Lesson 3 Michael Dell’s Two-Billion-Dollar Dream

1. Detailed Discussion of the Text1. painstakingly putting together a trotline, a maze of ropes to which several fish hooks could be attached. (1) Lesson 3Michael Dell’s Two-Billion-Dollar Dream

2. painstakingly: carefully and thoroughly • trotline: a strong fishing line strung across a stream, or deep into a river having individual hooks attached to smaller lines at intervals. • There is a hospital attached to the medical school. A trailer is attached to the car. The two sisters are very much attached to each other.

3. a maze of: a large number of things arranged in a complicated and confusing way, e.g. a maze of streets, a maze of paths, a maze of rules, etc. (maze: 迷宫) • to be attached to: to be connected with; to be part of (附属于); to like very much, e.g.

4. 2. … the rest of the family called to Michael, as they pulled in fish. “Grab a pole and join in the fun.” (1) • to join in: to take part in an activity as one of a group of people, e.g. • to join in the fun; to join in the party (cf. to join the Party) • 3. … everyone else was ready to call it a day. (2) • to call it a day: (infml) to decide to stop working because you have done enough or because you are tired, e.g. • I don't know about you guys, but I’m tired and hungry. Let’s call it a day. • (cf. to call it quits for the day)

5. 4. Still, the youngster cast the trotline far into the water, anchoring it to a stick that he plunged deep in the sand. (2) • youngster: (old-fashioned) a young person • Note: The word “youth” is often used to refer to the period of time when a person is a young(青春) or used to refer to young people as a group (青年们) • to cast: to throw to anchor sth somewhere: to fasten sth to a certain place firmly so that it cannot move • to plunge in/into: to push sth firmly into something else

6. 5. Over dinner his family teased young Michael about coming away empty-handed. (3) • over dinner: during dinner • to tease: to make fun of sb (sometimes in a playful way)

7. 6. But afterward Michael reeled in the trotline, and on the hooks were more fish than the others had caught together! (3) • to reel in the trotline: to make the fishing line move on a reel by winding it • reel: n. (鱼线，胶卷等的)卷轴

8. 7. …rise…from teen to tycoon. (4) • …rise…from a teenager to a tycoon • tycoon: a very wealthy and powerful businessman • teenager: someone between 13 and 19, e.g. • He was in his early teens. • Notice: the author is using an alliteration here.

9. 8. He has become…the youngest man ever to head a Fortune 500corportation. (4) • to head: to be at the top or at the front of • cf. You are heading for trouble if you don't listen to me. (moving in that direction) • She was asked to head a delegation to discuss the border issue with India. (to be in charge)

10. 9. Growing up in Houston, Michael and his two brothers were imbued by their parents with the desire to learn and the drive to work hard. (5) • to be imbued with: (fml) to be filled with or inspired by certain feelings • Young people are usually imbued with strong patriotic feelings. • It is pathetic how these people are imbued with their self-importance.

11. 10. Like the time a saleswoman came asking to speak to “Mr. Michael Dell” about his feeling about his getting a high school equivalency diploma. (6) • Obviously the 8-year-old boy had asked this saleswoman about the possibility of buying a high school diploma, not knowing of course that the diploma is not for sale. Dell’s parents naturally were surprised; therefore he had to “explain” to them. • Notice that this little anecdote is not supposed to reflect dell’s dishonesty. It is meant to show that he was unusual even as a little boy. He couldn't wait to complete his education.

12. 11. … it might be a good idea to get high school out of the way. (6) • to get sth out of the way: to finish or to remove sth. (an obstacle), sth difficult or unpleasant, e.g. • I just want to have my tooth filled and get it out of the way…. • Can’t you do your washing now and get it out of the way? It only take a few minutes.

13. 12. to trade stamps (7) to buy and sell stamps • 13. Then he took it apart to figure out how it worked. (7) • Then he separated the computer into pieces to find out how it did its job. • to take apart: opposite of “to assemble”

14. 14. Newlyweds, he figured, were the best prospects. (8) • He guessed that newly-married people were the most likely to buy the subscriptions. • prospect: a person or plan or job that has a good chance of success in the future. Here it means “a potential client”, e.g. • I think the best prospects for our products are in Africa. • The trade between the two countries has bright prospects.

15. 15. recent recipients of marriage licenses. (8) • recipient: someone who receives sth • Notice: the word “receiver” often means sth else as in “telephone receiver” or “the receiver of a bankrupt company (people in charge of …)”

16. 16. … but dealers were selling them at a hefty markup. (10) • hefty: big and heavy as in “a hefty man”, “a hefty book”, “a hefty amount”, “a hefty fine”, “a hefty blow” etc • markup: the increased price at which the product is sold. It comes from the phrasal verb to “mark up”, e.g.

17. 17. Dell knew that IBM required its dealers to take a monthly quota of PCs • Dell knew that IBM required its dealers to sell a certain fixed number of personal computers every month.

18. 18. He also knew that holding excess inventory was costly. So he bought dealers’ surplus stock at cost. (11) • excess inventory: too many goods in stock • inventory: all the goods in a shop; stock • Notice that “excess” here is an adjective meaning “not wanted or needed because there is too much or too many” as in “excess luggage”, “excess fat”, “excess capacity”, “excess labor”, etc. Notice also that in the phrases above, “excess” is used rather than “excessive”. • to buy or sell at cost: to buy or sell sth at the price paid for its production (按成本价)

19. 19. The trunk of his car was his store ; his room took on the appearance of a small factory. • trunk of his car (AmE)=boot of his car (BrE) • to take on the appearance of : • to begin to have the appearance of , • Within ten years, this small fishing village took on the appearance of a modern city. • In the desert, many insects take on the colors of the sand.

20. 20. …he felt the opportunity of a lifetime was passing him by. (13) • the opportunity of a lifetime: a rare opportunity; a golden opportunity • by: “past” as in “passing by”, “going by”, walking by”, “driving by”, etc.

21. 21. After one month he started selling computers again—with a vengeance. • on a larger scale or with a greater effort. • with a vengeance: (infml) even to a greater degree than is normal, expected, or desired 变本加厉地, e.g. • He tried to quit smoking—only for two weeks. Then he started smoking again, with a vengeance. • In some areas, TB (tuberculosis) is back, and with a vengeance.

22. 22. The quarters he shared with two roommates looked like a combat zone—boxes piled high, computer boards and tools scattered around. • = with boxes piled high, and with computer boards and tools scattered around.

23. 23. One day his roommates heaped all his equipment into a pile. (14) • to heap up: to put a lot of things on top of each other in an untidy way • to pile up: to put things of the same kind on top of each other in a tidy way

24. 24. It was time to come to grips with the magnitude of what he had created. (14) • to come to grips with: to understand and deal with a difficult problem or situation, e.g. • It’s high time we came to grips with the drug problem. • The first thing they decided to come to grips with was their financial reform.

25. 25. The business was now grossing more than $50,000 a month. (14) • to gross: to make a total profit (before tax has been taken away) • cf. to net: to make a net profit • to top: to exceed; to be more than • to average: to be usually the amount

26. 26. Over spring recess…(15) • During spring holidays… • recess: (AmE) time for rest between lessons, during a working day or in the year

27. 27. But not matter what they said, Dell stuck fast. (19) • But no matter what they said, Dell stood firm. He did not give up. • to stick fast to a belief or idea: to continue to believe sth although it is difficult.

28. 28. …Dell…incorporated Dell Computer Corp. (20)to incorporate: to form into a legal corporation • 29. Under a deadline, his pace was frantic. (21) • He had to work extremely hard and fast because he had to meet a deadline.

29. 30. to handle finance and administration. (21) • to take care of the financial business and all the other activities involved in managing the company. For a big company, it will usually appoint a treasurer or manager of the financial department to take care of the former and another manager to be in charge of the latter.

30. 31. Dell still specialized in direct marketing of stripped-down IBM PCs to which he added custom features. (22) • More examples of the use of “specialize in ”: • She is a literature major, and specializes in women literature. • I don't think it’s a good idea to try to specialize in anything now. We should try to be well-grounded in all the major fields first. • custom features: characteristics or qualities designed for a particular customer • cf. custom-built computers