Английский. Учебник МЭО 1 курс. Учебное пособие по английскому языку. Мировая экономика. Часть 1 Москва 2012 удк 81(075. 8)111 ббк 81 Англ. 7365. 5
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Part 2 Read the passage below and match each paragraph with the appropriate heading.
Top 10 Issues Facing Our Youth Today (on the materials of the USA Internet and press resources) Now that we are well into the new Millennium society has begun to recognize serious concerns with issues that kids have to deal with today. Some issues have always been there but are now coming to the eyes of the public to find solutions. Other issues are new trends as society begins to adapt to a faster pace of life. Below are the top 10 issues facing our youth today. 10. ________________ The problems begin at home. Since the 1950s, the number of single parent homes has consistently increased to the point of catastrophe. Today, 14 million single parents are responsible for 28 million children. Raising a child is difficult enough in a two parent home, especially in tough economic conditions. The situation is even direr when there is only one parent. Economically, a single parent is likely to bring less income home. This equates to fewer opportunities for such vital necessities as education. Trying to make ends meet also takes time – time that is spent away from children who need a parent’s guiding/influence. Absent a parent’s diligent guidance, children become subject to higher dropout rates, higher risk of dangerous sexual behaviors and pregnancies, higher chances of drug and alcohol abuse etc. It truly takes a village to raise a child. 9. __________ There was a time in cinematic history where virtually every actor/actress was portrayed on screen with a cigarette in hand. Smoking, it was implied, was cool. As a result everyone was doing it, including kids. Well, as awareness to the danger of smoking increased, “cool” images of smoking disappeared. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about drugs and alcohol. These vices are staples in everyday media. Simply, drinking and using drugs is shown as being cool. The numbers bear the tale. 21% of high school seniors say they get high and 41% of the same group report drinking alcohol. Our kids are literally moving around in an intoxicated daze. Immature behavior is then amplified due to being under the influence. Drunk driving, poor grades and attendance, anti-social and violent behavior and the list goes on. 8. __________ There was a time when kids enjoyed being kids. Today, even at the earliest of ages, children are partaking in adult activities with serious consequences. Similar to what we see with alcohol and drugs, sex is a very popular and portrayed subject matter. The movies, TV, the internet, essentially everywhere a kid turns he or she is bombarded with sexual suggestions. Music is a culprit as well. Songs have always had sexual innuendos, but at least “back in the day” you had to be old enough to understand them. The concept of childhood is literally being wiped out. 7. __________ A child’s education is the foundation from which he or she will be able to go forth out into the world and build a life. Schools play a major role in this endeavor, and therefore it is reasonable to expect that these places of learning would be safe havens for the children while they are preparing for adulthood. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. In many instances, especially in low income, urban settings, schools can be a war zone. We are not talking about minor bullying, but rather serious violence. Consider that in the last decade 284 kids were murdered due to school violence – these were shootings, stabbings, fighting and suicides. Growing up is tough enough without having to be worried about being killed while going to math class. 6. _________ We live in a society that promotes materialism and so we perpetuate this particular malady by instilling bad habits into our children. We teach our children that the measure of success and happiness in life is how much stuff you have. Kids naturally want things –especially if their friends have something similar. Unfortunately, there seems to be little restraint on accompanying guidance as we go about this. Essentially, we provide our kids with whatever they want that is within our financial ability to do so. The concept of “earning” what you get or the idea that something “you don’t need” seem to have been lost and discarded. Is there really any wonder why the average adult is $15,000 in debt at any given time? We have a mentality of getting what we want and when we want it that has been ingrained in us since childhood. The unfortunate result is that there are devastating consequences for such continued behavior later in life. 5.__________ Our kids are fat and getting fatter. Recent numbers show that 20% of American children are obese. Not chubby –OBESE! Video games, TV, the internet and fast food are partly to blame. Kids are spending more time sitting in front of a TV/computer screen than running around outside. This sedentary lifestyle has consequences. Socially, it’s no secret that overweight kids are going to be subject to ridicule from their peers – it’s sad, but nevertheless true. This can result in such issues as low self-esteem, depression, etc. Then there are the health concerns. High blood pressure, diabetes and other maladies that is associated with obesity. Psychologically and physically, obesity is an issue that can be resolved with a simple increase in activity and awareness. 4. __________ Education is important. Few people would dispute this well regarded fact. A good education (in comparison with a bad one) will provide a child with an increased chance of taking advantage of opportunities to be successful in life. Unfortunately, some people have it better than other. This is not an issue of just one school being better than another school. Rather we are talking about whole classes of American children being denied a proper education that will prepare them to compete in a job market with their peers and have the same access to the American Dream. Disparity in educational quality is delineated by race and financial status. If you live in a poor neighborhood or are a minority, there is a good chance that the schools you attend are lacking many necessities. While Asians and Whites enjoy high graduating rates, African American and Latinos continue to lag behind. Not surprisingly, because job opportunities are lessen for dropouts, these two groups have the highest incarceration rates. 3. __________ America used to sustain itself with making its own products through manufacturing and then turning around and selling those products. The economy is shifting to more of a service industry versus a manufacturing industry. In order to cut costs and keep product prices down companies are forced to outsource manufacturing to other countries. Other countries can produce products at much lower labor costs. Some companies have even begun to outsource call center jobs to keep labor costs down. Not only is America now having lower paying service jobs than the average blue-collar job with a sustainable income but our economy is now a global economy. For example, what happens in Japan or Iraq can drastically alter prices for our stock exchanges, gas/oil, and many other products. What exactly does this mean for our youth? The youth cannot graduate or even dropout of school without going through the pains of a low-income job. The jobs offered with no experience pay very little with very little room for pay increases. In fact, the competition to get a promotion can be fierce. In the past, your high school senior could graduate and go work at the local factory for the rest of his or her life and make a good living. They would not necessarily need to have a college education to survive. In fact, youth today will graduate from college with multiple degrees and still cannot find work that pays enough to sustain a decent lifestyle. 2. __________ The federal poverty level is $22,050 for a family of four. This equates to 21% of all children (15 million children) are considered in poverty. Just to cover basic expenses for a family of four you would need to have a salary of $45,000. This means that nearly 50% of our children are living in poverty. Half of those kids receive no government assistance because their parents earned more than $22,050 that year. According to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP), that poverty is the single greatest threat to children’s well-being. Poverty impedes learning and contributes to social and behavioral problems. And guess what? There is no income to counteract these problems. Mommy cannot afford a tutor or Daddy cannot afford a counselor. There is a huge opportunity for society to stop being so materialistic and in turn poverty wouldn’t be such an issue because most children will all have the same things –things they need instead of what they want. This would decrease violence in schools because fewer kids would be teased. 1. __________ If every year the Olympics were held, this probably wouldn’t be a problem. This list is indicative of the fact that America (like any nation) has problems. The issue at hand is collective though amongst the people affected about how to deal with them. Unfortunately most folks tend to focus on their self and not the whole. We see these problems as affecting “them” and not “me/us” When we hear that America’s children are the fattest among Western nations, this doesn’t sting. When we learn that America’s children lay educationally behind other industrialized nations, we don’t cringe. There is very little sense of collective identity of people, as Americans. This is a result of our children not being properly educated and guided. There was a time when every child would begin the school day by standing and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Children were taught the significance of the 4th of July (besides fireworks). These practices are long gone and so is our sense of common destiny. With so many diverse nationalities, races, and ethnic groups that comprise America, the one common bond we all have with one another is that we are Americans. Ex 1. Comment on each issue. Do the same problems exist in your life? Ex 2. Here’s an abstract from an Internet discussion on the above issues. Read the statements and express your opinion on them. Should you participate in this discussion, what would you say? Ian says: July 26, 2011 at 4:13 am I like this list a lot. I was planning to write a list like this, but you beat me to it. Things I wish would happen: 1) 2nd Enlightenment Era 2) 2nd Progressive Era 3) Country-wide educational reform 4) Country-wide health reform (including diet) 5) Less Defense spending (China is two generations or so behind us anyways) 6) More Renewable Energy research 7) World-wide Depopulation FMH says: July 28, 2011 at 1:20 pm Yeah and about 40 or fifty years ago, it was perfectly okay to beat your children until they had manners. Even though this quote is used all the time, I have to repeat it here: “[...] They have bad manners, contempt for authority, they show disrespect to their elders…. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and are tyrants over their teachers.”- Aristotle, who complained about the youth of today 2300-and-something years ago. shyanneg says: July 27, 2011 at 11:41 am I resent entry 10. There is no denying that a generalization can be made – two incomes, after all, are better than one– but I know few two parent families who have done a better job raising their children together than my mother did entirely alone! My mother is my best friend. She is one of the strongest, most brave people that I know. I admire her. She is my hero. If I can be even half the mother that she is to me when I decide to start a family, then I will be thrilled. Remember that there are exceptions to every “rule”. Ex 3. What 10 issues facing the Russian youth today would you put on the list? Write them down and comment on them. Ex 4. Discuss your list with those of other students. Hold a discussion on the major problems facing the young nowadays. Unit II Part 1 Basics of Economics economy, economics, goods, services, producer, consumer, factors of production Text A Economics and Economy Every group of people must solve three basic problems of daily living: what goods and services to produce, how to produce these goodsand services, and for whom to produce these goods and services. Economics is the study of how society decides what, how, and for whom to produce. Economics is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Greek for oikos (house) and nomos (custom or law), hence "rules of the house(hold)." By goods we mean physical commodities such as steel, cars, and strawberries. By services we mean activities such as massages or live theatre performances which can be consumed or enjoyed only at the instant they are produced. In exceptional circumstances, society may find that some of the questions about what, how, and for whom to produce have already been answered; until the arrival of Man Friday, Robinson Crusoe need not worry about the 'for whom' question. In general, however, society must answer all three questions. By emphasizing the role of society, the definition places economics within the social sciences, the sciences that study and explain human behaviour. The subject matter of economics is that part of human behaviour which relates to the production, exchange, and use of goods and services. The central economic problem for society is how to reconcile the conflict between people's virtually limitless desires for goods and services, and the scarcity of resources (labour, machinery, and raw materials) with which these goods and services can be produced. In answering the questions what, how, and for whom to produce, economics explains how scarce resources are allocated between competing claims on their use.Economics is about human behaviour. Economists analyse problems, not the subject matter of economics. Economists aim to develop theories of human behaviour and to test them against the facts. The modern market economy is populated by three types of economic agents, whose interaction constitutes economic activity: consumers, producers, and the government. The main social purpose of the economy is to produce goods and services for the satisfaction of the needs and wants of consumers. Consumers, typically, represent households that .provide labour, and other resources to produce against an income which they use to purchase consumer goods or to save. Producers, typically, represent enterprises or firms that acquire factors of production, or inputs – labour, land, and capital – from households and combine them to produce outputs, or commodities which can be classified into goods-tangible commodities – and services. The activities of firms move around the sale of their output at a profit. The third basic element, the government, is involved with the economy, on the one hand, as a producer and consumer and, on the other hand, as a regulator, supervisor and promoter of economic activities. The economic agents are engaged in a complex web of transactions involving factors of production and outputs. However, the volume of the commodities that can be produced and purchased is limited by the scarcity of resources. This fact has two important consequences as regards economic decision-making: a) the utilization of resources has to be efficient. In terms of the welfare of economic agents, the utilization of resources is efficient when every opportunity has been exhausted to make some individuals better off without hurting the interests of others; b) individual economic agents and society as a whole cannot simply use more, they have to make compromises between alternative uses. Given these constraints, consumers, producers, and the government have to make rational decisions over available resources. Rational decisions reflect choices that draw maximum profit from given resources or obtain desired results with the minimum efforts or cost. Vocabulary list
n. production — производство n. producer — производитель
n. consumption — потребление n. consumer — потребитель
syn. agents of production
n. definition — определение
adj. economic — экономический (относящийся к экономике) adj. economical — экономичный (приносящий экономию) v. toeconomize — экономить, экономно расходовать
in exchange for – вобмен
n. allocation — распределение, размещение
ant. intangible
Notes
Ex 1. Suggest the Russian equivalents: consumed at the instant they are produced; in exceptional circumstances; the subject matter of economics; how to reconcile the conflict; the scarcity of resources; to develop theories; interaction; the satisfaction of the needs and wants of consumers; consumer goods; tangible commodities; a regulator, supervisor and promoter of economic activities; to be engaged in a complex web; to regard economic decision-making; without hurting the interests of others; given these constraints; to draw profit. Ex 2. Fill in the gap with the words and expressions from the text.
Ex 3. Find in the text the English equivalents for the following: распределение и потребление товаров и услуг; потребляться в момент производства; в исключительных обстоятельствах; подчеркивать роль общества; погасить конфликт; конкурирующие притязания на использование чего-либо; их взаимодействие составляет экономическую деятельность; представлять домашние хозяйства; факторы производства; выпуск продукции; быть ограниченным дефицитом ресурсов; использование ресурсов; учитывая эти ограничения…; достичь желаемых результатов. Ex 4. Match the term with the appropriate explanation. Economy, inputs, Economics, output, goods, factors of production, services
Ex 5. Answer the questions and do the assignments.
Ex 6. Find in the text the words and phrases that mean:
microeconomics, macroeconomics, household budget, positive economics, normative economics Text B What are Microeconomics and Macroeconomics? Economists talk about microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics deals with people, like you and me, and private businesses. It looks at the economic decisions people make every day. It examines how families manage their household budgets. Microeconomics also deals with companies - small or large – and how they run their business. Macroeconomics, on the other hand, looks at the economy of a country - and of the whole world. Any economist will tell you, though, that microeconomics and macroeconomics are closely related. All of our daily microeconomic decisions have an effect on the wider world around us. Another way to look at the science of economics is to ask, ‘what’s it good for?’ Economists don’t all agree on the answer to this question. Some practice positive economics. They study economic data and try to explain the behavior of the economy. They also try to guess economic changes before they happen. Others practice normative economics. They suggest how to improve the economy. Positive economists say, ‘this is how it is’. Normative economists say, ‘we should … ’ So what do economists do? Mainly, they do three things: collect data, create economic models and formulate theories. Data collection can include facts and figures about almost anything, from birth rates to coffee production. Economic models show relationships between these different data. For example, the relationship between the money people earn and unemployment. From this information, economists try to make theories which explain why the economy works the way it does. Vocabulary List
Notes
Ex 1.Suggest the Russian equivalents: to manage household budgets; to be closely related’ to have an effect on the wider world around us; to practice positive economics; to guess economic changes; to create economic models; why the economy works the way it does. Ex 2. Answer the questions.
Ex 3.Match the term with the appropriate explanation. Macroeconomics, budget, business, Microeconomics
Ex 4. Increase your vocabulary.
economics, economy, economic, economical, economists, economically, economize
Translate into English:
produce, producer, production, productive, productive, productivity
Translate into English:
Writing Task I. Write a Summary and a GIST of Text A. Task II. Fill in the table and comment on it.
Speaking Task I. Comment on the table (Writing, Task II) Task II. Prepare a talk on the subject of the Unit and present it in class. Task III. Act as an interpreter for Parts A, B.
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