Why not ride a bike or take a train?

Joke

During an examination before Christmas one of the students did not know how to answer the question, “What causes a depression?” - so he wrote: “God knows! I don't. Merry Christmas!”

When the examination paper came back, the student saw that the professor had written on his paper: “God gets 100, you get zero. Happy New Year!”

to get 100 - получить самую высокую оценку

zero - самая низкая оценка

3. My Flat

We live in a new 16-storeyed block of flats in Strogino. It’s situated in a very picturesque place not far from the Moskva River. There’s a big supermarket on the ground floor and it’s very convenient to do every day shopping.

Our flat is on the fifth floor. It’s very comfortable and well-planned. We have all modern conveniences, such as central heating, electricity, gas, cold andhot running water and a tele­phone. There are three rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom and a hall in our flat. There's also a balcony and we can enjoy a lovely view of the river.

The largest room in our flat is the living room and we use it as a dining room and as a sitting room. In the middle of the room there is a big table and six chairs round it. Opposite the window there is a wall unit with lots of books, a TV-set and a videocassette recorder. There are two comfortable armchairs and a small coffee table in the right-hand corner. There is also a sofa and an electric fire inour living room. We like the li­ving room best of all, because in the evenings we gather there to have tea, watch TV, talk and rest.

My room is the smallest room in our flat, but it isverycosy and light. There is a bed, a wardrobe, a desk, an armchair and several bookshelves in my room. There is a thick carpet on the floor. The walls in my room are light-brown and there are some big posters on them. I like my room very much, but from time to time I change it round. I quite often move the bed and change the posters on the wall.

Our kitchen is large and light. It is very well equipped. We have got a refrigerator, a freezer, a microwave oven, a coffeemaker and a toaster. We haven’t got a dishwasher yet, because it is very expensive. But I’m sure we shall buy it in the nearest future.

Exercises:

I. Complete the following sentences using the text:

1) There are… in the right-hand corner.

2) Our smallest room is very…

3) I have a flat in a new…

4) There are… rooms in my flat.

5) We have… in our kitchen.

6) … because in the evenings we gather there.

7) I like… very much, but from time to time…

8) … there is a wall unit.

9) We have no dishwasher, because…

10) My flat is very…

II. Give English equivalents for the following words and use them in the sentences of your own:

а) 16-ти этажный, многоквартирный дом, первый этаж, удобный, современные удобства, центральное отопление, электричество, водопровод, жилая комната, кухня, столовая, гостиная, стенка (мебельная), левый угол, уютный;

б) не далеко от, больше всего, время от времени, довольно часто, в ближайшем будущем, быть уверенным, вид на…, быть расположенным.

III. Translate into English:

1) Я живу в 15 (10, 8, 5, 1) -этажном доме.
Я живу в многоквартирном доме.

2) Я живу недалеко от Иртыша, но далеко от центра города. (The centre of the city (Br.); Downtown (Am.)).

3) Мой дом расположен в живописном месте.

4) Я живу на первом (2, 5, 9) этаже.

5) Моя квартира очень комфортабельная и хорошо спланирована.

6) У нас в квартире есть все современные удобства.

7) У нас есть электричество, газ, водопровод, центральное отопление.

8) Наша квартира состоит из кухни, прихожей, ванной комнаты, жилой комнаты и двух спален.

9) У нас в квартире есть столовая, гостиная и спальня.

10) Напротив окна находится журнальный столик и два кресла.

11) В правом углу жилой комнаты расположен удобный диван.

12) По воскресеньям мы собираемся в нашей столовой, чтобы поужинать вместе. (to have supper)

13) Моя комната самая маленькая, и я время от времени делаю в ней перестановку.

14) Наша кухня очень удобная и хорошо оборудована.

IV. Give equivalents to the following sentences using the text:

1) I live in a new five-storeyed block of flats.

2) My house is situated not far from the market, so it's very convenient to do shopping.

3) There is a lovely view of the river from my window.

4) We have not all modern conveniences: there is electricity, gas, central heating and no telephone in our flat.

5) We often use our living room as a sitting room and as a dining room.

V. Answer the questions:

1) What house do you live in?

2) Where is it situated?

3) What is situated not far from your house?

4) Is there a shop on the ground floor?

5) What floor is your flat on?

6) What modern conveniences have you?

7) How many rooms does your flat consist of?

8) Have you a balcony? What view is there from your balcony (window)?

9) What are the largest and the smallest rooms in your flat?

10) What is there in the left-hand corner of your living room?

11) What is there in the right-hand corner of your bedroom?

12) What is there in your bedroom?

13) Do you change your room round quite often?

14) Is your kitchen well-equipped?

15) What is there in your kitchen?

VI. a) Study the following words:

– 1 –

attic   

['xtIk]

мансарда

balcony         

['bxlkqnI]

балкон

bathroom      

['bRTrum]

ванная

bedroom       

['bedrum]

спальня

lounge

[launG]

гостиная, комната для отдыха

block 

[blOk]

квартал, жилищный массив

ceiling           

['sJlIN]

потолок

chimney        

['CimnI]

труба (печная)

entrance hall

['entr(q)ns'hLl]

прихожая

flat/apartment (Am.)           

[flxt], [q'pRtmqnt]

квартира

floor  

[flL]

пол

garage

['gxrRZ]

гараж

home 

['hqum]

дом, домашний очаг

hostel

['hOst(q)l]

общежитие

house 

['haus]

дом, жилище, здание

lift/elevator (Am.)   

[lIft], ['elIveItq]

лифт

one-room flat           

 

однокомнатная квартира

radio  

['reIdIqu]

радио

roof    

[rHf]

крыша

sewerage       

['sjHqrIG]

канализация

staircase        

['stFqkeIs]

лестница

study 

['stAdI]

кабинет

telephone      

['telIfqun]

телефон

toilet  

['tOIlIt]

туалет

TV-set           

['tJvJset]

телевизор

wall    

['wLl]

стена

– 2 –

bookcase      

['bukkeIs]

книжный шкаф

carpet

['kRpIt]

ковер

chest of drawers

['Cestqv'drLz]

комод

cooker           

['kukq]

плита, печь

cooking things

 

принадлежности для приготовления пищи

cupboard      

['kApqd]

шкаф для посуды

curtain           

['kWtn]

штора, занавеска

cushion         

['kuS(q)n]

диванная подушка

desk   

 

письменный стол, парта

dining table  

 

обеденный стол

double bed   

['dAblbed]

двуспальная кровать

drawer           

[drL]

ящик (выдвижной)

dressing table

['dresIN]

туалетный столик

furniture       

['fWnICq]

мебель

gas-stove      

['gxsstquv]

газовая плита

kitchen-unit 

['kICIn]

кухонный гарнитур

lamp-stand   

['lxmpstxnd]

торшер

mirror

['mIrq]

зеркало

night table    

 

тумбочка

ornament      

['Lnqmqnt]

украшение

padded stool

['pxdId]

пуфик

picture           

['pIkCq]

картина

pillow

['pIlqu]

подушка

shelf (shelves)

[Self], [Selvz]

полка (полки)

shower          

['Sauq]

душ

sink    

 

раковина

sofa-bed        

['squfq]

диван-кровать

stool  

 

табурет

tape-recorder

 

магнитофон

three-leaved mirror

['lJvd]

трельяж

video-cassette recorder

['vIdIqu]

видеомагнитофон

wardrobe      

['wLdrqub]

шкаф для одежды

washing machine

 

стиральная машина

writing table 

 

письменный стол

– 3 –

antique          

[xn'tJk]

антикварный

cheap 

[CJp]

дешевый

clean  

[klJn]

чистый

expensive     

[Iks'pensIv]

дорогой

high   

[haI]

высокий

long   

[lON]

длинный

low     

[lqu]

низкий

modern          

['mLdqn]

современный

narrow           

['nxrqu]

узкий

nicely-furnished

['naIslI'fWnISt]

прекрасно обставленный

old-fashioned

 

старомодный

short  

 

короткий

tidy    

 

опрятный

well-equipped

 

хорошо оборудованный

wide   

[waId]

широкий

– 4 –

at        

у

next to           

рядом с

in front of     

перед

on the right (left)

справа (слева)

in the corner 

в углу

opposite        

напротив

in the middle of

в середине

over, above  

над

near   

около

under 

под

   b) Translate the sentences using the words from this exercise:

1) У моей бабушки двухкомнатная квартира в новом квартале. 2) Он живет в студенческом общежитии. 3) Его кабинет хорошо оборудован, в нем современная удобная мебель. 4) В углу нашей спальни стоит большой книжный шкаф, а напротив него – письменный стол. 5) В центре нашей гостиной стоит широкий обеденный стол. 6) У нас в спальне над туалетным столиком висит красивое антикварное зеркало. 7) На полу в жилой комнате у нас дорогой ковер. 8) У окна стоит письменный стол и табурет.

VII. Ask each other about your flats. Begin your questions in the following way:

- How many rooms…?

- What is there…?

- What have you…?

- Is there…?

- Have you…?

- Are there…?

- Where is…?

 

VIII. Describe the room on the picture.

 

1. kitchen

6. dressing table

2. table

7. chest of drawers

3. bed

8. carpet

4. armchair

9. curtains

5. wardrobe

 

 

IX. Read the dialogues and find English equivalents for the following word-combinations:

свой собственный дом; снимать квартиру; хозяйка дома или квартиры, сдаваемых внаем; квартирная плата; кондиционирование; выходить на (об окнах); высотный дом; частный дом.

– 1 –

- I’m glad to meet you, Mr. Denissov. I’d like to make friends with you. Please put down my address. I’ll be happy to receive a letter from you.

- And you must write down mine. I’ll gladly correspond with you.

- Robert W. Scott, 16, East Street, Salisbury ['sOlzbqrI], England.

- Thank you, Mr. Scott. Now put down my address. Andrei P. Denissov, House 15, Flat 80, Matrossov Street, Tambov, Russia. If you write the address in Russian, you’ll have to change the order of names.

- Thank you very much. Well, I know that. I’ll send you a postcard as soon as I return to Britain.

– 2 –

- I’m sorry, Mr. Scott, but when you gave your address you failed to mention the number of your flat. What is it?

- That’s right. I didn’t mention because I haven’t got one. I live in a small house.

- I see. Is it your own house or do you rent it?

- I have a house of my own. I inherited it from my parents.

– 3 –

- I say, Harry, have you got a home of your own or do you rent a flat?

- I rent a room from a landlady.

- Is your rent high?

- Very high. Rents in Britain keep going up. I have to move from one district to another searching for lower rents.

– 4 –

- What kind of home do you live in, Mr. Denissov?

- I live in a four-room flat with all the modern conveniences including air-conditioning. Two of the rooms overlook the river.

- Is your apartment as Americans say in a tall block?

- Yes, I live in a new multistoried block of flats of experimental design.

- You Russian people are progressing pretty fast in housing construction. I say this as a civil engineer. Travelling over your country I saw thousands of nice-looking private houses cropping up around big towns and industrial centres.

- Yes, I for one am also building a country summer house on a river, a dacha as Russians say.

X. Make up special questions to the sentences:

1) My address is: House 56, Flat 71, Lenin Street, Omsk, Russia. 2) I rent a house from a private landlord. 3) I live in London. 4) I live in flat 52. 5) I have a four-room flat in a new block.

XI. Answer the questions:

1) What town (city) do you live in? 2) Do you live in the student hostel or at home? 3) Does your family rent a flat or do you have a home of your own? 4) What is your address? 5) Is the flat you have good for your family? 6) Do you live in a private house? 7) What can you say about the living conditions of Russian students? 8) What can you say about the rent in Britain? 9) What can you say about the housing problems in Russian? 10) What can you say about the privatisation of flats and houses in our country?

XII. a) Read the advertisements and describe the flats to let.

To Let

A separate flat facing the river on the second floor, central heating, hot water, a bathroom, a big kitchen, a spacious living-room with three large windows, a bedroom. All the rooms are furnished and in perfect order. The landlady is middle-aged, friendly, kind, always willing to help. The rent is $100 a month.

A separate room on the fifth floor for a single man, with furniture and a separate bathroom. There is a desk, three chairs, a sofa, a TV-set and a bookcase. The telephone is in the hall. There is no lift. The room is small but warm and cosy. The rent is only $50 a month.

   b) Imagine that you are a landlord (landlady), make up your own advertisement about the flat (room) you rent.

XIII. Make up dialogues on the following situations:

- You want to correspond with your friend, so you have to exchange your addresses.

- You want to know as much as possible about the home of your friend who lives in a student hostel.

- You are discussing the living conditions of your friend who lives in a modern block of flats.

XIV. Describe your own flat or the house you live in.

XV. Translate and discuss the following texts:

A. The majority of the British population live in small houses built close together. A typical house of this kind is built with two floors. The front door, which faces the street, opens into a hall with two rooms, one on each side of the hall. One of them is the dining-room the other may be called the sitting-room or the living-room. The most modern name for this room is the lounge.

The rooms upstairs are bedrooms; they are often very small. Often the dining-room is the most comfortable room in the house, and the one that is used all the time. The other members of the family bring their hobbies and games to the table.

Very many houses of this type were built in British cities in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Today the land on which they stand has become very valuable and the owners either sell it, or pull down the old houses and build large blocks of flats. In this way the owners make more money.

Many British people give their suburban house a name, such as the Cedars, the Poplars, the Rhubarb Cottage, even though there are no trees or vegetables in their gardens. People of high social position have country houses with names, so a house with a name seems “better” than a house with a number. Numbers make the postman’s work much easier, but this is not important.

B. My friend spent a day in an English family. This is what she wrote to me about her visit.

“… Before coming to England, I had read that the English were not very hospitable. A well-known proverb says that an Englishman’s house is his castle. So you understand I                                                                                                   

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   brighter and more organised.

The house itself is a two-storeyed brick structure with lots of flowers in front of the main door. On the ground floor they have a dining-room, a lounge and a kitchen. The French window of the lounge opens into a green lawn. The lawn is extremely smooth. As Paddy explained, it had taken the English many centuries to make their lawns look so beautiful. On the first floor there are their bedrooms, a library and a room for guests, which is very often occupied. On both floors there are bathrooms and lavatories. I want to emphasize that the house is not big, the lounge being the largest.

I had a marvellous time in this family! They all were so friendly and well-disposed towards me that soon I began to feel at home. With such hospitable and sociable people as the Weldings, the time passed very quickly. In the evening they took me for a drink to the local pub. The pub I’ve been to occupies the ground floor of an average two-storeyed house. It consists of several rooms that are furnished by comfortable arm-chairs and small tables. In the corner of one of the rooms there’s a colour TV-set. In fact, the pub is the place where you can just sit and have a glass of beer and have a chat with your friend.

I enjoyed my visit to an English family. And I think there were tears in the women’s eyes when we were saying good-bye. But on the other hand, they did not ask me to come once more or to give them my home address; they did not give me their address either. So I still wonder if the Englishman’s house is his castle.

4. My Working Day

I am a first-year student of the Siberian Automobile and Highway Academy. Not long ago I finished school. In July I took my entrance examinations, passed them well and was admitted. My dream has come true and I am happy.

As a rule, on weekdays the alarm-clock wakes me up at 6.30 and my working day begins. I'm not an early riser, that's why it's very difficult for me to get out of bed, especially in win­ter. I air the room, switch on my tape-recorder and do my morning exercises to music. Then I go to the bathroom, take a warm shower, brush my teeth and shave. After that I go to my bedroom to get dressed.

Usually my mother makes breakfast for me. But when she is away on business or just doesn't have to get up early I make breakfast myself. While having breakfast I listen to the latest news on the radio.

I leave the house at about 7.30 and go to the nearest bus stop. I usually walk to the Institute. It takes me half an hour to get there. But sometimes when I get up later than usual I go to the Institute by bus. On my way I read a book or a newspaper.

My classes begin at 8.20 and I arrive at the Institute at 8 sharp. I usually have three or four lectures. During the break I go to the canteen and have lunch. For the first course I some­times take milk soup. For the second course I take roast or ste­wed meet or beefsteak with mashed potatoes. For sweet I always take a cup of coffee.

The classes are over at 13.05. Occasionally I have to stay at the Institute till 5 o'clock. So, by the end of the week I get very tired. All I can do on Sundays is to sleep till 11 o'clock, watch TV, listen to the music and read books.

And I still always look forward to my next working day because I like to study. I think I get a lot of useful experience.

Exercises:

I. Read the words:

Siberian

alarm-clock

course

riser

Automobile

soup

tape-recorder      

roast

Highway

arrive

bathroom           

stewed

July

entrance

shower             

admitted

beefsteak

passed

hour

come

occasionally

tired

lecture

rule

break

forward

useful

 

II. Complete the following sentences:

1) In July… 2) The alarm-clock… 3) It's difficult… 4) In the morning I… 5) I do my morning exercises… 6) I sometimes… myself. 7) While… I listen to… 8) At about 7.30 I… 9) It… to get to the Institute. 10) I go to the Institute… 11) … I read. 12) At 8.20… 13) During the break… 14) At 13.05… 15) By the end of the week…

III. Give English equivalents for the following words and use them in the sentences or situations of your own:

среди недели, готовить завтрак, вставать (просы­па­ться), завтракать, будить, под музыку, обедать, приходить в, добираться автобусом, по дороге, на первое, на третье, оставаться в, до 5-ти часов, мне приходится, с нетерпе­нием дожидаться, заканчиваться.

IV. Make up sentences:

1) am, an, riser, a, as, I, not, early, rule.

2) to, takes, dressed, five, it, set, me, minutes.

3) days, early, always, get, working, I, on, my, up.

4) Academy, go, the, by, to, usually, tram, I.

5) at, I, at, to, arrive, the, minutes, five, Academy, nine, usually.

6) I, a, to, up, as, have, early, get, rule, very.

7) very, on, I, tired, weekdays, got, usually.

8) to, I, my, look, day, always, working, forward.

9) at, my, are, one, over, half, usually, classes, past.

V. Make up sentences:

A.

I

get up

at 11:00.

 

My mother

gets up

at 11:30.

 

My brother

go to bed

at 9:45.

 

My father

goes to bed

at 7:40.

 

You

 

at 7:15.

 

B.

 

me

 

the plant.

 

 

him

 

the Academy.

 

It takes

her

half an hour to get to

the canteen.

 

 

us

 

the factory.

 

 

you

 

the library.

 

 

them

 

the cinema.

 

C.

 

him

 

the plant?

 

 

her

 

the Institute?

 

How long does it take

us

to get to

the library?

 

 

you

 

the factory?

 

 

them

 

the centre of the city?

 

 

D.

Answer the questions:

How long does it take you

to get out of bed?

to brush your teeth?

to get dressed?

to have breakfast?

 

 

to get to the Institute?

 

 

to have lunch?

 

 

to have supper?

 

 

to get ready for your English classes?

VI. Translate the sentences:

1) По воскресеньям я обычно встаю рано утром.

2) Среди недели мои родители будят меня в 6:30.

3) Мне трудно готовить завтрак самому.

4) Мне трудно делать зарядку, особенно рано утром.

5) Когда я ужинаю, я слушаю музыку.

6) Мне приходится обедать в институте.

7) Когда я завтракаю, я смотрю телевизор.

8) Когда мой отец ужинает, он читает газеты.

9) На дорогу в институт у меня уходит 30 минут (1,5 часа, 1 час).

10) Я добираюсь до института на автобусе.

11) Мне приходится добираться до института на троллейбусе.

12) Я обычно остаюсь в институте до 3-х часов.

13) Сегодня мне придется остаться в институте до 5-ти часов.

14) Я с нетерпением дожидаюсь выходных.

VII. Answer the questions:

1)         When do you get up on weekdays?

2) When does the alarm-clock wake you up?

3) Are you an early riser?

4) Do you do your morning exercises every day?

5) Do you take a cold shower in the morning?

6) Who makes breakfast for you?

7) Do you read newspapers (listen to the radio; watch TV) while having breakfast?

8) What do you do after breakfast?

9) Is your house far from the Institute?

10) When do you leave the house for the Institute?

11) How do you usually get to the Institute?

12) How long does it take you to get there?

13) What do you usually do on your way to the Institute?

14) When do your classes begin?

15) When do you arrive at the Institute?

16) What do you usually do during the break?

17) When are your classes over?

18) How long do you have to stay at the Institute?

19) When do you come home from the Institute?

20) What do you do when you come home from the Institute?

21) Do you get tired by the end of your working day?

22) What do you do in the evenings?

23) When do you go to bed on weekdays?

24) What do you do on Sundays?

25) Do you look forward to your next working day?

VIII. Read the supplementary words and word combinations:

regularly

регулярно

weekend

выходной

day off

выходной

to get used (to)

привыкать

to cope with

справляться

to comb one’s hair

расчесывать волосы

to wash one’s face and hands with soap

мыть лицо и руки с мылом

to brush one's teeth with a toothpaste

чистить зубы зубной пастой

to make a bed

застилать постель

to take a bus number…

садиться на автобус номер…

to go on foot (to walk)

идти пешком

to rest (to have a rest)

отдыхать (немного отдохнуть)

to be short of time

быть ограниченным во времени

(I'm short of time.)

(У меня нет времени.)

to do shopping

делать покупки

to be late for

опаздывать на

to do the room (flat)

убирать комнату (квартиру)

to do one's homework

делать домашнее задание

to have a good time

хорошо провести время

to fall asleep

заснуть

IX. Answer the questions using the word-combinations from the previous exercise:

1) Do you regularly do your morning exercises?

2) Do you wash your face and hands with soap in the morning?

3) How many times a day do you clean your teeth with a tooth­paste?

4) Who usually makes your bed?

5) How long does it take you to comb your hair in the morning?

6) Are you always short of time in the mornings? Why?

7) Do you go to the Institute on foot?

8) What bus do you usually take to get to the Institute?

9) Are you always (sometimes, never) late for your classes?

10) Do you cope with all the subjects at the Institute?

11) Who does shopping in your family?

12) Who usually does your room (flat)?

13) When did you fall asleep yesterday?

14) Do you have a good time on weekends?

15) What do you always (sometimes, never) do on your days off?

X. a) British and American people speak the same language – right? Wrong. Although they both speak English, there are a lot of differences between the two varieties of English. Here are two descriptions of one and the same day, but written in British and American English. Read these texts and try to notice differences between them.

A. (Great Britain).

I got up at half past seven. After my bath I had breakfast with my parents on the terrace. Our flat is on the fifteenth floor, so the view is terrific. At eight o'clock my mum and I took the lift to the car park under our block of flats. First we stopped for petrol, and then she drove me to school. The motor­ way was very busy - cars everywhere.

School was OK, except that we had a maths exam before break. I think I failed it. Anyway, after school I took a bus to the city centre to meet my sister, Susan. She became a primary school teacher after she left university. We went out for dinner to a Chinese restaurant. I ordered chips. After sweet and coffee we left. It was raining and the pavements were wet. At home I did some history homework for the next day, watched a film on the TV and went to bed at about half past eleven. I was very tired.

Vocabulary:

terrace

['tFrqs]

терраса

view

[vjH]

вид

block of flats

 

многоквартирный дом

petrol

['pFtrql]

бензин

motorway

['mqutqweI]

шоссе

except

[Ik'sFpt]

за исключением

Chinese restaurant

[CaI'nJz 'rFstqrON]

китайский ресторан

pavement

['peIvmqnt]

тротуар

fail

[feIl]

проваливать (экзамен)

Susan

['sjHzn]

Сьюзен

primary

['praImqrI]

начальный

wet

[wFt]

мокрый

В. (The USA). Read this text without dictionary.

I got up at seven-thirty. After my bath I ate breakfast with my parents on the deck. Our apartment is on the sixteenth floor, so the view is terrific. At eight o'clock my mom and I took the elevator to the parking lot underneath our apartment block. First we stopped for gas, and then she drove me to school. The free­way was very busy - automobiles everywhere.

School was OK except that we had a math test before recess. I think I flunked it. Anyway, after school I took a bus down­town to meet my sister, Susan. She became a grade school teacher after she left college. We ate out at a Chinese restaurant. I ordered french-fries. After dessert and coffee we left. It was raining and the sidewalks were wet. At home I did a history assignment for the next day, watched a movie on TV and went to bed around eleven-thirty. I was pooped.

Be careful while reading the following words:

apartment

[q'pRtmqnt]

elevator

['elIveItq]

underneath

[Andq'nJT]

recess

[rI'sFs]

flunk

[flANk]

dessert

[dI'zWt]

assignment

[q'saInmqnt]

movie

['mHvI]

   b) Now copy the table into your notebook and fill it in:

 

British English

American English

1. половина восьмого

2. завтракать

З. терраса

4. 16-тый этаж

5. лифт

6. стоянка, место стоянки

7. бензин

8. шоссе

9. автомобиль

10. большая перемена

11. начальная школа

12. университет

13. центр города

14. тротуар

15. на третье

16. домашняя работа

17. кино (фильм)

18. около половины двенадцатого

 

 

XII. Speak on your own working day.

5. Environmental Protection

Ecological problems are among the greatest facing the world today. Ways of resolving them are sought by many countries and by the world community as a whole.

Nowadays numerous sciences join together to regulate the interrelations between man and nature. Man uses natural resour­ces as the material for his creative work, and nature itself as his workshop. But he will cease to be HOMO SAPIENS if he doesn't think about the consequences that may be brought by his trans­forming activities.

While creating machines and technologies, which save time and effort, people “consume” mountains and forests, overuse water resources, let myriads of factory stacks contaminate the atmosphere. Technological progress can often overstep the line when it becomes an enemy of the natural resources.

Billions of tons of raw materials are processed by the world’s industries every year. Millions of tons of smoke and dust are discharged every year into the atmosphere. One of the most significant changes in the earth’s atmosphere is that, which began with the industrial revolution in the last century. Industry demanded coal and oil, and we began to burn lots of it, so raising the level of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the air. Today the concentration of CO₂ is increasing rapidly each year. The scien­tists state that high levels of CO₂ will lead to the greenhouse effect slowly warming the earth’s climate.

Air pollution has been going at a fast rate. The smokes dis­charged by factories are carried by winds hundreds and thou­sands of km. away from industrial areas. On contacting atmosphe­ric moisture, compounds of sulphur and nitrogen turn into acid. Acid rains affect open-air plants, small animals, the amount of fish, the quality of forests, etc.

The heaviest impact has been on the world ocean and inland water bodies, such as lakes and rivers. Water pollution is a se­rious problem at the present time, as fast-growing cities dis­charge increasing amount of factory effluents into rivers. Be­cause of extensive extraction of oil, the world ocean is getting heavily polluted.

The world’s forests, which maintain the air and water balance on the planet, are also at risk. Tropical forests, account for 60 per cent of the world forests. The rate of the tropical timber production has already gone to 20 hectares per minute. At such speed vast territories of forests may even disappear soon.

Industrial waste gets into the soil of underneath large cities.

All these factors affect human health. A rapid spreading of diseases and growing number of cancer deaths are the consequences of environment pollution.

                                                                                                                                                  

                                                               

                                                                                                                                                   

The rapid growth of towns, traffic and population also influence the pollution of air, water, soils and vegetation. These impacts are felt at a distance some 40-50 times greater than the city radius. The usage of motorcars is also harmful from the point of view of air pollution.

Among numerous ways of solving the ecological problems are the purification of industrial effluents and the development of low-waste, waste-free and resource-saving technologies.

Nuclear power can be an alternative to solid fuels, but lots of people are against the nuclear power engineering, especially after the Chernobyl accident in 1986.

Nowadays motor vehicles are being equipped with special devices to neutralize engine fumes. Industrial enterprises undergo ecolo­gical inspection. Trees are being planted in the cities.

Environmental protection is an important question in the state policies of all countries in the world. But one should remember that the world's ecological balance depends on every person par­ticularly. Each of us must take a greater responsibility for our environment.

Notes:

homo sapiens (лат.)

 

человек разумный

carbon dioxide

['kRbqn daI'OksaId]

углекислый газ

greenhouse effect

['grJnhaus]

парниковый эффект

sulphur

['sAlfq]

сера

nitrogen

['naItrqGqn]

азот

acid

['xsId]

кислота

waste

[weIst]

отходы

device

[dI'vaIs]

механизм, устройство

waste-free

['weIst frJ]

безотходный

Exercises:

I. Read the following words:

community

carbon dioxide

resources

hectare

natural

moisture

myriads

diseases

creative

acid

contaminate

environment

consequence

pollution

raw material

vehicle

machine

effluents

discharge

neutralize

technology

supply

atmosphere

purification

II. Complete the sentences:

1) Millions of tons of smoke… 2) One of the most signifi­cant changes in the atmosphere is… 3) … lead to the greenhouse effect. 4) Acid rains affect… 5) Because of extensive extraction of oil… 6) … has gone to 20 hectares per minute. 7) … influence the pollution of air, water and soils. 8) … are the main ways of solving ecological problems.

III. Find equivalents for the following word-combinations and use them in the sentences of your own:

регулировать взаимоотношения, последствия, экономить время, истощать ресурсы, выбрасывать в атмосферу, потепление климата, загрязнение воды, понижаться до 1/3, быть в опасности, здоровье человека, быть против, защита окружающей среды.

IV. Read the following passages and formulate their main ideas:

1. The term ecology was coined in 1866 by the German biologist Ernst Haeckel from two ancient Greek words: óikos (house, dwelling) and logos (science). Today, the term has been extended to denote a complex of science dealing above all with the interrelations between man and nature. Early in the beginning of the 20^th century, Russian scientist Vladimir Vernadsky (1863-1945) pioneered work on the problems of optimizing relations between society and nature. It was largely to his work that the concept of man’s absolute domination of nature has given way to that of relations between equal part­ners.

2. One of the most famous lakes in Russia is Lake Baikal. It's the world's deepest freshwater lake. The volume of its water body is about 23,000 cubic kilometres. Lake Baikal is approximately 25 million years old. It is entered by 336 rivers. The wildlife of Lake Baikal is diverse – there are over 1,200 animal and 600 plant species in the area. That's why in '80s the whole country became involved in the debates on the future of Lake Baikal. There was a need for a compromise between the economic and the environmental interests. So, the territory surrounding the lake was given the status of reserve. From 1988 on, no commer­cial tree-felling has been permitted there. The timber-produ­cing industries in the area have been reorganized to maintain and reproduce stock.

3. The Caspian Sea is unique in its natural features and commercial importance. It yields 90 per cent of the world's catch of sturgeon. But the water reserves of the Caspian Sea are being overused. The indiscriminate industrial utilization of the ri­vers run-off and extensive irrigation programmes have reached a critical point. The sea is reported to "self-cure", but there occurred a natural rise of the water level only to 27.9 m below ocean level – still, to preserve the unique stock of sturgeon fish, the Caspian Sea level should not be below 28.5m.

4. Four-fifths of Russia's forest reserves are in Siberia and the Far East. The fact that the Siberian forests are not inex­haustible has not been fully realized. The best forest lands located in the southern parts of the region and adjacent to the Trans-Siberian railway have been substantially cleared. In the past 40 years these forests have lost nearly 40 per cent of pine stock and most of their cedar.

5. There is a great diversity of wildlife in Russia. The country has about 100,000 species of plants and up to 130,000 spe­cies of animals. Human interference has had a considerable impact upon the abundance and composition of wildlife: some spe­cies became extinct, or decreased in number. Information on the rare species can be found in the Red Data Book.

V. Answer the questions using the information from the previous exercises:

1) What does the term ecology mean?

3) What is Lake Baikal famous for?

3) What do you know about the problems concerning the Caspian Sea?

4) What is the Red Data Book necessary for?

5) Why is the problem of forest protection important nowadays?

VI. Translate and render the article (magazine “The Economist”, May 30, 1992).

Nature is no respecter of national bound­aries. Across those dotted lines on the globe, winds blow, rivers flow and migrating species walk or fly.
The dotted lines may carve up the earth, but the sea and the atmosphere remain open to all, to cherish or plunder. When people in one country harm that bit of the environment they assume to be theirs, many others may suffer, too.

Such problems pose new issues for diplomats and economists. Reaching agreement often means resolving conflicting goals and priorities. Even among countries of similar wealth, environmental goals may differ: think of the rows with Iceland and Japan over whaling, or the reluctance of Britain to curb sulphur dioxide from power stations.

International agreement is the best way to solve environmental problems that transcend national borders. These are of three main kinds. First, neigh­bouring countries may share part of the environ­ment: a river such as the Rhine or the Jordan, a stretch of water such as the Mediterranean or the Great Lakes. Regional problems – acid rain is one example – fall into this category. Second, some environmental resources, such as the atmosphere, the oceans and Antarctica, are shared by the whole planet. The build-up of climate-changing green­house gases, the thinning of the ozone layer and the killing of whales fall into this group. Lastly, some environmental assets clearly belong to individual countries, but their future may affect others, in either material or (more often) spiritual and emo­tional ways. The disappearance of coral reefs or ele­phants may not show up as more than a microscopic blip on gross world product, but it gives people in many countries a sense of loss.

The best way to protect wildlife is by international agreement. Wildlife protection was, indeed, the goals of some of the earliest environmental treaties. Under a treaty of 1911, Japan and Britain (on be­half of Canada) agreed to stop pelagic sealing. In exchange, they were guaranteed a share of the seals killed by the other two countries at their island breeding-grounds. The arrangement was a success. Having fallen to about 300,000 in 1911, seal numbers recovered to over 2m by the 1950s.

T                                                                                                                                                                        

                                                                                                                                             

                                                                                                                                                                                              

   b) Look at more vocabulary from the text in the box below. Ask other people in your class for the meanings of the words you don’t know. Then look up the words in a dictionary. How do you pronounce the words? Which words have more than one meaning?

adolescent

a school (of whales)

the coast

to sizzle

rubbish

to swallow

hot dogs

to splash

clumsy

 

   c) Read the beginning and the end of a story entitled The Great Whale’s Mistake. In groups, invent a possible storyline.

A mother whale and a father whale were swimming along the coast with their adolescent son whale when the mother saw a school of people on the beach…

 

…The young whale was so excited by this news that he spout­ed, and the people on the shore saw it and cried, ‘Whales!’ and somebody threw a beer bottle at them. The whales made for the deep distant water and later that night as they drifted off the Gulf Stream admiring the stars a large ship passed by and spilled oil over them, but they remained at peace with the world as it was, and afterwards dreamed of the unfortu­nate people far behind them making rubbish through the sweet summer night.

   d) Read the whole story once quickly and try to summarize it in one sentence.

The Great Whale’s Mistake

A mother whale and a father whale were swimming along the coast with their adolescent son whale when the mother saw a school of people on the beach.

‘What’s that?’ asked the son whale, who had never seen a school of people before, or even a person on his own.

‘People, son,’ said the father whale. ‘You see them all up and down this coast at this time of year. They cover them­selves with oil and lie up there on the sand and boil them­selves until they sizzle.’

‘But they’re such little things,’ said the son whale. I’ll bet I could swallow one whole and have him live in my stomach’.

His mother said she would not want her stomach filled with anything that had been boiled in oil and had sand all over it. As well as that, she said, it would be very unhealthy because they were filled with smoke and hot dogs.

‘What do people do?’ asked they young whale.

‘They sit on the beach and stare at the ocean,’ the father whale said. ‘And they eat hot dogs.’

The mother whale said that they also walked in the ocean now and again for a short time and splashed around in such a clumsy manner that the fish had to get out of their way.

‘They seem to be useless,’ said the son whale. ‘Why did the Great Whale make people anyway?’

‘Son,’ said me father whale, ‘no creature in the Great Whale’s universe exists without a purpose. If the Great Whale made people it was for a good reason.’

‘Maybe people are the Great Whale’s way of keeping down the hot dog population,’ the young whale suggested.

‘There are some things,’ said the mother whale, ‘that even whales can’t understand. We must accept the world as it is and live at peace with it.’

The father whale drew their attention to a small group of people who had moved away from the school and were get­ting into a metal box on wheels. When they were all inside the metal box moved along the beach, throwing up a great cloud of sand and destroying vegetation and birds’ nests.

‘What are they doing now?’ asked the son whale.

‘Making rubbish,’ said the father whale. ‘People make al­most all the rubbish in the world and they use those little moving boxes to do it.’

He showed his son the dark gases which came out of the box.

‘And inside the box,’ he said, ‘they are also preparing more rubbish.’

At that moment six beer cans came flying out of the box, followed by a bag containing a half-eaten hot dog, a mustard jar, some banana peel and an empty plastic body-oil container.

‘Maybe that’s the reason the Great Whale made people,’ said the young whale. ‘To make rubbish.’

‘The world doesn’t need rubbish,’ growled the father whale.

‘Now, now,’ said the mother whale, who was always un­easy when religion was mentioned, ‘we must accept the world as it is and learn to live at peace with it.’

‘Sometimes,’ said the father whale, ‘I think the Great Whale doesn’t know what he’s doing.’

‘Your father has been very sensitive about rubbish,’ the mother whale explained, ‘ever since he dived into 800 tons of fresh sludge which had been dumped off the coast. He smelled disgusting for weeks.’

The young whale was so excited by this news that he spout­ed, and the people on the shore saw it and cried, ‘Whales!’ and somebody threw a beer bottle at them. The whales made for the deep distant water and later that night as they drifted off the Gulf Stream admiring the stars a large ship passed by and spilled oil over them, but they remained at peace with the world as it was, and afterwards dreamed of the unfortu­nate people far behind them making rubbish through the sweet summer night.

(The Great Whale’s Mistake by Russell Baker)

   e) Look at the definitions below and match them to words from the last two paragraphs of the story.

i) n a measurement of weight equal in Britain to 2,240 pounds.

ii) n 1 thick mud. 2 the product of waste (sewage) treatment.

iii) v to drop or unload (something) in a heap or carelessly.

iv) v to throw or come out in a forceful stream.

   f) Read the story more carefully and answer the following questions.

1) Why do you think the whales refer to a ‘school’ of people?

2) Why are people useless, according to the young whale?

3) Why do people exist, according to the young whale?

4) What do you think the ‘Great Whale’ is?

5) What is the mother’s view of the world?

6) What do you think the ‘metal box on wheels’ is?

   g) Discuss the following.

1) What is the ‘Great Whale’s Mistake’?

2) How does the writer make us feel sympathetic to the whales?

3) How would you respond to the whales’ criticism of the people?

4) Find any examples of humour in the text.

 

VIII. Imagine you are a “Green Peace” member. Study carefully the following real “Green Peace” member letter and some statistics, prepare three TV presentations and act them before your group mates:

   a) In defence of world forests.

February 28, 2001

Dear Friends:

The Brazilian congress is now voting on a project that will reduce the Amazon forest to 50% of its size. This letter will take 1 min to read. Please put your names on the list below and forward this on.

The area to be deforested is 4 times the size of Portugal and would be mainly used for agriculture and pastures for livestock. All the wood is to be sold to international markets in the form of wood chips, by multinational companies. The truth is that the soil in the Amazon forest is useless without the forest itself. Its quality is very acidic and the region is prone to constant floods. At this time more than 160,000 square kilometers deforested with the same purpose are abandoned and in the process of becoming deserts. Deforestation (and the subsequent processing of the woodchips) on this scale will also release a huge amount of carbon (which is currently locked up in the wood) back into the atmosphere worsening the problem of climate change.

We cannot let this happen. Copy the text into a new e-mail, put your complete name in the list below, and send to everyone you know. If you are the 300^th person to sign please send a copy to: [e-mail].

Thank you.

For as the days of a tree,
so will be the days of my people…[Isaiah 65:22][39]

- The total area of the planet's forests is 4 billion hectares.

- One hectare of forests generates enough oxygen for 200 people to breathe.

- It has been calculated that a quarter of the world population breathes the oxygen generated by Russian forests.

- The world softwood reserves are 100 billion m³, while the total timber reserves are estimated at 300 billion m³.

- Every person utilizes an average of 100 m³ of wood during a life-span.

   b) Against car expansion.

Your car is killing the Earth:

The car is an ecological disaster. It is now the world’s number one polluter. From the beginning to the end of its life, one car produces an enormous quantity of pollution.

The production of one car results in 1,500 kilos of waste, and 75 million m³ of polluted air.

During its life one car produces:

44.3 tonnes of carbon dioxide;        

325 kg of carbon monoxide;

4.8 kg of sulphur dioxide;      

36 kg of hydrocarbons;

46.8 kg of nitrogen dioxide;   

29 kg of various chemicals

from the tyres and brakes
(an average car over a period of ten years).

When you throw the car away, many dangerous metals (like cadmium) and other chemicals pollute the earth.

The building of roads, motorways and car parks produces a large quantity of pollution. It is impossible to estimate how much.

The statistics above are for one car. There are now approximately 500 million cars on Earth. So multiply all these numbers by 500 million. That gives, for example, more than 22 billion tones of CO₂ in ten years!