Chapter 2

Chapter 2
Hamdayya, a new town

police officer
superior
dark
safe
next to
light
belong to
eldest
dearly
glad
top floor
practise
hobby
freely
favourite
conversation / chat
include
trust
flexible
crawl
call
land
close to
attack
climb
surprised
speed
speedy
size
yellow lines
back
fang
disappear
shopping trip
Zoology
look up
search for ضابط شرطة
رئيس أعلى
مظلم
آمن
مجاور لـ
نور / ضوء
ملك
أكبر
كثيراً
مسرور
الطابق العلوى
يمارس
هواية
بحرية
محبب / مفضل
دردشة
تشتمل على
يثق فى
مرن
يزحف
ينادى على
يهبط
بالقرب من
يهاجم / يهجم على
يتسلق
مندهش
سرعة
سريع
حجم
خطوط صفراء
ظهر
ناب
يختفى
رحلة التسوق
علم الحيوان
يبحث عن شئ فى مرجع
يبحث عن web
communication lines
search button
click
funny
flies
insects
search page
search box
text
department
Egyptology
burn down
rebuild
townspeople
tomb
give up hope
disappearance
identify
exactly
climate
dry
secret
quiet
disturb
plenty of
carefully
female
lay eggs
enclose
silk sac
refer to
solution
long wait
according to
suitable
World Wide Web شبكة
خطوط الاتصال
زرار البحث
ينقر على
مضحك
ذباب
حشرات
صفحة البحث
صندوق البحث
نص
قسم
علم المصريات
يحرق
يعيد بناء
أهل المدينة
مقبرة
يفقد الأمل
اختفاء
يحدد نوع
بالضبط
المناخ
جاف
سر
هادئ
يزعج
وفرة من
بعناية
أنثى
يضع البيض
يغلف
كيس حرير
يشير إلى
حل
الانتظار الطويل
طبقا لـ
مناسب
شبكة الإنترنت
A police officer discovered the treasures in the boxes in the Land Cruisers. He could
not believe his eyes. While he was running to tell his superior about the gold, the deadly
spider escaped. The officer never knew that he had been just a few centimetres from death.
A spider can live inside walls and between floors. It can travel easily from house to house,
looking for a place that is dark and safe. The house next to the police station was full of
light and noise. It belonged to the Hassan family. Ayman was the eldest brother. He was
twenty. His brother, Mohamed, was sixteen. His two younger sisters were Lamia, who was
twelve and Najat, who was ten.

Ayman loved his younger sisters and brother dearly, but he was often glad that he had his own room on the top floor where he could practise his hobby freely. In this room he had his own computer. It had been his uncle's computer, but his uncle had bought a newer one and had given this one to Ayman. His favourite hobby was the internet. He used it for his university studies and for making friends in other countries. He and his 'internet friends' had conversations almost every day through their computers. The conversations were like written telephone conversations but they were much cheaper and they could include more than two people.

That day, Ayman and his ‘internet friends’ had a conversation about getting a job after leaving university. Ayman didn’t know what to do because it wasn’t easy to get a good job. Ed advised him not to trust luck but he had to work for the thing he wanted. Jill advised him to be flexible and take any job, as any job was better than no job.
While Ayman was having this conversation, the spider was crawling across the room below where Najat and Lamia were playing. The spider was near the door when the girls' mother called them. Najat's foot landed close to it. The spider didn’t attack Najat because she moved away.

The spider climbed out of the window and went to the garden. Ayman saw it as he was going to the shops. He was surprised at its speed and size. He was more interested than afraid. He went closer to the spider. It was black, with two yellow lines on its back. It was as big as a small apple. It had eight eyes and eight legs. The spider opened its mouth, and Ayman saw two long fangs. The spider ran up the wall and disappeared into the garden of the next house, which was empty.

When Ayman returned from his shopping trip, he was still thinking about the spider. He phoned a friend who was a student of Zoology at his university. Ayman described the spider, and the student looked up the spider in a book called ‘Spiders of North Africa’. But there were no big black spiders with two yellow lines in the book. Ayman decided to search for the spider on the World Wide Web. The Web is like a great library where the information moves between thousands of computers around the world. The communication lines between these computers are like a great spider's web.

Ayman said that spiders use webs to catch flies and insects, but he would use the Web to find a spider. He opened a search page on his computer screen. Then he typed spider "black and yellow" in the search box and clicked on the search button. Ayman found three pictures of black and yellow spiders, but they were not like his spider. He also found an English translation of a very old Egyptian text by Dr Shereen Fakhry, Department of Egyptology, Oxford University.

The text was about a town in ancient Egypt. It told the story of many hundreds of people who were killed by black and yellow spiders in that town. These spiders were so dangerous that the people decided to burn the town down. They hoped to kill all the spiders and then rebuild the town. The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained. But many spiders found their way into underground tombs and passages. The spiders were safe, where nobody could find them. The townspeople gave up hope and left the town.

Ayman wrote an e-mail to Dr Shereen telling her that he had read her translation of
the story about the black and yellow spiders from ancient Egypt. He asked her if the story
was true and if there was a picture of the spider with the text. He also told her about the
large black and yellow spider with two yellow lines on its back, which he couldn’t
identify. The next day, Ayman received an e-mail from Dr Fakhry. She told him that the town was a real town, but nobody knew exactly where it was because many ancient towns and villages in Egypt disappeared under desert sand about 2,000 years ago because the climate in Egypt became drier. She also told him that the story of the spiders might be just a story.

During these two days, the spider had found a home in a secret place that was quiet and dark. It was a place where nobody came to disturb it, and it was a place with plenty of food. The spider had chosen this place carefully because it needed a safe place, not just for itself but for its new family. The spider was a female and it was ready to lay its eggs.
That night, the black and yellow spider laid 2,000 eggs. It carefully enclosed them in four
sacs of white silk and then began its long wait.

1) Why could the police officer not believe his eyes?
 He was very surprised when he saw the gold and treasures in the boxes.

2) What happened when the police officer ran to tell his superior?
 The deadly spider escaped.


3) Where do spiders usually live? (دور ثان 2003)
 They usually live in tombs, under the ground, in safe, quiet, dark, wet places.

4) Why do you think Ayman was pleased that he had his own room in the house?
 Because he could practise his hobby freely in his room.

5) How did Ayman get his computer?
 His uncle gave it to him when he bought a new one.

6) What was Ayman’s favourite hobby?
 It was the internet.

7) What did Ayman use the internet for?
 He used it for his studies and for making friends in other countries.

8) What was Ayman’s main hobby? How did he make use of it in his life? (دور أول 2004)
 It was the internet. He used it for his university studies and for making friends in other countries.

9) What were Ayman and his internet friends chatting about?
 They were chatting about getting a job after leaving university.

10) Why couldn’t the spider attack Najat?
 Because she moved away when her mother called her.

11) How was Nagat saved from the spider’s attack?
 Because her foot moved away when her mother called her.

12) Where and when did Ayman first see the spider?
 He first saw it in the garden of his house when he was going shopping.

13) Why was Ayman surprised when he saw the spider? (دور أول 2001)
 Because it was very big and fast. It was as big as an apple.

14) Show that Ayman wasn’t afraid of the spider he had seen in the garden.
 He was more interested than afraid. He went closer to the spider.

15) Describe the spider Ayman had seen. (دور أول 2009)
 It was black with 2 yellow lines on its back. It was the biggest spider he had ever seen. Its body was as big as a small apple. It had 8 eyes and 8 legs. It had 2 long fangs.


16) Why did the spider leave Ayman’s house?
 Because it was full of light and noise.

17) Why did Ayman phone a student of zoology?
 To look up the spider in a book called “Spiders of North Africa”.

18) How did Ayman get information about the spider he had seen?
 He phoned a friend who was a student of zoology, and used the internet to get information about the spider.

19) What do spiders use webs for?
 They use webs for catching flies and other insects.

20) What did Ayman use to search the internet for information about spiders?
 He used the World Wide Web.

21) What is the World Wide Web like?
 The World Wide Web is like a great library. The information in this library moves between thousands of computers around the world.

22) What was funny with Ayman when he sat down to his computer to search for information about the spider?
 Spiders use webs to catch flies, but Ayman used the web to find a spider.

23) What was the ancient Egyptian text translated by Dr Fakhry about?
 It was about the story of some spiders that killed hundreds of people in ancient times.

24) How did the townspeople in ancient Egypt fight the black and yellow spiders?
 They burned the town down hoping to kill all the spiders and then rebuild the
town. The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained.

25) Explain why the townspeople in ancient Egypt gave up hope and left the town? (دور أول 2006)
 Because they failed to destroy all the spiders which found their way into underground tombs and passages in spite of burning down the town.

26) How did the spiders survive after burning the town down?
 They found their way into underground tombs and passages

27) What did Dr Shereen tell Ayman in her first e-mail?
 She told him that the town was a real town but nobody knows exactly where it was. Many ancient towns and villages disappeared under desert sand because the climate in Egypt became drier.
28) According to the story, how did the ancient town disappear?
 The people burned the town down, hoping to kill all the spiders.

29) In Dr Fakhry’s opinion, what is another possible reason for the disappearance of the town? (دور أول2007 )
 Dr Fakhry’s another possible reason for the disappearance of the town was the fact that the climate in Egypt became drier and towns and villages disappeared under desert sand.

30) Where did the spider find a suitable home?
 It found it in a secret place that is dark, quiet and safe, a place where nobody came to disturb it, and it was a place with plenty of food.

31) Why did the spider need to find a home?
 Because it was ready to lay eggs.

32) Why was the spider looking for a quiet and dark home?
 To lay its eggs.

33) What did the spider do when it laid its eggs?
 It enclosed them in four white silk sacs and then began its long wait.

34) What was the spider’s ’long wait’, do you think?
 It was waiting for the eggs to become young spiders.






Read the following quotation and then answer the questions.

1- “What are you going to do when you leave school?”
a- Who said these words to whom?
Ed said these words to Ayman.
b- What was the second person’s answer?
He said that he didn’t know and that it was a big problem.
c- Where did this conversation take place?
On the internet.






2- “I don’t know. It’s a big problem for me.”
a- Who said this to whom?
Ayman said this to Ed, his internet friend.
b- What problem was the speaker referring to?
It was the problem of getting a good job after finishing university.
c- What was the solution to this problem?
It was to be flexible and take any job.

3- "It's not easy to get a good job."
a- Who said these words to whom?
Ayman said these words to Ed, his internet friend.
b- What were they talking about?
They were talking about the problem of getting a good job after finishing university.
c- Where did this conversation take place?
On the internet.

4- “You can't just trust luck. If you want something, you have to work for it.”
a- Who said this to whom?
Ed said this to his internet friends.
b- What were they talking about?
They were talking about getting a job after leaving university.
c- Do you agree or disagree with the speaker?
I agree with the speaker.

5- “Right. I think you have to be flexible.”
a- Who said these words to whom?
Jill said these words to Ayman on the computer.
b- What were they talking about?
They were talking about the problem of getting a job after leaving university.
c- What does the speaker mean by “flexible”
He means taking any job.

6- "What do you mean by 'flexible'? Just take any job?"
a- Who said these words to whom?
Ed said these words to Jill.
b- What was the addressed person's answer?
Any job is better than no job.
c- Where did this conversation take place?
On the internet.
7- “Spiders use webs to catch flies, but I’m going to use the web to find a spider!” (دور أول 2002)
a- Who said these words and to whom?
Ayman said these words to himself.
b- What are the two kinds of webs according to the speaker’s point of view?
The first web is the spider’s web, but the other web is the web site on the internet.
c- How did the internet help in the fight against the spiders?
It helped Ayman to communicate with Dr Shereen who helped him to identify the female spider. It also helped him get information about the medical plant “echinacea negra” that saved Ayman’s life.

8- “Many hundreds of people were killed by black and yellow spiders in this town.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Which town was the speaker talking about?
He was talking about an ancient Egyptian town.
c- How did the townspeople fight these spiders?
They burned the town down hoping to kill all the spiders and then rebuild the town. The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained.

9- “These spiders were so dangerous that the people decided to burn the town down.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Why were the spiders dangerous?
They were deadly and killed many hundreds of people.
c- What happened when the townspeople burned the town down?
The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained. But many spiders found their way into underground tombs and passages.

10- “They hoped to kill all the spiders and then rebuild the town.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Who hoped to kill the spiders and then rebuild the town?
The people of the ancient Egyptian town.
c- What did they do to kill the spiders?
They burned the town down hoping to kill all the spiders and then rebuild the town. The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained.
d- To what extent were they successful?
They were not successful because many spiders found their way into underground tombs and passages.

11- “The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Who made this fire? Why?
The people of the ancient Egyptian town made this fire to kill all the spiders and rebuild the town.
c- Did they achieve what they wanted? Why?
No, they didn’t because many spiders found their way into underground tombs and passages.

12- “But many spiders found their way into underground tombs and passages. The townspeople had buried their dead in these tombs for a thousand years, so many of the tombs were in unknown places.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Why did the spiders escape to underground tombs and passages?
Because the townspeople burned the town down.
c- Why were the spiders safe in these underground tombs and passages?
Because many of the tombs were in unknown places, where nobody could find them.

13- “The spiders were safe, where nobody could find them.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Which spiders were safe?
The spiders that survived after burning the town down.
c- Why were these spiders safe?
Because they were in unknown places, where nobody could find them.

14- “The townspeople gave up hope and left the town.”
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- What hope did the townspeople give up?
They gave up the hope of killing all the spiders.
c- What did they do before giving up hope?
They burned the town down hoping to kill all the spiders and then rebuild the town. The fire burned for six days and nights until nothing remained.


15- "The story may or may not be true."
a- Where did Ayman read these words?
He read them in a translation of a very old Egyptian text on the internet.
b- Which story is the speaker talking about?
The speaker is talking about the story of some spiders that killed hundreds of
people in ancient times.
c- Does the speaker think the story is just a story or does she think it is true?
She thinks it is just a story.

16- “I have read your translation of the story about the black and yellow spiders from ancient Egypt. Do you think the story is true?”
a- Who said this to whom?
Ayman said these words to Dr Shereen in an e-mail.
b- What did the spiders do in the ancient Egyptian town?
They killed many hundreds of people.
c- Why did the townspeople leave their town?
Because they failed to kill all the spiders.

17- “I have just seen a large black and yellow spider which I can't identify.” (دور ثان 2005)
a- Who wrote that statement and to whom was it written?
Ayman wrote that statement to Dr Fakhry.
b- What did the writer do to get information about the spider?
He phoned a friend who was a student of zoology, and used the internet to get information about the spider.
c- Did the writer succeed in finding out that information?
No he didn’t. He hardly found any useful information.

18- “Is there a picture of the spider with the text?”
a- Who said this to whom?
Ayman said this to Dr Shereen in his e-mail.
b- Which text was the speaker referring to?
He was referring to the ancient Egyptian text translated by Dr Shereen.
c- What was this text about?
It was about a town in ancient Egypt in which many hundreds of people were killed by black and yellow spiders.
d- Was there a picture of the spider?
No, there wasn’t.





19- “I think the town was a real town, but nobody knows exactly where it was."
a- Who said this to whom?
Dr Shereen said this to Ayman in her e-mail.
b- According to the speaker, how did the town disappear?
The climate became drier, so the town perhaps disappeared under desert sand.
c- What did the townspeople do to kill all the spiders?
They burnt the town down.

20- “Many ancient towns and villages died about 2,000 years ago …..”
a- Who said these words to whom?
Dr Shereen said this to Ayman in her e-mail.
b- Why did many ancient times and villages disappear?
Because the climate in Egypt became drier, so they perhaps disappeared under desert sand.
c- According to the story how did the ancient town disappear?
The people burned the town down, hoping to kill all the spiders.

21- “The story of the spider may be just a story.”
a- Did Dr Fakhry think the story was just a story or does she think it was true?
She thought it was just a story.
b- Do you think that Ayman was pleased or disappointed when Dr Fakhry told him this?
He was disappointed.
c- If the story wasn’t just a story, what might Ayman think?
If it wasn’t just a story, then perhaps the spiders in the story were the same species of spider he had seen.

22- “Good Luck with identifying your spider.”
a- Who said these words to whom?
Dr Shereen said these words in her e-mail to Ayman.
b- Which spider was the speaker referring to?
The black and yellow spider that Ayman saw in the garden of his house.
c- Why was the second person surprised when he saw the spider?
Because it was very big and fast.
d- Was it a known species?
No, it was an unknown species.
23- “The spider had found a home.”
a- Where did the speaker find a home?
It found it in a secret place that is dark, quiet and safe, a place where nobody came to disturb it.
b- What was the spider’s previous home?
The archaeological site in the Western Desert.
c- Why was the spider looking for a home?
Because it was ready to lay eggs.

24- “That night, the spider laid its eggs. Not just four or five eggs like a bird lays.”
a- Where did the spider lay its eggs?
It laid its eggs in a secret place that is dark, quiet and safe, a place where nobody came to disturb it, and it was a place with plenty of food.
b- How many eggs did the spider lay?
It laid 2,000 eggs.
c- What did the spider do when it laid its eggs?
It enclosed them in four white silk sacs and then began its long wait.

1- The officer who opened the first box never knew that he had been just a few centimetres from death.
2- While the police officer was running to tell his superior about the gold, the deadly spider escaped.
3- A spider can travel easily from house to house, looking for a place that is dark, quiet and safe.
4- Spiders usually live in tombs, under the ground, in safe, quiet, dark, wet places.
5- The most suitable place for a spider to live in is a quiet, dark and cold place.
(دور أول 2009)
6- Ayman used the internet for his university studies and for making friends in other countries. (دور أول 2001)
7- The conversations on the internet were like written telephone conversations but they were much cheaper and they could include more than two people.
8- The computer enabled Ayman to do his university studies, make friends and find out about the deadly spiders. (دور ثان 2006)
9- The spider didn’t attack Najat because she moved away when her mother called her. (دور أول 2005)
Najat was lucky enough not to be bitten by the spider.
10- If Najat hadn’t moved her foot away, the spider would have bitten her.
11- The spider was crossing the garden when Ayman saw it.
12- Ayman was crossing the garden when he saw the black and yellow spider.
13- Inside the mouth of the spider Ayman saw two long fangs, each about a centimetre long.
14- When the spider opened its mouth, Ayman saw two long fangs.
15- Ayman phoned a friend who had a book about spiders.
16- To get information about the spider, Ayman phoned a friend who had a book called ‘Spiders of North Africa’ and used the internet.
17- The World Wide Web is like a great library. The information in this library
moves between thousands of computers around the world. دور ثان 2001))
18- Spiders use webs to catch flies but Ayman used the web to find a spider.
19- On the World Wide Web Ayman found three pictures of black and yellow spiders.
20- The old Egyptian text was about a town in Ancient Egypt where many people were killed by black and yellow spiders. (دور ثان 2007)
21- Ayman read a story of some spiders that killed hundreds of people in ancient times.
22- In ancient Egypt, the spiders were so dangerous that townspeople burnt down the town. (دور ثان 2008)
23- Although people in ancient Egypt burned their town down to kill all the spiders, many spiders escaped to underground tombs and passages. (دور أول 2004)
24- The people in the ancient Egyptian town give up hope and left the town because they failed to kill all the spiders.
25- The female spider needed a secret place where nobody came to disturb it.
26- The spider was looking for a quiet and dark home to lay its eggs
The spider enclosed its eggs in four silk white sacs. (دور ثان 2005)



▼أسئلة الكتاب المدرسي
A- Answer the questions.
1- Why could the police officer not believe his eyes'?
• As thy found a lot of gold and treasures in the land cruisers.

2- Why do you think Ayman was pleased that he had his own room in the house?
• As he had his own room in which he had his computer.

3 -What did Ayman use the internet for?
• For his university studies and making friends.

4- Was the spider much bigger than most spiders?
• Yes.

5-According to the story, how did the town disappear?
• The people burnt the town down hoping to kill all the spiders.

6- In Dr Fakhry's opinion, what is another possible reason for the disappearance of the town?
• The climate became drier so the town perhaps disappeared under the desert sand.

7- Why did the spider need to find a home?
• As it was a female and it was ready to lay its eggs.

8- What was the spider's 'long wait', do you think?
• It was waiting for the eggs to hatch and produce young spiders.

B- Read the following quotation and then answer the questions.

'The story of the spiders may be just a story.'
?Did Dr Fakhry think the story was just a story or did she think it was true1-
She thought that the The story of the spiders may be just a story.
2- Do you think that Ayman was pleased or disappointed when Dr Fakhry told him this?
He was pleased.
3- If the story wasn't just a story ; what might Ayman think?
He might think that the spider was real.

C- Complete the sentences.
1- The spider didn't attack Najat because she moved here foot away.
2- Ayman was going to the shops when he saw the female spider.
3- The spider enclosed its eggs in silk sacs and then it began its long wait.