MasteryConnect: An Accidental Invention

Why was Adams unsuccessful in creating an inexpensive synthetic version of rubber from the chicle that de Santa Anna provided for him?

• The chicle was too expensive and few factories were producing it.

• General de Santa Anna could not get enough chicle shipped from Mexico.

• The chicle was not sturdy enough to hold the shape of the objects he created.

• Adams did not try hard enough to develop the synthetic rubber from chicle.

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Which quotation from the passage shows evidence of the answer in Part A?

• At the time, rubber was used for tires, shoes, toys, and many other products, but it was expensive, and there were few factories still producing it immediately after the Civil War. (paragraph 4)

• The former Mexican general used some of his remaining connections in Mexico to deliver a shipment of the tree product to Staten Island. (paragraph 4)

• Thomas first attempted to make bicycle tires from the chicle, but the substance was not tough enough to maintain the necessary shape. (paragraph 5)

• The only asset he had was the large shipment of chicle that Santa Anna had provided, and he had no way of making money from it until a day in 1869 when he happened across a candy store. (paragraph 5)

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What can be inferred about Thomas Adams based on the description of him in paragraph 2?

• Adams became an accomplished inventor after an unlikely meeting with a Mexican general.

• Adams enjoyed inventing new things and found success in many aspects of his life.

• Adams developed a friendship with a Mexican general while working as his photographer.

• Adams was a photographer from Mexico who found success in New York.

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Which two additional quotations from the passage show evidence of the answer in Part A?

• Santa Anna witnessed these experiments and suggested that Thomas try chicle which was a substance obtained from Mexican sapodilla trees. (paragraph 4)

• General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was over 70 years old and had experienced many historical events in his lifetime before his encounter with Adams. (paragraph 3)

• While Santa Anna was staying with Thomas, Thomas attempted to develop a cheap synthetic replacement for rubber because of its high demand. (paragraph 4)

• Within two years, Thomas Adams New York Chewing Gum company was producing “Chiclets” and other flavored gum in factories and became a national phenomenon. (paragraph 7)

• “Thomas never became a famous photographer, but his accidental invention (with the help of an exiled Mexican general) definitely made a mark on American history.” (paragraph 7)

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CCSS.RI.5.2

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Which line from the text summarizes the central idea?

• "Aztecs, Ancient Greeks, and even American Indians all had their own variations of the chewy substance, but the modern version that many Americans have come to enjoy was invented accidentally by a man named Thomas Adams in 1870." (paragraph 1)

• "While Santa Anna was staying with Thomas, Thomas attempted to develop a cheap synthetic replacement for rubber because of its high demand." (paragraph 4)

• "The former Mexican general used some of his remaining connections in Mexico to deliver a shipment of the tree product to Staten Island." (paragraph 4)

• "The only asset he had was the large shipment of chicle that Santa Anna had provided, and he had no way of making money from it until a day in 1869 when he happened across a candy store." (paragraph 5)

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CCSS.RI.5.2

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Based on its use in paragraph 5, what does the word viable mean?

• artificial; magnified

• impractical; unreasonable

• possible; workable

• separate; unique

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Part A: How does the passage support the idea that Thomas Adams made a significant impact on history by inventing chewing gum?

• It describes how Adams changed the candy world by inventing chewing gum in a variety of flavors and introducing the gum vending machine.

• It explains how Adams used his experience as an inventor to create his own company that manufactured the chewing gum vending machine.

• It reveals that without his friendship with the Mexican General de Santa Anna, Adams would have never been able to invent chewing gum.

• It states that Thomas was never famous for his photography, but he developed notoriety worldwide because he developed chewing gum.

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Part B: Which sentence from the passage shows evidence of the answer in Part A?

• Thomas saw a young girl buy a piece of candy that she popped into her mouth and started chewing.

• It reminded Thomas of Santa Anna chewing chicle, so Thomas asked the store owner about the candy and found out that it was a gum made from gooey wax and was quite popular.

• He went back to the candy store owner, and the owner agreed to sell the gum and see how his customers liked it.

• At one penny a piece, the chewing gum was affordable, and it increased in popularity as Thomas invented flavored gums and the gum vending machine.

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Part A: Paragraph 1 contributes to the overall structure by​

• describing to readers how Adams created the formula

• providing readers with the history of chewing gum

• by revealing to readers that gum was primarily used for hygiene

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Part B: Select the piece of text evidence that best supports your answer in Part A.

• "People have been chewing forms of gum for thousands of years."

• "Early fossil records from Finland have shown teeth marks in the tar of the bark."

• "Whether or not the Neolithic people knew it, the bark was very good for their dental hygiene."

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