READTHEORY Passages and Questions Reading Comprehension Assessment Directions: Read the passage. Then answer the questions below. Name Date The Curiosity of Newness There is a famous anecdote about an early movie audience. The audience gathered in a theater to watch a film. They looked up at the screen, which showed a train approaching in the distance. As the train grew increasingly close, members of the audience jumped out of the way of the train. Of course, the train did not pop out of the screen at the audience. It was just a projection of a moving train. But the audience had never before seen a movie, so it was startled by it. This story is likely exaggerated if it is true at all. But it underscores a point. When something is new, people do not know how to respond. Just as the audience was afraid of the movie train in the early 1900s, so too were Americans afraid of a real train the first time they saw one in the 1800s. And no one knew what to make of the bicycle later in the century. The idea of balancing on a twowheeled contraption seemed reckless at best and downright suicidal at worst. Likewise, people did not know what to make of early automobiles. They seemed more dangerous than a horse did, and so speed limits of 10 miles per hour were enforced throughout the 1920s. Nowadays, even in busy cities, speed limits average 30 miles per hour! It is all about familiarity. When we are used to seeing something, we no longer wonder about it. Audiences rarely jump out of the way of movies, and we all navigate around speeding cars each and every day. These technologies no longer scare like they did when they were new. Yet, every now and then, a new technology emerges, one that frightens everyone who sees it. Or, if it is not frightening, it is just not accepted. Critics will complain of it or say that it will never catch on. Just note, they said that about trains, movies, and cars too. But, after people got used to them, they became part of our daily lives. So I say, unless the new technology is designed to kill, let us give it time. Once we have seen a technology once or twice, it will never seem so new. And once it is not new, it is just common. 1) As used in paragraph 1, the word anecdote most nearly means A. a story B. an artifact C. a fact D. a cure 2) The main function of paragraphs 2 4 is to A. argue that people eventually get used to any technology B. call into question the accuracy of the story retold in paragraph 1 C. introduce a famous anecdote about a well-known invention D. provide examples to illustrate the author s point
READTHEORY Questions 3) According to the information in paragraph 4, compared to speed limits of the 1920s, today s average city speed limits are A. one third as high B. one half as high C. three times as high D. four times as high 4) Based on its use in paragraph 5, it can be understood that the word familiarity is LEAST similar to which of the following words? A. freshness B. awareness C. understanding D. closeness 5) What kind of new technology would the author of the passage be most likely to worry about? A. a jet aircraft B. a nuclear bomb C. a laptop computer D. a digital television 6) Which of the following statements best summarizes the author s main point? A. New technologies are always because we can never be sure what they are capable of doing. B. New technologies are often scary but become less scary once something newer is created. C. New technologies might be scary until they become familiar. D. New technologies are not scary at all but still should not be used carelessly. 7) Based on the information in the passage, do you think it is possible that people once feared the television? Why or why not?
READTHEORY Questions 8) Where else do you see the attitude described by the author? What modern technologies are still feared or misunderstood by older generations? 9) How do you usually respond to new technology? Are you an early adapter with all the latest gadgets and know-how, or do you prefer to stick to the methods and devices you re used to? Why?
READTHEORY Answers and Explanations 1) A Question Type: Vocabulary anecdote (noun): a short story used to illustrate a point about a real incident or person. In the first sentence of the passage, the author states that there is a famous anecdote about an early movie audience. He or she goes on to tell the anecdote, which concerns a film audience being confused by a movie. The anecdote reads like a story. This suggests that an anecdote is a story. Additionally, in the second paragraph, the author refers to the anecdote as this story, making it even clearer. For these reasons, choice (A) is correct. The anecdote the author describes in the first paragraph concerns a piece of history, but it is not suggested that an anecdote itself is a piece of history or an artifact. Because of this, choice (B) is not correct. The anecdote the author describes in the first paragraph is possibly factual, but the author is not certain. He or she later suggests that the anecdote was likely exaggerated. This suggests that an anecdote is not necessarily a fact, so choice (C) is not correct. There is no information in the first paragraph that would suggest that an anecdote is a type of cure. Rather, it is an antidote, not an anecdote; that is a cure for something. Choice (D) is not correct because of this. 2) D Question Type: Inference In paragraphs 2, 3, and 4, the author lists a series of technologies that scared or confused people at first. He or she describes trains, bicycles, and automobiles as things that caused Americans to feel afraid, or that seemed reckless or dangerous. The author s main point is introduced in paragraph 5, in which he or she states that, when we are used to something, we no longer wonder about it. This means the examples used in paragraph 2 4 are used to illustrate the author s point that people are only afraid of a new technology at first use. This makes choice (D) correct. The author does not argue that people get used to technologies until paragraph 5. This question asks about paragraphs 2 4, so choice (A) is not correct. Paragraph 2 does suggest that the anecdote shared in paragraph 1 might not be entirely factual. However, the author does not elaborate on this point beyond that one sentence. Because of this, it cannot be said that paragraphs 2 4 are mostly used to call into question the anecdote. Because of this, choice (B) is not correct. The first paragraph provides an anecdote about a well-known invention: the movie. But this question asks about paragraphs 2 4, so choice (C) is not correct. 3) C Question Type: Detail In paragraph 4, the author lists two different speed limits. He or she states that speed limits of 10 miles per hour were enforced throughout the 1920s but that in today s world, speed limits average 30 miles per hour in cities. Thirty is three times 10, so choice (C) is correct. Choice (A) is not correct because the question asks for a comparison of today s average city speed limit to speed limits of the 1920s. The latter were one third as high as the former, so choice (A) is the right answer if the question s order were reversed. Choice (B) is not correct because neither of the numbers listed in paragraph 4 is half of the other number. Choice (D) is not correct because neither of the numbers listed in paragraph 4 is four times the other number. 4) A Question Type: Vocabulary familiarity (noun): close acquaintance with or knowledge of something. In paragraph 5, the author states that it is all about familiarity and that, when we are used to something, we no longer wonder about it. This suggests that having familiarity with something is the same as being used to it. The question asks for a word that is not similar in meaning to familiarity, so choice (A) is correct. The word freshness suggests unfamiliarity or newness. Choices (B), (C), and (D) are each not correct because each provides a word that is similar in meaning to familiarity. All three words would suggest that one is used to something, so neither of them correctly answers the question. 5) B Question Type: Inference The author makes only one suggestion about the kinds of technology he or she would not trust. This occurs in paragraph 7. There, he or she states that, unless the new technology is designed to kill, let us give it time. This makes it clear that the author would not quickly embrace a technology that was designed to kill. The only technology listed that is designed to harm or kill others is that listed in choice (B). A nuclear bomb s purpose is to kill, so choice (B) is correct. The author states that, unless the new technology is designed to kill, let us give it time. This makes it clear that the author would not quickly embrace a technology that was designed to kill. However, a jet aircraft can be used for purposes besides killing. Though it may be used to drop bombs on a nation, it can also be used to help people travel. Therefore, it is not something necessarily designed to kill. This makes choice (A) not correct. The author states that, unless the new technology is designed to kill, let us give it time. This makes it clear that the author would not quickly embrace a technology that was designed to kill. Laptop computers are not designed to kill, so there is no reason to think the author would worry about them. Because of this, choice (C) is not correct. The author states that, unless the new technology is designed to kill, let us give it time. This makes it clear that the author would not quickly embrace a technology that was designed to kill. A digital television is in no way designed to kill, so there is no reason to think the author would worry about one. Because of this, choice (D) is not correct. 6) C Question Type: Global The author s main point is made in paragraphs 5 and 7. In paragraph 5, he or she writes, When we are used to seeing something, we no longer wonder about it. He or she goes on to state that, These technologies no longer scare like they did when they were new. In paragraph 7, the author argues that things become common after we become familiar with them and have seen them once or twice. This means the author argues that new technologies might be scary until they become familiar, making choice (C) correct. The author does not mainly argue that new technologies are scary. Rather, he or she argues that they are scary until we become used to them. Choice (A) is not correct because it only summarizes half of the author s argument. Choice (B) is not correct because the author never argues that new technologies only become less scary once something newer is created. Instead, he or she argues that they are scary until we become used to them. The author does not argue that new technologies never appear scary.
READTHEORY Answers and Explanations Nor does he or she argue that the technologies should not be used. Instead, he or she mostly argues that new technologies scare people until the people become familiar with them. For this reason, choice (D) is not correct.