Ready for IELTS, Unit 13, Listening

Section 3

infrastructure the basic systems and services that are necessary for a country or an
organization to run smoothly, for example buildings, transport and water and power
supplies
Ex. 1
Teacher’s note
- Ask students in pairs to discuss different types of research and any they might
have conducted themselves.
Look at the list and, as a class, decide which ones are connected to research and
what they refer to in the process.
Put them in the correct order.
conduct something (formal) to organize and/or do a particular activity
to conduct an experiment/an inquiry/a survey
The negotiations have been conducted in a positive manner.
relate to sb/sth to be connected with something/somebody; to refer to
something/somebody
We shall discuss the problem as it relates to our specific case.
The second paragraph relates to the situation in Scotland.
Answers
1, 3, 4, 5 and 7 are directly related, 2 and 6 may be indirectly related.
1 aims and objectives: what the research intends to do/show, etc
aim [countable] the purpose of doing something; what somebody is trying to achieve
the aims of the lesson
She went to London with the aim of finding a job.
Teamwork is required in order to achieve these aims.
objective something that you are trying to achieve
SYNONYM GOAL
the main/primary/principal objective
to meet/achieve your objectives
3 research question: the question the researcher is seeking to answer
seek to do something to try to do something
SYNONYM ATTEMPT
They quickly sought to distance themselves from the protesters.
4 research findings: the results/conclusions of the research
5 data analysis: the examination of the data/information collected
examination [uncountable, countable] the act of looking at or considering something
very carefully
Careful examination of the ruins revealed an even earlier temple.
On closer examination it was found that the signature was not genuine.
7 literature review: a review or analysis of the books/journals/articles related to the
research
 literature (on something) pieces of writing or printed information on a particular
subject
I've read all the available literature on keeping rabbits.
sales literature
literature review an evaluative report of information found in the literature related to
your selected area of study. The review should describe, summarise, evaluate and
clarify this literature. It should give a theoretical base for the research and help you
(the author) determine the nature of your research. Works which are irrelevant should
be discarded and those which are peripheral should be looked at critically.
journal a newspaper or magazine that deals with a particular subject or profession
a scientific/trade journal
the British Medical Journal
Ex. 2
Teacher’s note
- Discuss the questions as a whole class.
Don’t forget
Questions 21-30
Teacher’s note
- Play the listening through once and follow the usual procedure for transferring
answers and checking answers.
In this particular test, all of the answers are letters of the alphabet so students
must be careful about transferring the answers correctly.
Ask them to check their answers in pairs and then play the recording again,
pausing for them to mark their answers.
Clarify any misunderstandings.
procedure (for something) U Ca way of doing something, especially the usual or
correct way
maintenance procedures emergency/safety/disciplinary procedures
to follow normal/standard/accepted procedure
Questions 21-23
Answers
21 B
link a relationship between two or more people, countries or organizations
link (with something) to establish trade links with Asia
link (between A and B) Social customs provide a vital link between
generations.
infrastructure the basic systems and services that are necessary for a country or an
organization to run smoothly, for example buildings, transport and water and power
supplies
breakdown [countable, uncountable] a failure of a relationship, discussion or system
the breakdown of a marriage marriage breakdown
a breakdown in communications
22 A 23 B
commence [intransitive, transitive] (formal) to begin to happen; to begin something
 The meeting is scheduled to commence at noon.
commence with something The day commenced with a welcome from the
principal.
commence something She commenced her medical career in 1956.
commence doing something We commence building next week.
commence to do something Operators commenced to build pipelines in
1862.
assume to think or accept that something is true but without having proof of it
assume (that)… It is reasonable to assume (that) the economy will continue
to improve.
it is assumed (that)… It is generally assumed that stress is caused by too
much work.
assume something Don't always assume the worst (= that something bad has
happened).
assume somebody/something to be/have something I had assumed him to
be a Belgian.
Questions 24-28
Answers
24 B
aspect [countable] a particular part or feature of a situation, an idea, a problem, etc.; a
way in which it may be considered
The book aims to cover all aspects of city life.
the most important aspect of the debate
25 G
literature (on something) pieces of writing or printed information on a particular
subject
I've read all the available literature on keeping rabbits.
sales literature
literature review an evaluative report of information found in the literature related to
your selected area of study. The review should describe, summarise, evaluate and
clarify this literature. It should give a theoretical base for the research and help you
(the author) determine the nature of your research. Works which are irrelevant should
be discarded and those which are peripheral should be looked at critically.
journal a newspaper or magazine that deals with a particular subject or profession
a scientific/trade journal
the British Medical Journal
time-consuming adj taking or needing a lot of time
a difficult and time-consuming process
It’s quite time-consuming having to check all the labels individually.
26 F 27 A 28 E
aim [countable] the purpose of doing something; what somebody is trying to achieve
the aims of the lesson
She went to London with the aim of finding a job.
Teamwork is required in order to achieve these aims.
 objective something that you are trying to achieve
SYNONYM GOAL
the main/primary/principal objective
to meet/achieve your objectives
fairly adv (before adjectives and adverbs) to some extent but not very
a fairly easy book a fairly typical reaction
I know him fairly well, but I wouldn't say we were really close friends.
Script
go [intransitive] + adv./prep. used to talk about how well or badly something makes
progress or succeeds
‘How did your interview go?’ ‘It went very well, thank you.
’Did everything go smoothly?
Ahmed: ... I didn’t really think it would be like this at all already ...
the public [singular + singular or plural verb] ordinary people in society in general
The palace is now open to the public.
There have been many complaints from members of the public.
The public has/have a right to know what is contained in the report.
cityscape the appearance of a city or urban area, especially in a picture; a picture of a
city
mood [countable] the way you are feeling at a particular time
She's in a good mood today (= happy and friendly).
He's always in a bad mood (= unhappy, or angry and impatient).
I'm just not in the mood for a party tonight.
I'm not really in the mood to go out tonight.
get your head round something (British English, informal) to be able to understand
or accept something
She's dead. I can't get my head round it yet.
Janice: ... looking at data analysis and I am having a bit of a struggle ...
a bit of a… (informal, especially British English) used when talking about unpleasant
or negative things or ideas, to mean ‘rather a…’
We may have a bit of a problem on our hands.
The rail strike is a bit of a pain.
struggle (to do something) [singular] something that is difficult for you to do or
achieve
SYNONYM EFFORT
It was a real struggle to be ready on time.
They face an uphill struggle to get to the finals of the competition.
Ahmed: ... You’re quite far on them
Ahmed: ... what your experiences have been as you are further along ...
get doing something to start doing something
I got talking to her.
We need to get going soon.
Janice: ... but then it all came together.
say [transitive, no passive] to suggest or give something as an example or a possibility
 say something/somebody You could learn the basics in, let's say, three
months.
Let’s take any writer, say (= for example) Dickens…
say (that)… Say you lose your job: what would you do then?
literature (on something) pieces of writing or printed information on a particular
subject
I've read all the available literature on keeping rabbits.
sales literature
literature review an evaluative report of information found in the literature related to
your selected area of study. The review should describe, summarise, evaluate and
clarify this literature. It should give a theoretical base for the research and help you
(the author) determine the nature of your research. Works which are irrelevant should
be discarded and those which are peripheral should be looked at critically.
take sth up to fill or use an amount of space or time
The table takes up too much room.
I won't take up any more of your time.
Janice: ... Although it can eat into the time, I actually like digging into things and
getting to the bottom of problems.
eat into sth to use up a part of something, especially somebody’s money or time
Those repair bills have really eaten into my savings.
dig into sth to find out information by searching or asking questions
Will you dig a little into his past and see what you find?
get to the bottom of sth to find out the real cause of something, especially something
unpleasant
I won’t rest until I’ve got to the bottom of this!
frame something to express something in a particular way
You'll have to be careful how you frame the question.
get into sth to become involved in something; to start something
I got into conversation with an Italian student.
to get into a fight
Are you sure you know what you're getting into?
get sth out of the way to finish something
I like to get my homework out of the way on a Friday night so that I
can enjoy the weekend.
Janice: ... I enjoy analysing the systems ... so I think I sorted the method design out
really quickly ...
sort sth out to organize something successfully
If you're going to the bus station, can you sort out the tickets for tomorrow?
agonizing adj causing great pain, anxiety or difficulty
his father’s agonizing death
It was the most agonizing decision of her life.
aim [countable] the purpose of doing something; what somebody is trying to achieve
the aims of the lesson
She went to London with the aim of finding a job.
 Teamwork is required in order to achieve these aims.
objective something that you are trying to achieve
SYNONYM GOAL
the main/primary/principal objective
to meet/achieve your objectives
Questions 29-30
Answers A, E in any order
supervisor a person who supervises somebody/something
I have a meeting with my supervisor about my research topic.
All work is done under the guidance of a supervisor.
supervise to be in charge of somebody/something and make sure that everything is
done correctly, safely, etc.
supervise (somebody/something) to supervise building work
supervise somebody doing something She supervised the children playing
near the pool.
Script
Janice: Is all of this any help Ahmed?
appreciate [transitive] (not usually used in the progressive tenses) to be grateful for
something that somebody has done; to welcome something
appreciate something I'd appreciate some help.
Thanks for coming. I appreciate it.
appreciate doing something I don't appreciate being treated like a second-
class citizen.
appreciate somebody doing something We would appreciate you letting us
know of any problems.
Janice: ... I know there’s language support in the university if you are not a full-time
student
Janice: ... can get help through the main library ...
Janice: It’s so easy to get isolated and not know everything that’s available.
isolated adj without much contact with other people or other countries
I felt very isolated in my new job.
Elderly people easily become socially isolated.