SIBERIA.

More than 3,500 miles from Moscow, between the Arctic Circle and Mongolia,lies Siberia, a frozen land more than ten times the size of Italy but with only halfa million inhabitants. There the temperature can fall as low as seventy degrees centigrade below zero. The intense cold makes life immensely difficult and dangerous for anyone unaccustomed to it.


But Siberia is not a permanently frozen waste. Though parts of the region are colder than the North Pole itself, the temperature in summer may reach 40°C.When this happens, the topsoil thaws to a depth of about two meters and can support rich vegetation, though none of the trees grows to any great height as the roots have to spread sideways. The summer days are so long that the earth stores enough heat to bear a variety of flowers which blossom between the trees. It is almost impossible for anyone to enter the forests during this season because of the clouds of insects, especially mosquitoes.


A deep, permanently frozen layer of earth has acted as a natural refrigerator for millions of years, and the bodies of prehistoric animals are sometimes dug up and eaten by the wild dogs. In 1901, an expedition went to search for the remains of a prehistoric mammoth, reported to have been found in the area. The men found the mammoth frozen into the side of a mountain. Part of the head had been exposed by a fall of frozen rock, and bears and wolves had managed to tear off some of the flesh. Most of the frozen mammoth was in excellent condition, complete with flesh, skin and a thick covering of coarse hairs. The men were able to study the prehistoric food found on the creature’s tongue and teeth and in its stomach. Eventually the whole body was excavated and taken away for preservation and study.

It may be, too, that there are still living dinosaurs to be found. Far up in the mountains is the Lake of Labankur. No one has ever had the courage to take a boat out on it. Some time ago, a group of men made an expedition to examine it. They pushed in a reindeer, forced it to swim out towards the centre of the lake and saw it disappear abruptly. Then they sent a dog, which was also swallowed up. Suddenly a black monster emerged from the still waters of the lake, blew threateningly and
plunged back into the depths.

Reading Comprehension n.

1. Answer the following comprehension questions.
· Why is Siberia so sparsely populated?………………………………………………………………………
· Why do the roots of the trees spread sideways instead of going down

into the soil?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

· What difficulties does one face when entering the forests during a)

the summer, b) the winter?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
· How did wolves manage to get at the head of the mammoth?

……………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
· Explain why the mammoth’s flesh had not decomposed…………………………………………………
· What was the purpose of the experiments with the reindeer and the

dog?………………………………..


· Why was it necessary for the author to insert the word ‘natural’

before ‘refrigerator’ in line 14?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
· What evidence, if any, is there in the text concerning the existence

of dinosaurs in Siberia?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

· Explain the meaning of the following words as they are used in the

passage.
a) unaccustomed (5)…………………………………………………………
b) support (9)……………………………………………………………….
c) rich (9)………………………………………………………………….
d) prehistoric (17)…………………………………………………………..
e) flesh (20)………………………………………………………………..
f) coarse (21)………………………………………………………………
g) abruptly (29)……………………………………………………………
h) swallowed up (29)……………………………………………………..
i) threateningly (30)………………………………………………………

18
2. What do the following words refer to?
there (5)………………………………………….. it (5)………………………………………….
itself (7)…………………………………………… which (11)…………………………………..
it (12)……………………………………………… this (12)………………………………………
its (22)……………………………………………. it (25)………………………………………..
it (27)………………………………………………. they (27)………………………………………
it (28)……………………………………………… which (29)…………………………………….


3. Translate the following linking words as they are used in the text.

State the function of each linking word,
e.g., to add information, to contrast, concession, reason etc.
· though (6)…………………………………………………………………………..
· when (8)……………………………………………………………………………
· because of (13)…………………………………………………………………….
· eventually (23)………………………………………………………………………
· too (25)……………………………………………………………………………..
· then (29)……………………………………………………………………………


4. MODALS …..translate each of the following modal constructions and

state what each modal expresses,
e.g., ability, possibility, obligation, permission, advice etc.
· the temperature can fall (3)…………………………………………………………………
· the temperature in summer may reach 40° (7)……………………………………………….
· the topsoil can support rich vegetation (8)……………………………………………………
· the roots have to spread sideways (10)………………………………………………………..
· ** bears and wolves had managed to tear off (19)……………………………………………..
· **the men were able to study (21)………………………………………………………………
· it may be (25)…………………………………………………………………………………..


5. IRREGULAR VERBS….write the infinitive, past simple, past participle

and translation of the following verbs.
INFINITIVE PAST SIMPLE PAST PARTICIPLE TRANSLATION
lie (2)………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
fall (3)……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
make (4)……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………frozen (6)…………………………………………
grow (9)…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
spread (10)………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
bear (11)…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
……………………………………………………………………….dug (15)…………………………………….
……………………………………………………………………..eaten (16)…………………………………
………………………………………………………………………found (17)…………………………………
tear (19)……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
swim (28)…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………….taken (23)…………………………………
……………………………..saw (28)…………………………………………………………………………….
…………………………….sent (29)…………………………………………………………………………….
…………………………….blew (30)……………………………………………………………………………


6. PASSIVES ….translate the following passive constructions.
· animals are sometimes dug up and eaten (15)………………………………………………………………
· a mammoth (which was) reported to have been found (17)

…………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
· the head had been exposed (18)………………………………………………………………………………
· the body was excavated and taken away (23)………………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
· there are living dinosaurs to be found (25)

…………………………………………………………………..
· a dog, which was also swallowed up (29)……………………………………………………………………

7. CLOZE ….fill each of the numbered spaces with an appropriate word

taken from the box.

warning predict severe prepare obsolete
percentage late lower eyewitness characteristic

Modern weather technology can detect strong winds and rain, which are

_______________(1)
of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. In the past, an _______________

(2) radar system was used
to predict such storms. Under this old system, warnings often depended

on ________________(3) reports.
These reports gave people only about three minutes to ________________

(4) for the tornado. Today, more
than 100 new detection centres are in place in the United States. By

the ________________(5) 1990’s,
a total of 152 systems will be working throughout the country. In the

past, many ______________(6)
thunderstorms and tornadoes struck without ________________(7). Weather

forecasters could not
__________________(8) all of them. In fact, they did not predict 33

percent of all the storms. As a result
of the new technology, this __________________(9) has decreased to 13

percent. When all the new systems
are in place, this percentage will be even _________________(10).

7(a) CLOZE 2

by the it to decisions
will that maintain citizens shown

With the rejection of the Euro, Denmark has _______________(1) the true

value of democracy.
Its ______________(2) decided via a referendum that they preferred to

________________(3) their own
currency rather than adopt _______________(4) of the European Union.

Their vote _____________(5)
influence the long-awaited _______________(6) of Britain and Sweden and

contribute ______________(7)
reduced confidence in a number of Euro countries. _______________(8)

will also show all participating
nations _______________(9) value of a true referendum ________________

(10) the people, as opposed
to the decisions made by a bunch of international politicians.


8. VOCABULARY…fill in the spaces with an appropriate Noun, Verb,

Adjective and Adverb.

NOUN VERB ADJECTIVE ADVERB


INHABITANT
WASTE
HAPPEN
SUPPORT
HEIGHT
ENTER
CLOUD
EXPEDITION
REMAINS
HEAD
MANAGE
COVERING
CREATURE
EXPOSED
EXCAVATED
PRESERVATION
COURAGE
EMERGE