The Desert

NCERT Solutions for Class 7th: The Desert An Alien Hand Supplementary Reader English

Page No: 16

Comprehension Check

1. From the first paragraph

(i) pick out two phrases which describe the desert as most people believe it is;

(ii) pick out two phrases which describe the desert as specialists see it.

Which do you think is an apt description, and why?

Answer

(i)Two phrases which describe the desert as most people believe it is:

'dry, hot, waterless and without shelter.'

'an endless stretch of sand where no rain falls and, therefore, no vegetation grows.'

(ii)Two phrases which describe the desert as specialists see it:
'a beautiful place'
'home of a variety of people, animals and plants'

I think both the description is an apt in their own way as most people describe it what they saw on television or read over internet while specialists made the conclusion by their interest and experience after living in desert.

Page No: 17

2. The phrases on the left in the following box occur in the text.

Match each of them with a phrase on the right.

(i)	an endless stretch of sand	fertile place with water and plants in a desert
(ii)	waterless and without shelter	not visible because the grass is thick
(iii)	an oasis	nothing but sand as far as one can see
(iv)	hidden by a cover of grass	no water and no shade

Answer

(i)	an endless stretch of sand	nothing but sand as far as one can see
(ii)	waterless and without shelter	no water and no shade
(iii)	an oasis	fertile place with water and plants in a desert
(iv)	hidden by a cover of grass	not visible because the grass is thick

Page No: 19

Comprehension Check

1. A camel can do without water for days together. What is the reason given in the text?

Answer

 A camel can do without water for days together because they sweat very little. Camels can stand high body temperature. They don’t need to sweat and therefore can retain the water they drink

for long periods of time.

2. How do the smaller desert animals fulfill their need for water?

Answer

The smaller animals fulfill their need for water by burrowing underground during the hot day and come out at night to eat. Some of them eat other animals and get the water they need from the moisture in the meat. Others eat plants and seeds and get the water they need from plant juices.

3. In a desert the temperature rises during the day and falls rapidly at night. Why?

Answer

In a desert the temperature rises during the day and falls rapidly at night because of the absence of moisture in desert lands. The moisture present in the air acts as a blanket and protects the earth’s surface form the hot rays of the sun but the moisture in air is absent in desert.Therefore, the land get heats up quickly during the day due to the sun’s rays and cools down rapidly at night.

Exercises

Do the following activities in groups.

1. Describe a desert in your own way. Write a paragraph and read it aloud to your classmates.

Answer

A desert is generally without water and vegetation but it as beautiful as a forest.  A desert may be too hot or too cold but plants and animals there have learned to survive in hot and dry and cold condition. Deserts also have a different kind of vegetation.

2. Go to the library and collect information about the lifestyle of people in desert areas— their food, clothes, work, social customs, etc. Share this information with the group.

Answer

Students need to do this question by themselves.