Ползунова Англиыскиы язык для студентов 1-го курса неязыковыкх вузов 2014

БЛОК II

ГЕОГРАФИЧЕСКОЕ ПОЛОЖЕНИЕ И ЭКОНОМИКА

РАЗДЕЛ I. ГЕОГРАФИЧЕСКОЕ ПОЛОЖЕНИЕ

И ЭКОНОМИКА ВЕЛИКОБРИТАНИИ (THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND)

The United Kingdom is situated on the British Isles. The British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, with Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, and a great number of small islands. Their total area is over 244,000 sq km.

The British Isles are separated from the European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel. The western coast of Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea.

Northern Ireland occupies one third of the island of Ireland. It borders on the Irish Republic in the south.

The island of Great Britain consists of three main parts: England, Wales and Scotland.

There are no high mountains in Great Britain. Scotland is a mountainous country, especially in the north. There the main chain of mountains is called the Grampians. Its highest peak is Ben Nevis, which is 1,343 metres high. It is the highest peak in Britain.

The northern part of Scotland is often called the Highlands, and the southern part is called the Lowlands. In England, the Pennine Chain runs down from the north through the centre. In Wales there are the Cambrian Mountains, the highest peak of which is Snowdon.

The Cheviots (the Cheviot Hills) separate England from Scotland. There is very little flat country except in the region known as East

Anglia.

The British Isles have many rivers, but they are not very long. The longest of the English rivers is the Severn, which flows into the Irish Sea. The Thames flows through rich agricultural and industrial districts.

The capital of Great Britain London stands on it. Scotland‟s most important river is the Clyde, on which Glasgow stands. Many of the English and Scottish rivers are joined by canals, so that it is possible to travel by water from one end of Great Britain to the other.

England, Ireland and Scotland have many beautiful lakes. The most famous of them are in the Lake District in north-west England.

51

The climate of the British Isles is generally mild, not very cold in winter and never very hot in summer. All parts of the British Isles have a lot of rain in all seasons. In winter, thick fogs cover many parts of Britain. The British Isles are warmed by the Gulf Stream, the warm currents in the Atlantic Ocean.

The mild and damp climate is very good for agriculture, especially for vegetable-farming, sheep - and cattle-farming.

Great Britain is not very rich in mineral resources: it has some deposits of coal, and iron ore and vast deposits of oil and gas that were discovered in the North Sea.

Great Britain is a highly industrialized country. The main industrial centres are London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Glasgow and Bristol.

There are so-called „old‟ branches of industry, textile industry with the centres in Yorkshire and Lancashire and coal-mining, which appeared in the period of industrial revolution. Coal-mining industry is found in Wales, in the south of Scotland, and in the northern part of England. The district around Birmingham is known as the Black Country. It is a land of factories and mines.

Today in a new age of modern technology Britain has made important advances in such new industries as electronic and telecommunication equipment, in aircraft and aircraft engines, in plastics and synthetic materials, radio-isotopes and new drugs.

The population of the United Kingdom is over 60 mln people. The main nationalities are: the English, the Scottish, the Welsh and the Irish. In Great Britain there are a lot of immigrants from former British Asian and African colonies.

I. Names / Географические названия

the United Kingdom [ju:,naɪtɪd'kɪŋdəm] of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [,nɔ:ðən'aɪələnd] – Соединенное Королевство Великобритании и Северной Ирландии

the British Isles [aɪlz]– Британские острова

the Irish Republic ['aɪ(ə)rɪʃ rɪ'pʌblɪk] – Ирландская республика Europe ['juərəp] – Европа

the European continent [juərə'pi:ən 'kɔntɪnənt] – европейский кон-

тинент

52

Asia ['eɪʃə] – Азия

the Asian colony ['eɪʃ(ə)n 'kɔlənɪ] – азиатская колония Africa ['æfrɪkə] – Африка

the African colony ['æfrɪkən 'kɔlənɪ] – африканская колония the North Sea [nɔ:θ'si:] – Северное море

the Atlantic Ocean [ət'læntɪk 'əuʃn] – Атлантический океан the English Channel [ɪŋglɪʃ'ʧænl] – Ла-Манш

the Irish Sea ['aɪ(ə)rɪʃ si] – Ирландское море Wales [weɪlz] – Уэльс

Scotland ['skɔtlənd] – Шотландия

the Grampians ['græmpɪənz] – Грампианские горы

the Highlands ['haɪləndz] – Высокогорье (северная часть Шотландии) the Lowlands ['ləuləndz] – Низменность (южная часть Шотландии) the Pennine Chain ['penaɪn ʧeɪn] – Пенинские горы

the Cambrian Mountains ['kæmbrɪən 'mauntɪnz] – Кембрийские горы the Cheviots (the Cheviot Hills) ['ʧi:vɪəts] – Чевиот-Хиллс

Ben Nevis [ben'neɪvɪs] – Бен-Невис

Snowdon ['snəud(ə)n] - Сноудон the Severn ['sev(ə)n] – р. Северн the Clyde [klaɪd] – р. Клайд

the Thames [temz] – р. Темза

the Lake District [leɪk'dɪstrɪkt] – Озерный край the Gulf Stream ['gʌlf stri:m] - Гольфстрим

East Anglia [,i:st'æŋglɪə] – Восточная Англия

Birmingham ['bɜ:mɪŋəm] – г. Бирмингем

Manchester ['mænʧɪstə] – г. Манчестер

Liverpool ['lɪvəpu:l] – г. Глазго Yorkshire ['jɔ:kʃə] – Йоркшир Lancashire ['læŋkəʃɪə] – Ланкашир

the Black Country – «Черная страна» (каменноугольный и железообрабатывающий район)

the English - англичане the Scottish, - шотландцы the Welsh - валлийцы

the Irish – ирландцы

53

II. Words and word combinations to be remembered /

Слова и словосочетания для заучивания

III. Find in the text English equivalents for these word combinations / Найдите в тексте эквиваленты следующих словосочетаний

1)Соединѐнное Королевство Великобритании и Северной Ирландии;

2)и большого числа небольших островов;

54

3)одна треть острова Ирландия;

4)спускается с севера к центру;

5)отделяют Англию от Шотландии;

6)самая высокая вершина;

7)северная часть;

8)южная часть;

9)которая впадает в Ирландское море;

10)реки соединены каналами;

11)на северо-западе Англии;

12)которые были обнаружены;

13)на юге Шотландии;

14)в северной части Англии;

15)новые отрасли промышленности.

IV. Match the parts of the sentences using the following verbs /

Соотнесите части предложений, используя данные глаголы

55

e) to the north-west of the European Continent.

3. consist(s) of

4. is / are washed by

6.is / are called

1)The northern part of a) The Grampians.

56

chain

6)The highest peak in Great Britain

7)The highest peak in Wales

7.separate (s) … from …

8. there is / are

1)two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland.

2)three parts on the island of Great Britain.

3)no high mountains in Great Britain.

4)very little flat country.

5)a lot of rivers but they are not very long.

6)a net of canals connecting many of the English and Scottish riv-

ers.

7)a lot of immigrants from former British Asian and African colo-

nies.

V.Make up minidialogues according to the following patterns /

Составьте мини диалоги по данным образцам

1.Patterns:

Is Great Britain called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?

I am sure / I think it is.

Is the UK situated on the continent?

I‟m not sure. / I don‟t think it is. The UK is situ-

ated on the British Isles.

Prompts:

1) The area of Great Britain is 350,000 square kilometers.

57

2)The British Isles are separated from the Continent by the North Sea and the English Channel.

3)Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea in the east.

4)The population of the UK is over 60 mln people.

5)The main nationalities are the English, the Welsh, the Scottish and the Irish.

6)There are a lot of high mountains in the country.

7)The southern part of Scotland is called the Highlands.

8)The highest peak in the UK is Snowdon.

9)There is very little flat country.

10)The British rivers are not very long.

11)The climate is very cold in winter and very hot in summer.

12)There are a lot of immigrants from former British Asian and African colonies.

2.Patterns:

Do the British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland?

Yes, they do. I fully agree with you. / You are quite (absolutely) right.

Does Northern Ireland occupy a half of the island of Ireland?

No, it doesn‟t. I can‟t agree with you. / I disagree with you. / I think you‟re wrong about that.

Prompts:

1)The UK borders on the Irish Republic in the south.

2)The country consists of four parts: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

3)The Cheviot Hills separate England from Wales.

4)The Irish Sea separates the British Isles from the Continent.

5)The river Severn flows into the Irish Sea.

58

6)London stands on the river Clyde.

7)A lot of immigrants live in Great Britain.

3.Patterns:

What is the official name of the country?

It seems to me that it is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

How many islands do the British Isles consist of?

In my opinion / to my mind they consist of two large islands and a great number of small islands.

Prompts:

1)The UK is situated on the British Isles.

2)Its total area is over 244,000 square kilometers.

3)The British Isles are washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea in the west and the North Sea in the east.

4)The British Isles are separated from the Continent by the English Channel.

5)The capital of the UK is London.

6)It stands on the river Thames.

7)The UK consists of four main parts.

8)Scotland is a mountainous country.

9)The main mountain chains are the Grampians, the Pennines, and the Cambrians.

10)The most famous British lakes are in the Lake District in north-west England.

11)The climate of Great Britain is mild and damp.

12)The British Isles are warmed by the warm currents in the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf Stream.

4.Pattern:

Is the UK situated on the continent or on the islands?

As for me, I think / If you ask me, I think the

UK is situated on the islands.

59

Prompts:

1)The Island of Great Britain consists of three / four main parts.

2)The main chain of mountains in England is called the Grampians / the Pennines.

3)The highest peak of the UK is Ben Nevis / Snowdon.

4)Scotland‟s most important river is the Severn / the Clyde.

5)The Gulf Stream is the warm currents in the Pacific / Atlantic Ocean.

6)The population of Great Britain is over 85 / 60 mln people.

5.Patterns:

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the official name of Great

Britain, isn‟t it?

Yes, it is. / Sure. / Right. / Absolutely.

The UK borders on Russia, doesn‟t it?

No, it doesn‟t. I can‟t agree with you. / I disagree with you. / I think you‟re wrong about that.

Prompts:

1)The British Isles consist of two large islands and a great number of small islands.

2)The British Isles are separated from the Continent by the Irish Sea.

3)Wales is a mountainous country.

4)The Pennine Chain runs through the center of England.

5)The British rivers are very long.

6)The longest of the English rivers is the Severn.

7)London stands on the river Clyde.

8)The British Isles are warmed by the Gulf Stream.

60