Roman Technology
The Romans used great public projects to make the city the most advanced of the ancient world,
and to create the largest empire of the era. Many of the roads, bridges and aqueducts of ancient
Rome are still used today.
The Romans built many roads throughout their empire. The roads made
it easier to travel and trade with faraway provinces. It also made it
easier to collect taxes. Roman roads were straight and followed an exact
design. The expression, "All Roads Lead To Rome" refers to the fact
that Rome was the center of modern civilization.
Roman engineers brought water into the city by building pipelines
called aqueducts. Nine aqueducts provided the Roman people with 38
million gallons of water every day. Parts of the Roman aqueduct system
still supply water to fountains in Rome.
The Romans built many amphitheaters, or huge stadiums. People
would gather in amphitheaters to watch shows with clowns, jugglers, and acrobats. Some of Roman
entertainment was very cruel. People would watch fights between wild animals and Gladiators.
Gladiators were usually slaves or criminals who fought with swords against animals or each other.
A skillful gladiator might win his freedom by defeating an opponent. More often, the gladiators lost
their lives.
The largest amphitheater, the Coliseum, seated about 45,000 people. Only a portion of the
Coliseum remains standing today. Earthquakes have
destroyed some of the structure. Also, engineers used some of
the stone from the Coliseum to build later Roman buildings.
Some of the stone used to build St. Peter's Basilica, the
church where the Pope resides, came from the Coliseum.
Perhaps the greatest Roman engineering achievement was the
sewer. Rome is in a valley among seven hills. Without the
sewers, there would be nowhere for dirty water to go. The
sewer system made it possible for it to become the largest city
in the world. Rome was the first city to house more than one
million people. The population declined after the fall of Rome, but today, it is home to more than
six million people.
1. What is most likely the main idea of paragraph two?
a) Rome was the center of modern civilization
b) Roads were important for the development of Rome
c) Roman roads were straight
d) Trade was important in ancient Rome
2. In paragraph three, the author writes, “Roman engineers brought water into the city by building pipelines
called aqueducts”. In this sentence, the word engineers most likely describes…
a) people who build things
b) people who work with water
c) people who lived in Rome
d) people who measured the quality of water
3. From paragraph three, you can infer that the aqueduct system in Rome was…
a) good, but not good enough
b) something the people were proud of
c) highly unsuccessful
d) highly successful
4. The following sites in Baltimore is most likely
an example of an Amphitheater…
a) The Hippodrome Theater
b) Ravens Stadium
c) Druid Hill Park
d) The Inner Harbor
5. Looking a paragraph four, what do you think the author’s attitude is towards gladiator fights.
Please use examples from the text.
6. Which of the following sentences from the last paragraph doesn’t help in supporting the main idea
of the paragraph?
a) Without the sewers, there would be nowhere for dirty water to go.
b) The sewer system made it possible for Rome to become the largest city in the world.
c) Rome is in a valley among seven hills.
d) The population declined after the fall of Rome, but today, it is home to
more than six million people.
7. If this passage had to be given a new title, the best choice for a title would be…
a) The Most Important Engineering Achievement in Rome
b) How Rome Grew So Large
c) The Roads and Aqueducts of Rome
d) Great Roman Engineering Accomplishments