Солнцева Практический курс английского языка Ч.1 2011

Since then, the use of burundanga (the popular Colombian name for the drug and all its variants) has been on the increase. Two months ago, under its influence, a senator and his wife spent a whole night withdrawing large amounts of money from their various banks' cash dispensers and gave it to thieves. They then opened up their flat and handed over their most precious possessions to the gang.

But that was a relatively banal case of how the drug can be used for criminal purposes. Every weekend, 15-20 victims are admitted to the emergency ward of Bogota's Kennedy Hospital with absolutely no recollection of what has happened to them. It usually turns out they have been robbed of their money and jewellery.

The drug responsible, made from scopolamine and/or benzodiazepine (a synthetic substance which goes into many tranquillisers, and which has similar effects to scopolamine when administered in high doses), seems to be a Colombian speciality that is only rarely used outside the country's borders.

Dr Camilo Uribe of the Bogota Toxicology Clinic thinks that burundanga is responsible for over 80% of the poisoning cases that the casualty departments of Colombian hospitals have to deal with.

He says it is an ideal drug for criminals: 'The victim does what he or she is told, then forgets both what happened and who the attackers were. It's a perfect form of chemical "hypnosis" which allows all sorts of crimes.'

He recalls the case of a well-known diplomat who vanished on a Friday evening after having a drink at a Bogota bar. He reappeared the following Tuesday, when he was arrested by customs officers at Santiago airport in Chile in the company of a woman he did not know - and in possession of two kilos of cocaine.

Scopolamine acts directly on the central nervous system. The effect of the drug on the brain is comparable to that of a power cut on a computer: all the data so far memorised is lost forever. Whether made of scopolamine (a natural substance) or benzodiazepine (an artificial substance), burundanga has to be administered orally to have an effect. It takes the form of a white or yellow powder which has the advantage, for the criminal, of being perfectly soluble and remaining odourless and tasteless.

There is only one way for people to avoid the dreaded effects of the drug and that is to mistrust any stranger who offers them something to drink or eat. Most cases of poisoning occur in nightspots or during public events.

The toxicology department of the Institute of Forensic Science has a display case filled with all the potential traps - sweets, chewing gum and pieces of chocolate containing the poison, some slightly cloudy aguardente (the local spirit), and an unopened can of Coca-Cola into which the poison had been injected through a tiny hole.

Datura arborea still grows wild in Colombia and elsewhere in South America. For the past few years, there has been intensive farming of the tree in

11

Ecuador to meet the needs of the pharmaceutical industry. It would seem that some of the substances produced find their way illegally into Colombia. Paradoxically, a superb specimen of the 'tree that drives people mad' is to be found in the courtyard of the Institute of Forensic Science in Bogota.

4. Often we read a text in order to find out particular things we are interested in. For example, here are some notes that might be made by a pharmacologist, who is interested in the drug itself and what it consists of.

Make two sets of similar notes:

-just about the tree, as if made by a botanist (where it grows, what it looks like, etc.)

-just about the drug, as if made by a criminologist (what it looks like, how it is taken, what effect it has on the victim).

5. Which of these do you think are main points, and which are minor details?

1.Benzodiazepine is used in tranquillisers.

2.Burundanga is a perfect drug for criminals because the victim doesn't remember what happened afterwards.

3.Under the influence of the drug, the victim does whatever the criminal suggests.

4.Burundanga is sometimes injected into cans of Coca-Cola.

5.In Colombia, you should be very careful not to accept food or drink from strangers.

6.80% of all poisoning cases in Colombia are caused by burundanga.

7.Datura arborea is farmed in Ecuador.

6.Translate these sentences from the text into Russian:

1)It usually turns out they have been robbed of their money and jewellery.

The drug responsible, made from scopolamine and/or benzodiazepine (a synthetic substance which goes into many tranquillizers, and which has similar effects to scopolamine when administered in high dozes) seems to be a

Colombian speciality that is only rarely used outside the county‘s borders.

2) It would seem that some of the substances produced find their way illegally into Colombia.

12

Study Skills: Writing a Draft and Making Improvements

1 Here is a rough draft made from the notes. Consider these points:

1.Could some of the ideas be made clearer or expanded?

2.Could some of the ideas be joined together better?

3.Could the overall shape of the writing be improved? (What's wrong with the ending?)

13

3. Choose a topic like your favourite pastime or music genre and write a rough draft like in ex. 1. Then exchange your notes with a partner and improve his/her writing like in ex. 2.

Reading and Speaking: Newspapers in Britain

1. Discuss with a partner your attitude to news. These questions might help

you:

1. What are your reading habits? How often do you read newspapers? 2. Do people in your family read newspapers?

3. What stories do you read first? What stories do you never read? 4. Do you always believe what they say in the newspapers?

5. What's the most popular newspaper in your class? 6. Do you know the names of any British newspapers?

2. Provide Russian equivalents to the following key words.

National papers; regional papers; morning papers; Sunday papers; daily papers; evening papers; circulation; to cater for; ‗quality‘ papers; popular papers; tabloids; pages in colour; to be independent of; a political party; an editor; a ‗leader‘; ownership; publishing groups; Broadcasting Bill.

3. In pairs. Before you read try to predict if these sentences are true of false:

a)British people read a lot of newspapers.

b)Papers are owned by political parties.

с) People read more papers on Sundays.

d) All papers are printed in black and white.

4. Now read the text and check your answers. Pay attention to the use of key words (ex. 2).

Newspapers in Britain

If you get on a bus or catch a train in Britain, especially during the

morning and evening ‗rush hour‘, when most people travel to and from work, you will see a lot of people with their heads in a newspaper. More daily newspapers, national and regional, are sold in Britain than in most other developed countries. On an average day two out of three people over the age of 15 read a national morning paper; about three out of four read a Sunday paper. There are about 135 daily papers and Sunday papers, 2,000 weekly papers and nearly 100 papers produced by members of ethnic minorities (60 of which are Asian papers). A lot of people buy a morning paper, an evening paper and a couple of Sunday papers so it is not surprising to learn that national newspapers have a circulation of 15.8 million copies on weekdays and 17.9 million on Sundays.

14

The press caters for a variety of political views, interests and levels of education. Papers are generally divided into 'quality' papers which are serious with long, informative articles, and 'popular' papers known as tabloids because of their smaller size. Tabloids are less serious and contain more human interest stories than news.

In the 1980s a new quality paper, The Independent, and a new tabloid, Today, were introduced. Today had pictures and pages in colour and that started a fashion; now most tabloids are in colour.

Newspapers are almost always financially independent of any political party. Nevertheless, during general election campaigns many papers recommend their readers to vote for a particular political party. The paper's editor usually

writes an open letter called a ‗leader‘ to the readers.

Ownership of the national, London and regional daily newspapers is concentrated in the hands of large press publishing groups. In the early 1990s the government‘s Broadcasting Bill aimed to pass laws to prevent too much media ownership being in the hands of one individual or organisation.

5. Answer the following questions about the text.

1)Prove that the British are a press-loving nation.

2)What main categories of newspapers are there? What are their peculiarities? Give examples.

3)How and when did the fashion for newspapers in colour start?

4)Do newspapers in Britain belong to political parties? When and how can they express political ideas?

5)Who owns newspapers in Britain?

6. What do you think?

a) Do the British prefer quality papers or tabloids? Give reasons for your opinion.

b) Are there the same categories of newspapers in Russia? If so, papers belonging to what category are preferred by Russians? Give reasons for your opinion.

7. Translate intoEnglish:

1)В Британии существуют общенациональные и региональные, утренние и вечерние, ежедневные и воскресные газеты. Их тираж достигает 30 млн. экземпляров (копий) в день.

2)Газеты делятся на качественные и популярные. Качественные – серьезные газеты, содержащие длинные информационные статьи. Популярные газеты обычно называют «желтой прессой». Они публикуют статьи о людях, а не новости.

3)Во время предвыборных кампаний редактор пишет открытое письмо к читателям, которое называется передовая статья, и просит их голосовать за

15

определенную политическую партию, хотя все газеты независимы от политических партий в финансовом смысле.

4) Собственность на британские газеты сосредоточена в руках крупных издательских групп.

Reading for Information: More About the Press

1. Read the text and find out whether the following statements are true (T), false (F) or there is no such information (NI) in the text.

1.Sunday papers are run by the same people as daily papers.

2.Sunday papers give more commentaries than daily papers.

3.The national daily and Sunday papers have larger circulations in Britain than in France.

4.Advertising plays an important role in newspaper publishing in Britain.

5.The circulations of the Observer and the Sunday Times run into several millions of readers.

6.All Sunday newspapers have a colour supplement.

7.The Sunday newspapers are more frequently criticised for being too sensational than the ‗dailies‘.

8.The use of radio and television has had a negative impact on the popularity of magazines.

9.The magazines for women are more popular than Sunday newspapers.

10.Technical and semi-technical magazines are popular nowadays.

11.Newsagents deliver the morning papers to their customers free of charge.

12.The morning papers are usually delivered by teenagers who want to earn their own money.

More about the Press

Besides the daily newspapers, there are a number of Sunday newspapers,

many of which are connected with the ‗dailies‘, though not run by the same editor and staff. The Sunday papers are larger than daily papers and usually contain a greater proportion of articles concerned with comment and general information rather than news. The national daily and Sunday papers have enormous circulations (the largest in the world) running into several millions of readers in certain cases. The economics of newspaper publishing in Britain and in particular their reliance on advertising revenue have, in recent years, led to the closing down of several newspapers; their circulations would have been considered large in many other countries, but they were insufficient to ensure the life of a national newspaper in Britain. Of the Sunday papers, the Observer and the Sunday Times are the best known; their literary and artistic reviews are particularly prized, especially among the more highbrow members of the community. Several Sunday newspapers now publish a magazine supplement in colour.

16

Some of the daily and the Sunday newspapers are at times criticised for being too sensational and devoting too much space to reporting murders and other crimes.

It is a regrettable fact that the number of magazines of a literary or political nature has declined recently. This has been caused by the ever-wider use of television and internet. The most flourishing magazines are those published for women. Their covers are designed to catch the eye, and they certainly succeed in doing so! They offer their readers articles on fashion, makeup, lovelife, career, family relations, cookery and many other matters of feminine interest. They also provide advice to those in love, 'your fate foretold by the stars', and stories of romance with handsome heroes. Some women's magazines also include serious articles of more general interest.

The visitor who looks at the magazines displayed in a large bookstall such as one may find in an important railway station will notice that there is a wide variety of technical or semi-technical publications. There are magazines for the motorist, the farmer, the gardener, the nurse, the wireless enthusiast, and many others.

There are many local and regional newspapers. It is customary in Britain for a newsagent to deliver the morning papers to his customers for a small extra payment; this service is usually performed by boys and girls who want to earn some pocket money.

2. Explain in English the difference between: an editor and a publisher;

a daily newspaper and a Sunday newspaper;

a national newspaper and a regional newspaper.

Study Skills: Reading for Information

1. Here are the beginnings of four novels. Read them quickly (you don't

have to understand every word), and decide which of them is about:

1. a 19th century landowner in northern Norway who gets rid of her sick husband by faking an accident

2. a young girl in an orphanage who is carried off by a giant 3. the family of a wandering preacher in the USA

4. a middle-aged man living alone, separated from his wife.

2. What helped you decide? Was it the general style or atmosphere, or did particular words or phrases give you a clue?

17

|

Grammar: Negative Questions

19