READING AND USE – PART 5

You are going to read an article about James Hansen who is a volcanologist. For questions 31 – 36, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.

Volcanologists are really adventurous researchers, who travel to some of the planet’s most remote places to try to better understand one of nature’s most powerful and destructive forces – the volcano.
When James Hansen stood and watched red fire shooting violently out from the Nyamuragira volcano, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, he said the noise and the heat of the eruption were “like an assault on his senses”.
“Normally when you see geology it has happened over hundreds, thousands and millions of years, but this was geology in action; this was life, this was rocks being born right in front of us, so that was absolutely incredible. You don’t often get a chance to experience that,” he proudly added.
To see the eruption he had flown to Rwanda facing many difficult situations on his way there. He had been arrested by soldiers while crossing Congo and also had his filming equipment stolen as soon as he reached Rwanda. These unpleasant events didn’t discourage him since he had been used to overcoming obstacles in the 24 years he’s been a volcanologist. His life now couldn’t be more different from some two decades before, when he was working for a company in England.
“I used to be contracts manager for a mobile telecoms infrastructure company,” he explained.
“About 25 years ago I started studying geology with the Open University. At the same time I lost my job, so I decided that this was an opportunity for me to go back to university to study full time.”
What was originally intended to be a career break developed into his dream career. After getting a bachelors degree in geology from Drafindom University, he recently completed a PhD at Scandar University, aged 50. He is currently employed at the British Geological Survey.
“Studying volcanoes has completely changed my life. I’ve got a better understanding of the Earth that we live on for a start,” he said.
“I can’t wait to get up in the morning and come in to work now, whereas 20 something years ago I didn’t want to go to work.
“I get excited about everything that I do now – it has completely changed my life,”he admits.