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SCMP Reporter

Word Power
Match the correct meaning
1 blizzards
2 undermines
3 undaunted
4 turnabout
5 debunk
a complete change in opinion, attitude or method
b very bad snowstorms with strong winds
c makes something less strong or less secure
d reject a widely accepted belief
e not worried or afraid about dealing with something
Fill in the blanks with the words you have just learned.
6 He had practised his speech so many times that he was  _________________________________ when he spoke to more than  1,000 students yesterday.
7 A large area of eastern and central US  was hit by _________________________________ which  destroyed electric pylons.
8 There  are a handful of historians who _________________________________ the  Holocaust  during the second world war.
9 There is a ______________________________ in my mother's attitude towards me after she knew that I got brilliant results at school.
10 Corporate bureaucracy sometimes __________________efficiency.
Language Focus
A gerund is a verb that ends in -ing and functions as a noun. It is placed in positions  a noun would usually occupy in a sentence.
Here is an example from the main passage
Discerning  a human influence on climate, he said, 'involves finding a signal in a noisy background', adding, 'the only way to do this within our noisy climate system is to average over a sufficient number of years that the noise is greatly diminished, thereby revealing the signal ...
Fill in the banks with the given gerunds
a. travelling b. sleeping c. playing d. eating e. sitting
1  _____________________________ the violin is easy for him because he has been practising for more than 10 years.
2 My cat's favourite activity is _____________________________.
3 _____________________________ to different places widens one's horizon.
4  _____________________________ too much candies is bad for your health. You can get diabetes later in life.
5_____________________________ in a sofa  after a shower is a pleasure for people who have worked hard all day.
Think about it
1 Do you think the weather is becoming more extreme? Can you think of examples?
2 What do you think about the theory of global cooling?
3 Do you think human activities have led to changes in global climate?
Check out these websites
www.bbc.co.uk/climate
www.campaigncc.org
www.greenpeace.org/international
www.foe.co.uk/campaigns/climate/index.html
Answers
Word Power:
1. b, 2. c, 3. e, 4. a, 5. d, 6. undaunted, 7. blizzards, 8. debunk, 9. turnabout, 10. undermines
Language Focus:
1. playing, 2. sleeping, 3. travelling, 4.eating, 5. sitting



environment