ASSOCI,ATION

Eull.F]I con'uau I

Studying English:Objects

byIra Dayaratne BA (Peradeniya) Dip. TESL (Colombo)

Senior Instructor in EnglishUniversity of Sri Jayawardenepura

Published in theof Sri Lanka on

Student Readers Projectbehalf of the Universitv

of the English Associationof Sri Jayawardenepura

@ 1992, University of Sri Jayawardenepura

2nd ImPression, 1993

English Programme

Academic Coordinator: Geetha Premaratne BA (Peradeniya), MA (Honolulu),

Senior Lecturer i" i"gfi.ft, Univeisity of Sri Jayawardenepura

Consultant' Pioi' trvri"l chJ;; w?i'iu,,,"to;vu til Gtons) (London)'

irilgp (Ceylon), MA (Education) (London)

Enelish Association of Sri LankaStudent Readers Project

Chief Editor: Nirmali Hettiarachchi BA (Hons) (Peradeniya)

Stuclying English SeriesEditor : Rajiva Wijesinha MA' D Phil (Oxon)

All tghts reserved.without Permission

No part of this work may be reprodurced in any form

il#;;; from the Universitv of Sri Javawardenepura'

ISBN 955 - 9068 - 15 - 6Illustrated bY Bandula PierisCorr", Desiglr bY Prasanna LiYanage

Ttre Studying English Series is publishedUV th-e English Association^'^

"isJlrrr"r." *itrrirr" ,ssistince of a grant from the canadianInternational Development dgency

INTRODUCTION

The reading material in this book is selected from a number of real life texts. You will read, ryrite and-alh about all sorts of objects. You will learn to describe them and their uses, and in the process you will

:Iso deal with the way in which people act and inter-react.

Vhen working with these books remember that they are designed to help students to learn English--hrough active use of the language. Particular functions and structures are higblighted in each Unit.

lhe exercises included are mainly to encourage further usage of these grammatical structures. Thenocabulary that is introduced will help students to develop confidence in using these constructions. The

:cllowing iist therefore only includes what is useful to students when loing through each unit.

Ihe course, however, is meant to be cyclic; that is, other constructions are used in this book while the

rcnstructions highlighted in this book are also used in others. In dealing with any subject a variety of

:onstructions are bound to occur. Students should be made familiar with the variations possible, even

:hough in each book only a few ofthese are stressed.

In this book students should focus on -

Functions

Ltnit 1

Lrnit 2

Unit 3

-u--nit 4

Ilnit I

Unit 2

nit 3

tnit 4

Describing natural objects -What they look likeWhat they are made of

Classifying objectsExpanding sentencesConducting interviews

Describing man-made obj ectsGoing shopping- making purchases, trying things on, returning things

Describing buildingsHistorical accountsUnderstanding how things and systems work

Adjectives and adjectival phrasesOrder of adjectives

Comparison of adjectivesConversational expressions

Intransitive verbs with complementsContractionsIntroduction to the passive voice

Past tenses and participlesModal verbsCombining sentencesAdverbs and adverbial phrases

Unit 4

Vocabulary

Unit 1 Related to natural phenomena, and man's response to it

Unit 2 itelated to analysis of natural phenomena

Unit 3 Related to clothesRelated to technological objectsDialogue for shopping

Related to historical and economic analysisRelated to buildings

Unit 3

Unit 4

Reading

Unit 1 Understanding a description of natural objectsUnderstanding an account ofprocesses ofcreation and destruction

Unit 2 Understanding personal responses to natural phenomena

Unit 3 Understanding scientific description

Unit 4 Understanding narrative and analysis

Writing

Unit I Writing descriptive phrases

Unit 2 Writing descriptions of actionsUsing different degrees of adjectivesMaking classifications

Writing detailed description sWriting out dialogues

Combining sentences : using eonjunctions and relative pronouns

'L2

1gE CORAL NAEF

Anactivecoralreefisoneofthelovelibstsishfintheworld.Per}rapsthemostfamousreefin our country is i' trr"-reu nn11*t*ao*". ;;;;;ilaet.tleyutet, iies a r"totiful reef which looks

rather like a -u'y-.Joo"ed

garden. B"tgh6y;l"otedfish t*il-h"; and there between corals

that are gola"r,-v"troiulitriJ* *"".". Th;;"*" t"t* t" [t trtings like flowers on this reef' with

petals that move ,"Jr, ilF;W. ,* "

."Jl""i t,o**u"" it Jotu a home for manv different

t inds of animals than ior planls. ,, u ,u"iiil'.iiJ-"al.+"r"ly by animals. There are not manv

habitats in the world which have so -""vlir*"it

*ro,,"r J#Jup.. of animals as the coral

reef.

The builders of the coral reef are very small animals, called polyps' They ar

open-mouth"afug*.'Aiii"i"f"f tt ir-UugoJ'ut * thin finger-shaped iuructur-es called tentacles'

These tenracles ,*";;;h;;ite" a.,d d;;;;;."d in"!i" brouiht close to them bv the waves'

while the coral p"r;: ffi';;d gr"* in.vi""i"t" tr,u timesioie thar forms-the hard parr of

the reef. This coral ,'o.k *hi.h i. *ua" oJoil;iff- .""ui""t"-* *ostly white. However, red and

Uiu.X .otuf rocks are also found'

z3 1. What is a coral reef made of ?

;. By *t o- or what is it made ?

3. How manv t;ffi;t;;; ;ed todescribe the cerals ?

4. What otr'"" iilJtii** u"" rrt"a about the reef ?

:};"f T."Jf TlfJltiff ffi: ffi ;;;;' ;; ;h oora - u'r. " vo"r ab scripti on riverv an d

entertaining.

- Now read on.

*nu,H;fflf:lI?ffi:::*|ilT:Til"v. e",* ,t*.to""s"--aae uv different groups orporvps

havemanyair""urlii,l'pi-;;f;i"r, rh"li;;;;;{1";F;:a;;"d' """-"' A coral which

makesahard,r.r"i;;;;;;;*r,*irig"5;i*ffi;h;*"r'x"itt"iredthebraincoral' rhecoral

which looks tik" h;r;;?;;ii; *r{" ;;.'."J *r"tr' has been named the dead man's fingers'

c-orals grow t" -r;;'iff;;;l

r"r*1 rhJtr"J#;;:f-"th1" thi"gt we have seen' es' a flowering

bush, abun.h'fleit;;;ffi;;;;;;up""' and the antlers of a deer'

Thepolypswhichare.themain,occupantsofthecoralreefbelongtothegroupofanimalsca'ed thecoelentro*.-crr".9 tr,"tbrffr#;;;-.uit"a trr" true oi stoiv corals- 'There is

anorhersroupor.nJrs*tic\{o.not";;ilriltfi lr,9 te95 il"1 ri"t on it adding colour and

diversity to it. The corars w-hjch """ "r*.iii -rii*,"*"ir"w, "t

*ell as the tog; g6rnls like the

i-ii.,i'-iu"i;"e d this second o:on'

' Unit 1 : Natural Objects

Ttre Coral Reef

- what theYlook like' what theYIn this book ygu will learn to talk' read and write about objects

*" -"a" "f,

dttd o'hat purposes they serve'

ladthefollowingdescriptionandanswerthequestions

Hi"H'ijiru"S:h:*:'"-1""$i?T;;Ta;a;il;'d"';vJ;il-."ffi',,'};*ilr' jo"ir'r'"a'

3.3 1. What is a colonY2. How are corals named ?

I

Whatis'the difference between hard corals and soft corals'?

i

i

2.4

3.1

3.2

o "o 'L lo

?"0

ud(@"w

3.4 The words used to describe shapes in the above passage were mainly nouns' The description told

you whatvarious types of coral resemble. Afew adjectives were also used. List them' What other

adjectives could be used to describe shapes ?

{.1 Now read on.

1.2 one of the biggest structures that has been made by living things on this Earth is the

GreatBarrier Reef of Australia. This huge coral reef is l"atly 1,300 miles long. It covers 80,000

squaremiles! Abarrierreef liesparall"i toth"coastlinebut is separated from it by a wide

bodyofwater.ThereefsatvantataiandSilavathuraioffMannaralebanierreefs.

AsimplertypeofreefisttrefringingreefwhichgTowsclosetotheshorelikeaplatform.People .u' onu,,w.utr. out to a fringing-r."f bu.uo"" they are so close to the land and are in very

shallow seas. Theie are fringng reefs at Beruwela and Hikkaduwa.

Athirdtypeofreef istheotoll. Thisisaringof reefs which grows round a lagoon' The

parts of the atoll may each be an island. There are no atolls in Sri Lanka. The Maldive Islands

are.a group of atolls found in the naiu" ocean. In the Pacific ocean there are atolls like Bikini'

4.3.1 1. What are we told about the Great Barrier Reef ?

2. Whgre do yo-u find barrier reefs ? Where do you find fringing reefs ?

3. what are atolls ? where do you find them ? where can you not find an atoll ?

In the above passage, most of the noun-s were preceded by articles, that is the w-ords 'a' and'the"

whatisthe differencirbetweenthem ? which nouns are notprecededbyarticles? whatrules about

the use of articles does this passage fulfil ?

Now read on.

Recently Man has destroyed many coral reefs. Like other Asian countries sri Lanka

exports a large ,ro*u"i of coral reef fi*r. 'Corals

and shells are also collected from the reefs to be

sold to tourists. Removing these fish or corals, without knowing how many there are or how fast

ihose left will multiply, can have a very bad effect on the reef'

- corals have also been removed to make line. on the south - western coast of sri Lanka

=o -"rry

.oiut, t uu. u""., L.-orr.a that reefs which protected the coast have been wiped out'

Man has also caused erosion of soil by clearing forests and lands' This soil has been

carried down to the sea as sedirrent by ihe ri'tte"s. This muddy sedirnent, as well as the

agricultural and industrial wastes that areiaken down to the seaby rivers, have had abad effect

on coral reefs and their animals. Unfortunately itlooks as ifMan is destroyinghis environinental

heritage.

1' What are the different ways in which a reef can be destroyed ? '

2. How can this destruction be avoided ? what would be the easiest damage factor to prevent?

3. why should coral reefs be preserved ? Does the passage answer this question ?

There are a number of abstract nouns in this passage, that isnouns that do not stand for anything

you can see or feel. What are they- ? I-n addifion tti"" "".

a few mass nouns, that is nouns which

stand for s-ubstan.., trrut.unrrofb. dividod up into separate units. What are these ?

The above passage is taken from a chapter in the book' our Living world" edited by Janaki

Cuiupputti ReaJ other sections of it to improve your descriptive ability'

5.1

5.2

5.3.

5.4

6. Using a{iectivesTo describe an object you have to learn its important features such as its shape, ir!e, colour,

origin and the material out of which it is made. You may also want to talk about the purpose it

serves, and your opinion ofit.

I.he easiest way to do this is through adleetives, which are words specifrcally used for describing

nou4s.

Look at the following list. .How

many pairs of opposites can you find ?

big hot

flat rough

thin light

new black

long woollen

bright antique

Material

6.1

dull

pointed

round

fat

slow

wooden

cheap

sharp

smooth

dark

white'leather

exciting

fast

fragile

short

old

orange

blunt

small

cold

heavy

expensive

Spanish

How many words fitted into more than one pair of opposites ? What difference in their meaning

did you notice when this haPpened ?

6.2.1 Can you classify the a{ectives above into groups according to the function they perform ? -Use the following columns-

Shape Age Colour " Origin

Which words were left out ?

6.2.2 put the adjectives in the following phrases too into the correct column above.

a tall black Portuguese almiraha delicious Dutch fruit ca-kethe fine old traditional customsseven beautiful Yellorf oriolesa long new bluq Plastic Pen

Which words were left out ?

6.3 Ifwe use several adjectives together, they should be placed in a particulai order, depending on

what they do. Filst .froofa ."ir" uA;e.tl*' oi""-llifi"cluding words.l-ike so'me or few)' then of

opinion, followed b;'ffi;;tt"* iio"aing t" trt" ""a*

+*"1-iuo1*' Itvgt* r"emember the word

,NOpSACOM',youwillbeabletoo"d"" yooi a{ectiv-escorrectly (though if yo-u u-se more than

one a$ective of the same sort, yoo -uy

r,J.d tJJ"tia" V"urself' from tfre sound' what order they

:il,iffi""H . il;ffi;"h"*"u"' th;t;;i; t"" -"i'v

adjectives togethel mav sound uglv'

Finally, sometimes we find nouns used as descriptors'Theyarejoined to another noun to

describe a particular.tt"g""y"rtrr"trri4gsi;;J;til;;*"dnoutt' ng' agardenchair'adining

table.

In such cases, the noun that is being used as an adjective comes immediately befote the second

noun.

Makephrasesoutofthefollowinggroupsofwords,placingtheadjectivesinthecorrectorder'Theft"tt is done for You.

I

Correct order -two lovelY new wooden kitchen tables

5

tables

Sinhalese interesting

New Year

several

recently - opened

Other descriPtors

Nounscanalsobedescribedbyusingprepositionstogetherwithothernouns.i""f. .t the following Phrases'

(/ ,/'(/,//z,u//i///

i//,t,t t'irl

oplmon

rnaterials

shape

colour

9. -

The Lotus

Dhal from IndiaOil found in MexicoChairs of gini-saPuA rope made oflfrom hemPA thing of beautYA performance of great brillianceLegends of antiquitY

change the above into the a{iectival form (exceptfor'antique legends" which is not quite correct'

since ,antique' is used mainly with objectsi. fh"'aaje.tival formls *oie usual, but remember that you

cuun use alternative, ,o.f, u, tt "

above fo" """pha'il

qr for variety' P\raryg such as'the above are also

essentialfordescriptionwhen therearenoreiatedadjectives. Ei. acloud inthes&y, abook onadesk'

abush underatree.

g. vesaklanternshavevariousshapes,sizesandcolours. Theyaremadefromavarietyofmaterials'

andtan be hung in various Places'

iqtinns vou have seen. nescribe a VesakLook at the given picture, and then ima"gine other vesak celebiations you have seen

lantern, and then go on to describe a icene in which Vesak lanterns are hung'

The following groups of words will be helpful to describe

place - tree, branch, night, on, at, under, wire, fiom, ground' leaves' above

beautiful, bright, .lively, colourful, exciting

bamboo sticks, string, wire, tissue paper, paste, streamers, candles, bulbs, gold and

silver tinsel

square, round, octagonal, hexagonal, triangular, bucket-shaped"flower-shaped

white, blue, yellow, orange' red, green, purple, pink

g.1 Read the following passage quickly to find out'some facts about the lotus'

Get into pairs and answer the questions below'

Then diseuss Your answers'

TTIE LOTUS.

ThelotusfloweriscalledNeluntinsinhala. ItsBotanica-lnameisNel"ybYs!:::^f#:l,t-T

*ia"ry'i'i"di;;iffift?;;;l*;;. .rt i.-tr,. r""g,..1.f !h-"-1"Igr.:i,::::::i;y:lifffXJ'ail1"":ffi;,,#fi;;rt.["J'r"r no*u". It, leaves are round and large and spread over

r - l ! -^r^ - : - l - f r - o^-oIc

:XTff l?;i:ffif ffi ffii'fi il;il;;'il;;ilisiit1'erY,h1t"":1:l':ilin1ihl"i""n*iX"X'iJ"":lJH';r;;;-s""an1ot".ti"-" pjr'Lnb*:ill-1::-tf*:3"t:-'*iy:i:;rff;i:;ff:ni:'Ti:;dJ::#;"'"";:';;"*petarsarenu1er:3sa3do:y-'l3::.':ittr*:lY::Tlinto stamenr. A t"p-rt;;dUoay for-s thelnnermost part of the flower and tliis is called the

It is filed to a tall and slender stalk'

(a) ' What is the Lotus ? Wlat colour is it ? Whele does it grow ?

(b) rWhat are the Parts of the lotus?Mention rgufJ;;h fart its shape, size, colour, and function if given in the text'

(c) What is called the receptacle and where is it ?

'(d) When do the sepals open out and where are they ?

10

(€) In what shape do the Petals Srow ?

(f) What other shape is mentioned in the text ?

g.2. Writing

Define a Lotus - state what it is, where it grows and.gtve its Sinhala and Botanical names.

g.B Read the following passage quickly and find out why it is an important flower to Sri Lankans'*.

. f i IELoTUSINRELIGI0N'ARTAT.. IDARCIITIECTI 'RE

The Lotus is a sacred flower and is offered at Buddhist temples and llindukovils. The Lotus Sutra

or the Sadd.lwrmapund.arika Sutra is a famous Buddhist text. Moreover, the Lotus has become a

frequently used ornamental flower in art and architectuie. Well known examples are its use in

ilecoratini the capital orhead of columns, and its depiction in the moonstone that was set at the entrance

to important buildings.In addition torlts artistic uses, the Iotus has had symbolic meaning from the times of earliest

recorded history. It symbolises fertility and its other meanings seem to com-e fr-om this agpect- 9*gthese are assosiations with birth, po"ity, and rebirth of the dead. In astrological practices the Lotus

stands for the rising sun.

(a)

&)

(c)

(d)

(e)

9.4

Answer the following questions

What makes t\e Lotus important in religion

Where is it used as an ornamental form ?

What does it symbolise ?

Whatdoes the Lotus stand for in astrolory ?

What does these refer to in the sentence before the last. '

Classifr the followingwords into nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Refer to the text when you

do this exercise.

offerfloattankartflowerpondslenderwidelY

9.5 Read the text which follows.

What do the followingrefer to ?

Sentence 3 - TheYSentence4 - ThesemenSentenceS . - theY,their

landstalkspreadbeautifulgrowsymbolise

-lake

Manymyth,"'.",.,::;:"ffi ::ffi ffit.'.:returningrromtherrdanwar met some North African people. They lived on the fruits and flowers of the Lotus plant. These men

offered it to the Greek soldiers. Aft€r they ate it, they forgot their homes and friends and wanted to

remain there eating the lotus. Thus the phrase 'a lotus eater' is used metaphorically to mean, someone

who forgets other things through indulging in pleasure

11

Answer the following questions'

(a) What is the name of the Greek hero mentioned in this text t

I(b) What was the war he fought ? I

(c) What did the Greek soldiers eat ? Who gave these to them ? I

What happened when they ate these t I

(d)Didtheywarfr togobackhome?whatwordinthetextgivesyoutheanswert l

(e) What does the phrases a'lotus eater'mean metaphorically ? I

How did it get its meaning t I

(f) What else do you know about the Trojan War ?

I9.6 Language Practice

Ig.6.1 Note the difference in the singular and the plu:al verbs in the following'

I

lT":"i:' noats I

*:::iT:["- Iizrf:;'*::' ILet us examine the sentences in which these occur. Note the subjecu verb agreement in tnem'l

Subject Main Verb Rest of Predicate

It:. rhe rotus

}:ffi *iairt" x-Lanka Ii^, ffi:'.fi. il.* l':'iifi"'J',|!* |:. tl:l";:il" Hru l;';','lili*"'" I

change the frrst three sentences above into the plural. change the subjects of the last thr{

sentences into the singular, a"d mate sentences 'uitt' tt'ut"' II

g.6.2 choose a flower you like and describe it as fully as you can' Refer to shape' size' colour antI

appearance I

g.6.3.Pickoutwordsthatsuggestshapefromthefol lowingl istofwords. II

surface, slender, cylindrical, peg, flat' body' sepal' top-shaped' " II

9.6.4 Note the following expressions' I

In addition to .....""""" I- Among them ......"

pick out th; ;;;l.;ces in *hiih"il;y occur. Make sentences ofyour own, tobringouttrrel

meaning. IIIIIIII

12 lI

Unit 2: More Natural Obiects

1' AButterflY

l.Readthetextquick}yandfrndoutwhatthebutterftywasdoingwhenthewriternoticedit.Dontstop to write the answer'

A BUTTERT'LY IN TIIE GARDEN

onasunnymorning,whiletakingastrollilmygarden,Inoticedabeautifulbutterfly'Itwasquitetig, with wingsir,at-coora cover the;.il;?;t-"ia] nt9fi"* orfore wings wereblack' withfaint

white bars on them. The back or hind winil;;;; ; ;J.${ut"e witrt coal black tear drops at the edges'

crose to the white ,p"Ju.a [r".t uoav *"t"JJ-1il'p"jt"rr ,irlririia"l tecl, like a ruby set in black velvet'

It was a "Blue Mormon"'

Thisparticularbutterflytrrat.!waswatchingseemedtohoveroveralemonplant'alightingonatender shoot for a brief moment and then flritiil r*?y t"

"""trr*. was it trying to fted, I wondered' No,

that couldn,t be, Lemon flowers ao ,rot p"o"i?"'nJdar ror uutterflies. in any case it seemed to be

interested only in the young leaves. p."t;;;;*;rl;;tt"g th; bv alightingon them' to make sure

that it was a lemon Plant'

Didyouknowthatbutterfliescantastewiththei{eet]Aftertrying-onetendershootafteranother,*frnaltysee-"atorr'Jor,"*r'i.r,*"tt"#;#;;;i:H-";d;;;illGirttte-ttingwings'itdepositeda little Lgg on its very tiP'

Prithiuirai FemandoDaiIY N ew s, SePternber 1 99 I

t.2 Answer the questions below'

1)writedownnounswhichrefertothepartsofthebodyofthebutterf ly.

DHowdoesthewriterdescribethecoloursofthebutterf ly?Pickouttheexpressions.Writethem down.

3) When did the writer see this butterfly ?

4) He says it was 'quite big ' How big was it ?

5) a. Describe the front wings of tl,t butterfly'U. Wft.t are hind wings ? Describe them'

6) What is like "a ruby set in black velvet" ?

T was this butterfly searching for food from the lemon tree ? Give the sentences which give

you the answer'

8) What actually was the butterfly trying to do ?

Wtti.ft words give You the answer ?

Describe abutterfly youhave seen. You can use some of the following words and phrases in your

description.

sizemedium - sizelargesmallextra large

1.3

colourbrown backgroundblack markingsbright redwhiteorange-redred-striPered-black

wingswing tiptop of wingsoutside of the wingsfore wings

L4 Comparative and SuPerlative

When we describe objects, it is often useful to compare their qualities with those of other objects

::J;:il1-l-;ences. rhey show you how comparisons are usuarv made.

Ravi is tall.Saman is taller than Ravi.iagath is the tallest boy in the class.

With some adjectives, especially long ones, we use'more' and 'most' with the adjective, which

does not itself change.

1..4.1 Give the comparative of the following words usinger or more

Example:- big - bigger

mPortant - ntore imPortant

old, interesting, beautiful, long, short, diffrcult, small, easy, cheap

1.4.2 Give the superlative using esf or rnosf

Example:: big. - biggest

imPortant - most imPortant

fast,healry,surpr is ing,cheerf i . r l ,bor ing,nice,young, l ight, intel l igent,hard

1.4.3 Use two forms of each of the above adjectives in different sentences. Try to use two adjectives

in some ofyooi slntences. Eg. The yooirgu" of the two sisters is the mostintelligent in her class'

1.5 Description (Classification)

Before we begin to describe things we often classifr them. That is, we put them in a class; eg' dogs

belong to th; class called'animals', oranges belong to the class called'fruits'.

Descriptions often begin in this way:

A dog is an animal ."""""""""""'An orange is a fruit

1.5.1 Put the item from column (A) with its correct class in column (B)'

(A)

A cat

ES. A cat is an animal

(B)

A typewriterA mammotyA chairA thermometerA shark

toolpiece offurnituremachinefrshanimalinstrument

If we are not sure which class to use we can say'object'; we should add what it is used for'

A screw is an object used to fasten things tightly'

A button is an object

L4

There are many kinds of animals:

Fill in the blank above. We use the word'animal'most commonly for only two of the categories above.Which are they ?At the next level we can name particular types. Fill in the blanks with suitable words. :

Another level is that at which we name the particular species. Try to fill in the blanks.

A useful question with which to start isIs it an animal ?orIs it a plant ?0rIs it, a mineral ?

I

There are various other distinctions as well, as you will see when you look at a dictionary. In

ord,inary conversation however, remember that you need only give whatever information is of interest.

You need not mention what is unnecessaiy

Thus, you could say, 'The python is a large snake found ir-l mglty parts-of-Sri Lanka'. You would

not say, 'The python is a reptile, which is a type of animal'. That would be boring.

1.6 Classifications such as the above cdn be very useful wlren_ y9 .play-the g?Te called'Animal,Vegetable or Mineral' : Divide into groups. One group should think of something, and the others

sfroulAtryfuguess whatitisbyaskingquestions. Thequestionsshouldrequireayes/no'answer,and you if,oota set a limit, qf for instance twenty questions.

:pending on ih. "rrr*.",

you can go down into smaller categories. This sdrt of question gives you moreformation early on than if you ask, say, 'Is it red?' or'Is it large?'

15t

2. A BIRD,S NEST

2.L Here is a first hand account of a nature lover,s, experience. Read it quickry.

when I went to Argentina four years ago' I noticed that every tre_e-stump in the pampas wasdecorated with a strange earthenware-construction about the size and shape of a football. At first Ithought they were termite nests, for ih"y *""" ln"ry similar to a c'mmon feature of the Iandscape in westAfrica' when I saw perched, on top of o'ne -of theri,

" .-"iii"t and round bird about the size of a robinwith a rusty red back and grey front, I realized th;t ;;;;ile nests of the oven-bird.

As soon as I fouadS:r unoccupied nest, I carefully cut it in half and was amazed at the skill withwhich it had been built' wet mud tt"a u"e" mixed *ttlttt"y i;lgments of dried grass, roots and hair tomake it strong' Tlhe sides of the nest were approximately an inch and a half thick. The outside had beenIeft crude but the inside had been r*ooii",i io "

gt"s.:rik" i*i.rr. The entrance to the nest was a sma'arched hole' It was rather like a church door. It-led t"to;;;;w passage way that curved round theedge of the nest and eventually led into the .i".or"ir"riiig il"rnuer rined with a pad of soft roots andfearhers. The whote thingratire" ""."*Lt.i;,;;il;:ii:

"'

fromOuen Birds

,, by Gerald Durrell

2.2 Understanding sentences a,.d reading for fluency.See how sentences expand.

2'2' 1 Read out the sentences given below and underline the word group which answers the question foreach sentence. The ans*er to the first is t;dt.il;fr" io".Paragraph Ia) I noticed

What ?I noticed

b) How ?

il1:l;:*':ffy"f;ffHf;i in the Pampas was decorated wirh a srrange objecr about

c) When was this ?when I went to Argentina four years ago,, I noticed that every'tree stump in th e pampas wasdecorated wirh a strange object abouithe ,t^;J;;;; of a foot bail.

Paragraph IIa) As soon as I found an unoccupied nest

What did you do ?As soon as I found an unoccupied nest I carefully cut it in half and was amazed.

b) \,Vtry ?As soon as I found an unoccupied nest I carefully cut it in half and was amazed at the skill.

c) What skill ?As soon as I found an unoccupied nest I carefully crrt itin half and was amazed at the skillwith which it had been built.

2,2.2 Read the fotowing sentences. How do they vary from what you find in the text ?a) The entrance to the nest was a small arched hole, rather like a church door, which led intoanarrowpassagewaythatcurvedroundtheedgeofthe". . t . ---_. ' .^.

b) [ffiXH:ltI

led into a circular nesting chamber, which was lined with a pad of soft roors

16

2.3 Now read paragraph 2, and answer the following questions.

What is an unoccupied nest ?

What did the writer do when he saw one ?

What did he feel ?

2.4 Now read the text again for details and interpretation.

What did he think the nests were ?How did he find out what they really were ?What was the nest made of ?What looked like a snail's shell ? What words tell you this ?The writer says he was amazed at the skill. :Whose skill amazed him ?What details does he give you to describe the skill ?Pick out from this text all the words that refer to the bird's nest, and classifr them as follows.a) materialb) sizec) textured) parts ofthe nest

a)

b)

c)

1.2.3.4.o.

6.7.

2.5 Writingwhen describing Iive objects in motion, sentences such as the following would be useful:

There was a jerk at the end of the lin-e that bent my rod from the tip to the handle. I thought I,dgot atleastabigparatiya, and I drewthe Iine in ca*l"ll" it*asrr't airrutiyr-u* "large

petthaya.It's a beautiful *l with black and yellow stripes, but fishermen detest it. i thiew it nack into thewater' It puffed itself up like a whitish balloon and floated

"pria" d"*"-u"?o"" rgrrtingitself andswimming away.

fromMadol Dooua

by Martin Wickre rne sing lwtr. Ashley Halpe

Describe a bird perched on a tree flnng away, or any'other live object in motion. The followingwords may be useful for the first.

woodpecker, perched, lookedaround,. fluttered,itswings, spread, flewaway, circled swifgy,ascended, darted, speck in t]re skf, disappeared. '

L7

I

3. Sea Shells

3.1. Read the following passage and answer the questions given below.

SEA SIIEITS

Collecting sea shells has become a very popular hobby in many parts of the world. It is interestingbecause of their bright colours and rich variety of shapes and designs. With every tide the seacasts up new treasure at one's feet. A shell may look like a petal frozen in stone, or like an egg,an ear, a butterfly, a turban, the paw of a lion or the wing of an angel.. Each one has once houseda living creature, a mollusc.

In Sri Lanka, along the south west coast there is a stretch of over a thousand miles of beautifulbeach. Shells are in abundance in places like Mt. Lavinia, Beruwala, Bentota, Hikkaduwa, Galleand Tangalle. Then there are the famous beach resorts of the Eastern coast, eg. T?incomalee,Kalkudah and Nilaveli. The Pearl Banks of Mannar is also a famous spot for oyster shells andchanks.

Shells have long been used for ornaments, tools and coins. Thus they have always been prizedby men.

What brings sea shells to the shore ?

Is collecting shells a popular hobby ? Why has it become popular ?

What shapes of shells are mentioned ? Writethem down.

What are the uses mentioned ? What other uses do vou know ?

e. Name a few beaches where shells are found in abundance.

3.2 Language practice

3.2.1 Fill in the blanks with a, an, or the.

. . . . . . . . . . . .she11 may look l ike . . . . . . . . . . . .petal f rozen instone, or like ...egg, .....ear,

::: : : : : ::: llTf:: ;1,?"0#i: .....' ..' :#if3.2.2 Mark the beach resorts of Sri Lanka on a map. Have you been to any of them ? What makes them

attractive to tourists ? Discuss under the following headings.

a. Hotelsb. Beachesci' Shopping centresd. Other facilities

3.2.3 Practise saying the following sentence fast.

She sells sea shells at the sea shore.

3.3 Here is a description of a very strange shell. Read the description and find out what is strangeabout it.

ORNAMENT SPNINGS TO LIFE

An ornate seashore shell used as an ornament sprang to life years after ithad been varnished andplaced on a dressing tablei

"The ereature, now called Super Snail, beat the longest previous recorded time for a snailto survive wiihout nourishment by two years," the British Museum said.

a.

b.

c.

d.

I18

Biologists believe'Super pn{l'was sealed on

il.tti. .ftipped. Ex - coal miner Joseph Bell'hibernation by the varnish but awoke when it

Zn, f"a fri, former ornament on cabbage before he

?.4

returned it to the seashore'

Answer the following questions'

(a) What was the strange object ? Where was it ?

ft) How did itcome back to lif&

(c) For how long had it been motionless ?

(al)Whathadmadeit l i feless?Whowastheotrneroftheshell?

(O What is varnish ?

3.5 The man who had this strange experience was JosephBell' forme" t91l -il"I'

He spoke to the

representative o?the gritirfrfrf"r"o* *io-i"t"*il*"a nt"' Firstread the dialogue and complete

iiiti"t"i"gf"fry- Then read it together with a partner'

MuseumRepresentative:Goodmorning,Mr.Bell,wouldyoumind..............

Bell

Rep.

Bell

Bep.

Bell

Rep.

i' Of course not. I'm happy to be of sone sen'ice to you'

Bell

Rep.

Bell

Rep.

Bell

Rep.

Bell

Rep.

Bell

oh! I see. What exactly happened on the day it started living aggrn ?

Wgll you see my wife-cleaned the dressing table and """"""" and it""""""'

Really! And then ?

When you finally took it to the seashore what exactly happened ?

That's wonderful.

Tothinkthatlhadevenplayedcatchwithmysonusingtheshell!

Thank you very much, IVIr. B"]l -I

hope you 'll enjoy reading this interview

in the papers next week. Good BYe'

C'ood BYe!

Where exactly was it kept all these years ?

you have heard of other animals like bears who hibernate during the winter

;soi. rr". youheard of snails doing so ?

19

3.6 you are Mr. Bell. Imagine you are relating the incident to your closestfriend in your offrce. Start

with "It's a very stranle th'ing you know! I picked up this large beautiful spotted snail shell from

ihe sea shore exactly ihree years ago.......................'...............' '

Why is the shell called'Super Snail'?

Pick out expressions used in the dialogue for the followipgfunctions.

Starting a conversation *

Making a polite request

Showing willingness

Showing surprise

Expressing interest

Asking for specifi c information

Ending a conversation

Write out a report of thiS inteniew as it mighthave appeared in the newspaper'

3.?

3.8

3.9

t20

Unit 3: Man-made Obiects

3.1 Buying clotJres

3.1.1 \\ho is speaking to x-hom and where are they, in the following pictures ?

3,2 Put the s€nEences that follow in order, to make up a dialogue that goes with each picture.

I

reI

i1r

2L

3.2.1 a.

b.

we have some nice new saroigs, from Kattankudy. would you like to see them ?

That's abit exPensive for me'

How'much are theY ?

Well,I mightbe able to lower the price'

I'm just looking.

From 80 to 120 rupees.

All right, I'll have a look'

Can I helP You ?

well, I don t really like red. Have you got anything that's blue ? A light shade of blue if

possible.

They both look good. Can I try them on ?

Can I helP You ?

Yes, of course.

I'm afraid not. It s the only one l$9 that we have. If s cheap because it s called a reject' I

;6fu" that's whY it's a bit small too'

Here's a beautiful one, in blue' And here's another one' in stripes'

Fine. I'll take it"

Doesn't matter. How much is the other one ? '

Here's a lovely orr-e' What size ? Size 12 ?

It's 60 ruPees.in a bigger size ?

The striped one is nicer, but it's a bit tight' Do you have it:

Yes please. I'm looking for a blouse'

c.

at.

e.

f.

e.

h.

3.2.2 a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

g.

h.

i.

j.

k.

l.

22

M

3.2.3 a.

b.

How are they ?

These are a bit small. Have you got them in a larger size ?-

Yes please.

I'll just see.

They fit perfectly. How much do they cost ?

No, I'm afraid we haven't. Would you like to try these ?

3.3 Practise each conversation. Use variations, such as buying a shirt, looking at skirts, trying on a

pair of trousers.

What difference in conversational patterns would occur if you were buying(a) soap ft) a watch (c) a new cassette

3.4 Grarnmar

8.4.1 Note the adjectives that were used in the above dialogues. When were adjectival phrases used ?

What forms did these take ?

3.4.2 What were the different ways in which cost was expressed or asked about ?

The verb'to cost' is like the verb 'to be', in that what follows tells you more about the subject. As

you can see, sometimes'is' is used instead of 'costs'.

Some other verbs that take complements are 'look', 'seem', and 'feel'. Use these in sentences that

involve items of clothing.

Use the words in the following columns, by combining them into sentences that make sense.

c.

d.

e.

f.

Noun Phrase

My shoesThat blouseHer sareesYour shirtThe school uniformThose trousers

l'erb

iVareseem(s)look(s)feel(s)

Complement

tightdirtyuncomfortablelovely

. comfortablethe latest style

8.4.8 A lot of contractions were used in the above passages. In speaking and sometimes in writing too

it is usual to join words by leaving out some Gtters. This is indieated when we write by usin-g the

apostrophe (;) in place ofth. misiing letters. Nolg _tha! the apostrophe is also used to indicate

pigur.io",,by bAttg added to the.Jon, with an 's' (or by itself if there is an 's' already).

Contractions are very common with pronouns, and the common verbs'is' and'have' and 'will'. Note

that the possessive for*r of pronouns do not use apostrophes. Eg. 'it's' means'it is'; 'its'means

'belonging to it'.

Make contractions-out of the following and use them in sentences.

I am We will Youhad

He is TheY have He will

She has You are Here is

It hasThey areI have

T24

a€

3.4.4 Note that the past tense of is - ie. 'was' - is not contracted, because it would sound the same asthe present tense and it would be diffrcult to decide which was meant. The past tense of 'has' - ie.'had' - can be contracted. 'He's' can mean 'He is' or 'he has'; you have to decide which by the sense.Eg. 'He's got a new watch' involves has' while 'She's going to market' involves 'is'.

Correct the mistakes in the following sentences.

Ravis book is neater than her's.Theyll bring they're lunch today.You're going to waste yours money if you buy his'bicycle.Its easier to replace the lock than to find it's key.Well find she's pen if we all look carefully.

3.5 Language PracticeDivide into groups and construct dialogues for the following situations.

a. You want to buy a present for a friend who is getting married. You are in a shop that sellschina, but 5rou're not sure what to buy.

b. You want to buy a new bell'for your bicycle. You are in the street, and need to find a suitableshop first.

c. You are in a strange town and want to frnd somewhere to eat.

3.6 Ttre BlackBox

3.6.1 Read this passage silently, making a special note ofthe size ofthe object, and other characteristics.Do not write down anything at this stage. You may come across unfamiliar words. Do not worryabout them. Guess their meanings and continue reading.

3.6.2 BLACK BO)GS . WIIA'T THEY REVEAL

When an aeroplane crashes, how do scientists and other investigators find out what wentwrong? They look for the black box, that is required by international aviation authorities to becarried on all airline flights.

Most air disasters leave few clues. Often there are no survivors. Fire or water can destroyevidence. The boxes are the first and sometimes the only hope. What are these black boxes,and what do they contain ?

They are a little bigger than shoe boxes, cost more than 10,000 dollars each and havesurvived some of the worst crashes in history. They are the single most valuable tool in crashinvestigations. Flightdataandallvocalexchangesarerecordedontapeinvirtuallyindestructiblemetal boxes. They collect vital information on the plane's movements and the pilots' actions, andpreserve it against hazards and destruction.

The 25 pound metal box, actually a box within a box, can withstand temperatures as.lowas 67 degrees Fahrenheitbelow zerc. 2,012 degrees can be resisted for an hour and 437 degreesfor three days. The black boxes resist fungus, will survive for more than 30 days in salt waterand can withstand shock of a force six times the force of gravity.

Although they are called 'black boxes', most are painted orange to make them easier tolocate. By the time they are retrieved from the site of a crash, however, the paint, and often theentire outer casing, has blackened or disintegrated. That still leaves another box lined with a heatresistant material, standingbetween destructive elements and the tape that contains the preciousrecord.

3.6.3 The passage describes an object which is most valuable in investigating air crashes.

Fill in the details under the following headings.

.Name :Colour :Weight ,:

The maximum temperature it can stand :Other characteristics :Its use :

26

t

1.

{**I

?

3.6.4 Now read the text again and answer the following questions.

Althoughtheyareoftencalledblackboxesmostarepaintedorange. Whythenaretheycalledblackboxes ? \ltrat is the reason for painting them orange ? Is the ieason always operative ?

3.6.5 Speech -Get into groups of four or five. :\\tat dJ1'ou think *'ould be vital information on the plane's rnovements and the pilots'actions ? Discuss x'hy you think the black box is a useful device even if there are no survivorsto bear *itne-is. Once you agree on the reason, tell the whole class about it.

3.6.6 Wri t ing

1' Non--uriteadescriptionofablackbox,usingthefactsgiveninthetext. Usetheparticularsl'ou gave in 1'our answer to 9.1.

2. Sho*'3'or.u description to your partner for editing.Rer"ise iq correcting any mistakes.

3.6. 7 Language Practice

1. Pick out '-he verbs *-hich refer to the properties of a black box. Write also the subject (noun)of eacl'r verb. and the object (noun) if there is one.

2. Sow noake s€ntences of your own, making use of these words in different sentences.

3.7 Computers

3.7.1 Read the folloning passage. As you read, look for information that will enable you to answer thefol loning que=ri : : rs.

1. \\taat examples are given of the use of computers ?

2' \\lat hurnan processes do computers perform ? Why can they do this better ?

3. \\Aar are input and output ?

TIIE USES OF COMPUTERS

An unrnanned space rocket begins its lonelyjourney to meetwith one of the moons of Mars. Thereit r+-ill carrv out roanl' erperiments and report its frndings. Here on Earth, a Jumbo jet makes aperfect lancurg ar a bus;- European airport, although the weather is so bad that the iilot cannotsee anlthing oul--iCe. At a nearby hospital, a su"geott sits in front of a television-l-ike screen,looking inro dre head of a patient. D-eep_inside the brain, a tumour is clearly seen in the pictureon the *re€n. The zurgeon can now plan how to treat the patient. All these thi.rgs can be done onlybecau-s€ *'e carl u_r€ computers to help us to do them.

You and I tcdal- are iir-ing through a great technological revolution: a revolution made possibleby the con:rpu:€r: a revolution *'hich witl let ui do things that man has only dreamed about before.

l\h-v has the cornputer become so important today ? What does a computer do ? How does it work?Can all computers do the same.things ?

Er-erything that n'e do. from nriting a letter to deciding what to do tomonow; has to do withinformatitn pr're-r-<ing. But x-hat is information pro."r.=irrg ? When we get iniormuiiorr, we haveto organise it in our rninds before r,re can use it to do something. In othei words we have to thinkabout the infc,rr'aation or process it to decide what is the besithing to do. This is the kind ofinformation processing *-e do all the time in our daily life.

27

Computers are much better at some kinds of information processingthan humans' A computer

isabtetoprocessororderalargeamo""#b;;;ai;.lti"tai."."y coitpticatea calculations much

fasrerthanrh;;;;;. A fi;;" piJ" *"rird need tn-v duvt to do calculationsthatsome

computers .o',rjTo il; i;;;*"ar. Information- p"*"sing -by a-co-puter involves ma'ny

activities. First, data orfacts "r,

oft irrJ""a tt"i.ai" databaiesln the computer' In computer

,,jargon,, art. a'irfio*"ii"" 4*9 -itghily

tttr""."t -t*i"g*

Data whichls put into order or

ri-&**"a in some way is called information

so if we put data into a computer (input), the computer can store this data and carry out

calculations opo' tt i, auta (pro-cess). fr'!"*" t't trte e9-p"tei questiotts it can return the data

ro us asusetul t"i;;;i;; iltt" form that we need it (output).

Tocarqloutitswork,a-co.mnuler}rasmanynarts.'.JthSskeyboards,ratherlik-etypewriters,whichcan be used for input. It has

"t..t"orri.lii.,iittvlil."trr" p"i"t"a ciicuit boards inside a transistor

radio (but far more complicated). ihil.ir.oitry ir "i"a-ioi

.toting information and doing

calculations. A computer also}-as Ti-iit.r-.."".ni kn-own as visuar Display units where you can

seetheoutputandpiinterswhichwif;ti*tit;dtioifotVot" Thepa*softhecomDuter'therefore'

are its input-output devices, it, -.#J"v

pa i! e"";d;;iiiJ'Uiti""l' The processor is the

part of the ."-pi;"-;;;;Lil lrt" information processing is done.

3.?.3 Work in Pairs.-" -- lt**er the questions above as briefly as you can'

write down the nouns used in this passage with which you were previously familiar'

Now write down the nouns that you did not know, but that you were able to understand.

Nowwritedownthenounsthatstillpresentdiffrculties.Workingingroups,frndoutwhatthey

-""" and use them in sentences of your own'

3.?.4Lookatthesesentences,whichareshorterversionsofthoseinthetext.

1. A tumour is clearly seen inthe picture'

;:. ;;;J i..t, "rJ"rtained

and stored in data bases in the computer'

;: Uata *hich is puuinto order is called information

;. irtJ.i*"itry is used for storing information

Find the subject, the predicative and the rest of the predicate in these sentences' The first one

is done for You.

Subject

A tumour

Predicative

is seen

Rest of the Predicate

clearly in the Picture1.2.3.4.

, r r:-ir^ rL ̂ * I lents. What is theNowtakefourothersentencesfromthetext,anddividethemintothesamecompoldifferencebetweenthefrrstfoursentencesandthesentencesyouchose?

Youwil lnot icethat inthefrrst foursentencesthesubjectwasnotthedoeroftheact ion.I twasthereceiveroftheaction.Whenthishappensinasentence,o,.,uythattheverbisinthePassiveVoice.

CanyouworkouthowthePassiveVoiceis-formed?Firstnotewhatauxi l iaryverbisused.

Thepartoftheact ionverbthat isaddedtothisiscal ledthepastpart ic iple.Wewil lstudythisin detail later.

3.2.b Inthefirstsentenceabovewecanunterstandthatthepersondoingtheseeingis'tlresurgeon':thatis, 'the tumour is seen by the surgeon"

If we want to mention the doer or agent of an action in the passive -voice,

we use the preposition' ,by'. In the npxl-two ,.rrt*rr.", trre igeltrfa be anyone, utti itt such cases we would not usually

bother to mention this. In the last oFthe four sentences, it is the eomputer that uses its own -circuitry;

", i., trr" nrrt sentence thi, ;;; ;enfioned, but becauge it is clear enough anyway' it

need not be.

Look out for passive constructions in the texts that follow, and work out how !|ey;re fopta'*d

uged. when *;;;;;;;"y *rt"i r"Jori"ro.t"itiot tt" thev most usetul ? \{hen should the

;;; l!-*""ti.""a,-""a *fr"ir can/should he/she/it be omitted ?

3.?.6 Work in grouPs.wn-at-more can you say about the way in which cotnputers work ? Try to explain whathardware

and software are.

Describe a computer laboratory. Mention ways in which you could make use of computers in your

work.

3.8 Back to the shop 'A Telephone Co4versation

3.g.1 somethinghasgonewrongwithapressureGooker. sothecustomerphonesasalesmanattheshopfrom where she bought it. Some q".iiio". a1d31sy9rs are given below' Rearrange-the dialogue

into rhe ora..i,i*il;tilahi"liiff;;;;;;. woif in pairs-. Read out vour parts' who starts ?

1.

2.

List A

Is the pressure cooker stainless steel ?

Sales section here. Rohan Dias speaking'Can I help you ?

Is it automatic ?

Is it under guarantee ?

How long have You had the cooker ?

3. Vinitha Gamage.

4. The valve isbioken.

5. Good morning, can I sPeak tosomeone in the sales section please?

6. I bought a Pressure cooker fromyoo" thop. Iiut I found sorGthing

List B

Yes, for one year.

Prestige.

wrong with it.

One week.

Yes. I have the eard.

I live at NawalaPitiYa.

1.

2i.

3.

4.r

5.

6. Do youhaveYour guarantee card ?

7. What make is it ?

8. What's your name Plebse ?

9. Do you have the receiPt ?

10. OK, we'll send someone tomorrow' if vo-u giye^

-. ihe address. What time would be suitable 'l

11. Where do you live ?

12. What's the problem ?

Can you continue the dialogue ?

3.g.2 Youhaveboughtaniron. somethinghasgonewrongwithit. whatshould you takewithyouwhen

going to the shop to make your complaint ?

Constmct the dialogue that takes place in the shop'

7.

8.-

9.

10. Yes, it's automatic.

11. Yes, it is.

L2. Yes, I do.

29

Unit 4: More'nan'made Objects, and Structures'

4.1 TheBMICH

Read the text below and answer the questions that follow.

The Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall is situated onBauddhaloka Mawatha,

which is one of the main roads in the residenlial part of the city of Colombo. The Hall and its gr-ounds

cover an area of "b*t-Bt;;;es

a"d u"" *ithi., uasy access fiom ar'y poilt-i1tt-re city',The elegant

appearance of trris rr*imakes it a st"iking tourist attrlltion. It was buift with Chinese aid as a tribute

toS.W.R.D.gar,aa"a;aiie,thefourthPriireMinisterofSri Lanka. Thereareonlyafewconferencehalls

of this kind in Asia.

The buitding is octagonal in shape5n accordance with the traditions of Sri Lank-a's indigehous'

architeeture. The d";igtr;?;h; interior is simple. Its spacious halls, hlgh ceilings and chaste columns

i*p"tt an immaculate-atmosphere and finish to the whole'

The hall is really a large complex consisting of four different blocks'

Block 1 is the main building. It consists of the tirain assembly hall, a spacious log.nge for de-legates,

ur,a p'.irrui" suites foi ltre ct airmlan and chief office bearers of the conference. On the second floor are

the public gaffury rrra in" pi"s fotby which includes a public lounge. Th-e kitchen and stores are located

in the basement. Block 2 is the eastern G"Jut the reaY of Elock 1 and is connected to the latter by a

bridge. This block *r, b" dur.ribed as tfre ae"f egates' area and consists of 90 office rooms meant for the

ose 6f delegations. This block has three floors'

Block B is a6jacent to block 2 and is the area of committee rooms and where the technical facilities

' are located. It consilts of the following:1. A ground noor on *tri.fr the libriry, telephorre excfrange, auditorium for cinema shows or lecture

mJetings and air conditioning blowers are located'

2. G "pp"""

floor with Zlarge committee rooms and 4 small committee rooms'

The total floor area of this block is 67,000 sq' ft'

Block 4 is the residential and secretariat area, situated at the rear ofblock 2 and 3 and consisting

of the following features:1. A ground floor with a restaurant and of;fices';:.

-ariopp"" floor with deluxe accommodation for distinguished visittirs'

4.2 Answer the following questions'

a. Where is the BMICH situated ?b. In whose name was it built ?c. What do the letters BMICH stand for ?

d. Why is the BMICH called a large complex ?

e. What is its shape ?f. How many blocks does the complex consist of ?

4.g Word studY.Get into pairs and do these exercises'

a. People mentioned in the text.[. lfuff r and rooms in the entire building complex mentioned in the text'1. Make lists sf

2. Read them out to the whole class. Add to your lists any words left out'

3. What do you understand by thq following ?base,menl, floor, wing' rear' deluxe, auditorium

4. Pick out the phrases in which they occur to frnd out tbe meanings.

b. Note the following verbs. You will need them w-hen you describe the structure of buildings:

is situated inis located in

consists ofcovers an area ofincludes

If '.,

30

6. Note also the following expressions. See howsentences in which theY occur.

a hall of this kindin accordance witha symbol ofa mark of

7 . , Write a few sentences of your own, using the phrases in the last two sections so as to bring

out their meaning.

write a paragraph on the Taj Mahal using the following guidelines

(a) Where is it ?

(b) When was it built ?

(c) In whose memory was it built ?

(d) What size is it ?

(e) What is it made of ?

(f) What is interesting or special about it ?

Words and expressions you may frnd helpful for the above:

famous, tomb, in Agra, India, beautiful, beloved, wife,-Mumtaz Mahal, shah Jahan, the 1?th

.""t""V, MoghulEriperor, twentyyears' complete"millionsofrupees, marble, minarets'

Describe a temple, a library or any other important institution in your area with these points in

mind.

Location. Shape, size and usefulness

Period \

4.6 Here's another way of describing objects as seen by a poet. Read the poem'

BUILDINGSBuildings are a great surPrise.

Every one's a different size.Officesgrowlongandhightall

' enough'to touchthe sky.

Houses seemmore like a box

made of glueand building blocks.

Every time you look, You seebuildings shaped quite

differentlY.

J. Liuingstone

Write a description of an institution on the above pattern. First think of .words, whether

they be ttoot s or verbs or adjectives or adverbs, that rhyme'

31

they are used in the text. Copy out the

4.4

4.5

I

32

4.2 Ttre Industrial Revolution'

4.2.1 Readthefollowingpassage. Guessthemeaningof the highlightedwords'Thefollowingheadings

have been omittei. Shere would you place them in the text ?

1. Machines;. Conditions before factories were built

5: So-" ..ot"s of the Industrial Revolution

4. Using steam Power

TIIE INDUSTRIAL NEJOLUTION

We havelearntaboutthe French Revolution, thattook place in 1?89. The ideas thattookrootthen

have affected all political thinkers since'

Now we shall learn about avery different sort of revolution, thathas proved equally significant'

At the end of the 18th century a new movement took place -in

Britain' Machines that worked

on steam power *""""'i""""ila. 11t"y ili"" t 6otrte w-o-r\ of ten or twenty men and as a'

resurt cottage t"dr.l;;;";;;; t"i.n -irtir

period is called t}'e Industriat Reuotution.

Britain now had a large empire. she therefore had large markets' she could sell anything she

-"a" t" rr"r colonies li=ke Iniia, canada, and Australia.

In the colonies there was a demand for British goods like textiles and hardware' As the demand

grew more suPPlies had to be made'

In the 18th and 19th centuries Britain-was a m4ior'sea power' she was able to transport the

;;;;.h" -"de

to anY Part of the world'

By this time English merchants had a voice in the British Parliament' They were able to look aft'er

their own interests-

AlsoBri tainhadgreatadvantagesinthemakingofcotton.shehadalotofcoalneededforfactor ies.Shealsohadadampcl imatewhichwasnecessaryforthespinningofcotton.Thef irstmachines tt at weie mrd" irr Britain were all connected with the cotton industry.

Before factories were built people used,to weave cloth in their homes' The looms that they

used were small. Th;y;;;; *orr."a uv rtu"a. notr, men and womenused to make cloth' However

* was nor their *r:fii"tr'irt";;il "tit;;joUt ut *"'. Thev would spin or weave during their

iree time. This was called the Domestic system'

This system worked quite well but it was slow. The weavers and spinners worked at their

own speed. Ttr"v *Jr"';;il;"! puia -gil.,r"1x

.oo-.t the amount of cloth made in the cottages

was not enoogfr. a *uV lr-ad to be foi-a t"--"f." .ioif, f.tt"r. Men began to think ofways in which

i" J" ir,i.. ftachinei were invented'

Here is a short account of how this happened'

First of atl power was needed and electricity-had-1gtlietbeen discovered' In 1698 Thomas

Savery invented .-.t"u- ."giqt. fo1"t. i" *i"u.l tt f ZOtr Tho*at Newcome improved this mine

machine. Butit;;;;"1?Stittut.lu-.. Watt made steam power available for all kinds of

machines.

.Thef i rst industr ia lmachinesweremadeforthetext i le industry. I -n1733JohnKeyinvented tf,e ffvi"?"SlJtfe. Cf,it f*fp"d tfre yeSvel to weave a double width of cloth' In 1763

James Ha"grearnes;"d; a machine .ufi"J ihe Spinning Jenny' This could work from 8 to 100

spindles at one time.

ToimprovethisRichardArkwrightmadethe.waterFrameinL?68'Hebuiltandownedmany factories anJiscalled "The Fathei of The Factory System."

In 1?g4 Edmund Cartwright built a power loom. It could do the work of ten looms worked

by hand'

33

In 1?93 Eli whitney, an American' invented the cotton Gin' This machine helped to

i"*ou" the seeds from the cotton very fast'

Fromthistimeonwardsrnoreandmoremachinesweremadetomanufactureallkinclsofgoods.from

About Our PastbY Goolbai Gunasekera

4.2.2 Answer the following questions'

1. Why ilid the Industrial Revolution take place in Britain ?

i; ffiin:ff*ffi:?tf:tlgr. gr."t*st contribution to the Industrial Revolution ?

4.2.3 Gramnar

Thispassageissetinthepast,andthereforetheverbsinit 'whetheractiveorpassive'areintheG;;;;":Most of them are in the simple past'

Inthefirstparagraphhoweverwefindanintroductionthatexplainsto.studentstheimportanceofthesubjecb tley study- g"""*.itduai1'e"*tto"tolp"Jttense'tha!'is used whenweare

concernedwiththepresentsignmci;;*rrutttpp"";;"i;;h;ilit" Thitittulledtheperfect

rense. How is it formed? wot" nrrl^iir"";";il;t;;iutiiti."r"a- whatpartofthe actionverb

is used with it ?

4.2.4 This form is called the past participle. It is necessary to learn this form as well as the simple Past

-'--- i"rr.". In many bases it is the same'

Fill in this table with the required forms of the verbs' Th" fittt hu,t bu"tt dot" fo" yoo:

Makesentenceswith6oftheseverbs.Choose3eachfromeitherpastform.

4.2.Slnmanycommonverbs,thereare. in 'egular i t iesthatwehavetolearn'Find the prrt t""."

"",ipast participlJforms of these irregular verbs'

I

Basic Form-Present Tense Plural

assume

elect

enter

return

behave

fail

resign

allow

show

arrive

vote

depart

34

The first one is done for You.

becomebeginbiteblowbreakbringbuildcatchchoosecomedodrinkdriveeatfallfrndflyforgetgetgtvegohaveholdknowlieriserunshakeshoottakethinkthrowwearwinwrite

What is the past participle of the verb 'to be' ?

4.2.6 you would have noted that, in addition to combining yilh 'have' to form the perfect (in the active

voice), it is the past participle that;;;i*t *ittt 'io be' to form the passive voice of the present

tense.

4.2.7 Goback to the second paragraph of the passage. How is the future tense formed there ? what is- -

ift. auxiliary that we have usually seen used ?

Remember that in the first person, that is Tth'Ij and,'we, 'shall' can be used instead of 'will"

loJutfr"" witft tfte iasic form of *t" action verb, to form the future tense'

35

4.g. A Cigarette Lighter

4.3. lReadthetextsi lent ly.Seeifyouunderstandthemeaningsofthedif f rcul twords.

Acigarettelighterisasmallmachineforgivingusaflamewithwhichtolightourcigarettes.It is a sim-ple;;ffi;"-;th five main parts'

.Thebiggestpart isatankforholdingthel ight ingf lu id.on-top.of thetankisasimplemechanismformaking aflame. es;;il'i.J;.k "fr";;'"l;;i*h;

*'iti.t' isheldin placebv a

screw. At the base of tf,e wheel i" *ii"ia *tl.f, t-. "-"t" "

*" tnitt' It has a cover over it' There

isalso"*""iTi**hHH;#;;;;'u'tor"tathefluidtothewick'

Acigarettelighter-isuSyallyattractivelyfinished.Itlookst}'lv:Itismadeofmetal,probably .il;;;;i;a, .r,a i, t iif; ;;;il"g tr,,,t' ii r'

'" '-"u tr'"t it slips into a pocket'

4.3.2 Answ"t ihe following questions

1. What is a cigarette lighter ?

2- List its main parts' Write down their functions'

3. What makes it an attractive object ?

' What maktis it convenient to use ?

4.3.3 Think of another household object in everyday uslwhich is convenient to handle' Describe it to

yolr, p""t"#ffi;;iil o" tit" t* guttt what the object is'

4.3.4 Describe its parts under the following headings :

AppearanceFunctionMaterial

ShaPeSizeComPonents

4.3.5 Grammar

Combining Sentences

Look at the following sentences from the passage'

A spark is struck offa central yheelwhich is held in place by a screw'

rt is matte .t-;TJi;il#iil;;;h;* pi"t"a, and is built to last a long time'

Howmanypredicativesormainverbsarethere?.Youshouldcountfour.Canyoudividethesentences into iwo sentences

""tf' f "iilult

o'ota' ao yo,, o-it ? What new words do you need Eo

introduce ?

4.3.6 There are two very coTmon:uv. {io,"iL.-g-::*::::ne isbv using conjunctions' such as'and"

,but, ,when,, 'be.iore' etc. The *ori'.or,5i,,'-ction' meanJ;t"il;l- C" back through the variou-s

bxts in this book, and identify ut i.urt five senten;J-;;d'" up of two parts joined with

conjunction". wtut" separate ,u"tu*"t o,,t of the pdrts' "!"p"i"t"f,arts in a sentence thathave

ii"i, o* Main Verb are called clauses'

36

4.3.? Another way to join sentences is by using relative-pronouns. Words such as 'who' or 'which'or '

,that, can be used to refer to a word in one intence that also appears in the next. Remember that

if it is the object in the second sentence'who'becomes'whom', and if it is used in the possessive,

it becomes 'o,hose'; 'which' and 'that' remain the same as objects, and are not generally used in the

possessive. Both whom' and'which' can also be used with prepositions'

Identify at least frve sentences in previous texts in this book that use relative pronouns to join up

clauses.

4.3.8 Read the following sentences'

It is very small.So it sliPs into a Pocket.

How have they been combined in the text ? the word'that is not a relative pronoun here, but is

a word o," oa" with 'so', to join clauses to express a consequence or result.

4.4 EconomicAnHYsis

4.4. 1 The following text ileals with commodities, that is things that are used, on which we can set certain

values. nead it and, working in groups, anslver the questions that follow.

F'BEE PR,ICING AT.ID CENTB.AL PI,A}INING

Water sells for almost nothing, if it sells at all. The air we breathe is free, though it may sometimes

cost money to make it cbld or hot by air-conditioning or by heating. Most of the free grfts of nature have

beenchangedbyman. Thushehasaddedavaluetaitandplacedapriceontheresourcesfoundinnature.The water, which flowed freely along the river, now co*"1 into a paddy-freld in a certain area, through

a metal or concrete pipe. A guog* measures ihe amount of water that is sent to the paddy-freld. The

owner is told to ue carerul wilh water because there are other fields that also need water. The amount

of water that people want to use r4ay be more than the amount that is actually available. So the water

must be distributed in an equal way.

This distribution may be done by a Vel Vidane or by asking the farmers to pay for the water they

use. The Vel Vidane is the-water guu"a from the water board who locks the water pipe at some time of

the day or week or month. This iJhow he distributes water to the users down the canals he guards'

when the farmers pay for their water, they will use only wh3! they negd o1 what they can pay for'

Thus the money that is puia ror the water does the work of the vel vidane. In this case economists say

that price is an allocating mechanism.

Think of somebody living in the capital of a big country like Russia or China 'e would be working

i" u pru." .uUed theplanning o'ffrce. He would be carrying out the work of a Vel Vidane for the economy.

He has to decide how much Jf "uroo".u,

he should usefor producing different types of goods. He will ge-t

facts from the owners or users of all these things, as to wtrat quantity they used last year and how much

they want this year. IIe will use these facts in dqciding what and how mueh to produce in the coming

y"u". Hir decision will be for the whole economy of the country.

How does he decide ? Let us look at the following example. He may have found that the thriller

fil*s i., ihe irt* i"a".try were very popular last year and that there wasn't enough room in the cinemas

for the people *ho warrted to see them. So tre may want a hundred cinemas built in each province of the

;;;"t "

Tr build these cinemas, the goods thai are used to build them have to be produced.il ligg"Iquantities. no" e*a*pte, cement, bricks, tiles etc. The planner can make an input-output table based

J' tfr. quantity of it p'ot*tttat are needed to produce a ""i-t

of output. For example, 'A' units of cement

pt* 'g''orrit, of i"o"-pius {l'units of tiles plus'D' units of bricks make one cinema of.a particular size.

He will then tell the makers of inputs to make a certain quantity and to make it available for

building cinemas in a certain province. ile witl tell the qeople who have been given the job of building

37

I

l!t I {rr,,

.-/-- --

<-_--

the ci.emas to get the inputs from the input people and to brrild them. He r+'ill have to get other people

to look over the work ofinir p"oje.t. Thi; is an eiample of Central Planning or physical distribution of

resources by someone who does not use or produce them.

The work of a central planner can also be done by the price of goods. Le|, us look at how price works

in the above example. If films are very popular, the cinema owners will make the price of cinema tickets

higher. In this way they will get more money from the film goers. They will wan-t to build more cinemas

so-that they will Ue affl to earn -ote

mottey. Maybe other people who notice thatthe film industry is

a;i"g *;ii";ll also *r"i t" p"t up their own cinemas. These two groups of people will then ask the

**.It. ofbricks, tiles, cemerrt and suchtike, to supply them with these inputs. The makers of the inputs

*if"iirr"i supply them at the present prices o" uJkfo" higher prices. If they raise the prices of these

i"p"ts; tfrey witt Le aUte to employ more people, bring factories that have not been used back into action,

build new factories etc.

This whole process is started by the rise in the price of cin-ema tickets. The fact thatrnore people

are buying cinema tickets is a signal ihat there is a gteate-rneed for cinema seats. Cinema owners can

choose whether to take notice of t[is signal or not. ff t-hey think that they can earn more bymaking their

.i""-". ligg"" or building new einemas they will do so. The number of cinemas they-build shows how

much notic!-they have tak"en of this signal. bepending on how important they think this signal is, ne-w

p."pir*1i.ttt t trr. frlm industry. More people will siart prodgcing the inputs that are needed to build

ih" .irr.-"r. ttis g.eal";i;;;"t"".e ttrai is put on thefilm industry means that le_sser importance will

beputonotherindistries. T'hisisbe.utrre..roorcesarelimitedandpeoplehavetochoose betweendoing

orrithirrgo"anotherwiththeseresources. Thepricesthat_peoplearewillingt-opayforgoodsde-cide-whatis tobe iroduced and how much of it. It is ttre people who ma"ke and use these goods who decide the

urr.*.rr to these questions. They are'able to do this through the mechanism of price.

The use of price and central planning are two very different ryays of distributing resources in an

economy. Each ofthese ways has iti own advantages and disadvantages. So today, many countri_es havg

a mi*ture of free pricing and central planning in their economies. These economies are called mixedfromeconomies'

Economics in ou'r Liuesby Wilfred JaYasuriYa.

1. What are the two major commodities with which the text deals ? Make two columns and

write down in either one the nouns describing things that are connected with that

commodity.

2. Who are the people mentiohed in this text ? Most of them are involved in the distribution

or marketing of eit[er of the commodities mentioned above. What people are mentioned in

connection with general Planning ?

Think of an example of your own to show how resources are used through central planning

or through the price of commodities.

4.4.2 Gramnar

Look at the following sentences

1. So the water mustbedistributed in an equal way.2. This distribwtion rnay be done by a Vel Vidane.3. He would be working in a place called the planning offrce.

' 4. He hasto decidehow much ofresources he should use.5. The planner con make an input-output table.6. They are able to do this through the mechanism of price.

Z. The verbs that are underlined are used as you can see with other verbs, that describe certainactions. Those actions are not however performed. Instead, the underlined verbs glvq adifferent rnode or sense to the action verh to suggest possibility or necessity. These verbsare called modal uerbs, and act as auxiliaries which take various forms of the action verb,either the infinitive, or the basic form (which is the infrnitive, without'to'). Other formsthat are used, involving participles, are passive or continuous forms of the above (ie. 'beworking' instead of 'work').

39

4.4.3 Look at the following table

A. Implying necessitv followeu o' *outt *t::

u?ti,ul

'i'tl:"::)**rTi lfi*Tr [ |2. have basic form basic form

:u#:::. ffi ;; ll3. could

4.4.4 The following sentences are example, ol19P",:f the-above. Which is which ? For instance, the

' I

first senten.E or". the modal .rurf, .f'oofa' in the putti* voice: it is an example'of A 3 b'

I N

Remember that the present participre with 'be' is the basic form that expresses continuousness'

Il l1. The cows shouid be miiked every dav'

I I2- I may be going to Colombo tomorrow'

I I

3' Thev rvould be punished if anvone found out' I I

4. Dogs can be controlled through kindness' I I

5' We have to finish this lesson this week'

lf{ffih*.l' *unw I

9' You may be asked to give evidenqe' t44s;dffi ;#***r*r*ffi H:Htr:si.'l;"fr *:'i.:'"""iTT::t-:l

sim'arry,inthe.oth*::191.".rffi:*i"Yr")li,,iidlT"f,ni::tr"l"T"t-'i*l1'*ffi,::ridtentativeness' These are not d

:r*iiril"#"H:::lll"il#il:*{nt*:ml,nlrH:*:x1".fi ',l"jJH"#Ylit j#l

' ' u

ff"lll""*lli l'};:Hj; ililfh""':^Tdrrnd six exampres ormodar verbs' change them arouno

I4.5 Adverbials

4.5.1 Look at the following words from the text : sometimes, thus, freely, also, actually, then, maybe,

ItodaY'

I40

* l r r I l

They are adverbs, that is they- modify or assist verbs by teliing us how, when or why the action was

performed. N.# th;t;dveibs .o.rt ur;u.tually' or 'ieally' are used to reinforce, that is increase

the impact of, the verb theY modifY'

I :.2 The same task can be done by phrases. For instance, 'In this way' can be used instead of ' thus"- -

A;; ;; t; trte olrter advetbs above into adverbial phrases ?

I 5.2 Unlike adjectives, which should come vety close to the noun to which they refgr' adverbs can be

fitted into various places in the sentence'

You should be careful however not to place adverbs in-p!?ces where the-y do not contribute to the

meaning of the sentence, or where th";;;;;e;*k*utd. Which of the following adverbials should

not usuatty b. ;1";;; ;i'the begin'i#;?;;;;tence ? - never, sometimes, perhaps' alwavs '

, also, usuallY.

Use these adverbs in sentences'

i 5.3 Look at the following sentences

1. At 8 a.m she leaves home for her first lecture'

2. She leaves home for her first lecture at 8 a'm'

3. She leaves home at 8 a.m for her frrst leeture'

4. She always gets late for her first lecture'

5. She is always late for her first lecture'

Note the different positions the adverbial occupies.-{he frrst three sentences use a phrase that

specifres a ti*"]'b-,.[t*rp..in. "aru.biulr

can gelerally be used at any sJli-table place in a sentence'

iie. where th"." i, "ipir.

in the phrasss - yo;ishould not of course say'she leaves at 8 a.m home")

; 5.4 The next two sentences use adverbs that indicate frequency, ie- theytell us how often some action- -

l, puJo*"d. F;;;;;v aa",e"Ui"ir"a.get o*totalnegaiivefrequency-'never'-tototalpositivefrequency -'alwaYs'.

Put the followingfrequency adverbials in order, beginning with 'never" and moving up the scale

of frequency t- o?.uaio.tally, never, always, sometimes' usually' rarely'

Near which of the above on the scale would you place the following ? - frequently, hardly ever,

often, generallY, regularlY.

Remember that we cannot be exact since ,people use these words according to their own

interpretatlonr. for i"s[ance, 'I go home to see my parents frequently', could mean once a week,

or once u rnon.i, ;r;;;G" oit"ti, aepe"al"g on- one s views. Howevei, we should use these words

according to a pattern that gives iome sort of clear idea as to what is meant'

1.5.5 With frequency adverbials we have to exercise a little bit of care as to the place in which we use

thern. Tt e t*o'efl"e"rrr!-;;ai h"""r' and'always' should be near the verb: they should come just

after the ""lU

to Uu' (when used as a main ,re"L o" an au-xiliary), and just before other verbs, as

i' tfr. ."u',,pt". u[;";. Wu can be a bit flexible with'alyays], and e-xceptions are sometimes

p"r-iti"a r"r ;ilh;;i; """"

*itn r"rre.; (ie. 'Never is she late for her classes'), but to be safe you

ihould follow the above rule.

:.5.6 With the other frequency adverbials we can be more flexible' Note however that

,t' -

tfr.v should not generaliy be used at the beginnin-g of a sentence:

:i) witir 'to be', imm"ediately after the verb is usually the best place;

:ii) 'often'is very flexible;,r:j 'rejularly' piefers to come after the verb,,and is oft'en found at the end of the sentence;

;'; '".""uffv' rid t;;;li u"u tit.;ut*ays' in ihut {""."pt with 'be') just before the verb is best.

'Make corrections as required in the following sentences'I go home always by train rather than bus'

4l

Usually she writes to me once a week'

il;;tly he is at work until 7 P'm'Hardly ever theY come to see me'

iil;;ilk il.rot"a frequentlv in th9 a{ternoons'

ff-. giu.t his tutorials in never on trme.'

He wears his spectaJle' ta*ty "*cePt -to'read'

The princip"t .o*u'-itg"f *ty late to. school'

iil;;;;;Jo"ailv eaten at that boutique'

The food at the t""t""" is very bad sometimes'

VOCABT]LARY4'6

' ' ' ' " - t ow' Youshouldbe

Writedownal istof300wordsusedinthisbookthatyouthinkyououghttoknable to use th"rn ir, .o,i''rJrr-"ii"t,

-a t" i"tl";;;h; iead'v

-#;i'y1t"' oi"1'1t-.ttem into sections'

according to rhe p-arti.of^spe..l'!l:I.:i. fi;;;;;ld ;i'" bi;il:t'f'-gd accordincr to the subjects to

which they are rerated. compare yoo" rirti'#tffi*1;tr*rr fd;;. what words have been selected

in common ? What are the unusual woros tiiai-ftave bein selected ?

42