4000 Essential English Words 5 » Unit 22: The New Bioco

Word List
  • acid [ˈæsid] n.
    An acid is a chemical that can burn or dissolve other substances.
    → In chemistry class, we mixed two acids together and watched the reaction.
  • administration [ədˌminəsˈtreiʃən] n.
    An administration is the group of people who manage a company or organization.
    → She hoped she could be promoted to a job in the administration.
  • administrative [ədˈminəstrətiv] adj.
    Administrative describes anything related to managing a company or organization.
    → I work as an administrative assistant to the owner of the company.
  • biotechnology [ˌbaioutekˈnɒlədʒi] n.
    Biotechnology is the use of living parts, such as cells, in industry and technology.
    → Researchers at the biotechnology company use bacteria to make medicine.
  • cholesterol [kəˈlestəroul] n.
    Cholesterol is a substance in fat, tissues, and blood of all animals.
    → When people have too much cholesterol, they are at a high risk for heart problems.
  • coalition [kouəˈliʃən] n.
    A coalition is a group of people or organizations working for a common purpose.
    → The companies formed a coalition to make trade less expensive.
  • deceptive [diˈseptiv] adj.
    When something is deceptive, it encourages one to believe something that is false.
    → The scary-looking man’s appearance is deceptive, but he is actually very nice.
  • diabetes [daiəˈbiːtis] n.
    Diabetes is a medical condition where a person has too much sugar in their blood.
    → Overweight people are more likely to suffer from diabetes than slimmer ones.
  • eliminate [iˈliməneit] v.
    To eliminate something that is unwanted means to completely remove it.
    → Wearing a seatbelt eliminates some of the dangers of driving a car.
  • erosion [iˈrouʒən] n.
    Erosion is the destruction of rock or soil due to flowing water or weather.
    → Canyons are formed because rivers of fast-moving water caused erosion.
  • ethics [ˈeθiks] n.
    Ethics are moral beliefs or rules about right or wrong.
    → The act of stealing certainly doesn’t go against some people’s ethics.
  • explicit [iksˈplisit] adj.
    If something is explicit, it is very clear, open, and truthful.
    → The man gave a very explicit account of the car accident.
  • framework [ˈfreimwəːrk] n.
    A framework is a set of rules or ideas that people use to solve problems.
    → His ideas fit into the framework of a successful business plan.
  • manufacture [ˌmænjəˈfæktʃə:r] v.
    To manufacture something means to make it in a factory.
    → My father’s company manufactures steel building materials.
  • mechanism [ˈmekənizəm] n.
    A mechanism is a part of a machine that performs a certain function.
    → I can’t open my car door because the locking mechanism is broke.
  • minimize [ˈminəmaiz] v.
    To minimize means to reduce something to the lowest possible level.
    → I checked my homework twice to minimize errors I might have made.
  • nectar [ˈnektər] n.
    Nectar is a sweet liquid produced by flowers that bees and other insects collect.
    → Bees use nectar to make their honey.
  • notion [ˈnouʃən] n.
    A notion is an idea or belief about something.
    → I have a notion that this route would get us to the beach.
  • prone [proun] adj.
    When things are prone to some bad thing, they are likely affected by it.
    → Some people are more prone to catching colds than others.
  • straightforward [ˌstreitˈfɔːrwərd] adj.
    When something is straightforward, it is good because it is easy to understand.
    → The teacher’s grading system was straightforward and fair.
Exercise 1

Choose the answer that best fits the question.

  1. What is something you want to eliminate?
    • a. A problem
    • b. A present
    • c. A statue
    • d. A victory
  2. What would collect nectar?
    • a. A tree
    • b. A bee
    • c. A cat
    • d. A housefly
  3. If you have good ethics, you _______.
    • a. dislike school
    • b. know right from wrong
    • c. rarely follow the rules
    • d. are extremely smart
  4. Which is most closely related to something administrative?
    • a. Loss
    • b. Fatigue
    • c. Organization
    • d. Swimming
  5. What might cause erosion?
    • a. A strong wind
    • b. A fast car
    • c. A lonely person
    • d. Loud music
Exercise 2

Fill in the blanks with the correct words from the word bank.

WORD BLANK
cholesterol prone framework administration
explicit deceptive coalition mechanisms
straightforward manufactures    

I learned about all the different things the factory 1___________ .
They make big machinery as well as tiny parts and 2___________ .

The students asked the school’s 3___________ to buy a better kind of meat.
The meat served there is too high in fat and 4___________ .

I can’t stand companies that are 5___________ .
Customers have to make sure they get 6___________ information about all details.

Citizens formed a 7___________ because the city’s air was making people ill.
Elderly people and infants were the most 8___________ to becoming sick.

To solve our problem, we’ll first need a strong 9___________ .
Our ideas need to be intelligent and 10___________ .

Exercise 3

Write C if the italicized word is used correctly. Write I if the word is used incorrectly.

  1. ______ Smoking makes people more prone to breathing problems.
  2. ______ We toured the factory that manufactures cheese.
  3. ______ The deceptive man was very open and honest about his plans.
  4. ______ Eating a lot of fast food raises people’s cholesterol levels.
  5. ______ The straightforward instructions were impossible to understand.
  6. ______ The group decided on a framework for the new project.
  7. ______ Businesses try to minimize the amount of money they can make.
  8. ______ He had a notion that the speaker was not really an expert on the subject.
  9. ______ The maid used a kind of acid to dissolve the stains on the floor.
  10. ______ It is important for a judge to have good ethics.
  11. ______ Some factories produce energy by burning coalitions.
  12. ______ The lawyer hoped that the witness would tell an explicit version of the story.
  13. ______ My father works in construction while my mom has an administrative job.
  14. ______ Be sure to eliminate all the ingredients to make a great cake.
  15. ______ Jim receives shots to treat his diabetes. They reduce the sugar in his blood.
  16. ______ All of the prisoners formed an administration where they played games.
  17. ______ Dry weather, followed by sudden floods, caused the erosion in the valley.
  18. ______ The biotechnology company only made things from nonliving rocks and sand.
  19. ______ The cutting mechanism on the lawnmower is broken.
  20. ______ This nectar produces the best flowers.
Answer Key
Exercise 1
  1. a
  2. b
  3. b
  4. c
  5. a
Exercise 2
  1. manufactures
  2. mechanisms
  3. administration
  4. cholesterol
  5. deceptive
  6. explicit
  7. coalition
  8. prone
  9. framework
  10. straightforward
Exercise 3
  1. C
  2. C
  3. I
  4. C
  5. I
  6. C
  7. I
  8. C
  9. C
  10. C
  11. I
  12. C
  13. C
  14. I
  15. C
  16. I
  17. C
  18. I
  19. C
  20. I
Answer Key
The New Bioco

Jack got a new job at a biotechnology company called Bioco. Bioco manufactured drugs to treat diabetes and high cholesterol. Jack’s job was to use a tiny mechanism to get nectar from flowers. The nectar was a main ingredient in the drugs. Jack liked his job, and he thought that Bioco was a caring company. However, Jack soon learned that the company wasn’t as kind as he first thought.

Bioco’s motto was “Make the Earth a Better Place.” However, this motto was deceptive. The company actually did a number of really bad things to the environment. The company produced a lot of smog and harmful acid. Bioco poured the acid in a nearby river, which caused erosion and made fish prone to illness.

After a few weeks at the new job, Jack saw all the bad things Bioco was doing. He had always had strong ethics, and he knew he had to do something. One day, while the Bioco workers were eating in the cafeteria, Jack stood up and gave a speech. He said, “My fellow coworkers, I know you have all seen the evil things our company is doing. I have a notion that we can fix them if we form a coalition. We can go to the administration and tell them we’ll quit if they don’t eliminate the problems. They’ll have no choice but to listen to us.”

Jack explained what they were to do. His coworkers liked his explicit plan. They went to the administrative offices and demanded that Bioco stop damaging the environment, or they all would quit. One supervisor said to them, “Thank you for being straightforward about this issue. Since I can’t afford to lose all of you workers, I guess we’ll just have to fix things.”

Jack, his supervisor, and his coworkers spent the next month designing a new framework for the company. They cleaned up the acid from the river and minimized the amount of air pollution the company released. At last, the company motto became apt.

Reading Comprehension

Part A: Mark each statement T for true or F for false. Rewrite the false statements to make them true.

  1. _____ Bioco was a biotechnology company that manufactured diabetes and high cholesterol.
    • _____________________________________________________
  2. _____ Jack used a mechanism to get nectar from flowers.
    • _____________________________________________________
  3. _____ The new framework involved an explicit plan to fix the smog and acid problems.
    • _____________________________________________________
  4. _____ The waste acid caused erosion and made fish prone to illness.
    • _____________________________________________________
  5. _____ After the company minimized Jack’s ethics, the motto became apt.
    • _____________________________________________________

Part B: Answer the questions.

  1. What was Bioco’s deceptive motto?
    _____________
  2. What did Jack stand up to do in the cafeteria?
    _____________
  3. What was Jack’s notion about fixing things?
    _____________
  4. What did the coalition of workers threaten to do if the administration didn’t eliminate the problems?
    _____________
  5. What did the boss in the offices say after the workers were straightforward with him?
    _____________
Answer Key
Answer Key
Reading Comprehension
Part A
  1. F / Bioco was a biotechnology company that manufactured drugs to treat diabetes and high cholesterol.
  2. T
  3. T
  4. T
  5. F / After the company minimized air pollution, the motto became apt.
Part B
  1. “Make the Earth a better place.”
  2. Jack stood up to give a speech.
  3. We can fix things if we all work together.
  4. The workers threatened to quit.
  5. Since I can’t afford to lose all my workers, I guess we’ll just have to fix things.
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