Getting ready for the Role Play, put down your idea and arguments.

1.                …………………………………………………………………………………...

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2.      ……..……………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

3.    ……………………………………………………………………………………………

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UNIT 3 science approach

LEAD-IN

1 “ Ars longa, vita brevis” are the first two lines of a Latin translation of an aphorism by Ancient Greek physician Hippocrates. The words are commonly translated in English as “Art is long, life is short.” The full text in Latin is “Ars longa, vita brevis, occasio praeceps, experimentum periculosum, iudicium difficile”.

· Find the commonly accepted English translation.

· Think of the most common and significant caveat in this translation.

· Dwell on the aphorism and provide your own understanding of it.

 

Complete the text using the words and phrases given.

 

Paragraph 1 surges    gouges      plunges   hurtles   blocks   smashes       sweep     Paragraph 2,3,4,5 spells         matter        wiped out      species    acrimonious extinction triggered    aftermath

 

KILLER  BLOW

 

A meteor as big as the city of San Francisco 1)…………………… towards the Earth at 20 km per second, 2) ………………….. into the tropical lagoons of the Gulf of Mexico and 3) ……………………… a fathomless hole. As a result, a tidal wave 4) ……………. outwards. Fires 5) …………………. across North and South America and fallout 6) ………………… the sun and 7) ……………………….. the Earth into permanent gloom.

This catastrophic event is the classic answer as to why dinosaurs were 8) ……………… 65 million years ago, but does the theory hold water? Everyone agrees that the Earth suffered a large meteor strike towards the end of the Cretaceous period, yet more than 20 years after the Chicxulub impact was proposed as the cause of mass extinction, scientists are still arguing over what really killed the dinosaurs.

On one side are the 'catastrophists', who say the impact snuffed out the majority of life on Earth in a 9) ………………… of months or a few years. On the other are 'gradualists', who point out that the fossil record shows a steady decline in the number of species, starting several hundred thousand years before the end of the Cretaceous period. The gradualists don't deny the Chicxulub impact happened, but maintain that it wasn't responsible for the mass10) ……………….. .

The debate between the two sides has been polarised and 11) ………………., but thanks to a feat of engineering, scientists may finally be able to find out exactly what happened to our planet on that fateful day 5 million years ago. By boring through solid rock, drilling contractors have pulled out a core, 1112 metres long and 7.6 cms in diameter, which records the full story of the impact and its 12) ……………………. . Geologists (mainly catastrophists, of course) are queuing up to analyse the core. In so doing, they hope to confirm whether the impact was devastating enough to kill the dinosaurs.

For the catastrophists, however, there are two big problems. First, they don't know how intense and widespread the meteor's effects were and would have to provide evidence of an extreme global change that lasted for at least a year. Secondly, it wasn't just meteors that were stirring up unrest. At that time, an area known as the Deccan Traps in what is now Western India was enduring one of the most intense 13) ………………….. of volcanism in Earth's history. A 'hot spot' deep in the mantle was producing plumes of superheated lava that burst through the crust, inundating 2,5 million square km of land.

Greenhouse gases and water vapour emerged with the lava and, in 1981, Dewey McLean proposed that the Deccan Traps 14) ………………….. severe global warming and a mass extinction. In support of this theory, the gradualists point out that this is not the only episode of supervolcanism that has occurred simultaneously with a mass extinction. At the Permian-Triassic boundary 250 million years ago, over 90% of marine 15) ………………….. became extinct just as the region that is now Siberia was being flooded with lava.

 

3    Find the linking words used in the text. Study the way they organize the structure of the text.

e.g. Everyone agrees that …., yet more than 20 years ….

 

•  Study various ways of expressing cause and result.

Noun phrases	Verb phrases	Linking words
cause (of), effect/effects (of... on), explanation (for), outcome/outcomes (of), reason, result	affect, be caused (by), cause ... (to + inf), be responsible (for), contribute (to), lead (to), result (in), suffer (from), trigger	as a result, in so doing

 

• Use some of these phrases in the sentences below, paying attention to any prepositions following the spaces.

1 One of the immediate …………………….  of the meteor strike was a tidal wave.

2 The extensive fires that …………………….. by the impact..........................to a long period of darkness.

3 Catastrophists believe that the Chicxulub impact ......................in the extinction of the dinosaurs.

4 Gradualists refuse to believe that the impact......:........................ for the end of the dinosaurs.

5 Dewey McLean's theory suggests that the Deccan Traps................................... the Earth's temperature to rise and, …………………......, there was a mass extinction.

6 Some researchers are convinced that the volcanic activity which formed

the Deccan traps.................................. in part to the end of the dinosaurs.

7 Up until now, many scientists have seen these eruptions as being too infrequent to ................................  extreme environmental change.

8 However, new research suggests that this volcanic activity could provide a watertight a ................................................for the dinosaurs' extinction, as it shows the Deccan Traps were formed more quickly than previously thought.

4    Write the summary of the article Killer Blow following the suggested structure. (about 100 words) Use the words different from those in the text, such as

biodiversity coincidence      adverse     crater         debris      duration eradication     incident        proof      quantities    dispute

 

The Chicxulub meteor strike ……………………. and ………………….. . Catastrophists believe…………………………, but gradualists don’t ……………………., pointing to ………………….. . There has been a long-running ……………….  . Catastrophists need ……………………….. Moreover, gradualists ………………………… .

 

! Avoid quoting the text, use the vocabulary different from the language of the text. !

 

5    Listening   1

    ( Мультимедийный каталог института :

номер – 2143 IELTS Objective Advanced, Unit 13 – Listening)

• Do the quiz “What do you know about comets”.
• Say whether the statement is True or False?

1 The name 'comet' comes from the Greek and means 'long-haired'.

2 'Asteroid' is another name for 'comet'.

3 Comets follow circular orbits around the sun.

4 The nucleus of a comet is made solely of icy matter.

5 When a comet gets closer to the sun, it changes its shape.

6 The tail of a comet consists solely of dust and debris.

• You are going to hear a lecture about the Rosetta mission. Before you listen, look at the sentences and try to work out what kind of information you need to listen for.
• Complete the sentences below.

 

1 The ESA Rosetta Mission was also called the ……………………………. .

2  The mission was delayed in 2003 because of a ………………………………… .

3  The revised flight plan includes several flybys - one of ……………… and three of  ……………………. .

4  The indirect route will allow Rosetta to visit ……………………………………… .

5  Rosetta will arrive at its final destination (the comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko) in ……………………………………. .

6  Once in orbit, it will carry out its ………………………. . 

7  The Rosetta Lander will remain in one place, attached to………………………. .

8  Comets' tails are made up of ……………….. and …………………… .

9  As well as giving us information about comets, data from Rosetta may help us to understand how ............................................

 Listening   2

( Мультимедийный каталог института :

номер – 2143 IELTS Objective Advanced, Test Folder 7 – Listening)

· You will hear part of a lecture about meteorites, and about some craters they have created on Earth.

· What does the lecturer say about each meteorite or crater?

· Choose your answers from the boxes, matching them:

 

e.g. Ensesheim - the meteorite was damaged by humans. (The speaker says people began chipping off pieces.)

 

1 Krasnojarsk 2 Antarctica 3 Cape York 4 Siberia 5 Vredefort Crater 6 Wolf Creek Crater

A crater first identified from the air В it was used to prove where meteorites come from С meteorite damaged by humans D meteorite destroyed part of forest E meteorite has become tourist attraction F meteorite landed in uninhabited region  G meteorites sometimes revealed by natural forces H story invented about it I thought to be largest known crater

6    SPEAKING.   GIVING OPINIONS

· Read about some scientific innovations which may affect our present and future.

 

A A high proportion of employers appear to favour genetic testing of employees. The aim is to identify workers at risk of developing job-related illnesses and those likely to suffer from heart disease, who may retire early.

B Artificial intelligence is on its way. Currently, a small personal computer has about the same power as an insect's brain. On present trends, however, within fifteen years a small PC will have as much computing power as a human brain.

C Studies on mice indicated that increasing the metabolic rate and eliminating free radicals from the body made them live significantly longer. Applied to humans, the increased life span would mean an extra thirty years of life

D Scientists may one day be able to reduce the power of hurricanes, or move them onto a different course. This could be done by changing the temperatures in and around the hurricane, possibly using solar power beamed in from orbiting satellites.

E Stem cells could be taken from a human ovary and re-implanted many years later. This would enable a woman to freeze the cells when she is young, with the option of giving birth when she is much older - possibly in her sixties.

 

• Decide what issues are raised by each of A-E. Define advantages and disadvantages of each issue.  Examples are given in relation to extract A.

 

BENEFITS	MORAL ISSUES	DRAWBACKS	UNEXPECTED CONSEQUENCES
A It could save money in the long run.   B …………….	A It will lead to a new form of discrimination. B ………………….	A Employees may resent it.   B …………………..	A It will create a new job.   B ……………………

 

 

• While giving your own opinion, make use of the  phrases from the lists below to help you.

Arguing for: I think it's a good idea because ..., There's a lot to be said for it, for instance ...

Arguing against: I'm completely against it because ..., There are too many drawbacks/dangers such as ...

Hedging: I'm not sure. You could say ... , but..., It's hard to say. One way of looking at it is ..., but ...

Part 1

7   Read these comments about space exploration and discuss how far you agree with each opinion.

ü Space exploration is ridiculously expensive, considering how little we get for the money wasted on it.

ü It's stimulating to think about what exists beyond, but what are the chances of getting something useful out of space exploration? It should be scaled down.

ü We've got our priorities wrong. It's about time science turned its eye back to this planet and set about doing something about poverty, disease and pollution. Once we've sorted out our own problems, let the exploration continue.

ü The equivalent of exploration in the 21st century often has more to do with overcoming physical challenges than discovering the unknown.

 

Read the following text.

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