Tóm Tắt Nội Dung Bài Viết

From the sharp obsidian spearheads of early humans to the mass-produced industrial glass bottles used in our daily lives, glass has accompanied the journey of human civilization for thousands of years. The reading passage The History of Glass takes readers through a rich historical journey: the development of Roman glassblowing techniques, the invention of lead crystal that revolutionized optics, tax fluctuations in Britain, and the leap toward mechanization in modern times.

Falling under the topic of History & Manufacturing Technology, The History of Glass features a clear chronological structure, making it exceptionally well-suited for practicing chronological keyword localization techniques. The test examines two familiar question types: Note Completion and True/False/Not Given. The vivid full translation, curated academic vocabulary list, and detailed answer explanations below will help you fully decode this reading passage.

1. Reading Passage

The History of Glass

[Paragraph 1] From our earliest origins, man has been making use of glass. Historians have discovered that a type of natural glass – obsidian – formed in places such as the mouth of a volcano as a result of the intense heat of an eruption melting sand – was first used as tips for spears. Archaeologists have even found evidence of man-made glass which dates back to 4000 BC; this took the form of glazes used for coating stone beads. It was not until 1500 BC, however, that the first hollow glass container was made by covering a sand core with a layer of molten glass.

[Paragraph 2] Glass blowing became the most common way to make glass containers from the first century BC. The glass made during this time was highly coloured due to the impurities of the raw material. In the first century AD, methods of creating colourless glass were developed, which was then tinted by the addition of colouring materials. The secret of glass making was taken across Europe by the Romans during this century. However, they guarded the skills and technology required to make glass very closely, and it was not until their empire collapsed in 476 AD that glass-making knowledge became widespread throughout Europe and the Middle East. From the 10th century onwards, the Venetians gained a reputation for technical skill and artistic ability in the making of glass bottles, and many of the city’s craftsmen left Italy to set up glassworks throughout Europe.

[Paragraph 3] A major milestone in the history of glass occurred with the invention of lead crystal glass by the English glass manufacturer George Ravenscroft (1632 – 1683). He attempted to counter the effect of clouding that sometimes occurred in blown glass by introducing lead to the raw materials used in the process. The new glass he created was softer and easier to decorate, and had a higher refractive index, adding to its brilliance and beauty, and it proved invaluable to the optical industry. It is thanks to Ravenscroft’s invention that optical lenses, astronomical telescopes, microscopes and the like became possible.

[Paragraph 4] In Britain, the modern glass industry only really started to develop after the repeal of the Excise Act in 1845. Before that time, heavy taxes had been placed on the amount of glass melted in a glasshouse, and were levied continuously from 1745 to 1845. Joseph Paxton’s Crystal Palace at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851 marked the beginning of glass as a material used in the building industry. This revolutionary new building encouraged the use of glass in public, domestic and horticultural architecture. Glass manufacturing techniques also improved with the advancement of science and the development of better technology.

[Paragraph 5] From 1887 onwards, glass making developed from traditional mouth-blowing to a semi-automatic process, after factory-owner HM Ashley introduced a machine capable of producing 200 bottles per hour in Castleford, Yorkshire, England – more than three times quicker than any previous production method. Then in 1907, the first fully automated machine was developed in the USA by Michael Owens – founder of the Owens Bottle Machine Company (later the major manufacturers Owens-Illinois) – and installed in its factory. Owens’ invention could produce an impressive 2,500 bottles per hour. Other developments followed rapidly, but it was not until the First World War when Britain became cut off from essential glass suppliers, that glass became part of the scientific sector. Previous to this, glass had been seen as a craft rather than a precise science.

[Paragraph 6] Today, glass making is big business. It has become a modern, hi-tech industry operating in a fiercely competitive global market where quality, design and service levels are critical to maintaining market share. Modern glass plants are capable of making millions of glass containers a day in many different colours, with green, brown and clear remaining the most popular. Few of us can imagine modern life without glass. It features in almost every aspect of our lives – in our homes, our cars and whenever we sit down to eat or drink. Glass packaging is used for many products, many beverages are sold in glass, as are numerous foodstuffs, as well as medicines and cosmetics.

[Paragraph 7] Glass is an ideal material for recycling, and with growing consumer concern for green issues, glass bottles and jars are becoming ever more popular. Glass recycling is good news for the environment. It saves used glass containers being sent to landfill. As less energy is needed to melt recycled glass than to melt down raw materials, this also saves fuel and production costs. Recycling also reduces the need for raw materials to be quarried, thus saving precious resources.

2. Original Questions

Questions 1-8

Complete the notes below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 1-8 on your answer sheet.

The History of Glass

Early humans used a material called 1. _______________ to make the sharp points of their 2. _______________.
4000 BC: 3. _______________ made of stone were covered in a coating of man-made glass.
First century BC: glass was coloured because of the 4. _______________ in the material.
Until 476 AD: Only the 5. _______________ knew how to make glass.
From 10th century: Venetians became famous for making bottles out of glass.
17th century: George Ravenscroft developed a process using 6. _______________ to avoid the occurrence of 7. _______________ in blown glass.
Mid-19th century: British glass production developed after changes to laws concerning 8. _______________.

Questions 9-13

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?

In boxes 9-13 on your answer sheet, write:

TRUE — if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE — if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN — if there is no information on this
9. In 1887, HM Ashley had the fastest bottle-producing machine that existed at the time.
10. Michael Owens was hired by a large US company to design a fully-automated bottle manufacturing machine for them.
11. Nowadays, most glass is produced by large international manufacturers.
12. Concern for the environment is leading to an increased demand for glass containers.
13. It is more expensive to produce recycled glass than to manufacture new glass.

3. Natural and Engaging Full Translation

[Paragraph 1] From our earliest origins, humans have made use of glass. Historians have discovered that a type of natural glass—obsidian—formed in places such as volcanic craters as a result of intense eruption heat melting sand, was first used as spear tips. Archaeologists have even found evidence of man-made glass dating back to 4000 BC, which took the form of glazes used to coat stone beads. However, it was not until 1500 BC that the first hollow glass container was made by covering a sand core with a layer of molten glass.

[Paragraph 2] Glassblowing became the most common method for producing glass containers from the first century BC. The glass produced during this period was heavily colored due to raw material impurities. In the first century AD, methods for creating colorless glass were developed, which were then tinted by adding coloring agents. The secret of glassmaking was spread across Europe by the Romans during this century. However, they guarded the skills and technology required for glassmaking very closely, and it was not until their empire collapsed in 476 AD that glassmaking knowledge became widespread throughout Europe and the Middle East. From the 10th century onward, the Venetians gained a reputation for technical skill and artistry in crafting glass bottles, and many of the city’s craftsmen left Italy to establish glassworks across Europe.

[Paragraph 3] A major milestone in the history of glass occurred with the invention of lead crystal glass by English glass manufacturer George Ravenscroft (1632–1683). He attempted to counteract the clouding effect that sometimes occurred in blown glass by introducing lead into the raw materials used in the process. The new glass he created was softer, easier to decorate, and possessed a higher refractive index, enhancing its brilliance and beauty, which proved invaluable to the optical industry. Thanks to Ravenscroft’s invention, optical lenses, astronomical telescopes, microscopes, and similar devices became possible.

[Paragraph 4] In Britain, the modern glass industry only truly began to develop following the repeal of the Excise Act in 1845. Prior to that time, heavy taxes had been imposed on the amount of glass melted in a glasshouse, levied continuously from 1745 to 1845. Joseph Paxton’s Crystal Palace at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851 marked the dawn of glass as a building material. This revolutionary new structure encouraged the use of glass in public, domestic, and horticultural architecture. Glass manufacturing techniques also advanced alongside scientific progress and the development of superior technologies.

[Paragraph 5] From 1887 onward, glassmaking evolved from traditional mouth-blowing into a semi-automatic process after factory owner HM Ashley introduced a machine capable of producing 200 bottles per hour in Castleford, Yorkshire, England—more than three times faster than any previous production method. Then in 1907, the first fully automated machine was developed in the USA by Michael Owens—founder of the Owens Bottle Machine Company (later the major manufacturer Owens-Illinois)—and installed in its factory. Owens’ invention could produce an impressive 2,500 bottles per hour. Further developments followed rapidly, but it was not until the First World War, when Britain was cut off from essential glass suppliers, that glass became integrated into the scientific sector. Before this, glass was viewed more as a craft than a precise science.

[Paragraph 6] Today, glassmaking is big business. It has evolved into a modern, high-tech industry operating in a fiercely competitive global market where quality, design, and service levels are critical to maintaining market share. Modern glass plants are capable of producing millions of glass containers daily in a wide array of colors, with green, brown, and clear remaining the most popular. Few of us can imagine modern life without glass. It features in nearly every facet of our lives—in our homes, our cars, and whenever we sit down to eat or drink. Glass packaging is used for numerous products; many beverages and food items are sold in glass, as are medicines and cosmetics.

[Paragraph 7] Glass is an ideal material for recycling, and with growing consumer concern for green issues, glass bottles and jars are surging in popularity. Glass recycling is a win for the environment, preventing used glass containers from ending up in landfills. Because less energy is required to melt recycled glass than to melt down raw materials, it also saves fuel and production costs. Furthermore, recycling reduces the need to quarry raw materials, thereby conserving precious natural resources.

4. Core Academic Vocabulary

Vocabulary / Phrase

Part of Speech

Meaning in Context

<span

Đoàn Nương

View Author

Comments & Q&A

No comments yet!