Public finance

The government collects money from the citizens through taxes. Income tax is the tax collected on wages and salaries. Inheritance tax is collected on what people inherit from others. Customs or excise duties have to be paid on goods imported from other countries. VAT or value added tax is a tax paid on most goods and services when they are bought or purchased. Companies pay corporation tax on their profits. If you pay too much tax, you should be given some money back, a tax rebate.

The government also sometimes pays out money to people in need, e.g. unemployment benefit (also known informally as the dole), disability allowances and student grants (to help pay for studying). Recipients draw a pension/ unemployment benefit or are on the dole or on social security.

Every country has its own special currency. Every day the rates of exchange are published and you can discover, for example, how many dollars there are currently to the pound sterling.

A company may sell shares to members of the public who are then said to have invested in that company. They should be paid a regular dividend on their investment, depending on the profit or loss made by the company.

Ex. 4. Translate from Russian into English

Многие люди хотели бы владеть собственным домом. Но для многих людей трудно скопить достаточно денег, чтобы купить дом. Многие из нас тратят все деньги, которые они зарабатывают в месяц. Если вы не можете позволить себе купить квартиру или дом, вы можете одолжить деньги. Вы можете взять банковскую ссуду. Это хорошее вложение ваших денег. Через несколько лет ваш дом будет стоить больше, чем вы за него заплатили вначале. И вы можете продать его и получить прибыль.

Ex. 5. Translate from Russian into English

Различные способы сэкономить деньги: 1. покупать оптом 2. искать снижение цен и выгодные покупки при распродажах 3. покупать продукты в экономичной упаковке 4. задерживать оплату счетов до последнего требования 5. ездить в отпуск в сезон низких цен 6. покупать подержанную одежду на распродажах или в благотворительных магазинах 7. звонить по телефону по низким тарифам 8. покупать только в тех местах, где при возврате покупки, деньги могут быть возвращены, а не только обменены на другой товар

9. обменивать валюту, когда курсы обмена являются благоприятными 10. не зыбывать брать цеки и гарантийные талоны.

Ex. 6. Write an essay describing an idea of one of the following English proverbs:

• Money is the root of all evil.

• Money makes the man.

• Money doesn’t grow in a tree.

Useful words and expressions

1.	income	доход
2.	a salary/ wages	оклад, зарплата
3.	a bonus	премия
4.	tips	чаевые
5.	benefits	льготы, пособия
6.	insurance contributions	страховые взносы
7.	repayments on a loan	возврат ссуды, займа
8.	bank charges	банковские сборы, комиссия
9.	donations to charities	благотворительные пожертвования
10.	to inherit	унаследовать
11.	inheritance	наследство
12.	wealthy/ well-off/ reach/ prosperous/ affluent/ well off	богатый, состоятельный, обеспеченный
13.	to be hard up	испытывать материальные затруднения, “быть на мели”
14.	to make ends meet	сводить концы с концами

Unit 6 CONSUMER SOCIETY

Ex. 1. Discuss the questions:

1. Are you influenced by advertising? Which adverts have made you want to buy something? Why?

2. Do you have any favourite adverts? Are there any adverts that really annoy you? Which aspects of them do you like or dislike?

3. What kind of things do you enjoy or not enjoy buying?

4. Which of the following shops do you use most and what do you buy in each one?

• department stores and chain shops

• small independent shops

• markets and second-hand shops

• online stores.

5. What was the last important purchase that you or your family made? Describe the purchase step by step?

Ex.2. – 4.2. - Listening. Listen to the information and answer the following questions:

1. What is “stealth marketing”?

2. Why do Michael and Anna do stealth marketing?

3. What kind of people do they talk to?

4. Do you think what they are doing is morally acceptable?

5. Would you do this kind of advertising? Why? Why not?

Ex.3. – 4.4. - Listening. Listen to the story and tick (v) true, cross (x) false or write (?) if there is no information. Explain why your answers are true or false.

1. □ Izzie looked on the Internet because she knew the boots were cheaper abroad.

2. □ Izzie realised that the boots were fake when she opened them.

3. □ She wore the boots several times.

4. □ Greg was angry because Izzie had used his credit card again.

5. □ Nobody would help Izzie and Gred.

6. □ Greg had to pay the credit card bill.

7. □ Izzie’s dad did not let her wear the boots.

Ex. 4. Write an essay (150 -180 words) “The Role of Advertising”.

Ex.5. - Read the text, check new words in the box below and learn them.

The Importance of Cultural Awareness

It is useful to define culture as a system of shared symbols, beliefs, attitudes, values, expectations and norms of behaviour. All members of a certain culture have similar assumptions about how people should think, behave and communicate; therefore, cultures vary in their attitudes towards outsiders. Some are openly hostile or maintain a detached aloofness. Others are friendly and cooperative towards strangers. Such nations as Italians and Spanish (Spaniards) are affective and very emotional; Chinese and Japanese – on the contrary – are too reserved and neutral while Americans and Russians are mixed because of their multinational basis. As we know, misunderstanding is especially likely to occur when the people who are communicating have different backgrounds. Thus, cultural awareness is a key to communication.

Our awareness of intercultural differences is both useful and necessary in today’s world of business. Having a poor understanding of the influence of cross-cultural differences in such areas as management, PR, advertising and negotiations can eventually lead to blunders that can have damaging consequences. It is crucial for today’s business personnel to understand the impact of cross-cultural differences on business, trade and internal company organization. The success or failure of a company, venture, merger or takeover is essentially in the hands of people. If these people are not cross-culturally aware, then misunderstanding, offence and break down in communication can occur. Cross-cultural differences in matters such as language, etiquette, non-verbal communication (body language), norms and values can, do and lead to cultural blunders. To illustrate this there are a few examples of intercultural blunders that could have been avoided with appropriate cross-cultural awareness training.

Take the case of the computer sales representative who was calling on a client in China. To make a good impression, the salesperson brought along a gift to break the ice – an expensive clock. Unfortunately, the Chinese client was deeply offended because in China, giving clocks as gift is considered bad luck for the recipient.

Pepsodent tried to sell its toothpaste in South East Asia by emphasizing that it “whitens your teeth”. They found out that the local natives chew betel nuts to blacken their teeth which they find attractive.

A company advertised eyeglasses in Thailand by featuring a variety of cute animals wearing glasses. The ad was a poor choice since animals are considered to be a form of low life and no self-respect. Thai would wear nothing worn by animals.

When Pepsico advertised Pepsi in Taiwan with the ad “Come Alive With Pepsi” they had no idea that it would be translated into Chinese as “Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the dead”.

We shouldn’t ignore the fact that people from other cultures differ from us in many ways; in their language, religion and values, use of space, attitude toward time, decision-making habits, body language. Gestures help us clarify confusing messages, so differences in body language are a major source of misunderstanding. Or take eye contact. Keeping your eyes lowered is a signal of respect among many Latin Americans.

Concepts of status also differ; therefore, people establish their credibility in different ways. North Americans, for example, send status signals that reflect materialistic values: the big boss has the corner office on the top floor, deep carpets, an expensive desk, and exquisite accessories; the most successful companies are located in the most prestigious buildings. In other countries, status is accepted in other ways. For instance, the senior executives in France sit in the middle of an open area, surrounded by the lower-level employees. In the Middle East, fine possessions are reserved for the home, and business is conducted in cramped and modest quarters.

Cultures also differ in terms of who makes the decisions. In China and Japan, decision making is a shared responsibility. No individual has the authority to commit the transaction without first consulting others. In Japan, for example, the negotiating team arrives at a consensus through an elaborate, time-consuming process. In North America, they try to reach decisions as quickly and efficiently as possible. Latin Americans prefer to make their deals slowly, after a lengthy period of discussion. British and US negotiators, for example, found themselves at a standstill when the American company proposed that they “table’ particular key points. In the US it means “not to discuss” while the same phrase in Britain means “bring it to the table for discussion”,

It is a must that in the national and global economies cross-cultural awareness is taken into consideration to avoid intercultural blunders. The best way to prepare yourself to do business with people from another culture is to study their culture in advance!

1.	attitude	позиция; отношение
2.	assumption	предположение; допущение;
3.	hostile	неприятельский; вражеский; враждебный
4.	to maintain a detached aloofness	поддерживать отчужденность/ замкнутость
5.	affective	эмоциональный
6.	reserved	замкнутый; необщительный
7.	awareness	осведомлённость; информированность
8.	advertising	рекламирование; реклама
9.	negotiation	переговоры
10.	blunder	грубая ошибка; промах; оплошность
11.	damaging consequences	разрушительные последствия
12.	crucial	решающий; ключевой;
13.	impact	удар; толчок; столкновение; влияние; воздействие
14.	venture	коммерческое предприятие
15.	merger	объединение; слияние
16.	takeover	слияние компаний; приобретение контрольного пакета другой компанией
17.	offence	обида; оскорбление
18.	sales representative	торговый представитель
19.	to make a good impression	произвести хорошее впечатление
20.	to break the ice	растопить лед
21..	to be deeply offended	быть глубоко оскорбленным
22.	bad luck	невезение
23.	recipient	получатель
24.	cute	остроумный; милый; привлекательный
25.	ancestor	предок
26.	to establish credibility	завоевать доверие
27.	exquisite	изысканный; утончённый; тонкий
28.	possessions	собственность; имущество;
29.	cramped and modest quarters	тесные и скромные кварталы
30.	to commit the transaction	совершать сделки
31.	to arrive at a consensus	прийти к консенсусу
32.	time-consuming process	трудоемкий процесс
33.	negotiator	участник переговоров; сторона в переговорах
34.	in advance	заранее, предварительно

Unit 7 BODY AND MIND

Ex. 1. Discuss the questions:

1. What is one good and one bad thing you do for your health?

2. What should a person do in order to be healthy?

3. What is the best way to stop smoking?

4. Should smoking be banned in public places like trains, buses and restaurants? Why/ why not?

5. What are the most serious diseases which people face today?

6. What do you do to handle stress?

Ex. 2. How much do you know about smoking?

		A	B	C
1.	What proportion of the male adult global population smoke?	a quarter	almost half	over half
2.	Which region of the world has the highest smoking rate?	USA	East Asia	Europe
3.	In what year was smoking linked to lung cancer?	1851	1901	1951
4.	How many toxic chemicals are there in cigarette smoke?	50	1,000	4,000
5.	How many smokers in the UK want to quit?	one in ten	one in three	two in three
6.	Which substance in cigarettes causes addiction?	nicotine	tar	carbon monoxide
7.	The tobacco industry in the USA spends about $5 million on advertising?	a day	a month	a year
8.	How many young teens (13 – 15) smoke worldwide?	one in ten	one in five	one in three
9.	Of 1,000 young Australians who smoke, one will be murdered and fifteen will be killed on the road. How many will die from smoking?	50	150	250
10.	How many people could be fed by food crops grown instead of tobacco?	1 – 2 million	5 -10 million	10 – 20 million

Ex. 3. Listen to a talk about the effects on the body of giving up smoking and complete the notes.

Time stopped	Benefits
1 )……………	Blood pressure and pulse return to normal. Circulation improves, especially for 2) ……… and ………….
8 hours	3) …………. in blood returns to normal.
24 hours	Carbon monoxide leaves body. 4) ……………… start to clear.
48 hours	There is no nicotine left in the body. Senses of 5) …………… and …………
72 hours	6) ………….. becomes easier. Energy levels rise.
2 – 12 weeks	Circulation improves throughout the body. Walking and 7) …….. become easier.
3 – 9 months	Breathing problems such as coughing and shortness of breath improve. Lung efficiency increased by up to 8) …………………
9 )…………….	Risk of heart attack falls to about half that of a smoker.
10 years	Risk of cancer falls to about half that of a smoker. Risk of heart attack falls to same as someone who 10) ……………….

Ex. 4. Translate the following words and expressions into Russian and learn them.

1. What are your symptoms?

I have a cold/ a cough/ a sore throat/ a temperature/ a stomach ache/ chest pains/ earache/

a pain in my side/ a rash on my chest/ spots/ a bruise on my leg/ a black eye/ a lump on my

arm/ upset stomach/ painful joints/ sunburn/ pain and nausea after eating/ headache/

sneezing/ dizziness/ insomnia.

2. What do doctors do?

They take your temperature, listen to your chest, examine you, take your blood pressure, ask you some questions, etc.

3. What is the diagnosis?

You have the flu/ pneumonia/ a virus.

You have broken your wrist and sprained your ankle.

You have food poisoning.

4. What does the doctor prescribe?

Take one pill/ tablet three times a day after meals.

Take a teaspoonful last thing at night.

Rub in this ointment.

Put a bandage on it.

You will need to have some injections.

You will have to have your leg put in plaster.

You should avoid stressful situations.

You should give up smoking.

You should go on a diet and lose some weight.

You should cut down eating sweets and drinking coffee.

Read the following dialogues and try to learn them by heart.

Ex. 5. Read the following dialogues and try to learn them by heart.

Asking about Health

A: How is you father keeping?

B: He has been off work for a day or two.

A: What's wrong with him?

B: He's gone down with a cold.

A: Tell him I hope he soon feels better.

B: That's very kind of you. I will pass it on.

A: I haven't seen Bob lately. How is he?

B: As a matter of fact, he has laid up.

A: Oh dear! What's up with him?

B: We don't know, but we are having the doctor in tomorrow.

A: Let me know if there is anything I can do.

B: Thank you. He will be pleased to hear you asked after him.

At a Doctor's Surgery

A: I have a sore throat and my chest hurts.

B: How long have you been like this?

A: It all started the day before yesterday.

B: I should think you have got flu: there is a lot of it about.

A: What do you advise?

B: Take this prescription to the chemist's and then go straight to bed.

A: I keep feeling dizzy, and I have got a headache.

B: How long has this been going on?

A: It came on yesterday.

B: I should say you are generally run down.

A: What do you think I should do?

B: It is nothing serious, but you'd better stay in bed for a day or two.

At a Chemist's Shop

A: The doctor has given me this prescription.

B: It will only take five minutes, so perhaps you will wait.

A: Have you also got something suitable for sore lips?

B: Rub in this cream every four hours.

A: Could you make up this prescription for me, please?

B: I will do it for you straight away.

A: By the way, what do you suggest for sunburn?

B: This ointment should clear up the trouble.

A Visit to the Doctor

- Well, what is the trouble? You are looking rather unwell, I must say.

- You had better ask me what is not trouble with me, Doctor. It seems to me that I am suffering from all the illnesses imaginable: headaches, earache, insomnia, indigestion, pains in the stomach, muscle pains and appetite loss. To make things worse I have caught a cold, I have got a sore throat, so I am sneezing and coughing all the time. I feel hot and feverish. I get short of breath. Actually, I feel more dead than alive.

- I am sorry to hear that. Anyway, I don’t think things are as bad as you imagine. Let me have a look at you. I would like to listen to your chest. Your heart, chest and lungs are not too bad. Now let me see your throat. Yes, it looks a little sore. Show me your tongue. Have you taken your temperature?

- Not yet, but I guess I should.

- Well, I don’t find any radically wrong with you. But it is clear that you are run down, and if you don’t take care of yourself, you may have a nervous breakdown. So first of all I advise you to stop worrying. Take some rest, have regular meals, keep off alcohol. If possible, give up smoking, at least for a time. Have this tonic made up and take 1 tablespoon three times a day before meals.

- What about diet, Doctor?

- Wee, keep to a diet of salads and fruit, and a bit of meat. If you do this I can promise you a full recovery.

- But if I don’t?

- You have to decide what the lesser evil is – to follow my advice or prepare for a better world!

Ex. 6. Read, translate the following three texts and then retell them. New words and expressions are to be learned.

MEDICINE IN THE FUTURE

Medicine as we know it is set to change dramatically in the next century. Here are just some of the changes you could well see in your lifetime.

Visits to the doctor may become a thing of the past. Already heart monitors can transfer details of a beating heart down a telephone line to a hospital computer. Soon patients may be able to tell all their complaints to computers which will then decide on treatments and dispense medicines. We may even be able to avoid getting ill. Every cell of the body contains DNA molecules: these molecules control who we are and how we grow. Scientists can alter DNA molecules by genetic engineering. In the future, it may be possible to create “designer people” who will be physically perfect.

If all that seems a little far fetched, at least you may not have to worry any more about going to the dreaded dentist: dentists are developing a liquid that dissolves tooth decay.

You may not have to worry about getting old either: on average, people in the developed world live twice as long today as they did a hundred years ago. This is partly due to advancing medical techniques. Scientists are now trying to prevent the ageing process.

Hospitals could change radically too: some medical conditions are easier to treat in the zero-gravity of space. Total burn victims, for example, would be more comfortable if they could lie on nothing. Patients with heart problems might also benefit from weightlessness. Or what about virtual reality surgery? This would allow student doctors to practice surgical techniques – before starting on real people!

Other definite possibilities are that blind people may be able to see through television cameras implanted in their eyes and connected directly to the brain.

And do not forget cloning. Did you ever want a younger sister exactly like you? Your wish may just come true!

How could:

• blind people be helped to see?

• space help burns victims?

• people be “designed”?

• doctors be helped to train?

• a computer replace going to the doctor?