Level 3 - 6th January 2022

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun

Contents
The Article .................................................................... 2
Warm-Ups .................................................................... 3
Vocabulary ................................................................... 4
Before Reading / Listening .............................................. 5
Gap Fill ........................................................................ 6
Match The Sentences And Listen ..................................... 7
Listening Gap Fill ........................................................... 8
Multiple Choice - Quiz .................................................... 9
After Reading / Listening ................................................ 10
Spelling ....................................................................... 11
Put The Text Back Together ............................................ 12
Put The Words In The Right Order ................................... 13
Homework.................................................................... 14

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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 THE ARTICLE

China has set a record for creating the highest heat ever recorded.

Scientists created temperatures of up to 70,000,000ºC in an "artificial

sun". The new record was for keeping the heat at a temperature that is

five times hotter than the sun. It did this for more than 17 minutes. The

extreme heat was created in a nuclear fusion reactor. The reactor is part

of the Experimental Advanced Super-conducting Tokamak project

(EAST). It reproduces the natural reactions that happen inside our sun

and other stars. The scientists want to develop the artificial sun to create

a near-endless supply of clean energy. The EAST project has cost China

more than $950 billion. Total costs will run over $1 trillion this year.

Scientists around the world have been trying for decades to develop

nuclear fusion. They say it is the best way to produce clean energy. The

nuclear fusion process needs no fossil fuels and leaves behind no

dangerous waste. If scientists can make it work, the world will become

greener and cleaner. It could also mean lower fuel bills. EAST set the new

record in a laboratory. Nuclear fusion technology is still not advanced

enough to become a global industry. However, researcher Dr Gong

Xianzu, a nuclear fusion expert, says the EAST project is an important

step. He said: "The recent operation lays a solid scientific and

experimental foundation towards the running of a fusion reactor."

Sources: http://www.china.org.cn/china/2022-01/01/content_77964589.htm
https://news.yahoo.com/china-switches-artificial-sun-five-105253561.html
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/20211231/415ad5413d0f4f4880de7cb64972bbf0/c.html

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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 WARM-UPS

1. THE SUN: Students walk around the class and talk to other students about the sun.
Change partners often and share your findings.

2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, talk about these topics or words from the article. What will
the article say about them? What can you say about these words and your life?

record / heat / temperature / artificial / nuclear / scientist / supply / clean energy /

decade / fossil fuels / waste / fuel bills / laboratory / global / expert / operation

Have a chat about the topics you liked. Change topics and partners frequently.

3. CLEAN ENERGY: Students A strongly believe we will have clean energy soon;
Students B strongly believe we won't. Change partners again and talk about your
conversations.

4. GREEN ENERGY: What do you know about these green energies? How green
are they? Are they used in your country? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change
partners often and share what you wrote.

What I Know How Green? My Country

A bit A bit
Nuclear
It’s an energy that comes from A lot A bit
Wind
the wind blowing
It’s a clean energy, comes from Much low
Solar
the sun
It comes from the waves of the Much low
Wave
sea
We take the thermic energy that Much low
Geothermal
comes from the center of the
earth
We use some biomaterials to Much A bit
Biofuels
make them fuel

5. HEAT: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with
the word "heat". Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put
the words into different categories.

1-. Warm 3-. Calefaction 5-. Burn 7-. Thermic 9-. Temperature
2-. Hot 4-. Fire 6-. Energy 8-. Flame 10-. Incandescense

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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 WARM-UPS
6. BILLS: Rank these with your partner. Put the worst bills at the top. Change partners
often and share your rankings.

• Electricity bills • Gas bills

• Repair bills • Tax bills
• Water bills • Food bills
• Phone bills • Hospital bills

1-. Tax bills

2-. Hospital bills
3-. Food bills
4-. Repair bills
5-. Electricity
Bills
6-. Gas bills
7-. Water bills
8-. Phone bills

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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 VOCABULARY MATCHING
Paragraph 1

1. set a. Created the best of something (a record) for

others to try and beat or better.

2. temperature b. A special place where a nuclear reaction

takes place.

3. artificial c. How hot or cold someone or something is.

4. heat d. Very great; reaching a high or the highest

degree.

5. extreme e. Made by people, not nature.

6. reactor f. The quality of being hot.

7. supply g. Make something that is needed or wanted

available to someone.

Paragraph 2

8. decade h. A printed or written paper showing the

money owed for goods or services.

9. nuclear fusion i. The part that is left over and not needed
after a process has taken place.

10. fossil fuel j. A period of ten years.

11. waste k. An area of business activity (e.g. tourism,

health, cars, oil...).

12. bill l. A reaction in which atoms react to release

energy.

13. industry m. The basic thing needed to build on or

develop from.

14. foundation n. Coal, oil and gas.

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

1. Scientists in China created temperatures of 70 millionº C. T/F

2. The scientists maintained the record heat for nearly 17 seconds. T/F
3. The artificial sun project in China is called FAST. T/F
4. The cost of the project is already over $1 trillion. T/F
5. Scientists have been working on nuclear fusion for decades. T/F
6. The artificial sun project needs fossil fuels to work well. T/F
7. Nuclear fusion could mean we will pay less for fuel. T/F
8. A researcher said the artificial sun was an important step forward. T/ F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: (The words in bold are from the news article.)

1. set a. create
2. keeping b. established
3. extreme c. base
4. reproduces d. limitless
5. endless e. great
6. develop f. specialist
7. way g. maintaining
8. lower h. method
9. expert i. copies
10. foundation j. reduced

3. PHRASE MATCH: (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)

1. creating the highest heat a. fuels

2. The extreme heat was created in b. inside our sun
3. the natural reactions that happen c. over $1 trillion this year
4. create a near-endless supply d. advanced enough
5. Total costs will run e. a nuclear fusion reactor
6. Scientists around the world have been f. clean energy
7. it is the best way to produce g. ever recorded
8. fossil h. trying for decades
9. Nuclear fusion technology is still not i. foundation
10. a solid scientific and experimental j. of clean energy

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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GAP FILL

China has (1) set record for creating the highestheat ever recorded. extreme

Scientists created temperatures of up to 70,000,000ºC in an "artificial natural

sun". The new record was for
costs
(2) keeping the heat at a temperature that is five times hotter
than the sun. It did this for more than 17 minutes. The set

(3) extreme heat was created in a nuclear fusion endless

reactor. The reactor is (4) part of the Experimental

part
Advanced Super-conducting Tokamak project (EAST). It

keeping
reproduces the (5) natural reactions that happen

inside our sun and other (6) stars . The scientists stars

want to develop the artificial sun to create a near-

(7) endless supply of clean energy. The EAST project
has cost China more than $950 billion. Total
(8) costs will run over $1 trillion this year.

Scientists around the world have been trying for greener

(9) decades to develop nuclear fusion. They say it is the decades

best (10) way to produce clean energy. The
enough
nuclear fusion process needs no fossil fuels and leaves behind no
dangerous (11) waste . If scientists can make it work, waste

the world will become (12) greener and cleaner. It bills

could also mean lower fuel (13) bills . EAST set the
running
new record in a laboratory. Nuclear fusion technology is still not

way
advanced (14) enough to become a global industry.

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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GAP FILL
step
However, researcher Dr Gong Xianzu, a nuclear fusion expert, says
the EAST project is an important (15) step . He
said: "The recent operation lays a solid scientific and experimental

foundation towards the (16) running of a fusion

reactor."

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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LISTENING – Listen and fill in the gaps

China has (1) SET for creating the highest heat everrecorded. Scientists

created temperatures of up to 70,000,000ºC in an"artificial sun". The new

record was for (2) KEEPING at atemperature that is five times hotter than the

sun. It did this for more than

17 minutes. The (3) EXTREME HEAT WAS created in a nuclear fusion reactor. The

reactor is part of the Experimental Advanced Super-conducting Tokamak

project (EAST). It (4) IT REPRODUCES reactions that happen

inside our sun and other stars. The scientists want to develop theartificial

sun to create a near-endless supply (5) OF CLEAN ENERGY . The EAST

project has cost China more than $950 billion. Total costs will runover $1 (6)

TRILLION THIS YEAR.

Scientists around the world have been (7) TRYING FOR DECADES to develop

nuclear fusion. They say it is the best way to produce clean energy.The

nuclear fusion process needs (8) NO FOSSIL FUELS and leaves behind no

dangerous waste. If scientists can make it work, the world willbecome

greener and cleaner. It could also mean (9) LOWER FUEL BILLS .EAST set the new

record in a laboratory. Nuclear fusion technology is still not advanced

enough to (10) BECOME A GLOBAL industry. However,researcher Dr Gong Xianzu, a

nuclear (11) FUSION EXPERT SAY the EASTproject is an important step. He said:

"The recent operation lays a solid scientific and experimental foundation

(12)TOWARDS THE RUNNING of afusion reactor."

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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MULTIPLE CHOICE - QUIZ

1) What temperature did the 6) For how long have scientists been
scientists create? working on nuclear fusion?
a) 70,000,000ºC a) years
b) 17,000,000ºC b) millennia
c) 77,000,000ºC c) centuries
d) 7,000,000ºC d) decades

2) For how long was the record 7) What does nuclear fusion not
temperature maintained? need?
a) 18 minutes a) lots of cash
b) 15 minutes b) fossil fuels
c) 17 minutes c) a laboratory
d) 16 minutes d) atoms

3) What is the abbreviation for the 8) What could be lower because of

project? nuclear fusion?
a) FAST a) global temperatures
b) EAST b) snowfall
c) BEAST c) stress
d) YEAST d) fuel bills

4) Where does nuclear fusion take 9) What is nuclear fusion still not
place naturally? advanced enough to be?
a) inside plants a) safe
b) power stations b) a game-changer
c) inside our bodies c) a global industry
d) inside our sun d) cheap

5) How much will costs rise to later 10) What is Dr Gong Xianzu an expert
this year? on?
a) over $1 trillion a) the sun
b) around $1 trillion b) nuclear fusion
c) exactly $1 trillion c) global industries
d) just under $1 trillion d) laboratories

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 AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionary / computer to find collocates,

other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words 'artificial' and 'sun'.

Artificial sun
unreal, bogus, counterfeit, ersatz star, sunlight, bask, daylight, flare,
fabricated factitious, faked, false, falsie shine, sol. sunrise, tan, aubade
hyped-up

• Share your findings with your partners.

• Make questions using the words you found.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down

some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.
• Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

What do you think about the project?

Do you think it will work in the future?

3. GAP FILL: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise.

Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new,
interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups,

pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try
to recall how they were used in the text:

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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 highest decades
keeping way
17 behind
happen enough
develop expert
run running

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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SPELLING

Paragraph 1

1. temperatures of up to 70,000,000ºC

2. a nuclear fusion reactor

3. natural reaction that happen inside our sun

4. develop the artificial sun

5. create a near-endless supply of clean energy

6. Total costs will run over $1 trillion

Paragraph 2

7. trying for

8. The nuclear fusion process

9. dangerous waste

10. in a laboratory

11. a nuclear fusion expert

12. The recent operation

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( 11 ) bills. EAST set the new record in a laboratory. Nuclear fusion

technology is still not advanced enough to

(4 ) a nuclear fusion reactor. The reactor is part of the Experimental

Advanced Super-conducting Tokamak project

(9 ) way to produce clean energy. The nuclear fusion process needs no

fossil fuels and leaves behind no dangerous

(6 ) stars. The scientists want to develop the artificial sun to create a

near-endless supply of clean

(10 ) waste. If scientists can make it work, the world will become greener
and cleaner. It could also mean lower fuel

(7 ) energy. The EAST project has cost China more than $950 billion.
Total costs will run over $1 trillion this year.

(8 ) Scientists around the world have been trying for decades to develop
nuclear fusion. They say it is the best

(14) and experimental foundation towards the running of a fusion

reactor."

(13) expert, says the EAST project is an important step. He said: "The
recent operation lays a solid scientific

(12) become a global industry. However, researcher Dr Gong Xianzu, a

nuclear fusion

(2 ) of up to 70,000,000ºC in an "artificial sun". The new record was for

keeping the heat at a temperature that is five

( 1 ) China has set a record for creating the highest heat ever recorded.
Scientists created temperatures

(5 ) (EAST). It reproduces the natural reactions that happen inside our

sun and other

(3 ) times hotter than the sun. It did this for more than 17 minutes. The
extreme heat was created in

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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PUT THE WORDS IN THE RIGHT ORDER

1. for creating record a Set highest heat . the

set a record for creating the highest heat

2. more this than for 17 It minutes . did

did this for more than 17 minutes

3. supply near-endless of Create clean a energy .

create a near-endless supply of clean energy

4. scientists want The develop the sun . to artificial

The scientists want to develop the artificial sun

5. costs will this run $1 trillion over Total year .

Total costs will run over $1 trillion this year

6. the been have trying . world Scientists around

Scientists around the world have been trying

7. energy . way the clean It's best produce to

it is the best way to produce clean energy

8. fuels . fusion fossil no needs process nuclear The

The nuclear fusion process needs no fossil fuels

9. not fusion technology enough is advanced still Nuclear

Nuclear fusion technology is still not advanced enough

10. important step . an is project EAST The

the EAST project is an important step

China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text.

Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up
more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find out more about this news story.
Share what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. THE SUN: Make a poster about the sun. Show your work to your classmates
in the next lesson. Did you all have similar things?

4. FOSSIL FUELS: Write a magazine article about ending all investment in

fossil fuels immediately. Include imaginary interviews with people who are for and
against this.

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Write down any
new words and expressions you hear from your partner(s).

5. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next

stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the
next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

6. LETTER: Write a letter to an expert on the sun. Ask him/her threequestions

about it. Give him/her three of your ideas on how we can use thesun. Read
your letter to your partner(s) in your next lesson. Your partner(s) will answer your
questions.

Level 3 China's artificial sun five times hotter than real sun – 6th January, 2022
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