Read the following passages carefully and answer the questions given below them:
In Kerala, houses are not needed for warmth, but rather for protection from the heavy rains and the sun. Except for the bigger townhouses, most of the houses have walls of dried mud with wooden rafters, for there is plenty of wood available. The roofs are sloping to carry off the rain, and they overhang the walls so as to give shade. They are thatched with coconut leaves. Most of the houses have a veranda, also thatched. No chimneys are needed, for the cooking is usually done in a corner of the veranda on a hearth made of bricks and mud.
Inside, the floor is hard, shiny mud, or in the better houses, highly polished, coloured lime or cement, which is clean and cool. On the floor there are grass mats, often beautifully made. In the village houses there are no chairs or tables, for most village people in South India prefer to sit on the cool floor.
The only pieces of furniture may be cupboards, often with finely carved doors. There are no beds, for people sleep on the floor on grass mats or on mattresses padded with cotton. Each person has a sheet and pillow, which, in the daytime, is rolled up with the mattress and put away.
(1) How are the walls and roofs of the houses in Kerala?
(2) Why is there no need for chimneys in the house?
(3) Which materials are used for the different parts of the houses in the villages ofKerala?
(4) What things do the people of Kerala do to keep themselves cool?
