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Exercises - Tenses

C) Fill in the blanks with the Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continuous forms of the verbs in the box.

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1. Despite the importance of solar and wind power for the environment, scientists _______________ batteries that
can store the energy obtained from these sources for a long time.

2. Recently, The World Health Organisation _______________ a report indicating that the climate crisis would
cause viruses to spread rapidly and extensively more than expected.

3. Scientists from Oxford University _______________ that they have developed a malaria vaccine with
“revolutionary” potential.

4. Perseverance, the Mars rover, _______________ the planet for traces of life and habitability since 2020.

5. Norwegian people _______________ to join the European Union twice by the referendum.

6. The podcast format, which brings a new breath to broadcasting, _______________ its popularity in many
countries day by day since the very first day it came out.

7. The excavations of the ancient city of Assos _______________ without a break for the past 42 years, even
though they take place throughout the entire year.

8. Nobel laureate Turkish scientist Prof. Dr. Aziz Sancar _______________ that a molecule called EdU, often
used in laboratory experiments, can be used especially in treating brain cancer.

D) Fill in the blanks with the Past Simple or Past Continuous forms of the verbs in brackets.

A Real-Life Survival Story
Aron Ralston, an American nature athlete and an engineer, 1. ___________________ (cross) Blue John Canyon
on April 26, 2003, just south of Horseshoe Canyon in Canyonlands National Park, east of Wayne County, Utah.

As he 2. ___________________ (descend), the big rock he stepped on moved; Ralston’s right hand and forearm
were crushed and trapped between the rock and the canyon wall. Since he had not told anyone about his trip to
the canyon, no one would be able to call him.The climber 3. ___________________ (contemplate) death as he
4. ___________________ (spend) five days trying to free his arm, using his remaining water little by little. Efforts
to free his arm 5. ___________________ (be) futile against the 360kg rock. Running out of water on the fifth day,
Ralston 6. ___________________ (carve) his name, date of birth, and estimated date of death into the canyon wall.
He 7. ___________________ (record) his last words to his family on video since he 8. ___________________

(not think) he would survive the night. Driven by thirst and mood, he 9 ___________________ (amputate) his
jammed arm at the fore part. Even though Ralston 10. ___________________ (get out) of the place he trapped,
he still 11. ___________________ (need) to be able to get to his car. After climbing from where he fell, he
12. ___________________ (manage) to descend the steep slope of about 20 metres with one hand. Then he 13.
___________________ (start) walking the canyon under the sun. He was about thirteen kilometers away from
his car. While he 14. ___________________ (walk), he 15. ___________________ (run) into the couple Eric and
Monique Meijer and their son Andy. The Dutch family 16. ___________________ (supply) Ralston with water
and informed the authorities. Ralston 17 ___________________ (think) he would bleed to death, but rescuers,
who had just begun their search with his family’s report of the missing, 18. ___________________ (arrive) by

helicopter and 19. ___________________ (rescue) him six hours after he had managed to free his arm.

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