1. NİŞANTAŞI ÜNİVERSİTESİ
Readıng skılls ıV
WEEK 12:Planet earth
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İktisadi, İdari ve Sosyal Bilimler Fakültesi
iisbf.nisantasi.edu.tr

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Pre-readıng
Work with a partner. Name one famous example for each geographic feature in the box. Give examples in Turkey if possible. Use a dictionary if necessary.
Beach :
Island :
Desert :
Jungle/rainforest:
Lake:
Forest :
Ice cap:
Mountain:
Mountain range:
Ocean/sea:
River:  
Valley :
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Pre-Reading
II. Work with a partner. Match the definitions with the words in the box. There are three extra words.
When heat cannot escape from the atmosphere and the temperature on Earth goes up___greenhouse effect__.
When ice turns to water __________________.
A long period of time when there is no rain____________.
The part of the Earth’s atmosphere which protects the earth from the sun ___________.
The process of making the air, water and land dirty from chemicals or exhaust, with chemicals for example _________.
A large quantity of water that suddenly covers an area usually after heavy rain ___________.
The increase in the temperature on Earth ________________.
An accident with nuclear power, usually causing radioactivity _______________.
An accident when oil comes out of its container, for example at sea ______________.
drought - flood - global warming - greenhouse effect - melt - nuclear disaster - oil spill - ozone layer - pollution - recycle - save - waste
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4. NİŞANTAŞI ÜNİVERSİTESİ ©
Look at the four pictures below, and predict the topıc of the text. Then, exchange ideas with a partner.
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5. Watch the video. Work with a partner and answer the questions below.
A.What is the video talking about? B.Do you think it is a serious issue in our time? Why or Why not? C.Can you and your partner suggest some solutions to the issue? D.How can you contribute to help as an individual?
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Work with a partner. Look at the two photos in the article. Talk about what you can see. What do you think is the connection between them?
Skim the text to check your predictions.
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7. Is this the most important building in the world?
Future problems: Each year, people are becoming more and more worried about the future of our planet. People are now starting to agree – global warming will definitely make a difference to the world’s weather. On the one hand, some parts of the world may have more floods. But some other parts might suffer terrible droughts. All of this will have a serious impact on the world’s agriculture. And that could make it difficult for us to get enough food to survive.
A possible solution: This explains the idea behind the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. The Seed Vault is built into a mountain on an island near the North Pole. The aim of the building is to protect the world’s agriculture from future catastrophes so we can continue to grow fruit and vegetables after they happen. This may not just be a question of global warming. Perhaps there will be a major nuclear disaster or war one day. These things definitely won’t be a problem for Svalbard. Thanks to careful planning, experts say that it(1) is going to survive any catastrophe.
Protecting our plants: Some experts think that the population of the earth will probably go up by 50% in the next 40 years. Because of climate change, it probably won’t be easy for some plants to survive so there may not be enough food for a larger world population. Having many different types of plants will be essential for agriculture to adapt to changes in the environment. In the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, there is space for 4.5 million types of seed. That’s 2.5 billion individual seeds! At the moment there are over 770,000 different types there.
Helping worldwide: Any country in the world can leave seeds in Svalbard. And the service is free. There are 1,500 potatoes from Peru, bananas from the Pacific Islands, and rice from more than a hundred different countries. The seeds of some plants, such as peas, only survive for 20 to 30 years. But others will last for hundreds of years.
The most important building? In 2028, the Svalbard Vault will celebrate its 20th anniversary. 200 years in the future, it’s possible that the ice caps will melt. Even if this(2) happens, Svalbard will be safe. That’s because it(3) is on a mountain and will be above the water level. And because it is so close to the North Pole, even if their electricity stops working, the ice will maintain a cool temperature of -3.5ºC to keep the seeds safe. But the best protection is the fact that it is in such a remote place. After all, maybe one day this will be the most important building in the whole world.
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Whıle readıng
I. Choose the correct alternative. Write the letter of the paragraph where you found the answer.
Countries pay / don’t pay to keep their seeds there.
Paragraph ………….
If there is an electric problem at the Seed Vault, the temperature will / will not be a problem.
Paragraph…………..
One important thing about the location of the Seed Vault is that it is close to high up/ far from the low down places.
In the case of a future catastrophe, the important thing is to have wide variety / a lot of seeds.
Paragraph………
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault has / doesn’t have millions of types of seeds.
Paragraph……..
Norway built the Svalbard Global Seed Vault because of the global warming / possible environmental disasters.
People believe droughts and floods might/will never make it difficult to find food in the future.
Paragraph………..
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II. What do the underlined and bold words in the text mean? Guess and then check in your dictionary with a partner.
Impact (v)
Vault: (n)
Survive (v)
Catastrophe (n)
Peas (n)
Level (n)
Remote (adj)
III. What do the underlined and numbered pronouns refer to?
It (1) _____________
This (2) _____________
It (3) _____________
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POST READING
I. Work in pairs, discuss the questions and take notes.
Do you agree that this is the most important building in the world? Why? Why not?
What plants from your country do you think are important to protect?
II. Work in groups and discuss:
Are you generally optimistic or pessimistic about the future of the planet? What kind of positive predictions can you make for ten years’ time?
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Extra practice
Work with your same group. Work together to find a similar solution to save humanity if great disasters as floods, drought, or worldwide hunger occur in the future.
Mention these few points:
What is your solution?
How will it help to protect the planet?
Who can use it?
How can it be used?
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References
Gateway_2nd_Edition/gateway-2nd-edition-b1-sb-unit-6.pdf
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