Conversation 2
Kate Have you made plans for the summer vacation yet? Mark Yes, I'm travelling around the States for three months.
Janet Three months! Wow, you're lucky! Whereabouts are you going?
Mark Well, I'm flying to New York City, and then I'm working for eight weeks as a
counselor 顾问on a summer camp in upstate北部的 New York. And then I'm travelling around for about four weeks, back in time for the start of term. Kate Where are you staying?
Mark On the campsite营地 in the mountains. It's about an hour away from New
York City by bus.
Kate What are you going to do there?
Mark I'll be looking after teenagers, city kids mostly. We're going swimming, rafting
and canoeing独木舟, and maybe backpacking in the mountains. Janet That sounds amazing! And after that, what are your plans?
Mark I'll catch the Greyhound bus to Boston, and relax in a hotel for three days. Kate The museums in Boston are great! You absolutely must visit them.
Mark OK, I'll do that. Then I go back to New York for two days, to watch a baseball
game.
Kate The New York Yankees? That's my team!
Mark Then I'm flying to Chicago for six days, to stay with some friends. Kate And will you fly home from Chicago?
Mark No, then I'll go to DC for six days to do some sightseeing. And then I'll be back
a few days before the beginning of term. Janet It sounds like a dream vacation.
Outside view
Speaker 1 Let's take a trip to Australia.
Speaker 2 That sounds like fun, but I won't be able to come. I'm too busy. You can go
if you promise to tell me all about it. Speaker 1 OK.
Speaker 2 Oh, and get me some photos of kangaroos and koalas. I'd love to see them. Voice-over So here I am in Australia. How about a few facts to start with? Australia
is the largest \It's the world's smallest continent, but the sixth largest country. Its population is only 20 million, so there's a lot of space. This is Perth on the west coast. It's famous for its black swans. If you come here, you'll definitely want to go sailing. This is Uluru, or Ayers Rock. This amazing rock formation is in the traditional lands of the original inhabitants of Australia -the Aborigines. Their rock paintings have been preserved here for centuries. If you want sun, sea and sand, Queensland is the place to be. This is where you can find the famous Great Barrier Reef. It's the world's largest natural feature and is 2,300 kilometres long. Sydney is Australia's biggest city with over four million people -nearly a quarter of the entire population. The Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge are famous landmarks. If you like surfing, you'll have to visit the world-famous Bondi Beach. The smallest state is the Australian Capital Territory around the city of Canberra, which is the capital of Australia. And finally, this is Melbourne -a lively city in the southeast. I did promise pictures of koalas and kangaroos. Are these OK? Unit 8 The green revolution Inside view
Conversation 1 Janet Hi! Mark Hi!
Kate How are you?
Mark I'm OK, thanks. How're you guys? Kate Good.
Mark Good ... Oh, that traffic! It's getting worse and worse!
Kate Tell me about it, it's awful! Don't you worry about your health when you're
cycling? All that pollution! Like, what are we breathing in? They really should do something about it!
Mark I think they intend to - or at least they keep talking about it. Janet Shall we go inside? Mark Yea.
Mark You know, it sounds crazy, but it might be an idea to ban cars from the centre
of the city. I nearly got hit by a crazy driver earlier. Kate Are you OK? Mark Yes, I'm fine.
Janet Would they really do that - ban cars?
Mark It's possible. It'd sort out the traffic problems. And it would reduce pollution. Janet I don't think that would be very popular with drivers. Mark But it would be safer for cyclists.
Kate Supposing they introduced a congestion charge? Mark Like in London?
Janet Do you think it would stop people driving into Oxford? Mark It'd stop some people.
Kate They could always extend the Park and Ride scheme. Janet It's a good idea.
Kate If people actually use it.
Mark Hey, I haven't told you, I'm going to a meeting of the Environmental Action
Group tonight.
Kate You are? Good for you!
Mark Yes, I'm just concerned about the environment. I've decided to get more active,
believe it or not.
Janet I guess we all should.
Kate I know, you're right... Excuse me ...
Conversation 2
Janet By the way, Mark, how did your meeting go? Mark Quite interesting, actually. Janet So what did they talk about?
Mark Uh, recycling, mostly. They have this plan ... that everyone should write to the
Council. Ask them to collect more rubbish. You know, like, all the plastic, which they don't do. I'm going to write a letter this evening.
Janet Really? You know, I think I might go to the next meeting. I've been meaning to
do something ... get more active about the environment.
Mark Yes, we all need to. Global warming, ice caps melting, pollution. Doesn't it
worry you?
Janet Yes, it's really frightening.
Mark Hey, it would be great if you came to the meeting, Janet. The Action Group
really wants to make students more aware of what they can do to help.
Janet You know, I think everyone knows what they should do. But they don't do it -1
don't do it.
Mark I'm the same. Actually, there's something we could do right now. Janet What?
Mark There's this poster they want to put up all over the university. It tells you easy
ways of saving energy. I'm looking at it, here, look ... Janet \
Mark They've asked us to print it out and put it up in college. You want to help me? Janet Sure! It might be an idea to ask Kate to help.
Mark Yes, let's ask her. But why don't we print it out — right now? Janet Sure.
Outside view
The weather is a very popular topic of conversation in Britain. That's because the weather changes a lot.
Sixty-five per cent of all the days in Britain are overcast - dull, grey and often cold. That's 260 dull days. What do people find to talk about? When the weather is good, people complain that it's too hot. When it rains, they say it's too wet. When it isn't sunny, they say it's too cold. The seasons in Britain are fairly clear. Winter lasts from December to February. It's cold and wet but doesn't often snow. Spring is from March to May. It starts to get a bit warmer and there are more sunny days. The summer months are June, July and August, when it can be very hot. Then the autumn - September, October, November - often has foggy, cold, wet days, and the leaves fall from the trees. It's not surprising that Britain has got one of the most important weather centres in the world. The Met Office employs over 1,000 years. They provide weather forecasts for radio, television and newspapers - and on the Internet. Two huge supercomputers analyze information from many sources, including satellites. This is very different from some of the early weather forecasts. These instruments were used for the earliest weather forecasts. This is the first one - published in The Times in 1879. Scientists at the Met Office make weather forecasts for the public and for special purposes - military, shipping, airlines and many others. The Met Office also looks at environmental issues such as global warming and climate change. The computers can predict the tropical storms and hurricanes that cause so much damage around the world. The trouble is, weather changes very quickly so nobody ever believes the weather forecast. They still go out in their shorts and get wet! But at least it's something to talk about.