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3.Among the animals … became dominant. a) marsupials;

b) snakes; c) birds.

4.An enormous fence was erected to …

a)stop the spread of rabbits;

b)continue fox hunting;

c)see endangered penguins.

26. Read the sentences. Do you think they are true? Read the text and check your answers.

How Many of Us

As of 26 January 2010, the population of Australia was 22 140 000. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, this figure rises by one person every 1 minute and 12 seconds (or 1200 a day). On average, there is a birth every 1 minute and 44 seconds, a death every 3 minutes and 39 seconds, and a net gain of one international immigrant every 1 minute and 53 seconds.

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Our population grows at 1.7 per cent a year (faster than Indonesia’s, at 1.2 per cent, and India’s, at 1.6 per cent). But some parts of the country are more popular than others: this decade the populations of Western Australia and Queensland have been growing at 2.5 per cent a year.

The bureau predicts that Australia will reach 30 million by 2025 and 38 million by 2050. Entrepreneurs think we should aim to reach 50 million, the tipping point to make us a world economic player. Environmentalists think we should reduce our population because the continent’s resources can’t sustain more than 18 million people. The bureau says neither of those scenarios can be achieved this century.

Australia is the 55th most populated country in the world (China is top with 1.35 billion) and the 12th most spacious country in the world (Russia is biggest with 17 million square kilometres, while we have 7.7 million). We have one of the lowest population densities: 2.8 people per

29. Look at the charts (pic. 186 – 187) and fill in the missing information. Comment on the charts.

Ex. As the charts show Australian population is steadily growing. In 2010…

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Population growth

30. Read about Australian mysteries and complete the table.

Mrs Chamberlain

was sentenced to twenty years in gaol for …

Tasmanian tiger Harold Holt

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31. Now ask and answer questions as in the example: Ex. What happened to Mrs Chamberlain? – She was … Who was sentenced to 20 years in goal? Why? – …

What happened to Azaria Chamberlain?

In 1980, a two-month-old girl disappeared from a tent a camping ground near Uluru. Her mother, Lindy Chamberlain, said she was dragged away by a dingo. In 1982, Mrs Chamberlain was convicted of the child’s murder and spent four years in gaol before being declared innocent.

Who put the dope in Schappelle Corby’s bag?

In 2005, a 28-year-old Queensland woman, described as a ‘beauty student’, was arrested at Denpasar Airport in Bali after customs officers found a four-kilogram package of cannabis in her boogie-board bag. After trial, she was sentenced to twenty years in gaol. She says she was the victim of an international smuggling racket. Conspiracy theories flourish about Australian airport baggage handlers, drug dealers and even members of her family.

Who carvedСthe Marree Man?

In 1988, a four-kilometre-long carving of an Aboriginal hunter appeared in the desert sands of Lake Eyre South, 60 kilometres from the town of Marree in South Australia. In order to create the landmark, the site must have been surveyed from space and the figure would have taken months to plough.

What killed Bogle and Chandler?

On New Year’s Day, 1963, the bodies of Gilbert Bogle, a CSIRO scientist, and Margaret Chandler, the wife of another CSIRO scientist, were found on the banks of the Lane Cove River near Chatswood Golf Course in Sydney. No cause of death has been determined. There was speculation they were working on secret drug projects for the CIA.

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Who was attacking the Family Court?

In 1980, Judge David Opas of the Family Court was shot dead at the front door of his Sydney home. In 1984, a bomb went off at the Family Court in Parramatta, Sydney, and later that year the wife of Family Court judge Ray Watson was killed by a bomb at their home. No one has been charged with these crimes.

32. Complete the missing information about Australia. Use Wikipedia to help you. Be ready to tell about Australia.

Name origin:

Total area:

Population:

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