B1 Vstep reading: từ vựng, tham chiếu 2

Most people think that lions only come from Africa. This is understandable because in fact most of them do come from there but this has not always been the case.

• people

• lions

• Africa

• facts

Asiatic lions are subspecies of African lions. It is almost a hundred thousand years since the Asiatic lions split off and developed as a subspecies.

• spotted animals

• divided

• developed into different species

• changed the original species

Despite living in a sanctuary, which makes lions safe from hunters, they still face a number of problems that threaten their survival. One of these is the ever-present danger of disease.

• lions

• hunters

• problems

• diseases

India’s lions are particular vulnerable because they have a limited gene pool. The reason for this is interesting – it is because all of them are descended from a few dozen lions that were saved by a prince who took a particular interest in them.

• weak

• careless

• cautious

• easily protected

You can try some water sports that are especially popular in Hawaii: surfing, snorkeling and scuba diving. Surfing is a sport which started in Hawaii many years ago. The Hawaiians called it “he’e nalu”, which means “to slide on a wave”.

• water sport

• surfing

• snorkeling

• scuba diving

When you get to where the waves begin to break, you wait for a calm moment. Then you try to stand up on the board. The wave will begin to rise under you. You must try to steer the board with your feet so you stay on top of the wave. The important thing is to keep your balance and not fall down. If you can manage this, you will have an exciting ride all the way in to the shore.

• standing on the board

• keeping balanced and not falling down

• an exciting ride

• staying on top of the wave

In Hawaii, you can take special courses to learn how to scuba dive. After the courses, you can get a certificate that will allow you to dive alone. Since it can be dangerous, proper instruction and great care are always necessary when you are scuba diving.

• enthusiastic

• informative

• appropriate

• short and clear

The violin has been in existence since about 1550. Its importance as an instrument in its own right dates from the early 1600’s, when it first became standard in Italian opera orchestras.

• practical

• customary

• possible

• unusual

Small changes had to be made to the violin's internal structure and to the fingerboard so that they could withstand the extra strain. Accordingly, a higher standard of performance was achieved, in terms of both facility and interpretation.

• Civaldi and Tartini

• internal structure and fingerboard

• thinner strings and a higher string tension

• small changes