| quate Inter-Curriculay Ling, | Feathered Friend a ina space station Read a science fiction about a small canary whose existence in 2 SP helped save lives, }# To the best of my knowledge, there’s never bet sa keep pets in a space station. No one ever thought it was neces: ve a rule existed, | am quite certain that Sven Olsen would have ign 2 i ix-foot-six Nordic? gi . With a name like that, you will picture Sven at once as a six-foot-six Slant, built like a bull and with a voice to match. Had this been so, his chances of getting a job in like most of the space would have been very slim. Actually he was a wiry little fellow, aera early spacers, and managed to qualify easily for the 150-pound bonus” that kept so en a regulation? that forbids one ty ry—and even had Such many of us on a reducing diet. Sven was one of our best construction men, and excelled at the tricky and specialize work of collecting assorted girders as they floated around in free fall, making them do the slow-motion, three-dimensional ballet that would get them into their right Positions, and fusing the pieces together when they were precisely dovetailed into the intended Pattern: it was a skilled and difficult job, for a spacesuit is not the most convenient of garbs in which to work. However, Sven’s team had one great advantage over the construction gangs you see putting up skyscrapers down on Earth. They could step back and admire their handiwork without being abruptly parted from it by gravity ... Don’t ask me why Sven wanted a pet, or why he chose the one he did. I’m not a psychologist, but | must admit that his selection was very sensible.re ne | Claribel weighed practically nothing, her food requirements were tiny—and she was not worried, as most animals would have been, by the absence of gravity. [first became aware that Claribel was aboard when | was sitting in the little cubbyhole laughingly called my office, checking through my lists of technical stores to decide what items we'd be running out of next. When | heard the musical whistle beside my ear, jassumed that it had come over the station intercom, and waited for an announcement to follow. It didn’t; instead, there was a long and involved pattern of melody that made me look up with such a start that | forgot all about the angle beam just behind my head. When the stars had ceased to explode before my eyes, | had my first view of Claribel. She was a small yellow canary, hanging in’ the air as motionless as a hummingbird—and with much less effort, for her wings were quietly folded along her sides. We stared at each other for a minute; then, before I had quite recovered my wits, she did a curious kind of backward loop I’m sure no earthbound canary had ever managed, and departed with a few leisurely flicks. It was quite obvious that she’d already learned how to operate in the absence of gravity, and did not believe in doing unnecessary work. Sven didn’t confess to her ownership for several days, and by that time it no longer mattered, because Claribel was a general pet. He had smuggled her up on the last ferry from Earth, when he came back from leave—partly, he claimed, out of sheer scientific curiosity. He wanted to see just how a bird would operate when it had no weight but. could still use its wings. Claribel thrived and grew fat. On the whole, we had little trouble concealing our guest when VIPs from Earth came visiting. A space station has more hiding places than you can count; the only problem was that Claribel got rather noisy when she was upset, and we sometimes had to think fast to explain the curious peeps and whistles that came from ventilating shafts and storage bulkheads. There were a couple of narrow escapes—but then who would dream of looking for a canary in a space station? We were now on twelve-hour watches, which was not as bad as it sounds, since you need little sleep in space. Though of course there is no ‘day’ and ‘night’ when you arefloating in permanent sunlight, it was still convenient to stick to the terms. Certainly when | woke that ‘morning’ it felt like 6:00 a.m. on Earth. | had a nagging headache, ang vague memories of fitful, disturbed dreams. It took me ages to undo my bunk straps, and | was still only half awake when | joined the remainder of the duty crew in the mess, Breakfast was unusually quiet, and there was one seat vacant. “Where's Sven?” | asked, not very much caring. “He's looking for Claribel,” someone answered. “Says he can’t find her anywhere. She usually wakes him up.” Before | could retort that she usually woke me up, too, Sven came in through the doorway, and we could see at once that something was wrong. He slowly opened his hand, and there lay a tiny bundle of yellow feathers, with two clenched claws sticking pathetically up into the air. “What happened?” we asked, all equally distressed. “I don’t know,” said Sven mournfully. “I just found her like this.” “Let's have a look at her,” said Jock Duncan, our cook-doctor-dietician. We all waited in hushed silence while he held Claribel against his ear in an attempt to detect any heartbeat, Presently he shook his head. “I can’t hear anything, but that doesn’t prove she’s dead. I’ve never listened to acanary’s heart,” he added rather apologetically. “Give her a shot of oxygen,” suggested somebody, pointing to the green- banded emergency cylinder in its recess beside the door. Everyone agreed that this was an excellent idea, and Claribel was tucked snugly into a face mask that was large enough to serve as a complete oxygen tent for her.delighted i ; to our detig! surprise, she revived at once, Beaming broadly, Sven removed the ind she ho is fi ashe aa _th ped onto his finger. She gave her series of ‘Come to the cookhouse, poys’ trills—then promptly keeled over again. | ’t get it,” li ” FF don’t B lamented Sven. “What 's wrong with her? She’s never done this before.” | for the last few minutes, something had been tugging at my memory. My mind seemed to be very sluggish that morning, as if | was still unable to cast off the burden of sleep. [felt that | could do with some of that oxygen—but before | could reach the mask, understanding exploded in my brain. | whirled on the duty engineer and said urgently: «jim! There’s something wrong with the air! That’s why Claribel’s passed out. I've just remembered that miners used to carry canaries down to warn them of gas.” “Nonsense! said Jim. “The alarms would have gone off. We’ve got duplicate circuits, operating independently.” “Er—the second alarm circuit isn’t connected up yet.” His assistant reminded him. That shook Jim; he left without a word, while we stood arguing and passing the oxygen bottle around like a pipe of peace. He came back ten minutes later with a sheepish expression. It was one of those accidents that couldn’t possibly happen; we'd had one of our rare eclipses by Earth’s shadow that night: Part of the air purifier had frozen up, and the single alarm in the circuit had failed to go off. Half a million dollars’ worth of chemical and electronic engineering had let us down completely. Without Claribel, we should soon have been slightly dead. So now, if you visit any space station, don’t be surprised if you hear an inexplicable snatch of birdsong. There's no need to be alarmed; on the contrary, in fact. It will mean that you’re being doubly safeguarded, at practically no extra expense. Arthur C. Clarke Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (1977-2008) vas a British science fiction writer science writer and e 6 futurist Inventor, undersea explorer, and fetevision series host, n R61, he was warded the Kalinga SS Prige, an award wich s glven by UNESCO for popularizing science, 10 ‘the 1980s, Clarke became | tel noun to many for his flevsion programmes Aritur C Clarke ‘s Hysterlous World, Arthur C. vvarke's World of Strange Powersand Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious Universee Reading 1 1. On the basis Of your understanding of the text, tick the best answer. 3. lam quite certain that Sven Olsen would have ignored it. What is ‘it’ here? i, the canary bird ii, the guidelines iii, the space station iv. the trip to space b. What could have reduced the chances of Sven getting a job in space? i. breaking rules ii. his love for animals iii, his excessive body weight iv. all of the above ¢. Why did Claribel grow fat? i. because she ate too much ii, because of the temperature in the cabin because of the different kind of food iv. because of lack of exercise 2. Think of the events in the story. Complete the table with the causes and effects of these events. a. ... but | must admit that his selection was very sensible : She was a small yellow canary, hanging in the air as motionless as a hummingbird. Claribel thrived and grew fat. 'had a nagging headache, and vague ; Memories of fitful, disturbed dreams. “I just found her like this.3, Why did Sven keep the bird a secret from his colleagues? 4, How was the presence of the bird discovered? ‘ oa crew want to hide the bird from the VIPs from Earth? How did they deal with e ii 6 What was the alarm meant for? What had caused its failure? 7. Howis life in space different from life on Earth? @keading 2 ay 1, Did Sven do the right thing by getting a bird into the spaceship? Why do you think so? ® 2, Based on your reading, justify the title of the story. 3. What, according to you, is a better choice—carrying a canary or an alarm system? Why do you think so? 4, Who saved the lives on board: Sven or the canary? Why do you think so? e Vocabulary Fill in the blanks with correct words from the story. 1. Twas . When | learnt my father was not well. a. pathetic b. distressed c. mournful d. sluggish 2. My sister is logical; she approaches every problem very .... : a. concealingly —_b. apologetically c. mournfully d. practically 3. We were surprised when Sanya turned and left the room. a. abruptly b. forbiddingly c. concealingly d. pathetically 4, The lost child wept... a. forbiddingly _b. pathetically c. practically d. humourously 5. . the death of my pet. a. forbid b. smuggled c. lamented d. distressed 6. The baby was sleeping in his crib. a. abruptly b. snugly mournfully d. concealingly 7. Idislike delays; hence respond .. a. promptly b. leisurely c. abruptly d. practically 8. The law of the land . discrimination on the basis of race. a. conceals b. laments c. forbids d. mournse Writing & &e © Article been test ed on ac rt this has ncesen ave always subject to a hie! legree of Historically, new products and in are Conan s time anima been a controversial issue because most of the harmful effect of hee camecice abuse and torture, Often animals die due to the ries have only Been Possible ines an cannot be denied that many groundbreaking medicin' article of about 150 words , Write an because they were successfully tested on animals. expressing your views on the subject. Remember, an article should contain: sie el * atitle that is eye-catching and encapsulates the tl ventions hi * abyline «content that is clear, accurate, offers @ balanced view © Paragraphs that 1. introduce the theme. 2. bring out the cause—effect relat! nal observations, jonship. predictions. 3. offer suggestions, perso @ Speaking @ &@ Panel discussion The technology revolution ife-changing technology. These include self-driving cars, touchscreen android, The last decade has seen the invention of li GPS, social networking platforms, robot delivery services, technology, etc. ged life in the last 10 years. You could In small groups discuss how technology has chan; al advancements that you use each day but your parents or compare the technologic grandparents did not have. You can talk about the following: What are the three recent inventions that you feel you coul Do you think that there are inventions that have made life worse or humans lazier? Whe fc) ld not live without? are they and how have they negatively impacted life? Are there any gadgets that you feel, if invented, could make life easier for you? What de you think the next biggest technological revolution will be? Discuss new technologies that can be used in schools. Present your views to the class in the form of a panel discussion.yr = os, Hae” lCUCUC Uh ee ee @listening Go Listen to an extract about animals tl the best option for the following. hat have travelled to space. Then choose the 4, Animals were sent to space to study... a. ifrockets were safe b, if they could live without air c. the effects of weightlessness 2, Astronauts used saa in space for their study. a, mammals b, insects c. botha. and b. 3, The United States sent ..as the first animals into space. a, monkeys b. dogs c. fruit flies 4, Albert Il was a... a. monkey b. dog c. tortoise 5. Laika was selected to be sent into space because . a. it was sturdy enough to survive in harsh environments b. it was good-natured c. botha. and b. 6. Laika died because ... a. its life-support system failed b. the satellite caught fire ¢, the satellite fell down to EarthSection 3 The Choice 4 OIC id | ™ = & 2 They were landing and the g reat thrust pence eg ly cassis Pressed like magnetism! on their bodies. IN 2meteorite alee Outer space thy i A y len on Eartl The great ship hovered then slow Yt | has fallen o : \ 4s / SN rm , : & Dropped on meadow grass, Starglyn, the captain, stared At the green landscape. a Between two hills a deserted city, oe The Scanning Screen. The dials \\ On a Blue Screen indicated No human life present. Suncon, the Celestial Geologist, | Smiled over his captain’s shoulder| ‘You were right,’ said Starglyn. What was your main source of inf rmation?” ‘The great meteorite? which broke From Earth in 2048 AD | | We took it to station Z | And examined it. It told us everythin ‘What?’ asked Starglyn. L Ze ‘They were allowed to choose. & Between good and.er> @ Poem appreciation 4, on the basis of your understanding of the poem, tick the most appropriate option. a, The poem is about i, analien invasion, li, preserving resources. ii, inventions and innovations, iv. all of the above b. Starglyn and Suncon were i, scientists who invented the spacecraft. ii, aliens who came to study the Earth’s crust iii. conquerors of Earth. iv. residents of the crumbling city. c. The tone of the poem is i. happy. ili, instructional. ii, satirical. ie iv. cautionary. 2. Answer the following questions. a. Where did the spacecraft land? b. Why were the aliens there? c. Why was the Earth without any human trace? d. They were allowed to choose ... i, Who is ‘they’ here? ii. What was the choice that ‘they’ made? iii, What was the consequence of the choice? e. What does ‘good and evil’ refer to in the poem? 3. Starglyn calls people ‘fools’. Why does he do so? Do you agree/disagree with him? 4, What is the message that the poet wants to give? Do you think he does that effectively? 8 5. According to you, are humans foolish or ambitious? Give two reasons. ® ' STEM connect-sci-stop &e . ‘ The poem you read talks about how humanity could bring about its doom if it continues to t ignore the effects of its actions and inaction on nature. Look up the Net and research how \ humanity is at peril if it continues with its indiscriminate behaviour. Record your findings, and ‘ have a discussion in class about what you as students can do about it. ! ' ' ‘ 1 ‘ ' ‘ \