Chapter 6: The Making of a Scientist

Important questions — the ones the board asked most (8)

1. Q1Short answer6 marksAsked: 2025

   Answer ANY TWO of the following three questions, in about 40-50 words : I. Books play a significant role in shaping the personality of a person. In what way did a book cause a significant shift in Richard Ebright’s life? (The Making of a Scientist) II. Bholi is sent to school for an uncommon reason, leading to a distinctive twist in her story. Elucidate. III. Fowler’s disappointment arose when he laid eyes on Ausable. Rationalise the statement. (The Midnight Visitor)

   

   Medha Ma’am

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   1. 1.When Ebright had collected all twenty-five species of butterflies around his home town, his mother gave him the book 'The Travels of Monarch X'. It told how monarch butterflies migrate to Central America and invited readers to tag butterflies for Dr. Frederick Urquhart. This turned his hobby of collecting into scientific research.3 marks
   2. 2.(II) The Tehsildar asked Ramlal, the village numberdar, to set an example by sending his daughters to the new girls' school. Her parents sent Bholi because they felt that, with her pock-marked face and simple mind, she would never be married anyway. The twist is that school made her confident, and she later refused to marry the greedy old Bishamber. OR (III) Fowler, a young writer, expected the romantic life of a secret agent, full of mystery, pistol shots and drugged drinks. Instead, Ausable was fat and sloppy and lived in a dingy room in a French hotel, so Fowler was disappointed.3 marks

   Marks split from a structure derived from past papers (checked twice); not CBSE’s official scheme

2. Q2Short answer6 marksAsked: 2026

   Answer ANY TWO of the following three questions, in about 40-50 words each : 2x3 = 6 I. Working through his project of collecting and tagging butterflies, Ebright developed a scientific temperament. Elaborate. (Making of a Scientist) II. Mention how Ausable was always one step ahead of everyone. (The Midnight Visitor) III. Mention any two reasons that substantiate that Bholi's mother was a negative presence in her life. (Bholi)

   

   Medha Ma’am

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   Watch it on the board · 140 s

   Model answer

   1. 1.Task I: Ebright began collecting butterflies in kindergarten and soon collected all the twenty-five species found around his hometown. His mother got him the book 'The Travels of Monarch X', which led him to tag butterflies for Dr Urquhart's research on their migration. He then began raising butterflies and doing projects, such as testing whether the viceroy copies the monarch and studying the gold spots on the monarch pupa. Through this he learnt curiosity, careful observation, patience and testing ideas by experiment: a scientific temperament. OR Task III: First, she agreed to send Bholi to school only because she thought that, with her ugly face and lack of sense, no one would marry her anyway, so the teachers could worry about her. Second, she readily agreed to marry Bholi to Bishamber, an old, lame man with grown-up children, because he asked for no dowry, without any thought for Bholi's feelings.3 marks
   2. 2.Task II: Ausable kept his presence of mind. When Max surprised him in his room with a pistol, he did not panic. He calmly made up a story about a balcony below his window and said the police would be coming. When there was a knock (only the waiter with the drinks Ausable had ordered), Max climbed out of the window onto the balcony that did not exist and fell. Ausable outwitted Max by his wit, not by force. OR Task III: First, she agreed to send Bholi to school only because she thought that, with her ugly face and lack of sense, no one would marry her anyway, so the teachers could worry about her. Second, she readily agreed to marry Bholi to Bishamber, an old, lame man with grown-up children, because he asked for no dowry, without any thought for Bholi's feelings.3 marks

   Marks split from a structure derived from past papers (checked twice); not CBSE’s official scheme

3. Q3Short answer3 marksAsked: 2026

   In what way was Richard Ebright’s scientific journey enhanced by the support of his mother ? (The Making of a Scientist)

4. Q4Short answer3 marksAsked: 2024

   Justify how Ebright’s mother played an important part in his becoming a scientist. (The Making of a Scientist)

5. Q5Short answer3 marksAsked: 2024

   How can one say that Ebright’s curiosity / inquisitiveness drove him to become a scientist ? (The Making of a Scientist)

6. Q6Short answer3 marksAsked: 2023

   What opinion did Mr. Weiherer, Ebright's Social Science teacher have about him ?

   How the model answer begins

   1. Mr. Richard A. Weiherer, his Social Science teacher, said that Ebright was competitive, but not in a bad sense.

   The full answer from Medha Ma’am →
7. Q7Short answer3 marksAsked: 2023

   How did Ebright’s mother help him to become a scientist ?

8. Q8Short answer3 marksAsked: 2023

   What lesson did Ebright learn when he did not win anything at a science fair?

Questions parents and students ask

How many marks does "The Making of a Scientist" carry in CBSE Class 10 English?

In the CBSE papers of 2023–2026, this chapter carried about 1 marks and about 0 questions a year; by marks it ranks 25 in English.

Which are the most important (VVI) questions of "The Making of a Scientist"?

The 8 questions above are from the board’s real papers, each with the years it was asked; the most-asked come first with their full model answers. All 8 written questions of this chapter, with answers, are in the AskMedha app.

Do the answers follow the board’s marking scheme?

Yes. CBSE publishes its marking schemes; every model answer here is written point by point to the marks the board’s own scheme gives, and checked by a second, independent model.