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Deserts
简体
Deserts
荒漠

Learn the First Conditional

Date: Nov 30 2011

Themes: Travel, Weather

Grammar: First Conditional

Intro

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No place on Earth looks more like another planet than the desert. Whether it’s the Sahara with its miles and miles of sand dunes or the Grand Canyon with its dramatic red cliffs, deserts are beautiful and strange.

Deserts also might not be what you expect. For instance, not all deserts are hot. Much of Antarctica is covered in “cold desert,” where temperatures are often freezing and where you can find “snow dunes” instead of sand dunes.

Hear a conversation between Jason and Ella about deserts.

在地球上,没有什么比荒漠看起来更像是在另一个星球上。无论是沙丘绵延数千里的撒哈拉沙漠,还是遍布陡峭的红色悬崖的美国大峡谷,荒漠充分展现了美丽和奇异。
荒漠也可能与你想象的不一样。例如,不是所有的荒漠都酷热难当。南极洲的大部分地区覆盖着“寒漠”,气温常年在冰点以下,这里“雪丘”遍地,却没有沙丘的踪影。
请听詹森和艾拉有关荒漠的对话。

Dialog

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Ella

Ella

Jason

Jason

Ella:  I’m not a fan of heat, but I’m definitely a fan of deserts.

Jason:  Wow, OK. So you go to cold deserts then?

Ella:  Yes!

Jason:  I mean, deserts are really cold, especially at night.

Ella:  I know, I love it. I mean, it’s just straight up heat. I hate humidity, and in the desert, there’s no humidity.

Jason:  Not likely to rain, and if it does, it’ll last about five minutes.

Ella:  Yes.

Jason:  You know, I like the desert because it seems kind of spiritual. Like somehow all the space and the lack of life, just makes it sort of magical in some way. I guess it’s that cliche of like Jim Morrison going out into the desert to find truth, and he was sort of imitating the Native Americans. It seems like there’s something to that to me.

Ella:  I mean, mirages occur there a lot, I hear.

Jason:  Right!

Ella:  And you can do lots of sand boarding. That’s why I like deserts.

Jason:  Oh, so you like to get on the dunes and ride down?

Ella:  Yeah! It’s so fun.

Jason:  Would you ever want to live in the desert? It’s kinda sandy.

Ella:  If I’m close to a lake, like Lake Tahoe, I’d be totally OK living near the desert.

Jason:  Gotcha. You need a place to cool off and wash off the sand.

Ella:  Exactly.

 

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Discussion

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Ella tells Jason that she loves the desert. She hates humidity, so she appreciates how dry the desert is. She also likes sand boarding in the desert. Sand boarding is like surfing or skate boarding, but on sand dunes.

Jason also likes the desert. He thinks it is a magical, spiritual place. But he thinks that all that sand would get annoying if he actually lived in the desert. Ella says she could live in the desert as long as there was a lake nearby where she could cool off.

Have you ever been to the desert? Do you think the desert is magical, or too hot?

 

Comments

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lizaolamaribel@yahoo.comSuper Member!

United States

,My favority time its the sunset I think its a good place to spend your time and meed with the beauty of nature.

07:14 PM Apr 05 2018 |

Hamedrees

Hamedrees

Sudan

deserts are very nice place to it’s quite , and when you visit it or be member of some people who live in it you will learn more and be suprise of it to it’s beauty , and you must think how our GOD create it and see the diversity of the universe , lakes ,sees , deserts , rivers , rains , sands , SKY , EARTH , etc 


our main life in the desert so i’am a member of it .


yes may be some of it are magical and otherwise are not .

08:47 AM Apr 17 2016 |

samirah

samirah

Saudi Arabia

In a word, desert whether being hot or cold is unlivable…


it is known extreme weather has a negative  effect on  person ’s productivity and mood ..

08:00 AM Mar 23 2012 |

abaan

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

have u ever heard about the beauty of the sky at desert nights?

08:34 PM Dec 19 2011 |

arash111

arash111

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

my heart is like a desert :)


12:27 PM Dec 02 2011 |

1 person likes this

dhtt86

dhtt86

United States

i love deserts, too. I used to pass neveda when i was on a plane. and it’s just an amazing creature of life. cool to find out what’s going overthere.

06:28 AM Dec 02 2011 |

miss316

China

the first time when i saw desert was at Muene Viemam. I  have to say that was really awesome. there are lots of red and yellow sand dunes right beside the beach. the sand there is so soft and clean. you can ride down or just roll down from the to of dunes. much fun!! another fabulous things is that there are some small lake filled of blossom lotus. you can take fantasic photoshot there combine blue sky, beautiful lotus, white beach and colourful sand dunes. that is my top ten vacation destinations and the life cost there is very cheap compair with north american.

05:14 PM Dec 01 2011 |

Bruce_zhou

China

Before i read this article,i hated desert very much,and never want to go,because in my mind ,i think desert so horrible,very hot in daytime and very cold in night,no life and no plant here,many many people dead in desert when they want to through desert,but for now ,i think desert really funning and interesting,actually i just watching mirages on sea,if can seeing the mirage on desert ,maybe so funning,let’s image,when u riding  camel in the desert alonely and thirstly,suddently,you found the forest and river between the sand dunes,maybe you will become exciting so much,but when u arrived you found that just mirages,really so sadly and hopleless.actucally,as for me ,it’s really first time to heard not all desert are hot and can not endure,some desert actually cold all the time,not hot at all.really interesting.

08:04 AM Dec 01 2011 |

foz12

foz12

Saudi Arabia

Actually, it’s really magical place, I mean even it’s hot spot you can find the rest to your spirit, think, clear your mind and looking widely around the desert, we do having fun set on fire at night. I totally love the taste of the tea when we make it on the fire and the food as well.

07:32 AM Dec 01 2011 |

i love life

Palestinian Territory, Occupied

really from my opinion I am sure the life in the desert different on the life in a big cities


if you want to feel comfortable you should go to empty place for example to desert or another place dosnt have many people


I would like to say I prefer to live in a suitable place


I have many dreams I,M looking to achieve it


I like desert because gives us many different things


tranquility and comfortable


we should go to desert for camping we will be happy


I dont like the humidity I suffer from cold atmosphere here but I prefer to live with hot weather more than cold atmosphere


I know perfume it.s name desert very nice smell I use this perfume


I would like recommende others try to visit the desert


we should to take some Ideas about the life there


really there are a lot people spend a lot of time with the desert for discover our lives and get on what is mean our lives


we didnt know every thing about the universe really will be a crazy experience


09:15 PM Nov 30 2011 |

selvgali

selvgaliSuper Member!

Honduras

For some people desert can be magical, mistical, lovely etc, but for most people I guess is not that amazing, it depends of how well are you prepared for beeing in the desert.

08:26 PM Nov 30 2011 |

IsaaBelaxD

IsaaBelaxD

Brazil

I’ve never been in the desert, but I think I wouldn’t like it cause I really hate dry. It’s really bad to people who have problem like allergies  and stuff, like me.

08:13 PM Nov 30 2011 |

marwa89

marwa89

Syrian Arab Republic

i like the desert so much and i wish to live there,it is very romantic magical and sipirtual place to live in and natural at the same time and with a lake every thing i guess is going to be ok and fantastic

04:18 PM Nov 30 2011 |

GregoryM

Germany

Hey guys!!!!!


Can anybody of you answer me this question?


In school we wrote a test where we had to express sentences more fluently using participle constructions.


One sentence was like this:


When you feel too much pressure and always want to be perfect, you might get an eating disorder.


Is it possible to write instead: On feeling too much pressure and on always wanting to be perfect, you might get an eating disorder.


My English teacher said, this is not right.


But I do not know why. I hope my solution is possible, because I would get a better mark in this case.


Please answer!!!!


I do know that this is the wrong place to write something like this. And I will never do something like this again. But I did not find a better place where I could write this question. Sorry about that!!!!!!!


But I realy need an understandable quick answer of somebody who speaks English very very well.


Thank you very much!!!!!!!;-)

03:30 PM Nov 30 2011 |

1 person likes this

妞额

妞额

China

i havent been to desert ,but i know i like it and i may hate living there,life there is too difficult .

03:10 PM Nov 30 2011 |

1 person likes this

friendlover

Turkey

I have never been to the desert, but I’d like to be (I wouldn’t like to spent a long time there as it would be hard). Deserts are interesting and absoultely beautiful. They are like a different planet as movies about Mars are recoreded in deserts. 


I think my favourite desert is in Chile, The Atacama Desert. This place is so special for scientist because it’s the best place to see stars from to Earth. No humidity, no lights. A perfect sky at night. Scientist go there and spend a few nights to observe the sky. So lovely.


02:27 PM Nov 30 2011 |

snoopyboy

snoopyboy

Antarctica

 I have this keen interest for photographs of deserts.As a matter of factI love anything that appears untouched or untarnished by men.


   So yeah Julito, if I were to choose where I’d rather be stranded at, between the Sahara desert and the Antarctica, I’ll choose the latter in a heartbeat. People tend to hallucinate in hot deserts; they see things, mirages and oasis. Plus, most deserts are renowned for housing the world’s deadliest snakes (:S) and the cold ones like Antartica have a lot of hostile polar bears. Despite all, deserts are lovely places cold or hot… just squeeze another “S” in the middle of “desert” it becomes a tasteful treat  we all love: dessert cold or hot, Laughing


Right?

01:32 PM Nov 30 2011 |

1 person likes this

yjfnyygy

yjfnyygy

China

i have never been to the desert even seldom hear about it , in my view , the desert is a very hot place ,where also lack of water , maybe it does not live there for human , but i am curious for the desert ,if have a chance i think i would like to be there just as a experience of life  ,

08:47 AM Nov 30 2011 |

sreejithjr

sreejithjr

India

 iam living in desert place because iam wrking in saudi arabia


there is hardly any plants in desert. survival in this condition is very difficult because temperature condition is very difficult to handle ,in winter season temperature will below 5degree,in summer temperature will be above 55 degree and also the humidity is also high, frequent vsit of sand storm(cyclones)


STILL PEOPLE LIVE IN DESERT-SURVIVAL OF FITTEST

08:42 AM Nov 30 2011 |

agnes-China

China

I’ve never been to the desert. There is hardly any trees and grasses in the desert because of lacking water. I can imagine that it is desolate and bleak.

06:57 AM Nov 30 2011 |

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