A) Explain the meaning of the following words and phrases in English and make up your own sentences or a story, using at least 7 of them:
1) cloud conditions (paragraph 1)
2) is producing deadly lightning (paragraph 1)
3) lightning claims only one or two victims at a time (paragraph 2)
4) are injured (paragraph 3)
5) to be struck by lightning (paragraph 4)
6) due to (paragraph 5)
7) insulation capacity (paragraph 6)
8) flows into the ground through (something) (paragraph 7)
9) induced voltage (paragraph 8)
10) generates a surge current (paragraph 10)
B) Fill in the table with the sentences given below:
| How to Know if You Are in Danger?
| Avoiding the Lightning Threat:
|
| Lightning is a threat whenever:
1. ……
2. ……
3. ……
4. ……
| 1. ……
2. ……
3. ……
4. ……
5. ……
|
| What to Do When Your Inside:
| What Should You Do When You Can't Get to a Safe Place:
|
| 1. ……
2. ……
3. ……
4. ……
5. ……
| 1. ……
2. ……
3. ……
4. ……
5. ……
|
A) Avoid open areas and stay away from isolated tall trees, towers, or utility poles.
B) You hear buzzing sounds on radio antennas
C) Turn off TVs, computers and other electronics.
D) Spread out because this reduces the risk of multiple lightning casualties.
E) Postpone activities.
F) Mastheads begin to glow.
G) Crouch down on the balls of your feet, put your hands over your ears, and bend your head down.
H) Keep away from windows and doors.
I) Plan ahead.
J) Do not lie flat on the ground.
K) You hear loud static on your AM radio.
L) Stay away from sinks and tubs.
M) Don't use the telephone unless it is an emergency.
N) Get to a safe place.
O) You see lightning or hear thunder.
P) Stay inside.
Q) Stay away from metal bleachers, backstops, and fences.
R) Don't use the microwave or other electric appliances.
S) Monitor the weather.
http://www.squidoo.com/lightning-safety
C) Match lightning safety myths with the truths:
| MYTH:
|
| 1) Lightning never strikes the same place twice.
2) If it’s not raining or there aren’t clouds overhead, you’re safe from lightning.
3) Rubber tires on a car protect you from lightning by insulating you from the ground.
4) A lightning victim is electrified. If you touch them, you’ll be electrocuted.
5) If outside in a thunderstorm, you should seek shelter under a tree to stay dry.
6) If you are in a house, you are 100% safe from lightning.
7) If thunderstorms threaten while you are outside playing a game, it is okay to finish it.
8) Structures with metal, or metal on the body (jewelry, cell phones, Mp3 players, watches, etc), attract lightning.
9) If trapped outside and lightning is about to strike, I should lie flat on the ground.
|
| FACTS
|
| A) Being underneath a tree is the second leading cause of lightning casualties. Better to get wet than fried!
B) Lightning often strikes more than three miles from the center of the thunderstorm, far outside the rain or thunderstorm cloud. “Bolts from the blue” can strike 10-15 miles from the thunderstorm.
C) Height, pointy shape, and isolation are the dominant factors controlling where a lightning bolt will strike. The presence of metal makes absolutely no difference on where lightning strikes. Mountains are made of stone but get struck by lightning many times a year. When lightning threatens, take proper protective action immediately by seeking a safe shelter and don’t waste time removing metal. While metal does not attract lightning, it does conduct it so stay away from metal fences, railing, bleachers, etc.
D) The human body does not store electricity. It is perfectly safe to touch a lightning victim to give them first aid. This is the most chilling of lightning Myths. Imagine if someone died because people were afraid to give CPR!
E) Lying flat increases your chance of being affected by potentially deadly ground current. If you are caught outside in a thunderstorm, you keep moving toward a safe shelter.
F) A house is a safe place to be during a thunderstorm as long as you avoid anything that conducts electricity. This means staying off corded phones, electrical appliances, wires, TV cables, computers, plumbing, metal doors and windows. Windows are hazardous for two reasons: wind generated during a thunderstorm can blow objects into the window, breaking it and causing glass to shatter and second, in older homes, in rare instances, lightning can come in cracks in the sides of windows.
G) Lightning often strikes the same place repeatedly, especially if it’s a tall, pointy, isolated object. The Empire State Building is hit nearly 100 times a year.
H) Many lightning casualties occur because people do not seek shelter soon enough. No game is worth death or life-long injuries. Seek proper shelter immediately if you hear thunder. Adults are responsible for the safety of children.
I) Most cars are safe from lightning, but it is the metal roof and metal sides that protect you, NOT the rubber tires. Remember, convertibles, motorcycles, bicycles, open-shelled outdoor recreational vehicles and cars with fiberglass shells offer no protection from lightning. When lightning strikes a vehicle, it goes through the metal frame into the ground. Don't lean on doors during a thunderstorm.
|
http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov/myths.htm
