UNIT 8 Inventions and Discoveries

Notice that in this grammar (the past unreal conditional), we are going to use the past
perfect (had + past participle) in the if clause, but in the result clasuse we´re using
would / could + have + past participle. When we start the sentence with IF, we have to
place a comma before the other clause. When the IF clause is written after the result
clause, we don´t need a comma.
Ex.
If I had listened to my mother, I would have accepted the job. (It means I didn´t listen
to my mother)
I would have accepted the job if I had listened to my mother.

A) Understand the grammar

1) a I went to class.
2) We got lost.
3) They didn’t lose this year’s crop.
4) They canceled the flight.
B) Grammar practice.
1) What would you have done if you had missed the train?
2) We couldn’t have had this digital video conference if an Internet connection
hadn’t been available.
3) If our huge old camcorder hadn’t broken , we wouldn’t have bought this
smaller one
4) If she hadn’t taken her smart phone, she wouldn’t have known they canceled
her flight.
5) If they hadn’t had good weather, they couldn’t have landed in Alaska this
morning.
6) If the weather had been better, we would have gone to the beach.

1) If I had seen the post later, I would not have bought that car.
2) If I hadn't forgotten about the windows, the furniture wouldn't have been
damaged.
3) if i had gone to morton street mall i would have gotten everything for half price
4) If I had noticed before taking the repellent I would not have bought it
the only one of its kind unique

pretty silly wacky

doesn’t use modern technology low-tech

uses modern technology high-tech

doesn’t waste time, money, or energy efficient

wastes time, money, or energy inefficient

 A) LISTEN TO DRAW CONCLUSIONS
THE ROBO-TILLER (4)
THE ALL BODY UMBRELLA (3)
THE PET EXIT (1)
THE VAC-BOT (2)

B) LISTEN TO SUMMARIZE
1) The cats woke her up three times last night.
2) The floor is dirty, and they have one hour to clean up.
3) Cars splashed water on her skirt.
4) He has to get the soil ready for the tomatoes, and he has a lot of work to do in the
home.
 A) Listen to people talking about new products. Match the name of each product with the
best adjective to describe it.

Name of product Adjective

d 1 The Ultraphone a. top-of-the-line

c 2 Dinner-from- b. distance b unique

b 3 Kinder-TV c. efficient
a 4 Ten Years Off d. cutting-edge

B) Check the statement that is true for each situation.

1) We wouldn’t have gotten lost if we had remembered to bring our portable
GPS device.
We brought it, and we got lost.
We brought it, and we didn’t get lost.
We didn’t bring it, and we got lost. ✓
We didn’t bring it, and we didn’t get lost
 2) If the salesclerk were here, she would explain how the Omni works.
The salesclerk is here, so she will explain how the Omni works.
The salesclerk is here, but she won’t explain how the Omni works.
The salesclerk isn’t here, but she will explain how the Omni works.

The salesclerk isn’t here, so she won’t explain how the Omni works. ✓

3) If Ron had brought the Ultraphone with him, he would have already sent
those e-mails.
Ron brought the Ultraphone, and he has already sent those e-mails.
Ron brought the Ultraphone, but he hasn’t sent those e-mails yet.
Ron didn’t bring the Ultraphone, but he has already sent those e-mails.

Ron didn’t bring the Ultraphone, so he hasn’t sent those e-mails yet. ✓

C) Complete each conditional sentence with your own ideas.

1 If the computer hadn’t been invented, . I wouldn’t have been able to book my vacation
online

2 If I had to decide what the most important scientific discovery in history was, I would
say it was penicillin

3 If most people cared about the environment, . there wouldn’t be so much pollution
4 Would new cars be less expensive if ? CEOs of car companies were paid less
5 If Ella had known that being a teacher was so hard, ? she would have chosen a different
career