1. B1+ Reading (Breaking the Codes)
1
Breaking the Codes
I. During World War II, the Germans invented a machine that was used by the German
military to keep their communications secret. This machine was called the Enigma. The German
authorities believed in the absolute security of the Enigma. However, British code breakers
managed to find weaknesses in the machine and were able to crack the Enigma code and reach their
military secrets. An equally impressive achievement, the decoding of the teleprinter* used by Hitler
and his generals, is less well known. This machine, which enabled the German military to
communicate safely, presented a serious challenge to the code breakers, one of whom was Alan
Turing, a gifted Cambridge mathematician.
II. Turing's work had been helpful in the breaking of the Enigma code, and based on his ideas, a
mechanical computer was built to help with the decoding process. The computer given to Turing
was called Heath Robinson, and its operation required a pair of teleprinter tapes to move at high
speed and in synchronisation, a very difficult task to perform. As the long paper tapes often
stretched or got torn, the computer sometimes began to smoke. Early in 1943 at Bletchley Park,
Turing became aware of the problems and began to look for help. He called Tommy Flowers, who
he had worked with before.
III. Born in London, Thomas Harold Flowers followed a four-year mechanical engineering
apprenticeship at Woolwich Arsenal. He then studied at night school and obtained a degree in
engineering from London University. During the day, working at the Post Office's research station
at Dollis Hill, London, he helped to develop electronic systems, which were subsequently used in
the development of long-distance telephone networks. It was this experience that caught the eye of
Turing and inspired him to call Flowers to work with him at Bletchley Park to improve Heath
Robinson.
IV. When Turing explained the problem with Heath Robinson, Flowers knew that electronic
valves should replace the mechanical switches. However, the code breakers were sceptical about
Flowers’ solution because they believed that electronic valves would be impractical and unreliable.
Flowers admitted that the machine would take a year to construct. As a result, Flowers was sent
back to Dollis Hill. At Bletchley Park, Heath Robinson continued functioning despite its
weaknesses.
V. Not willing to give up, Tommy Flowers started building his own valve-driven computer
with the help of his colleagues and his own finances. Working tirelessly for ten months, he designed
and built Colossus, a much faster and more reliable machine that used 1,500 thermionic valves
(vacuum tubes). On 8th December, 1943, the Bletchley Park experts were invited to a
demonstration and Colossus didn't disappoint them as it worked with complete accuracy. As
Flowers had expected, the valves caused no problems as long as they were left switched on
permanently. This was the world’s first practical electronic digital information processing machine -
a forerunner of today’s computers.
VI. Soon after this achievement, an even bigger and more powerful machine, Colossus Mark II,
came. Installed at Bletchley Park on 1st June 1944, it played a significant role in war operations.
Hitler's messages could be deciphered more quickly than before. By the end of the war, ten
Colossus machines ran code breaking programmes.
VII. After the war, Flowers returned to his work on electronic telephone systems at Dollis Hill
and his role in the breaking of Nazi codes had to remain a secret, even from his own family.
Because all evidence of Colossus had to be destroyed, most of the machines were dismantled and
the parts were returned to the Post Office. He eventually received an award of £1000 in recognition
of his war effort, an amount that barely covered his own contribution to the cost of the project.
*An electromechanical typewriter used to communicate typed messages
2. B1+ Reading (Breaking the Codes)
2
1. What is the text mainly about?
A) The invention of the Enigma by a British engineer
B) How Alan Turing broke the secret messages of the British military
C) The story of how Thomas Flowers developed Colossus
D) The creation process of Colossus Mark II
2. From paragraph II, we can understand that Heath Robinson ----.
A) worked efficiently C) was more expensive than the Enigma
B) was badly damaged in a fire D) was an unreliable machine
3. According to paragraph III, Turing wanted to work with Flowers because ----.
A) they graduated from the same school
B) he thought he could benefit from Flowers’ work experience
C) he had a degree in engineering from London University
D) he owned an electronics company
4. In paragraph III, the word eye could be replaced with ----.
A) attention B) struggle C) capacity D) abuse
5. According to paragraph IV, which of the following is TRUE about the code breakers?
A) They thought Heath Robinson was a useless machine.
B) They believed Flowers could build a new machine in a short time.
C) They did not want Flowers to use mechanical switches instead of electronic valves.
D) They did not support Flowers’ solution to the problem with Heath Robinson.
6. From paragraph V, we can infer that Tommy Flowers ----.
A) had serious financial problems C) didn’t like teamwork
B) had little impact on the future of computers D) was a determined person
7. In paragraph VI, by this achievement, the author means ----.
A) building a more advanced machine C) building Colossus Mark II
B) leaving the machine on permanently D) inviting the experts to a demonstration
8. Which of the following is closest in meaning to: “After the war, Flowers returned to his work on electronic
telephone systems at Dollis Hill and his role in the breaking of Nazi codes had to remain a secret, even from
his own family.” (paragraph VII)?
A) Flowers continued to work as a code breaker at Dollis Hill after the war and kept this as a secret from
everybody but not from his own relatives.
B) After the war had ended, Flowers was neither allowed to go back to his old job at Dollis Hill nor to see
his relatives.
C) After the war had ended, Flowers went back to his normal life and was not allowed to reveal his secret
mission to anybody, including his relatives.
D) Having completed his mission as a code breaker, Flowers went back to his old job at Dollis Hill and told
his family not to talk about his secret mission with anybody.
9. In paragraph VII, the word dismantled could be replaced with ----.
A) rebuilt C) developed gradually
B) separated into pieces D) generated
10. According to the text, which of the following is FALSE about Heath Robinson and Colossus?
A) Heath Robinson and Colossus were used for the same purpose.
B) Heath Robinson and Colossus were designed by different people.
C) It took Flowers less than a year to complete Colossus.
D) Colossus made Flowers a very rich man.
ANSWER KEY: 1.C 2.D 3.B 4.A 5.D 6.D 7.A 8.C 9.B 10.D
