I. Read and translate the text

QUICKSAND

People have been terrified of quicksand for centuries. It is supposed to have the mysterious power of sucking victims into it until they disappear.

The truth is that quicksand has no such power. And the fact is that if you know what it is and how to deal with it, it cannot hurt you at all.

What is a quicksand? It is light, loose sand which is mixed with water. It does not look different from sands which might be right next to it. But there is a difference: quicksand will not support heavy objects.

Quicksand usually occurs near the mouths of large rivers and on flat shores where there is a layer of still clay under it. Water is collecting the sand because the underlying clay keeps the water from draining away. This water may come from many different places, such as river currents or pools.

The grains of quicksand are different from ordinary grains of sand because they are round instead of being angular or sharp. The water gets between the grains and separates and lifts them, so they tend to flow all over one another. This makes them unable to support solid objects.

Some quicksand is not even made of sand. It can be any kind of loose soil, a mixture of sand and mud, or kind of pebbly mud.

People who step into quicksand do not sink out of sight. Since it contains so much liquid, it will enable them to float. And since quicksand is heavier than water, people can float higher in it than they do it in water.

The important thing is to move slowly in quicksand. This is to give it time to flow around the body. Once it does this, it will act like water in which you are swimming.

Vocabulary

to terrify – вызывать страх

mysterious – таинственный

power – сила

to suck – засасывать

Victim – жертва

to disappear – исчезать

to deal with - иметь дело с

to hurt – причинять вред

light – легкий

loose – рыхлый

ordinary – обычный

to support – поддерживать

to occur – встречаться

mouth – устье

flat – плоский

layer – слой

stiff – плотный

clay – глина

to drain away – течь

current – поток

grain – зерно

angular – остроугольный

sharp – острый

to tend to – стремиться к

pebble – галька

mud – глина, ил

to sink - тонуть

to float – погружаться

to separate – разделять

II. Answer the questions

1. Why were people terrified of quicksand for centuries?

2. What is a quicksand?

3. Where does quicksand usually occur?

4. How are the grains of quicksand different from ordinary grains of sand?

5. What is not even made of sand?

6. Can people float higher in quicksand than they do it in water?

III. Make up your own sentences with the vocabulary

IV. Complete the sentences

1. It is supposed to have the mysterious power of …

2. … which is mixed with water.

3. Quicksand usually occurs …

4. This water may come from many different places, such as …

5. … so they tend to flow all over one another.

6. … do not sink out of sight.

7. Since it contains so much liquid …

8. The important thing is …

V. Agree or disagree with the statements

1. The truth is that quicksand has no power of sucking victims into it.

2. Quicksand looks like any sands.

3. Quicksand supports heavy objects.

4. The grains of quicksand are different from ordinary grains of sand.

5. Some quicksand is made of sand.

6. The important thing is to move faster in quicksand.

VI. Name the properties that quicksand has

VII. Retell the text

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I. Read and translate the text

CHALK

Practically no one can grow in the world today without coming into contact with chalk at some time in his life. In millions of classrooms around the world, children step up to blackboards to write things with chalk. And, certainly, what could teacher do without chalk to help her?

Did you know that chalk was originally an animal? The waters of our oceans are covered with many forms of very tiny plants and animals. One of these is a one-celled animal called “Foraminifera”. The shells of these creatures are made of lime.

When these animals die, their tiny shells sink to the floor of the ocean. In time, a thick layer of these shells is built up. Of course this takes millions of years to accomplish. This layer gradually becomes cemented and compressed into a soft limestone which is called chalk.

As we know, various disturbances in the surface of the earth have often made land out of land that was once under water. One of the places where this happened is along the English Channel, The chalk layers at the bottom of the sea were pushed up. Later the soft parts were cut away by water, leaving huge cliffs of chalk. The two most famous ones are the chalk cliffs at Dover on the English side and at Dieppe on the French side of the Channel. In other parts of the world, chalk deposits appear far inland in areas that were once under water. But the finest natural chalk comes from England which produces more than 5000000 tons a year.

Chalk in one form or another has been used by man for hundreds of years. The blackboard chalk with which we are all familiar is mixed with some binding substance to prevent it from crumbling. The best blackboard chalk is about 95 percent chalk. By adding pigments to it chalk can be made in any color.

When chalk is pulverized, washed, and filtered, it s called “whiting”. It can be then used in the making of many useful products such as putty, paints, medicines, paper, toothpastes and powders.