From the History of Building

Man has always been a builder. The first houses in different countries of the world were made of wood. In other regions the most convenient building material was stone.

The ancient Egyptians erected temples, palaces. Having dried the bricks in the sun, they put up four walls, and above these they placed a flat roof. The roof was flat because there was very little rain in Egypt. Egyptian builders gave the world the column which has played an important part in the history of building. Most of the buildings of old times were based upon the column and beam method of construction.

The Greeks built a slanting roof because there was much rain in their country.

The Romans added the arch, thus increasing strength and beauty to their buildings.

Since the middle Ages, brickwork has been in constant use everywhere.

In our country architecture flourished for the first time in Kiev Russ. The churches of the time were strong buildings with thick walls and small windows.

During the last hundred years many new methods of building have been discovered. The use of precast concrete is a very advanced construction technique.

Nowadays houses are often built of complete concrete structural units which are factory-made and assembled on the spot.

 

since the middle ages – начиная со средних веков

a flat roof – плоская крыша

a slanting roof – покатая крыша

the column and beam method of construction – стоечно-балочный метод

строительства

an arch – арка

a brickwork – кирпичная кладка

precast concrete – сборный бетон

Задание № 11. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант

окончания.

Most of the buildings of old times were based upon …

a) concrete structural units

b) the use of steel

c) the column and beam method of construction

Задание№ 12. Перепишите вопросы к тексту и письменно ответьте на них.

1. Did ancient people use wood or bricks to build their houses?

2. What kinds of buildings did the ancient Egyptians erect?

3. What method of construction was used for most of the buildings of old times?

4. Why did the Greeks build a slanting roof?

5. What building materials are used nowadays?

 

Вариант № 2

Задание № 1. Выберите соответствующее местоимение. Перепишите и

переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. He took the child into (her, hers, his) arms.

2. (These, that, those) was a really nice meal. Thank you very much.

3. We enjoyed (myself, our, ourselves) at the dance.

4. This demand of (them, they, theirs) is quite ridiculous.

Задание № 2. Выберите нужный предлог after, of, for, with, at. Перепишите

и переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. He woke up … 8 o’clock.

2. They sent … a doctor.

3. He cared for and looked … his aging mother.

4. There is nothing wrong … him.

5. He is always careful … himself.

Задание№ 3. Закончите разделительные вопросы и перепишите их.

1. Wood is the most ancient structural material, …?

2. We use many building materials for bearing structures, …?

3. He will wait in the next room, …?

4. There isn’t any extinguishing valve in this system, …?

5. We haven’t known him since his childhood, …?

Задание № 4. Поставьте предложения с модальными глаголами в

прошедшем или будущем времени, используя слова, данные в скобках.

Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. She can play a few simple tunes on the piano (when she was a little girl).

2. They must go home alone (tomorrow).

3. I can translate this article (the next week).

Задание № 5. Выберите действительную или страдательную форму

глагола. Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. The news (will announce, will be announced) after dinner.

2. Our scientists (are examining, are being examined) a new spaceship.

3. The front door of his house (unlocked, was unlocked).

4. The secretary (has recently brought, has been recently brought) this letter.

Задание № 6. Переделайте предложения из действительного залога в

страдательный, сохраняя видовременную форму сказуемого. Напишите и

переведите полученные предложения на русский язык.

1. Tom and Harry were carrying our suitcases.

2. She found the envelope at last.

3. We use secondary materials for the interior finish.

4. Our architects have gained considerable creative achievements.

5. They will discuss your report next week.

Задание № 7. Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

Выпишите из каждого глагол – сказуемое и определите его видовременную

форму и залог. Напишите форму инфинитива глагола.

1. Stone has been used as a structural material since the earliest days.

2. Buses and taxis are given a special lane.

3. James was picking his way among the heaps of gravel.

4. Tom has just told me a good story.

5. We shall have finished all the housework by 6 o’clock this afternoon.

6. Materials which have been affected by the fire are non-combustible.

Задание № 8. Выберите нужную форму глагола. Перепишите и переведите

предложения на русский язык.

1. If we (clear) this forest, many animals (die).

2. He (become) a highly qualified specialist, if he (study) well.

3. If I (be) you, I (study) for the exams.

4. We (not be able) to live, if the trees (not make) oxygen.

Задание № 9. Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

Выпишите причастный (Absolute Participle Construction) или инфинитивный (Complex Object, Complex Subject) оборот и определите его тип.

1. The river Thames is known to divide the city into two parts.

2. He would like us to read this book.

3. The weather being fine, they went for a walk.

Задание№ 10. Перепишите и письменно переведите текст.

Fire and Water

The pages of history are full of conflagrations and disasters caused by fire.

The industrial revolution at the end of the nineteenth century resulted in higher economic efficiency; it also created greater fire risks and more damage from fire.

Another challenge in the fight against fire has been set by newly developed materials that decompose in a fire to products that pollute the environment. It shows the link between fire protection and environmental protection.

Automatic fire fighting with the use of sprinkler systems has been known since the middle of the nineteenth century. Henry S. Parmelee, American piano builder, had the pioneering idea which was to revolutionize fire protection. His invention, the automatic “Sprinkler System”, was taken up by the engineer Wilhelm Walther as early as 1884, and this led to the construction of the first system in Germany.

In order to protect the environment, fire protection specialists have set themselves the task of preventing or restricting the influence of contaminated extinguishing water.

The Micro Drop extinguishing process is a major step towards the optimum use of water as an extinguishing agent.

The breakthrough was achieved by transforming the extinguishing water into a fog-like cloud of droplets distributed in space.

 

contaminated – загрязненный

extinguishing – гасящий, тушащий

Micro Drop – микрокапельный

a sprinkler system – противопожарная система

Задание № 11. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант

окончания.

The industrial revolution at the end of the nineteenth century resulted in …

a) industrial fire protection laboratories

b) reducing the damage caused by fire

c) higher economic efficiency

Задание № 12. Перепишите вопросы к тексту и письменно ответьте на них.

1. What are the pages of history full of?

2. The industrial revolution at the end of the nineteenth century resulted in

reducing the damage caused by fire, didn’t it?

3. Who had the idea to revolutionize fire protection?

4. What is the major step towards the optimum use of water?

5. How is the extinguishing water transformed in the Micro Drop system?

 

 

Вариант № 3

Задание № 1. Выберите соответствующее местоимение. Перепишите и

переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. Some people are very nervous at (our; their; his) first driving lessons.

2. It can be funny to compare advertisements for cars with the reality of driving

(her, us, them).

3. (it, they, you) is known that different machines and mechanisms are being used

in road construction nowadays.

4. Russian engineers were the first (someone, anyone, ones) to construct granular

surfacing laid on a sand base.

Задание № 2. Выберите нужный предлог with, over, in, to, of. Перепишите и

переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. The M 25, the motorway around London was opened … 1986.

2. Winston Churchill described the car as the curse … the twentieth century.

3. Cities and towns all … the world have a traffic problem.

4. The electric car had success … American women in the early 1900s.

5. Many people have jobs that are related … cars.

Задание№ 3. Закончите разделительные вопросы и перепишите их.

1. Road building is one of the earliest arts known to mankind, …?

2. The strategic and commercial aims of the Roman Empire required the creation

of broad lines of communication, …?

3. One day soon we will hear about a traffic jam all the way round the M 25 in

both directions, …?

4. We do not have the technology to find a solution to the traffic problem, …?

5. The first road was simply a layer of logs and brushwood over marshland, …?

Задание № 4. Поставьте предложения с модальными глаголами в

прошедшем или будущем времени, используя слова, данные в скобках.

Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. The spring flood may lead to disintegration of the road (last year).

2. With the use of tamed pack animals for transport paths must be cleared to a

greater width and height (in the ancient times).

3. Road engineers can improve the road building operations (in future).

Задание № 5. Выберите действительную или страдательную форму

глагола. Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

1. New types of road construction (invented; were invented) by Thomas Telford and John Macadam.

2. Road jobs (demand, are demanded) the extensive transportation of large quantities of materials.

3. Every year thousands of kilometers of new highways (put, are put) into service.

4. Nowadays a great care (take, is taken) to the safety on roads.

Задание № 6. Переделайте предложения из действительного залога в

страдательный, сохраняя видовременную форму сказуемого. Напишите и

переведите полученные предложения на русский язык.

1. The Romans built a military road through some of the highest and wildest

country in England.

2. In the period of early human settlements people were gradually making

footpath.

3. The town of Delft in Holland has solved the traffic problems by encouraging

people to cycle.

4. They are building a tunnel to link the island with the mainland.

5. Urban highway construction inevitably causes disruption to traffic.

Задание № 7. Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

Выпишите из каждого глагол – сказуемое и определите его видовременную

форму и залог. Напишите форму инфинитива глагола.

1. By 2015, the number of cars on our roads will double.

2. Today people call the M 25 the biggest car park in Europe.

3. In both town and country, the greatest nuisance has always been caused to those

living, working and walking within the road’s noise zone.

4. The first artificially constructed roads were made in mountainous and forested

country.

5. The underpasses in Düsseldorf had been created attractive to pedestrians.

6. Cars are symbols of freedom, wealth and masculinity.

Задание № 8. Выберите нужную форму глагола. Перепишите и переведите

предложения на русский язык.

1. If trains … (carry) more people, the roads … (not/be) so crowded.

2. If Romans … (not/invade) Britain they … (not/build) their roads there.

3. If there … (be) more roads, there … (be) more cars to use them.

4. If you … (start) earlier, you … (not miss) the train yesterday.

Задание № 9. Перепишите и переведите предложения на русский язык.

Выпишите причастный (Absolute Participle Construction) или

инфинитивный (Complex Object, Complex Subject) оборот и определите его тип.

1. The federal road system is known to provide the drivers and passengers with

hotels and restaurants, service stations and repair shops.

2. In the second half of the 18th century a period of intensive road building began,

the rate of building being dependant upon the rate of development of industry and

commerce in various states.

3. The driver wanted the car to be filled up.

Задание№ 10. Перепишите и письменно переведите текст.