Interesting facts about canals

1. The best examples of canals used for draining land are to be found in Holland, where much of the country is below sea level. Dams are used to prevent flooding and since 1932 over 300,000 acres of land have been drained. In winter the Dutch people use the frozen canals for ice-skating.

2. In a hot dry country such as Egypt water is scarce, and to prevent the land from becoming dry long canals are built from dams. These canals must be continually kept open, for the Egyptian farms and cotton fields can not exist without these life lines of water.

3. Many inland waterways are used for the transport of heavy goods by barges. This method of carrying materials is not so widely used now, for although it is cheaper, it has the disadvantage of being much slower. Speed is regulated by the number of bridges and locks which the barges encounter.

4. Two notable canals for ships in Europe are the Corinth Canal and the Kiel Canal. The former was built in 1893 across the solid rock of the Isthmus of Corinth. Bridges from the tops of the steep sides of the canal connect north and south Greece. The Kiel Canal, which also has no locks, was built two years later and it gives the countries of the Baltic Sea quicker access to the west.

5. Venice, at the Adriatic Sea, is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, for it has many canals instead of streets. Long narrow boats with curved ends, called ‘gondolas’, carry passengers and goods from one part of the city to another. The gondolas are supplied with lanterns, which at night make the canals very colourful and romantic. A peculiar custom of former days was that the Ruler of Venice used to throw a ring into the water each year to show that the city was wed to the sea.

6. One of the greatest arteries of world trade is the Suez Canal separating the two continents of Asia and Africa. As trade with India increased, the overland route across Suez became regular but very expensive. In 1859, the French engineer, Ferdinand de Lesseps, started to cut a passage through this flat desert country. Ten years later, the first sea-going ships passed through the canal, which is a hundred miles long and has no locks, thus completing a direct water route from the North Atlantic to the Indian Ocean. The journey along the canal takes about fifteen hours and shortens the distance from Britain to the East by about 4,000 miles. The canal belongs to Egypt and is a vital waterway serving the merchant fleets of many nations.

7. The Great Lakes which lie between Canada and the United States have become parts of the world’s ocean highways for it is now possible for big ships to sail up the Saint Lawrence Canal to the ports of Toronto, Cleveland and Chicago. A 218 mile canal joins the Atlantic with these Great Lakes which contain half of all the fresh water in the world. There are seven locks, five on the Canadian side and two on the United States side. Bridges needed to be raised fifty feet to allow big ship traffic to pass and, indeed, from Montreal, these ocean-going vessels are raised 246 feet above the sea level to Lake Ontario. The Saint Lawrence Canal takes the ships 2,200 miles inland, half-way across the North American continent and deep into the heart of Canada.

8. The construction of a major canal, 290 miles long, linking the rivers Volga and Ural irrigates the steppe lands between them. The first 140-mile stage of the canal was completed in 1979 and the second stage in 1985. The final stage of the canal irrigation system was only put into operation when the Volga started receiving some of the water from the Northern Pechora River, which flows into the Arctic. The Volga-Ural Canal enables hundreds of small lakes in West Kazakhstan which dry up in the summer to receive water supplies, and it is thus intended to create a substantial fish breeding zone there.

Exercise 2 Answer the following questions.

1. What are dams in Holland used for? 2. Why aren’t barges so widely used now? 3. When was the Corinth Canal built? 4. When was the Kiel Canal built? 5. What makes Venice one of the most beautiful cities in Europe? 6. What peculiar custom existed in Venice? 7. When was the Suez Canal opened for navigation? 8. Who built the Suez Canal? 9. Do the Great Lakes contain fresh or salt water? 10. Can ocean-going ships travel along the Saint Lawrence Canal?

Exercise 3 Translate and memorize the following expressions from the text.

To use for draining land, to be below sea level, to prevent flooding, water is scarce, must be continually kept open, inland waterways, to transport heavy goods, the number of bridges, to build across the river, to connect north and south, quicker access, to carry passengers and goods, one of the greatest arteries, the overland route, to cut a passage, a direct water route, journey along the canal, ocean-going vessels, the final stage, to receive water supplies.

Exercise 4 Find synonyms among the following words.

To found, land, final, expensive, to carry, goods, scarce, to prevent, possible, journey, indeed, widely, heavy, construction, to contain, to establish, to avert, ground, deficient, freight, weighty, to transport, extensively, to comprise, probable, erection, closing, really, costly, trip.

Exercise 5 Write a summary of the text, presenting the content of each paragraph in 2-3 sentences. Use the expressions:

The main idea of the text is ... The text deals with one of the most important (urgent) issues ... Much attention (consideration) is given to (classification, description)... It focuses on the matters of … The text gives an overview of... The text is mainly concerned with ... The aim of the survey is to show (demonstrate, find)... Particular emphasis is given to the analysis of... The text gives a detailed analysis of (reports on)... To sum up ... In conclusion ...

Индивидуальное задание для студентов заочного отделения к курсу

«Английский язык»

Вариант № 3/3c

Exercise 1 Read the text and translate it in written form.

SURVEY

1. A topographic survey is a survey made to secure data from which may be made a topographic map indicating the relief or elevation and irregularities of the land surface. Maps are based on measurements of distances, directions and heights. Surveying is the name given to the methods of making these measurements.

2. The simplest and most commonly used method of measuring the distance between two points on the ground is called chain surveying. It is very similar to the way in which the distance between two points on a piece of paper is measured using a foot-rule. In chain surveying the place of the foot-rule is taken by a chain which is laid down in a straight line between the two points. Small areas are often surveyed entirely by chain survey provided that the ground is not too rough.

3. Angles in surveying are measured with special instruments called theodolites. In its simplest form the theodolite is a telescope mounted above a horizontal circular scale, which is rather like a protractor. It is marked in degrees, minutes and fractions of minutes. (There are 60 minutes in one degree). Theodolite also allows the measurement of angles in a vertical plane, such as the angle between the horizontal and the top of a tall building or hill.

4. Route survey is a survey necessary for the location and construction of transportation or communication lines such as highways, railroads, canals, transmission lines and pipe lines. The preliminary work consists of a topographic survey.

5. Mine surveying makes use of the principles of land, topographic and route surveying with modifications in practice made necessary by altered conditions. Both surface and underground surveys are required. City surveying is the term frequently applied to the operation of laying out lots and to the municipal surveys made in connection with the construction of streets, water supply systems and sewers.

6. The maps and data produced by surveyors are used by civil engineers in many ways. Before construction begins the exact position of the various parts of dam, or the track of the railway or road, are fixed on the ground by using normal surveying methods. In choosing the site for a dam, for instance, an engineer can study on a map the courses of all the rivers and streams in the area. By reading the contours he can calculate the amount of water which can be stored by building a dam of a given height in a certain place. In the same way the results of a soil survey clearly marked on a map will give the engineer vital information about the foundations. When deciding the route of a railway or road, the gradients, radii of curves, heights of embankments and depth of cutting can be calculated from data supplied by the surveyor.

7. In case of a tunnelling which is usually carried out from both ends simultaneously a base line is set out on the ground at each end and the course followed by the tunnellers is continually checked by measuring both levels and angles with reference to the base line. By this means it is possible to make the two tunnels meet accurately or within 1 or 2 inches over a distance of a mile or more.

8. Terrestrial photogrammetry or photographic surveying from ground stations has been found to be a useful addition to other methods in mapping of mountainous areas. The work consists in taking photographs from two or more control stations and in utilizing the photographs for the projection of details of the terrain in plane and elevation.

9. Surveying by the methods described above is very laborious; the surveyor has to work over all the ground step by step. A great deal of time is saved by modern methods of photographic air survey. The advantages of air survey are the speed with which the field work is accomplished, the wealth of details secured and used in locations otherwise difficult or impossible of access.

Exercise 2 Answer the following questions.

1. What data can be received from a topographic survey? 2. What kind of survey is most commonly used? 3. Can one use chain survey if the ground is very rough? 4. What is the theodolite used for? 5. What is the route survey used for? 6. What principles does mine surveying make use of? 7. What information does a civil engineer building a dam get from surveying? 8. What data must be supplied by the surveyor in choosing the route of a road? 9. Is tunnelling usually carried out from one or both sides? 10. What are the advantages of air survey?

Exercise 3 Translate and memorize the following expressions from the text.

A topographic survey, to secure data, the land surface, to make measurements, most commonly used method, construction of transportation or communication lines, special instruments, the distance between two points, preliminary work consists of, horizontal circular scale, water supply systems, the term is frequently applied, the exact position, for instance, to calculate the amount of, the route of a railway, by this means, to make the two tunnels meet accurately, step by step, advantages of air survey.

Exercise 4 Find synonyms among the following words.

Land, to mount, to carry out, for instance, similar, to check, building, entirely, rough, to work, position, method, special, to base, ground, to ground, means, alike, completely, particular, to ascend, location, to operate, to verify, useful, edifice, to fulfil, bumpy, for example, helpful.

Exercise 5 Write a summary of the text, presenting the content of each paragraph in 2-3 sentences. Use the expressions:

The main idea of the text is ... The text deals with one of the most important (urgent) issues ... Much attention (consideration) is given to (classification, description)... It focuses on the matters of … The text gives an overview of... The text is mainly concerned with ... The aim of the survey is to show (demonstrate, find)... Particular emphasis is given to the analysis of... The text gives a detailed analysis of (reports on)... To sum up ... In conclusion ...

Индивидуальное задание для студентов заочного отделения к курсу

«Английский язык»

Вариант № 4/3c

Exercise 1 Read the text and translate it in written form.