Wednesday, 2/19/03
Warm Up. Copy the euphemism and translate it.
  1. vertically challenged =
  2. encore telecast =
  3. previously owned =
  4. reduction in force (RIF) =
  5. collateral damage =
  6. Which of our vocabulary words this week is a euphemism?
"The Earth Men" (5)
  1. What did Captain Williams and the rest want from the Martians?  a) Land. b) They want the Martians to surrender. c) Recognition. d) Goods to trade with Earth. e) All of the above.
  2. Even though it doesn't really have anything to do with the story, Ray Bradbury spends time describing a mechanical spider toy that the little girl plays with. What might be the point? a) To show how weird the Martians are. b) To show us a glimpse of what Martian life is like. c) He's comparing the Earth men to the spider; they are just toys that the Martians play with. d) All of the above.
  3. What makes Mr. Aaa finally take a little notice of the Earth men?
  4. The best word(s) to describe most Martians' reaction to the Earth men would be...a) surprise. b) anger. c) indifference. d) annoyance. e) all of the above.
  5. On page 17, after Mrs. Ttt yells at him about his muddy boots, the captain says, "This is no time for trivialities...we should be celebrating." The word trivialities means...a) worries about cleanliness, b) important things, c) womanly worries, d) unimportant things, e) yelling.
Correct TOFTest.
Mars Facts and Pics.
  • Average temperature on Mars is about  -67, Martian surface temperatures range widely from as little as -207 at the winter pole to almost 80 on the day side during summer. 
  • A Martian year is  686.98 days.
  • The pressure is only 1% of Earth's. Almost no atmosphere.
  • Mars has permanent ice caps at both poles composed mostly of solid carbon dioxide ("dry ice").
  • Pics and facts courtesy of nineplanets.org.
"The Earth Men" aloud.