The Reading / Listening - Isolation - Level 4

Could you survive without your smartphone? Could you live in a cave for 40 days? Fifteen people did just that. They took part in a project called Deep Time to see if they could totally disconnect from the modern world. Scientists examined how they adapted to basic living conditions in a cave with no sunlight for six weeks. They had no contact with the outside world. They only had their body clock to know when to wake up, go to sleep and eat.

Most volunteers enjoyed the total isolation. They wanted to stay underground longer to finish projects they had started. Deep Time's director said the experience would, "test humans' ability to adapt to the loss of their frame of reference for time and space". He said: "Our future as humans on this planet will evolve. We must learn to better understand how our brains are capable of finding new solutions, whatever the situation."

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Isolation - Level 5 or  Isolation - Level 6

Sources
  • https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-25/deep-time-experiment-sees-people-spend-40-days-in-cave/100093966
  • https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210424-french-volunteers-leave-cave-after-40-day-endurance-trial
  • https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/25/deep-time-team-ends-40-days-underground-in-french-cave


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. survive without
  2. live
  3. Fifteen people did
  4. They took part
  5. they could totally disconnect from
  6. Scientists examined how
  7. basic living
  8. no contact with the
  1. the modern world
  2. in a project
  3. outside world
  4. in a cave
  5. conditions
  6. just that
  7. they adapted
  8. your smartphone

Paragraph 2

  1. volunteers enjoyed the total
  2. They wanted to stay underground
  3. test humans' ability to
  4. their frame of
  5. time and
  6. Our future as humans
  7. our brains are capable of
  8. whatever the
  1. on this planet
  2. situation
  3. reference
  4. isolation
  5. finding new solutions
  6. space
  7. longer
  8. adapt

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Could you survive (1) ___________________? Could you live in a cave for 40 days? Fifteen people did just that. They took                                      (2) ___________________ project called Deep Time to see if they           (3) ___________________ from the modern world. Scientists examined how they (4) ___________________ living conditions in a cave with no sunlight for six weeks. They (5) ___________________ with the outside world. They only had their (6) ___________________ know when to wake up, go to sleep and eat.

Most volunteers enjoyed (7) ___________________. They wanted to stay underground (8) ___________________ projects they had started. Deep Time's director said the experience would, "test humans' (9) ___________________ to the loss of their frame of reference (10) ___________________ space". He said: "Our future as humans on this (11) ___________________. We must learn to better understand how our brains are capable of finding new solutions, (12) ___________________."

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Couldyousurvivewithoutyoursmartphone?Couldyouliveinacavefor4
0days?Fifteenpeopledidjustthat.TheytookpartinaprojectcalledDeep
Timetoseeiftheycouldtotallydisconnectfromthemodernworld.Scient
istsexaminedhowtheyadaptedtobasiclivingconditionsinacavewithno
sunlightforsixweeks.Theyhadnocontactwiththeoutsideworld.Theyo
nlyhadtheirbodyclocktoknowwhentowakeup,gotosleepandeat.Most
volunteersenjoyedthetotalisolation.Theywantedtostayunderground
longertofinishprojectstheyhadstarted.DeepTime'sdirectorsaidtheex
periencewould,"testhumans'abilitytoadapttothelossoftheirframeofr
eferencefortimeandspace".Hesaid:"Ourfutureashumansonthisplan
etwillevolve.Wemustlearntobetterunderstandhowourbrainsarecapa
bleoffindingnewsolutions,whateverthesituation."

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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