Finding the Topic of a Para graph

Most paragraphs have one topic. The topic is the general subject of the
paragraph. lt is what the paragraph is about. Usually you can find the topic at
the beginning of the paragraph. Sometimes, however, you will have to read
the whole paragraph to find the topic. Finding the topic of a paragraph is an
important reading skill.

fxanrples & Explanations

Today people cross national borders The topic is often at the beginning of
much more often than they did 100 years the paragraph. ln this paragraph, the
ago. Cars and planes help us move easily topic is crossing notionol borders.
from one country to another. You can get
on a plane and a few hours later arrive
in another country on the other side of
the world.

‐:HOwevertthis easv movё ment can alsO The topic is not always in the first
CauS‐ e prOble]CLSt'The Spread Of diSeaSe iS sentence. The first sentence in this
seriOus pr6blemt Whon people paragraph says there are problems, but
the trno■
‐ the second sentence gives the topic:
move=0■ 五 ☆6`14,‐ dis■ SOS‐ SOmoimes
the spreod of disease. In addition, many
`thё a rё sulti at manv
liiOVe with thenl.:AS of the words in this paragraph, such as
borde‐ rl,goverⅢ Ⅲent o菫 cialll■cck to sick, doctor, and medicine, give clues to
soё iftravё lers are sick:sick‐ travelers inav the topic. These words can help you
liave tO see a dOctOr or take solne rnedicine understand that the topic is the spread
of disease.
bOわ they.can enter the∞ ￨,try,
“
0 1opic,Of“ ёfir,ttwo
丁い
10ne eXainOle 6fthis‐ iS SARSIIn 2003t paraOraph,
thiS seFi6uS diSease appeared in(3hina:It aFe CrOSS′ わ0′σarS and dた Oα Sa in thiS
paragraphi"α
there are a lot of sploこ
sbi`血 れ iこ kll ar6品 d.Aζ ial■dt61Camd江 ific

detalis abOut One disease.The topic Of

ヽ this paragraph isき わa sρ
'lorethan
than 700
8,000 peopledied.GOveFnment
becamc SiCk and αびOf αdisを σs`
m6re peO,le ― `θ
ca″ θ
ごSス RS.
6mと ialls itも もだし iζ lお 五 五 d the漱 る1la
CheCkё d tr″ 。
lё rSi e● eCialy"Om China
and canada,to see ifthev were siこk:
■五
↓816基 続ii SARs‐ 臀ёrι lё ied ff6轟
cntering the cOlntFy `iё

SKlLLS AND sTRAT,CIES2 0 19

 Strategies
These strategies will help you find the topic of a paragraph whi:e you read.
畿As you read the paragraph′ ask yourself: И/わ σl is tわ is ραragraρ わ0わ oυ ど
7

覇 Pay attention to the first sentence.it often gives the topic of the paragraph.
機 Look for words and phrases that are all connected to the Sarne topiC.They Can
help you figure out the topic of the whole paragraph.

Skill Practice 1

Read the following paragraphs. Then look at the four possible topic choices for
the paragraph. Circle the best choice. Discuss your answers with a partner.
1 ln the early 1800s, many people came to the United States from different
countries. These people are called immigrants. The United States wanted
immigrants to come to work on farms and in factories. The government did not
check the immigrants' health. ln the 1880s, the number of immigrants increased
quickly. The government began to worry about diseases. lt worried that the
immigrants were bringing diseases.
Topic:
a The history of immigration
b Health and immigration
c lmmigrant workers
d Health in the United States
2 ln 1891, the government began to check the health of all immigrants. There
were doctors and hospitals at the border. The largest number of immigrants -
about 70 percent of them - came through New York, so the largest hospital was
there. The doctors looked for two kinds of diseases. The first were dangerous
diseases that might spread from one person to another. The second were diseases
that might prevent the person from working. The government only wanted

20 参 UNI丁 1
 3 lf immigrants had either of these kinds of diseases, they could not enter the
country. lf the doctors believed that the people would get better, they sent them
to a hospital. They stayed in the hospital until they were healthy again. Their
friends and families had to wait for them. lf the doctors believed the immigrants
would not get better, sometimes they sent them back to their countries.
Topic:
a lmmigrants with diseases
b lmmigrant families
e Two diseases
ei lmmigration and immigrants

skill Praこtiこ 02 - .‐ ￨.:1 1 ‐

Read thl f● :lo'wil屯 lparagralhs.AfteF eath lparagraph:it● pl and thi∴ k ab611t thei
topic.Then write the tOpic On the blank:inet . ‐ ‐

l Computё rこ hips are very sma‖ ,lbut the,can‐ tt61ola 16t 6flihbrMati6hi M‐ ahy.
credit cards and passports have cOnllu‐ ter chips inside of thさ m。 「
「hese are cal10d
動ari ca漱 :Look at a credit cardi lt品 aヤ havざ a blら こkline 6h thё baと k。 こo品 oし tё rt
can read this black line.lt te‖ s thё cOmputtr a lot ofimportant inぉ rmatiOn`

TOplC:三二 三 二 三 二 二 二 _二 二 二 三 二 二 三 二 三 二 _二:三 二 二 二 二 二 i三二 ■_三 二 二 二 二 二

2 Many people use passヽ へ

′ordst A,password is a secret nunlbeり word,6F grOup
of‐ letters and nurnbers.Yё u rrlay use alpassword to get into your cornputer′
you「 bank,or tho school‖ brary=Yё ulshO口 ld never use‐ ソ ourtdeph6he hu"bO「 :
‐
Or biⅢ hday asソ Our passw6rd bilta由 lё otherlp16pll may khlw thё 綺:V66 should
alSO Ch00Se different paSSWOrdS fOF different purpoSeS.HaVe you evё F fOrgOtten ・
a paぶ sWord?When people haψ ё a‐ 16t Of difttrehtloぉ
ノヽ6品 lotimё
fbrget thern. =
"16ds thё `

TOpiCt三 二 二 三 二 三 二 二 _三 二 _二 二 三 二 三 二 三 二 二 二 十 二 三二 二 ■二 ニ ニ ニ ニ ニ 三 二 二 _二 三 二 二 二 三 二 二
一

3 People often worry about their pet dogs and cats.They wOrFy that their pet
will run away Or get10st.HOw will‐ they be able tO find their pet?SorYle pets wear
SOrnethinc around their neCkS that has inf6rrnat:on about ther71。 FOF eXan■ Ole` ・ _
the inf6rrnation lγ light give the pё trs nan,e and addFess.VVhat happenS if the pё t
10SeS thiS infOrrnatiOn?「「 he pet rnay neVer COrne hOFnleo BeCauSe Sonle peO‐ ple
WOrry abOut thiS′ they put a COnlputer Chip under their pett Skin.丁 he chlp haS
the infOrrnatiOn abOut the‐ pet・ :f sOrneOne finds the pet,a cOrnputer can read the
hformation on the chip.丁 his helps thё d6o or cat retuFn hOme:

Topic:

SKILLS AND STRATEGIES 2‐ ● 21

 Before You Read

Connecting to the Topic

Discuss the following questions with a partner.
1 What usually happens when people cross a border into a different country? Do they
have to show anything to the officials at the border? Do they have to answer any
questions? Can they take what they want with them over the border?
2 Have you or someone you know ever had an unusual experience crossing a border?
What happened?

Previewing and Predicting

When you preview a reading, look to see if it has sections. Also, look to see
if the sections have headings. Read the headings and think about why the
writer divided the reading in this way.

@ in Reading 3. Decide what you will read about in each

neaO the section headings
section. Then write the number of the section (l-lll) next to the topic that best
describes it.

Using fingerprints to identify people as they cross the border

How our grandchildren may go from country to country

Using eyes to identify people as they cross the border
Passports

Documents you may need to enter different countries

S
C)COnllpare yOur anSWerS VVith a partner′

While You Read

As you read, stop at the end of each sentence that contains words in bold. Then
follow the instructions in the box in the margin.

22 ● UNI丁 1
 READ:NG

{) Border Control
L Documents at the Border
What happens when you cross a national border? The answer is not
the same in every country. When you enter most countries, you need Findl a clue in this

a passport - a document that governments give to their citizens that sentence that signals a
definition of possport.
allows them to travel to other countries. Passports include important Highliqht the clue.
information such as name, birth date, and
birthplace. Most passports also include a
photograph. When you enter most countries,
you must show a passport. However, this is
not true for many countries in Europe. When 炸 a
Europeans cross a national border between 璃
most countries in the European Union, they
do not need to show a passport.
2 A passport is not the only type of travel
document. A visa is another important travel
document. Many countries require travelers
to have a visa when they enter. The type of ヽ￨:1紅

visa depends on which country you come ン￢じ

from and the reason for your visit. There are
several types of visas. If you go for a brief passport controt at an airport
visit, you may need a tourist visa. If you
want to study, you need a student visa. If you
want to find a job in the country, you probably need a business or
work visa. What is the topic of
paragraph 2? Highlight
' the word or words that
ll. New Technology at the Border name the topic.
2 Government officials at national borders look very carefully at
passports and visas. They want to be sure that the people who are
entering the country are not dangerous. They use technology to help
them decide who may enter the country. For example, when travelers
enter the country, officials at the border check their computers for
important information about these travelers. They can check if trav-
elers have been in the country before and if they have done anything
wrong. Officials also examine the traveler's documents to see if they
are real. Some people try to cross the border without permission. They
use fake passports or visas. Officials at the border can use computer
technology to check whether these documents are real or fake.

READING 3 ● 23
 4 Technology has been helpful in other ways, too. In the second half
of the twentieth century, passports were the major form of identifi-
cation for travelers. Now there are new forms of identification that Find a clue in the next
use technology. One example is a machine that can read fingerprints. sentence that signals
a definition of scon.
When travelers enter the country, they put their fingers on a machine Highlight the clue and
that scans them. In other words, the machine takes a picture of the the definition.

fingerprints and saves the picture in a computer. It can also send the
picture to government officials who are far from the border. Those
officials can compare the picture to fingerprints of
many other people. If the traveler's fingerprints are the
same as fingerprints of a dangerous person, the traveler
may not enter the country. This technology is now in
use at many airports all over the world.
ｒヨ

One persont fingerprints are different from another

person's fingerprints. Therefore, many countries use
fingerprints as a good form of identification. However,
A fingerprint
it is possible to trick the machines that scan them. In
2008, a woman at a Japanese airport put tape on her
fingers. The tape had another person's fingerprints on
it, so she was able to enter )apan without permission.
轟 As a result of these problems, some airports are using another part
of the body for identification - the iris. The iris is the colored part of
the eye. New machines can scan travelers' irises and save the pictures. Look in the next sentence
for a definition of′
Several airports are already using this technology, including airports rな .

Highii9ht it.
in London and Qatar. Irises work bet-
ter than fingerprints for identification.
The iris has hundreds of very small
lines in it. These lines are unique. In
other words, everyone's iris is differ- Find a clue in the next
ent. Even twins have different irises. . sentence that signals
a definition ol unique.
These new forms of technology have Highlight the clue and
another advantage. They are fast. This : the definition.
makes lines at airports and borders
shorter and helps travelers move more
An iris
quickly.

lll. Crossing Borders in the Future

7 Passports, visas, fingerprint scans, and iris scans are all forms
of identification that governments can use today. Sometime in the
future, there might be new forms of identification. You will not need
paper documents. You may not need to scan your fingers or eyes. You

24 ● ∪N:丁 1
will store all of your important information on a computer chip. This
computer chip will be inside a small card, or perhaps under your skin.
Computers will quickly read, save, and send the information on the
card when you cross the border.
Long ago, there were no national borders. People moved around What is the topic of
freely. They moved to find food or somewhere to live. They did not paragraph 7? Highlight
the words that name
think about borders or documents. Some people believe that in the the topic.
future, national borders will become less important. Some borders
may disappear. People will move freely again. They will travel quickly
and easily around the world for education, for work, or simply to see
new places.

E「 口 :ヽ ‖ヽ1:)ヽ 旺
コ L日 ,1;1:11ロ
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

New technology will help travelers cross

borders more quickly in the future.

READiNG 3 ● 25
 I

Reading Skill Development

ヽ4ain idea Check

Which sentence gives the main idea of Reading 3?

a Paper documents are not important anymore.
b lt is important to have correct documents when you cross a national border
c ln the future, there will be no national borders.
d The way that officials check travelers at the borders is changing.

A Closer Look
Look back at Reading 3 to answer the following questions.

1 Which of the following is nof information on most passports? (Par. 1)

a Birth date d Address
b Birthplace e Photograph
c Name

2 lf you want to visit a country for one week, what kind of visa will you probably need?
(Par. 2)
a A student visa c A traveler's visa
b A business visa d A tourist visa

3 According to section ll, how has technology helped government officials? Circle
three answers.
a Computers can check if travelers have done anything wrong.
b Machines can scan travelers' eyes.
c Computers can make fake documents.
d Computers can tape travelers'fingerprints.
e Machines can scan travelers'fingerprints.
4 What happens if computers show that a traveler's fingerprints are the same as
fingerprints of a dangerous person? (Par. 4)
a The traveler needs a new passport.
b The traveler must have an iris scan.
c The traveler may not enter the country.
d The traveler must give his passport to officials at the border.
5 How did the woman at the Japanese airport trick the fingerprint scanner? (Par. 5)
a Her fingerprints were not on her passport.
b She used a fake passport.
c She taped another person's fingerprints onto her fingers.
d She used the iris scanner instead of the fingerprint scanner.

26 0 UNITl
 6 Twins have the same lines in their irises. True or False? (Par. 6)

7 Reread paragraphs 5 and 6. What are three reasons why iris scanners may be better
than fi ngerprint scanners?
a lris records are easier to store on computers.
b They are harder to trick.
c They are faster.
d They are cheaper.
e lrises are unique; fingerprints are not.
8 According to paragraph 7, what might be the next step in technology at borders? (Par. 7)
a Borders will disappear.
b People will store all their information on a computer chip.
c People will move freely everywhere,
d Passports will disappear.

Skill Review

:n Skills and Strategies 2′ you learned that every paragFaph haS a tOpiC.You
also leaFned that it islan impo「 tantに ading sk‖ lto be able to‐ idOは ify what
‐_
the tolpic of a paragraph is. _

@ loot back in Reading 3, and then match the topic of paragraphs 1*7 (note that
the concluding paragraph 8 is not included) to the list below. Write the number
of the correct paragraph on the blank line. Three items in the list will not be used.
1 __ Checking documents
2____ Forms of identification in the future
3___ Passports
4____ Countries without border checks
5___ Fingerprint scanning
6 _____ Visas
7 ____ Border officials
8 ___ Someone who tricked the fingerprint scanner
9 __ Long lines at the border
10 ____ lris scanning

@ Compare your answers with a partner's.

READING 3 ● 27
 Vocabu lary Development

Definitions
Find the words in Reading 3 that complete the following definitions.

l A/An is an official piece of paper. (n) Par. 1

2 Your is a card or piece of paper that says who you are. (n) Par. 4
3To is to make someone believe something that is not true.
(v) Par. 5
4 lf something is there is nothing else that is‖ ke it。 (a可 )Par.6

5 Two brothers, two sisters, or a brother and a sister who are born at the same time
are (n pl) Par. 6
6A/An is something that gives you a better chance of success.
(n) Par. 5
7To is to keep something to look at or use in the future. (v) Par. 7

8 When things people can no longer see them. (v) Par. 8

Words in Context
Complete the passages with words from Reading 3 in the box below

1 When you arrive at an airport in a different country, often you must wait in line to
enter the country. There are usually two lines. The first is for **-.------,a
that
is, people who live in that country. The second line is for , who are
h
visiting the country, as well as students and people who have come for business
reasons. Sometimes you have to wait a long time, but if you are lucky, your wait will

be .This the number of planes that land at the

d
same time.

2 Travel to another country usually a passport. Today's passports

e
use new computer . lf you a passport very
t g
carefully, you will see very thin lines. These lines have information that a computer
can read. The computer uses this information to tell if the passport is real or if it is

28 0 UNITl
Academic W<lrd List
The following are Academic Word List words from all the readings in Unit 1. Use
these words to complete the sentences. (For more on the Academic Word List, see
page 260.)

aた as(わ ) ￨ ‐
featureS.(O ma10r(σ ″)
ー
■
.

01o,Ч 甲,nt,(の identificatioo(O physical(￨イ ) ¨ ,￨

1 She put important *---*-__-_---'--, such as her passport, under her bed
2 The country's most important natural are oil, gas, and gold.
3 especially the use of computers, has changed many things in
business, government, and education.
4 A trip to Antarctica a lot of warm clothes.
5 Scientists said the fish was It was the only one in the world.
6 There were different in the classroom. Some were for quiet work,
and others were for discussion
7 All citizens must carcy a lan card when they leave the country.
I One of the most famous of Egypt is the Nile River,

9 During the twentieth century, there were several vvars

10 As children grow, their abilities increase. They can run, jump, and
throw things.

READING 3 0 29
 Beyond the Reading

Critical Thinking EVALUATING L

ln Reading 3, the writer says that in the future, there will IN「 ORMAT10N

be powerful technology at borders, borders will become

Critical thinkers ask
easier to cross, and one day, borders may even disappear.
themselves if there is
enough information
@ Wort with a partner and decide if there is enough to support the points
information to support the writer's point by answering
a writer makes in
the following questions. Give reasons for your answers,
a text.
and take notes on your discussion.
1 Does the writer explain what type of powerful technology
there might be at the borders in the future? What type do you imagine there will be?
2 Does the writer explain why it will become easier to cross borders in the future? Do
you think it will become easier to cross borders in the future or more difficult?
3 Does the writer explain why borders might disappear in the future? Do you think
there will be a time in the future when borders disappear?

@ Worlt with another pair of students. Compare your answers and the reasons you
gave for your answers.

Research
Find out about border control in your country or a country that you know well.
Find answers to the following questions.
a Who needs a visa to visit this country?
a Do citizens of the country need a visa to visit other countries?
c What sort of technology is used at the borders of the country?

VVriting
VVrite a short surnrnary of your research。 :〕 )escribe border cOntrOlin the cOuntry
you researched.

30 0 ∪NIT l
IMIAKING CONNECT10NS
L
PRONOUN CONNECTORS
vvriters use pron6uns tё connlct w‐ o「 ds and ideas within and acrOss
sentencesI PrOnOuns rn‐ ake the writing shOrter and loss repetitive.HOvvever′
pr6nouns qive the rOaderleXtFa WOrk t6 dO beCauSё the rё adbr haS tO fihd the
WOrdS and ideaS that the_OFOnOunS refer tO。 ・ .

Sonle cornrnon OrOnouns are

わe sわ セ 『
′ :力 ●ソ [わ た めα[ めθsθ :わ os●

When yol sё e a pr6noun′ ask yOurself:"`ゎ 。

l dolsめ な,Ю nO″ nた た′わ7
in the fO‖ Owing exarllple,the pronOun is in‐ bOld′ and the noun it‐ refers tO is
undё r‖ ned:十 A3‐ arrOw shOws the cOnnoこ tiOn, .T‐ ￨‐ ‐

Covernment officials work at the border. check all passports.

in the_next exanlple′ the prOnOun i‐ s in bold′ anld the idea it refё rs tO is

むndё rlinё d.The arrOW ζhOWS that the OFOn6色 h lreた rs b tRe wholo idea in the
irst sentence。 _ ._ . ‐

■皇三里五二LngLll and cars at_th-e border crossing.

the tour bus for 3 hours.

Exercise 1

Read the following groups of sentences. Highlight the pronoun in the second
sentence in each group. Underline the noun or ideas the pronoun refers to. Draw
an arrow from the pronoun to the underlined items. The first one has been done
for you.

1 I gave my passport to the official. He examined the photo carefully.

2 Everyone is required to show some kind of identification. The guard at the entrance

will ask for it.

3 All the documents are electronic. They are stored on one computer

4 There were three attempts to guess the password. They all failed.

5 Each person's iris is unique. That is the reason irises are good forms of identification.

6 There were separate lines for visitors and citizens. This made it faster for citizens to

come back into the country.

MAKING CONNEC丁 10NS ● 31

 Exercise 2
Make a clear paragraph by putting sentences A, B, and C into the best order after
the numbered sentence. Look for pronouns to help you. Write the letters in the
correct order on the blank lines.

1 The fence along the border prevents people from entering.

C
--*
A These help officials see It is very high and has a Thatis the time
if anyone is trying to come lot of lights. when most people try
across the fence at night. to cross the border
without permission.

2 All Americans need to know about recent changes at the Mexican border.

They began in January The most important C They now have to show
change affects passports as identification
American tourists. instead of drivers' licenses.

3 Tourists should check the government website before they travel.

These could make travel B This helps people C It has information about
)n those counliet dlficDl undersland when salety )n d)llerenl counties
for foreign citizens. there are dangerous
political situations.

4 The invasion was a complete surprise

Enemy soldiers crossed They took control of the It happened suddenly,

the border at night. major city. with no warning.

5 The information is stored on a computer chip in your passport.

They worry that A computer can then C Some people don't

someone with the right scan it when you go like this.
technology can steal through customs.
the information.

32 0 ∪NI丁 1