Exam B7 LV

Choose the best form of the word to complete each sentence. 

1. The ____________ region of the Mariana Trench is nearly 11,000 meters below sea level

2. Some places are named after the person who ____________ them, such as the Cook Islands, which were named in honor of Captain James Cook.

3. McMurdo Station, a research center in Antarctica, is located in one of the most remote ____________ of the world.

4. Calakmul is one of the largest Mayan cities ever found, but because it is ____________ in the jungles of southern Mexico, this ancient settlement is hard to visit.

5. During his many trips to remote regions, British explorer Ranulph Fiennes has ____________ frostbite – an injury caused by extreme cold – several times.

6. The underground city of Derinkuyu in Cappadocia is very large, but the city recently discovered underneath Nevsehir is even ____________.

7. The northernmost town in the world, Ny-Alesund, which has a population of just over 30 people, is ____________ on the island of Spitzbergen, Norway.

8. Some artifacts recently discovered in Peru suggest that the society that made them was more advanced than other ____________ cultures of that time.

Complete each definition by matching the sentence parts.

INTO THE UNKNOWN 

A    In the early 19th century, much of the world was still unexplored. Today, most places on the surface of the Earth have been mapped. Some places, however, are still waiting to be discovered. Some of these are underground, in deep caves called blue holes.

B    A blue hole is a special kind of underwater cave. It can be found inland or in the sea. The hole forms when the earth above a cave falls in and water fills the space. Some of the world’s most spectacular blue holes are located in the Bahamas. The islands there may have more than a thousand blue holes. Blue holes can be very deep. For example, Dean’s Blue Hole, one of the deepest blue holes in the world, is over 200 meters deep.

C    An inland blue hole’s water is very still and has different layers. A layer of fresh rainwater floats on top of salt water. The fresh water keeps oxygen from the atmosphere from reaching the salt water. Brightly colored bacteria live where the two layers meet.

D    Diving into blue holes is extremely dangerous. Near the top of a blue hole, there is a layer of poisonous gas. This gas causes itching, dizziness, and – in large amounts – death. Divers must also be fast. They have to get in and out of a cave before their oxygen runs out. Additionally, it is very dark in these caves, so it is very easy to get lost. Divers therefore have to follow a guideline as they swim through a blue hole. If they lose the guideline, they may not find their way back out of the cave.

E    If blue holes are so dangerous, why do explorers and scientists risk their lives to explore them? One reason is that these underwater caves can provide valuable scientific information. They provide clues about geology, archaeology, and biology. For example, some blue hole creatures, such as the remipede, probably haven’t changed for millions of years.

F    The blue holes could even provide clues about astrobiology – the study of life in the universe. For example, divers have found bacteria there that can live without oxygen. Astrobiologist Kevin Hand says the bacteria in blue holes may be similar to forms of life that might exist on Jupiter’s fourth largest moon, Europa. Similar life forms probably existed on Earth billions of years ago. “Our study of life’s extremes on Earth,” he says, can help increase “our understanding of habitable environments off Earth.” G In addition, the oxygen-free environment of the blue holes preserves bones of humans and animals that fell into the caves long ago. By studying blue holes, we can understand what life was like in prehistoric times. As cave diver Kenny Broad says, “I can think of no other environment on Earth that is so challenging to explore and gives us back so much scientifically.”

Review the reading passage “INTO THE UNKNOWN” from Unit 7. Choose the best heading for paragraphs A-G from the list of headings (a-g).

A    Mention the word “explorer” and you might think of men such as Marco Polo, Ibn Battuta, and Jacques Cousteau. However, through the years, a number of female explorers have traveled the globe. At the time of their travels the world was a more difficult and dangerous place for women, and their adventures deserve to be more widely known.

B    One such explorer was Isabella Bird. She was born in England in 1831 and died almost 73 years later in Scotland. During her long life, Bird experienced many exciting and remarkable adventures, despite the fact that she was often sick. (It is not possible to say exactly what was wrong with her, although her illness may have been due to a skin infection.) Bird’s adventures began in 1854 when she traveled to the United States of America. While there, she wrote many letters to relatives back home, and these were later collected and published as a book. She returned to the United States in her 40s, and traveled around the Rocky Mountains in particular. In later years, Bird visited Japan, Korea, and other Asian countries. Due to her achievements, Bird was the first woman to become a member of the Royal Geographical Society.

C    Annie Smith Peck was another great female explorer. Like Bird, she was born in the nineteenth century – in 1850 – and died in the twentieth century, in 1935. Unlike Bird, however, Peck was born in the United States. As a young woman, Peck received only a high school education. She wanted to attend university, too, but was not accepted because she was a woman. Peck did not let this stop her, and at the age of 27, she achieved her goal of going to university. In 1885, Peck fell in love with mountain climbing. One of her most famous climbs was reaching the top of the Matterhorn in Switzerland in 1895. Some people were shocked because Peck climbed in trousers, which were considered unsuitable clothes for women at that time. It seems Peck did not let this negative reaction bother her as she continued climbing all around the world.

Read the passage and answer the questions below. Complete each sentence with TWO WORDS from the passage.

A    Mention the word “explorer” and you might think of men such as Marco Polo, Ibn Battuta, and Jacques Cousteau. However, through the years, a number of female explorers have traveled the globe. At the time of their travels the world was a more difficult and dangerous place for women, and their adventures deserve to be more widely known.

B    One such explorer was Isabella Bird. She was born in England in 1831 and died almost 73 years later in Scotland. During her long life, Bird experienced many exciting and remarkable adventures, despite the fact that she was often sick. (It is not possible to say exactly what was wrong with her, although her illness may have been due to a skin infection.) Bird’s adventures began in 1854 when she traveled to the United States of America. While there, she wrote many letters to relatives back home, and these were later collected and published as a book. She returned to the United States in her 40s, and traveled around the Rocky Mountains in particular. In later years, Bird visited Japan, Korea, and other Asian countries. Due to her achievements Bird was the first woman to become a member of the Royal Geographical Society.

C    Annie Smith Peck was another great female explorer. Like Bird, she was born in the nineteenth century – in 1850 – and died in the twentieth century, in 1935. Unlike Bird, however, Peck was born in the United States. As a young woman, Peck received only a high school education. She wanted to attend university, too, but was not accepted because she was a woman. Peck did not let this stop her, and at the age of 27, she achieved her goal of going to university. In 1885, Peck fell in love with mountain climbing. One of her most famous climbs was reaching the top of the Matterhorn in Switzerland in 1895. Some people were shocked because Peck climbed in trousers, which were considered unsuitable clothes for women at that time. It seems Peck did not let this negative reaction bother her as she continued climbing all around the world.

Review the passage about famous female explorers. Then answer the questions writing (in CAPITAL LETTERS) FACT or SPECULATION.

Expressing a personal interest or desire to do something is usually more common in informal writing than formal writing. There are certain expressions you can use to express interests and desires. 

Read these sentences. A teacher has underlined one mistake in each sentence. Rewrite the underlined expression so that it is correct. 

Examples are a good way to support your opinions or ideas. There are several different phrases you can use to introduce examples. 

Read this short passage about some famous explorers. Then write the words in parentheses in the correct order in the spaces below. 

Many faraway regions of the world were discovered by explorers from Great Britain during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. There are many reasons for this. (A) (example / for), Great Britain had powerful ships, so it was easy for explorers to travel to these regions. One British explorer was Mary Kingsley. She spent several years traveling around Africa, where she discovered several new species. (B) (an / example / give / to), she discovered three types of fish that were named after her. (C) (another / example / famous / very) of a British explorer is David Livingstone. Like Kingsley, he traveled widely in Africa and is best known for bringing back news of lakes, rivers, and waterfalls to Europe. Perhaps (D) (best / examples / of / one / the) of a famous explorer is James Cook. He sailed around the world and was the first person to bring back news – along with detailed, accurate maps – of places like New Zealand, Australia, and the Sandwich Islands, which are now called Hawaii.

Write full sentences in answer to these questions.

41. If you could travel anywhere on Earth, where would you go? Why?

42. Who would you like to go on a long journey with? Why?

43. What would you take with you on a long journey? Why?

44. What aspect of a long journey would worry you the most? Why?

45. While on a long journey, what or who would you miss the most? Why?

46. After returning home from a long journey, how might your life be different? Why do you think this?

Which would you prefer to do: explore a hidden underground city, explore an unknown cave, dive into a blue hole, or travel to the bottom of the Mariana Trench? Why? 

47. Write at least 100 words. Support your opinion with detailed reasons and examples.