Pathways Reading-Writing 2 Unit 2 Vocabulary and Comprehension

Pathways Reading-Writing 2 Unit 2
Unit 2 Section 1: Vocabulary
Complete the sentences with words from the list. One or more words may not be used.
efficient creative equipment
afford powered prevention
1. The author who wrote this book is very ____________________. I’ve never read anything like it.
ANS: creative
PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

MSC: Lesson A: Reading
2. Vehicles that are ____________________ by electricity are much quieter than vehicles that use
gasoline or diesel fuel.
ANS: powered

3. In the past, lightbulbs were not very ____________________. They wasted a lot of energy and didn’t
last very long.
ANS: efficient

4. One of the most important factors in the ____________________ of disease is a clean water supply.
ANS: prevention

5. I couldn’t ____________________ to buy a tablet computer until I found a full-time job.
ANS: afford

6. This store sells printers, copiers, computers, and other types of office ____________________.
ANS: equipment

Unit 2 Section 2: Reading Comprehension: Review
The Power of Creativity
William Kamkwamba lives in Malawi, Africa, where most people have to grow their own food and
have no electricity or running water. Only two percent of Malawians can afford electricity. With no
electricity or running water, life is difficult. In 2001, when William was 14 years old, life in Malawi
became even more difficult. There was a severe drought and most families, including William’s,
couldn’t grow enough food. He explains, “Within five months all Malawians began to starve to death.
My family ate one meal per day, at night.”
Because of the drought, William’s family couldn’t afford to send him to school anymore. So one day
William went to the library near his home. He wanted to continue his education. William found a
science book called Using Energy. It included instructions for building a windmill. Windmills can be
very efficient sources of electricity, and they can bring water up from underground. William didn’t
know much English, and he wasn’t able to understand most of the book, but it was full of pictures and
diagrams. Looking at the pictures, William thought he could build a windmill for his family.
When William went home and started building his windmill, a lot of people laughed at him, including
his mother. They didn’t think he could do it, but William was confident. He saw the photo of the
windmill in the book. That meant someone else was able to build it, so he knew he could build it, too.
William was also creative. He didn’t have the parts and equipment that he saw in the book’s
illustrations, and he couldn’t buy them. So he looked for parts in junkyards. He explains, “I found a
tractor fan, [a] shock absorber, [and] PVC pipes. Using a bicycle frame . . . , I built my machine.”
William changed and improved his design little by little. First, the windmill powered only one
lightbulb. Eventually, it powered four lights. Then there was enough electricity for four lights and a
radio. No one laughed at William after that, and people in his town started to come to his house to get
power for their cell phones. Later, William built a second windmill. This one brought water up from
underground. After that, William began to teach other people how to build windmills. He also
continued to build more of them himself, including one at a primary school in Malawi.
Because of his success with the windmills, William was able to go back to school. He also helped with
other projects, including solar power, clean water, and malaria prevention. He wrote a book about his
life, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope. In addition, he uses
his website, movingwindmills.org, to educate and give hope to people. His main message is this: “To
the Africans and the poor who are struggling with your dreams . . . trust yourself and believe.
Whatever happens, don’t give up.”
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
7. What was the author’s main purpose in writing this passage?

a. to explain how William was able to solve a problem in a creative way
b. to discuss the effects of the 2001 drought on William and his family
c. to show readers how to build their own sources of power
d. to indicate why it is important for people to learn English
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A
OBJ: Reading Review MSC: Lesson A: Reading
8. Which of these was NOT one of the problems that William faced in 2001?
a. The drought made it impossible to grow enough food.
b. William’s home did not have a source of electricity.
c. There was no library close to William’s house.
d. William couldn’t buy all the parts he saw in the diagrams.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A
9. Why does the author mention the book Using Energy in the 2nd and 3rd paragraphs?
a. William wrote this book about his own experiences.
b. William used this book to help him learn English.
c. This book taught William how to use solar power.
d. This book gave William the idea to build a windmill.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A
10. The author uses the word “confident” in the 2nd line of the 3rd paragraph to indicate that William was
_____.
a. upset that people were laughing at him
b. sure that he could be successful
c. happy to help other people
d. confused by the diagrams in the book
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A
11. According to the passage, what is the main point of the book William wrote?
a. The most important tool for any inventor is a good education.
b. Technology requires the right parts and equipment.
c. Windmills are the most efficient means of producing energy.
d. People should believe in their dreams even if they are poor.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A
Unit 2 Section 3: Reading Comprehension: Extension
LifeStraws
Some inventions make life enjoyable; some make it possible. The LifeStraw falls into the second
category, and is an invention that has saved countless lives. Some 900 million people lack access to
clean water. Many people in developing countries—children especially—fall ill and die from diseases
caused by drinking contaminated water, that is, water not suitable for drinking.
The LifeStraw, developed by the Swiss-based Vestergaard Frandsen company, is a personal water filter
that removes 99.9% of bacteria and parasites from water, making it safe to drink. It is a 25 cm long
plastic pipe that is used the same way one would use a normal drinking straw. As the contaminated
water is sucked through the straw, it passes through a series of tiny tubes that remove bacteria and
parasites from the water. Unlike some systems for cleaning water, no chemicals are involved and no
electricity is needed to operate it. The LifeStraw can filter up to 1,000 liters (about 264 gallons) of
water, which is enough for one person for a year.
Although the LifeStraw is available in developed countries for campers and hikers, it was actually
created for use in developing countries—it was first introduced in Kenya—and for victims of natural
disasters like earthquakes or floods. For example, thousands of LifeStraws were given out after the
2010 earthquake in Haiti. The best part? A LifeStraw costs only a little more than a cup of coffee.
Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
12. This passage is about devices that make life enjoyable.
ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

OBJ: Reading Comprehension MSC: Lesson A: Reading
13. According to the passage, children have a higher chance of dying from water-related diseases
ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

14. The word “contaminated” (underlined) in the last line of the 1st paragraph means something that is
impure or unclean.

15. Tiny tubes full of chemicals are used to filter the water passing through a LifeStraw.

16. The author assumes one person uses 1,000 liters of water a month.

17. The Lifestraw is used by people in developing countries more than developed countries.

18. The LifeStraw was first used in Haiti.

19. The author mentions “a cup of coffee” in the last line to indicate that LifeStraws are inexpensive.

Unit 2 Section 4: Vocabulary
Match the words with their definitions. One or more words may not be used.
a. detect
b. innovation
c. store
d. container
e. benefit
f. valuable
20. to keep a supply of something
21. to discover or identify
22. a can, a box, a bottle, or something similar that holds liquids, foods, or other things
23. to help; to give assistance
24. a new idea; an invention
25. helpful, useful
20. ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B

OBJ: Vocabulary MSC: Lesson B: Reading
21. ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
22. ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
23. ANS: E PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
24. ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
25. ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
Unit 2 Section 5: Reading Comprehension: Review
Big Ideas: Little Packages
Can simple ideas change the world? They just might, one new idea at a time. Creative designers and
scientists are working to invent products for communities in developing countries. Some of their
innovations might solve even the biggest problems—from health care to clean water.
Infant Warmer
Around 19 million low-birth weight babies are born every year in developing countries. These babies
weigh less than 5.5 pounds (2.5 kilograms) when they’re born. Low birth-weight babies are often
unable to keep their body temperatures warm enough. Many get too cold and die. The Embrace Infant
Warmer helps keep these babies warm. Developer Jane Chen says, “Over the next five years, we hope
to save the lives of almost a million babies.”
Water Container
In poor areas, people often have to walk several miles to get clean water. Usually, women and children
have to carry heavy containers of water home every day, and it is difficult work. The Q Drum holds 13
gallons (about 50 liters) in a rolling container. With this innovation, people can easily roll the water on
the ground.
Portable Clay Cooler

The pot-in-pot system is a good way to store food without using electricity. The user puts wet sand
between two pots, one fitting inside the other. The water evaporates and keeps food cool. That helps
food stay fresh longer. For example, tomatoes can last weeks instead of just days. That way, people can
buy more fresh fruits and vegetables at the market, and farmers can make more money.
Health Detector
Scientist Hayat Sindi’s device is the size of a postage stamp, and it costs just a penny. But it could save
millions of lives. In many parts of the world, doctors and nurses work with no electricity or clean
water. They have to send health tests to labs and wait weeks for results. But this little piece of paper
could change that. It contains tiny holes that are filled with chemicals. These chemicals can detect
health problems. A person places a single drop of blood on the paper. The chemicals in the paper
change because of the blood and indicate whether or not the person has an illness.
Solar Wi-Fi Light

The StarSight system is an innovation that can benefit millions of people around the world. It absorbs
solar energy during the day to power streetlamps at night. The solar panels also power wireless
Internet access. The result: renewable electricity for better street lighting and faster communication.
This can be extremely valuable in places where it is difficult to get electricity.
26. What do all of the inventions mentioned in the passage have in common?
a. They were invented by the same person.
b. They are all health-care products.
c. They are especially useful in developing countries.
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
OBJ: Reading Review MSC: Lesson B: Reading
27. How many low birth-weight babies are born every year in developing countries?
a. 5.5 million
b. 13 million
c. 19 million
28. What can be inferred about the Q Drum?

a. It is carried on one’s shoulders.
b. It can be moved by people who are less strong.
c. It must be transported in a vehicle.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
29. Which of these is NOT required for the portable clay cooler?
a. wet sand
b. solar power
c. two pots
30. Which of these devices can improve communication?

a. the health detector
b. the infant warmer
c. the solar wi-fi light
31. Which of these is closest in meaning to this sentence from the 5th paragraph?
The chemicals in the paper change because of the blood and indicate whether or not the person has an
illness.
a. The blood changes the chemicals in the paper; this indicates if the person is sick.
b. Chemicals change the color of blood, which shows whether a person will become ill.
c. Chemicals found in some kinds of paper can cause diseases in certain people.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
Unit 2 Section 6: Reading Comprehension: Extension
Biofuels
Most people think that the idea of powering vehicles with biofuels 1 is a relatively new concept.
Surprisingly, it has a long history and came very close to being the world’s fuel of choice until
Rudolf Diesel, the man who invented diesel fuel which is commonly used in large vehicles like buses
and trucks, used peanut oil when demonstrating his engine in 1900. Henry Ford, who owned Ford
Motor Company, one of the largest car manufacturers in the world, thought that biofuels were the “fuel
of the future.”
Ford’s vision of mass biofuel consumption began with his Model T Ford. By 1918, over half the cars
in America were Model Ts, giving Ford little reason to change the car’s design in its nearly 20 years of
production. Henry Ford designed the Model T to run on ethanol—a type of biofuel—as well as on
petroleum. He believed ethanol would become the most commonly used fuel source, and he believed
that America could grow its own fuel, making it out of everything from potatoes to wood products.
Ford predicted that automobile production would benefit U.S. farmers by increasing demand for their
crops. However, for most motorists, ethanol fuels were not easily available, so nearly all Model Ts
operated on petroleum fuel instead.
In 1927, in order to compete with General Motors, a successful new car company, Ford issued the first
new car model since the Model T: the Model A. Unlike the Model T, these new cars could only burn
petroleum products. This marked the end of the classic Model T, and Ford’s vision for ethanol use in
the near future.
1
Biofuels are fuels made from plants such as corn, grasses, or trees.
32. What does the author of the passage find surprising?

a. That Ford Motors became the largest manufacturer of automobiles
b. That the Model T was first produced as early as 1908
c. That the concept of using biofuels is as old as it is
OBJ: Reading Comprehension MSC: Lesson B: Reading
33. Whcih of these happened is true for the year 1918?

a. The majority of cars in the U.S. were Model Ts.
b. Ford introduced a new type of automobile.
c. A new type of fuel first became available.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B
34. Why did most Model T owners use petroleum fuel?

a. Farmers could not grow enough crops to produce biofuels.
b. Biofuels were much more expensive than petroleum fuel.
c. Petroleum fuel was easier to find than biofuels.
35. What does the author say about the Model A?

a. It was built in the years before the Model T became available.
b. It could not be powered by biofuels, only by petroleum fuel.
c. It was produced by General Motors to compete with the Model T.
Unit 2 Section 7: Writing Skills

A Renaissance Man
(A) Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) is the perfect example of a “Renaissance man”—a person who
can do many things and do them well. He is probably best known as an artist. (B) His painting, Mona
Lisa, and his drawing, Vitruvian Man, are among the most iconic art works in the world. Always
curious about the world around him, Leonardo was also a scientist. He contemplated geology, physics,
meteorology, aeronautics, anatomy, and optics many years before such disciplines even existed.
Unfortunately, because he did not publish his observations, his work had little impact on later science.
(C) Leonardo was a designer and an inventor as well. In his notebooks, there are conceptual sketches
of a submarine, a telescope, a helicopter, and a parachute. Leonardo was also known as a kind and
humane person. According to Vasari, one of his biographers, Leonardo would buy caged birds and then
set them free. (D) Leonardo was the subject of a number of films and of television shows, such as the
BBC’s documentary, Leonardo’s Dream Machines.
Match the sentences with the correct description.

a. Sentence A
b. Sentence B
c. Sentence C
d. Sentence D
36. This is a supporting sentence.
37. This sentence provides details that strengthen a supporting sentence.
38. This is the topic sentence.
39. This sentence does not belong in this paragraph.
36. ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

OBJ: Writing Skill MSC: Lesson C: Writing
37. ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C
38. ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C
39. ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C
Unit 2 Section 8: Language for Writing
Tesla
Nikola Tesla (1856–1943), a Serbian inventor, physicist, and electrical engineer, (A) were born in the
town of Smiljan, in what (B) was now the Republic of Serbia. Even in his early life, he (C) is
inventing things. His first invention (D) was an engine powered by five beetles.
Tesla (E) gotten his first job in Budapest, working at a telephone company. Later, he (F) has gone to
the United States and (G) became a citizen there. He is best known for his contributions to electrical
science, especially for his discoveries that (H) lead to the development of alternating current, a form
of electricity and for inventing an early form of radio. He also (I) believes he could transmit electricity
wirelessly, much like a radio signal. He (J) tried to build a large transmitting tower in New Jersey to
test his theory, but he ran out of money before the project was finished.
Mark the word YES if the past-tense verb is used correctly in the paragraph. Mark the word NO if it is
not, and write the correct form on the line.
40. (A) were born ___________
ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

OBJ: Language for Writing MSC: Lesson C: Writing
41. (B) was _____________

42. (C) is inventing __________

43. (D) was ____________
ANS: Y PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

44. (E) gotten ____________

45. (F) has gone __________

46. (G) became ___________

47. (H) lead ___________

48. (I) believes ____________

49. (J) tried ___________

50. Unit 2 Section 9: Writing Task
Choose ONE of the following topics and write a paragraph about it.
A. How do you think the communication of ideas has changed since the invention of book-printing?
How have the Internet and modern technology influenced this change?
B. Do you think it is easy or difficult to be an inventor nowadays? Give reasons for your answer.
ANS:
Answers will vary.
PTS: 10 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C MSC: Lesson C: Writing

Pathways Reading-Writing 2 Unit 2 Vocabulary and Comprehension

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Pathways Reading-Writing 2 Unit 2

Unit 2 Section 1: Vocabulary

afford powered prevention

PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

5. I couldn’t ____________________ to buy a tablet computer until I found a full-time job.

PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A OBJ: Vocabulary

The Power of Creativity

7. What was the author’s main purpose in writing this passage?

Unit 2 Section 3: Reading Comprehension: Extension

12. This passage is about devices that make life enjoyable.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

18. The LifeStraw was first used in Haiti.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson A

Unit 2 Section 4: Vocabulary

20. ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson B

Unit 2 Section 5: Reading Comprehension: Review

Big Ideas: Little Packages

Portable Clay Cooler

Solar Wi-Fi Light

28. What can be inferred about the Q Drum?

30. Which of these devices can improve communication?

Unit 2 Section 6: Reading Comprehension: Extension

32. What does the author of the passage find surprising?

33. Whcih of these happened is true for the year 1918?

34. Why did most Model T owners use petroleum fuel?

35. What does the author say about the Model A?

Unit 2 Section 7: Writing Skills

Match the sentences with the correct description.

36. ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

40. (A) were born ___________

ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

41. (B) was _____________

ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

42. (C) is inventing __________

ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

43. (D) was ____________

ANS: Y PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

44. (E) gotten ____________

ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

45. (F) has gone __________

ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

46. (G) became ___________

ANS: Y PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

47. (H) lead ___________

48. (I) believes ____________

ANS: N PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

49. (J) tried ___________

ANS: Y PTS: 1 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C

50. Unit 2 Section 9: Writing Task

PTS: 10 REF: Unit 2 Lesson C MSC: Lesson C: Writing

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