The Elevator and the Top Floor
Written by Studio AM.
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Lifting machines existed long before Elisha Otis. Many hoists carried freight, but a broken rope could send a platform falling. A dependable safety device could help make passenger elevators more acceptable.
At a New York exhibition in 1854, Otis stood on a raised platform and had its rope cut. The platform dropped a few inches before his safety mechanism stopped it. When the rope lost tension, a spring-operated device engaged the guides beside the platform. The demonstration made a hidden safety feature visible to the crowd.
More reliable elevators also changed the appeal of upper floors. In buildings reached only by stairs, climbing several flights could make high rooms less convenient and less valuable. An elevator reduced that effort. Light, quieter surroundings, and a view could then become advantages rather than rewards for a difficult climb. Over time, elevators helped reprice upper-floor space in many buildings, contributing to the appeal of the modern penthouse.
Steel construction and other technologies made tall buildings possible. Safe, practical elevators helped make their upper floors useful and desirable. The history connects an engineering improvement with a change in how people valued urban space.
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Questions
Choose an answer. The explanation appears after you answer.
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Question 1 of 4
What is the passage mainly about?
The answer is C: How safer elevators increased confidence and helped make upper floors more desirable.
The passage links the safety demonstration with the later value of easier access to upper floors.
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Question 2 of 4
Why did Otis order the rope cut in public instead of simply selling his brake?
The answer is D: A public demonstration could make the safety mechanism easier to trust.
Watching the platform stop gave the crowd visible evidence of a feature otherwise hidden in the machine.
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Question 3 of 4
In this passage, "reprice" most nearly means
The answer is A: changed what people would pay for each floor
The passage describes changing the amount people would pay for upper-floor space.
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Question 4 of 4
According to the passage, what happened when the rope was cut in 1854?
The answer is B: The platform dropped a few inches before the safety device stopped it.
The second paragraph describes a short drop followed by the mechanism engaging.
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