Description: This is
a VOA Special English Technology Report.
See text below
Text:
The earliest process of making paper was done almost
five thousand years ago in Egypt and the Nile
Valley. In those days, paper was made from strips of
the papyrus plant. Modern papermaking began in China
about two thousand years ago. This process produced
paper from cloth, straw, wood or the bark of trees.
The raw materials are struck over and over until
they become loose. Then they are mixed with water.
After the water has been removed, the flat, thin
form remaining is permitted to dry. This becomes a
sheet of paper. Large machines started to be used
for making paper near the end of the sixteenth
century. Today, papermaking is a big business. But
it is still possible to make paper by hand, since
the steps are the same as using big machines.You
should choose paper with small amounts of printing.
Old envelopes are good for this reason. Colored
paper also can be used, as well as small amounts of
newspaper. Small pieces of rags or cloth can be
added. These should be cut into pieces about five
centimeters by five centimeters.Everything is placed
in a container, covered with water and brought to a
boil. It is mixed for about two hours with some
common chemicals and then allowed to cool. Then it
is left until most of the water dries up. The
substance left, called pulp, can be stored until you
are ready to make paper. When you are ready, the
pulp is mixed with water again. Then the pulp is
poured into a mold. The mold is made of small
squares of wire that hold the shape and thickness of
the paper. To help dry the paper, the mold lets the
water flow through the small wire squares. After
several more drying steps, the paper is carefully
lifted back from the mold. It is now strong enough
to be touched.The paper is smoothed and pressed to
remove trapped air. You can use a common electric
iron used for pressing clothes. There are many other
technologies for people making paper using small
machines.More information about making homemade
paper can be found on the Internet. You can also
order information on papermaking through the website
enterpriseworks.org. For VOA Special English, I'm
Carolyn Presutti. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of
our reports are at voaspecialenglish.com. You can
also find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and
iTunes at VOA Learning English.
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Hi. I
personally reviewed this video and found it appropriate for
the news section of English Global Group. This
is a Voice of America video which covers an interesting
topic in Special English. I would appreciate some feedback from both
students and teachers about this video. You can comment in
the window below using any of a number of different services
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