Practical Tasks

Task 1. Subfolder GRAMMAR (in Folder Unit 13) contains 25 audio and video files reflecting grammatical features of the broadcast media discourse.

Analyse files No 1-8, 24, 25 in the subfolder GRAMMAR and define what grammatical feature each file reflects. Put them down to discuss in class. Be sure to write down only a sentence fragment (not the whole transcript) containing the grammatical phenomenon in question.

Task 2. Study the following word list.

recession	retails
economic recovery	construction industry
the third quarter of the year (Q III)	data
public sector	to revise something down
public sector borrowing	output (industrial)
the Office for National Statistics (ONS)	the long-term average
the City	GDP
the retail sector	production sector

Read the newspaper article extract. What genre is the piece? Prove your point.

Get ready to translate the material in class.

UK’s official economic growth estimates revised down

Britain’s economy grew less rapidly than thought over the past nine months,

raising fears over the strength of the UK’s recovery from recession

Graeme Wearden

The Office for National Statistics revised down its previous estimate for GDP growth between July and September to 0.7 %, from 0.8 %. It also cut its estimate for annual growth in the UK economy during the quarter to 2.7 %, from 2.8 %, which remains above the long-term average.

But with Britain’s public sector borrowing hitting a record high yesterday, today's revisions did disappoint some in the City – sending the pound down to a three-month low of $1.5426 against the dollar.

The ONS said the construction, services and production sectors had all shown slower growth than originally thought in the third quarter of 2010. It also revised down the output of business services and finance companies.

Today’s data showed that imports grew faster than exports in the last quarter, dealing a blow to hopes that Britain was exporting its way to recovery.

Economists warned that economic growth will continue to slow in the current quarter, especially given the disruption caused by the recent bad weather.

Philip Shaw of Investec agreed that GDP growth has softened in the last three months, but added that GDP growth for 2010 will still exceed most expectations at the start of the year.

The Guardian, December 22, 2010

Task 3. Watch Video 34 and get its major idea.

Task 4. Watch the video again and transribe it.

Task 5. Draw up a list of verbs defining the current state of the UK economy. Recollect what the term double-dip recession mean.

Task 6. Identify an idiom in Video 34. Say whether there any clichés in the material. What grammatical construction does the last sentence of the brief contain?

Task 7. Study the word list in the box and listen to the leadof Audio Track 12.

rating Credit Rating Agency

national income recovery

global economic environment to boost

outstanding (as an economic term) rate of growth

What new information does the lead contain as compared with Video 34?

Task 8. Listen to the lead again. Unravel its ‘5W and H’ pattern.

Task 9. Listen to the rest of Audio Track 12. What is the context in which the following terms are used? Translate them into Russian. What do the realia in the box above mean?

a) a … double-dip recession;

b) … strong growth;

c) that … was boosted;

d) The … rate of growth;

e) the … 1-3… “Standard and Poor’s”;

f) … “A rating”;

g) uncertain …1… economic …2…;

h) …1-2… equipment;

i) the …;

j) outstanding 200 …;

k) healthy … of …;

l) so … income is still a long way.

Task 10. Which of the sentences and word combinations in Task 9 are emotionally charged? Put forward your arguments. By what means is the emotion conveyed?

Can you identify any clichés in the piece?

Task 11. Find phrasal verbs in Audio Track 12 and close the gaps:

a) to …….. back; b) to ……… off.

In what context are the verbs used in the report? Are they colloquial or neutral?

Task 12. What can you say about the stylistic features of the report in general? What adjectives are used in the piece? Make a list of them.

Task 13. Study the italicised terms in the newspaper article fragment below. Read the material, determine its genre.

Austerity won’t trigger double-dip recession, economists say

Graeme Wearden

George Osborne’s programme of spending cuts and tax rises will not push Britain into a double-dip recession, according to a poll of the UK’s top economists published today.

The Financial Times (FT) surveyed 78 economists from across academia and the business world, and found that only one firmly believes the British economy will contract during 2011. The findings will be seen a boost to the government, as it faces criticism for raising VAT (value added tax) to 20 % today.

However, many of those surveyed remained pessimistic about the state of the British and world economies, with inflation rising strongly at home and the sovereign debt crisis bubbling away overseas.

The FT survey found that most leading economists believe Osborne’s deficit-reduction programme will slow growth this year, but that the economy will continue to expand at a modest pace.

However, several of those surveyed did caution that a double-dip recession remained a possibility, as the government implements a wide-ranging fiscal tightening while the global economic crisis is still being played out.

Raising VAT from 17.5 % to 20 % will, the chancellor believes, raise around £13bn to help reduce Britain’s borrowings. The deficit for the current financial year is expected to hit £155bn.

Retailers have warned that the increased tax will hurt them badly.

After growing strongly earlier in 2010, the UK economy probably slowed in the last three months of last year – a trend expected to continue in 2011.

The Сhancellor may be forced to rethink his deficit-reduction plans if the economy falters. Osborne’s austerity cutbacks were cited by 34 economists as one of the top three risks to the UK economy in 2011. The top threat was the European sovereign debt crisis, amid ongoing concern over Portugal and Spain’s ability to cover their borrowings. Experts believe this will be a “make or break” year for the euro, with some predicting that the single currency will not survive the next decade.

High inflation was also a major concern, with the Consumer Prices Index expected to hit 4 % in the next few months. Nearly half of the economists suggested that the Bank of England was losing credibility, having missed its inflation target throughout 2010.

The Guardian, January 4, 2011

Task 14. Analyse the syntactical structure of the article headline. Compare it with the headline in Task 2.

Task 15. Below goes a list of special terms. Comment on their lexical structure, translate them into Russian.

1) deficit-reduction programme; 2) sovereign debt crisis; 3) tripple A rating; 4) Credit Rating Agency; 5) underlying rate of growth; 6) uncertain global economic environment; 7) Consumer Prices Index.

Task 16. Make lexical and syntactical analysis of the following fragment.

“… Those surveyed remained pessimistic about the state of the British and world economies, with inflation rising strongly at home and the sovereign debt crisis bubbling away overseas”.

Task 17. Listen to Audio Track 1 3. What is its idea?

Task 18. Listen to the track again and find English equivalents of the following Russian terms.

общее количество безработных	искать работу
пособие	занятость
численность безработных	экономический спад
рынок труда	центр занятости
статистические данные	число вакансий возросло
самый высокий уровень (безработицы)	уровень инфляции
трудоспособный возраст	доходы
экономически неактивный безработный	получать пособие по безработице

Task 19. Put the numbers in the box into the context of the report.

2,5m 3rd month 9,25 49,000

1992 16 to 24s 1m 1 in 4

Task 20. Listen to Audio Track 13 again and answer the questions.

1. What are the verbs and nouns used by the journalist to denote movement in the upward / downward direction?

2. Find all the clichés in the track and correlate them with their Russian equivalents.

3. Are there any colloquial words in the piece? If so, what are they?

4. Name all the realia in the piece.

5. Why is the report permeated with phrasal verbs? Identify them all and comment on their use.

6. What grammatical constructions did you come across in the report?

Task 21. Translate the following sentence into Russian, paying attention to the italicised words and word combinations.

“As the economy struggles to recover from the recession, the difficulties facing anyone looking for a job have been underlined by the latest unemployment figures.”

Task 22. Watch Videos 35.1 – 35.4. What genre are they? What news is it – soft or hard?

Be prepared to make lexical and grammatical analysis of the briefs.

Task 23. Study the terms in the box below,watch Video 35.1 again and fill in blanks in the script.

(bank) bail out quarterly results bond auctions

oil leak strength of the dollar zone debt

peripheral eurozone country

Task 24. Translate the brief in writing at home. Are there any clichés in the clip?

A. …(clip title)...

European …1… finished lower as concerns over the …2… …3… …4… dampened investors’ appetite for risk, ahead of a flurry government …5… …6… this week. They are also cautious while waiting to see white kind of …7… are revealed as US companies start reporting their …8-9…

Banks were the biggest losers due to their exposure to …10… …11… in …12… …13… countries.

Miners also lost ground as …14… prices were pressured by …15… …16… …17…. Speculation that Portugal may be the next eurozone member to need a …18… …19-20…, knocked the euro to a …21-23… against the dollar. It has …24-25… now but at one stage slipped to one dollar 28.60.

…26… is …27… after the trans Alaska …28… was shut because of a …29…

Task 25. Watch Video 35.2 and fill in the blanks in its script with special terms and grammatical constructions typical of TV discourse. Identify a cliché in the piece.

What is one off? What style of discourse is this lexical unit typical of?

I. (clip title)……: ……..

Airbus has won the world’s biggest ever …1… …2… …3… – 180 …4… for Indian …5… …6… …7… Indigo.

Most are of …8… …9… version of Airbus ’ …10… …11… A320, and the first …12-13… be …14… in four …15… time.

This gives Airbus a big …16… in its annual battle with its US …17… Boeing for …18… …19…. …20… in its …21… company EADS …22… …23… on news of the 12 bln euro …24…

II. (clip title)…: …

Not even …1… of Royal wedding …2… …3… help British …4… in November – the …5… …6… …7… rose to a …8… …9… during the month – a development that will raise further concerns about …10… …11… …12… …13… in the UK.

The …14… …15… was, though, mostly …16… …17… …18… of …19… and …20…, and analysts say that was probably a …21-22… event. …23… …24… also a sharp …25… in …26… …27…

III. (clip title)…: …

The price of …1… …2… …3… has been above …4… dollars a …5… for the first time in …6… months.

That comes amid …7… …8… …9… and growing …10… …11….

A …12… …13… forced two Norwegian …14… …15… to close …16…

And over the weekend the …17… …18… …19… had to be shut because of a …20…, though it has since resumed …21… …22…

Task 26. Render the briefs in Video 35.2 into Russian (in class).

Task 27. Watch Video 35.3 and fill in the gaps with clichés, names and terms. Translate the brief in writing (at home).

(clip title)… …

The …1-2… says there are no discussions currently …3… …4… on an …5… …6… …7… …8… …9… of …10…. The …11… was responding to media reports of pressure from …12…, …13… and other countries for Portugal to ask for …14… …15… …16… …17… …18-21…. The …22-23… Angela Merkel also denied that her country was …24-26…

Task 28. Watch Video 35.4 and make its transcript. Name all the terms in the brief. What service industry do they relate to?

Task 29. Get prepared to write a lexical quiz on the terms you learned in Videos 35.1 – 35.4.

Task 30. Analyse files No 9-15 in the subfolder GRAMMAR. Write down grammatical features in question to discuss them in class.

Task 31. Read the following newspaper extract, and say what economic problems Ireland faces. What new economic terms and grammatical constructions does the piece contain?

Ireland’s economic outlook worsens

Ireland’s economic outlook worsened on Monday as the country’s central bank

cut its growth forecast for this year, with gross domestic product now set

to increase 0.2 per cent against previous forecasts of 0.8 per cent

John Murray Brown

Publishing its revised forecasts, the central bank said the recovery was unbalanced, because it was driven mainly by exports, as domestic demand continued to stall. It added “the continuing weakness of investment remains a considerable drag on growth.” Ireland’s economic woes will be further underlined with exchequer returns for the third quarter published later on Monday which are set to confirm a further deterioration in the fiscal deficit.

After announcing further bank bail-outs last week, the government said the deficit would hit 32 per cent of national income this year or 10 times the Maastricht1 fiscal guidelines for eurozone members. But stripping out the bank rescue costs, which officials say do not affect Ireland’s borrowing requirement this year as they have already been paid for using 10 year promissory notes, the underlying fiscal deficit forecast has been revised to 11.9 per cent this year, as against 11.6 per cent forecast at the time of last year’s budget.

The FT, October 3, 2010

Task 32. Watch Video 36 to get its idea.What genre is the piece?

Task 33. Watch the clip again for information. Fill in the gaps.

A. Nigel Farage says that:

a) the euro is …;

b) the euro was not launched for the …, it was launched for …;

c) it was obvious that the countries such as … would never fit requirements to enter the eurozone;

d) the people that support the euro are the people that want …;

e) the Spanish economy and its debt …;

f) these countries like … are trapped inside …

B. Ken Clarke states that:

a) the British commentators have been forecasting the death of euro about …;

b) this crisis is not caused by the euro …;

c) Irish should have been all right if they …;

d) Ireland really followed the path of …;

e) the debt is bigger than …;

f) if the Greeks and the Irish should not been in the euro…

Task 34. Analyse grammatical and lexical features of the fragments below. What conclusions do you come to?

1. It was always gonna be doomed.

2. It was pretty obvious then that…

3. …there were countries that would never ever going to fit into that euro mold.

4. And there are some on this panel…

5. Thank goodness, we didn’t join the euro.

6. But I’m afraid what has happened in Ireland…

7. And frankly, thank goodness for that…

8. If they should not been in the euro, they’d be both belly up now.

9. Indeed, it’s quite obvious, there’s a great political commitment to it.

10. It bust Northern Rock in the United Kingdom, we were in sterling, and it’s bust all three Irish banks and the government rather rashly guaranteed the deposits of these three banks and the debts of these banks.

Task 35. Which of the two (N. Farage or K. Clarke) sounds more emotional? Why? Put forward your arguments.

Task 36. Sum up the information in Video 36. Jot it down in five sentences. Read them out in class to be interpreted by your group mates.

Task 37. Watch Video 37 lead. What is the idea of the report you are going to watch. What do expressions negative equity and austerity measures mean?

Task 38. Transcribe Video 37 lead.

Task 39. Study the following word list.

to dwarf mortgage to brace oneself (for)

idle cranes social welfare to be trapped

betrayal nutritious scar / to be scarred

to jump on the bandwagon household

Task 40. Watch Video 37 in full.

What are the major sections that the report falls into? Compress each section into a sentence. Put them down into the following slots

a) …

b) …

c) …

d) …

?) …

Task 41. Watch the report, fill in the gaps and make lexical analysis of the sentences below. Identify colloquial phrasal verbs in the material for analysis.

1. It doesn’t …1-2… but this was once George Osborn’s …3… …4… of how to cut your …5-6… to prosperity.

2. The …1… of his spending review …2… by the …3… …4… to public services here since 2008.

3. The problem is that the …1-3… in Ireland was …2…, and now a …3-5… …6… like the …7… on Dublin’s …8…

4. …1-2… on theses …3… streets once hit half a million, now there’s …3… poverty …4-5… doors.

5. Now …1… to …2-3… …4-5…, the couple …6-8… for the next round of …9…

6. The …1-3… is even …4… in one of Dublin’s most …5… areas. The …6… brought …7…but the new homes and …8…are …9… by near derelict blocks.

7. They …1-4… but with money …5-6…, there are people still living here.

8. The …1… is …2… too – building sites …3… in the city, and homes lying …4… and …5… in the countryside.

9. The property …1… …2… the good times here.

10. Then banks …1-2…, and many builders simply …3-4… money to finish …5… like this one.

11. And now Ireland’s countryside is …1… with …2… estates – …3… to a boom built on a …4… of foundations.

12. …1… bankers, like London’s …2… much …3-5…

13. …1-2… the British, the Irish haven’t had the option of …3… more cash …4-6…

14. But some believe Ireland …1-2… any hope of an …3… by cutting too deeply at the bottom …4-7…

15. This time it’s Labour …1-4… and warning us of a similar …5…

Task 42. What stylistic device prevails in the sentences above? Why? Translate the sentences into Russian.

Task 43. Listen to the interviews in Video 37. People are talking with the Irish accent. Can you describe some of its phonetic features?

Task 44. What lexical units prevail in the interviews below? Fill in the gaps to answer the question.

A) Helena Hasler:

“At the height of …1… we were in over …2…. You know, we were …3… We were idiots, we never thought it would end. And we have …4…. We are struggling and we have to …5-7…”

B) Ferus Finlay:

“There are …1… where when the cupboard is …2… in the morning, there is nothing inside, when the fridge is opened in the morning, there is no milk. So, yes, we get …3… coming to the …4… to start their education, and the first thing we have to do is to make sure they get a …5… …6… breakfast.”

C) Colm Cacarthy:

“If people look around and say they’ve …1…, and the economists say they are …2-3…, that rather assumes that there was an option to not bother doing anything …4-5… and then everything will be fine. There is no such option.”

Task 45. Listen to interviews below and:

a) fill in the gaps in the second interview;

b) make corrections in the scripts of both interviews (the phrases in question are italicized).

A) Ben Hasler:

“They’re constantly putting money into the banks which got us into this situation, eventually. They are throwing money around. There are poor people who can’t afford to pay their mortgage, can’t pay electricity or gas bills and that’s it. They are not getting any aid, that is making harder for them to get money. And it seems it would never end. ”

B) Belinda Pryce:

“Constant delays. We were supposed to get out of here …1… three years ago. We’re still here. I have a daughter who lives over here. She is told she won’t be out of here for five years. She …2-3… small children, she’s living in a …4-5… where there’s scattered people in, and emptiness, and a lot of …6… at night. Youngsters going around, …7… things like the apartments, setting them on fire – doing …8… vandalism. And with three young children it’s hard.”

Task 46. Analyse files No 16-23 in the subfolder GRAMMAR. Write down grammatical features in question to discuss them in class.

Task 47. Watch Video 38 and say how ATM is called colloquially.

Task 48. Revise all new words of the Unit (Tasks 2, 7, 17, 15, 23, 39), words and word combinations below and get ready for a lexical quiz.

1) spending cuts; 2) tax rises; 3) to contract; 4) to expand; 5) sovereign debt crisis; 6) to bubble away; 7) a property bubble; 8) deficit-reduction programme; 9) child benefit; 10) deprived areas; 11) at a modest pace; 12) borrowings; 13) the current financial year; 14) retailers; 15) the single currency; 16) inflation target (target figures); 17) people in work; 18) a drop in numbers; 19) a property boom; 20) the number (of job seekers) is down; 21) a sharp rise in exports; 22) pipeline; 23) to calm (fears); 24) a wage-price spiral; 25) an economic outlook: 26) to claim benefit; 27) rival; 28) to drop out (of the labour market); 29) sales; 30) VAT; 31) to deliver (goods); 32) trade deficit is record high; 33) to be under way; 34) to apply pressure; 35) weakness of investment; 36) trade surplus; 37) the exchange rate mechanism; 38) a bail out; 39) common sence; 40) at this point money ran out; 41) the Spanish debt is seven times that of Ireland; 42) domestic demand has stalled; 43) to get on one’s feet; 44) to put food on the table; 45) to brace oneself for…; 46) to take the blame for something; 47) strength of the dollar; 48) The figures are set to confirm a further deterioration in the fiscal deficit; 49) the economy has picked up; 50) peripheral eurozone countries; 51) Hang on!

Task 49. Group the words and word combinations above into standard and expressive lexical means of the broadcast media discourse. Classify each group further into subgroups (neutral words, bookish words, special terms, etc.).

Unit 14

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