INSTRUCTIONS TO WORK ON THE VIDEO :

Little do they know it, but these six creatures are each about to experience a very unusual death. One-by-one, they will fall prey to the remarkable, predatory antics of... a carnivorous plant. 

Around the world there are more than 600 plant species that supplement a regular diet of sunlight, water, and soil with insects, microbes, or even frogs and rats. Scientists believe that carnivory in plants evolved separately at least six times on our planet, suggesting that this flesh-munching adaptation holds a major benefit for plants. Carnivorous plants tend to grow in places with highly acidic soil, which is poor in crucial nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. In these hostile conditions, plants that are able to lure, trap, and digest prey have an advantage over those that rely on soil for their nutrients. 

Take this inhospitable bog, where pitcher plants reign supreme. Drawn to the pitcher’s vivid colors and alluring scent, the fly closes in and slurps its nectar. But this pitcher species has an ingredient called coniine in its nectar, a powerful narcotic to insects. As the coniine takes effect, the fly grows sluggish, stumbles, and falls down the funnel into a pool of liquid at the base, where he drowns. Enzymes and bacteria in the liquid slowly break his body down into microscopic particles the pitcher plant can consume through its leaves. Occasionally, larger prey also tumbles into the fatal funnel of the pitcher plant. 

The second victim faces off with the sticky sundew plant. The sundew’s tiny leaves are equipped with a viscous secretion called mucilage. The ant is swiftly trapped in this goo. As she struggles, enzymes begin to digest her body. Special tentacles sense her movement and curl around her, clenching her in their suffocating grip. Once she asphyxiates, which can happen in under an hour, the tentacles unfurl again to snare their next victim. 

Two down, four to go. The next target meets his end underground, in the coils of the corkscrew plant. He enters the roots through a tiny slit in search of food. But inside, he quickly loses his way through the tangled labyrinth. A forest of curved hairs prevents his escape, guiding him into a central chamber with flesh-digesting enzymes and deadly low levels of oxygen. 

In the murky depths of a nearby pond, a tadpole unwittingly swims into the path of the bladderwort, the speediest of all carnivorous plants. She treads on the bladderwort’s trigger, and in milliseconds, a trapdoor swings open and sucks her in. Trapped half in and half out, she struggles to free herself while the part of her body inside the plant gets digested. Over the next few hours, her writhing sets the trap off repeatedly, each time bringing her deeper into the plant to be digested alive bit by bit. 

Meanwhile, this beetle is bewitched by sweet-smelling nectar. The scent draws him closer and closer until he lands on the leaves of the world’s most infamous carnivorous plant. His landing triggers tiny hairs on the surface of the leaves, and the jaws of the venus fly trap snap shut around him. The spikes interlock to seal his fate. Once closed, the leaves act like an external stomach that digests the beetle’s soft tissues. When they open again a few days later, only the dry husk of his exoskeleton remains. 

The mayfly is the last creature standing. As she approaches the butterwort plant, she heads for the flowers that wave high above the plant’s globs of adhesive goo. She alights on the petals, drinks the nectar, and takes off unscathed. These long flower stalks keep certain insects away from the carnivore’s traps— a way of separating pollinators from food. Off the mayfly buzzes to live a long and fruitful life– oh. 

According to the video, are these statements true or false?

1. Carnivorous plants eat exclusively insects.
2. Carnivorous plants have less chances of surviving in infertile soils than other plants.
3. Pitcher plants attract their preys through their scent only.
4. The tentacles of sundew plant are responsible for the digestion.
5. Corkscrew plants have roots that lead preys to a deadly chamber.
6. There are carnivorous plants with external stomachs.
7. There are carnivorous plants that don’t eat insects capable of pollination.

According to the video, are these statements true or false?

1.  F
2. F
3. F
4. F
5. T
6. T
7. T

Take a look at the following sentence from the text:

Little do they know it, but these six creatures are each about to experience a very unusual death.

This sentence starts with an inversion of the position of the adverb little.

We use inversion, i.e. putting the verb before the subject, in several different situations in English. Just like in the example above, usually we put the expression at the beginning of the sentence to emphasise what we're saying. It makes our sentence sound surprising or striking or unusual. It sounds also more formal.

Here are some other negative adverbs that we often use with inversion:

Exercise:

Change the sentences so that they use inversion.

1. John had never been to such a fantastic restaurant. _____________________________________________________________________
2.  I in no way want to be associated with this project. _____________________________________________________________________
3. They had no sooner eaten dinner than the ceiling crashed onto the dining table. _____________________________________________________________________
4. I had scarcely finished writing my essay when the examiner announced the end of the exam. _____________________________________________________________________

Answers:

1. Never had John been to such a fantastic restaurant.
2. In no way do I want to be associated with this project.
3. No sooner had they eaten dinner than the ceiling crashed onto the dining table.
4. Scarcely had I finished writing my essay when the examiner announced the end of the exam.

Traduire les phrases suivantes en anglais, issues du texte, puis retrouver ces phrases dans les deux premiers paragraphes du texte en anglais:

1. Elle ne le savent pas encore, mais ces six créatures sont sur le point de faire l'objet de mort inhabituelle.

2. Les scientifiques pensent que le regime carnivore des plantes c'est devellopés de maniere independantes six fois, ce qui laisse à penser que s'adapter à consommer de la chaire comporte de nombreux avantages aux plantes.

Essential Grammar in use p 187-188

Unit 90   enough

Complete the sentences. use enough with one of these words:

big  eat  fruit  loud  old  practise  sugar  time tired

1. "Is there ............ in your coffee?"  "Yes thank you"
2. Can you hear the radio? Is it .......... for you?
3. He can leave school if he wants - He's ........
4. Did you have ..................  to answer all the questions in the exam?
5. This house isn't ....... for a large family.
6. Tina is very thin. She doesn't ................ .
7. You don't eat .......... . You should eat more -  it's good for you.
8. It's late but I don't want to go to bed now. I'm not ....... .
9. Lisa Isn't a very good tennis player because she doens't ........... .

1. enough sugar
2. loud enough
3. old enough
4. enough time
5.  big enough
6. eat enough
7. enough fruit
8. tired enough
9. practise enough

(please note that this definitions are according to the context)

Antics (plural noun) - foolish, outrageous, or amusing behaviour.

Lure (verb) - tempt (a person or animal) to do something or to go somewhere.

Bog (noun)- an area of wet muddy ground that is too soft to support a heavy body.

Alluring (adjective) - powerfully and mysteriously attractive or fascinating; seductive.

Slurps (3^rd person singular of the verb to slurp) - to drink a liquid noisily as a result of sucking air into the mouthat the same time as the liquid.

Sluggish (adjective) - slow to respond, lacking energy.

Tumble (verb) - fall suddenly, clumsily, or headlong.

Goo (noun) - a sticky or slimy substance.

Unwittingly (adverb) - without being aware; unintentionally.

Writhing (noun) - twisting, squirming movements or contortions of the body.

Peseshet is a doctor and a teacher. The video describes a typical day of her life.

Now it is you turn. Write a text :

- Present yourself.

- Describe your profession.

- Tell what you did to get this job.

- Describe a typical day of your life : what usually happens when you are at work?

You can book a one to one class with a teacher who will correct your writing exercise.  One to one classes can be online, with a video call, anytime of the day. 

This gives you full flexibility for your timetable.

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