Module 7

Vocabulary
 Unexplained mysteries

A Match the words to form collocations.

1 extraterrestrial a occurrences
2 ancient b disappearances
3 international c release
4 ocean d spacecraft
5 press e force
6 supernatural f headlines
7 strange g floor
8 unexplained h city

 Mysteries & Civilisations

B Complete the sentences with words from the list.

 civilisation  concrete  carvings  fake  powers  remote  temples  unsolved

1 It was believed that witch doctors had 5 Archaeologists found prehistoric

special magic ............................................. .
2 The man was arrested for trying to
sell ............................... artefacts.
3 The Bermuda Triangle remains one of the
most famous ............................... mysteries
in the world.
4 Mesopotamia was home to an
early ............................. that developed one
of the first forms of writing.
rock ................................ in a cave in the
south of France.
6 The ancient temple was discovered near
a ................................ village in the
Amazon.
7 There is no ............................... evidence
that extraterrestrial life exists.
8 The ancient Greeks built
beautiful ................................. for their
gods.

C Replace the words/phrases in bold in the sentences with words from the
list in the correct form.

 conquer  decline  expand  flourish  extend  worship

1 The Ottoman Empire stretched over the
Balkans and a large part of the
Mediterranean. ..............................
2 The Roman Empire became weak and fell
apart after the 3rd century AD. .....................
3 Alexander the Great took control of vast
territories of Europe and Asia.
..............................
4 The British Empire grew very rapidly in
the Victorian era. ..............................
5 The Ancient Greeks prayed to a large
number of deities. ..............................
6 The Ancient Egyptian civilisation
prospered for several centuries and
produced great things. ............................

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 Module 7
 Space & UFOs

D Fill in land, launch, orbit, travel in the correct form.

Columbia was the first of NASA’s space shuttles. It was first 1) ......................... into space
on 12th April 1981, twenty years after the first ever human spaceflight, Vostok 1. Its mission
was to perform a safe ascent into space, to check the space shuttle system and return to
Earth safely. The vessel 2) ........................ the Earth 36 times and 3) ................... a
distance of over 1.7 million kilometres before 4) .......................... safely two days later at
an airbase in California. Columbia would carry out 27 more missions into space before
being destroyed during re-entry in 2003.

E Match the words to form collocations.

1 alien a system
2 close b sightings
3 shooting c exploration
4 solar d star
5 space e abduction
6 UFO f encounter

F Choose the correct word.

1 UFO sightings were at their summit/peak
in the 1960s.
2 Ancient Roman aqueducts were built to a
very clever design/pattern.
3 Many people are waiting for a symbol/
sign that there is alien life.
4 Do you know who discovered/invented
the wheel?
5 How high is the top/point of Kilimanjaro?
6 Have they recovered/uncovered the
ancient ruins yet?

G Fill in: bull, dark, doors, truth.

1 The whole meeting was held behind
closed ........................ and everything was
kept secret.
2 You shouldn’t tell lies because
the ........................ will come out one day.
3 Don’t listen to that! It’s a cock
and ........................ story.
4 We are all in the ........................ about
what really happened.

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 Module 7
 Word formation

H Complete the sentences with the correct form of the word in bold.

1 There are high ........................................... from medical research on marine EXPECT

plants.
2 There is simply no ........................................... for the disappearance of the EXPLAIN
ship.
3 Some people don’t think we should spend money on space ........................ . EXPLORE
4 The government set up an ........................................... into the UFO INVESTIGATE
sightings.
5 How many ........................................... are there in the study? PARTICIPATE
6 Did you know that Denis is a ........................................... architect? QUALIFY
7 Jane would like to become a medical ........................................... . RESEARCH
8 Dr Norton keeps coming up with ........................................... theories about INTRIGUE
UFOs.

 Phrasal verbs

I Replace the word/phrase in bold with a suitable phrasal verb from the list
in the correct form.

 cover up  calm down  put forward  come across  pass out

1 Dr Heath presented an interesting theory 4 If I ever saw an extraterrestrial, I think I
on the subject. .............................. would collapse. ..............................
2 Many people believe that the government 5 The fisherman found an ancient tomb
is hiding the real cause of the explosion. while fishing off rocks. ..............................
..............................
3 Dan was sure he saw a UFO and Ken had
to make him relax. ..............................

 Prepositions

J Choose the correct preposition.

1 The soldiers prohibited the people of/from
approaching the UFO crash site.
2 There is a certain amount of controversy
over/with research into artificial intelligence.
3 A spacecraft is said to have fallen out of the
sky and crashed onto/into a field.
4 The archaeologist explored the forest in
search for/of the ancient ruins.
5 There are people constantly trying to
communicate with/to extraterrestrials
through the airwaves.

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 Module 7
Grammar
 Comparisons
A Put the adjectives in brackets into the correct form, adding any necessary
words.
1 The Mothman is by far .................................
(intriguing) urban myth.
2 The Odyssey is ............................................
(fascinating) any other poem I have read.
3 The Corpus Museum in Amsterdam
is ................................... (amazing)
Science museum I’ve ever been to.
B Put the adverbs in brackets into the correct form, adding any necessary words.
1 Jeff is very bright and
learns ............................ (quickly) anyone I
know.
2 The temple was found in one
of .............................. (remotely) located
areas in the country.
3 Why didn’t you tell him about it ....................
(early)?
C Put the adjectives/adverbs in brackets into the correct form, adding any
necessary words.
1 A: Sorry! Could you tell me where the
Science museum is?
B: Oh, yes! It’s ................................... (far)
down the street towards the river.
2 A: Wow! Did you see that?
B: Yep! That was ...................................
(strange) thing I’ve ever seen.
3 A: He really believes in aliens, doesn’t he?
B: Yeah, no one believes in
them ...................................
(passionately) than Thomas.
4 A: Lenny knows a lot about ancient
civilisations, doesn’t he?
B: Yes, he is by far ...................................
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4 Do you know what .....................................
(fast) aircraft is?
5 I think medical research
is ....................... ................. (important)
space exploration.
6 Notre Dame is considered one of ..............
................... (great) gothic structures in
Europe.
4 His plays are ............................ (widely)
performed in the USA.
5 Simon tries ................................... (hard)
he can to study properly.
6 James tells a tale ......................
(vividly) any of the other kids.
5 A: Shall we leave soon?
B: Sure! The ...................................
(early) we leave,
the ................................... (good).
6 A: Let’s take a taxi.
B: No, the underground will cost
us ................................... (little).
7 A: Does anyone know what happened?
B: No, it’s just .........................................
(mysterious) as all the other
disappearances.
8 A: So everyone agrees then?
B: Yes, it is ........................................
(widely) accepted theory in the world.
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 Module 7
(knowledgeable) person I know.

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 Module 7
D Choose the correct item.
1 Maths is more/most difficult than English.
2 Stories about Bigfoot go back as farther/
far as the 1950s.
3 The article I read about Atlantis was
less/least interesting than I had expected.
4 The Pyramids are much old/older than the
Parthenon.
5 Bicycles aren’t as fast than/as cars.
6 Helen’s project on ancient civilisations was
the best of/in class.
E Complete the second sentence so that it means the same as the first.
1 That disappearance is more mysterious
than any other.
It is .................................................... of all.
2 He tells stories in a more convincing way
than anyone else.
He tells stories ...........................................
anyone else.
3 The documentary was not as interesting as
the previous ones.
The documentary was ...............................
.......................................the previous ones.
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7 Space shuttle technology is becoming
the more/more and more advanced.
8 The Inca empire expanded more
rapidly/rapid than any other empire at
that time.
9 I am not impressed by alien stories as
easy/easily as you are.
10 The longer/longest we stay, the more
time we can spend visiting the ancient
ruins.
4 That book was the cheapest in the shop.
It was .....................................................
expensive book in the shop.
5 He is among the top scientists in the world.
He is one ...............................................
scientists in the world.
6 Archaeologists around the world
appreciate that type of artefact more than
any other.
That type of artefact is ...........................
........................................................of all.
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 Module 7
 Inversion
F Rewrite the sentences as inversions.
1 I rarely hear about any UFO sightings
around here.
Rarely .......................................................
................................................................. .
2 If I had had a camera with me, I would
have photographed the UFO.
Had ...........................................................
................................................................. .
3 We had just arrived at the spot when we
saw strange creatures.
Hardly........................................................
................................................................. .
4 He believes in UFOs and also thinks that
governments know about them.
Not only......................................................
................................................................. .
 Clauses
G Join the sentences using the words in brackets.
1 A number of people claim to have seen
UFOs. There is no proof of extraterrestrial
life. (although)
..................................................................
..................................................................
2 They collected the pieces of the wreckage.
They wanted to study it. (in order to)
..................................................................
..................................................................
3 He leaves the radio on all the time. He
wants to listen out for alien transmissions.
(so that)
..................................................................
..................................................................
4 There is no proof of the existence of Atlantis.
Dr Byrne still believes in it. (despite the fact
that) .........................................................
..................................................................
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5 He was so frightened that his legs were
shaking.
So ...........................................................
.............................................................. .
6 If the sky is clear tonight we will see a
partial eclipse of the moon.
Should ....................................................
.............................................................. .
7 They didn’t believe the man until they
saw it themselves.
Only after ................................................
.............................................................. .
8 If I were you, I would write a book about
the abduction.
Were ......................................................
.............................................................. .
5 He bought a telescope. He wanted to
observe the stars at night. (so as to)
................................................................
................................................................
6 The launch of the shuttle was postponed.
The weather was bad. (due to)
................................................................
................................................................
7 The Antikythera Mechanism is a complex
mystery. No one really knows what it was
used for. (such a ... that)
................................................................
................................................................
8 Stephen talks. He thinks he was really
abducted by aliens. (as if)
................................................................
................................................................
 Module 7
Reading
Read the text and choose the best answer, A, B, C or D.

Newgrange: a 5,000-year-old mystery

Newgrange is a mysterious prehistoric monument located in County Meath in Ireland. It
was built during the Neolithic period sometime around 3,200 BC making it older than the more
famous great pyramids of Egypt or Stonehenge in England. Newgrange is part of a complex of
35 monuments built along a bend of the River Boyne known collectively as Brú na Bóinne and
is surrounded by a circle of huge standing stones. The building is a kidney-shaped structure
76m across and 12m high comprising of a large mound of alternating layers of earth and stones
with grass growing on top. On the south-eastern side of the mound is an entrance leading to a
chambered passage made from slabs of stone, some of which are decorated. The passage
stretches for 18.95 metres and leads to a large central chamber and three smaller chambers.
The structure contains a variety of abstract Neolithic rock art carvings, one of the most
important being a triskele, found on the entrance stone. This is a Celtic symbol consisting of line
three spirals and is considered one of the most famous stone carvings of all megalithic art. 11
How such a huge building was constructed without machinery remains a mystery. The
stones used for the main structure are local but weigh a total of 200,000 tonnes and would have
been difficult to transport uphill to the site. Others come from a beach around 20 km away. It is
thought they were brought up the river tied to the underside of boats. The true mystery of
Newgrange lies in its astronomical character, though. Once a year, at the winter solstice on 21st
December, the sun shines directly through a specially designed opening known as a roof-box
and illuminates the central chamber for about 17 minutes. Although solar alignments are not
uncommon among passage graves, Newgrange is one of only a few to contain a roof-box
feature and its alignment is very precise compared to that of other similar structures. These
days, the first rays of light enter the chamber about four minutes after sunrise, but calculations
show that 5,000 years ago, first light would have entered exactly at sunrise.
People do not all agree on why the building was built and what it was used for. During
the medieval period, Newgrange and the wider Brú na Bóinne Neolithic complex were often
associated with figures of Irish mythology and some people believed them to be inhabited by
supernatural spirits. More recently, archaeologists classified Newgrange as a passage tomb
where the bones of the dead were possibly originally deposited. Some claim that it was an
ancient temple of spiritual, religious and ceremonial importance designed for a ritualistic
capturing of the sun on the shortest day of the year for a people for whom the sun was an
important form of worship. Others claim it was a centre of astronomy, geometry and mythology.
Today, Newgrange is widely recognised as one of the most important megalithic
structures in Europe and is consequently a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has also become a
popular tourist site and visitors can experience an artificial reproduction of the astronomical
phenomenon any time of year. An annual lottery is also held for a few lucky people to be
allowed into the tomb on the winter solstice to view the actual event.

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 Module 7
1 According to the text, Newgrange was built before
A any other Neolithic monument.
B the other buildings in the complex.
C the ancient Egyptian pyramids.
D any other building in Ireland.

2 In line 11, what does ‘This’ refer to?

A the building and the complex
B the building’s entrance stone
C a carving in the central chambers
D a design on the entrance stone

3 Newgrange is unique because of

A the way the building was constructed.
B how long the central chamber is lit up.
C the decorations in the central chamber.
D how exact the solar alignment is.

4 Newgrange and its surroundings were

A once thought to be haunted.
B used to re-enact ancient Irish history.
C only discovered in medieval times.
D used throughout the year to worship the sun.

5 Tourists who visit the site

A are not allowed inside Newgrange.
B can see what happens on the winter solstice.
C have to enter an annual lottery.
D must have permission from UNESCO.

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 Module 7
Listening

Listen to a talk about the Bermuda Triangle and for questions 1-5 choose the
correct answer, A, B or C.

1 The speaker is
A an airline pilot.
B an engineer.
C a researcher.

2 The craft disappeared

A in fine weather.
B after sending out warnings.
C as soon as they got into the triangle.

3 The name ‘Bermuda Triangle’ was chosen because

A the island was in the centre of the triangle.
B Bermuda was the largest island nearby.
C Bermuda already had an appropriate nickname.

4 Some explanations say a plane could explode due to

A electronic fog.
B methane gas.
C malfunctioning instruments.

5 To fly from London to Bermuda was hazardous because

A of weather conditions.
B planes were badly designed.
C planes of the time didn’t carry as much fuel as today.

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