Madrid, episode 22: Photosynthesis, 174 (simple) 

Interactive (definitions, icons, linguagraphics and quizzes)

But she must listen to what Maria Jose was saying.
’This afternoon’, the old woman continued, as she opened a small box, ‘I was able to reach some conclusions about everything that has happened.’ The box had a little machine in it. ‘This,’ she explained, ‘is an air quality meter. It measures the pollution in the air. When I bought it this afternoon in the middle of town, the meter said 47. Now let’s turn it on and see what the pollution is here in the mountains… Look, it says zero.’
‘So the air is clean in the mountains,’ Arturo observed.
The sky was quite dark now. Maria José’s voice reached Inés from beyond the camp light.
‘True, but even so, zero is extremely unexpected, even in the mountains. On the other hand, the Madrid air is usually worse than it was today. The carbon monoxide levels – that’s air pollution – are down. The nitrogen oxide levels are also down – which explains why ozone is down…. And other stuff too…’
Maria José looked up from the air meter. ‘As mysterious as it is astonishing! So why? What’s changed? Have we suddenly stopped driving our cars? Or using our factories?
Everyone looked at each other. Where was she going with this?
‘No. However, one thing that has happened is that Arturo has been in Madrid for three and a half days. And Martina – maybe for a few weeks? I’m convinced that the reason the Madrid air is changing is because the ‘buzzing’ is actually a chemical process. Have you ever noticed how dusty it is when Arturo is around?’
‘I’ll say!’ exclaimed Inés. ‘It was impossible to keep my shelter clean after he arrived!’
‘I think Arturo can change carbon dioxide into air and cellulose. That’s what the dust really is. He’s doing a chemical process that releases cellulose when it makes air. Trees use cellulose’, Maria José continued, ‘to make branches and leaves, of course. Arturo can’t make trees, so he breathes it out. What Martina’s doing is nearly the same.’
‘It seems that since Arturo arrived in Madrid, the two of them have been working together without…’
‘We haven’t!’ Arturo interrupted.
?
Arturo likes working with Martina.Wrong answer! Try again.
Carbon dioxide is a good chemical to breathe.Wrong answer! Try again.
Arturo and Martina have been reducing the pollution in Madrid.
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Categorized as B1, Book 2