Many of you are in this world only because fungi saved your life, or the life of one of your parents or grandparents. To get an idea what fungi is you need to remember a piece of bread that you once forgot in a bag, or tea that stayed in a teapot for a week. You’ll discover that your bread or tea then got a greenish colour flourishing with small ‘flowers’. BEAUTY 6. This is fungi. If you don’t believe in it, then you need to know that antibiotics, chemicals that cure many diseases, are made of fungi. EFFECT 7. In 1929, Alexander Fleming, a doctor and a published a paper on chemical he called “penicillin”, which he had received from a fungi. He became the first person who found out that penicillin may kill bacteria. RESEARCH 8. In 1938 scientists from Oxford University were able to grow, extract and purify enough penicillin to prove that it may be used as a medicine. SUCCESS 9. Penicillin has a magic ability to cure people of many bacterial . INFECT 10. It was first used as a to cure wounded soldiers during the World War II. It has saved so many lives that it is easy to understand why it was once called a “ miracle drug”. IV. Writing You have received a letter from your English – speaking pen – friend Tom who

Dear students,

Today, I will be your schoolteacher and we will be discussing the topic of fungi. Fungi are organisms that play a vital role in our lives, and many of you may not even realize how much they have contributed to our existence.

To better understand what fungi are, let's recall a time when you forgot a piece of bread in a bag or left tea in a teapot for too long. Do you remember how the bread or tea turned green and had small 'flowers' growing on it? This is fungi. They are responsible for the decomposition of organic matter like bread and tea, causing them to spoil.

But fungi are not just responsible for making our food go bad. They have also had a significant impact on the field of medicine. Antibiotics, which are chemicals that help cure various diseases, are actually made from fungi. It was in 1929 when a doctor named Alexander Fleming published a paper on a chemical called "penicillin," which he had extracted from a type of fungi. He was the first person to discover that penicillin could kill bacteria, and this was a crucial breakthrough in the field of medicine.

After Fleming's discovery, scientists from Oxford University in 1938 worked hard to grow, extract, and purify enough penicillin to prove that it could be used as a medicine. Their efforts were successful, and penicillin became widely used to treat bacterial infections. This discovery marked a significant success in medical research.

Penicillin has a remarkable ability to cure people of many bacterial infections. It has been used extensively, especially during World War II, to treat wounded soldiers and has saved countless lives. Its effectiveness was so extraordinary that it was often referred to as a "miracle drug."

So, you see, fungi have played an instrumental role in saving lives and advancing medicine. Without them, many of us might not be here today, or our parents and grandparents might not have survived certain illnesses.

I hope this explanation has clarified the importance of fungi and their impact on our lives. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Sincerely,

Your Schoolteacher