Read the following passage and answer the questions below
It is time we looked at the latent causes. Where does the strength of India lie? Not in numbers ,not necessarily in our moral stands on international issues. In modern times ,the strength of a nation lies in its achievement in science and technology. This is not to say that the other fields do not count.
In the five decades after independence ,we have yet to demonstrate our originality in applied science and technology. Though Japan also started like us ,by cultivating the technology of the west ,the Japanese adapted ,improved and displayed originality in ,several areas of science and technology. The generation which was at the helm of affairs in science and technology in our country after independence mostly consisted of self-seekers .By and large the science and technology managers in India concentrated on gaining power and influence. They loved publicity. Most of them stopped doing science while they managed science. Things would have been better ,had they been humble enough to acknowledge the difference between doing and managing science. Instead , they claimed that they were the foremost in science and technology , simply because they were at the helm of affairs. As a result they ceased to inspire the younger a lot. India continues to be the borrower of science and technology, even though its potential for originality is substantial.
Our achievement in nuclear science and technology may be dazzling to our people. But , in worth and originality they are ordinary and routine. While our own people remain ignorant , the people of other countries know all about the pretensions to knowledge of our nuclear science and technology managers. The veil of secrecy over nuclear deals does not allow any investigations into misdeeds of the people who sabotage good and sincere efforts. The ones at the helm of affairs do make every endeavour to sabotage any genuine efforts ,least they might not get the continued funding if the actual objective is accomplished. International bodies came in as handy tools in this subtle process. The talk of national security comes as an easy weapon to prevent any probe into mismanagement .On nuclear matters ,the media in our country, by and large, avoid the investigative approach. As a result , the mismatch between promise and performance in the nuclear field does not get exposed as much as that in other fields.
1. What , according to the passage , is the criterion to decide the strength of the country ? (1)
2. What is common between the scientists of Japan and India?(1)
3. What does the author mean by doing science ? (1)
4. Pick out the words that is nearest in meaning as the words underlined in the passage. (2)
a)Pretensions
i) shortcomings ii) claims iii) apathy iv) access
v) permissiveness
b) Managed
i) conducted ii) organized iii) trained iv) managed
v) maneuvered
5. Pick out the word which is furthest in meaning to the words underlined : (2)
a) Dazzling
i) lustrous ii) glaring iii) unnoticeable iv) unexposable v) unscrupulous
b) Substantial
i) insignificance ii) extensive iii) independent iv) noteworthy v)uncompromising