The attack on Britain’s environment

There has been bad pollution of Britain’s rivers, and the government has tried hard to stop it. There are now strict laws against water pollution, though it still quite often happens incidentally. Britain and France share the problem of oil pollution from the Channel. This has caused great damage to beaches and wildlife.

The need for new roads causes great environmental difficulties. They often spoil the countryside and bring noise and pollution to thousands of homes. Since 1958 the pollution of Britain has increased by 11% but the number of cars increased by 400%.

There are now only about thirty meters of road for each car in Britain, so we’ll have to build more expensive motorways which damage the environment.

Cars cause other problems too: thousands of people die in car accidents; car parks use valuable space in towns and cities; cars use a lot of our limited amount of oil. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to do anything about all this because cars play an important part in the lives of many families, and the car industry employs large numbers of people.

Friends of the Earth suggest that the bicycle is the best way to travel because it is cheap, quiet and riding keeps you healthy. However, there are far fewer cyclists in Britain than in some other European countries, so our roads are not built for cycling. It can be dangerous to cycle in large cities as British motorists don’t seem to notice cyclists. Some people think that only buses and bicycles should be allowed in our centers.

 

ВАРИАНТ 3

I. Перепишите и переведите на русский язык следующие предложения, принимая во внимание, что субъектный и объектный инфинитивные обороты переводятся на русский язык большей частью придаточными предложениями (см. образец выполнения 1).

 

1. We asked our partners to be informed of the arrival of the cargo.

2. He ordered the goods to be sold immediately.

3. Many buildings were reported to have been damaged by the fire.

4. The telegram was not likely to reach them in time.

5. The negotiations are said to have been completed already.

II. Перепишите и письменно переведите на русский язык следующие предложения, учитывая различия в переводе зависимых и независимых причастных оборотов.

1. Having taken the examinations, he went to his native town.

2. All the students having finished the translation in time, we could check it in class.

3. Having achieved the necessary results, we decided to describe them in our article.

 

III. Перепишите и письменно переведите на русский язык сложные предложения, содержащие придаточные предложения условия.

 

1. If you annoy the cat she will scratch you.

2. But for the storm we should have arrived in time.

3. Unless it stops raining we shall not be able to go to the country.

IV. Перепишите и письменно переведите текст на русский язык.

 

MAN AND THE BIOSPHERE

 

Interrelations between man and biosphere are of a fairly complex nature. Man, like any other living organism, depends for his life on what the biosphere provides: water, oxygen, food and shelter. On the other hand, the biosphere is strongly effected by all sorts of human activity.

Technology powerfully amplifies the effects human beings on the atmosphere. Prehistoric man withdrew from the atmosphere only the oxygen he required for respiration; technological man consumes a far greater amount of oxygen to support fires, power plants and chemical processes. The carbon dioxide produced by technological processes in the biosphere substances wholly new to it; man-made radioisotopes and a wide variety of synthetic materials such as plastics, insecticides, herbicides and numerous industrial materials. These, too, also alter the biosphere.

The problem has already been discussed at a large number of conferences, some of them sponsored by the UN. However, relatively little has so far been done to check environmental pollution.

 

ВАРИАНТ 4

 

I. Перепишите и переведите на русский язык следующие предложения, принимая во внимание, что субъектный и объектный инфинитивные обороты переводятся на русский язык большей частью придаточными предложениями (см. образец выполнения 1).

 

1. I never heard him speak French.

2. Approximately 500.000 steel workers were reported to have gone on strike in the United States on October 1.

3. The plan likely to be approved seems to provide for the immediate construction of a new power station.

4. The delegation is expected to arrive to-morrow.

5. She saw him come into the house and went downstairs to meet him.

II. Перепишите и письменно переведите на русский язык следующие предложения, учитывая различия в переводе зависимого и независимого причастных оборотов.

1. The letter having been delayed, the news reached us too late.

2. The negotiations between the American and British representatives were conducted behind closed doors, measures having been taken that no correspondent should receive any information.

3. Having been warned that the river was rising rapidly, they turned back.

III. Перепишите и письменно переведите на русский язык сложные предложения, содержащие придаточные предложения условия.

1. If we had a car we would get there quite quickly.

2. If you started working right away you could finish by noon.

3. Had you invited him earlier he would have come to your birthday party.

IV. Перепишите и переведите текст на русский язык.

TWO COURSES OF ACTION

The problem of the environmental crisis has recently assumed global proportions. Both scientists and politicians agree that unless some radical steps are taken before long, life on our planet may be irrevocably damaged if not destroyed altogether. It seems therefore worthwhile to consider the fundamental conflict which underlies the surface manifestations of the present crisis. For there undoubtedly exists a conflict, an incompatibility between the tenets of an industrial society and those of ecology.

Industry is bound to expand continuously, all ecological systems tend toward stability and equilibrium. There seems to be at least two general courses of action which may be adopted in order that the environmental doom may be averted.

One would be to curb the dynamics of industrial development; the other - to turn technology to the construction of physiologically and socially healthy environment. The former possibility being highly unrealistic, the latter one seems to be the only path to follow.

ВАРИАНТ 5

 

I. Перепишите и переведите на русский язык следующие предложения, принимая во внимание, что субъектный и объектный инфинитивные обороты переводятся на русский язык большей частью придаточными предложениями (см. образец выполнения 1).

 

1. We don’t want him to be interrupted.

2. I have never seen him swim, but I have heard that he swims very well.

3. These agreement is likely to be concluded in near future.

4. He appears to be satisfied with the results of his work.

5. The documents are expected to be signed this week.

II. Перепишите и письменно переведите на русский язык следующие предложения, учитывая различия в переводе зависимого и независимого причастных оборотов.

1. Having returned from the expedition, he made a very interesting report.

2. The conversation was interesting, many designers taking part in it.

3. Having nеver done such kind of work, he did not know what to begin with.

III. Перепишите и письменно переведите на русский язык следующие сложные предложения, содержащие придаточные предложения условия.

 

1. If Tom were here I could ask him to help us.

2. If I were you I should plant potatoes here.

3. He would have drowned if he had fallen through the ice.

 

IV. Перепишите и письменно переведите текст на русский язык.