The Environment influences an organism's life in many ways. It is everything that surrounds an organism and it includes physical and biological components. The physical components of the environment are soil, water, air, light and temperature. These are termed as abiotic components. The biological components are plants and animals, collectively referred to as biotic components. Air, water, soil, minerals, coal, petroleum, animals and plants are referred to as natural resources. Types of natural resources: Inexhaustible Natural Resource:the inexhaustible natural resources are unlimited in nature, and they are not likely to be exhausted by human activities. Example are solar radiation, air, water, precipitation (rainfall, snow fall, etc.,) and atomic power. Exhaustible Natural Resource:the exhaustible natural resources are limited in nature and are liable to be degraded in quantity and quality by human activities. Examples are forests, soil, wild animals, minerals, fossil fuels etc.
Activities:
READ THE FOLLOWING READING AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE READING.
The only way to protect the rivers and oceans of Costa Rica is to have impact studies involving local community and scientific assessment; this is in order to give diagnostic credibility and to prevent more crimes against nature from industries and giant mega-projects that alter and damage the surrounding areas near water sources above and below the ground. Pollutants dumped into the river alter surrounding areas and fresh water supplies. This is as old as the industrial age.
The government of Costa Rica should punish those responsible with large fines and sanctions, such as cleaning up the mess and replacing all the fish and shrimp and other flora and fauna damaged before their operation license is returned.
QUESTIONS: 1. What is the best option to keep waters clean? _________________________________________________________
2. What does the construction of big commercial companies cause? _________________________________________________________
3. The author of the article considers that local authorities must __________________________________________________________ Enviromental Vocabulary
When considering a visit to Costa Rica, something important to take into consideration are the national holidays. It would be a shame to come when everything is closed. As mentioned before “Ticos” are rather religious people so most of their holidays are church related. For example, if plans include coming to visit the country during Holy Week, it is important to know that most of the countries offices, banks, courts, government offices, and many stores will be closed, and locals head for the beach and mountain spots to relax for an entire week. These mass migrations to the beach spots make finding a hotel very difficult and many times the rental car places will not have even a single car. This also happens during Christmas/New Year’s so plan ahead. These times of the year are also on record as the most expensive times to visit Costa Rica. A list of major national holidays year round and a brief description:
January 1st: New Year’s Day is celebrated outside San José, and the ones that decide to stay at home meet their families or go out to bars and wait together for the New Year to come.
February 14th: San Valentine's Day. is celebrated all around the world "Ticos" celebrate “El día Del Amor y la Amistad” (love and friendship day) taking their partners to dinner, sending flowers or exchanging chocolates or cards.
Between March and April Easter Holy Week, Semana Santa: Dates change annually but businesses often close from Holy Thursday to Sunday. Most Catholic Churches will made religious processions in which they re-create dramatizations of Jesus' final days before being crucified.
April 11th: Juan Santamaria Day. commemorates Costa Rica’s national hero who fought at the battle of Rivas against the American invader, William Walker, in 1856. The International Airport is named after him.
May 1st: Labor Day. Dia de los Trabajadores. is the same as Labor Day in North America and every public and private sector employee has the day off.
July 25th: Guanacaste Day. is celebrated for the annexation of Guanacaste from Nicaragua in 1824. Highlights usually include bullfights, rodeos, dancing, topes, and other parades and parties all around the province.
August 15th: Mother’s Day. is surprisingly a major national holiday where all the locals have off work to go and be with their mothers.
September 15th: Independence Day. big patriotic parades celebrate Costa Rica’s independence from Spain in 1821. Everything is closed including some streets. High school bands commemorate marching and playing national songs, and the country is decorated with blue, red, and white hand-made crafts, little flags and “faroles” (kind of paper lanterns lighted with candles). It is a day of large community celebrations.
Activities:
Anna:
“I’m planning my holiday for next summer and I don’t know whether I should have a lazy holiday or
an exciting one. Last year I went on holiday to southern Spain with my best friends, Joanna and
Ling. We stayed in a brilliant four‐star hotel, which had three swimming pools. It was quite
expensive but we really enjoyed ourselves and we all got great suntans! This year, Joanna is going
away with her parents to Greece so it’ll be just Ling and me. Ling wants us to go on an adventure
holiday in Africa, the type where you have to go walking in the desert and sleep out in the open.
She said it would be interesting and better than having a lazy holiday because we would learn
about the world around us and see some wild animals. I’m not sure whether I want to go to Africa.
For me, a holiday means relaxing on a beach, not trekking across the middle of nowhere. Ling said
that we’d see elephants and zebras and have some amazing experiences. I think she’s bored of lying
in the sun all day and fancies a change. I’ve got to make up my mind by next Monday at the latest
so that she can book the tickets. It would cost £1,400 each to go to Africa, but less than half that
amount for two weeks in Portugal.”
Questions:
1. When is Anna going on holiday?
2. Name her two closest friends.
3. True or false – last year she went to northern Spain?
4. How many swimming pools did their hotel have?
5. Was the hotel expensive?
6. True or false – only Anna got a good suntan?
7. Where is Joanna going on holiday this year?
8. Who is she going with?
9. What type of holiday does Ling want this year?
10. Where does she want to go?
Costa Rican cuisineis known for being fairly mild, with high reliance on fresh fruits and vegetables. Rice and black bean are a staple of most traditional Costa Rican meals, often served three times a day. Costa Rican fare is nutritionally well rounded, and nearly always cooked from scratch from fresh ingredients. Traditional meals have a home-cooked, comforting feel to them. Due to the tropical location of the country, there are many exotic fruits and vegetables readily available and included in the local cuisine.
The Arts of Costa Rica are diverse. Visitors and locals alike can enjoy a day of Dance or Music at a local Theatre or perhaps enjoy a presentation of Paintings or Photography at a local gallery. There are also countless Museums to be appreciated in the San Jose area and around the country. A walk around downtown San Jose can open one's eyes to a variety of different styles of Architecture from colonial to modern. From oil canvases to digital photography, to Literature Costa Rica has it all from national to international artists who call Costa Rica home.
The Culture of Costa Rica
Music and dance in Costa Rica:
Ticos love to dance. By night San José gets into the mood with discos hotter than the tropical night. On weekends rural folks flock to small-town dance halls, and the Ticos' celebrated reserve gives way to outrageously flirtatious dancing. Says National Geographic: "To watch the viselike clutching of Ticos and Ticas dancing, whether at a San José discotheque or a crossroads cantina, is to marvel that the birthrate in this predominantly Roman Catholic nation is among Central America's lowest." Outside the dance hall, the young prefer to listen to Anglo-American rock, like their counterparts the world over. When it comes to dancing, however, they prefer the hypnotic Latin and rhythmic Caribbean beat and bewildering cadences of cumbia, lambada, marcado, merengue, salsa, soca, and the Costa Rican swing, danced with sure-footed erotic grace.
Folkloric music
Classical music
Activities:
Reading Comprehension:
MUSEUM CELEBRATES 10TH ANNIVERSARY
The Children’s Museum is holding a one-week celebration starting April
25. On the opening day of the celebration, they will have an “Intelligent
Light Show”, where the lights will dance to a mix of music at 3, 4, and 5
p.m. Admission is free. On April 26, a Latin American Culture Night will
feature dances, music videos, and paintings of various Latin American
countries at the Museum. The ticket price is ₡ 1,500. A rock concert with
the groups Gandhi, Evolution and Stigma will be held at 9 p.m. April 30 at
the museum. The ticket price is ₡ 2,000.
On May 2, the final day of celebrations, the museum will hold a carnival
starting at 10 a.m. and lasting to 3 p.m.
1. What celebration starts on April 25? The __________ birthday of the Children’s
Museum.
a. twenty-fifth
b. fourth
c. Tenth
d. Fifth
2. What time will the rock concert be? At __________.
a. nine at night
b. ten in the morning
c. nine in the morning
d. three in the afternoon
3. What will the last activity be? A (n) __________.painting exhibition
a. intelligence
b. show
c. carnival
d. dance
4. What will the Latin Night include? It will include __________.
a. dances and music
b. paintings and a light show
c. videos and rock music performers
d.a presentation by the groups Evolution and Stigma
5.How long will the celebrations for the anniversary last? They will last __________.
a. two months
b. one month
c. two weeks
d. one week
Miguel· Brenes is one Costa Rica’s
living master sculptors. f-Iisworks
celebrate the "Eternal Feminine'' in wood,
stone, and bronze. Inaddition to holding a
degree in Fine Art from the University of
Costa Rica (U.C.R.), he studied extensively at
the National School of Painting and Sculpture
of Mexico.Brenes' sculptures have been
widely shown in Central America and Mexico
in individual and group exhibitions. A native
of Heredia, Miguel Brenes has obtained
numerous awards and honors for bis work,
including a meda! in the First Fine Arts Salon
of the Museo Nacional de Costa Rica, the
Acquisition Prize in.the Second Biennial of
Fine Arts in El Salvador, and the first prize
far Central American Sculpture in Guatemala.
Answer the following questions based on the previous reading.
Sports are all forms of usually competitive physicalactivityor games which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants, and in some cases, entertainment for spectators. Usually the contest or game is between two sides, each attempting to exceed the other. Some sports allow a tie game; others provide tie-breaking methods, to ensure one winner and one loser. A number of such two-sided contests may be arranged in a tournamentproducing a champion. Many sports leagues make an annual champion by arranging games in a regular sports seasons, followed in some cases by playof. Hundreds of sports exist, from those between single contestants, through to those with hundreds of simultaneous participants, either in teams or competing as individuals. In certain sports such as racing contestants may compete, each against all with one winner. Different types of sports: -soccer -tennis -volleyball -baseball -basketball -football -badminton Reading comprehension activity Triathlon is a sport that consists of three parts, swimming, cycling and running. Athletes race against each other. They swim first, cycle second and run last. Triathlon became an Olympic Sport in 2000 at the Sydney Summer Olympics in Australia. In the Olympics athletes swim for 1.5 km, cycle for 40 km and then run for 10 km. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics in China the women’s gold medal in triathlon was won by an Australian, Emma , who completed the race in just under two hours. Jan Frodeno from Germany won the men’s gold medal; he finished the race in one hour and 48 minutes. A popular triathlon event is the Sprint Triathlon. It is a shorter race. It is half the distance of the triathlon of the Olympics. In the Sprint Triathlon athletes swim for 750 metres, cycle for 20 km and run for 5 km. If you think that this is too short for you, you can try the Ironman Triathlon. In the Ironman competition athletes swim for 3.86 km, cycle for 180 km and then run for 42.2 km! The fastest athletes can finish an Ironman Triathlon in just over eight hours!
Fill in the blanks:
1. The Sprint Triathlon is ___________________ than an Olympic Triathlon.
2. The fastest athletes finish an Ironman Triathlon in just over ______________ hours.
3. A triathlon has _________ parts, cycling, ________________ and swimming.
4. The 2008 summer Olympics were held in ________________________________.
