1. Read the following passage and answer the questions given below it

Animals may become extinct in three ways. First of all, they may evolve into another species and not really die out at all. For example, through time, many early forms of horses and of human beings have progressively changed by evolution into new species. The old species has changed and not really died out, so this is called a pseudoextinction.

The second common way in which animals have died out is for a single species to disappear because of some local disturbance. Many animals that have very special diets, for example, could die out very easily if their source of food goes. It is thought that certain species of dinosaurs were adapted to eating particular kinds of reedy plants. When these disappeared, those particular species of dinosaurs starved and so died out.

Other aspects of an animal's way of life could lead to extinction. For example, the mammoths and woolly rhinos of Europe were adapted to living in the cold conditions of the ice ages. When the ice retreated, they could not adapt to life in warmer conditions, and this may have led to their extinction.

Animals which have very special ways of life are clearly much more likely to become extinct than those that can live almost anywhere. The panda, which eats only the shoots of bamboo canes, is much more likely to die out than, say, the rat, which seems to be able to eat anything. The panda is one of many endangered species.

The third kind of extinction is the mass extinction. This is when many hundreds of thousands of species die out all over the world at the same time. There may have been as many as ten or more mass extinctions in the past 600 million years when plants and animals were wiped out in droves on land and in the sea. Many scientists are studying these mass extinctions with great interest because they want to find out why they happened. One theory is that they were caused by gradual changes in climate that lasted for 1 million years altogether. The other theory is much more dramatic. It says that the Earth has been hit by showers of comets every 26 million years or so. As many as half of all living species were wiped out by the great explosions and dust clouds which shut out the sunlight. No one can say which of these ideas is correct.

What is meant by the term 'pseudoextinction' in the light of this passage?

Some species disappear due to 'local disturbances'. How? Give an example.

Why did the mammoths and woolly rhinos of Europe become extinct?

A rat has a great chance of surviving as a species because

Discuss how mass extinctions happen. Give examples where necessary.

Find words/expressions from the passage which mean the same as the following:

opposite of 'survival'

gradually change and develop into another form

gradually over a period of time

opposite of 'global'

change to be able to deal with' a situation successfully

moved away from a place

opposite of 'ordinary'

(viii) something that has a potential of being completely destroyed if steps are not taken to prevent it

in large numbers

an object from space that travels around the Sun

Fill in the blanks using the correct form of the verbs given in brackets.

If you ask me nicely, I you out for lunch. (take)

Oil if you pour it on water. (float)

If you tease the dog, it (bite)

If! were you, I packing now. (start)

If she to the market by bus, she would not have taken such a long time.

What you " you won a lottery?

If it there will be no game. (rain)

(viii) If I had worked hard, I the examination. (not fail)

If you don't know how to play, Nikhil the rules to you. (explain)

If you the best solution, you get the most points. (choose)

Make the following active sentences into passive ones.

You must brush the dog's coat every day to keep it clean.

You should give a dog plenty of water.

A vet was treating a sick chimpanzee in the zoo.

An attendant was feeding a tiger cub.

You needn't give a dog meat every day.

Join these sentences using the words/phrases given in brackets.

The air was polluted. We couldn't even breathe comfortably. (so... that)

The fuse has blown off. The toaster is not working.

Take an umbrella. You might be caught in the rain. (lest)

They advertised on television. Their sales were going down. (because)

It is an old car. It doesn't need much repair. (although)

3. With the help of hints given below, write a letter to the editor of a local newspaper about inadequate water supply in your locality.

• Corporation unconcerned

• two hours water supply at odd timings

• low pressure

• request for regular water supply

4. Imagine you are a manager in a bank. A customer is aggressively complaining. Write a dialogue where you resolve the situation by attempting to address the customer's problem. You can imagine any problem.

5. Write an essay in about 250 words on anyone of the following topics

Modern technology is changing interpersonal communication

The most important invention of the 20th century

Climate change will lead to disaster if environmental pollution is not controlled