X-Rays Worksheet

A History (cloze). Read the text and complete the missing words.

Medical radiology has now existed for over a century. It all started in 1895 when Wilhelm Roentgen
discovered x-rays. On 28 December 1895 his manuscript ‘On a New Kind of Rays’ ___ (1) submitted to
the Wurzburg Physical medical Institute. The essential features of x-rays were described and the
new discovery aroused tremendous interest. Because the apparatus was available ____ (2) most
physics departments, his results could easily _____(3) repeated.

At the start, the radiographs were made onto glass photographic plates; George Eastman introduced
film in 1918. In recent years there has been a digital revolution and radiographic images are now
recorded and stored digitally.

Most of the early x-ray work was performed _____(4) doctors and the departments were often combined
with electro-therapeutic departments. However, from about 1903 lay x-ray operators were appointed
_____(5) assistants. Training courses ______(6) set up and the Society of Radiographers _____(7)
formed in 1920.

X-rays were used ___ (8) therapy from the earliest times. The techniques depended ____ (9) the
development of more powerful apparatus, the use of multiple therapy beams and on the use of radium.
The doctors in the x-ray department were involved in _____ (10) therapy and diagnosis. It was only
_____ (11) the 1930s that doctors were appointed with specific interests in diagnosis or therapy.


B Vocabulary

C Equipment – C-arm tutorial:

C1 Match the verbs with the nouns

1 push/hit                  a)    the
C-arm

2 turn                          b)     the picture

3 unlock                      c)    a tilt

4 take                          d) the
button

5 save/flip                  e) the handle

6 pull/rotate              f) a snapshot

7 make                         g) the foot brake


C2 Watch the video and answer the following questions

1 What is the purpose of the video?

2 What is the first thing to do when using the machine?

3 What kind of profiles are displayed?

4 What are the functions of the yellow and green buttons?

5 What is the function of the first two locks?

6 What two types of tilt are mentioned?

7 What happens if the footbrake is in a flat position?

8 What is the wig-wag used for?


D X-ray examination


E Grammar Corner