1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that
follow:
(10 marks)
1. Early automobiles were sometimes only herseless carriages
powered by gasoline or steam engines. Some of them were so noisy
that cities often made laws forbidding their use hecause they
frightened horses.
2. Many countries helped to develop the automobile. The internal
combustion engine, invented in Austria and France was an early
leader in automobile manufacturing. But it was in the United States
after 1900 that the automobile was improved most rapidly. As a large
and growing country, the United States needed cars and trucks to
provide transportation in places not served by trains.
3. Two brilliant ideas made possible the mass production of
automobiles. An American inventor named Eli Whitney thought of
one of them, which is known as 'standardisation of parts. In an effort
to speed up production in his gun factory, Whitney decided that each
part of a gun could be made by machines, so that it would be exactly
like all the others of its kind.
4. Another American, Henry Ford developed the idea of the assembly
line. Before Ford introduced the assembly line, each car was built by
hand. Such a process was, of course, very slow. As a result,
automobiles were so expensive that only rich people could afford
them. Ford proposed a system in which each worker would have only
a portion of the wheels. Another would place the wheels on the car.
And still, another would insert the bolts that held the wheels to the
car. Each worker needed to learn only one or two routine tasks.
5. But the really important part of Ford's idea was to bring the work
to the worker. An automobile frame which looks like a steel skeleton
was put on a moving platform. As the frame moved past the workers,each worker could attach a single part. When the car reached
end of the line, it was completely assembled. Oil, gasoline, and
water were added and the car was ready to be driven away. With
the increased production made possible by the assembly line,
automobiles became much economical and, more and more
people were able to afford them.
6. Today, it can be said that wheels run America. The four rubber
tyres of the automobile move America through work and play.
7. Even though the majority of Americans would find it hard to
imagine what life could be without a car, some have begun to
realise that the automobile is a mixed blessing. Traffic accidents
are increasing steadily and large cities are plagued by traffic
congestion. Worst of all, perhaps, is the air pollution caused by the
internal combustion engine. Every car engine burns hundreds of
gallons of fuel each year and pumps hundreds of pounds of carbon
monoxide and other gases into the air. These gases are one source
of the smog that hangs over large cities. Some of these gases are
poisonous and dangerous to health, especially for someone with a
weak heart or respiratory disease.
8. One answer to the problem of air pollution is to build a car that
does not pollute. That's what several major automobile
manufacturers are trying to do. But building a clean car is easier
said than done. So far, progress has been slow. Another solution is
to eliminate car fumes altogether by getting rid of the internal
combustion engine. Inventors are now working on turbine-
powered cars, as well as on cars powered by steam and electricity.
But most of us won't be driving cars run on batteries or boiling
water for a while yet. Many automakers believe that it will take
years to develop practical models that are powered by electricity
or steam.
9. To rid the world of pollution-pollution is caused not just by cars,
but by all of the modern industrial life-many people believe that
we must make some fundamental changes in the way many of us
live. Americans may, for example, have to cut down on the number
of privately owned cars and depend more on public mass transit
systems. Certainly, the extensive use of new transit systems could
cut down on traffic congestion and air pollution. But these
changes, sometimes clash head-on with other urgent problemsFor example, if a factory closes down because it cannot meet
government pollution
standards, a large number of workers suddenly find themselves
without jobs. Questioning the quality of the air they breathe becomes
less important than worrying about the next paycheque. Drastic
action must be taken, if we are to reduce traffic accidents, traffic
congestion and air pollution. While wheels have brought better and
more convenient transportation, they have also brought new and
unforeseen problems. Progress, it turns out, has more than one face.
Based on your understanding of the passage, answer the
questions given below.
(1x10=10marks)
i) What did the United States need for transportation in places that
were not served by trains?
a) They needed trains
c) They needed cars and trucks
b) They needed fuel
d) All of the above
ii) How does standardisation of parts help to make mass production
possible?
iii) What was the impact of the increased production made by the
assembly line?
a) Automobiles became much economical
b) More people were able to afford them
c) Traffic accidents increased
d) Both (a) and (c)
iv) How does the assembly line help to make mass production
possible?
v) What has brought better and more convenient transportation?
a) Engines
b) Public mass transport systems
d) None of these
c) Wheels
vi) What did Henry Ford develop?
a) The idea of the assembly line b) Horseless carriages
c) Automobile frame
d) Wheels for the car
vii) Why do some Americans call the automobile a mixed blessing?
Write any two points.viii) What is the one solution to the problem of air pollution?
a) To burn hundreds of gallons of fuel each year
b) To build a car that does not pollute
c) To increase the production of cars
d) To provide transportation in all the places
(ix) What suggestions are offered in the passage for getting rid of
pollution?
(x) Find a word from the passage (para-8) which means 'to
remove or take away'.