Learning to learn in English

and “Green Living” grade. The magazine defined Green Living as the number of buildings approved by the United States Green Building Council. This nonprofit organization has a rating system for making environmentally safe buildings. It is called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED. According to this list, the greenest city in the United States is Portland, Oregon. San Francisco, California came in second on the list, while Boston, Massachusetts was third. Fourth and fifth were Oakland, California and Eugene, Oregon.

VOICE TWO: Cities around the world are also taking action to protect the environment. For example, the mayor of London, England has made environmental planning an important part of his work. The city has created a Climate Change Action Plan to help cut pollution levels. London has also started a Green Grid program in the eastern part of the city. Its aim is to create and protect planted areas in which people can enjoy the outdoors. In the Netherlands, a Dutch company has built a system that uses cold lake water to cool people’s homes in one area of Amsterdam. This use of a renewable natural resource helps reduce pollution and energy costs.

VOICE ONE: About five years ago, officials in Thane, India decided to reduce its dependency on power from coal. This city, near Mumbai, often experiences lack of power because of the large numbers of people using electricity. Officials decided to save energy by putting water heaters powered by the sun on top ofthe city’s main hospital. The hospital saved thousands of dollars in energy costs each year. Officials then began building solar powered water heaters around the city. Thane later started requiringsolar water heaters for all new buildings. And, the city offers a reduced property tax rate for people who place these water heaters in their homes.

VOICE TWO: China has announced plans to create an eco-city called Dongtan. The company designing the city says it will produce its energy from the wind, sun and reused waste. The aim is for the city to be an example to the rest of China. China is also working to make the Olympic games this year in Beijing as green as possible. For example, the Olympic Village where athletes and officials live during the games uses solar power technologies and other renewable energy sources.

VOICE ONE: The United Arab Emirates and the environmental group World Wide Fund for Nature have taken green buildinga step further with the Masdar City project. Its aim is to be the greenest city in the world. The city will meet environmental rules set by the WWF One Living Planet and the company BioRegional. The city is expected to produce no waste, no carbon pollution and contain no cars. The city will create renewable energy from the wind, sun and other technologies. And, buildings will be made using only recycled materials. Masdar City is expectedtobefinishedbytwothousandsixteen. TheUnitedArabEmirateshasgiventhe company Masdar Initiative fifteen billion dollars to develop future energy sources. The country aims to become a world leader in renewable energy technologies. Experts say developments like this may lead to a greener future for all cities in the world.

VOICE TWO: This program was written and produced by Dana Demange. I’m Barbara Klein.

VOICE ONE: And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for Explorations in VOA Special English.

(2008, http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/archive/2008-03/2008-03-18-voa1.cfm)

Module 5 Unit 2

Electronic Waste

What is ‘electronic waste’ (e-waste)?

Electronic waste is the fastest growing waste stream in the world. It’s everything electronic: from our cell phones, to our IPods, to laptops andtelevision sets, computers, andour copiers and printers. Everything electronic encompasses e-waste

Why is e-waste a growing concern?

E-waste has lots of hazardous materials and toxic materials in it, such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and beryllium. If these items end up in our landfills, and then leech into our ground and water supplies, they tend to pollute our environment to the point where it is then ingested by a human being or animals. We want to prevent that.

Why should I recycle my e-waste?

You should do it because it’s easy to recycle. You get back to an appropriate collector or recycler who will demount the factors of the materials to plastics, metals and glass. Also, everything in your cell phone or your television set is reusable, and reuses the essence of recycling. Everybody should be participating.

How much of the solid waste in landfills is e-waste?

Approximately two percent and growing is e-waste in our landfills, but it makes up a lot greater percentage ofour toxic material. It is paramount thatwe keep e-waste out of our landfills. We do not want it’s toxic elements to end up in the landfills, in our land and water supplies.

Is it illegal to dispose of computers in the trash?

In California today, in 2007, it’s illegal to throw out your computers or e-waste into the trash. Other states andother countries are yet to catch up with California’s leadingrecycling laws, but I believe other states and countries will soon come on aboard with the landmark laws that have been passed here in California.

How long has e-waste recycling been around?

E-waste recycling has been around, internationally speaking, since 1991, when Switzerland and some European countries started passing initiatives. In California, they passed the landmark SB 20 law in 2003. That law just got enacted January 1, 2005. So e-waste as we know it in the United States is a growing trend that has been around only since 2003, and operating since 2005.

Who started the e-waste recycling movement?

It’s unclearwho really started the e-waste recyclingmovement, butthere’s lotsofresponsible groups and people out there that saw what was coming and saw the growing trend with technologyand the fast turnover that we have now withtechnology. Manypeople gottogether to pass the landmark laws that have been passed in Massachusetts, which has had a landfill ban since the early 2000 years and in California which passed SB20 and created the landfill bans here in California.

What percentage of electronics today are being recycled properly?

A very, very low percentage of electronics are now being recycled appropriately in the United States. Unfortunately, California has led the way on this issue but the other states have been slow tofollowand the other countries have beenslowtofollow. However, changes are in the wind. I believe that other states and other countries are going to start catching up, because they see the great success of the California Recycling Model. In 2005, 65 million pounds of electronic waste was recycled appropriately in the state of California. In 2006,

over 120 million pounds of electronic waste was recycled in California. Those numbers are growing, year over year and day over day.

(Videojug: Ask the expert: Electronic waste. http://www.videojug.com)

Module 6 Unit 1

Scientists Receive National Medalsof Science and Technology

This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I’m Barbara Klein. And I’m Steve Ember.This week, we tell about the highest honors for science and

technology in the United States.

VOICE ONE: On July twenty-seventh, President Bush honored recent winners of the National Medals of Science and Technology at special ceremonies at the White House. The National Science Foundation administers the science awards. It accepts nominations for the award each year from universities and other organizations. Each nominee must be a United States citizen or a permanent resident seeking citizenship.

A committee of twelve scientists and engineers is named by the president to examine the nominees’ work. They study how eachone has affected scientific knowledge. They also look at how other scientists have honored each nominee in the past, and how the work of each has influenced the education of future scientists through publications and teaching.

Two groups ofwinners were announced this year. Scientists inthe firstgroup were named in May and received the two thousand five National Medal of Science. Those in the second group were named in July and received the National Medal of Science for two thousand six. VOICE TWO:JanAchenbach ofNorthwestern University in Evanston, Illinois was honored for his engineering research in the area of solid mechanics. He developed ways to find weak areas in structures, which has greatly affected the airplane industry.

Another Northwestern professor also received the National Medal of Science. Tobin Marks’ research involves the study and design of new substances. He designed a material that made possible an improved way to produce a plastic substance.

Two professors at Stanford University in Stanford, California were also among the winners. Gordon Bower was a professor of psychology who retired in two thousand five. He worked inexperimental studies of humanmemory, language, feelingsand actions. Bradley Efron invented a statistical tool known as the bootstrap method for estimating.

VOICE ONE: Another honoree was the former president of Rockefeller University in New York City. Torsten Wiesel shared the nineteeneighty-one Nobel Prize in Medicine for studies on how visual information moves from the retina of the eye to the brain.

Also honored withthe NationalMedalofScience wasLonnie Thompson, a professor ofearth science at the Ohio State University in Columbus. His studies ofclimate conditions have provided evidence that the last one hundred years was the warmestperiod oftime in recorded history.

Anthony Fauci of the NationalInstitutes of Health near Washington, D.C., also received a National Medal of Science. He is the director of the National Institute of Allergies and InfectiousDiseases. He studiesways topreventand treatdiseasessuchasAIDS, tuberculosis, influenza and malaria.

The finalNational Medalof Science winner for two thousand five was Ralph Alpher of the Dudley Observatory in Schenectady, New York. His work in the nineteen forties led to the developmentofthe Big BangTheory, now accepted as explainingthe beginnings of the universe. Until two thousand four, he was professor of physics at Union College, in Utica, New York.

VOICE TWO: The winners of the two thousand six National Medal of Science include two women. Rita Colwell is a professor at the University of Maryland in College Park. She received the awardfor creating a better understandingofmicrobesthatcause the disease cholera. Nina Federoff works at the Pennsylvania State University in State College. Her work with plants includes efforts to copy several kinds of plant genes.

Another Medal of Science winner is Marvin Caruthers, a professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder. He was honored for his work with the genetic material DNA and the human genome project. Peter Dervan of the California Institute of Technology in San Marino was honored for research in organic chemistry and biology, and for influencing education and industry.

Lubert Stryer is a former professor at Stanford Universityin California. He was honored for work with biological molecules. Hyman Bass of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor was recognized for establishing a new kind of mathematics.

Two professors at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge also received the NationalMedalofScience. Robert Langer washonored for helpingdevelopnew medical technologies. Daniel Kleppner is a former professor at MIT. He was honored for his research into the links between atoms and light.

VOICE ONE: The National Medal of Technology is awarded to Americans considered to be the leading developers of new technology ideas and products. It was established by Congress in nineteen eighty. The medal is given every year to researchers, teams of researchers and or companies for excellent technology work.

The National Medal of Technology is administered by the United States Department of Commerce. A special committee studies all nominations for the award. The secretary of commerce appointsthe committee membersfor three-year terms. Membersof the committee are generally experts in the areas of science, technology, business and law.

Again, this year twogroupsofwinnerswere honored atthe same ceremony inWashington on July twenty-seventh. The first group of winners was announced in June. They received the medal for two thousand five. The second group was named in July and received the two thousand six awards.

VOICE TWO: The two thousand five technology winners included two individuals, one team and three companies. The first went to Alfred Cho of Alcatel-Lucent’s Bell Labs in Murray Hill, New Jersey.

He was honored for helping invent a technology that is used to produce cellular telephones, compact disc players and high-speed communication devices.

Dean Sickingis a professor at the University ofNebraska in Lincoln. He was recognized for his design and development of safety technologies that stop the energy involved in high-speed vehicle crashes. The committee said his work has prevented many deaths and injuries on roads every year.

A scientific team at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in Madison, New Jersey received a technology award fordevelopingthe first vaccine topreventdeadly streptococcus pneumonia in children. The committee said the work has been described as the most important advance in medicine for children in the past ten years.

The first companyaward went to the Genzyme Corporation inCambridge, Massachusetts for improvingthehealthofpeople withrare diseases.TheSemiconductor Research Corporation in Durham, North Carolina was honored for buildinga research force to support the growth

of the semiconductor industry. And the Xerox Corporation in Stamford, Connecticut was recognized for fifty years of work that has created the modern printing industry. VOICE ONE:The Technology Medals for two thousand six went to five individuals. Leslie Geddesis a formerprofessor atPurdue UniversityinWestLafayette,Indiana. He washonored for his research into the electricity involved in medical devices.

Charles Vest is a former president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was recognized for workingtoward joint scientific efforts amonguniversities, the government and industry.

James West is a professor at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. He received the technology award for helping invent the electret microphone in nineteen sixtytwo. That technology is now used in several kinds of communication devices.

PaulKaminskiis the chairman ofthe Technovation Companyin Fairfax Station, Virginia. He was honored for developing new kinds of pictures from space and his work in national security. And Herwig Kogelnik works at Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs in Murray Hill, New Jersey. He received a technology medal for his leadership in the development of lasers and lightwave communications systems.

VOICE TWO: This SCIENCE IN THE NEWS was written by Nancy Steinbach. Brianna Blake was our producer. I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE: And I’m Barbara Klein. Read and listen to our programs at voaspecialenglish.com. Join us again at this time next week for more news about science in Special English on the Voice of America.

(http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/archive/2007-08/2007-08-13-voa1.cfm)

Module 6 Unit 2

Future Kids

Simon and Todd talk about how the future will be different for his newborn son. Todd: OK, Simon, I was wondering you know, you have a newborn son and before you know it, he’ll probably be 10 years old, 12 years old, and I wonder if his life will be a lot different than it was for us when we were 10 or 12. Like for example, education, do you remember what school was like when you were 12.

Simon: Yeah, sure I do. I think his education will be the same as mine. I don’t think, like I had a classroom with maybe 15 or 20 students in it. He’ll probably have a classroom with 15 or 20 students in it. … Of course there will be a lot more technology in his classroom. I mean, I remember my first computer had green and white, green and black screen. He’ll probably have 3-dimensional shapes with his computer screen.

Todd: That will be amazing. What about sports? Do you think sports will be the same? That he’ll play pick up games with his friends and go to the park and play soccer, whatever. Simon: Sure. The only difference is for example, I played soccer when I was young. I played on grass. He’ll probably play on artificial turf on the top of a building somewhere. Todd: Right. Actually that kind of things worried me about kids today. They don’t play sports and as freely as I did, you know, when I was 12 … cause when I was 12, we would always play pick-up basketball games or pick-up baseball games. I don’t know if kids do that so much anymore.

Simon: I think they’ll probably do.

Todd: You think so. OK. … Well what about entertainment?

Simon: I think some things never change so when he is 12 years old he will do exactly what I don’t want him to do, which is exactly what I did so … those things might be different, like I would probably hang out with my friends and go skateboarding. He’ll probably have a jet board instead.

Todd: A jet board. Right.

Simon: Well, who knows. I don’t know, but something, something new.

Todd: Right. Right. OK, that’s cool. …. Anythingelse you think might be different for your son, especially when you son is 30, in his 30’s like you.

Simon:Yeah, but Iguess technology, I thinktechnology and overpopulation sohe’ll probably see a lot less natural sites or won’t be able to experience nature as I did. I mean even now I don’t see as much nature as I did 20 years ago.

Todd: Right. Yeah, it’s kind of a sad thing. OK, anyway, thanks a lot Simon. Simon: Yeah, no problem.

http://www.elllo.org/Text0601/645-Simon-Future.htm

Module 7 Unit 1

Job Centre

Thanks for calling the local College Job Center. We have lots of jobs just for you. Our first job is at the local radio station. We need a DJ. This person needs to work from 5 to 8 in the morning, morning people, on Saturday and Sunday. This is perfect for people who love music. You need to have a good clear voice, and if you like to go out and stay late and, you know, party on Saturday and Sunday, this job is not for you.

Alright, we also got a job for people that love animals. The local pet care company needs people towalk dogs for people when they’re outoftown, so ifyoulike dogs, youlike exercise, and you know, you want to be outside, this is a good job for you. It pays ten dollars an hour, but hours very. It summer there’s lots of work because people are out of town, but in winter, not so much, so it kind of depends, but still, if you like animals, it’s a good job.

Now if youwant a job where you don’t have to talk to people and youlike good physical work, then you should work for the university bookstore. They need people in their warehouse. Basically the books come in. You got to take the books out of the boxed and stack them in the warehouse. It pays pretty good. It’s fifteen dollars an hour. The hours are flexible but you got to work at least twenty hours a week, so if you need lots of money and you want to work hard this is a good job for you.

This is probably our best job. It pays twenty dollars an hour. We need somebody to work withthe universitypresident, butyou gottoknowcomputers.YoumustknowExcel,Powerpoint, and Word. You need to be able to type sixtywords a minute. And you have to have good phone skills. But job pays twenty dollars an hour and it’s twenty hours a week so it’s really good for students if you need to make a lot of money.

Also, it lookslike we have a job at the university movie theater. They needushers and ticket collectors, so the pay’s not so great - only seven dollars an hour - but the hours are pretty good, abouttwenty hoursa week, butyouget to see movies for free.You get free popcorn. Thingslike that. The bad thing about his job, is you got to work Friday and Saturdays. They say that’s very important. Everybody must work Friday and Saturday night.

We have one more job if you’re interested. If you have a car, you must have your own car, the pizza palace is lookingfor people do deliver pizzas on campus. Basically you deliver pizzas. You got to move quick to get the pizzas there as soon as people order them, but it’s a nice job if you like to drive, you like to be by yourself, but you like tomeet people. The pay is eight dollars an hour and you get tips. So usually they say it works out to about fifteen dollars an hour with tips. Oh, another thing. You got to work weekends - Friday and Saturday night.

OK, those are allthe jobs at the job center. Hopefully you found something just for you.

http://www.elllo.org/english/Games/G013-JobCenter.html

Module 7 Unit 2

Interns Provide Free Labor, But Internships Are Not Always Free

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Many college students in the United States use their summer break to earn money in a temporary job. But more and more are working as summer interns.

Some internship programs accept students in high school.

Internships are usually unpaid, and the work might not always be the most exciting. But they offer a chance to gain experience in business, public service or some other area of interest. They can also be a chance to get to know a possible future employer. More importantly, internships can help students make sure their area of study is a good choice.

For most organizations, interns mean extra workers for little or no cost. They also get a chance to see if a student might make a good future employee. Some interns are promised a full-time job once they finish their studies.

Yet some students have no choice but to get a payingjob during the summer. They have a real financial need.

Interns provide free labor, but internship programs can involve costs for travel, housing and meals.

Businesses might require interns to receive college credit for their experience. These businesses are concerned about labor laws that say workers must receive something in return for their work. So, if not money, then credits.

Many colleges and universities resist such requirements. They say students should earn credit only for school experience. Some other schoolsprovide the credits but charge students for them.

So, for a student from a poor family, an unpaid internship just may not be possible. Economic realities like this sometimes lead to criticism of internship programs.

But some colleges and universities are offering help for students who want to be interns. Some provide scholarships to help pay for housing and meals, but they do not always give academic credits.

BrandeisUniversitynearBoston, Massachusetts, offers asummer internshipclass. Students pay for one college credit. They must write an essay or keep a journal of their internship.

Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, is considering a similar one-credit summer class. Associate Dean John Bader says the students would work with a professor, but would not have to pay any money.

And that’s the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach.

You can read transcripts and hear past reports at voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Pat Bodnar.

(2006, http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/archive/2006-08/2006-08-09-voa3.cfm)

Keys

In the Realm of Science 2

i.e. – that is e.g. – for example etc. – and so on at al. – and the others A.D. – B.C.

University Schools – law, medicine, social work, business, engineering, applied science

Tuition fees for undergraduate students for a year – 11000$

Tuition fees for the Master of Business Administration program – 38000$ Scholarships and lоans – available

Date of the foundation – 1853

Humboldt University – Berlin - Germany

MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) – Cambridge – USA

Tokyo Daigaku - Tokyo – Japan

Fudan University – Shanghai – China

Harvard University - Cambridge – USA

Oxford – Oxford – UK

MIPT (Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology) – Moscow – Russia Friedrich Wilhelm University – Bonn – Germany

Cambridge – Cambridge – UK

Yale – New Heaven – USA

Sorbonne – Paris – France

Reading 2

Description

A modular course is made up of _a number of self-contained units of study or modules

Course organization

1.A full-time programme will require 9-12 modules______________each year.

2.Students have to take a number of __compulsory________ or “core” modules and optional subjects__ within the specialist area or in an associated field.3. A number of elective_______ modules are available. They focus on _completely different subject areas________________

Advantages

1.Flexibility: students can design a program of study, choose topics of professional and general interest, transfer credit points to other institutions___

2.Easier to monitor the progress through end-of-module assessment __

Disadvantages

1.students have to make more decisions_____________________________

2.requirea lot of planning________________________________________

Questions

1.What is CAT? Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme_________

2. Where can I study a modular course? At polytechnics, colleges of higher educations and some traditional universities_

Module 2 Unit 2

Reading 1

1.Pollution Science (C)

2.Ecology (E)

3.Environmental Management (A)

4.Environmental Chemistry (D)

5.Environmental Mathematics (B)

Listening2

Comprehension check 1

a)25 departments

b)majority of science graduates especially for those who have a particular career in mind

c)scientific journalism, IT specialists, medical and research managers, etc.

d)at least two science themes and one non-science theme

e)Combined Science tutor

Модуль 3 Unit 1

Lead in 2

speak, read, write, count, solve, function, achieve, develop

Listening

Computer technology has become a major part ofpeople’s lives. It has its own specialwords. One example is the word mouse. A computer mouse is a device that you move around on a flat surface in front of a computer, it moves the pointer or cursor on the computer screen. The idea was developed in the early 1960s by Douglas Engelbart. First devices – a carved block of wood with two metal wheels.

Its name is due to a tail at one end which was the wire that connected it to the computer. Experts are called hackers. They write software programs in a special computer language. The other meaning of the word is a person who tries to steal information from computer systems Google –a popularsearchengine for the Internet. People use ittofindinformation. The name is connected to extremely large number in maths – 1+100 zeroes. When you google a subject – you get a large amount of information about it. A blog (a Web log) is a personal Web page. It contains, stories, comments, pictures and links to other Web sites Their owners are called bloggers Spam is unwanted sales messages sent to your mailbox. The name is due to a joke on a British television show.

Comprehension check 2

a)commercial

b)education and research

c)government

d)non-profit organization

e)individuals

Focus on language 3

Information: reliable, relevant, falsified, true, available, free of error, current, commercial/ business, secret, factual, etc.

Module 3 Unit 2

Reading

Comprehension check 2

1) B 2) D 3) F 4) H 5) C 6) A 7) E 8) G

Comprehension check 3

Progress Test Task 3

–library

–periodicals

–plagiarism

Speaking 2

a)A microscope is a device that uses lenses to magnify very small objects and scientifically examine them.

b)A magnetic compass is a tool for finding direction which has a freely suspended needle which always points to a magnetic north.

c)Athermometer is a device that is used for measuring temperature of the air, water or people’s body. It is usually a graduated glass cylinder with a line of mercury or some other coloured alcohol that moves up when the temperature rises and moves down when it falls.

d)A telescope is a cylindrical instrument which contains lenses and curved mirrors to enlarge and observe distant stars and planets (for making distant objects look nearer and larger in order to study them).

Reading 1

Focus on language

Practice 2

a)had already begun; got ;quietly took

b)were discussing; walked

c)had been studying; got tired

d)roamed; had become extinct; appeared

e)called; was not; was studying

f)was asking; had been daydreaming

g)had never seen; visited

h)left; collected

i)was writing; was vacuum cleaning; could not concentrate; got angry

j)had passed; got; felt

Listening5

Prize in … (field of science) Chemistry prize

Prize – to give, to establish, to present, to divide, to share, to win, to receive, Prize – winning work

Prize winner