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Файл:English for communication. Учебное пособие
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12. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Read the text and translate. Can science and technology solve all peoples’
problems?
Science and technology is very important for everybody of us because man
wants to live in the word full of electronics. For example, we probably cannot
imagine our lives without microwave, mobile phone, television, hi-fi or computer.
These things make very important part of our lives. We use them daily and of
course they are very helpful. They make our life easier and more comfortable.
People usually have think up things that help them in casual, everyday life. Every
woman is happy if robots or domestic appliances help her in the kitchen or with the
housework.
People also want to travel. In the past we travelled by horses or on foot. It
cost no money but it was not very comfortable. We wanted to improve our
travelling and made it more comfortable and faster. Because of this we thought up
the first train. It was made in England. It was the first car, in fact, it was not very
fast but man was satisfied. Due to the man feelings, scientists did not feel
satisfaction. They were thinking and thinking and after that they thought up planes.
In fact, it was great discovery and everybody wants to try this way of transportation.
Nowadays, it is common to travel by planes, ships, trams, cars or trains. In many
cases it is not very convenient but rather much faster than going on foot.
For a long time people were not very pleased with their inventions and that
was the reason why they started to construct something useful and important –
computers. The first one was very big and slow. Successively it was improved and
the results are today’s modern computers that are used at offices, schools, and
institutions or at homes and they are unreachable part of our common life. Mainly
teenagers and children use computers for playing.
Inseparable part of computers is the Internet. The Internet is and there is no
doubt about it. Internet is an international network of computers. There we can find
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information about everything. Every Internet user has its own e-mail address and we
can send a letter to our friends. We can talk during this network in real time.
Space flights represent a special application of modern technology and
science. Russians launched the first satellites into orbit around Earth in 1957. Soon
the first man was sent in the space, too. His name was Gagarin. The first man who
stepped onto the Moon’s surface was Neil Armstrong. At present artificial satellites
are used for scientist purposes, communications, weather forecasting, etc.
Other technical innovations:
- nuclear energy
- electricity
- synthetic insulin and hormones
- x-ray machines
- radar
- birth control methods
- silicon chip and laser
Since 1960´s we have spoken about the scientific-technical revolution. Both
science and technology are the most important phenomena, which can solve
people’s problems on the earth. For example to find other alternative energy
sources, to reduce pollution and to protect environment, to find way how to feed
people in the countries of the „Third world“ or to find medicine against such disease
as cancer, AIDS or the latest Ebola virus which trouble contemporary world.
1. Make up a list of 5 inventions which did not exist a hundred of years ago.
Think how people did without them.
2. Arrange the following scientific inventions in order of their importance.
Justify your choice. Choose one of them and tell what you know about it. (When,
where and who invented it?)
DNA _____
atom _____
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our solar system _____
insulin _____
galaxies beyond our own _____
electricity _____
gravity _____
radioactivity _____
bacteria/viruses _____
vitamins _____
X-rays _____
dynamite _____
microorganisms _____
nuclear energy _____
3. Which of the following inventions seem most essential to you? How did
they change your life? Which of them do you often use and which not? Why?
assembly line • money • cordless/wireless telephone • letter • penicillin •
escalators • elastic eyeglasses • bubble gum • compass • chewing gum • deodorant•
ball-point pen/biro • bar code • bicycle • bra • fax • e-mail • the Internet • telephone
• television • answer phone • contact lenses • computer • plane • Post-it notes •
remote controls • safety pin • scissors • helicopter • laser • lycra • submarine • toilet
paper • umbrella • sellotape • plastic money • microscope • mobile phone
4. Tell what the following devices are used for and answer questions (1-4).
food processor
microwave oven
vacuum cleaner
washing machine
dishwasher
DVD player
iron
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digital camera
word-processor
Printer
VCR (video recorder)
tape recorder
fridge
CD player
photocopier
electric kettle
coffee maker
camcorder
1 Which of them are examples of the most modern technology?
2 Which of them do you have? How often do you use them? What for?
3 Which of them do you find absolutely indispensable and which could you
do without?
4 How did people manage when these things didn't exist?
5. What instruments are necessary to do the following:
1 cutting a sheet of paper in half
2 making a hole in a concrete wall
3 putting a picture on the wall
4 cutting a piece of wood into two pieces
5 opening a bottle of wine
6 painting a bookshelf
6. Complete the sentences (1-6).
1. The car engine broke down when______________________________
2. You need spare parts to______________________________________
3. A power plant is a factory which______________________________
4. A power cut made it impossible to____________________________
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5. Children shouldn't touch electric sockets because_________________
6. If you don't plug the radio in, it_______________________________
7. What do you know about these fields of modern science?
genetic engineering
Information Technology
transplantology
nuclear engineering
astrophysics
nanotechnology
8. Choose one of the topics. Speak and discuss.
1 Necessity is the mother of invention. Explain this saying.
2 Having a telephone at home is both a blessing and a curse.
3 People from communities that live without all the benefits of modern
civilization are much happier than we are.
4 Environmental problems are mostly the effect of developing technology.
5 Genetic experiments should be banned for ethical reasons. Do you agree?
6 Funding science is a waste of money.
7 Some people don't trust modern technology and some are obsessively
scared of it. How can you explain this phenomenon?
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13. NATURE
Read the text and translate. What definitions of nature can you give?
What is nature? The obvious answer is so deeply ingrained, and yet it is
ambiguous. Is "nature" a specific category of phenomenon? If I go on a "nature
walk" what can I expect to see? I may observe forests, mountains, streams, plantlife, animal-life, occurring in its "natural" environment.
As convenient and as wide spread as this use of the word is, it casts
aspersions on humanity, for all things human are, by contrast, under this definition
of the term "nature", deemed UN-natural. What does it mean to be natural? Are not
all things natural by virtue of the fact that they exist? What must I exclude when I
speak of the natural world? What can be pointed out as having occurred outside the
forces of nature?
The human species has emerged as naturally as any other species. All that
human hands have touched, though transformed, re-engineered, or processed, are
still wholly composed of available natural resources-all ingredients being quite
natural in their origin.
A beaver constructs a dam. Is it not natural? A bird puts together a nest. A
human being designs and builds a home. These all occur quite naturally. If we
include human beings in this select category (i.e. "nature") then must we not also
consider all human-made things "natural"? Where do we draw these lines, or must
we draw lines at all? What is nature? If we must consider it a category of
phenomenon then let us include everything in this category.
It is now recognized by the scientific community that all phenomenon in the
natural world, though it appears as concrete form, is in fact nothing more than a
gathering of energy in various shapes, rhythms and levels of density. The natural
world is energy expressing itself in a multitude of ways. Can we not then claim that
everything is in some way alive- that everything is an expression of energy in some
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form? Are all things, due to their animation on atomic levels (proton, neutron, etc.)
beach
elephant
potato
coast
camel
grass
rainfore
intelligence
fur
volcano
bear
pet
to be considered "living"?
There is another relatively common use of the term "nature" that, in practice,
is more inclusive than the first example. It conveys the meaning "attribute" or
"way". For instance, when I speak of human "nature", I am speaking of the human
"way". This use of the word "nature" not only allows us to include all existent
things, but at the same time acknowledges a common thread by focusing on that
which is behaving- that which is common to all living things.
Nature is a way of behaving. It is something that all things possess (a nature).
It is not a category of things, but all things, for everything behaves. Nature is the
behaviour. All the various things in our natural world behave differently. These
differences show up in many ways- shape, size, scope, color, rhythm, density,
ability-to-change, etc. Everything has a distinct nature and nature, by our definition
is not a category of phenomenon, but a distinct way of behaving specific to each
individual organism, species, and kingdom.
Switch on
Work in pairs. Write down as many names of animals as possible during 5
minutes and answer the questions about each of them.
1 What does the animal look like?
2 Where does it live?
3 What does it eat?
4 What habits/'lifestyle1 does it have?
1. Complete the table using the words below. Answer questions (1-3).
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oxygen
nest
forest
cattle
eagle
whale
valley
tulip
bush
hill
tail
mountain
root
dolphin
desert
leaves
peach
lake
stream
peak
carrot
ocean
The world of animals
The world of plants
Environments
boiling sun ice drizzle hot storm chilly hurricane shower thunder clouds
breeze fog snow cold freezing downpour humid sleet
temperature
wind
rain
other
1. Which animals from the column «The world of animals» belong to
endangered species? What threatens them? Add your own examples.
2. Which words from the column «The world of plants» refer to vegetables
and fruit? Add your own examples.
3. Which words from the column «Environments» cause pleasant
associations? Say why?
2. Complete the table using the words below.
3. Describe:
a) your favourite kind of weather and what you like to do then
b) the type of weather you don't like
c) typical English weather
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d) the weather which played an important role in some dramatic events in
flood earthquake fire drought famine hurricane volcanic eruption epidemics
A
1.
acid
a)
spill/slick
2
oil
b)
effect
3.
global
c)
rain
your life
4. Read the names of natural disasters and answer questions (1-6).
1 In which parts of the world do they most commonly take place?
2 Which of them occur in Russia? Where?
3 What are they caused by?
4 What are their consequences?
5 Can they be prevented? How?
6 How can people defend themselves if these disasters occur?
5. Do you remember any catastrophe where you were a witness or learned
about it through mass media? Describe:
what happened
where and when it took place
how long it lasted
if there were any casualties
people's behaviour and reactions
the kind of help provided
6. Match the words in A and B with the words on the right. Which of these
expressions describe favourable and unfavourable phenomena?
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4.
greenhouse
d)
pollution
5.
air
e)
warming
В
1.
solar
a)
paper
2.
ozone
b)
control
3.
recycled
c)
friendly
4.
nuclear
d)
waste
5.
noise
e)
energy
7. What causes the following phenomena? How can they influence the
environment? Can you propose your ideas of solving these problems?
waste and rubbish disposal
nuclear explosion
overpopulation
destruction of forests
poaching (hunting wild animals illegally)
8. How can the following technologies, institutions and ideas help in
protecting the environment?
solar energy
ban on ivory trading
recycling
bicycles
media
artificial furs
separating organic waste
schools
CFC-free devices/ozone-friendly sprays
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