Word Study

Ex. 1. a) Read correctly the names of the planets. Mind the stress.

Mercury	Mars	Uranus
Venus	Jupiter	Neptune
Earth	Saturn

b) Read the following paying attention to the pronunciation of letter combinations with U. State their meaning.

[ju:]	[ju]	[u:]	[]	[u]
universe	obscurity	conclusive	result	pull
eventually	during	revolution	sun	fully
unit			rush
speculation			subject
unique			number
superior			crust

[O]	[au]	[]
quarry	mountain	temperature
	surround

Ex. 2. Use your dictionary and complete the following table.

Verb	Noun	Adjective
exist
	explosion
	movement
appear
	distance
locate
	convenience
		solid

Ex. 3. Match English phrases and their Russian equivalents.

at an extremely rapid rate to come to a halt to estimate the distance to exist in the Universe to have favorable conditions for convenience overflows of molten lava to form a solid crust of rock to surround Earth

измерить расстояние существовать во вселенной образовать твердую земную кору окружать землю для удобства с очень высокой скоростью потоки расплавленной лавы прекратиться иметь благоприятные условия

Ex. 4. Identify the meaning of the words as they occur in the sentences below.

1. Long glaciers move more rapidly than do short ones.

2. This river has long been used for internal traffic.

3. Air masses do not long remain over their source region.

4. This winter will be long remembered for its cold and snowy weather.

5. It has long been known that there are variations in the amount of radiation given off by the Sun.

6. The Dead Sea basin has long been regarded as rift or graben basin.

7. Heat passes to the colder body as long as he temperature difference exists.

8. These theories have long been subjects of much speculation among scientists.

Ex. 5. Add nouns to the following adjectives to form noun phrases:

Adjectives: modern, capable, gaseous, present, planetary, solar, favorable, widespread, molten, solid, moist, cataclysmic, rapid, separate.

Nouns: overflows, vapor, system, concept, satellites, lava, explosion, form, scientists, units, mass, conditions, crust, rate.

Ex. 6. Pair the verbs in column A with a suitable phrase in column B. You must find a match for every word but there is not necessary only one correct solution!

A	B
divide	to form water
form	Earth
exist in	into five eras
estimate	into existence
condense	a solid crust of rock
repeat	the temperature
solidify into	the sequence
the superior	to man
come	combined solid form
surround	its present form

Ex. 7. Write out the equivalents in pairs:

fragment	speed
rate	concerning
off-shoot	before
distance	quick
midget	separate or incomplete part
similar	stop or pause
prior to	divided
rapid	enough
eventually	convincing
halt	branch
separate	very small
origin	in the end
sufficient	like
conclusion	starting point
with reference to	measure of space

Ex. 8. Match the verbs with their appropriate explanations.

to evolve	to travel (a certain distance)
to exist	to turn something the other way
to accept	to be developed naturally and (usually) gradually
to solidify	to continue living
to estimate	to make longer
to speculate	to leave uncovered or unprotected
to locate	to go round in a circle
to remain	to receive something offered
to reverse	to make or become hard or firm
to revolve	to calculate the size (of)
to expose	to establish in a place
to cover	to form opinions (without having complete knowledge)
to extend	to be still present after a part has gone or has been away

Ex. 9. How are these ideas expressed in the text?

1. A cataclysmic explosion of a single mass of highly concentrated matter.

2. The rate of the stars movement is slowing down.

3. Subjects of speculation among scientists.

4. Earth is an offshoot from Sun.

5. Planetary systems similar to the one of which Earth is a part.

6. The fire eras of the history of Earth.

7. The interior of Earth.

Ex. 10. Fill in the missing words in the sentences below. Choose from the following putting the verbs in the right tense.

estimate	expose	condense	leave
make up	record	rush	explain
come	total	may come	begin

1. The galaxies … of the many billions stars.

2. The stars … farther and farther out into space ever since.

3. Eventually this expending movement … to a halt.

4. Modern concepts … many points … .

5. Earth … into existence largely as a gaseous mass.

6. The gaseous mass … to solidify into its present form some four and one-half billion years ago.

7. The distance from Sun to Pluto … at 3,675 million miles.

8. The history of Earth … in part in the rocks that … to view.

9. The fire eras … 2, 000 million years.

10. The moist vapor gradually … to form water.

Ex. 11. Choose the best alternative to complete the following sentences.

1. Earth is a … fragment of a universe.

a) important

b) minute

c) big

2. Milky Way … out of a cataclysmic explosion.

a) made up

b) expanded

c) evolved

3. All the separate units of the universe might … back together.

a) be pulled

b) be estimated

c) be believed

4. Some of the more modern concepts of scientists appear sufficiently … .

a) interesting

b) conclusive

c) capable

5. Our solar system in not … .

a) favorable

b) conceivable

c) unique

6. The highest forms of life on some of the planets like Earth may be … to man.

a) superior

b) similar

c) nearer

7. For … the history of Earth is divided into fire eras.

a) importance

b) convenience

c) similarity

8. The most recent era, the Cenozoic era, … the last 60 million years.

a) exists

b) covers

c) refers

9. The Mesozoic era began with the … that formed the Appalachian Mountains.

a) forming

b) spreading

c) folding

10. The interior of Earth has remained … down to the present time.

a) cool

b) cold

c) hot

Ex. 12. What prepositions are missing in the following article?

The distance (1) _____ the surface (2) _____ the centre of Earth is a little (3) _____ 3,950 miles. The most dependable information (4) _____ the interior (5) _____ Earth has been obtained(6) _____ studies (7) _____ earthquake waves. When the rates (8) _____ travel (9) ______ these waves were measured (10) _____ varying distances (11) _____ their points (12) _____ origin, they were found (13) _____ increase (14) _____ about eight miles a second (15) _____ a depth (17) _____ 1,800 miles, (18) ______ which they slowed down (19) _____ about five miles a second. (20) _____ this it was deduced that Earth’s core is made (21) _____ of very different materials (22) _____ that constitute the remainder (23) _____ the globe. The average density (24) _____ the rocks that make up the outside shell of Earth is about 2.7. That of Earth as a whole is 5.52. (25) _____ other words, the weight of Earth is a little (26) _____ five and one-half times that (27) _____ an equal volume (28) _____ water.

From this and other evidence the conclusion has been reached that Earth is enclosed (29) _____ a shell about 550 miles thick. The outside (30) _____ this shell consists (31) _____ a relatively thin layer (32) _____ soil, some rock debris, and a variety (33) _____ solid rocks (34) _____ the type (35) _____ which we are familiar. The solid rock still lower down is probably a dark-colored igneous type, formed directly (36) _____ molten matter and known as magma, (37) _____ which little if any has ever been exposed (38) _____ view. Within this outside shell is a second shell that is made (39) _____ mostly (40) _____ iron oxide and iron sulfide and that extends 1,050 miles farther inward toward the center (41) _____ Earth. Inside this second shell is a core, (42) _____ a radius of about 2,150 miles, that is believed to consist mostly of iron and nickel, similar (43) _____ composition (44) _____ most (45) _____ the meteorites. The density of the iron oxide-sulfide inner shell is estimated (46) _____ 5.6 and that (47) _____ inner iron-nickel core at 8.0. These three divisions of Earth’s interior no doubt merge (48) _____ each other rather than having distinct boundaries.

Ex. 13. Spend a few minutes thinking about how you would translate the following sentences.

1. Volcanic actions are known to cause great destructions especially in the nearby areas.

2. Life on Earth is believed to have originated in the areas, growing from small molecules of amino acids and nucleotides.

3. The studies of the settlement systems and their relations proved to be a new direction in the demography.

4. The solid crust of the Earth is now believed to be only about 30 miles deep.

5. Grey limestone formations proved to be very hard.

6. Tornadoes are most likely to occur in spring or early summer when contrasts of temperature and humidity in the air masses are at a maximum.

7. Frost, dew and fog are not considered to be precipitation.

8. Sea temperatures in the North Sea are said to have grown warmer.

9. The surface of the sun is estimated to have a temperature of more than 10,000 ⁰ F.

10. Most of the great undersea mountains are thought to have been created through volcanic action.

Ex. 14. Give the English equivalents.

Расплавленная масса; складкообразование; твердая земная кора; располагаться относительно звезд; условия, благоприятные для жизни; влажный пар; по крайней мере; происхождение земли; отдельные частицы; охлаждаться, оставаться горячей до сегодняшнего времени; высшие формы жизни; в конечном итоге; отдельные частицы.