Issue 169, Dated 19th April, 2012

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Issue 169

Newsademic.com British English edition Activities Answer Key

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Remembering the Titanic (Page 1)

Instructions: Read the article Remembering the Titanic. Answer questions 1-16. 1. When and where did the Titanic sink? In the early hours of 15th April 1912 in the North Atlantic Ocean.

2.

What was the White Star Line? The shipping company that built and operated the Titanic.

3.

Where was the Titanic built and what was it designed to do? In Belfast; to take passengers and cargo between the USA and the UK across the Atlantic Ocean.

4.

How many people were on board the ship? 2,200. Where did the Titanic sail before heading for New York City? From Southampton to Cherbourg, in France, and then to Queenstown (now called Cobh), in Ireland. How was the Titanic powered? By steam produced from coal-fired furnaces. Electricity produced by steam turbines. What were the different ways that people could travel on the Titanic? First-, second-, and third-class.

5.

6.

7.

8.

How do modern-day ships manage to avoid icebergs? They use radar and satellites.

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Remembering the Titanic (Page 1) continued

9. What caused the Titanic to sink? The undersea part of a large iceberg damaged the side of the ship below the water level, and seawater began pouring in.

10. What did the Titanics captain order after he realised the ship was sinking? Ships officers to lower the lifeboats and make sure women and children got in first. 11. What were the problems with Titanics lifeboats? There were not enough for all the passengers, and the first ones that were sent away from the ship when it began sinking were not as full of people as they could have been. 12. Why did the closest ship to the Titanic not go to its rescue immediately? Because it did not receive the signals asking for help, as the wireless operator who received the messages had gone to bed. 13. Why was the Titanic unfortunate in the timing of its first and last voyage? Because there were more icebergs in this part of the Atlantic Ocean at the time than there had been for 50 years. 14. Why do you think so few of the crew survived? eg. because they were helping passengers to get into the lifeboats instead of getting in themselves, so there were no lifeboats left for crew members, their duty was to help the passengers first. 15. When was the wreck of the Titanic found and what did it show? In 1985; that the ship had broken in half.

16. How were shipping laws changed after the disaster? Ships had to carry enough lifeboats for all the passengers; new rules meant large ships had to be able to send and receive messages 24 hours a day.

Issue 169

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UN monitors arrive in Syria (Page 9)

Instructions: Read the article UN monitors arrive in Syria. Tick either true or false for the following statements.

TRUE 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Damascus is the capital of Syria. Bashar al-Assad is a former secretary-general of the UN. The Arab League has 46 member countries. The violence in Syria first started two months ago. Syria has been suspended from the AL. Kofi Annan is the president of Syria. Kofi Annan is a Nobel Peace Prize winner. The Security Council is part of the Arab League. Homs is a town in Turkey.

FALSE

10. The ceasefire was supposed to begin on 10th April.

Issue 169

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Avalanche in Kashmir (Page 16)

Instructions: Read the article Avalanche in Kashmir. The answers to the questions are given for 1-8. Write the questions. 1. Q. eg. where is the Pakistani base that was buried by an avalanche; what area in Kashmir is close to the disputed border between Pakistan and India? A. 2. Siachen Glacier.

Q. What is the main religion of people living in India? A. Hindu.

3.

Q. What is the name of the disputed dividing line between the India and Pakistan-controlled parts of Kashmir? A. Line of Control.

4.

Q. What is the main religion of people living in Pakistan? A. Muslim.

5.

Q. Who is the president of Pakistan; who visited India on 8th April and went to an important Muslim shrine there? A. Asif Ali Zardari.

6.

Q. Who is the prime minister of India? A. Dr Manmohan Singh.

7.

Q. In what year did Pakistan and India become independent countries? A. 1947.

8.

Q. A lack of what causes altitude sickness? A. Oxygen.

Issue 169

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North Korean rocket fails (Page 14)

Instructions: Read the article North Korean rocket fails. Draw a line to connect the correct links. The first is done for you. Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Yellow Sea

Capital of North Korea

Kim Jong-un

Grandson of the founder of North Korea

ICBM

Hereditary dictatorship

Kim Il-sung

West of Korea

Kim Jong-il

Criticised rocket launch

China

Son of the founder of North Korea

North Korea

Founder of North Korea

Pyongyang

Issue 169

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Tsunami warning system (Page 6)

Instructions: Read the article Tsunami warning system and fill in the spider diagram below with the details.
STRIKE-SLIP EARTHQUAKE THRUST EARTHQUAKE

happened under the Indian Ocean on 11th April near the north coast of Sumatra in Indonesia; plates move horizontally; causes a lot of shaking but does not displace a large amount of sea water if earthquake is under the seabed.

plates move vertically (up and down); under the sea this type of movement can displace a large amount of seawater, which can cause a tsunami.

TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM

2004 TSUNAMI

undersea earthquake with magnitude of 9.0; in about the same place as this one on 11th April; 170,000 people in Aceh died, most from a tsunami; total deaths around Indian Ocean 230,000; one of the worst natural disasters in history.

set up after 2004 tsunami; buoys in the ocean measure the sea level; when it changes sirens go off; SMS alerts and messages are sent to websites and smartphones; shelters have been built; quickest routes to high ground are signposted; first real test since the 2004 earthquake; officials were pleased with how it worked.

Issue 169

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World Health Day (Page 12)

Instructions: Read the article World Health Day. Answer questions 1-6. 1. Where is the WHO based and what is its purpose? In Geneva; to advise governments on health matters and lead global research and programmes on health. When was the United Nations (UN) founded and what was its purpose? Just after the end of the Second World War in 1945; to promote cooperation and peace among countries and to prevent future wars.

2.

3.

Why are people in developed countries now living for longer than their parents and grandparents did? eg. because of better treatment for illnesses; because we know more now about healthy lifestyles.

4.

What are non-communicable diseases? List some examples Illnesses you cant catch from someone else but that develop on their own; asthma, diabetes, cancer, heart disease.

5.

What does the WHO mean by healthy habits? eg. not eating too much of foods that are high in saturated fats; exercising regularly, not smoking.

6.

What was this years World Health Day theme? Give an explanation of what it means. Good health adds life to years; eg. that developing healthy habits early on in our lives helps to keep us well when we get older.

Issue 169

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World Map (Page 13)

Instructions: Solve these anagrams. Each answer is a country that appears on the World Map. Each anagram has one extra letter. Together the extra letters form another anagram. The answer is a mystery country. One is already done for you. 1. LAWNAIM

M A L A W I
2. BOACMEDIA

C A M B O D I A
3. GRANTERAIN

A R G E N T I N A
4. SENDAWE

S W E D E N
5. MOBOCALIA

C O L O M B I A
6. THORN ORIKEA

I K O R E A M

N O R T H
7. AMNESIODIN

I N D O N E S I A Mystery country = A R M E N I A

Issue 169

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Issue 169 Elimination

Instructions: Read issue 169. Now eliminate from the list 13 pairs of words or phrases that go together. You will have one word or phrase left over. That is the answer. One pair is already done for you.

North Korea (1)

Titanic (2)

Pacific Ocean (3)

Ollanta Humala (4)

Yen (5)

Antarctica (6)

China (7)

Australia (8)

Parasite (9)

Cuba

Japan (5)

Pyongyang (1)

Falkland Islands (10)

Spring (11)

Emperor penguins (6)

Microsoft (12)

Great Pacific Garbage Patch (3)

Plasmodium (9)

Aceh (13)

Peru (4)

Mandarin (7)

Belfast (1)

Indonesia (13)

Malvinas (10)

Cane toad (8)

Bill Gates (12)

Qingming (11)

Odd one out =

CUBA

Issue 169

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Issue 169 multiple choice quiz

Instructions: Read issue 169 and circle the correct answers for questions 1-10.
1. In which country would you take part in Tomb-Sweeping Day? a. Bulgaria b. Iran c. Bolivia d. China e. Sudan 2. When did the last ice age end? a. 10,000 years ago b. 25,000 years ago c. 100,000 years ago d. 150,000 years ago e. 300,000 years ago 3. In which country is the Sony Corporation based? a. Japan b. China c. India d. Brazil e. The USA 4. In which ocean did the Titanic sink? a. Arctic Ocean b. South Atlantic Ocean c. North Atlantic Ocean d. Southern Ocean e. Indian Ocean 5. Where is the Line of Control? a. Between Israel and the Gaza Strip b. Between North and South Korea c. In Kashmir d. In Panama e. In the Antarctic 6. Who is the president of Colombia? a. Cristina Fernndez de Kirchner b. Fidel Castro c. Evo Morales d. Juan Manuel Santos e. Ral Castro 7. Of which African country has Joyce Banda just become president? a. South Africa b. Sudan c. Zambia d. Malawi e. Mali 8. Where would you find ambergris? a. On Mars b. In a copper mine c. Washed up on a beach d. Inside a mosquito e. In a nuclear warhead 9. Who has been appointed by the UN and the Arab League as their envoy to Syria? a. Kofi Annan b. Stephen Harper c. Dr Manmohan Singh d. Kazuo Hirai e. Barack Obama 10. Of which country is Asif Ali Zardari the president? a. Sri Lanka b. Afghanistan c. Bangladesh d. India e. Pakistan