June 25, 2011- 1 -Your Names?
Names?
(Sentence_combining.doc)
Relative clauses
Combine the sentences by turning the second and subsequent sentences into relative clauses. Use the first sentence in each group as the base clause.
1.Ottawa is a small Minnesota River valley town.
Ottawa is home to Unimin Corporation.
2.Unimin Corporation mines Ottawa white.
Ottawa white is the silica sand of preference for fracking.
3.Grey Lusty claims that Ottawa white can withstand the intense pressure needed to break rock.
Grey Lusty is a manager for Unimin Corporation.
That Ottawa white can withstand the intense pressure needed to break rock makes it ideal for fracking.
4.Fracking is a process.
Fracking is slang for hydraulic fracturing.
The process is used to extract natural gas from underground rock formations.
5.Environmentalists are concerned.
Fracking may contaminate drinking water.
Fracking involves the use of lots of water and chemicals.
For more information about Unimin Corporation and fracking see Mark Steil’s “Fracking in the Valley,” Mankato Free Press, 28 February 2011, C1, or consult the Unimin Corporation website ( Unimin’s motto appears to be “If it can’t be grown, it must be mined” (
Appositives
Combine the following sentences by turning the second and subsequent sentences intoappositives. Use the first sentence as the base clause.
1.Biff and Buffy hoped to attend the Minnesota School of Mines and Technology.
The Minnesota School of Mines and Technology is located near Mankato.
2.Biff thought that the School was located underground.
Underground seemed an appropriate location for a school of mines.
3.Buffy liked the School’s scenic location.
The School is located not far from Mount Kato.
Mount Kato is not to be confused with Mount Rushmore.
4.Biff hoped to play on the men’s spelunking team.
Biff is a natural born follower.
The men’s spelunking team was undefeated for ten years.
5.Buffy was looking forward to her first composition course.
Her first composition course is Writing about Rocks (Eng 101).
Writing about Rock (Eng 101) is an experience-based class.
6.Buffy and Biff both confused the ivory towers with Flintstone Towers.
Flintstone Towers is a five-story underground dormitory.
The dormitory is the lowest residential space on campus.
Absolutes and participial phrases
Combine the following sentences by turning the second sentence (and any additional sentences) in each group into an absolute construction or a participial phrase.
1.Hydraulic fracturingis the process of creating fractures in a rock layer.
Hydraulic fracturing employs a fluid as the source of energy.
2.The fracturing is done from a wellbore drilled into reservoir rock formations.
Fracturing done from a wellbore drilled into reservoir rock formations increases the extraction of oil and natural gas.
3.Fluid, typically 99% water and various chemicals and 1% proppant,is inserted into the rock.
The fluid opens fractures in the rock.
4.Sand is often used as a proppant.
The proppant serves to keep the fractures open so that the oil or gas can be extracted from the rock formation.
5.Environmentalists have protested the use of hydraulic fracturing.
Environmentalists fear that fracturing fluid used far below the earth's surface is polluting aquifers.
For more information about fracking, see the Wikipedia article “Hydraulic fracturing” (