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ClimateBritain is as far north as Siberia. For example Edinburgh is 56 degrees north of the equator, the same latitude as Moscow, yet its climate is generally mild and temperate because of the Gulf Stream, which brings warm water and air across the Atlantic from the Gulf of Mexico. The climate in the UK is usually described as cool, temperate and humid. The weather is so changeable that the English often say that they have no climate but only weather. Therefore it is natural for them to use the comparison “as changeable as the weather” of a person who often changes his mood or opinion about something. The weather is the favourite topic of conversation in the UK. As the weather changes with the wind, and Britain is visited by winds from different parts of the world, the most characteristic feature of Britain’s weather is its variability. The English also say that they have three variants of weather: when it rains in the morning, when it rains in the afternoon, or when it rains all day long. Sometimes it rains so heavily that they say “It’s raining cats and dogs”. Rainfall is more or less even throughout the year. The wind brings rain from the Atlantic to the hills of the west. This means that the western parts of Britain are wetter than the east, which is fairly sheltered. London is drier than continental cities such as Hamburg. Its weather may be unpredictable, but it is not particularly wet. The northern mountains have much more rain and snow. More generally, the southern part of England and Wales are a little warmer, sunnier and less misty than the rest. The driest period is from March to June and the wettest months are from October to January. During a normal summer the temperature sometimes rises above 25 degrees in the south. Winter temperatures below 5 degrees are rare. It seldom snows heavily in winter, snow does not remain for long, except in the Scottish mountains, where skiing is possible; frost is rare. January and August are the warmest. Still the wind may bring wintercold in spring or summer. Sometimes it brings the whirlwinds or hurricanes. Droughts are rare. So, we may say that the British climate has three main features: it is mild, humid and changeable. That means that it is never too hot or cold, too wet or dry. This humid and mild climate is good for plants. The trees and flowers begin to blossom early in spring. In the British homes there has been no central heating up till recently. The fireplaces are often used, but the coal is not used as it’s very expensive. Britain has no good coal now and imports it. Many schools and universities have no central heating either, and the floors there are made of stone. The British bedroom is especially cold, sometimes electric blankets or hot-water bottles are used. Climate, Vegetation and Wildlife The USA is a very large country, so it has several different climate zones. The coldest regions are in the north and north-east, where much snow falls in winter. The south has a subtropical climate. Hot winds blowing from the Gulf of Mixico often bring typhoons. The climate along the Pacific coast is much warmer than that of the Atlantic coast. The region around the Great Lakes is known for its changeable weather. In general, the climate in North America is much colder than in Europe and the average annual temperature of New York, for example, is 11°C. In the East the principal trees are spruce, poplar, birch and fir. The Northern Appalachians and the upper Great Lakes region are dominated by mixed forests of birch, beech, maple, hemlock, and pine. Much of southern Florida and the lower Mississippi River valley are covered by marsh grasses. In the Western mountains on the lower slopes are open woodlands. The warm-winter desert areas of Southwest support much cactus. The Pacific Northwest has dense coniferous forests with fir, hemlock, and spruce among the principal trees. Northwestern California has dense stands of giant redwoods (sequoias) along the coast. Throughout Midwest and in much of Texas the native vegetation has been largely removed to make way for agriculture. The animal population of the United States was both numerous and prolific in aboriginal times. Since the advent of the white man, with his firearms and with his need of land for agriculture, the animal population has been greatly reduced. Whole species have been exterminated, or preserved in other than the wild state. The northeastern forests abounded in animals of all kinds and sizes. Deer, recoons, skunks, grey and red squirrels, black bears, rabbits and hares, beavers, minks, and moles were common. Great flocks of birds were present, including migratory wild fowl. Reptiles included turtles, salamanders, and several species of snakes. In the forests of the Southeast opossums abounded and along the coasts were alligators and sea cows. Crocodiles were present in the extreme south of Florida. Great numbers of large birds, such as the flamingo, the whooping crane, were common in the swamps and marshes. The Interior Plains had vast herds of grazing animals, especially bisons (“buffaloes”) and antelopes. The higher mountains of the West were the home of the mountain sheep, mountain goat, grizzly bear, marmot, and rock rabbit. The deserts have a highly specialized world, equipped to avoid heat and reduce water losses to a minimum, like the sidewinder rattlesnake, which keeps much of its body off the ground to avoid contact with that searing surface. Climate in Canada Canada has four distinct seasons all of which occur right across the country although their arrival times vary. The single most significant factor in climate, and even day-today weather, is latitude. In just a few hours travelling north by road, a drop (sometimes a considerable one) in temperature can often be felt. The warmest area of Canada is along the US border. It’s no accident that nearly everybody lives in this southernmost region. The overall warmest areas of the country are British Columbia’s south and central coast and southern Ontario particularly around the Niagara Peninsula. These districts have the longest summers and the shortest winters. July and August are the warmest months across the country and generally they are reasonably dry. Along the US border, summer temperatures are usually in the mid and upper 20°C. Each year there are a few days in the 30°C Manitoba through to central British Columbia gets the hottest summer temperatures as well as the most sunshine. The west and east coasts are very wet with 2500 mm of precipitation a year but much of that is through the winter months. The prairies are fairly dry all year but south-eastern Canada including Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto can be quite humid in summer and damp in winter. Ontario and Quebec have warm summers without a lot of rain. Southern Ontario can be hot in midsummer. The east coast is generally cooler than the rest of the country and can have more summer rain as well. Summers in the Yukon and Northwest territories (NWT) can be pleasantly warm and have the added benefit of extremely long daylight hours. Outside the main cities, anywhere in Canada, nights are cool all year round. Canadian winters are long. In more than two-thirds of the country the average January temperature is -18°C. The major cities are not consistently this cold but temperatures are generally below freezing. Except in the warmest areas, snowfall can be heavy especially from Toronto east. As a rule of thumb the further north, the more snow. But only to a point, once past the central part of the country, the dry conditions prevent snow fall of major accumulation. Climate in Australia Australian seasons are the antithesis of those in Europe and North America. It’s hot in December and many Australians spend Christmas at the beach, while in July and August it’s midwinter. Summer starts in December, autumn in March, winter in June and spring in September. The climatic extremes aren’t too severe in most parts of Australia. Even in Melbourne, the southernmost capital city on the mainland, it’s rare occasion when the mercury hits freezing point, although it’s a different story in Canberra, the national capital. The poor Tasmanians, farther to the south, have a good idea of what cold is. As you head north the seasonal variations become fewer until, in the far north around Darwin, you are in the monsoon belt where there are just two seasons – hot and wet, and hot and dry. In the Snowy Mountains of southern New South Wales and the Alps of north-east Victoria there’s a snow season with good skiing. The centre of the continent is arid – hot and dry during the day, but often bitterly cold at night. Unit 4. EURORAILING Thanks to their extended summer vacations, students are in the enviable position of being able to travel round Europe by rail and see the sights on the cheap. This article points out some of the pros and cons of travelling by train. The sense of freedom offered by rail travel is unrivelled by any other, except perhaps the less safe option of hitch-hiking. Trains are also a great way to meet local people and, compared with other long-distance modes of transport, the Greenest you can get. Rail travel allows you to explore the hidden corners of the continent, especially areas where rural lines are still open and trains are still the most common form of public transport. It’s also a relaxing way to travel, whether you’re using it as a cheap bed for a night, or as a ring-side seat for a series of stunning views. The first step before you go to choose one of the Eurorail schemes available. After that, there are a few tips to bear in mind before you leave. Budgeting always causes headaches and it’s worth finding out which are the “expensive” and “cheap” countries. It’s sensible to take some cash, but you should take most of your money in traveller’s cheques. Choose a well-known brand and buy small denominations. Your most important piece of equipment is your backpack, and it’s worth choosing one that’s comfortable and light, sits just above your hips, and is “high” rather than “wide” when full. A day-pack is usefull for sightseeing, and a pair of comfortable walking shoes is vital, along with dark, hard-wearing clothes. As a general rule, put out everything you want to take - then halve it. Some things, however, should not be left behind. An alarm clock(so you don’t miss those early trains); a scarf to cover your shoulders or legs for visits to churches or mosques; photocopies of all your important documents – best packed separately or given to a travelling companion; toilet paper, soap and a universal plug; a Swiss army penknife; numerous plasitic bags; a water bottle and a small first aid kit. The fun really starts once you’re out there, of course – hunting for a hostel at 10 p.m., being ripped off by a taxi driver who claims there are no buses to your campsite or being turned away from a famous tourist attraction for wearing shorts. There are compensations for these frustrations (which make the best stories afterwards, anyway!), but many problems can be avoided if you’re aware of the potential pitfalls before you leave. The golden rule is not to try to cram too much into the time available. Trying to see the whole of Europe in a month, by spending every night on a train and an afternoon in each capital city will result in an unsatisfactory blur of shallow impressions. It is also a recipe for disaster, as you will be tired, grumpy and unreceptive for most of your trip. Instead, try to vary your rout, mixing visits to cities with relaxing spells on the beach or in the countryside. Each year a few unlucky travellers have their valuables stolen. The best way to prevent this is to carry them with you at all times, preferably in a money belt or a neck pouch. This is especially important on night trains, where most thefts occur. Another sensible precaution is not to sleep rough – you’re just asking for trouble. Watch out for conmen at stations: they’ll try to persuade you to accept a room, tempting you wit glamourous pictures of a hotel which turns out to be awful and whose price will have doubled by the time you reach it. And, if you’re on a tight budget, it’s always worth asking if they’ve got anything cheaper. These ideas are really just common sense, but it’s amazing how often they’ve overlooked. But the most important tip of all is – have fun! Unit 5. Why laughter is the best medicine. Our unserious side is being taken seriously by doctors. Laughing helps you fight illness – and gets you fit. But how it works is still being puzzled out. A group of adults are lying in a circle on the floor listening to a recording of ”The Laughing Policeman”. At first everyone feels ridiculous and there’s only the odd nervous giggle, but suddenly the laughter becomes real. It quickly spreads around the room until everyone is infected by it. Doctors are starting to believe that laughter not only improves your state of mind, but actually affects your entire physical well-being. The people lying in a circle are attending a workshop to learn the forgotten art of laughter. This is laughter therapy in action. Britain’s first laughter therapist, Robert Holden says: ‘Instinctively we know that laughing helps us feel healthy and alive. Each time we laugh we feel better and more content.’ But we could be losing our ability to laugh. A French newspaper found that in 1930 the French laughed on average for nineteen minutes per day. By 1980 this had fallen to six minutes. Eighty per cent of the people questioned said that they would like to laugh more. Other research suggests that children laugh on average about 400 times a day, but by the time they reach adulthood this has been reduced to about fifteen times. Somewhere in the process of growing up we lose an astonishing 385 laughs a day. William Fry – a psyciatrist from California – studied the effects of laughter on the body. He got patience to watch Laurel and Hardy films, and monitored their blood pressure, heart rate and muscle tone. He found that laughter has a similar effect to physical exercise. It speeds up the heart rate, increases blood pressure and quickens breathing. It also makes our facial and stomach muscles work. Fry thinks laughter is a type of jogging on the spot. Laughter can even provide a kind of pain and relief. Fry has proved that laughter produces endorphins – chemicals in the body that relieve pain. Researcheres from Texas tested this. They divided forty university students into four groups. The first group listened to a funny cassette for twenty minutes, the second listened to a cassette intended to relax them, the third heard an informative tape, while the fourth group listened to no tape at all. Researcheres found that if they produced pain in the students, those who had listened to the humorous tape could tolerate the discomfort for much longer. Patch Adams is both a doctor and a performing clown in Virginia, America. He is convinced that humour should be a part of every medical consultation. ‘There’s evidence to suggest that laughter stimulates the immune system, ’says Adams, ‘yet hospitals and clinics are well-known for their depressing atmospheres.’ Adams practises what he preaches. He wears his waist-length hair in a ponytail and also has a handlebar moustache. He usually puts on a red nose when seeing patients. Long life Scientists are finally beginning to unlock the secret everyone has dying to know: just how long can we live? They confidently predict that in the 21st century people will be living to the incredible age of 130. And this is just the start. Experts studying the process of ageing believe it is possible that people will live long enough to have great-great-great-grandchildren. This belief is based on research and on fact that more and more people are living to be 100 as our general health improves. There are around 4000 people over the age of 100 in Britain – ten times more than 30 years ago. Dr. Vijg, a Dutch biologist, is the head of a project studying the growing number of old people in the population. He and his team are focusing their attention on human genes, which they think may hold the key to what kills us, early or late in life. A century ago average life expectancy in Europe was 45. Today, providing we look after ourselves, drive our cars carefully, and cut down on things like butter, alcohol and cigarettes, we can add nearly 30 years to that figure. Within the next ten years, we may all have added a couple more years on top of that. But that is nothing, compared to what will happen once scientists have discovered our genetic secrets. Some of the problem genes, like those that cause haemorphilia, have already been tracked down. Dr. Vijg says: ’Nobody dies from old age – just diseases that affect people as they get older.’ And he forecasts that within 30 years, science will be preparing people for a long life.’ Already the killer diseases are being eradicated,’ he says. ‘About 50% of cancers are curable, and i really believe that this will increase to 80%.’ Doctors also believe that the death rate from the biggest killers – diseases of the circulatory system will decline as man comes to his senses by giving up smoking and eating more healthily. Dr. Vijg points to experiments with animals in laboratories. ‘Those given less food, but of a higher quality, lived to the human equivalent of 150 years’. Dr. Vijg believes that as life span increases, so will other expectations. Women will be having babies at an older age. ‘Already, more and more are having their first child when they are over 30,’he says. ‘In other ten years people might think it normal for a woman of 50 to be having her first child.’ What about living forever? Will eternal life ever become reality? ‘So far, that is science fiction,’ says Dr. Vijg. ‘Theoretically it is possible, but it will be another hundred, perhaps two hundred years before we know all secrets of our genes.’ Are you on top of the world? Some things that can make you feel better... These days most doctors and scientists agree that our physical health is closely related to our psychological well-being. ut just what have the experts discovered about what makes us feel good? Getting moving As well as being important to your physical health, regular exercise is now believed to improve your psychological state by releasing endorphins or ‘happy chemicals’ into the brain. Some researches consider it can be just as valuable as psychotherapy in helping depression, and engendering a more positive outlook. Even a brisk ten-minute walk every day can help according to researches. In one project, unemployed urban youths who undertook intensive sports training for several months, not only became involved in that sport, but also in other activities such as study, politics, and voluntary work. According to experts, companionship and social support are vital to both our psychological and physical well-being – one reason, perhaps, why married people tend to live longer than unmarried ones. Modern researches emphasize the value of group social activities in this respect. ‘Relationships we form at church or in clubs tend to be more supportive and uncritical than those we form at work or in the family’, says Professor Michael Argyle, of Oxford Brookes University,’and these positive relationships improve our self-esteem,which is vital to our physical and mental health.’This is backed up by recent research which shows, perhaps surprisingly , that people who spend more time with others actually get fewer colds and viruses than those who stay at home on their own. In fact social support is so important to our mental and physical well-being that it may even increase our life expectancy! Another piece of research found that people who belong to strong church groups, not only claim to be happier than those who don’t, they suffer from less than half the number of heart attacks than the rest of the population, and live up to four years longer! |