レッスンを予約する
Step 1
Read the Article
Read the article to understand the main idea.
記事を読んで、おおよその内容をつかみましょう。
Museum makes a find under its own parking lot
A Denver museum known for its dinosaur displays has made a fossil bone discovery closer to home than anyone ever expected: under its own parking lot.
It came from a hole drilled more than 230 meters deep to study geothermal heating potential for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.
The museum is popular with dinosaur fans, and features full-size dinosaur skeletons. The fossil in the parking lot was much smaller, however.
The odds of finding the hockey-puck-shaped fossil sample were impressively small. With a bore only about 5 centimeters wide, museum officials struggled to describe just how unlikely it was to hit a dinosaur, even in a region with a fair number of such fossils.
“Finding a dinosaur bone in a core is like hitting a hole in one from the moon. It’s like winning the Willy Wonka factory. It’s incredible, it’s super rare,” said James Hagadorn, the museum’s curator of geology.
The fossil is believed to be from a smallish, plant-eating dinosaur that may have lived around 67.5 million years ago.
(AP)
Step 2
Check the Vocabulary and Phrases
Check the following vocabulary and phrases.
以下の単語やフレーズの発音、意味、使い方を確認しましょう。
fossil
化石
The parts of a dead animal or a plant that have become hard and turned into rock
Fossils help scientists learn about the past.
化石は科学者が過去について学ぶ助けになります。
geothermal
地熱の
Of or connected with the heat inside the earth
The town uses geothermal energy to heat homes.
その町は地熱エネルギーを使って家を暖めています。
odds
可能性
The probability (= how likely it is) that a particular thing will or will not happen
The odds of seeing a shooting star tonight are small.
今夜流れ星を見る可能性は低いです。
struggle
〜するのに苦労する
To try very hard to do something when it is difficult or when there are a lot of problems
I sometimes struggle to find the right word in English.
私は時々、英語で正しい単語を見つけるのに苦労します。
geology
地質学
The scientific study of the physical structure of the earth, including the origin and history of the rocks and soil of which the earth is made
In geology class, we looked at different kinds of stones.
地質学の授業で、私たちはさまざまな種類の石を見ました。
Step 3
Comprehension Questions
Answer the following questions based on the article.
理解度問題に挑戦しましょう。
In what location was the dinosaur fossil found?
What type of dinosaur do experts believe the fossil belonged to?
Step 4
Discussion
Share your opinions on the following questions.
以下の質問について、自分の考えを述べてみましょう。
Have you ever been to a museum with dinosaur displays? What did you see there?
What kind of museums do you like to visit? Why?
Do you think geology is interesting? Why or why not?
Do you think there are still a lot of fossils waiting to be found? Please explain your answer.
If you could become a researcher, what would you like to study?