SYNERGIZE:

• A. languish
• B. lapse
• C. sabotage
• D. atrophy
• E. catalyze

Hong Kong prospered as the center of trade with China, _______ until it fell to the Japanese in 1941.

• A. languishing
• B. flourishing
• C. retreating
• D. increasing
• E. succeeding

The village of Vestmannaeyjar, in the far northern country of Iceland, is as bright and clean and up-to-date
as any American or Canadian suburb. It is located on the island of Heimaey, just off the mainland. One
January night in 1973, however, householders were shocked from their sleep. In some backyards red-hot
liquid was spurting from the ground.
Flaming "skyrockets" shot up and over the houses. The island's volcano, Helgafell, silent for seven
thousand years, was violently erupting! Luckily, the island's fishing fleet was in port, and within twenty-four
hours almost everyone was ferried to the mainland. But then the agony of the island began in earnest. As
in a nightmare, fountains of burning lava spurted three hundred feet high. Black, baseball-size cinders
rained down. An evilsmelling, eye-burning, throat-searing cloud of smoke and gas erupted into the air,
and a river of lava flowed down the mountain. The constant shriek of escaping steam was punctuated by
ear-splitting explosions. As time went on, the once pleasant village of Vestmannaeyjar took on a weird
aspect. Its street lamps still burning against the long Arctic night, the town lay under a thick blanket of
cinders. All that could be seen above the ten-foot black drifts were the tips of street signs. Some houses
had collapsed under the weight of cinders; others had burst into flames as the heat ignited their oil storage
tanks. Lighting the whole lurid scene, fire continued to shoot from the mouth of the looming volcano. The
eruption continued for six months. Scientists and reporters arrived from around the world to observe the
awesome natural event. But the town did not die that easily. In July, when the eruption ceased, the people
of Heimaey Island returned to assess the chances of rebuilding their homes and lives. They found tons of
ash covering the ground. The Icelanders are a tough people, however, accustomed to the strange and
violent nature of their Arctic land. They dug out their homes. They even used the cinders to build new
roads and airport runways. Now the new homes of Heimaey are warmed from water pipes heated by
molten lava.
The village is located on the island of-

• A. Heimaey
• B. Heimma
• C. Vestmannaeyjar
• D. Helgafell
• E. Hebrides

In 1892 the Sierra Club was formed. In 1908 an area of coastal redwood trees north of San Francisco was
established as Muir Woods National Monument. In the Sierra Nevada mountains, a walking trail from
Yosemite Valley to Mount Whitney was dedicated in 1938. It is called John Muir Trail. John Muir was born
in 1838 in Scotland. His family name means "moor," which is a meadow full of flowers and animals. John
loved nature from the time he was small. He also liked to climb rocky cliffs and walls. When John was
eleven, his family moved to the United States and settled in Wisconsin. John was good with tools and
soon became an inventor. He first invented a model of a sawmill. Later he invented an alarm clock that
would cause the sleeping person to be tipped out of bed when the timer sounded. Muir left home at an
early age. He took a thousand-mile walk south to the Gulf of Mexico in 1867and 1868. Then he sailed for
San Francisco. The city was too noisy and crowded for Muir, so he headed inland for the Sierra Nevadas.
When Muir discovered the Yosemite Valley in the Sierra Nevadas, it was as if he had come home. He
loved the mountains, the wildlife, and the trees. He climbed the mountains and even climbed trees during
thunderstorms in order to get closer to the wind. He put forth the theory in the late 1860's that the
Yosemite Valley had been formed through the action of glaciers. People ridiculed him. Not until 1930 was
Muir's theory proven correct. Muir began to write articles about the Yosemite Valley to tell readers about
its beauty. His writing also warned people that Yosemite was in danger from timber mining and sheep
ranching interests. In 1901 Theodore Roosevelt became president of the United States.
He was interested in conservation. Muir took the president through Yosemite, and Roosevelt helped get
legislation passed to create Yosemite National Park in 1906.
Although Muir won many conservation battles, he lost a major one. He fought to save the Hetch Valley,
which people wanted to dam in order to provide water for San Francisco.
In the late 1913 a bill was signed to dam the valley. Muir died in 1914. Some people say losing the fight to
protect the valley killed Muir.
What happened first?

• A. Muir visited along the east coast.
• B. Muir Woods was created.
• C. The Muir family moved to the United States.
• D. John Muir learned to climb rocky cliffs.
• E. John Muir walked to the Gulf of Mexico