Nâng cấp từ vựng – IELTS Vocab Booster 2.CAM9 – Test1- READING PASSAGE 3

The history of tortoise

If you go back far enough, everything lived in the sea. At various points in evolutionary history, enterprising individuals within many different animal groups moved out onto the land, sometimes even to the most parched deserts, taking their own private seawater with them in blood and cellular fluids. In addition to the reptiles, birds, mammals and insects which we see all around us, other groups that have succeeded out of water include scorpions, snails, crustaceans such as woodlice and land crabs, millipedes and centipedes, spiders and various worms. And we mustn’t forget the plants, without whose prior invasion of the land none of the other migrations could have happened.

Moving from water to land involved a major redesign of every aspect of life, including breathing and reproduction. Nevertheless, a good number of thoroughgoing land animals later turned around, abandoned their hard-earned terrestrial re-tooling, and returned to the water again. Seals have only gone part way back. They show us what the intermediates might have been like, on the way to extreme cases such as whales and dugongs. Whales (including the small whales we call dolphins) and dugongs, with their close cousins the manatees, ceased to be land creatures altogether and reverted to the full marine habits of their remote ancestors. They don’t even come ashore to breed. They do, however, still breathe air, having never developed anything equivalent to the gills of their earlier marine incarnation. Turtles went back to the sea a very long time ago and, like all vertebrate returnees to the water, they breathe air. However, they are, in one respect, less fully given back to the water than whales or dugongs, for turtles still lay their eggs on beaches.

There is evidence that all modem turtles are descended from a terrestrial ancestor which lived before most of the dinosaurs. There are two key fossils called Proganochelys quenstedti and Palaeochersis talampayensis dating from early dinosaur times, which appear to be close to the ancestry of all modem turtles and tortoises. You might wonder how we can tell whether fossil animals lived on land or in water, especially if only fragments are found. Sometimes it’s obvious. Ichthyosaurs were reptilian contemporaries of the dinosaurs, with fins and streamlined bodies. The fossils look like dolphins and they surely lived like dolphins, in the water. With turtles it is a little less obvious. One way to tell is by measuring the bones of their forelimbs.

Walter Joyce and Jacques Gauthier, at Yale University, obtained three measurements in these particular bones of 71 species of living turtles and tortoises. They used a kind of triangular graph paper to plot the three measurements against one another. All the land tortoise species formed a tight cluster of points in the upper part of the triangle; all the water turtles cluster in the lower part of the triangular graph. There was no overlap, except when they added some species that spend time both in water and on land. Sure enough, these amphibious species show up on the triangular graph approximately half way between the ‘wet cluster’ of sea turtles and the ‘dry cluster’ of land tortoises. The next step was to determine where the fossils fell. The bones of P quenstedti and JR talampayensis leave us in no doubt. Their points on the graph are right in the thick of the dry cluster. Both these fossils were dry-land tortoises. They come from the era before our turtles returned to the water.

You might think, therefore, that modem land tortoises have probably stayed on land ever since those early terrestrial times, as most mammals did after a few of them went back to the sea. But apparently not. If you draw out the family tree of all modem turtles and tortoises, nearly all the branches are aquatic. Today’s land tortoises constitute a single branch, deeply nested among branches consisting of aquatic turtles. This suggests that modem land tortoises have not stayed on land continuously since the time of P. quenstedti and P talampayensis. Rather, their ancestors were among those who went back to the water, and they then re-emerged back onto the land in (relatively) more recent times.

Tortoises therefore represent a remarkable double return. In common with all mammals, reptiles and birds, their remote ancestors were marine fish and before that various more or less worm-like creatures stretching back, still in the sea, to the primeval bacteria. Later ancestors lived on land and stayed there for a very large number of generations. Later ancestors still evolved back into the water and became sea turtles. And finally they returned yet again to the land as tortoises, some of which now live in the driest of deserts.

1. Giải thích từ vựng

• Enterprising (a) /ˈen.tə.praɪ.zɪŋ/ mạnh dạn, dám nghĩ dám làm

Eg: The business was started by a couple of enterprising young women.

• Parched (a) /pɑːtʃt/ khô nẻ (mặt trời, cơn khát), khô rang

Eg: It was the height of summer and the land was parched and brown.

He raised the water bottle to his parched lips.

• Invasion (n) /ɪnˈveɪ.ʒən/ sự xâm chiếm, sự xâm lấn

Eg: The d-day invasion was a concerted exercise by the armed forces of britain, the us and canada.

• Migration (n) /maɪˈɡreɪ.ʃən/ sự di trú

Eg: Christmas island is known for its annual migration of 50 million bright red land crabs from the forest to the sea.

Some old roads follow the paths of seasonal animal migrations.

• Major (a)  /ˈmeɪ.dʒər/ lớn (hơn), nhiều (hơn), trọng đại, chủ yếu

Eg: Citrus fruits are a major source of vitamin c.

There has been a major change in attitudes recently.

• Breathing (n) /ˈbriː.ðɪŋ/ sự thở, hơi thở, sự hô hấp

Eg: She lay awake listening to her sister’s steady breathing.

Breathe (v)

• Reproduction (n) /ˌriː.prəˈdʌk.ʃən/ sự sinh sôi nẩy nở; sự sinh sản

Eg: We are researching reproduction in elephants.

• Thoroughgoing (a)  /ˌθʌr.əˈɡəʊ.ɪŋ/ hoàn toàn; trọn vẹn, triệt để

Eg: He lowers his standards rather than recasting his argument in the thoroughgoing way that would be required to avoid the problems.

• Turn around (phrasal verb) thay đổi (một kế hoạch, công việc kinh doanh hoặc hệ thống không thành công, vô ích và làm cho nó thành công)

Eg: Do you think our housing sales will turn around during this year?

• Abandon (v)  /əˈbæn.dən/ bỏ rơi, ruồng bỏ

Eg: By the time the rebel troops arrived, the village had already been abandoned.

If disturbed, the bird may abandon the nest, leaving the chicks to die.

• Terrestrial (a) /təˈres.tri.əl/ (động vật học) ở cạn, sống trên mặt đất

Eg: Vertebrate remains are decidedly patchy, particularly the terrestrial species. 

• Cease (v) /siːs/ dừng, ngừng, ngớt

Eg: Whether the protests will cease remains to be seen.

The company has decided to cease all uk operations after this year.

• Revert (v) /rɪˈvɜːt/ trở lại, trở về

Eg: Why does the conversation have to revert to money every five minutes?

Collocation 

• Revert to sth

•  Marine (a) /məˈriːn/ (thuộc) biển, thuộc đại dương

Eg: The oil slick seriously threatens marine life around the islands.

• Remote (a) /rɪˈməʊt/ xa, xa xôi, cách xa (về thời gian, khoảng cách) 

Eg: It happened in the remote past, so no one worries about it any more.

• Ashore (adv) /əˈʃɔːr/ trên bờ; vào bờ

Eg: A few pieces of wood had washed ashore.

Strong winds blew the ship ashore.

• Breed (v) /briːd/ sinh sản, sinh đẻ

Eg: The blackbird, like most birds, breeds in the spring.

While the animals are still immature, they do not breed.

• Equivalent (a)  /ɪˈkwɪv.əl.ənt/ tương đương

Eg: An imperial gallon is equivalent to 4546 cubic centimetres.

It’s important to stress that this qualification is not equivalent to a degree.

• Descend from (phrasal verb) bắt nguồn từ, xuất thân từ

Eg: He is descended from a long line of farmers.

• Ancestry (n) /ˈæn.ses.tri/ tổ tiên, tổ tông, dòng họ

Eg: He was proud of his native american ancestry.

His wife was of royal ancestry.

Một số từ đồng nghĩa :

• Ancestor i discovered that one of my ancestors was a member of king henry viii’s court.
• Forebear my forebears were enslaved and brought to this country.
• Forefather i visited the land of my forefathers.
• Extraction my family is of italian extraction.
• Family tree since many families will be gathering for the holiday, it’s a perfect time to create a family tree.

•  Obvious (a) /ˈɒb.vi.əs/ rõ ràng, rành mạch, hiển nhiên

Eg: It’s obvious that  she doesn’t like him.

They have a small child so for obvious reasons they need money.

I know you don’t like her, but do you have to make it so obvious?

Một số từ đồng nghĩa :

• Clear it was clear that he was unhappy.
• Apparent her joy was apparent to everyone.
• Plain his disappointment was plain to see.
• Evident the company president was impressed by her evident ambition.
• Manifest his manifest lack of interest has provoked severe criticism.

•  Reptile (n) /ˈrep.taɪl/ loài bò sát

Eg: Humans, insects, reptiles, birds and mammals are all animals.

Birds, fish, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles are all vertebrates.

Snakes, turtles, and crocodiles are all reptiles.

Reptilian (a) 

•  Streamlined (a) /ˈstrim·lɑɪnd/ có dáng thuôn, có dáng khí động

Eg: For fishes streamlined bodies help them swim in water with the least possible resistance.

Three animals that have streamlined bodies are fishes, birds and snakes.

•  Overlap (n) /ˌəʊ.vəˈlæp/ sự lấn lên nhau, gối lên nhau 

Eg: The roof tiles will need an overlap of several centimetres.

• Aquatic (a) /əˈkwæt.ɪk/ sống ở nước, mọc ở nước

Eg: Waterskiing is my favorite aquatic sport.

Fertilizers from surrounding farmland has reduced the aquatic life.

• Constitute (v) /ˈkɒn.stɪ.tʃuːt/ cấu tạo, tạo thành

Eg: The long-term unemployed now constitute a sort of underclass.

The publishers claim that the book constitutes ‘the first sequential exposition of events and thus of the history of the revolution’.

• Nest (v)  /nest/ làm tổ

Eg: we’ve got some swallows nesting in our roof at the moment.

Farm buildings are ideal nesting sites for barn owls.

Some bugs had nested under the computer’s motherboard.

• In common with: cùng với, cũng như, giống như

Eg: In common with many mothers, she feels torn between her family and her work.

• Stretch (v) /stretʃ/ kéo ra, căng ra, giăng ra, duỗi ra

Eg: I stretched out and listened to the sound of the rushing stream.

The cat was stretching in front of the fire.

• Primeval (a) /praɪˈmiː.vəl/ nguyên thủy; thái cổ; nguyên sinh

Eg: Primeval clouds of gas formed themselves into stars.

• Transfer (v) /trænsˈfɜːr/ dời, chuyển

Eg: She transferred her gun from its shoulder holster to her handbag.

We were transferred from one bus into another.

• Represent (v) /ˌrep.rɪˈzent/ tiêu biểu cho, tượng trưng cho; tương ứng với

Eg: The statue represents st. George killing the dragon.

• Dense (a) /dens/ dày đặc, chặt/ đông đúc; rậm rạp

Eg: The forest is quite dense at that point.

The dense foliage overhead almost blocked out the sun.

• Position (v) /pəˈzɪʃ.ən/ đặt vào vị trí, xác định vị trí

Eg: When it came to seating people for dinner, i positioned myself as far away from him as possible.

1. Luyện tập

Bài 1: Chọn từ trong khung để hoàn thành các câu bên dưới

major	around	common	parched	primeval
stretch	migration	descended	transferred	dense

1. He claims to be …………….. from a Spanish prince.
2. Britain, in ………………… with many other industrialized countries, has experienced major changes over the last 100 years.
3. She studied for two years at Smith College, then ………………. to the University of Chicago.
4. The exhaust pipe belched out …………………. black smoke.
5. Yoga is a great way to ……………………. your body.
6. The sun and planets formed from a ……………….. cloud of gas about 5 billion years ago.
7. Prior to ……………….., Ohio’s peregrine falcon population is estimated to reach 110 to 130 birds.
8. The United States is a …………… influence in the United Nations.
9. Puddles were forming on the ………………….. earth.
10. They are hoping to turn the company ……………….  with the launch of the new products.

Bài 2: Chọn đáp án đúng để điền vào chỗ trống

1. According to an eyewitness account, the thieves …………………… their vehicle near the scene of the robbery and then ran off.                A. abandoned                          B. reverted
2. Workplace nurseries will ……………………… to be liable for tax.             A. cease                 B. breed
3. Julie jumped off the boat and swam ………………………..                        A. distinctly            B. ashore
4. Animals ……………………… in captivity would probably not survive if they were released into the wild.      A. bred       B. reverted
5. Dolphins enjoy relatively lower travel costs than do the ………………. mammals.     A. marine           B. terrestrial
6. The money will ………………. to the state general fund if it isn’t claimed.                   A. revert            B. cease
7. Surely men and women doing …………… jobs should be paid the same amount?     A. remote          B. equivalent
8. Probably the seabirds found extra food among the small fish and …………………. animals which clustered near the larger items of rubbish.         A. marine             B. terrestrial
9. With contributions from different authors, there is no central …………………. theme to the volume.     A. thoroughgoing   B. parched
10. Thousands of troops have massed along the border in preparation for an ……………………….            A. migration           B. invasion
11. It is an ……………………. use of sources which takes the reader very much into popular culture.        A. enterprising    B. thoroughgoing
12. Dora was asleep, and I listened to the sound of her deep …………………..                    A. breathing           B. reproduction
13. There is a ………………. possibility that we won’t be able to make the trip.                     A. equivalent           B. remote
14. DNA tests tell me that I have Central Asian ………………..                                              A. invasion             B. ancestry
15. Birds also hav…………………………. bodies that help them fly in air with the least resistance.     A. streamlined          B. equivalent
16. Under the microscope even the bone structure of these dinosaurs looks more like that of living mammals than cold-blooded …………………….         A. ancestry              B. reptiles
17. ………………… organic matter is subject to a hard-water error and is therefore not usable.           A. Aquatic               B. Streamlined
18. They felt that our discussions with other companies ……………….. a breach of our agreement.    A. constituted         B. abandoned
19. They are calling for a ban on …………………. for human cloning.                      A. migration              B. reproduction
20. Would you quickly look over these figures for me and see if there are any ……………….. mistakes?      A. obvious          B. streamlined
21. There are some ………………………. between the products of the two companies.                   A. overlaps                   B. reptiles
22. This new report ……………………….. the current situation in our schools.                               A. represents               B. abandons
23. Until now, experts thought this puffin …………………… much farther north.                             A. constituted              B. nested
24. She studied for two years at Smith College, then ………………… to the University of Chicago.      A. ceased          B. transferred

1. LUYỆN TẬP

Bài 1: 

1.descended 2. common 3. transferred 4. dense 5. stretch 

6. primeval 7. migration 8. major 9. parched 10.around   

Bài 2: 

1.A 2. A 3. B 4. A 5. B

6. A 7. B 8. A 9. A 10.B 
7. A 12. A 13. B 14. B 15.A
8. B 17. A 18. A 19. B 20.A 

21. A 22. A 23. B                    24. B