Transcripts
6.2 a A My flight to Vancouver has been cancelled. Which flight can I take?
B I’m not sure. Could you wait a moment? I’ll just check with the airline.
b A I don’t have any water with my meal. B OK. I’ll get you a glass. Would you like still or sparkling?
c A My suitcase hasn’t come through. B I’m sorry, sir. There’s a problem with the baggage carousel at the moment. We’ll let you know when it’s fixed.
d A Excuse me, the self-service check-in machine isn’t working.
B I see. Please go to the check-in desk over there and they’ll help you.
6.3 A Oh, hello, Ben. I see you’re interested in running the new sports project. Tell me, why should we choose you?
B Oh, right. Well, three reasons actually. The first is that I’m experienced in this area. You know about my project management experience at Camdale Leisure Centre. I managed a project with local schools there. The result was that use of the leisure centre increased by 30%, and the schools were really happy, too. And that’s my second point. All the schools were different, and the students were, too. We had a small team, but we planned the project really carefully to meet individual needs. I think working well with other people is one of my strengths. We won an award for the best local project, too. The final point is that I know how to use the planning software here, and that will make the project much easier to manage. I can send you more details by email.
A That would be good. Thanks, Ben.
Slideshow – Will we ever live on Mars? From the very start of human civilization, people have looked up at the night sky and wondered: ‘What’s it like on the Moon?’. On 20th
July 1969, two men found out. Neil Armstrong and
Buzz Aldrin were the first men to walk on the Moon. Here’s Buzz Aldrin. You can see Neil Armstrong taking the picture, reflected in the glass of Buzz’s helmet. When the astronauts returned home, they were greeted as heroes. Here they are, parading down Broadway in New York. The crowds are going crazy! Landing on the Moon is one of humanity’s greatest achievements. But that was a long time ago. Now people are thinking about another destination. People have started to ask: ‘Will humans ever live on Mars?’. Why Mars, and not another planet? Well, there are lots of reasons. Firstly, the temperature. The average temperature on Mars is -63 degrees Celsius. Cold … but not too cold. Secondly, it’s not too big or too small. The diameter of Mars is about one half of the diameter of Earth. As a result, gravity on Mars is 38% of gravity on Earth. So, someone who weighs
100 kg on Earth weighs 38 kg on Mars. The human body could adapt to this difference. Next, Mars has an atmosphere to protect us from the Sun’s radiation. Finally, and most importantly, we now know that there is liquid water on Mars. How do we know all this? Well, since 12th
August 2012,
a rover called Curiosity has been exploring the surface of Mars. A ‘rover’ is a robot that drives across the surface of a planet. One of Curiosity’s main goals is to see whether humans will, one day, be able to live on Mars. Curiosity has found out lots of new, useful facts about the planet, and sent the information back to NASA. It has taken measurements of temperature and pressure. It’s looked for signs of water and microbial life. It has sampled soil and rocks. And it has sent thousands of amazing photographs back to Earth for us all to enjoy. Curiosity’s findings show that, with the right technology, humans could survive on Mars. But there are lots of problems to solve first. Human beings have four basic needs: shelter, air to breathe, food and drink. This is a drawing of a possible future Mars colony. It shows that people will live underground to protect themselves from the freezing temperatures and from the Sun’s radiation. Solar panels will generate electricity for heating. The air on Mars is poisonous, so people will live in special ‘life-support units’. And they’ll wear protective suits when they go outside. Special machines will take water from the soil. Oxygen from that water will be used to create a breathable atmosphere inside the life-support units. Machines will remove salt from the water and make it drinkable. Fruit and vegetables will grow in special greenhouses. Water will be very valuable, so every drop will be recycled and used many times. One of the most difficult problems is: How will we get there? Mars is more than 50 million kilometres away! Lots of different companies have drawn up detailed plans. Here’s a diagram by Buzz Aldrin Enterprises. Complicated, eh? Don’t worry if you find it hard to understand. We can’t all be rocket scientists! So … will humans ever live on Mars? Well, NASA seems to think we will. The rover Perseverance, which landed in 2021, is providing important information about how humans could survive there. But will anyone really want to live on Mars? It’s hard to know. In April 2013, a company called Mars One asked for volunteers to live in the first Mars colony. The volunteers would never come back to Earth. The company claimed more than 200,000 people applied – which sounds like a lot of very adventurous people! But Joseph Roche, one of the selected astronauts, claimed the real number was far lower – around 2,000. The company no longer exists, but even so, Roche maintains he would still go on a one-way trip to Mars if he got the opportunity.
English for the 21st
Century • Transcripts
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