3.4.9. Translate the text of Video-Target 2 into Russian, with special attention being given to the following basic sequences:

Only a few years ago...

...would have been dismissed by...

...as of no interest or importance...

...of no economic value...

No one would want to...

But recently our attitude has gone through a dramatic change.

We've come to value places like this...

...precisely because...

They've become infinitely precious to us.

...the last stretches of...left in the world.

We've suddenly become aware of just ...

What a devastating impact we've made on the world.

In the last few decades with our huge advances in...

...that impact has reached the point of crisis.

Whatever the case...

I've certainly reached the conclusion that...

...there are no easy answers, political or technological, to...

...even if it is hard to believe sometimes that...

We are still tempted to believe that...

This is all the result of excessively alarmist talk.

It has been extraordinary to witness the surge of interest that...

.. .have gradually become part of our daily lives.

These are the cunning questions, which concern me deeply.

I'm, to say the least, no scientific expert.

There are plenty of others who seem to know a great deal more about the subject than I do.

But I would like to raise a few questions.

I've gradually come to believe that...

We cannot solve our environmental problems simply by coming up with yet more answers based on...

Every so-called solution seems to unleash a whole new generation of problems.

What interests me is ...

...the debate going on beneath the actual issues.

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3.4.10. Make up your own sentences or short contexts on the basis of the sequences singled out in 3.4.9.

— Follow as closely as you can the rhythm and the pitch-movement of the target.

— Here are some examples to show how it can be done:

Only a few years ago the word 'culture' was mainly referred to literature, music, painting, architecture, etc. Now our attitude towards the concept of culture has gone through a considerable change.

* * *

Whatever the case, I've certainly reached the conclusion that there are no easy answers, social or historical, to the crisis of cross-cultural communication.

3.4.11. Translate the following texts 1 and 2 into English applying the target principle expounded in 3.4.10.

— Use the Basic Word Combinations Dictionary and the Explanatory Dictionary wherever necessary.

INSTRUCTIONS — Try not to give a word-for-word translation — your main task is to show how well you know this target — as well as the previous ones — and how easily you can 'process' it to express another idea in another context.

Text l

Всего каких-нибудь несколько десятилетий тому назад сама мысль об использовании телевизоров и видеомагнитофонов в обучении иностранным языкам казалась маловероятной и почти сразу же отвергалась большинством преподавателей как нечто не представляющее реального практического интереса. И тогда, разумеется, казалось, что применение технических средств не имеет непосредственного отношения к филологии: трудно было найти соответствующие тексты и материалы, трудно было создавать свои собственные учебные программы, мало кто пытался использовать их продуктивно.

Но постепенно наше отношение к ним кардинально изменилось. Мы научились ценить современные технические средства обучения как раз потому, что они позволяют нам делать невозможное. Мы стали дорожить ими, потому что они дают нам уникальную возмож-

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ность совершенствовать навыки общения на иностранном языке, не выезжая за пределы своей собственной страны.

Мы неожиданно осознали, какое огромное воздействие они оказали на весь учебный процесс. В последние годы, когда новые программы и учебные материалы стали широко доступными, использование современных технологий в обучении языку дало прекрасные результаты.

Text 2

Известно, что большинство из великих империй прошлого распались и прекратили свое существование. В чем причина такого трагического конца? Этот непростой вопрос волнует человечество уже немало лет. Многие сегодня даже склонны считать, что такое внимание к судьбе этих государств объясняется чрезмерным интересом, который проявляют к этим проблемам средства массовой информации: революционные перемены, исчезнувшие цивилизации, беспрецедентный рост вооружения — эти «фатальные» фразы буквально наводнили нашу прессу, радио и телевидение.

Как бы то ни было, мы приходим к выводу о том, что нет, и не может быть простого, однозначного ответа (как со стороны историков, так и со стороны политиков) на вопрос о том, что вызвало кризис некогда великих мировых держав. Некоторые считают, что это результат исключительно неблагоприятного стечения обстоятельств, ошибок и просчетов правящих кругов, безответственности и пассивности простых людей и т. д. Другие убеждены в том, что такие объяснения по меньшей мере не научны и не имеют отношения к действительности.

Дело в том, что каждое из этих утверждений не может не вызывать целого ряда дополнительных вопросов. Сегодня нас интересует, что действительно послужило подоплекой этих разрушительных перемен. Другими словами, это вопросы экономики, а также всего того, что способствует благосостоянию, прогрессу и процветанию общества.

3.4.12. Make up your own extended context on a subject of your own choice.

— It is also important to understand that the subject should be interesting enough to hold the audience (it may be one of the 'topical issues' such as, for example, culture, education, world-views, history, the psychology of human relations, etc.).

— Here is an example to show how it can be done if you have really understood the target principle:

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Only a decade ago the question of culture and education in this country would have been dismissed by most people as of no interest or importance. And certainly of no material value: you couldn't profit by it, you couldn't make money of it, no one would want to sponsor and support such unprofitable spheres.

But recently, most people's attitude has gone through a dramatic change. Quite a few of our contemporaries have come to value things like theatre and music, ballet and opera, literature and painting, precisely because they have been terribly neglected for so long. They have become infinitely precious to us, because they are the embodiment of eternal or spiritual values, which are part of the Russian national character. People have suddenly become aware of just what a devastating impact political and social changes can make on their way of life and their views in general. In the last few years with our huge economic reforms, that impact has reached the point of crisis.

Whatever the case, I've certainly reached the conclusion that there are no easy explanations — social or economic — of the sudden surge of interest in these matters. We are still tempted to believe that the crisis of culture was somebody else's fault, not ours: looking for a job, money and salary problems, the general feeling of uncertainty about our future, — these and many other everyday difficulties have gradually ousted all the former priorities.

These were the cunning questions, which used to concern my contemporaries deeply for more than a decade. How, then, can we account for this sudden change of attitude and the growing interest in culture and education that can be witnessed nowadays.

I'm, to say the least, no scientific expert: there are plenty of others who seem to know a great deal more about people's motives than I do. But I would like to raise a few questions. I've gradually come to believe that we cannot solve our everyday problems simply by focusing on material issues. In that case every solution would inevitably unleash a whole new generation of problems. What interests people now, is something going on beyond the practical down-to-earth spheres. It's perennial human values, something that forms the essence of the 'Russian spirit', the so-called 'mysterious Russian soul' and the special feeling of national identity.

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— 3.5. Grammar ——————