polunina_ln_bobrovskaia_im_priroda_nauka_tekhnologii

for fitting in high-performance sports cars. Continuous (2) … of gasoline engines for over a hundred years has produced improvements in efficiency and reduced (3) … . The (4) … was used on nearly all road car engines until the 1980s but it was long realised better control of the fuel/air mixture could be achieved with fuel (5) … . Indirect fuel injection was first used in (6) … engines from 1909, in (7) … car engines from the 1930s, and road cars from the late 1950s. Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) is now starting to appear in production vehicles such as the 2007 (Mark II) BMW Mini. (8) … gases are also cleaned up by fitting a catalytic converter into the exhaust system. Most modern gasoline engines also are capable of running with up to 15% ethanol mixed into the gasoline - older vehicles may have seals and hoses that can be harmed by ethanol. With a small amount of redesign, (9) … vehicles can run on ethanol concentrations as high as 85%. 100% ethanol is used in some parts of the world (such as Brazil), but (10) … must be started on pure gasoline and switched over to ethanol once the engine is running. Most gasoline engined cars can also run on LPG with the addition of an LPG tank for fuel (11) … and carburettor modifications to add an LPG mixer. LPG produces fewer toxic (12) … and is a popular fuel for fork-lift trucks that have to operate inside buildings.

(Adapted from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia)

10. Read the text and put the verbs in brackets in the correct form. Pay attention to the word order.

Transmission

The transmission, also known as the gearbox, (1) … (to transfer) power from the engine to the driveshaft. As the engine’s crankshaft rotates, combinations of transmission gears (2) … (to pass) the energy along to a driveshaft. The driveshaft (3) … (to cause) axles to rotate and turn the wheels. By using gears of different sizes, a transmission

(4) … (to alter) the rotational speed and torque of the engine passed along to the driveshaft. Higher gears (5) … (to permit) the car to travel faster, while low gears (6) … (to provide) more power for starting a car from a standstill and for climbing hills.

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The transmission usually (7) … (to locate) just behind the engine, although some automobiles were designed with a transmission mounted on the rear axle. There (8) … (to be) three basic transmission types: manual, automatic, and continuously variable.

A manual transmission (9) … (to have) a gearbox from which the driver selects specific gears depending on road speed and engine load. Gears (10) … (to select) with a shift lever located on the floor next to the driver or on the steering column. The driver (11) … (to press) on the clutch to disengage the transmission from the engine to permit a change of gears. The clutch disk (12) … (to attach) to the transmission’s input shaft. It (13) … (to press) against a circular plate attached to the engine’s flywheel. When the driver presses down on the clutch pedal to shift gears, a mechanical lever called a clutch forks and a device called a throw-out bearing separates the two disks. Releasing the clutch pedal presses the two disks together, transferring torque from the engine to the transmission.

An automatic transmission selects gears itself according to road conditions and the amount of load on the engine. Instead of a manual clutch, automatic transmissions (14) … (to use) a hydraulic torque converter to transfer engine power to the transmission.

Instead of making distinct changes from one gear to the next, a continuously variable transmission uses belts and pulleys to smoothly slide the gear ratio up or down. Continuously variable transmissions (15) … (to appear) on machinery during the 19th century and on a few small-engine automobiles as early as 1900. The transmission keeps the engine running at its most efficient speed by more precisely matching the gear ratio to the situation. Commercial applications (16) … (to limit) to small engines.

(From Microsoft Encarta, 2008)

SPEAKING

11. Work in groups of four or five. Take turns asking each other questions. Tick off your fellow students’ answers under their names. Find out how many people in your group

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Name

1.drive a car

2.have a driving license

3.have a car

4.always wear a seat belt

5.have ever been stopped for speeding

6.have ever been in a traffic accident

7.often use public transportation

8.ride public transportation during rush hours

9.feel safe using public transportation

10.know how much gasoline costs in our country

12. Work with a partner. Ask him/her the questions below. Take turns.

1.Which transportation does your partner prefer – air, sea or road?

2.Which transportation does he/she consider the most dangerous?

3.What transport is the worst for the environment in his/her opinion?

4.How has international transportation changed in the past few decades?

5.How could public transportation in your city be improved?

WRITING

13. Choose one of the methods of transportation and describe it briefly using the following scheme:

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1.how often you use it

2.its advantages

3.its disadvantages

4.how it has changed recently

14. Write an essay on the following topic. Give reasons and specific examples to support your answer.

If life is a highway, what mode of transportation are you using?

KEY WORDS

air bag, automobile, axle, brake, bumper, car, carburetor, carry, cushion, diesel, direction, drive, driver, engine, fuel vapor, fuel, gasoline, gear, gearbox, headlight, highway, ignition, injection, internal combustion, move, operate, passenger, power, produce, propel, protect, road, rotate/revolve, seat belt, shock absorber, speed, spring, steer, supply, suspension, tire, transmission, transmit, vehicle, wheel

SUPPLEMENTARY READING

Electric Car

(1)An electric car is an automobile propelled by one or more electric motors, drawing power from an onboard source of electricity. Electric cars are mechanically simpler and more durable than gasolinepowered cars. They produce less pollution than do gasoline-powered cars. An electric car stores its energy on board – typically in batteries, but alternatively with capacitors or flywheel storage devices. Or it may generate energy using a fuel cell or generator. Most current versions of electric cars use some combination of these energy sources. “Pure” electric cars, however, run only on batteries and need a charger to replenish the battery’s power from an electrical outlet.

(2)The hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) uses both an electric motor or motors and a gasoline or diesel engine to extend the car’s range and often to provide additional power. A conventional HEV, such as the Toyota Prius, uses battery power up to certain speeds and the gasoline

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engine for higher speeds, and can draw on both power sources if needed. The batteries are recharged by the gasoline engine, which acts as a generator, and in most models by the energy generated from braking. Another type of HEV, known as a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), uses an extra battery or batteries to extend the range of the vehicle. The PHEV can be plugged into a typical 120-volt electric outlet, like those found in most households, for a recharge. Regardless of the energy source, an electric car needs a controller, which is connected to the accelerator pedal.

(3)Most electric cars use lead-acid batteries, but new types of batteries, including zinc-chlorine, nickel metal hydride, and sodiumsulfur, are becoming more common. The conventional HEV uses nickel metal hydride, while some automakers contemplate using lithium-ion batteries; General Motors, for example, may use these in their hybrid electric vehicle prototype known as the Volt. While the internalcombustion engine of a conventional car has many moving parts and must convert the linear motion of pistons and rods into rotary motion at the wheels, an electric motor has only a single rotating element.

(4)Most electric cars have a regenerative braking system - the braking system acts as a battery charger. When drivers ease up on the accelerator or step on a brake pedal, the drive motor acts as a generator and converts the vehicle’s momentum back into electricity and stores it in the battery. Converting the kinetic energy into electric energy slows the car. Electric cars also have a brake pedal and a traditional braking system, which uses friction to slow the vehicle for quick and emergency stopping.

(Abridged from Microsoft Encarta, 2008)

1. Read the text and decide whether the following statements are TRUE, FALSE or there is NO such INFORMATION in the text.

2. Decide which part of the text contains the following information.

1.More common types of electric car batteries are zinc-chlorine, nickel metal hydride, and sodium-sulfur batteries.

2.An electric car can be recharged in a typical 120-volt electric outlet.

3.Give the answer to the following question.

What is an electric car?

1.An electric car is a vehicle propelled by one electric motor, drawing power from an onboard source of electricity.

2.An electric car is an automobile powered by one or more electric motors, drawing power from any source of electricity.

3.An electric car is a self-propelled vehicle, drawing power from an off board source of electricity.

4.An electric car is an automobile powered by one or more electric motors, using an onboard source of electricity.

4. What is the main idea of the text?

1.Most people around the world drive electric cars.

2.Because electric cars produce less pollution and save fuel, they are expected to become more commonplace in the future.

3.Electric cars are mechanically simpler.

4.Electric cars can be easily recharged at home.

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СПИСОК ИСТОЧНИКОВ

1.Computerworld.- www.computerworld.com

2.Downey, A.B. Python for Software Design: How to Think Like a Computer Scientist.- Cambridge University Press, 2009.- 270 pp.

3.Drexler, K. E. Nanotechnology Essays: Revolutionizing the Future of Technology, 2006.- www.eurekalert.org

4.Glendinning, E.H., Holmström, B. Study. Reading. A Course in Reading Skills for Academic Purposes. 2nd Edition.- Cambridge University Press, 2007.- 160 pp.

5.McGraw-Hill Concise Encyclopedia of Science and Technology. 6th Edition.- McGraw-Hill Professional, 2009.- 2688 pp.

6.Microsoft Encarta, 2008.

7.Murphy, R. English Grammar In Use. A Self-study Reference and Practice Book for Intermediate Students of English. 3rd Edition.- Cambridge University Press, 2007.- 390 pp.

8.Oxford Dictionary of English.- OUP Oxford, 2008.- 2110 pp.

9.Oxford Thesaurus of English.- OUP Oxford, 2009.- 1072 pp.

10.Redman, St. English Vocabulary in Use: Pre-intermediate and Intermediate.- Cambridge University Press, 2007.- 230 pp.

11.Stern, K.R. et al. Introductory Plant Biology. 11th Edition.- McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math, 2007.- 640 pp.

12.The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 2007.

13.Wallace, M. Study. Skills in English. Student’s book.- Cambridge University Press, 2007.- 208 pp.

14.en.wikipedia.org - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia

15.www.britannica.com - Britannica Online Encyclopedia

16.www.cancer.org

17.www.math.ualberta.ca

18.www.math.utah.edu

19.www.nanotech-now.com

20.www.unaids.org

21.www.yourhtmlsource.com

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СОДЕРЖАНИЕ

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