Excerpt from Stuff Matters

By Mark Miodownik

In the absence of copper, gold, and meteoric iron, our ancestors’ tools during the Stone Age were made of flint, wood, and bone. Anyone who has ever tried to make anything with these kinds of tools knows how limiting they are: if you hit a piece of wood it either splinters, cracks, or snaps. The same is true of rock or bone. Metals are fundamentally different from these other materials because they can be hammered into shape: they flow, they are malleable. Not only that, they get stronger when you hit them; you can harden a blade just by hammering it. And you can reverse the process simply by putting metal in a fire and heating it up, which will cause it to get softer. The first people to discover these properties ten thousand years ago had found a material that was almost as hard as a rock but behaved like a plastic and was almost infinitely reusable. In other words, they had discovered the perfect material for tools, and in particular cutting tools like axes, chisels, and razors. This ability of metals to transform from a soft to a hard material must have seemed like magic to our ancient ancestors.

***

In 1961 Professor Richmond from Oxford University discovered a pit that had been dug by the Romans in AD 89. It contained 763,840 small two-inch nails, 85,128 medium nails, 25,088 large nails, and 1,344 extra-large sixteen-inch nails. The hoard was of iron and steel and not gold, which most people would have found bitterly disappointing. But not Professor Richmond. Why, he asked himself, would a Roman legion bury seven tons of iron and steel? The legion had been occupying the advance headquarters of Agricola in a place called Inchtuthil in Scotland. This was at the outer reaches of the Roman Empire, and their mission was to protect its border from what they saw as the savage tribes who threatened it: the Celts. The legion of five thousand men occupied the region for six years before retreating and, in the process, abandoning their fort. They made great efforts to leave behind nothing that could help their enemies. They smashed all food and drink containers and burned the fort to the ground. But they weren’t satisfied with this. In the ashes were the steel nails that had held the fort together, and they were far too valuable to be left to the tribes that had driven them out. Iron and steel were the materials that enabled the Romans to build aqueducts, ships, and swords; they allowed them to engineer an empire. Leaving the nails to their enemies would have been as useful as leaving a cache of weapons, so they buried them in a pit before marching south.
The author draws a contrast between metals and other materials in all of the following EXCEPT:

A) Flint, wood, and bone are more brittle.

B) Metals are reusable.

C) Metals are non-polluting.

D) Metals can be shaped into other objects.

Answer:

C) Metals are non-polluting.

Explanation:

According to the excerpt from Stuff Matters

by Mark Miodownik, it is narrated that metals were a very important discovery that helped shaped mankind forever. Our ancestors made use of stones, flints and bones but these materials had their limitations and could not be shaped into other forms. However, the discovery of metals solved this problem.

The author draws a contrast between metals and other materials in all of the following EXCEPT saying that Metals are non-polluting.

what are people doing to prevent acid rain​

What does the appositive phrase refer to?

[A creative genius], Ron Weasley built a robot to do his home work.

A. His homework
B. A creative genius
C.Ron Weasley
D. A robot

Need ASAP

Read this excerpt from “Sea Fever” by John Masefield. What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;
And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

A. abab

B. aabb

C. abba

D. abac

Please help! 35 points and brainliest to correct answer!

1. What happened to Lionel in Mr. Grabowski's class that he has never forgotten?

hello please help i’ll give brainliest but you have to have a correct answer!

If you have 7 fish and 3 drown how many do you have left? My friends are always doing this i always say 4..

Read these lines from Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken." And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Which idea is conveyed by this part of the extended metaphor that is created throughout the poem? One path seems to hold more promise than the other. Both decisions seem equally likely to turn out poorly. Neither decision appears to be better than the other. Only two choices would turn out well.

Hello please I need help it’s for my assignment... the question is: how does the poets present the power of nature in the prelude and one other poem. The other poem we compare it to is Ozymandias

Please advise this is URGENT. I am give 75 points and BRAINLIEST to anyone that can help with this.
write a well-developed, text-based response of two to three paragraphs. In your response, identify a central idea in the text and analyze how the author’s use
of one writing strategy --> Literary Technique.

Which is an example of a adjectival phrase in the sentence "The players all dove to floor, competing over the loose ball that bounced
quickly down the court."?
A)
to the floor
B)
The players all dove
C)
that bounced quickly down the court
D)
None of these are adjectival phrases

What does Lincoln wish to do through this final
sentence of the speech?
With malice toward none, with charity for all, with
firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let
us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the
nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the
battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which
may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among
ourselves and with all nations.
-Second inaugural address,
Abraham Lincoln
O leave the listener feeling sad and hopeless
O cause the listener to feel angry about the length of
the unwinnable war
O stir up emotions about the lives lost in the war and
encourage the listener to help end it
O make the listener blame the South for the ongoing
violence

Bring a cup of tea (make a request use could​

Read the sentence below:
Before this time, in places like Egypt, Babylonia, and ancient China, individuals were generally regarded as
subjects not as citizens."
What does the word subjects mean as used in the text above? Select ALL that apply
Please help

The thesis of a composition must simply state a fact.

True
False

PLZZZ ANSWER WORTH BRAINLIEST AND 20 POINTS!!!!
Texts having a cause-effect structure might contain signal words such as (Likewise/consequently) and (For this reason/On the other hand) .

One of the two options is correct on each part.

What method of characterization does this passage use to develop Raymond as someone with an imagination?​

In refugee how does Mahmoud get to school. A. Take a long bus ride B. walk a different route every day C. Walk the same route every day

What is the Greek root that gives meaning to the word bronchitis?

Write a conclusion paragraph that effectively ends an essay containing the following
thesis statement and main pointa
Passage
Thesis statement: Students should be required to start studying a foreign
language once they enter middle school
Point 1: Language experts say that it's easier to learn a foreign language the
earlier you start
Point 2. The growth in worldwide business and communications means that
learning a foreign language will create employment and other opportunities
for students in the future,

Plz help

hii pls help i’ll give brainliest if you give a correct answer :)

I WILL MAKE YOU BRANLIEST PLEASE HELP!!


What do you think are the benefits and drawbacks of beginning and finishing the
production of food or manufacturing in different locations?

WILL GIVE BRAINLIEST In at least three complete sentences, write a character analysis for the protagonist in Now Is A Time For Running. Include literal, interpretive, and evaluative information about the character. (14 points)

What sentence has correct pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Some of the books in the library are not in its proper place.

Few of the actors who auditioned for the part knew all of their lines.

All of the audience members left his seats as soon as the concert was over.

Everyone should put their backpack in the closet.

PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!!!!!!!

The setting of 12 Angry Men reflects what?

i shall spend my golden years watching the sunset

From the article "CHARLES" on common lit

How does Charles’ behavior vary throughout the story?

A
Laurie describes Charles’ behavior as improving but having occasional setbacks.
B
Laurie describes Charles’ behavior as steadily improving throughout the story.
C
Laurie emphasizes how Charles is always misbehaving even if he’s not caught.
D
Laurie shows how Charles wants to change at the end of the story, but he doesn’t know how.

what is friendship 5 sentence

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Chapters 4-7 ASAP Pleaseee
What did Bruno and Gretel see out Bruno's window? 10 points

a
A green meadow
b
The ocean
c
Many children
d
A wheat field

How is manipulation used in the play the othello?