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Maharashtra State BoardSSC (English Medium) 10th Standard

Read the passage and write a summary of it in a paragraph. Suggest a suitable title. Fireflies are beetles and go through several life stages, - English

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Question

Read the passage and write a summary of it in a paragraph. Suggest a suitable title.

Fireflies are beetles and go through several life stages, starting out as an egg, then hatching into larvae. At the juvenile stage, they turn into pupae and then, finally adults. Fireflies spend most of their lives in a larval stage, hidden away. There are 2000 different species of fireflies. But they all go through a long juvenile stage and a short adult life, which is mainly about courtship, mating and reproduction. The juveniles living underground or underwater, are very different though-they're hunters, they eat snails and soft-bodied insects and they have very different habitats.

Conserving them is essential for human life as fireflies are a key part of the food web. They are predators of agricultural pests. In turn, they are prey for spiders and other insects. They are completely enmeshed in the web of life. In addition, about 70 years ago, scientists unravelled the mystery of fireflies' light-producing talents. Since then, the bio-chemical reactions that fireflies experience have been used in detecting bacterial contamination in foods, testing drugs against cancer, developing drought-resistant crops. They have been used in space exploration. So fireflies give us beauty and inventions. Fireflies carry oxygen, calcium, magnesium and a natural chemical called luciferin. These react together to produce the photons. This is how the fireflies glow.

Firefly tourism is growing across the world. In Maharashtra, for example, a particular species monsoon fireflies, emerge before the rains. They're beautiful and a festival is held in Purushwadi, encouraging firefly tourism. Its wonderful that people around the world go to see fireflies in their natural habitat. We need to be cautious. Too many people can disturb adult and larval habitats. Fireflies need darkness to communicate with each other and we need fireflies because they are harbingers of hope.

Writing Skills
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Solution

The Life and Light of Fireflies

Fireflies, a type of beetle, go through several life stages, spending most of their time as larvae and only briefly as adults focused on mating and reproduction. With 2000 species worldwide, these insects play a vital ecological role by preying on pests and serving as food for other creatures. Beyond their environmental function, fireflies have contributed to scientific advancements, including cancer research and space exploration, thanks to their unique light-producing chemical reactions. While firefly tourism, like in Maharashtra’s Purushwadi festival, promotes appreciation for these creatures, excessive tourism could disrupt their habitats. Fireflies symbolize both natural beauty and hope, emphasizing the need for their conservation.

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Summary Writing
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2021-2022 (March) Set 1

RELATED QUESTIONS

Dairy farming is a major livelihood followed by many households in rural areas. This includes rearing milk cattle - cows, buffaloes, goats, and sheep. There is a shortage of milk in the country as consumption in both urban and rural areas has risen sharply.

Dairying is an important source of subsidiary income to marginal farmers and agricultural labours. They play a very important role in milk production of the country. In 1986 - 87, about 73 percent of rural households owned livestock. According to the National Sample Survey of 1993 - 94, the livestock sector produces regular employment to about 9.8 million persons in principal status and 8.6 million in subsidiary status, which constitutes about 5 percent of the total workforce.

The Manure from animals provides a good source of organic matter for improving soil fertility and crop yields. The gas obtained by processing dung is used as a fuel for domestic purposes and also for running engines to draw water from wells. The surplus fodder and agricultural by-products are gainfully utilized for feeding the animals. Since agriculture is mostly seasonal, there is a possibility of finding employment throughout the year for many persons through dairy farming.

The milk processing industry is a small one. Only 10 percent of all the milk produced is delivered to some 400 dairy plants. A specific Indian phenomenon is the unorganized sector of milkmen and vendors, which handles around 65 - 70 percent of the national milk production. They collect milk from local producers and sell it in both urban and non - urban areas.

Summary:
Write a summary of the above extract with the help of the following points and suggest a suitable title: 
 
Dairy forming - major livelihood - income and employment source - uses of dung - uses of surplus fodder - role or unorganised sector.

Read the passage given in question 4(A) and write a summary of it in a paragraph. Suggest a suitable title. 


There are various ways of incorporating other writers’ works into your own writing. They differ according to the closeness of your writing to the source writing. Match the ways of writing in brief given in column (A) with their descriptions in column (B).

Sr. no. (A) Ways of writing   (B) Descriptions
1. Summarising a. It includes not just the main idea but every detail expressed clearly and to the point
2. Paraphrasing b. It includes selection of proper lines from the given text for correction, condensation and organization
3. Précis writing c. It includes the most essential part or the crux of the matter.
4. Quoting d. It includes taking a broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.
5. Editing e. It includes the presentation of main ideas into one’s own words.
6. Gist writing f. It must be identical to the original and match the document word by word.

Cut redundant words:

We’re often inefficient in our language, using more words than necessary. Consider the following phrases. Find five more redundant words.

  1. “Circle around” can become “circle.”
  2. “Write down” can become “write.”
  3. “Added bonus” is simply a “bonus.”
  4. “Get to the point as quickly as possible” is really “get to the point.”
  5. “Close proximity” is “close.”
  6. “During the course of” is “during.”

Adverbs clutter up your copy. You can usually live without them. Just delete italicized word and rewrite.

“I totally agree.”


Use of noun in apposition:

Apposition is a grammatical construction in which two elements, normally noun phrases, are placed side by side, with one element serving to identify the other in a different way; the two elements are said to be in apposition.
Apposition can be used to make compound sentences short and simple.
Neha is their eldest child and she is very intelligent.
- Neha, their eldest child, is very intelligent. [Here, Neha and their eldest child are the same person.] Provide two such examples of apposition.


Read any book of your choice and write its summary according to the steps explained in the chapter.


Find some professions that require the skill of summary writing and editing. Write them in your notebook.


Read the following passage and write a summary of it. Suggest a suitable title for your summary.

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar who was born on 24th April 1973 in Mumbai is a former Indian International Cricketer and a former captain of the Indian National Team. He is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time and is often referred as the ‘God of cricket’ by Indian Cricket followers. He made his debut on 15th November 1989 against Pakistan in ‘Karachi’ at the age of sixteen. He is the only player to have scored one hundred international centuries and only player to complete more than 30,000 runs in international cricket. He was trained under the able guidance of Ramakant Achrekar Sir. He received the Arjuna Award in 1994, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in 1997, Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan Awards in 1999 and 2008 respectively, fourth and second highest civilian awards of India. He was also awarded the Bharat Ratna, highest civilian award of India in 2013. He is a devotee of the deity Ganesha.


Love is a great force in Private life; it is indeed the greatest of all things, but love in public affairs does not work. It has been tried again and again; by the people of the Middle Ages, and also by the French Revolution, a secular movement which reasserted the Brotherhood of Man, And it has always failed. The idea that nations should love one another, or that business concerns or marketing boards should love one another or that a man in Portugal should love a man in Peru of whom he has never heard — it is absurd, unreal, dangerous. ‘Love is what is needed,” we chant, and then sit back and the world goes on as before.

The fact is we can only love what we know personally. And we cannot know much. In public affairs, in the rebuilding of civilization, something much less dramatic and emotional is needed, namely tolerance. Tolerance is a very dull virtue. It is boring. It is negative. It merely means putting up with people, being able to stand things. No one has ever written an ode to tolerance, or raised a statute to her. Yet this is the quality which will be most needed after the war. This is the sound state of mind which we are looking for. This is the only force which will enable different races and classes and interests to settle down together to the work of reconstruction. 

The world is very full of people— appallingly full; it has never been so full before and they are all tumbling over each other.

Most of these people one doesn’t know and some of them dosen't like. Well, what is one to do? If you don't like people, put up with them as well as you can. Don't try to love them; you can't. But try to tolerate them. On the basis of that tolerance a civilized future may be built. Certainly I can see no other foundation for the post-war world.

Write a 'summary' of the above extract by using the following points.

(Love as a force - its limitations - tolerance - need of tolerance)


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