Ecology and Environment: NEB Class 12 English Notes

Ecology and Environment Exercise: Question Answers and Grammar

Working with words Section

A. The words/phrases in the box are from the text. Check their meanings in a dictionary and use these words to complete the given sentences.

a. Logging is one of the main reasons behind the rapid deforestation in the world.
b. That’s one example of how the pandemic should be a wake-up call.
c. Propane is a gas used as a fuel for cooking and heating.
d. Emergency teams are still clearing the debris from the plane crash.
e. What a transformation! You look great.
f. My father made a New Year resolution to give up smoking.
g. He has worked in the Army for two years. He hates that two-year detrimental.
h. Emissions from the factory are widely suspected of having a/an stint effect on health.
i. My father is an occasional smoker. He doesn’t smoke often.
j. Redwood is a very tall type of tree that grows especially in California and Oregan.

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B. Choose one word from each box to make sensible compound words.

Rattle : Rattlesnake
Sun : Sunflower
Touch : Touchdown
Moon : Moonlight
Day : Daydream
Fire : Fireworks
Water : Watermelon
Basket : Basketball
Pass : Passport
Wash : Washcloth
Weather : Weatherman
Grand : Grandmother
Cross : Crosswalk

C. Match the following words/phrases related to the ecology with their meanings.

Sustainability
to keep in existence; maintain. To supply with necessities or nourishment

Tree line
the height on a mountain above which the climate is too cold for trees to grow

Precipitation
water that returns to the earth as rain, hail, sleet, or snow

Tropical Zone
the region between latitudes 23.5 degrees S and 23.5 degrees N

Kyoto Protocol
an agreement between countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. It was established in Japan in 1997 but didn’t become international law until 2004

Pollutants
substances that destroy the purity of air, water, or land

Geosphere
the soils, sediments, and rock layers of the Earth’s crust, both continental and beneath the ocean floors

Deciduous
a plant that sheds all or nearly all its leaves each year

Ephemeral
an organism that has a short life cycle

Trash
items that are discarded
 

Comprehension Section

A. Choose the best answer.

a. The author of the text above has the opinion that Julia Hill made her pastime in a tree for two years more.

b. The sentence ‘Julia had occasional visitors’ indicates she had a few visitors now and then.

c. The logging company managed 24 hour security service around the tree to discourage her from her campaign.

d. Ms. Hill began to respond the loggers with songs and conventional conversations because she had unconditional love for all nature’s creations.

e. Julia Hill climbed down the tree after 738 days when her demands were about to be fulfilled.

B. Answer the following questions.

a. Who was Julia Butterfly Hill? How did Hill’s campaign gain popularity?

Julia Butter Jill was a person who spent more than two years living in a 200-foot-tall redwood tree to draw attention to the ongoing clearcutting of California's remaining redwood forests. Her campaign gained traction when she began to receive occasional visitors.

b. What made Hill start her mega campaign to save redwood trees?

When she arrived in the redwood forest, she was seized by the forest's spirit. When she saw the clearcutting of redwood trees, she fell to her knees and sobbed. She sat and cried for a long time before deciding to launch her massive campaign to save redwood trees.

c. What kinds of amenities were there to support Hill’s life in the tree?

Hill was prepared with a sleeping bag, a solar-powered cell phone for media interviews, and a single-burner propane stove to cook and heat water to sustain her life in the tree. She had few necessities and none at all.

d. Did Hill’s value of life change after her car accident? How?

Yes, Hill's perspective on life shifted following her car accident. She described the event as a wake-up call. Her primary focus prior to the accident had been work, but she later realized that the value of people is not in their stock portfolios and bank accounts, but in the legacies they leave behind.

e. Deforestation causes natural calamities. What evidence do you have in the text to prove this?

Yes, deforestation does cause natural disasters. According to the text, the cutting of redwoods destabilized the hillside, causing a mudslide that carried trees, stumps, and debris from the hillside down into town, displacing seven families.

f. How did the logging company try to discourage Hill in the early days of her sit-in?

In the early days of her sit-in, the logging company attempted to discourage Hill by hiring 24-hour security guards to harass her and ensure her support team couldn't deliver her supplies. A helicopter was hovering dangerously close to her. A nearby tree was felled, striking Luna's outer branches and nearly knocking Hill over. She was verbally abused, threatened with violence, rape, and death, and kept awake with floodlights and air horns all night.

g. How were the vagaries of nature unwelcoming to Hill?

Her problems were not limited to the logging company. One of her most terrifying experiences was a 16-hour, 70-mph windstorm that shredded the tarps that surrounded her and ripped large branches from the tree. Her hair stood straight up when lightning struck nearby during an electrical storm. Nature's whims were unwelcome to Hill in this way.

h. What is the purpose of the author to write a review on Hill’s book? Do you think the author stands for ecological sustainability? Give reasons.

The author's goal in writing a review of Hill's book is to bring attention to the issue of deforestation. He wants people to learn about deforestation and its negative effects through his review, and he wants people to know what they can do to avoid it. Yes, I believe the author supports ecological sustainability.

 

Writing Section

A. Write a review of a book/film which you have read/watched recently.

The Time Machine

1. Title of the Book: The Time Machine
2. Author of the Book: H.G. Wells
3. Country: United Kingdom
4. Language: English
5. First originally published by: William Heinemann, London in 1895.
6. Genre: Science Fiction Novel
7. Cost of the Book: Rs. 300
8. Name of the Publisher: Dover Publications
9. Edition and year of Copyright: April 3, 1995
10. No. of pages: 80
11. Writing style: Narrative
12. Characters: The Narrator-Hillyer, Eloi, Morlocks, Weena

13. Plot: The plot revolves around a Victorian scientist who claims to have invented a device that allows him to travel through time and visit the future, arriving in the year 802,701 in what was once London. The narrator recounts the Traveler's lecture to his weekly dinner guests, in which he explains that time is simply the fourth dimension and shows a tabletop model machine for traveling through it. He reveals that he has created a machine capable of transporting a person through time and returns the following week for dinner to tell a remarkable story, becoming the new narrator.

14. Summary: The Time Traveler is discussing his theory that time is the fourth dimension with a group of men, including the narrator. The Time Traveler creates a miniature time machine and vanishes into thin air. The guests return the following week to find their host stumbling in, disheveled and tired. After dinner, they sit down, and the Time Traveler begins his story.

15. My Impressions: The time traveler's machine is described in such hazy terms that it is difficult to believe it is a scientific instrument, and the time traveler's account is similarly hazy and bizarre. Because of the nature of time travel, he is only gone for a short period of time, and the only "proof" of his absence is a crunched-up flower. And, because the story is told in a twice-removed manner, the reader is left wondering whether any of the novels are true at all. Was the time traveler truly involved in such chronological shenanigans, and did he have the experiences he claims? Is he simply using a fictitious future to warn about the current state of society? But, in reality, neither the truth nor the journey is important: only the outcome is.

B. Your school is going to organize a speech competition on coming Friday. The subject of the speech is "Let’s save the trees and protect our environment." Draft a speech using the following prompts.

 Let’s Save the Trees and Protect Our Environment

Honorable Judges, esteemed teachers, and fellow students,

I stand before you today to address a very important issue that affects all of us - the need to save our trees and protect our environment. Trees are the lifeline of our planet. They not only provide us with oxygen but also help in maintaining the ecological balance by regulating the climate, preventing soil erosion, and supporting a wide variety of wildlife.

However, our planet is facing a crisis due to the rapid destruction of our forests. Every year, millions of hectares of forest land are cleared for agriculture, logging, and urbanization, which not only destroys the natural habitats of wildlife but also contributes to climate change.

It is, therefore, our responsibility as citizens to take action and do our part in protecting our environment. We can start by planting more trees in our communities and neighborhoods, supporting organizations that work towards the conservation of forests, and adopting eco-friendly practices in our daily lives.

We can reduce our carbon footprint by using public transport, walking or cycling instead of using cars, and by reducing our use of single-use plastics. We can also reduce waste by recycling, composting, and reducing our consumption of products that are harmful to the environment.

In conclusion, let us all take a pledge today to save our trees and protect our environment. Let us work together to create a greener, cleaner, and more sustainable planet for ourselves and future generations. Remember, we only have one planet, and it is our responsibility to protect it.

Thanks for your patient hearing!

 

Grammar Section

B. Someone says something to you which contradicts to what they told you earlier. Match the beginnings of the conversations with the correct endings.

a. I’m going to Pokhara on holiday.

You said you were going on business.

b. He’s a lawyer.

You told me he was a teacher.

c. She’s had a baby girl.

You said she’d had a boy.

d. I haven’t seen Binesh for ages.

You told me you’d seen him the previous week.

e. I love these new boots.

You said you hated them.

f. I only cheated in one exam.

You admitted you cheated in all your exams.

g. She doesn’t speak Hindi or Chinese.

You told me she was fluent in both.

h. He works in Kathmandu.

You told me his office was in Biratnagar.

C. Rewrite the following sentences with the sentence beginnings given below.

 a. The principal said, "You can phone from my office, Rita."

The principal said that she could phone them from his office.

b. "You must not neglect your duty," said the teacher to the student.

The teacher told the student that he/she must not neglect his/her duty.

c. The student said, "Sir, please, grant me a leave for two days."

The student requested to grant leave for two days.

d. I said to her, "Go to school or you will be fined."

She was told to go to school or she would be fined.

e. The headmaster said, "Don’t make any noise, boys."

The headmaster asked the boys not to make any noise.

f. "Work hard if you want to rise in life," said the old man.

The old man suggested working hard if they wanted to rise in life.

g. He said, "Goodbye, my friends!"

He said goodbye to his friends.

h. She said to me, "Have a pleasant journey ahead."

She told me to have a pleasant journey ahead.

i. "Don’t give me the book, please," Sharmila said.

Sharmila pleaded not to give her the book.

j. "Where have you been these days?" she spoke on the telephone.

He asked on the telephone where I had been those days.

k. The teacher said, "Have you submitted your assignments, students?"

The teacher asked students if they had submitted their assignments.

D. These are the exact words Dinesh said to you yesterday.

"I’ve just got engaged! We’re getting married next month. We’re going to Pokhara for our honeymoon. It’s all going to be very expensive. Luckily, my friend is a photographer so he’ll take the photos for us. We’ll be having the reception in my parents’ back garden. My mum is baking the cake for us and my sister’s band is playing free for us. I hope you’ll come to the wedding."

Now, you’re telling your friend what Dinesh told you. Complete the text.

He said he (1) had just got engaged. He told me that he (2) they were getting married next month. He told me (3) they were going to Pokhara for their honeymoon. He mentioned that it (4) was all going to be very expensive. He said that his friend (5) was a photographer and he (6) would take the photos for them. He mentioned that they (7) would be having the reception in his parents’ garden. He admitted that (8) his mum was baking the cake for them. He said his sister’s band (9) was playing free for them. He said he (10) hoped I’d come to the wedding.