Friday, April 23, 2010

Reading Comprehension: Oil Rig Sinks

Oil rig in Gulf of Mexico sinks after explosion; eleven missing
Friday, April 23, 2010

The oil rig Deepwater Horizon sank yesterday after an explosion Tuesday night that left eleven people missing.
According to an officer from the US Coast Guard, the rig sank sometime in the morning. The rig had caught fire after an explosion of unknown origin occurred two days ago. 115 of the 126 workers on board at the time of the explosion have been rescued after evacuating in lifeboats, either by the Coast Guard or from other ships in the area.
The remaining eleven have not been located, although Coast Guard officials have expressed optimism that they are still alive.
The environmental impacts of the explosion and subsequent sinking of the rig are unclear. While up to 13,000 gallons of crude oil per hour has been released from the rig, until now, the effects have been considered minimal, as it had been burned off in the fire. That does have the potential to change, though, according to David Rainey, vice president of the lessor of the rig, BP. The rig, built in 2001 by Hyundai Heavy Industries was owned and operated by Transocean.
The rig was located roughly 50 miles southeast of the coast of Louisiana, and was under lease to BP since 2007. It was completing the construction of a new oil well, and was constructing a layer of cement in the well to reinforce it. This is considered dangerous, as it has the potential to produce an uncontrolled release of case, called a blowout. While the cause of the explosion has yet to be determined, a blowout is considered a possibility.
One survivor of the explosion, who declined to give his name, told the The New York Times that he was laying in bed when the explosion happened. "It caught me by surprise. I’ve been in offshore 25 years, and I’ve never seen anything like that," he recalled.
Stanley Murray, the father of another survivor named Chad, an electrician, said: "My son had just walked off the drill floor." However, Murray said that a neighbor did not make it in time, adding that his son told him that the missing eleven workers could not have made it out alive. "The eleven that’s [sic] missing, they won’t find them," Murray said.
Source: Wikinews
Licensed under the CC-By 2.5


Questions:
What caused the rig to sink?
How did most of the workers escape?
Why has the released oil not yet had a large environmental impact?
What is suspected of causing an explosion?

Answers: Click Here for Answers

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Reading Comprehension: Former IOC President Dies

Former IOC President Samaranch dies at 89

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Juan Antonio Samaranch, former head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has died in Barcelona at the age of 89.
A former diplomat and Spanish ambassador in Moscow elected to the IOC in 1980, Samaranch was largely credited with the renewal of the Olympic movement over two decades marked by boycotts, bribery and drug scandals. While appearing to be small in stature and uncomfortable speaking in public, he was viewed as an often ruthless operator who could forge consensus within an often fractious Olympic movement and bring IOC members to deliver what he wanted.
Samaranch was admitted to hospital on Sunday with heart trouble and passed away at approximately 11:25 UTC, marking one of a number of occasions he has fallen ill. Even in retirement, with advancing age and medical issues, Samaranch continued to travel and be active in Olympic circles, working to try and secure both the 2012 Olympics and 2016 Olympics for Madrid as well as attending various sport conferences.
“I cannot find the words to express the distress of the Olympic Family,” current IOC president Jacques Rogge was quoted as saying, also making mention of the personal inspiration he drew from Samaranch.
During his time in office, Samaranch worked to help increase the number of participating countries at the Olympics, oversaw the creation of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the creation of the IOC Athletes Commission.
Prior to his election to the role of IOC president in 1980, he had a long background in sports, having held roles with the Spanish Skating Federation, Spanish National Olympic Committee and as Chef de Mission at the games in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Rome and Tokyo.
Source: Wikinews
Licensed under the CC-By 2.5

Questions:
Who was Juan Antonio Samaranch?
Did the current International Olympic Committee (IOC) president die?
How did Samaranch die?
Where did he serve as an ambassador?
What did Samaranch work for during his tenure as IOC president?
Did Samaranch have experience with sports prior to becoming IOC president?

Answers: Click Here for Answers

Reading Comprehension: Europe Flight Ban

European airlines question flight bans
Monday, April 19, 2010
Some of Europe's airlines and airports have called into question whether the mass restrictions imposed on the continent's airspace, due to volcanic ash in the area, are necessary.
Millions of travelers have been stranded by the cancellations; however, some airlines have made test flights to see if there were any immediate effects on jets after flying through ash. Authorities fear that the ash can cause vital aircraft parts, such as the engines, to fail in-flight.
Three large airlines — KLM, Air France, and Lufthansa — have already made test flights. Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus, the head of the Association of European Airlines (AEA), commented: "Verification flights undertaken by several of our airlines have revealed no irregularities at all; this confirms our requirement that other options should be deployed to determine genuine risk."
KLM, meanwhile, said that it will allow three freight planes to make flights to Asia, and had transferred seven passenger planes from Duesseldorf, Germany to Amsterdam, without any travelers.

Source: Wikinews
Licensed under the CC-By 2.5

Questions:
Are all airlines questioning the flight ban?
What effect has the ban had on passengers?
What do the airlines want to change?
What is the fear of authorities?
Why do airlines think they should be allowed to fly?

Answers: Click Here for Answers

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Reading Comprehension: Australian Earthquake

Magnitude 5.2 earthquake hits Kalgoorlie, Western Australia


Tuesday, April 20, 2010


A magnitude 5.2 earthquake has hit the Western Australian mining town of Kalgoorlie-Boulder this morning. It is the strongest earthquake in 50 years to hit the region. The Goldfields region of Western Australia is considered one of the more geologically stable regions of Australia, in comparison to the southwest corner of the state, which is an active zone at the edge of the Yilgarn block. Kalgoorlie is located 600 kilometers (370 miles) east of the capital — Perth — and is historically the largest gold producing center of its type in Australia. Kalgoorlie is also the largest urban center in the goldfields region, and has the largest number of buildings that would be vulnerable to such an earthquake. Minor casualties have been reported, and miners and school children have been evacuated. Buildings have been damaged in Kalgoorlie.

Source: Wikinews
Licensed under the CC-By 2.5


Questions:

What city was struck by the earthquake?

Was anyone killed by the earthquake?

What happened to the school children?

Has there been a larger earthquake in the last 50 years?

Are earthquakes unusual for this area in Australia?

Answers: Click Here for Answers




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