Margaret E. Knight (1)

Meet a woman whose ingenuity still affects our lives today 

by Elizabeth Sunshine

No one could have predicted that a baby girl born on February 14, 1838, in the cold northern state of Maine would revolutionize the world. Yet, that is what Margaret Kinght did.
She was not wealthy, received little education and lived at a time when women were not expected to accomplish much. Nevertheless, Knight's intelligence, effort and persistence enabled her to invent many devices with great significance for her own time and for our lives today.

Knight lived during a time when factories were springing up all over the United States and manufacturing was booming. Her father died when she was 10 years old, so she, like many young women of her day, began working in a textile mill.

When she was 12, Knight witnessed an accident in which a component of one of the machines flew off, seriously injuring a worker. Horrified, she determined to devise a way to prevent such accidents in the future. Knight designed a safety feature that would stop the machines if something got caught in them. The device soon became common in textile mills and is still used in some factories to this day.
Info Cloud
little幾乎一點也沒有(negative)
* Margaret Knight received little education.
Margaret Knight沒讀過什麼書
* I have little money.
我沒什麼錢
a little有一點(positive)
* I have a little money.
我有一點錢
few
* Few friends came to see him.
簡直沒什麼朋友來看他 (內心OS:很失望)
a few
* A few friends came to see him.
有幾位朋友來看他

Grammar Gym
spring up : to appear and usually in a very quick way
* Margaret Knight lived during a time when factories were springing up all over the United States.
* When the park was opened to the public, hotels and motels began to spring up nearby.
* Shops and restaurants were springing up along the beach as the place became more popular.

Language Lab
ingenuity 不可數n.獨創性、別出心裁、發明的才能
* We were amazed by the artist's ingenuity.
這位藝術家的創意，讓我們驚豔。
* The girl showed ingenuity in her paintings.
這位女孩的畫作，展現她的獨創性。
persistence n.堅持、屹立不搖、契而不捨
persist v.堅持
* The tennis player's persistence and hard work contributed to his success today.
這位網球選手的堅持與努力，促成他今天的成功。
* If you persist in that behavior, I'll take away your computer privileges.
如果你持續那樣做，我會剝奪你使用電腦的權利。
textile mill 紡織工廠
* Patrick used to work in a textile mill when he was young.
Patrick 年輕時曾經在紡織工廠工作
a steel mill 鐵工廠
a cotton mill 棉花工廠
component n.零件、成分 (fency word of part)
* Most of the car's components were made in Germany.
這部車的零件大部分是在德國製造的
* Fresh fruit and vegetables are important components of a healthy diet.
新鮮的水果和蔬菜是健康飲食的重要成分

You might also like
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blknight.htmhttp://www.women-inventors.com/Margaret-Knight.asp       
Link
mms://webvod.goodtv.tv/SC/20130211_3b3a8.wmv