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Unit 1 From Fiction to Fact

An old ___________________ ___________________ tells of two green-skinned children, a boy

and a girl, who mysteriously appeared in Woolpit, England. Villagers discovered them in old

___________________ that were designed to trap wolves. The children were confused and

___________________, and couldn’t speak a word of English.

The kind village people took the children in and ___________________ ___________________

them. At first they would only eat green beans, and soon the boy died. The girl ___________________

___________________ ___________________ other food, and her skin lost its green color. She eventually

learned to speak English. Then she finally told her ___________________ story.

The girl said she came from St. Martin’s Land, an ___________________ world where

everybody was green! Some took this as a ___________________ that the children were

___________________, or even aliens. Historian Paul Harris doesn’t believe this, but he does think the

girl was telling the truth--or at least her ___________________ of it.

Harris says the children probably came from a Flemish village ___________________ Fornham

St. Martin, which was about 8 miles from Woolpit. He thinks the children were orphans who

___________________ ___________________ after their parents died. He suggests that they

___________________ in the forest by eating vegetables, and then later ___________________ into an old

mine ___________________. They walked through the dark mine and eventually came out near

Woolpit.

The girl’s story of an underground world? It was how she remembered the mine shaft.

And the children’s green skin? Harris says that it came from their ___________________

___________________ of forest vegetables.

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Unit 2 Real Enough

It is a sailor’s ___________________ ___________________. The weather is calm and the wind is

___________________, when suddenly a ship is ___________________ on the ___________________. As it gets

closer, the sailor becomes frightened. The ship is moving, but there is no wind! It’s the Flying

Dutchman!

The legend of the Flying Dutchman starts in 1614. A Dutch ship was trying to

___________________ ___________________ around the Cape of Good Hope when it sank. As the

___________________ ___________________, the captain ___________________ sailed his ship into a terrible

storm. He and his crew ___________________ for hours to sail the ship back to ___________________.

Eventually, it ___________________ into some rocks and began to sink. Just before they

___________________ ___________________, the captain screamed out a ___________________: “I WILL round

this Cape even if I have to keep ___________________ until the end of time!” Sailors say that to this

day his ghost is still trying to sail around the Cape!

Every sailor who traveled the African ___________________ knew that seeing the Flying

Dutchman was a ___________________ ___________________. But there are worse things than bad luck.

Sometimes the dead crew of the Dutchman would ask sailors to ___________________ messages for

them: messages ___________________ to people who were long dead. Any sailor foolish enough to

accept one was ___________________ to die soon.

No one knows if the Flying Dutchman was real or just a story. But that may not matter. It

was real enough in the minds of the sailors who think they saw her.

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Unit 3 A Bright Idea

You are ___________________ in a ___________________ hot and sunny desert. You are dying of

thirst and you’ve finally found water! But wait, the water is in a ___________________ that many

animals drink from. It could make you sick. How do you ___________________ it? You could use heat

to kill the bacteria, but there is no wood or anything else to ___________________ ___________________

___________________ with. So what can you use to heat and clean the water? Give up? The sun!

All you need is some cardboard, tinfoil, a plastic bag and a pot. ___________________ the

cardboard into a giant bowl, and cover the inside with tinfoil. Fill the pot with water,

___________________ the bag around it, and place it in the middle of the ___________________ bowl.

Leave the whole thing in ___________________ sunlight for about ___________________ minutes. Then,

take the pot out of the bag, but be careful, it will be hot. Your water will be safe to drink.

This isn’t just an interesting experiment. This simple technology could save

___________________ ___________________ ___________________. ___________________ two million children die

from drinking ___________________ water every year. They get diarrhea from bacteria in the water.

The diarrhea ___________________ and eventually kills the children. That solar cooker, which can be

___________________ from cheap, easy to find ___________________, kills those deadly bacteria. It can

even be used to cook simple dishes. It’s strange, but in the desert, the sun can be your best

friend.

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Unit 4 What Do You See?

A ___________________ circles high up in the sky. Suddenly it dives to the ground. It reaches

out and catches a small mouse in its ___________________, and then flies back up into the sky. How

did it know exactly where that tiny mouse was? Well, for one thing, it has incredible

___________________ vision. But that’s not all. Hawks can see colors that humans can’t!

Color is the way that our ___________________ see different kinds of light. When light hits

something, the light ___________________ back into our eyes. It ___________________ ___________________

of different things in different ways. Our brain sees these differences as colors. This is why an

apple looks red and ___________________ looks green. The ability to see color is very important

because it allows creatures to ___________________ food, and to easily tell different things

___________________.

Our brains can see three main colors; red, green, and blue. Each unique color is

___________________ ___________________ ___________________ different combinations and

___________________ of these three. Dogs and some other kinds of mammals see two main colors,

blue and yellow. Many ___________________ animals can only see one. Most birds, on the other hand,

can see four main types of color!

An important color that birds can see is called ___________________ light. We know it is

there because we can ___________________ it with machines. Birds don’t need machines, though.

They see it in the ___________________ of ___________________, like mice, and on other birds. It’s

impossible to imagine exactly how they see the world.

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Unit 5 The Tree of Life

Trees have many uses. They ___________________ our fires, provide wood for our homes,

and give us all sorts of delicious foods. No tree is ___________________ as useful as the Baobab,

though. In fact, it is so important that natives know it as the “tree of life.”

The name ___________________ ___________________ when you consider the things that

humans need to survive. The ___________________ of life are food, water, and ___________________. The

baobab provides all three and more. Its fruit is highly ___________________ and delicious. It can be

___________________ ___________________, or it can be made into drinks, soups or porridges. Baobabs

can store up to ___________________ gallons of water in their massive ___________________. During

___________________, natives use hollow grass to ___________________ water directly out of the tree.

The insides of old baobabs are often hollow. Natives use these spaces to store ___________________

and ___________________. Some trunks are so huge that they can ___________________ an entire family!

Besides the necessities, the Baobab has all sorts of other uses. Its leaves are full of

___________________ and can be eaten to protect against ___________________. The ___________________

can be eaten to protect against malaria, a common and deadly disease. The ___________________

also provides ___________________ that can be used to make ___________________, rope, nets, hats and

musical instrument ___________________. It even ___________________ after humans ___________________ it

away.

Do you want a Baobab house? You’ll have to wait. They take thousands of years to grow

that big.

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Unit 6 Not So Innocent

Long ago in India, English ___________________ noticed a huge tree under which merchants

___________________ to sell their ___________________. The tree provided ___________________ from the

hot Indian sun. As the Indian merchants were called “banya,” the travelers named this tree the

banyan tree. The banyan isn’t as ___________________ as its name makes it sound, though. It is also

known by another, darker, name: “___________________ fig.” This murderous nickname describes

exactly how the banyan tree grows. It doesn’t start life in the ground, like most plants. It starts

growing on other trees. A bird drops a banyan ___________________ onto a branch, and the

___________________ ___________________. It sends a ___________________ and leaves upwards, and roots

downwards. By growing like this the banyan tree eventually “strangles” the tree that gave it life.

It doesn’t stop there. The branches spread out through the forest. As they spread, the

banyan tree ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ to the forest floor. These roots

become new trunks, and these trunks send out new branches. If ___________________

___________________ another banyan tree, they will ___________________ together. In this way, a single

banyan can ___________________ ___________________ an entire forest.

The Great Banyan, in the Indian Botanical Gardens, was the widest tree in the world until

___________________. The original trunk had to be removed ___________________ ___________________

disease. What is ___________________ ___________________ it covers 14,500 square meters. That’s more

than two soccer fields put together!

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Unit 7 Just for Fun

People love games. And more than just playing them, we love to win. Competition is often

___________________. Just take a look at the fans and players of the World Cup! But not all

competitions are ___________________ ___________________. Some are just for fun.

Wife Carrying

In this Finnish sport, which started as a ___________________, ___________________ carry their wives

through an ___________________ course. There are several different ___________________ of carrying.

Some put their wives over their shoulders. Others carry them ___________________ ___________________.

But most racers have their wives hang upside down ___________________ ___________________ their

___________________. It’s not an easy race, but it is fun! And the winner of the race is usually

___________________ his wife’s ___________________ in beer!

Cheese-Rolling

The ___________________ cheese-rolling competition is ___________________ at Cooper’s Hill, near

Glouchester, England. It’s fast, funny, and often ___________________! A big ___________________l of

hard cheese is rolled down the hill and the ___________________ chase after it. The hill is so

___________________ that nobody ever stays ___________________ ___________________

feet___________________, and the racers end up ___________________ down the hill just like the cheese!

Extreme Ironing

Ironing is simple, right? So how can it be a sport? Well, why don’t you try ironing underwater?

Since the sport started in ___________________, ___________________ have ironed under the ice of a

___________________ lake, in a ___________________, while skiing, while snowboarding, while

___________________, in the middle of the street, and on top of large ___________________. What

___________________ place would you try ironing?

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Unit 8 Fame and Fortune

Do you like to sing? Do you want to be famous? Then just ___________________

___________________ ___________________ an idol show! Anybody can ___________________. It doesn’t even

matter if you are a good singer or not. Of course, bad singing ___________________

___________________ you the competition, but if you sing badly enough you might still become

famous!

For contestants, idol competitions offer ___________________ and fortune. Most contestants

are just normal people. They might practice singing in the shower, or in front of friends. Idol

shows ___________________ to discover their ___________________ talents. Winning a competition often

completely changes a winner’s life. They record ___________________, perform concerts, and make

lots of money.

For television ___________________, idol is also great fun. The audience ___________________

___________________ ___________________ amazing performances by talented contestants. Some

performances are the same high ___________________ as professional pop concerts. Even the bad

singers are great entertainment. Their mistakes and ___________________ singing are often

___________________. Some are so bad that they become famous! William Hung, one especially

terrible singer, even signed a ___________________ ___________________. People bought his CDs just

because his singing was so funny!

Now, new kinds of talent competitions are becoming popular. They ___________________

magicians, dancers, jugglers, ___________________ and all sorts of other entertainers. Like idol, these

shows have their ___________________ ___________________ of embarrassing mistakes and

___________________ performances. And like idol, they offer huge prizes: sometimes as much as

$___________________! So what talent will you share with the world?

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Unit 9 Forever Young?

Brooke Greenberg is 17 years old. Like most teenagers she loves to go shopping with her

mother. She is not like most teenagers, ___________________. She can’t ride a bike, or play sports. In

fact, she can’t even speak. Brooke’s body is still that of an ___________________.

Brooke does not ___________________ in the same way that other people do. Her hair and

___________________ are the only parts of her body that grow normally. All of her other parts age

___________________ ___________________ ___________________, but they don’t grow. Doctors say that her

___________________ are about 10 years old, her teeth are 8 years old, and her mind is

___________________ to that of a one year-old.

When people see Brooke, they ask how old she is. Brooke’s mother doesn’t try to explain

because it would be too ___________________. She tells them Brooke’s age in ___________________ of

months, not years. It’s easier for her to just say, “Brooke is 16 months old.”

Scientists are trying to discover what makes Brooke so different, but they aren’t having

much luck. Her ___________________ is unique. There are other kinds of ___________________

___________________, but ___________________ quite like hers. There is hope that Brooke will help us

better understand how people age. Some even think Brooke might be the key to

___________________.

Brooke’s mother would be happy if her daughter could help people live better. She

doesn’t worry too much about that, though. She is happy just to have Brooke ___________________

___________________ ___________________ of her family.

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Unit 10 A Daring Escape

Most everything about D.B. Cooper is a mystery, even his real name. If he is still alive, he

probably ___________________ it this way. After all, he is responsible for the world’s only

___________________ airplane hijacking.

In 1971, on a ___________________ ___________________ over Portland Oregon, a man calling

himself Dan Cooper ___________________ a ___________________ to a flight attendant. It read: “I have a

bomb. You are being ___________________. Do what I say.” The woman was ___________________, but

she did exactly what he told her to do, as she did not want the passengers to ___________________.

Cooper ___________________ that the plane ___________________, and requested four

parachutes and $___________________. After he got what he wanted, Cooper allowed the passengers

to leave the plane. He then ordered the pilot to ___________________ ___________________ again, even

though there was a thunderstorm ___________________. Once they were up in the air, Cooper told

the ___________________ to move to the front of the plane. While they were up front, the crew heard

a loud noise from the back. They ___________________ ___________________, and discovered the door

open and cold rain ___________________ ___________________ the plane.

There was no ___________________ of Cooper, and the money and two parachutes were

___________________. He must have ___________________ ___________________ the ___________________! The

FBI searched the ground below for days, but never found Cooper. To this day no one knows who

he was, why he did it, or even if he survived his ___________________ escape.

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Unit 11 Sweet Disaster

In 1919, there was a ___________________ flood in Boston, Massachusetts. 21 people were

killed and ___________________ were ___________________. The flood wasn’t caused by a storm, or even

by a ___________________ ___________________. And it didn’t come from a river or a lake. In fact, the

flood wasn’t even made of water. It was a flood of molasses.

A tank of molasses ___________________ feet tall and ___________________ feet wide

___________________ ___________________ stand in downtown Boston. It’s gone now. One morning in

January, something ___________________ ___________________ and it ___________________ open. 2.3 million

gallons of molasses rushed into the streets of Boston. The heavy ___________________ formed a

___________________ between 8 and 15 feet high. It moved at a speed of 35 miles per hour. It was

so powerful that it ___________________ ___________________ buildings and even ___________________ a

train off of its ___________________. ___________________ ___________________ ___________________, many

people and animals were ___________________ to death. Many others ___________________ after they

were ___________________ in the waist deep ___________________.

One boy told his story of surviving the flood. He remembers being picked up by the

wave, and then ___________________ ___________________ the ground by the ___________________ liquid.

His throat filled with molasses and he ___________________ ___________________. When he woke up he

saw his entire family staring down at him.

The people of Boston were angry about the disaster. Not everyone was lucky like the boy.

They ___________________ the molasses company. Eventually they won 6.6 million dollars

___________________ ___________________.

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Unit 12 Gone

Dinosaurs ___________________ the earth for over ___________________ million years. Then

suddenly, about 65 million years ago, every dinosaur on Earth died. What happened?

It had to be something terrible, and scientists think they know what it was. In

___________________ a geologist found a giant ___________________ in Mexico. It was about 180 km

wide. Scientists ___________________ ___________________ that it was created by an asteroid. By looking

at the rocks, scientists ___________________ the age of the crater. They found that it was made about

65 million years ago--around the same time that dinosaurs ___________________ ___________________.

The asteroid hit the earth with great ___________________. It released about

___________________ ___________________ more energy than the world’s largest ___________________

___________________. The ___________________ killed many things immediately and forest fires spread

across the world. The ___________________ created a mega-tsunami, a giant ocean wave that was

thousands of feet high. It also sent ___________________ ___________________ through the earth,

creating earthquakes and volcanic ___________________ across the ___________________.

Amazingly, some dinosaurs survived these disasters. But they didn’t survive for long.

___________________ and ___________________ in the sky blocked the sun’s light for years, dramatically

___________________ ___________________ the earth. As the weather cooled, plants started dying. Soon,

everything that ate them started dying as well. In a short time dinosaurs were completely gone.

Maybe we’re lucky that they are extinct. If dinosaurs were still around there wouldn’t be

any ___________________ for us.

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Unit 13 Zombie Ants!

Have you ever seen a zombie movie? Zombies are ___________________. A disease infects a

person and kills them, but the victim doesn’t ___________________ ___________________. They wake up

again as a zombie! Only now the disease is controlling their dead body, and using it to infect

more people.

Zombies aren’t just in movies, though. There are zombies in the natural world too. They

are made by a special kind of fungus that only infects and kills carpenter ants.

When an ant is ___________________, the fungus takes ___________________ of its brain. The

fungus makes it climb up a certain kind of plant and ___________________ ___________________ the

bottom of a leaf. The ant dies soon after. But its mouth keeps the dead body ___________________

___________________ the leaf. The fungus starts growing, using the ant’s dead body for food.

The fungus makes the zombie ant bite onto leaves that are close to 10 inches above the

ground, and on the ___________________ side of the plant. This is exactly where the fungus grows

best. This location also provides a convenient way for the fungus to ___________________. From

under the leaf, the fungus ___________________ ___________________ onto the forest floor, infecting ants

that are walking below.

Luckily carpenter ants live high in the trees away from the forest floor. Maybe they realize

it is the one place ___________________ they are safe from becoming zombies!

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Unit 14 Why Stripes?

A zebra’s stripes aren’t just beautiful. They are ___________________ ___________________ in ways that

you might never imagine.

Camouflage

A zebra is easy to spot, right? Maybe for us, but not for a lion. Because lions are

___________________, a zebra’s stripes are the perfect camouflage. When a zebra is ___________________

___________________ in tall grass, a lion has a hard time ___________________ it. To the lion, the tall

yellow grass and the long black and white stripes all look the same.

A zebra’s stripes protect it from a tiny ___________________ too. The tsetse fly might not

seem dangerous, but it carries a deadly disease called ___________________ ___________________. For

some reason, it doesn’t often bite zebras. Scientists think it gets confused by the zebra’s black

and white lines.

Identification

We ___________________ people by their faces. Zebras are different. Because each zebra’s stripes are

unique, zebras can tell each other apart by their stripes.

Temperature Control

A zebra’s stripes may help it ___________________ a comfortable temperature. Scientists know that

their white stripes ___________________ heat and their black stripes ___________________ it. This could

help them ___________________ ___________________ during the day and warm at night.

Mating

Clear stripes might show that a zebra is healthy. Any injuries would break the ___________________

___________________. A zebra with a broken pattern would look ___________________, so other zebras

would not mate with it.

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Unit 15 Instead of Us

Have you ever had this strange experience? You are walking through a store, and out of

the ___________________ of your eye you see a person. You turn around to look, but it’s just a big

doll wearing clothes. These human dolls are called mannequins. Stores use them to

___________________ things like clothes, hats, and ___________________. Wearing clothes isn’t the only

thing they do well, though.

Mannequin comes from a ___________________ word meaning, “little man.” At first,

mannequins were very small. Artists used them as models of the human body. They are useful to

artists because they can be ___________________ into many different ___________________. Mannequins

can also stay in one position forever. A real human would never ___________________

___________________ ___________________.

Mannequins have gotten bigger since then and are now used for a ___________________ of

things. They are useful in ___________________ ___________________ any ___________________ situation

where a real person would be uncomfortable, or in danger. ___________________ workers practice

CPR on mannequins with ___________________ lungs. They also practice saving mannequins from

accidents, or from ___________________ buildings.

Mannequins have also been used to test how humans will ___________________ to a nuclear

explosion. They are placed in ___________________ towns--at dinner tables, in cars, and at schools. A

nuclear bomb is then ___________________, and the mannequins are tested for ___________________

afterwards. Some nuclear test sites are still full of old mannequins.

Humans are glad that mannequins are so useful. No person wants to be the

___________________ ___________________ for a nuclear explosion!

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Unit 16 Stuck Together

Try this fun game. Run and jump at a wall. Can you ___________________ ___________________

it? Don’t try this on a ___________________ wall--try it on an ___________________ one. And don’t forget

to wear a suit! No, this isn’t just a crazy game, and don’t worry, nobody gets hurt. It’s actually lots

of fun. And it’s all ___________________ ___________________ Velcro.

When George de Mestral invented Velcro, he thought it would soon ___________________

buttons and zippers all over the world. He probably never thought that one day people would

___________________ ___________________ ___________________ covered in Velcro and throw themselves at

Velcro-___________________ walls. His invention isn’t just used for fun and games, though. People

have found ___________________ uses for Velcro all over Earth, and even in ___________________.

NASA uses over ten thousand ___________________ ___________________ of Velcro in each of

its space shuttles. It’s all over the walls so that astronauts can ___________________ tools, boxes, and

even themselves to it. A small piece of Velcro is in each astronaut’s helmet. They use it as a

___________________ ___________________.

The Army uses Velcro on soldier’s uniforms for their ___________________, and to hold their

pockets ___________________. Their Velcro is special, though. It’s silent. Don’t ask them how they

made it. It’s a ___________________ secret!

Velcro is often used in children’s clothing and shoes. It is much easier to use than

buttons, zippers, or ___________________. From kid’s clothes to space, Velcro is everywhere. Who

knows ___________________ it will show up next!

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Unit 17 A Self-Portrait?

The Mona Lisa is the most famous portrait in the world. It might also be the most

mysterious. ___________________ ___________________, researchers have ___________________ about who

and what the painting shows. Most people believe it is a painting of Lisa del Giocondo. Some

believe it is a portrait of the painter’s mother, and others believe it is a self-portrait of the painter,

Leonardo da Vinci!

The painting shows a woman sitting in a chair and looking ___________________. She is

smiling mysteriously. Because of her smile, some people think she is ___________________ something.

These people have great fun trying to ___________________ the secret of the Mona Lisa’s smile.

The secret might be Leonardo’s great joke. One researcher noticed some

___________________ between Leonardo’s self-portrait and the Mona Lisa. She was curious, so she

___________________ the two with a computer. The two faces ___________________ ___________________

perfectly! Did Leonardo paint himself as a woman? Some researchers think so. Others think that

the portrait looks like Leonardo because it is actually a ___________________ of his mother.

Leonardo’s mother was dead by the time that he painted her portrait. He

___________________ ___________________ ___________________ his own face as a model for the painting. It

is hard to tell ___________________ he ___________________ for the painting to look like him, or

___________________ it just happened. But it is clear that he took the painting very seriously. He

spent ___________________ years of his life working on it!

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Unit 18 What Is Art?

Art is beautiful, right? Art is painting, drawing, and ___________________. But is that all? Marcel

Duchamp didn’t think so. In 1917 he displayed an incredible new “___________________.” It was a

men’s ___________________ that he turned upside down and ___________________ with a

___________________ name. Many art critics were ___________________, but the art world

___________________ his new idea of what “art” was. Nowadays it seems like anything can be art.

Found Object Art

How much would you ___________________ ___________________ a dead shark? Not much? Well, Steven

Cohen paid $8 million for one. It wasn’t just any dead shark, though. It was a piece of art made

by Damien Hirst. Hirst ___________________ a shark and then ___________________ it in a clear box filled

with green liquid. Many people ___________________ that it wasn’t real art, but it’s hard to

___________________ with an $8 million ___________________ ___________________. Something that

___________________ must be art!

Graffiti art

Anyone caught spray-painting on a public building is usually arrested or ___________________. Police

call them ___________________. But there is one ___________________ who is safe from the police, even

though he has ___________________ on buildings all over the world. He calls himself Banksy, and he

is a graffiti artist. His art is so popular that usually no one ___________________ ___________________

___________________.

Performance art

Performance artists are special. They don’t just make art, they do it. One performance artist even

lived in a ___________________ ___________________ for a few months. People could watch everything

she did. Her life became art.

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Unit 19 Human Lightning Rod

Lightning strikes ___________________ often, but it ___________________ strikes people. The

chance of being struck once in your life is ___________________. The chance of being struck twice is

about the same as winning the ___________________: ___________________. Roy Sullivan was struck by

lightning seven times. If his bad luck had been good luck, he might have become a

___________________.

All seven strikes occurred while Roy worked as a ___________________ ___________________ in

Shenandoah National Park. The first was in 1942, during a severe thunderstorm. The lightning

___________________ burned a strip down his right leg and ___________________ a ___________________ in

his shoe.

The next strike was in 1969. This one knocked him ___________________ and

___________________ ___________________ his eyebrows, eyelashes, and most of his hair. Roy survived

two more strikes in the next two years, but he began to believe he was ___________________. He

now kept a can of water with him at all times.

One day in 1973 Roy’s caution ___________________ ___________________. After

___________________ from a dark storm cloud in his truck, Roy decided he was safe. He got out of

the ___________________ and was immediately struck by lightning. It knocked off his shoe and

___________________ his hair ___________________ ___________________. He just grabbed the can of water

and ___________________ it over his head.

By the time he died in 1983, Roy had been struck twice more. The last strike happened

when he was ___________________. After Roy was struck, a bear tried to ___________________ his

___________________. Roy wasn’t worried. He scared the bear away with a ___________________!

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Unit 20 A Shocking Sight

When you think of lightning, do you imagine long ___________________ of light

___________________ from the sky? This is the most common kind of lightning. It’s not the only kind,

though. For hundreds of years there have been stories of a rare, slow-moving, ___________________

kind of lightning. Until recently, scientists thought these stories were just ___________________ or

___________________. Now they have ___________________ for what ball lightning might be.

One of the earliest stories of ball lightning comes from ___________________. An 8-foot-wide

ball of fire entered a church during a huge thunderstorm. The ball knocked stones off of the walls,

destroyed ___________________ and windows, and smelled badly of ___________________. Ball lightning

is described differently in other stories. Sometimes it strikes people and kills them. Other times

people are struck, but they say it only ___________________. The most dramatic kinds of ball

lightning explode with a loud ___________________, killing people and ___________________ buildings.

Scientists have all kinds of explanations for this ___________________. One of the most

unusual is that ball lightning isn’t lightning at all. They say that it is actually ___________________

black holes traveling through the sky. Other scientists have an incredible explanation. They

discovered that regular lightning affects our ___________________ when it strikes very

___________________ ___________________. These scientists think that a close strike of lightning can

cause us to think that we are seeing ___________________ ___________________. So ball lightning might

just be a kind of fantasy after all!

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