ACT English Practice Test 5

Walter Reed’s Medical Breakthrough

Just over 100 years ago, one of the most important medical discoveries, in modern times Q1 relieved the suffering and saved the lives of untold thousands. This major breakthrough was the identification of the cause and spread of the disease yellow fever. For several centuries, yellow fever was a scourge upon societies Q2 in various parts of the world, striking towns and killing thousands of people.

Thanks to Q3 the efforts of Major Walter Reed and many courageous volunteers, the mechanisms for contracting and spreading yellow fever were uncovered.

During Reed’s lifetime, it was a common acceptance Q4 that yellow fever was spread by contact with infected items; such as Q5 the clothing or blankets of a person with yellow fever. Some doctors, however, questioned this notion, as the spread of yellow fever was not consistent with the spread of other communicable diseases. Q6

Doubts about the accepted theory’s Q7 of the fever’s spread prompted the U.S. Army to assign Reed and several doctors to the problem. They studied yellow fever in Cuba, where they were Q8 infecting soldiers fighting in the Spanish American War at a discouraging Q9 rate. Acting on a hunch, several doctors volunteered to be bitten by mosquitoes; the volunteers developed yellow fever. This was enough information to spur General Reed to conduct more comprehensive experiments, so helping his cause.Q10 American and Spanish soldiers were paid to participate in these experiments, but some participants wanted only to advance science and refused the money.

The experiments began with the construction of a building in which men who did not have yellow fever were housed. These men were placed in contact with clothing that have been worn Q11 by yellow fever victims. Not one of these men contracted the fever. A Q12 second building was constructed with two sides separated by a screen. An infected volunteer lived on one side, and more volunteers lived on the other side, where they were completely protected from mosquitoes. This experiment was repeatable

Q13 many times, and the volunteers who were protected from mosquitoes never contracted the fever.

Q14 As a result of his findings and of the bravery of the volunteers, measures were taken to control the mosquito population and to keep the insects away from people. Eventually a vaccine was developed, which reduced further the outbreaks of yellow fever incidences. Q15