Comprehension - Intermediate [ 13 ]

[ 13 ] Comprehension . 

[  13  ] Intermediate 

Read the following , then answer the questions below :

                  Antarctica is nearly twice the size of the United States . The name Antarctica was coined to mean “ opposite to the Arctic .” It is just that in many ways .Antarctica is a high , ice-covered land mass . In Arctic the land masses are grouped around the ice-covered Arctic Ocean .

                Largely because of this difference , the climate of the two areas is very different . Antarctica is the coldest area in the world . On the average it is about 30 degrees colder than the Arctic . At the South Pole , only in coastal regions temperatures sometimes rise about freezing in summer [ December to March ] . In contrast , near the North Pole monthly mean temperatures often rise above freezing. 

              At both poles , daily temperatures may drop far below the monthly mean . At the American South Pole Station , winter temperatures sometimes fall below -100 degrees Fahrenheit . Elsewhere , on higher parts of the south polar plateau , even lower temperatures are recorded . A temperature of -127 degrees Fahrenheit was measured in August 1960 . It is the world’s record low temperature .

                Partly because of this climate difference , the land animals and plants of the two regions are very different . On the continent of Antarctica masses , lichens and algae are found . Penguins populate Antarctica coastline , but do not exist in the Arctic . The land animals of the Arctic are foxes , bears , reindeer , and lemmings . They are unknown in the Antarctic .

                Ice is the great feature of Antarctic . More than 4.5 million square miles of ice sheet cover that area . Antarctica is the storehouse of about 85 percent of the total world supply of ice .

A-] Answer the following questions :

1-] Show some differences between Arctic and Antarctica .

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

2-] What is the world’s record low temperature ?

……………………………………………………………………………………….

3-] Where do animals live ? Why ?

……………………………………………………………………………………….

4-] Why is Antarctica the storehouse of the world ice ?

……………………………………………………………………………………….

B-] Choose the correct answer :

1-] Some areas of Antarctica are

A-] ice-free  B-] very humid  C-] quite mild  D-] temperate

2-] The main feature of Antarctica is

A-] rain fall  B-] ice  C-] cold desert  D-] coastal regions .

3-] ……………………. because of the climatic difference the land animals and plants of the two regions are very different .

A-] To some extent   B-] Extremely  C-] Almost    D-] Largely