1) The high temperatures in the tropics          a) can precipitate in deeper layers of                                   

                                                                                             the soil.

2) Fine particles and dissolved matter            b) depend on their origin and history.

3) Soil develops                                              c) through interplay between physical

                                                                            and chemical processes.

4) Chemical, physical and biological             d) the slow disintegration of parent

properties of soils                                          rock material.

5) Cropping and cultivation practices               e) helps in soil- forming process.

6) Weathering is                                             f) influence soil properties.

7) Soil organic matter                                     g) induce rapid decomposition of soil

                                                                        organic matter.

 13. Переведите следующие словосочетания на английский язык:

медленное разложение горной породы, основные компоненты почвы, развитие почвы, образование почвы, происхождение почвы, свойства почвы, физическая структура почвы, содержание органического вещества в почве.

Согласитесь с данными ниже утверждениями или опровергните их с помощью следующих выражений.

I think                            я думаю

I agree                           я согласен (согласна)

In my opinion               по моему мнению

I am not sure                 я уверен(а)

I believe                        я считаю

I suppose                      я предполагаю

It is necessary to add    необходимо добавить

1. Soil properties don’t depend on the origin and history of soil.

2. Soils change through time.

3. Soil properties are static.

4. Dissolution and precipitation are physical processes.

5. Cultivation practices influence soil properties.

6. Soil formation is complex.

7. Lettuce, spinach and leek have shallow root system. 

15. Ответьте на вопросы.

1. What is weathering?

2. How does soil develop?

3. What is organic matter?

4. Does organic matter help in the soil-forming process?

5. What main constituents of soils do you know?

6. What do chemical, physical and biological properties of soils depend on?

7. Can soil properties change?

8. Do soils differ between regions?

9. What do you know about tropical and subtropical soils?

10. What do the high temperatures in the tropics induce?

Прочитайте и озаглавьте следующий текст.

A tropical rainforest presents intense biological activity and has the largest variety of both animal and plant species. Looking at it from the outside, one would think that the soil would be very productive. This is far from true. Nearly all biological activity in a rainforest is above the ground, often far above the ground, in the trees. Millions of years of heavy rains, combined with the high temperature and the intense biological activity, have left the soil virtually without nutrients. As long as the indigenous[1] population cleared only small plots of the forest (slash[2] and burn), after they were abandoned the forest soon invaded the open spots. However, once the forest is removed, the soils will sustain only a couple of years of agricultural crops, then a few years of grassland, after which the area becomes more or less infertile. The best way of obtaining a harvest from a tropical rainforest is to cooperate with the forest, e.g. harvest the fruits the forest itself produces. A good example is the Brazil nut, which is harvested only in the wild, as cultivating it is difficult.

17. Проанализируйте словарную статью глагола to sustain и переведите следующие словосочетания на русский язык, обращая внимание на разные значения этого слова:

to sustain a loss, to sustain life, to sustain injuries, to sustain a theory, to sustain one’s claim.

Определите, какой частью речи являются выделенные слова и переведите предложения на русский язык.

1) Scientists discuss problem of precipitation in tropical rain forests.

2) Fine particles and dissolved matter can precipitate in deeper layers of the soil.

3) The biological activity of tropical rain forest is intense.

4) The intensity of the soil colour depends on many factors.

5) These soils are geologically old.

6) What are geological characteristics of these soils?

Составьте 7-8 вопросов к тексту из упражнения № 16.