2. Choose the correct alternative (past simple or past continuous). Lucky accidents
Is it true that Sir Isaac Newton understood gravity because an apple (1) fell / was falling on his head when he (2) lay / was lying under a tree in his garden? Probably not. However, many great and small discoveries are the result of lucky accidents...
One day in 1879 chemist Constantin Fahlberg (3) didn’t wash / wasn’t washing his hands before dinner. While he (4) ate / was eating he (5) noticed / was noticing that the bread (6) tasted / was tasting sweet. The sweetness was saccharin.
Alexander Fleming (7) became / was becoming interested in the control of bacteria while he (8) worked / was working as a doctor during the First World War. In 1928 he (9) tidied / was tidying his laboratory when he (10) saw / was seeing that one of the dirty dishes (11) didn’t have / wasn’t having any bacteria on it, but that something else (12) grew / was growing there. It was penicillin.
In 1930 dietician Ruth Wakeield (13) prepared / was preparing some cookies for guests when she (14) realised / was realising that she had no chocolate powder. She (15) decided / was deciding to use small pieces of ordinary chocolate instead. The chocolate pieces (16) didn’t melt / wasn’t melting, and the first chocolate chip cookies were a great success.
Dr Percy Spencer was a physicist in the 1940s who probably enjoyed chocolate chip cookies. He (17) walked / was walking past some equipment in the laboratory when he (18) felt / was feeling something strange in his pocket. It was his chocolate bar and it (19) melted / was melting. This accident (20) led / was leading to the invention of a new piece of cooking equipment – the microwave oven.
Moreover, the essential drawback of these meals is that they contain too much saturated animal fats, which put a heavy load on the liver, contribute to hypertension, vascular occlusion and building up cholesterol plaques.
For reasons of economy, fast-food establishments use cheap fat substitutes called margarines which are especially dangerous because they contain trans fats that are harmful for heart and even, according to some reports, causing cancer.
According to WHO, the safe usage of trans fats for a man is less than 1% of the total meal, while the portion of French fries contains 30-40% of such fats.
Moreover, the essential drawback of these meals is that they contain too much saturated animal fats, which put a heavy load on the liver, contribute to hypertension, vascular occlusion and building up cholesterol plaques.
For reasons of economy, fast-food establishments use cheap fat substitutes called margarines which are especially dangerous because they contain trans fats that are harmful for heart and even, according to some reports, causing cancer.
According to WHO, the safe usage of trans fats for a man is less than 1% of the total meal, while the portion of French fries contains 30-40% of such fats.