книги / Basic course of english for students of technical universities

Part 4. Personal Correspondence

Exercise 1. You have received an email from your English friend Ben who writes:

From: [e-mail]

To: [e-mail] Subject: Spare Time

... In Great Britain most young people want to spend their spare time alone playing computer games or watching anime. Some young people prefer going on weekend picnics with their parents in case they get on well with them. Others go in for sports.

What do you enjoy? What are your most popular leisure activities? Do you like to spend your free time with the members of your family?...

Exercise 2. Write an email to Ben. In your letter answer his questions and ask your questions. Write 120–140 words.

Remember the rules of letter writing. Use the plan below.

1.Обращение (слева, на отдельной строке, выделяется запя-

той), например, Dear Jim/Alice, Hello/ Hi Jim/Alice;

2.В начале письма автор обычно благодарит адресата за полученное письмо и ссылка на предыдущие контакты, например, Thank you for your recent letter (e-mail, message). I was very glad to hear from you again, Thanks for writing to me. /I enjoy reading your letters and writing to you;

3.Ответы на три вопроса (основная часть письма): You asked me about … Well, I can say that … или As you are interested in … I’d like to tell you that …;

4.Упоминание о дальнейших контактах, например, Write back soon; Hope to hear from you soon; Please, write to me soon и т.д.;

5.Завершающая фраза, например, Best wishes; All the best; With love; Yours (на отдельной строке, выделяется запятой);

6.Подпись автора (только имя, на отдельной строке).

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Additional Tasks for Self-Control

Variant 1

Task: open the brackets and use the verb in a proper tense.

1)He (to graduate from) Moscow University this year.

2)She (not to see) us yesterday.

3)You (to finish) already your diploma work? No, I (to finish) it by the end of June.

4)He (to look) through a newspaper when the telephone rang.

5)My aunt (to watch) TV every day.

6)What you (to do) tonight at 10 o’clock?

7)It (to rain) now.

8)The sun (to shine) brightly soon.

9)When we came to the station, the train (to leave) already.

10)Last July they (to take) their exams for the whole month.

11)My brother (to enter) Moscow University (long ago, just, in 5 years, by the end of the month, when I came to Moscow, this year).

Variant 2

Task: open the brackets and use the verb in a proper tense.

1)He (to graduate from) Moscow University in 6 years.

2)She (not to see) us this morning.

3)What you (to do) a minute ago? I (to watch) TV.

4)The students (to have) an interesting discussion when the teacher came in.

5)We usually (not to translate) stories.

6)We (to read) a technical text now.

7)It (to snow) every day in winter.

8)Look! The wind (to blow) since morning.

9)By the beginning of the lecture the laboratory assistant (to bring) all the necessary diagrams.

10)In spring of 1945 World War 2 (to be over).

11)This student (to study) hard (at present, every day, last term, when the telephone rang, tomorrow at this time, next term).

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UNIT2.REGION SPACE

Part 1. Perm and Perm Krai: Industry, Culture,

Natural Resources

Exercise 1. Match the headings to paragraphs. There is one extra heading.

1.Perm’s industry

2.City’s cultural life

3.Natural resource as attraction

4.The greatest achievement

5.Traditionally liberal

6.Beneficial location

7.Where the name comes from

8.Too important to be left alone

A. The word “Perm” first appeared in the 12th century in the Primary Chronicle, the main source describing the early history of the Russian people. The Perm were listed among the people who paid tribute to the Rus. The origin of the word “Perm” remains unclear. Most likely, the word came from the Finno-Ugric languages and meant “far land” or “flat, forested place”. But some local residents say it may have come from Per, a hero and the main character of many local legends.

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B.Novgorodian traders were the first to show an interest in Perm. Starting from the 15th century, the Muscovite princes included the area in their plans to create a unified Russian state. During this time the first Russian villages appeared in the northern part of the region. The first industry to appear in the area was a salt factory, which developed on the Usolka river in the city of Solikamsk. Rich salt reserves generated great interest on the part of Russia’s wealthiest merchants, some of whom bought land there.

C.The history of the modern city of Perm starts with the development of the Ural region by Tsar Peter the Great. Perm became the capital of the region in 1781 when the territorial structure of the country was reformed. A special commission determined that the best place would be at the crossroads of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, which runs east-west and the Kazan line, which runs north-south. This choice resulted in Perm becoming a major trade and industrial centre. The city quickly grew to become one of the biggest in the region.

D.Perm is generally stable and peaceful, so the shocks of 1917 did not reach it right away. Neither did they have the same bloody results as in Petrograd. Perm tried to distance itself from the excesses and did not share the enthusiasm for change of its neighbours. Residents supported more moderate parties. They voted for the establishment of a west European style democracy in Russia. Unfortunately, the city could not stay completely unaffected, as both the White and the Red armies wanted its factories.

E.Perm’s desire for stability and self-control made the region seem like a “swamp” during the democratic reforms of the 1990s. Unlike other regions, there were no intense social conflicts or strikes. Nevertheless, Perm was always among the regions that supported the democratic movement. In the 1999 elections, the party that wanted to continue the reforms won a majority in the region. So the city got an unofficial status of “the capital of civil society” or even “the capital of Russian liberalism”.

F.During the Second World War many factories were moved to Perm Oblast and continued to work there after it ended. Chemicals, nonferrous metallurgy, and oil refining were the key industries after the war. Other factories produced aircraft engines, equipment for telephones, ships, bicycles, and cable. Perm press produces about 70 percent of Russia’s currency and stamped envelopes. Nowadays several major business compa-

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nies are located in Perm. The biggest players of Russian aircraft industry are among them.

G. Perm has at least a dozen theatres featuring productions that are attracting audiences from faraway cities, and even from abroad. The broad esplanade running from the city’s main square has become the site of almost continuous international art, theatre and music fairs during the summer. Even the former prison camp with grim walls outside town was converted into a theater last July for a production of “Fidelio”, Beethoven’s opera about political repression. The performance was well-reviewed.

Text	A	B	C	D	E	F	G
Heading

Exercise 2. Read the text about the history of Perm, try to translate it into Russian.

История Перми

Наш город был основан в 1723 году В.Н. Татищевым (горным инженером, историком и географом).

Будучи фаворитом Петра I, Татищев был послан на Урал от-

крыть медеплавильный завод (a copper-smelting factory).

В 1780 году благодаря Екатерине II город был назван «Пермь». Слово «Пермь» произошло от финно-угорского (Ugro-Finnic) слова «Парма», которое означает «далекая земля». Согласно другим легендам, «Парма» означает «тайга» или «холмистая местность (hilly place), покрытая лесами. А наш город действительно расположен на семи холмах и богат

лесами!

В истории Перми было много выдающихся людей: Строгановы, Демидовы, основатель государст-

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венного университета Н.В. Мешков, балетный импресарио С.П. Дягилев, изобретатель электрической сварки (welding) Н.Г. Славянов, первый губернатор (governor) Карл Модерах, изобретатель радио А.С. Попов. Мы гордимся нашими писателями: П.П. Бажовым, Д.Н. Маминым-Сибиряком, В.П. Астафьевым; художником П.П. Верещагиным, композитором Е.П. Крылатовым и др.

В прошлом наш город был местом политической ссылки (political exile). Сюда были сосланы А.И. Герцен, М.М. Сперанский, В.Г. Короленко, М.А. Романов. С 1940 по 1957 год наш город был переименован в Молотов.

Exercise 3. Do pre-text exercises. Match the English words (1–10) to their Russian equivalents (a–j).

1.	embankment	a.	древесина
2.	railway	b.	предприятие
3.	highway	c.	машиностроение
4.	timber	d.	авиадвигатель
5.	wood-workingindustry	e.	нефтеперерабатывающаяпромышленность
6.	machine-building	f.	удобрение
7.	oil-refining industry	g.	железная дорога
8.	enterprise	h.	набережная
9.	fertilizer	i.	деревообрабатывающая промышленность
10. aircraft engine		j. автомагистраль

Exercise 4. Read and translate the texts about Perm.

Geography and Industry of Perm

Perm is the largest city in the Prikamye area, the centre of Perm krai. Its area is 720 square km. The city is located in the Urals (on the border of Europe and Asia) on the Kama river, one of the biggest and beautiful rivers of Russia. The Kama is the fourth longest river in Europe. It is 1,805 km in length. Our city is an important river port. Sometimes Perm is called a port of 5 seas because thanks to the Kama river via a system of canals the city has an access to 5 seas: Azov, Black, Baltic, White

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and Caspian. The Kama river embankment is one of the most picturesque spots in the city. Perm stretches along the Kama for 65 km. Two main railways, Transsibirian being one of them, cross the territory of Perm krai and give it a way out to Central and Eastern Europe, Siberia and Far East. One more gate to the city is the international airport “Boljshoe Savino”. Modern Perm is famous for a network of highways connecting the towns and settlements of the krai.

The population of Perm is about one million people. The climate is continental. The Kama river makes it rather damp. The mean temperature in winter is about 15 degrees below zero and in summer – 18 degrees above zero.

The krai is rich in different minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium and others. At the end of the 18 century the most popular Perm product was salt which was extracted in Usolye and Solikamsk. It is said that at the Perm wharf dockers carried this “white gold” in enormous sacks on their backs, and their ears were often covered with salt. That is the explanation of the origin of the saying “Permyak-Salty Ears”. Perm has also large timber resources because the city is surrounded by a great number of pine forests. Powerful oil and gas pipe-lines cross the region in different directions. The city has some gigantic oil-refining complexes.

The city location has always been favourable for the development of tool-building, wood-working and paper industries, aviation, cable engineering, construction industry, etc. There are chemical, metallurgical and machine-building plants. The cable works “Kamkabel” and the printing factory “Goznak” are known not only in Russia but abroad. Perm enterprises export their goods to dozens of countries. Our visiting card is aircraft engines, fertilizers, paper and chemical products, sweets, etc. In fact, the industrial potential of the city is very big.

Exercise 5. Do pre-text exercises. Match the English words (1–10)

to their Russian equivalents (a–j).
1.	Puppet Theatre	a. аттракцион
2.	Young Spectator’s Theatre	b. цирк
3. wooden sculptures		c. шедевр
4. masterpiece		d. ВУЗ
5. exhibit		e. ТЮЗ

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6. stuffed animals	f. кукольный театр
7. side show	g. деревянные скульптуры
8. palace of sports	h. экспонат
9. higher educational institution	i. чучела животных
10. circus	j. дворец спорта

Exercise 6. Read and translate the texts about Perm as a Cultural Centre.

Perm as a Cultural Centre

Perm is one of the biggest cultural centres in Russia. Our theatres (the Opera House, the Drama Theatre, the Puppet Theatre, the Young Spectator’s Theatre) are known not only in Russia but abroad.

The P.I. Tchaikovsky Perm State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre founded in 1870 was the first musical theatre in the Urals. Now it is reputed to be one of the best theatres in this country. Its repertoire is very extensive. Tchaikovsky’s operas and ballets (including “the Queen of Spades” and “Swan Lake”), Rossini’s “the Barber of Ceville”, Prokofiev’s “War and Peace” and “Cinderella” and many other classical and modern operas and ballets have always been a great success. The Perm Theatre is called “the laboratory of the Russian opera”. The ballet troupe consists mainly of graduates of the Perm Ballet School (including a former dancer of the Theatre, the world-famous ballerina N. Pavlova). Our troupe has toured in many countries; thus the Theatre has won universal recognition.

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The tallest building with a spire, a former cathedral, situated on the bank of the Kama, houses the Perm State Art Gallery. This building is a unique monument of Russian classicism. The Gallery was opened in 1922 by Serebrennikov. Today our Gallery ranks with such treasuries as the Hermitage and the Tretyakov Art Gallery. It is remarkable for its collection of wooden sculptures. Many masterpieces of Russian and foreign painters are exhibited here. The Gallery also displays works by Ye. Shirokov, A. Tumbasov, A. Zyryanov and other Perm artists.

In the Perm Museum of Local Lore, located in the former house of the steam-owner and public figure N.V. Meshkov, there are over 360,000 exhibits. The exposition gives an interesting insight into the history of Perm. Place of pride in the exhibition is taken by the collection of manuscripts of the XVI–XVII centuries. The collection of metal sculpture of the ancient Prikamye area is unique. The Nature Department features the natural conditions of our region. There are also collections of Urals ornamental stones and stuffed animals in the Museum.

One more delightful open-air Museum is situated on the picturesque bank of the Kama river at Khokhlovka. This treasure trove of architecture and etnography houses a collection of wooden peasant buildings of the XVII–XX centuries.

And in winter, there is the Kungursky ice cave. Here you can admire the beautiful underground grottoes. The cave is a kind of a symbol of Perm, just as volcanoes are for Kamchatka. Many tourists associate our city with the labour camp “Perm-36”, the memorial to the victims of Gulag and the Museum of Modern Art (PERMM).

The city is famous for numerous hospitals, shops, prestigious restaurants and trading centres, cafes, fashionable hotels, banks. There is a number of palaces of culture, stadiums and cinemas in Perm.

The biggest library of our city is the A.M. Gorky Regional Library. The Perm State Circus situated on the City Hills is designed to seat 2,000. (The buildings of the Circus and the Gorky library were designed by the local architect M.G. Futlik). The Perm Planetarium is not far from the Circus. In the Perm Zoolоgical Garden there are about 300 species of animals from all the world.

In the city of Perm there are three Parks of Culture and Rest: the Gorky Park, the Balatovsky Park and the Zakamsky Park. All these parks

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have ample facilities for relaxation: dance pavilions and numerous side shows such as a motor-drome, merry-go-rounds, swings and many others. The most popular place for recreation is, of course, the Gorky Park. In the last century it was called “the Out-of-Town Garden”.

The educational potential of Perm is very big. There are about 150 secondary schools, a number of research institutes and higher educational institutions. Many school leavers choose to study at Perm State National Research University (the oldest University in the Urals) or Perm National Research Polytechnic University (the largest University of the city).

Perm is a great sports centre. Perm’s leading sports collectives are the football team “Amkar”, the basketball team “Parma” and the icehockey team “Molot”. Ice shows are staged and figure-skating competitions are held at the “Orlyonok” Palace of Sports. The Perm athlete arena “Spartak”, the “Zvezda” Stadium and the children’s Stadium “Yunost” are also far-famed.

Perm is a very interesting city from the point of view of its architecture. The most impressive monuments are the Monument to Heroes of the Front and Rear in the esplanade park beside Lenin Street and the memorial complex in honour of the Urals Volunteer Tank Corps. Besides we have a lot of monuments to famous people. Motovilikha is famous for a number of revolutionary monuments. In the Gorky Park one can admire I.I. Sviyazev’s rotunda built as far back as 1824. Among the most attractive modern monuments are unusual ones such as “Permyak-Salty Ears”, “Monument to Plumber”, “The Legend of Perm Bear”, etc.

At present all visitors to Perm are impressed by the art objects which appear in the streets of the city as the part of different fesivals and competitions. The most famous of them are “Red People”, “Letter P”, “Scarab”, “Iconman”, “Apple”, the message “Happiness is Just Around the Corner!”, etc. They make our city more attractive for guests. It is so exciting to take photos in front of them! In fact, being “closed” just some years ago, modern Perm attracts a lot of tourists.

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