Journey to the End of the Earth by Tishani Doshi

                                                  Short Answer Questions ( 2 Marks) 

Q1 What emotions did the author experience when she reached Antarctica at last?

Ans : The author finally set foot on the Antarctica continent after travelling over 100 hours in combination of car, aeroplane and ship. Her first emotion on seeing the vast expansive white landscape and the blue horizon was of relief. She experienced the emotion of wonder at its immensity and isolation and its strange relationship with India.

Q2. In what respect, Tishani Doshni’s encounter with Antarctica is a chilling prospect?

Ans : The author remained there for two weeks. For a sun worshipper South Indian, being face to face with ninety per cent of earth’s total ice volume was a mind-boggling and chilling prospect. It was also a chilling experience for circulatory and metabolic functions and for imagination. It is like walking into a giant ping-pong ball with no human markers such as trees, billboards, and buildings.

Q3. How has Antarctica sustained itself and managed to remain pristine?

Ans: Antarctica, on account of being the coldest, windiest and driest continent in the world, has never sustained a human population and has thus managed to remain pristine. This has prevented man from being able to create ruckus in this part of the world by his thoughtless exploitation of the natural resources.

Q4. How is global temperature increasing? What are the immediate fears due to it?

Ans : Global temperature is increasing due to the increasing burning of fossil fuels. It has now created a blanket of carbon dioxide around the world. This has given birth to questions like: Will the West Antarctica ice sheet melt entirely? Will the Gulf Stream Ocean current be disrupted? Will it be the end of the world as we know of? It may be. It may not be.

Q5. How is Antarctica a crucial element in the debate of climate change?

Ans : Antarctica is a crucial element not because it has no human population but because it holds in its ice cores half a million year old carbon records. They are trapped in its layers of ice. It will open up areas of knowledge about the past, present and future of the earth.

Q6. What are the reasons for the success of the Students on Ice programme?

Ans: Sitting distant in the comfort zone of our houses, any talk about global warming looks so unreal and one can be unconcerned. But the visible experience of seeing glaciers retreating, ice caps melting and ice shelves collapsing makes one understand and realize what global warming is all about. The indications for the future of humankind become clear when one actually witnesses the geological phenomena.

Q7. What is that beauty of balance that a trip to Antarctica unfolded to the author?

Ans: The author was wonderstruck by the beauty of balance in play on our planet. Travelling across nine time zones, three bodies of water and as many ecospheres was an experience that unfolded a wide range of climate, geographical features, and flora and fauna. It was also a visible experience of the varied geographical phenomena.

Q8. What are phytoplanktons? What is their importance?

Ans: Phytoplanktons, the grasses of the sea, are single-celled organisms living in the southern ocean. They nourish and sustain the entire ocean’s food chin, being first link in the food chain of ocean. Using sun’s energy, they assimilate carbon and synthesize organic compounds.

The diminishing number of these organisms due to the depletion of ozone layers affects other organisms of the ocean, finally leading to the extinction of life on earth.

Q9. Why is it necessary to remain fully equipped while walking on ice?

Ans: While walking on ice, the troupe was fully kitted out in Gore-Tex (type of spiked boots that help in walking on ice) and glares. The spiked boots protect them from falling down on ice which might result in injury and the glares protect the eyes because the sunglasses can injure their eyes, particularly the ratina.

Q10. Does the study of the lesson give you a feeling that man is his own great enemy?

Ans: In his 12000-year-long stint on the earth so far man has caused untold harm to the planet, its environment and biodiversity. His activities in the name of development have spelt doom for the flora and fauna and his own existence is in danger. Man is to blame for all the havoc and ruckus created on earth. Thus it is quite right that man is his own great enemy.

                                                                        6-Mark Questions

Q11. What is the significance of the title ‘Journey to the End of the Earth’?

Ans : The title ‘Journey to the End of the Earth’, has more than one meaning. It describes an educational journey to Antarctica undertaken by a group of high school students. To learn more about the real impact of global warming and future of the earth 52 students went to the coldest, driest, windiest continent in the world called Antarctica in Russian research vessel, the Akademik Shokalskiy. The author calls it a journey to the end of the earth because it began 13:09 degrees North of Equator in Madras, involved crossing nine time zones, six checkpoints, three oceans and as many ecospheres. She travelled over 100 hours in combination of a car, an aeroplane and a ship. The journey being to the extreme south of the the earth, was really towards the end of it. Another meaning of this title is more significant as the warnings that Antarctica gives are shocking and much concerning the humanity and the millions of other species on the earth. The changes taking place in Antarctica are pointing a warning finger at the existence of of the earth; the earth is journeying to its end.

Q12. By whom and with what objective was Students on Ice programme started? How far has it achieved its goals?

Ans : The Students on Ice programme was started by Canadian Geoff Green. He felt students are the future generation of policy-makers. They should be provided an opportunity to have this lifechanging experience at a young age in order to foster a new understanding and respect for our planet. It would help them to absorb, learn and, more importantly, act for the benefit of the planet.

Geoff Green was tired of taking celebrities and retired rich curiosity seekers who could only give back in a limited way. It means Geoff wanted something in return from his passengers to solve the problems relating to climate changes due to environmental pollution. It is difficult to imagine or be affected by the polar ice caps melting while sitting in our living rooms and so this visible life changing expence is important. Hence, this programme made the children learn that to save big things, small things must be cared for.

Q13. What makes Antarctica an ideal subject of study?

Ans : Antarctica is the only place in the world which has never sustained a human population. It thus remains relatively pristine in this respect. But, more importantly, it holds in its ice core, half a millionyear- old carbon records trapped in its layers of life. Antarctica has a simple ecosystem and lack of biodiversity. It is, therefore, a perfect place to study how little changes in the environment can have big repercussions. Visiting Antarctica means knowing where we have come from and where we could possibly be heading. This place holds the key to know the geological evolution and it shall reveal the earth’s past, present and future.

Q14. The author states that her Antarctic experience was full of epiphanies, but the best occurred just short of the Antarctic Circle of 65–55 degrees south? Explain.

Ans: Epiphanies is a Christian festival that celebrates the revelation or enlightenment. Here epiphanies are used metaphorically to suggest moments when the author suddenly becomes conscious of something that is very important to her.

The author experienced the rare of the rarest experiences there in Antarctica both in relation to beauty, wonder and geological phenomena. Such masterly geological epiphany was experienced by her when the Akademik Shokalskiy got wedged into a thick white stretch of ice between the peninsula and Tadpole Island. The captain decided to turn around and asked the passengers to walk on the ocean. They kitted out in Gore-Tex and glares, walking on a white sheet of ice. Underneath their feet was a metre-thick ice pack. And underneath that, 180 metres of living breathing, salt water lay before them. In the periphery crabeater seals were stretching and sunning themselves on ice floes. They were doing so like stray clogs will do under the shade of a banyan tree. It was nothing short of revelation. The author saw in it that everything does, indeed connect. This really proved to be the most wonderful experience of all experiences of Antarctica.

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