Question 3 - Unseen Passage (with Past Year Questions) - Reading Comprehension - English Class 12

(1)The sage of science, Einstein, was sitting in a depressive and pensive mood one evening. His eyes were  brimming with tears. The pain was evident on his face. He peeped out of the window of his room. The sun had set a  few minutes back. The sky was filled with a reddish glow. At this sunset, he felt that it was humanity that had sunk  into devilish darkness and the reddish glow in the sky was the blood of humanity spilling all over the sky from earth.  With tired steps, he walked back to his chair and settled down. It was the 9th of August, 1945. Three days back, he had  felt the same agony as if someone had torn him apart. He was deeply hurt and depressed when he heard on the radio  that America had dropped an atom bomb on the Japanese city, Hiroshima. Today, within three days, another bomb was  dropped on another city, Nagasaki and lakhs of people had been killed. 

(2)He had heard that the blast released so much energy that it had paled all past destructions in comparison and  death had played out a pitiable dance of destruction. The flames that broke out of the bomb were burning, melting and  exploding buildings. Scared of the heat of the bomb, people had jumped into lakes and rivers, but the water was boiling  and the people too were burnt and killed. The animals in the water were already boiled to death. Animals, trees, herbs,  fragrant flowering plants were all turned into ashes. The atomic energy destruction had just not stopped there. It had  entered the atmosphere there and had spread radiation that would affect people for generations to come and would  also bring about destructive irreversible biological change in animals and plants. 

(3)As the news of the atomic attack reached Einstein, and he became aware of the glaring horror of the abuse of  atomic energy, his distress and restlessness knew no bounds. He could not control himself and picked up his violin to  turn his mind on to other things. While playing the violin, he tried to dissolve his distress in its sad notes, but couldn’t.  He was burning on the embers of destruction; his heart was filled with an ocean of agony and tears just continued  streaming uncontrollably out of his eyes. Night had fallen. His daughter came up & asked him to eat something as he had not taken anything for last 4 days. His voice was restrained and he said, “I don’t feel like eating.” 

(4)He could not sleep that night. Lying down, he was thinking how he had drawn the attention of the then  American President Roosevelt towards, the destructive powers of an atomic bomb. He had thought that this would be  used to scare Hitler and put an end to the barbarism that Hitler was up to. However, Roosevelt kept him in the dark  and made false promises. Eventually, he had abused Einstein’s equation of E= mc2 that resulted in the destructive experiments. His actions had made science and scientists as murderers. Einstein kept on thinking for a long time. Eventually, he slipped into sleep. When he woke up at dawn, there was a new dawn in him too. The atomic threat had transformed heart. 

(5)The next day, he decided to disassociate himself from the scientific policy of the government and all  governmental institutions. He decided to open educational institutions for children, adolescents, and youth-institutions  where along with science, spirituality will be compulsorily taught. 

(6)To inaugurate this institution, he had invited two great philosophers, Bertrand Russell and Albert Schweitzer.  Ten other great scientists who had won Nobel Prizes in different fields were also invited. They all saw a different  Einstein, not a great scientist but a sage in him. The institution was opened by garlanding a photo of Mahatma Gandhi.  While garlanding the Mahatma, he became emotional and said with a lump in his throat, ‘I bow down to the great man  who fought for the Independence of his country through non–violence. He could do so because he was a truthful man  and a true spiritualist’. 

(7)Those who teach science should be taught spirituality too. Without harmony between science and spirituality,  the destruction would continue unabated. A few years after this institution was built, a Japanese delegation came to  meet him. Einstein broke down in the meeting and said, ‘You can give me any punishment and I will accept it. Anyway,  I have decided to lead my life in penitence’. The Japanese were moved by his sincerity and forgot their grief.  Based on your understanding of the above passage, answer any eight of the questions given below by choosing the  most appropriate option:

Question 3 ( i )

Which musical instrument did Einstein play  when he was in grief? 

(A) Harmonium  

(B) Guitar 

(C) Violin  

(D) Flute

Answer

Einstein was distressed and restless. To divert his mind and release some anxiety, he played the violin .

So, the correct answer is (C) .

Question 3 (ii)

Einstein came to know that America had  dropped an atom bomb on the Japanese city,  Hiroshima through _________.

(A) television       

(B) newspaper 

(C) radio       

(D) a telephonic message

Answer

• (A) television - He did not switch on the television, so did not get the news from it.
• (B) newspaper - He did not read the newspaper, so did not get the news from it.
• (C) radio - He turned on the radio and heard about the news.
• (D) a telephonic message - it is a message received on the phone, which Einstein did not receive.

On turning on the radio , Einstein heard the depressing news and felt bad.

So, the correct answer is (C) .

Question 3 (iii)

Einstein said to the Japanese delegation, 

(A) ‘You can give me any punishment and I  will accept it.’ 

(B) ‘I am not at fault.’ 

(C) ‘What could I do?’ 

(D) ‘The President didn’t agree to my advice.’

Answer

To the utter shock of the Japanese, Einstein was ready to accept any punishments that they would give him to reduce his guilt.

So, the correct answer is (A) .

Question 3 (iv)

What did Einstein do to show his displeasure  over the atomic attack?

(A) He decided to open a science laboratory. 

(B) He decided to establish an Educational  Institution. 

(C) He disassociated himself from  Governmental Institutions. 

(D) He invited two great philosophers.

Answer

• (A) He decided to open a science laboratory -  under different circumstances
• (B) He decided to establish an Educational Institution -  under different circumstances
• (C) He disassociated himself from  Governmental Institutions - To show his displeasure over the atomic attack Einstein withdrew himself from scientific policies of the government and its institutions.
• (D) He invited two great philosophers -  under different circumstances

So, the correct answer is (C).

Question 3 (v)

The depressive mood of Einstein was compared:

(A) Sunrise           

(B) Sunset 

(C) Devilish darkness       

(D) Tired steps

Answer

• (A) Sunrise - considered to be something positive, so it is not in comparison to the depressing mood.
• (B) Sunset -  As the setting of the sun, mood can be considered low
• (C) Devilish darkness - compared to humanity and not Einstein’s mood.
• (D) Tired steps - There is no reference to tired steps.

The depressing mood of Einstein can be compared to ‘sunset’ as with the setting of the sun, he too seemed to be at a low point missing his energetic self, feeling that darkness has taken over humanity . 

So, the correct answer is (B) .

Question 3 (vi)

What made Einstein restless and sleepless? 

(A) When America was hit by atomic bomb. 

(B) When Nagasaki was hit by atom bomb. 

(C) When atom bomb was dropped on  Hiroshima by America. 

(D) Both (B) and (C)

Answer

• (A) When America was hit by atomic bomb -  America was not hit by a bomb, it dropped the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
• (B) When Nagasaki was hit by atom bomb - Einsteing felt restless and sleepless when his invention was used to destroy a city.
• (C) When atom bomb was dropped on  Hiroshima by America - Einsteing felt restless and sleepless when his invention was used to destroy a city.

The dropping of atom bombs on Hirosimha and Nagasaki by America, made Eintein restless and sleepless , as he was feeling guilty of having promotyed violence in the world by introducing it to nuclear weapons.

So, the correct answer is (D) .

Question 3 (vii)

Pick out the event after which Einstein  could not control himself and tried to play  instrument to divert his mind. 

(A) After getting the news of atomic attack. 

(B) By inventing sad notes. 

(C) Over barbarism of Hitler. 

(D) When he was pained by false promises.

Answer

• (A) After getting the news of the atomic attack - the event made Einstein sad leading him to play sad notes
• (B) By inventing sad notes - inventing sad notes was a result of the event and not the event
• (C) Over barbarism of Hitler - while thinking about the events, he thought that the nuclear formula would be used to scare Hitler; but it did not distress him that much that he couldn’t control himself
• (D) When he was pained by false promises - Roosevelt kept Einstein under the false promise that the formula would be used to scare Hitler; but it did not distress him that much that he couldn’t control himself

Hearing about the nuclear attacks , Einstein was distressed and hence, couldn’t control himself. To distract those feelings, he started playing sad notes on the violin .

So, the correct answer is (A).

Question 3 (viii)

Which event in 1945, according to Einstein,  turned science and scientists into murderers? 

(A) The wrong use of Einstein’s equation. 

(B) False promises of Roosevelt. 

(C) The dropping of atom bombs on the two  Japanese cities. 

(D) None of these.

Answer

• (A) The wrong use of Einstein’s equation - did not make him feel that it turned science and scientists into murderers because until then no killings had ocurred. 
• (B) False promises of Roosevelt - did not make him feel that it turned science and scientists into murderers because until then no killings had ocurred.
• (C) The dropping of atom bombs on the two  Japanese cities - make him feel that it turned science and scientists into murderers because it killed too many people.

After Roosevelt abused Einstein’s equation saying that it led to a nuclear war (dropping off bombs on japanese cities) , Einstein felt that this event turned science and scientists to murderers.

So, the correct answer is (C).

Question 3 (ix)

Einstein invited which philosopher to  inaugurate the new institution? 

(A) Bertrand Russell   

(B) Albert Schweitzer 

(C) Both (A) and (B)    

(D) Neither (A) nor (B)

Answer

Einstein decided to open educational institutions for children, adolescents, and youth-institutions  where along with science, spirituality will be compulsorily taught. To inaugurate this institution , he had invited two great philosophers - 

• (A) Bertrand Russell 
• (B) Albert Schweitzer  

along with ten other great scientists who had won Nobel Prizes in different fields.

So, the correct answer is (C).

Question 3 (x)

Those who teach science should be taught  spirituality too. Why it is good to teach  spirituality with science? 

(A) Spirituality will make science easier to  understand. 

(B) Spirituality will help the scientists to  make deadly weapons. 

(C) Spirituality will give more power to  scientists. 

(D) Spirituality will enable scientists to use  science for the welfare of others.

Answer

Spirituality means the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things. 

• (A) Spirituality will make science easier to understand. - connection to the soul would not help one understand science better as it is related to practical knowledge.
• (B) Spirituality will help the scientists to  make deadly weapons. - connection to the soul provides scientists a calmness and would forbid them from making deadly weapons.
• (C) Spirituality will give more power to  scientists. - connection to the soul provides scientists a calmness and hence, they would not desire power any more.
• (D) Spirituality will enable scientists to use science for the welfare of others. - connection to the soul provides scientists a calmness and would compel them to use science for the welfare of all.

With a harmony between science and spirituality, scientists will strive hard to use science for the welfare of all instead of making deadly weapons and gaining more power.

So, the correct answer is (D).