important. Also, a boss may keep his employees waiting for a long time.
Josh: But if his secretary is late, she‘s in trouble. She will probably be
reprimanded.
Maggie: How true!
V. Let’s Talk
International Slavery Museum
Script
The International Slavery Museum has opened at Albert Dock, in Liverpool. Many people travelled from all over the world to celebrate the opening on 23rd of August. The museum is a place of reflection, contemplation and education.
It tells the story of the cruel acts of the transalantic slave trade, the stories of the lives of the millions of African people, who were forced from their homelands onto ships that sailed to unknown lands where they were made to work on farms and in mines in harsh conditions without dignity or payment.
Liverpool is one of the many British seaports that became very rich from money made transporting goods such as cotton and sugar, produced by African slaves.
One of the most important parts of the museum's exhibits are the stories of the lives of people who live all over the world today, whose family history can be traced to the Africans whose lives were changed forever by the translantic slave trade.
It has taken four years of hard work and planning to organize the creation of the museum, and its opening year is a very significant date because in 2007 we commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Abolition of the Slae Trade Act.
This was a law made in 1807; it banned all British people from taking part in the slave trade. Later in 1833 all people who had been forced into slavery to work for British companies were freed.
VI. Further Listening and Speaking Task 1: Punctuality
Script
To Americans, punctuality is a way of showing respect for other people‘s time. Being more than 10 minutes late to an appointment usually calls for an apology, and maybe an explanation. People who are running late often call ahead to let others know of the delay. Of course, the less formal the situation, the less important it is to be exactly on tome. At informal get-togethers, for example, people often arrive as much as 30 minutes past the appointed time. But they usually don‘t try that at work.
American lifestyles show how much people respect the time of others. When people plan an event, they often set the time days or weeks in advance. Once the time is fixed,
it takes almost an emergency to chance it. If people want to come to your house for a friendly visit, they will usually call first to make sure it is convenient. Only very close friends will just ―drop in‖ unannounced. Also, people hesitate to call others late at night for fear they might be in bed. The time may vary, but most folks think twice about calling after 10:00 p.m.
To outsiders, Americans seem tied to the clock. People in some Eastern cultures value relationships more than schedules. In these societies, people don‘t try to control time, but to experience it. Many Eastern cultures, for example, view time as a cycle. The rhythm of nature---from the passing of seasons to the monthly cycle of the moon---shapes their view of events. If they have wasted some time or let an opportunity pass by, they are not very worried, knowing that more time and opportunities will come in the next cycle. But Americans often want to jump at the first opportunity. They are unwilling to stand by idly and give up the opportunity.
The early American hero Benjamin Franklin expressed that view of time like this: ―Do you love life? Then do now waste time, for that is the stuff life is made of.‖
1. According to the passage, when people are late in America, what do they do?
2. According to the passage, what do Americans do after the time for an appointment is fixed?
3. How do people in some Eastern countries view relationships and schedules?
4. According to the passage, why aren‘t some Eastern people worried if they let an opportunity pass by?
5. What was Benjamin Franklin‘s view of time? Keys: 1.C 2.B 3.A 4.C 5.D
Task 2: Our Personal Spaces Script
Our personal space, that piece of the universe we occupy and call our own, is contained within an invisible boundary surrounding our body. As the owners of this area, we usually decide who may enter and who may not. When our space is invaded, we react in a variety of ways. We back up and retreat, stand our ground as our hands become moist from nervousness, or sometimes even react violently. Our response shows not only our unique personality, but also our cultural background.
For example, cultures that stress individualism such as England, the United States, Germany, and Australia generally demand more space than collective cultures do, and tend to become aggressive when their space is invaded. This idea of space is quite different from the one found in the Mexican and Arab cultures. In Mexico, the physical distance between people when engaged in conversation is closer than what is usual north of the border. And for middle easterner, typical Arab conversations are at
close range. Closeness cannot be avoided.
As is the case with most of our behavior, our use of space is directly linked to the value system of our culture. In some Asian cultures, for example, employees do not stand near their bosses; the extended distance demonstrates respect. Extra interpersonal distance is also part of the cultural experience of the people of Scotland and Sweden, for whom it reflects privacy. And in Germany, private space is sacred. Keys: 1.T 2.F 3.T 4.F 5.F
Task 3: We don‘t know what to do with them. Script
A Russian, a Cuban, an American businessman, and an American lawyer were passengers on a fast train speeding across the French countryside. As time wore on, the men gradually became friendly with one another, introducing themselves and shaking hands. Eventually, the Russian took out a large bottle of vodka and poured each of his traveling companions a drink. Just as the American businessman was sipping the vodka and praising its fine quality, the Russian hurled the half-full bottle out of the open window.(q. 1)
―What did you do that for?‖ asked the startled American businessman.
―Vodka is plentiful in my country,‖ said the Russian, ―In fact, we have thousands and thousands of liters of it---far more than we need.‖(q. 2)
The American businessman shook his head and leaned back in his seat, obviously baffled by the Russian‘s reasoning.
A little later, the young Cuban passed around a box of fine Havana cigars. The men enjoyed this treat and made admiring remarks about the pleasures of smoking good Havana cigars. At that very moment the Cuban took a couple of puffs of his cigar and then tossed it out of the open window.
―I thought the Cuban economy was not good this year,‖ the American businessman said. ―Yet you threw that perfectly good cigar away. I find your actions quite puzzling.‖(q. 3)
―Cigars,‖ the Cuban replied, ―are a dime a dozen in Cuba. We have more of them than we know what to do with.‖(q. 4)
The American businessman sat in silence for a moment. Then he got up, grbbed the lawyer, and threw him out of the window.(q. 5)
Viewing and speaking Reviving the image of tea
Script and key
Voice-over: Walk down any high street and you can't help noticing the explosion of
trendy office shops. The old style of cafes are gradually disappearing to make way for the caffeine culture. As people become espresso friends and cappucino connoisseurs, designer coffees are kicking the traditonal British beverage--tea--off the menu. But there are still a few oases of calm.
(on-screen text: Charlotte Grindling.)
Voice-over: Charlotte Grindling is a design guru and a tea fanatic. Charlotte: I'll have a pot of house blend please. Waitress: Ok, and a cream.
Charlotte: Yes, thank you. Here we are in a quintessentially English tea shop. I love
these places. Look, they even give you a doily. But the problem is that tea is undergoing an image crisis. You think of your granny, tea at four, the flat cap. But with the explosion of the new coffee shops hitting the high street, the question is: How is tea going to update its image?
Voice-over: One tea manufacturing company saw a niche in the market for a chain of
tea shops to compete with the American-style coffee shops that dominate the high street. But to compete successfully, they needed a tea machine that made quality tea as fast as the coffe machines make coffee. They turned to the company Design Bridge for help.
David: I'm David. Richard: I'm Richard.
David: We work for Design Bridge. Richard: And we design things like this. David: And that. Richard: And that. David: Yeah, and that. Richard: And this one.
David: In fact, all of these.
Voice-over: David and Richard are product designers. They are responsible for
repackaging many familiar high street brands. Repackaging tea was just one of their briefs and it was because of the contacts that they made with the tea company that they got the job of designing the tea machine.
Uint 4
Taste the sweets and bitters of family life.
II. Basic Listening Practice
1.Script
M: Amy, sit down, we need to talk. Your mother and I are going to separate.
W: What! Are you crazy? You can‘t do that! What will my friends say? I just want to have a normal family. Q: What is the girl saying?
2. Script
M: Good evening, Mrs. Jones. The manager sent you these roses and his best wishes to you both for a happy anniversary.
W: Thank you. We like the room and the service here, and we especially appreciate the manager‘s consideration/
Q: What can we learn from the conversation?
3. Script
W: While I‘m scrambling the eggs, could you put the flour into the bowl? M: You bet, darling. I‘ll also turn the oven on so that it gets warmed up. Q: Where does this conversation probable take place?
4. Script
W: I have a very important meeting tonight, and I‘m afraid I can‘t miss it.
M: But this evening is the parents‘ meeting at school, and I was expecting you‘d come to it. OK, I‘ll phone Dad, maybe he and his girlfriend will come. Q: What can be inferred from the conversation?
5. Script
W1: So you‘re still single? If you‘d listen to me and used the Internet, you‘d have a
husband by now.
W2: I did use the Internet. I posted an ad that read ―Husband Wanted‖. There were dozens of e-mail responses. But they all said pretty much the same thing: You can have mine.
Q: What can we infer from the conversation?
Keys: 1.C 2.A3.B 4.C 5.D
III. Listening In