Welcome to the University of Arizona library

 

Ø 1) Find the words that belong to the topic “a library” in the text.

Like many modern academic libraries, the University of Arizona Library has open stacks. This means that patrons may choose the books directly from the shelves. There are more than eighty professional librarians and staff members to assist patrons in making the best possible use of the library resources.

Since its beginning in 1891, when a few hundred books were housed in one room in Old Main, the library system has grown to over 3,000,000 items, including books, periodicals, microforms, maps, government publications, manuscripts, and non-book media. The University of Arizona Library is one of the approximately one hundred distinguished libraries which comprise the Association of Research Libraries. The library holdings cover all subject fields, and there are especially strong collections in anthropology, geology, Spanish and Latin American language and literature, American agriculture, Southwestern Americana, Arizoniana, history of science, and 18^th and 19^th century British and American literature. The University Library is also a member of the Center for Research Libraries, which vastly increases the resources available to faculty and students.

In January of 1977, the new Main Library on the Corner of Cherry Avenue and University Boulevard was opened. A pleasant, spacious, and comfortable building, it occupies almost 300,000 square feet and has seatings for 1,700 persons. There are special lounge areas, group study rooms, viewing rooms, and individual study carrels conveniently located throughout the building.

In the Main Library you will find the Central Reference Department and the Main Card Catalog; the Interlibrary Loan; the Current Periodicals and Newspapers Room; the Microforms Room; the Map Collection; the Media Center; Government Documents Department; Special Collections; the Technical Services Division; and the Library Administrative Offices.

The Science-Engineering Library, to the west of the Main Library, contains all materials on science and technology. The Oriental Studies Collection is on the 5^th floor of the Science-Engineering Library.

In addition to the Main and Science-Engineering Libraries, the University of Arizona Library system also includes the following branches: the Music Collection, the Center for Creative Photography, and the Library Science Collection. The Library’s resources exist primarily to support the teaching and research needs of the University Community; however, all of its collections are available for use by the general public.

Ø 2) Shorten the text on the University of Arizona Library.

Ø 3) Compare the library facilities provided by the University of Arizona Library and by the Karelian Branch of the North-West Academy of Public Administration in Petrozavodsk.

 

A HOMELY FACE

Ø 1) Read the text and translate the third paragraph of the text in writing.

(1) Can an eighty-year-old washerwoman become a famous model? Most definitely. The entire na­tion of France has fallen in love with La Mere Denis, who describes herself as a “fat old wo­man.” Her wrinkled, almost toothless counte­nance smiles out at the French citizenry from every TV set and magazine. This homely face appears on billboards, subway posters, and even on the backs of buses. All over France, the face of La Mere Denis can be found in ads.

(2) What product does she advertise? A washing machine, that’s what! Who could better tell of the virtues and wonders of a modern washing machine than a woman who has washed clothes for decades? The ads state that a person should have the same confidence in the machine that one used to have in the old washerwoman. These ads have helped to skyrocket sales of the com­pany’s washing machine.

(3) To show its appreciation for the contribution La Mere Denis has made to its sales, the washing machine company offered her the bonus of a new washing machine. This offer was politely refused. The reason? La Mere Denis said, “I wouldn’t know how to work it. Even if I did, the nearest water is in the stream I wash my clothes in. What would be the sense?”

 

Ø 2) Choose the correct answer:

a) La Mere Denis was an unusual model because she (liked to wash her own clothes; was seen on TV from time to time; didn’t make any money; was old and unattractive).

b) This selection is set in (England; America; French Canada; France).

c) La Mere Denis is an old washerwoman who advertises (soap and bleach; clean clothes; a washing machine; TV sets).

d) This story is mainly about (how to wash your clothes; the advertising industry and TV; an old washerwoman who made good as a model;. how to buy a washing machine in France).

e) In this text, which is NOT mentioned as a place to find the old washerwoman? (on the stage; on billboards; on television; in magazines).

f) You can guess that La Mere Denis is not a wealthy woman because (she doesn’t have a bank account; she knows how to wash her clothes; her home doesn’t have running water; she likes to smile a lot).

g) The word “countenance” refers to the woman’s (income; clothes; face; hard-working hands).

h) La Mere Denis didn’t want a new washing machine because (she liked her old one; she was retired from washing; she didn’t know how to use it; she didn’t have a dryer).

 

A helpful directory

Ø 1) What helpful directories do you know?

If you happen to live in Des Moines, Iowa, you can pick up a telephone and, for the price of a local call, reach the Des Moines Area Council for International Understanding. What would this do for you? You can learn how to say any word you want in Russian, Swahili, Urdu, or almost any other language in the world.

This is made possible through the council’s up-to-date directory of people in the Des Moines area who can read, write, or speak a foreign lan­guage. These people are willing to act as inter­preters and translators. The directory lists the names and telephone numbers of these people, as well as the languages they speak.

Who would use such a directory? Lots of people. Suppose someone has a foreign vis­itor. The directory could help locate a person to act as a translator. Suppose you were a business person who needed someone to write a letter for you in another language. The directory would help. Perhaps you need information on a foreign coun­try for a school report. The directory might help you to find someone from that country who now lives in your area.

Recently someone called the Council and re­quested a literal translation. The person asked how to say “Blue Eyes” in Russian. Of what use was this little bit of information to the caller? The caller had just purchased a Siberian Husky and wanted to name the dog in its native language. Do you know how to say “Blue Eyes” in Russian?

Ø 2) Say if the following statements are correct.

a) Russian, Swahili and Urdu are places in the United States.

b) Des Moines is a city in Iowa.

c) A person who can tell you what someone is saying in a foreign language is called a foreigner.

d) The caller in this selection wanted to name a dog Siberia.

e) If you had a school report to write on India, an Indian person could help by telling you about his or her own country.

f) A directory contains information.

 

Roses

Ø 1) Before reading, try to guess if the text refers to roses as things to eat; gifts for loved ones; medicine and drinks; all of the above?

 

Have you eaten a rose lately? No? Have you ever thought of roses as being edible? Roses have long been used as food, drink, and medicine.

In ancient times, parts of the rose were used to treat diseases of the stomach and the liver. The Greeks believed that rose juice could cure someone bitten by a mad dog. For a sprained ankle, one might get a pint of wine boiled with rose petals, rather than an ice pack. For a sore throat, rose juice would be just what the doctor would order.

Rose petals were especially popular for those who wanted to avoid drunkenness. It was thought that slipping a few rose petals into an alcoholic drink would allow a person to drink without feeling side effects. Although some people actually believed this, it didn’t really work.

An ancient Roman chef named Apicius had delicious recipes for cooking roses. What would happen if you cooked with roses yourself and treated your family to a really different dinner? A little rose juice boiled in wine used to be con­sidered an excellent remedy for an upset stomach.

Roses really have been used in all these ways. However, most people today prefer the beauty of a rose to its taste. So, if you want to send something lovely to someone you love, pick a rose. If you are really sick or hurt, a doctor would be a wiser choice than a rose.

 

Ø 2) Say whether the following statements are true or false and justify your answer.

a) Recipes are party invitations.

b) The ancient Greeks used rose juice for bites from mad dogs because they believed in it.

c) The text suggests that an upset stomach was treated with rose juice boiled in wine.

d) This text is mainly about interesting drinks.

e) The last paragraph suggests that roses may not be the best medicine.

 

Ø 3) Give the definition of the following words: edible; to avoid; side effects; a remedy; to prefer.

 

The use of pesticides

Ø 1) Read and translate the second paragraph into Russian.

Ø 2) The text contains a number of words to describe the environmental impact of chemicals. How many can you find?

Ø 3) Tick the statements which are true:

a) Destructive insects can live on pesticides.

b) The Environmental Protection Agency has banned all pesticides.

c) To live, people need food and health.

d) If a pesticide is prohibited, it cannot be used.

e) If insects are not controlled, more food could be grown.

 

(1) Farmers, together with consultants from the United States Department of Agriculture, are continuously working to eliminate the presence of destructive insects, for the purpose of improving crop yields. To destroy the unwanted insects, chemical pesticides are often used. However, not all pesticides which are harmful to pests are harmless to other animals and people.

(2) The Department of Agriculture is not the only government agency concerned with the use of pesticides. It is the task of the Environmental Pro­tection Agency to determine if the pesticides now in use should continue to be used. Intensive re­search is necessary to study the effects – both short term and long term – that the various chem­ical pesticides have on humans and other as­pects of the environment.

(3) The Environmental Protection Agency has for­bidden the use of some pesticides, because evi­dence of harmful effects to human health and the environment have been found. One of the most widely used chemicals to be banned was DDT, the cumulative effects of which have proved to be extremely hazardous to desirable wildlife.

(4) Department of Agriculture officials, as well as farmers, fear that many additional pesticides may be prohibited. They fear a possible food shortage when destructive insects are able to multiply freely and destroy crops.

(5) Clearly, both food supply and human health are necessary. Therefore, it is essential to find substi­tutes for harmful pesticides. What is needed are substances that control pests without harming people. Finding suitable and safe measures to control destructive pests is not an easy task. Its importance, however, clearly adds up to a matter of life and death.

 

Ø 4) Which of the summaries renders the content of the article you have read the most adequately:

a) In order to improve crop yields it is necessary to eliminate the presence of destructive insects. Otherwise, there may be food shortage. Farmers started using different chemicals, e.g. DDT. Some of them are very harmful to health. It is therefore essential to find suitable but safe measures to control the use of pesticides.

b) This text is mainly about the Department of Agriculture. The Department is trying to introduce methods of controlling destructive insects. The Environmental Protection Agency works hand in hand with the Department of Agriculture and is working on methods to let farmers prosper.

 

The intruder in the salad

Ø 1) Paraphrase the heading using substitute words.

Ø 2) Read the text and say whether the following questions are covered in it:

a) What is most important in business?

b) Services to meet the client’s wishes.

c) Crime and punishment.

d) Types of restaurants.

 

Mr. Cohen of San Francisco went out one warm, summer evening. He decided to go to a restaurant to dine. He chose a seafood restau­rant with nautical decor and pleasant atmos­phere. He sat in a captain’s chair and ordered lobster with all the trimmings.

Soup and salad preceded the main course. After Mr. Cohen enjoyed his clam chowder, the waiter served him salad. As Mr. Cohen poured oil and vinegar on his salad, he noticed some­thing extra in the bowl of greens. At first he thought it might be part of an olive pit. Further examination indicated that it was a fly. He called the waiter and pointed out the intruder in the salad bowl. The waiter picked up the fly and threw it on the floor. He turned to the customer and told him to continue to eat the salad be­cause the fly was gone. Mr. Cohen was so angered by this behavior that he left the restau­rant without paying his bill.

Mr. Cohen was later arrested for “defrauding an innkeeper.” He then sued the restaurant and won. Three years later the restaurant had to pay him nearly $1,000 in damages. At the time of the incident, a fresh salad would certainly have been less costly.

 

Ø 3) A good word to describe the waiter would be: pleasant; efficient; courteous; rude.

 

Ø 4) Is the text information up-to-date or out-of-date?

Ø 5) What recommendation / instruction would you give to the waiter: call the police; make Mr. Cohen pay;tell the man to leave;bring a new salad? Give your own examples to the main ideas expressed in the text.

 

 

A British spy

 

Ø 1) Read the text and name the statements which are true.

a) Phoebe Fraunces was General Washington’s wife.

b) Something lethal can kill you.

c) Hickey’s punishment was eating poisoned peas.

d) Mortier House is located in Washington.

e) Ms. Fraunces was loyal to General Washington.

 

The American Revolution had numerous heroes and heroines who contributed to its ultimate success. In many cases, history books describe these individuals and their deeds inadequately, if at all. One such case is the story of Phoebe Fraunces, a young black woman who was a housekeeper for George Washington. Ms. Fraunces was in charge of the general’s New York headquarters, an establishment called Mortier House.

A British spy, Thomas Hickey, gained access to the American headquarters by posing as a desert­er. Hickey had it in mind to kill General Wash­ington by serving him poisoned peas.

Before carrying out his plan, Hickey happened to fall in love with Ms. Fraunces, and he made the strategic mistake of telling her what he intended to do. She quietly informed Washington that the peas were poisoned, as she set the plate in front of the general.

Washington reportedly tossed the peas out the window into the yard, and the lethal vegetables were eaten by chickens which then died. Hickey was caught. He gave a full confession and was hanged for his crime. An audience of 20,000 New Yorkers witnessed the spy’s final punishment.

 

Ø 2) Put the following events in the right order:

a) Washington tossed his peas away.

b) Hickey told Ms. Fraunces his plan.

c) Hickey was hanged for his crime

d) Chickens in the yard died.

e) Hickey poisoned the peas.

 

 

FLIGHTS AND FARES

Ø 1) Study the following words and guess what this text may be about. Read the article.

arrival – прибытие departure – вылет, отъезд fare – стоимость проезда flight – рейс passenger - пассажир

suburb – пригород total seat capacity – общее количество мест trip – путешествие, поездка, экскурсия to turn to – обратиться к

Aer Lingus. It operates four return flights daily to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris during the week. In total, it runs 26 flights per week, with a total seat capacity of 2,730. Weekday flights from Dublin leave at 7.55 am, 11.55 am, 4 pm and 6.25 pm. Aer Lingus flights from Paris leave at 8.55 am, 11.15 am, 3.15 pm and 7.25 pm. Aer Lingus has nine fares for tickets that include a Saturday night stay, ranging from £99 return to £219, depending on the flexibility that the passenger requires.

The lowest fully flexible same-day return available from Aer Lingus is £464, while the business class seat costs £499.

Public transport, bus and the underground rail are available from Charles de Gaulle Airport, while a taxi to the city centre will cost at least £20.

Ryanair. The operator has three return flights to Paris Beauvais every day. Flights leave Dublin at 7.05am, 1.55 pm and 5.40 pm and Paris Beauvais at 9.55 am, 4.45 pm and 8.30 pm. A same day return with Ryanair costs £149 but there is no refund if you cancel. For £199 you can get a refund if there is a cancellation. Ryanair leisure fares start at £50 return. Ryanair has a fixed price deal with the Ser’Cent Foxtrot taxi company of?40 for each additional passenger. If you want a cab back to Beauvais from Paris, you have to ring that particular company rather than simply flagging any taxi on the street.

With a return cab fare of £94 it would probably be cheaper to hire a car for the day – so long as you don’t mind braving Parisian traffic, you know where you are going and you don’t need to work on the way. Ryanair also operates a bus service from Beauvais to Paris which costs?40 one way.

City Jet. Leisure fares are priced at £99 and £318, though a Saturday overnight is mandatory. Its same-day return fares range from £324 to £499. City Jet’s new service to Paris has come about through a relationship with Air France’s weekend flights to Dublin/Paris.

City Jet flies to Air France’s terminal 2B at Charles de Gaulle Airport. Flights depart from Dublin at 7.30 am and 17.40 pm, arriving in Paris at 9.55 am and 20.05 pm (local time), and depart Paris at 11.10 am and 20.50 pm.

Charles de Gaulle is serviced by bus and the underground train service which can take you to the city centre or other destinations. Alternatively, a taxi service will take you to the city centre in about 20 minutes at a cost of?240.

Ø 2) Imagine you are a participant in the situations given below. Answer the questions in each situation.

a) You are to get from Dublin to Paris to attend a very important conference. You are short of time. It’s 3 pm now and the conference starts at 10am tomorrow. What operator will you turn to? What transport in Paris will you use to get to the place of destination in time?

b) Your family decided to spend a weekend in Paris to visit some museums. What operator will you choose? What will be the times of departure from Dublin and arrival to Paris? What kind of transport will you choose while in Paris? How much will the trip cost?

c) A famous Paris suburb is mentioned in one of the texts. What is it called? If you decide to go there by car, will you stop a taxi in the street or ring a taxi company? What does the author of the article recommend and why?

 

 

2.31 Pea-sized universe not so far-fetched

According to the latest theory, the entire universe may once have been the size of a pea before the Big Bang blew it apart. The theorist is Stephen Hawking.

Dick Ahlstromhas been trying to make sense of it.

 

Ø 1) Have you heard anything of the Big Bang theory (creation of the universe, the Earth or the Solar system)? Who is the author of this theory? Are you interested in such kind of questions as creation of the universe? Why?

Ø 2) Read the text and answer the questions:

a) What are the ancient ideas about the structure and functions of the universe?

b) What are the current theories of the universe?

c) Who put forward the theory of the pea-sized lump of matter which blew up in the Big Bang, thus creating the universe?

d) What is the essence of this theory?

e) What was the universe point of view of Ptolemy?

f) What were the views of Einstein?

g) Can Stephen Hawking and Neil Turok prove their theory on paper?

h) What are the practical steps to prove the theory of the Big Bang?

 

If you want to get down to real basics can you do any better than cosmology, the study of how the universe came to be? You could fiddle around with test tubes, explore human biochemistry or take a trip to the moon, but real scien­tists don’t fool around with this stuff, they try to solve the ultimate riddle - Why is there something rather than nothing?

For centuries this effort had been left in the hands of philoso­phers who gazed at the stars, and decided the sun revolved around the earth, carried on the back of a giant turtle which bathed itself each evening in the far western ocean where the water ran off the edge of the flat earth.

We are better informed now. Now we know that everything in our solar system, the Milky Way, and all the billions of gal­axies around us used to be con­densed into a pea-sized lump of matter that for no particular reason blew up in the Big Bang, thus creating the universe.

The cosmos as pea isn’t so far­fetched, however, Prof Stephen Hawking - reckoned to be the greatest mind since Albert Ein­stein - can prove mathemati­cally on paper why this could be so. The Cambridge don and author of A Brief History of Time has proposed this latest schema for the creation of the universe - known as Open In­flation - with Prof Neil Turok, who holds the chair of mathe­matical physics at Cambridge.

The theory offers everything from the creation of matter from kinetic energy through the for­mation of planets, stars and gal­axies and on to a universe that will most likely continue expanding forever, like a balloon that doesn’t know when to quit. Cosmologists such as Hawking or Turok can have all sorts of fun producing theories about how the universe came to be and one might sound crazier than the next except for one key point - you have to be able to prove what you say. As was pointed out by Dr William Reville in Monday’s Science Today column, theory after cosmological theory fell by the wayside as new astronomical proofs became available.

The view of Ptolemy, the an­cient Greek geographer, that the other planets, sun and stars revolved around the earth, held sway for 1,400 years until Co­pernicus and later Kepler, Galileo and Brahe delivered ob­servations and mathematical models that proved the theory wrong. The latest Hawking/Turok attack is a continuation of this ongoing scientific process.

Often the pace of this evolu­tion is quickened by the intro­duction of new technology - the telescope, for example. Other times, it is an intuitive leap for­ward, as in this case, with the two mathematicians attempting to make observations of the uni­verse today gel with some theo­retical suppositions of how things might have been 12 to 15 billion years ago.

Their view is based on what might have happened just before the cataclysm that marked the birth of the cosmos. Current the­ories suggest that space and time began with the Big Bang - a discharge of energy beyond human comprehension. While time has counted out the seconds ever since, space has continued to expand like that balloon.

Einstein taught us matter can­not be created or destroyed, just changed back and forth between matter and energy. The stars, galaxies and all other matter condensed out of the Big Bang energy and began moving away from the starting point, carried forward by expanding space. We can observe this expansion today by looking for the change in wavelengths in infrared radia­tion from distant stars.

Hawking and Turok can show on paper, however, that the whole universe was started off by something that could be as small as a pea, suspended in a timeless void. Prof Mark Bailey, director of the Armagh Observatory, lik­ened it to a ball-bearing sitting at the top of a curve. At some stage the bearing began rolling, converting its potential energy into kinetic energy and then, abruptly - the Big Bang.

“Hawking has a solution to a set of equations that starts from a finite amount of matter and creates an infinite universe,” Prof Bailey explained. The equa­tions are also predicated and made possible on the assumption that gravity will never be enough to pull all of the matter in the universe back into a pre-Big Bang configuration. In other words, the universe will continue expanding forever to infinity.

Experimental realities provide a de­manding clockwork into which the new theory must integrate. The problem, Prof Bailey sug­gests, is that most people simply can’t comprehend the scale of the observable universe and so disregard its reality.

“What we see with our tele­scopes in fact is a real world. It is vast and insofar as we under­stand the laws of physics, all of these things are real and not just high-tech images on a screen.”

The mathematical mod­els told us that we should still be able to detect remnants of the microwave radiation given off by the Big Bang, at the moment the clock hands began their first sweep. This radiation was de­tected first in 1965 and then con­firmed by the СОВЕ satellite this decade.

Now an even more sensitive satellite, Planck, is to be launched in search of this radia­tion and similar satellites are on the way that will be able to scan backwards through time to the birth of the Cosmos. “It is remarkable that we now have at our fingertips the ability to come to conclusions about the creation of the universe,” Prof Bailey stated.

These satellites will deliver the latest and most comprehen­sive answer yet to the question, “What is the stars?”, that is, at least until the next theory sends the pea on its way to join the turtle.

Ø 3) Make up an outline of the text in writing.