Passage 3

 

Texting while driving was listed as a major cause of road deaths among young Americans back in 2013. A recent study said that 40% of American teens claim to have been in a car when the driver used a cellphone in the way that put people in danger. It sounds like a wide-spread disease, but it’s one that technology may now help to cure. TJ Evarts, a 20-year-old inventor, has come up with a novel solution that could easily put texting drivers on notice. It’s called ‘Smart Wheel’. And it’s a design to fit over the steering wheel of most standard vehicles to track whether or not the driver has two hands on the wheel at all times. Evarts’ invention warns the drivers with a light and a sound when they hold the wheel with one hand only. But as soon as they place another hand back on the wheel, the light turns back to green and the sound stops. It also watches for what’s called ‘close-by hands’, where both hands are close together near the top of the wheel, so the driver can type with both thumbs and drive at the same time. All the data Smart Wheel collects is also sent to a connected app. So any parent who installs Smart Wheel can keep track of the teens’ driving habits. If they try to remove or damage the cover that’s reported as well.

 

Questions 22 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.

Question 22. What is a major cause of road deaths among young Americans?

Question 23. What is ‘Smart Wheel’?

Question 24. What happens if the driver has one hand on the wheel?

Question 25. How do parents keep track of their teens’ driving habits?