The Shopping Cart
Written by Studio AM.
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In the 1930s, Oklahoma grocer Sylvan Goldman noticed that customers struggled with heavy shopping baskets. Carrying the load could limit what they bought, even when they wanted more.
Inspired by a folding chair, he and mechanic Fred Young developed a wheeled frame carrying two wire baskets. Goldman introduced the carts in his stores in 1937. The frame took the weight, allowing shoppers to move more groceries without carrying them in their arms.
Some customers were reluctant to use the new carts. Goldman employed people to push them around the store as if shopping, showing other customers how they worked. A useful invention also needed people to become comfortable using it.
The cart helped change the shopping experience. It encouraged stores to allow space for wheeled traffic in their aisles and made larger loads easier to manage. In that sense, it helped redraw the store: equipment designed for one problem could also influence the space and habits around it.
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Questions
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Question 1 of 4
What is the passage mainly about?
The answer is D: How the shopping cart reduced the burden of carrying groceries and helped change shopping.
The passage connects the carrying problem, the cart, customers' adoption, and changes to shopping space.
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Question 2 of 4
Why did Goldman hire people to push carts and pretend to shop?
The answer is B: Seeing others use carts could make the unfamiliar equipment seem more normal.
The demonstration helped people become comfortable with equipment they had been reluctant to use.
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Question 3 of 4
In this passage, "redraw" most nearly means
The answer is C: changed the shape and layout of
The preceding sentences discuss space for wheeled traffic, showing that redraw refers to changes in layout and use.
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Question 4 of 4
What inspired the design of Goldman's wheeled frame?
The answer is A: A folding chair.
The second paragraph names the folding chair as the inspiration, not an object converted directly into every cart.
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