2017-2018学年度第11期总第691期高二教案

Christie’s legacy lives on (P4)

烟台第二中学 孔洁

I. Warming up   

When it comes to crime fiction, what do you think of?

Agatha Christie

“Queen of crime”

“Duchess of death”

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) 

English crime novelist, short story writer and playwright. 

Best known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections

II. Skimming

Read the passage quickly and decide which topic is mentioned in the passage

Christie’s life

Christie’s works

Comment on Christie’s novels  

III. Scanning 

Para. 1-3 Judge whether they are true or false

1. As the “Queen of Crime” and the “Duchess of Death”. Christie loved violence and blood, and knew a lot about the weapons most often used in murder. 

2. During her 50-year writing career, Christie’s murder stories made her the world’s best-known mystery writer.

3. The new film adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express is the fifth adaptation of this novel.

 

Para. 4-7 Read this part in detail and find out the answers to the following questions 

1. What do we know about Christie’s writing career?

Born in 1890 in England, Christie was educated at home and began her writing career while working as a nurse during World War I. She went on to produce 79 novels and several short stories, before dying at the age of 86.

2. Who is Hercule Poirot? 

The character of Hercule Poirot is a retired Belgian police officer who Christie introduced in her first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles. Poirot then starred in 30 of her works, including Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile. The character has become so famous that someone has even written his biography, The Life and Times of Hercule Poirot.

3. How did Christie feature interesting aspects of human nature in her work?

Christie also featured interesting aspects of human nature in her work, usually by putting a large group of characters in an isolated environment. An example is And Then There Were None, in which 10 people with different personalities and from different social backgrounds were trapped on an island and soon started to mysteriously die one after the other. Each character’s story is portrayed with depth, and put together, they make for a fascinating read. 

4. According to TP Fielden, why are Christie’s works attractive to readers?

 

From the British country house to the exotic mysteries of the East, her vivid construction of character and place combined with dramatic moral complexities engages readers.

IV. Language focus-----sentences

1. But the pen of the British writer dared to travel where her eyes wouldn’t. 

•I dare not go there.

•Only a few journalists dared to cover the story.

•dare 为情态动词， be to be brave enough to do something that is risky or that you are afraid to do – used especially in questions or negative sentences

2. An example is And Then There Were None, in which 10 people with different personalities and from different social backgrounds were trapped on an island and soon started to mysteriously die one after the other. 

in which 非限制性定语从句 

 

Match the words with their meanings 

Adaptation: a film or television program that is based on a book or play

Isolated: far away from any others

Trap: to prevent someone from escaping from somewhere, especially a dangerous place

engage: to attract someone’s attention and keep them interested

Learn to use 

1. 20名矿工被困在地下。

Twenty miners were trapped underground. 

2. 这个玩具对她的吸引力没有维持多久。

The toy didn’t engage her interest for long.

3. 他在把自己的最新小说改编成电影。

He is working on a screen adaptation of his latest novel. 

4. 没有多少人到这个偏僻的地方来。

Not many people visit this isolated spot. 

V. Discussion    

Do you like crime stories? Can you share one of your favorite crime stories with us?

VI. Homework    

Write an composition introducing Agatha Christie. Her life and works should be included. 

 

 

Alpha Go AI meets its match (P6)

烟台第二中学 孔洁

I. Lead-in

Do you think Artificial Intelligence can defeat humans? 

II. Skimming

Read the passage quickly and summarize the main idea 

It introduces AlphaGo Zero, which defeated AlphaGo.

Para 1&2: AlphaGo’s defeat 

Para 3&4: AlphaGo Zero’s influence on humans 

Para 5&6: How AlphaGo Zero learned by itself

III. Scanning

1. What happened to Alpha Go in 2016?

In March, 2016, the pride of humankind was ________by a computer. Google’s AlphaGo ________the South Korean Go grandmaster  Lee Sedol four games to one, as the world __________with shock and awe. Artificial intelligence (AI) had suddenly reached a new and ________height.

2. What’s AlphaGo Zero’s advantage over AlphaGo? 

The new AI program is _____in the way it learned to play Go. _______learning from thousands of human matches, as its predecessor did, AlphaGo Zero ________ Go in just two days without any human knowledge of the game and _____ AlphaGo by day three, reported The Guardian. It then went on to defeat AlphaGo 100 games_______.

3. How did Alpha Go Zero teach itself?

To learn how to play Go, AlphaGo Zero played millions of _______against itself using only _____________of the game to rapidly create its own knowledge of it. Like the_____________, it used “reinforcement learning to become its own teacher,” according to DeepMind’s website.

4. How can Alpha Go Zero abilities be applied in our life?

AlphaGo Zero’s _________ to self-learning is a _________ advancement in AI that could be _______ to help solve some of the world’s biggest problems, according to a recent research report _______ in the journal Nature. 

IV. Language focus-----sentences

Analyze the following sentences and pay attention to the use of “as”

1. In March, 2016, the pride of humankind was crushed by a computer. Google’s AlphaGo defeated the South Korean Go grandmaster Lee Sedol four games to one, as the world looked on with shock and awe.

As: conj. While sth is happening 

He sat watching her as she got ready.

2. But as smart as AlphaGo is, it’s no longer the best Go “player” in the world. 

As: conj. In spite of sth = though

Though AlphaGo is smart, it’s no longer the best Go “player” in the world. 

Happy as they were, there was something missing. 

3. Instead of learning from thousands of human matches, as its predecessor did, AlphaGo Zero mastered Go in just two days without any human knowledge of the game and defeated AlphaGo by day three, reported The Guardian.

As: conj. In the way in which

She lost it, as I said she would.   

IV. Language focus----words & phrases

Fill in the blanks with proper words

The new AI program is unique ___the way it learned to play Go. Instead of learning ____thousands of human matches, AlphaGo Zero mastered Go ___ just two days ________any human knowledge of the game and defeated AlphaGo ___day three.  It then went ___to defeat AlphaGo 100 games ___zero.

___learn how to play Go, AlphaGo Zero played millions of matches _______itself using only the basic rules of the game.

AlphaGo Zero’s approach ___self-learning is a significant advancement ___AI that could be applied  ____help solve some of the world’s biggest problems. AlphaGo Zero could probably find cures ____a number of serious diseases ______weeks.

粉碎 crush

打败defeat

看待look on

达到一个新的出乎意料的高度reach a new and unexpected height

独一无二的unique

以前的版本previous version

以前的方法previous approach

数据data

除去人类知识的约束remove the constraints of human knowledge

自学的方法approach to self-learning

意义重大的进步a significant advancement

被应用到be applied to

与…相关/相连be connected with

既然now that

V. Post-reading   

In 2016, the news that AlphaGo defeated humans shocked the world. After AlphaGo’s victory, AI inevitably aroused people’s worries, as some think AI may take over the planet one day. What’s your opinion on this? 

VI. Homework    

Write a composition introducing AlphaGo Zero. You may refer to what we have learned today.