Lesson 3. The Russian Federation / Российская Федерация

Exercise 1: Read and translate the text, learn the active vocabulary:

The Russian Federation is my Homeland. It is the largest country in the world. It occupies about 1/7 (one-seventh) of the Earth surface. The country is situated in Eastern Europe, Northern and Central Asia. Its total area is over 17 million square kilometres.

Our land is washed by 12 seas, most of which are the seas of three oceans: the Arctic, the Atlantic and the Pacific. In the south and in the west the country borders on fourteen countries. It also has a sea-border with the USA.

There are no countries in the world where such a great variety of flora and fauna can be found as in our land. Our country has numerous forests, plains and steppes, taiga and tundra, highlands and deserts. There are two great plains in Russia: the Great Russian Plain and the West Siberian Lowland. The highest mountains in our land are the Altai, the Urals and the Caucasus. The largest mountain chain, the Urals, separates Europe from Asia.

There are over two thousand rivers in the Russian Federation. The longest of them are the Volga, the Ob', the Yenisei, the Lena and the Amur. Our land is also rich in lakes with the deepest lake in the world, the Baikal, included. It is much smaller than the Baltic Sea, but there is much more water in it than in the Baltic Sea. The water in the lake is so clear that if you look down you can count the stones on the bottom.

On the Russian territory there are 11 time zones. The climate conditions are rather different: from arctic and moderate to continental and subtropical. Our country is one of the richest in natural resources countries in the world: oil, natural gas, coal, different ores, ferrous and non-ferrous metals and other minerals.

The Russian Federation is a multinational state. It comprises many national districts, several autonomous republics and regions. The population of the country is about 140 million people.

Moscow is the capital of our Homeland. It is the largest political, scientific, cultural and industrial center of the country and one of the most beautiful cities on the globe. Russian is the official language of the state. The national symbols of the Russian Federation are a white-blue-red banner and a double-headed eagle.

At present, the political and economic situation in the country is rather complicated. There are a lot of problems in the national economy of the Russian Federation. The in­dustrial production is decreasing. The prices are constantly rising, the rate of inflation is very high. People are losing their jobs because many factories and plants are going bank­rupt.

The Russian Federation is a constitutional republic headed by the President. The country government consists of three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. The President controls only the executive branch of power -the government, but not the Supreme Court and Federal Assembly.

The legislative power belongs to the Federal Assembly comprising two chambers: the Council of Federation (upper Chamber) and the State Duma (lower Chamber). Each chamber is headed by the Speaker. The executive power belongs to the government (the Cabinet of Ministers) headed by the Prime Minister. The judicial power belongs to the system of Courts comprising the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court and federal | courts. Our country has a multiparty system.

The foreign policy of the Russian Federation is that of international cooperation, peace and friendship with all nations irrespective of their political and social systems.

Vocabulary

 

to border on – граничить с

highlands – горные возвышенности

desert – пустыня

the Urals – Уральские горы

the Caucasus – Кавказ

moderate – умеренный

ore – руда

ferrous and non-ferrous metals – чёрные и цветные металлы

banner – знамя, флаг

legislative – законодательный

executive – исполнительный

judicial – судебный

Federal Assembly – Федеральное Собрание

the Council of Federation – Совет Федерации

Supreme Court – Верховный суд

foreign policy – международная политика

irrespective of – независимо от

 

Exercise 2. Answer the following questions:

1. Is Russia the largest country in the world?

2. What oceans wash the borders of the Russian Federa­tion?

3. How many countries have borders with Russia?

4. Are Russian flora and fauna various?

5. What are the highest mountains in Russia?

6. What is Baikal famous for?

7. What is the climate in Russia like?

8. What is the national symbol of Russia?

9. What can you say about the Russian economy?

10. What does the Federal Assembly consist of?

11.Who is the head of each Chamber of the Federal Assembly?

 

Exercise 3. Insert the prepositions:

 

1. The country is washed … 12 seas.

2. … the south Russia borders … China and Mongolia.

3. It also has a sea – border … the USA.

4. The Urals separates Europe … Asia.

5. The Volga flows … the Caspian sea.

6. The Yenisei and the Lena flow … the south … the north.

7. Russia is rich … beautiful lakes.

8. If you look down you can count the stones … the bottom.

9. There are various types … climate: … arctic … subtropical.

10. The Russian Federation is headed … the President.

11. The country government consists … three branches.

12. The legislative power belongs … the Federal Assembly.

 

Exercise 4. Ask the questions to the underlined words:

1. Russia covers the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia.

2. The Russian Federation borders on Finland, China, Korea.

3. The largest mountain chain, the Urals separates Europe from Asia.

4. Russian forests are concentrated in the European north of the country.

5. The legislative power in Russia is exercised by the Duma.

6. The Russian Federation produces machines, airplanes, ships, TV sets, refrigerators and other things.

7. The depth of Lake Baikal is 1600 metres.

8 In the middle of the country the climate is continental.

9. The President controls only the executive branch.

10. The population of the country is over 140 million people.

Exercise 5. Put the verbs in brackets into the right form:

1. I (to be) a citizen of the Russian Federation.

2. The Russian Federation (to occupy) about one seventh of the Earth surface.

3. The Russian Federation (to border) on fourteen countries.

4. It (to have) a sea –border with the USA.

5. The highest mountains in our land (to be) the Altai, the Urals, the Caucasus.

6. Our country (to have) a multiparty system.

7. The Black sea (to be) a very popular place for people who (to prefer) to spend their holidays at the seaside.

8. As for me, I (to visit) a lot of places in my country.

 

Exercise 6. Translate into English:

1. Общая площадь Российской Федерации составляет более 17 миллионов километров.

2. В мире нет стран с такой разнообразной флорой и фауной.

3. Озеро Байкал — самое глубокое озеро на земном шаре.

4. На территории Российской Федерации 11 часовых поясов.

5. Россия является конституционной республикой, с президентом во главе.

6. Законодательная власть принадлежит Федерально­му Собранию, состоящему из двух палат.

7. Президент контролирует только исполнительную ветвь власти.

 

Exercise 7. Read and translate the text “Moscow”: Moscow

Moscow was founded in 1147 by the prince Yuri Dolgoruky. Moscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the capital of Moscow region. It stands on the banks of the Moskva River. More than nine million people live in the city. Moscow is the economic, political and cultural centre of Russia. Railways and numerous airlines link the city with all parts of Russia. Moscow Canal, the Moskva River, and Volga-Don Canal link Moscow with the Baltic Sea, the White Sea, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea and the Sea of Azov.

Moscow covers the area of about 880 square kilometres.

The Kremlin has the shape of a triangle with one side along the north bank of the Moskva River. A stone wall, up to 21 metres in height with 19 towers, surrounds this triangular complex of former palaces, cathedrals, and other monuments. The Great Kremlin Palace, completed in 1849, is the most impressive structure inside the Kremlin. Other famous Kremlin palaces are the Grano-vitaya Palace (built in 1491) and the Terem (built in 1636).

Among many cathedrals, now used mainly as museums, are the Cathedral of the Assumption (Успения) and the Archangel Cathedral, each with five gilded domes, and the Cathedral of the Annunciation (Благовещения) (built in 13th-14th century), with nine gilded domes. The bell tower of Ivan the Great has the height of 98 metres. On a nearby pedestal is the Tsar Bell (nearly 200 tons), one of the largest in the world. A recent addition to the Kremlin is the Palace of Congresses, completed in 1961.

St. Basil's Cathedral, a masterpiece of Russian architecture with coloured domes, stands at one end of Red Square and at the other end there is Historical Museum.

Other points of interest in Moscow include the Central Lenin Stadium, comprising about 130 buildings for various sports and the tall Ostankino TV tower, which contains a revolving restaurant and an observation platform. Moscow has a modern railway underground system (Metro) famous for its marble-walled stations.

Moscow is a scientific and cultural center with a lot of institutes, universities, libraries and museums. The city leads a vast cultural life. It has a lot of cinemas, clubs, concert halls, more than 40 drama and musical theatres, including the Bolshoi Theatre, the Art Theatre, the Maly Theatre, the Vakhtangov Theatre.

Muscovites are proud of their museums: the Tretyakov Art Gallery, the A. S. Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts and the State Historical Museum. Crowds of people visit Tretyakov Gallery to see beautiful pictures of Russian painters.

There are a lot of big plants and factories in Moscow. Among the products are aircraft, high-quality steel, ball bearings, cars and other motor vehicles, machine tools, electrical equipment, precision instruments, radios, chemicals, textiles, shoes, paper, furniture. Food processing, printing, and the repair of rail equipment are important industries.

Vocabulary:

prince – князь

bank – брег (реки)

cathedral – кафедральный собор

masterpiece – шедевр

palace – дворец

fortress – крепость

bell tower – колокольня

dome – купол

crowd – толпа

marble – мрамор

vast – обширный

 

printing – печатание, печать

machine tool – станок

precision instruments – точные приборы

repair – ремонт

observation – наблюдение

rail – рельс, железнодорожный путь

ball bearing – шарикоподшипник

processing – обработка

furniture – мебель

 

Exercise 8. Answer the following questions:

1. When was Moscow founded?

2. Who founded Moscow?

3. Where is Moscow located?

4. Is Moscow a port city?

5. What is Moscow Metro famous for?

6. What are the places of interest in Moscow?

7. Why the Kremlin is the most important place of inter­est for tourists?

8. What cathedrals are situated inside the Kremlin?

9. What is Palace of Congresses used for at present time?

 

Exercise 9. Translate the following sentences into English:

1. Старинные церкви, соборы и монастыри привлекают тысячи туристов со всего света.

2. Москва знаменита своими художественными музеями, в которых размещаются уникальные коллекции произведений русских и зарубежных художников.

3. Башни Кремля были построены для украшения, когда Москва перестала быть крепостью.

4. В соборах Кремля короновали и хоронили (bury) царей и императоров.

5. Соборы и колокольня Ивана Великого были построены между 15 и 17 веками.

6. Сначала Москва была посёлком (settlement), позже город был укреплён (to be fortified) и стал торговым центром.

7. Москва – промышленный и торговый центр, местонахождение правительства Российской федерации.

8. Официальная дата основания Москвы – 1147 год.

Lesson 4. The Astrakhan region / Астраханская область

I. Read the words:

region	sturgeon
south	enterprise
major	unique
junction	hydrogen
the Caspian Sea	entrepreneurship
Kazakhstan	lyceum
Central Asia	affiliate
Northern Caucasus	mosque
Iran	church
neighboring	masterpiece
climatic	bio-sphere preserve
semi-desert	environmental
ambient	research
temperature	deposit
nationality	gypsum
foreign	ceramzites
primarily

 

II. Read the text.

The Astrakhan Region

The Astrakhan Region is located in the South-West part of Russia in the lower reaches of the Volga River and the North coast of the Caspian Sea. In the west the Region borders on the Kalmykia republic, in the north on the Volgograd region, in the east on the republic of Kazakhstan, in the south it is washed by the waters of the Caspian Sea. Its area is 44,1 thousand square kilometres.

The Region has 11 administrative Areas. There are 5 cities and towns, 13 townships and 140 rural settlements in the Region.

Astrakhan is a city in southern Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan region. The city lies on two banks of the Volga River, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea at an altitude of 28 meters (92 ft) below sea level. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 520,339. It is a major industrial and cultural center, a sea and river port. It is also a major transport junction linking Russia, to Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Northern Caucasus and Iran (via the Caspian Sea).

Natural conditions of the Region are mainly determined by the joint influence of the Delta rivers and the Caspian Sea. A large number of sunny days during the year and the neighbouring steppes of Kalmykia and Kazakhstan make the climate of the Region continental despite the proximity of the sea. Three climatic zones can be singled out in the Region territory: zone of hot and dry semi-desert climate, zone of extremely dry and hot desert climate, zone of moderate intermediate climate in the Volga River delta. Astrakhan features a temperate continental "Aralian" semi-arid climate with cold winters and hot summers. Astrakhan is one of the driest cities in Europe. Rainfall is scarce but relatively evenly distributed throughout the course of the year with, however, more precipitation (58%) in the hot season (six hottest months of the year), which determines the "Aralian" type.

It is this even distribution of rainfall and the relatively low annual temperature that causes the city to fall under this climate category as opposed to an arid climate.

Winters tend to be cold in the city, though by Russian standards, Astrakhan features relatively balmy winters. Summers in the city can be hot, with high temperatures in excess of +40 °C (104 °F). The mean annual temperature amplitude (difference between the mean monthly temperatures of the hottest and coldest months) is thus equal to 29.2 °C (52.6 °F) (+25.6 °C (78.1 °F) in July and −3.6 °C (25.5 °F) in January), so the climate is truly continental (amplitudes superior or equal to 21 °C (38 °F) determines continental climates, while in semi-continental climates amplitudes vary between 18 °C (32 °F) and 21 °C (38 °F)). Spring and fall are basically transitional seasons between summer and winter. The summers are much hotter than found further west on similar parallels in Europe and worldwide for the 46th parallel.

The Astrakhan Region is a multinational one. There are over one million inhabitants including Russians, Kazakhs, Tatars and Ukrainians. Besides there are over 100 less numerous nationalities in the Region.

The Region’s economic development and foreign economic activities are primarily determined by the geographic situation and natural resources.

Large deposits of oil and gas, silica clays, construction materials such as gypsum, lime-stone, clays, ceramzites, silica sands, etc. are found in the Astrakhan Region territory.

In terms of fish resources and seafood, Astrakhan ranks high among Russian regions. It is also the major producer of sturgeon and caviar.

The Astrakhan Region is one of the most industrialized regions in Russia. There are many enterprises here. The most important of them are shipyards, ship-repairing plants, paper mill the gas processing complex which is about 80 km to the North of the city. The Astrakhan gas-condensate field is the largest in Europe. The gas has a high condensate content and it is unique as for its hydrogen sulfide content.

Fishing industry is also well developed in our Region. Tinned fish famous delicious caviar, smoked and dried fish find many other fish products are produced at the fish processing plants.

Our Region is famous for its vegetables growing. The Astrakhan fresh tomatoes and water-melons are well-known for their taste while their tinned products are in great demand in our country.

Astrakhan is a city of high cultural level. Shaliapin and Sobinov were singing in its theatres. Famous Russian singers – Maksakova, Barsova, Petrov; Milashkina were born here..Astrakhan had one of the first Russian universities which helped the development of scientific activities in the Region.

Nowadays Astrakhan is an educational centre. At present the education and training system is reoriented for the new situation in the social sphere. Specialized study groups arc formed and operate at schools and institutions of further education for training in the basics of entrepreneurship, business and management. In the vocational training system schools arc reorganized as Lyceums and polytechnic colleges. There are five institutions of higher learning, two affiliate, of such institutions, one affiliate of die Volgograd Academy of Management,, two non-state institutions of higher learning a 31 research institutes operating in the Astrakhan Region.

The Astrakhan Region is a promising area for tourism and recreation.

There are many places of interest in Astrakhan, for example, a wonderful Kremlin, an architectural monument of the 16-th century, a lot of churches, monastery and mosque ensembles, civic buildings with very interesting architectural designs. Five museums of various specializations (local nature, history and economy, historical, devoted to famous people) are located here.

The Astrakhan Kustodiev picture gallery is one of the oldest galleries in Russia. Now it has a unique collection which includes masterpieces by famous Russian artists, such as Levitan, Nesterov, Korovin, Rerikh, Serov and other famous painters. There is also a large collection of works by the "Russian avant-garde artists, such well-know names Kandinsky, Malevich and Shagal.

The Astrakhan Region has favourable conditions for rest and recreation.

It is necessary to mention the Astrakhan state bio-sphere preserve, located in the Volga River delta. It is a center of international environmental tourism and a major research, institution At present there are about 50 preserve zones in the Region protected hy the State, which are used от can be used for organizing bird-watching, fishing and hunting tours.