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Marconi and the Radio

Read this, then answer the questions at the bottom of the page.

Guglielmo Marconi was born in Italy in 1874. He studied in Bologna and since his childhood, he showed great interest in physics and electricity. Basing his studies on Hertz's findings, Marconi concluded that the electromagnetic waves could transmit messages, so he conducted his research in that direction.

As Marconi did not get any financial incentives from the Italian government, he moved to England where he got funds for his research.

In 1897, Marconi was able to communicate via radio through the Bristol Channel. In 1901, he transmitted long-wave radio signals across the Atlantic Ocean. At that time, Marconi was already recognized as a great name in science and technology.

In 1909, he shared the Nobel Prize in physics with Karl Ferdinand Braun, a German physicist, who worked on wireless telegraphy and cathode rays.

Marconi died in 1937.

Answer These Questions

  1. The text is about ___.
    a. a famous Italian physician.
    b. a famous Italian inventor.
    c. a famous Italian electrician.
  2. Marconi based his studies on ____.
    a. Hertz
    b. Braun
    c. his own intuition
  3. Marconi moved to England because ___.
    a. he did not get financial support for his research in Italy.
    b. he loved England.
    c. his research had to be conducted in England.
  4. In 1901, Marconi was able to ___.
    a. communicate via radio through the Bristol Channel.
    b. establish a long distance transmission.
    c. transmit the first radio messages.
  5. Marconi is a famous name in ___.
    a. science
    b. technology
    c. both in science and in technology
  6. In 1909, the Nobel Prize in physics ___
    a. was shared by Marconi and Braun.
    b. was given to Marconi and his partner Braun.
    c. was given to Marconi and his compatriot Braun.
  7. Find in the text a synonym for "scientific investigation".
Copyright (C) 1999 by (Vera Mello) (vcqm@ruralsp.com.br)
This quiz is part of the HTML-Only Self-Study Quizzes which is part of Activities for ESL Students, a project by The Internet TESL Journal.