EENNGGLLIISSHH DDIIGGEESSTTMODERNEENNGGLLIISSHH DDIIGGEESSTTTHE MAGAZINE HELPING STUDENTS LEARN ENGLISH

Vol 5 / Issue 4 £4.25

Plus:Avebury Stone CircleFun with NumbersTanzanite

AlchemyViennese Waltz

Pirate Queen

Rachel WeiszRachel Weisz

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abb – abbreviation, adj – adjective, adv – adverb, coll – colloquial, i – idiom,n – noun, np – noun phrase, ph.v – phrasal verb, prep – preposition,

pron – pronoun, q – question word, v – verb

Your guide to the graded English used in Modern English Digest

We have packed this latest issue of Modern English Digest with a wide rangeof features that make learning English interesting and fun! All the articles inthis magazine are carefully written in graded English to cater forelementary and intermediate level students of English.

We have a partnership with Macmillan Education. Each issue of the magazinefeatures an extract from Macmillan Education’s award-winning series ofsimplified readers.

The magazine has a great mix of interesting articles that help improvevocabulary and understanding in cultural and work-specific context. Please writein with your comments and visit our website www.ModernEnglishDigest.net.

Key to glossaryIE

• Simple passive forms• Infinitives of purpose: to, in order to• Modals – could (ability), can (permission)• Present perfect• -ing verb form after like, enjoy• be interested in• used to & wanted to + verb• Defining relative clauses• Modal will with future reference• Conditional sentences (1 & 2)• Present Progressive with future reference

• Comparative and superlative of adjectives• Reported commands in the past• Adverbs of frequency and manner• Constructions with it and until• Indefinite pronouns: everyone, everybody, etc.• had better, would rather• Phrasal verbs• Reported speech• say and tell• Verb -ing as subject or object• Conjunctions: although, so, but, because

• Modal should + Passive Perfect• Past Passive• Modal could, may, might + Perfect Progressive• Present Perfect Progressive• Future Perfect• Should have + Past Participle• Needn’t have + Past Participle• Relative clauses, defining and non-defining• Which, whose• Adjective as noun• Subordinators: wherever, whenever

• Reflexive pronouns• Be supposed to, be likely to + verb• Double object verbs• As if + clause• Participial phrases• Modal will, could, should + Passive infinitive• Phrasal verbs with give, come + in the Passive• Indirect commands• Indirect questions with if and wh- questions• Modal could + Perfect Conditional with Past• Perfect (Third Conditional)

IInntteerrmmeeddiiaattee I

EElleemmeennttaarryy E

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LIFESTYLE

●I 12 Life is Abundant

●E 14 Revving Up For a Row

●I 23 Fun with Numbers

●E 26 The Rarest Gemstone in theWorld

●I 29 Punch and Judy – That’s the WayTo Do It!

●E 36 Elegant Entertaining

●I 38 Ice Houses

●I 42 Covered Bridges in MadisonCounty

●E 50 Dogs and Cats

BUSINESS

●I 52 Carbon Reduction – An InevitableBusiness Requirement For Yearsto Come

ACTIVITIES

●E 56 Fresh Minds – Paper Penguin

●I 58 Just for Fun

●E 60 Find a Word – Alchemy,Philosophy & Magic

●E 61 Know the Issue

63 Just for Fun – answers

FEATURES

4 ●I

In Search of theAlchemists

8 ●E

Viennese Waltz

16 ●I

The Pirate Queen

20 ●I

Avebury Stone Circle

32 ●E

Rachel Weisz46 ●E

The Lost WorldBy Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, retold by Anne

Collins published by Macmillan Education

3

Photo by Kazden / Rex Features

Rachel Weisz: page 32IntermediateElementaryE I

CONTENTSCONTENTS

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FEATURE

In Search of theAlchemists

BY JOE ST CLAIR

Today the chemical industry is bigbusiness. Huge pharmaceuticalcompanies pour billions of pounds

into drugs research for hospitals andclinics the world over. Globalpetrochemical giants like Shell and BPown huge research laboratories.Universities and scientific foundationsalso explore the way chemicals react tofind out more about the nature of life. Weare now so used to the fact that“chemicals” are an integral part of ourprocessed foods, cleaning products andtransport that we tend to take them forgranted. How things have changed!

Only a few hundred years agoEuropean cultures lacked the conceptsfor “chemicals” or “chemistry”. Therewas no tradition of scientific research inthese cultures. People who experimentedwith the ways in which differentsubstances reacted with each otherfound themselves accused of blasphemyor witchcraft. Trying to change the natureof a thing seemed to go against the God-given order of the world. The penalty forthis crime was often death. Despite thisrisk, however, many educated thinkers

continued to try to discover the secrets ofnature by experimenting with the rawmaterials of the landscape. Their goalwas to discover why natural thingsbehave in the way that they do. Theircontemporaries called this kind ofthinking “alchemy” and viewed all“alchemists” with deep suspicion.

The origins of alchemy are shroudedin mystery. Some historians suggest thestudy of alchemy first emerged in ancientEgypt where the word “khem” was usedto describe the fertile flood plains aroundthe Nile. The ancient Egyptians believed itwas important to preserve a deadperson’s body as a way to ensure themsafe passage to the afterlife. TheEgyptians studied ways to use chemicalsto help embalm and preserve a body afterdeath. This knowledge gave a great dealof power to the priests who kept theprocess secret and wrapped up inmystery.

In 332 BC, Alexander the Greatconquered Egypt. Greek scholars andphilosophers followed Alexander’s armyinto the land they knew as “Khemia”. TheGreeks were determined to discover as

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much as they could about the secretknowledge of the land of the pharaohs. Atthis time, the Greeks believed that allmatter is made up of some proportion ofthe four elements of nature – air, earth,fire and water. The Greek scholars inEgypt merged this concept with theknowledge they found around embalmingand preserving bodies. So the idea ofEgypt as Khemia, became completelylinked to the idea of the mysterious andsacred science of “khemia”. This mix ofideas in the word “Khemia” lasted for thenext thousand years until the Arabs cameinto Egypt in the 7th Century. The Arabsadded the prefix “al” to the word“khemia” to describe Egypt as “the BlackLand”. And it is from this Arabic wordthat the modern English alchemy derives.

The great library in Alexandria wasthe most important centre for alchemical

knowledge in the ancient world. Sadly,most of this knowledge went up in flameswhen the library burned down in 391. Butthe art of alchemy flourished in otherparts of the Greek world. Hermes, themessenger of the gods in ancient Greekmythology, is also known as the Father ofAlchemy. Hermes gave his name to the“Hermetica”, a body of secret wisdomthat legend says the messenger godpassed down to human beings. The mostimportant Hermetic text is called the“Emerald Tablet” after the jewel on whichthe stories say Hermes wrote down thekey secrets that humankind needed toknow.

However, the Egyptians and Greekswere not the only peoples in the ancientworld to be interested in the physicalproperties of nature itself. Taoist monks inChina in particular paid a great deal of

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attention to what they called the “outerelixir” and “inner elixir” of life. In theTaoist tradition the “outer elixir”describes the study of the physicalproperties of minerals and plants. The“inner elixir” describes the use ofexercise techniques, such as yoga,meditation and various martial arts tobring the mind into harmony with the“chi” or inner life force of the body. InIndia, many spiritual traditions also linkthe idea of using gifts from nature as away of purifying the body to live in closerharmony with nature and the world. InIndia, however, alchemists also brought avery practical side to their studies. Theyinvented steel and noted the differentflame colours associated with theprocessing of different metals. So it issafe to say that Ancient China is theproper birthplace of the modern sciencewe now know as chemistry!

The European notions of alchemy firstemerged in the 8th century when theArabs occupied much of Spain. The Arab

civilisation in Andalusia was one of therichest and most intellectual in the worldat that time. The ideas around alchemyspread out along the trade routes fromAndalusia to the rest of Europe. The basicprinciple of European alchemy was thatmercury and sulphur came together indifferent proportions to make up all thedifferent kinds of metal in the world. Thisincluded gold, which alchemists believedto be the most pure and perfect metal.Many alchemists believed they couldchange less pure metals into gold bychanging the proportion of mercury orsulphur in their make up. This gave rise tothe myth of the “Philosopher’s Stone” –the name given to the secret substancethat helped change the balance ofmercury and sulphur in any metal. Giventhis magical property, it is not surprisingthat many people also believed that thePhilosopher’s Stone could help givepeople immortal life. While no one hasever found any scientific basis forbelieving a Philosopher’s Stone couldexist, popular stories about its amazingproperties persist to this day. The firstHarry Potter book included thePhilosopher’s Stone in its title. But,interestingly, the characters in that bookcome to realise that love is the mostpowerful, mysterious and mysticalelement in nature – and far greater in itsimpact and importance than anythingoffered by any branch of science,alchemy, art or magic.

Throughout Europe, and in particularin places like Prague and Paris, theexperiments of the alchemists of theMiddle Ages led to huge advances in theunderstanding of chemical processes.

The basic principle ofEuropean alchemy wasthat mercury andsulphur came togetherin different proportionsto make up all thedifferent kinds of metalin the world.

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The alchemists’ early experiments laiddown the rudiments for the rigorouspractice of scientific research that wetake for granted today. Modern chemistsowe a debt of thanks to those alchemistswhose names have survived in recordedhistory. In this roll call of early scientificresearchers we can call the followingnames to honour.

Zosimus (ca 250 AD) was an Egyptianborn Greek Alchemist who believed thatall substances are composed of the fourelements of nature – fire, water, air andearth. He collected together all theknowledge on Khemia, as it was thenknown, and compiled a 28 volumeencyclopaedia. It is thanks to Zosimusthat we know so much aboutEgyptian/Greek Alchemy today.

Geber (721 – 815 AD) was an ArabianAlchemist who lived in what we nowknow as Iraq. Geber discovered theprocess to distil strong acetic acid fromvinegar. Geber is one of the earliest andmost influential thinkers on the role ofexistence of the Philosopher’s Stone.

Abertus Magnus (1200 – 1280 AD)was a German monk and practisingalchemist. He is the first person todescribe arsenic in its pure form.Albertus Magnus was the teacher ofThomas Aquinas who went on to writesome of the most important philosophical

thinking of the Christian church. Another very famous alchemist, the

Swiss born Paracelsus (1493 – 1541 AD)invented the word “alcohol” which hederived from the Arabic “al-kohl”.Paracelsus focused his studies inalchemy on ways to promote health andcure disease.

One of the last great alchemists wasthe English scientist Isaac Newton (1642– 1727 AD). Admired for his work onphysics and maths which are celebratedas keys to the thinking of the so-called“age of reason”, Newton is also famouslydescribed as “the last of the magicians”.From existing documents from Newton’stime historians now know that alchemywas the inspiration for his work on lightand gravity.

The great scientists of the modernworld say that the physical nature of theuniverse cannot be separated from theprinciple of life of which all humankind isa part. So perhaps Harry Potter has got itright. The amazing “magicians” and“wizards” of folklore and modern mythactually owe their place in the popularimagination to those real men and womenwhose passion to tame wild nature andchange raw matter into products helpfulto life have given rise to the everydaymiracles of modern science we todaytake so completely for granted. ✪

Foundation (n) an organisation. Integral (adj) an essential and critical (part of something).Blasphemy (n) something that is offensive to God or religion.

Philosopher (n) someone who studies the meaning of life, knowledge and beliefs.Legend (n) an old, famous story about the past which is usually not factual.

Meditation (n) quiet and relaxing thoughts. Immortal (adj) living or existing forever.Rudiments (n) basic or essential skills and facts.

Influential (adj) able to influence and effect the way people think or behave.

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FEATURE

Viennese WaltzBY SARA HALL

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T he famous Pummerin, the greatbell of St Stephen’s Cathedral inVienna, Austria strikes at midnight

every New Year’s Eve. This sound sendsshivers of anticipation through anyonewho loves to dance the waltz. For theringing of the Pummerin does not justherald in the New Year. The cathedralbell also signals the start of thetraditional Ball season in one of the mostbeautiful cities in Europe. Vienna’sfamous Ball tradition dates back to thenineteenth century when the new and,for the time, rather risqué waltz was allthe rage. Even today, the season runsfrom the New Year and continuesthroughout January and February in tothe “Faschung”, Austria’s carnival time.

The Austrian capital of Vienna stillretains an Imperial grandeur reminiscentof the Belle Epoque when Vienna wasone of the world’s great centres oflearning, culture, art and music.Nowadays visitors still delight in thebeautiful architecture and grandavenues that make up the historicalcentre of Vienna. Against thismagnificent backdrop, glittering ballstake place each week during the twomonth long season. Some of the mostfamous and celebrated balls are theKaffeesiederball (the Coffee Brewer’sBall), the Jagerball, (the Hunter’s ball)and the Zuckerball (the Confectioners’Ball). A performance by members of theworld famous Elmayer Dance Schoolprovides the highlight of the CoffeeBrewers’ Ball. The woman who receivesthe crown at the Confectioners’ Ball alsoreceives chocolate free for the rest ofher life. Another glamourous occasion is

the Blumenball, the traditional FlowerBall. But perhaps the most famous ball ofall is the Viennese Opernball. the OperaBall located in the Vienna State Operasince 1877.

Vienna’s great Balls impress even themost reluctant and retiring dancers. Thedress code is strict. Ladies wearsumptuous long dresses and glitteringjewellery. The men wear full eveningdress. As the orchestra plays the firstnotes of a waltz; hundreds of couplesbegin to whirl around the dance floor inrhythms that date back over a hundredyears. Given the spectacle and brillianceof the occasion it is not surprising that inits heyday the waltz was the mostpopular dance in the world.

The exact origin of the waltz isuncertain. Folklorists suggest the waltztraces its roots back to more humble andtraditional Austrian folk dance called the“Ländler”. The Ländler was popularthroughout the country especially inmore rural villages. The Ländler spreadfrom inn to inn across Austria until finallyit reached the capital city. The Ländlerarrived in Vienna in the eighteenthcentury at around the same time thatdancing at court was changing. Formalset dances were giving way to dancesthat allowed a man and women to holdeach other and dance together in a moreromantic way. Steps from the Ländlerlent themselves well to this new style ofdancing. The three quarter beat of themusic made it easy for the dancers tomove elegantly in time to the music.However, the daring intimacy of newwaltzes shook the foundations ofVienna’s high society. But the fun really

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began when the dancing couples beganto twirl faster and faster…..

Johann Strauss the younger is one ofAustria’s most famous composers.Strauss created a revolution in musicand on the dance floor when heaccelerated the old Austrian peasantdances to create what we know now asthe waltz. Strauss came from a musicalfamily. His father, Johann Strauss (nowknown as “the elder”), was already awell respected composer in Austriawhen Johann was born. Somewhatsurprisingly, Strauss the elder did notwant his son to follow in his musicalfootsteps. He forbade his son frombecoming a musician. But despite hisfather’s opposition, Johann remainedundeterred and played the violin insecret. As he continued to play and

compose into adulthood Stauss’sreputation grew and grew until, in hisprime, he became known as the “WaltzKing”. Strauss travelled extensively inRussia, Europe and the USA, where thenew waltzes quickly attracted a greatdeal of attention and became immenselypopular. Strauss wrote the world famouswaltz The Blue Danube that was tobecome an informal Austrian nationalanthem. He also wrote 17 operettas inaddition to countless number of waltzesbefore his death in 1899.

Today, most Viennese residents go tomore than one of the 300 Balls that takeplace during the season. However,despite their city’s association withromantic dancing, most Viennese are nobetter at waltzing than anybody else.However, anyone who wants to attend atraditional Ball can learn the basic stepsvery quickly. Vienna boasts more thantwenty high quality dance schoolshelping new dancers to find their feet onthe ballroom floor. One of the mostfamous of these is the Elmayer DanceSchool which is set in the Pallavicinipalace next to the Spanish Riding Schoolstables. Graduates from this schoolhave been performing the showpiecedance at the Coffee Brewers’ Ball fordecades.

So, as the Elmayer Dance School’ssuccesses show, if the sound of aViennese waltz makes your feet start totap, there may be every reason for you togo out and learn how to whirl a partneraround a ballroom. There is somethingtruly exhilarating about the pace, styleand glamour of a waltz that means thisdance is never out of fashion. ✪

Strauss wrote theworld famous waltzThe Blue Danube thatwas to become aninformal Austriannational anthem. Healso wrote 17operettas in addition tocountless number ofwaltzes before hisdeath in 1899.

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Herald (v) to give a sign that something is going to happen. Risqué (adj) likely to offend other people.Grandeur (n) being impressive and important. Reluctant (adj) not wiling to do something.

Sumptuous (adj) impressive, of high quality. Intimacy (n) close personal contact.Opposition (n) strong disagreement and objection to something.

Graduate (n) someone who has finished their studies at a school or college.

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LIFESTYLE

Life is AbundantBY ILKA BRADSHAW

In a world where climate changedominates the headlines we are used tohearing about the threat of extinction

for many species and destruction of lifethrough habitat loss. How refreshing thenit is to hear that our planet can stillsurprise and delight us by revealingspecies that are entirely new to science.

A team of scientists from Britain’sNatural History Museum have officiallyadded 11 new species to the millions sofar recorded. The scientists made theirdiscoveries in La Amistad National Parkwhich protects an extremely remote andinaccessible cloud forest in Costa Rica.La Amistad is so difficult to access thatthere are no roads in the region andalmost no modern economic activity suchas logging, mining or mineral exploitation.As a result, the ecosystems of the cloudforest remain untouched and unspoiledby human intervention. The scientificteam spent many long nightspainstakingly searching through forestfloor litter, leaf mould, rotting vegetationand under the bark of many differentkinds of trees to make their astonishingdiscoveries. Five new kinds ofamphibians and six new plant speciescame to light as a result of this work.

The most fascinating creatures toemerge from La Amistad were three new

kinds of salamanders with characteristicsthat have astonished naturalists aroundthe world. The largest of the salamandersis as brightly coloured as some of theworld’s most poisonous frogs. However,despite its warning colours, thesalamander lacks poison of any kind andis entirely harmless. A second kind ofsalamander from La Amistad is so smallthat it can sit comfortably on a humanfinger nail. All three of the newlydiscovered salamanders from Costa Ricaare incredibly slow moving. Described bythe scientists as being practicallyimmobile, the La Amistad salamandersowe their survival to their incredibly fastmoving tongues. Each of the three newspecies has a sticky pad on its tongue onwhich it can catch hold of the particularinsects on which it feeds. Each speciesshares the ability to flick out its tongueand return it to the mouth laden withinsect prey in less than one seven-thousandth of a second. This remarkableability places the slow moving CostaRican salamanders among the swifteststriking hunters in the animal world!

The two new frog species at LaAmistad presented the scientists withfewer surprises than the salamanders.However, a spectacular floweringmistletoe has created a similar sense of

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excitement in the scientific community asthe salamanders. And the scientists saythat, with four more expeditions plannedover the next year, they expect to findmuch much more that is new, strange andchallenging to conventional scientificexpectations. This highlights theimportance of the world’s equatorialregions to life on earth in general, thescientists say. Most of the world’s greatjungles and rain forests remain relativelyunexplored and there may be many morespecies waiting to be found in all kinds ofplaces.

This sense of the world having manysecret and surprising places left emergedin 2006 when a group called ConservationInternational discovered a highland areanever before visited by human kind in theFoja Mountains of western New Guinea.That expedition found a number ofmammal species new to scienceincluding a giant rat and pygmy possum.None of the animals that the expedition

found showed any fear of man. Theexpedition discovered the giant rat whena curious individual weighing 1.4kgrepeatedly came into their camp toinvestigate what these strange creatureswere doing. About five times the size ofan urban rat, the Foja Mountain rat is afearsome predator but one which, as yet,has never learned the need to showaggression to humans.

Scientists are both exhilarated anddismayed by the findings from expeditionslike those to La Amistad or the FojaMountains. They are excited by therealisation that mankind has not yetdiscovered and classified all the life thatthere is on earth. At the same time theyare distressed and despondent by therealisation that many kinds of life may begoing extinct before mankind has evenhad the chance to know they exist. Andthe scientists fear that as the impacts ofclimate change occur ever faster, it is thefragile ecosystems of some of the world’sleast explored regions that will suffer themost. However, before we all start toworry about losing species that we willnever have the chance to know existed,we need to celebrate the evident truththat life on earth is full of surprises.Despite all the impacts that human kindhas had on habitat after habitat aroundthe world, life continues and evenflourishes against all expectations. ✪

Extinction (n) when an animal or plant no longer exists.Habitat (n) the type of land where an animal or plant usually lives.

Intervention (n) when someone or something becomes involved and influences a situation.Amphibian (n) an animal that can live on land or in the water. Immobile (adj) not moving.

Predator (n) an animal that hunts and eats other animals.Despondent (adj) unhappy and gloomy.

Most of the world’sgreat jungles and rainforests remainrelatively unexplored…

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A recent survey by a televisionprogramme about cars in the UKcame to some surprising findings

on family motoring. British men, it seems,find driving with their wife or children farmore stressful than driving through rushhour traffic to work or back home again.Most of the 1000 men replying to thesurvey said they found having anothermember of the family in the car withcreated a sense of stress. Amazingly, formost of the men, this set the scene for arow or argument within minutes of settingoff on a journey. This is very far from theimage of happy family motoring that caradverts show on British TV. According tothe advertisers, a family day our in the caris full of fun, laughter and cheerfulconversation. The men in the survey painta very different picture. Most of them saidthey started to argue with the other familymember in the car within twelve minutesof setting off on a journey. This thresholdfell to an amazing six minutes whenchildren under ten were in the car!

Given that most families now drivetheir children to school in the morning, itseems that a majority of Britons arestarting their day with a massive amountof bad temper and family ill will! Anotherrecent survey comparing the quality oflife for children across Europe discovered

that British children are the most unhappyand worried. British children say theyworry about violence, terrorism andeating the wrong kind of food.Interestingly, they said nothing aboutdriving. So maybe it is just British parentswho find a family day out motoring or thedrive to school unpleasant, argumentativeand disappointing.

For men in Britain, motoring is only areal joy when a man can be behind thewheel on his own it seems. Driving alonegives a British man space to enjoy hisown company in relative peace and quiet.For eight out of ten men in the UK, drivingin to work appears to be a very enjoyablepart of the day. This compares stronglywith the sense that drivers in Britain arebecoming more aggressive and prone toroad rage as their tempers snap at baddriving from other motorists. Road rage, itnow appears, is most likely to occurwhen a man is out driving with his familythan when he is on his own. When drivingwith his family, a British man is morelikely to turn any temper and aggressioncreated by arguments inside the caroutwards on to drivers outside. Whendriving on his own, a British man is morelikely to remain polite and courteous toother drivers – even when they drivepoorly or make dangerous mistakes.

LIFESTYLE

Revving Up For a RowBY MARY HUBER

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Of the 1000 men taking part in thesurvey, 70% who were married or in arelationship said they argued with theirwife or partner when in the car together.One in three fathers said they foundbeing in the car with their childrendifficult and stressful. But one in two ofall the men replying to the survey saidthey dreamed often of driving their carin triumph around the Grand prix circuitat Silverstone. These men identifiedtheir car as very important to them. Theysaid their car helped give them a senseof pride, importance and place amongtheir neighbours and work colleagues.

The survey found some realdifferences in attitude to driving amongthe different regions of the UK.Welshmen admitted to having the mostarguments with their family in the car.Men from Birmingham and the Midlandsof England identified themselves as themost dangerous drivers in the country.Men from the Northwest and Northeastof England said they tended to speedand swore more when in the car than atany other time of the day. Notsurprisingly, these drivers said theywere the most aggressive towards otherroad users than any others in thecountry. Scotsmen said they were themost likely to have accidents.

To the astonishment of everyone, itappears that drivers in the mostcrowded and congested part of the

British Isles are the most tolerant, politeand safety conscious of all! Drivers inLondon and the Southeast of Englandsaid they valued politeness on the roadand tried to help and respect others.

On the face of it, the survey of Britishmotorists paints a very depressingpicture of family men across thecountry. However, the reality may be alittle less grim than the picture themotorists paint of themselves. Britishmen work the longest hours of any inEurope. So the journey to and from workcan be important in terms of gettingready to meet the very differentdemands of the office and home.Compared to similar surveys from othercountries, British men place very highexpectations on the way they expectthemselves and others to behave whenbehind the wheel. It may just be thatthey are being equally hard onthemselves and their families when theysay they tend to argue so quickly andeasily when together in the car withthose they love. British men want theirfamily time in the car to match thatpresented in the adverts on TV. Whenthe reality falls short of the adlandfantasy, they blame themselves andexpress disappointment. Surveys ofpassengers with male drivers suggestthat they quite enjoy family journeys andvalue the chance to be together with theman behind the wheel! ✪

Rush hour (n) the time of day when there are lots of vehicles on the road as people travel to and from work.Stress (n) worried and nervous state. Threshold (n) the level at which something happens.Aggressive (adj) behaving in a rude and angry way. Prone (adj) probable; likely to happen.

Congested (adj) difficult to move about because of the number of vehicles or people.

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FEATURE

The Pirate Queen BY JOE ST CLAIR

T he recent phenomenal success ofthe film series Pirates of theCaribbean shows how popular the

romantic figure of the outlaw pirate canbe. But while most people enjoy theexcitement and thrill of pirate stories,often these legendary exploits bear littleresemblance to actual historical facts.But dig a little deeper and any pirateenthusiast can find true stories aboutreal-life pirates. There are even a fewreal-life tales about pirates who happento be women.

The true story of the Irish pirate“Grainne Ni Mhaille” also known as“Granuaille” or “Grace O’Malley” is asincredible as any work of fiction. ButGrace was a real person whose life andexploits are well documented andrecorded. Sometimes known as “TheSea Queen Of Connaught” or the “PirateQueen”, Grace’s truly remarkable life anddaring courage are still celebrated intheatres and songs all over Ireland.

Grace O’Malley was born in Irelandaround 1530. At the time the English heldcontrol over Ireland. However, the Irishprinces pretty much did as they pleased.However, during Grace’s life the Englishbrought more forces into the country toincrease their power and control. Thiscaused widespread civil unrest and

violent disturbances. Grace was thedaughter of Owen O’Malley, a highranking chief of the O’Malley clan. TheO’Malleys controlled most of what is nowCounty Mayo on the west coast ofIreland. With these vast holdings theO’Malleys owned many castles, a hugefleet of ships and thousands of horses.The O’Malleys were a great seafaringfamily. They taxed any fishermen whofished off their coasts, including Englishfishing boats.

From an early age Grace showed shewas bold, fearless and spirited.According to legend, Grace first showedher adventurous nature when, as a smallgirl, she wanted to go on a tradingexpedition to Spain with her father.O’Malley refused, arguing that Grace’slong hair would catch in the ship’s ropes.Angered by her father’s refusal, Graceimmediately cut off her hair. Many peopleadmired Grace for her defiance. Theyaffectionately called her “Granuaille”,meaning “cropped hair” – a nicknamethat stuck to her throughout her lifetime.

During her childhood, Grace lived ather family’s castle on Clare Island, anidyllic small island just off the Irish coast.Unusually for the time, but because of herstatus as the chief’s daughter, Grace wasformally educated. She learnt Latin as

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well as some English, Spanish, ScottishGaelic, and French. Grace always knewshe wanted to be a sailor. Her familystrongly discouraged this ambitionbelieving a life at sea was not suited forany woman. However, despite all herfamily’s efforts to change her, Graceremained true to her passion of sailingthe open seas and commanding her ownship or fleet.

In 1546 at the tender age of 16 Gracemarried Donal O’Flaherty, an heir to theO’Flaherty chieftanship. The marriagewas a good political match for the twoclans. Grace and her husband had threechildren before Donal was killed in battleby a rival clan, the Joyces. Her husband’sdeath motivated Grace to raise enoughmen to recapture a castle from theJoyces. After the battle, Grace returned

The west coast of Ireland

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to her family’s castle on Clare Island tobring up her children among her ownclan. The O’Malleys welcomed her homeas a formidable swordswoman and afearless leader in her own right.

As a young woman, Grace continuedto learn the business of sailing ships andthe tricks of growing rich by attackingcargo ships! As her experience andreputation grew, Grace came tocommand a whole fleet of pirate ships. Tomake sure everyone understood she wasa woman to be feared, she dressedherself in men’s clothes with a sword ather belt. At the time, the Irish seas werebusy with Spanish, English and Turkishships. Grace regularly raided theseforeign ships to steal their lucrative

cargoes. Very soon she was the mostfeared pirate on the west coast of Ireland.Grace also started to capture fortressesalong the coastline to ensure hercomplete control of the seas off Ireland.As a result, she became one of the mostpowerful leaders in Ireland with manycastles and clans in her hands.

Even into her late 50s Grace wasknown to be as fierce as any man inbattle. Grace even gave birth to one ofher sons while out at sea. Turkish piratesattacked Grace’s ship on the very dayafter the birth of her baby. Thoughexhausted from giving birth, Gracegrabbed a gun and went on deck to rallyher men and fight alongside them. Inshort order Grace forced the Turks toabandon the attack and flee away in theirship.

During Grace’s lifetime, the Englishtook control of Ireland in a long series ofbattles and wars. Each time the Englishwon clan lands they forced the clanleader to swear loyalty to the Englishcrown to get them back. This process ofconquest was called “submit and re-grant”. Despite the increasing Englishsuccesses, Grace maintained herindependence for longer than manyothers. In 1593 Sir Richard Bingham, theEnglish Governor of Ireland, capturedGrace’s sons Tibbot and Murrough andheld them for ransom. Grace sailed herpirate ship all the way to England topetition Queen Elizabeth I in person fortheir release. Amazed Londonersgathered in their thousands as Grace’shuge pirate ship sailed up the riverThames. When Queen Elizabeth andGrace, perhaps two of the strongest

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women of their time, finally met atGreenwich Palace they immediately likedeach other. Grace wore a fine gowninstead of her usual pirate outfits. Despiteher ladylike appearance, Grace famouslyrefused to bow before Elizabeth as theQueen of Ireland. Surprisingly, QueenElizabeth granted Grace’s petitions on thecondition that Grace stopped givingsupport to the rebellion in Ireland andended her piracy against English ships.

Despite her assurances, Grace wasback to her old pirating ways within aremarkably short space of time. QueenElizabeth’s men finally captured andarrested Grace when she was 56 yearsold. Determined to put an end to ever tothis fearless and troublesome pirate, theEnglish imprisoned the Irish leader andsentenced her to hang. Determined to diewith dignity, Grace held her head high as

she stood at the scaffold. But at the verylast minute, Grace’s son-in-law offeredhimself as a hostage to guarantee thatGrace would never return to herrebellious ways. On the basis of thisagreement, the English released Graceand removed her death sentence.

Even in her twilight years, stories ofGrace’s adventures continued to spreadacross Ireland. Tales of the PirateQueen’s courage in battle as well assome of her heroic rescues of herclansmen from enemy castles meant thatshe was a figurehead for many fellowIrishmen. Throughout her life Grace andher family saw the English rule spreadingthroughout Ireland. But Grace’s personalcourage, strength and leadership savedher clan’s independence where manyothers failed.

Today Grace’s legendary exploits havebecome part of Ireland’s folklore. GraceO’Malley is remembered as a devotedmother, a loving wife, a canny politician, awise diplomat, a powerful clan chieftain,a brilliant sea captain, a courageous Irishpatriot, and as an unlikely personal friendto Queen Elizabeth I of England. ButGrace is most affectionately known as thePirate Queen who survived countless seabattles and cheated death at the gallowsto live a long life in her beloved West ofIreland. Grace died a peaceful death in1603 at the age of seventy. ✪

Enthusiast (n) someone who is very interested and excited by something.Fiction (n) stories about imaginary people or events.

Fleet (n) a group of vehicles e.g. planes, ships and trains. Defiance (n) a refusal to obey a rule.Formidable (adj) very impressive in size, power or talent.

Lucrative (adj) valuable, bringing in a lot of money.Rebellion (n) an attempt to remove a government or leader by force. Twilight (n) the final stages of something.

Despite the increasingEnglish successes,Grace maintained herindependence forlonger than manyothers.

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LIFESTYLE

Avebury StoneCircle

BY RORY GEAR

Most visitors to Britain arefamiliar with the image ofStonehenge. As one of the

country’s most iconic landmarks, thisancient stone circle attracts millions ofvisitors every year. Not very far fromStonehenge though is another equallyimpressive archaeological site that farfewer people visit. Called Avebury, thislesser-known stone circle site is one ofthe most fascinating and mysteriousplaces in Europe.

The small village of Avebury liesnestled in the gently undulating fields ofWiltshire in the south of England. It is aparticularly green, lush and beautifularea of the English countryside. WhileAvebury village itself comprises anunremarkable cluster of houses, thesight of the magnificent stonessurrounding the village impresseseveryone who visits. These amazingstones or “megaliths” date back toaround 4,500 years ago. The reason fortheir construction remains a completemystery even today.

The site of Avebury village is knownin archaeological terms as a “henge”,

meaning an area that comprises anumber of ancient features such as anenormous ditch, steep earth banks, hugenatural stones that form circles or linearavenues and many other archaeologicalcuriosities such as burial mounds andsacred streams. Near the Avebury hengestands the equally enigmatic Silbury Hill.This is the largest man-made mound inEurope. Silbury Hill dominates thesurrounding landscape. And not thatmuch farther away at East Kennet andWest Kennet are two of the largestsurviving British “long barrow” burialmounds. Indeed, the entire Aveburyarea provides one of the mostremarkable open air museums foundanywhere in the world. As the famousantiquarian John Aubrey remarked,“Avebury does as much exceed ingreatness the so renowned Stonehengeas a cathedral does a parish church”.

The Avebury stone circle dates fromaround 2600 BC. In addition, nearbyexcavations at a site known as“Windmill Hill” reveal evidence of humanoccupation as early as 3700 BC. Thesefindings suggest that the entire Avebury

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area has been a continuous centre ofhuman civilization and activity for anastonishing 6000 years.

Although it is virtually impossible tostate with any certainty why ancientpeoples carved the Avebury complex outof the landscape, we do know thatsettlers dug out the original circularditch using antler picks and stone toolsaround 2500 BC. The ditch was originallya staggering ten metres deep. Avebury’smegalithic stones are set into the centralisland created by the ditch. The actualstones were quarried from theMarlborough Downs and transportedoverland, probably on wooden rollers.

This was a monumental task as some ofthe stones within the circle weigh over40 tons. While almost twice as heavy asthe stones found at Stonehenge, theAvebury stones are not as well finishedor neatly shaped. There were originallyaround 100 of these stones although only27 remain intact today. Concrete postsnow mark the sites of Avebury’s missingstones. Sadly, much of the Avebury sitewas systematically destroyed during the17th and 18th centuries when England’s“puritans” viewed the stones as paganand evil in origin. Fortunately manydrawings and engravings from this timedepict the original site in its former glory.

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It is the size of the stones thatcreates a lasting impression today. Butwhen it was constructed the ditch atAvebury was surely far moremonumental and awesome to behold.Literally hacked by hand out of the solidchalk of the Wiltshire landscape, theAvebury ditch was among the largestand deepest excavations of its kindanywhere in the world. Excavationsshow that, due to erosion and silting, theditch today is now only one third of itsoriginal depth with the bank perhapsonly half of its original height.

As with all ancient sites a certainmythology or folklore is linked to certainstones. The “Devil’s Chair” for exampleis a natural seat where childless couplesgo to sit and pray that they may have a

baby. There is also a strong connectionto astronomy. Many of the stones notonly align to particular stars but alsoalign to other ancient features of thelandscape. Researchers continue to tryto understand the meaning behind thesecomplex sets of alignments.

For most, our lack of knowledge atthe precise purpose of Avebury doesnothing to diminish the sense of awe andwonder, mystery and magic that this veryspecial place evokes. Visiting Aveburyreminds you both that mankind has thepower to leave the most monumentalreminders of human greatness in thelandscape while, at the same time,reminding us of human kind’s trulyamazing smallness in the greaterscheme of life on earth! ✪

Iconic (adj) famous and well known that also represents a particular idea.Archaeological (adj) relating to the studies of ancient societies.

Lush (adj) healthy and fertile.Enigmatic (adj) mysterious and difficult to understand.

Excavations (n) digging in the ground as a way of finding out about the past.Pagan (adj) relating to ancient religions.

Align (v) to organise things and objects so that they fit well or match each other.

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LIFESTYLE

Fun with NumbersBY STAN POWELL

Most people regard mathematicsas a serious and importantpursuit, one of a range of

sciences that enables us to understandthe logic of the world around us.Mathematics allows us to model our

environment and to predict how thingswork. As such, mathematics helps usunderstand the universe in which we live.But, on an altogether more human scale,mathematics provides us with anintellectual exercise of great beauty and

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simplicity. In the history of mathematics,clever mathematical proofs are describedas works of art that show the functionalbeauty of man’s creative mind. To showthe distinction between art and sciencemany universities still award a Bachelor ofArts (BA) degree to those studying puremathematics rather than a Bachelor ofScience (BSc) degree.

While famous for its logic,mathematics also has a quirky side.Mathematicians enjoy creatingconundrums and puzzles and like to teaseeach otherwith themathematicalequivalent ofnonsensepoetry. Forinstance, canyou prove that1 = 2? Youmight besurprised thatthere areseveral waysto prove this absurd notion. They all usealgebra and they all have one thing incommon. Hidden somewhere in the proofis a line where both sides of the equationare multiplied by zero. All you are reallyproving is that 0 times 1 is the same as 0times 2, or that 0 = 0. But at first sight thisis often surprisingly difficult to spot!

Mathematicians also have many waysto check the precise nature of numbers.For instance, does a large number divideby 3? Here is a trick school teachers useto impress their pupils. Take any number(say 7581). Does it divide exactly by 3? Tofind the answer add the individual digits

(7 + 5 + 8 + 1 = 21). If the result divides by3 (21 ÷ 3 = 7) then the original number alsodivides by three. This calculation can bedone in the head faster than the questioncan be answered using a calculator!

People can get very touchy aboutnumbers. Many people have a favouritenumbers. Superstitious people got togreat lengths to avoid numbers they thinkare unlucky. And these beliefs go rightback in history. The great Greekmathematician Pythagoras who livedaround 500 BC believed that numbers

ruled the universe. Pythagoras believedthat everything could logically beexpressed by whole numbers (1, 2, 3, 4etc.) and by the ratios of these numbers.Pythagoras set up a school in Italy andpeople flocked to hear the master talk.But one of Pythagoras’ followers, calledHippasus, blew a huge hole in histeacher’s theories. He proved that there isno number or fraction which whenmultiplied by itself gives the number 2. Inother words Hippasus showed that thesquare root of 2 can not be expressed asa fraction. Hippasus’ discovery suggestedthat the world was far too complex to be

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explained simply in terms of wholenumbers. Legend has it that Pythagoras’disciples were so put out at thissuggestion that they took Hippasus out ina boat and dumped the poor manoverboard and left him to drown.

Another superstition to do with thenumber three suggests that you bestavoid being the third person to light acigarette from a single match. Thissuperstition has its basis in grim reality. Inthe WWI a person lighting a match alertedenemy snipers to his position. The secondperson leaning in to light his cigarettefrom the match gave that sniper time totake aim and pull the trigger. The thirdperson leaning in to light their cigarettefrom the match put their head directly intothe path of the sniper’s bullet.

In English certain numbers are soimportant that the language gives themtheir own unique or special words. Twentyis called a “score” and the expectedlength of a man’s life used to be describedas “three score years and ten”. Thenumber two has many words associatedwith it. We use the words “pair” or“couple” to describe two things that weexpect to go well together. A married manand woman are called a couple. We pairhorses or other kinds of draft animalstogether to pull a wagon or a cart. But weuse the word “brace” to describe twopistols, or two hunting dogs, or two birdswe have shot to eat. We also use theword “dozen” to describe things that we

eat that come in quantities of 12. The mostfamous example of this is a dozen eggs.We use the phrase “a baker’s dozen” todescribe things that come in quantities of13! This phrase originated way back inmedieval times. In 1266 Henry III passed alaw call the “Assize of Bread and Ale”under which bread was measured byweight and anyone who gave shortmeasure was liable to viciouspunishment. To avoid any chance ofmiscalculation, it became normal forbakers to add extra bread to an order.This was called the “inbread” or “vantageloaf”. Bakers gave their vantage loaf withany order above ten or more. But sincemost orders came in multiples of twelve,by the early 17th century the phrasebakers dozen to mean 13 was in commonuse. A “gross” is the term we give to aquantity of 12 dozen or 144 things.

Finally, I’ll leave you with anotherexample of the many little tricks that theproperties of numbers provide.

Think of a number between 1 and 10. Multiply the number by 9. Add the digits of your result.Subtract 5 from your new number. The answer is 4I will leave you to work out why this

always works. In the meantime, I hopeyou will agree with me that playing withand speaking about numbers can be greatfun. It is not for nothing that mathematicsis popularly known as “the Queen ofSciences”! ✪

Pursuit (n) an activity to try to achieve something. Logic (n) a reasoned, rational idea or explanation.Quirky (adj) slightly odd and strange. Notion (n) an idea.

Precise (adj) exact and accurate. Superstitious (adj) believing in magic and luck. Disciple (n) follower, student.Sniper (n) someone who shoots from a hidden place. Vicious (adj) extremely violent.

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LIFESTYLE

The Rarest Gemstonein the World

BY ANGIE BROTHWELL

T anzanite is the rarest preciousstone in the world. Tanzaniteoccurs in just one area in Africa.

The first tanzanite came to light only in1967. The current supply of tanzanite willrun out by 2030. Tanzanite has a mostincredible blue colour. Blue is a sacredcolour to the Masai people on whoselands the Tanzanite mines occur.

Tanzanite is one of the fewgemstones in the world that is minedaccording to ethical principles. This ismainly due to the work of the TanzaniteFoundation. This foundation is industrysupported to ensure that most of theprofits go back to the Masai people toimprove their community and supporttheir traditional way of life. The incomefrom tanzanite mining has provided thefunds for schools, roads, a clinic andclean water to support a community oftwo thousand Masai and their fourthousand head of cattle.

The blue gemstone owes its name toTanzania, its country of origin.Discoveries of new minerals arerelatively rare. When discovered,tanzanite became known as a truly “20th

century gemstone” and its launch on tothe world market created a sensation.Masai shepherds tending their flocks inthe remote hills of Tanzania spotted anumber of blue crystals sparkling in thesun. Attracted by the colour so sacred totheir people, the shepherds brought thecrystals back to their village to show toothers. From here news leaked outabout the amazingly attractivegemstones that looked like no othersanywhere else in the world. From theoutset, the Tanzanian government andMasai people wanted the trade intanzanite to be licensed. They wantedthe trade to be fair to everyone involvedin it – but most especially to the localpeople in Tanzania whose landsproduced the fabulous gemstone in thefirst place. So the government created alicensing system for the trade intanzanite and every stone ever minedhas reached its final destination throughlegal, documented and fairly tradedchannels. In this regard tanzanite isperhaps unique among all the gemstonesof the world. Over 90% of tanzanitemerchants are members of the

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International Coloured GemstoneAssociation (ICGA). Tanzanite stones goto a limited number of strictly controlledcutting centres to be shaped andpolished into their final form asincredibly high value, high fashion andhigh art jewellery. Since the 1960s, mostof the gemstone cutting has taken placein Jaipur in India. However, newlegislation from the Tanzanian authoritiesproposes to restrict the export of

unprocessed tanzanite to India. The aimof this is to allow local cutters to processthe gemstones and to create a highvalue, high quality gem cutting industryin Tanzania with the skills and reputationto continue processing gemstones fromelsewhere in the world when thesupplies of tanzanite finally run out intwenty years or so.

The family of stones that thetanzanite comes from is zoisite. Zoisite iscomposed of calcium aluminium silicatewhich is relatively soft compared toother gemstones. This means that thewearer of tanzanite jewellery needs totake care and not let the stone com incontact with any form of acid. Acid of

Tanzanite stones go toa limited number ofstrictly controlledcutting centres to beshaped and polishedinto their final form …

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every kind is the enemy of tanzanite. Theblue of the tanzanite ranges fromultramarine blue to light violet blue. Themost precious hue for tanzanite is a bluewith a surrounding of purple. Becausetanzanite is soft, the stone can be cutinto every imaginable shape. This makestanzanite a favourite for new, daring andunusual cutting. As such tanzanite findsits place in a great deal of modernjewellery design – as well as in moreclassical and familiar jewellery shapesassociated with other preciousgemstones.

Tiffany’s, the world-famous New Yorkjeweller, created the name tanzanite.The official story behind the name is thattanzanite pays homage to the proudnation of Tanzania while managing tosound both modern and exotic. Theunofficial story is that the gemstone’sfamily name, “zoisite”, soundsuncomfortably close to the English word

“suicide”. Not surprisingly, the world’sjewellers worried that any hint of badluck around the new blue gemstonemight kill its chances of success.Fortunately, as Tiffany’s predicted, thename tanzanite caught on and jewellershave never looked back since.

Tanzanite prices are rising all thetime. This reflects the fact that tanzanitesupplies are strictly limited and worldstocks will run out in a few years’ time.With each passing year the image oftanzanite becomes one associated withever greater rarity and exclusivity. Manysee tanzanite as a great investment forthe future because it is predictable that,once tanzanite supplies run out, thevalue of tanzanite jewellery will soar toextraordinary heights.

Because tanzanite is so new to theworld as a gemstone, there are almostno myths or legends that talk of themystic qualities of the stone. However,the Masai people of Tanzania associatetanzanite with birth. Masai men give atanzanite stone to their wife at the birthof their first child. And this givestanzanite universal appeal as a birthstone. All other gemstones areassociated with births that occur in aparticular month of the year. Tanzanitealone stands outside this tradition. Sotanzanite stands for the love and hopethat new life brings in to the world.Tanzanite speaks of the future and is notconcerned with the past. ✪

Rare (adj) not happening or found very often. Sacred (adj) connected to religion.Ethical (adj) morally right and good. Sensation (n) an event that causes a lot of excitement.

Destination (n) the place where someone or something is going.Investment (n) money used in a way that will earn more.

E

Tanzanite prices arerising all the time. Thisreflects the fact thattanzanite supplies arestrictly limited andworld stocks will runout in a few years’ time.

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LIFESTYLE

Punch and Judy –that’s the way to do it!

BY RORY GEAR

T raditional seaside holidays in theUK usually mean braving theunpredictable British weather,

playing on the beach, making

sandcastles and enjoying donkey ridesbeside the pier. But there is another,equally traditional pastime that manyadults and children remember with great

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nostalgia – the Punch and Judy Show.This slapstick comedy puppet show,usually performed on a small stage onthe beach, successfully captivatedaudiences of all ages for centuries. Butsadly, Punch and Judy shows aregradually dying out in the face of themodern seafront’s noisy, neon-litamusement arcades and pleasuregrounds.

In the past, the Punch and JudyShow was one of the most common andpopular forms of seaside entertainment.Punch and Judy, the two leadingpuppets, fought and hurled abuse ateach other for virtually the entireperformance. And while today’s

audiences view the traditional puppetshow as violent and full of aggressivebehaviour, people in the past did notthink it so. For generations, the Punchand Judy Show provided an opportunityto share a lot of fun and laughter. Theshow poked fun at relationships betweenmen and women and between thosewith money and those without. As such,Punch and Judy revealed aspects ofBritain’s social and cultural heritage thatare fast disappearing as the last fewsurviving puppeteers retire.

The Punch and Judy Show has itsroots in the 16th Century and the Italian“Commedia dell’ Arte”, the traditionalItalian Comedy. The Commedia was apopular form of theatre in Italy duringthe 15th Century and its heritagecontinues in Italy to this day. Commediaplays usually consisted of tenperformers and were largely improvisedand based on the familiar themes oflove, old age, adultery and jealousy –themes familiar to Greek and Romantheatre-goers centuries ago. Indeed,many of the characters in the commediaremain largely unchanged today andinclude the ancestors of today’s circusclown.

Mr Punch, the hunchbacked, hooknosed, scheming jester complete with along stick is easily identifiable as theItalian character Pulcinella orPunchinello. In other parts of Europe thePunch character appears in variousguises, for example he is known as“Kasparek” in the Czech Republic andas “Kasperle” in Germany Thischaracter has his roots in the age-oldarchetype, the “Lord of Misrule”. In

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Britain Punch speaks in a high pitchedtype of squawking tone which childrenfind very amusing. Punch is alwaysuntrustworthy and devious. However,most audiences come to share somesort of sympathy with Punch. Despitethemselves, they find themselves drawnin to his schemes and watch withinterest to see if his tricks and liessucceed or fail. This creates thedynamic for the comic situations thatunfold in each act of the show.

The earliest written record of thePunch and Judy Show being performedin Britain dates from May 1662.However, it is likely that by this time theplay was a fairly common form ofentertainment on the streets of Londonat least. From the earliest times, thePunch and Judy show encouragedparticipation from the audience. Thecrown alternately cheers and boosdepending on how they feel about theaction taking place on stage. The use ofpuppets allows the Punch and Judyshow to exaggerate the antics on stageto great comic effect. Characters areable to interact with one another in away that would not be possible betweenactors in real life. Every action can beintensified to good comic effect. Theoriginal commedia stories usuallyrevolved around the misfortune of twolovers whose families forbade them formmarrying. However, British audiences in

the nineteenth century preferred moredark and violent themes with Punchusually killing all the other characters.

A Punch and Judy Show alsofeatures a cast with many charactersunknown to the Italian audiences of theoriginal Commedia dramas. Apart fromJudy (who features as Columbina in theCommedia), a Punch and Judy showmakes strong use of Judy’s baby, Joeythe Clown, a Policeman, an Alligator(who steals Judy’s sausages) andsometimes “Old Jack” or the Devil whotempts Punch into doing bad things. Atypical show involves a great deal ofeach puppet beating the other with astick. And while many people hate theviolent clashes and beatings suffered byPunch, Judy and all the other puppets,there is no doubt that the preoccu-pations and sufferings of the centralcharacters in the main storylines endureand remain as relevant today as they didto 17th century audiences. Indeed, thereis much to suggest that these storylineshave made there way on to Britain’stelevision screens in such popular soapoperas as “Eastenders” and“Coronation Street”. So no matter thatPunch and Judy may be losing out at theseaside, they remain alive and kicking inthe most popular forms of entertainmentabout life in Britain’s cities – a life that isas full of laughter and woe now as itever was hundreds of years ago! ✪

Pier (n) a structure built out from the land over water e.g. over the sea or a lake.Nostalgia (n) happy and fond thoughts about the past.

Aggressive (adj) angry and rude (behaviour). Puppeteer (n) a person who performs with puppets.Jealousy (n) feelings of anger because someone else has something that is better than you have.

Antics (n) funny and enjoyable behaviour. Woe (n) worries and problems.

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COVER FEATURE

Rachel WeiszBY SARA HALL

There are many Hollywood actresses who arestriking beauties with plenty of talent, but whatis it that makes Rachel Weisz stand out from

the crowd? Critics and fans alike are quick to pointout that Weisz has what it takes to be a trueHollywood star. She has a rare and enviablecombination of brains, beauty and charisma. Andwhile there are lots of would-be stars queuing up totake her place as one of Hollywood’s leading ladies,Weisz maintains a healthy disregard for the theatricaltrappings, glitzy parties and Hollywood lifestyle.Indeed, in interviews she rather damningly condemnsHollywood as “really toxic”.

Rachel was born England in 1971 and grew up inHampstead in north London. Interestingly, both herparents’ families came to England when they fledfrom persecution in Europe before World War Two.Rachel’s Hungarian father is a medical inventor who,amongst his many achievements, invented life-savingmedical respiratory apparatus and also machines tosense land mines. Rachel’s mother is similarly giftedand is a psychoanalyst from Vienna, Austria.

Rachel began modelling early on. When she wasjust 13 years old she auditioned for and won a part inRichard Gere’s film King David. But while her motherapproved and supported Rachel’s budding actingcareer, her father vehemently disapproved. He wasconcerned that Rachel was just too young to take onwork of this kind. He also worried about the impacton her studies. In the end Rachel turned down thepart in accordance with her father’s wishes. Instead,she attended a boarding school which she hated!

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Rachel Weisz in My Blueberry Nights

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Life improved for Rachel when shemoved to the prestigious St Paul’sschool for girls in west London. Shequickly settled down in this moreacademic and demanding environment.In her younger years, Rachel earned areputation as a girl who misbehaved.However, at St Paul’s Rachel studiedhard and won a place reading English atTrinity Hall at Cambridge University. Aswith her decision to turn down the partin King David, this episode shows thatWeisz has a deep determination toshape her own destiny. She is not afraidto turn away from the crowd and followher own path and values.

But despite her obvious intellect andstudious nature, Weisz’s interest inacting continued unabated. During hertime at University she appeared in anumber of student productions. She tookpart in productions at the annualEdinburgh Festival in Scotland. Afterone such appearance, she won a veryprestigious Student Drama Award,presented by the British newspaper TheGuardian. So, while at university, Weisz’sreputation as an actress to watch in the

future grew strongly in art circles in theUK. After graduating, Weisz appeared inseveral theatre productions in the WestEnd in London. Playing alongside otheryoung and talented British actors suchas Ewan McGregor and Rupert Everett,she enjoyed the buzz and thrill of thetheatre. She also appeared in varioustelevision programmes such as theclassic cult television series InspectorMorse.

Weisz’s film screen debut came in1996 in two very different films. Her firstbreak-through role in BernadoBertolucci’s Stealing Beauty got hernoticed in Europe. Soon after, her firstUS film debut in the feature film ChainReaction alongside Keanu Reevesbrought her to the attention of Hollywoodfilm producers. However, Weisz did notbecame a household name until 1999when she starred in the fast movingadventurous romp The Mummy. Herreputation as one of the hottestproperties in Hollywood grew with the2001 sequel. The Mummy Returnsgrossed even more in the box office thanthe original movie. Industry analystsidentified Weisz’s contribution to the filmas the prime reason why! SuddenlyWeisz became a bankable assetguaranteed to add millions of dollars tothe takings of any film she starred in.

Riding high with her success in theMummy films, Rachel starred alongsideHugh Grant in About a Boy in 2002. As aresult, this quietly understated film aboutthe son of a single mother growing up inLondon was a massive hit in the US.Interestingly, at this point in her careerWeisz showed her talent for going her

But despite herobvious intellect andstudious nature,Weisz’s interest inacting continuedunabated.

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own way once again. In 2005 Weiszstarred in The Constant Gardener, thefilm adaptation of a John Le Carré thrillerset in Kenya in East Africa. In the filmWeisz plays Tess, a British diplomat’swife investigating corruption and fraud.In a remarkable piece of acting, Weiszmanages to convey Tess as someonewho is not conventionally heroic orsympathetic. The character comesacross as a complex woman who isslightly irritating and totally unconcernedabout other people’s point of view. AsRachel commented herself,” What I likedabout that role is that she is not an angelyet she spends her entire career savingpeople”.

For her role in The ConstantGardener Rachel won the 2006 AcademyAward and Golden Globe Award for BestSupporting Actress. These awardssecured her reputation as a hard-working and exceptionally talentedactress. However, 2006 was not merelysignificant for Weisz in terms of careersuccess. On the 31st May 2006 RachelWeisz gave birth to a son, Henry Chance,in Manhattan in New York. Since thebirth her boy, Weisz has combinedmotherhood with a flourishing career.Today, she lives in New York with herlong term partner, the American film

maker Darren Aronofsky. But althoughthe couple live in America, Weisz visitsLondon frequently. The actress is veryconscious of her British roots. “WhenI’m playing a character” she says, “I usethe American accent. But when I goback to England, I just glide right backinto Englishness immediately”.

Weisz’s plans for the future promiseto be varied and interesting. With hertalent and academic prowess, RachelWeisz is sure to seek out the mostchallenging and stretching roles. She isrelatively unconcerned about her fame.Indeed, she is not afraid to make choicesthat challenge her status as a Hollywoodstar and glamour icon. But, even so, sheis fiercely ambitious and conscious ofthe talent and intellect of the rest of herfamily. In this respect Weisz frequentlypoints out that, “I sometimes worry thatactors are people’s role models. Anddoctors and teachers and people doingreally important things get paid nothing.And they put us on the cover ofmagazines. They should be our heroes. Ifind it all a bit dubious”. WhateverRachel Weisz chooses to do next, herdecision will make people sit up and takenotice and question their own lifechoices that little bit harder than they didbefore. ✪

Enviable (adj) that is respected and admired.Charisma (n) a strong personality that people are attracted to and drawn towards.

Toxic (adj) poisonous and harmful.Psychoanalyst (n) a doctor whose job it is to talk to people about their emotions to help them

understand their behaviour.Budding (adj) just beginning and developing. Prestigious (adj) admired and respected.

Unabated (adj) unable to stop or prevent from happening. Romp (n) a playful adventure.Complex (adj) complicated and difficult to understand. Prowess (n) great skill and ability.

E

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LIFESTYLE

Elegant EntertainingBY HENRY WALLWORK

Having friends round for a meal isone of life’s great pleasures. But agood dinner party can take a lot of

preparation if you want everything to goright. Here are a few simple tips on how togive everyone a great time without

causing you too much stress.Invite a small number of guests.

Having six to eight at the table (includingyourself) ensures that the conversationwill flow without your having to make ahuge effort.

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Select dishes that are simple to cook,easy to serve and not too expensive interms of their ingredients. Avoid roastmeats as these are difficult to carve andserve well. Many fish and vegetariandishes are easy to set out on a plate inways that are pleasing to the eye.

Plan a menu around three main dishes.Prepare two of these in advance so youare never away from your guests for toolong. With the third dish, get as muchready before your guests come. It is bestto have no more than two final things todo on the night to get this dish finishedand on the table.

When your guests come get one ofthem to look after drinks for the others.Delegate the passing round of nibblesand finger food to another. But refuse anyoffers of help in the kitchen. It is easier foryou to focus on the food if you are on yourown. You can also cope better with anyproblems in the preparation of the foodthis way.

Eat in the dining room if you have one.If not, set up an eating area outside thekitchen which you can leave in a totalmess in the final run up to getting food onthe table.

Make the table look pretty. A lovelytable setting will make your food lookmore attractive and delicious to eat.

Make sure your glasses, plates andcutlery are really clean and shine out.

Your guests will get great pleasure fromseeing water pour into their glasses froma lovely jug.

For dessert, make a big pudding or fruitdish that you can serve direct from theserving bowl. This will create a pleasantsense of plenty for the final stage of themeal. It also saves on the washing up.

Do not let your guests do any washingup. Whisk the dirty dishes into the kitchenso your guests can enjoy their after-dinnerconversation in calm and tranquillity. Youcan get everything neat and tidy in thekitchen again after they have gone.

Serve herbal tea after the meal withsomething small and fine, like chocolateor wafer biscuits, to nibble on. This helpscreate a pleasant atmosphere where yourguests can wind down gently. You canalso use a phrase such as “anyone for afinal cup of tea?” as a signal to draw theevening to a close. ✪

Stress (n) nervous or worried feelings.Guests (n) people you invite to your home for a meal, a party or to stay the night.

Ingredients (n) the different types of foods or liquids used to make a recipe.Carve (v) to cut a piece of food. Menu (n) a list of food (usually) available at a restaurant.

Delegate (v) to ask someone else to do some of your work. Nibbles (n) small pieces of food eaten at socialgatherings. Cutlery (n) knives, forks and spoons. Tranquillity (n) a sense of peace.

Make the table lookpretty. A lovely tablesetting will make yourfood look moreattractive anddelicious to eat.

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LIFESTYLE

Ice Houses BY RORY GEAR

T here are many things that wesimply take for granted in today’smodern world. For example, many

people cannot imagine coping without afridge or freezer to keep their food fresh.While the first fridge dates back to 1843,using ice and cool air to keep food freshgoes back much, much further. But in thedays before fridges, having access to icewas an absolute luxury. In Victorian timesthe rich and wealthy impressed theirguests by serving iced drinks or cocktailswhile entertaining lavishly at their Englishcountry homes. In the nineteenth century,ice was a sign of a fabulously highstandard of living. Victorians cut ice fromfrozen-over lakes and rivers in the winter

and stored this in specially designedouthouses that architectural historiansrefer to as “ice houses”.

An ice house is a building or structure,usually made of brick or stone, in whichice is stored during the winter months.Most ice houses are built either partiallyor wholly underground to keep theinterior cold and naturally insulatedagainst the heat of the sun. Few icehouses survive today because with thecoming of the fridge most ice houses costtoo much to keep going. However, thememory of an ice house is oftenpreserved in a place name. There aremany Ice House Woods and Ice HouseLanes dotted around the Englishcountryside. Most of these occur on ornear to the grounds of a once greatcountry house. In a few cases, a largecountry house still boasts its original icehouse structure – usually hidden away ina north facing hillside or a cool and shadywood.

Despite their popularity in Victoriantimes, ice houses in Britain actually dateback to the Romans. The concept of anice house is a relatively simple one. Anice house is built by digging a hugeunderground storage pit with a smallpassage way out to the surface. In

Most ice houses arebuilt either partially orwholly underground tokeep the interior coldand naturallyinsulated against theheat of the sun.

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winter, workmen chop out chunks of icefrom the surface of frozen lakes or riversand cart it off to the ice house forstorage. The ice is stored in layersseparated by straw. The earth insulatesthe ice house from the outside air andkeeps the ice at freezing even in thehottest of summer months. Ice housesoften doubled as food lockers and gamelarders. Indeed, many ice houses showthe remnants of shelves and hooks built in

to them for these purposes.Most ice houses found today owe

their survival to detection and goodrecord keeping. Most ice houses liebelow ground and many simplydisappeared from view when theystopped being used on a regular basis.Place names give away the location ofsome ice houses. But most owe theknowledge of their existence to theprecision with which the Ordnance

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Survey set about making its first maps ofBritain!

Ice houses sometimes get confusedwith more ancient landmarks, such asround barrows, bell pits, and burialmounds. In all cases, the classification ofa structure as an ice house relies oncareful examination of maps andhistorical records along with detailedanalysis of the layout of the undergroundchambers. There are some 2500 knownice houses in England but many historiansbelieve this number to represent a smallfraction of the total number of ice housestructures built over the centuries.

The most distinctive part of any icehouse is the pit or chamber in which theice was stored. The chambers arealways watertight and are often built oflocal materials. While these chamberscome in many shapes and sizes, manyare circular and have vertical sides.However, the most effective ice housesare shaped something like an egg or aninverted cone since these designsmaximize the weight of earth the wallscan carry while minimizing the wallsurface area and optimizing waterdrainage. However, these shapes aredifficult to build. So many ice housessimply have a domed roof while othershave widely spaced double walls thatwere originally packed with charcoal,

straw or stone to help with insulation. As the stored ice gradually melted, a

drainage system at the bottom of the icehouse chamber removed the melt waterdown through a pipe into anunderground “soak away”. The ice itselfstood off the floor on some kind of grill orwooden planking. In some ice housesthe grill was formed by a cart wheel orposts that slotted into the floor. Early icehouses are found near places where it iseasy to collect ice in winter. This meansthat most ice houses are found in lovely,natural locations. Despite this, historianshave shown little interest in ice housesuntil comparatively recently. There islittle research available on thecontribution that an ice house made tothe working of a great estate. But thereis no doubt that ice houses were ofimmense practical value to those estatesfortunate enough to have one. The abilityto keep food fresh for longer meantthese estates suffered less from foodspoilage, wastage or illness associatedwith food poisoning.

So next time you go to the fridge to getsomething out to eat or drink, stop andthink. About how the machine in front ofyou is only the latest in a very long line ofspectacular design ideas for keeping ourvictuals waiting fresh and ready for uswhenever we need them. ✪

Luxury (n) extremely comfortable way of life.Lavish (adj) something that is highly decorated and costs a lot of money.

Insulate (v) to cover something to prevent heat, cold, noise or electricity from escaping.Boast (v) to proudly tell other people about an achievement.

Remnant (n) the remaining part of something.Analysis (n) careful study of something in detail.

Victuals (n) an old fashioned word for food.

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LIFESTYLE

Covered Bridges inMadison County

BY ANGIE BROTHWELL

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Covered bridges are much morecommon in the USA than in mostEuropean countries. For many

Europeans, covered bridges symbolisetraditional, small-town America.Covered bridges provide a structuralform which is good on the eye andpractical too. The first covered bridgein the United States was built inPhiladelphia in 1805. Covered bridgesbecame a popular feature in many partsof the country thereafter. Most of theseare based on simple designs that arerelatively cheap and easy to build. Theroof structure protects the roadbed ofthe bridge to help the bridge last longerwith less regular maintenance andcost. In some parts of the Americacovered bridges are called “kissingbridges” because they provided youngmen and women living in rural areaswith a convenient, easy-to-reach butsheltered place to meet!

The covered bridges of MadisonCounty in Iowa became the mostfamous bridges of their kind in theUnited States following a best sellingbook by Robert James Waller called“The Bridges of Madison County”. Thebridges of Madison County reached aworldwide audience in 1995 when ClintEastwood directed and starred in filmof that name. The storyline is basedaround a romance between an olderman and a younger woman whose lovefor each other is linked to the love ofthe place they live in. The distinctivebridges provide the backdrop for manyscenes in the film and become asymbol of all that is distinctive andadmirable in small town America.

Madison County was famous for itscovered bridges long before RobertJames Waller thought to write aboutthem. This area of the United Statesboasts the highest concentration ofcovered bridges in the entire country.The reason for this is simple. In 1868 EliCox became the supervisor of MadisonCounty. Cox favoured this type of bridgeconstruction over all others, believing itto be more practical and cost effectivein the long run. As a result hecommissioned a total of 19 coveredbridges to be built in the area aroundthe town of Winterset. Cox encouragedthe local farmers to pay their localtaxes in kind rather than cash byhelping to build the bridges. Notsurprisingly, many farmers took up thisoffer with great enthusiasm. As aresult, many residents of MadisonCounty were extremely fond of thecovered bridges they originally helpedto build. And there is no doubt that Coxwas right about the superior quality ofthis kind of bridge. Many of MadisonCounty’s covered bridges lastedwithout repair for 80 years or morewhile simple wooden bridges in otherparts of the country required majoroverhaul and reconstruction every 15 to20 years or so. For this reason, iron andsteel bridges replaced wooden bridgesin most parts of America by the 1940s.And Madison County found itselfcaught up in this trend too. The Countylost 12 of its original 19 covered bridgesin the years up to the 1940s.Fortunately, in 1949 the newly formedMadison County Antique Associationturned its attention to saving the

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Today Madison Countyboasts a total of fiveoriginal coveredbridges dating back tothe 19th century. Threeof these bridges arelocated on the site oftheir original building.

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county’s unique heritage. Today Madison County boasts a total

of five original covered bridges datingback to the 19th century. Three of thesebridges are located on the site of theiroriginal building. The other two weretaken down and rebuilt by the MadisonCounty Antique Association to preservethem from harm from river erosion. Asixth bridge, the Cedar Bridge, is amodern reconstruction of an originalbridge that burned down in 2002. Thisloss followed the destruction by arsonof the McBride bridge in 1983. Despitethese sad losses, the Madison CountyAntique Association looks after thebridges in its care with great vigilance.The Association sees to the regularmaintenance and repair of all thesurviving bridges. In the late 1960s thecovered bridges became the focus ofMadison County’s efforts to put itself onthe tourist map. The week longMadison County Covered BridgeFestival takes place every year anddraws in thousands of visitors. Sincethe 1995 film visitor numbers regularlyexceed 30,000 and include visitors fromall over the world.

Visitors to the covered bridges ofMadison County see a classical type ofbridge style called the Towne Truss,named after Ithiel Towne, the designerwhose style of bridge building Eli Cox

favoured. The sides of a covered bridgeare made in the form of a truss – a rigidstructure that is strong enough to carrythe weight of the deck and roof withoutproblems. While there are 21 differentstyles of truss, each is based on theuse of triangles. The triangle providesthe engineering world with one of thestrongest, most stable and easiest-to-construct shapes there is.

While each type of truss is namedafter its designer, the bridges ofMadison county are named after thefarmers that helped build them or thatoriginally lived nearest to them. TheCedar, Imes, Holliwell, Hogback andRosewell bridges trace their namesback to some of the oldest families tosettle in the region around Winterset.Only one bridge, the Cutler-Donahue,has a double-barrelled name. This isbecause two families disputed theother’s right to name the bridge afterthemselves. The double-barrelled nameemerged as a compromise acceptableto both parties with Cutler comingbefore Donahue only because C comesbefore D in the alphabet! And thisstory shows exactly some of the level-headed, practical values that makesmall town America the kind of no-nonsense, peace-loving place forwhich so many modern city dwellersnostalgically long after. ✪

Symbolise (v) to represent something.Sheltered (adj) a sheltered place is one that is protected and safe e.g. protected from bad weather.

Backdrop (n) everything you can see behind the main object you are looking at.Commission (v) to ask someone to create something.

Nostalgic (adj) fondly remembering the past.

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Our Journey Begins The meeting at the Zoological Institutebegan at half past eight. The meeting hallwas very crowded. Many famousprofessors and scientists were there.There were also many young students.

At the front of the hall there was a wideplatform. The platform was higher thanthe people sitting in the audience. Someimportant scientists were sitting on theplatform. I could see Professor Challenger.

A man called Mr Waldron was giving atalk. Mr Waldron was a famous scientist.His talk was called ‘How Life on EarthBegan’. It was very interesting. First hetalked about how the earth was made.Then he talked about the first plants andanimals. Then he talked about dinosaurs.

‘All the dinosaurs are dead,’ said MrWaldron. ‘All these creatures died millionsof years ago.’

‘Excuse me,’ said a loud voice. ‘That isnot true.’

Mr Waldron was very surprised. Helooked around.

‘Who said that?’ he asked. ‘I did,’ said Professor Challenger. ‘What do you mean, Professor

Challenger?’ said Mr Waldron. He wasvery angry.

‘The dinosaurs are not all dead,’ saidProfessor Challenger. ‘Some are stillliving.’

Some people began to laugh. But MrWaldron did not laugh.

‘And how do you know this, Professor?’he said coldly.

‘I know this because I’ve seen them,’replied Professor Challenger. ‘I’ve seenliving dinosaurs.’

‘Nonsense!’ said Mr Waldron. ‘Thedinosaurs are all dead.

They died a long time ago. Please,Professor, let me finish my talk.’

But Professor Challenger wanted to talkto the people himself.

‘I’m telling the truth,’ he said. ‘Two yearsago I went to South America. I found aLost World. Dinosaurs are living there. Butnobody in London believes my story.

‘So now I have an idea. Other peoplemust go to South America to visit the LostWorld. Then everybody will know my storyis true. I ask you now. Who will go toSouth America to find the Lost World?’

The meeting hall was very quiet.Nobody spoke.

‘I ask you again,’ shouted ProfessorChallenger. ‘Who will go and find the LostWorld?’

A tall man wearing glasses stood up.His name was Professor Summerlee. Hewas a famous scientist.

‘Professor Challenger, I don’t believeyour story,’ said Professor Summerlee.‘But I’m a scientist too. It’s my job to find

SHORT STORY

The Lost WorldBY SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

RETOLD BY ANNE COLLINS

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out about things. So I’ll go to SouthAmerica. I’ll find out if you are tellingthe truth.’

‘Good,’ said Professor Challenger.‘Who else will go?’

Then I made a decision. I decidedto go to South America. I wanted tosee the Lost World myself.

I stood up. At the same time, a tallthin man stood up too.

‘I will go,’ I said. ‘My name isEdward Malone. I’m a reporter on theDaily Gazette.’

‘And I will go,’ said the tall thinman. ‘My name is Lord John Roxton.’I’m not a scientist. I’m a traveller. I’man expert on South America. I’vebeen there many times. I know theAmazon forest well.’

‘Good,’ said Professor Challenger.‘All these men will go to SouthAmerica. They will find out the truth.’

The audience shouted andcheered. The meeting was finishedand soon I was outside in the street.A cold wind was blowing on my face.

What had I done? Had I made aterrible mistake? The journey to the LostWorld would be very dangerous. I beganto feel afraid.

Somebody touched my arm. It was thetall thin man from the meeting – Lord JohnRoxton.

‘Come with me,’ said Lord Roxton. ‘I livenear here. Come to my home and let’stalk.’

Lord John Roxton’s house was veryinteresting. He loved travelling. He hadcollected beautiful things from manycountries. His house was full of carpets,pictures and furniture from all over theworld.

Lord Roxton liked sport and he alsoenjoyed hunting. I saw the heads of manyanimals on the walls. Large anddangerous animals. Lord Roxton hadhunted these animals and killed them.

I had heard many things about LordRoxton. I knew he was a very brave man.Lord Roxton was not afraid of anything.

Lord Roxton was about thirty-eightyears old. He had a strong body and coldblue eyes. He began to talk to me aboutSouth America. When he talked, I did notfeel afraid any more. I felt strong andbrave like him.

‘I love South America,’ said LordRoxton. ‘It’s the most exciting country in

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the world. ‘Perhaps the Professor’s story is true.

Perhaps there are dinosaurs in a LostWorld.’

~~~~~~~Later that evening I went to see Mr

McArdle, my boss at the Daily Gazette. Itold him everything that had happened.

‘So you are going to look for ProfessorChallenger’s Lost World,’ said MrMcArdle. ‘Well, Malone, you are going tohave an adventure. Good luck to you.’

‘Thank you, Mr McArdle,’ I said. ‘I’llsend reports about my journey to theDaily Gazette.’

~~~~~~~Before we left England, Professor

Challenger gave Professor Summerlee,Lord Roxton and me an envelope.

‘There is a town by the River Amazoncalled Manaos,’ he said. ‘When you reachManaos, open this envelope. You mustopen it on 15th July at twelve o’clock. Ihave written some instructions inside. Theinstructions will tell you how to find theLost World.’

Ten days later, at the beginning of May,Professor Summerlee, Lord Roxton and Ileft for South America. We sailed on aship called the Francisca.

And so we began our difficult anddangerous journey. But was there a LostWorld? Would we find it? I did not know.

~~~~~~~After many weeks of travelling, we

reached the town of Manaos on the RiverAmazon.

There were many Indians living nearManaos. These Indians knew Lord Roxtonvery well. When they saw him, theybecame very excited.

‘Why are the Indians so pleased to seeyou?’ I asked Lord Roxton.

‘Five years ago,’ he replied, ‘a mancalled Pedro Lopez was living here. Lopezwas of mixed race – his mother was anIndian and his father was a Mexican.Lopez was very rich. He owned a lot ofland. Many Indians worked for Lopez onhis land. But he gave them very littlemoney or food. Lopez was a terrible man.The work was very hard and many Indiansdied.

‘I saw that Lopez was very cruel. Ifought him and killed him. The Indianswere very happy because I killed Lopez.’

We needed many things for our journey.We needed guns, tents, food and blankets.All these things were very heavy. Wecould not carry them ourselves. Weneeded some servants to help us.

We found some very good men. Theywere five Indians and two men of mixedrace. One of the Indians was tall andstrong. He was called Sancho. The twomen of mixed race were called Gomezand Miguel. Gomez spoke very goodEnglish.

~~~~~~~At twelve o’clock on 15th July,

Professor Summerlee, Lord Roxton and Isat round a table. We were going to openProfessor Challenger’s envelope. LordRoxton opened the envelope and a pieceof paper fell out. I picked it up and turnedit over. We looked at it in surprise. Thepaper was blank. There was nothingwritten on it at all.

Professor Summerlee was very angry. ‘Iknew it!’ he said. ‘Challenger is playinggames with us. There is no Lost World. It’sa trick. I’m going back to London.’

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‘May I come in?’ said a loud voice: A man came into the room – a short

man with a long black beard and anenormous head.

‘Professor Challenger!’ we all cried. ‘Yes,’ said Professor Challenger. ‘I’m

sorry I tricked you but I wanted to surpriseyou. I’m coming with you to the LostWorld.’

Lord Roxton and I were very pleased.Now we would find the plateau easily. ButSummerlee said nothing. He was nothappy to see Professor Challenger. He didnot like Challenger’s trick. And he did notbelieve in the lost world.

~~~~~~~The next day, we left Manaos. We

sailed up the Amazon in a boat called theEsmerelda. After four days, we left theAmazon and sailed up a smaller river.There was an Indian village beside thisriver. The Indians in this village had finecanoes. These canoes were long thinboats with paddles.

We bought two canoes from the Indiansin the village. Then for two days wepaddled up the river in our canoes.

On each side of the river there werethick forests with tall trees. The branchesof the trees grew out over the river. Theforest on both sides of the river was verydark. We could not see into the forest. Wecould not see any animals. But we heardbirds and monkeys in the tree brancheshigh above us.

Professor Challenger and ProfessorSummerlee were scientists. So they werevery interested in the living things in theforest. They watched each plant andinsect. They listened to the birds. But theycould not agree with each other about

anything. They argued all the time.~~~~~~~

In the afternoon of the next day,Professor Challenger suddenly cried out,‘There it is! The way to the Lost World!’ Isaw an opening on one side of the river.Some tall green plants grew across thisopening. We pushed our canoes throughthe plants and came to a small stream.

This stream was a wonderful place. Thewater was bright and clear and we couldsee many beautiful fish. Near the streamthere were brightly coloured animals andbirds. They were not afraid of us at all.

We paddled our canoes up the streamfor three days. Then the stream becamevery narrow. We could not take ourcanoes any further. We left them undersome trees beside the stream and startedto walk.

We walked for nine days. We carriedeverything on our backs. Our journey wasvery difficult. Sometimes the ground wasdry and rocky. Sometimes it was very softand wet. Sometimes huge plants were inour way and we had to cut them down.We were walking up and up.

On the ninth day, we saw a line of highcliffs in front of us. The cliffs were darkred. They were flat at the top and made aplateau.

I knew the place at once. ProfessorChallenger had shown me Maple White’sdrawing in London. The plateau was in thedrawing. Now we could all see theplateau. We had reached the plateau ofthe Lost World. ✪

From The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,retold by Anne Collins 1995, for MacmillanReaders, published by Macmillan Education2005.

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LIFESTYLE

Dogs and CatsBY SARA HALL

Being devoted animal lovers, petowners tend to think that they knoweverything there is to know about

the creatures they own. Interestingly, thisis often not the case. Most pet owners arevery sentimental about their animals. Theythink of them as being human in somespecial way. Many owners treat their petas a member of their family. Despite this,every pet remains an animal at heart andis driven by purely animal needs. Recentstudies into the different characteristics ofcats and dogs show that both speciesremain mysterious and wild at heartdespite their long association with man.Here are ten facts that will surprise eventhe most devoted cat or dog owner:

Cats may be one of the cleverest ofhunters but all cats have a blind spot rightunder their nose. Consequently, cats areunable to retrieve tit-bits from the floor aseasily as their canine friends.

Hungry cats are able to meow at therate of two meows per minute for morethan two hours non-stop. Most cats canpurr without stopping for up to two hoursat a time. Adult cats are also able toconvey different messages with a dozendifferent sounds. Cats usually signalterritorial aggression by growling andhowling. By contrast, cats signaldefensiveness by spitting and hissing.

Cats meow and make trilling sounds as aform of greeting.

Dogs respond differently whenlistening to various music styles. Studiesshow that stressed dogs respond best toclassical music which calms them. Mostdogs show a strong preference for musicby the German composer Bach. Heavymetal or “grunge” music agitates dogsand can make them howl and bark withunease.

Cats have more than 20 muscles intheir external ears or pinnae.Consequently, cats are able to move theirears independently of each other. Thisability enables cats to pick up very faintsounds quickly and efficiently. Cats canmove their bodies in one direction whilepointing their ears in another direction.

Believe it or not, dogs can tell the timewith great accuracy! The Russianphysiologist, Ivan Pavlov, trained dogs toexpect to be fed every half an hour. Whenhe changed the routine to feed them atlonger intervals, the dogs still salivated atprecisely half hourly intervals. Pavlov’sexperiments show that a dog’s internalclock can be changed to act like an“alarm clock” to produce a desiredresponse at a set interval.

No less surprising than a dog’s internalalarm clock is a cat’s ability to fish! To

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catch their prey, cats put one or two pawsinto the water and deftly slide their pawsunder the belly of an unsuspecting fish. Aswift flick hurls the fish out of the waterand onto the ground. From here the catcan eat its catch without getting wet.

Many pet owners enjoy indulging theirpets with tit bits from the table. However,tests show that chocolate actuallypoisons dogs. Chocolate contains highlevels of theobromine, which acts as acardiac stimulant and diuretic on dogs.Cats, on the other hand, do not like sweetthings. Scientists have confirmed that thisis actually a genetic trait in all cats. Testsshow that cats do not have the DNA codethat provides an animal with sweet-tastingreceptors.

There is an old saying that you cannotteach an old dog new tricks. However,

new studies show that this is in fact a lie.Researchers successfully taught severalextremely elderly Beagles new tasks. Thetrick was to feed the dogs on a healthydiet of fruit, vegetables and vitamins. Thedogs learned their new skills as part of aregimen of good exercise that helpedstimulate the brain and engage thememory.

Previously, scientists believed thatdogs were colour-blind. Again, new testsshow that this is not the case. Althoughdogs are unable to see the full range ofcolours that humans can, they are verysensitive to blues and yellows.Interestingly, cats are receptive to aneven smaller range of hues.

Cats are famous for having “ninelives”. This saying comes from a cat’sability to land on its feet, no matter howfar or hard it falls. Cats’ muscles areprogrammed to flex the body upright whenthe animal loses its balance and falls. Anda cat has a fairly light body mass whichmeans it falls more slowly than manyother similarly sized animals. As a result,many cats emerge from falls which injureother animals without scratch or hurt.

So while an owner sees a creaturewhose characteristics they think remindthem of their own human traits, the mostrecent science shows that cats and dogsare very different from their humancompanions in almost every way! ✪

Sentimental (adj) relating to emotion rather than to logic or reason.Species (n) a group of animals or plants sharing broadly the same features.

Retrieve (v) to get something back.Preference (n) feelings of liking something or someone better than something or someone else.

Salivate (v) to produce liquid from a gland in your mouth.Trait (n) a particular aspect of someone’s personality or character. Hue (n) a colour.

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BUSINESS

Carbon Reduction – An Inevitable Business

Requirement for Years to ComeBY HENRY WALLWORK

T he emergence of triple bottom lineaccounting as a standard fororganisations that care about the

sustainability of their business isbeginning to have a wider impact onbusiness as a whole. In the past it wasenough for a business to produce a set ofaccounts for its shareholders thatshowed the level of profit or loss that thebusiness had made with a generalcomment about business performanceand future outlook. As triple bottom linethinking starts to hold sway thisapproach no longer satisfies all thosewho have an interest in the business.These include stakeholders andcommunity as well as shareholders andstaff. And all those with an interest in abusiness or organisation have alegitimate concern to be able to askquestions about the way in which thatbusiness or organisation goes about itsactivity. They want to know how thebusiness acts on a social level (theimpact of its conduct on staff,

stakeholders, clients, customers andcommunity) and on an environmentallevel (how it uses resources, how itsources those resources and the energyit consumes to create its goods andservices using those resources).

Interestingly, the issue of climatechange has pushed the environmentalaspect of business and organisationalbehaviour very much higher up theagenda than anyone might havepredicted even two or three years ago.As people in general begin to understandthat climate change is real and takingplace at a rate unprecedented in humanhistory, so they begin to worry about howclimate change is going to affect thehuman future. The rising proportion ofgreenhouse gases in the atmospheredrives the present cycle of climatechange. The majority of greenhousegases are produced by burning fossilfuels to generate energy. This energy, inturn, drives the wealth creation thatunderpins the global economy, so that

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53Gregorius Gp Buir | Agency: Dreamstime.com

people start to feel entitled to ask, asnever before, if a business ororganisation is harnessing energy wiselyfor the future or squandering it recklesslyfor today. The basic proposition here isthat climate change is a very long termproblem and the only real solution is toreduce our output of carbon dioxide (CO2)

and other greenhouse gases right now toavoid catastrophic impacts on our way oflife in the future.

The idea that the wellbeing of thehuman future depends on the planet’secosystems rather than on our ownsense of will and purpose is new in termsof mass thinking. But it is precisely this

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54Tomasz Gulla | Agency: Dreamstime.com

idea that gives individuals the sense ofmoral right to ask questions of howbusinesses and organisations are usingenergy in their name (ie produce thegoods and services that they asindividuals wish to consume). And it isthis basic shift in the way people nowsee energy, rather than any specific newlaw or regulation, that will transform theway businesses and organisations makedecisions about the way that they choseto do what they do.

The most pressing concern emergingfor the majority of consumers (a term thatin its widest sense includes staff,stakeholders, clients, customers and

community) is to see evidence that abusiness or organisation is activelyreducing its production of CO2 and othergreenhouse gases. Reducingconsumption of fossil-fuel energy is themost transparent and compelling way toprove this. So the first demand for anybusiness or organisation seekingsustainable competitive advantage in anymarket place is to show that it has takenevery conceivable measure to cut downits need for fossil fuel. This is beginningto now hold as true for sole traders as forglobal giants. And the activity of organi-sations like the Carbon Trust arebeginning to evolve a set of energy

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consumption and CO2 or greenhouse gasproduction metrics that allow soletraders and global giants to comparetheir approaches on an equivalent if notyet exactly like for like basis.

The gold standard demand is that abusiness or organisation should becarbon-neutral or carbon-negative to winconsumers’ loyalty. A carbon neutralbusiness or organisation is one that isnot adding to the climate changeproblem of the future. A carbon negativebusiness or organisation is one that isactively helping to solve climate changefor the future by reducing the proportionof CO2 and other greenhouse gases in theatmosphere right now. As fewbusinesses or organisations are able tobe carbon negative in the short term,carbon offsetting is likely to becomemore prevalent and popular. However,this will only be as a second-orderchoice. Consumers will judge those whoturn to carbon offsetting but fail to tacklefossil fuel reduction almost as harshly asthose who fail to do anything in eithersphere at all.

All of which now puts carbonreduction right at the heart of thebusiness and organisational reputationgame. Being able to proclaim (and prove)carbon-neutral or carbon-negative status

is going to be as key as basic profitabilityto securing a stake in the future. Andwhile consumers may forgive someambiguity in the metrics now available tobusinesses and organisations to explainthe validity of the energy consumptiondecisions they make, the rising sense ofscam around the claims many playersmake mean that this forgiveness is likelyto be very short-lived. Those firms andorganisations that work hardest now tobe able to rigorously substantiate theircarbon-neutral or carbon-negative statusare likely to be the most profitablewinners in the very near future.

Which means that debate aroundenergy metrics and carbon productionand offsetting is going to be heated andhighly contested in the next 100 monthsto come. However, it is predictable thatwithin this timescale, consumers willhave settled on fit-for-purpose carbon-metrics that they expect to see in triplebottom line accounts even if politicians,accountants and experts are divided asto which are most accurate, cost-effective or convenient. And it is likelythat such fit-for-purpose metrics willevolve through collaborative researchfrom businesses and organisations forwhom, going carbon-negative, drives theexchange of best practice. ✪

Legitimate (adj) according to law; lawful.Agenda (n) a list of aims or possible future achievements.

Atmosphere (n) the gaseous envelope surrounding the earth; the air.Fossil (n) skeletal remains of a plant or animal which have been preserved in a rock for a very long period.

Ecosystem (n) all the living things in an area and the way they affect each other and the environment.Transparent (adj) easily seen through, recognised, or detected.

Metrics (n) the science of measuring. Prevalent (adj) in general use or acceptance.Ambiguity (n) the state of being doubtful or uncertain of something. Scam (n) an illegal plan for making money.

Substantiate (v) to show something to be true, or to support a claim with facts.

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56© Fresh Minds Publishing. For more information contact: +44 (0)1285 640045

Origami paper with black on one side and white onthe other works perfectly for this project. Using veryfew folds, you can create something that stands up

like a real penguin. Penguins like to swim and feed ingroups. So why not make a whole group of penguins and apaper pool for them to swim in?

1Take your square piece of paper. Fold itdiagonally in half with the white on the

inside to make a crease, then unfold. Turn thepaper over. Take a corner at one end of thediagonal fold, and fold it up 21/2cm as shown.Crease sharply. 2 Reverse the diagonal fold so that

the white is on the outside, tomake the shape shown.

3 Fold the top point down to 11/2cmfrom the bottom fold, and crease.

Turn the paper over and repeat asshown. (This step is just like making thewings on a paper aeroplane.)

YOU NEEDOne 10cm square

piece of paper, blackon one side and white

on the other.

ACTIVITY

Paper PenguinFrom ‘Origami’ by Fresh Minds Publishing

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57

4 Place a ruler over the shape. Foldthe point down against the edge of

the ruler at the angle shown. Removethe ruler. Crease the fold.

5 Open the crease up slightly and pullthe point towards you (making a

reverse fold). This makes the penguin’shead point downwards.

6Crease the penguin again sothat it is completely flat. Then

open it up to show the finishedpenguin.

MORE IDEASMake a group of

penguins in differentcolours and sizes,

and maybe a paperpool for them to

dive into.

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58

A Write the answers to the questions inthe grid. The letters in the shaded

squares will spell the name of a famousperson. Read the articles in the magazineto find the right answers. 1. The name given to a group of ships.2. The waltz was first danced in this

capital city.3. The name of one of the two main

puppets in the famous British

slapstick puppet show.4. The sum of 3 x 0.5. The city where Rachel Weisz lives

with her husband and young son.6. Someone who shoots from a hidden

place.7. Where ice was stored in the olden

times.8. A famous ancient stone circle in the

south of England.

LANGUAGE QUIZ

Just For FunTry our questions and puzzles – no prizes, just for fun!

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

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9. A structure built out from the landover water e.g. over the sea or alake.

B Unscramble these words that appearin the magazine articles:

1. HEMYALC2. DENLEG3. ZTLAW4. VILLGAE5. CIDTH6. NOZED7. DGE BRI8. GEUSTS9. BBINLE

C Find a letter that will complete thefirst word and the start of the second:

a. STRES WIMb. CLEA EWc. SLAPSTIC NITd. JEWE AKEe. BRIDG LEPHANTf. GRADUAT NDINGg. DANCE EBELLION

JUST FOR FUN SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 63

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s60

FIND A WORD SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 63

MeditationElixir

ImmortalStonePaganMagic

MineralsRitualThink

TeacherWizardFolkloreNaturePotion

Experiment

1. Find and circle all words associated with things magical,mysterious and strange. The words lie along, up, downand diagonally across the columns. The words can runforwards or backwards.

2. Translate or explain the words for yourself.

E M A N W Y Q V Z E E F H G C AN D V I M M O R T A L N F E P MO U Q X A I E P O I U I R K Q ET Q W G G N A T U R E E X D W DS W E Y I E T R I T M G F I E IW E R E C R Y D A O J Q O H R TE R T P Z A W I Z A R D L S T AO T Y O S L I Y C I F R K K Y TD Y O T I S O F E D E I L P S IZ C I I L E P T S H A Z O C V OK X N O A T L R C Y U I R P Z NP Y C N U Q K A S E J O E N N CJ I P V T R E O D F G H D V A UO X O H I T H R K N I H T S G LE X P E R I M E N T S X W H A IW P X H J K F V Z U Z T F P P B

FIND A WORD

Alchemy, Philosophy and Magic!

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s61

Photos © dreamstime.com

KNOW THE ISSUE

The ModernEnglish Digest Quiz

Find the answers to our quiz

1. Which Greek god is known as theFather of Alchemy?

2. What is the Philosopher’s Stone?

3. What is the great bell of StStephen’s Cathedral in Viennacalled?

4. Name a famous waltz composed byJohann Strauss the younger.

5. When does “Faschung” or Vienna’scarnival time usually take place?

6. Does the giant Foja Mountain ratshow aggression to humans?

7. Are the La Amistad salamanderspoisonous?

8. What is Road Rage?

9. Who was the “Sea Queen ofConnaught”?

10. Did Grace O’Malley and QueenElizabeth I get on well when theymet at Greenwich palace?

11. How old is the Avebury Stone Circlebelieved to be?

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12. Why was much of the Avebury sitedestroyed during the seventeenthand eighteenth centuries?

13. What is the “Devil’s Chair” famousfor?

14. What does the phrase “Baker’sDozen” mean?

15. Where was Tanzanite firstdiscovered and by whom?

16. What colour is Tanzanite?

17. Describe a Punch and Judy Show.

18. Identify three other charactersoften found in a Punch and JudyShow.

19. Name the role for which RachelWeisz won the 2006 AcademyAward.

20. What is an Ice House?

21. Where was the first covered bridgein the United States built?

22. Who directed and starred in the1995 film, The Bridges of MadisonCounty?

Send your answers with your name and address to:The EditorKeyways PublishingPO Box 100ChichesterWest Sussex, PO18 8HD, UK.

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63

Editor: SARA HALL

Contributing Editor: STAN POWELL

Design: GEORGIA DAVEY, www.taurus-graphics.net

Editorial Director: PETER COLLIN,peter.collin@keywayspublishing.com

Advertising Sales: SOPHIE MALONEMAINLINE MEDIA

Tel: +44 (0)1536 747333 Fax: +44 (0)1536 746565,

Writers KESTA ALLEN, ANGIE BROTHWELL, NEIL COOPER,

EDWIN DRUMMOND, RORY GEAR, SARA HALL, MARY HUBER, FANNY MILLS, STAN POWELL,

JOE ST CLAIR, LOUISE STRAUCH, HENRY WALLWORK

Photographers/Illustrators STAN POWELL, GEORGIA DAVEY

PublishersKEYWAYS PUBLISHING

PO Box 100, Chichester, West Sussex PO18 8HDTel: +44 (0)1243 576444 Fax: +44 (0)1243 576456

KEYWAYS PUBLISHINGTitle & arrangement © 2008,

KEYWAYS PUBLISHING

Text and layout © 2008, SARA HALLImages and photographs © 2008, as noted above

PUBLISHED six times each yearISSN 1478-9019

VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www.ModernEnglishDigest.net

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PUZ Z L E SOLUT IONFROM PAGE 60

B1. ALCHEMY2. LEGEND3. WALTZ4. VILLAGE5. DITCH6. DOZEN7. BRIDGE8. GUESTS9. NIBBLE

Ca. STRES (S) WIMb. CLEA (N) EWc. SLAPSTIC (K) NITd. JEWE (L) AKEe. BRIDG (E) LEPHANTf. GRADUAT (E) NDINGg. DANCE (R) EBELLION

A

Just for Fun Answers from page 58

E M A N W Y Q V Z E E F H G C AN D V I M M O R T A L N F E P MO U Q X A I E P O I U I R K Q ET Q W G G N A T U R E E X D W DS W E Y I E T R I T M G F I E IW E R E C R Y D A O J Q O H R TE R T P Z A W I Z A R D L S T AO T Y O S L I Y C I F R K K Y TD Y O T I S O F E D E I L P S IZ C I I L E P T S H A Z O C V OK X N O A T L R C Y U I R P Z NP Y C N U Q K A S E J O E N N CJ I P V T R E O D F G H D V A UO X O H I T H R K N I H T S G LE X P E R I M E N T S X W H A IW P X H J K F V Z U Z T F P P B

F L E E T

V I E N N A

P U N C H

Z E R O

M A N H A T T A N

S N I P E R

I C E H O U S E

S T O N E H E N G E

P I E R

1.

2.

3.

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