Answer — Exercise 5

a)

1. When Sidis was seven months old, he pointed at the moon and said 'moon'
2. At eighteen months, he could read The New York Times.
3. At six, he could speak Russian, French, German and Hebrew.
4. Aged nine, he gave a lecture on mathematics at Harvard University.
5. Journalists followed him around and wrote articles about him but he didn't achieve much as an adult.
6. He died in 1944, aged 46.

c)

1. His parents were originally from Russia. They moved to New York.
2. William's first word was 'door'
3. William was six when he could speak Russian, French, German and Hebrew.
4. When he was nine, he gave a lecture on mathematics at Harvard University.
5. Two years later, he began attending Harvard University.
6. Journalists 'followed him around'
7. His sister said he knew all the languages of the world and that he could learn a language in a day.
8. For most of his adult life, Sidis was 'Tunning away' from fame.