We know the famous ones--the Thomas Edisons and the Alexander Graham Bells --but what about the less famous inventors? What about the people who invented the traffic light and the windshield wiper ? Shouldn' t we know who they are?

Joan Mclean thinks so. In fact, Mclean, a professor of physics at Mountain University in Range, feels so strongly about this matter that she' s developed a course on the topic. In addition to learning "who" invented "what" , however, Mclean also likes her students to learn the answers to the "why" and "how" questions. According to Mclean, "When students learn the answers to these questions, they are better prepared to recognize opportunities for inventing and more motivated to give inventing a try. "

Her students agree. One young man with a patent for an unbreakable umbrella is walking proof of McLean's statement. "If I had not heard the story of the windshield wiper' s invention," said Tommy Lee, a senior physics major. "I never would have dreamed of turning my bad experience during a rain storm into something so constructive. " Lee is currently negotiating to sell his patent to an umbrella producer.

So, just what is the story behind the windshield wiper? Well, Mary Anderson came up with the idea in 1902 after a visit to New York City. The day was cold and stormy, but Anderson still wanted to see the sights, so she jumped aboard a streetcar. Noticing that the driver was struggling to see through the snow covering the windshield, she found herself wondering why there couldn' t be a built - in device for cleaning the window. Still wondering about this when she returned home to Birmingham, Alabama, Anderson started drafting out solutions. One of her ideas, a lever on the inside of a vehicle that would control an arm on the outside, became the first windshield wiper.

Today we benefit from countless inventions and innovations. It' s hard to imagine driving without Garrett A. Morgan' s traffic light. It' s equally impossible to picture a world without Katherine J. Blodgett' s innovation that makes glass invisible. Can you picture life without clear windows and eyeglasses? What are the answers to this following set of questions: 1. Where does Joan Mclean work?
2. What is her job title?
3. Which questions does she want her students to answer?
4. Is she preparing her students to become inventors?
5. What did one of her students invent?
6. What was his name?
7. and his major?
8. What year is he in school?
9. What bad experience led to his invention?
10. When was the idea for the windshield wiper brainstormed?
11. By who?
12. Where was she travelling?
13. Where was her home?
14. What kind of weather sparked her creativity?
15. What did Garret A. Morgan invent?
16. Who helped made glass see-through?
17. What is one example of her technology in use?
18. Are Garret and Katherine famous?
19. What is one example of a well-known inventor?
20. Does Joan Mclean think famous inventors are the only important inventor to study?
Answer: 1. Mountain University in Range
2. professor of physics
3. "why
4. YES
5. unbreakable umbrella
6. Tommy Lee
7. physics
8. senior
9. dreamed
10. 1902
11. Mary Anderson
12. New York City
13. Birmingham, Alabama
14. stormy
15. traffic light
16. Katherine J. Blodgett
17. clear windows
18. YES
19. Morgan
20. NO

question: The mystery stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle are famous all over the world. The detective in his stories is called Sherlock Holmes. He solves mysteries in a most surprising way. His assistant, Dr Watson, watches with admiration and then writes up the story of the mystery afterwards. This is a useful story writing skill. Because Watson is not very clever, the story remains a mystery until the end. The readers can sometimes pick up some clues before he does! Then, to make Watson understand the mystery, Holmes has to explain it all, step by step. So we, the readers, get to see it step by step too. Watson is almost as good a character in the story as Sherlock Holmes! The very first time they meet, Holmes greatly surprises Watson. When they are first introduced, Holmes says to Watson, 'How do you do? I see you have been to Afghanistan .' Watson is too amazed by this to ask Holmes how he knows this. Watson has, indeed, been to Afghanistan. Later, he asks Holmes about it. Holmes explains that there is nothing magical about what he does. He gets to know it all by very, very careful observation . Observation One Watson was introduced to Holmes as a doctor. Yet Holmes thought that the way he stood and walked made him seem like a soldier. So, this meant he was probably an army doctor. Observation Two Watson's face was quite dark skinned. But his wrists were pale. So his dark face was probably sun burnt. This meant that he had been to a hot, sunny country. Observation Three At the time, the British army had soldiers at bases in many parts of the world. So there were still a lot of places to choose from. However, Holmes saw that Watson looked very tired and he was always holding his left arm, as if it was painful. So, he had probably been with the army to a place where they were fighting. There was only one place where the British army was fighting at that time: Afghanistan.
1. who is the writer?
2. is he well known?
3. who is the main player in his books?
4. does someone help him?
5. who?
6. does the main character have a job?
7. what?
8. how did he surprise his helper when they first met?
9. was his helpers skin milky and white?
****
answer:
1. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
2. Yes
3. Sherlock Holmes
4. Yes
5. Dr Watson
6. Yes
7. detective
8. Knowing he went to Afghanistan
9. No