Unit 14
A.
How many of us used to dream of joining the circus when we were children? Well, Chris Sayers, a trapeze artist at Zippo’s Circus, did just that. It took him ten years of training before he felt confident enough to perform six metres above the ground. Since then he has become one of the few people in the world who can do four somersaults one after the other.
There are many risks involved in this job. Trapeze artists need to work with a partner they can depend on. When flying through the air at 60 mph, they have to be sure their partner will catch them. “Many times in the past, if I hadn’t had a partner I could trust, I would have fallen and probably hurt myself seriously,” says Chris.
People who work in the circus love the risks and the thrill of their profession. Broken bones are part of the job. “I just wish they didn’t take so long to mend,” Chris explains. He earns $500 per week, but it is certainly not easy money.
B.
There are only two hundred combat soldiers in the British Army who can parachute into the sea, dive for hours in freezing waters and then spy in enemy territory successfully. James Rennie is one of them. This isn’t his real name because his own identity has to be kept secret. “It’s a very exciting job, but it’s also tough and dangerous. You have to be courageous,” says James. It takes five long years of training before such a soldier can go on a special mission. According to James, the toughest part of the business is spying. “I’ve been on a lot of missions that involve this kind of work. If the enemy had caught us, they would have killed us.” $45000 per year might sound a lot, but few people would risk their lives for less.
C.
Most patients are thankful for the care they get from their doctors, but when it comes to animals it’s a different story. Every vet knows that animals are much more likely to turn round and bite rather than thank them. Steve Divers is an experienced vet and has been bitten by countless cats and dogs. With more dangerous animals, he takes special care. For example, with poisonous snakes, he keeps them in a cloth bag, and uses a metal instrument to keep the head down and the teeth away from his hands. “If I didn’t know how to handle some animals, I would probably have permanent scars by now,” Steve says. Although it takes many years of study to become a vet, it is a very rewarding and well-paid career. “All animals in need must be treated. I would never ignore a sick animal, even if it was dangerous to kill me,” says Steve.
Grammar:
1)If Past Simple + Future Simple in Past (would+V)
If we had a car we would drive to Ulaanbaatar. (We don’t have a car)
If Past Perfect + Future Perfect in Past (would + have + Participle II)
If you had followed my directions you would have found the house. (criticism. You didn’t find.)
2) wish + Past Simple. I wish I knew his phone number. (I don’t know)
Wish + Past Perfect. I wish I had called him. (I didn’t call)Imagine this scene: a woman inside a cage in the sea, with sharks all around her. Wouldn’t you expect the woman to feel terrified? Not Gill Williams – she finds such experiences absolutely thrilling. Gill is an “extreme” spots woman – an adventurer who takes sport to its most dangerous limits.
“I love scary animals”, says Gill. “I love being near them and touching them. Great white sharks come and attack the bars of the cage. I touch them, bite me!” There are more people like Gill than you might think. They leave their offices and businesses to spend their free time doing extremely dangerous things. Some of them fly jets across deserts or go diving in unexplored caves, while others explore African rivers. All of them want to experience something more than their normal lives can offer. They want adventure.
Bob Card is a skydiving trainer. He teaches people to leap out of aeroplanes and let themselves fall through the air without opening their parachutes until the very last minute.
“I believe there is an adventurer inside every one of us,” he says. “If doesn’t matter how old or strong you are. The adventurer is there – it’s just hidden away somewhere. If you find that spirit, your life will take on new meaning.”
One advantage of doing extreme sports to satisfy your need for adventure is that you can completely forget about your everyday problems. As Bob Says: “You can’t be concerned about business phone calls or examination results when you’re jumping out of a plane.”
How much danger can person take? According to Sandra Quiggen, panic is rare, even when you come face with a bad – tempered hippopotamus on the Zambezi River. “You get scared,” she says. “Those hippos have big teeth. But a little fear makes the brain work faster, as long as you don’t let it turn into panic.”
There is an element of risk in all extreme sports. “If you don’t do things right, you are asking for trouble,” says Card. But training and proper equipment help to make these sports safer. The difference between extreme sport and “normal” sport is that, although there are organized competitions for these sports, most extreme sports people are more interested in testing their own abilities than in winning prizes. In fact, most of them would agree with mountaineer Sir Edmund Hilary’s reply when asked why he wanted to climb Everest: “Because it’s there.”
The Viking had tied a weight around the professor’s legs, and he sank quickly into the water. He didn’t feel the cold; he didn’t feel anything. The water was black, and he could feel himself being pulled down. Then the weight broke off, and the ropes around his arms and his arms and legs came free. The years was 1666. A horrible plague had killed 75.000 people in London, and now their city was burning . Everyone thought that they were cursed. Once he was our of the river, James saw some people passing buckets of water from one person to the next trying to put out the fire. He decided to help them . He also told them that the city would be rebuilt in a bigger and better way.
“How do you know al this ?” one man asked suspiciously.
“Perhaps he’s a Dutch spy,” another said.
“Maybe he’s the one who started the fire,” the first man added.
England was at war with the Dutch , and many people thought that they had set London on fire . The people dropped their buckets and began chasing the professor.
He ran through the streets of London with the angry crowed chasing after him and buildings burning all around. He ran into a dead-end street. There was a wall in front of him. All he could do was waited for the crowd to close in on him.
They dragged James to the palace. The professor also saw Chistopher Wren, the famous architect who would rebuild most of the churches in London, and he was amazed at the historical significance of the moment. It almost made him forget the trouble he was in
The charges against James were read out of the king, accusing him of being a spy and the possible cause of the fire.
“Even if I told you the truth ” he said , “you wouldn’t believe me”
The king told him he would be sent to the Tower if he did not answer the charges. James didn’t think they would believe him, but he told them it was the King’s baker who had started the fire by accident and that it had spread because of the wind and because all the buildings were made of wood. Everyone listened with interested. King asked him how he knew this.
“I’m from the 21st century. I’ve sent here by mistake,” she said.
Everyone began to laugh. The King was furious. He thought the professor was treating him like a fool.
When they placed his head on the block, James hoped that he would be saved again from death, but he didn’t feel sure.
His heart beat wildly and his mind raced.
“I just want to get back to the 21st century,” he said.
Then he heart a thud as the as the axe hit the block.
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