Nowadays television is one of the most common ways of entertainment – cheap, convenient and easy to get. The variety of 1. _____and programmes is almost unlimited: it seems that everybody can find something to enjoy. But since its discovery back in the 1920s, television has always been one of the most arguable things. Is TV a friend or a foe for us?
Watching TV is one of the most popular pastimes for a modern teenager. Everything you need to do is just set yourself comfortably in a coach and turn on your telly. Millions of families spend their evenings in front of the blue screen. People watch TV shows or films, discuss the latest news and enjoy the time spent together with their 2. _____. The importance of a close-knit family for a teenager cannot be overemphasized and TV is one of the ways to bring a family together.
It should be mentioned that not all people have the same interests. Somebody likes watching football but the others prefer 3._____ or comedies. It is quite common nowadays to have several TV-sets at home and each member of the family can enjoy his favorite show and spend some time just with himself.
The list of shows available on TV these days is almost endless. Some of them are really useful for a teenager. There are several TV channels that show 4. _____ and documentaries. Sports programmes, music programmes and the news help us to keep abreast.
Despite having some advantages, television brings lots of threads into the life of the modern teenager. And one of 5. _____ is the fact that TV life becomes a kind of a substitute for the real life. Watching a football match on TV is quite interesting but much more useful is playing a game with your friends. The life, which is shown on TV, is full of violence and evils. Except for some really good programmes there are a lot of cruel and even vulgar scenes, useless serials and endless talk shows on the screen. Quite often TV steals a great number of time that should better be spent for socializing or having the necessary rest.
Well, is TV a friend or a foe 6. _____? In my opinion, TV opens a door to the whole world in your own sitting-room and it is up to you to decide what you want to let in into your life.
A - soap operas
B - in your armchair
C - TV channels
D - the most dangerous
E - educational programmes
F - nearest and dearest
G - for a teenager
Задание III. В соответствии с содержанием текста продолжите предложение, выбрав цифру 1, 2 или 3.
А. The variety of TV channels and programmes is …
1)limited. 2)almost unlimited. 3) not very large.
В. People watch …
1)TV shows or films. 2) DVD films. 3) nothing.
С. A lot of people have …
1) a pet. 2) several TV-sets at home. 3) several computers.
D. The list of shows on TV is …
1) short. 2) almost endless. 3) not very large.
E. TV life becomes …
1) a kind of a substitute for the real life. 2) a kind of work. 3) interesting.
|
|
F. TV opens …
1) a window to Europe. 2) a wardrobe in your sitting room. 3) a door to the whole world in your own sitting-room.
CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
A. As we know, misunderstandings are especially likely to occur when the people who are communicating have different backgrounds. For example, take the case of the computer sales representative who was calling on a client in China. Hoping to make a good impression, the salesperson brought along a gift to break the ice, an expensive grandfather clock. Unfortunately, the Chinese client was deeply offended because, in China, giving clocks as gift is considered to be bad luck for the recipient.
B. Such problems arise because of our unconscious assumptions and non-verbal communication patterns. We ignore the fact that people from other cultures differ from us in many ways: in their religion and values, their ideas of status, their decision-making habits, their attitude toward time, their use of space, their body language, and their manners. We assume, wrongly, that other people are like us.
C. Although North America is a melting pot of people with different religions and values, the predominant influence in this culture is the Puritan ethic: If you work hard and achieve success, you will find favour in the eyes of God. They tend to assume that material comfort is a sign of superiority, that the rich are a little bit better than the poor, that people who work hard are better than those who don’t. They believe money to solve many problems. They assume people from other cultures to share their view, to dislike poverty and value hard work. In fact, many societies condemn materialism and prize a carefree life-style.
D. As a culture, they are goal-oriented. They want the work to be done in the most efficient manner, and they assume everyone else to do too. They think they are improving things if they can figure out a way for two people using modern methods to do the same work as four people using the “old way”. But in countries like India and Pakistan, where unemployment is extremely high, creating jobs is more important than getting the work done efficiently. Executives in these countries would rather prefer the method of employing four workers than two.
E. In North America, they try to reach decisions as quickly and efficiently as possible. The top people focus on reaching agreement on the main points and leave the details to be worked out later by others. In Greece, this approach would backfire. A Greek executive assumes that anyone who ignores the details is being evasive and untrustworthy. Spending time on every little point is considered to be a mark of good faith. Similarly, Latin Americans prefer making their deals slowly, after a lengthy period of discussion. They resist an authoritarian “Here’s the deal, take it or leave it” approach, preferring the more sociable method of an extended discussion.
|
|
F. Cultures also differ in terms of who makes the decisions. In American culture, many organizations are dominated by a single figure who says yes or no to every deal. It is the same in Pakistan, where you can get a decision quickly if you reach the highest-ranking executive. In other cultures, Notably China and Japan, decision making is a shared responsibility. No individual has the authority for committing a deal without first consulting others. In Japan, for example, the negotiating team arrives at a consensus through an elaborate, time-consuming process (agreement must be complete – there is no majority rule). If the process is not laborious enough, the Japanese feel uncomfortable. Formal rules are specifically taught “rights” and “wrongs” of how to behave in common situations, such as table manners at meals. Informal social rules are much more difficult to identify and are usually learned by watching how people behave and then imitating that behavior. Informal rules govern how men and women are supposed to behave. Violations of these rules cause a great deal of discomfort to the members of the culture.
Задание I. Установите соответствие заглавий 1 - 7 абзацам текста A - F. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании один заголовок – лишний.
1. Decision-making habits
2. Arising of differences in culturеs
3. Use of space
4. Religion and values
5. Goal-oriented culture
6. Ways of misunderstandings
7. Reaching agreement
Задание II. Заполните пропуски 1-6 частями предложений, обозначенными буквами A-G. Одна из фраз в списке A-G лишняя.
CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
As we know, misunderstandings are especially likely to occur when the people who are communicating have different backgrounds. For example, take the case of the computer sales representative who was calling on a client in China. Hoping to make a good impression, the salesperson brought along a gift 1. _____, an expensive grandfather clock. Unfortunately, the Chinese client was deeply offended because, in China, giving clocks as gift is considered to be bad luck for the recipient.
Such problems arise because of our unconscious assumptions and non-verbal communication patterns. We ignore the fact that people from other cultures differ from us in many ways: in their religion and values, their ideas of status, their decision-making habits, their attitude toward time, their use of space, their body language, and their manners. We assume, wrongly, that other people are like us.
|
|
Although North America is 2. ______, the predominant influence in this culture is the Puritan ethic: If you work hard and achieve success, you will find favour in the eyes of God. They tend to assume that material comfort is a sign of superiority, that the rich are a little bit better than the poor, that people who work hard are better than those who don’t. They believe money 3. _____. They assume people from other cultures to share their view, to dislike poverty and value hard work. In fact, many societies condemn materialism and prize a carefree life-style.
As a culture, they are goal-oriented. They want the work to be done in the most efficient manner, and they assume everyone else to do too. They think they are improving things if they can figure out a way for two people using modern methods to do the same work as four people using the “old way”. But in countries like India and Pakistan, where unemployment is extremely high, 4. _____than getting the work done efficiently. Executives in these countries would rather prefer the method of employing four workers than two.
In North America, they try to reach decisions as quickly and efficiently as possible. The top people focus on reaching agreement on the main points and leave the details to be worked out later by others. In Greece, this approach would backfire. A Greek executive assumes that anyone who ignores the details is being evasive and untrustworthy. Spending time on every little point is considered to be a mark of good faith. Similarly, Latin Americans prefer 5. _____, after a lengthy period of discussion. They resist an authoritarian “Here’s the deal, take it or leave it” approach, preferring the more sociable method of an extended discussion.
Cultures also differ in terms of who makes the decisions. In American culture, many organizations are dominated by a single figure who says yes or no to every deal. It is the same in Pakistan, where you can get a decision quickly if you reach the highest-ranking executive. In other cultures, Notably China and Japan, decision making is a shared responsibility. No individual has the authority for committing a deal without first consulting others. In Japan, for example, the negotiating team arrives at a consensus through an elaborate, time-consuming process (agreement must be complete – there is no majority rule). If the process is not laborious enough, the Japanese feel uncomfortable.
Formal rules are specifically taught “rights” and “wrongs” of how to behave in common situations, such as table manners at meals. Informal social rules are much more difficult to identify and are usually learned 6. _____and then imitating that behavior. Informal rules govern how men and women are supposed to behave. Violations of these rules cause a great deal of discomfort to the members of the culture.
A - creating jobs is more important
B - by watching how people behave
C - to solve many problems
D - to break the ice
E - making their deals slowly
F - by a chip the size of a pin head
G – a melting pot of people with different religions and values
Задание III. В соответствии с содержанием текста продолжите предложение, выбрав цифру 1, 2 или 3.
A. Misunderstandings occur when …
1) the people have different values.
2) the people have different languages.
3) the people have different origin.
B. North America is a melting pot of …
1) different material comforts.
2) different cultures.
3) people with different values.
C. The Puritan ethic is…
1) if you work hard, you will be blessed by God.
2) material comfort is evil.
3) the rich are worse than the poor.
D. In Greece people focus on reaching agreement, this approach would have...
1) pleasant consequences.
2) unpleasant consequences.
3) evasive consequences.
E. In American culture, many organizations are …
1) less than a single figure.
2) prevailed by a single figure.
3) equal a single figure.
F. Informal rules …
1) determine how people should behave.
2) tell us how to behave in common situations.
3) are easy to identify.
NEWSPAPERS
A. When it comes to American newspapers, a lot of people outside the United States think of that slender, serious paper, the International Herald Tribune, said to be on the daily reading list of many world leaders. The Herald Tribune, however, is not really an American paper. It is published in Paris (and printed simultaneously in Paris, London, Zurich, Hongkong, Singapore, The Hague, Marseille, and Miami) as an international digest of news, most of it taken from its much-larger parents The New York Times and The Washington Post. Many people in America have never heard of it. And few Americans would read it when they can get the real thing, that is, the full-sized daily newspapers.
B. In 1986, a total of 9,144 newspapers (daily, Sunday, weekly, etc.) appeared in 6,516 towns in the United States. Most of the daily newspapers are published rain or shine, on Christmas, Thanksgiving, or the Fourth of July (Independence Day). Including the 85 foreign-language newspapers published in 34 different languages, the daily newspapers in the United States sell over 63 million copies a day. The 762 Sunday papers are usually much larger than the regular editions. The record for a Sunday paper is held by The New York Times. One issue on a Sunday in 1965 contained 946 pages, weighed 36 pounds, and cost 50 cents. Reading the Sunday paper is an American tradition, for some people an alternative to going to church. Getting through all of the sections can take most of the day, leaving just enough time for the leisurely Sunday dinner. The Sunday newspapers have an average circulation of 57 million copies. There are also more than 7,000 newspapers which are published weekly, semi-weekly or monthly. Most daily newspapers are of the "quality" rather than the "popular" (that is, non-quality) variety. Among the twenty newspapers with the largest circulation only two or three regularly feature crime, sex, and scandal. The paper with the largest circulation, The Wall Street Journal, is a very serious newspaper indeed.
C. It is often said that there is no "national press" in the United States as there is in Great Britain, for instance, where five popular followed by three quality newspapers dominate the circulation figures and are read nationwide. In one sense this is true. Most daily newspapers are distributed locally, or regionally, people buying one of the big city newspapers in addition to the smaller local ones. A few of the best-known newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal can be found throughout the country. Yet, one wouldn't expect The Milwaukee Journal to be read: in Boston, or The Boston Globe in Houston. There has been one attempt to publish a truly national newspaper, USA: Today. But it still has only a circulation of 1.2 million and, in its popular form, can only offer news of general interest. This is not enough in a country where state, city, and local news and political developments most deeply affect readers and are therefore especially interesting to them.
D. In another sense, however, there is a national press, one that comes from influence and the sharing of news. Some of the largest newspapers are at the same time news-gathering businesses. They not only print newspapers, they also collect and sell news, news features, and photographs to hundreds of other papers in the U.S. and abroad. Three of the better-known of these are The New York Times', The Washington Post's, and the Los Angeles Times' news services. In one famous example, an expose of the CIA published in The New York Times also appeared in 400 other American papers and was picked up or used in some way by hundreds more overseas. "Picked up" is not quite right. Such stories are copyrighted and other newspapers must pay for their use. Often newspapers try to avoid paying for this news by using the original newspaper's story and quoting the story indirectly ("The Washington Post reported today that..."). Because so many other newspapers print (or "borrow") news stories from the major American newspapers and magazines, they have great national and international influence. This influence spreads far beyond their own readers.
E. In addition, these newspapers and others such as The Christian Science Monitor, The (Baltimore) Sun, the St. Louis Dispatch or The Milwaukee Journal are frequently mentioned among papers of international excellence. In a large international survey of newspaper editors, The New York Times was ranked by most as "the world's top daily."
F. Syndicated columnists, journalists whose articles are sold by an agency for simultaneous publication in a number of newspapers, have much the same effect. Serious editorial columnists and news commentators from the major newspapers appear daily in hundreds of smaller papers throughout the nation. This allows the readers of a small town daily to hear the opinions of some of the best national and international news analysts. Many newspapers also use syndicated columnists as papers of international excellence. On the so called op-ed pages (opposite the editorial page) оf newspapers, columns from leading liberal and conservative commentators are of ten printed side by side. Political and editorial cartoons are also widely syndicated. Well-known political cartoonists such as Oliphant or MacNelly are known to most American and many foreign newspaper readers. Comic strips from Jules Feiffer, Garry Trudeau, or the creator of "Garfield" are similarly distributed. Satire and humor columns often have international reputations as well. The humor of Art Buchwald or Erma Bombeck is enjoyed from New Mexico to New Delhi, although the first writer is at home in Washington, D.C., the latter in Arizona.
Задание I. Установите соответствие заглавий 1 - 7 абзацам текста A - F. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании один заголовок – лишний.
1. types of papers
2. the view of the foreigners
3. news-gathering businesses
4. a truly national newspaper
5. Political cartoons
6. papers of international excellence
7. glamorous newspaper
Задание II. Заполните пропуски 1-6 частями предложений, обозначенными буквами A-G. Одна из фраз в списке A-G лишняя.
NEWSPAPERS
When it comes to American newspapers, a lot of people outside the United States think of that slender, serious paper, the International Herald Tribune, said to be on the daily reading list of many world leaders. The Herald Tribune, however,is not really an American paper. It is published in Paris (and printed simultaneously in Paris, London, Zurich, Hongkong, Singapore, The Hague, Marseille, and Miami) as an international digest of news, most of it taken from its much-larger parents. The New York Times and The Washington Post. Many people in America have never heard of it. And few Americans would read it when they can get the real thing, that is, the full-sized daily newspapers.
In 1986, a total of 9,144 newspapers (daily, Sunday, weekly, etc.) appeared in 6,516 towns in the United States. Most of the daily newspapers are published rain or shine, on Christmas, Thanksgiving, or the Fourth of July (Independence Day). Including the 85 foreign-language newspapers published in 34 different languages, the daily newspapers in the United States sell over 63 million copies a day. The 762 Sunday papers are usually much larger than the regular editions. The record for a Sunday paper is held by The New York Times. One issue on a Sunday in 1965 contained 946 pages, weighed 36 pounds, and cost 50 cents. Reading the Sunday paper is an American tradition, for some people an alternative 1. _____. Getting through all of the sections can take most of the day, leaving just enough time for the leisurely Sunday dinner. The Sunday newspapers have an average circulation of 57 million copies. There are also more than 7,000 newspapers which are published weekly, semi-weekly or monthly. Most daily newspapers are of the "quality" rather than the "popular" (that is, non-quality) variety. Among the twenty newspapers with the largest circulation only two or three regularly feature crime, sex, and scandal. The paper with the largest circulation, The Wall Street Journal, is a very serious newspaper indeed.
It is often said that there is no "national press" in the United States as there is in Great Britain, for instance, where five popular followed by three quality newspapers dominate the circulation figures and are read nationwide. In one sense this is true. Most daily newspapers are distributed locally, or regionally, people buying 2. ______in addition to the smaller local ones. A few of the best-known newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal can be found throughout the country. Yet, one wouldn't expect The Milwaukee Journal to be read: in Boston, or The Boston Globe in Houston. There has been one attempt to publish a truly national newspaper, USA: Today. But it still has only a circulation of 1.2 million and, in its popular form, can only offer news of general interest. This is not enough in a country where state, city, and local news and political developments most deeply affect readers and are therefore especially interesting to them.
In another sense, however, there is a national press, one that comes from influence and the sharing of news. Some of the largest newspapers are at the same time news-gathering businesses. They not only print newspapers, they also 3. ______, news features, and photographs to hundreds of other papers in the U.S. and abroad. Three of the better-known of these are The New York Times', The Washington Post's, and the Los Angeles Times' news services. In one famous example, an expose of the CIA published in The New York Times also appeared in 400 other American papers and was picked up or used in some way by hundreds more overseas. "Picked up" is not quite right. Such stories are copyrighted and other newspapers must pay for their use. Often newspapers try to avoid paying for this news by using the original newspaper's story and quoting the story indirectly ("The Washington Post reported today that..."). Because so many other newspapers print (or "borrow") news stories from the major American newspapers and magazines, they have great national and international influence. This influence spreads far beyond their own readers.
In addition, these newspapers and others such as The Christian Science Monitor, The (Baltimore) Sun, the St. Louis Dispatch or The Milwaukee Journal are frequently mentioned among papers of international excellence. In a large
4. ______, The New York Times was ranked by most as "the world's top daily."
Syndicated columnists, journalists whose articles are sold by an agency for simultaneous publication in a number of newspapers, have much the same effect. Serious editorial columnists and news commentators from the major newspapers appear daily in hundreds of smaller papers throughout the nation. This allows the readers of a small town daily to hear the opinions of some of the best national and international news analysts. Many newspapers also use syndicated columnists as papers of international excellence. On the so called op-ed pages (opposite the editorial page) оf newspapers, columns 5. ____are of ten printed side by side.
Political and editorial cartoons are also widely syndicated. Well-known political cartoonists such as Oliphant or MacNelly are known to most American and many foreign newspaper readers. Comic strips from Jules Feiffer, Garry Trudeau, or the creator of "Garfield" are similarly distributed. Satire and 6. ____often have international reputations as well. The humor of Art Buchwald or Erma Bombeck is enjoyed from New Mexico to New Delhi, although the first writer is at home in Washington, D.C., the latter in Arizona.
A - collect and sell news
B - one of the big city newspapers
C- to going to church
D - humor columns
E - from leading liberal and conservative commentators
F - international survey of newspaper editors
G – 400 papers
Задание III. В соответствии с содержанием текста продолжите предложение, выбрав цифру 1, 2 или 3.
A. The Herald Tribune is…
1) extremely an American paper.
2) actually not an American paper.
3) Hongkong newspaper.
B. The Sunday newspapers have ….circulation of 57 million copies.
1) more
2) approximately
3) less
C. News-gathering businesses is …
1) collecting and selling coins.
2) collecting and selling badges.
3) collecting and selling news, news features, and photographs.
D. Reading the Sunday paper is…
1) the original newspaper's story.
2) the major American magazines.
3) an American tradition.
E. The paper with the largest circulation is…
1) The New York Times.
2) The Washington Post.
3) The Wall Street Journal.
F. Political and editorial cartoons are also widely …
1) united.
2) isolated.
3) insulated.
КЛЮЧИ
Максимум – 18 баллов
Оценка «5»: 17 – 18 баллов
Оценка «4»: 13 – 16 баллов
Оценка «3»: 8 – 12 баллов