Improve Your Reading Skills

PART 1
Unit I
Pre-reading tasks
1. Look through the key words and expressions and guess what this text is
about:
smoking
to see no evil
tobacco
definite link ( )
to take timid measures
( )
to tax
bronchial troubles
cigarette advertising
harmful ()
lung cancer ()
to ban short-sighted policy ()
governments
cancer research
2. Think of and write down 5 questions the answers to which this text
might contain.
3. Now look through the text to see:
a) if your guess about the contents of the text was correct;
b) what questions can be answered. (Answer these questions).
1. If you smoke and you don't believe that there is a definite link
between smoking and bronchial troubles, heart disease and lung cancer, then
you are certainly () deceiving () yourself. Let us say
that you are suffering from a bad case of wishful thinking (
). Whenever the subject of smoking and health
is raised, the governments of most countries hear no evil, see no evil and smell
no evil. Admittedly ( ), a few governments have taken
timid measures. In Britain, for instance (), cigarette advertising has
been banned on television. The conscience (, ) of the nation
is appeased (), while the population continues to puff () its
way to a smoky, cancerous death. You don't have to look very far to find out
why the official reactions to medical findings have been so lukewarm
(). The answer is simply money.
2. Tobacco is a wonderful commodity () to tax. It's almost like a tax
on our daily bread. In tax revenue () alone the government of Britain
collects enough from smokers for its entire educational facilities

(). So while the authorities point out ever so discreetly that
smoking may, conceivably (), be harmful, it does not shout
too loudly about it. This is surely () the most short-sighted policy you
could imagine. While money is eagerly ( ) collected in vast
sums ( ) with one hand, it is paid out in increasingly vaster
sums with the other. Enormous amounts are spent on cancer research and on
efforts () to cure () people suffering from the disease.
Countless valuable lives are lost. In the long run, there is no doubt ()
that everybody would be much better-off if smoking were banned altogether.
3. Of course, we are not ready for such drastic () actions. But
if the governments of the world were honestly concerned about the welfare
() of their people, do you think they'd conduct aggressive
anti-smoking campaign? Far from it! The tobacco industry is allowed to spend
staggering () sums on advertising. Its advertising is as
insidious (, ) as it is dishonest. We are never shown pictures
of real smokers coughing up () their lungs early in the
morning. That would never do. The advertisements always depict virile
() clean-shaven young men. They suggest it is manly to
smoke, even positively healthy. Smoking is associated with the great open-air
life, beautiful girls, true love and togetherness. What utter nonsense (
)!
4. For a start governments could begin by banning all cigarette and
tobacco advertising and should then conduct anti-smoking advertising
campaigns of their own. Smoking should be banned in all public places like
theatres, cinemas and restaurants. Great efforts should be made to inform
young people especially of the dire () consequences ()
of taking up (, ) the habit. A horrific warning - say,
a picture of death's head - should be included in every packet of cigarettes that
is sold. As individuals we are certainly weak (), but if governments
acted honestly and courageously (), they could protect us from
ourselves.
Post-reading tasks
Read the text once again to fulfill the tasks to follow.
1. The text has no heading. Below you will find three possible versions.
Choose the one that suits best the information given in the text. Explain
your choice.
a) Anti-smoking campaigns.
b) Dreadful consequences of smoking.
c) Smoking! Is it really harmful?
(If none of the variants is good enough, in your opinion, suggest your own
heading.)
2. Choose the synonyms to the words given in italics according to the
context.
evil
commodity
to take up
welfare
a) badness
a) thing
a) to begin
a) well-being
b) wickedness
b) convenience
b) to raise up
b) prosperity
c) sin
c) product
c) to have
c) security
d) harm
d) purchase
d) to develop
d) happiness
3. Match questions with the paragraphs of the text. One question is

unnecessary.
1. In which paragraph does the author
a) argue that medical costs of lung cancer increase?
b) give examples of the erroneous belief that ones wishes are in accordance
with reality?
c) state that cigarette advertising does harm unseen and secretly?
d) prove that the population is not ready to inform young people of dreadful
consequences of smoking?
2. In which paragraph is the author of the opinion that governments should
conduct tough, courageous and fair anti-smoking policy?
4. Complete the following sentences. Your answers must be related to the
ideas contained in the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
There is a definite link .

Governments of most countries see .
Only a few governments take for example, .
Why the reaction of authorities is so lukewarm .
Authorities agree that smoking but .
People are not ready for .
The tobacco industry spends a lot .
But people are never shown on the contrary .
Among possible measures that governments can take are .
5. Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order to sum up the information
given in the text.
1. Only, a few governments have taken some measures aimed at decreasing
the number of smokers.
2. Tobacco brings a lot of money.
3. Smoking usually results in bronchial troubles, heart disease and lung cancer.
4. Nevertheless, a number of measures should be taken.
5. It can easily be explained.
6. For a start governments should ban all cigarette advertising, then smoking
should be banned in public places and young people should be informed
about harmful effects of smoking.
7. Instead of banning smoking altogether authorities discreetly point out that
smoking may be harmful.
8. Governments of most countries do not see, smell or hear any evil.
9. In most countries cigarette advertising is allowed.
6. Use the following outline and key words and expressions to speak about
the problem raised in the text.
1. Consequences of smoking (bronchial troubles, heart disease, lung cancer).
2. Governments reaction to smoking (to take timid measures, to see no evil,
lukewarm).
3. A wonderful commodity (tobacco, to tax, short-sighted policy, to spend
money on research, to cure people, to ban smoking altogether).
4. Measures to be taken (to ban, cigarette advertising/smoking, public places,
to warn about, dire consequences of smoking).
Unit II
Pre-reading tasks
about:
online shops
shopping
to get a refund
to be available
economical
convenient
safe
to find out
tips
sellers physical address
to ensure
total cost
to send cash
to save records of online transactions
might contain.
Love them or hate them, online shops are here to stay, and more and
more are appearing on the World Wide Web every day.
(1) . Online stores are usually available seven days a week, 24 hours a
day, and many consumers have Internet access both at work and at home.
With a click of a mouse, you can buy an airline ticket, book a hotel, send
flowers to a friend, or purchase your favorite fashions. But sizing up your
finds on the Internet is a little different from checking out items at the mall.
Shopping on the Internet can be economical, convenient, quick and no less
safe than shopping in a store or by mail. (2) .
Know who you're dealing with. Anyone can set up a shop online under
almost any name. Confirm the online seller's physical address and phone
number in case you have questions or problems. If you get an email or pop-up
message while you're browsing that asks for financial information, don't reply
or click on the link in the message. (3) .
Know exactly what you're buying. Read the seller's description of the
product closely, .especially the fine print.
Know what it will cost. (4) . Factor shipping and handling into the total
cost of the order. Do not send cash under any circumstances.
(5) . Can you return the item for a full refund if you're not satisfied? If
you return it, find out who pays the shipping costs or restocking fees, and
when you will receive your order.
Keep a paper trail. Print and save records of your online transactions,
including the product description and price, the online receipt, and copies of
every email you send or receive from the seller.
These tips should ensure that you will have a safe and easy shopping
experience. (6) . If you don't feel comfortable buying an item over the
Internet, or if you don't trust a website 100 per cent, then you may well be
right. Happy shopping!
Post-reading tasks
your choice.
a) Dont trust online shops 100%.
b) Economical shopping.
c) Shopping online.
context.
consumer
economical
available
refund
a) buyer
b) seller
c) supplier
d) visitor
a) careful
b) expensive
c) profitable
d) wasteful
a) obtainable b) at hand
c) handy
d) accessible
a) repayment b) money
c) compensation
d) another product of the same kind
3. a). Fill in the blanks in the text (1-3) using one of the suggested variants
(a-d). One variant is unnecessary.
a) Legitimate companies dont ask for this information via email.
b) By following the advice below, you can ensure that your shopping trip in
cyberspace is a successful one.
c) Dont email your financial information.
d) Shopping online offers lots of benefits that you wont find shopping in a
store or by mail.
3. b). Fill in the blanks in the text (4-6) using one of the suggested variants
(a-d). One variant is unnecessary.
a) However, as in all areas of life, its important to have faith in your

instincts.
b) Check out the terms of the deal, like refund policies and delivery dates.
c) Check the privacy policy.
d) Check out websites that offer price comparisons and then, compare
apples to apples.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Online shops are .

Any consumer can click a mouse and .
Shopping on the Internet is .
One should know: a) who he ., b) what , c) what .
It is important to save .
These pieces of advice will help .
If you are not sure .
given in the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Using the Internet for shopping is profitable and convenient.

Online shops are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
But one should know who he deals with.
People can use the Internet for booking and buying tickets, purchasing
goods, etc.
It is also important to understand what you are going to buy and read
attentively all the information about this product.
All these tips can result in safe and easy shopping.
You should know the total cost of the order and whether you can return
your purchase for a full refund if you dont like it.
It is recommended to save records of all online transactions.
6. Use the following outline to speak about shopping online.

1. Availability of online shops.
2. Advantages of online shopping.
3. Recommendations one should follow while doing his shopping online.
10
Unit III
Pre-reading tasks
about:
to vandalize
to intervene
to rebuke somebody
to call forth
to get facts wrong
to push ones luck
to become guardian of ones own community

to take minor law and order into ones hands
a sense of respect for authority
a lot of abuse
to be guilty of
to take ideas of active citizenship seriously
might contain.
1. Today how many of us seeing a group of 11- or 12-year-olds
vandalizing a phone box or picking on a younger child would actually
intervene? Yet if we dont, who will? Intervening would be an example of
active citizenship, in which citizens should become guardians of their own
communities. Instead of asking for more and more policemen, we should take
minor law and order into our own hands. Frankly, this strikes me as unrealistic
to the point of lunacy. In a highly disciplined society Japan, for instance
you might well get away with rebuking someone for antisocial behaviour. But
this is because the Japanese have a very highly developed sense of respect for
11
authority. I remember sitting in a subway train in Kyoto and noticing, to my

surprise, that a young man sitting opposite me had put his feet up on the seat
without removing his shoes. As a foreigner, and with limited Japanese, I did
not even think of rebuking him. But he caught my glance, obviously read my
unspoken thought, blushed and removed his feet. Try anything like this on the
London Underground and you might find that even an unspoken, but obvious,
thought will call forth a lot of abuse which has become such a notable feature
of our society.
2. We all have at the back of our minds the notion that we are entitled to
make a citizen's arrest. But I have never met anyone mad enough to try a
citizen's arrest and with good reason. If you get your facts wrong and jump
to a hasty conclusion that the man lying on the ground is the victim when he
actually started the fight, then you could be guilty of 'false arrest' and be held
responsible for it. Surely, there are times when we have to do something. The
French actually have a strict law that makes it a criminal offence if you fail to
assist someone in danger or distress.
3. In Cairo a few months ago, coming out of a restaurant, I was
approached by three ragged boys begging for money. They were obviously
just about to snatch my wallet and run off when two passers-by on oppose
sides of the street bellowed at them in a real fury, and sent them off their way.
I doubt this would happen in London. But in Cairo everyone smokes on trains
and buses, everyone drops masses of litter and everybody hates the police.
4. A few years ago an elderly, publicly spirited woman I know saw a wellbuilt mugger snatch a handbag from a girl on the Underground. She followed
him down the escalator, found him standing on a platform waiting for a train,
marched up to him and said: Young man, give me that handbag. He was so
startled that he meekly handed it over. Then she really did behave like an
active citizen: You will now come with me upstairs and we shall find a
policeman and he will arrest you. Maam, he replied, dont push your
luck. This is what I would say to anybody prepared to take these ideas of
active citizenship too seriously.
Post-reading tasks
your choice.
12
a) Dont push your luck!

b) Guardians of their own communities.
c) Intervene or go past?
context.
rebuking
meekly
abuse
hasty
distress
a) reproaching
a) obediently
a) misuse
a) quick
a) danger
b) beating
b) reluctantly
b) maltreatment
b) thoughtless
b) trouble
c) arresting
c) hastily
c) attack
c) prompt
c) pain
d) disgracing
d) patiently
d) swearing
d) fast
d) worry
3. Choose the best answer or statement.

1. Intervening is
a) an example of active citizenship.
b) pushing ones luck.
c) a notable feature of modern society.
2. How did the author react to the sight of the man on the train?
a) He asked him to take his feet off the seat.
b) He was embarrassed by the behaviour.
c) He didnt say anything.
3. The author thinks that
a) we should ask for more policemen.
b) active citizenship works well in Japan.
c) the idea of active citizenship is inappropriate in England.
4. In comparison with the French, the British are unlikely to intervene
because
a) they leave it to the police.
b) they dont want to.
c) there is no law to make them do so.
5. Which statement is closest to the authors opinion?
a) People in Cairo hate the police as much as the British.
b) People in Cairo are less organized but more likely to intervene.
c) People living in Cairo dont intervene if somebody is in danger or distress.
6. What does the author think about the action of the elderly woman?
13
a) It was foolish of her.

b) She taught the criminal a good lesson.
c) She expected too much.
given in the text.
1. But if you try anything like this in London, it will call forth a lot of abuse.
2. This idea is unrealistic because of a lot of abuse which has become a
notable characteristic of modern society.
3. It would never happen in London.
4. He handed it over but refused to go to the police.
5. One can try a citizens arrest, but if he gets facts wrong he can be guilty
of false arrest.
6. Intervening is an example of active citizenship.
7. In a highly developed society you can get away with scolding somebody
for antisocial behaviour.
8. An elderly woman saw a mugger snatch a handbag from a girl.
9. In Egypt I was approached by three boys who wanted to snatch my wallet.
10. She followed him and demanded to return it back.
11. Two passers-by intervened and sent them off their way.
5. Use the following words and word combinations to speak about the
problem raised in the text.
1. Citizens, to become guardians, community.
2. People, to take into ones hands, minor law, order.
3. Highly disciplined society, Japan, to get away with, to rebuke, antisocial
behaviour.
4. Japanese, a sense of respect for authority.
5. A young man, to put ones feet up, to catch ones glance, to blush, to
remove.
6. The London Underground, to call forth, abuse.
7. To make citizens arrest, to get facts wrong, to be guilty of, false arrest.
8. France, strict law, to fail to assist, in danger, a criminal offence.
9. An elderly woman, to behave, active citizen, to push ones luck.
14
Unit IV
Pre-reading tasks
about:
to get older
life expectancy
to alter diet
process of ageing
immune system
to live longer
genetic engineering
to reduce
number of calories
intake of vitamin E
to increase
to promote long life
to control
to function efficiently
might contain.
b) what questions can be answered. (Answer these questions)
1. People are getting older an obvious truth, isnt it? Everyone ages
with the passing of time. But there is another meaning to this unavoidable
fact. It is that peoples life expectancy is increasing and there are a growing
number of people in the world who live longer than ever before. In 1900 there
were between 10 and 17 million people aged 65 or older; they made up less
than 1% of the worlds population. Now there are about 345 million people in
this age group, constituting over 6% of the worlds population. Average life
expectancy has increased from 26 years 2,000 years ago, to 49 years at the
beginning of the twentieth century and to 76 years in many countries today.
The Japanese have the longest life expectancy, with women living to an
average age of 82.5 and men to 76.2.
15
2. However, despite the rise in average life expectancy, there does not
seem to have been an increase in maximum lifespan. In other words, more
people are living longer today than in the past, but the longest time that
anyone lives has not changed much over many centuries. The longest that a
human is known to have lived is 120 years; this figure compares with
maximum life expectancies of 150 years for a tortoise and three-and-a-half
years for a mouse. The age of 120 years seems to be a limit for human life.
The challenge for scientists is to raise this limit.
3. One way of increasing lifespan may be by means of genetic
engineering. Scientists have doubled the life of a certain type of fly from 25 to
50 days by using the flies that live the longest for breeding. It is thought that
the flies have over 100 genes which control the process of ageing. Humans
probably have more than 1,000 such genes. If some of these can be identified
and treated in some way, it may be feasible to delay the ageing process.
4. It may also be possible to increase lifespan by altering diet in various
ways. In experiments on rats and other animals, scientists have found that
reducing the number of calories taken in by the animals actually increases
their lifespan. Although this may seem strange, it is supported by the evidence
of a small group of people who lived in a specially-constructed environment in
order to see how people can adapt to living on another planet such as Mars.
These people grew their own food inside the place where they lived, but
because of problems with food production their diet was very restricted for
several months. Surprisingly, their blood pressure and cholesterol levels fell
and the immune systems of their bodies functioned more efficiently than
before. There is obviously a limit of the reduction of calorie intake and most
people would probably not be very happy restricting their diet in this way, but
scientists may discover a way of producing the effects of calorie restriction
without causing feelings of hunger!
5. Another way in which diet may promote long life is through the intake
of vitamin E. Scientists studying people over 100 years old found that they
had high levels of vitamin E in their bodies, while in an experiment people
who took extra vitamin E had 40% less risk of suffering from heart disease
than others.
Post-reading tasks
your choice.
16
a) Genetic engineering the key to increase lifespan.

b) Population growth in the 20th century.
c) Possibilities for increasing lifespan.
context.
intake
a) consumption
to promote a) to prevent
feasible
a) impossible
to delay
a) to postpone
b) production
b) to ensure
b) convenient
b) to put off
c) conservation
d) absorption
c) to raise d) to assist
c) plausible d) possible
c) to slow down
d) to hinder
4. Choose the best ending.

1. Ageing
a) is unavoidable.
b) can be controlled.
c) cannot be slowed down.
2. The longest time that a man can live
a) has not changed much with the passing of time.
b) has increased.
c) has decreased.
3.
by
a)
b)
c)
Scientists suppose that the process of ageing in humans is controlled

about 100 genes.
less than 1000 genes.
more genes than in flies.
4. It is found that calorie restriction

a) can result in decreasing blood pressure and cholesterol level.
b) can lead to a constant feeling of hunger.
c) can have harmful effects on peoples health.
5. Scientists have discovered that people who have high levels of vitamin
E in their bodies
a) do not suffer from heart disease.
b) are protected against the ageing process.
c) live more than 100 years.
17
given in the text.
1. The age of 120 is a limit for human life.
2. If scientists could identify and treat some of them, the process of ageing
could be delayed.
3. In spite of the increase in average life expectancy maximum lifespan has
not changed much over many centuries.
4. People are growing older and it is an unavoidable fact.
5. The other possible way of increasing lifespan is by altering diet.
6. Diet may also ensure long life through the intake of vitamin E.
7. But life expectancy increases and there are a growing number of people
who live longer than even before.
8. However, genetic engineering can help to increase lifespan.
9. Calorie restriction can lead to a decrease in blood pressure and cholesterol
levels.
10. There are more than 1000 genes that control the process of ageing in
humans.
5. Use the following words and word combinations to speak about the
ageing process and possibilities of increasing lifespan.
1. To get older, ageing, unavoidable.
2. Life expectancy, to increase.
3. Despite, rise, average life expectancy, increase, maximum lifespan.
4. The longest, a human, to live, 120 years.
5. Way, to increase, lifespan, genetic engineering.
6. 1000 genes, to control, the process of ageing.
7. Scientists, to treat genes, to delay, ageing process.
8. To alter diet, to increase lifespan.
9. To reduce calorie intake, to result in, immune system, to function more
effectively.
10. To promote, longer life, intake, vitamin E.
Unit V
Pre-reading tasks
18
about:
real life
rehearsal
majority
to give up
to miss the best moments

to be under pressure
temporary state of affairs
to realize dreams
to enjoy this very day

to realize dreams
life-long planning
to procrastinate
might contain.
b) what questions can be answered. (Answer these questions)
SEVERAL YEARS ago while sheltering from a typhoon in a sleazy motel
in Cincinnati I came across a tattered beer-stained notice pinned to a wall
above a public telephone. It read simply: This isnt a rehearsal. This is Life,
dont miss it.
It was a message which has ghosted through my life ever since. How many
of us can honestly claim not to have mortgaged our lives to some future
dream, a dream which as likely as not will never be realized?
We live life on the never-never: telling ourselves that just as soon as we
have got past this or that particularly onerous chore or stage we will be able to
devote our energies to what we really want to do.
I must admit to being a master of the art of the never-never. Daily I say to
myself that as soon as I have finished this or that script, or article or paid off
my overdraft, then I will really start to live. It is, I believe, a delusion I share
with the great hopeful majority, and a delusion it is dangerous to harbour,
because each of us knows that tomorrow never comes.
For some I suspect that this life-long planning for the future is a way of
procrastinating: a get-out for not having the will, talent or nerve for trying
something new and discovering oneself to be a failure.
How many people have I met who have told me about the book they have
been planning to write but have never yet found the time? Far too many.
This is Life, all right, but we do treat it like a rehearsal and, unhappily, we
do miss so many of its best moments.
We take jobs to stay alive and provide homes for our families always
convincing ourselves that this style of life is merely a temporary state of
19
affairs along the road to what we really want to do. Then, at 60 or we are
suddenly presented with a clock and a couple of grandchildren and we look
back and realize that all those years waiting for Real Life to come along were
in fact real life.
In America they have a saying much ridiculed by the English: Have a
nice day they intone in their shops, hotels and sandwich bars. I think it is a
wonderful phrase, reminding us, in effect, to enjoy the moment: to appreciate
this very day.
How often do we say to ourselves, Ill take up horse-riding (or golf, or
sailing) as soon as I get promotion, only to do none of those things when
promotion comes.
When I first became a journalist I knew a man who gave up a very well
paid responsible job at the Daily Telegraph to go and edit a small weekly
newspaper. At the time I was astonished by what appeared to me to be his
complete mental aberration. How could anyone turn his back on Fleet Street
for the parish pump? I wanted to know.
Now I am a little older and possibly wiser, I see the sense in it. In Fleet
Street the man was under continual pressure. He lived in an unattractive
London suburb and he spent much of his life sitting on Southern Region
trains.
In Kent he became his own boss, lived within minutes of the office in a
very pretty village and found his life enriched tenfold. His ambition for
advancement in his career had been smothered by his enjoyment of the life he
was leading. His life had stopped being a rehearsal and become the real thing.
I am not suggesting that this would suit every one of us. Unhappily it
would not suit me. But in many ways I consider that man in Kent to be one of
the luckiest chaps I know.
I am not advocating that one should live for the minute in any hedonistic
sense. That isnt the answer. But it is, I hope, an exhortation to some degree of
self-fulfillment. Whatever you want to do, do it now: because, no matter how
old you are, its later than you think.
Post-reading tasks
your choice.
20
a) Life-long planning for the future is a way of procrastinating.

b) Life isnt a rehearsal.
c) Dont miss the best moments in your life.
context.
to share
a) to divide b) to distribute
c) to participate
d) to have equal shares with others in the use, enjoyment, etc of something
chore
a) work
b) job
c) unpleasant task
d) ordinary task
to miss
a) to fail
b) to drop
c) to be late
d) to lose an opportunity
to advocate
a) to recommend b) to promote
c) to support
d) to argue
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Several years ago I came across a notice that .

Many of us have mortgaged .
Being a master of the art of the never-never I .
Life-long planning for the future is .
People take jobs to stay alive and they convince .
I knew a man who gave up .
At that time I thought it was . but later .
I am not suggesting that .
given in the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
This is a delusion I share with the great hopeful majority.

At first I thought it was complete mental aberration.
We hope that this style of life is a temporary state of affairs.
The majority live life on the never-never.
Once I found a message that read This isnt a rehearsal. This is life.
In some time I realized that there was some sense in it.
Most of us treat life as a rehearsal and miss its best moments.
It has ghosted through my life.
Once I knew a man who gave up a well-paid job in London and moved to
the country.
21
10. I dont think that this would suit everyone but I consider him the happiest
man I have ever known.
11. From day to day I promise myself that soon I will really start to live.
5. Using the following words and word combinations give the main idea of
the text.
1. Message, to come across, to read, life, rehearsal.
2. To mortgage ones life to, future dream, never, to realize.
3. To persuade, to get past, onerous stage, to devote ones energy.
4. To share a delusion, majority, tomorrow, never, to come.
5. Life-long planning, way, to procrastinate.
6. To take up golf or sailing, to get promotion.
7. To give up, well-paid, to edit, small newspaper.
8. Life, to enrich, tenfold, to stop, rehearsal.
9. Life style, to suit, everybody.
10. Whatever, to want, to do, now.
Unit VI
Pre-reading tasks
about:
to make a mess
to keep rooms neat and tidy
hostile/female territory
to feel like guests
to have the last and counting vote
a reaction against a command
to decide
to give the rights
to take the role of a parent
to feel responsibility
martyr
2. Look through the text to see if your guess about its contents was correct.
If it wasnt, give the information that you have missed.
Are Men Lazy?
Why does it seem like men make more mess than women do?
22
Maybe we do make more mess in some places but we usually keep it neat
and tidy where we work or where we have our hobbies. We mess more when
we are in "female territory", where we for some reason feel that we are guests.
And why do we feel like guests in some areas?
Often the woman occupies the kitchen, the living room, the bathroom and
the bedroom. She often decides how it shall look, she buys the curtains, she
chooses the colours, she makes the food and so on. What would happen if the
husband tore down the curtains and said they were tasteless and looked
horrible? I guarantee there would be trouble in the air. If the opposite
happened, she took down the curtains, nothing much would happen. We, men,
are somehow used to that. We would adjust to the new curtains in "our" room.
It is difficult to make men feel responsibility in an area where the woman has
the last and counting vote. Why do men always delay practical work at home?
Most women have heard our excuses: I will do it tomorrow. Does it have
to be now? Maybe tomorrow.
This is not because we are lazy, but more like a reaction against a
command. We wish to have something to say about things, and the very least
we can do is to decide when to do it, since we are not in the position to decide
if it should be done. We know it is the best time, right now, but do not like that
she decides all the time. It is also annoying always to be asked to do this and
that. And there is no difference in her voice whether she comments her little
boy or her husband. She takes the role of a parent towards both. We
immediately remember our mother when she was angry. We do not need a new
mother. So, if a wife keeps up this mothering thing, she either gets a new son
or an angry husband.
Why do not men feel satisfaction when cleaning?
We do not feel any satisfaction while cleaning up in her world. That is also
why we would rather do it later. When we do it, it is to please her, not
ourselves. While we discuss whether to do it or not, she often already has
begun to do it herself. And now nothing can stop her. Now she will go on until
she is finished. She is now the martyr, and enjoys feeling the hate against him
and put another little note in the "black book".
Give us some of your domain and we will feel different about. Give us
half of the rights, and we will do half of the work.
Then there is a woman who has heard about this, and declares that from
this minute he has half the rights and tells him to go on with it. She has totally
misunderstood. One must start from the beginning and make some choices. Do
I need a husband, or do I need a butler? Am I ready and willing to take the
consequences by giving my husband the right to decide how the bedroom
should look like?
23
Post-reading tasks
Read the text again to fulfill the tasks to follow.
1. The text is headlined Are men lazy? Does it suit the information given
in the text? Below youll find some more headings to this text. Choose the
one that suits best and motivate your choice.
a) Give us more rights and well do our best.
b) Dont expect equality in the cleaning thing!
c) Equal rights, equal responsibilities!
context.
lazy
to adjust
mess
right
domain
a) idle
a) to adapt
a) trouble
a) justice
a) field
b) doing little work

b) to regulate
b) difficulty
b) virtue
b) province
c) slow
c) to fix
c) disorder
c) goodness
c) territory
d) inert
d) to arrange
d) dirtiness
d) claim
d) branch

1. Men usually make more mess in female territory but they often keep
it neat .
2. Women occupy and they decide .
3. Men usually dont feel responsibility in .
4. If men delay practical work at home .
5. There is no difference in the womans voice when .
6. Men dont feel any satisfaction while .
7. If the woman cant make her husband do any work about the house, she
8. Women should give men .
24
given in the text.
1. Men cant feel any responsibility in areas where the woman has the last
and counting voice.
2. Women usually occupy the kitchen, the living room, the bedroom, then
bathroom and often decide how they will look.
3. Its more like a reaction against a command.
4. Men dont feel any satisfaction while cleaning up in her world.
5. Men make more mess in female territory where they feel like guests.
6. Men dont like women to decide all the time.
7. There would certainly be trouble in the air.
8. They want to decide themselves what to do and when it should be done.
9. Give us some of your territory and well feel different about it.
10. What would happen if the husband said that the curtains were tasteless.
11. But if the opposite happened nothing much would happen, men would
simply adjust to the new curtains.
12. Men always delay practical work at home thinking of different excuses not
because they are lazy.
5. Use the following words and word combinations to speak about mens
attitude toward household duties. Add connectives and some more words if
necessary.
1. Men, to make a mess, women.
2. Men, to keep neat and tidy, female territory, to mess more.
3. Women, to decide, to look, her territory.
4. Men, usually, to adapt to, changes.
5. Men, to feel responsibility, area, women, the last and counting vote.
6. Men, to delay, housework, reaction, command.
7. Annoying, no right, to decide.
8. To feel no satisfaction, to clean up, womans world.
9. To give, female territory, rights, to feel different.
Unit VII
Pre-reading tasks
25
1. Look through the key words and expressions and guess what this text
runs about:
teenagers
to grow up
to allow freedom
to make life harder
to lack experience
to tolerate
supportive
to receive less care
to come into contact

drugs
alcohol
permissive
to contend with
to put on pressures
aids
threat
Teenagers Now
They seem to grow up so quickly these days is commonly on adult lips
followed by "When I was young" and a tirade of which the main line of
argument seems to be that not only was life much harder, but that everyone did
a better job of living it. It seems to me however, that there can be no objective
discussion as no one is a teenager twice.
The young of today do have problems. They are considered adults long
before their parents were. This removes the frustration of not being taken
seriously or respected, and allows much more freedom. Unfortunately, it often
makes life harder because teenagers are not adults. Although they look and act
like adults, they lack experience and so often make mistakes which people
dont understand or tolerate. Unfortunately, the family is not such a strong and
supportive unit as it was. One-parent families are common and mothers often
work, either because they have to or because they wish to have a career.
This means that children and teenagers receive less care and time, and this
lack of parental input leads to many teenagers dropping out and not working.
Mothering is no longer recognized as the most important and difficult job
and this in turn devalues children and teenagers.
Young people start to dress and look like adults at an early age and so
come into contact with drugs, cigarettes, alcohol and sex earlier. The
permissive society that we live in now is very contradictory and difficult to
contend with. It has also so changed that parents have no idea of the pressures
put on the young by their peers and so cannot help them. AIDS is a new threat,
but perhaps will help teenagers as it will prevent them from sleeping around
26
and so losing much self-respect. It might also give them an unquestionable

reason for saying no.
If you conclude, as I have, that adolescence is harder now than it was for
our parents, it might also be recognized that being a parent is also now more
difficult.
Post-reading tasks
1. The text is headlined Teenagers now. Do you agree with this heading?
Express your viewpoint. Below youll find some more headings to this text.
Choose the one that suits best and motivate your choice.
a) Is it difficult to be a teenager?
b) Teenagers problems.
c) Nowadays being a teenager is as difficult as being a parent.
2. Determine the meaning of the words given in italics in the text.
to tolerate
permissive
a) to permit
a) giving permission
peer
a) equal
lack
a) want
frustration a) defeat
b) to allow c) to stand d) to authorize

b) optional c) tolerant d) giving more
opportunities
b) noble
c) lord
d) rival
b) need
c) abundance
d) absence
b) disappointment c) discouragement d) failure
3. Combine two sentences together omitting less important information

and adding connectives.
4. There cant be any objective discussion connected with problems of two
different generations. Nobody can be a teenager twice.
5. Teenagers of today are considered adults long before their parents were. It
leads to more freedom and it makes life harder.
6. Teenagers lack experience and often make mistakes. People usually dont
understand and tolerate teenagers mistakes.
7. The family is no longer a supportive unit as it was. It results in children
receiving less care and time.
27
8. Modern society has changed a lot and become very contradictory. Parents
do not know about pressures put on the young by their peers.
9. Adolescence is harder now. Being a parent is also more difficult
nowadays.
given in the text.
1. It allows more freedom but it also makes life harder.
2. At present adolescence is harder but being a parent is also more difficult
now.
3. The family is not as supportive as it used to be.
4. Teenagers grow up so quickly nowadays.
5. Parents often have no idea of the pressures put on their children by their
peers and cant help them.
6. The young of today are regarded adults long before their parents were.
7. As a result teenagers receive less care and time.
8. Teenagers lack experience and make mistakes that elder people dont
tolerate.
9. The society they live in is very contradictory and difficult to contend with.
5. Use the following words and word combinations to speak about
teenagers and their problems. Add connectives and some more words if
necessary.
1. These days, teenagers, to grow up, quickly.
2. Objective discussion, none, to be, teenager, twice.
3. The young, to have, problems.
4. To become adult, long before, parents.
5. To allow, more freedom, to make, harder.
6. To lack experience, to make mistakes, elder people, to understand.
7. Supportive, family, to receive, less care and time.
8. To come into contact with, alcohol, drugs, cigarettes.
9. Modern society, contradictory, difficult, to contend with.
10. Society, to change, to put on pressures, peers, to help.
11. Adolescence, hard, to be a parent, difficult.
Unit VIII
28
Pre-reading tasks
about.
modern life
restlessness
to deal with problems separately
stressful
loss of appetite
to share ones responsibility with others
to compete
sleeplessness
to find the cause of stress
gloominess
unsociability
to earn as much as possible
to become tense to get rid of to
to talk to somebody
signs of stress
irritability
to change ones view over the situation
How to Reduce Stress and Tension
Modern life is stressful. We compete at work and often in sport and even
with our friends. We try to save time and try to earn as much money as
possible in order to possess cars, better houses, washing machines or to go on
holiday so that we can relax after becoming so tense and tired!
Signs of stress: have you noticed any of these signs in yourself or in
another person recently? Are these signs increasing?
Irritability, fussiness, gloominess, suspicion, indecision, excitability,
restlessness, lack of concentration, unsociability, loss of appetite, over-eating,
sleeplessness, drinking, smoking, worrying, tension.
What is causing the stress?
Many people try to get rid of the signs of stress instead of the cause. They
may like sleeping pills or try to control the various signs in other ways. But
the only satisfactory way of stopping stress is to find the cause of it. You may
not be able to change the cause of the stress but understanding it will probably
help.
It may be the death or illness of a friend, the loss of your job or money
worries. And you can probably do nothing to change these.
It may be conflict inside yourself. Perhaps you feel you ought to do
something but you dont want to. You may have mixed feelings about
someone or something and not know what to do. All you can do is to try to
examine yourself and what you feel is right. It may be helpful to talk to
someone about it. It may be that you feel hopeless in a situation. Try to be
realistic; make a list of all the characteristics of the situation and of yourself
and then face the facts.
29
Perhaps you feel weak, interior, not good enough, ignored or guilty. Once
more, try to be realistic. It may be true! If it is true it may not really be so
serious. But it may not be true or it may not be as simple as you might think.
We sometimes see only our own position in a situation. It may well be that
other people also have their own problems or are also guilty, etc. you may be
able to change your view of the situation by redefining it, and saying quite
simply Oh, it could be worse or Well, theres another side to it.
Perhaps you have several different problems. Try to see them separately
and deal with them one by one. Perhaps you feel you have too much
responsibility. Share some of it. Or just dont do something. It is amazing how
life can continue if we dont do something, which we thought was very
important.
It may be that you are acting in a way, which isnt natural to you. This may
be causing you stress. Is it worth it?
Perhaps you are stressed by fears you cant identify. Do your best to
decide whether they are real or not.
Post-reading tasks
1. The text is headlined How to reduce stress and tension. Do you think
the heading suits the information given in the text? Express your opinion.
Below youll find some more headings. Choose the one that suits best and
motivate your choice.
a) Modern life is full of stress.
b) Recipes for happiness.
c) Finding the cause of stress is a way of getting rid of it.
context.
to compete a) to cooperate b) to oppose
c) to rival d) to fight
tense
a) tight
b) stretched
c) excited d) worried
to deal with a) to trade
b) to distribute
c) to behave d) to cope
to share
a) to participate b) to divide
c) to distribute
d) to have equal shares with others in the use, expense, etc
30
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Modern life is .
People compete at .
There are different signs of stress: irritability .
Many people try to get .
They take sleeping but they dont .
The causes of stress may be different .
It may be helpful to examine .
It may also help if one changes his view .
If there are several different problems .
given in the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
This results in irritability, sleeplessness, restlessness, gloominess.

But the only way of stopping stress is finding its cause.
Modern life is full of stress.
What causes the stress?
If you have several problems, deal with them one by one.
People compete at work and in sport, try to save time and to earn as much
money as possible.
7. If you have too much responsibility, share some of it and your life will
change for the better.
8. Many people try to get rid of the signs of stress instead of its cause.
9. Talk to someone about your problems.
10. Examine yourself and your feelings.
11. If you understand the cause of stress, it will help.
12. Change your view of the situation by redefining it.
13. Try to be realistic.
5. Use the following outline to speak about the problem mentioned in the
text.
1. Modern life is full of stress and tension.
2. The signs of stress: irritability, gloominess, suspicion, unsociability,
restlessness, sleeplessness, etc.
3. Getting rid of stress is finding its cause.
4. Causes of stress.
5. Tips to follow if you want to change the state of affairs.
31
Unit IX
Pre-reading tasks
about:
to get on ones nerves
parents
to embarrass
to avoid upsetting each other
understanding
two-way process
to be open and reasonable
generation gap
to hold adult conversations
to disapprove of something
to be under pressure
to antagonize somebody
to worry
to deceive
Believe It or not, Your Parents Can Be Your Friends
Mother, father, brothers and sisters they can get on your nerves, just as
you can get on theirs. Have you ever felt that you dont want your father to
pick you up from a party because you think your friends might laugh at him?
And what about you? Have you ever asked your parents personal
questions in public? The members of a family can embarrass each other, even
without meaning to. But if youre sensitive to each others feelings youll be
able to avoid upsetting each other too badly.
Understanding a parent is a two-way process. If your parents are open and
reasonable with you, you owe it to them to be open and reasonable with them.
That means telling them where youre going; who youre going with and when
youll be back.
Believe it or not, your parents can be your best friends and theyll be
pleased that youre growing up.
However, as you grow up, relationships within your family will change.
The adults will continue to love and look after you, but the relationship will
become much more one between equals.
The difference between your philosophy and way of life and your parents
is often referred to as the generation gap. You may think your parents are
32
really old. But try to think about them as ordinary people. They have good
days and bad days, too.
Sometimes parents are under all sorts of pressures. They may worry about
money, or if they're a single parent, they may be lonely. Or they may be
worried about getting old themselves. Your parents also have to deal with a
world that is changing faster than it did when they were young.
Whats the best action to take if you want to do something that you think a
parent will disapprove of? First, work out why you think theyll disapprove. If
you can present a carefully worked out argument, youre doing well. Talk
things over with friends or brothers and sisters. Has anyone been in a similar
situation? If you treat your parents in an honest way, their response is bound to
be more reasonable. If you antagonize them, your job will be much harder.
A parent often worries that his or her children are the only ones who want
to do things they dont approve of. Help your parent to see that it isnt true.
Introduce them to your friends and show them that you all want similar things.
Talk to other peoples parents and see how they react. In some ways, you will
find life easier than those young people who are allowed to do anything. And
remember, if you want to change things, think before you act. Never lie to or
deceive your parents.
Post-reading tasks
1. The text is headlined Believe it or not, your parents can be your
friends. Do you think the heading suits the information given in the text?
Express your opinion. Below youll find some more headings. Choose the
one that suits best and motivate your choice.
a) Mutual understanding is a basis for good relations in the family.
b) Generation gap.
c) Parents are always easy to come to terms.
context.
to embarrass a) to interfere b) to confuse c) to upset d) to disturb
sensitive
a) touchy
b) vulnerable c) delicate d) irritable
to disapprove a) to deny
b) to praise c) to blame
d) to have an unfavourable opinion
to refer to a) to direct
b) to regard c) to mention d) to concern
to owe
a) to be in debt to somebody
b) to attribute
33
c) to be obliged (to)
d) to possess
3. Combine two sentences together omitting less important information

and adding connectives.
1. Parents can get on your nerves just as you can get on theirs. If you are
sensitive to each others feelings, youll be able to avoid upsetting each
other.
2. Mutual understanding is a two-way process. If your parents are open and
reasonable with you, you owe it to them to be open and reasonable with
them.
3. When children grow up relationships within ones family change. The
relationship becomes much more one between equals.
4. Your way of life and your philosophy differ from your parents. This
difference is often called the generation gap.
5. Think about your parents as ordinary people. Parents may worry about
money, they may be lonely or they may be upset about getting old.
6. Parents often disapprove of what their children do. If children can
convince their parents that they are not the only ones who want to do
things parents dont approve, parents response is bound to be more
reasonable.
given in the text.
1. But not all parents are easy to get on with.
2. If you antagonize your parents, your life will be much harder but if you
treat them in an honest way, their response will be more reasonable.
3. Parents can get on your nerves just as you can get on theirs.
4. Mutual understanding is a two-way process.
5. The difference between childrens philosophy and way of life and their
parents is called the generation gap.
6. Try to avoid doing things your parents will disapprove of and never
deceive your parents.
7. Before doing something think of your parents response.
8. If you are sensitive to each others feelings, you can avoid upsetting each
other.
9. They may worry about money or about getting old themselves.
10. Try to think about your parents as ordinary people who are under all sorts
of pressure.
34
11. Be open and reasonable with your parents and theyll treat you in a similar
way.
12. In time the relationship between parents and children will change and
become much more one between equals.
5. Give the main idea of the text using the following words and expressions
and adding connectives and some more words if necessary.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
1.Parents, to get on ones nerves.

To be sensitive to, feelings, to avoid, to upset each other.
Understanding, to be, parents, a two-way process.
To grow up, relations, to change, to become, one between equals.
Generation gap, to call, difference, way of life, philosophy.
Parents, to be under pressure, to worry about, to get old, to be lonely.
To treat, honest way, reasonable response, to antagonize, life, to be hard.
To think, to act, to deceive parents, never.
Unit X
Pre-reading tasks
about:
sport
to create good will
to lead to hatred
competitive
the question of prestige
to do ones utmost
to win
to have nothing to do with
feelings of rivalry
to arouse
to humiliate
to gain a victory
to intervene
to cheat
crowd
fair play
35
The Sporting Spirit

I am always amazed when I hear people saying that sport creates good will
between the nations, and that if only the common peoples of the world could
meet one another at football or cricket, they would have no inclination to meet
on the battlefield. Even if one didnt know from concrete examples that
international sporting contests lead to hatred one could deduce it from general
principles.
Nearly all sports nowadays are competitive. You play to win, and the game
has little meaning unless you do your utmost to win. On the village green,
where you pick up sides and no feeling of local patriotism is involved, it is
possible to play simply for the fun and exercise; but as soon as the question of
prestige arises, as soon as you feel that you and some larger unit will be
disgraced if you lose, the most savage combative instincts are aroused.
Anyone who has played even in a school football match knows this.
At the international level sport is frankly mimic warfare. But the
significant thing is not the behaviour of the players but the attitude of the
spectators; and behind the spectators, of the nations who work themselves into
furies over these absurd contests and seriously believe that running, jumping
and kicking a ball are tests of national virtue. As soon as strong feelings of
rivalry are aroused, the notion of playing the game according to the rules
always vanishes. People want to see one side on top and the other side
humiliated and they forget that victory gained through cheating or through the
intervention of the crowd is meaningless. Even when the spectators dont
intervene physically they try to influence the game by cheering their own side
and rattling opposing players. Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It
is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, in other
words, it is war minus the shooting.
I do hot, of course, suggest that sport is one of the main causes of
international rivalry; big-scale sport is itself, I think, merely another effect of
the causes that have produced nationalism. Still, you do make things worse by
sending forth a team of eleven men to do battle against some rival team. There
are quite enough real causes of trouble already, and we need not add to them.
Post-reading tasks
1. The text is headlined The Sporting Spirit. Do you think the heading
suits the information given in the text? Express your opinion. Below youll
36
find some more headings. Choose the one that suits best and motivate your
choice.
a) Serious sport and fair play are incompatible.
b) Sport as one of the main reasons for international rivalry.
c) Ambiguous nature of sport.
context.
fair
to intervene
rivalry
to humiliate
a) considerable
a) to happen
a) match
a) to insult
b) beautiful
b) to interfere
b) competition
b) to offend
c) light
d) honest
c) to interrupt d) to disturb
c) contest
d) tournament
c) to praise d) to shame

1. I am always astonished when I .
2. In fact, sporting contests lead to .
3. Sport is .
4. Players usually do their .
5. When the question of prestige .
6. The most important thing is .
7. When feelings of rivalry are aroused .
8. If spectators dont intervene .
9. Serious sport has nothing .
10. Sport is one .
11. In my opinion, there are enough real .
given in the text.
1. It is connected with hatred, jealousy, and disregard of all rules.
2. There are quite enough real causes of trouble already and we neednt add
to them.
3. I think that sport never creates good will between the nations.
4. Sport is competitive and sportsmen do their utmost to win.
5. Sport is one of the main reasons for international rivalry.
6. Competitions usually lead to hatred.
7. The most important thing is not the behaviour of players but the attitude of
spectators.
37
8. Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play.

9. People want to see their team on top and the other side humiliated.
10. When the question of prestige arises, the most savage combative instincts
are aroused.
5. Use the following words and expressions to speak on the problem
touched upon in the text. Add connectives and some more words if
necessary.
1. To be amazed, sport, to create, good will.
2. International competitions, to lead, hatred.
3. Sport, competitive.
4. To do ones utmost, sportsmen.
5. The question of prestige, to arise, to arouse, savage, combative instincts.
6. Attitude, spectators, to be significant.
7. Feelings of rivalry, to arouse, to play, according to rules.
8. People, to intervene, to influence, game.
9. Sport, to have nothing to do, fair play.
10. Sport, to cause, international rivalry.
11. Enough, real causes, trouble, to add.
38
PART 2
UNIT XI
Key words and expressions: to like, to find strange, to promote, maledominated, experience, relaxed atmosphere, obvious difficulties, cultural
differences.
Pre-reading tasks
1. Look at the title of the text and the key words and guess what the text is
about.
2. Look through the text to see if your guess was right. Is the heading
misleading?
Made in Japan, Sold on Britain
54,400 Japanese live in Britain. How do they find life here?
4.400 Japanese live in Britain: 12,000 are business people, 5,800 are
students, most of the rest are their families. The Japanese like Britain. They
find it strange, but they like it.
Masami Sato, one of only 70 office ladies' junior women managers - in
Britain, is happy. She says, most things are better here than in Tokyo -there are
so many parks and green fields'.
As an office lady, she cannot be promoted above her present junior
managerial position, but she thinks the UK is less male-dominated than Japan.
She is in London as part of a scheme to give office ladies overseas experience
(they are allowed to go to 10 cities considered safe - none of them are in the
United States), and she does not want to go back to Tokyo when the time
comes next year.
39
When I go back to Japan, I have to live with my family', she says. There
are few amusements and we can't be relaxed because all Japanese are very
busy'.
The Japanese appreciate the space, the more relaxed atmosphere and the
longer holidays, but they also experience some difficulties: the most obvious
is the language beerier was very hard at first. I used to sit hours at the parties
not understanding a single word. But the children become absolutely bilingual.
Mr Kojima has lived in Wales for two years, and still has problems. The
language is very difficult, but the staff are very experienced at explaining to
the Japanese, he says I can understand the explanations, but I can't
understand when they talk to each other.
Besides the language, there are also cultural differences which can make
life difficult. Banker Kaoru says the British like arguments, the Japanese don't.
They dislike raising the opposite opinion. In Japan everyone respects the
opinion of the majority'.
Post-reading tasks
1. Now that you have read the text choose the title of the text from the ones
given below or offer your variant and motivate your choice.
a) Life in the UK is not a bed of roses.
b) East or West home is best.
c) The problems of immigrants.
2. Choose the synonyms to the given words according to the context.
Reproduce the sentence from the text with the synonym chosen.
junior
obvious
to appreciate
to respect
a) older
a) credible
a) to value
a) to despise
b) higher in rank ) superior d) lower in rank

b) evident
c) permanent d) solvable
b) to evaluate c) to apprehend d) to adore
b) to look up
c) to approve d) to assess
3. Complete the following sentences.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The majority of Japanese living in Britain ... .

As an 'office-lady' Masami Sato cannot be promoted but ... .
The aim of the program is... .
The advantages of living in Great Britain are ... .
The difficulties the Japanese living in the UK might come across are ... .
They also face cultural difficulties such as ... .
40
7. Language barrier .
4. Join 2 sentences using the connectors given so as to form a compound
sentence.
1. More than 54 400 Japanese live in the UK. They like it. (And)
2. Masami Sato a junior manage is happy. Most things are better in this
country. (Because)
3. She is quite satisfied with her position. She cannot be promoted.
(Although)
4. At home she cannot be relaxed. All Japanese are busy. (Because)
5. The Japanese have problems in sociolizing. They enjoy the relaxed
atmosphere. (Despite)
UNIT XII
Key words and expressions: to drop an atomic bomb, to test, to explode, to
survive, to cause destruction, serious damage, to kill and injure, casualties,
unnecessary attack, remembrance.
Pre-reading tasks
1. Look through the key words and guess what the text is about.
Towards the end of World War II, the United States decided to use the
atomic bomb against Japan to force Japan to surrender as quickly as possible.
The first atomic bomb was completed and tested in New Mexico on July l6th
1945, and on July 25th the order to drop the atomic bomb was issued by the
U.S. President at that time, Harry S. Truman. On August 6th 1945, history was
changed forever when the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the
Japanese city of Hiroshima. For the first time, an atomic bomb had been fired
on a military target. Three days later, a second bomb was released on
Nagasaki.
On August 6th 1945, at 8:15 A.M., Japanese time, the Enola Gay, a B-29
heavy bomber jet, dropped 'Little Boy' on Hiroshima. 'Little Boy', the
41
nickname given to this atomic bomb, exploded one minute after it was
released at an altitude of 2000 feet above ground level. The bomb exploded
with a blinding flash in the sky and produced a ferocious heat wave and blast
that caused indiscriminate destruction. The bomb generated a strong wind that
caused the most serious damage to the city and people. 66,000 people were
killed and 69,000 injured. It is estimated that more than 140,000 people died
due to the bomb by the end of the year. Hiroshima was selected as the primary
target for the atomic bomb because of the existence of a concentration of
military installations, troops, and factories in the city. Its size and topography
also made it an ideal place for testing the atomic bomb's destructive
capabilities.
Three days later, on August 9th, at exactly 11:02 A.M., a second bomb,
nicknamed 'Fat Man', was dropped in the industrial section of the city of
Nagasaki. 'Fat Man' killed 39,000 people and injured 25,000 more. Even
though there were more casualties in Hiroshima, 'Fat Man' proved to be more
powerful, because the destruction radius was greater in Nagasaki (14,000 feet)
than in Hiroshima (12,000 feet).
The injuries inflicted on the people resulting from the atomic explosions
were: burns from flash radiation of heat and from fires ignited by the
explosion; direct physical effects of the blast pressure; mechanical injuries
from flying debris or the collapse of buildings, and radiation effects. Most of
the casualties resulted from mechanical injuries.
In the years since the bombings, some people have said that dropping the
atomic bombs ended World War Two, while others have said that it was an
unnecessary attack because it did not yield the result desired. Every year on
August 6th in Hiroshima people float lanterns filled with prayers and
messages of peace in remembrance of the tens of thousands who died in those
terrible events.
Post-reading tasks
1. Now that you have read the text think of a proper title to the text or
choose from the ones given below. Motivate your choice.
a) The tragedy that could have been avoided.
b) Hirochima: pain and tears.
c) The history of atomic bomb.
42

to yield
casualties
target
to prove
a) to lose
a) accidents
a) aim
a) to confirm
b) to turn out
b) disasters
b) site
b) to test
c) to give
c) events
c) spot
c) to appear
d) to test
d) killed and injured
d) objective
d) to demonstrate
3. Complete the following sentences choosing the best ending.

1. An atomic bomb was first used as an act of war in
a) Hiroshima.
b) New Mexico.
c) Nagasaki.
d) The United States.
2. The decree to drop the bomb was issued on
a) August 6th 1945.
b) July 25th 1945.
c) July 16th 1945.
d) August 9th 1945.
3. Little Boy DID NOT generate
a) a sudden flash of light.
b) a blast of hot air.
c) extensive damage to Hiroshima.
d) 69,000 deaths.
4. Hiroshima was chosen to be bombed because
a) it was easy to concentrate on.
b) it was the largest city in Japan.
c) it was easy to destroy.
d) many military bases were located there.
5. 'Fat Man'
a) caused a greater number of deaths than 'Little Boy'.
b) damaged a larger area than 'Little Boy'.
c) was less powerful than 'Little Boy'.
d) was the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare.
6. Most of the Hiroshima inhabitants suffered from
43
a) radiation poisoning.
b) deep wounded cuts.
c) burns.
d) injuries caused by machinery.
7. It was not mentioned in the text that
a) the bombings did not need to happen.
b) we should all remember those who died.
c) such bombings should never happen again.
d) the war ended thanks to the bombings.
4. Using these words and word combinations express the main idea of each
paragraph, add connectors or your own words where appropriate.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The end of the war, the US, to drop a bomb, to decide.

A heavy bomber, to drop "Little boy", to cause serious damage.
'Fat Man', more powerful, to kill and injure, Nagasaki.
The injuries, burns and mechanical injuries, radiation effects.
Horrific and unnecessary act, to hold remembrance events.
5. Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order to sum up the contents of
the text.
1. In August a second more powerful bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.
2. The blast of 'Little Boy' produced heat wave, strong wind and caused great
damage.
3. Hirochima was the primary aim of the attack because there were a lot of
military installations in the city.
4. The consequences of the bombing were radiation effects, physical effects
and mechanical injuries.
5. Some people claim that the bombing was justified as it put an end to the
war while others consider it cruel and unnecessary.
6. The US decided to drop an atomic bomb on Japan to make Japan
surrender.
UNIT XIII
Key words and expressions: fashion industry, to promote, to achieve success,
competitors, to support, to hold fairs, to increase funding, to create industrial
and financial links, better image.
44
Pre-reading tasks
Fashion has always been important to the Spanish but until recently
they haven't had a home-grown fashion industry and have imported most of
their clothing. All that is changing now, however. The Spanish government is
busily promoting the clothing and fashion sectors of the textile industry. Their
ultimate goal is to make their fashion products so well regarded on the
international market because of their quality that this success will spread to
other product areas and export markets.
Spain is starting from scratch when you compare it with fashionable
competitors like Italy and France. But there is activity everywhere. The
government has set up organizations to support the fashion industry,
organizing projects such as combined efforts between fashion designers and
people in business. The country holds fashion fairs twice a year, the Cibeles in
Madrid, and the Gaudi in Barcelona. There is also a children's fair in Valencia
which further demonstrates Spaniards' creative progress to international
fashion buyers.
The government is trying to create an environment where fashion and
textile designers have an opportunity to prosper. Talented companies and
designers can succeed in Spain but although there is much creativity, there is a
lack of managerial experience. Some people still do not believe enough is
being done, and point to Italy where they believe there are far better chances
for designers to succeed. One highly regarded Spanish designer is now
manufacturing her entire line of clothing in partnership with an Italian
company. The problem, as some see it, is that the amount of money being
provided by the Spanish government is still not enough. People in the fashion
industry know they will not be able to make an impression in foreign countries
unless government funding is increased.
Nevertheless, much progress is being made. While the exclusive salons are
in the larger cities, studios and boutiques are opening throughout Spain and
many Spaniards are already involved in exporting their clothes. Through their
own efforts, designers are beginning to open shops in France, Italy and Japan.
But most fashion houses are quite small, and they are finding it difficult to
create the industrial and financial links needed for growth and expansion.
Many designer products are hard to make, expensive to market and
sometimes difficult to sell. But they create a better image for the industry, and
45
you end up with higher quality products in general. One international critic
thinks that the relative youth of the Spanish industry could create fresh and
lively fashions, well able to compete with the industries in France and Italy.
Post-reading tasks
a) The job of a fashion designer in Spain.
b) Spanish fashion products on the world market.
c) Fashion industry in Spain.
to spread
lack
competitor
from scratch
a) to expand b) to occupy c) to distribute d) to stretch out

a) drawback b) failure
c) disadvantage d) deficiency
a) co-worker b) colleague c) rival
d) enemy
a) at the beginning b) from memory c) from time to time
d) starting from nothing

1. The Spanish government is trying to achieve
a) high quality of all Spanish products.
b) an increase in clothing sales.
c) a change in the textile industry.
2. T show their advances the Spanish
a) hold exhibitions and shows.
b) send designers abroad.
c) invite foreign designers.
3. The Spanish fashion industry lacks
a) talented designers.
b) support from French designers.
46
c) government money.
4. The people involved in fashion are afraid of
a) strong competition.
b) not having creative designers.
c) not having enough money for the industry to expand.
5. Some fashion designers started
a) to open shops in Europe.
b) to open big shops throughout Spain.
c) to obtain financing for exporting their products.
6. Fashion businesses find it hard to expand because
a) they are too small.
b) their clothes are too expensive.
c) there are few industries wanting to expand.
4. Using the following words and word combinations express the main idea
of each paragraph. Add your own words where appropriate.
1. The Spanish government, to promote fashion sector, international market.
2. To support fashion industry, to hold special events, to set up organizations,
projects.
3. To create favourable conditions, lack of experience, better chances, in
collaboration with.
4. To open salons, studios, shops, to export, growth and expansion.
5. Designer, products, to create a good image, be able to compete.
5. Put jumbled sentences in the logical order to sum up the contents of the
text.
1. Original high quality Spanish designer products can well conquer the
international market.
2. The government is doing its best to create favourable conditions for
fashion designers.
3. To be successful Spanish fashion industry has to get more funding.
4. People in fashion are to promote their products on international markets.
5. It is easier to develop the fashion sector in Italy and France.
6. Fashion industry in Spain cannot be considered a flourishing one.
7. Fashion designers are attempting to change the situation for the better.
47
UNIT XIV
Key words and expressions: women entrepreneurs, to enter business, lack of
training, to rise in number, to earn a degree, to face obstacles, to exclude, on
one's own, to succeed, men dominated.
Pre-reading tasks
Until recently, most American entrepreneurs were men. Discrimination
against women in business, the demands of caring for families, and lack of
business training had kept the number of women entrepreneurs small. Now,
however, businesses owned by women account for more than $40 billion in
annual revenues, and this figure is likely to continue rising. As Carolyn
Doppelt Gray, an official of the Small Business Administration has noted,
"The 1980s was the decade of women entering management, and this decade
has turned out to be the decade of the woman entrepreneur."
What are some of the factors behind this trend? For one thing, as more
women earn advanced degrees in business and enter the corporate world, they
are finding obstacles. Women are still excluded from most executive suites.
Charlotte Taylor, a management consultant, had noted, "In the 1970s women
believed if they got an MBA and worked hard, they could become chairman of
the board. Now they've found out that isn't going to happen, so they go out on
their own."
In the past, most women entrepreneurs worked in "women's" fields
cosmetics and clothing, for example. But this is changing. Consider ASK
Computer Systems, a $22-milIion-a-year computer software business. It was
founded by Sandra Kurtzig, who was then a housewife with degrees in math
48
and engineering. When Kurtzig founded the business, her first product was
software and her office was a bedroom at home, with a shoebox under the
bed to hold the company's cash. After she succeeded with the newspaper
software system, she hired several bright computer-science graduates to
develop additional programs. When these were marketed and sold, ASK began
to grow. It now has 200 employees and Sandra Kurtzig owns $ 66.9 million of
stock.
Of course, many women who start their own businesses fail, just as menoften do. They still face hurdles in the business world, especially problems in
raising money; the banking and finance world is still dominated by men, and
old attitudes die hard. Most businesses owned by women are still quite small.
But the situation is changing; there are likely to be many more Sandra
Kurtzigs in the years ahead.
Post-reading tasks
a) Women in business: now and then.
b) Women's traditional business fields.
c) Discrimination of women in the US.
entrepreneur
hurdle
board
to hire
a) shop assistant b) business person c) manager

a) obstacle
b) drawback c) disadvantage
a) chief manager b) committee c) officials
a) to include
b) to enroll
c) to monitor
d) boss
d) trouble
d) authorities
d) to employ
2. Join the following sentences using the connectors given below.

Sometimes more than one variant is possible.
1. The number of women in business was small. They encountered a lot of
difficulties.
2. There are still many obstacles. The number of businesses owned by
women is rising.
3. Some women fail. They face problems in raising money.
49
4. Women are still excluded from business world. The 1990s has seen a
substantial increase of the women entrepreneurs.
5. Women have been traditionally engaged in "women's fields". Many of
them managed to succeed in other spheres.
6. Sandra was bright and ambitious. Her business is flourishing.
7. A lot of women had advanced degrees in business. They could not enter
the corporate world.
CONNECTORS: in spite of (the fact that), despite, because, nevertheless,
however, that's why, notwithstanding, although.
1. The major obstacle to women in the business world was
a) lack of abilities.
b) lack of academic degrees.
c) male domination in business and discrimination.
2. The author of the article believes that women
a) were unrealistic about their opportunities in management.
b) were more interested in education than in business itself.
c) were unable to work hard enough to succeed.
3. The author mentions "the shoebox under the bed" in order to
a) show the resourcefulness of Sandra.
b) stress that her financial resources were initially limited.
c) suggest that the company needed to expand.
4. Businesses owned by women are small because
a) women cannot deal with money property.
b) many women still encounter obstacles.
c) women prefer a small intimate setting.
5. The authors attitude to the future of women in business is
a) sceptical.
b) negative.
c) optimistic.
4. Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order so as to sum up the
contents of the text.
1. Women still face obstacles in running their business and they often fail.
50
2. The author adduces the carrier path of Sandra Kurtzig as an example of a

woman who succeeded in male dominated field.
3. In the past there were few businesswomen.
4. The obstacles women face are male domination and financial difficulties
5. The reasons for that were their duties of mothers and housewives and lack
of special training.
6. Fortunately the situation is changing for the better and the number of
prosperous businesses run by women is increasing.
UNIT XV
Pre-reading tasks
1. Look at the title of the text. Does it ring the bell for you?
anything about this method?
DO
you know
2. Read biographical notes below and guess what the text is about. Render
the information forming complete sentences.
MARIA MONTESSORI: biographical notes
Among greatest educators of the 20th century
Founder of Montessori schools chief strategy - follow the child
EARLY LIFE
Born Ancona (Italy) 1870 in a middle-class family.
Studied medicine in Rome. First woman graduate of medicine (1896).
Working as a physician.
Contact with children from poor families.
DEVELOPMENT OF MONTESSORI SCHOOLS
1907 -founded first schools.
First schools in USA -1911.
Wrote more than 20 books on education theory and practice.
Developed pioneering Montessori method.
3. Look through the key words and expressions and guess what the text
below is about.
51
Key words and expressions: to learn better, enriched environment, to

stimulate, purposeful activity, to develop self-confidence, influence on
education, learner centered.
4
Guess the meaning of the international words.
To adapt, to stimulate, a variety, to summarize, activity, specific, prevalent,

disciplinarian, to nominate, senses.
Montessori Method
There are a number of key principles of the so-called 'Montessori method'
which are still used in Montessori schools world-wide and widely copied and
adapted elsewhere. Let me summarize these briefly now.
Firstly, there is the belief that children learn better if they are placed in
what is called an 'enriched environment' - that is an environment which
stimulates the senses through pictures, sound, colour, touch, etc., and in which
the children themselves can choose from a wide variety of activities. Children
need a wide range of activities from which they can choose what they'd like to
do, rather than everybody having to do the same thing at the same time.
Secondly, the idea that children learn through purposeful activity, not just
play, but activities with a purpose, for example, making something, drawing
pictures, etc. Given a choice, children will choose work rather than play. Toys
which do not serve a specific purpose are therefore discouraged.
And thirdly, in order that children develop confidence and self-esteem,
they should always be treated with respect and should be allowed to develop at
their own pace - a sharp contrast to many of the disciplinarian attitudes which
were prevalent at the time when Montessori was developing her ideas.
Having looked at those principles, let's look briefly at some of the key
events in Montessori's later life before summarizing her influence on the
world of education today.
In her later years, Montessori travelled widely, spending several years in
Spain, India and the UK. It was typical of her energy that, even in her
seventies she remained as active and dynamic as ever. She was nominated for
the Nobel Peace Prize on three occasions - in 1949, 19S0 and 1951. She died
in the Netherlands in 1952. She had previously insisted that she was buried
52
there rather than in her native Italy as she considered herself a citizen of the
world.
The influence of Montessori is still widely felt today. She was among the
first to put the learner at the centre of the learning process. As she wrote
herself 'We teachers can only help the work going on, as servants wait upon a
master.' There are now thousands of Montessori schools in more than fifty
countries, and former students include Jacqueline Kennedy and the British
royal princes, William and Harry.
Post-reading tasks
1. Read the text and summarize its main idea in 1-2 sentences using the
following phrases.
The text deals with the description ... .
The author points out the main...and adduces ... .
The text gives a brief outline of ... .
to discourage
to wait upon
to treat
pace
a) to force
a) to serve
a) to cure
a) step
b) to disappoint c) to deprive d) to dissuade

b) to accompany c) to hope for d) expect
b) to discuss
c) to regard d) to offer food
b) speed
c) peace
d) rate

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
The text under consideration deals with ... .

The fundamental principles of Montessori method are ... .
In an enriched environment children themselves can ... .
Children learn through purposeful activity such as ... .
To develop confidence and self-esteem ... .
In her later years Montessori ... .
Montessori was the first to put the learner ... and her influence on
education is still felt.
53
4. Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order to sum up the contents of
the text.
1. Children learn through purposeful activity which presupposes work not
just play.
2. Montessori was keen on travelling and considered herself the citizen of the
world.
3. Children learn better in an enriched environment
4. The influence of this pioneering method on education was great.
5. The text under discussion deals with the essence of Montessori method
and its influence on modern education.
6. They are free to choose the type of activity to engage in.
7. In Montessori method the learner is at the centre of the learning process.
8. It stimulates the senses through pictures, sound and touch.
UNIT XVI
Key words and expressions: compulsion to buy, hobby, financial ruin, rising
incomes, personal problems, excitement, to feel important, to escape the
demands of life.
Pre-reading tasks
1. Look at the title of the text. Try to guess what the text is about. What
nation in your opinion is meant?
A Nation of Shopaholics
It's the sort of thing men joke about in the pub. 'My wife's addicted to
shopping', they'll say, while their mates grin and nod sympathetically.
A study suggests however, that the compulsion to buy may be a growing
problem, affecting as many as one in five people, and in extreme cases leading
to family breakup and financial ruin. [1]
The number of people who confess to being shopaholics has grown from
fifteen percent to twenty-two percent of the population in five years. And
while twenty-nine percent of women admit to being addicted, so do fifteen
percent of men. Shopping is no longer simply a way of providing .essentials
for the family, say market researchers, to many women it is more like a hobby.
54
True, many people have more money to spend these days. Personal
disposable income has risen in twenty years. However, what they buy is not
necessarily what they can afford.
Over the same period, the number of people using credit cards has
increased by four times, and consumer debt has trebled. [2]
A bank executive stole more than 150,000 from her employers and blew
it on clothes and make-up to 'escape the stresses of being a working mother'.
Lyne Harding hid her purchases from her husband, who had no idea of what
she was doing. And she got away with it for four years. [3]
Spending sprees can be a symptom of serious personal problems,
according to researchers who have studied the subject. There are 'revenge
shoppers', who want to spite their husbands or boyfriends because they are
unhappy with their relationships. There are those who need shopping trips to
add excitement to their lives. Dr Helga Dittma, of the University of Sussex,
believes habitual shopping - particularly for designer clothes and jewellery - is
a symptom of a collapse of self-esteem. 'Addicts want not only the latest
fashions, they want to feel like the sort of person who would normally own
them, and to feel important, glamorous and loved.
Post-reading tasks
compulsion
to afford
to admit
disposable
a) desire
b) hope
c) influence
d) attempt
a) to allow b) to supply c) to be able to buy d) to avail of
a) to permit b) to let in c) to agree
d) to claim
a) the one you can spend freely
b) the one you must save
c) intended to be used only once
d) personal
2. The following passage is taken from the text above. Where does it go (1,
2 or 3)?
She went on huge spending sprees, sometimes spending thousands on
designer clothes and make-up in one day. 'It was a vicious circle. 'I could not
stop spending', she told the police after her arrest. 'It all started as an attempt
to escape the demands of a full-time job, combined with looking after a home
and children', she said.
55
3. Look at the following words from the text. Which of them are NOT
associated with the noun MONEY?
Income, debt, consumer, purchases, vicious, market, to afford, to revenge, an
addict.
4. Speak on the four causes of shopaholism and two consequences using
the words given.
Causes:
1. More money to spend, personal income, to rise, to be able to afford,
consumer debt.
2. A symptom of personal problems, to revenge, unhappy.
3. To add excitement, collapse of self- esteem, to feel glamorous and loved.
4. To escape demands and stresses, working mothers.
Consequences:
1. Family breakup.
2. Financial ruin.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
A person addicted to shopping ... .

Women shopaholics spend money on clothes to escape ... .
To many women shopping is ... .
Many people can afford to spend more as ... .
A lot of people spend more than they can afford which leads to... .
Shopping trips add ... .
For some women it is a way to escape ... .
Shopaholism may be a symptom of ... .
It helps the addicts to feel ... .

contents of the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Extreme cases of shopaholism lead to family breakups and financial ruin.

Shopping is gradually becoming a hobby with many women.
Researchers point out that the compulsion to buy is a growing problem.
On the other hand consumer debt is growing.
Shopping trips add excitement to their lives and make them feel important
Shopaholism may be a symptom of personal troubles and a collapse of
self- esteem.
56
7. On the one hand, personal incomes are growing.

8. For example, shopaholics may be unhappy with their relationships.
9. For women shopping is a way to escape the stresses of having to keep the
house and work full time.
10. Women shopaholics tend to spend money on designer clothes and makeup.
UNIT XVII
Key words and expressions: noise, traffic, jet-planes, to disturb, to do harm,
difficult to remove, costly, economic conflict, to ignore the problem, public
concern, to limit.
Pre-reading tasks
1. Look at the title of the text below and the key words and guess what the
text is about.
2. Look through the text to see if your guess was right.
The Noise about Noise
The roar of traffic, the squeal of brakes, the clickety-clack of typewriters,
the pounding of machinery. We live and work among it all. It disturbs sleep,
frays tempers, reduces working efficiency and does an unknown amount of
actual physical harm. Noise has become the curse of modern civilization. But
because it is the responsibility of nobody, because it is the by-product of
almost every human activity, because being deaf is an affliction which fails to
rouse human pity, the problem of controlling and limiting noise has been
neglected.
57
The hazard is not recognized, even by the people subjected to noise. The
noise is an unwanted and useless by-product, but one which is difficult and
costly to remove. The noise the jet aircraft flying into London Airport makes
is unpleasant enough for those who work at the airport, but even more so for
those who live round about. The nuisance could be reduced by moving the
airport to some remote part of the country, but this would inconvenience air
travellers and cost a great deal. It is a matter of economic conflict between the
public, largely disorganized but suffering a nuisance, and industry attempting
to compete.
How much do people who live around noisy airports or near noisy
factories really suffer? "There are a few notorious streets near the airport,"
said a Hounslow estate agent, 'where prices are 500 or 600 below what
you'd expect.
Only in the past few years, since the multiplication of the motor-cars
and strident-voiced jets has the public conscience been aroused. All over the
world, communities are beginning to demand control of the onslaught on their
ears. Rome and Paris banned the motor horn. American motor manufacturers
have agreed to limit the noise made by their cars. And the Port of New York
Authority led the rest of the world in devising regulations to limit the quite
unbearable noise of big jets taking off from International Airport.
Post-reading tasks
affliction
onslaught
curse
to disturb
a) trouble
a) attempt
a) evil
a) to interrupt
c) to irritate
b) harm
c) illness
b) attack
c) onset
b) bad chance
c) trouble
b) to interfere into affairs
d) to break in upon a person
d) symptom
d) start
d) hate
2. Paraphrase the following sentences using synonyms for the underlined

words. There are two odd ones.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Noise reduces working efficiency and frays tempers.

This problem has long been neglected.
The public concern has been roused.
Noise harms human health.
58
5. The nuisance could be reduced by moving airports to some remote

location in the country.
6. Rome and Paris banned the motor horn.
7. The regulations limit the unbearable noise from jet-engines.
8. There are a few notorious streets near airports where houses cost cheaper.
Synonyms: to prohibit, to damage, distant, to decrease, to suffer, to become
exited, to remove, to restrict, to wear out, trouble, to ignore, unfavourably
known.
3. Speak on causes and consequences of industrial noise, the measures
taken to eliminate it and the difficulties encountered. Use the words given.
CAUSES: traffic, noisy machinery, airports, jet-planes, a lot of cars, byproduct of human activity, to neglect the problem.
CONSEQUENCES: unbearable noise, to disturb sleep, onslaught on ears, to
reduce working efficiency, to suffer, to harm health, to become deaf
MEASURES: to arouse public concern, to demand control, to ban, to limit, to
devise regulations, to move to distant locations
DIFFICULTIES: to neglect, to ignore the problem, a matter of economic
conflict, costly.
UNIT XVIII
Key words and expressions: to play video games, to be addicted, computer
games industry, profitable, boys and girls gaming profiles, psychologists, to
attract older audience, to join forces with television and film industry.
Pre-reading tasks
The habits of those who constantly play video games are of great
interest to people working in the video-game industry. If video games are
going to be one of the most attractive features of future interactive television
systems, it is important for manufacturers to know what types of games to
59
produce, how best to present such games, and how to ensure that such games
maintain fascination for people. Above all, it is essential to build up profiles of
people who are addicted to video games.
Until recently, the chief market for video games has been boys aged eight
to fifteen. The fascination for interactive video games is seen in its purest form
in this group. Video games appeal to some deep instinct in boys, who find it
impossible to tear themselves away from them. Schoolwork is neglected,
health is damaged, and even eating habits are affected. Girls of the same age,
however, are entirely different, demonstrating far greater freedom from the
hold of video games. Quite simply, they can take video games in their stride,
being able to play them when they want and then, leave them alone.
A few psychologists feel that video games may serve chiefly as a refuge
for boys, who develop at a far slower rate than girls do in their early teens. As
a result, young teenage boys often feel embarrassed and anxious in their
dealing with girls of their age and tend to withdraw into sports, clubs, hobbies
- and above all video gaming.
Aware of the reliance on boys of such a relatively narrow age group, some
video-game manufacturers have tried to attract young boys while others have
concentrated on providing an older audience, with an excuse to extend its
game-playing habits into adulthood. These attempts have certainly had some
success, though, it must be admitted, of a fairly limited nature in comparison
with the huge success of the eight to fifteen age group.
No one has yet succeeded, however, in making video games attractive to
the largest market of all: young adult women. These women buy more novels
and watch more films and television dramas than any either single section of
the population - but few show interest in video games. Since Hollywood has
undoubtedly the best experience and expertise in bringing stories to life on the
screen, several large video-game companies now feel it is time to join forces
with the film industry. They feel that video games made by top-rate film
directors and film stars must inevitably succeed in attracting women. Already
well-known actors are being recruited to serve as models for the behavior and
actions of the cartoon characters in video game: namely, that it is such fun to
play that it is irresistible.
Post-reading tasks
1. Now that you have read the text think of a proper title to the text.
Motivate your choice.
60

fascination
inevitably
an excuse
to tear
a) mystery
c) simplicity
a) unexpectedly
c) uncommonly
a) pretext
c) mercy
a) to divide
c) to throw away
b) attractiveness
d) delight
b) unavoidably
d) unbearably
b) pardon
d) apology
b) to pull apart
d) to remove by force

1. Producers of video games are keen on
a) developing computer techniques.
b) finding the best ways to attract people.
c) devising ways to change their games into TV programmes.
2. The people who are most addicted to video games are
a) girls between eight to fifteen.
b) boys aged from eight to fifteen.
c) young adult women.
3. The addiction can be so powerful that it can
a) make people physically ill.
b) destroy people's instincts.
c) make people seek protection.
4. Young teenage boys are reluctant to talk to girls of their age because
a) the girls are not interested in video games.
b) boys are interested only in video games.
c) boys are slower in their development than girls.
5. Games manufacturers
a) succeeded in attracting boys who are over fifteen.
b) failed in attracting adults.
c) provided an older audience with games suitable for their age.
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4. Join two sentences together so as to form a compound sentence. Add

connectors given below. In some cases more than one variant is possible.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
People in games industry are interested in the habits of game addicts.

Boys are more addicted to video games.
Boys develop at a slower rate than girls do.
Those who are awfully keen on games cannot tear themselves from them.
Games manufacturers made some attempts to attract older audience.
Young adult women are least addicted to games.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
Their health suffers.

Young teenage boys are reluctant to deal with girls.
It was of a very limited nature.
Their policy is to continue to attract people.
Game manufacturers are inclined to join forces with film industry.
Girls demonstrate greater freedom from computer games.
Connectors: that's why, because, while, nevertheless, as a result, although, in

contrast to, moreover.
contents of the text. Add your own sentences where appropriate.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Girls develop faster than boys in their teens.

Boys are awfully keen on video games.
Games are not very popular with young adult women.
Health is damaged and they do badly at school.
Games made by famous film producers might appeal to women.
Some producers focus on games for adult people.
The consequences of being addicted to video games are dramatic.
Unit XIX
Key words and expressions: to tell lies, compliments, psychologists, to accept
or reject a lie, reasons for lying, to spot a lie.
Pre-reading tasks
62
2. Read the text to see if your guess was right. Think of a proper title to the
text.
Can you imagine the whole day without telling lies? 'Yes, of course',
most people would answer, but then they've probably forgotten all those little
lies that are said so easily - 'This is delicious'. 'You look lovely in that shirt. 'I'd
love to come with you etc. Lying is a way of making life run more smoothly.
We are told not to lie from the moment we learn how to do it. According to
psychologist Richard Wiseman, this is at the age of about four when children
realize they can deceive people. We are not born liars. In childhood, the line
between imagination and lying is often not clear. Children are praised for
creative imagination but generally criticized for hiding the truth.
As adults we have definite ideas about which kind of lies are OK and
which are not. Very often the reason for the lie is the important thing in
accepting or rejecting the lie.
Generally speaking there are three types of lies, and liars. The first sort of
liar wants to please people, the second wants to protect him or herself, the
third sort doesn't care about other people and lies to get what he or she wants.
If someone is fishing for compliments and you tell them what they want to
hear, you probably think it's a 'kind' lie. However, you get something as a
result of this lie - affection, friendship, peace and quiet. When you lie for selfprotection, the reason is clearer. To explain your lateness, you tell your boss
the train was cancelled not that you overslept. You cannot be blamed for being
late, because you are not responsible for the 'behaviour' of the train and the
consequences. The third sort of lie could be more dangerous. It is, for
example, the kind that people tell in order to climb up the ladder at work
without caring who gets hurt in the process.
But what about being lied to? Can you spot when someone is telling you a
lie? Apparently there are some verbal clues lots of ahs and liars take longer
to answer a question. They also speak faster but don't always give the details.
And then there's body language. Experts say there are certain things that can
help identify someone who's not telling the truth. Speaking through their
fingers and putting the hands over the face is one. Playing with their hair or
clothes and being unable to stay still for any length of time is another. But the
truth of the matter is that we all lie at some time and if anyone tells you they
don't they're lying.
63
Post-reading tasks
affection
a clue
to spot
to blame
a) protection
a) a key
a) to search
a) to ignore
b) pretence
b) an offer
b) to specify
b) to praise
c) love
c) reaction
c) to define
c) to object
d) apprehension
d) assumption
d) to detect
d) consider responsible

1. According to the text, lying
a) is saying something which we are not sure of.
b) develops a persons intellectual ability.
c) makes one's life easier.
2. The difference between lying and imagination
a) is not defined by psychologists.
b) can hardly be grasped by a child.
c) disappears as one grows up.
3. In the text the author
a) explains that children are taught to lie by adults.
b) proves that lying is something people are born with.
c) puts lying into different categories.
4.
When you lie for self-protection

a) your lie can be detected.
b) nobody is harmed.
c) you try to find someone else to be punished for your faults.
4. Speak on the following points using words and expressions given.

1. The attitude of adults to the children telling lies (bad habit, deceive people,
lies and imagination, to criticize, to praise for imagination).
2. Lies and compliments any difference? (to tell compliments, a kind lie, to
gain affection and friendship, to make life easier, to fish for compliments).
64
3. It is quite possible to identify liers (body language, verbal clues, to spot,

unable to stay still, to play with the hair, to speak fast).
4. Lies egoists and ambitious people might tell (dangerous, to get a
promotion, not to be blamed, not to care about other people).
UNIT XX
Key words and expressions: mobile phone revolution, rise of sales, to
transform life, to spend much time on the phone, innovations, to generate a
new type of language, the rich and the poor, drawbacks.
Pre-reading tasks
No consumer product in history has caught on as quickly as the
mobile phone, global sales of which have risen from six million in 1991 to
more than 500 million a year now. The arrival of the mobile phone has
transformed our lifestyles so much that men now spend more time on the
phone than women, according to the results of our special opinion poll.
The survey found that men with mobile phones (72% of all men) spend
more than an hour a day making calls on an average weekday. The average
man spends sixty-six minutes on his landline or his mobile, compared with
fifty-three minutes before the mobile phone revolution. But the poll reveals
that, while men are using their phones a lot more, women are actually
spending less time on the phone. Slightly fewer women (67%) have a mobile
phone, and the survey shows that the average amount of time they spend on
the phone on a weekday has gone down from sixty-three minutes before they
got a mobile to fifty-five minutes now. The explanation might lie in the fact
65
that men love to play with techno toys while women may be more conscious
of the bills they are running up.
Innovation in mobile phones has been happening so fast that it's difficult
for consumers to change their behaviour. Phones are constantly swallowing up
other products like cameras, calculators, clocks, radios, and digital music
players. There are twenty different products that previously might have been
bought separately that can now be part of a mobile phone. Mobiles have
changed the way people talk to one another, they have generated a new type of
language, they have saved lives and become style icons.
Obviously, the rich have been buying phones faster than the poor. But
this happens with every innovation. Mobile phone take-up among the poor has
actually been far quicker than it was in the case of previous products, such as
colour television, computers and Internet access. Indeed, as mobile phones
continue to become cheaper and more powerful, they might prove to be more
successful in bridging the gap between the rich and the poor than expensive
computers.
There are obviously drawbacks to mobiles as well: mobile users are two
and a half times more likely to develop cancer in areas of the brain adjacent to
their phone ear, although researchers are unable to prove whether this has
anything to do with the phone; mobile thefts now account for a third of all
street robberies in London, and don't forget about all the accidents waiting to
happen as people drive with a mobile in one hand. But, overall mobile phones
have proved to be a big benefit for people.
Post-reading tasks
conscious
a) concerned
swallow up a) enclose
gap
a) discrepancy
to account for a) to calculate
b) well-informed
b) destroy
b) disagreement
b) to consider
c) honest
c) absorb
c) variety
c) to state
d) reasonable
d) eat
d) barrier
d) to explain

1. The group with the highest number of people who own a mobile phone is
66
a) teenagers.
b) people between 40 and 50.
c) men.
2. According to the opinion poll, women
a) spend less time on the phone than they used to.
b) like to play with their mobile phones.
c) spend more time on the phone than men.
3. According to the text, mobile phones
a) are modified too fast.
b) are incorporated into cameras.
c) can now replace any other product.
4. Among the poor, the demand for mobile phones
a) has created more of a gap with the rich.
b) follows the pattern of some similar innovations.
c) has grown faster than the demand for computers.
5. Speak about advantages and drawback of mobile phones using the
following word combinations.
Advantages: to change lifestyle, to save lives, more quickly, innovations,
cheaper, even the poor, more powerful.
Drawbacks: bills, to transform life, to become addicts, lack of real
communication, likely to develop cancer, thefts of mobiles, road accidents.
67
PART 3
UNIT XXI
Key words and expressions: to bear in mind, an experienced traveler, to
travel abroad, the ignorance of the habits, according to ones notions, to touch
the pride of people.
Though recent years have witnessed a great improvement, it must be
confessed that many people still betray woeful ignorance of the veriest
rudiments of the art of travelling abroad. One should bear in mind that one
cannot reasonably expect the manners of the people among whom one is
staying to be altered for one's particular benefit, and that it is not the
nationality which makes the gentleman, but his actions.
Wherever you decide to go, it is sensible, unless you are an experienced
traveller, to consult some friend who has been there before as to the kind of
climate you may expect, the kind and quantity of clothes you will need and to
get any advice he may be able to give you in general which may add to the
ease and comfort of your trip. Your friend will not be at all bored by the
questions as there are few topics more welcome to anyone who has "been
there before!"
68
When travelling abroad it is odious perpetually to be instituting

comparisons. It is discourteous to those with whom you may be temporary
thrown; and it detracts from your own comfort and pleasure. You may
dislike this, that, or the other thing, but all the grumbling in the world is not
likely to alter it. The matter complained about may, and very likely does,
exactly suit the taste of the foreigner, and as he prefers his own taste to yours,
you must either accept it or remain in your own country. What is more, by
grumbling you display your ignorance of the habits and customs of foreign
countries. The true traveller, if dining on salt fish in Iceland, would never tell
the Icelanders that roast beef is better, whatever he might think.
And this attitude should apply to everything. The women may not dress so
tastefully, according to your notions, as your sisters or daughters at home. The
men may be too noisy or too quiet. The houses may be ridiculously
inconvenient, or clumsily built. No matter wherein lies the difference,
institute no comparisons. Remember you are in a strange country, where you
must expect to see strange things. Be especially careful not to say or do
anything that will touch the pride of the people, or show disrespect of their
religion.
Remember too, that, though in some respects the comparisons you may be
mentally drawing may be flattering to your own country, the reverse will be
true, over and over again if you study things dispassionately.
Post-reading tasks
1. Choose the synonyms according to the context.
To betray
a) be disloyal
b) be evidence or symptom of
c) to accept
benefit
a) quality
b) an advantage
c) a loss
ease
a) comfort
b) freedom from constraint
c) a trouble
to institute
a) to establish
69
b) to appoint
c) to study
clumsy
a) awkward in shape
b) strange
c) difficult

1.
2.
3.
4.
Though people have travelled a lot these days they still show .
If one of your friends is an experienced traveler ask him about .
Your constant grumbling while comparing abroad might easily lead to .
When in a foreign country be ready to and not to .
3. Join two sentences using connectives.

1. Many improvements have taken place. People still show ignorance of
many basically important things.
2. You should definitely consult an experienced traveller. You are an
experienced traveller yourself.
3. Constant grumbling may display your ignorance of habits of foreign
countries. The true traveller would never complain of anything in a foreign
country.
4. You are in a foreign country. You must expect to see strange things.
5. Some comparisons may not be flattering. You think of them
dispassionately.
4. Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order.
1. If you happen to be in a foreign country try to accept things there as they
are otherwise you are going to offend the pride of the local people.
2. Sometimes it is sensible to consult an experienced traveller about the
climate, the cuisine of the country you are going to.
3. Despite the fact that people have travelled a lot they still do not know
many important things about staying abroad
4. Through no fault of their own travellers make comparisons which detracts
them from their comfort and pleasure.
5. When abroad many things such as peoples behavior their clothes, meals
might seem odd.
70
5. Now that you have read the text choose the title of the text from the ones
given below.
a) Being a tourist is a difficult job.
b) The art of travelling abroad.
c) Pros and cons of travelling abroad.
UNIT XXII
Key words and expressions: a high security area, a data base entry, a PIN, a
digital file, to record iris-scanning.
Shock Tactics
The advanced laser gun is an electric stun gun which allows police to deal
with violent people without causing injury or death, h has a laser sight to make
sure the suspect is properly targeted. It uses a compressed air cartridge to fire
two darts at the suspect. The darts pull behind them fine electric cable. They
can penetrate the thickest clothing, up to 5 centimetres, at a range of 6.4
metres. When the darts hit someone, the gun delivers a 50,600 volt shock for
five seconds. The shock causes temporary paralysis. "Laser waves, electrical
signals, cause the suspect's muscles to contract. The guns contain a microchip
which records the date and time of each firing.
The iris is the coloured ring round the central part of your eye. Each one is
different, which makes it perfect for security systems such as Iris-scanning.
First, your iris is scanned and the information converted to a digital file which
is stored in a database. This process lakes about three minutes. When you go
to a high security area, you simply look at a camera which scans your iris. The
result is compared with your database entry. It takes just over a second to
complete the check. The system is used at airports to speed passengers through
71
passport control and to control entry to restricted areas. Some banks use it at
ATM machines instead of PINs. Apart from the speed, the advantage is that
users don't need to remember a password or key. This system can handle users
wearing glasses, contact lenses, and also changes to the eye as people age. So
far, it's foolproof.
Offender tracking consists of a small tracking unit worn on the belt or
ankle. It uses the technology of Global positioning system (GPS) to record the
wearer's movements. This data is fed to a server which matches movements
with places. Some offenders are restricted to an area around their home. If
they move outside that area, this is reported by email to the police. Some
offenders are forbidden to enter certain areas. If they go there, this is reported
automatically to the police. The system also contains details of crimes. If an
offender is near the scene of a crime at the right time, a report is sent directly
to the police.
Post-reading tasks
1. Form synonymous pairs.
1. To stun
2. To penetrate
3. To cause
4. To handle
5. To match
2.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
3.
a) to go into/through
b) to deal with
c) to shock completely
d) to induce
e) to be equal
Complete the following sentences.

A laser gun is able to .
The system of iris-scanning is widely used in .
GPS is the technology applied for .
Laser guns contain .
The system of iris scanning is used in .
Offender tracking uses the technology .
Join two sentences using connectives.
1. The suspect is properly targeted. A laser gun has a laser sight.

2. The date and the time of firing are recorded. The laser gun contains a
microchip.
3. The iris is scanned. The information is stored in a database.
72
4. Users do not need remember password or key. This system has one more
advantage.
5. Offender tracking uses GPS. His movements are recorded.
6. Offenders move outside the restricted area. This is reported to the police.
4.
Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order.
1. The process of scanning ones iris takes about three minutes.

2. A compressed air cartridge with two darts allows police to deal with
violent people.
3. This system is used at airports to speed passengers through passport
control.
4. GPS is used during offenders tracking.
5. If offenders break the borders of the restricted area it is immediately
reported to the police.
UNIT XXIII
Key words and expressions: an active ingredient, lung cancer, passive
smoking, to underestimate the danger.
Pre-reading tasks
Before reading the text answer the questions.
1. Why do people smoke?
2. Do you think it is difficult to avoid this harmful habit?
The Risks of Cigarette Smoke

Discovered in the early 1800s and named nicotianine, the oily essence now
called nicotine is the main active ingredient of tobacco. Nicotine, however, is
only a small component of cigarette smoke, which contains more than 4,700
chemical compounds, including 43 cancer-causing substances. In recent times,
scientific research has been providing evidence that years of cigarette smoking
vastly increases the risk of developing fatal medical conditions.
73
In addition to being responsible for more than 85 per cent of lung cancers,
smoking is associated with cancers of, amongst others, the mouth, stomach
and kidneys, and is thought to cause about 14 per cent of leukemia and
cervical cancers. In 1990, smoking caused more than 84,000 deaths, mainly
resulting from such problems as pneumonia, bronchitis and influenza.
Smoking, it is believed, is responsible for 30 per cent of all deaths from cancer
and clearly represents the most important preventable cause of cancer in
countries like the United States today.
Passive smoking, the breathing in of the side-stream smoke from the
burning of tobacco between puffs or of the smoke exhaled by a smoker, also
causes a serious health risk, A report published in 1992 by the US
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emphasized the health dangers,
especially from side-stream smoke. This type of smoke contains more, smaller
particles and is therefore more likely to be deposited deep in the lungs. On the
basis of this report, the EPA has classified environmental tobacco smoke in the
highest risk category for causing cancer.
This report emphasizes that cancer is not caused by a single element in
cigarette smoke; harmful effects to health are caused by many components.
Carbon monoxide, for example, competes with oxygen in red blood cells and
interferes with the blood's ability to deliver oxygen to the heart. Nicotine and
other toxins in cigarette smoke activate small blood cells called platelets,
which increases the likelihood of blood clots, thereby affecting blood
circulation throughout the body.
The researchers criticize the practice of some scientific consultants who
work with the tobacco industry for assuming that cigarette smoke has the same
impact on smokers as it does on non-smokers. They argue that those scientists
are underestimating the damage done by passive smoking and, in support of
their recent findings, cite some previous research which points to passive
smoking as the cause for between 30,000 and 60,000 deaths from heart attacks
each year in the United States. This means that passive smoking is the third
most preventable cause of death after active smoking and alcohol-related
diseases.
Post-reading tasks
1. Form synonymous pairs.
1. Breath in
2. Essence
3. Main
a) link
b) basis
c) substance
74
4. Fatal
5. Associate
d) inhale
e) friend

1.
2.
3.
4.
Cigarette smoke contains .

Smoking can cause such fatal diseases as .
Passive smoking is .
Among the many components that are harmful to health due to smoking
are .
5. Some scientific consultants working with the tobacco industry are
criticized for assuming that .
3. Agree or disagree with the following statements.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Nicotine is the main component of cigarette smoke.

Smoking is connected with many types of cancer.
Passive smoking is not harmful to ones health.
Other components of cigarette smoke are also responsible for many health
disorders.
5. Passive smoking is a preventable cause of death.
1. Smoking is responsible not only for lung cancer but also for developing
many other diseases.
2. It is worth mentioning that some scientists underestimate the damage done
by passive smoking.
3. Many other elements such as carbon monoxide harmfully affect health.
4. Nicotine, the oily essence, is the main ingredient of tobacco.
5. Passive smoking contains much smaller particles which are deposited deep
in the lungs thus causing cancer.
6. Medical evidence proves that cigarette smoking is the cause of developing
fatal diseases.
UNIT XXIV
Key words and expressions: a homogeneous unit, corporate clothing,
hierarchy, to market communication, visual cues, a dress style, to size up.
75
Pre-reading tasks
Answer the questions.
a)
b)
c)
d)
Do you judge people by their clothes?

Do you think staff have to wear a uniform?
Would you like to wear a uniform as a student of the BSU?
When you form a first impression of someone which of these is most
important to you? Rank them from 1 (most important) to 5 (least
important).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The way they look at you.

Their job or who they work for.
The way they dress.
The way they shake hands or greet you.
The way they speak.
First Impressions Count
Traditionally uniforms were - and for some industries still are manufactured to protect the worker. When they were first designed. it is also
likely that all uniforms made symbolic sense - those for the military, for
example, were originally intended to impress and even terrify the enemy;
other uniforms denoted a hierarchy - chefs wore white because they worked
with flour, but the main chef wore a black hat to show he supervised.
The last 30 years, however, have seen an increasing emphasis on their role
in projecting the image of an organization and in uniting the workforce into a
homogeneous unit - particularly in 'customer facing' industries, and especially
in financial services and retailing. From uniforms and workwear has emerged
'corporate clothing'. "The people you employ are your ambassadors," says
Peter Griffin, managing director of a major retailer in the UK. "What they say,
how they look, and how they behave is terribly important." The result is a new
way of looking at corporate workwear. From being a simple means of
identifying who is a member of staff, the uniform is emerging as a new
channel of marketing communication.
Truly effective marketing through visual cues such as uniforms is a subtle
art, however. Wittingly or unwittingly, how we look sends all sorts of powerful
subliminal messages to other people. Dark colours give an aura of authority
while lighter pastel shades suggest approachability. Certain dress style creates
a sense of conservatism, others a sense of openness to new ideas. Neatness can
76
suggest efficiency but if it is overdone, it can spill over and indicate an

obsession with power. "If the company is selling quality, then it must have
quality uniforms. If it is selling style, its uniforms must be stylish. If it wants
to appear innovative, everybody can't look exactly the same. Subliminally we
see all these things," says Lynn Elvy, a director of image consultants House of
Colour.
But translating corporate philosophies into the right mix of colour, style,
degree of branding and uniformity can be a fraught process. And it is not
always successful. According to Company Clothing magazine, there are 1000
companies supplying the workwear and corporate clothing market. Of these,
22 account for 85% of total sales - 380 million in 1994.
A successful uniform needs to balance two key sets of needs. On the one
hand, no uniform will work if staff feel uncomfortable or ugly. Giving the
wearers a choice has become a key element in the way corporate clothing is
introduced and managed. On the other, it is pointless if the look doesn't
express the business's marketing strategy. The greatest challenge in this
respect is time. When it comes to human perceptions, first impressions count.
Customers will size up the way staff look in just a few seconds, and that few
seconds will colour their attitudes from then on. Those few seconds can be so
important that big companies are prepared to invest years, and millions of
pound; getting them right.
Post-reading tasks
1. Choose the best explanation.
1. Subtle
2. Subliminal
3. Branding
4. Projecting
a) promoting revealing some features

b) difficult to explain, very delicate
c) applying a specific name to the goods made by
one manufacturer
d) below the consciousness of the senses

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Initially uniforms were manufactured for different purposes such as .

Corporate clothing emerged from .
Dark colours and pastel shades suggest correspondingly.
A uniform will work if .
It will take customers a few seconds .
77

1. Different colours, neatness, dress styles of uniform wearers send all sorts
of powerful subliminal messages to other people.
2. From the very beginning uniforms meant different things.
3. Those few seconds of customers sizing up the staff make big companies
invest years and millions of pounds in uniforms.
4. Uniforms were initially produced to protect workers.
5. Special way of saying, looking and behaving of people in uniforms creates
a new channel of marketing communication.
UNIT XXV
Key words and expressions: space travel, exploration of the universe, a
reaction principle, to date back, to credit, to propel rockets.
The Rocket - From East to West
The concept of the rocket, or rather the mechanism behind the idea of
propelling an object into the air, has been around for well over two thousand
years. However, it wasn't until the discovery of the reaction principle, which
was the key to space travel and so represents one of the great milestones in the
history of scientific thought, that rocket technology was able to develop. Not
only did it solve a problem that had intrigued man for ages, but, more
importantly, it literally opened the door to exploration of the universe.
An intellectual breakthrough, brilliant though it may be, does not
automatically ensure that the transition is made from theory to practice.
Despite the fact that rockets had been used sporadically for several hundred
years, they remained a relatively minor artifact of civilisation until the
twentieth century. Prodigious efforts, accelerated during two world wars, were
required before the technology of primitive rocketry could be translated into
the reality of sophisticated astronauts. It is strange that the rocket was
generally ignored by writers of fiction to transport their heroes to mysterious
78
realms beyond the Earth, even though it had been commonly used in fireworks
displays in China since the thirteenth century. The reason is that nobody
associated the reaction principle with the idea of travelling through space to a
neighbouring world.
A simple analogy can help us to understand how a rocket operates. It is
much like a machine gun mounted on the rear of a boat. In reaction to the
backward discharge of bullets, the gun, and hence the boat, move forwards. A
rocket motor's 'bullets' are minute, high-speed particles produced by burning
propellants in a suitable chamber. The reaction to the ejection of these small
particles causes the rocket to move forwards. There is evidence that the
reaction principle was applied practically well before the rocket was invented.
In his Nodes Atticae or Greek Nights, Aulus Gellius describes 'the pigeon of
Archytas1, an invention dating back to about 360 . Cylindrical in shape,
made of wood, and hanging from string, it was moved to and fro by steam
blowing out from small exhaust ports at either end. The reaction to the
discharging steam provided the bird with motive power.
The invention of rockets is linked inextricably with the invention of 'black
powder'. Most historians of technology credit the Chinese with its discovery.
They base their belief on studies of Chinese writings or on the notebooks of
early Europeans who settled in or made long visits to China to study its history
and civilisation. It is probable that, some time in the tenth century, black
powder was first compounded from its basic ingredients of saltpetre, charcoal
and sulphur. But this does not mean that it was immediately used to propel
rockets. By the thirteenth century, powder-propelled fire arrows had become
rather common. The Chinese relied on this type of technological development
to produce incendiary projectiles of many sorts, explosive grenades and
possibly cannons to repel their enemies. One such weapon was the 'basket of
fire' or, as directly translated from Chinese, the 'arrows like flying leopards'.
The 0.7 metre-long arrows, each with a long tube of gunpowder attached near
the point of each arrow, could be fired from a long, octagonal-shaped basket at
the same time and had a range of 400 paces. Another weapon was the 'arrow
as a flying sabre1, which could be fired from crossbows. The rocket, placed in
a similar position to other rocket-propelled arrows, was designed to increase
the range. A small iron weight was attached to the 1.5m bamboo shaft, just
below the feathers, to increase the arrow's stability by moving the centre of
gravity to a position below the rocket. At a similar time, the Arabs had
developed the 'egg which moves and burns'. This 'egg' was apparently full of
gunpowder and stabilized by a 1.5m tail. It was fired using two rockets
attached to either side of this tail.
79
Post-reading tasks
1. To propel
2. An artifact
3. Incendiary
4. Sophisticated
5. To compound
6. An arrow
a) to make up
b) setting on fire of property
c) to push forward
d) a product of prehistoric art
e) a straight shot from bow
f) highly developed

1. The reaction principle not only contributed to the development of but
also .
2. The invention of rockets is closely .
3. At first black powder composed of .
4. The rocket by writers of fiction though .
1. Rockets remained a minor artifact of civilization. They had been used
from time to time for several hundred years.
2. Nobody associated the reaction principle with travelling through space. It
was used in rockets.
3. Burning propellants produce high-speed particles. This reaction causes the
rocket to move forwards.
4. The rocket range increases. It is placed in a specific position to other
rocket-propelled arrows.
1. The way a rocket operates can be compared with that of a machine gun
mounted on the rear of a boat.
2. Most historians of technology credit the Chinese with the discovery of
black powder.
3. The reaction principle has become the key to space travel.
4. It took time for the technology of rocketry to be translated into the reality
of astronautics.
5. The Chinese relying on black powder produced incendiary projectiles of
many sorts.
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UNIT XXVI
Key words and expressions: breed, prevent from, species, a fly, a residue, a
fertilizer, decompose, deprive of.
Pre-reading tasks
Before reading the text say if you know what the Russian equivalent of the
saying Blind as a beetle means. Why the word beetle is the key word?
A Remarkable Beetle
Some of the most remarkable beetles are the dung beetles, which spend
almost their whole lives eating and breeding in dung.
In the early 1960s George Bornemissza, then a scientist at the Australian
Government's premier research organisation, the Commonwealth Scientific
and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), suggested that dung beetles
should be introduced to Australia to control dung-breeding flies.
Introducing dung beetles into a pasture is a simple process: approximately
1,500 beetles are released, a handful at a time, into fresh cow pats in the cow
pasture. The beetles immediately disappear beneath the pats digging and
tunnelling and, if they successfully adapt to their new environment, soon
become a permanent, self-sustaining part of the local ecology. In time they
multiply and within three or four years the benefits to the pasture are obvious.
In the late 1960s they were introduced with a view to controlling buffalo flies
by removing the dung within a day or two and so preventing flies from
breeding. However, other benefits have become evident. Once the beetle
larvae have finished pupation, the residue is a first-rate source of fertiliser. The
tunnels abandoned by the beetles provide excellent aeration and water
channels for root systems. In addition, when the new generation of beetles has
left the nest the abandoned burrows are an attractive habitat for soil-enriching
earthworms. The digested dung in these burrows is an excellent food supply
for the earthworms, which decompose it further to provide essential soil
nutrients. If it were not for the dung beetle, chemical fertiliser and dung would
be washed by rain into streams and rivers before it could be absorbed into the
81
hard earth, polluting water courses and causing blooms of blue-green algae.
Without the beetles to dispose of the dung, cow pats would litter pastures
making grass inedible to cattle and depriving the soil of sunlight.
Dung beetles have become an integral part of the successful management
of dairy farms in Australia over the past few decades.
Post-reading tasks
1. Larva
2. Breed
3. Benefit
4. Abandon
5. Habitat
6. Nutrient
7. Integral
8. Enrich
a) a substance that provides nourishment for the

maintenance of life
b) improve the quality or value of
c) an active immature form of an insect or other
animal
d) develop a variety of plant or animal
e) an advantage or profit from something
f) natural home or environment of an organism
g) leave behind
h) necessary to make a whole complete

1. The beetles immediately disappear beneath the cow pats. Approximately
1500 beetles are released.
2. In the late 1960s the beetles were introduced. It was necessary to prevent
flies from breeding.
3. The new generation of beetles leaves the nest. The abandoned burrows
become an attractive habitat for soil enriching earthworms.
4. Chemical fertilizer and dung would be washed by rain into rivers. The
beetles were not introduced.
5. The beetles didnt dispose of the dung. Cow pats would litter pastures and
make grass inedible.
1.
2.
3.
4.
The dung beetles are known for .

Controlling dung-breeding flies resulted in .
Having adapted to new environment the dung beetles start .
Apart from being a first-rate source of fertilizer the pastures .
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5. The abandoned by beetles burrows become .

6. If the dung beetles didnt nest on pastures .
1. The beetles immediately disappear beneath the pats and tunneling.
2. Chemical fertilizer and dung would be washed by rain into streams and
rivers if it were not for the dung beetle.
3. Dung beetles were introduced into farming in the early 1960s to control
dung-breeding flies.
4. There are some evident benefits of using dung beetles.
5. If the beetles didnt dispose of the dung cow pats would litter pastures and
grass inedible to cattle.
UNIT XXVII
Key words and expressions: to lack, to cause, depressed, exposure,
fluorescent, to be exposed to, a mood, melatonin.
Pre-reading tasks
Look at the title of the text and guess what the text is about.
Highs and Lows
Hormone levels - and hence our moods - may be affected by the weather.
Gloomy weather can depression, but sunshine appears to raise the spirits. In
Britain, for example, the dull weather of winter drastically cuts down the
amount of sunlight that expended which strongly affects some people. They
become so depressed and lacking m energy that is work and social life are
affected. This condition has been given the name SAD (Seasonal Affective
Disorder). Sufferers can fight back by making the most of any sunlight in
winter and by spending a few hours each day under special, full-spectrum
lamps. These provide more ultraviolet and blue-green light than ordinary
fluorescent and tungsten lights. Some Russian scientists claim that children
learn better after being exposed to ultraviolet light. In warm countries, hours
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of work are often arranged so that workers can take a break, or even a siesta,
during the hottest part of the day Scientists are working to discover the links
between the weather and human beings' moods and performance.
It is generally believed that tempers grow shorter in hot, muggy weather.
There is no doubt that 'crimes against the person' rise in the summer, when the
weather is hotter and fall in the winter when the weather is colder. Research in
the United States has shown a relationship between temperature and street
riots. The frequency of riots rises dramatically as the weather gets warmer,
hitting a peak around 27-30C. But is this effect really due to a mood change
caused by the heat? Some scientists argue that trouble starts more often in hot
weather merely because there are more people in the street when the weather
is good. Psychologists have also studied how being cold affects performance.
Researchers compared divers working in icy cold water at 5C with others in
water at 20C (about swimming pool temperature). The colder water made the
divers worse at simple arithmetic and other mental tasks.
Psychologists have conducted studies showing that people become less
sceptical and more optimistic when the weather is sunny. However, this
apparently does not just depend on the temperature. An American psychologist
studied customers in a temperature-controlled restaurant. They gave bigger
tips when the sun was shining and smaller tips when it wasn't, even though the
temperature in the restaurant was the same. A link between weather and mood
is made believable by the evidence for a connection between behavior and the
length of the daylight hours. This in turn might involve the level of a hormone
called melatonin, produced in the pineal gland in the brain. The amount of
melatonin falls with greater exposure to daylight. Research shows that
melatonin plays an important part in the seasonal behaviour of certain animals.
For example, food consumption of stags increases during the winter, reaching
a peak in February/March. It falls again to a low point in May, then rises to a
peak in September, before dropping to another minimum in November. These
changes seem to be triggered by varying melatonin levels.
Post-reading tasks
Look through the text to see if your guess was right. Is the head misleading?
1. Gloomy
2. Depression
a) have none or insufficient of

b) disturbance of the peace
84
3. Lack
4. Performance
5. Muggy
6. Riot
c) miserable
d) oppressively damp and warm
e) mood of hopelessness
f) carrying out, doing

1.
2.
3.
4.
Gloomy weather can be the reason for .

To avoid SAD sufferers are recommended to ... .
Research in the United States has shown the higher is the temperature .
Customers in a temperature-controlled restaurant give bigger tips
when .
5. The amount of melatonin depends on .
1. Divers perform much worse when they work in cool water.
2. The frequency of street riots rises dramatically as the weather gets warmer.
3. Melanin plays an important part in the seasonal behavior of certain
animals.
4. The dull weather of winter reduces the amount of sunlight which affects
some people.
5. Some people need exposing the light of full-spectrum lamps.
UNIT XXVIII
Key words and expressions: to dump, to dispose of, recycle, sewage, wasteful,
rubbish, to pollute, nuclear waste, poisonous, to produce.
Dumping or Disposal
We often talk about waste disposal, but disposal is really the wrong word,
because you cannot really dispose of waste. Suppose that you put your waste
on a rubbish dump. You have dumped it, but you have not disposed of it.
85
If you want to do something better than dumping, you can change waste
into something different. For example, you can burn it. This will produce heat,
which may be useful, but it may also produce poisonous smoke and gases,
which are another kind of waste.
Better still, you can change waste into something useful. This is called
recycling. For example, old newspapers can be made into new paper.
Industry - making things for people to use - produces a lot of waste. Some
industrial waste is just dirty, but some is actually dangerous. Some factories,
for example, produce poisonous gases which go up into the air and then make
acid rain which kills trees and pollutes water.
Sometimes toxic chemicals leak into rivers, polluting the water and killing
fish and other animals. Toxic chemicals can also pollute the ground. In the
USA in the 1930s, a chemical factory dumped a large number of big metal
drums of waste chemicals in a hole in the ground. Later a builder covered the
place with earth and built a small town called Love Canal there. In the 1970s
the drums began to leak into the earth. The trees died. The ground was covered
with a horrible, smelly, black slime which burned holes in people's shoes.
Everybody had to leave Love Canal.
Later eighty-two different toxic chemicals were found in the earth.
There are billions of old tyres on dumps all over the world. Some years
ago, fourteen million tyres on a dump in Canada caught fire. The fire burned
for two weeks. The burning tyres produced a black, oily smoke and toxic
gases, and left behind a poisonous black slime.
Power stations produce electricity for homes and shops, schools and
factories. Many power stations also produce smoke, toxic gases, mountains of
dirty black waste and acid rain. When nuclear power stations were first built,
many people were pleased because they did not pollute like the old power
stations. But nuclear power stations produce nuclear waste, which produces
radiation. You cannot see or smell radiation, but it is very toxic - and it stays
like that for thousands of years. You cannot easily dispose of nuclear waste.
Until we discover a good way of disposing of nuclear waste we will have to
live with this dangerous problem.
Waste from farms is a serious problem too. Farm animals produce a lot of
dung. The chemicals from the dung can leak into the earth and poison it. They
can also leak into rivers and poison the water.
Aeroplanes and cars, boats and buses produce poisonous gases which
pollute the air. They also make a lot of noise, which is another kind of
pollution. Perhaps the best answer to this problem is a quiet, clean bicycle!
86
People at home produce waste too, and rich countries are more wasteful
than poor ones. Every day New York produces more than 24,000 tonnes of
waste and a lot of it is sent by sea to dumps thousands of miles away.
Waste from toilets is called sewage. Millions of tonnes of sewage are
dumped in the sea every year. The sewage pollutes the water, poisons fish and
covers the beaches with brown slime.
Post-reading tasks
1. Throw away
2. Slime
3. Leak
4. Pollution
5. Chemical
6. Waste
7. Dump
8. Disposal
a) to escape from a container

b) a material which is used in science
c) wet in an unpleasant way
d) to dispose of something as if it is not wanted
e) making things dirty and/or dangerous
f) something which is superfluous, unwanted or
rejected
g) getting rid of
h) place for depositing refuse

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The process of waste is called recycling.

Toxic chemicals leak into river thus .
The burning tyres produced .
Nuclear power stations produce .
Some rich countries use poor countries .

1. You burn waste. Poisonous smoke and gases are produced.
2. Drums of waste chemicals were dumped in the ground. The ground was
covered with smelly black slime.
3. People were pleased when nuclear power stations were built. They didnt
pollute.
4. Radiation is very toxic. It stays like that for thousands of years.
5. Our waste will continue poisoning the environment. We do not do
anything with waste.
87

1. Billions of tyres on dumps are burned regularly and oily smoke and toxic
gases are produced.
2. The noise of flying aeroplanes is another kind of pollution.
3. Big metal drums dumped in the ground caused a disaster in the USA in the
1930s.
4. Waste from toilets pollutes the water poisons fish and covers the beaches
with brown slime.
5. To dispose of waste completely is to change it into something useful.
UNIT XXIX
Key words and expressions: to be in search of, a surfboard, to tour, to learn
the technique, to catch a wave, to surf, to experience.
Surfs up!
Riding the waves can be the thrill of a lifetime. But what does it take to
become a surfer?
If you have ever dreamt about incredibly big seas with huge powerful
waves crashing onto sandy beaches, then you should definitely think about
learning to surf. It's the most exciting watersport fee- is. Serious surfers must
be very brave, love adventure and have lots of energy. Once they've
experienced the excitement of a ride on top of the waves, they never want to
stop.
Surfers say they feel it's the only place to be. Many travel around the
world searching for the perfect wave, moving from one surf festival to another
and checking weather forecasts to see where the really exciting waves are
expected next. Some even carry pagers which beep when there are weather
88
reports of perfect conditions. A surfer's greatest disappointment would be

missing the opportunity to surf in the best weather conditions.
Hawaii is where the sport began - the place which most surfers see as their
"true home". They love nature and the excitement you get from the deep
waters. Enormous waves crash along mile after mile of beautiful sand, and
every surfer dreams of experiencing surfing in Maui or Oahu. Other great
surfing locations include Australia, the west coast of the U.S., the Caribbean,
Brazil, Japan, Hong Kong, South Africa, the Canary Islands, and Cornwall.
Experienced surfers are always in search of the best waves in some totally
unspoilt paradise that hardly anyone has heard of.
It takes time for a beginner to learn the technique, but during a long hot
summer, who minds practising? The professionals, of course, are in the sea
every day, then come back onto the beach to do some exercises with weights.
You need to be a strong swimmer with good balance and plenty of courage to
be an expert surfer.
You can surf almost anywhere in any weather if you are wearing a wet
suit. All you need to do then is choose a surfboard and you're ready to go hopefully into big waves that are warm, with an experienced teacher to lead
you. You don't need to wear a wet suit in summer, but many surfers keep them
on all the time since they can protect you from the hot sun as well as from cold
water.
It can take a few weeks or it can take a whole summer for you to learn to
catch a wave at the right moment, stand up on your board and stay there. It's
an amazing feeling when you look down and see your feet on the board and
realize you are finally standing up on the sea, even if you aren't very steady.
Professional surfers look as if they learned to surf as soon as they could walk.
For example, Shane Powell, an Australian professional, watched videos of
Australian surfing heroes like Peter Townsend, Barton Lynch and Tom Carroll
as he was growing up. He says, "As a boy I'd watch those surfers and just
imagine myself riding the waves." Powell seems to move over the sea without
any difficulty. He first practised on small waves, but clearly had talent. By the
age of 17 he was touring with the world's best surfers, and now, at 23, he
practises every day and an even younger generation of surfers study videos of
him in action.
Simply watching great surfers will make you want to try the sport. If you
do try it, you'll find muscles you never knew you had; you may begin to think
you might never get it right, but you'll have a lot of fun.
Post-reading tasks
89

1. To ride
2. To crash
3. A beep
4. To experience
5. A disappointment
6. A balance
a) to actually observe or be practically acquainted with

b) to sit, to go, to be on smth
c) an event resulting in distress
d) to collide violently with obstacle
e) a sound of motor-car horn
f) a steady position

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
True surfers must be .

Hawaii is the place .
It takes time for a beginner .
To be a good surfer means .
Its an amazing feeling .

1. Surfers check weather forecasts. There places where really exciting waves
are expected.
2. A beginner should learn a technique of surfing. One wants to be a good
surfer.
3. You are wearing a wet suit. You can swim both in warm and cold water.
4. One can learn to catch a wave. It is necessary to spend a few weeks or a
whole summer on training.
5. You try to do surfing. You may find muscles you have never felt before.
1. To be a professional surfer one should be a strong swimmer with good
balance and a lot of practicing.
2. Many surfers travel round the world searching for perfect waves and
checking weather forecasts in order to find really exciting waves.
3. Watching great surfers may make you want to try the sport.
4. Surfing is the most exciting watersport.
5. There are great surfing locations including Brazil, South Africa, Cornwall.
6. Many surfers prefer wearing wet suits irrespective of water temperature.
90
UNIT XXX
Key words and expressions: a hurricane, a thunderstorm, to originate, a
forecaster, to issue, a surge, to stock up on, to hurricane-proof.
Hurricanes
Hurricanes are violent storms that cause millions of dollars in property
damage and take many lives. They can be extremely dangerous, and too often
people underestimate their fury. Hurricanes normally originate as a small area
of thunderstorms over the Atlantic Ocean west of the Cape Verde Islands
during August or September. For several days, the area of the storm increases
and the air pressure falls slowly. A center of low pressure forms, and winds
begin to whirl around it. It is blown westward, increasing in size and strength.
Hurricane hunters then fly out to the storm in order to determine its size
and intensity and to track its direction. They drop radiosondes, or instruments
for recording temperature, air pressure, and humidity, into the storm. They
also look at the size of waves on the ocean, the clouds, and the eye of the
storm. The eye is a region of relative calm and clear skies in the center of the
hurricane. People often lose their lives by leaving shelter when the eye has
arrived, only to be caught in tremendous winds again when the eye has passed.
Once the forecasters have determined that it is likely the hurricane will
reach shore, they issue a hurricane watch for a large, general area that may be
in the path of the storm. Later, when the probable point of landfall is clearer,
they will issue a hurricane warning for a somewhat more limited area. People
in these areas are wise to stock up on nonperishable foods, flashlight and radio
batteries, candles, and other items they may need if electricity and water are
not available after the storm. They should also try to hurricane-proof their
houses by bringing in light-weight furniture and other items from outside and
covering windows. People living in low-lying areas are wise to evacuate their
houses because of the storm surge, which is a large rush of water that may
come ashore with the storm.
Hurricanes generally lose power slowly while traveling over land, but
many move out to sea, gather up force again, and return to land. As they move
toward the north, they generally lose their identity as hurricanes.
91
Post-reading tasks
1. Damage
2. A flashlight
3. A shelter
4. A hurricane
5. To originate
6. To issue
a) an illuminating device
b) a storm with violent wind
c) loss of what is desirable
d) to announce
e) a thing serving as barrier
f) to cause to begin

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Hurricanes are severe storms that .

While the hurricanes form .
Those who hunt for hurricanes .
The issued hurricane warning may make people .
Hurricanes travelling over land .

1. Hurricanes are violent storms. They may take many lives.
2. Hurricane hunters fly out to the storm. They want to measure its size and
intensity.
3. Human lives are lost. The eye of the hurricane arrives.
4. The forecasters issue a hurricane warning. The probable point of landfall is
clear.
5. The people are warned of a coming hurricane. They try to consume
nonperishable foods, use radio batteries and candles.
6. Eventually hurricanes move toward the north. Soon after they are not
hurricanes anymore.
1. Hurricane hunters estimate the size and intensity of the hurricane.
2. The more northwards hurricane moves the less violent it becomes.
3. Hurricanes usually originate over the Atlantic Ocean.
4. Being aware of the storm people hurricane-proof their houses, stock up on
nonperishable food, radio batteries.
5. People sometimes are misled by the eye of the storm and leaving their
shelter they lose their lives.
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PART 4
UNIT XXXI
Is Language Unique to Humans?
According to Dr Sue Savage-Rumbaugh at Georgia State University,
humans are not the only species capable of language. She carried out an
extensive training and testing programme with a bonobo chimpanzee called
Kanzi, who, by the age of six, had mastered a vocabulary of 200 words along
with a series of meaningful gestures. (Since chimpanzees, like all primates,
lack vocal chords, Kanzi was taught to use a keyboard and press symbols as a
means of communicating.) The testing also involved commands being given
by hidden speakers, so the research team could affirm that Kanzi was not just
responding to contextual cues. It was reported that Kanzi responded accurately
to 74 per cent of the complex questions that were put to him.
However, there are many who are far from convinced by this research.
Among them is linguist Noam Chomsky who believes that only humans
93
possess the innate cognitive ability to both comprehend and produce language.
He compares human children with apes: the former learn to speak rapidly and
can produce original sentences, but the primates find even the learning of a
few words extremely challenging. Furthermore, Chomsky states that the
ability to use individual symbols does not equate to the ability to recognize
syntax. Cognitive scientist Steven Pinker is also sceptical and believes that
Kanzi has merely learnt to behave in a way that will earn him a reward. In
another experiment with a chimp called Washoe, his trainers were convinced
he was capable of using American Sign Language. But Pinker points lo the
fact that a deaf researcher who studied Washoe reported that the chimp was
not using sign language, but actually his own set of gestures.
Post-reading tasks
Complete the sentences with words from the text. Write no more than two
words for each answer.
1. Dr Savage-Rumbaugh claimed Kanzi used , as well as vocabulary, to
communicate.
2. Kanzi was given a keyboard to communicate with as chimpanzees do not
possess .
3. were used to make sure Kanzi could understand language without the
support of visual information.
4. According to Noam Chomsky, primates cannot understand and use
language as they do not have naturally occurring .
5. Chomsky believes that the use- of is not evidence of understanding how
language works.
6. Steven Pinker uses the observations of a to discredit the idea of a chimp
using sign language.
UNIT XXXII
Social Customs
How many people, whether on business abroad or merely touring, have
unknowingly insulted their clients, hosts, local shopkeepers, or a complete
94
stranger on the bus? A quick read of our guide below will help you to conform
to social norms and make a positive impression.
First, behaving in the same way that you would at home can land you in
fairly serious trouble. In England, it is standard practice to take wine to a
dinner party, but the same does not apply in France. To do so would suggest
your host is unable to choose or afford a good bottle. If you are doing business
in Turkey, be careful who you speak to first. Age is seen as evidence of
wisdom and therefore you should start with the oldest person in the room.
Some Turkish people also consider it disrespectful for young people to cross
their legs in front of older people, something most westerners wouldn't even
think about.
In some countries, your body language may be unwittingly offensive. Do
not pat girls or boys on the head in Thailand as this is considered the most
sacred part of the body, and make sure the soles of your feet are not on display
in Arab countries. It is important to bow lower than your seniors or elders in
Japan, and elderly members of Maori tribes in New Zealand would find your
bottom resting on a table or desk to be extremely disrespectful.
As for everyday behaviour on the street, if you have a cold, turn away
from others and use your tissues discreetly in Germany. Never step over a coin
or a note in Thailand. These bear the image of the king and are therefore
deserving of respect.
When you are indoors, don't light up in Canada without first asking
permission, and in Arab countries, it would be unthinkable to walk into a
house with footwear on.
Post-reading tasks
Answer the questions as quickly as possible.
In which country/countries should you
a) hide the bottom of your feet?
b) ask if it is OK to smoke inside?
c) avoid walking over money?
d) avoid sitting on tables?
e) avoid touching someone's head?
f) speak to the oldest person first in a business meeting?
g) avoid taking wine to dinner parties?
h) avoid crossing your legs in front of older people?
i) remove your shoes before entering a house?
j) blow your nose privately?
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UNIT XXXIII
Super Size Me
In 2004, American independent film-maker Morgan Spurlock released
Super Size Me, a feature-length documentary that attacked the fast-food
industry and specifically McDonald's. The title comes from McDonald's
former policy of encouraging customers to buy the largest size of whatever
they ordered from the menu, which Spurlock regarded as one of the factors
contributing to the obesity epidemic in children and adults sweeping the
United States.
The documentary largely took the form of an experiment in which
Spurlock aimed to eat only McDonald's food three times a day for thirty days.
At the outset of the film, he weighed a healthy 185.51 pounds, but gained 24.5
pounds by the end of the month. During this time, he experienced mood
swings, sexual dysfunction, and severe liver damage, to the extent that his
doctor insisted he return to a normal diet immediately. Spurlock also suffered
depression, lethargy and headaches, and found to his horror that these could be
relieved by eating more McDonald's food. In other words, he had become
addicted to its high sugar and casein content.
The film was nominated for an Academy Award and was one of the
highest-earning documentaries in the US that year. The McDonald's
Corporation, however, was not amused and set up a website
(www.supersizeme-thedebate.co.uk) to dispute Spurlock's claims. At the same
time, it also discontinued its Super Size policy, but denied it had anything to
do with the film.
Post-reading tasks
Answer the questions as quickly possible.
1. Morgan Spurlock called his film Super Size Me as a reference to
a) the fact that he had enjoyed fast food meals since childhood.
b) the way that McDonald's persuaded people to buy large portions.
c) the trend in the US for people to be overweight.
2. The effects of just eating fast food led Morgan Spurlock to experience
96
a) certain psychological problems.

b) a change in attitude towards the fast food industry.
c) doubts about continuing the experiment.
3. According to the writer, what happened after the film was released?
a) Morgan Spurlock acknowledged that parts of his film were misleading.
b) The McDonald's Corporation was forced to admit that its Super Size
policy was wrong.
c) US cinemas sold a large number of tickets for Super Size Me.
UNIT XXXIV
Film
When was the last time you came out of a very successful film and really
felt you'd got your money's worth? It's hard not to be disappointed nowadays,
since every film receives huge amounts of publicity months before it's
released, and inevitably it won't live up to your expectations. Even Hollywood
seems to have realized that its best film-making years are over, which is
possibly the reason why we seem to be faced with so many remakes recently.
If you're a fan of film, you'll know that King Kong was originally released
in 193 3, again in 1976, and once more in 2005. The main female actor puts on
a good show, and the big gorilla looks more realistic, but isn't a third form of
this story a little excessive? War of the Worlds first terrified audiences in 1953;
the budget wouldn't even have covered Tom Cruise's salary in his adaptation
last year. The latest remake falls into the thriller-mystery type of film, with
Nicolas Cage as the star in The Wicker Man. The location moves from
Scotland to somewhere off the Washington coast, and audiences who are too
young to remember the 1973 film will still be gripped by the suspense.
Nevertheless, professional opinion is that surely there are other stories worthy
of the big screen? When you remake a classic, it is easy to guess the result will
always be a poor imitation.
Post-reading tasks
1. What can we infer about the writer's attitude to remade films?
a) He believes in general that they are not worth doing.
97
b) He feels that some are better adaptations than others.

c) thinks that remakes require well-known actors to be successful.
2. Replace the words/phrases in bold in the text with words from the texts in
Unit 4. The first letter of each word is given as a clue.
a) h
d) the 1
b) p
e) r
) g
f) p
UNIT XXXV
Fashion
Forget face lifts, breast implants, and Botox injections - the latest trend in
New York City is cosmetic toe amputation* surgery. A growing number of
New York women are opting for an operation that means they can squeeze
their feet into pointy high-heeled shoes, preferably those made by designers
Manolo Blahnik or Jimmy Choo. Advocates of the procedure stress the value
of height in making the right impression in business and society circles. 'They
give a woman that extra confidence in her appearance says New York
podiatrist* Dr Fay Miller, who claims to have performed more than fifty 'foot
enhancement surgeries.' In fact, the term 'amputation' has misled many wouldbe patients. The second toe is cut open, part of the bone is removed, and the
toe is sewn back up, causing the flesh to shrink. This still seems gruesome, but
is not actually whole amputation. Some members of the American Orthopedic
Foot and Ankle Society deeply oppose this kind of operation, believing it can
often result in permanent disability and be excruciating. They would also
discourage women from wearing high heels since they can lead to a number of
serious problems including knee, pelvic, back, and shoulder pain. Despite their
warnings, New York women are continuing to make appointments with Dr
Miller. Vanity, it seems, is a strong kind of painkiller.
*amputation = the removal of a part of the body (for example an arm) in a
medical operation
*podiatrist = a specialist in the care of feet and the treatment of foot diseases
Post-reading tasks
98

1. According to the writer, why are women having operations on their feet?
a) Their toes had been damaged as a result of wearing high heels.
b) Other operations to improve their appearance have not satisfied them.
c) Their feet do not fit the kind of shoe they want to wear.
2. What does the writer claim is confusing about this kind of foot surgery?
a) What the operation involves.
b) Who is legally allowed to perform it.
c) The kind of physical problems it may cause.
3. Find a word in the text that means
a) someone who strongly supports something.
b) to make someone believe something that is incorrect.
c) horrible/disgusting.
d) to disagree with or disapprove of something.
e) extremely painful.
f) the fact of being too interested in your appearance.
UNIT XXXVI
Controversial Issues
A. At 62, Patricia Rashbrook is so far the oldest woman in Britain to give
birth. The healthy baby boy, nicknamed JJ, was conceived through IVF,* after
several previously failed attempts. The treatment was carried out by Dr
Antinori, an Italian doctor who runs a fertility clinic in Rome. The birth
sparked controversy among those in the fertility profession and attracted
media attention around the world. JJ was Ms Rashbrook's fourth child; the
youngest of the other three was 18 when his new sibling was born. John
Farrant, Ms Rashbrook's new husband, told the media that they were well able
to meet the child's needs. The couple say that they are in good health, but in
the event that they both meet an untimely death, friends have agreed to
become surrogate parents.
. We can divide opinion on this issue into two major camps. Those who
are vehemently against older people giving birth say that the parents are only
thinking of themselves. They believe that the child will be ashamed of having
much older parents as he or she grows up. Furthermore, there is considerable
99
likelihood that the child will be bereaved much sooner in life than is normal.
Those in the other camp, however, point to the fact that many children are
brought up by grandparents and benefit from this arrangement. Older parents
can often offer the child greater financial security and constant devotion.
Moreover, they argue that if the government ever started to impose legal
restrictions on the types of people who could have children, there is no telling
where those restrictions would end.
*IVF = In Vitro Fertilization: the medical process in which a woman's egg is
fertilized outside the body and then put back inside to grow into a baby
Post-reading tasks
Paragraph A
Decide if the sentences are True (T), False (F), or if the information is Not
Given (NG) in the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Ms Rashbrook became pregnant after one treatment of IVF.

Dr Antinori treated Ms Rashbrook in his clinic.
Ms Rashbrook wanted a child because her other children had left home.
Ms Rashbrook and her husband believe they will have a long life.
Ms Rashbrook and her husband have not decided what will happen to the
child if they die.
Paragraph
1. Which three reasons are given against older people having children?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
the child's embarrassment

the child's potential health problems
the early death of the child's parents
the lack of energy the parents have
the money problems older people face
the selfishness of the parents
2. What point is being made in the final sentence?

a) It is difficult to say what the upper age limit should be for parenthood.
b) Many people could be affected if there was a law to stop people having
children.
c) People should have the freedom to make their own decisions in life.
100
UNIT XXXVII
Head off for Your First Work Experience!
Looking for a useful and enjoyable way to try out your new degree or just
putting off a nine-to-five job? Why not take a year out to think about it and
sign up with VSO (Voluntary Service Overseas), an organization that sends
volunteers to help out with community projects in Africa (Poverty Alleviation,
Sustainable Livelihoods), Asia (Environment, Health and Education), and The
Pacific (Rural Development and Empowering Women). If you are seeking
adventure and want to do some good at the same time, working alongside an
excellent team of like-minded people could be just the experience you are
looking for. Both the work and the camaraderie can be extremely rewarding.
Accommodation / flights / and visas are provided. Volunteers should be
adaptable, open to new cultures and be prepared to work in basic conditions.
For more information, come and see Steve Dunn in the Student Union from
9am-12pm Mon-Thurs.
Attention Law Students
The Innocence Project was first established in the United States. It aims to
re-examine criminal cases in which a wrongful conviction may have occurred.
Participating students are expected to thoroughly analyze witness statements
and take a fresh look at evidence, searching for details that the original
attorney may have missed. It can be painstaking work, but the Innocence
Project has helped people gain both their freedom and compensation for
wrongful imprisonment. Furthermore, through studying these cases, you will
learn to identify injustices in current legal procedure and see how to correct
them. This is unpaid work that requires a commitment of about 16 hours a
week, but it is a chance to gain your first real practical experience in the Held
of law. Talk to Jane Andrews in the Student Law Office if you are interested.
Post-reading tasks
101
Which of the following statements applies to which advertisement? Write A

for the first advertisement, for the second advertisement, or A/B for both
advertisements.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
You will be able to recognize how the system could be improved.

You don't mind working without modern facilities.
You will work with other people who are similar to you.
You will have to work slowly and carefully.
You will have the opportunity to do something useful, while deciding what
kind of job you want.
6. You will not earn a salary for the work you do.
Which of the words in bold in the text means
a) friendship and trust between a group of people?
b) something that is done very slowly and carefully? a duty or responsibility
that you have accepted?
c) giving you satisfaction and pleasure?
d) money that someone receives because something bad happened to them?
e) able to change ideas or behaviour easily in order to deal with new
situations?
UNIT XXXVIII
The Haunted House
For me, most paranormal phenomena can be, or will someday be,
explained by science, and I'm extremely sceptical when it comes to ghosts.
When people report a haunting, I think they probably experienced a form of
hallucination or a hoax. Having said that, when I was about 13 years old, my
brother, my mother, and I went to stay with my aunt Christine. Her family
lives in a huge country mansion that they bought very cheaply after it had
been abandoned for many years. At the time, they lived in one wing of the
house and guests stayed in the opposite wing. In between the wings was the
middle part of the house, which was just room after dusty room, filled with
odd things that my uncle had brought home, like old pianos, broken statues,
and rusty clocks. You could explore for the whole day and not bump into
anyone else, apart from the occasional peacock that had jumped in through an
open window, or a rat that my cousins had tamed. Anyway, the room where I
was staying was at the end of a long corridor, and I have to admit that I did
feel the atmosphere was a bit spooky. The floors creaked and there was a
102
rocking chair in the room which you always see in horror films! But one night,
I suddenly woke up and opened my eyes, thinking my brother had come into
the room and was sitting on my legs. I could feel an incredible weight on both
of them, but the room was filled with moonlight and I could see nobody was
there. I was petrified and just closed my eyes tight and waited for what
seemed like an eternity before I felt the weight lift. In the morning, I told my
brother, who thought it was absolutely hilarious. My aunt's brother, however,
who happened to be visiting, thought differently. He had had exactly the same
experience in the same room, and was also at a loss to explain whal had really
happened. I know it's not rational, but nothing could persuade me to sleep
there again!
Post-reading tasks
1. Christine's ancestors had owned the house for many years before she lived
there.
2. The author's uncle collected strange things in order to sell them.
3. It was possible to spend a day in the house without seeing another person.
4. The author's brother tried to frighten her by silting on her legs.
5. The author stayed still for a long time-before the pressure on her legs went
away.
6. Christine's brother convinced the author that her experience had been a
hoax.
Translate the words and phrases in bold in the text.
UNIT XXXIX
Survival Tips for the North American Wilderness
Pre-reading tasks
Think of the following.
103
What to do when you're lost

First of all, stay where you are. There's no point expending energy if
you're uncertain which direction to take. Before you set off, make sure you
notify someone where you're going, your intended route, and anticipated time
of return, so if you do get lost, at least you know a rescue party is on its way.
Remain calm. Your priority is to find water and shelter. You can do without
food for up to a month, but dehydration will kill you after four days, and
hypothermia can take just 24 hours. Look for shelter in a cave or under a fir
tree, but avoid very tall trees as they can attract lightning. If you do need to
eat, avoid plants as some can be quite poisonous. You're better off eating
lizards, frogs, and insects.
What to do if you meet a bear
Don't turn your back and run. You will be behaving just like the bear's
regular prey and it will chase you. Bears can also reach speeds of nearly 19
mph, so you have no chance of outrunning it! Heading up a tree is also
inadvisable. Black bears are excellent climbers and brown bears may be
capable of pushing your escape route over. Instead, look a bear firmly in the
eyes and back away slowly. Drop any food you have as a bear will go after
anything edible. As you move away, the bear will hopefully wander off, but if
it does attack, most experts suggest that you play dead, so that the bear loses
interest.
What to do if a snake bites you
Whatever you may have seen in films, do not attempt to suck the poison
out as you will simply absorb more venom into your system. The best thing to
do is to wash the affected area with soap and water, and leave a damp cloth
over it. Remain still and make sure the bite point is lower than your heart.
Don't panic, as this will pump the venom round your body faster. If you have a
mobile phone, call for medical attention or get someone to seek help.
Post-reading tasks
Guess if the sentences are True or False. Then read the text to check.
1.
2.
3.
4.
If you get lost, you should keep moving and looking for a way out.
It is more important to find a source of food than a source of water.
Ii is more dangerous to get wet and cold than to become very thirsty.
You should not make shelters under tall trees.
104
5. Frogs are a safer source of food than plants.

6. Trees are a safe place to get away from bears.
7. It is better to pretend to be dead than to run away from a bear.
8. If a snake bites you, suck out the poison immediately.
9. You should clean a snake bite with soap.
10. The bitten part of the body should be kept higher than your heart.
UNIT XL
Beloved Pets
When a loved one passes away, it can be hard to accept they are truly gone
for ever, and for some, the loved ones are of the furry, four-legged variety.
Some animal lovers are content with a private burial in the garden, others may
want something a little more ceremonial and prefer a service at a pet cemetery.
In the last decade, another option has become available, that of freeze-drying.
This process involves the complete removal of liquid from a pet, so that it
retains its shape and size. This can take up to four months to complete,
depending on the pet's weight. It is then sent back to the owner. Initially, this
service was mainly available in the United States. Now, Britain has joined the
trend in pet preservation, but in the form of taxidermy. In fact, the resurrection
of interest in this form of preservation is so great that the few taxidermists still
practising cannot cope with demand. For the layperson, taxidermy means
'stuffing dead animals' and brings to mind dusty collections of exotic creatures
in museums. For the professional taxidermist, theirs is an art form that also
requires a genuine interest in wildlife. When they begin work on a subject,
they must not only sculpt a body from wood or, in the case of large animals,
fibreglass (the animal's skin is then stretched over this frame), but they must
position the animal in a convincing pose, and they can only do this by
knowing how it moved in life. The subjects, by the way, have all met natural
deaths or been killed in road accidents, as British law prevents endangered
species from reaching the taxidermist's table.
Post-reading tasks
Answer the question.
105
What is the main point of the text?

a. To suggest that some people take their relationship with their pets too
seriously.
b. To make people reconsider their definition of art and what it includes.
c. show how a technique for preserving dead animals has become popular
again.
Complete the sentences with one or two words from the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
The in an animal is taken out during freeze-drying.

An animal's affects the amount of time it takes to freeze-dry.
Big frames are made out of .
Taxidermists are not allowed to work on .
UNIT XLI
The Sonic Teenager Deterrent
If you're out with a group of people, but you're the only one who can hear
an unbearable high-pitched noise and it's driving you crazy, the chances are
that you're the only person under 20. And if you're out late at night and
congregating around a shop or in a car park, the chances are even higher that
what you're hearing is the Sonic Teenager Deterrent, a gadget specifically
designed to drive young trouble makers away. Unfortunately, the Mosquito, as
it's otherwise known, makes no distinction between well-behaved teens and
those in gangs. The under 20s all have the capacity to hear high-frequency
band widths and 90 per cent of older people do not. The Mosquito is a remotecontrolled device that comes packaged in a small black box and emits bursts
of pulsing sounds that are effective more than 20 yards away. It is the
brainchild of Howard Stapleton, who was once an electronics apprentice at
British Aerospace. Stapleton created it after becoming fed up with local youths
who were intimidating customers at his local shop. His four children were his
original guinea pigs, and Stapleton knew his invention worked when they
106
clutched their ears and ran away. Now that it has been bought by hundreds of
shopowners and several local authorities, the Mosquito is tormenting many
other teens who are loitering in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Post-reading tasks
1. Underline the answers to the questions in the text.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What is the purpose of the Sonic Teenager Deterrent?

What is its other name?
What does it look like?
What does it do?
Who invented it and why?
Who did the inventor use to test the Sonic Teenager Deterrent?
2. Find words that mean

a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
so extreme that you cannot deal with the pain/feeling (adj).

to gather together in a group (v).
a difference between two things.
a machine or piece of equipment that does a particular thing.
to send something out into the air, for example gas, sound, light, heat.
an original idea.
to deliberately make someone frightened or nervous.
someone who is used in an experiment.
to hold something firmly because you are in pain.
to stand or wait in a public place, with the possible intention of committing
a crime.
UNIT XLII
Samoa
When reporting on foreign culture, the media often focus on what seems
alien, and the Polynesian island of Samoa is certainly a target of this kind of
reporting. Whenever a journalist comes looking for a story, they inevitably
focus on the fa'afafine (Samoan men who dress as women) and overlook most
107
other aspects of Samoan culture. Almost without exception, they misrepresent

the valued place that a fa'afafine has in the community.
Fa'afafine translates as in the manner of a woman. In traditional Samoan
society, when a family had a large number of male children, one would be
selected to help his mother. The choice would be based on which son showed
the most ability and interest in domestic chores, and he would then be dressed
and raised as female. The choice was in no way based on the sexual
preferences the family believed the son might have. It was a choice based on
who was best suited to a certain kind of labour. The fa'afafine's abilities in the
home and in producing crafts, combined with physical strength, were a useful
asset to Samoan communities. When the son grew up, he would marry and
have children, as is expected of all Samoan men, but continue to retain a
female identity. Modern-day Samoa has strong Christian beliefs, as well as a
firm sense of cultural identity, and many Samoans resent the Western
description of fa'afafine as homosexual.
Post-reading tasks
1.
2.
3.
4.
Journalists tend to choose unusual things in other cultures to write about.

Journalists prefer to avoid writing articles about the fa'afafine in Samoa.
Journalists do not understand the role of the fa'afafine in Samoan society.
Samoan parents choose a son to become a fa'afafine when they have no
daughters.
5. Fa'afafine were chosen according to their particular work skills.
6. A fa'afafine went back to living as a man once he got married.
108
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PART 1

collects enough from smokers for its entire educational facilities

3. Match questions with the paragraphs of the text. One question is

There is a definite link .

a) However, as in all areas of life, its important to have faith in your

Online shops are .

Using the Internet for shopping is profitable and convenient.

6. Use the following outline to speak about shopping online.

to become guardian of ones own community

authority. I remember sitting in a subway train in Kyoto and noticing, to my

a) Dont push your luck!

3. Choose the best answer or statement.

a) It was foolish of her.

a) Genetic engineering the key to increase lifespan.

4. Choose the best ending.

Scientists suppose that the process of ageing in humans is controlled

4. It is found that calorie restriction

to miss the best moments

to enjoy this very day

a) Life-long planning for the future is a way of procrastinating.

Several years ago I came across a notice that .

This is a delusion I share with the great hopeful majority.

b) doing little work

3. Complete the following sentences. Your answers must be related to the

to come into contact

and so losing much self-respect. It might also give them an unquestionable

b) to allow c) to stand d) to authorize

3. Combine two sentences together omitting less important information

This results in irritability, sleeplessness, restlessness, gloominess.

3. Combine two sentences together omitting less important information

1.Parents, to get on ones nerves.

The Sporting Spirit

3. Complete the following sentences. Your answers must be related to the

8. Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play.

b) higher in rank ) superior d) lower in rank

3. Complete the following sentences.

The majority of Japanese living in Britain ... .

2. Choose the synonyms to the given words according to the context.

3. Complete the following sentences choosing the best ending.

The end of the war, the US, to drop a bomb, to decide.

a) to expand b) to occupy c) to distribute d) to stretch out

3. Complete the following sentences choosing the best ending.

a) shop assistant b) business person c) manager

2. Join the following sentences using the connectors given below.

2. The author adduces the carrier path of Sandra Kurtzig as an example of a

Key words and expressions: to learn better, enriched environment, to

Guess the meaning of the international words.

To adapt, to stimulate, a variety, to summarize, activity, specific, prevalent,

b) to disappoint c) to deprive d) to dissuade

3. Complete the following sentences.

The text under consideration deals with ... .

A person addicted to shopping ... .

6. Put the jumbled sentences in the logical order so as to sum up the

Extreme cases of shopaholism lead to family breakups and financial ruin.

7. On the one hand, personal incomes are growing.

2. Paraphrase the following sentences using synonyms for the underlined

Noise reduces working efficiency and frays tempers.

5. The nuisance could be reduced by moving airports to some remote

2. Choose the synonyms to the given words according to the context.

3. Complete the following sentences choosing the best ending.

4. Join two sentences together so as to form a compound sentence. Add

People in games industry are interested in the habits of game addicts.

Their health suffers.