Can you believe that the history of the hot-air balloon all began with a sheep, a duck and a chicken?

Read the text and choose the correct answer.

ANIMALS IN THE AIR

Can you believe that the history of the hot-air balloon all began with a sheep, a duck and a chicken?

One day in 1777, Joseph Montgolfier was relaxing in front of the fire with his laundry drying nearby. After a while, he noticed that one of his shirts had started to float upwards. The young man was curious about what was happening, so he threw some small pieces of paper into the fireplace to see if the same thing happened to them. When he saw them coming out of the chimney, he came to the conclusion that smoke had the power to lift things up and carry them through the air. Joseph loved science and wanted to become an inventor, so he started trying to think of a craft that would be able to capture smoke and heat and lift people of the ground. Along with his brother, Jacques, he began performing experiments on something that later became the first hot-air balloon.

The Montgolfier brothers quickly realized that it was heat and not smoke that had the power to lift things. On 19^th September 1783, they presented their first hot-air balloon, which was made from paper and cloth. They burned some straw underneath it and the heat helped the balloon to float. As this was its first trip, The Montgolfier brothers ware too nervous to go up in the balloon themselves. So, instead they put a sheep, a duck and a chicken in the basket that hung below the balloon for the two-mile journey.

The new invention was a great success and the animals landed safe and sound. A huge crowd, including some members of the French Royal Family gathered to watch the balloon floating high in the sky. Shortly afterwards, the brothers asked the king for permission to send men up in the balloon. The king agreed, and the first flight consisting of human passengers took place in Paris on 21^st November 1783, with great success. The balloon reached heights of around 150 meters as it floated over the Paris rooftops, starting a long tradition of hot-air ballooning.

1. Joseph Montgolfier got the idea for a flying machine when…

a) he saw smoke in a fireplace.

b) he saw pieces of paper flying.

c) He watched a shirt drying.

1. Joseph hoped to be a(n)…

a) scientist.

b) engineer.

c) performer.

1. They burned straw to…

a) help the balloon go up.

b) make the balloon lighter.

c) make the balloon move faster.

1. The first flight was watched by…

a) the king only.

b) just the Montgolfier brothers.

c) a lot of people.

1. The Montgolfier brothers asked the king permission to…

a) send animals up in the balloon.

b) send young men only.

c) send some people.

Use of English

Part 1

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