Video Worksheets

Reading Explorer 5, Third Edition
Video Worksheets
Unit 1: Legacies of the Maya

Fill in the blanks with the correct words from the box.
predominant debate deciphering flourished
indigenous conquest advancements prevalent
Narrator: The Maya. They're considered one of the most advanced civilizations to have
existed in the Americas before the Spanish 1________. But who exactly were the ancient
Maya people, and what led to the collapse of their civilization?
As early as 1800 B.C., the Maya had begun settling in established villages in what is today
Mexico and Central America. Maya civilization peaked from 250 to 900 A.D.—during what
archeologists call the Classic Period.
More than 40 cities 2________ throughout the region, with populations as large as 50,000.
The Maya built magnificent urban centers consisting of stone structures, including pyramid
temples that were central to Maya religious practices.
In addition to these impressive city structures, agriculture played a key role in Maya
civilization. Corn was one of the 3________ crops. The Maya creation story tells of nature
gods—the basis of Maya religion—who created humans out of yellow and white corn.
The Maya also made significant 4________ in mathematics and astronomy. They invented
the concept of zero, and they developed an accurate calendar system. Used to guide the
Maya agricultural cycles, the calendar was based on observations of the sun and sky over
thousands of years.
The Maya also developed the only known system of writing in Mesoamerica—hieroglyphs.
In fact, much of what we now know about ancient Maya civilization comes from 5________
hieroglyphic characters inscribed on pottery, stone slabs, and other ruins discovered at
ancient sites.
Hieroglyphs have revealed that, despite the Maya's ingenuity and agrarian lifestyle, conflict
was 6________ among some Maya city-states, as they battled for control of the region.
Throughout much of the Classic Period, the city-state of Tikal (located in modern-day
Guatemala) reigned as the closest thing to an empire in Maya history. But for a period of
roughly 130 years, the Tikal people were overtaken through force and diplomacy by the
Kaanul, a rival kingdom.
Toward the end of the Classic Period, around 900 A.D., most Maya cities had collapsed.
Among the theories are warfare, a volcanic eruption, and, perhaps most likely, drought.
However, archeologists still 7________ why as new evidence continues to emerge.
Despite the decline of ancient Maya civilization, the Maya people have by no means
disappeared. More than seven million Maya are estimated to be alive today in their
8________ homelands and around the world. While they participate in modern global life,
they continue to follow agricultural and ceremonial practices of their ancestors.

Video Worksheets

Fill in the blanks with the correct words.
Narrator: The Maya. They're considered one of the most advanced civilizations to have
existed in the Americas before the Spanish 1________. But who exactly were the ancient
Maya people, and what led to the collapse of their civilization?
As early as 1800 B.C., the Maya had begun settling in established villages in what is today
Mexico and Central America. Maya civilization peaked from 250 to 900 A.D.—during what
archeologists call the Classic Period.
More than 40 cities 2________ throughout the region, with populations as large as 50,000.
The Maya built magnificent urban centers consisting of stone structures, including pyramid
temples that were central to Maya religious practices.
In addition to these impressive city structures, agriculture played a key role in Maya
civilization. Corn was one of the 3________ crops. The Maya creation story tells of nature
gods—the basis of Maya religion—who created humans out of yellow and white corn.
The Maya also made significant 4________ in mathematics and astronomy. They invented
the concept of zero, and they developed an accurate calendar system. Used to guide the
Maya agricultural cycles, the calendar was based on observations of the sun and sky over
thousands of years.
The Maya also developed the only known system of writing in Mesoamerica—hieroglyphs.
In fact, much of what we now know about ancient Maya civilization comes from 5________
hieroglyphic characters inscribed on pottery, stone slabs, and other ruins discovered at
ancient sites.
Hieroglyphs have revealed that, despite the Maya's ingenuity and agrarian lifestyle, conflict
was 6________ among some Maya city-states, as they battled for control of the region.
Throughout much of the Classic Period, the city-state of Tikal (located in modern-day
Guatemala) reigned as the closest thing to an empire in Maya history. But for a period of
roughly 130 years, the Tikal people were overtaken through force and diplomacy by the
Kaanul, a rival kingdom.
Toward the end of the Classic Period, around 900 A.D., most Maya cities had collapsed.
Among the theories are warfare, a volcanic eruption, and, perhaps most likely, drought.
However, archeologists still 7________ why as new evidence continues to emerge.
Despite the decline of ancient Maya civilization, the Maya people have by no means
disappeared. More than seven million Maya are estimated to be alive today in their
8________ homelands and around the world. While they participate in modern global life,
they continue to follow agricultural and ceremonial practices of their ancestors.
Video Worksheets
Unit 2: Soloing Safely

relatively fringe terrain feat
adrenaline gear reckless safety net
Matt Maddaloni: Everything about the sport said danger.
Oh my god!
As a young guy, I was totally excited about that. If I even sneeze, I was dead. Exciting, to
say the least.
Narrator: To some climbers, the act of climbing without the rope, free soloing, is 1________
and irresponsible.
Matt Maddaloni: Not having a rope—any mistake at all, and it's a death fall to the ground,
so even easy 2________ became difficult, mentally.
Narrator: The vast majority of climbers would never seriously consider ditching the rope.
The rope, clipped into successive pieces of removable 3________ placed in cracks, is the
climber's safety net. The climber slips, the rope catches him or her. For as long as climbers
have been using ropes, they've also been making the decisions to go without them. Solo
climbers who push their limits—they never get a chance to learn from their mistakes.
Matt Maddaloni has been working on ways to make climbing without the rope safe. Or, at
least, 4________ safe.
Matt Maddaloni: I wanted to push it harder. Physically, mentally, I wanted to get that grade
as difficult as it could be, so I discovered a sport called deep water soloing where you're
climbing without a rope but this time over water, so if you fell off, you had that as your
5________.
Narrator: Falling became acceptable. Matt decided to take this fringe niche of the sport
back to solid earth. The next test would be a 6________ of engineering.
Matt Maddaloni: Okay, let's try Young Blood without a rope. Oh my god, I don't know. It's a
long way down. God. It's like almost too much, the 7________.
Narrator: Matt took a page from the circus.

Matt Maddaloni: There is no instruction booklet on how to set these things up, so all of this
creates a challenge that pushed it into a realm that we had no idea what we were getting
ourselves into.
Oh, so nice!
Narrator: A trapeze net would take the place of the rope.
Matt Maddaloni: If the net failed, it would be like your rope breaking.
Narrator: Out of each successful engineering project comes the idea for the next creative
endeavor.
Matt Maddaloni: Learning is the most exciting thing about life, and as long as we're
learning, we're living. You know, it's definitely not gum and paper clips, and jumping off a
cliff and see if it all works. There is a method to my madness, for sure. Am I 8________?
Do I stand out as one-and-only, doing the stuff that I do within the sport? No. But I'd say for
the main group of climbers that exists, yeah, I'm definitely a bit of an oddball, for sure.
Video Worksheets

Matt Maddaloni: Everything about the sport said danger.
Oh my god!
As a young guy, I was totally excited about that. If I even sneeze, I was dead. Exciting, to
say the least.
Narrator: To some climbers, the act of climbing without the rope, free soloing, is 1________
and irresponsible.
Matt Maddaloni: Not having a rope—any mistake at all, and it's a death fall to the ground,
so even easy 2________ became difficult, mentally.
Narrator: The vast majority of climbers would never seriously consider ditching the rope.
The rope, clipped into successive pieces of removable 3________ placed in cracks, is the
climber's safety net. The climber slips, the rope catches him or her. For as long as climbers
have been using ropes, they've also been making the decisions to go without them. Solo
climbers who push their limits—they never get a chance to learn from their mistakes.
Matt Maddaloni has been working on ways to make climbing without the rope safe. Or, at
least, 4________ safe.
Matt Maddaloni: I wanted to push it harder. Physically, mentally, I wanted to get that grade
as difficult as it could be, so I discovered a sport called deep water soloing where you're
climbing without a rope but this time over water, so if you fell off, you had that as your
5________.
Narrator: Falling became acceptable. Matt decided to take this fringe niche of the sport
back to solid earth. The next test would be a 6________ of engineering.
Matt Maddaloni: Okay, let's try Young Blood without a rope. Oh my god, I don't know. It's a
long way down. God. It's like almost too much, the 7________.
Narrator: Matt took a page from the circus.
Matt Maddaloni: There is no instruction booklet on how to set these things up, so all of this
creates a challenge that pushed it into a realm that we had no idea what we were getting
ourselves into.
Oh, so nice!
Narrator: A trapeze net would take the place of the rope.

Matt Maddaloni: If the net failed, it would be like your rope breaking.
Narrator: Out of each successful engineering project comes the idea for the next creative
endeavor.
Matt Maddaloni: Learning is the most exciting thing about life, and as long as we're
learning, we're living. You know, it's definitely not gum and paper clips, and jumping off a
cliff and see if it all works. There is a method to my madness, for sure. Am I 8________?
Do I stand out as one-and-only, doing the stuff that I do within the sport? No. But I'd say for
the main group of climbers that exists, yeah, I'm definitely a bit of an oddball, for sure.
Video Worksheets
Unit 3: Energy Entrepreneur

enabling opportunity households network
alternative figured out community crisis
Sanga Moses: I made a journey to go visit my mother, and on my way home, I met my kid
sister carrying wood. When she saw me, she started crying. She was tired of missing
school at least twice a week to go gather wood for my family. Kids carry wood in Uganda
because that's what their families use to cook. Education has changed my life, so seeing
my sister the verge of losing the only 1________ she had to improve her life hit me hard.
She inspired me to think about an 2________ source of fuel. I quit my job. My boss thought
I was crazy. My mom thought I was under a spell. I came back to Kampala, and then went
to a university professor. He made me stand in front of his class and said, "This young man
is crazy enough to think that he can fix the energy 3________ in this country, but he doesn't
know how to do it. Who wants to help him?" And everyone's hand went up.
I had $500, and we run through it in two months. I decided to sell my TV, my bed, and my
sofa set. After I sold my stuff, my girlfriend slammed the door and said, "If you want to
waste your life, waste yours alone."
Now, I'm the CEO of Eco-Fuel Africa. It's amazing what can happen if you believe in your
dreams and act upon it. We 4________ how to turn farm waste like sugarcane waste,
coffee husks, corn waste, into clean cooking fuel that burns cleaner, burns longer, and is
65 percent cheaper.
We put our product in the market, and people loved it. That's when the journey began. We
work with a 5________ of twenty-five hundred farmers. We have four hundred and sixty
women retailers who sell this fuel back to their communities. Currently, we reach ten
thousand 6________. But we want to reach sixteen point six million households in the next
10 years.
By bringing clean cooking fuel to users, we are stopping deforestation, stopping indoor air
pollution, and 7________ farmers and women to earn a living. More kids are in school
getting the education they need.
And me, I fell in love again with a wonderful woman. Now she's my wife and, together, we
have a beautiful baby girl. I only look at myself as an everyday community guy trying to
make his 8________ a little bit better.
Video Worksheets

Sanga Moses: I made a journey to go visit my mother, and on my way home, I met my kid
sister carrying wood. When she saw me, she started crying. She was tired of missing
school at least twice a week to go gather wood for my family. Kids carry wood in Uganda
because that's what their families use to cook. Education has changed my life, so seeing
my sister the verge of losing the only 1________ she had to improve her life hit me hard.
She inspired me to think about an 2________ source of fuel. I quit my job. My boss thought
I was crazy. My mom thought I was under a spell. I came back to Kampala, and then went
to a university professor. He made me stand in front of his class and said, "This young man
is crazy enough to think that he can fix the energy 3________ in this country, but he doesn't
know how to do it. Who wants to help him?" And everyone's hand went up.
I had $500, and we run through it in two months. I decided to sell my TV, my bed, and my
sofa set. After I sold my stuff, my girlfriend slammed the door and said, "If you want to
waste your life, waste yours alone."
Now, I'm the CEO of Eco-Fuel Africa. It's amazing what can happen if you believe in your
dreams and act upon it. We 4________ how to turn farm waste like sugarcane waste,
coffee husks, corn waste, into clean cooking fuel that burns cleaner, burns longer, and is
65 percent cheaper.
We put our product in the market, and people loved it. That's when the journey began. We
work with a 5________ of twenty-five hundred farmers. We have four hundred and sixty
women retailers who sell this fuel back to their communities. Currently, we reach ten
thousand 6________. But we want to reach sixteen point six million households in the next
10 years.
By bringing clean cooking fuel to users, we are stopping deforestation, stopping indoor air
pollution, and 7________ farmers and women to earn a living. More kids are in school
getting the education they need.
And me, I fell in love again with a wonderful woman. Now she's my wife and, together, we
have a beautiful baby girl. I only look at myself as an everyday community guy trying to
make his 8________ a little bit better.
Video Worksheets
Unit 4: Hurricanes
devastation potential regulate cluster
sustain minimize wind speeds storm surge
Narrator: Cyclone, typhoon, hurricane—all of these names are used around the world to
describe the most powerful storm known to man.
Hurricanes are unpredictable, but scientists have a thorough understanding of how

hurricanes form and 1________ their power.
In the Atlantic Ocean, hurricane season peaks during the late summer months when
tropical waters are the warmest.
Hurricanes form from a 2________ of thunderstorms that suck up the warm, moist air, and
move it high into Earth's atmosphere. The warm air is then converted into energy that
powers the hurricane's circular winds.
These winds spin around a low-pressure center called "the eye," which can provide a 20–
30-mile radius of eerie calm.
Encircling it is the "eyewall," a towering ring of clouds with some of the fastest 3________
of the hurricane.
Surrounding the "eyewall" are curved bands of clouds, "the rainbands," often tens of miles
wide, releasing sheets of rain—and sometimes tornadoes.
When a tropical storm's winds reach at least 74 miles per hour, it becomes a hurricane.
The hurricane then receives a category ranking of 1 to 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale,
based on its wind speed and 4________ damage.
But wind speed isn't always the most dangerous component when hurricanes come near
land—it's 5________.
Storm surge is caused when winds from an approaching hurricane push water towards the
shoreline up to 20 feet above sea level and can extend 100 miles. 90 percent of all
hurricane deaths are the result of storm surge.
While hurricanes can cause mass 6________, just like other natural disasters, they serve a
higher purpose within the global ecosystem.
Hurricanes help 7________ our climate by moving heat energy from the equator to the
poles, keeping the Earth's temperature stable.
Over time, science has helped us to better understand hurricanes and predict their paths,
saving lives through early warning systems and helping us build better infrastructure to
protect our cities.
The more we study these complex storms, the better we can prepare for them and
8________ their impact on human lives.
Video Worksheets
Unit 4: Hurricanes
Narrator: Cyclone, typhoon, hurricane—all of these names are used around the world to
describe the most powerful storm known to man.
Hurricanes are unpredictable, but scientists have a thorough understanding of how

hurricanes form and 1________ their power.
In the Atlantic Ocean, hurricane season peaks during the late summer months when
tropical waters are the warmest.
Hurricanes form from a 2________ of thunderstorms that suck up the warm, moist air, and
move it high into Earth's atmosphere. The warm air is then converted into energy that
powers the hurricane's circular winds.
These winds spin around a low-pressure center called "the eye," which can provide a 20–
30-mile radius of eerie calm.
Encircling it is the "eyewall," a towering ring of clouds with some of the fastest 3________
of the hurricane.
Surrounding the "eyewall" are curved bands of clouds, "the rainbands," often tens of miles
wide, releasing sheets of rain—and sometimes tornadoes.
When a tropical storm's winds reach at least 74 miles per hour, it becomes a hurricane.
The hurricane then receives a category ranking of 1 to 5 on the Saffir-Simpson scale,
based on its wind speed and 4________ damage.
But wind speed isn't always the most dangerous component when hurricanes come near
land—it's 5________.
Storm surge is caused when winds from an approaching hurricane push water towards the
shoreline up to 20 feet above sea level and can extend 100 miles. 90 percent of all
hurricane deaths are the result of storm surge.
While hurricanes can cause mass 6________, just like other natural disasters, they serve a
higher purpose within the global ecosystem.
Hurricanes help 7________ our climate by moving heat energy from the equator to the
poles, keeping the Earth's temperature stable.
Over time, science has helped us to better understand hurricanes and predict their paths,
saving lives through early warning systems and helping us build better infrastructure to
protect our cities.
The more we study these complex storms, the better we can prepare for them and
8________ their impact on human lives.
Video Worksheets
Unit 5: Eco-Detectives
resistance solar lurking eliminate
common sense investigate appliances demonstrates
Narrator: This house is a typical three-bedroom home in a nice suburban neighborhood.

But 1________ beneath this innocent façade is an energy-eating monster.
Houses and buildings account for more than half of all energy consumption in the United
States. And many homes waste more energy than they actually use.
Environmental visionary Amory Lovins has brought a team of eco-detectives to 2________

the Cohen house.
Amory Lovins: So this innocent-looking thing here, when it is on, eats a whole lot of money.
When I feel this much cold on the outside of the freezer, the insulation is really not as thick
as we would like.
Oh, what have we here?
Climate change is a problem we don't need to have, and it's cheaper not to.
Narrator: Lovins 3________ that we needn't give up the conveniences we want—a warm
room or a cold drink—in order to save energy. It's all about how efficiently we use it.
Amory Lovins: I think once people understand that climate protection puts money back in
your pocket because you don't have to buy all that fuel. Political 4________ is going to melt
faster than glaciers.
You see that little red light? Down in the corner?
Cohen: Yes.
Narrator: And you'd be surprised by just how much energy your home is wasting, even
while you sleep.
Amory Lovins: If you have all kinds of 5________, you know, your TV, your VCR, your
DVD, etc. that have that little light on—they're using electricity. It's called vampire loads.
A hundred and nine watts. Almost 60 bucks a year, just sitting there, turned off.
Narrator: If every household in the U.S. did away with their vampire loads, we could
6________ a minimum of 18 coal-burning power plants.
Lovins leads by example. He designed his own home in Aspen, Colorado. He employs a
mix of high technology and good old 7________.
Amory Lovins: We're at 70, 100 feet here. It can go to -47°F, get frost any day of the year.
We could get 39 days of continuous winter cloud.
Narrator: Winters are extremely cold here, but Lovins's house doesn't need a furnace. The
house gets all the electricity it needs from the 8________ panels on the roof. And there's
energy to spare. The entire house runs on 120 watts. That's just slightly more electricity
than a single light bulb uses.
Amory Lovins: Energy-efficiency is the biggest, fastest, cheapest way to solve the climate
problem, to save money, and to make a safer, richer, fairer, cooler world.
Video Worksheets
Narrator: This house is a typical three-bedroom home in a nice suburban neighborhood.

But 1________ beneath this innocent façade is an energy-eating monster.
Houses and buildings account for more than half of all energy consumption in the United
States. And many homes waste more energy than they actually use.
Environmental visionary Amory Lovins has brought a team of eco-detectives to 2________

the Cohen house.
Amory Lovins: So this innocent-looking thing here, when it is on, eats a whole lot of money.
When I feel this much cold on the outside of the freezer, the insulation is really not as thick
as we would like.
Oh, what have we here?
Climate change is a problem we don't need to have, and it's cheaper not to.
Narrator: Lovins 3________ that we needn't give up the conveniences we want—a warm
room or a cold drink—in order to save energy. It's all about how efficiently we use it.
Amory Lovins: I think once people understand that climate protection puts money back in
your pocket because you don't have to buy all that fuel. Political 4________ is going to melt
faster than glaciers.
You see that little red light? Down in the corner?
Cohen: Yes.
Narrator: And you'd be surprised by just how much energy your home is wasting, even
while you sleep.
Amory Lovins: If you have all kinds of 5________, you know, your TV, your VCR, your
DVD, etc. that have that little light on—they're using electricity. It's called vampire loads.
A hundred and nine watts. Almost 60 bucks a year, just sitting there, turned off.
Narrator: If every household in the U.S. did away with their vampire loads, we could
6________ a minimum of 18 coal-burning power plants.
Lovins leads by example. He designed his own home in Aspen, Colorado. He employs a
mix of high technology and good old 7________.
Amory Lovins: We're at 70, 100 feet here. It can go to -47°F, get frost any day of the year.
We could get 39 days of continuous winter cloud.
Narrator: Winters are extremely cold here, but Lovins's house doesn't need a furnace. The
house gets all the electricity it needs from the 8________ panels on the roof. And there's
energy to spare. The entire house runs on 120 watts. That's just slightly more electricity
than a single light bulb uses.
Amory Lovins: Energy-efficiency is the biggest, fastest, cheapest way to solve the climate
problem, to save money, and to make a safer, richer, fairer, cooler world.
Video Worksheets
Unit 6: Life on Ice

genomes plunging archives specimens
ecology researchers diversity elaborate
Jonathan Coddington: Museums are really the 1________ of scientific knowledge. We think
that the future of meeting the needs of 21st century biology will be about frozen tissues—
life on ice. The Smithsonian has just built the largest natural history biorepository in the
world. Biologists are going to be spending a lot of the next few decades sequencing the
2________ of many kinds of life on Earth.
We're in the field, out at Edgewater, Maryland, which is The Smithsonian Environmental
Research Center, and we are here to start working out the methods for how you put life on
ice. You might ask, "So why do we do this?" Well, as a scientist, the main reason is that I
want to understand the history and 3________ of life on Earth.
For 300 years, we've been studying the morphology of animals, the behavior of animals,
the 4________ of animals. What we've discovered in the last 20 is that all of those things
leave signals in their genomes. So there are a couple of really hard problems we haven't
been able to solve with classical data, and we think that genomic data is the way to solve
all those problems.
Dana De Roche: Got him. See, and he's in there. That looks like a leucauge. Yeah.
Jonathan Coddington: That's one. We'll be catching spiders live and then 5________ them
directly into liquid nitrogen which, by the way, is a very fast and painless way to go. It's
instantaneous. Ready? So, this is sacrificing the spiders. You hear that?
Dana De Roche: Boiling away!
Jonathan Coddington: Why care about spider genomes? It's two obvious reasons—there's
silk and poison. They have some of the most 6________ and precise poisons of any
organism on Earth. They're widely used in neurobiology research so that they can see the
mechanism of how the poison affects cells, say, in a human body. So we think nature is a
library of solutions that are waiting to be discovered.
Amy Driskell: Museums are repositories of all sorts of information that people have used in
the past and haven't used yet. So we're adding to it, to a museum collection, in a different
way than has been traditional. And basically, you know, museums will have 7________ in
ethanol, they'll have specimens that are dried and pinned, they'll have specimens that are
in drawers, and they'll have specimens that are in the biorepository in liquid nitrogen. So, to
me, it seems to be a normal thing for a museum to be doing, which is to be adding to its
collection.
Jonathan Coddington: The liquid nitrogen tanks hold tens of thousands of samples at -
190°. At the moment, liquid nitrogen is the gold standard for long-term and, by long-term,
the Smithsonian's in the forever business.
Chris Huddleston: Now we're starting to centralize our frozen tissue collections. So we're
somewhere between 200,000 and a half a million samples. The reason we do this is
people like to do genomic work, they do biogenetics, they do toxicology work with our
samples. So 8________ request samples, and we actually go in and we pull samples out,
we cut a small piece of it, and send them out to the researchers.
Jonathan Coddington: Every time science jumps to a new phase, the museums will follow.
Because the technology of doing genome sequence is advancing rapidly. By building a
library of frozen tissue where you can do genomics of life on Earth, we'll be doing what
museums have always done, which is to concentrate life into a collection that will support
research.
Video Worksheets
Unit 6: Life on Ice

Jonathan Coddington: Museums are really the 1________ of scientific knowledge. We think
that the future of meeting the needs of 21st century biology will be about frozen tissues—
life on ice. The Smithsonian has just built the largest natural history biorepository in the
world. Biologists are going to be spending a lot of the next few decades sequencing the
2________ of many kinds of life on Earth.
We're in the field, out at Edgewater, Maryland, which is The Smithsonian Environmental
Research Center, and we are here to start working out the methods for how you put life on
ice. You might ask, "So why do we do this?" Well, as a scientist, the main reason is that I
want to understand the history and 3________ of life on Earth.
For 300 years, we've been studying the morphology of animals, the behavior of animals,
the 4________ of animals. What we've discovered in the last 20 is that all of those things
leave signals in their genomes. So there are a couple of really hard problems we haven't
been able to solve with classical data, and we think that genomic data is the way to solve
all those problems.
Dana De Roche: Got him. See, and he's in there. That looks like a leucauge. Yeah.
Jonathan Coddington: That's one. We'll be catching spiders live and then 5________ them
directly into liquid nitrogen which, by the way, is a very fast and painless way to go. It's
instantaneous. Ready? So, this is sacrificing the spiders. You hear that?
Dana De Roche: Boiling away!
Jonathan Coddington: Why care about spider genomes? It's two obvious reasons—there's
silk and poison. They have some of the most 6________ and precise poisons of any
organism on Earth. They're widely used in neurobiology research so that they can see the
mechanism of how the poison affects cells, say, in a human body. So we think nature is a
library of solutions that are waiting to be discovered.
Amy Driskell: Museums are repositories of all sorts of information that people have used in
the past and haven't used yet. So we're adding to it, to a museum collection, in a different
way than has been traditional. And basically, you know, museums will have 7________ in
ethanol, they'll have specimens that are dried and pinned, they'll have specimens that are
in drawers, and they'll have specimens that are in the biorepository in liquid nitrogen. So, to
me, it seems to be a normal thing for a museum to be doing, which is to be adding to its
collection.
Jonathan Coddington: The liquid nitrogen tanks hold tens of thousands of samples at -
190°. At the moment, liquid nitrogen is the gold standard for long-term and, by long-term,
the Smithsonian's in the forever business.
Chris Huddleston: Now we're starting to centralize our frozen tissue collections. So we're
somewhere between 200,000 and a half a million samples. The reason we do this is
people like to do genomic work, they do biogenetics, they do toxicology work with our
samples. So 8________ request samples, and we actually go in and we pull samples out,
we cut a small piece of it, and send them out to the researchers.
Jonathan Coddington: Every time science jumps to a new phase, the museums will follow.
Because the technology of doing genome sequence is advancing rapidly. By building a
library of frozen tissue where you can do genomics of life on Earth, we'll be doing what
museums have always done, which is to concentrate life into a collection that will support
research.
Video Worksheets
Unit 7: A Giant Step

milestone overwhelming maintain device
paralyzed activates rehabilitation intoxicating
Frank: I'm a T-6 paraplegic. I was injured in a motorcycle accident on December 6th, 1998
that left me 1________ just below the chest down.
Frank’s mother: I didn't accept the fact that he was hit by another person, and he became a
paraplegic but, Frank, he has that will and desire to go forward. He has that inner strength.
Frank: There's always a hope in my heart that some way, through science, technology, that
I won't be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life.
Narrator: Today, that hope may be answered. Frank is getting strapped into a battery-
powered bionic 2________. If it works, his dream will come true, and Frank will be able to
stand and walk.
Doctor Guy Fried: How you doing, Frank?
Frank: Fantastic.
Narrator: Doctor Guy Freid has worked on Frank's 3________ since the accident.
Doctor Guy Fried: Today is an absolute 4________ for Frank. It's a milestone for me. Today
is the first time Frank will be able to take his first step. So the technology has finally met the
body.
Narrator: The plan is for Frank to use the walker as he relearns how to move on his feet.
The therapist will push a button that 5________ sensors throughout the leg brace, which lift
and bend the knee to let Frank step forward. Push, push, push, push.
First, Frank must make sure he can position his feet to support himself and 6________ his
balance. But after being in a wheelchair for more than a decade, it's not easy.
Nurse: Let yourself come forward a little bit.
Narrator: Frank is facing tough odds.
Nurse: Don't rush it. Shift.
Narrator: For the first time in years, Frank has pulled himself upright.
Nurse: Okay, now try to find that balance point right in the center.
Frank: Got it.
Nurse: Perfect.
Frank: I got this.
Narrator: He finds his footing, for the moment.
Frank: Feels great. This is awesome! Wow!
Narrator: Just being vertical is 7________.
Frank: Feels good.
People with disabilities, people in wheelchairs are constantly looking up, you know?
There's something about standing, too. When you stand, you feel like who you are.
Narrator: Now comes the hard part.
Nurse: Ready to walk?
Frank: I'm ready.
Nurse: Push through your hands, stepping right.
Frank: Okay. Wow!
Nurse: Okay, now we're going to shift. To the right, and then forward. Step left.
Doctor Guy Fried: You're walking! You're a natural!
Frank: I'm in the rhythm. Here we go. Got it. Got it. Here we go. Feels good.
Narrator: Step by step, Frank walks again.
Frank: I got this.
Doctor Guy Fried: That's the superhero we need. I'm looking for you to fly at this point.
Frank: This is insane.
Frank’s mother: We're reaching the stars right now. It's very 8________ and, as a mother, it
makes me feel like my boy is whole again.
Video Worksheets

Frank: I'm a T-6 paraplegic. I was injured in a motorcycle accident on December 6th, 1998
that left me 1________ just below the chest down.
Frank’s mother: I didn't accept the fact that he was hit by another person, and he became a
paraplegic but, Frank, he has that will and desire to go forward. He has that inner strength.
Frank: There's always a hope in my heart that some way, through science, technology, that
I won't be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life.
Narrator: Today, that hope may be answered. Frank is getting strapped into a battery-
powered bionic 2________. If it works, his dream will come true, and Frank will be able to
stand and walk.
Doctor Guy Fried: How you doing, Frank?
Frank: Fantastic.
Narrator: Doctor Guy Freid has worked on Frank's 3________ since the accident.
Doctor Guy Fried: Today is an absolute 4________ for Frank. It's a milestone for me. Today
is the first time Frank will be able to take his first step. So the technology has finally met the
body.
Narrator: The plan is for Frank to use the walker as he relearns how to move on his feet.
The therapist will push a button that 5________ sensors throughout the leg brace, which lift
and bend the knee to let Frank step forward. Push, push, push, push.
First, Frank must make sure he can position his feet to support himself and 6________ his
balance. But after being in a wheelchair for more than a decade, it's not easy.
Nurse: Let yourself come forward a little bit.
Narrator: Frank is facing tough odds.
Nurse: Don't rush it. Shift.
Narrator: For the first time in years, Frank has pulled himself upright.
Nurse: Okay, now try to find that balance point right in the center.
Frank: Got it.

Nurse: Perfect.
Frank: I got this.
Narrator: He finds his footing, for the moment.
Frank: Feels great. This is awesome! Wow!
Narrator: Just being vertical is 7________.
Frank: Feels good.
People with disabilities, people in wheelchairs are constantly looking up, you know?
There's something about standing, too. When you stand, you feel like who you are.
Narrator: Now comes the hard part.
Nurse: Ready to walk?
Frank: I'm ready.
Nurse: Push through your hands, stepping right.
Frank: Okay. Wow!
Nurse: Okay, now we're going to shift. To the right, and then forward. Step left.
Doctor Guy Fried: You're walking! You're a natural!
Frank: I'm in the rhythm. Here we go. Got it. Got it. Here we go. Feels good.
Narrator: Step by step, Frank walks again.
Frank: I got this.
Doctor Guy Fried: That's the superhero we need. I'm looking for you to fly at this point.
Frank: This is insane.
Frank’s mother: We're reaching the stars right now. It's very 8________ and, as a mother, it
makes me feel like my boy is whole again.
Video Worksheets
Unit 8: Crane Migration

abundant coexist threats resilience
migration adapted wetlands spectacular
Nicole Arcilla: This is, I think, without a doubt, one of the most 1________ migrations that
you can witness in North America, if not the most spectacular. There's just something really
uplifting and inspiring about them, and people all over the world have felt that way. They're
kind of impossible to resist.
Kirk Summers: When the cranes arrive, it's the first sign the spring's coming. And then,
soon after, the baby calves will be coming and hitting the ground, and the grass greens up.
It's the start of the best time of year for me.
Nicole Arcilla: Cranes have been in the world for tens of millions of years, and they've been
doing this 2________ for at least 10,000 years. From what we know, each individual crane
will spend about three to four weeks here, and they're doing a behavior that's common with
many other water birds called staging. They're kind of fattening up for the rest of their
journey, and then they're also kind of meeting up with their friends, with their mates, with
family.
Andrew Caven: They start doing certain social behaviors here for the first time. They get up
in there. There's a gigantic lift off off the river, and it is actually deafening. So, then they go
out and then go to their feeding areas in the cornfields. They're usually, they're gone before
we put seed in the ground, so we really 3________ pretty well.
Nicole Arcilla: And for the cranes, it's a breakfast buffet all day. All day all-you-can-eat
buffet.
Andrew Caven: The cranes have 4________ to where the grain is very important to their
diet now. We're probably really only leaving about 250 pounds of corn that the combine
isn't getting, and then the cows are cleaning up part of that, but the cranes are thriving on
that little amount that we're leaving.
Nicole Arcilla: They are some of the world's most successful birds in terms of how long
they've been around on this planet, and I think eating—they're eating corn even though it's
only been around for a hundred years, which is a tiny portion of their evolution. It's another
measure of their 5________ and their opportunism—they're taking advantage of a new food
source.
Andrew Caven: Today, in the Platte River Valley, about 95 percent of their caloric intake is
from corn. It provides them calories, but it does not provide them nutrients or protein and
some essential minerals. They get that from these wet meadows.
Nicole Arcilla: So even though sandhill cranes are doing well, they, of course, face
6________ just like every other species. The number one threat region-wide for them is the
loss of wetland habitat and loss of habitat in general.
Andrew Caven: We really need these meadows, and that we're to a point where we have to
preserve the last few percent that remain along the Platte and elsewhere. So, we are
working to restore these prairies, and also with multiple objectives in mind, to improve
habitat for cranes but also these other grassland and wetland birds.
Nicole Arcilla: With the cranes, they can't really shift away from this river. They really need
this river system. These birds are adapted to water, and they need that, and water
obviously is affected by climate.
The jury is kind of out on how climate change will affect sandhills, but we know that their
migration has advanced. They're arriving about 30 days earlier than they did 20 years ago.
That's a very rapid shift. They can deal with all sorts of changes, but they need water, and
they need 7________ at the end of the day.
Andrew Caven: I think they're resilient, but I think that it's not really about them. It's about
this whole great plains water bird ecosystem that is on the verge of something very
dangerous if we don't really put our foot down and stop it.
Nicole Arcilla: So just because the cranes are 8________, it doesn't mean they're not
fragile. They were over-hunted, and they lost a lot of habitat going into the 1930s, and the
U.S. actually legislated to protect them and other native birds. Sandhill cranes can be
hunted. They, in fact, are hunted in almost all states except Nebraska where we are now,
but it's always under strict conditions. So, I think the success of these birds is a
combination of their own natural resilience and also the fact that humans have acted to
help them, to protect them.
They're a symbol of hope because of their own success on their own terms, and they also
symbolize what humans can achieve when we work together. Their success is our
success.
Video Worksheets

Nicole Arcilla: This is, I think, without a doubt, one of the most 1________ migrations that
you can witness in North America, if not the most spectacular. There's just something really
uplifting and inspiring about them, and people all over the world have felt that way. They're
kind of impossible to resist.
Kirk Summers: When the cranes arrive, it's the first sign the spring's coming. And then,
soon after, the baby calves will be coming and hitting the ground, and the grass greens up.
It's the start of the best time of year for me.
Nicole Arcilla: Cranes have been in the world for tens of millions of years, and they've been
doing this 2________ for at least 10,000 years. From what we know, each individual crane
will spend about three to four weeks here, and they're doing a behavior that's common with
many other water birds called staging. They're kind of fattening up for the rest of their
journey, and then they're also kind of meeting up with their friends, with their mates, with
family.
Andrew Caven: They start doing certain social behaviors here for the first time. They get up
in there. There's a gigantic lift off off the river, and it is actually deafening. So, then they go
out and then go to their feeding areas in the cornfields. They're usually, they're gone before
we put seed in the ground, so we really 3________ pretty well.
Nicole Arcilla: And for the cranes, it's a breakfast buffet all day. All day all-you-can-eat
buffet.
Andrew Caven: The cranes have 4________ to where the grain is very important to their
diet now. We're probably really only leaving about 250 pounds of corn that the combine
isn't getting, and then the cows are cleaning up part of that, but the cranes are thriving on
that little amount that we're leaving.
Nicole Arcilla: They are some of the world's most successful birds in terms of how long
they've been around on this planet, and I think eating—they're eating corn even though it's
only been around for a hundred years, which is a tiny portion of their evolution. It's another
measure of their 5________ and their opportunism—they're taking advantage of a new food
source.
Andrew Caven: Today, in the Platte River Valley, about 95 percent of their caloric intake is
from corn. It provides them calories, but it does not provide them nutrients or protein and
some essential minerals. They get that from these wet meadows.
Nicole Arcilla: So even though sandhill cranes are doing well, they, of course, face
6________ just like every other species. The number one threat region-wide for them is the
loss of wetland habitat and loss of habitat in general.

Andrew Caven: We really need these meadows, and that we're to a point where we have to
preserve the last few percent that remain along the Platte and elsewhere. So, we are
working to restore these prairies, and also with multiple objectives in mind, to improve
habitat for cranes but also these other grassland and wetland birds.
Nicole Arcilla: With the cranes, they can't really shift away from this river. They really need
this river system. These birds are adapted to water, and they need that, and water
obviously is affected by climate.
The jury is kind of out on how climate change will affect sandhills, but we know that their
migration has advanced. They're arriving about 30 days earlier than they did 20 years ago.
That's a very rapid shift. They can deal with all sorts of changes, but they need water, and
they need 7________ at the end of the day.
Andrew Caven: I think they're resilient, but I think that it's not really about them. It's about
this whole great plains water bird ecosystem that is on the verge of something very
dangerous if we don't really put our foot down and stop it.
Nicole Arcilla: So just because the cranes are 8________, it doesn't mean they're not
fragile. They were over-hunted, and they lost a lot of habitat going into the 1930s, and the
U.S. actually legislated to protect them and other native birds. Sandhill cranes can be
hunted. They, in fact, are hunted in almost all states except Nebraska where we are now,
but it's always under strict conditions. So, I think the success of these birds is a
combination of their own natural resilience and also the fact that humans have acted to
help them, to protect them.
They're a symbol of hope because of their own success on their own terms, and they also
symbolize what humans can achieve when we work together. Their success is our
success.
Video Worksheets
Unit 9: Infinity Artist

hallucination reputation revolve infinity
renowned installation honors stifled
Narrator: Known for her use of polka-dots, Yayoi Kusama is one of the most 1________
artists in the world.
She is also the first Japanese woman to receive the Praemium Imperiale, one of Japan's
highest 2________ for internationally recognized artists.
Kusama's iconic polka dots are inspired by a recurring 3________ from her childhood—she
described herself as standing in the middle of a vast field of flowers, akin to millions of
polka dots that went on for as far as she could see—into infinity.
She recalled, "I felt as if I had begun to self-obliterate, to 4________ in the infinity of
endless time and the absoluteness of space."
Born in 1929, in Matsumoto, Japan, Kusama moved to Seattle at the age of 27, feeling
5________ by the expectations from her family and the cultural censorship at the time.
There, she became increasingly political and quickly gained a 6________ in the avant-
garde movement, becoming close friends with artist Donald Judd and sculptor Eva Hesse.
Kusama experimented with various mediums such as drawing, painting, sculpture,

performance, fashion, writing, and 7________. She would sometimes work up to 50 hours
without rest, and once had to be hospitalized from overwork.
One of her most popular installations is her 8________ mirror room, a room filled with
mirrors and neon lights.
In 1973, she eventually moved back to Japan in ill health and checked herself into the
Seiwa Hospital for the Mentally Ill.
There, Kusama continues to produce hundreds of new pieces for exhibitions around the
world.
Video Worksheets

Narrator: Known for her use of polka-dots, Yayoi Kusama is one of the most 1________
artists in the world.
She is also the first Japanese woman to receive the Praemium Imperiale, one of Japan's
highest 2________ for internationally recognized artists.
Kusama's iconic polka dots are inspired by a recurring 3________ from her childhood—she
described herself as standing in the middle of a vast field of flowers, akin to millions of
polka dots that went on for as far as she could see—into infinity.
She recalled, "I felt as if I had begun to self-obliterate, to 4________ in the infinity of
endless time and the absoluteness of space."
Born in 1929, in Matsumoto, Japan, Kusama moved to Seattle at the age of 27, feeling
5________ by the expectations from her family and the cultural censorship at the time.
There, she became increasingly political and quickly gained a 6________ in the avant-
garde movement, becoming close friends with artist Donald Judd and sculptor Eva Hesse.
Kusama experimented with various mediums such as drawing, painting, sculpture,

performance, fashion, writing, and 7________. She would sometimes work up to 50 hours
without rest, and once had to be hospitalized from overwork.
One of her most popular installations is her 8________ mirror room, a room filled with
mirrors and neon lights.
In 1973, she eventually moved back to Japan in ill health and checked herself into the
Seiwa Hospital for the Mentally Ill.
There, Kusama continues to produce hundreds of new pieces for exhibitions around the
world.
Video Worksheets
Unit 10: Black Holes

dense scattered compressed matter
massive entity by comparison boundary
Narrator: Black holes are among the most fascinating objects in our universe, and also the
most mysterious.
A black hole is a region in space where the force of gravity is so strong not even light—the
fastest known 1________ in our universe—can escape.
The 2________ of a black hole is called the event horizon, a point of no return, beyond
which we truly cannot see.
Once something crosses the event horizon, it collapses into the black hole's singularity—an
infinitely small, infinitely 3________ point where space, time, and the laws of physics no
longer apply.
Scientists have theorized several different types of black holes, with stellar and
supermassive black holes being the most common.
Stellar black holes form when 4________ stars die and collapse. They're roughly 10 to 20
times the mass of our Sun, and scattered throughout the universe. There could be millions
of these stellar black holes in the Milky Way alone.
Supermassive black holes are giants 5________, measuring millions, even billions of times
more massive than our Sun. Scientists can only guess how they form, but we do know they
exist at the center of just about every large galaxy, including our own.
Sagittarius A, the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, has a mass of
roughly 4 million suns, and has a diameter about the distance between Earth and our Sun.
Because black holes are invisible, the only way for scientists to detect and study them is to
observe their effect on nearby 6________. This includes accretion disks, a disk of particles
that form when gases and dust fall toward a black hole, and quasars, jets of particles that
blast out of supermassive black holes.
Black holes remained largely unknown until the 20th century.
In 1916, using Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, a German physicist named Karl
Schwartzschild calculated that any mass could become a black hole if it were 7________
tightly enough. But it wasn't until 1971, when theory became reality. Astronomers, studying
the constellation Cygnus, discovered the first black hole.
An untold number of black holes are 8________ throughout the universe—constantly

warping space and time, altering entire galaxies, and endlessly inspiring both scientists and
our collective imagination.
Video Worksheets

Narrator: Black holes are among the most fascinating objects in our universe, and also the
most mysterious.
A black hole is a region in space where the force of gravity is so strong not even light—the
fastest known 1________ in our universe—can escape.
The 2________ of a black hole is called the event horizon, a point of no return, beyond
which we truly cannot see.
Once something crosses the event horizon, it collapses into the black hole's singularity—an
infinitely small, infinitely 3________ point where space, time, and the laws of physics no
longer apply.
Scientists have theorized several different types of black holes, with stellar and
supermassive black holes being the most common.
Stellar black holes form when 4________ stars die and collapse. They're roughly 10 to 20
times the mass of our Sun, and scattered throughout the universe. There could be millions
of these stellar black holes in the Milky Way alone.
Supermassive black holes are giants 5________, measuring millions, even billions of times
more massive than our Sun. Scientists can only guess how they form, but we do know they
exist at the center of just about every large galaxy, including our own.
Sagittarius A, the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, has a mass of
roughly 4 million suns, and has a diameter about the distance between Earth and our Sun.
Because black holes are invisible, the only way for scientists to detect and study them is to
observe their effect on nearby 6________. This includes accretion disks, a disk of particles
that form when gases and dust fall toward a black hole, and quasars, jets of particles that
blast out of supermassive black holes.
Black holes remained largely unknown until the 20th century.
In 1916, using Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, a German physicist named Karl
Schwartzschild calculated that any mass could become a black hole if it were 7________
tightly enough. But it wasn't until 1971, when theory became reality. Astronomers, studying
the constellation Cygnus, discovered the first black hole.
An untold number of black holes are 8________ throughout the universe—constantly

warping space and time, altering entire galaxies, and endlessly inspiring both scientists and
our collective imagination.
Video Worksheets
Unit 11: Crossroads of the World

contrasting symbol iconic bustling
fusion renovated divides dominating
Narrator: Turkey sits on the border of Europe and Asia, creating a 1________ of Eastern
and Western culture. This culminates in the cultural heart of the country, Istanbul.
With a population of around 15 million, Istanbul is Turkey's largest and perhaps most
famous city. Its long, intriguing history, together with its unique geographical location mean
that the 13 million tourists who visit every year have no shortage of sites to take in.
The Bosphorus strait is a 2________ waterway that runs through the center of the city. The
strait forms part of the continental boundary between Europe and Asia and 3________
Istanbul in two. Taking a boat ride along the strait gives a stunning view of the city.
Istanbul's beautiful skyline is a mix of 4________ architectural styles, with influences from a
diverse range of historic cultures and time periods. Byzantine churches, decorated
mosques, and Ottoman palaces blend together to create a truly unique spectacle.
One of the most 5________ sites of the skyline is the Galata Tower. When it was built in
1348, the tower was the city's tallest structure. Modern-day visitors can climb 67 meters to
the top and enjoy spectacular panoramic views of the city.
Perhaps the most famous, and arguably most beautiful, building in Istanbul is the Hagia
Sophia museum. Built between 532–537 A.D, originally as a church, it was once the largest
cathedral in the world and became the 6________ of the Byzantine Empire.
Following the Ottoman conquest, the building was turned into a mosque, and the walls
were plastered over and decorated in Ottoman-style art. In 1935, the Hagia Sophia
became the museum it is today.
The Kizkulesi (Maiden's) Tower is another stunning piece of architecture. Located at the
southern entrance to the Bosphorus Strait, the tower was built on a small islet in the 5th
century B.C. as a checkpoint for goods entering and leaving the city.
In the late 1990s, the tower was 7________. Now it has a cafe, restaurant and is a popular
setting for weddings. The tower also appeared in the James Bond movie, The World is Not
Enough.
No visit to Istanbul is complete without a visit to the Süleymaniye Mosque. This incredible
building was constructed between 1550 and 1557 under the command of Süleyman the
Magnificent, whose grave is located in the garden behind the mosque. The building is a
great showcase of the work of the renowned Ottoman architect Sinan.
Today, the mosque remains one of the world's greatest pieces of Islamic architecture, and
is one of Istanbul's most 8________ buildings.
Video Worksheets

Narrator: Turkey sits on the border of Europe and Asia, creating a 1________ of Eastern
and Western culture. This culminates in the cultural heart of the country, Istanbul.
With a population of around 15 million, Istanbul is Turkey's largest and perhaps most
famous city. Its long, intriguing history, together with its unique geographical location mean
that the 13 million tourists who visit every year have no shortage of sites to take in.
The Bosphorus strait is a 2________ waterway that runs through the center of the city. The
strait forms part of the continental boundary between Europe and Asia and 3________
Istanbul in two. Taking a boat ride along the strait gives a stunning view of the city.
Istanbul's beautiful skyline is a mix of 4________ architectural styles, with influences from a
diverse range of historic cultures and time periods. Byzantine churches, decorated
mosques, and Ottoman palaces blend together to create a truly unique spectacle.
One of the most 5________ sites of the skyline is the Galata Tower. When it was built in
1348, the tower was the city's tallest structure. Modern-day visitors can climb 67 meters to
the top and enjoy spectacular panoramic views of the city.
Perhaps the most famous, and arguably most beautiful, building in Istanbul is the Hagia
Sophia museum. Built between 532–537 A.D, originally as a church, it was once the largest
cathedral in the world and became the 6________ of the Byzantine Empire.
Following the Ottoman conquest, the building was turned into a mosque, and the walls
were plastered over and decorated in Ottoman-style art. In 1935, the Hagia Sophia
became the museum it is today.
The Kizkulesi (Maiden's) Tower is another stunning piece of architecture. Located at the
southern entrance to the Bosphorus Strait, the tower was built on a small islet in the 5th
century B.C. as a checkpoint for goods entering and leaving the city.
In the late 1990s, the tower was 7________. Now it has a cafe, restaurant and is a popular
setting for weddings. The tower also appeared in the James Bond movie, The World is Not
Enough.
No visit to Istanbul is complete without a visit to the Süleymaniye Mosque. This incredible
building was constructed between 1550 and 1557 under the command of Süleyman the
Magnificent, whose grave is located in the garden behind the mosque. The building is a
great showcase of the work of the renowned Ottoman architect Sinan.
Today, the mosque remains one of the world's greatest pieces of Islamic architecture, and
is one of Istanbul's most 8________ buildings.
Video Worksheets
Unit 12: The Lure of Lithium

stabilize refining sourced commodity
properties element catapult versatile
Narrator: Over the course of human history, fuel for industry has come in many forms.
But one of the major drivers of development in the current technological age is a highly
volatile element that makes up only 0.002 percent of the Earth's crust.
Such a rare 1________ has become the bedrock of industry, and may be the key to the
future of civilization.
Lithium, a soft, silver-grey metal, is the third lightest 2________ in the universe.
Originally discovered in 1817, in a piece of volcanic stone, lithium was named after the
Greek word for stone—lithos.
Ever since its discovery, lithium has been found to be incredibly 3________, including
strengthening glass and 4________ metal alloys.
But probably the most popular use of lithium is in lithium batteries.
Holding a charge for longer than traditional batteries, lithium batteries are often used to
power devices as small as smartphones and laptops and as large as electric vehicles. The
versatility of lithium has helped 5________ many technological developments, largely due
to the metal's unique chemical properties.
Lithium is classified as an alkali metal.
When combined with water, the metal forms alkalis, or chemicals that 6________ acidic
solutions. Additionally, lithium is heat-resistant—having extraordinarily high melting and
boiling points—causing it to be capable of storing large amounts of energy.
Lithium is also highly reactive in that it readily loses one of its electrons to form new bonds,
thereby creating a positive charge.
Altogether, these 7________ allow the metal to serve as the receiving point of negatively
charged particles, helping create a powerful electrical current in lithium batteries.
But because of lithium's reactivity, it does not naturally occur in its pure, elemental metal
form.
It's often found as a component of chemical compounds and 8________ from hard-rock
minerals, seawater, or saltwater reservoirs called brines. Within the past few decades, the
presence of lithium in South American countries has drawn the attention of federal and
commercial entities from around the world, hoping to extract one of the most sought-after
natural resources on the planet.
By extracting a natural resource as valuable as lithium, these entities may fuel and help
shape the future of technology and industry.
Video Worksheets

Narrator: Over the course of human history, fuel for industry has come in many forms.
But one of the major drivers of development in the current technological age is a highly
volatile element that makes up only 0.002 percent of the Earth's crust.
Such a rare 1________ has become the bedrock of industry, and may be the key to the
future of civilization.
Lithium, a soft, silver-grey metal, is the third lightest 2________ in the universe.
Originally discovered in 1817, in a piece of volcanic stone, lithium was named after the
Greek word for stone—lithos.
Ever since its discovery, lithium has been found to be incredibly 3________, including
strengthening glass and 4________ metal alloys.
But probably the most popular use of lithium is in lithium batteries.
Holding a charge for longer than traditional batteries, lithium batteries are often used to
power devices as small as smartphones and laptops and as large as electric vehicles. The
versatility of lithium has helped 5________ many technological developments, largely due
to the metal's unique chemical properties.
Lithium is classified as an alkali metal.
When combined with water, the metal forms alkalis, or chemicals that 6________ acidic
solutions. Additionally, lithium is heat-resistant—having extraordinarily high melting and
boiling points—causing it to be capable of storing large amounts of energy.
Lithium is also highly reactive in that it readily loses one of its electrons to form new bonds,
thereby creating a positive charge.
Altogether, these 7________ allow the metal to serve as the receiving point of negatively
charged particles, helping create a powerful electrical current in lithium batteries.
But because of lithium's reactivity, it does not naturally occur in its pure, elemental metal
form.
It's often found as a component of chemical compounds and 8________ from hard-rock
minerals, seawater, or saltwater reservoirs called brines. Within the past few decades, the
presence of lithium in South American countries has drawn the attention of federal and
commercial entities from around the world, hoping to extract one of the most sought-after
natural resources on the planet.
By extracting a natural resource as valuable as lithium, these entities may fuel and help
shape the future of technology and industry.
Video Worksheets: Answer Key

1. conquest 2. flourished 3. predominant 4. advancements
5. deciphering 6. prevalent 7. debate 8. indigenous

1. reckless 2. terrain 3. gear 4. relatively
5. safety net 6. feat 7. adrenaline 8. fringe

1. opportunity 2. alternative 3. crisis 4. figured out
5. network 6. households 7. enabling 8. community
Unit 4: Hurricanes
1. sustain 2. cluster 3. wind speeds 4. potential
5. storm surge 6. devastation 7. regulate 8. minimize
1. lurking 2. investigate 3. demonstrates 4. resistance
5. appliances 6. eliminate 7. common sense 8. solar
Unit 6: Life on Ice

1. archives 2. genomes 3. diversity 4. ecology
5. plunging 6. elaborate 7. specimens 8. researchers

1. paralyzed 2. device 3. rehabilitation 4. milestone
5. activates 6. maintain 7. intoxicating 8. overwhelming

1. spectacular 2. migration 3. coexist 4. adapted
5. resilience 6. threats 7. wetlands 8. abundant

1. renowned 2. honors 3. hallucination 4. revolve
5. stifled 6. reputation 7. installation 8. infinity

1. entity 2. boundary 3. dense 4. massive
5. by comparison 6. matter 7. compressed 8. scattered

1. fusion 2. bustling 3. divides 4. contrasting
5. dominating 6. symbol 7. renovated 8. iconic

1. commodity 2. element 3. versatile 4. refining
5. catapult 6. stabilize 7. properties 8. sourced

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Reading Explorer 5, Third Edition

Unit 1: Legacies of the Maya

predominant debate deciphering flourished

indigenous conquest advancements prevalent

they continue to follow agricultural and ceremonial practices of their ancestors.

Unit 1: Legacies of the Maya

Unit 2: Soloing Safely

relatively fringe terrain feat

adrenaline gear reckless safety net

Matt Maddaloni: Everything about the sport said danger.

Narrator: Matt took a page from the circus.

Narrator: A trapeze net would take the place of the rope.

Unit 2: Soloing Safely

Matt Maddaloni: Everything about the sport said danger.

Narrator: Matt took a page from the circus.

Narrator: A trapeze net would take the place of the rope.

Unit 3: Energy Entrepreneur

enabling opportunity households network

alternative figured out community crisis

Unit 3: Energy Entrepreneur

devastation potential regulate cluster

sustain minimize wind speeds storm surge

Hurricanes are unpredictable, but scientists have a thorough understanding of how

Hurricanes are unpredictable, but scientists have a thorough understanding of how

resistance solar lurking eliminate

common sense investigate appliances demonstrates

Narrator: This house is a typical three-bedroom home in a nice suburban neighborhood.

Environmental visionary Amory Lovins has brought a team of eco-detectives to 2________

Oh, what have we here?

You see that little red light? Down in the corner?

Narrator: This house is a typical three-bedroom home in a nice suburban neighborhood.

Environmental visionary Amory Lovins has brought a team of eco-detectives to 2________

Oh, what have we here?

You see that little red light? Down in the corner?

Unit 6: Life on Ice

genomes plunging archives specimens

ecology researchers diversity elaborate

Dana De Roche: Boiling away!

Unit 6: Life on Ice

Dana De Roche: Boiling away!

Unit 7: A Giant Step

milestone overwhelming maintain device

paralyzed activates rehabilitation intoxicating

Doctor Guy Fried: How you doing, Frank?

Nurse: Let yourself come forward a little bit.

Narrator: Frank is facing tough odds.

Nurse: Don't rush it. Shift.

Frank: Got it.

Frank: I got this.

Narrator: He finds his footing, for the moment.

Frank: Feels great. This is awesome! Wow!

Narrator: Just being vertical is 7________.

Frank: Feels good.

Narrator: Now comes the hard part.

Nurse: Ready to walk?

Frank: I'm ready.

Nurse: Push through your hands, stepping right.

Frank: Okay. Wow!