A2 RW Ch7 L2 · Making Comparisons
📘 Học trước khi làm · Skill · Making comparisons
Making comparisons ✍️
Like X, Y … → Like animal science, horticulture is an area of sustainable agriculture.
X … Similarly, Y … → Fatty acids are good for the heart. Similarly, antioxidants clear the blood of toxins.
X … However / But, Y … · X … On the other hand, Y …
While X … , Y … → While horticulturists study plant life, animal scientists study animal life.
Both: necessary for survival · costs money · grown on farms and sold to consumers
Conventional only: grown with chemicals · cheaper · less nutritious · fewer fatty acids & antioxidants
1Is organic food healthier than conventionally grown food? Organic food is grown without dangerous chemicals, while conventional food is produced with chemical pesticides. Unlike a lot of conventional food, most organic food is expensive. However, recent research shows organic food is also more nutritious. A study by the British Journal of Nutrition shows organic dairy and meat contains more omega-3 fatty acids, which help reduce heart disease. Similarly, another study showed organic crops have more antioxidants. Some critics say the extra nutrients are too small to matter, so it's not worth the money. On the other hand, supporters believe the extra costs are worth the health benefits. In the end, consumers must choose for themselves.
📘 Học trước khi làm · Grammar · superlative adjectives
The superlative form 🧩
Complete the sentence
A Farming Life — complete the superlatives
Dairy farmers vs ranchers
1In Brazil, the Bom Futuro Farm is the largest producer of soybeans in the world, producing 950,000 metric tons (1 million US tons) in 2017. Similarly, in China, the Mudanjiang City Mega Farm is the biggest dairy farm in the world, producing 800 million liters (211 million gal.) of milk each year. Their secret? Chemical fertilizers and antibiotics for animals.
2Since its introduction, chemical fertilizer has forever changed the way farmers grow crops. In the past, farmers planted a crop for a year or two but then waited until the nutrients returned before they reused that same land. With chemical fertilizer, which adds the nutrients back to the soil, farmers can plant the same crop in the same place year after year. This means large amounts of crops at the lowest costs in history.
📘 Học trước khi làm · 🗺 Vocabulary strategy · word maps
Using word maps
• a picture • a sentence with the word (from the reading)
• part of speech • word family • association — what you think of
Sentence: "The right soil is important for making plants grow their best."
Association: "Farming reminds me of my grandparents, who were dairy farmers."
3In addition, farmers started giving antibiotics to animals to increase the animal's size and lifespan. Like with crops, this has meant some of the highest production rates and lowest costs in the history of farming.
4A win-win, right? Not everyone agrees. More food at a lower price sounds good, but many believe that these kinds of industrialized farming practices are more harmful than helpful. This fertilizer, for example, causes pollution and leads to global warming. In addition, planting the same crop year after year harms the soil. Also, large animal farms produce a lot of waste, which can make the water supply dangerous to drink. Critics also say the animals' living conditions are bad. Finally, some believe antibiotics can cause illness or even death in both animals and humans.
5As the world population grows, the demand for food will, too. However, we must demand that food be grown safely.