READING1
Pre-reading
Ex:1 Before reading the passage, answer the following questions.
1.Have you ever read or heard about Alfred Nobel?
2.What does the phrase “ A Man of Contrasts” in the title mean? Can you make a guess?
Now read the passage to learn more about Alfred Nobel.
Alfred Nobel-a Man of Contrasts
Para 1.Alfred Nobel, the Swedish inventor and industrialist, was a man of many contrasts. He was the son of a bankrupt, but became a millionaire; a scientist with a love of literature, an industrialist who managed to remain an idealist. He made a fortune but lived a simple life, and although cheerful in company company he was often sad in private. A lover of mankind, he never had a wife or family to love him; a patriotic son of his native land, he died alone on foreign soil. He invited a new explosive, dynamite, to improve the peacetime industries of mining and road building, but saw it used as a weapon of war to kill and injure his fellow men. During his useful life he often felt he was useless. “Alfred Nobel,” he once wrote of himself, “ought to have been put to death by a kind doctor as soon as, with a cry, he entered life.” World-famous for his works he was never personally well known, for throughout his life he avoided publicity. “ I do not see,” he once said, “that I have deserved any fame and I have no taste for it,” but since his death, his name has brought fame and glory to others.
Para 2.He was born in Stockholm on October 21, 1833, the son of Immanuel Nobel who invented the landtime. After his father’s bankruptcy, Alfred began his own study of explosives in his father’s laboratory. He had never been to school or university but studied privately and by the time he was twenty he was a skillful chemist and excellent linguist, speaking Swedish, Russian, Russian, German, French and English. Like his father, Alfred Nobel was imaginative and inventive, but he had better luck in business and showed more financial sense. He was quick to see industrial openings in 20 different countries. Indeed his greatness lay in the outstanding ability to combine the qualities of an original scientist with those of a forward-looking industrialist.
Para 3.But Nobel’s main concern was never with making scientific discoveries. Seldom happy, he was always searching for a meaning to life, and from his youth he had taken a serious interest in literature and philosophy. Perhaps because he could not find ordinary human love-he came to care deeply about the whole of man- kind. His greatest wish was to see and end to wars, and thus peace between nations and he spent much time and money to provide prizes for outstanding work in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology, Medicine, Literature and Peace, is a memorial to his interested and ideas. And so, the man who felt he should have died at birth is remembered and respected long after his death.
Para 4.… the whole of my remaining estate shall be dealt with in the following way: the capital shall be safely invested to form a fund; the interest on this fund shall be distributed annually in the form of prizes to those who, during the previous year have done work of the lows: one part to the person who has made the most important chemical discovery within the field of physiology or medicine; one part to the person who has done the most or the best work for brotherhood between nations, for the abolition or reduction of permanent armies and for the organization of peace conferences. The prizes for physics and chemistry shall be awarded by the Swedish Academy of Sciences; that for medical works by the Caroline Institute in Stockholm and that for workers for peace by a committee of five people to be Elected by the Norwegian Parliament. It is my firm wish that in awarding the prizes no consideration whatever shall be given to the nationality of the candidates, but that the most worthy shall receive the prize, whether he is a Scandinavian or not.
Para 5.1. The Nobel Committees send invitations to hundreds of scientists and Scholars around the world, asking them to suggest names for the Nobel prizes in the coming year.
Para 6.2. The names are sent in by February.
Para7.3.Each Committee, with the help of specially appointed expert, discusses the names suggested, and makes out a short list to present to the prize-awarding institution. A vote is taken for the final choice.
Para 8.4. The names of the prizewinners are announced in October or November.
Para 9.5. The prizes are awarded on December 10. The Peace Prize is present at Oslo University, the others at a ceremony in Stockholm. The King of Sweden presents a diploma, a medal and a cheque to each prizewinner and there is a ceremonial dinner afterwards in the City Hall. Each Nobel prizewinner is expected to give a “ Nobel lecture”.
Exercise .2 Analysis of Ideas and Relationships: Circle the letter next to the correct answer.
a. the life of Alfred Nobel
b. Alfred Nobel’s famous will
c. the way to choose Nobel prizewinners
d. the education Alfred Nobel received in college
2.From the passage we know that Alfred Nobel’s father.
a. was an excellent linguist
b. was always successful in business
c. was imaginative and inventive but had bad luck
d. invented a new explosive and passed the skill onto his son
3.According to the author, an industrialist ………………
a. pays greater attention to practical considerations than to ideals
b. pays greater attention to ideals than to practical considerations
c. always tries his best to remain an idealist
d. constantly balances practical matters and ideals
4.According to the author, scientists ………………
a. are likely to take great interest in literature
b. usually take little interest in literature
c. usually take no serious interest in the matter of peace or war
d. are likely to take great interest in both literature and science
5. Alfred Nobel started his study of explosives ……………..
a. in order to make money
b. for the purpose of making scientific discoveries
c. to better the industry of mining and road building
d. because he wanted to invent a powerful weapon for his country
6.Which of the following statements is TRUE?
a. Alfred Nobel was personally well known before his death although he was world-famous for his works.
b. Alfred Nobel was personally well known before his death because he was was world-famous for his works.
c. Alfred Nobel was personally well known before his death only because he was the son of a bankrupt.
d. Alfred Nobel was personally well known when he was twenty.
7.Which of the following statements is FALSE?
a. The prize for peace should be awarded by a committee of five people to be elected by the Norwegian Parliament.
b. The prize for medical works should be awarded by the Caroline Institute in Stockholm.
c. The prize for literature should be awarded by the Academy in Stockholm.
d. The prize for physics and chemistry should be awarded by the Swedish government.
8.It was Nobel’s strong wish that in awarding the prize ……….
a. the candidate’s nationality should be taken into consideration
b. the candidate’s nationality should not be considered
c. consideration should be given to the candidate’s age
d. the candidate’s presentation speech should be considered
9. Nobel prizes are provided for outstanding work in all the following areas EXPECT
a. physics
b. mathematics
c. chemistry
d. physiology
10.Where is the Nobel prize for literature presented every year?
a. In Italy.
b. At Oslo University.
c. In Stockholm.
d. In Norway.
Reading material 2
Whales
By Marion Conger and Pat Cherry (Word Count:700 )
Everyone has heard about whales. What a beautiful sight it must be to see a whale. It is no wonder so many stories have been written about them. In years gone by, men sailed in ships that did not take them back to their homes for many years. Their job was to capture whales. They sold certain parts of the whales to people for different uses. The whale was valuable because it was not easy to get. Whaling is not a job for many people any more. We no longer need very much of anything from whales.
There have been many stories written about whales. They are good stories to read because they always tell of adventure.
To enjoy a story about whales it is a good idea to learn as much about them as you can. Aboard the whaling ship you would hear a man shout:
‘’That she blows! Whale off the starboard bow!’’
The lookout on a whaling ship has sighted a spouting whale. All hands spring to their jobs. The harpooner takes aim with his gun and fires. There is a short fight. The whale is dead. Its body is taken aboard the ship. A crew of men sets to work stripping the great whale of its blubber.
The thick fat, or blubber, under the whale’s skin protects the animal against cold waters. It is for the valuable oil in blubber that whales are hunted.
Although whales spend their lives in water, they are not fish. Whales cannot breathe under water, but must come above water for air every thirty or forty minutes. The whales’ lookouts watch for the misty stream of water when the whales exhale.
One group of whales has, instead of teeth, long strips of bone, hanging from their upper jaw. This is the baleen whale, the largest animal in the world. Although it may weigh as much as twenty elephants, this giant of the sea feeds on see plants and animals. It strains the tiny plants and animals through its bone strips.
Some of the kinds of whales are the blue whale, the humpback, the gray whale, and the white whale.
Once whales were hunted for whale –bone as well as blubber. So many whales were killed that it was feared they might die out. An international code was set up to protect them.
The sperm whale is dangerous. It fights and kills. It often dives thousands of feet down into the ocean in search of its favorite dinner. It likes to eat the giant squid.
There in the darkness, the two monsters fight a terrible of life and death. The whale matches its strength and weight against the moving arms of the great squid. Many a whale carries battle scars that were left by a squid’s fierce struggles.
The giant sperm whale is the only whale whose mouth is large enough to hold a man. It could turn over the early whaling days are written in Herman Melville’s story of the white whale, Moby Dick.
Eskimos use many parts of the whale. They make its hide into clothing and its flesh into food. The blubber is used for fuel. Oil from the whale’s head is burned in lamps.
When a sperm whale is sick, it may produce a fatty substance called ambergris. Strangely enough, this greasy, ill-smelling product is used in making fine perfumes.
The sperm whale has about thirty teeth in its lower jaw. It belongs to a group of whales called toothed whales are the bottlenose, the beaked whale, and the white whale.
Read the passage and choose the correct item.
1. Whales-
A. can breathe under water
B .are not fish
C. are sea serpents
D .are all the same size
2. The sperm whale has-
A .no teeth
B .teeth
C .tusks
D .a sharp jaw
3. The purpose of blubber is to –
A .help the whale to float
B .store food for later use
C .protect the whale from the cold
D .all of the above
4. All whales are –
A .harmless
B .killers
C .large
D .valueless
5. Oil can be taken from –
A .any part of whale’s body
B .the whale’s head only
C .the blubber and head
D .the whale’s tail
6. Ambergris is used in –
A .foods
B .perfumes
C .oils
D .paints
7.Ambergris –
A .can be found easily because of its pleasant smell
B .comes from a sick whale
C .is found in seaweed
D .is another name for blubber
8. The story about whales –
A .tells some facts
B .is untrue
C .is sad
D .is exciting
9. Moby Dick is –
A .the name of this story
B .the name of a book
C .about a slow whale
D .about the giant squid
10. If all whale hunting were to be stopped, those who would suffer most would be –
A .people who need oil for lamps
B . Eskimos
C .people who need bone for carving.
D .perfume companies
Awesome post, thanks you so much
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