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The Mystery of Bermuda Triangle.
The potential of nature, of discovered and undiscovered elements in our world, persuades us to probe into some of her mysteries and what they may tell us. Prepare yourself then for a true odyssey of the Earth around us.
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Air France Plane Misalng Near Bermuda Triangle The date was January 8, 1962. A huge 4 engine KB50 aerial tanker was enroute from the east coast to Lajes in the Azores. The captain, Major Bob Tawney, reported in at the expected time. All was normal, routine. But he, his crew and the big tanker, never made it to the Azores. Apparently, the last word from the flight had been the usual routine report, which had placed them a few hundred miles off the East Coast. |
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The Sea of Lost Ships The ships below represent samples of the many vessels that have mysterioualy vanished in the Bermuda Triangle .
Many US warships are listed missing by the US Navy between 1780 and 1824 , including the general Gates , Hornet , Insurgent , Pickering , wasp , wildcat and Expervier .
The Rosalle was built in 1838 of 222 tons of wood . In 1840 , she was found deserted but in ship shape near the Bahamas .
Ellen Austin's Encounter disappeared in 1881 in the Triangle |
Bermuda Triangle Theories
The Bermuda triangle is a stretch over the Atlantic Ocean, measuring less than a thousand miles on any one side. The name 'Bermuda Triangle' remained a colloquial expression throughout the 1950s. By the early 1960s, it acquired the name 'The Devil's Triangle.' Bordered by Florida, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico, the location became famous on account of the strange disappearance of ships, as well as aircrafts in the area. A number of supernatural explanations have been put forward with regard to the mysterious disappearances.
However, many probable logical explanations for the missing vessels include hurricanes, earthquakes, as well as magnetic fields, which render navigation devices worthless. However, most people do not like to accept such boring explanations and instead opt for more interesting options like alien abduction, giant squids, or getting sucked into another dimension.
Supernatural theories
| Death Rays from Atlantis. Rays from the magic crystals, left from the time of Atlantis, deep down in the sea are responsible for the strange sinking of ships. However, several underwater expeditions have revealed places under the ocean that look man-made, but no such crystals have been found. In fact no real proof that Atlantis existed, has been ever found. |
| Sea monsters. The presence of sea monsters was the most widely believed explanation especially in the earlier times, when their existence was believed to be true. |
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Presence of a time warp. People claim to be lost in the time warp while going through the region. |
| Alien abductions. The Bermuda Triangle is a collecting station from where aliens take our people, ships, planes and other objects back to their planet to study. |
Scientific Explanations
Magnetic Compass
According to the scientists in the US Navy, this area is one of the only two in the world, where a magnetic compass points to true north rather than magnetic north. This probably caused some navigators to go off course, which is very dangerous because many of the islands in 'The Triangle' have large areas of shallow water where vessels can run aground. They can also sink a long way down as some of the ocean's deepest trenches, from 19 ,000 to over 27 ,000 feet below sea level, are found here.
Unpredictable weather
Since the island is situated in the Atlantic Ocean, the weather is influenced by several factors and can change instantly. That means that at one moment the weather is stable, and at another it becomes extremely turbulent accompanied by strong currents of wind along with the hurricanes.
Formation of methane in the sea.
Methane can lower the density of water, leading to the sinking of ships. Similarly, methane can cut out an aircraft engine leading to crashes.
Bermuda Triangle Survivors
These witnesses constitute a long list of pilots, sailors and fishermen.
1. It is interesting to note that Christopher Columbus was one such witness. He wrote in his memoir on how his compass acted strangely while sailing through the Bermuda Triangle. He along with another shipmate witnessed a glowing globe of light that seemed to hover over the sea.
2. It is said that when clouds or fog enter the Bermuda Triangle, strange things start happening. Such a phenomenon has been witnessed with the Philadelphia Experiment in which the USS Eldridge vanished and reappeared later miles away, with some of the crew men warped into the hull of the ship.
3. In 1901, Anne Moberly and Eleanor Jourdain stepped into a mist and claimed to arrive at a time period before the French Revolution. It is said, that the mist and the ominous clouds might be the key to time travel or entering into other dimensions.
4. Even a great pilot like Charles Lindbergh witnessed unusual events while flying in the reaches of the Bermuda Triangle. It is said that when he was making a nonstop flight from Havana to St. Louis, his magnetic compass started rotating. His Earthinductor-compass needle jumped back and forth erratically. This has now all been revealed in his autobiography.
5. Another eyewitness account is that of Bruce Gernon, who flew his plane, a BonanzaA36, into the Bermuda Triangle and encountered a non-threatening mile and a half long cloud. As he neared, the cloud seemed to come alive. It became huge and engulfed his plane. However, a tunnel opened up in the cloud and he went through this tunnel. It had cloud trails swirling around his plane. He also reported that while going into this tunnel, he experienced zero gravity and the only thing that kept him in the cockpit was his seatbelt.
Whatever be the actual reason, there is an involvement of more than one fact.or behind the disappearances of ships and aircrafts in the Bermuda triangle region.
The Bermuda triangle continues to evoke a lot of interest. Most people like to read about it. In fact., in the last few decades, island of Bermuda has emerged as a major tourist destination as well; mainly, due to its close proximity with the Bermuda Triangle.
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: Duties and Privileges
. In some schools the student - council members are assigned duties at the
beginning of every academic year.
Write a job description to be given to the newly elected Environment
Monitor of your school.
You may do this individually. Later your class as a whole can come out with one
duty list to be displayed on the soft-board. You may use the words given in the
box below.
can, may, can’t, mustn’t, must, should, have to.
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Work in pain and complete the table of the supernatural theories and logical explanations as presented in 'The Mystery of Bermuda Triangle'.

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Duties and privileges of an Environment Monitor.
e.g. You must ensure that the campus is clean.
Did you know?
should and ought to have similar meanings. They show obligation or duty. However there is a slight difference in meaning.
ought to has an objective meaning whereas should is more subjective.
We ought to / should save water.
We ought to save money but we are unable to. (In this sentence should will not be appropriate.).
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Listen to an interview between a radio jockey and a pilot.
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In groups of four prepare a questionnaire for a pilot who has survived the Bermuda Triangle. Use the hints given below.
- Radar normal
- No disturbances
- Sudden communication failure
- Strange occurrence (use any of the theories or myths you have just read about)
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On the basis of the questionnaire, hold a conversation with your partner - one could be a radio jockey and the other could be the pilot.
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Probability
The following statements express varying degrees of certainty. Look at the underlined modals in each of the statements. Then number the sentences in order of certainty. Mark the sentence No. 1 if it is most likely certain and the least likely as no. 5.
(a) The lady in the formal attire may be Mr. Chawla’s secretary. (a) ___________
(b) The foreigners accompanying him could be the (b) ___________ newly appointed interpreters
(c) The man in the safari talking to someone on the (c) ____________ cell phone mustbe Mr. Chawla.
(d) Mr. Chawla will be the chief guest. (d) ___________
(e) The people following him might be from the media. (e) ___________
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In groups of six, work on one of the mysteries given below by surfing the net and through other sources. Make a power point presentation.
- Yeti , the abominable snowman
- Loch Ness Monster
- UFOs ((Unidentified Flying Objects)
- Lost city of Atlantis
- Crop circles
- Nazcalines
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On a cold winter night you hear a loud shrieking noise at repeated intervals. What might have caused this?
Write down your ideas using the pattern below.
| it |
might could must |
have been |
the owl hooting a ghost____________ |
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Make five promises to your friend expressing your willingness to do something.
Use shall/will
e.g. I shall never be late to school.
Promises to Keep!
Did you Know?
One of the puzzling things in English is to know when to use shall and when to use will.
Whenever we desire to express some command, promise, threat or determination shall is used in the second and third person and will is used in the first person.
He shall not enter the lab again, (determination)
I will reward her for her diligence, (promise)
I will report to the Principal if you don’t submit your homework, (threat)
I will never use abusive language, (determination)
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The Environment in Danger
What do you think will happen to the following?
Choose four, and write one sentence about each using the modals below and/ or expressions from 10.
(a) The ozone layer
(b) The Taj Mahal
(c) The Maldives
(d) The rainforests
(e) Weather patterns
(f) Fossil fuels
(g) The Ganges delta
e.g. In my opinion, the hole in the ozone layer will grow bigger and more people will get skin cancer.
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Saving the World.
What do you think ought to be done about these problems?
should
e.g. I think the Government should ban all sprays which destroy the ozone
layer.
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This is an account of Sir James' flight across the Atlantic Ocean. Complete the following using words from Question 1.
Captain James was enjoying the (a) ______ party hosted by his neighbour Mr. Samuel. Suddenly, he got a call from his boss who wanted him to fly across the Atlantic with a reputably renowned investigator to (b) _________into the (c) ____ of an heiress. He immediately got ready for the assignment. While intializing the flight he checked the radar controllers. He found that routine traffic was proceeding undisturbed, in their (d)_______ . There was no difficulty in the (e) and he (f) ____. All of a sudden there was a (g)______ and communication was abruptly cut off. He checked the radar screen and it was moving (h)________ . He experienced a strange (i)___________ . He stepped into a mist and claimed to arrive at a time period after the French- Revolution. However, his U) ____ theory was not convincing. He claimed that he just remembered being (k) ____ in a big cloud. Nevertheless, people were happy to see him return after a month.
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Read an extract from the poem New Year Resolution
The priest asked "Son, any new resolution this year"
I said "Father, driving with the
helmet and in first gear",
"That's good, my son, but have you any more?"
"Sure, there are ten, but I shall keep only four".
The first will be never to wipe
the shoe behind my pant
The second will be to say without hesitation "I can't",
The third is to always keep the toothpaste cap on
It's something which I never did since I was born.
The fourth, never to look at your neighbour's hedge
It's that what has brought the envy and the wedge,
The fifth is easy and you can have a ball
Never take from Peter what you have to pay Paul.
The sixth is to hold my head high even under water
Learn simple things of life from the potter,
He moulds wonders out of his two hands
Leaving impression forever on the sands.
Try and compose a poem conveying your resolutions. Let the first stanza be the
same.
e.g.
The first will be never to yawn
in public be it noon, dusk or dawn.
The second .................. .
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Match the sentences in A with their meanings in B.
| A | B |
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You should have taken your keys. You could/might have lost your keys at the cinema. You must have left your keys at home. |
It is possible that you left your keys. You are to blame for leaving your keys. I think that you probably left your keys. |
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List some phrases and words that come to your mind, when you look at the picture given below

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Discuss in groups.
- Have you heard a story, seen a film, or read about someone becoming invisible?
- Did he/she use his/her power for good or for evil?
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While you were away on holiday, your house was burgled. Write a letter to
your friend to tell him or her about it.
Use the underlined expressions in Column A above to help you. Include ...
1. how the burglar could have got in,
2. how he knew you had gone away, and
3. what you could have done to prevent the burglary.
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Study the words given in the box below and complete the police report.
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4 January, Wednesday |
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