Test № 1
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Small towns with the population of about 3000 people seldom have a good cinema.
2. Woodmanshythe didn't have an activity centre 10 years ago.
3. The cinema in Workshop — the nearest big town — closed after the cinema in Woodmanshythe was started.
4. Major Richard Danby knows everything about the cinema in Woodmanshythe.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. Who is the cinema in Woodmanshythe run by?
2. Who is the cinema for?
3. Who had helped to organise the cinema financially?
4. What kind of films are shown at the cinema?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. There is a cafeteria next door to the cinema.
2. The firm club uses the cinema twice a week
№2
If you leave the main street and turn right, you are in Amina's world. The people in the street are «foreign-looking» — they look like Indians or Pakistanis, and they or their parents certainly originated from Asia. The shops in this area sell foreign goods. The windows are filled with saris and turbans, exotic shawls, unusual perfumes, incense, and books written in letters that an ordinary European cannot read. The grocers sell spices and vegetables not normally to be found in English kitchen, and the cinemas advertise Indian films. The travel agents offer cut-price flights to New Delhi and Karachi.
If you come here in the evening or on Sunday, the streets are almost as busy as they are during an ordinary weekday. The grocers are open and life goes on as usual.
Amina stands behind the counter in her little grocer's shop on the corner. Her two children play in the back. Most of her customers are Asians, two or three are Europeans. «We are open every day,» she says. «I open at 9.30 every day, except for Sundays, when I open at 10 o'clock. The shop closes at 10.30 in the evening — again Sunday is different, we close at 5 o'clock. Of course I close in the middle of the day for a good long break. I would like to close the shop altogether on Sundays, but it is not possible. There is too much competition here. We are saving up to buy a bigger shop with a back garden for the children to play in while I am working. We don't want to move far away, because the people are friendly here. There is no real prejudice against us. We try to fit into the English way of life as much as possible. I draw the line at wearing English clothes, though! I am too fond of my sari. The children are a little divided. They have been on one trip to India, where my parents still live. They liked it very much there, but when we came back to London, they settled down very quickly. My husband has got a good job here with a computer firm, so I am sure we will stay here. I don't know how the children will grow up. I hope they will fit into the English society without too much trouble. It isn't always so easy. At the same time I hope they will remain good Indians—good Hindus. The most important thing for them is to be happy — to have a good education, and for us to find good marriage partners for them. Then I will be happy too.»
Test № 2
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Amina doesn't close the shop on Sundays because it is the only shop for Asians in the area.
2. Amina and her husband are saving up for a trip to India.
3. Amina doesn't wear English clothes.
4. Amina and her husband will have to find marriage partners for their children when they grow up.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What do people in Amina's world look like?
2. Where in England does Amina with her family live?
3. What does Amina's husband do?
4. Why don't Amina and her husband want to move far away from where they live?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. Amina's children have never been to India.
2. The cinemas in Amina's world advertise American films.
№3
Thirty years ago my family were one of the lucky ones and went on holiday, once a year for a week. They went every year to the nearest seaside resort where there were a few traditionally run hotels, a beach, a little town and that was it. Today tourism is big business throughout the world and our expectations and life styles have greatly altered.
There are those people, especially environmentalists, who see the growth of tourism as a disaster for the environment as well as local cultures. Tourism has often meant huge hotel complexes, swimming pools, pollution and overcrowding that has destroyed many local communities. This has been the case on the Costa del Sol in Spain, which has been literally invaded by tourists for the past few decades. As the tourists start to look for more exotic places to go on holiday, the problem with protecting yet unspoiled areas in, for example, South East Asia, Central America and Africa grows.
Many of us have laughed at the commercial that shows an American tourist group on a sightseeing coach in Norway. Whenever the guide points out a local sight of interest, someone on the coach spots a McDonald's or another American Company on the other side of the coach, and everyone's attention is drawn to that. This is a good example of how many people, who go abroad on holiday, are actually more interested in experiencing familiar surroundings than discovering the local culture. As a result, travel companies try to make the resorts look as much as possible like the environment the tourists are used to.
Yet the growth of tourism has opened up parts of the world and enabled travellers to go to places they could only have dreamed of thirty years ago. The meeting of different cultures in this way has led to a greater mingling of peoples and cultures and habits. Take food for example: Italian dishes such as spaghetti and Spanish rice dishes such as paella, are nowadays eaten all over the world.
On a more serious level, tourism is often the developing countries' most important source of income. Foreign tourists bring in much needed foreign currency and this can help that country buy equipment and goods from abroad. In this way tourism is good for an area of the country.
Test № 3
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Some people think that the growth of tourism has been harmful to nature.
2. Many tourists on a holiday abroad laugh at Me Donald's or other American companies.
3. Costa del Sol in Spain hadn't been a popular tourist place until a few decades ago.
4. Tourism has led to the disappearance of many cultures.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. Where did the narrator's family usually go on holiday 30 years ago?
2. Where do tourists today try to find more exotic places for a holiday?
3. Why has tourism destroyed many local communities?
4. What dishes are nowadays eaten all over the world?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. Travel companies try to make the resorts look different from the environment the tourists are used to.
2. Tourism is often the most important source of culture for developing countries.
№4
Nowadays the number of crimes involving violence is growing in Sweden as well as many other countries. The main cause of this development is undoubtedly the use of drags especially in larger cities. The higher rate of unemployment and growing racism are significant reasons too. Meaningless murders and assaults' are the frightening results. One can, as a consequence, see how people not only in countries like the United States, but also in countries like Sweden, arm themselves with weapons for protection, but violence breeds violence.
It is often claimed that an efficient way to lower the number of acts ol violence is to have more severe sentences2. However, people who commit these crimes often have serious social and psychological problems. Many of them may therefore be indifferent to how severe the sentences are. Besides, these criminals do not think that they will ever get caught. Because of these reasons I doubt that acts of violence in Sweden would decrease if our government was to make the sentences for this type of crime more severe. A common measure to reduce the acts of violence is to increase the number of policemen patrolling the streets. Although this is a good way of preventing acts of violence, it will not actually stop people from becoming criminals.
I am convinced that it is impossible to erase3 the violence related criminality completely, but there is a way in which I think it can be reduced considerably. Children should be informed about crimes related to violence and drugs. This information should be given in kindergarten as well as in elementary school Furthermore, it should especially reach those children who live in areas with high crime rates. The information should take the form of a discussion, not a lecture, led by some expert, preferably a local police officer.
Hopefully, the children would then at an early age already have some understanding of these problems that would be valuable to them for the rest of their lives. Although the costs for such a project would be considerable, the benefits would be great. It would certainly prevent many from becoming violent criminals in the future.
1 assault —нападение
2 sentence — приговор, наказание
3 to erase — уничтожать, ликвидировать
Test № 4
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. The author doesn' t know the reasons for the growth of violence related crimes.
2. The acts of violence cannot be reduced by violence.
3. Many criminals don't care about the possible punishment.
4. The author thinks that the real problem is the high cost of increasing the number of policemen in the streets.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What do many people in different countries do to protect themselves?
2. What is often regarded as an efficient way to lower the rate of violence in a state?
3. What can erase violence related crimes completely?
4. Why is educating people important?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. Information about acts of violence should be given in kindergarten as well as in high school and colleges.
2. The information should take the form of a discussion preferably led by the headmaster.
№5
Anyone who has ever visited the centre of London cannot help but notice the number of young people who beg in the streets, and some who probably steal as well. Last summer I returned to attend a summer language course in London and stayed in the same area I had visited five years earlier. I was shocked by the increase in the number of young homeless people, living and sleeping in the streets.
There are approximately 30,000 homeless people in and around London. This has worsened due to the long recession1 in Britain and the change in the social security system which doesn't allow any person under 18, or those without a permanent address to receive any social benefits from the governments. The numbers of homeless are growing as more young people come to London, believing that they will find work and a place to live. Unfortunately London does not live up to their dreams and a vicious circle is created: without a job they have no money to rent a place to live and without a place to live they cannot get any government social benefits or a job.
My solution to this problem may be short term but at least it would be a start for many of these young people. Squatting2 should become legal again, as it once was in Britain. It is only recently that the law has been changed to make squatting illegal.
Surely it would be more profitable for the local council to let people squat in these houses if they are going to be empty for more than six months. These young people would then have an address and if over 18 years old, could get some benefits. They could then buy some decent clothes, tidy themselves up and have a greater chance of getting a job and a proper place to live. The houses may be in a bad condition but for homeless people this must surely be better than sleeping in the streets in the rain and cold. Somehow the vicious circle has to be broken.
1 recession — worsening of economic activity
2 squatting — occupying a house or a flat without permission
Test № 5
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Homeless people do not receive any social benefits from the government.
2. People under 18 years old are not allowed to work in Britain.
3. Squatting used to be allowed in Britain.
4. The author suggests that the local councils should let homeless young people live in the houses that have been empty for more than 6 months already.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. Where did the author live when he came to London last year?
2. Why are the numbers of homeless people growing?
3. Why is the situation with homeless people like a vicious circle?
4. Why are there many empty houses in London?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. Anyone who has ever visited the suburbs of London cannot help noticing the number of people living and sleeping in the streets.
2. The author came to London to study the problem of squatting.
№6
Annie Stewart has been a keeper at Woburn Animal Kingdom for the past twelve years, and for eight years before that she worked at another safari park. It's hard physical work, out in all weathers — animals have to be fed and looked after every day of the year.
«My working day normally begins at 8 a.m., but if an animal is sick I may have to be up all night with it. Week-ends and bank holidays are our busiest times while we're open to visitors between March and October. I begin by loading feeds onto my car, then I drive to the eland (a type of larger antelope). I feed and check them. Then I go through a similar process with the giraffe and the hippo.
We always have to take special care in our dealings with the rhino — remember that they are dangerous wild animals. They have to be watched all the time in case something upsets them. And the eland can be especially unpredictable1 when the strangers are around. They only trust two of us to go near them, so if there are any problems with them on my day off I might easily be called in.
During the season when we're open to the public, it's part of the keepers'
job to patrol the park watching the public as much as the animals. People
can be amazingly silly, ignoring signs and warnings. They seem to have no
idea of the possible danger. Some get out of their cars to take photographs
when they are frighteningly close to an animal that could kill them in an
instant. We have to try and be diplomatic and maintain a sense of humour.
I get to know all the animals in my care individually. I fill in a daily
diary and a weekly report, making a note of any changes of behaviour.
This is a job that requires dedication and hard work. I was first attracted
to it when I saw a documentary about this place 20 years ago. I had
experience of looking after dogs in boarding kennels2, and I was fascinated
by the safari park concept. So I wrote to them and was lucky enough to
get a job, learning as I went along. It's like a wild animal farm here —
the animals have plenty of freedom and I enjoy the independence and
responsibility which are central to my job».
1 unpredictable — непредсказуемый
2 kennels — псарня
Test № 6
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Annie Stewart has been a safari park keeper for 20 years.
2. When there are queues of traffic Annie can be called in even on her days off.
3. Annie's first job in Animal Kingdom was looking after dogs in boarding kennels.
4. Annie had to do some learning before she was accepted to the Animal Kingdom.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What are the busiest times for Woburn Animal Kingdom?
2. Why do the rhino have to be watched all the time?
3. Why do people need watching as much as the animals?
4. What things about Annie's job are the most important for her?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. Ann was attracted to Animal Kingdom when she came across a newspaper article about it.
2. One of Annie's responsibilities is filling in monthly reports.
№7
From inside the zoo director's office, the tiger is living very comfortably. Saved from having to earn its own living in the tough outside world, it has all its meals provided and doesn't even have to walk anywhere. I have heard one zoo director describe the zoo as a «welfare state» for animals. But the zoo director also tells us that the tiger is earning its keep by educating the public. When their existence is put into question zoos always answer by saying that they educate people. The argument goes like this: all the nature and wildlife documentary films in the world can't replace flesh and blood. There's just nothing like the experience of coming face to face with real, live, wild animals. Having seen wild animals close up, zoo visitors will be so enthusiastic about the wonders of the natural world that they will start to care deeply about what is happening to wild animals, go off and do something about it. Along with all the other caged animals, the tiger — to use a favourite zoo phrase — is an «ambassador for the wild».
As someone who studies human behaviour, I'm interested in why people go to zoos, what they get from looking at animals in cages and what zoos say they get. Having spent hours watching people watching animals, my feeling is that no zoo can fulfil the educational aim it says it has. No zoo can bring about a meaningful meeting between people and animals because by its very nature, the zoo — good, bad, best in the world — presents a false picture of wild animals and our relationship with them.
The time I have spent outside the cages has shown me how the zoo hinders1 any true understanding of animals.
The only way we can bring about any healthy and relaxed meeting between people and imprisoned animals is to do away with2 the idea of zoos and to start again. Start with the animals, not the people. Start by asking what reasons there could be for keeping animals in cages. Start by finding ways of offering them somewhere which can realistically replace the wild, an imaginative space of the right size, a chance to relate to other animals as they would in the wild, a chance to get away from the public stares — a chance, basically, to live their own lives.
1 hinder —мешать 2 to do away with —покончить с чем-то
Test № 7
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. According to the director of the zoo, animals have a safer life at zoos than in the outside world.
2. The author believes that documentary films can't replace seeing wild animals face to face.
3. People who visit zoos are enthusiastic about the wonders of wild life.
4. The author suggests that it's impossible to create any place where animals can live their own life.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. How, according to the zoo director, does the tiger earn its keep?
2. What experience helped the author to get a good idea of zoos?
3. Why, according to the author, can't zoo bring a meaningful meeting between people and animals?
4. What, in the author's opinion, should people do about zoos?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. From the point of view of the zoo visitors the tiger is living very comfortably.
2. As someone who studies the behaviour of animals the author is interested in why people go to zoos.
№8
If you are thinking of buying a dog you must also be ready to devote a good deal of time to training the dog when it is young and giving it the exercise it needs throughout its life, unless you live in the country and can let it run freely. Dogs are demanding pets. Whereas cats identify with a house and are content if their place there is secure, a dog identifies with its master and consequently wants him to show proof of his affection.
The best time to buy a puppy is when it is between six and eight weeks old so that it can transfer its affection for its mother to its master. If puppies have not established a relationship with a human being until they are over three months old, their strongest relationship will always be with dogs; if they are kept in kennels' for this length of time, they are likely to be too shy when they are brought out into the world to become good pets.
Different breeds2 require different training methods. German shepherd dogs, for example, respond favourably to mild punishment but terriers usually resent it and become more aggressive. The best way to tram a dog is by reward, not punishment, but the reward must be immediate so that the dog connects it with what it has done. In general it is better to teach a dog by preventing it from doing things than by punishing it afterwards.
Pet food is a profitable business and there are firms concerned to make you believe that your dog will suffer if you do not buy it some special biscuit. In fact, dogs require a well-balanced diet, like human beings, except that they do not need fruit and vegetables because their bodies produce their own vitamin C.
In the same way beauty parlours3 for dogs would like you to think that it will be unhappy if it does not have its nails cut or its hair combed. Some dogs may benefit, but the essential point to remember is that you should take it regularly to a vet to ensure that it is healthy. In that case you should have a faithful companion for ten years or more.
1 kennels — псарня
2 breed —порода
3 beauty parlour —косметический салон
Test № 8
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Dogs want more attention than cats.
2. If you live in the country your dog needs more exercise.
3. Pet food produced by pet food firms is the most well-balanced diet for dogs.
4. According to the author, dogs will be happier if they have their nails cut and their hair combed.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. Why do they recommend to buy puppies when they are 6 or 8 weeks old?
2. What happens if puppies don't establish a relationship with a human being till they are three months old?
3. Why don't dogs need fruit or vegetables?
4. What is the most essential rule that you have to observe if you want to have a happy and healthy dog?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. If puppies are kept in kennels until they are 3 months old they may be too aggressive to become good pets.
2. Dogs require a well-balanced diet like cats.
№9
What is a hero? This not an easy question to answer. When we look closely at the life stories of many popular heroes, we find that they are not always very good or very likeable people. They have become heroes because of their actions, not because of their characters. People may be famous while they are alive, but after they are dead, stories are told and songs are written which make them into heroes.
The British hero who still remains larger than life is, of course, Robin Hood. Historians tell us that little — if any — of his story is true, but people love the idea of an outlaw1 who stole from the rich to give to the poor and they continue to believe it. In 1991, the Robin Hood Festival attracted 100,000 tourists to Sherwood Forest. They wanted to see Robin's favourite hiding-place, the «Major Oak» — a tree which was planted a couple of hundred years after the hero's death. They crowded into St. Mary's Church, where Robin married Maid Marian — a marriage between a fourteenth-century hero and a woman who was added to the story two hundred years later (in a church which was completely rebuilt four hundred years later). They queued to get into The Tales of Robin Hood, an exhibition about the life of the outlaw who, according to the Dictionary of National Biography, never existed.
Villains2, like heroes, are the subjects of stories and songs which often have little to do with historical facts. Just as heroes are always stronger, braver and more heroic than they are in real life, villains are always more wicked, more cruel and more villainous. For example, there are stories about Blackbeard the Pirate which tell us that he acted with great cruelty to his own men when he was drunk and could cut a man in two with one blow of his sword. In fact, Blackbeard probably encouraged these stories to make himself more frightening to the captains and crews of the ships he attacked. There are just as many stories which say that he avoided battles and showed some kindness to his enemies, but we like our villains to be black-hearted and that is the way we remember him.
Test № 9
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Historians often make into heroes people who were famous while they were alive.
2. According to historians, Robin Hood married Maid Marian in St. Mary's Church.
3. Blackbeard was much more cruel in reality than in the stories about him
4. People like villains and heroes to be black and white.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What do we find out when we look closely at the life stories of man> popular heroes?
2. Why is Robin Hood people's favourite hero?
3. When was «Major Oak», Robin's favourite hiding place, planted?
4. Why did Blackbeard encourage stones about his cruelty and wickedness?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. According to the Dictionary of National Biography Robin Hood lived in the 14th century.
2. There are few stories which say that Blackbeard showed some kindness to his enemies.
№10
The problem with American parks system is that the parks are being, in the popular phrase, «loved to death». Too many people are visiting the system. It's said they are raining the plants with the pollution fromthedr cars, scaring the animals, destroying by their numbers the experience of being in a wild place the parks are supposed to offer.
It's hard for a visitor from Europe to feel that way. Three years ago we went to the Grand Tetons in Wyoming which is my favourite park of all. Yes, you could find yourself waiting behind a line of cars as someone tried to photograph a herd of animals with a pocket camera.
But then we drove a little way north, turned off the main road and found a small lake surrounded by fields of flowers, with the beautiful snow-capped range of the Tetons in the background. We saw a total of two other people during the whole long, sunny, perfect afternoon.
The busiest park in the system, the Great Smoky Mountains between Tennessee and North Carolina, can get 60,000 visitors on a single summer's day. That sounds plenty and it is. But all of these people are sharing an area only slightly smaller than the whole of Luxemburg, which has a permanent population seven times as great.
The basic argument is over how much should be done in the parks to satisfy human visitors. Should the accommodation be so basic that only true lovers of nature will be tempted to come? Or should they contain — as they increasingly do — comfortable bathrooms and colour TVs? Choose the former and you are necessarily excluding America's growing population of old people.
And exactly what should be preserved? Twenty years ago Yellow Stone, perhaps the most famous park of all, decided to change to a «hands-off» policy. Animals in danger of starving in the winter would be left to starve, just as nature intended. My advice is to stop trying too hard. Provide plenty of car parks and lodgings for visitors of all kinds. Ban radios and snowmobiles. But realize that for every thousand acres which are spoiled, there are a million which remain as beautiful as they were in George Washington's day.
Test № 10
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Visitors from Europe notice that American parks are being destroyed.
2. In the Grand Tetons in Wyoming visitors.are not allowed to turn off the main road.
3. The Great Smoky Mountains can get seven times more people on a single summer day than the permanent population of Luxemburg.
4. The basic argument over national parks is about the accomodation that would satisfy human visitors.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What, according to the author, are the parks supposed to offer?
2. Why did the author have to wait a few times behind a line of cars during his visit to the Grand Tetons' Park?
3. What accomodation should hotels have to welcome old age people'
4. What does the «hands off» policy which was introduced in the Yellow,
Stone park mean?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержани ем текста.
1. The Great Smoky Mountains park is the largest in the American park system.
2. The author's advice is to provide lodgings for true lovers of nature only
№11
Toys have formed part of human culture since the earliest times. Every society has provided its children with imitation of human beings or animals, and dolls are probably the oldest form of toy. No dolls have been found in prehistoric graves1, but this may be because they were made of materials like wood or cloth that have perished. Nevertheless, a doll with movable arms has been found in a Babylonian grave, and there were certainly dolls in Egypt over six thousand years ago.
Other ancient toys include balls and sticks, and it is clear that most games requiring physical action were originally introduced to train boys in the art of warfare2. Sometimes the result went beyond the inventors' intention. Football was banned3 in England in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I because it became too violent. But boys continued to play with toy soldiers and weapons. We have examples dating from the Middle Ages. Moving toys also have a long history. The Chinese developed explosive toy weapons from the use of fireworks, and many early toys employ wheels. Modern technology has made possible the production of sophisticated moving toys like model railways, aircraft controlled by radio, and dolls that can walk.
Children need toys because many adult skills are developed from playing with them. Children who learn to construct model aircraft are using their hands to a purpose; children who solve jigsaw puzzles are using their minds. Above all, children's imagination is stimulated by playing with objects.
But it is not clear that giving children particular toys changes the nature of their games, or that the most elaborate toys will be the ones they like most. Many parents are upset to find that two or three days after Christmas or a child's birthday, the expensive presents they bought have been broken or are lying in a corner of the room, and the child is once again happily building an imaginary castle with a few pieces of wood or playing with an old teddy bear the parents think is ugly and should be thrown away.
1 grave —могила
2 warfare — война, боевые действия
3 to ban—запрещать
Test № 11
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. The oldest form of toy is an imitation of human beings.
2. People have found toy soldiers dating from Middle Ages.
3. At one time playing football was not allowed in most of the European countries.
4. According to the author, giving children particular toys changes the nature of their games.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. Why, according to the text, have no dolls been found in prehistoric graves?
2. What fact proves that in ancient times they sometimes buried children's toys with children when they died?
3. What was the purpose of ancient toys like balls or sticks?
4. Why are many parents upset after Christmas or a child's birthday?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. It is known that there were dolls in Egypt over six hundred years ago.
2. Children's independence is stimulated by playing with objects.
№12
The World Health Organization reports that 3.5 million people die every year from tobacco related diseases. Half of these deaths occur in industrial countries. Anti-smoking campaigns have been started in most developed countries — banning1 tobacco advertising in the mass media, increasing cigarette taxes and requiring health warnings on cigarette packages.
For the first time in a quarter of a century the number of women smoking is on an increase. Statistics show that it's the youngest women who are increasingly taking up the habit.
The habit is on an increase among teenage girls while it is falling in all other groups of the population. Now almost one in three girls of school-leaving age are smokers. Teenage girls who smoke believe cigarettes help keep them slim, make them look grown-up and control stress, health experts say. And while they know the risks to their future health, they would still rather smoke.
Health experts are puzzled as to why the anti-tobacco message is not reaching them. Dr. Anne Charlton said «We do not really know why they keep taking up smoking when everyone is giving up.» Teenage girls are twice as likely to start smoking if one of their parents is a smoker. They probably have a best friend who smokes and parents who do not disapprove of their taking up the habit. They are more likely to leave school at 16.
Fifty per cent of girls who leave school to start a career in hairdressing are smokers. In nursing the figure is 44 per cent and around 34 per cent in secretarial work. Dr. Charlton said: «The rates are less among those who go to university. The smokers are usually the ones who do not do well at school and show few signs of wanting to. They mistakenly believe it helps to keep their weight down, although they have no weight problem in the first place».
One of the most effective methods of getting girls to stop smoking is to point out how much they smell, says Dr. Charlon. Others stop when a boyfriend insists he does not like it.
1 to ban—запрещать
Test № 12
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Teenage girls smoke because, according to scientists, smoking helps to keep down weight.
2. Teenage girls are more likely to take up smoking when they start a career in hairdressing.
3. Most of the girls who smoke are not interested in their progress at school.
4. A lot of girls give up smoking after they are told that they smell.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What are the World Health Organisation's statistics on smoking related diseases?
2. What measures do anti-smoking campaigns include?
3. What puzzles health experts about teenage smoking?
4. What category of girls smoke less?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. The habit of smoking is on an increase among teenage girls while it is falling among adult women.
2. Teenage girls are likely to start smoking if their best friends do not disapprove of their taking up the habit.
№13
If there is no difference in general intelligence between boys and girls, what can explain girls' lack of success in science and mathematics?
It seems to be that their treatment at school is a direct cause. Mathematics and science are seen as mainly masculine subjects, and therefore, as girls become teenagers, they are less likely to take them up. Interestingly, both boys and girls tend to regard the «masculine» subjects as more difficult. Yet it has been suggested that girls avoid mathematics courses, not because they are difficult, but for social reasons. Girls do not want to be in open competition with boys, nor do they want to do better than boys because they are afraid to appear less feminine and attractive.
However, if we examine the performance of boys and girls who have undertaken mathematics courses, there are still more high-achieving boys than there are girls. This difference appears to be world-wide. Biological explanations have been offered for this, but there are other explanations too.
Perhaps the difference which comes out during the teenage years has its roots in much earlier experiences. From their first days in nursery school, males are encouraged to work on their own and to complete tasks: this is essential behaviour for learning how to solve problems later on.
Apart from that, there can be little doubt that teachers of mathematics and science expect their male students to do better at these subjects than their female students. They even appear to encourage the difference between the sexes, not consciously1, but they still do it. They spend more time with the male students. They are more likely to call on boys for answers and to allow them to take the lead in classroom discussion. They also praise boys more frequently. All of this tends to encourage boys to work harder in science and mathematics and to give them confidence, to convince them that they are able to succeed.
Such male-oriented teaching is not likely to encourage girls to take many mathematics and science courses. It seems certain, then, that where these subjects are concerned, school widens the difference between boys and girls.
1 consciously —сознательный
Test № 13
I. Определите, верны (True) или неверны (False) следующие утверждения.
1. Some scientists explain girls' lack of success in science and mathematics by their biological characteristics.
2. The author believes that mathematics and science are treated as masculine subjects because they are more difficult than other subjects.
3. Teachers of mathematics and science tend to encourage the difference between sexes.
4. Male students don't usually allow female students to take the lead in classroom discussions.
II. Ответьте на следующие вопросы.
1. What are social reasons for which girls avoid mathematics courses?
2. What do the worldwide statistics on science achievement show?
3. When, according to the author, does the difference in the approach to girls and boys come out?
4. What, according to the author, is the essential behaviour for learning how to- solve problems?
III. Исправьте предложения в соответствии с содержанием текста.
1. Girls are more likely to take up mathematics and science as they become teenagers.
2. It seems certain that where mathematics and science are concerned school encourages competition between boys and girls.
№14