SFL/METU January 2017 Dept. of B.E. Reading Practice 12 INTERMEDIATE GROUP Student s Copy

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1 SFL/METU January 2017 Dept. of B.E. Reading Practice 12 INTERMEDIATE GROUP Student s Copy 1 Endangered Humans When people refer to endangered species, most of them think of plants and animals. Certainly, looking around or taking a drive through a major city filled with millions of people, it is indeed hard to believe that human cultures are in danger of extinction. However, as with endangered plants and animals, there are areas of the world that provide haven for native peoples who are under the risk of losing their customs and even their ability to exist as a culture. After thousands of years of total isolation, these native societies managed to protect themselves against the perils of the industrialized world. Nevertheless, this is rapidly changing as the plague of economic growth enters native homelands and threatens their ability to support their human and animal inhabitants Deep within the Amazon rainforests in Brazil, cattle ranchers and timber merchants are destroying the forest and pushing several native tribes, which constitute some of the surviving native cultures left in the world, to the edge of extinction. The primary reason for this is the construction of roads which are built in order to accommodate economic exploitation of the rain forest. Once these roads are built, the surrounding trees are cleared, and the soil is excavated and paved over, what initially seemed like an unimportant little wound will have developed into an incurable cancer; an illness taking over the whole body. Several of the most endangered tribes live in the remote areas of the Amazonian forest. These are the Macuxi, Marubo, and Yanomami. Today, both the rain forests and the native human cultures which inhabit them are in serious jeopardy. Take the Yanomami, who are the only inhabitants of the area along Brazil s border with Venezuela, for instance. About two or three decades ago, the Brazilian military entered the Yanomami territory, brought with them modern things, and built a small military base there. Today, the military airport is massive and crowded with thousands of soldiers. Once nomadic, the Yanomami would constantly move, seeking fresh hunting grounds and new land on which to grow crops. Now, however, the military has forced them into a state of dependence such as receiving food and medicines from the soldiers, and their land, which they would look after so well, is no longer fit to sustain life. The fate of the Yanomami is not new to the modern world. For thousands of years, humans have been destroying other humans. Somewhere in the evolution of human beings, greedy and barbarous behavioral characteristics were adopted. This was illustrated most strongly in the European expansionist period of the 16 th and 17 th centuries. Innovations in navigation techniques not only made sea travel faster and more efficient, but they also started a giant trend in the exploration and settlement of new lands. The European entrepreneurs, keen to set up world centers for trade and commerce, exploited and butchered native peoples around the world. The invaders eliminated anything that got in their way, including entire cultures. The slaughter in the 16 th and 17 th centuries can be compared to the 20 th century industrial revolution. The post- World War II reconstruction period brought prosperity and economic growth, which is still escalating. The rate at which this has occurred is tremendous. Despite considerable advances in environmental awareness, resources are still being exhausted. However, perhaps the most unseen side effect of this exploitation and destruction of resources is the global loss of biodiversity, which now includes populations of human species. The difficult situation of the native peoples of the Amazon illustrates the effects of industrial carelessness and how it manipulates natural systems. These age-old cultures are surrendering to the same adversity affecting many plants and animals: the loss of habitat. This is a sad commentary on human behavior worldwide. How can this be allowed to happen? Those who criticize environmental regulations which protect natural resources say, "We are putting animals before people." However, it seems that does not apply anymore. We are actually putting people before other people. 1

2 A. What do the following words refer to? 1. their (para.1) : 2. there (para.3) : 3. they (para. 4) : B. Find words in the text which mean the following. DO NOT CHANGE THE FORM OF THE WORDS and write ONE WORD ONLY. 1. shelter, protection (para.1) : 2. threats, dangers (para.1) : 3. danger, risk (para.3) : 4. killed, murdered (para.4) : C. Mark the best choice according to the text. 1. The writer establishes a similarity between the destruction of the Amazon rainforests in Brazil and. a) the activities of cattle ranchers and timber merchants b) the construction of roads in the area c) the economic exploitation of the rainforest d) the development of an incurable cancer 2. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text? a) The Macuxi, the Marubo, and the Yanomami all live along Brazil's border with Venezuela. b) There were more Brazilian soldiers in the military base in the past than there are now. c) The Yanomami are still a nomadic tribe who constantly move to find food and shelter. d) The Yanomami need the Brazilian military in order to continue to survive. D. Mark the following statements True (T) or False (F). T F 1. In the 16 th and 17 th centuries, Europeans were more greedy and barbarous than ever. T F 2. The increasing environmental awareness among people has not helped much to protect the environment. T F 3. The native tribes of the Amazon have caused a loss of biodiversity through their activities. T F 4. The writer criticizes those who complain about giving priority to the environment over humans. 2

3 COLLOCATIONAL VOCABULARY living / extinct / common / rare / native / threatened / protected / endangered species (n.): (plural species) a group of plants or animals that share similar characteristics to be in danger of /to be threatened with / to face extinction (n.): a situation in which sth. no longer exists to be/become extinct (adj.) to provide sth. for smb. (v.) to provide smb. with sth. to threaten to do sth. (v.) to threaten smb. (with sth.) threat (n.) to constitute (v.): to make up primary purpose/aim/objective/concern /responsibility (adj.): main; most important; basic commercial/economic/industrial exploitation of sth. (n.): the process of making use of sth. so that you gain as much as possible from it to exploit sth. (v.) a remote village/town (adj.): isolated to seek smb./sth. (past tense and past participle sought) (v.): search; look for to sustain life/economic growth/a relationship (v.): provide the conditions in which sth. can happen or exist; maintain/continue (un)sustainable economic growth/agriculture (adj.) to adopt an approach/policy/attitude (v.): to decide to start using a particular idea, plan, or method innovation in sth. (n.): the introduction of new things, ideas or ways of doing sth. technological/scientific/industrial/educational innovations an innovative approach/idea/method/design (adj.) to set up sth. (v.): establish prosperity (n.): affluence a prosperous country/farmer/landowner (adj.): rich and successful a considerable amount/number of sth. (adj.): significant considerably (adv.) advance (in sth) (n.): progress or development in a particular activity or area of understanding technological/scientific/medical advance safety /traffic/fire/security/building/planning regulations (n.) * Mountain gorillas are an endangered species. * The area is rich in different plant species. * animal / bird / fish / insect species * Many species of animals are threatened with extinction. * Pandas could become extinct in the wild. * The hotel provides a shoe-cleaning service for guests. * The project is designed to provide young people with work. * They threatened to kill him unless he did as they asked. * They threatened the shopkeeper with a gun. * It s unwise to make threats that you cannot carry out. * Female workers constitute the majority of the labour force. * Her primary responsibility is to train new employees. * Starvation and poverty are the result of global economic exploitation, not lack of resources. *These countries are exploiting the rainforests for hardwood. * He exploited his father s name to get himself a job. * My grandparents were from a remote village in China. * Are you actively seeking jobs? she asked. * Drivers are advised to seek alternative routes. * He seems to find it difficult to sustain relationships with women. * Which planets can sustain life? * The government should do more to promote sustainable agriculture. * He decided to adopt a more radical approach to the problem. * The company is very interested in product design and innovation. * The school adopted an innovative approach to language teaching. * He has just set up his own company. * The growth of tourism brought prosperity to the island. * The island s prosperity depends on its fishing industry. * Farmers are more prosperous in the south of the country. * The project wasted a considerable amount of time and money. * The need for sleep varies considerably from person to person. * recent advances in medical science * We live in an age of rapid technological advance. * All companies must comply with the regulations. 3

4 VOCABULARY PRACTICE A. Match the adjectives on the left with the nouns on the right to make common collocations. Then fill in the blanks below with the correct collocations. ADJECTIVES endangered innovative technological safety remote NOUNS advances areas regulations designs species 1. Many in medicine have taken place over the past decade. 2. The mission is to transport medical supplies to. 3. Smoke detectors must be installed to comply with. 4. There will be a prize for the most. 5. The giant panda, a symbol of the world s, is no longer threatened with extinction. B. Match the underlined words with their synonyms given after the sentences. a) The under-18s constitute nearly 25% of the town s population. b) Dealing with crime is our primary concern. c) Electronic firms continue to seek ways of developing more sophisticated equipment. d) There is not enough oxygen to sustain life at very high altitudes. e) They want to set up their own import-export business. f) A country s future prosperity depends upon the quality of education of its people. 1. look for 2. main; most important 3. establish 4. affluence; wealth 5. make up 6. maintain 4

5 C. Fill each gap with a suitable word from the box. DO NOT change the form of the words. Use each word only ONCE. primary considerable sustain remote provide threatened seek adopted extinct constitute It is estimated by some language experts that there are over 5,000 languages in the world. A century from now, however, many of these languages may be gone. Some linguists claim that the number may decrease by about 10%. Others are of the opinion that there will be a(n) (1) decrease in the number of languages spoken and that 80% of the world's languages may disappear within the next century. Endangered languages are often thought to be spoken in relatively (2) areas, by minority groups, and to be undeveloped (i.e. to be unwritten and undescribed). These endangered languages (3) an irreplaceable treasure, not only for the communities who speak them, but also for scientists and scholars. According to a recent survey, out of hundreds of languages that were once spoken in North America, only 194 remain. Of these, 33 are spoken by both adults and children; another 34 are spoken by adults, but by few children; 73 are spoken entirely by adults over 50 and no youngsters; 49 are spoken only by a few people, mostly over 70; and 5 may have already died out. The languages that are not being passed on to children are endangered and likely to become (4). In fact, only the 33 languages in the first group seem to be 'safe.' However, most of these languages are (5) as well. The (6) reason these languages are about to become endangered is because their speakers live near other communities where the children speak English. These children are continuously exposed to television and movies in English, and thus, all native North American groups are under pressure to give up their native languages and use English instead. What can be done to save endangered languages? A community that wants to (7) its language has a number of options. Irish has had significant institutional and political support as the national language of Ireland. In New Zealand, Maori communities have established nursery schools and kindergartens for infants and young children where only the Maori language is spoken. In places like Alaska and Hawaii, they have (8) this model and extended it to primary schools, and in some cases, to high schools. A growing number of conferences, workshops, and publications now (9) support for individuals, schools, and communities trying to save their languages. Since language is an integral part of a culture, when a language comes under threat it is not just the language but the culture of its speakers which is in peril. Therefore, communities should (10) ways to preserve these endangered languages. 5