Reading, 10-A, 17.05.

Read the text about and match the headings a–e with the paragraphs 1–5.

Science fiction and Science

1                                            [Tourism in space, Entertainment or the future of science?, Robots and robot pets, What about the future?, Space and space travel] Many people think that science fiction stories are just fun. They are stories that are set in different worlds, where people live different lives and things exist that don't yet exist today. However, science-fiction authors have written about things that have come true. So what things have writers dreamed up that are now part of our lives?

2                                             [Tourism in space, Entertainment or the future of science?, Robots and robot pets, What about the future?, Space and space travel]
This is one area where many inventions have occurred. In 1865, nearly a hundred years before humans first landed on the moon in 1969, Jules Verne wrote From the Earth to the Moon. In his book he described how people in space weighed less than on Earth. The spaceship in his book was similar to Apollo 11, the first spaceship to land on the moon - it was cylindrical, about the same size and had a crew of three men. Verne's spaceship also had to land in water when it returned to Earth!

3                                             [Tourism in space, Entertainment or the future of science?, Robots and robot pets, What about the future?, Space and space travel]In 2001, millionaire Dennis Tito paid $20 million to become the first space tourist, but the idea is not new. In 1962, Arthur C. Clarke's A Fall of Moondust told the story of some rich tourists who were trapped on the moon.

4                                             [Tourism in space, Entertainment or the future of science?, Robots and robot pets, What about the future?, Space and space travel]These inventions were written about long before they were invented. 'Robot' comes from the Czech word robota, but it became popular as a result of a play written by Karel Capek in 1920. Twenty years later, Isaac Asimov started writing I, Robot. In these stories, the robots have special 'positronic' brains that mean they can think and feel emotions. They can talk, serve meals and explore other planets - all things robots today can do. Robot pets have also featured in science-fiction - the most famous example is probably Philip K. Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? The main character wants to buy an electric sheep for his garden so that his neighbours will be jealous. However, the first real robot pet, the Sony Aibo robot dog, wasn't invented until the 1990s.

5                                             [Tourism in space, Entertainment or the future of science?, Robots and robot pets, What about the future?, Space and space travel]Some people believe that if writers hadn't imagined all these things, scientists wouldn't have invented them. Will the things people are writing about now also come true in the future? We'll have to wait and see!

Read the text again and answer the questions.

How long before the first moon landing did Verne write about space travel?

Science fiction and Science

1    Many people think that science fiction stories are just fun. They are stories that are set in different worlds, where people live different lives and things exist that don't yet exist today. However, science-fiction authors have written about things that have come true. So what things have writers dreamed up that are now part of our lives?

2    This is one area where many inventions have occurred. In 1865, nearly a hundred years before humans first landed on the moon in 1969, Jules Verne wrote From the Earth to the Moon. In his book he described how people in space weighed less than on Earth. The spaceship in his book was similar to Apollo 11, the first spaceship to land on the moon - it was cylindrical, about the same size and had a crew of three men. Verne's spaceship also had to land in water when it returned to Earth!

3    In 2001, millionaire Dennis Tito paid $20 million to become the first space tourist, but the idea is not new. In 1962, Arthur C. Clarke's A Fall of Moondust told the story of some rich tourists who were trapped on the moon.

4    These inventions were written about long before they were invented. 'Robot' comes from the Czech word robota, but it became popular as a result of a play written by Karel Capek in 1920. Twenty years later, Isaac Asimov started writing I, Robot. In these stories, the robots have special 'positronic' brains that mean they can think and feel emotions. They can talk, serve meals and explore other planets - all things robots today can do. Robot pets have also featured in science-fiction - the most famous example is probably Philip K. Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? The main character wants to buy an electric sheep for his garden so that his neighbours will be jealous. However, the first real robot pet, the Sony Aibo robot dog, wasn't invented until the 1990s.

5    Some people believe that if writers hadn't imagined all these things, scientists wouldn't have invented them. Will the things people are writing about now also come true in the future? We'll have to wait and see!

Read the text again and answer the questions.

How much did it cost Tito to travel in space?

Science fiction and Science

1    Many people think that science fiction stories are just fun. They are stories that are set in different worlds, where people live different lives and things exist that don't yet exist today. However, science-fiction authors have written about things that have come true. So what things have writers dreamed up that are now part of our lives?

2    This is one area where many inventions have occurred. In 1865, nearly a hundred years before humans first landed on the moon in 1969, Jules Verne wrote From the Earth to the Moon. In his book he described how people in space weighed less than on Earth. The spaceship in his book was similar to Apollo 11, the first spaceship to land on the moon - it was cylindrical, about the same size and had a crew of three men. Verne's spaceship also had to land in water when it returned to Earth!

3    In 2001, millionaire Dennis Tito paid $20 million to become the first space tourist, but the idea is not new. In 1962, Arthur C. Clarke's A Fall of Moondust told the story of some rich tourists who were trapped on the moon.

4    These inventions were written about long before they were invented. 'Robot' comes from the Czech word robota, but it became popular as a result of a play written by Karel Capek in 1920. Twenty years later, Isaac Asimov started writing I, Robot. In these stories, the robots have special 'positronic' brains that mean they can think and feel emotions. They can talk, serve meals and explore other planets - all things robots today can do. Robot pets have also featured in science-fiction - the most famous example is probably Philip K. Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? The main character wants to buy an electric sheep for his garden so that his neighbours will be jealous. However, the first real robot pet, the Sony Aibo robot dog, wasn't invented until the 1990s.

5    Some people believe that if writers hadn't imagined all these things, scientists wouldn't have invented them. Will the things people are writing about now also come true in the future? We'll have to wait and see!