Lesson 4: Technical English

The Future of Cyberspace

Peter Taylor finds out how computers and the Internet are going to affect our lives.

In the last thirty years, Internet grew

dramatically. In 1993, there were only 200
computers connected to the Internet; now
there are millions of them and this growth
is clearly going to continue. Some experts
are pessimistic about the future. One
worry is the activities of cybercriminals
can affect the right use of the Internet.
For example, the well-known hackers can
get into the computers of banks and governments. In the future cyber terrorists
may ‘attack’ the world’s computers, cause chaos, and make planes and trains
crash.
However, many people are optimistic about the future of the Internet. Nowadays,
users can buy books and tickets; pay bills; find out about holiday offers; book
tickets; get all sorts of information; download music, upload videos and movies.
They can also chat with people from all over the world using a webcam, post
messages in facebook, twitter and other social nets. Some people believe that in
the future television will probably disappear with the increasing use of the Internet.
Some specialists see our future in virtual reality – the use of computers with
sounds and images that make you feel as if you are in a real situation. ‘Virtual
reality has become part of modern life’, says Australian expert Peter Miller. ‘I see
some people living and working in a virtual world. We will work in virtual offices,
shop in virtual supermarkets, and we will even study in virtual schools’.
Lesson 5: Job Interview

Applying For A Job

Tom Johnson: (shakes the interviewer’s hand)

Good morning, sir. It is a pleasure
to be here today.
Interviewer: Good morning, err, Mr. Johnson. How are you today?
Tom Johnson: I am fine, thank you.
Interviewer: Well, welcome to “J and Q”. Let’s get started.
Tom Johnson: Yes, sir.
Interviewer: What do you know about our company?
Tom Johnson: J and Q is the leading software developing company in the country.
Your company earned over 4.3 billion last year.
Interviewer: Very good. I see you did your homework. Well, why should we hire
you?
Tom Johnson: I believe I should get this job because I have a lot of experience
working in this field.
Interviewer: What kind of experience?
Tom Johnson: I worked as head analyst at MaiboSoft for ten years.
Interviewer: Sounds like a nice position. Why did you quit?
Tom Johnson: I wanted to try something new. I wanted a challenge. I know that I
will be able to grow to new heights at your company.
Interviewer: Well, you sound very motivated. What is your greatest strength?
Tom Johnson: I am determined. I try my best to do quality work in every situation.
Interviewer: What is your biggest weakness?
Tom Johnson: I am an overachiever. I won’t give up.
Interviewer: Good answer. Well, thank you for coming in today. You certainly
are a very strong applicant. We will notify you in a week.
Tom Johnson: Thank you for interviewing me today!
 Lesson 6: Social Issues

Bullying: A Special Report.

Bullying is cruel, pointless and makes a lot of young people very unhappy, but it’s a big
problem in many schools. Read this special report, including the case of a girl victim of
bullying.

How big is the problem?

 One in ten pupils in secondary schools is bullied.
 It isn’t just boys. Girls can be bullies, too.
 With boys bullying is usually physical, while female bullying is normally verbal.
But words can hurt as much as being punched or kicked.
 A lot of bullies become criminals when they grow up.
 Every year about 10 young people kill themselves because they are bullied at
school.

Who are the victims?

Anyone can be a victim, but most victims are
kids who are different in some way:
 People who are a different color or religion.
 Kids who are very small or fat or who just a
different hair color.
 People who wear glasses.
 Kids who are new at school
 People who are naturally quiet or shy.
 Kids who prefer to be in their own group,
rather than part of a group.

Can you recognize a bully?

You might think that bullies are not very nice people, but that’s wrong. A recent study on
bullying in London showed that a typical bully isn’t a big, ugly kid that nobody likes. In
fact, the opposite is often true:
 Bullies are usually popular and they have a lot of friends.
 They aren’t stupid. In fact, bullies are very clever. They find their victim’s weak
points very easily, and they are very good at hiding what they do from teachers.
 They are usually good-looking and popular with the opposite sex.
 They wear fashionable clothes. Bullies are often the fashion leaders in a
school.
Francisca’s story:

People have always called me names because I have long red hair
and freckles. They call me “Carrot Head” and things like that. I
supposed it is because red heads are different, but I like my hair.
I don’t usually do anything when people call me names. I just ignore
it. But a few weeks ago I was in the park, and someone shouted
“Hey, Carrot Head!” it was two girls and a boy from my school. I told
them they were stupid and walked away, but they chase me.
Luckily, they didn’t catch me because I ran quite fast. But at the next
day, I saw them in the playground at school, but I couldn’t escape. They pushed me and
called me names. And it was the same every day after that. It was
terrible. Then, one day when I came out of school, they were
waiting for me. They pushed me again, and pulled my hair. Then
my glasses fell off. When I bent down to pick them up, one of girls
punched me and another one kicked me. I shouted and screamed
and they ran away.
When I got home, I was still crying. I told my mom all about it and
she phoned the police. They came around to talk to me. Then they
went to the bullies’ houses and talked to their parents.
I was really worried for a few weeks. After that I often saw the kids who did it at school,
but luckily they just left me alone. I’m glad I told my mom about it. If you keep it to
yourself and don’t say anything, the bullies will just carry on.