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Alpacas were first kept by the Inca people in the mountains of South America, more than six thousand years ago. These animal provided clothes, food and fuel for their owners. The softest wool was mainly worn by the leaders of Incan society though. When Spanish explorers arrived in the fifteenth century, sheep were introduced and these gradually replaced alpacas in the region. It wasn't until the middle of the 20th century that both farmers and fashion designers began to recognise the qualities of alpacas again. They are easy to look after since they eat grass and are used to low temperatures. Their wool, which comes in a range of natural colours from white to dark brown, is lighter and warmer than sheep's wool and also strong. It is not surprising therefore that alpacas are becoming a familiar sight in the fields of North America, Australia and the UK.
Horses have been valuabe to humans for thousands of years. Because there are several different sorts of horses such as coldbloods, which are large but gentle, or hotbloods that are known for their running ability, there are horses for every purpose. We use them for transport as well as for physical work, for example pulling farm machinery. It's now also very common to see horses used in sports. Horses need food and water in large amounts. A horse can drink between twenty and forty litres of water a day, and around a kilo of food for every fifty kilos od its body weight. Horses need to be out in the fields, as grass is part of their diet. They can live for over 25 years, so their owners need to give them plenty of love and attention- but horses always give lots back.
Wool comes from sheep and certain other animals like goats and rabbits. Over a million tonnes of wool is produced every year, of which 60% goes into clothes. The wool that is used mostly comes from Australian Merino sheep. Their wool is good for baby clothes, as it is soft, keeps babies warm, and can protect their bodies. When wool is first cut from the sheep, it contains a high level of a valuable oil, so before the wool is used, it must be cleaned. The simplest way to do this is by putting the wool in warm water. The oil that is removed from the wool is widely used in Products like hand creams. Sheep were first used by humans several thousand years ago, but it is believed that this was for meat rather than wool. When people developed a way of cutting the wool from sheep it bacame a more important material.
Most people would agree that finding the perfect ring for your partner is difficult. However, John Greenwood, a Scottish engineer, gave himself an extra challenge. Instead of taking a trip to the jeweller's. John spent much of last year standing up to his knees in freezing water. He was looking for tiny pieces of gold among the stones on the river beds in the Scottish Highlands. Using very basic equipment, John worked hard to collect enough gold to make not just an engagement ring for his girlfriend, Morag, but also their two wedding rings. 'I was out there every weekend and in the evenings before it got dark, in freezing cold water,' he said. Experts think that John was amazingly lucky to find so much gold in such a short time. Many people search for 30 years without getting anything.
Alexander Graham Bell …. born in Scotland in 1847. His father, an expert on speech, developed a way of teaching how words should be pronounced. He translated the sounds of words into straight or curvy lines. Alexander trained to be a teacher and, when his mother went deaf, he started to be interested in how deaf people communicate. In 1870, because his children were in poor health, Alexander and his family moved to be United States. He hoped that a warmer climate would be better for the whole family. It was while he was teaching deaf children there that he invented a new machine. It was very similar to human ear itself, and Bell discovered it could carry human speech along a wire frome one place to another. It was not long before the telephone was a part of all our lives!
Drawing has always been a very popular hobby. Young children draw with a pencil as soon as they can hold one. Drawing is often seen as a special skill, and it is true that some people seem to draw perfect picture without any effort. Yet drawing, like writing, can be learnt ; you can draw accurately if you work really hard at it. Drawing is first of all about looking carefully. It sounds easy to say thay all you need to do is look it things, but it really is that simple. The best way to draw a familiar subject is to imagine that you are looking at it for the first time. Nowadays there are more courses and materials available than ever before, which means that you can experiment to improve your skills. The only limit is your imagination.
A cave containing over 200 paintings was discovered in the Wollemi National Park, Australia, eight years ago. Some of the paintings are at the least 3000 years old. What is even more surprising is that the cave was found by chance by someone walking in the area. However, the site of cave was so difficult to reach that it took a long time before researchers could visit it. The exact location of the site has to be kept secret. This is to prevent the cave from being visited by sightseers who do not realise how easy it is to damage the paintings. The paintings show people and animals, including birds, lizards and other Australia animals that can still be seen today. According to researchers, untill its recent discovery, nobody has visited the cave for around 200 years.
The Atacama Desert in Chile is... as the driest place on Earth. It is almost 1, kilometres in length, lying between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes mountains. Under a centimeter of rain falls annually, and the centre is so dry that scientists have never recorded any rain there. Over a million people actually live in the. Atacama today. Most live on the coast, which is also home to teams of astronomers who are there to those advantage of the clear skies. In the north, farmers grow tomatoes with have their farms on higher ground, the water comes from melting snow. People generally seem to lack knowledge about what the desert has to offer, but in fact, there is plenty to do – from seeing the amazing natural sights to playing golf, one of the more recent activities attracting tourists to the region.
Tom Cruise is one of the most successful actors in cinema history. However, life hasn’t always been that easy for him. As a young boy, Tom was shy and had difficulty in finding friends, although he really enjoyed taking part in school plays. After he had finished high school, Tom went to New York to look for work. He found employment as a poster, and at the same time he attented drama classes. In 1980, the film director Franco Zeffirelli offered Tom his first part in a film. Ten years later, he had become so successful that he was one of the highest- paid actors in Hollywood, earning millions of dollars for each film. Today, Tom still appears in films and is as popular as ever with his thousands of fans from all around the world.
People began to keep animals in zoos over 3,000 years ago, when the rulers of China opened an enormous zoo called Gardens of Intelligence. In many of the early zoos, animals were taught to perform for the visitors. This no longer happens and it is accepted that the purpose of zoos is for people to see animals behaving naturally. Today, most cities have a zoo or wildlife park. However, not everybody approves of zoos. People who think that zoos are a good idea say they provide us with the opportunity to learn about the natural world and be close to wild animals. Both of these would not be possible without zoos. On the other hand, some people disapprove of zoos because they believe it is wrong to put animals in cages, and argue that in zoos which are not managed properly, animals live in dirty conditions and eat unsuitable food.
The village of Jukkasjarvi is still Swedish Lapland, and winter temperatures there can reach -40° C. But 6,000 holiday makers still go there annually, to visit what is probably Europe’s most unusual accommodation. In this hotel you eat, drink, and sleep in rooms made of ice. If you want, you can even get married in one. The bar is ice too, and putting hot drinks on it is obviously not recommended! The bedrooms are around -4° C, but fortunately guests are provided with special sleeping bags that will keep them warm in the coldest of temperatures. suitable outdoor clothes can be supplied too, if needed. The hotel is never more than six months old because it melts in summer, and each winter it is rebuilt. Creating the hotel takes 10,000 tons of ice, plus 30. tonnes of snow.
Henry Ford was born on a farm in Michigan in 1863 but he did not like farming. When he was fifteen he began work as a mechanic and in 1893 he built his first car. After he had driven it 1, kilometers, he sold it and built two bigger cars. Then, in 1903, he started the Ford Motor Company. By using strong but light steel, he built cheap cars for ordinary people to buy. In 1908, he built the first Ford Model “T”, which sold for £
Grass is probably the most successful living plant in the world. There are over 9,000 different types of grasses and they are found in every region on the earth. They are the only flowering plants that can exist in the freezing environment of the Arctic and the Antarctic. Grasslands support a wide range of animal life, from tiny insects and birds to huge animals like cows and lions. All of them depend on grass in one way or another. Grass recovers very quickly after it is cut or damaged .Unlike other plants, the new leaves grow from below the soil, not from the top of the plant. That is why large families of animals are able to live together in one area. As soon as they have eaten all the grass there, a fresh meal is always available because the plants start to grow again.
Honey is a sweet liquid made by bees. It consists of water and sugars. Bees may travel as far as seventy-five thousand kilometres and visit over two million flowers to produce just half a kilo of honey. The colour and flavour of honey depend on the type of flower visited. In fact , there are more than three hundred varieties of honey. The lighter-coloured ones are generally milder in flavour than darker honey. In ancient times , honey was the main sweet food, as sugar was very rare Honey was of great value to the ancient Egyptians, who used it as payment. Today, honey is produced and eaten in every part of the world. Research suggests that it prevents tiredness and improves athletic performance. However, honey is not just food - it can be taken for sore throats and is used in many skin and hair-care products.
In the past, importance was not given to shoes being comfortable or fashionable. These early foot coverings were probably animal skins, which people tied round their ankles during cold weather We still use leather today, but other materials such as silk, plastic, or cotton are also popular, depending on what is in fashion. It was only one hundred and fifty years ago that people began to wear a different shoe on each. Formerly, the two shoes had been straight instead of shaped and could be worn on the left or the right foot. All shoes used to be made by hand, but now, although there are shoemakers still using their traditional skills, most shoes are now machine-made in large factories. The of sewing machines allowed the shoe industry to produce large quantities of cheaper shoes for a wider range of buyers.
San Francisco lies on the coast of northern California. The earliest Europeans to discover the area were led by a Spanish explorer whose name was Gaspar de Portola. He first saw it in 1769. Surprisingly, although San Francisco Bay is a wonderful natural harbour, it was discovered by land rather than by sea. In 1849, people arrived in San Francisco in their thousands hoping to find gold. However, it was not the men looking for the gold that got rich. The richest people made their money from owning banks and law firms and they built themselves large houses on one of the hills. This was known as Nob Hill. Nowadays, tourists are attracted to San Francisco because there they can see famous places like Chinatown and the Golden Gate Bridge. Many even take the short boat trip to the island of Alcatraz to see the former prison.
awful weather which closed the roads. With the invention of the telegraph in 1861, the demand for Pony Express disappeared. THE FIRST WOMAN SCIENTIST (2.1) Hypatia was born in Alexandria, in Egypt, in 370 A.D. For many centuries she was the only woman scientist to have a place in the history books. Hypatia’s father was a director of Alexandria university, and he made sure his daughter had the best education available. This was unusual, as the most woman then had few opportunities to study. After studying in Athens and Rome, Hypatia returned to Alexandria where she began teaching mathematics. She soon became famous from her knowledge of new ideas. We have no copies of her books, but we know that she wrote several important mathematical works. Hypatia was also interested in technology and invented several scientific tools to help with her work. At the time many rulers were afraid of science, and anyone connected with it was in danger. One day in March, 415, Hypatia was attacked in the street and killed. SAMUEL PEPYS (2.2) The most famous diary in English was written by Samuel Pepys. It gives a detailed and interesting description of everyday life in England between 1660 and 1669. Pepys writes about important news stories of the time, like disease, an enemy navy sailing up the river Thames, and the Great Fire of London. He also writes about himself, even about his faults he often slept during church or looked at the other people. He describes his home life – a quarrel with his wife and how they became friends again, his worry about her illness. As well as books, he liked music, the theatre, card games, and parties with good food and plenty of fun. Pepys was a busy man who had many important jobs - he was a Member of Parliament and President of the Royal Society. He is remembered for his work for the British Navy. THE ROCKIES The Rocky Mountains run almost the length of North America. They start in the North-west, but lie only a few hundred miles from the centre in more sourthern areas. Although the Rockies are smaller than the Alps, they are no less wonderfull. There are many roads across the Rockies, but the best way to see them is to travel by train. You start from Vancouver, the most attractive of Canada's big cities. Standing with its feet in water and its head in the mountains, this city allows its residents to ski on slopes just 15 minutes by car from the city centre. Thirty passenger trains a day used to set off from Vancouver on the cross- continent railway. Now there are just three a week, but the ride is still a great adventure. You sleep on board, which is fun, but travel therough some of the best scenery at night. CARTOON FILMS (2.4) Cartoon films have very few limits: If you can draw something, you can make it move on the cinema screen. The use of new ideas and advanced computer programs means that cartoons are becoming exciting again for people of all ages. By the end of the 1970s, the cinema world had decided that cartoons were only for children. But soon afterwards , one or two directors had some original new ideas. They proved that it was possible to make films in which both adults and children could share the fun. However, not every cartoon film was successful. The Black Cauldron, for example, failed, mainly because it was too frightening for children and too childish for adults. Directors learnt from this mistake , and the film companies began to make large amounts of money again.
By Megan William, aged 13 Last year my Dad got a new job. It was in a town which was 100 kms from our home. Mum and Dad decided we would have to move, because it was a long way for Dad to travel every day. When they told me about their plan I was upset because I loved my home and school. I was worried that I would miss all my friends and teachers a lot. Anyway, six months after that, my family moved to the town of Rexford. The house was much bigger than our old one, and from my bedroom window I could see the sea. I wasn't looking forward to the first day at my new school. I felt really nervous about meeting lots of new people. But when I got there everyone was great! My class teacher was nice and I made friends with two girls in my class. Moving home isn't that bad, after all!
Do you like honey? Honey is a natural product, and it is made by honey bees. It has a special sweet flavour, which some people prefer to ordinary sugar. Sometimes, it is even possible to know from the flavour what kind of flowers the bees visited before producing the honey. Have you ever wondered about how honey is produced? Beekeepers - people who look after bees - are very important in the making of honey. They let the bees in their care produce more honey than is needed. Then the honey can be removed without causing problems for the bees. Honey collection is an ancient activity, going back at least 10,000 years, and honey has become increasingly popular nowadays as a healthy food.
Did you know that cinema is more than 100 years old? Moving pictures were invented by the brothers Louis and Auguste Lumiere. The first showing of a moving picture or 'movie' took place in a cinema in Paris on 28th December 1895. On that day, the Lumiere brothers showed movies using their newly-invented machine, called the Cinematographe. The audience saw a funny film in which a gardener spilt a lot of water on himself by accident. Everyone really loved it! Cinema very quickly became popular all over the world. In 1907 the first film studios were built in a district of Los Angeles called Hollywood. By the 1920s, Hollywood had become the centre of the world film industry. To begin with, the movies had no sound. Words appeared on the screen from time to time to explain the story.
If you take a walk through Reykjavik- the capital of Iceland- this summer, you'll see groups of young people working in parks, gardens and green areas around the city. Most of these kids are in high school but they spend the summer keeping the city green as part of a program known as 'work school'. The 'work school' consists of a surprisingly large number of Reykjavik's teenagers. Roughly 75% of Reykjavik's 14-year-olds and 60% of the city's 16- year-olds take part. They get paid for their work, and at the same time they improve the environment of their city. They also learn how to work as a member of a team which is led by an adult. This experience provides them with
useful skills for when they leave education and enter the world of work.
When the Spanish explorer Cortez reached Mexico in the sixteenth century, he found the people there using a drink they called chocolate. It tasted quite strong because it had pepper in it. To make it taste better, the Spanish added sugar to it. When chocolate first came to Europe in the seventeenth century, people started to drink it with milk, instead of water. Nowadays, tones of chocolate and cocoa are delivered to factories, where they are turned into many popular sweets and cakes. Both chocolate and cocoa come from the fruit of the cacao tree. Cacao trees can only be grown in hot countries, as they need a warm climate. Cacao is an American plant, which still grows wild in the northern part of South America. Countries in Central and South America were the first to grow it, but today Africa supplies the world with the most chocolate.
James Cook sailed around the world in the late 18th century and became famous as an explorer. He first went to sea in