade-appropriate general • Integrate audio, visuals, and text in
academic and domain-specific words
and phrases; develop vocabulary presentations.
knowledge when considering
a word or phrase important to
comprehension or expression.

342 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Academic Vocabulary: Informative Texts

Academic terms appear in all subjects and can help you read, write, and FOLLOW THROUGH
discuss with more precision. Informative writing relies on facts to inform Study the words in this chart,
or explain. Here are five academic words that will be useful to you in this and mark them or their
unit as you analyze and write informative texts. forms wherever they appear
in the unit.
Complete the chart.

1. Review each word, its root, and the mentor sentences.

2. Use the information and your own knowledge to predict the meaning
of each word.
3. For each word, list at least two related words.
4. Refer to the dictionary or other resources if needed.

WORD MENTOR SENTENCES PREDICT MEANING RELATED WORDS

assimilate 1. Once I assimilate all the similar; simile

information, I will start the
ROOT: project.
-sim- 2. The body can assimilate
“like” nutrients and use them for
energy.

tendency 1. People have a tendency to

believe good things about
ROOT: friends.
-ten- 2. My tendency is to avoid
“stretch” trouble rather than risk a
fight.

integrate 1. We will integrate this new

activity into the lesson.
ROOT: 2. The new student should
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-teg- integrate into our school very

“touch” quickly.

observation 1. My findings are based on

close observation over
ROOT: many weeks.
-serv- 2. Ed went to the hospital for
“watch over” observation after he fainted.

documentation 1. The documentation explains

how to use the software.
ROOT: 2. They found documentation
-doc- from the 1800s that proved
“show” the family owned the land.

Unit Introduction 343

UNIT
4 INTRODUCTION

The
Human
Brain
LAUNCH TEXT | INFORMATIVE MODEL

This selection is an example

of an informative text, a type
of writing in which an author
presents facts and details. This
is the type of writing you will
develop in the Performance-
Based Assessment at the end of
the unit.
As you read, look at the way
the ideas are introduced and
facts and details are presented.
Mark the text to help you
determine key ideas and
details.

NOTES
1

T he famous scientist James Watson summarized it this way: The

brain boggles the mind! The human brain is truly impressive: It
weighs only about three pounds but controls everything a person
does, ever has done, and ever will do—physically, intellectually,
and emotionally. No computer even comes close to having the
brain’s abilities. The brain controls a person’s actions, reactions,
and survival functions, such as breathing. It also has the ability to
think, remember, process information, and learn new things. Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

2 The brain is one part of the central nervous system—the system

that controls all of the body’s activities. The central nervous
system is made up of the brain and the spinal cord. The brain is
protected by the skull, and the spinal cord runs through vertebrae
of the back—the bones that make up the spine. The spinal cord
transmits messages between the brain and other parts of the body
through nerve cells called neurons. If a person decides to pick
up a book from the shelf—a voluntary action—the brain sends
that message to the arm and hand through the spinal cord. And
if a person touches a hot surface and burns his or her hand—
an involuntary action—the nerve cells in the hand send a pain
message to the brain through the spinal cord.

344 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

3 A constant stream of messages travels through the neurons in

the spinal cord, at speeds of more than 150 miles per hour. The NOTES

human brain never stops working, even when a person is asleep.

As well as transmitting messages through the spinal cord, neurons
transmit messages from one part of the brain to another. There are
approximately 85 billion of these cells in the brain alone. Neurons
send messages through tiny branch-like structures that connect
to other neurons in different parts of the brain, as well as other
parts of the body. The points where neurons meet and transmit
information to each other are called synapses. Each neuron may be
connected to as many as 10,000 other neurons, resulting in more
than 100 trillion synapses in a single brain.
4 Although a person cannot increase the amount of neurons in his
or her brain, learning new things increases the number of synapse
connections between them. Learning and education actually
change the structure of the human brain. That structure changes
every time a person learns, and every time that person has a new
thought or memory. The more a person learns the more there is to
think about. And the more there is to think about, the more there
is to remember. As a result, the connections between neurons
get stronger, and the brain is able to function more effectively. It
processes, thinks, analyzes, and stores information more quickly
and productively than it did before these connections were made.
Neurons are just cells, and everything a person knows is the result
of the connections between them.
5 Scientists have gained a wealth of knowledge about the human
brain, but there is a lot they do not yet understand. The neurologist
Santiago Ramón y Cajal, for example, compares the brain to a
world of unexplored continents with great stretches of unknown
territory. Even so, new discoveries continually increase our
knowledge of how the brain functions and how people learn. ❧
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! WORD NETWORK FOR HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

Vocabulary A Word Network

is a collection of words related
to a topic. As you read the
selections in this unit, identify
spinal cord
interesting words related to
human intelligence, and add
them to your Word Network. neuron HUMAN
For example, you might begin INTELLIGENCE
by adding words from the
Launch Text, such as spinal synapse
cord, neuron, and synapse.
Tool Kit
Word Network Model

The Human Brain 345

UNIT
4 INTRODUCTION

Summary
Write an objective summary of “The Human Brain.” A summary is a
concise, complete, and accurate overview of a text. It should not include
a statement of your opinion or an analysis.

Launch Activity
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Draft a Research Plan Think about this question: In what different
ways can people be intelligent? Consider your response by
completing this statement: I can find more information about human
intelligence by . . .

• On a sticky note, record a brief phrase to complete the statement.

• Place all sticky notes on the board, and then read the suggestions aloud.
Work together to group ideas that are the same or closely related.
• As a class, decide on the order in which the suggested research
strategies should be pursued. Vote on which suggestion should be
done first.
• Place a tally mark on the note or notes that list your choice or choices.
• Use the tally results to create a class research plan.

346 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

QuickWrite
Consider class discussions, the video, and the Launch Text as you think
about the prompt. Record your first thoughts here.
PROMPT: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

! EVIDENCE LOG FOR HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

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Review your QuickWrite.

Summarize your point of view Title of Text: Date:
in one sentence to record in CONNECTION TO PROMPT TEXT EVIDENCE/DETAILS ADDITIONAL NOTES/IDEAS
your Evidence Log. Then, record
evidence from “The Human
Brain” that supports your point
of view.
After each selection, you will
continue to use your Evidence
How does this text change or add to my thinking? Date:
Log to record the evidence you
gather and the connections you
make. This graphic shows what
your Evidence Log looks like.
Tool Kit
Evidence Log Model

Unit Introduction 347

 OVERVIEW: WHOLE-CLASS LEARNING

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

In what different ways can

people be intelligent?
Intelligence shows itself in many ways—sometimes in ways that do not overlap.
A master painter may be terrible at mathematics; a bestselling author may have
no sense of direction. Where one person excels, another may fail—and it’s often
impossible to make a judgment about which of the two people is smarter. As
you read, you will work with your whole class to explore some of the ways in
which people are intelligent.

Whole-Class Learning Strategies

Throughout your life, in school, in your community, and in your career, you’ll
continue to learn in large-group environments.

Review these strategies and the actions you can take to practice them as you
work with your whole class. Add ideas of your own for each step. Get ready to
use these strategies during Whole-Class Learning.

STRATEGY ACTION PLAN

Listen actively • Eliminate distractions. For example, put your cellphone away.
• Keep your eyes on the speaker.

Clarify by asking • If you’re confused, other people probably are, too. Ask a question to help your
questions whole class.
• If you see that you are guessing, ask a question instead.

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•

Monitor • Notice what information you already know, and be ready to build on it.
understanding • Ask for help if you are struggling.

Interact and • Share your ideas and answer questions, even if you are unsure.
share ideas • Build on the ideas of others by adding details or making a connection.

348 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 CONTENTS
ANCHOR TEXT | SHORT STORY

Flowers for Algernon

Daniel Keyes

This short story examines the relationship

between a character’s intelligence and his
personality.
COMPARE

ANCHOR TEXT | SCRIPT

from Flowers for Algernon

by David Rogers

A man’s life changes drastically—but is that a

good or bad thing?

PERFORMANCE TASK
WRITING FOCUS
Write an Informative Speech
The Whole-Class selections focus on a fictional story about a character named
Charlie, whose level of intelligence is transformed dramatically by an experimental
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treatment. After reading the texts, you will write an informative speech from
Charlie’s point of view.

Overview: Whole-Class Learning 349

 MAKING MEANING

Comparing Texts
In this lesson, you will read the short story
“Flowers for Algernon.” You will then read an
excerpt from the script for a film adaptation of
FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON from FLOWERS FOR
(short story) the story. Finally, you will compare the short ALGERNON (script)
story and the script.

About the Author

Raised in Brooklyn, New
Flowers for Algernon
York, writer and teacher Concept Vocabulary
Daniel Keyes (1927–2014)
As you conduct your first read of “Flowers for Algernon,” you will
was also a photographer, a
merchant seaman, and an encounter these words. Before reading, note how familiar you are with
editor. Keyes was fascinated each word. Then, rank the words in order from most familiar (1) to least
by unusual psychological familiar (6).
conditions. A meeting with a
man with a mental disability WORD YOUR RANKING
gave Keyes the idea for subconscious
“Flowers for Algernon.”
After winning the Hugo suspicion
Award for the story in 1959,
Keyes expanded “Flowers for despised
Algernon” into a novel. The
deterioration
story also inspired the award-
winning movie adaptation introspective
Charly, released in 1968.
regression

First Read FICTION

Tool Kit Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
First-Read Guide and opportunity to complete the close-read notes after your first read.
Model Annotation
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NOTICE whom the story is ANNOTATE by marking

about, what happens, where vocabulary and key passages
and when it happens, and you want to revisit.
why those involved react as
they do.

CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing

STANDARDS the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
Reading Literature already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
8.RL.RRTC.10 Read and comprehend have already read. the selection.
a variety of literature at the high end
of the grades 6–8 text complexity band
independently and proficiently.

350 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ANCHOR TEXT | SHORT STORY

Flowers for
Algernon
Daniel Keyes

BACKGROUND
Charlie Gordon, the main character in “Flowers for Algernon,”
undergoes surgery to increase his intelligence. In the story, doctors
measure his progress with IQ, or intelligence quotient, tests. These tests
were once widely used to measure intelligence and learning ability.
Researchers now recognize that one test cannot accurately measure the
wide range of intellectual abilities.

progris riport 1–martch 5 1965

1 Dr. Strauss says I shud rite down what I think and evrey thing NOTES

that happins to me from now on. I dont know why but he says its
importint so they will see if they will use me. I hope they use me.
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Miss Kinnian says maybe they can make me smart. I want to be

smart. My name is Charlie Gordon. I am 37 years old and 2 weeks
ago was my brithday. I have nuthing more to rite now so I will
close for today.

progris riport 2–martch 6

2 I had a test today. I think I faled it. and I think that maybe now
they wont use me. What happind is a nice young man was in the
room and he had some white cards with ink spillled all over them.
He sed Charlie what do you see on this card. I was very skared
even tho I had my rabits foot in my pockit because when I was a
kid I always faled tests in school and I spillled ink to.
3 I told him I saw a inkblot. He said yes and it made me feel
good. I thot that was all but when I got up to go he stopped me.

Flowers for Algernon 351

 He said now sit down Charlie we are not thru yet. Then I dont
NOTES remember so good but he wantid me to say what was in the ink.
I dint see nuthing in the ink but he said there was picturs there
other pepul saw some picturs. I coudnt see any picturs. I reely
tryed to see. I held the card close up and then far away. Then I said
if I had my glases I coud see better I usally only ware my glases in
the movies or TV but I said they are in the closit in the hall. I got
them. Then I said let me see that card agen I bet Ill find it now.
4 I tryed hard but I still coudnt find the picturs I only saw the ink.
I told him maybe I need new glases. He rote something down on
a paper and I got skared of faling the test. I told him it was a very
nice inkblot with littel points all around the eges. He looked very
sad so that wasnt it. I said please let me try agen. Ill get it in a few
minits becaus Im not so fast somtimes. Im a slow reeder too in
Miss Kinnians class for slow adults but I’m trying very hard.
5 He gave me a chance with another card that had 2 kinds of ink
spilled on it red and blue.
6 He was very nice and talked slow like Miss Kinnian does and
he explaned it to me that it was a raw shok.1 He said pepul see
things in the ink. I said show me where. He said think. I told him
I think a inkblot but that wasnt rite eather. He said what does it
remind you—pretend somthing. I closd my eyes for a long time
to pretend. I told him I pretned a fowntan pen with ink leeking all
over a table cloth. Then he got up and went out.
7 I dont think I passd the raw shok test.

progris riport 3–martch 7

CLOSE READ 8 Dr Strauss and Dr Nemur say it dont matter about the inkblots.
ANNOTATE: In paragraph 8, I told them I dint spill the ink on the cards and I coudnt see
mark every misspelled word anything in the ink. They said that maybe they will still use me. I
you see.
said Miss Kinnian never gave me tests like that one only spelling
QUESTION: Looking over and reading. They said Miss Kinnian told that I was her bestist

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the marked words, would pupil in the adult nite scool because I tryed the hardist and I reely
you describe the number
wantid to lern. They said how come you went to the adult nite
of spelling errors as a few,
some, or many?
scool all by yourself Charlie. How did you find it. I said I askd
pepul and sumbody told me where I shud go to lern to read and
CONCLUDE: What does
spell good. They said why did you want to. I told them becaus all
the number of spelling
my life I wantid to be smart and not dumb. But its very hard to be
errors suggest about the
person writing these smart. They said you know it will probly be tempirery. I said yes.
diary entries? Miss Kinnian told me. I dont care if it herts.
9 Later I had more crazy tests today. The nice lady who gave it
me told me the name and I asked her how do you spellit so I can
rite it in my progris riport. THEMATIC APPERCEPTION TEST.2

1. raw shok misspelling of Rorschach (RAWR shok) test, a psychological test that requires a
subject to describe the images suggested by inkblots.
2. THEMATIC (thee MAT ihk) APPERCEPTION (ap uhr SEHP shuhn) TEST personality test in
which the subject makes up stories about a series of pictures.

352 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 I dont know the frist 2 words but I know what test means. You got
to pass it or you get bad marks. This test lookd easy becaus I coud NOTES

see the picturs. Only this time she dint want me to tell her the
picturs. That mixd me up. I said the man yesterday said I shoud
tell him what I saw in the ink she said that dont make no difrence.
She said make up storys about the pepul in the picturs.
10 I told her how can you tell storys about pepul you never met. I
said why shud I make up lies. I never tell lies any more becaus I
always get caut.
11 She told me this test and the other one the raw-shok was for
getting personalty. I laffed so hard. I said how can you get that
thing from inkblots and fotos. She got sore and put her picturs
away. I dont care. It was sily. I gess I faled that test too.
12 Later some men in white coats took me to a difernt part of the
hospitil and gave me a game to play. It was like a race with a
white mouse. They called the mouse Algernon. Algernon was in a
box with a lot of twists and turns like all kinds of walls and they
gave me a pencil and a paper with lines and lots of boxes. On one
side it said START and on the other end it said FINISH. They said
it was amazed3 and that Algernon and me had the same amazed
to do. I dint see how we could have the same amazed if Algernon
had a box and I had a paper but I dint say nothing. Anyway there
wasnt time because the race started.
13 One of the men had a watch he was trying to hide so I woudnt
see it so I tryed not to look and that made me nervus.
14 Anyway that test made me feel worser than all the others
because they did it over 10 times with difernt amazeds and
Algernon won every time. I dint know that mice were so smart.
Maybe thats because Algernon is a white mouse. Maybe white
mice are smarter than other mice.

progris riport 4–Mar 8

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15 Their going to use me! Im so exited I can hardly write. Dr

Nemur and Dr Strauss had a argament about it first. Dr Nemur
was in the office when Dr Strauss brot me in. Dr Nemur was
worryed about using me but Dr Strauss told him Miss Kinnian
rekemmended me the best from all the pepul who she was
teaching. I like Miss Kinnian becaus shes a very smart teacher.
And she said Charlie your going to have a second chance. If you
volenteer for this experament you mite get smart. They dont know
if it will be perminint but theirs a chance. Thats why I said ok even
when I was scared because she said it was an operashun. She said
dont be scared Charlie you done so much with so little I think you
deserv it most of all.

3. amazed Charlie means “a maze,” or a confusing series of paths. Often, the intelligence of
animals is assessed by how fast they go through a maze.

Flowers for Algernon 353

 Charlie—as portrayed by Cliff Robertson
in the 1968 film adaptation—with
scientists and Algernon

16 So I got scaird when Dr Nemur and Dr Strauss argud about it.

NOTES Dr Strauss said I had something that was very good. He said I had
a good motor-vation.4 I never even knew I had that. I felt proud
when he said that not every body with an eye-q5 of 68 had that
thing. I dont know what it is or where I got it but he said Algernon
had it too. Algernons motor-vation is the cheese they put in his box.
But it cant be that because I didnt eat any cheese this week.
17 Then he told Dr Nemur something I dint understand so while
they were talking I wrote down some of the words.
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18 He said Dr Nemur I know Charlie is not what you had in mind
as the first of your new brede of intelek** (coudnt get the word)
superman. But most people of his low ment** are host** and
uncoop** they are usualy dull apath** and hard to reach. He has a
good natcher hes intristed and eager to please.
19 Dr Nemur said remember he will be the first human beeng ever
to have his intelijence trippled by surgicle meens.
20 Dr Strauss said exakly. Look at how well hes lerned to read and
write for his low mentel age its as grate an acheve** as you and
I lerning einstines therey of **vity without help. That shows the
intenss motor-vation. Its comparat** a tremen** achev** I say we
use Charlie.

4. motor-vation motivation, or desire to work hard and achieve a goal.

5. eye-q IQ, or intelligence quotient—a way of measuring human intelligence.

354 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 21 I dint get all the words and they were talking to fast but it
sounded like Dr Strauss was on my side and like the other NOTES

one wasnt.
22 Then Dr Nemur nodded he said all right maybe your right. We
will use Charlie. When he said that I got so exited I jumped up
and shook his hand for being so good to me. I told him thank you
doc you wont be sorry for giving me a second chance. And I mean
it like I told him. After the operashun Im gonna try to be smart. Im
gonna try awful hard.

progris ript 5—Mar 10

23 Im skared. Lots of people who work here and the nurses and CLOSE READ
the people who gave me the tests came to bring me candy and ANNOTATE: Mark the
sentences in the March 10
wish me luck. I hope I have luck. I got my rabits foot and my
entry that set out Charlie’s
lucky penny and my horse shoe. Only a black cat crossed me goals.
when I was comming to the hospitil. Dr Strauss says don’t be
supersitis Charlie this is sience. Anyway Im keeping my rabits QUESTION: What do you
notice about these goals
foot with me.
and the way that Charlie
24 I asked Dr Strauss if Ill beat Algernon in the race after the writes about them?
operashun and he said maybe. If the operashun works Ill show
CONCLUDE: How do
that mouse I can be as smart as he is. Maybe smarter. Then Ill
Charlie’s goals and the
be abel to read better and spell the words good and know lots way he states them make
of things and be like other people. I want to be smart like other you feel sympathetic
people. If it works perminint they will make everybody smart all toward him?
over the wurld.
25 They dint give me anything to eat this morning. I dont know
what that eating has to do with getting smart. Im very hungry
and Dr Nemur took away my box of candy. That Dr Nemur is a
grouch. Dr Strauss says I can have it back after the operashun. You
cant eat befor a operashun . . .

Progress Report 6—Mar 15

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26 The operashun dint hurt. He did it while I was sleeping. They

took off the bandijis from my eyes and my head today so I can
make a PROGRESS REPORT. Dr Nemur who looked at some of
my other ones says I spell PROGRESS wrong and he told me how
to spell it and REPORT too. I got to try and remember that.
27 I have a very bad memary for spelling. Dr Strauss says its ok
to tell about all the things that happin to me but he says I shoud
tell more about what I feel and what I think. When I told him I
dont know how to think he said try. All the time when the bandijis
were on my eyes I tryed to think. Nothing happened. I dont know
what to think about. Maybe if I ask him he will tell me how I can
think now that Im suppose to get smart. What do smart people
think about. Fancy things I suppose. I wish I knew some fancy
things alredy.

Flowers for Algernon 355

 Progress Report 7—Mar 19
NOTES
28 Nothing is happining. I had lots of tests and different kinds of
races with Algernon. I hate that mouse. He always beats me. Dr
Strauss said I got to play those games. And he said some time I
got to take those tests over again. Thse inkblots are stupid. And
those pictures are stupid too. I like to draw a picture of a man and
a woman but I wont make up lies about people.
29 I got a headache from trying to think so much. I thot Dr Strauss
was my frend but he dont help me. He dont tell me what to think
or when Ill get smart. Miss Kinnian dint come to see me. I think
writing these progress reports are stupid too.

Progress Report 8—Mar 23

30 Im going back to work at the factery. They said it was better I
shud go back to work but I cant tell anyone what the operashun
was for and I have to come to the hospitil for an hour evry night
after work. They are gonna pay me mony every month for lerning
to be smart.
31 Im glad Im going back to work because I miss my job and all
my frends and all the fun we have there.
32 Dr Strauss says I shud keep writing things down but I
don’t have to do it every day just when I think of something
or something speshul happins. He says dont get discoridged
because it takes time and it happins slow. He says it took a long
time with Algernon before he got 3 times smarter then he was
before. Thats why Algernon beats me all the time because he had
that operashun too. That makes me feel better. I coud probly do
that amazed faster than a reglar mouse. Maybe some day Ill beat
Algernon. Boy that would be something. So far Algernon looks
like he mite be smart perminent.

Mar 25
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33 (I dont have to write PROGRESS REPORT on top any more just
when I hand it in once a week for Dr Nemur to read. I just have to
put the date on. That saves time)
34 We had a lot of fun at the factery today. Joe Carp said hey
look where Charlie had his operashun what did they do Charlie
put some brains in. I was going to tell him but I remembered Dr
Strauss said no. Then Frank Reilly said what did you do Charlie
forget your key and open your door the hard way. That made me
laff. Their really my friends and they like me.
35 Sometimes somebody will say hey look at Joe or Frank or
George he really pulled a Charlie Gordon. I dont know why they
say that but they always laff. This morning Amos Borg who is the
4 man at Donnegans used my name when he shouted at Ernie the

356 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 office boy. Ernie lost a packige. He said Ernie what are you trying
to be a Charlie Gordon. I don’t understand why he said that. I NOTES

never lost any packiges.

Mar 28
36 Dr Straus came to my room tonight to see why I dint come in
like I was suppose to. I told him I dont like to race with Algernon
any more. He said I dont have to for a while but I shud come in.
He had a present for me only it wasnt a present but just for lend. I
thot it was a little television but it wasnt. He said I got to turn it on
when I go to sleep. I said your kidding why shud I turn it on when
Im going to sleep. Who ever herd of a thing like that. But he said if
I want to get smart I got to do what he says. I told him I dint think
I was going to get smart and he put his hand on my sholder and
said Charlie you dont know it yet but your getting smarter all the
time. You wont notice for a while. I think he was just being nice to
make me feel good because I don’t look any smarter.
37 Oh yes I almost forgot. I asked him when I can go back to the
class at Miss Kinnians school. He said I wont go their. He said that
soon Miss Kinnian will come to the hospital to start and teach me
speshul. I was mad at her for not comming to see me when I got
the operashun but I like her so maybe we will be frends again.

Mar 29
38 That crazy TV kept me up all night. How can I sleep with
something yelling crazy things all night in my ears. And the nutty
pictures. Wow. I dont know what it says when Im up so how am I
going to know when Im sleeping.
39 Dr Strauss says its ok. He says my brains are lerning when I
sleep and that will help me when Miss Kinnian starts my lessons
in the hospitl (only I found out it isnt a hospitil its a labatory. I
think its all crazy. If you can get smart when your sleeping why
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do people go to school. That thing I dont think will work. I use

to watch the late show and the late late show on TV all the time
and it never made me smart. Maybe you have to sleep while you
watch it.

Progress Report 9–APRIL 3

40 Dr Strauss showed me how to keep the TV turned low so now
I can sleep. I don’t hear a thing. And I still dont understand what
it says. A few times I play it over in the morning to find out what
I lerned when I was sleeping and I dont think so. Miss Kinnian
says Maybe its another langwidge or something. But most times it
sounds american. It talks so fast faster then even Miss Gold who
was my teacher in 6 grade and I remember she talked so fast I
coudnt understand her.

Flowers for Algernon 357

 41 I told Dr Strauss what good is it to get smart in my sleep. I want
NOTES to be smart when Im awake. He says its the same thing and I have
subconscious (suhb KON two minds. Theres the subconscious and the conscious (thats how
shuhs) n. mental activity you spell it). And one dont tell the other one what its doing. They
that occurs without
someone’s being aware
dont even talk to each other. Thats why I dream. And boy have I
of it been having crazy dreams. Wow. Ever since that night TV. The late
late late late late show.
42 I forgot to ask him if it was only me or if everybody had those
two minds.
43 (I just looked up the word in the dictionary Dr Strauss gave
me. The word is subconscious. adj. Of the nature of mental operations
yet not present in consciousness; as, subconscious conflict of desires.)
There’s more but I still dont know what it means. This isnt a very
good dictionary for dumb people like me.
44 Anyway the headache is from the party. My frends from the
factery Joe Carp and Frank Reilly invited me to go with them to
Muggsys Saloon for some drinks. I dont like to drink but they said
we will have lots of fun. I had a good time.
45 Joe Carp said I shoud show the girls how I mop out the toilet
in the factory and he got me a mop. I showed them and everyone
laffed when I told that Mr Donnegan said I was the best janiter he
ever had because I like my job and do it good and never come late
or miss a day except for my operashun.
46 I said Miss Kinnian always said Charlie be proud of your job
because you do it good.
47 Everybody laffed and we had a good time and they gave me
lots of drinks and Joe said Charlie is a card when hes potted.
I dont know what that means but everybody likes me and we
have fun. I cant wait to be smart like my best frends Joe Carp and
Frank Reilly.
48 I dont remember how the party was over but I think I went out
to buy a newspaper and coffe for Joe and Frank and when I came

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back there was no one their. I looked for them all over till late.
Then I dont remember so good but I think I got sleepy or sick.
A nice cop brot me back home. Thats what my landlady
Mrs Flynn says.
49 But I got a headache and a big lump on my head and black and
blue all over. I think maybe I fell. Anyway I got a bad headache
and Im sick and hurt all over. I dont think Ill drink anymore.

April 6
50 I beat Algernon! I dint even know I beat him until Burt the
tester told me. Then the second time I lost because I got so exited
I fell off the chair before I finished. But after that I beat him 8
more times. I must be getting smart to beat a smart mouse like
Algernon. But I dont feel smarter.

358 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 Charlie with Miss Kinnian—as portrayed by Claire Bloom

51 I wanted to race Algernon some more but Burt said that’s

enough for one day. They let me hold him for a minit. Hes not so NOTES
bad. Hes soft like a ball of cotton. He blinks and when he opens
his eyes their black and pink on the eges.
52 I said can I feed him because I felt bad to beat him and I wanted
to be nice and make frends. Burt said no Algernon is a very
specshul mouse with an operashun like mine, and he was the first
of all the animals to stay smart so long. He told me Algernon is
so smart that every day he has to solve a test to get his food. Its a
thing like a lock on a door that changes every time Algernon goes
in to eat so he has to lern something new to get his food. That
made me sad because if he coudnt lern he woud be hungry.
53 I dont think its right to make you pass a test to eat. How woud
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Dr Nemur like it to have to pass a test every time he wants to eat. I

think Ill be frends with Algernon.

April 9
54 Tonight after work Miss Kinnian was at the laboratory. She
looked like she was glad to see me but scared. I told her dont
worry Miss Kinnian Im not smart yet and she laffed. She said I
have confidence in you Charlie the way you struggled so hard to
read and right better than all the others. At werst you will have it
for a littel wile and your doing something for sience.
55 We are reading a very hard book. I never read such a hard book
before. Its called Robinson Crusoe6 about a man who gets merooned
on a dessert Iland. Hes smart and figers out all kinds of things so

6. Robinson Crusoe (KROO soh) 1719 novel written by Daniel Defoe, a British author.

Flowers for Algernon 359

 he can have a house and food and hes a good swimmer. Only I
NOTES feel sorry because hes all alone and has no frends. But I think their
must be somebody else on the iland because theres a picture with
his funny umbrella looking at footprints. I hope he gets a frend
and not be lonly.

April 10
56 Miss Kinnian teaches me to spell better. She says look at a word
and close your eyes and say it over and over until you remember.
I have lots of truble with through that you say threw and enough
and tough that you dont say enew and tew. You got to say enuff and
tuff. Thats how I use to write it before I started to get smart. Im
confused but Miss Kinnian says theres no reason in spelling.

April 14
57 Finished Robinson Crusoe. I want to find out more about what
happens to him but Miss Kinnian says thats all there is. Why

April 15
CLOSE READ 58 Miss Kinnian says Im lerning fast. She read some of the
ANNOTATE: Mark the Progress Reports and she looked at me kind of funny. She says
spelling errors you find in Im a fine person and Ill show them all. I asked her why. She said
Charlie’s April 15 entry. never mind but I shoudnt feel bad if I find out that everybody isnt
QUESTION: What do you nice like I think. She said for a person who god gave so little to
notice about the number you done more then a lot of people with brains they never even
of errors, as compared to used. I said all my frends are smart people but there good. They
the total you marked in
like me and they never did anything that wasnt nice. Then she got
the March 7 entry?
something in her eye and she had to run out to the ladys room.
QUESTION: What does
this reveal about the April 16
effect of the operation on 59 Today, I lerned, the comma, this is a comma (,) a period, with a
Charlie’s ability to think
tail, Miss Kinnian, says its importent, because, it makes writing,
and write?
better, she said, somebody, coud lose, a lot of money, if a comma,
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isnt, in the, right place, I dont have, any money, and I dont see,
how a comma, keeps you, from losing it,
60 But she says, everybody, uses commas, so Ill use, them too,

April 17
61 I used the comma wrong. Its punctuation. Miss Kinnian told
me to look up long words in the dictionary to lern to spell them.
I said whats the difference if you can read it anyway. She said
its part of your education so now on Ill look up all the words Im
not sure how to spell. It takes a long time to write that way but I
think Im remembering. I only have to look up once and after that
I get it right. Anyway thats how come I got the word punctuation
right. (Its that way in the dictionary). Miss Kinnian says a period
is punctuation too, and there are lots of other marks to lern. I told
her I thot all the periods had to have tails but she said no.

360 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 62 You got to mix them up, she showed? me“ how. to mix! them(
up,. and now; I can! mix up all kinds“ of punctuation, in! my NOTES

writing? There, are lots! of rules? to lern; but Im gettin’g them in

my head.
63 One thing I? like about, Dear Miss Kinnian: (thats the way it
goes in a business letter if I ever go into business) is she, always
gives me’ a reason“ when—I ask. She’s a gen’ius! I wish! I cou’d
be smart“ like, her;
64 (Punctuation, is; fun!)

April 18
65 What a dope I am! I didn’t even understand what she was
talking about. I read the grammar book last night and it explanes
the whole thing. Then I saw it was the same way as Miss Kinnian
was trying to tell me, but I didn’t get it. I got up in the middle of
the night, and the whole thing straightened out in my mind.
66 Miss Kinnian said that the TV working in my sleep helped out.
She said I reached a plateau. Thats like the flat top of a hill.
67 After I figgered out how punctuation worked, I read over all
my old Progress Reports from the beginning. Boy, did I have crazy
spelling and punctuation! I told Miss Kinnian I ought to go over
the pages and fix all the mistakes but she said, “No. Charlie, Dr.
Nemur wants them just as they are. That’s why he let you keep
them after they were photostated, to see your own progress.
You’re coming along fast, Charlie.”
68 That made me feel good. After the lesson I went down and
played with Algernon. We don’t race any more.

April 20
69 I feel sick inside. Not sick like for a doctor, but inside my
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chest it feels empty like getting punched and a heartburn at the

same time.
70 I wasn’t going to write about it, but I guess I got to, because its
important. Today was the first time I ever stayed home from work.
71 Last night Joe Carp and Frank Reilly invited me to a party.
There were lots of girls and some men from the factory. I
remembered how sick I got last time I drank too much, so I told
Joe I didn’t want anything to drink. He gave me a plain coke
instead. It tasted funny, but I thought it was just a bad taste in
my mouth.
72 We had a lot of fun for a while. Joe said I should dance with
Ellen and she would teach me the steps. I fell a few times and I
couldn’t understand why because no one else was dancing besides
Ellen and me. And all the time I was tripping because somebody’s
foot was always sticking out.

Flowers for Algernon 361

 73 Then when I got up I saw the look on Joe’s face and it gave me
NOTES a funny feeling in my stomack. “He’s a scream,” one of the girls
said. Everybody was laughing.
74 Frank said, “I ain’t laughed so much since we sent him off for
the newspaper that night at Muggsy’s and ditched him.”
75 “Look at him. His face is red.”
76 “He’s blushing. Charlie is blushing.”
77 “Hey, Ellen, what’d you do to Charlie? I never saw him act like
that before.”
78 I didn’t know what to do or where to turn. Everyone was
looking at me and laughing and I felt naked. I wanted to hide
myself. I ran out into the street and I threw up. Then I walked
home. It’s a funny thing I never knew that Joe and Frank and the
others liked to have me around all the time to make fun of me.
79 Now I know what it means when they say “to pull a
Charlie Gordon.”
80 I’m ashamed.

Progress Report 11–April 21

81 Still didn’t go into the factory. I told Mrs. Flynn my landlady to
call and tell Mr. Donnegan I was sick. Mrs. Flynn looks at me very
funny lately like she’s scared of me.
82 I think it’s a good thing about finding out how
everybody laughs at me. I thought about it a lot. It’s
I didn’t know what to because I’m so dumb and I don’t even know when I’m
do or where to turn. doing something dumb. People think it’s funny when a
dumb person can’t do things the same way they can.
Everyone was 83 Anyway, now I know I’m getting smarter every day.
I know punctuation and I can spell good. I like to look
looking at me and
up all the hard words in the dictionary and I remember
laughing and I felt them. I’m reading a lot now, and Miss Kinnian says I
read very fast. Sometimes I even understand what I’m
naked.
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reading about, and it stays in my mind. There are times
when I can close my eyes and think of a page and it all
comes back like a picture.
84 Besides history, geography and arithmetic, Miss Kinnian said
I should start to learn a few foreign languages. Dr. Strauss gave
me some more tapes to play while I sleep. I still don’t understand
how that conscious and unconscious mind works, but Dr. Strauss
says not to worry yet. He asked me to promise that when I start
learning college subjects next week I wouldn’t read any books on
psychology—that is, until he gives me permission.
85 I feel a lot better today, but I guess I’m still a little angry that all
the time people were laughing and making fun of me because I
wasn’t so smart. When I become intelligent like Dr. Strauss says,
with three times my I.Q. of 68, then maybe I’ll be like everyone
else and people will like me and be friendly.

362 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 86 I’m not sure what an I.Q. is. Dr. Nemur said it was something
that measured how intelligent you were—like a scale in the NOTES

drugstore weighs pounds. But Dr. Strauss had a big arguement

with him and said an I.Q. didn’t weigh intelligence at all. He said
an I.Q. showed how much intelligence you could get, like the
numbers on the outside of a measuring cup. You still had to fill the
cup up with stuff.
87 Then when I asked Burt, who gives me my intelligence tests
and works with Algernon, he said that both of them were wrong
(only I had to promise not to tell them he said so). Burt says that
the I.Q. measures a lot of different things including some of the
things you learned already, and it really isn’t any good at all.
88 So I still don’t know what I.Q. is except that mine is going to be
over 200 soon. I didn’t want to say anything, but I don’t see how
if they don’t know what it is, or where it is—I don’t see how they
know how much of it you’ve got.
89 Dr. Nemur says I have to take a Rorshach Test tomorrow. I
wonder what that is.

April 22
90 I found out what a Rorshach is. It’s the test I took before the
operation—the one with the inkblots on the pieces of cardboard.
The man who gave me the test was the same one.
91 I was scared to death of those inkblots. I knew he was going CLOSE READ
to ask me to find the pictures and I knew I wouldn’t be able to. I ANNOTATE: Mark the
was thinking to myself, if only there was some way of knowing sentences in paragraph 91
that begin in similar ways.
what kind of pictures were hidden there. Maybe there weren’t
any pictures at all. Maybe it was just a trick to see if I was dumb QUESTION: What
enough too look for something that wasn’t there. Just thinking emotions are emphasized
by the repetition?
about that made me sore at him.
92 “All right, Charlie,” he said, “you’ve seen these cards before, CONCLUDE: What is the
remember?” author showing about
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93 “Of course I remember.” Charlie’s state of mind by

writing the paragraph in
94 The way I said it, he knew I was angry, and he looked
this way?
surprised. “Yes, of course. Now I want you to look at this one.
What might this be? What do you see on this card? People see all
sorts of things in these inkblots. Tell me what it might be for you—
what it makes you think of.”
95 I was shocked. That wasn’t what I had expected him to say at
all. “You mean there are no pictures hidden in those inkblots?”
96 He frowned and took off his glasses. “What?”
97 “Pictures. Hidden in the inkblots. Last time you told me that
everyone could see them and you wanted me to find them too.”
98 He explained to me that the last time he had used almost the
suspicion (suh SPIHSH uhn)
exact same words he was using now. I didn’t believe it, and I n. feeling of doubt
still have the suspicion that he misled me at the time just for the or mistrust

Flowers for Algernon 363

 fun of it. Unless—I don’t know any more—could I have been that
NOTES feeble-minded?
99 We went through the cards slowly. One of them looked like a
pair of bats tugging at some thing. Another one looked like two
men fencing with swords. I imagined all sorts of things. I guess
I got carried away. But I didn’t trust him any more, and I kept
turning them around and even looking on the back to see if there
was anything there I was supposed to catch. While he was making
his notes, I peeked out of the corner of my eye to read it. But it
was all in code that looked like this:
WF + A DdF-Ad orig. WF-A
SF + obj
100 The test still doesn’t make sense to me. It seems to me that
anyone could make up lies about things that they didn’t really see.
How could he know I wasn’t making a fool of him by mentioning
things that I didn’t really imagine? Maybe I’ll understand it when
Dr. Strauss lets me read up on psychology.

April 25
101 I figured out a new way to line up the machines in the factory,
and Mr. Donnegan says it will save him ten thousand dollars a
year in labor and increased production. He gave me a $25 bonus.
102 I wanted to take Joe Carp and Frank Reilly out to lunch to
celebrate, but Joe said he had to buy some things for his wife, and
Frank said he was meeting his cousin for lunch. I guess it’ll take
a little time for them to get used to the changes in me. Everybody
seems to be frightened of me. When I went over to Amos Borg and
tapped him on the shoulder, he jumped up in the air.
103 People don’t talk to me much any more or kid around the way
they used to. It makes the job kind of lonely.

April 27
104 I got up the nerve today to ask Miss Kinnian to have dinner Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

with me tomorrow night to celebrate my bonus.

105 At first she wasn’t sure it was right, but I asked Dr. Strauss and
he said it was okay. Dr. Strauss and Dr. Nemur don’t seem to be
getting along so well. They’re arguing all the time. This evening
when I came in to ask Dr. Strauss about having dinner with Miss
Kinnian, I heard them shouting. Dr. Nemur was saying that it was
his experiment and his research, and Dr. Strauss was shouting back
that he contributed just as much, because he found me through
Miss Kinnian and he performed the operation. Dr. Strauss said
that someday thousands of neurosurgeons7 might be using his
technique all over the world.

7. neurosurgeons (NUR oh sur juhnz) n. doctors who operate on the nervous system,
including the brain and spine.

364 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 106 Dr. Nemur wanted to publish the results of the experiment at
the end of this month. Dr. Strauss wanted to wait a while longer to NOTES

be sure. Dr. Strauss said that Dr. Nemur was more interested in the
Chair8 of Psychology at Princeton than he was in the experiment.
Dr. Nemur said that Dr. Strauss was nothing but an opportunist
who was trying to ride to glory on his coattails.
107 When I left afterwards, I found myself trembling. I don’t know
why for sure, but it was as if I’d seen both men clearly for the first
time. I remember hearing Burt say that Dr. Nemur had a shrew of
a wife who was pushing him all the time to get things published
so that he could become famous. Burt said that the dream of her
life was to have a big shot husband.
108 Was Dr. Strauss really trying to ride on his coattails?

April 28
109 I don’t understand why I never noticed how beautiful Miss
Kinnian really is. She has brown eyes and feathery brown hair that
comes to the top of her neck. She’s only thirty-four!
110 I think from the beginning I had the feeling that she was an
unreachable genius—and very, very old. Now, every time I see her
she grows younger and more lovely.
111 We had dinner and a long talk. When she said that I was
coming along so fast that soon I’d be leaving her behind, I
laughed.
112 “It’s true, Charlie. You’re already a better reader than I am.
You can read a whole page at a glance while I can take in only a
few lines at a time. And you remember every single thing you
read. I’m lucky if I can recall the main thoughts and the general
meaning.”
113 “I don’t feel intelligent. There are so many things I don’t
understand.”
114 “You’ve got to be a little patient. You’re accomplishing in days
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and weeks what it takes normal people to do in half a lifetime.

That’s what makes it so amazing. You’re like a giant sponge now,
soaking things in. Facts, figures, general knowledge. And soon
you’ll begin to connect them, too. You’ll see how the different
branches of learning are related. There are many levels, Charlie,
like steps on a giant ladder that take you up higher and higher to
see more and more of the world around you.
115 “I can see only a little bit of that, Charlie, and I won’t go much
higher than I am now, but you’ll keep climbing up and up, and
see more and more, and each step will open new worlds that you
never even knew existed.” She frowned. “I hope . . . I just hope
to God—”
116 “What?”

8. Chair n. professorship.

Flowers for Algernon 365

 Charlie and Miss Kinnian walking in the park

117 “Never mind, Charles. I just hope I wasn’t wrong to advise you
NOTES to go into this in the first place.”
118 I laughed. “How could that be? It worked, didn’t it? Even
Algernon is still smart.”
119 We sat there silently for a while and I knew what she was
thinking about as she watched me toying with the chain of my
rabbit’s foot and my keys. I didn’t want to think of that possibility
any more than elderly people want to think of death. I knew that
this was only the beginning. I knew what she meant about levels
because I’d seen some of them already. The thought of leaving her

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behind made me sad.
120 I’m in love with Miss Kinnian.

Progress Report 12–April 30

121 I’ve quit my job with Donnegan’s Plastic Box Company.
Mr. Donnegan insisted that it would be better for all concerned if
I left. What did I do to make them hate me so?
122 The first I knew of it was when Mr. Donnegan showed me the
petition. Eight hundred and forty names, everyone connected
with the factory, except Fanny Girden. Scanning the list quickly,
I saw at once that hers was the only missing name. All the rest
demanded that I be fired.
123 Joe Carp and Frank Reilly wouldn’t talk to me about it. No one
else would either, except Fanny. She was one of the few people I’d
known who set her mind to something and believed it no matter

366 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 what the rest of the world proved, said or did—and Fanny did
not believe that I should have been fired. She had been against the NOTES

petition on principle and despite the pressure and threats she’d

held out.
124 “Which don’t mean to say,” she remarked, “that I don’t think
there’s something mighty strange about you. Charlie. Them
changes. I don’t know. You used to be a good, dependable,
ordinary man—not too bright maybe, but honest. Who knows
what you done to yourself to get so smart all of a sudden. Like
everybody around here’s been saying, Charlie, it’s not right.”
125 “But how can you say that, Fanny? What’s wrong with a man
becoming intelligent and wanting to acquire knowledge and
understanding of the world around him?”
126 She stared down at her work, and I turned to leave. Without
looking at me, she said: “It was evil when Eve listened to the
snake and ate from the tree of knowledge. It was evil when she
saw that she was naked. If not for that none of us would ever have
to grow old and sick, and die.”
127 Once again now I have the feeling of shame burning inside
me. This intelligence has driven a wedge between me and all the
people I once knew and loved. Before, they laughed at me and
despised me for my ignorance and dullness; now, they hate me despised (dih SPYZD) v.
for my knowledge and understanding. What do they want of me? hated; scorned
128 They’ve driven me out of the factory. Now I’m more alone than
ever before . . .

May 15
129 Dr. Strauss is very angry at me for not having written any
progress reports in two weeks. He’s justified because the lab is
now paying me a regular salary. I told him I was too busy thinking
and reading. When I pointed out that writing was such a slow
process that it made me impatient with my poor handwriting,
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he suggested that I learn to type. It’s much easier to write now

because I can type nearly seventy-five words a minute. Dr. Strauss
continually reminds me of the need to speak and write simply so
that people will be able to understand me.
130 I’ll try to review all the things that happened to me during the
last two weeks. Algernon and I were presented to the American
Psychological Association sitting in convention with the World
Psychological Association last Tuesday. We created quite a
sensation. Dr. Nemur and Dr. Strauss were proud of us.
131 I suspect that Dr. Nemur, who is sixty—ten years older than
Dr. Strauss—finds it necessary to see tangible9 results of his work.
Undoubtedly the result of pressure by Mrs. Nemur.

9. tangible (TAN juh buhl) adj. able to be felt or perceived; substantial.

Flowers for Algernon 367

 132 Contrary to my earlier impressions of him, I realize that Dr.
NOTES Nemur is not at all a genius. He has a very good mind, but it
struggles under the specter of self-doubt. He wants people to take
him for a genius. Therefore, it is important for him to feel that his
work is accepted by the world. I believe that Dr. Nemur was afraid
of further delay because he worried that someone else might make
a discovery along these lines and take the credit from him.
133 Dr. Strauss on the other hand might be called a genius, although
I feel that his areas of knowledge are too limited. He was educated
in the tradition of narrow specialization; the broader aspects of
background were neglected far more than necessary—even for
a neurosurgeon.
CLOSE READ 134 I was shocked to learn that the only ancient languages he
ANNOTATE: Mark could read were Latin, Greek and Hebrew, and that he knows
the specialized academic
almost nothing of mathematics beyond the elementary levels of
terms that Charlie uses in
paragraphs 134–138.
the calculus of variations. When he admitted this to me, I found
myself almost annoyed. It was as if he’d hidden this part of
QUESTION: From the use himself in order to deceive me, pretending—as do many people
of this language, what is
I’ve discovered—to be what he is not. No one I’ve ever known is
apparent about Charlie’s
level of intelligence what he appears to be on the surface.
compared to that of the 135 Dr. Nemur appears to be uncomfortable around me. Sometimes
people around him? when I try to talk to him, he just looks at me strangely and turns
CONCLUDE: What
away. I was angry at first when Dr. Strauss told me I was giving
potential problems could Dr. Nemur an inferiority complex. I thought he was mocking me
result from Charlie’s use of and I’m oversensitive at being made fun of.
language such as this? 136 How was I to know that a highly respected psycho-
experimentalist like Nemur was unacquainted with Hindustani10
and Chinese? It’s absurd when you consider the work that is being
done in India and China today in the very field of his study.
137 I asked Dr. Strauss how Nemur could refute Rahajamati’s attack
on his method and results if Nemur couldn’t even read them in
the first place. That strange look on Dr. Strauss’ face can mean

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only one of two things. Either he doesn’t want to tell Nemur what
they’re saying in India, or else—and this worries me—Dr. Strauss
doesn’t know either. I must be careful to speak and write clearly
and simply so that people won’t laugh.

May 18
138 I am very disturbed. I saw Miss Kinnian last night for the first
time in over a week. I tried to avoid all discussions of intellectual
concepts and to keep the conversation on a simple, everyday
level, but she just stared at me blankly and asked me what I meant
about the mathematical variance equivalent in Dorbermann’s
Fifth Concerto.

10. Hindustani (hihn du STAH nee) n. a language of northern India.

368 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 139 When I tried to explain she stopped me and laughed. I guess
I got angry, but I suspect I’m approaching her on the wrong NOTES

level. No matter what I try to discuss with her, I am unable to

communicate. I must review Vrostadt’s equations on Levels of
Semantic Progression. I find that I don’t communicate with people
much any more. Thank God for books and music and things I can
think about. I am alone in my apartment at Mrs. Flynn’s boarding
house most of the time and seldom speak to anyone.

May 20
140 I would not have noticed the new dishwasher, a boy of about
sixteen, at the corner diner where I take my evening meals if not
for the incident of the broken dishes.
141 They crashed to the floor, shattering and sending bits of white
china under the tables. The boy stood there, dazed and frightened,
holding the empty tray in his hand. The whistles and catcalls from
the customers (the cries of “hey, there go the profits!” . . .
“Mazeltov!” . . . and “well, he didn’t work here very long . . .
“ which invariably seems to follow the breaking of glass or
dishware in a public restaurant) all seemed to confuse him.
142 When the owner came to see what the excitement was about,
the boy cowered as if he expected to be struck and threw up his
arms as if to ward off the blow.
143 “All right! All right, you dope,” shouted the owner, “don’t just
stand there! Get the broom and sweep that mess up. A broom . . . a
broom, you idiot! It’s in the kitchen. Sweep up all the pieces.”
144 The boy saw that he was not going to
be punished. His frightened expression . . . he slowly mirrored
disappeared and he smiled and hummed as he
came back with the broom to sweep the floor. their smiles and finally
A few of the rowdier customers kept up the
broke into an uncertain
remarks, amusing themselves at his expense.
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145 “Here, sonny, over here there’s a nice piece grin at the joke which
behind you . . .”
146 “C’mon, do it again . . .” he obviously did not
147 “He’s not so dumb. It’s easier to break ’em understand.
than to wash ’em . . .”
148 As his vacant eyes moved across the crowd of amused
onlookers, he slowly mirrored their smiles and finally broke
into an uncertain grin at the joke which he obviously did not
understand.
149 I felt sick inside as I looked at his dull, vacuous smile, the wide,
bright eyes of a child, uncertain but eager to please. They were
laughing at him because he was mentally retarded.
150 And I had been laughing at him too.
151 Suddenly, I was furious at myself and all those who were
smirking at him. I jumped up and shouted, “Shut up! Leave him

Flowers for Algernon 369

 alone! It’s not his fault he can’t understand! He can’t help what he
NOTES is! But . . . he’s still a human being!”
152 The room grew silent. I cursed myself for losing control and
creating a scene. I tried not to look at the boy as I paid my check
and walked out without touching my food. I felt ashamed for both
of us.
153 How strange it is that people of honest feelings and sensibility,
who would not take advantage of a man born without arms or
legs or eyes—how such people think nothing of abusing a man
born with low intelligence. It infuriated me to think that not too
long ago I, like this boy, had foolishly played the clown.
154 And I had almost forgotten.
155 I’d hidden the picture of the old Charlie Gordon from myself
because now that I was intelligent it was something that had to be
pushed out of my mind. But today in looking at that boy, for the
first time I saw what I had been. I was just like him!
156 Only a short time ago, I learned that people laughed at me.
Now I can see that unknowingly l joined with them in laughing at
myself. That hurts most of all.
157 I have often reread my progress reports and seen the illiteracy,
the childish naivete, the mind of low intelligence peering from a
dark room, through the keyhole, at the dazzling light outside. I
see that even in my dullness I knew that I was inferior, and that
other people had something I lacked—something denied me. In
my mental blindness, I thought that it was somehow connected
with the ability to read and write, and I was sure that if I could get
those skills I would automatically have intelligence too.
158 Even a feeble-minded man wants to be like other men.
159 A child may not know how to feed itself, or what to eat, yet it
knows of hunger.
160 This then is what I was like. I never knew. Even with my gift of
intellectual awareness, I never really knew.

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161 This day was good for me. Seeing the past more clearly, I have
decided to use my knowledge and skills to work in the field of
increasing human intelligence levels. Who is better equipped
for this work? Who else has lived in both worlds? These are my
people. Let me use my gift to do something for them.
162 Tomorrow, I will discuss with Dr. Strauss the manner in which
I can work in this area. I may be able to help him work out the
problems of widespread use of the technique which was used on
me. I have several good ideas of my own.
163 There is so much that might be done with this technique. If I
could be made into a genius, what about thousands of others like
myself? What fantastic levels might be achieved by using this
technique on normal people? On geniuses?
164 There are so many doors to open. I am impatient to begin.

370 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 PROGRESS REPORT 13–May 23
NOTES
165 It happened today. Algernon bit me. I visited the lab to see
him as I do occasionally, and when I took him out of his cage, he
snapped at my hand. I put him back and watched him for a while.
He was unusually disturbed and vicious.

May 24
166 Burt, who is in charge of the experimental animals, tells me that
Algernon is changing. He is less cooperative; he refuses to run the
maze any more; general motivation has decreased. And he hasn’t
been eating. Everyone is upset about what this may mean.

May 25
167 They’ve been feeding Algernon, who now refuses to work the
shifting-lock problem. Everyone identifies me with Algernon. In
a way we’re both the first of our kind. They’re all pretending that
Algernon’s behavior is not necessarily significant for me. But it’s
hard to hide the fact that some of the other animals who were
used in this experiment are showing strange behavior.
168 Dr. Strauss and Dr. Nemur have asked me not to come to the lab
any more. I know what they’re thinking but I can’t accept it. I am
going ahead with my plans to carry their research forward. With
all due respect to both of these fine scientists, I am well aware of
their limitations. If there is an answer, I’ll have to find it out for
myself. Suddenly, time has become very important to me.

May 29
169 I have been given a lab of my own and permission to go ahead CLOSE READ
with the research. I’m on to something. Working day and night. ANNOTATE: In paragraph
I’ve had a cot moved into the lab. Most of my writing time is spent 169, mark the two
shortest sentences.
on the notes which I keep in a separate folder, but from time to
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time I feel it necessary to put down my moods and my thoughts QUESTION: What can you
out of sheer habit. tell about Charlie’s state
170 I find the calculus of intelligence to be a fascinating study. Here is of mind from the short
sentences?
the place for the application of all the knowledge I have acquired.
In a sense it’s the problem I’ve been concerned with all my life. CONCLUDE: Why has the
author made this choice?

May 31
171 Dr. Strauss thinks I’m working too hard. Dr. Nemur says
I’m trying to cram a lifetime of research and thought into a few
weeks. I know I should rest, but I’m driven on by something
inside that won’t let me stop. I’ve got to find the reason for the regression (ri GREHSH uhn)
sharp regression in Algernon. I’ve got to know if and when it will n. return to a previous, less
happen to me. advanced state

Flowers for Algernon 371

 June 4
NOTES
172 Letter to Dr. Strauss (copy)
173 Dear Dr. Strauss:
174 Under separate cover I am sending you a copy of my report
entitled, “The Algernon-Gordon Effect: A Study of Structure and
Function of Increased Intelligence,” which I would like to have
you read and have published.
175 As you see, my experiments are completed. I have included in
my report all of my formulae, as well as mathematical analysis in
the appendix. Of course, these should be verified.
176 Because of its importance to both you and Dr. Nemur (and need
I say to myself, too?) I have checked and rechecked my results a
dozen times in the hope of finding an error. I am sorry to say the
results must stand. Yet for the sake of science, I am grateful for
the little bit that I here add to the knowledge of the function of the
human mind and of the laws governing the artificial increase of
human intelligence.
177 I recall your once saying to me that an experimental failure or
the disproving of a theory was as important to the advancement of
learning as a success would be. I know now that this is true. I am
sorry, however, that my own contribution to the field must rest
upon the ashes of the work of two men I regard so highly.
178 Yours Truly,
Charles Gordon
179 encl.: rept.

June 5
180 I must not become emotional. The facts and the results of my
experiments are clear, and the more sensational aspects of my own
rapid climb cannot obscure the fact that the tripling of intelligence
by the surgical technique developed by Drs. Strauss and Nemur
must be viewed as having little or no practical applicability (at the
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present time) to the increase of human intelligence.
181 As I review the records and data on Algernon, I see that
although he is still in his physical infancy, he has regressed
mentally. Motor activity11 is impaired; there is a general reduction
of glandular activity; there is an accelerated loss of coordination.
182 There are also strong indications of progressive amnesia.
183 As will be seen by my report, these and other physical
deterioration (dih tihr ee and mental deterioration syndromes12 can be predicted with
uh RAY shuhn) n. process of statistically significant results by the application of my formula.
becoming worse
184 The surgical stimulus to which we were both subjected has
resulted in an intensification and acceleration of all mental
processes. The unforeseen development, which I have taken the
11. Motor activity movement; physical coordination.
12. syndromes (SIHN drohmz) n. a number of symptoms occurring together and
characterizing a specific disease or condition.

372 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 NOTES

Charlie, months into the experiment

liberty of calling the “Algernon-Gordon Effect,” is the logical

extension of the entire intelligence speedup. The hypothesis
here proven may be described simply in the following terms:
Artificially increased intelligence deteriorates at a rate of time
directly proportional to the quantity of the increase.
185 I feel that this, in itself, is an important discovery.
As long as I am able to write, I will continue to record my
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186

thoughts in these progress reports. It is one of my few pleasures.

However, by all indications, my own mental deterioration will be
very rapid. CLOSE READ
187 I have already begun to notice signs of emotional instability and ANNOTATE: Mark the
forgetfulness, the first symptoms of the burnout. choppy sentences that
appear at the beginning
June 10 of paragraph 188.
188 Deterioration progressing. I have become absent-minded. QUESTION: What does
Algernon died two days ago. Dissection shows my predictions this change in writing style
were right. His brain had decreased in weight and there was suggest?
a general smoothing out of cerebral convolutions as well as a
CONCLUDE: What effect
deepening and broadening of brain fissures. does knowing what is
189 I guess the same thing is or will soon be happening to me. Now happening to Charlie have
that it’s definite, I don’t want it to happen. on the reader?

Flowers for Algernon 373

 190 I put Algernon’s body in a cheese box and buried him in the
NOTES back yard. I cried.

June 15
191 Dr. Strauss came to see me again. I wouldn’t open the door and
I told him to go away. I want to be left to myself. I have become
touchy and irritable. I feel the darkness closing in. I keep telling
introspective (ihn truh myself how important this introspective journal will be.
SPEHK tihv) adj. thoughtful; 192 It’s a strange sensation to pick up a book that you’ve read
inward-looking
and enjoyed just a few months ago and discover that you don’t
remember it. I remembered how great I thought John Milton13
was, but when I picked up Paradise Lost I couldn’t understand it at
all. I got so angry I threw the book across the room.
193 I’ve got to try to hold on to some of it. Some of the things I’ve
learned. Oh, God, please don’t take it all away.

June 19
194 Sometimes, at night, I go out for a walk. Last night I couldn’t
remember where I lived. A policeman took me home. I have the
strange feeling that this has all happened to me before—a long
time ago. I keep telling myself I’m the only person in the world
who can describe what’s happening to me.

June 21
195 Why can’t I remember? I’ve got to fight. I lie in bed for days
and I don’t know who or where I am. Then it all comes back to
me in a flash. Fugues of amnesia.14 Symptoms of senility—second
childhood. I can watch them coming on. It’s so cruelly logical.
I learned so much and so fast. Now my mind is deteriorating
rapidly. I won’t let it happen. I’ll fight it. I can’t help thinking of
the boy in the restaurant, the blank expression, the silly smile, the
people laughing at him. No—please—not that again . . .

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June 22
196 I’m forgetting things that I learned recently. It seems to be
following the classic pattern—the last things learned are the first
things forgotten. Or is that the pattern? I’d better look it up again . . .
197 I reread my paper on the “Algernon-Gordon Effect” and I get
the strange feeling that it was written by someone else. There are
parts I don’t even understand.
198 Motor activity impaired. I keep tripping over things, and it
becomes increasingly difficult to type.

June 23
199 I’ve given up using the typewriter completely. My coordination
is bad. I feel that I’m moving slower and slower. Had a terrible
13. John Milton British poet (1608–1674) who wrote Paradise Lost.
14. Fugues (fyoogz) of amnesia (am NEE zhuh) periods of memory loss.

374 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 shock today. I picked up a copy of an article I used in my research,
Krueger’s “Uber psychische Ganzheit,” to see if it would help me NOTES

understand what I had done. First I thought there was something

wrong with my eyes. Then I realized I could no longer read
German. I tested myself in other languages. All gone.

June 30
200 A week since I dared to write again. It’s slipping away like
sand through my fingers. Most of the books I have are too hard
for me now. I get angry with them because I know that I read and
understood them just a few weeks ago.
201 I keep telling myself I must keep writing these reports so that
somebody will know what is happening to me. But it gets harder
to form the words and remember spellings. I have to look up even
simple words in the dictionary now and it makes me impatient
with myself.
202 Dr. Strauss comes around almost every day, but I told him I
wouldn’t see or speak to anybody. He feels guilty. They all do.
But I don’t blame anyone. I knew what might happen. But how
it hurts.

July 7
203 I don’t know where the week went. Todays Sunday I know CLOSE READ
because I can see through my window people going to church. I ANNOTATE: In paragraph
think I stayed in bed all week but I remember Mrs. Flynn bringing 203, mark errors in
Charlie’s punctuation.
food to me a few times. I keep saying over and over Ive got to do
something but then I forget or maybe its just easier not to do what QUESTION: Why are
I say Im going to do. these errors both familiar
and alarming?
204 I think of my mother and father a lot these days. I found a
picture of them with me taken at a beach. My father has a big ball CONCLUDE: What effect
under his arm and my mother is holding me by the hand. I dont do these errors have on
remember them the way they are in the picture. All I remember is the reader?
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my father arguing with mom about money.

205 He never shaved much and he used to scratch my face when
he hugged me. He said he was going to take me to see cows on a
farm once but he never did. He never kept his promises . . .

July 10
206 My landlady Mrs Flynn is very worried about me. She said she
doesnt like loafers. If Im sick its one thing, but if Im a loafer thats
another thing and she wont have it. I told her I think Im sick.
207 I try to read a little bit every day, mostly stories, but sometimes
I have to read the same thing over and over again because I dont
know what it means. And its hard to write. I know I should look
up all the words in the dictionary but its so hard and Im so tired
all the time.

Flowers for Algernon 375

 208 Then I got the idea that I would only use the easy words
NOTES instead of the long hard ones. That saves time. I put flowers on
Algernon s grave about once a week. Mrs. Flynn thinks Im crazy
to put flowers on a mouses grave but I told her that Algernon
was special.

July 14
209 Its sunday again. I dont have anything to do to keep me busy
now because my television set is broke and I dont have any
money to get it fixed. (I think I lost this months check from the lab.
I dont remember)
210 I get awful headaches and asperin doesnt help me much.
Mrs. Flynn knows Im really sick and she feels very sorry for me.
Shes a wonderful woman whenever someone is sick.

July 22
211 Mrs. Flynn called a strange doctor to see me. She was afraid
I was going to die. I told the doctor I wasnt too sick and that I
only forget sometimes. He asked me did I have any friends or
relatives and I said no I dont have any. I told him I had a friend
called Algernon once but he was a mouse and we used to run
races together. He looked at me kind of funny like he thought I
was crazy.
212 He smiled when I told him I used to be a genius. He talked to
me like I was a baby and he winked at Mrs Flynn. I got mad and
chased him out because he was making fun of me the way they all
used to.

July 24
213 I have no more money and Mrs Flynn says I got to go to work
somewhere and pay the rent because I havent paid for over two
months. I dont know any work but the job I used to have at

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Donnegans Plastic Box Company. I dont want to go back there
because they all knew me when I was smart and maybe they’ll
laugh at me. But I dont know what else to do to get money.

July 25
214 I was looking at some of my old progress reports and its very
funny but I cant read what I wrote. I can make out some of the
words but they dont make sense.
215 Miss Kinnian came to the door but I said go away I dont want to
see you. She cried and I cried too but I wouldnt let her in because I
didnt want her to laugh at me. I told her I didn’t like her any more.
I told her I didn’t want to be smart any more. Thats not true. I still
love her and I still want to be smart but I had to say that so shed go
away. She gave Mrs. Flynn money to pay the rent. I dont want that.
I got to get a job.

376 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 216 Please . . . please let me not forget how to read and write . . .
NOTES
July 27
217 Mr. Donnegan was very nice when I came back and asked him
for my old job of janitor. First he was very suspicious but I told
him what happened to me then he looked very sad and put his
hand on my shoulder and said Charlie Gordon you got guts.
218 Everybody looked at me when I came downstairs and started
working in the toilet sweeping it out like I used to. I told myself
Charlie if they make fun of you dont get sore because you
remember their not so smart as you once thot they were. And
besides they were once your friends and if they laughed at you
that doesnt mean anything because they liked you too. CLOSE READ
ANNOTATE: In paragraph
219 One of the new men who came to work there after I went away
219, mark the conclusion
made a nasty crack he said hey Charlie I hear you’re a very smart that Charlie reaches about
fella a real quiz kid. Say something intelligent. I felt bad but Joe Joe Carp.
Carp came over and grabbed him by the shirt and said leave him
QUESTION: How is
alone or Ill break your neck. I didn’t expect Joe to take my part so I the situation not really
guess hes really my friend. as simple as Charlie
220 Later Frank Reilly came over and said Charlie if anybody describes?
bothers you or trys to take advantage you call me or Joe and we
CONCLUDE: What does
will set em straight. I said thanks Frank and I got choked up so I the inclusion of this
had to turn around and go into the supply room so he wouldnt dialogue help the author
see me cry. Its good to have friends. show about Charlie?

July 28
221 I did a dumb thing today I forgot I wasnt in Miss . . . Im going someplace
Kinnians class at the adult center any more like I
use to be. I went in and sat down in my old seat in where nobody knows
the back of the room and she looked at me funny
and she said Charles. I dint remember she ever
that Charlie Gordon was
called me that before only Charlie so I said hello once a genus and now he
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Miss Kinnian Im ready for my lesin today only I

lost my reader that we was using. She startid to cry cant even reed a
and run out of the room and everybody looked at
me and I saw they wasnt the same pepul who use
book or rite good.
to be in my class.
222 Then all of a suddin I rememberd some things about the
operashun and me getting smart and I said holy smoke I reely
pulled a Charlie Gordon that time. I went away before she come
back to the room.
223 Thats why Im going away from New York for good. I don’t
want to do nothing like that agen. I dont want Miss Kinnian to
feel sorry for me. Evry body feels sorry at the factery and I dont
want that eather so Im going someplace where nobody knows that
Charlie Gordon was once a genus and now he cant even reed a
book or rite good.

Flowers for Algernon 377

NOTES

224 Im taking a cuple of books along and even if I cant reed them
Ill practise hard and maybe I wont forget every thing I lerned. If I
try reel hard maybe Ill be a littel bit smarter then I was before the
operashun. I got my rabits foot and my luky penny and maybe
they will help me.
225 If you ever reed this Miss Kinnian dont be sorry for me Im glad
I got a second chanse to be smart becaus I lerned a lot of things
that I never even new were in this world and Im grateful that I
saw it all for a littel bit. l dont know why Im dumb agen or what
I did wrong maybe its becaus I dint try hard enuff. But if I try
and practis very hard maybe Ill get a littl smarter and kow what
all the words are. I remember a littel bit how nice I had a feeling
with the blue book that has the torn cover when I reit. Thats why Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Im gonna keep trying to get smart so I can have that feeling agen.
Its a good feeling to know things and be smart. I wish I had it
rite now if I did I woud sit down and reed all the time. Anyway
I bet Im the first dumb person in the world who ever found out
something importent for sience. I remember I did somthing but
I don’t remember what. So I gess its like I did it for all the dumb
pepul like me.
226 Goodbye Miss Kinnian and Dr Strauss and evreybody. And P.S.
please tell Dr Nemur not to be such a grouch when pepul laff at
him and he woud have more frends. Its easy to make frends if you
let pepul laff at you. Im going to have lots of frends where I go.
227 P.P.S. Please if you get a chanse put some flowrs on Algernons
grave in the bak yard . . . ❧

378 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 Comprehension Check
Complete the following items after you finish your first read.

1. Who is Algernon, and why is he important?

2. What is the goal of the operation Dr. Strauss performs on Charlie?

3. What are three ways the operation changes Charlie’s life?

4. What happens to Algernon in May and June?

5. What happens to Charlie at the end of the story?

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6. Notebook Write a summary of “Flowers for Algernon.”

RESEARCH
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar detail from the text. Briefly research
that detail. In what way does the information you learned shed light on an aspect of
the story?

Research to Explore Choose something that interested you from the text, and formulate
a research question.

Flowers for Algernon 379

 MAKING MEANING

Close Read the Text

1. This model, from paragraphs 149–150 of the text, shows two sample
annotations, along with questions and conclusions. Close read the
passage, and find another detail to annotate. Then, write a question
FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON
and a conclusion.

ANNOTATE: This sentence contains many

descriptive adjectives.
QUESTION: What purpose do these
adjectives serve? ANNOTATE:
This paragraph
CONCLUDE: The author is showing that
consists of a
Charlie has become quite perceptive about
single sentence.
human behavior.
QUESTION: What
is the purpose of
I felt sick inside as I looked at his a single-sentence
dull, vacuous smile, the wide, bright paragraph?

eyes of a child, uncertain but eager CONCLUDE: The

to please. They were laughing at him author is showing
that this idea is
because he was mentally retarded. important enough
Tool Kit And I had been laughing at him to stand alone.
Close-Read Guide and
Model Annotation
too.

STANDARDS
Reading Literature
8.RL.KID.1 Analyze what a text says
explicitly and draw logical inferences; 2. For more practice, go back into the text, and complete the close-read
support an interpretation of a text by
citing relevant textual evidence.
notes.
8.RL.KID.2 Determine a theme or 3. Revisit a section of the text you found important during your first read.
central idea of a text and analyze its
development over the course of the Read this section closely, and annotate what you notice. Ask yourself
text, including its relationship to the questions such as “Why did the author make this choice?” What can
characters, setting, and plot; provide you conclude?
an objective summary.

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8.RL.CS.4 Determine the meaning
of words and phrases as they are CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE
used in a text, including figurative Analyze the Text to support your answers.
and connotative meanings; analyze
the impact of specific word choices Notebook Respond to these questions.
on meaning and tone, including
allusions to other texts, repetition of 1. Compare and Contrast In what sense is Charlie the same at the end
words and phrases, and analogies. of the story as he is at the beginning? In what sense is he different?
8.RL.CS.6 Analyze how similarities
and differences in the points of view 2. Analyze How does Charlie’s diary reveal his changing mental state?
of the audience and the characters
create effects such as suspense, 3. Draw Conclusions Review the journal entry for July 28. What has
humor, or dramatic irony. Charlie gained through his experience?
8.RL.IKI.9 Analyze how
contemporary texts are shaped 4. Analyze In what ways does Charlie’s operation affect his relationships
by foundational texts or literary with the people around him?
archetypes and how authors
allude to traditional works, myths, 5. Essential Question: In what different ways can people be
or religious texts; describe how
intelligent? What have you learned about human intelligence from
traditional elements are rendered
anew. reading this story?

380 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Analyze Craft and Structure

Development of Theme The theme of a literary work is the central
message about life that it conveys. In some works, the author expresses
the theme by stating it directly. More often, however, the author implies
or suggests the theme. To identify an implied theme, the reader analyzes
the elements of the story, such as the setting, characters, and plot. The
reader also considers the author’s choices about how to structure the
story and how to present details.

The point of view, or perspective from which a story is told, can provide
clues to the theme.

• In first-person point of view, the narrator is a participant in the

events of the story and uses first-person pronouns, such as I, me, and
my. The narrator can tell only what he or she sees, knows, thinks,
and feels. In first-person naive point of view, the narrator does
not fully understand what is happening—for example, because he or
she is a child or is traveling in an unfamiliar place.
• In third-person point of view, the narrator is not part of the story’s
events. Such a narrator uses only third-person pronouns, such as he,
she, and they.
Authors may also provide clues to the theme by using allusions. An
allusion is an unexplained reference to a well-known person, place,
event, literary work, or work of art. For instance, an author may make an
allusion to Greek or Roman mythology or to the Bible.

CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Practice to support your answers.

Notebook Answer the following questions.

1. (a) Who is the narrator of this story? (b) What point of view does this
narrator use? Explain.
2. (a) At the beginning of the story, what does Charlie know and not
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know about himself and others? (b) How does his understanding
change as the story progresses?
3. Cite specific ways in which the narrative point of view affects what
readers learn about all the characters, especially their feelings and
thoughts. Explain.
4. (a) Is Charlie’s life better or worse at the end of the story than it was
at the beginning? (b) What possible theme is suggested by Charlie’s
experience?
5. In paragraph 126, Fanny makes an allusion to a biblical story. If this
story is unfamiliar to you, briefly research it. (a) How does this story
relate to Charlie’s experiences? (b) What theme does the author’s
use of this allusion help him develop? (c) In what ways is Charlie’s
experience different—a fresh take on the biblical story?

Flowers for Algernon 381

 LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Concept Vocabulary
subconscious despised introspective

suspicion deterioration regression

FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON
Why These Words? These concept vocabulary words are related to
emotional and psychological states. Charlie experiences a range of these
states. For example, the experiment makes him aware that his co-workers
laughed at him and despised him. The experiment also changes Charlie’s
personality as his suspicion of everyone grows and he becomes more
introspective.

1. How does the concept vocabulary sharpen the reader’s understanding

of the experiment Charlie undergoes?

2. What other words in the story connect to Charlie’s experience?

Practice
! WORD NETWORK
Add words related to Notebook The concept vocabulary words appear in “Flowers
human intelligence from the for Algernon.”
text to your Word Network. 1. Suppose you were a psychology researcher. Write a paragraph about
an experiment you would like to design. Use at least four of the
concept vocabulary words in your paragraph.
2. With a partner, see if you can match each concept word to a related
word in the same word family.

Word Study
Latin Prefix: sub- You can use the Latin prefix sub-, which means
“under” or “beneath,” to help you determine the meaning of an

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unfamiliar word. In “Flowers for Algernon,” Charlie learns that his
subconscious is responsible for producing dreams and helping him learn.
STANDARDS His subconscious thoughts, or the ones of which he is unaware, sit below
Language his conscious thoughts, or the ones he knows he is having.
8.L.CSE.1 Demonstrate command
of the conventions of standard 1. Which would you expect to be a more important part of an outline, a
English grammar and usage.
topic or a subtopic? Why?
8.L.VAU.4.b Use common grade-
appropriate morphological elements
as clues to the meaning of a word or
a phrase.
8.L.VAU.6 Acquire and accurately
use grade-appropriate general
academic and domain-specific words 2. How does the definition of sub- help you determine where you might
and phrases; develop vocabulary
knowledge when considering find a submarine?
a word or phrase important to
comprehension or expression.

382 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Conventions
Direct and Indirect Objects Writers use objects to show whom or what
is affected by a verb’s action. A direct object is a noun or pronoun that
receives the action of the verb. A direct object answers the question
Whom? or What? after an action verb.

An indirect object is a noun or pronoun that comes after an action verb

and names the person or thing to which or for which something is done.
To find the indirect object, first find the direct object of the verb. Then,
ask: To whom? For whom? To what? or For what? The indirect object will
almost always come between the verb and the direct object.

DIRECT OBJECT INDIRECT OBJECT

S V DO S V IO DO
Sentence: Bill baked some cookies. Sentence: Bill baked Marissa some cookies.
Baked what? cookies Baked for whom? Marissa

Read It
1. In each sentence, identify the subject, the verb, the direct object, and
the indirect object. Some sentences do not include indirect objects.
a. In their first race, Algernon beats Charlie.
b. Miss Kinnian teaches Charlie reading and writing.
c. Charlie trusts the doctors.
2. Reread the first clause of paragraph 174 of “Flowers for Algernon.”
Mark the subject, the verb, the direct object, and the indirect object.

Write It
Notebook In each sentence, identify the subject, the verb, the direct
object, and the indirect object (if there is one). Then, rewrite the sentence
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with a different direct or indirect object. Your revisions do not have to

stay true to the events of the story.

EXAMPLE
In his progress reports, Charlie expresses his feelings.

S V DO
In his progress reports, Charlie expresses his thoughts and ideas.

1. The doctors give Charlie many tests.

2. Charlie’s co-workers often trick him. STANDARDS
Language
3. Charlie greatly admires Miss Kinnian. 8.SL.CSE.1.a When reading or
listening, analyze the use of phrases
4. Charlie brings Algernon flowers. and clauses with a larger text.

Flowers for Algernon 383

 MAKING MEANING

Comparing Texts
The script you are about to read is based on
the novel version of Flowers for Algernon. After
you read the script, you will perform the scene
FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON from FLOWERS FOR
(short story) with a group and then analyze your classmates’ ALGERNON (script)
performances. The work you do will help
prepare you for the final comparing task.

About the Playwright

David Rogers (1927–2013)
from Flowers for Algernon
was an author, playwright, Concept Vocabulary
and actor. He was born in
New York City and fell in love You will encounter the following words as you read the excerpt from the
with the theater at an early script for Flowers for Algernon. Before reading, note how familiar you are
age. In time, he became an with each word. Then, rank the words in order from most familiar (1) to
actor himself, appearing on least familiar (3).
Broadway in a production of
William Shakespeare’s As You
WORD YOUR RANKING
Like It. During his remarkable
career, Rogers was a writer for clarity
the Jackie Gleason Show and
the Carol Burnett Show; he peak
also wrote an award-winning unleashed
opera for New York City’s
Lincoln Center and numerous
After completing the first read, come back to the concept vocabulary and
adaptations of literary works
for the stage.
review your rankings. Mark changes to your original rankings as needed.

First Read DRAMA

Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
opportunity to complete a close read after your first read.

NOTICE whom the story is ANNOTATE by marking

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about, what happens, where vocabulary and key passages
and when it happens, and why you want to revisit.
those involved react as they do.

CONNECT ideas within the RESPOND by completing the

selection to what you already Comprehension Check.
know and what you have
already read.
STANDARDS
Reading
8.RL.RRTC.10 Read and
comprehend a variety of literature at
the high end of the grades 6–8 text
complexity band independently and
proficiently.

384 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ANCHOR TEXT | SCRIPT

from
Flowers for Algernon
A play by David Rogers, based on
the novel by Daniel Keyes

BACKGROUND
This script is based on Daniel Keyes’s novel Flowers for Algernon, an
expanded version of the short story you’ve just read. This particular
scene is a dramatic expansion of the progress report dated May 31.
The characters Doctor Strauss, Burt, and Charlie—or at least his
voice—from the short story are present in this scene.

1 [Lights come up on Strauss in his office. Burt is just entering,

carrying a huge pile of typed sheets which he puts on Strauss’ desk.] NOTES

2 Strauss. What’s that?

3 Burt. More of Charlie’s notes.
4 Strauss. How many days’ work is that?
Burt. Two.
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6 Strauss. Dear heaven.

7 Burt. I’ve got three stenographers1 working. I had to call in
extra help.
8 Strauss. Don’t tell me. I’m here every night till one listening
to his tapes. [He pushes the play button of his tape recorder and
they listen to:]
9 Charlie’s Voice. July eighteenth. They all think I’m killing
myself at this pace. But they don’t understand I’m living at a
peak (peek) n. highest level
peak of clarity and beauty I never knew existed. It’s as if all
clarity (KLAR uh tee) n. state
the knowledge I’ve soaked in during the past months has of thinking clearly
lifted me to a peak of light and understanding. This is beauty,

1. stenographers (stuh NOG ruh fuhrz) n. office workers who transcribe speech into
typed notes.

from Flowers for Algernon (script) 385

 love, and truth all rolled into one. This is joy. And now that
NOTES I’ve found it, how can I give it up? [Strauss snaps off the
machine and inserts new tape as he speaks.]
10 Strauss. It’s incredible. I can’t even believe any human being
can work at this level . . . at this pace.
11 Burt. Doctor. I’ve read some of this . . . of course, I don’t
understand it, but . . . is this work as brilliant as it seems?
12 Strauss. What are you asking me for? It may take science
forty years to understand what Charlie’s telling us this
month.
unleashed (uhn LEESHD) v. 13 Burt. What have we unleashed, Doctor? What do we do?
released; set loose on the
world
14 Strauss. We hire another stenographer . . . and make sure she
gets it all down correctly. [Burt exits right. Strauss pushes the
play button.]
15 Charlie’s Voice. July twenty-fifth. Algernon became lost in
the maze today. He threw himself against the walls . . .

CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

to support your answers.

Comprehension Check
Complete the following items after you finish your first read.

1. What phase of the experiment does this scene depict? How can you tell?

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2. Why are Dr. Strauss and Burt reacting to Charlie in this way?

3. How has the position of the other men changed in reference to Charlie?

4. What important information does Charlie reveal about Algernon?

386 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 MAKING MEANING

Close Read the Text

Reread the script. As you read, imagine how each line
would be delivered on stage. What tones of voice would
convey the amazement the characters feel about Charlie’s
progress? from FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON
(script)

CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Analyze the Text to support your answers.

Complete the activities.

1. Prepare the Scene Form groups of three. With your group, prepare
to perform the scene in front of the class. First, reread the script. Next,
discuss how you want to portray each character—his movements,
gestures, voice inflections, and so on. Then, rehearse the scene
several times. After each run-through, discuss ways to improve your
performance. You may even consider changing the exact words of the
script to better reflect your own interpretations of the story. Finally,
when your group is ready to perform, rejoin the whole class.

2. Perform the Scene As a class, decide the order in which the groups ! WORD NETWORK
will present their scenes. When it is your group’s turn, perform the scene
Add words related to
for the class. As other groups perform, take notes about the choices human intelligence from the
they have made. If they have decided to depart from the exact words of text to your Word Network.
the script, jot down your ideas about the effectiveness of their choices.

3. Analyze the Scene As a class, analyze each group’s performance.

First, discuss the choices the actors made about how to portray the
characters. Then, identify the extent to which they chose to depart
from the exact words of the script. Cite specific examples. Finally,
evaluate the effects and effectiveness of those choices.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Concept Vocabulary
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peak clarity unleashed

Why These Words? The three concept vocabulary words are used STANDARDS
to describe someone who is performing at the highest level—in this Reading Literature
case, Charlie. For example, the experiment has unleashed his full 8.RL.IKI.7 Analyze the extent to
which a filmed or live production
potential. Identify two other words from the selection that relate to of a story or drama stays faithful
great intelligence or emotion. to or departs from a text or script,
evaluating the choices made by the
director or actors.
Practice Langauge
8.L.KL.3 When writing and
Notebook Write a paragraph from the perspective of a high- speaking, adjust style and tone to a
performing athlete who is competing against other high-performing variety of contexts; when reading or
listening, analyze stylistic choices to
athletes. Use each of the vocabulary words correctly in the paragraph. determine context.

from Flowers for Algernon (script) 387

 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION

Writing to Compare
Daniel Keyes, the author of the short story “Flowers for Algernon,”
and David Rogers, the playwright behind the dramatic adaptation, use
different techniques to tell the same story. The specific features of a
FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON
writing form have a strong influence on a writer’s choices. Now, deepen
(short story) your understanding of those choices by comparing and contrasting them.

Assignment
Using information from class discussion, as well as details from the
selections, write an explanatory comparison-and-contrast essay
in which you identify the unique characteristics of a short story and
a script and explain how those characteristics influence the ways in
which a writer tells a story.
from FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON
(script)

Planning and Prewriting

STANDARDS
Compare Techniques Discuss the techniques used by the writers of the
Reading Literature
8.RL.CS.5 Compare and contrast short story and the script to present the same topic. Use the chart below
the structure of two or more texts to note advantages and disadvantages of each medium.
and analyze how the differing
structure of each text contributes to
its meaning and style. SHORT STORY SCRIPT
8.RL.CS.6 Analyze how similarities
and differences in the points of view Point of View
of the audience and the characters
create effects such as suspense, From what point of view, or
humor, or dramatic irony. perspective, is the story told?
Writing
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
explanatory texts to examine a topic
Characterization
and convey ideas, concepts, and
information through the selection, How do readers find out
organization, and analysis of relevant
what characters are like?
content.
a. Introduce a topic clearly, using
the introduction to prepare the
reader for what is to follow. Conflict
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b. Synthesize and organize ideas,
concepts, and information into How does the writer depict
broader categories using effective the conflicts characters face?
strategies to create cohesion and
aid in comprehension.
c. Develop the topic with relevant
facts, definitions, concrete details,
quotations, or other information Notebook Respond to these questions.
and examples.
e. Craft an effective and relevant 1. Visualization, or forming an image in your mind, can help you read
conclusion.
both a short story and a script. Is visualization more important when
8.W.RBPK.9 Support
interpretations, analyses, reflections, reading one of these forms than when reading the other? Why or
or research with evidence found why not?
in literature or informational
texts, applying grade 8 standards 2. Does the story or the script more closely match the point of view of
for reading; assess whether the
its readers or audience? (a) What effect is created by the difference in
reasoning is sound and the evidence
is relevant and sufficient to support point of view of the story version and its readers? (b) What effect is
the claims and recognize when created by similarities in points of view between the play version and
irrelevant evidence is introduced.
its audience?
388 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE
 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Drafting
Outline Decide the order in which you will present details in your essay.
If you use block organization, you will explain all of the techniques used
in one form and then discuss all of the techniques used in the other. If
you use point-by-point organization, you will choose important topics,
or points, and explain the techniques used in both forms to present one
topic, then another topic, and so on. Use the models below to help you
complete an outline for your essay.

Block Organization Point-by-Point Organization ! EVIDENCE LOG

Before moving on to a
I. Introduction I. Introduction new selection, go to your
II. Short Story II. Point of View Evidence Log and record
A. Point of View A. Short Story what you learned from the
B. Characterization B. Script short story “Flowers for
C. Conflict Algernon” and the scene
III. Characterization
from the script of the
III. Script A. Short Story dramatic adaptation.
A. Point of View B. Script
B. Characterization IV. Conflict
C. Conflict
A. Short Story
IV. Conclusion B. Script
V. Conclusion

Draft a Strong Introduction and Conclusion Planning your

introduction and conclusion before you draft can help you write a
satisfying essay. Follow these planning steps:
• Write an introduction. Begin with an introductory thesis statement that
clearly identifies the forms you will be comparing and summarizes your
main findings. Identify and mark key words in the assignment prompt,
and consider using those words or synonyms in your introduction.
Thesis Statement: ____________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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• Write a concluding thought. After presenting evidence in the body

of your essay, your conclusion will restate your main points. End with
a final statement that leaves readers with an interesting or challenging
idea about the two forms you compared.
Concluding Thought: _________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

Reviewing, Revising, and Editing

After drafting your essay, review the assignment to make sure your
writing fulfills your goals. Ask yourself:
• Have I compared and contrasted techniques used in both forms?
• Does the information provided follow a clear and logical organization?
• Are the introduction and conclusion effective?
• Is my essay free from errors in spelling, punctuation, and grammar?

Flowers for Algernon (short story) • from Flowers for Algernon (script) 389
 PERFORMANCE TASK: WRITING FOCUS

WRITING TO SOURCES

• FLOWERS FOR ALGERNON

Write an Informative Speech
(short story)
You have just read a short story and an excerpt from a script about a
character whose intelligence transforms dramatically. Now, you will
• from FLOWERS FOR use your knowledge of these texts to write an informative speech from
ALGERNON (script) Charlie’s point of view. Your speech should authentically portray Charlie’s
character, as well as his knowledge and ideas, based on details from the
short story and script.

Tool Kit Assignment

Student Model of an You have read about Charlie’s intellectual transformation, the research
Informative Text he is a part of, and the knowledge he gains from his experience.
Imagine yourself as Charlie at the beginning of June, ten weeks after
the experimental surgery. Write an informative speech on this
question:
ACADEMIC
VOCABULARY What has happened to you so far as a result of the
experiment, and what do you predict will happen to
As you craft your essay,
consider using some of the
you as time progresses?
academic vocabulary you
learned in the beginning
of the unit. Elements of an Informative Speech
assimilate An informative text or speech provides facts and details about a topic.
tendency Your assignment—writing as Charlie—is to recount the results of the
integrate experiment you have undergone and predict what will happen to you as
observation time progresses.
documentation
An effective informative text or speech does the following:
• introduces the topic clearly and organizes it in a way that an
STANDARDS audience can easily understand
Writing • uses headings, charts, tables, other graphics, or multimedia elements
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
explanatory texts to examine a topic to help illustrate ideas related to the topic
and convey ideas, concepts, and • develops the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, and
information through the selection,

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organization, and analysis of relevant quotations as needed
content. • uses a variety of transitions to make relationships among ideas clear
a. Introduce a topic clearly, using
the introduction to prepare the • demonstrates a formal style and precise word choices
reader for what is to follow. • provides a concluding statement or section that supports or extends
f. Include formatting, graphics, and
multimedia when appropriate. the information provided
g. Use appropriate and varied
transitions to create cohesion and
clarify the relationships among Model Informative Text For a model of a LAUNCH TEXT
ideas and concepts. well-crafted informative text, see the Launch UNIT

The
4 INTRODUCTION

h. Use precise language and Human

Text, “The Human Brain.” Brain
domain-specific vocabulary. LAUNCH TEXT | INFORMATIVE MODEL

This selection is an example

of an informative text, a type
of writing in which an author

j. Establish and maintain a formal Challenge yourself to find all of the elements
presents facts and details. This
is the type of writing you will
develop in the Performance-
Based Assessment at the end of
the unit.

style.
As you read, look at the way
the ideas are introduced and

of an effective informative text. You will have

facts and details are presented.
Mark the text to help you
determine key ideas and
details.

8.W.RW.10 Write routinely over

an opportunity to review these elements as you T
1 he famous scientist James Watson summarized it this way: The
NOTES brain boggles the mind! The human brain is truly impressive: It
weighs only about three pounds but controls everything a person

extended time frames and shorter

does, ever has done, and ever will do—physically, intellectually,
and emotionally. No computer even comes close to having the
brain’s abilities. The brain controls a person’s actions, reactions,
and survival functions, such as breathing. It also has the ability to

prepare to write your own informative speech.

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think, remember, process information, and learn new things.

time frames for a range of discipline-

2 The brain is one part of the central nervous system—the system
that controls all of the body’s activities. The central nervous
system is made up of the brain and the spinal cord. The brain is
protected by the skull, and the spinal cord runs through vertebrae
of the back—the bones that make up the spine. The spinal cord

specific tasks, purposes, and

transmits messages between the brain and other parts of the body
through nerve cells called neurons. If a person decides to pick
up a book from the shelf—a voluntary action—the brain sends
that message to the arm and hand through the spinal cord. And
if a person touches a hot surface and burns his or her hand—

audiences.
an involuntary action—the nerve cells in the hand send a pain
message to the brain through the spinal cord.

344 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

390 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION : In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Prewriting / Planning
Focus on Giving Information Reread the assignment. Remember, an informative
speech focuses on giving information about a topic, rather than simply telling a story.
State your topic in a sentence:
This speech is meant to give information about .

Consider Central Ideas An informative speech presents details about key ideas on the
topic. Determining your central ideas will keep your speech focused. What three ideas do
you want your audience to walk away with?
1.

2.

3.

Gather Evidence To develop your topic, you will need to add relevant ! EVIDENCE LOG
facts, details, and definitions. Start with information from the short story.
Review your Evidence Log
You may wish to research information on related topics. Because the and identify key details you
story and experiment are fictional, you may also invent details. Make may want to cite in your
sure, however, that the details are believable, based on information in the informative speech.
story, and that they make sense in the context of the story. Explain why
or how each piece of evidence relates to your topic. Study the Launch
Text to see how the writer uses different types of evidence to develop
a topic.

EVIDENCE SOURCE WHY OR HOW EVIDENCE IS IMPORTANT

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STANDARDS
Writing
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
explanatory texts to examine a topic
and convey ideas, concepts, and
information through the selection,
organization, and analysis of relevant
content.
a. Introduce a topic clearly, using
the introduction to prepare the
reader for what is to follow.
c. Develop the topic with relevant
facts, definitions, concrete details,
Connect Across Texts To connect your speech with the Anchor Texts, quotations, or other information
look for details that show the moment Charlie knows his intelligence has and examples.
d. Thoroughly and accurately
increased. How can you show this realization in your speech? In addition, explain and elaborate on the
consider how the script and the short story show Charlie’s personality. evidence provided, demonstrating
Use this information to help write a speech in the character’s voice. a clear understanding of the topic
and the source material.

Performance Task: Write an Informative Speech 391

 PERFORMANCE TASK: WRITING FOCUS

Drafting
Choose an Effective Organization Keep in mind that the purpose
of your informative speech is to help your audience understand the
intellectual transformation Charlie undergoes. Put your details in an order
that walks the audience through the experiment, the changes it causes,
and Charlie’s predictions of what will happen to him later. Consider
organizing your speech in one of these ways:
• In cause-and-effect organization, you examine the relationships
between or among events, explaining how one event or situation
(the cause) leads to a certain effect, result, or outcome. For instance,
STANDARDS the experiment can be the cause, and the effects can be the changes
Writing
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
Charlie experiences.
explanatory texts to examine a topic • In comparison-and-contrast organization, you analyze the
and convey ideas, concepts, and
information through the selection,
similarities and differences between or among two or more things.
organization, and analysis of relevant For example, you can explain the process by comparing and
content. contrasting Charlie at various points in time.
a. Introduce a topic clearly, using
the introduction to prepare the • In problem-and-solution organization, you describe a problem,
reader for what is to follow. offer at least one solution, and lay out steps to achieve this
b. Synthesize and organize ideas,
concepts, and information into
solution. Similar to cause-and-effect organization, this organization
broader categories using effective presents the cause as the problem. Remember that you are writing
strategies to create cohesion and from Charlie’s point of view. What would Charlie describe as the
aid in comprehension.
d. Thoroughly and accurately problem—his intellect or the experiment? What would he list as
explain and elaborate on the possible solutions?
evidence provided, demonstrating
a clear understanding of the topic Any of these structures will provide a cohesive flow to your speech.
and the source material. No matter which structure you choose, your informative speech
e. Craft an effective and relevant should feature a clear introduction, body, and conclusion, and include
conclusion.
f. Include formatting, graphics, and supporting information and examples. The graphic organizer here shows
multimedia when appropriate. how the Launch Text is organized.

LAUNCH TEXT

MODEL: “The Human Brain” Charlie’s Informative Speech

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INTRODUCTION
The human brain can do amazing things. INTRODUCTION

BODY ORGANIZATION
The author mostly uses cause-and-effect organization in BODY ORGANIZATION
describing how the brain works.

CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
Scientists are still learning more about the human brain.

Write a First Draft Use the information in your graphic organizer and
the text structure you have chosen to write a first draft of your speech.
Remember to use supporting evidence and examples to clarify your ideas.

392 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION : In what different ways can people be intelligent?

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT: CONVENTIONS

Subject-Verb Agreement
A verb must agree with its subject in number. The number of a noun or
pronoun may be singular (indicating one) or plural (indicating more
than one).
• Here are examples of nouns and pronouns used as singular
subjects: bus, goose, I, you, Seth or Mia
• Here are examples of nouns and pronouns used as plural
subjects: buses, geese, we, you, Seth and Mia
Most verbs have the same singular and plural form, except that in the
present tense they add -s or -es for the third-person singular form. For
example, Sam runs; Trudy goes.
Like all verbs, the verb be must agree with its subject in person and
number. It takes the form am or was with the subject I, is or was with
third-person singular subjects (such as she or Alex), and are or were
CLARIFICATION
with the subject you and all third-person plural subjects (such as they or
Make sure that every verb
children).
you use, whether in the
active voice or the passive
Read It voice, agrees with its
These sentences from the Launch Text show subject-verb agreement. subject.
• The brain controls a person’s actions, reactions, and survival • In the active voice, a
functions, such as breathing. (singular) verb’s subject performs
the action—for example,
• Neurons send messages through tiny branch-like structures that
Amanda wrote the
connect to other neurons in different parts of the brain, as well speech.
as other parts of the body. (plural)
• In the passive voice, the
verb’s subject receives the
Write It action—for example, The
As you draft your speech, make sure your subjects and verbs agree. This speech was written by
chart may help you. Amanda.
Use mainly active verbs in
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SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT your writing to emphasize

SINGULAR PLURAL the actor, not the action,
of a sentence. Active voice
I am busy. We are busy. makes writing livelier, more
precise, and more dynamic.

He runs. They run.

STANDARDS
Language
The child goes to sleep. The children go to sleep.
8.L.CSE.1 Demonstrate command
of the conventions of standard
English grammar and usage.
Seth agrees. Seth and Mia agree. 8.L.CSE.1.e. When reading or
listening, explain the function of the
voice (active and passive) and the
mood of a verb and its application
in text.

Performance Task: Write an Informative Speech 393

 PERFORMANCE TASK: WRITING FOCUS

Revising
Evaluating Your Draft
Use the following checklist to evaluate the effectiveness of your first
draft. Then, use your evaluation and the instruction on this page to guide
your revision.

FOCUS AND ORGANIZATION EVIDENCE AND ELABORATION CONVENTIONS

Introduces the topic clearly. Uses facts, definitions, Attends to the norms
concrete details, and and conventions of the
Organizes supporting information quotations to develop discipline, especially
and explanations in a way that the topic. correct subject-verb
is easy to understand, possibly agreement.
including graphical or multimedia Uses transitions to make
elements. relationships between
ideas clear.
Presents ideas in a formal style
using precise words.

Provides a conclusion that supports

the information provided.

Revising for Focus and Organization

! WORD NETWORK Choose Precise, Formal Words Choose words that capture your
meaning precisely. For example, the term IQ might express your meaning
You may want to include
interesting words from
more clearly than smarts. Since this is a speech about a scientific
your Word Network in your experiment, some technical language is appropriate. Avoid slang terms.
informative speech. Using words correctly will reflect Charlie’s extended vocabulary at
this point in the story. Remember to use complete sentences, correct
grammar, and clear language to explain information.

STANDARDS Provide a Strong Introductory Statement

Writing
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
Strong informative speeches grab the audience’s attention right away and
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explanatory texts to examine a topic hold it throughout the speech.
and convey ideas, concepts, and
In your introduction, present your topic in a way that emphasizes its
information through the selection,
organization, and analysis of relevant importance. Consider using a quotation from one of the texts, a personal
content. anecdote, or another memorable statement to begin your speech.
a. Introduce a topic clearly, using Remember that you are writing in Charlie’s voice. Make sure that you choose
the introduction to prepare the details that Charlie might have chosen at the beginning of June.
reader for what is to follow.
e. Craft an effective and relevant Revising for Evidence and Elaboration
conclusion.
f. Include formatting, graphics, and Use Transitions Transitions are words and phrases that connect and
multimedia when appropriate. show relationships among ideas. In an informative text, transitions show
g. Use appropriate and varied
transitions to create cohesion and readers or listeners how ideas or pieces of information are related.
clarify the relationships among • Words such as likewise, similarly, and conversely indicate a
ideas and concepts.
h. Use precise language and comparison or contrast.
domain-specific vocabulary. • Words such as first, next, and later tell the order in which events
j. Establish and maintain a formal
style.
occurred.
• Words such as thus and consequently signal causes and effects.
394 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE
 ESSENTIAL QUESTION : In what different ways can people be intelligent?

PEER REVIEW

Exchange speeches with a classmate. Use the checklist to evaluate your classmate’s
informative speech and provide supportive feedback.
1. Is the topic clearly introduced and organized in a way that is easy to understand?
yes no If no, suggest how the writer might improve it.

2. Is the topic developed with facts, definitions, concrete details, and quotations as
needed?
yes no If no, explain what the author might add or remove.

3. Does the speech use formal, precise language?

yes no If no, tell what you think might be missing.

4. What is the strongest part of your classmate’s speech? Explain.

Editing and Proofreading

Edit for Conventions Reread your draft for accuracy and consistency.
Correct errors in grammar and word usage. Make sure all your subjects
and verbs agree in number.
Proofread for Accuracy Read your draft carefully, looking for errors
in spelling and punctuation. Use a dictionary to check the spelling of
all key terms. In addition, check your spelling of commonly confused
words, such as affect (usually a verb) and effect (usually a noun). Finally,
check your spelling of homonyms—words that sound the same but have
different meanings and usually spellings, such as their, they’re, and there.

Publishing and Presenting

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Create a final version of your speech. Hold a class conference in which

you present your speech to a small panel of your classmates. Discuss
ways in which your speeches are similar and different. Did you include
any of the same information? Did you connect your information in the
same ways? Is the content similar but the style different? Share your
STANDARDS
thoughts with the class. Discuss what comparing the speeches taught Writing
you about developing a topic. 8.W.PDW.4 Produce clear and
coherent writing in which the
development, organization, and style
Reflecting are appropriate to task, purpose, and
audience.
Reflect on what you learned as you wrote your informative speech. 8.W.PDW.5 With some guidance
What did you learn about different ways to be intelligent? What was and support from peers and adults,
the most challenging aspect of writing your informative speech? Did you develop and strengthen writing as
needed by planning, revising, editing,
learn something from the review process that might inform your writing rewriting, or trying a new approach,
process in the future? focusing on how well purpose and
audience have been addressed.

Performance Task: Write an Informative Speech 395

 OVERVIEW: SMALL-GROUP LEARNING

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

In what different ways can people

be intelligent?
Throughout history, the topic of human intelligence has been a subject of much
debate. Scientists, writers, artists, and scholars have all reflected on the concept
of human intelligence and the factors that define it. Work with your group to
explore the ideas about different types of intelligence that are presented in the
selections in this section.

Small-Group Learning Strategies

Throughout your life, in school, in your community, and in your career, you will
continue to learn and work with others.

Review these strategies and the actions you can take to practice them as you
work in teams. Add ideas of your own for each step. Use these strategies during
Small-Group Learning.

STRATEGY ACTION PLAN

Prepare • Complete your assignments so that you are prepared for group work.
• Organize your thinking so you can contribute to your group’s discussion.

Participate fully • Make eye contact to signal that you are listening and taking in what is being said.
• Use text evidence when making a point.

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Support others • Build on ideas from others in your group.

• Invite others who have not yet spoken to do so.

Clarify • Paraphrase the ideas of others to ensure that your understanding is correct.
• Ask follow-up questions.

396 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 CONTENTS
MEMOIR

from Blue Nines and Red Words

from Born on a Blue Day
Daniel Tammet

A man who has an amazing memory and who can

speak ten languages sees and feels numbers as
shapes, colors, and textures.

MEDIA: INFOGRAPHIC
The Theory of Multiple Intelligences
Infographic
Howard Gardner

A professor of psychology shows how people have

recognizably different ways of learning, processing
information, and being intelligent.

POETRY COLLECTION

Retort Paul Laurence Dunbar

from The People, Yes Carl Sandburg

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Two poets explore distinctly different ways of

thinking about the concept of intelligence.

PERFORMANCE TASK
SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUS
Deliver a Multimedia Presentation
The Small-Group readings explore the diversity of human intelligence. After
reading, your group will plan and deliver a multimedia presentation showing how
each selection in this section highlights different aspects of human intelligence.

Overview: Small-Group Learning 397

 OVERVIEW: SMALL-GROUP LEARNING

Working as a Team
1. Discuss the Topic In your group, discuss the following question:
What are some ways in which intelligence can be obvious
yet unconventional?
As you take turns sharing your thoughts, be sure to provide examples
and reasons for your responses. After all group members have shared,
discuss some of the character traits associated with the ways of being
intelligent that you identified.

2. List Your Rules As a group, decide on the rules that you will follow
as you work together. Two samples are provided; add two more of
your own. You may add or revise rules based on your experience
together.
• Everyone should participate in group discussions.
• People should not interrupt.

3. Apply the Rules Share what you have learned about intelligence.
Make sure each person in the group contributes. Take notes and
be prepared to share with the class one thing that you heard from
another member of your group.

4. Name Your Group Choose a name that reflects the unit topic. Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Our group’s name:

5. Create a Communication Plan Decide how you want to

communicate with one another. For example, you might use online
collaboration tools, email, or instant messaging.

Our group’s decision:

398 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Making a Schedule
First, find out the due dates for the small-group activities. Then, preview
the texts and activities with your group and make a schedule for
completing the tasks.

SELECTION ACTIVITIES DUE DATE

from Blue Nines and

Red Words

The Theory of Multiple

Intelligences Infographic

Retort

from The People, Yes

Working on Group Projects

As your group works together, you’ll find it more effective if eachperson
has a specific role. Different projects require different roles. Before
beginning a project, discuss the necessary roles, and choose one for
each group member. Here are some possible roles; add your own ideas
to the list.

Project Manager: monitors the schedule and keeps everyone on task

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Researcher: organizes research activities

Recorder: takes notes during group meetings

Overview: Small-Group Learning 399

 MAKING MEANING

About the Author

from Blue Nines and Red Words
Concept Vocabulary
As you perform your first read of the excerpt from “Blue Nines and Red
Words,” you will encounter the following words.

symmetrical spiral aesthetic

Daniel Tammet (b. 1979)
grew up in a working- Base Words If these words are unfamilar to you, analyze each one
class suburb of London, to see whether it contains a base word you know. Then, use your
England, and is the eldest knowledge of the base word, or “inside” word, along with context, to
of nine children. In 2004, determine the meaning of the concept word. Here is an example of how
when he was 25, Tammet
to apply the strategy.
was diagnosed with “high-
functioning autistic savant Unfamiliar Word: skillful
syndrome,” a form of
autism. In 2005, he was the Familiar “Inside” Word: skill, with meanings including “expertise”
subject of a documentary and “learned power”
film entitled Extraordinary
People: The Boy With Context: I was astonished at the professor’s skillful ability to pass
the Incredible Brain, along complicated information.
first broadcast on British
Conclusion: The narrator is impressed with someone’s ability, so
television. Tammet’s four
skillful might mean “with skill,” or “showing expertise.”
books, the last of which was
published in 2016, have
been translated into 20 Apply your knowledge of base words and other vocabulary strategies to
languages. determine the meanings of unfamiliar words you encounter during your
first read.

First Read NONFICTION

Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
opportunity to complete a close read after your first read.

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NOTICE the general ideas of ANNOTATE by marking
the text. What is it about? Who vocabulary and key passages
is involved? you want to revisit.

STANDARDS
Reading Informational Text
8.RI.RRTC.10 Read and
comprehend a variety of literary CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
nonfiction at the high end of the
grades 6–8 text complexity band the selection to what you the Comprehension Check and
independently and proficiently. already know and what you by writing a brief summary of
Language have already read. the selection.
8.L.VAU.4 Determine or clarify the
meaning of unknown and multiple-
meaning words and phrases based
on 8th grade-level text by choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.

400 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 MEMOIR

from
Blue Nines
and Red Words
from Born on a Blue Day
Daniel Tammet

BACKGROUND
Although synesthesia, the topic of this memoir excerpt, is a neurological
condition, it also refers to a figure of speech. In synesthesia, one sense is
described using terms typically used to describe another. Many common
idioms are examples of synesthesia, such as “I smell trouble” and “The
air was so thick you could cut it with a knife.”

I
1 was born on January 31, 1979—a Wednesday. I know it
NOTES
was a Wednesday, because the date is blue in my mind and
Wednesdays are always blue, like the number 9 or the sound
of loud voices arguing. I like my birth date, because of the way
I’m able to visualize most of the numbers in it as smooth and
round shapes, similar to pebbles on a beach. That’s because they
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are prime numbers: 31, 19, 197, 97, 79, and 1979 are all divisible
only by themselves and 1. I can recognize every prime up to 9,973
by their “pebble-like” quality. It’s just the way my brain works.
2 I have a rare condition known as savant syndrome, little known
before its portrayal by actor Dustin Hoffman in the Oscar-winning
1988 film Rain Man. Like Hoffman’s character, Raymond Babbitt, I
have an almost obsessive need for order and routine which affects
virtually every aspect of my life. For example, I eat exactly 45
grams of porridge for breakfast each morning: I weigh the bowl
with an electronic scale to make sure. Then I count the number
of items of clothing I’m wearing before I leave my house. I get
anxious if I can’t drink my cups of tea at the same time each day.
Whenever I become too stressed and I can’t breathe properly,

from Blue Nines and Red Words 401

 I close my eyes and count. Thinking of numbers helps me to
NOTES become calm again.
3 Numbers are my friends, and they are always around me.
Each one is unique and has its own personality. The number 11 is
friendly and 5 is loud, whereas 4 is both shy and quiet—it’s my
favorite number, perhaps because it reminds me of myself. Some
are big—23, 667, 1,179—while others are small: 6, 13, 581. Some
are beautiful, like 333, and some are ugly, like 289. To me, every
number is special.
4 No matter where I go or what I’m doing, numbers are never
far from my thoughts. In an interview with talk-show host
David Letterman in New York, I told David he looked like the
number 117—tall and lanky. Later outside, in the appropriately
numerically named Times Square, I gazed up at the towering
skyscrapers and felt surrounded by 9s—the number I most
associate with feelings of immensity.
5 Scientists call my visual, emotional experience of numbers
synesthesia, a rare neurological1 mixing of the senses, which most
commonly results in the ability to see alphabetical letters and/
or numbers in color. Mine is an unusual and complex type,
through which I see numbers as shapes, colors, textures, and
motions. The number 1, for example, is a brilliant and bright
white, like someone shining a flashlight into my eyes. Five is a
clap of thunder or the sound of waves crashing against rocks.
Thirty-seven is lumpy like porridge, while 89 reminds me of
falling snow.
6 Probably the most famous case of synesthesia was the one
written up over a period of thirty years from the 1920s by the
Russian psychologist A. R. Luria of a journalist called
Shereshevsky with a prodigious memory. “S,” as Luria called him
in his notes for the book The Mind of a Mnemonist, had a highly
visual memory which allowed him to “see” words and numbers

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as different shapes and colors. “S” was able to remember a matrix
of 50 digits after studying it for three minutes, both immediately
afterwards and many years later. Luria credited Shereshevsky’s
synesthetic experiences as the basis for his remarkable short- and
long-term memory.
7 Using my own synesthetic experiences since early childhood,
I have grown up with the ability to handle and calculate huge
numbers in my head without any conscious effort, just like the
Raymond Babbitt character. In fact, this is a talent common to

1. neurological (nur uh LOJ uh kuhl) adj. occurring in the brain.

402 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 several other real-life savants (sometimes referred to as “lightning
calculators”). Dr. Darold Treffert, a Wisconsin physician and the NOTES

leading researcher in the study of savant syndrome, gives one

example, of a blind man with “a faculty of calculating to a degree
little short of marvelous” in his book Extraordinary People:

8 When he was asked how many grains of corn there would

be in any one of 64 boxes, with 1 in the first, 2 in the second,
4 in the third, 8 in the fourth, and so on, he gave answers
for the fourteenth (8,192), for the eighteenth (131,072) and
the twenty-fourth (8,388,608) instantaneously, and he gave
the figures for the forty-eighth box (140,737,488,355,328) in
six seconds. He also gave the total in all 64 boxes correctly
(18,446,744,073,709,551,616) in forty-five seconds.

9 My favorite kind of calculation is power multiplication, which

means multiplying a number by itself a specified number of
Mark base words or indicate
times. Multiplying a number by itself is called squaring; for another strategy you used to help
example, the square of 72 is 72 × 72 = 5,184. Squares are always you determine meaning.
symmetrical shapes in my mind, which makes them especially symmetrical (sih MEH trih
beautiful to me. Multiplying the same number three times over is kuhl) adj.
MEANING:
called cubing or “raising” to the third power. The cube, or third
power, of 51 is equivalent to 51 × 51 × 51 = 132,651. I see each
result of a power multiplication as a distinctive visual pattern in
my head. As the sums and their results grow, so the mental shapes
and colors I experience become increasingly more complex. I see
37’s fifth power—37 × 37 × 37 × 37 × 37 = 69,343,957—as a large
circle composed of smaller circles running clockwise from the
top around.
10 When I divide one number by another, in my head I see a spiral spiral (SPY ruhl) n.
rotating downwards in larger and larger loops, which seem to MEANING:

warp and curve. Different divisions produce different sizes of

spirals with varying curves. From my mental imagery I’m able to
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calculate a sum like 13 ÷ 97 (0.1340206 . . .) to almost a hundred

decimal places.
11 I never write anything down when I’m calculating, because
I’ve always been able to do the sums in my head, and it’s much
easier for me to visualize the answer using my synesthetic shapes
than to try to follow the “carry the one” techniques taught in the
textbooks we are given at school. When multiplying, I see the
two numbers as distinct shapes. The image changes and a third
shape emerges—the correct answer. The process takes a matter of
seconds and happens spontaneously. It’s like doing math without
having to think.

from Blue Nines and Red Words 403

 12 In the illustration above I’m multiplying 53 by 131. I see both
NOTES numbers as a unique shape and locate each spatially opposite the
other. The space created between the two shapes creates a third,
which I perceive as a new number: 6,943, the solution to the sum.
13 Different tasks involve different shapes, and I also have
various sensations or emotions for certain numbers. Whenever
I multiply with 11 I always experience a feeling of the digits
tumbling downwards in my head. I find 6s hardest to remember
of all the numbers, because I experience them as tiny black dots,
without any distinctive shape or texture. I would describe them
as like little gaps or holes. I have visual and sometimes emotional
responses to every number up to 10,000, like having my own
visual, numerical vocabulary. And just like a poet’s choice of
words, I find some combinations of numbers more beautiful than
others: ones go well with darker numbers like 8s and 9s, but not so
Mark base words or indicate
well with 6s. A telephone number with the sequence 189 is much
Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
another strategy you used to help
you determine meaning. more beautiful to me than one with a sequence like 116.
aesthetic (ehs THEHT ihk) 14 This aesthetic dimension to my synesthesia is something
adj. that has its ups and downs. If I see a number I experience as
MEANING:
particularly beautiful on a shop sign or a car license plate, there’s
a shiver of excitement and pleasure. On the other hand, if the
numbers don’t match my experience of them—if, for example, a
shop sign’s price has “99 pence” in red or green (instead of blue)—
then I find that uncomfortable and irritating.
15 It is not known how many savants have synesthetic experiences
to help them in the areas they excel in. One reason for this is
that, like Raymond Babbitt, many suffer profound disability,
preventing them from explaining to others how they do the things
that they do. I am fortunate not to suffer from any of the most
severe impairments that often come with abilities such as mine.

404 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 16 Like most individuals with savant syndrome, I am also on the
autistic spectrum. I have Asperger’s syndrome, a relatively mild
and high-functioning form of autism that affects around 1 in every NOTES
300 people in the United Kingdom. According to a 2001 study by
the U.K.’s National Autistic Society, nearly half of all adults with
Asperger’s syndrome are not diagnosed until after the age of
sixteen. I was finally diagnosed at age twenty-five following tests
and an interview at the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge.
17 Autism, including Asperger’s syndrome, is defined by
the presence of impairments affecting social interaction,
communication, and imagination (problems with abstract or
flexible thought and empathy, for example). Diagnosis is not easy
and cannot be made by a blood test or brain scan; doctors have
to observe behavior and study the individual’s developmental
history from infancy.
18 People with Asperger’s often have good language skills and
are able to lead relatively normal lives. Many have above-average
IQs and excel in areas that involve logical or visual thinking.
Like other forms of autism, Asperger’s is a condition affecting
many more men than women (around 80 percent of autistics
and 90 percent of those diagnosed with Asperger’s are men).
Single-mindedness is a defining characteristic, as is a strong
drive to analyze detail and identify rules and patterns in systems.
Specialized skills involving memory, numbers, and mathematics
are common. It is not known for certain what causes someone to
have Asperger’s, though it is something you are born with.
19 For as long as I can remember, I have experienced numbers
in the visual, synesthetic way that I do. Numbers are my first
language, one I often think and feel in. Emotions can be hard
for me to understand or know how to react to, so I often use
numbers to help me. If a friend says they feel sad or depressed,
I picture myself sitting in the dark hollowness of number 6 to
help me experience the same sort of feeling and understand it. If
I read in an article that a person felt intimidated by something,
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I imagine myself standing next to the number 9. Whenever

someone describes visiting a beautiful place, I recall my numerical
landscapes and how happy they make me feel inside. By doing
this, numbers actually help me get closer to understanding
other people.
20 Sometimes people I meet for the first time remind me of a
particular number and this helps me to be comfortable around
them. They might be very tall and remind me of the number 9,
or round and remind me of the number 3. If I feel unhappy or
anxious or in a situation I have no previous experience of (when
I’m much more likely to feel stressed and uncomfortable), I count
to myself. When I count, the numbers form pictures and patterns
in my mind that are consistent and reassuring to me. Then I can
relax and interact with whatever situation I’m in.

from Blue Nines and Red Words 405

 21 Thinking of calendars always makes me feel good, all those
NOTES numbers and patterns in one place. Different days of the week
elicit different colors and emotions in my head: Tuesdays are a
warm color while Thursdays are fuzzy. Calendrical calculation—
the ability to tell what day of the week a particular date fell or will
fall on—is common to many savants. I think this is probably due
to the fact that the numbers in calendars are predictable and form
patterns between the different days and months. For example, the
thirteenth day in a month is always two days before whatever day
the first falls on, excepting leap years, while several of the months
mimic the behavior of others, like January and October, September
and December, and February and March (the first day of February
is the same as the first day of March). So if the first of February
is a fuzzy texture in my mind (Thursday) for a given year, the
thirteenth of March will be a warm color (Tuesday).
22 In his book The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, writer and
neurologist Oliver Sacks mentions the case of severely autistic
twins John and Michael as an example of how far some savants
are able to take calendrical calculations. Though unable to care for
themselves (they had been in various institutions since the age of
seven), the twins were capable of calculating the day of the week
for any date over a 40,000-year span.
23 Sacks also describes John and Michael as playing a game that
involved swapping prime numbers with each other for hours at
a time. Like the twins, I have always been fascinated by prime
numbers. I see each prime as a smooth-textured shape, distinct
from composite numbers (non-primes) that are grittier and less
distinctive. Whenever I identify a number as prime, I get a rush
of feeling in my head (in the front center) which is hard to put
into words. It’s a special feeling, like the sudden sensation of pins
and needles.
24 Sometimes I close my eyes and imagine the first thirty, fifty,

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hundred numbers as I experience them spatially, synesthetically.
Then I can see in my mind’s eye just how beautiful and special the
primes are by the way they stand out so sharply from the other
number shapes. It’s exactly for this reason that I look and look and
look at them; each one is so different from the one before and the
one after. Their loneliness among the other numbers makes them
so conspicuous and interesting to me.
25 There are moments, as I’m falling into sleep at night, that
my mind fills suddenly with bright light and all I can see are
numbers—hundreds, thousands of them—swimming rapidly
over my eyes. The experience is beautiful and soothing to me.
Some nights, when I’m having difficulty falling asleep, I imagine
myself walking around my numerical landscapes. Then I feel safe
and happy. I never feel lost, because the prime number shapes act
as signposts. ❧

406 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 Comprehension Check
Complete the following items after you finish your first read. Review and clarify
details with your group.

1. Why does Tammet call his birth date blue?

2. What is one way in which the author says he demonstrates savant syndrome?

3. How does the author compare his experience with numbers to a poet’s choice
of words?

4. What is the author’s favorite type of calculation?

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5. Notebook Confirm your understanding of the text by writing a short

summary.

RESEARCH
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar point that Daniel Tammet makes
about intelligence. Briefly research that detail. In what way does the information you
learned shed light on an aspect of the memoir?

from Blue Nines and Red Words 407

 MAKING MEANING

Close Read the Text

With your group, revisit sections of the text you marked
during your first read. Annotate what you notice. What
questions do you have? What can you conclude?
from BLUE NINES AND
RED WORDS
CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE
Analyze the Text to support your answers.

Notebook Complete the activities.

1. Review and Clarify With your group, reread paragraphs 9–12.
GROUP DISCUSSION Discuss the author’s descriptions of his experiences with numbers. How
Listen carefully to others are his experiences of numbers an example of a kind of intelligence?
as they state their ideas.
Try not to repeat an idea 2. Present and Discuss Now, work with your group to share the
that someone has already passages from the text that you found especially important. Take turns
stated. Instead, try to make presenting your passages. Discuss what you noticed in the text, what
a new point or add a new questions you asked, and what conclusions you reached.
example to support points
already made. 3. Essential Question: In what different ways can people be
intelligent? What has this memoir taught you about the different
ways people can be intelligent? Discuss with your group.

! WORD NETWORK LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Add words related to hu-
man intelligence from the
text to your Word Network.
Concept Vocabulary
symmetrical spiral aesthetic

Why These Words? The concept vocabulary words from the text are
related. With your group, determine what the words have in common.
Write your ideas, and add another word that fits the category.
STANDARDS
Practice
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Language
8.L.VAU.4.b Use common grade-
appropriate morphological elements Notebook Confirm your understanding of the concept vocabulary
as clues to the meaning of a word words by using each one in a sentence. In each sentence, provide context
or phrase. clues for the vocabulary word to demonstrate your understanding of the
Reading Informational Text word’s meaning.
8.RI.KID.2 Determine a central idea
of a text and analyze its development
over the course of the text, including
its relationship to supporting ideas; Word Study
provide an objective summary.
Latin Suffix: -ical In “Blue Nines and Red Words,” Daniel Tammet uses
8.RI.KID.3 Analyze the techniques
used to distinguish between and to
the word symmetrical to describe how he envisions squared numbers.
make connections among individuals, The word symmetrical ends with the Latin suffix -ical, which means
events, or ideas in a text. “having to do with,” “made of,” or “characterized by.” Find other words
8.RI.CS.6 Determine an author’s in the selection that have this suffix. Use a dictionary to verify the precise
point of view or purpose in a
text and analyze how the author meanings of these words.
acknowledges and responds to
conflicting evidence or viewpoints.

408 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 In what different
ESSENTIAL QUESTION:ESSENTIAL QUESTION:ways
What
can does
people
it take
be intelligent?
to survive?

Analyze Craft and Structure

Memoir and Reflective Writing An autobiography is a true
CLARIFICATION
account of events and experiences written by the person who directly
As you read a reflective
experienced them. A memoir is a type of autobiography that focuses on
piece, pay attention to the
a specific period in the author’s life or an experience that holds particular
comparisons and contrasts
significance for the author. For example, in the excerpt from “Blue Nines an author makes to connect
and Red Words,” Daniel Tammet explores his experience with savant people, ideas, and events.
syndrome.

In a memoir, an author will often use reflective writing to communicate

his or her thoughts and feelings—or reflections—about an event,
experience, or idea. The purpose of reflective writing is to communicate
these reflections in a way that inspires readers to respond with their own
reflections. Reflective writing can reveal a variety of insights:

• what the author learned from the event or experience

• what the experience revealed about the author’s personality
• how the author feels about other people in his or her life
• how the author relates to his or her environment and the world
• how the author responds to the conflicts, or struggles, with which he
or she is faced

These insights help develop and reveal the author’s central ideas, or
main points, in a memoir. The ways in which the author structures and
connects his or her experiences and insights in a reflective piece enable
the author to achieve his or her purpose, or reason for writing.

CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Practice to support your answers.

Notebook Work individually to analyze Tammet’s use of reflective

writing in “Blue Nines and Red Words,” using a chart like the one
shown. After you have completed the chart, compare charts with your
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group members. Then, as a group, determine the central ideas that are
revealed through your analysis.

TAMMET’S EXPERIENCES TAMMET’S REFLECTIONS CLUES ABOUT CENTRAL IDEA

from Blue Nines and Red Words 409

 LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Conventions
Pronoun Case English has three cases, or forms, of pronouns. Writers
use pronoun cases according to a pronoun’s function in a sentence.

• nominative case: used for the subjects of verbs and for predicate
from BLUE NINES AND
RED WORDS
pronouns; also known as the subjective case
• objective case: used for direct and indirect objects and for objects of
prepositions
• possessive case: used to show ownership

The chart below shows the three categories for personal pronouns.

FUNCTION IN A
COLLABORATION CASE PRONOUNS
SENTENCE
Discuss the definitions and
examples of these pronoun nominative (subject) I, we, you, he, she, subject of a verb (“She read
cases as a group. If you it, they the book.”)
have a good grasp of the
predicate pronoun (“The
concepts, explain them to
book reader was she.”)
others. If your group is still
having difficulty, consult
objective (object) me, us, you, him, direct object (“Daniel said
with your teacher.
her, it, them it to Mia.”)
indirect object (“Daniel told
her his idea.”)
object of a preposition
(“Daniel told the idea to
her.”)

possessive my, mine, our, to show ownership (“Daniel

ours, your, yours, told his idea to Mia.”)
his, her, hers, its,
their, theirs

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Read It
Work individually to choose the correct pronouns and give their cases.

1. When Daniel Tammet thinks of numbers, (he/his) sees colors.

2. Prime numbers look like pebbles, and Daniel likes (they/them).

3. When (he/him) adds or multiplies numbers, Daniel does not write

(they/them) down.

4. Daniel Tammet sees (he/his) own birthday as blue.

STANDARDS
Language Write It
8.L.CSE.1 Demonstrate command
of the conventions of standard Notebook Write three sentences about the selection. Use all three
English grammar and usage. pronoun cases at least once.

410 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION

Research

Assignment
With your group, write a brief informational report. Choose from
the following options:
Conduct research to learn more about the condition known as
synesthesia. Then, write a report in which you explain the ways
in which Daniel Tammet’s experience serves as an example of this ! EVIDENCE LOG
condition. Before moving on to a
Conduct research to learn more about a well-known savant in a new selection, go to your
specific field, such as mathematics, music, language, or memory. Evidence Log, and record
Then, write a report in which you compare the experience of the what you learned from the
savant you chose to Tammet’s experience. excerpt from “Blue Nines
and Red Words.”

Gather Evidence Gather a variety of evidence from relevant, reliable

print and digital sources. Use the chart to guide your research and note
important information.

QUESTION EVIDENCE

What is the condition or ability, and

what makes it extraordinary?

How has the condition or ability

shaped the person’s life? STANDARDS
Writing
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
explanatory texts to examine a topic
and convey ideas, concepts, and
In what ways does Tammet’s information through the selection,
organization, and analysis of relevant
experience reflect the condition or
content.
ability? c. Develop the topic with relevant
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facts, definitions, concrete details,

quotations, or other information
and examples.
h. Use precise language and
Explain Technical Vocabulary In “Blue Nines and Red Words,” domain-specific vocabulary.
you may have noticed scientific terms such as autistic spectrum and 8.W.RBPK.7 Conduct research
to answer a question (including a
Asperger’s syndrome. As you conduct research, you will encounter self-generated question), drawing
various other technical terms. It is important to understand what these on multiple sources and generating
words mean so that you can use and explain them in your report. The additional related, focused
questions that allow for multiple
following strategies will help you clarify technical terms for readers who avenues of exploration.
might not be familiar with them: 8.W.RBPK.8 Use search terms
effectively; integrate relevant
• Summarize or paraphrase the term’s meaning by putting it into your and credible information from
own words. print and digital sources; quote
or paraphrase the data and
• Provide examples of a complicated idea or process so readers can conclusions of others while
connect it with something familiar. avoiding plagiarism and following
a standard format for citation.

from Blue Nines and Red Words 411

 MAKING MEANING

About the Theorist

The Theory of Multiple
Intelligences Infographic
Media Vocabulary
The following words or concepts will be useful to you as you analyze,
discuss, and write about infographics.
Howard Gardner (b. 1943)
is an American psychologist infographic: image used to present • An infographic can help simplify a
and a professor at the Harvard information, data, or knowledge complicated subject and present it
Graduate School of Education.
quickly and clearly in an engaging way.
The child of Jewish parents
who fled Germany before • Infographics are structured to
World War II, Gardner has been encourage readers to compare
called “one of the 100 most different ideas and information.
influential public intellectuals
icons: symbols or graphic • Icons are design to be simple,
in the world.” Although he has
published dozens of books and
representations, often used in functional, and easily recognizable.
research articles, he remains charts and on digital screens • On digital screens, icons allow the
best known for his theory of user to easily identify and access
multiple intelligences, which he files, programs, and applications.
outlined in his book Frames of
Mind: The Theory of Multiple labels and captions: short • Captions are used to briefly explain
Intelligences. descriptive words or phrases that the content of an image.
provide information • Labels are often formatted to draw
attention to specific content.

First Review MEDIA: INFOGRAPHIC

Apply these strategies as you conduct your first review. You will have an
opportunity to complete a close review after your first review.

LOOK at each image and NOTE elements in each image

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determine whom or what it that you find interesting and
portrays. want to revisit.

STANDARDS
Reading Informational Text
8.RI.RRTC.10 Read and
comprehend a variety of literary CONNECT details in the RESPOND by completing the
nonfiction at the high end of the images to other media you’ve Comprehension Check.
grades 6–8 text complexity band experienced, texts you’ve
independently and proficiently.
read, or images you’ve seen.
Language
8.L.VAU.6 Acquire and accurately
use grade-appropriate general
academic and domain-specific words
and phrases; develop vocabulary
knowledge when considering
a word or phrase important to
comprehension or expression.

412 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 MEDIA | INFOGRAPHIC

The Theory of Multiple

Intelligences Infographic
Howard Gardner
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BACKGROUND
When Howard Gardner first developed his theory of multiple intelligences in
1983, he identified seven different ways that people can be intelligent. He
added the naturalist and existential intelligences to his theory about a decade
later. According to his theory, intelligence is not defined by a single ability, but
by different types of related abilities. Gardner’s theory claims that most people
have a combination of these types of intelligences, but they will often display
some types more strongly than others.

NOTES

The Theory of Multiple Intelligences Infographic 413

 MAKING MEANING

Comprehension Check
Complete the following items after you finish your first review. Review
and clarify details with your group.

1. What ability is associated with linguistic intelligence?

2. Which type of intelligence is characterized by the ability to understand

yourself and your feelings?

3. What ability is associated with interpersonal intelligence?

4. Which type of intelligence is shown by the ability to picture the world

in 3D?

MEDIA VOCABULARY
Close Review
Use these words as you
discuss and write about With your group, review the infographic and your
the infographic. first-review notes. What questions do you have? What
can you conclude?
infographic
icons
labels and captions
CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE
Analyze the Media to support your answers.

Notebook Complete the activities.

1. Analyze and Discuss How do the captions and labels in the Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
! WORD NETWORK
Add words related to
infographic enhance your understanding of the different ways in
human intelligence from the which people can be intelligent? Provide specific examples to support
text to your Word Network. your response.

2. Review and Synthesize Review the infographic with your group.

What are the advantages of presenting the information about multiple
intelligences in an infographic? In what ways might presenting the
information this way be disadvantageous?
STANDARDS
Reading Informational Text
8.RI.IKI.7 Evaluate the advantages 3. Essential Question: In what different ways can people be
and disadvantages of using different intelligent? What has this infographic taught you about the different
mediums to present a particular
topic or idea. ways people can be intelligent? Discuss with your group.

414 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION

Speaking and Listening

Assignment
Take part in a group discussion about the different types of
THE THEORY OF MULTIPLE
intelligence shown on the infographic. Choose from the following INTELLIGENCES INFOGRAPHIC
topics:
With your group, engage in a collaborative discussion in which
you analyze the nine types of intelligence. Then, pick three or
four types on which to focus. For each type of intelligence,
identify a well-known person, from the past or present, who has
demonstrated that type of intelligence in a particularly strong
way. For example, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is a good example
of a person with substantial linguistic intelligence. Finally, write
a sentence or two about each person you have identified, in
which you explain how he or she has demonstrated that type of
intelligence.

With your group, engage in a collaborative discussion in which

you analyze the nine types of intelligence. Then, pick three or ! EVIDENCE LOG
four types on which to focus. For each type of intelligence,
Before moving on to a
identify a fictional character from literature who demonstrates new selection, go to your
that type of intelligence in a particularly strong way. For example, Evidence Log, and record
Sherlock Holmes might be a good example of a character who what you learned from the
demonstrates great logical-mathematical intelligence. Finally, write infographic.
a sentence or two about each character, in which you explain how
he or she demonstrates that type of intelligence.

Notebook Record notes from your discussion in the chart.

PERSON/CHARACTER TYPE OF INTELLIGENCE WHY

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Holding the Discussion Be sure to come to the discussion prepared

with ideas that are supported with evidence from the infographic. If you
disagree with someone else’s ideas or views, express your disagreement
respectfully. Pose questions that connect the ideas of other speakers, STANDARDS
Speaking and Listening
and respond to questions from other group members with relevant 8.SL.CC.1 Prepare for collaborative
observations supported by details from the text. When another group discussions on 8th grade level topics
member provides information that is new to you, reflect on your own and texts; engage effectively with
varied partners, building on others’
ideas, and decide whether the new information has changed your ideas ideas and expressing one’s own ideas
about the subject matter. clearly.

The Theory of Multiple Intelligences Infographic 415

 MAKING MEANING

POETRY COLLECTION

Retort
from The People, Yes
Archaic Vocabulary
Just as the way we live changes over time, so, too, does the way we
speak and use language. The vocabulary words are “archaic” words
because, though once in common usage, they are no longer used
regularly today, or the way in which they are used has changed. As you
conduct your first read of these poems, you will encounter these words.

art tress fair

Context Clues To find the meaning of an unfamiliar word, look for clues
in the context—words and phrases that appear in nearby text.

Example from “Life’s Tragedy,” by Paul Laurence Dunbar:

It may be misery never to be loved, / But deeper griefs than
these beset the way.
Possible Meaning: Because of the context clues “griefs” and
“the way,” I can infer that beset may mean “pose obstacles.”

Apply your knowledge of context clues and other vocabulary strategies to

determine the meanings of unfamiliar words you encounter during your
first read.

First Read POETRY

Apply these strategies as you conduct your first read. You will have an
opportunity to complete a close read after your first read.

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STANDARDS
Reading Literature NOTICE who or what is ANNOTATE by marking
8.RL.RRTC.10 Read and “speaking” the poem and vocabulary and key passages
comprehend a variety of literature at
the high end of the grades 6–8 text
whether the poem tells a story you want to revisit.
complexity band independently and or describes a single moment.
proficiently.
Language
8.L.CSE.1.a When reading or
listening, analyze the use of phrases
and clauses within a larger text. CONNECT ideas within RESPOND by completing
8.L.VAU.4 Determine or clarify the the selection to what you the Comprehension Check.
meaning of unknown and multiple- already know and what you
meaning words and phrases based have already read.
on 8th grade-level text by choosing
flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use context as a clue to the
meaning of a word or phrase.

416 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION : In what different ways can people be intelligent?

About the Poets Backgrounds

Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872–1906) was Retort
one of the first African American poets to
In Greek mythology, the Muses were a
achieve national prominence. The child of
group of goddesses who represented
freed slaves from Kentucky, Dunbar often
the arts and sciences. Currently, a muse
wrote stories and poems about plantation
life, many of which were written in dialect. can refer to any person who inspires
Despite being a fine student, Dunbar could an artist, writer, or musician and who
not afford to pay for college, so he took a may be a reoccurring focus of or subject
job as an elevator operator. In 1893, Dunbar in their work. Paul Laurence Dunbar
self-published a collection of poems called addresses a woman named Phyllis, a
Oak and Ivy. To help pay the publishing costs possible muse, in this poem, as well as in
and gain an audience for his poetry, he sold several other poems, including “Phyllis”
the book for a dollar to people riding in his and “Response.”
elevator.

Carl Sandburg (1878–1967) was a Pulitzer from The People, Yes

Prize–winning American poet, historian, and
The excerpt in this section is part of a
novelist. Born in Galesburg, Illinois, to
longer epic poem entitled The People,
Swedish immigrant parents, Sandburg
Yes. Carl Sandburg wrote this 300-page
decided at age six that he would be a writer.
Although he had to quit school after eighth poem in the 1930s during the height
grade to go to work so he could help of the Great Depression, a period when
support his family, Sandburg continued to many people could not find work and
write. As he pursued writing, Sandburg lived in poverty. As a whole, the epic
worked in a variety of positions, from factory poem praises the perseverance and
worker to newspaperman. He also became a triumphs of the American people.
well-known musician and political activist.
The variety of Sandburg’s experiences
informed his writing, and Sandburg
eventually gained recognition as an iconic
American writer.
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Poetry Collection 417

POETRY

Retort
Paul Laurence Dunbar

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418 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 “Thou art a fool,” said my head to my heart,
“Indeed, the greatest of fools thou art, NOTES

To be led astray by the trick of a tress,

By a smiling face or a ribbon smart;” Mark context clues or indicate
5 And my heart was in sore distress. another strategy you used that
helped you determine meaning.
art (ahrt) v.
Then Phyllis came by, and her face was fair,
MEANING:
The light gleamed soft on her raven hair;
And her lips were blooming a rosy red.
Then my heart spoke out with a right bold air:
tress (trehs) n.
10 “Thou art worse than a fool, O head!”
MEANING:

fair (fair) adj.

MEANING:
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Retort 419
POETRY

from The People, Yes

Carl Sandburg

The white man drew a small circle in the sand

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NOTES and told the red man, “This is what the Indian
knows,” and drawing a big circle around the
small one, “This is what the white man knows.”
5 The Indian took the stick and swept an immense
ring around both circles: “This is where the
white man and the red man know nothing.”

420 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 Comprehension Check
Complete the following items after you finish your first read. Review and clarify
details with your group.

RETORT

1. In the first stanza of the poem, how does the speaker’s heart feel?

2. How does the speaker describe Phyllis’s face?

3. What kind of “air” does the speaker’s heart speak with?

from THE PEOPLE, YES

Draw the figure created by the circles described in the poem. Label each circle
according to the details the speaker provides.
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RESEARCH
Research to Clarify Choose at least one unfamiliar detail from one of the poems.
Briefly research that detail. In what way does the information you learned shed light on
an aspect of the poem?

Poetry Collection 421

 MAKING MEANING

Close Read the Text

With your group, revisit sections of the text you marked
during your first read. Annotate what you notice. What
questions do you have? What can you conclude?
POETRY COLLECTION

CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Analyze the Text to support your answers.

Notebook Complete the activities.

GROUP DISCUSSION
1. Review and Clarify With your group, reread “Retort.” Who are the
Make sure that everyone
in the group has the
two fools in the poem? Why are they both fools? How does Dunbar’s
opportunity to speak. poem connect to the idea of different types of intelligence?
Encourage quiet members
2. Present and Discuss Now, work with your group to share lines from
to join the discussion.
the poems that you found especially important. Take turns presenting
! WORD NETWORK your lines. Discuss what you noticed in the text, what questions you
asked, and what conclusions you reached.
Add words related to
human intelligence from 3. Essential Question: In what different ways can people be
the text to your Word
intelligent? What have these poems taught you about the different
Network.
ways people can be intelligent? Discuss with your group.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Archaic Vocabulary
STANDARDS
Reading Literature art tress fair
8.RL.CS.4 Determine the
meaning of words and phrases as
they are used in a text, including Why These Words? The vocabulary words for these poems are all
figurative and connotative archaic words. Find at least one additional archaic word in the poems.
meanings; analyze the impact of Determine if the word you identified is no longer used in everyday
specific word choices on meaning
and tone, including allusions to English, or if it is used but its meaning has changed.
Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.
other texts, repetition of words
and phrases, and analogies.
8.RL.CS.5 Compare and contrast
Practice
the structure of two or more texts Notebook Confirm your understanding of these words from
and analyze how the differing
structure of each text contributes
the text by using each in a sentence. Provide context clues for each
to its meaning and style. vocabulary word to demonstrate your understanding.
Language
8.L.VAU.4 Determine or clarify
the meaning of unknown and Word Study
multiple-meaning words and
phrases based on 8th grade-level Notebook Multiple-Meaning Words In “Retort,” the speaker
text by choosing flexibly from a describes Phyllis’s face using the word fair—a word with multiple possible
range of strategies. meanings. Write the meaning of the word as the speaker uses it. Then,
8.L.VAU.5 When reading,
listening, writing, and speaking, write three other meanings of the word. If you have trouble thinking of
explain the function of figurative three, use a dictionary to help you.
language, word relationships, and
connotation/denotation and use
them correctly and effectively.

422 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Analyze Craft and Structure

Author’s Choices: Poetic Structures A poetic form is a set
arrangement of poetic elements. A form may have a certain number
of stanzas, lines, or both. It may require a pattern of rhyme, called a
rhyme scheme. It may also use a certain meter, or pattern of stressed
and unstressed syllables. Some forms of poetry have rules for all of these
elements. This type of poetry is seen as having a formal structure. By
contrast, free verse poetry does not follow any set pattern. A free verse
poem may have rhyme or meter, but those elements will vary throughout
the poem. Most poems—whether formal or free verse—include sound
devices. These are combinations of words that emphasize the musical
qualities of language. Common sound devices include the following types:

• Alliteration: repetition of consonant sounds at the beginnings of

syllables, especially stressed syllables
EXAMPLE: O wild West Wind
• Consonance: repetition of consonant sounds at the ends of syllables
with different vowel sounds
EXAMPLE: a quiet light, and then not even that
• Assonance: repetition of vowel sounds in stressed syllables that end
with different consonant sounds
EXAMPLE: pebbles resting in wet sand

CITE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Practice to support your answers.

Notebook Work with your group to analyze the poems in this

collection. Use a chart like this one to record your ideas. Then, answer the
questions that follow.

RETORT from THE PEOPLE, YES

Is the poem free verse

or formal verse? How
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do you know?

What kind of sound

devices are used?
Identify the line(s)
in which the sound
devices appear.

1. (a) A retort is a quick, sharp reply, especially one that turns the words of the
previous speaker back upon that speaker. Reread “Retort,” and identify the central
idea of each stanza. (b) How does the structure of the poem reflect its title?

2. (a) In the excerpt from The People, Yes, what effect is created by the use of
repetition? (b) How does use of sound devices enhance this poem’s meaning?

Poetry Collection 423

 LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

Conventions
Participial and Infinitive Phrases Participles and infinitives and the
phrases they form can make writing more concise or add important
information to sentences.
POETRY COLLECTION
A participle is a verb form that acts as an adjective. A participial
phrase is made up of a participle with its modifiers, such as adverbs,
and complements, such as objects. These all act together as an adjective,
modifying a noun or pronoun.Present participles end in -ing, and past
participles of regular verbs end in -ed. Past participles of irregular verbs
have a variety of endings, such as -en or -t.

An infinitive is a verb form that acts as a noun, an adjective, or an

adverb. Infinitives usually begin with the word to. An infinitive phrase
is made up of an infinitive with modifiers or complements, all acting
together as a single part of speech.

The chart below shows examples of participial phrases and infinitive

phrases. In the chart, participles and infinitives are underlined, and
phrases are in boldface.

PARTICIPIAL PHRASES AND THE WORDS

INFINITIVE PHRASES AND THEIR FUNCTIONS
THEY  MODIFY

Moving quickly, he picked up a stick. (modifies To prove how much he knew was the man’s
the subject, he) main goal. (functions as a noun)

The man, bothered by his thoughts, tried to He agreed with the request to listen to his
clear his head. (modifies the subject, man) heart. (functions as an adjective modifying
request)

The poem is about people fooling themselves. They practice to improve their skills. (functions
(modifies the object of a preposition, people) as an adverb modifying practice)

Read It Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

1. Mark the participial phrase in each sentence, and identify the word it
modifies.
a. One man, having made his point, walked away happy.
b. He saw the woman thinking very hard.
2. Mark the infinitive phrase in each sentence, and identify its function.
a. To teach the man a lesson, he drew a larger circle.
STANDARDS
Language b. The professor agreed to reward his students.
8.L.CSE.1 Demonstrate
command of the conventions of
standard English grammar and
Write It
usage. Choose one of the poems, and write two sentences about it. Use a
a. When reading or listening, participial phrase in one and an infinitive phrase in the other.
analyze the use of phrases and
clauses within a larger text.

424 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 EFFECTIVE EXPRESSION

Speaking and Listening

! EVIDENCE LOG
Assignment
Before moving on to a
With your group, develop a multimedia presentation of one of new selection, go to your
the poems from this collection. Make sure to come to your group’s Evidence Log, and record
discussion prepared with ideas, and follow the rules for a friendly, what you learned from
productive discussion. Choose from the following options: “Retort” and the excerpt
from The People, Yes.
With your group, identify a poem for a dramatic reading. Then,
develop a plan for your presentation. Decide who will read each
line, and determine how to read it. Which words should be
emphasized? Should the line be read quickly or slowly? Softly
or loudly? What type of emotions should the speaker show as
he or she is reading the line? Remember to include multimedia
elements, such as background music, props, and costumes. STANDARDS
Speaking and Listening
With your group, identify a poem for a nonverbal multimedia 8.SL.CC.1 Prepare for collaborative
presentation. Then, discuss the poem, and develop a plan for discussions on 8th grade level topics
and texts; engage effectively with
your presentation in which you present the poem without words.
varied partners, building on others’
Instead, convey the meaning of the poem by carefully arranging ideas and expressing one’s own
multimedia elements, such as music, video, dance, photos, ideas clearly.
original artwork, and mime. 8.SL.PKI.5 Integrate multimedia
and visual displays into presentations
to clarify information, to strengthen
claims and evidence, and to add
interest.
Project Plan With your group, decide which members will carry
Language
out each task. Also, decide on the order of speakers or sequence of 8.L.KL.3 When writing and
multimedia elements. You may wish to annotate a copy of the poem you speaking, adjust style and tone to a
chose in order to indicate what happens and when in the presentation it variety of contexts; when reading or
listening, analyze stylistic choices to
should occur. Use the chart to organize your presentation. determine context.

POEM READER/ PROPS, COSTUMES,

MUSIC/SOUND NOTES
LINE/STANZA PERFORMER VISUALS
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Poetry Collection 425

 PERFORMANCE TASK: SPEAKING AND LISTENING FOCUS

SOURCES

• from BLUE NINES AND

Deliver a Multimedia
RED WORDS
Presentation
• THE THEORY OF
MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
INFOGRAPHIC
Assignment
In this section, you have analyzed various selections that explore the
• RETORT
different ways people can be intelligent. Work with your group to
• from THE PEOPLE, YES develop a multimedia presentation that addresses this question:
How does each selection highlight a different way to
be intelligent?

Plan With Your Group

Analyze the Text With your group, discuss the ways in which the texts
in this section explore different types of intelligence. Use the chart to list
your ideas. For each selection, identify the type of intelligence featured.
Note that in some selections more than one type of intelligence may
be covered. Then, ask other group members questions you have about
intelligence, and answer questions they may have. Work together to
determine what each selection reveals about human intelligence.

SELECTION TYPES OF INTELLIGENCE FEATURED

from Blue Nines and Red

Words

The Theory of Multiple

Intelligences Infographic

STANDARDS Retort
Writing
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8.W.PDW.6 Use technology,
including the Internet, to produce
and publish writing and to
collaborate with others; present the from The People, Yes
relationships between information
and ideas efficiently; type a complete
product in a single sitting and
defined in W.1.3. Gather Evidence and Media Examples Identify specific examples
Speaking and Listening from the selections to support your group’s ideas. Then, brainstorm about
8.SL.CC.1 Prepare for collaborative the types of multimedia you can use to clarify your ideas and emphasize
discussions on 8th grade level topics
and texts; engage effectively with key points. These may include charts, graphs, photos, video, or other
varied partners, building on others’ visuals. Also, consider including audio elements, such as music. Allow
ideas and expressing one’s own ideas each group member to make suggestions as to what multimedia content
clearly.
should be included, as well as how to sequence multimedia to engage
8.SL.PKI.5 Integrate multimedia
and visual displays into presentations your audience.
to clarify information, to strengthen
claims and evidence, and to add
interest.

426 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION : In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Organize Your Ideas As a group, decide who is responsible for each

part of the presentation. Decide when each part of the presentation will
begin, and record what the presenter will say. Use a chart like this one to
organize your script.

MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATION SCRIPT

Media Cues Script
Presenter 1
Presenter 2
Presenter 3

Rehearse With Your Group

Practice With Your Group As you work through the script for your
presentation, use this checklist to evaluate the effectiveness of your
group’s first rehearsal. Then, use your evaluation and the instruction here
to guide revisions to your presentation.

PRESENTATION
CONTENT USE OF MEDIA
TECHNIQUES

The presentation Media clarify Speakers use

clearly addresses and emphasize adequate STANDARDS
the prompt. important points in volume and Writing
Main ideas are the presentation. maintain eye 8.W.PDW.6 Use technology,
contact. including the Internet, to produce
supported with Media are
and publish writing and to
evidence from the sequenced to Speakers use collaborate with others; present the
texts. engage the formal English relationships between information
audience and add and have an and ideas efficiently; type a complete
product in a single sitting and
interest to the objective tone. defined in W.1.3.
presentation. Speaking and Listening
8.SL.CC.1 Prepare for collaborative
discussions on 8th grade level topics
and texts; engage effectively with
Fine-Tune the Content To make your presentation stronger, review your
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varied partners, building on others’

evidence to be sure you fully support your main points. ideas and expressing one’s own ideas
clearly.
Improve Your Use of Media Review each piece of media to make sure
8.SL.PKI.4 Present claims and
it clarifies information effectively and adds interest to the presentation. findings in a focused, coherent
manner with relevant evidence,
Brush Up on Your Presentation Techniques Make sure that your valid reasoning, and well-chosen
script includes only formal English, such as academic vocabulary and details; use appropriate eye contact,
complete sentences. Avoid slang, idioms, contractions, run-on sentences, adequate volume, and clear
pronunciation.
and sentence fragments. Practice delivering your presentation using a
8.SL.PKI.5 Integrate multimedia
formal tone and proper English. and visual displays into presentations
to clarify information, to strengthen
Present and Evaluate claims and evidence, and to add
interest.
Evaluate how well other presentations met the checklist criteria. Did 8.SL.PKI.6 Adapt speech to
a variety of contexts and tasks,
other groups explore ideas you had not thought to include? After hearing demonstrating command of
the presentations of others, are there things you would do differently in formal English when indicated or
your next presentation? In what ways? For what purpose? appropriate.

Performance Task: Deliver a Multimedia Presentation 427

 OVERVIEW: INDEPENDENT LEARNING

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

In what different ways can

people be intelligent?
Human intelligence can be shown in small ways or in astonishing displays. In
this section, you will complete your study of human intelligence by exploring an
additional selection related to the topic. You’ll then share what you learn with
classmates. To choose a text, follow these steps.
Look Back Think about the selections you have already studied. What more do
you want to know about human intelligence?

Look Ahead Preview the selections by reading the descriptions. Which one
seems most interesting and appealing to you?

Look Inside Take a few minutes to scan through the text you chose. Choose a
different one if this text doesn’t meet your needs.

Independent Learning Strategies

Throughout your life, in school, in your community, and in your career, you will
need to rely on yourself to learn and work on your own. Review these strategies
and the actions you can take to practice them during Independent Learning.
Add ideas of your own for each category.

STRATEGY ACTION PLAN

Create a schedule • Understand your goals and deadlines.
• Make a plan for what to do each day.

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Practice what you • Use first-read and close-read strategies to deepen your understanding.
have learned • After you read, evaluate the usefulness of the evidence to help you understand
the topic.
• Consider the quality and reliability of the source.

Take notes • Record important ideas and information.

• Review your notes before preparing to share with a group.

428 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 CONTENTS
Choose one selection. Selections are available online only.
ARGUMENT

Is Personal Intelligence Important?

John D. Mayer

A psychologist argues that personal intelligence is important

because it helps us solve our own problems and resolve conflicts
that arise with others.

BLOG POST

Why Is Emotional Intelligence Important

for Teens?
Divya Parekh

What is your EQ, or level of emotional intelligence?

EXPLANATORY ESSAY

The More You Know, the Smarter You Are?

Jim Vega

Everyone has different strengths, and this essay presents

examples and explanations of the reasons for these variations, as
well as ways in which to identify your own strengths.

EXPOSITORY NONFICTION
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from The Future of the Mind

Michio Kaku

A physicist uses the example of Einstein’s brain to discuss the

question “Are geniuses made or born? ”

PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT PREP

Review Evidence for an Informative Essay
Complete your Evidence Log for the unit by evaluating what you have learned and
synthesizing the information you have recorded.

Overview: Independent Learning 429

 INDEPENDENT LEARNING

First-Read Guide Tool Kit

First-Read Guide and
Model Annotation
Use this page to record your first-read ideas.

Selection Title:

NOTICE new information or ideas you learn ANNOTATE by marking vocabulary and key
about the unit topic as you first read this passages you want to revisit.
text.

CONNECT ideas within the selection to RESPOND by writing a brief summary of

other knowledge and the selections you the selection.
have read.

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430 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Close-Read Guide Tool Kit

Close-Read Guide and
Model Annotation
Use this page to record your close-read ideas.

Selection Title:

Close Read the Text Analyze the Text

Revisit sections of the text you marked during Think about the author’s choices of patterns,
your first read. Read these sections closely structure, techniques, and ideas included in
and annotate what you notice. Ask yourself the text. Select one, and record your thoughts
questions about the text. What can you about what this choice conveys.
conclude? Write down your ideas.

QuickWrite
Pick a paragraph from the text that grabbed your interest. Explain the power of this passage.
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Independent Learning 431

 INDEPENDENT LEARNING

Share Your Independent Learning

! EVIDENCE LOG Prepare to Share
Go to your Evidence Log, In what different ways can people be intelligent?
and record what you learned
Even when you read something independently, you can continue to grow
from the text you read.
by sharing what you have learned with others. Reflect on the text you
explored independently, and write notes about its connection to the unit.
In your notes, consider why this text belongs in this unit.

Learn From Your Classmates

Discuss It Share your ideas about the text you explored on your own.
As you talk with your classmates, jot down ideas that you learn from them.

Reflect

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Review your notes, and mark the most important insight you gained from
these writing and discussion activities. Explain how this idea adds to your
understanding of the different ways in which people can be intelligent.

STANDARDS
Speaking and Listening
8.SL.CC.1 Prepare for collaborative
discussions on 8th grade level topics
and texts; engage effectively with
varied partners, building on others’
ideas and expressing one’s own ideas
clearly.

432 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT PREP

Review Evidence for an Informative Essay

At the beginning of this unit, you responded to the following question:

In what different ways can people be intelligent?

! EVIDENCE LOG
Review your Evidence Log and your QuickWrite from the beginning of the unit.
Have your ideas changed?

NOTES

Identify at least three pieces of evidence that interested you about the ways in which people
demonstrate intelligence.

1.

2.

3.

Identify the way of demonstrating intelligence that made the strongest

impression on you:
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Develop your thoughts into a topic sentence for an informative essay.

Complete this sentence starter:
One of the most unexpected ways in which people can show
intelligence is ___________________________________________________

STANDARDS
Writing
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/
explanatory texts, to examine a topic
and convey ideas, concepts, and
Evaluate Your Evidence Consider your ideas about intelligence prior information through the selection,
to reading the texts in this unit. How did the texts you studied influence organization, and analysis of relevant
your ideas about intelligence? Note specific examples and key passages content.
that piqued your curiosity. c. Develop the topic with relevant
facts, definitions, concrete details,
quotations, or other information
and examples.

Performance-Based Assessment Prep 433

 PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT

SOURCES PART 1
• WHOLE CLASS SELECTIONS Writing to Sources: Informative Essay
• SMALL GROUP SELECTIONS In this unit, you have read a variety of perspectives on human
intelligence. Both fiction and nonfiction texts have offered new ideas
• INDEPENDENT-LEARNING
SELECTION
and explanations about the ways we think about and define human
intelligence.

Assignment
Write an informative essay in which you address the Essential
Question:
In what different ways can people be intelligent?
! WORD NETWORK Consider how each selection you read reveals a different perspective
As you write and revise your on what intelligence means. Make sure that you integrate relevant
informative essay, use your quotations, facts, and examples to support your ideas. Use a formal
Word Network to help vary style and tone in your writing.
your word choices.

Reread the Assignment Review the assignment to be sure you fully

understand it. The assignment may reference some of the academic
words presented at the beginning of the unit. Be sure you understand
each of the words given below in order to complete the assignment
correctly. You may want to integrate some of the words into your essay.

Academic Vocabulary

assimilate tendency integrate

observation documentation

Review the Elements of an Effective Informative Essay Before

STANDARDS
Writing
you begin writing, read the Informative Essay Rubric. Once you have
8.W.TTP.2 Write informative/ completed your first draft, check it against the rubric. If one or more of
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explanatory texts to examine a topic the elements is missing or not as strong as it could be, revise your essay
and convey ideas, concepts, and
information through the selection, to add or strengthen that component.
organization, and analysis of relevant
content.
8.W.RBPK.9 Support
interpretations, analyses, reflections,
or research with evidence found
in literature or informational
texts, applying grade 8 standards
for reading; assess whether the
reasoning is sound and the evidence
is relevant and sufficient to support
the claims and recognize when
irrelevant evidence is introduced.
8.W.RW.10 Write routinely over
extended time frames and shorter
time frames for a range of discipline-
specific tasks, purposes, and
audiences.

434 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 ESSENTIAL QUESTION: In what different ways can people be intelligent?

Informational/Explanatory Rubric
Focus & Organization Development Language/Conventions
The introduction is effective and sets The topic is developed with The essay uses standard
forth the topic in a relevant way. relevant facts, definitions, details, English conventions of
quotations, and examples. usage and mechanics.
The ideas progress logically.
The writing demonstrates an Word choice is precise
A variety of transitions are included insightful understanding of and relevant to the task.
4 to show the relationship among ideas the topic by explaining clearly Sentences are varied and
and create cohesion. and elaborating on information interesting.
provided.
The conclusion is relevant and The tone of the writing is
effective and follows from the rest of formal and objective.
the essay.

The introduction is somewhat relevant The topic is developed with some The essay demonstrates
and effective. relevant facts, definitions, details, general accuracy in
quotations, and other examples. standard English.
The ideas progress somewhat
logically. The writing demonstrates an Word choice is often precise
understanding of the topic and generally appropriate
3 Some transitions are included with by explaining adequately and to the task. Sentences
occasional gaps in cohesion. elaborating on information are mostly varied and
provided. interesting.
The conclusion is relevant and mostly
follows from the rest of the essay. The tone of the writing is
mostly formal and objective.

The introduction sets forth the topic. The topic is developed with a few The essay demonstrates
relevant facts, definitions, details, some accuracy in standard
More than one idea is presented. quotations, or other examples. English.

A few transitions are included, but The writing demonstrates some Word choice is somewhat
ideas may be hard to follow. understanding of the topic appropriate to the task.
2
but supporting information is There is little sentence
The conclusion does not completely not complete or is sometimes variation.
inaccurate.
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follow from the rest of the essay.

The tone is inconsistently
formal and objective.

The topic is not clearly stated. The topic is not developed with The essay contains mistakes
reliable or relevant evidence. in standard English.
Ideas do not follow a logical
progression. The writing demonstrates little or Word choice is imprecise.
no understanding of the topic. There is little or no
1 Transitions are not included. sentence variation.

The conclusion is missing or does not The tone is neither formal

follow from the rest of the essay. nor objective.

Performance-Based Assessment 435

 PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENT

PART 2
Speaking and Listening: Speech
Assignment
After completing the final draft of your informative essay, use it as the
foundation for a short speech.

Do not simply read your essay aloud. Instead, take the following steps to
make your speech lively and engaging.
• Go back to your essay, and annotate its most important ideas and
supporting details. Add details where needed to suit a listening
audience.
• Refer to your annotated text to guide your presentation and keep it
STANDARDS focused.
Speaking and Listening
8.SL.PKI.4 Present claims and • Speak clearly and make eye contact with your audience.
findings in a focused, coherent
manner with relevant evidence,
valid reasoning, and well-chosen Review the Rubric Before you deliver your presentation, check your
details; use appropriate eye contact, plans against this rubric. If one or more of the elements is missing or not
adequate volume, and clear as strong as it could be, revise your presentation to improve it.
pronunciation.

Content Organization Presentation Techniques

The introduction is engaging and Ideas are organized and progress The speaker maintains
establishes the topic in a compelling logically. effective eye contact.
way.
Listeners can easily follow the The speaker speaks clearly
Ideas are clearly supported with presentation. and with adequate volume.
3
relevant evidence.

The conclusion offers fresh insight

and follows from the rest of the
presentation.

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The introduction establishes the Ideas are organized. The speaker sometimes
topic. maintains eye contact.
Listeners can mostly follow the
Ideas are usually supported with presentation. The speaker speaks
2 relevant evidence. somewhat clearly and
usually with adequate
The conclusion follows from the volume.
information in the presentation.

The introduction does not clearly Ideas are disorganized. The speaker does not
establish the topic. maintain eye contact.
Listeners have difficulty following
Ideas are not supported with the presentation. The speaker does not
1 relevant evidence. speak clearly or with
adequate volume.
The information in the conclusion is
not related to the presentation.

436 UNIT 4 • HUMAN INTELLIGENCE

 UNIT
4 REFLECTION

Reflect on the Unit

Now that you’ve completed the unit, take a few moments to reflect on
your learning.

Reflect on the Unit Goals

Look back at the goals at the beginning of the unit. Use a different
colored pen to rate yourself again. Then, think about readings and
activities that contributed the most to the growth of your understanding.
Record your thoughts.

Reflect on the Learning Strategies

Discuss It Write a reflection on whether you were able to improve
your learning based on your Action Plans. Think about what worked,
what didn’t, and what you might do to keep working on these strategies.
Record your ideas before joining a class discussion.

Reflect on the Text

Choose a selection that you found challenging, and explain what made it
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difficult.

Describe something that surprised you about a text in the unit.

Which activity taught you the most about human intelligence? What did
you learn?

Unit Reflection 437

ARGUMENT

Is Personal Intelligence
Important?
John D. Mayer, Ph.D.

About the Author

John Mayer (b. 1953) has written more than 120
articles, books, and psychological tests about the effects
of personality on a person’s life. Dr. Mayer has lectured
around the world and his work has been featured in
major newspapers and magazines, and broadcasted on
television and radio programs. He is a professor of
psychology at the University of New Hampshire.

BACKGROUND
Psychology isn’t just about the study of mental illness, and it isn’t
about reading people’s minds! As with other sciences, psychology uses
evidence from research to develop and assess theories. Psychologists
study the various factors—both biological and social—that influence
behavior. They explore the ways in which people think and learn, and
the ways in which they differ.

NOTES
1

I ntelligence researchers of today recognize several broad

intelligences including verbal-propositional intelligence,
perceptual-organizational intelligence, speededness (thinking
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quickly), and memory-retrieval intelligence. Recently, I’ve

argued that there exists a personal intelligence—an intelligence
about personality—that I believe belongs among those broad
mental abilities. Personal intelligence is the capacity to reason
about personality as a whole—including our motives, emotions,
thoughts, values, and self-control.
2 Why is personal intelligence important? Because we use our
personal intelligence to solve problems about ourselves and about
other people, including our loved ones—and what could be more
important than competently resolving problems that concern the
people we care about?

IL1 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Is Personal Intelligence Important?

 What Kinds of Problems Does
NOTES
Personal Intelligence Address?
3 Personal intelligence addresses questions such as who to spend
time with, who to work with, and who to ask for help. When we
make choices about other people, we often start by identifying
patterns in their behavior. If Cory is sympathetic to others and
modest, we can use our personal intelligence to deduce that he
cooperates with others and is less likely to be highly emotional.
If Conner is arrogant and unfriendly, we may also evaluate him
as untrustworthy. When it comes time to ask a small favor of a
friend, we’re more likely to choose to ask Cory than Conner.
4 Or perhaps we ask a friend to go out one night and are
surprised when he objects that we are pressuring him. From our
own standpoint, we had no intention of placing any demands on
him; we were just hoping to have his company. But were we in
fact demanding? Although we hadn’t meant to pressure him, we
do realize that having his company had been quite important to
us, and perhaps our request communicated that need more than
we thought. We also draw on another memory—of an earlier
friend with whom we’re no longer so close, who complained
that we often pressured her. We conclude that our friend might
be right: we might have pushed too hard and we may need to
acknowledge that to ourselves and our friend.
5 As the above examples suggest, personal intelligence involves
the ability to draw together clues about a person, to recognize
complex patterns in behavior, and to use that information to guide
our choices and, ultimately, to guide our lives.

All Intelligences Are Important

6 All broad human intelligences are of crucial use to us—it would
be hard to argue for the supremacy of one intelligence over
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another. We are all indebted to people who have used their verbal
intelligence, their perceptual-organizational intelligence, and
their other intelligences to help build the world around us. The
computers we use, our phones, our cars, the GPS-guided tractors
that harvest our food all depend upon innovations made possible
by people high in these intelligences. The people who are smartest
in these areas design the logic circuits in our computers, build
radio transmitters and receivers, create high-efficiency engines,
and design reapers,1 threshers,2 and milking machines. We are
indebted both to those whose ideas result in safe and efficient
equipment and to those who labor using their inventions.

1. reapers (REE puhrz) n. machines that harvest crops.

2. threshers (THREH shuhrz) n. machines that separate grain into seeds and straw.

UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Is Personal Intelligence Important? IL2

 7 Although all intelligences are important, they are not all the
NOTES same. Verbal-comprehension and perceptual organizational
intelligences typically address problems with a small set of
answers (or just one answer). For example, a test assessing verbal
intelligence might ask how to make sense of the nonsensical
sentence: “All animals are animals but all cats are not cats” by
rearranging its words. A test-taker might quickly respond, “All
cats are animals but not all animals are cats.”
8 By comparison, the problems of personal intelligence aren’t of
arranging words into meaningful sequences or understanding
general vocabulary. Rather they concern matters such as human
psychological needs and individual differences, contrariness and
cooperation, the dangerousness of certain individuals and the
creative promise of others. These matters concern likelihoods
rather than certainties—and the best answer may not pop
into place with the sense of satisfaction provided by “Not all
animals are cats.” In the Cory/Conner example, Cory was likely
to be more cooperative than Conner, but Conner still might
have granted our favor. Personal intelligence rests on complex
pattern recognition (e.g., who is cooperative) and assessments of
likelihoods. Despite its challenges and vagaries,3 it’s important
to study.
9 We urgently need to understand personality because more than
ever our world depends on it. Although humanity has gained
tremendously from technological discovery and innovation, we
also need to understand personality and social influences as
well as we can. These are more challenging in many ways than
understanding words or circuits: The patterns are more complex
and human systems are less predictable. Nonetheless, we need
such understanding to ensure that our societies thrive rather than
fail; to promote the likelihood that we can live together in peace
and that we can enjoy the fruits of what our intelligence—and our

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labor—provides us.
10 In other words, we use personal intelligence to solve basic
problems of human living—and if we can understand our
problem-solving, its limits, and where it can be improved, we may
be able to contribute to a more stable and functional society.
11 To foster4 such better relationships:
12 • We use our personal intelligence to mitigate5 our “blind
spots”—matters we don’t know about ourselves and others.
Reducing such misunderstandings can lead to greater
accuracy in understanding ourselves and one another.

3. vagaries (VAY guh reez) n. unpredictable actions or ideas.

4. foster (FAWS tuhr) v. promote or encourage.
5. mitigate (MIH tih gayt) v. make less severe.

IL3 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Is Personal Intelligence Important?

 13 • We use our personal intelligence to take responsibility for
appreciating and respecting human differences. We all vary NOTES

and our needs and contributions vary. People who know

something about recognizing others’ needs and potential
contributions can draw more from their relationships—and
give more in return.

14 • We use our personal intelligence to better select the

opportunities and lower the risks we take. For example, if I
know I seek constant excitement, then I can learn from the
broader class of people who are “sensation-seekers” like me.
I’ll expect that I’ll find extreme sports attractive, and that
I might find work as a fire fighter, police officer, or other
first responder gratifying. On the downside, I’ll need to
manage risk well. I’ll know that people who are risk-takers
like me run a slightly higher likelihood of getting in trouble
with drugs and alcohol, and I’ll monitor my use of these
substances carefully. As a second example, if I’m driven to
achieve, I could use my personal intelligence to understand
that I’ll be happiest fulfilling myself and meeting as many
standards of excellence as I can. To minimize my risks, I’ll
want to be alert to any temptations I might feel to break
important social rules and laws, knowing that high achievers
sometimes give in to such temptations. (Consider the recent
reports of whether Steve Jobs cavalierly broke antitrust laws.)
15 Here are some of the ways that studying personal intelligence
can help us as a society:
16 • We need to better acknowledge and respect people who
use their personal intelligence well. We benefit not only
from our computers, phones, cars, and farms—but also
from people who understand themselves well and interact
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with others with respect and understanding. To go a bit

further: Both people-oriented and product-oriented leaders
get good results, but who would you want managing your
organization—someone who frequently resorts to force and
ignores people’s needs or someone who motivates excellence
through understanding and inspiring people?

17 • Measures of personal intelligence can help us identify

people whose abilities to solve problems in the area of
personality [that] are above average. People who see
themselves and others most clearly are likely to excel at
certain occupations (human resources, counseling) relative to
others. They also may be more effective leaders—or advisers
to leaders—than people without such skills.

UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Is Personal Intelligence Important? IL4

 18 • Studying personal intelligence will teach us the advantages
NOTES and limits of personality prediction. For example, we
know that we can use personality-relevant information to
predict people’s behaviors at levels above chance; we can
also understand how good we can get at such prediction
(somewhat above chance levels, rarely perfection).

19 • The study of personal intelligence involves understanding

the foundations of reasoning about personality. As our
grasp of how people reason successfully about one another
increases, we can better teach that information, strengthening
everyone’s abilities in this area.
20 True, we can’t solve human problems with personal intelligence
alone. Advances in our psychological well-being depend not
only on our self-understanding, but on other matters as well,
including our physical health and social context. We need to
promote our health because good brain functioning underlies
all forms of problem-solving. We need to improve our social
conditions, which requires a better appreciation of social
intelligence—understanding power relationships, politics, and
in- and out-group relationships—because that communal level
of organization helps tie us together in (we hope) peaceful ways.
Our understanding of personality must be coordinated with our
biological and social understandings of humanity in order for us
to live well. That said, society is made up of individuals.
21 Our personalities are the basic units of our family, our
neighborhoods, and our broader community. That’s why
we should care about personal intelligence: Understanding
personality is an indispensable part of what it means to be
human at both an individual and social level. Improving our
understanding of personalities may guide our journey toward a
more peaceful, better-functioning world. ❧
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IL5 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Is Personal Intelligence Important?

 BLOG POST

Why Is
Emotional Intelligence
Important for Teens?
Divya Parekh

About the Author

Divya Parekh is a leadership coach based in North
Carolina. She has had careers as a scientist, business
manager, and educator, but now spends her time as a
speaker, working with corporate leaders to create high-
performing teams.

BACKGROUND
Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize and handle one’s own
emotions and those of other people. It is usually considered to involve
awareness of emotions, the ability to use those emotions, and the ability
to control emotions.

T he concept of emotional intelligence is a top topic among

today’s modern adolescents. It’s the young people of today
NOTES
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that will make up the workforce of tomorrow. Since businesses

are essentially people, anything that impacts the effectiveness of a
person will also impact the business in which they work or run.
2 Many psychologists are agreeing that a person’s level of
emotional intelligence, their EQ, is in many cases, more important
than their IQ. Experts are discovering that a person’s EQ is
not only a more efficient predictor1 of the quality of potential
relationships, but also an effective predictor for success and
overall happiness.
3 Your level of emotional intelligence is your ability to
understand and recognize your own emotions and reactions. In
essence, it’s your level of self-awareness. To be able to control,

1. predictor (prih DIHK tuhr) n. something or someone that expresses what will or might
happen.

UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Why Is Emotional Intelligence Important for Teens? IL6
 manage and adapt your mood, emotions, and responses through
NOTES self-management. Having the skills to motivate yourself through
emotions and then take the appropriate actions to commit and
follow through, is a learned skill.
4 It is also a powerful skill to be able to recognize and discern the
feelings of others, making a connection and gaining trust. Being
able to build relationships, relate to other people in any given
social situation, work as part of a team and negotiate any conflicts
that may arise, are prominent core elements to social emotional
intelligence.

Why is emotional intelligence so important?

5 Think about your mental well-being. Many of today’s young
people deal with stress and pressure each day. Those who lack the
skills to deal with these stresses have a higher chance of acting out
due to a lack of mental well-being. Having emotional intelligence
skills affects both your outlook and attitude. It can also help
get rid of anxiety, help you deal with mood swings and avoid
depression.
6 Now consider your physical well-being. Possessing the
ability to properly manage your stress has a powerful impact on
your overall wellness, which is tied to your level of emotional
intelligence. It is from being aware of your emotional state and
your reactions to various situations that you can learn to manage
your stress and maintain good health.
7 Developing quality relationships is a skill everyone should
have. By understanding your emotions you can better manage
yourself and communicate effectively. You will also be able to
relate to those around you by understanding the needs and
feelings of others. This will help you to build stronger bonds and
have more fulfilling relationships.
8 The skill of conflict resolution2 is one many people wish they
had. Being able to see the perspective of another person is a Copyright © SAVVAS Learning Company LLC. All Rights Reserved.

powerful skill that will serve you well throughout your entire life.
It’s easier to get along with people and give them what they want
when you’re able to see both sides of a conflict.
9 It’s easy to see how social emotional intelligence plays a
very important role in many areas of life. It plays a critical role
in every aspect of the quality of our professional and personal
existence. While technology can aid us in learning and mastering
information, it’s mastering emotional intelligence where we learn
to manage and master our emotions. ❧

2. resolution (rehz uh LOO shuhn) n. act of finding an answer or solution.

IL7 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • Why Is Emotional Intelligence Important for Teens?
 EXPLANATORY ESSAY

The More You Know,

the Smarter You Are?
Jim Vega

About the Author

Jim Vega (b. 1989) is a native of Brownsville, Texas, where his family
has lived since the late 1800s. After beginning a family of his own, Vega
became interested in the ways that people express their intelligence—his
two sons, he says, couldn’t have been more different! Vega still lives in
Brownsville, with his family and several rescue dogs.

BACKGROUND
In 1983, the publication of a groundbreaking book revolutionized
people’s understanding of psychology and education. Its author,
Howard Gardner, proposed that everyone has seven kinds of
intelligence, and that each individual exhibits more strength in some
of these intelligences than in others. Educators use his theory to adapt
their methods so that they can effectively teach the variety of students
in their classrooms.

W hile it’s true that acquiring facts and information about

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NOTES
a wide variety of sources is an important factor in what
it means to be smart, some people think there is a big difference
between being “well educated” and being “intelligent.” For
example, some people might be able to recite a lot of facts and
figures but not be able to use what they know to solve problems.
2 Howard Gardner, a professor at Harvard University, believes
that we place too much importance on language and math
abilities, and he did not agree that the Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
test should be the only way to look at intelligence. He identified
more areas of human intelligence. Below is a list of Gardner’s
Multiple Intelligences with the strengths associated with each one:
3 Visual/Spatial – puzzles, directions, drawings, models
4 Bodily/Kinesthetic – sports, dance, intricate movement
(surgery)

UNIT 4 Independent Learning • The More You Know, the Smarter You Are? IL8
 5 Musical – rhythm, sound
NOTES 6 Interpersonal – understanding others, empathy1
7 Linguistic – words, writing, reading
8 Logical/Mathematical – numbers, reasoning, calculating
9 Naturalist – using, categorizing, recognizing parts of the
environment
10 According to his way of thinking, just having a lot of
knowledge is not the only part of intelligence that should be
valued. Scientists who disagree with Gardner say that some
of these “intelligences” are just talents—they are not a part of
intelligence. However, the Multiple Intelligences theory has made
many people see “smart” in a new way.
11 Another way to be intelligent is to have “street smarts.” The
fancy term for street smarts is “tacit2 knowledge,” and both
mean something similar to common sense. If we learn from our
own experiences and mistakes and apply that learning to future
situations, then we are showing street smarts. For example, a
person who has read all about geography and can recite capitals
and countries might not have the “street smarts” to read a bus
schedule and find his or her way around. Sometimes it might
involve a way of looking at something to find the easiest and best
solution.
12 One story to illustrate this comes from history, when Thomas
Jefferson was designing the University of Virginia, and the
architects were designing the layouts of the walkways. Jefferson’s
solution was to plant grass and wait to see where the grass was
most worn down so that they would build the walkways where
people naturally wanted to walk.
13 A final example involves personal safety, and what can frustrate
us so much when watching scary movies: if a person knows an
alley is dark and could be dangerous, he or she avoids it. He or
she uses prior experience, intuition, and awareness to make solid

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decisions—street smarts! Usually, this type of learning happens
when we are not trying to learn anything at all; instead, we are
just trying to reach a goal or complete a task. Although this type of
learning can happen in school, it usually occurs during the course
of our daily lives.
14 Apart from book learning and critical thinking, there is wisdom,
which seems to be something earned over a lifetime (though
young people can have it, too!). A combination of intuition, life
experience, a deep understanding of people, and knowledge of
what is most important in life, wisdom might be just as important
as math skills or vocabulary knowledge. Maybe, when her
granddaughter tells her about a fight with a friend at school, a

1. empathy (EHM puh thee) n. awareness of and sensitivity to the feelings of others.
2. tacit (TAS iht) adj. expressed without words or speech.

IL9 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • The More You Know, the Smarter You Are?
 grandmother says, “This, too, shall pass.” She means everything
changes over time, again and again. The fight will end and NOTES

things will change, one way or another. The grandmother knows

this from a lifetime of seeing it happen, and she knows, in this
moment, that it might give her granddaughter some comfort.
Sometimes, however, wisdom can come from someone very
young. Maybe, as a mother explains what Thanksgiving is, her
three-year-old hugs her and says, “Is hugging grateful?” This
simple but deep understanding can also show wisdom.
15 Since there are so many ways to be smart, it seems like the
best course of action is to identify strengths, stretch weaknesses,
and make the most of the smarts we have by building on them
in as many ways as possible. So, if you love to build things but
sometimes have a hard time reading, you could find a complicated
model and read the instructions to help you build it: use your
strength to stretch your weakness. Similarly, if you love to draw
but have trouble with math, you can draw pictures to help you
solve problems. Everyone has strengths, so make sure to identify
what you love to do and what you are good at. Then you can
really enjoy those parts of yourself and make the most of them! ❧
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UNIT 4 Independent Learning • The More You Know, the Smarter You Are? IL10
EXPOSITORY NONFICTION

from
The Future
of the Mind
Michio Kaku

About the Author

Michio Kaku (b. 1947) is a physicist, author of
numerous best-selling books, and professor of physics
at City College of New York. He has appeared on
numerous talk shows and news programs on television,
and his work has been published in many magazines.
Dr. Kaku hosts weekly radio shows and podcasts about
science. He lives in New York City with his wife and
two daughters.

BACKGROUND
Albert Einstein is possibly the world’s most celebrated, most influential,
and widely-recognized scientist. He was born in Germany in 1879, and
won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921. Einstein was targeted by the
Nazis and left Germany in 1933. Years later, he became an American
citizen, and in 1955, he died in Princeton, New Jersey. Einstein is the
inventor of the famous equation—E = mc2—which had a major impact

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on the development of atomic energy.

1 Albert Einstein’s brain is missing.

NOTES
2 Or, at least it was for fifty years, until the heirs of the doctor
who spirited it away shortly after his death in 1955 finally
returned it to the National Museum of Health and Medicine in
2010. Analysis of his brain may help clarify these questions: What
is genius? How do you measure intelligence and its relationship to
success in life? There are also philosophical questions: Is genius a
function of our genes, or is it more a question of personal struggle
and achievement?
3 And, finally, Einstein’s brain may help answer the key question:
Can we boost our own intelligence?

IL11 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • from The Future of the Mind

 4 The word “Einstein” is no longer a proper noun that refers to a
specific person. It now simply means “genius.” The picture that NOTES

the name conjures up (baggy pants, flaming white hair, disheveled

looks) is equally iconic1 and instantly recognizable.
5 The legacy of Einstein has been enormous. When some
physicists in 2011 raised the possibility that he was wrong, that
particles could break the light barrier, it created a firestorm of
controversy in the physics world that spilled over into the popular
press. The very idea that relativity, which forms the cornerstone of
modern physics, could be wrong had physicists around the world
shaking their heads. As expected, once the result was recalibrated,
Einstein was shown to be right once again. It is always dangerous
to go up against Einstein.
6 One way to gain insight into the question “What is genius?” is
to analyze Einstein’s brain. Apparently on the spur of the moment,
Dr. Thomas Harvey, the doctor at the Princeton hospital who was
performing the autopsy on Einstein, decided to secretly preserve
his brain, against the knowledge and wishes of Einstein’s family.
7 Perhaps he preserved Einstein’s brain with the vague notion
that one day it might unlock the secret of genius. Perhaps he
thought, like many others, that there was a peculiar part of
Einstein’s brain that was the seat of his vast intelligence. Brian
Burrell, in his book Postcards from the Brain Museum, speculates
that perhaps Dr. Harvey “got caught up in the moment and
was transfixed2 in the presence of greatness. What he quickly
discovered was that he had bitten off more than he could chew.”
8 What happened to Einstein’s brain after that sounds more like a
comedy than a science story. Over the years, Dr. Harvey promised
to publish his results of analyzing Einstein’s brain. But he was no
brain specialist, and kept making excuses. For decades, the brain
sat in two large mason jars filled with formaldehyde and placed
in a cider box, under a beer cooler. He had a technician slice the
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brain into 240 pieces, and on rare occasions he would mail a few
to scientists who wanted to study them. Once, pieces were mailed
to a scientist at Berkeley in a mayonnaise container.
9 Forty years later, Dr. Harvey drove across the country in a
Buick Skylark carrying Einstein’s brain in a Tupperware container,
hoping to return it to Einstein’s granddaughter Evelyn. She
refused to accept it. After Dr. Harvey’s death in 2007, it was left to
his heirs to properly donate his collection of slides and portions
of Einstein’s brain to science. The history of Einstein’s brain is so
unusual that a TV documentary was filmed about it.
10 (It should be pointed out that Einstein’s brain was not the only
one to be preserved for posterity. The brain of one of the greatest

1. iconic (y KON ihk) adj. widely known and well-established.

2. transfixed (trans FIHKST) v. held motionless.

UNIT 4 Independent Learning • from The Future of the Mind IL12

 geniuses of mathematics, Carl Friedrich Gauss, often called the
NOTES Prince of Mathematicians, was also preserved by a doctor a
century earlier. Back then, the anatomy of the brain was largely
unexplored, and no conclusions could be drawn other than the
fact that it had unusually large convolutions or folds.)
11 One might expect that Einstein’s brain was far beyond an
ordinary human’s, that it must have been huge, perhaps with
areas that were abnormally large. In fact, the opposite has been
found (it is slightly smaller, not larger, than normal). Overall,
Einstein’s brain is quite ordinary. If a neurologist did not know
that this was Einstein’s brain, he probably would not give it a
second thought.
12 The only differences found in Einstein’s brain were rather
minor. A certain part of his brain, called the angular gyri, was
larger than normal, with the inferior parietal regions of both
hemispheres 15 percent wider than average. Notably, these parts
of the brain are involved in abstract thought, in the manipulation
of symbols such as writing and mathematics, and in visual spatial3
processing. But his brain was still within the norm, so it is not
clear whether the genius of Einstein lay in the organic structure
of his brain or in the force of his personality, his outlook, and the
times. In a biography that I once wrote of Einstein, titled Einstein’s
Cosmos, it was clear to me that certain features of his life were
just as important as any anomaly in his brain. Perhaps Einstein
himself said it best when he said, “I have no special talents. . . . I
am only passionately curious.” In fact, Einstein would confess that
he had to struggle with mathematics in his youth. To one group
of schoolchildren, he once confided, “No matter what difficulties
you may have with mathematics, mine were greater.” So why was
Einstein Einstein?
13 First, Einstein spent most of his time thinking via “thought
experiments.” He was a theoretical physicist, not an experimental

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one, so he was continually running sophisticated simulations
of the future in his head. In other words, his laboratory was his
mind.
14 Second, he was known to spend up to ten years or more on a
single thought experiment. From the age of sixteen to twenty-six,
he focused on the problem of light and whether it was possible
to outrace a light beam. This led to the birth of special relativity,
which eventually revealed the secret of the stars and gave us
the atomic bomb. From the age of twenty-six to thirty-six, he
focused on a theory of gravity, which eventually gave us black
holes and the big-bang theory of the universe. And then from the
age of thirty-six to the end of his life, he tried to find a theory of
everything to unify all of physics. Clearly, the ability to spend ten

3. spatial (SPAY shuhl) adj. relating to the relationship of objects within space.

IL13 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • from The Future of the Mind

 or more years on a single problem showed the tenacity with which
he would simulate experiments in his head. NOTES

15 Third, his personality was important. He was a bohemian,4 so it

was natural for him to rebel against the establishment in physics.
Not every physicist had the nerve or the imagination to challenge
the prevailing theory of Isaac Newton, which had held sway for
two hundred years before Einstein.
16 Fourth, the time was right for the emergence of an Einstein. In
1905, the old physical world of Newton was crumbling in light
of experiments that clearly suggested a new physics was about
to be born, waiting for a genius to show the way. For example,
the mysterious substance called radium glowed in the dark all by
itself indefinitely, as if energy was being created out of thin air,
violating the theory of conservation of energy. In other words,
Einstein was the right man for the times. If somehow it becomes
possible to clone Einstein from the cells in his preserved brain, I
suspect that the clone would not be the next Einstein. The historic
circumstances must also be right to create a genius.
17 The point here is that genius is perhaps a combination of being
born with certain mental abilities and also the determination and
drive to achieve great things. The essence of Einstein’s genius
was probably his extraordinary ability to simulate the future
through thought experiments, creating new physical principles
via pictures. As Einstein himself once said, “The true sign of
intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.” And to Einstein,
imagination meant shattering the boundaries of the known and
entering the domain of the unknown.
18 All of us are born with certain abilities that are programmed
into our genes and the structure of our brains. That is the luck of
the draw. But how we arrange our thoughts and experiences and
simulate the future is something that is totally within our control.
Charles Darwin himself once wrote, “I have always maintained
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that, excepting fools, men did not differ much in intellect, only in
zeal5 and hard work.”

Can Genius Be Learned?

19 This rekindles the question, Are geniuses made or born? How
does the nature/nurture debate solve the mystery of intelligence?
Can an ordinary person become a genius?
20 Since brain cells are notoriously hard to grow, it was once
thought that intelligence was fixed by the time we became young
adults. But one thing is becoming increasingly clear with new
brain research; the brain itself can change when it learns. Although

4. bohemian (boh HEE mee uhn) n. person who lives an unconventional life.
5. zeal (zeel) n. enthusiasm in the pursuit of something.

UNIT 4 Independent Learning • from The Future of the Mind IL14

 brain cells are not being added in the cortex, the connections
NOTES between neurons are changing every time a new task is learned.
21 For example, scientists in 2011 analyzed the brains of London’s
famous taxicab drivers, who have to laboriously memorize
twenty-five thousand streets in the dizzying maze that makes up
modern London. It takes three to four years to prepare for this
arduous test, and only half the trainees pass.
22 Scientists at University College London studied the brains of
these drivers before they took the test, and then tested them again
three to four years afterward. Those trainees who passed the test
had a larger volume of gray matter than before, in an area called
the posterior and the anterior hippocampus. The hippocampus is
where memories are processed. (Curiously, tests also showed that
these taxicab drivers scored less than normal on processing visual
information, so perhaps there is a trade-off, a price to pay for
learning this volume of information.)
23 “The human brain remains ‘plastic,’ even in adult life, allowing
it to adapt when we learn new tasks,” says Eleanor Maguire
of the Wellcome Trust, which funded the study. “This offers
encouragement for adults who want to learn new skills later in
life.”
24 Similarly, the brains of mice that have learned many tasks
are slightly different from the brains of other mice that have not
learned these tasks. It is not so much that the number of neurons
has changed, but rather that the nature of the neural connections
has been altered by the learning process. In other words, learning
actually changes the structure of the brain.
25 This raises the old adage “practice makes perfect.” Canadian
psychologist Dr. Donald Hebb discovered an important fact about
the wiring of the brain: the more we exercise certain skills, the
more certain pathways in our brains become reinforced, so the
task becomes easier. Unlike a digital computer, which is just as

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dumb today as it was yesterday, the brain is a learning machine
with the ability to rewire its neural pathways every time it learns
something. This is a fundamental difference between a digital
computer and the brain.
26 This lesson applies not only to London taxicab drivers, but
also to accomplished concert musicians as well. According to
psychologist Dr. K. Anders Ericsson and colleagues, who studied
master violinists at Berlin’s elite Academy of Music, top concert
violinists could easily rack up ten thousand hours of grueling
practice by the time they were twenty years old, practicing more
than thirty hours per week. By contrast, he found that students
who were merely exceptional studied only eight thousand hours
or fewer, and future music teachers practiced only a total of four
thousand hours. Neurologist Daniel Levitin says, “The emerging

IL15 UNIT 4 Independent Learning • from The Future of the Mind

 picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice
is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being NOTES

a world class expert—in anything. . . . In study after study, of

composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice skaters, concert
pianists, chess players, master criminals, and what have you, this
number comes up again and again.” Malcolm Gladwell, writing in
the book Outliers, calls this the “10,000-hour rule.” ❧
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UNIT 4 Independent Learning • from The Future of the Mind IL16