Surviving a Snakebite

(a) Annually, there are a million cases of snakebite in India and of these, close to 50000 succumb to the bites.
(b) When you look around the countryside, where most bites occur, and notice people's habits and lifestyles, these figures aren't surprising. People walk barefoot without a torch at night when they are most likely to step on a foraging venomous snake.
(c) We encourage rodents by disposing waste food out in the open, or by storing food grains in the house. Attracted by the smell of rats, snakes enter houses and when one crawls over someone asleep on the floor and the person twitches or rolls over, it may bite in defense.
(d) Once bitten, we don't rush to the hospital. Instead, we seek out the nearest conman, tie tourniquets, eat vile tasting herbal chutneys, apply poultices or spurious stones, cut/slice/suck the bitten spot, and other ghastly time-consuming deadly 'remedies'.
(e) As Rom cattily remarks: 'If the snake hasn't injected enough venom, even popping an aspirin can save your life'. That's the key- snakes inject venom voluntarily and we have no way of knowing if it has injected venom and if it is a lethal dose. The only first aid is to immobilise the bitten limb like you would a fracture and get to a hospital for anti-venom serum without wasting time.

Pick out a word from the passage, that means 'having the power to cause death'. (Para e)

• Voluntarily
  
  

• lethal
  
  

• Serum
  
  

• Immobilise

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

Aside from popular usage, Big Ben is really the

• exclusive radio signal of the BBC

• name of Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests

• clock tower of the Palace of Westminster

• great bell in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

The year 1959 was the

• 100th anniversary of Big Ben

• year in which Big Ben was restored

• 59th anniversary of Big Ben

• last year Big Ben was heard

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

The word 'consternation' used in the last paragraph stands for

• alarm

• sorrow

• anxiety

• despair

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

In the Royal Astronomer's 290 days check, it was established that

• the clock did not function properly for 93 days

• the clock was maintaining accurate time on all days

• the clock was reasonably accurate

• the clock was losing time alarmingly

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

On August 12, 1945, Big Ben's clock was

• being checked for accuracy

• 5 minutes fast

• bombed

• 5 minutes slow

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

For the Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the Big Ben serves as a link with home. It shows that

• the British are very patriotic

• the British are very sentimental

• the British are fond of traveling to far-off lands

• the Big Ben has become a powerful national symbol

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

People outside London can hear the chimes of the Big Ben because

• the BBC broadcasts the chimes

• the recording of the bell's chime is available all over the world

• the bell's sound is so loud that it can travel to all

• the legendary bell has become a global phenomenon

49.

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

The clock lost five minutes once because

• some starlings had roosted on the minute hand

• there was an unexpected lapse

• the maintenance was not done by the Ministry of works

• it was a dark day

The Big Ben
Every evening, some part of the British Commonwealth hears the chimes of Big Ben, largest of the bells in the clock tower of the Palace of Westminster. The bell is popularly called Big Ben and it is this bell which chimes out the quarter hours to the people of London. For Britons at sea or living in distant lands, the sound of Big Ben is still a link with home, for the chimes are broadcast each evening by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Big Ben has been chiming out the quarter hours now for more than one-and-a-half centuries. It started chiming on June 11, 1859. At that time, the Parliament couldn't decide what to name the bell. A light-hearted Member of Parliament called attention, in a speech, to the impressive bulk of Sir Benjamin Hall, Queen Victoria's Chief Lord of the Woods and Forests. "Call it Big Ben", said the speaker and the name stuck. Big Ben is 9 feet in diameter, 7 feet 6 inches tall and the thickness where the hammer strikes is 8.75 inches. The clock that regulates the chiming of Big Ben keeps good time. In 1939, the Royal Astronomer made a 290 days check on the performance of the clock. He found that during this test, the margin of error was less than two-tenth of a second in 24 hours on 93 days and greater than one second only on 16 of the 290 days. There was an unexpected lapse on August 12, 1945, and consternation, swept through the Ministry of Works. On that dark day, the clock was five minutes slow. A flock of starlings had roosted on the minute hand.

"Call it Big Ben" can be written in passive voice as

• We may call it Big Ben

• You will call it Big Ben

• Let it be called Big Ben

• People should call it Big Ben