Specialized Foreign Language Center of Veraguas

Technological University of Panama

Reading Comprehension Course 2021

Name: Neylin Hidalgo ID#: 8-897-1698 February 22nd, 2021

Total Score: 80 points

I. Before you read. Answer the following question. (10 points)

1. Do you think people with disabilities can have good and successful lives?
Why?

I believe that people with disabilities can have a successful and good life, but this

will depend on the family that accompanies them every day, on the spirit with which

they will face society. That is, if the family gives him all their support and love and

teaches him from a young age that even if he has a disability this is not an

impediment to do something, but the people of society will try to belittle him, but

since the family prepared him for this, He will be able to cope and overcome all

those inconveniences along the way. It is very important that this person with a

disability knows that they will always have his family.

STEPHEN HAWKING
There is a man driving around in a motorized wheelchair in Cambridge,
England. He can only move his eyes and to fingers of his left hand. He
communicates through a computer. He types words on the computer and the
computer speaks for him. This man is Stephen Hawking. People know him for his
courage and his sense of humor. He is also the greatest physicist since Albert
Einstein.
Stephen Hawking was born in 1942 in Oxford, England. His father was a
specialist in tropical diseases. Stephen wanted to be a scientist too. He went to the
University of Oxford and received a degree in physics. He then went to the
University of Cambridge to study for a Ph.D. during this time doctors discovered
that he had ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), which is sometime called Lou
Gehrig’s disease. This fatal disease weakens all of the body’s muscles. Must
people with ALS live for five years. The doctor thought Hawking would live for only
two and a half more years. When Hawking heard this, he became very depressed.
All about this time he met Jane Wilde, a language student at Cambridge.
They fell in love and got married in 1965. Hawking has often said that his wife gave
him to the courage to continue to study and work. Although Hawking had become
more severely paralyzed, he became at professor at Cambridge. Luckily, the work
of a physicist only requires one thing: the mind. Hawking had a son and then a
daughter. He had another son 12 years later when his disease had gotten much
worse. His youngest son had never heard his father’s real voice he has only heard
the voice from the computer.
Hawking does research about how the universe began. He sees
connections and works out explanations that other people cannot. His research
has influenced many other scientists. Some of his ideas are so advanced that other
scientist cannot prove them yet. His most famous ideas are about black holes.
They are areas in space that are very dense. They are so dense that even light
cannot pass through. That is why they are called black holes.
And his disease got worse, money became a problem for Stephen Hawking.
He had a lot of medical expenses. He needed special wheelchairs, nurses 24
hours a day, and machines to help him read and speak. To earn extra money,
Hawking gave speeches and published articles. Then someone told him to write a
book that explain the universe to ordinary people. Hawking agreed and wrote A
Brief History of Time. The book sold over 8 million copies worldwide, and Hawking
became a millionaire. Even though most people could not understand Hawking’s
ideas, he amazed them. Hawking became world famous. He met the Queen of
England, he was on the covers of magazines, and he appeared on television
shows.
 In 1990, Hawking ended his 25-year marriage. This was shocking to many
of his friends because his wife, Jane, was very devoted to him. She took care of all
of his needs. She fed him, bathed him, dressed him, and raised their children by
herself. Hawking left her for a younger woman, his nurse! They were married in
1995.
Hawking’s strong personality and spirit have helped him to live with ALS for
over 30 years. He has helped to make people aware of ALS and other disabilities.
Hawking teaches us that even though a person is physically disabled, the mind has
no limits.

II. VOCABULARY. Write the correct word in the blanks. (16 points)
Ph.D. devoted dense depressed

fatal research articles communicates

1. Black holes are actually filled with a lot of material. They are very dense .
2. A fatal disease, such as ALS, causes death.
3. Stephen Hawking wrote stories for newspapers and magazines. The articles
helped to pay for his medical costs.
4. Hawking cannot speak or write to share his ideas and feelings with other people. He
can only communicates through a computer.
5. Hawking’s wife, Jane, loved and cared for her husband. She was devoted to him.
6. Hawking studies about the universe because he wanted to find out new facts. He did
a lot of research .
7. Hawking was depressed when the doctor told him he was very sick.
8. Hawking studied for his Ph.D. , or doctorate, the highest university degree.

III. READING COMPREHENSION. Circle the correct answer. (6 points)

1. Stephen Hawking is an example of someone who____________________.
a. has overcome obstacles b. is devotes to his family c. cannot face his problems
2. The doctors who told Hawking that he had ALS___________________________.
a. were wrong b. thought he would get better c. expected him to die

3. Hawking’s disability____________________.

a. stopped him from b. is getting better c. did not stop him from
doing what he every day living a happy and
loved most in life successful life

IV. REMEMBERING DETAILS. Reread the paragraph and answer the questions.
(30 points)

1. What are the only parts of Hawking’s body that he can move? (5 points)
the only parts of Hawking's body that he can move are the eyes and fingers of
his left hand.
2. How does Hawking speak to people? (4 points)
Hawking communicates through a computer. He writes words on the computer
and the computer speaks for him.
3. How many children does Hawking have? (4 points)
Hawking had a son and then a daughter. He had another son 12 years later.
I mean, he had three kids.
4. What is Hawking’s job at the University of Cambridge? (4 points)
Hawking became a professor at Cambridge. he was a physical teacher.
5. Where did Hawking study for his degree in physics? (4 points)
He went to Oxford University and graduated in physics. He then went to the
University of Cambridge to study for a Doctorate.
6. What famous book did Hawking write? (5 points)
his best-of-sales Brief History of Time: From Big Bang to Black Holes, Black
Holes and Small Universes and Other Essays
7. How many copies of this book sold? (4 points)
The book sold more than 8 million copies worldwide
V. MAKING INFERENCES. True and False. (6 points)
1. ALS causes problems only with the body, not the mind T F
2. Hawking’s book was only popular with scientist T F
3. Hawking divorced his wife because she didn’t help him T F

VI. CRITICAL THINKING. Answer the question. (10 points)

1. Do you think there is life in outer space?

I think that if there is life in outer space, it is complicated since there is no

concrete evidence open to the public, but there are reports of many strange

events and sightings of inexplicable things.

Where I live you can see Punta Chame in the distance and Chicá, and at

night my family and I have seen strange lights that move in unusual

directions and these lights go from being intense to disappearing out of

nowhere, at first it was like Amazing, since I kind of don't pay attention to it.

There are stories from the grandparents and from the Chicá community that

there is a portal into space there, that lights from strange ships appear and

disappear.

Anyway, I think that society has created so many extraterrestrial life movies

that it is even normal to talk about life in outer space as if we knew them.

PS: don't think I'm crazy, just express my point of view. 😅