BUILDING SKILLS FOR THE TOEFL Ibt

BUILDING SKILLS FOR THE TOEFL iBT - Transcripts (Listening - Speaking - Writing Section)

Beginning READING Building Skills for the TOEFL ® iBT TRANSCRIPTS Listening Section / Speaking Section / Writing Section Listening 638 Transcripts C hapter 1 Skill A 01 Campus Life M: I’m worried about my girlfriend. W: Why is that? M: She thinks she’s too fat. W: Is she? M: No, but she keeps skipping meals. Then, she only eats chips and drinks cola. W: I used to do that. It’s called binging. It was no fun! M: Why did you stop doing it? W: Well, my doctor told me to eat when I’m hungry. She said, “Eat till you’re full or you’ll eat too much later.” She said a lot of girls ruin their health this way. M: Did she say what to eat? W: She said, “Eat fruit, vegetables, meats, and grains. Have regular meals and snacks. Get exercise, too.” 02Music History M: We know that Ludwig van Beethoven was born in 1770 in Bonn, Germany, but we are uncertain of the month. Beethoven wrote hundreds of songs. One of his most famous is his Fifth Symphony. The first four notes go like this: dah dah dah da! Almost everyone recognizes them. He was the first to use trombones in a symphony. At age 28, he began to go deaf. Yet, he kept on writing and conducting. He never got married. But after he died, friends found some love letters. We don’t know who he wrote them to. Beethoven died in 1827. 03 Biology W: OK .let’s talk about animals we don’t see in the winter. Many animals hibernate during the cold months of the year. Basically, they go to sleep. Some animals hibernate in holes in the ground. Others sleep in caves, under bushes, or at the base of trees. Bears hibernate. So do cold-blooded animals, like frogs and snakes. When animals are hibernating, it seems like they’re dead. They have slow heartbeats, and they almost stop breathing. They have stored extra energy and fat to keep them alive. By the end of winter, they are very weak. They must eat soon after waking up. 04 Campus Life M: Hey Julie, what’s up? W: Hi, Brian. Taking a break from studying. I’m surfing the Internet for an MP3 player. M: Do you like the iPod? W: Yes, but I need a really small one. M: Oh, it’s small! W: Really? Someone told me it holds 5,000 songs! M: It’s 3.6 inches tall and two inches wide. I have one. W: What’s that in centimeters? M: The math textbook says one inch is 2.54 centimeters. W: OK, so first I need to multiply 3.6 by 2.54. M: Here! Use my calculator. W: Thanks! OK . it’s 9.1 centimeters tall and 5 centimeters wide. Just what I need! 05 Anthropology W: Track and Field events happened long before they became a sport. The San people in Africa are one example. They still hold what’s called a “Persistence” hunt. The men find the tracks of an antelope herd. They find the antelope and follow them for several days and nights. During this time, they study the animals and choose one. Then, the hunt begins. Only the fastest runner will go after the chosen animal. He and the animal may run for as long as eight hours. If the hunter “persists,” the deer will finally get tired and fall. Then, he’ll slaughter it. 06Business Writing W: When you’re writing a business letter, it’s important to be specific. That is, tell the reader exactly what he or she needs to know. If something is wrong, list what the problem is and what should be done to fix it. If you need information, state clearly what you want to know. Next, um, be positive. Say “no” in a good way. M: How can we do that? W: Use polite language. For example, “we regret to inform you that .” or “we’re sorry, but .” Always keep in mind this golden rule: write the kind of business letter that YOU would like to receive. 07 Campus Life M: Come on Holly, we’re going to be late. W: For what? M: Today’s the day of the parking-space lottery. I want to see if I get a parking space for next year. W: What?! You mean if they choose your number, you get a place to park your car? M: Yes. Parking is very limited. Only a few students can bring their cars. And freshmen are never allowed to park on campus. W: If your number is chosen, do you get to park for free? M: No. It costs $120 a year. W: So, you’re hoping to win the privilege of paying money? M: Yes. Now, come on! 08 English W: Professor Smith, I forget many English words. What’s a good technique to remember them? M: Try using index cards. Uh, small pieces of heavy paper. W: What do I do? M: On the front of the card, write the new word. On the back, write a definition of the word at the top .in English. W: In English? M: Yes. No native language! Then, divide the bottom part of the back into two halves. On the left, write a correct English sentence using the word. On the right, draw some kind of picture .anything that helps you remember the word. W: Then what? M: Review the cards every day. Note: Highlighting indicates a repeated listening sample. Transcripts 639 Skill B 01 Geography W: Another name for the South Pole is Antarctica. This is a continent, but no people live there. There’s a good reason for this. It’s the coldest, windiest place on Earth. The lowest temperature ever measured was in Antarctica. Minus 88 degrees celsius! Ninety-eight percent of the ground is permanently frozen, and the continent contains 87 percent of the world’s ice. Antarctica’s only human occupants are scientists. They go there to learn how Antarctica used to be millions of years ago, when it was located at the equator. Antarctica used to be connected to Australia, before all the continents on the planet shifted. 02 Campus Life W: Hey Joe, where are you going? Are you on your way to class? M: No. I’m on my way to the recreation center to play basketball. Want to come? W: I can’t. I’m not a member. M: If you’re a full-time student, membership is included in your tuition. Do you have your student ID card? W: Yeah. Does that mean I can use any part of the rec center? M: Yes. You can use the swimming pool, the gym, the weight room .anything you want. All you need to do is show your ID card at the door. W: Hey, cool. I’ll come with you. 03 Literature M: If a play makes you laugh, it’s a comedy. Comedies have humorous characters and happy endings. A good example of a comedy is Shakespeare’s classic Much Ado About Nothing. Another popular style is called tragedy. Tragedies usually tell how a hero ruins his life, falling from good fortune to bad fortune because of a “tragic flaw” in character. One example is the play Ghosts, by Henrik Ibsen. Um, modern years have produced a third style, called tragicomedy. In tragicomedies, the play seems as though it will end in tragedy but instead has a humorous or unclear ending. An example is Saint Joan, by George Bernard Shaw. 04 Physics W: It’s a beautiful blue sky today. Ever wonder why it’s blue? It’s because the sun’s rays scatter, or spread out, as they enter the Earth’s atmosphere. Blue rays are scattered most; they seem to be all over the sky. Yellow rays are scattered less. This is why the sun looks yellow most of the time. But, after sunrise and just before sunset, the sun looks red. Why? Because then the rays must travel a longer path into the atmosphere. More of the blue and yellow rays are scattered. The red rays are scattered the least. So, they come through in the largest numbers. 05 Campus Life M: Hi, Ms. Jansen. Can we keep Romeo and Juliet in our dorm room? W: What on Earth .! M: They’re our pet hermit crabs! W: Oh, poor crabs! Don’t you think they’d be happier on the beach? M: Well, at the store they were squished into a little box. We thought they’d be happier with us. We let them out when we’re home. We give them baths too! W: I see. Do you know what to feed them? M: There’s free Internet information --- The Hermit Crab Association. They help crabs in captivity. And we will take them back to a beach someday. 06 University 101 M: As we study in university, we find we have a lot of reading. It’s very productive to learn how to read faster. To do this, you need to know how fast you read now. I’ll show you a quick test to find out. But before I do, let me say this. In this test, it’s important to understand what you have read. Rushing to beat the clock is pointless. You won’t enjoy the reading or understand it well. You’ll also get a false measure of your reading speed. When you finish, you should try to see what you remember. 07 Health W: We all know that we can get Vitamin D from sunshine. Long winters make it hard to get enough. People who don’t get outside often don’t get enough either. Without Vitamin D, we may develop weak bones and teeth. We can get certain kinds of cancer more easily, too. Few foods other than fish naturally have much Vitamin D, so it’s important to get some sunshine every day. But be careful. Too much can cause skin cancer. Notice what most animals that live outside all the time do. They are most active during the hours before sunrise and after sunset. 08 Campus Life W: Ha ha! Hey Trevor, check this out! M: I’m trying to study here! W: Oh, sorry. But this is really funny. M: What is? W: This article about strange inventions. M: Like what? W: Well, one guy invented a ladder for spiders. It’s a rubber strip you can put on the side of your bathtub. M: Ha! Yeah? What else? W: A portable seat. You carry it around your waist like a big cushion. M: Ha! That’s really stupid. W: Here’s the best one: A car license plate that tells if the driver’s a man or a woman. M: I like that one. Then I could stay away from women drivers. W: Yeah . Hey! Skill C 01 Campus Life M: I’m interested in your course on Indian culture. Can you tell me about it, please? W: Certainly. The course is eight weeks long. There will be a mid-term examination, a final exam, and two essays. M: How do you determine the grades? W: The final will account for 30 percent of your mark. The mid-term is 15 percent, the first essay is 10 percent, and the second essay is 30 percent. M: Let’s see. 30, 15, 10, 30 .that’s only 85 percent. W: The other 15 percent is based on your attendance and participation in the class. M: It sounds interesting. I think I’ll take it. 640 Transcripts 02 English W: One of the most effective ways to increase your vocabulary is through newspapers. They are cheap, and they have a wide variety of words. When you read an English newspaper, make a list of eight to ten words you don’t know. Look them up in a dictionary. Then add them to your vocabulary notebook. If you learn eight new words each day, you will be learning new words faster than the average American. M: Professor? W: Yes? M: How can we remember the words after we write them? W: Spend 15 minutes each day reviewing words from the previous day. You’ll be surprised how fast you learn. 03 Campus Life W: I really like art! Especially paintings. M: Really? Do you have a favorite one? W: Yes, Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci. M: What do you like about it? W: Her smile. If you look closely, it seems she’s not smiling at all. Look again, she’s smiling! So many artists try to copy that smile. M: It must be hard to paint something so beautiful. W: Did you ever notice that she doesn’t have any eyebrows? M: Really? No! I never noticed. I wonder why? W: Girls in that time shaved their eyebrows. I just read it in our art history textbook. M: Hey! That’s cool. Nowadays, she’d have an eyebrow ring! 04 Anthropology M: In North America, the best weavers are a group of people called the Pueblo --- that’s P-U-E-B-L-O. The Pueblo have been weaving clothes, baskets, and blankets since at least 1000 BC. At first, they used their fingers to weave together vegetable fibers and animal hair. In the first century AD, they began growing cotton. About this time, they also started using a loom --- a kind of, um, machine that helped them weave the cotton into cloth more quickly and easily. By the year 1600, the Pueblos had sheep, so they began weaving wool, using the same methods they had used for weaving cotton. 05 Campus Life M: Have you heard about Mexican turtles disappearing? W 1 : Yes. It’s because they lay their eggs on the beach, right? M: Yeah, and people eat the eggs. But my professor said there’s a plan to save them. W 1 : What is it? M: I don’t know, but he gave us a phone number. W 1 : Let’s call! M: OK, here goes . W 2 : Hello, Environmental Protection Hotline. How may I help you? M: I’d like to find out about the program to save Mexican turtles. W 2 : Yes, of course. I can send you something to read or you can look at our website, www.enviro.com. M: Thanks! I’ll look at the website. W 2 : Thanks for calling! 06 Physics W: And now, the winner of this year’s science fair, Choi Min-Soo! Min-Soo, tell everyone about your work. M: Thank you! Let me tell you about my “white noise” machine. Does noise ever annoy you or keep you awake? Well, we can lessen noise by using “white noise.” Think of water. Think of sending one big wave toward another coming in. My machine does that with sound. It can tell how much noise is coming in, then send back “white noise.” You don’t hear it, but it shuts out the noise! I hope that my machine will help those who need quiet. Thank you! 07 Health M: Acupuncture is a way of treating sick people. The Chinese developed it over 2,500 years ago, and it is still used today. In acupuncture, small metal needles are inserted into spots on the human body. There are 787 of these spots. Each one is connected to a special body part or system. If, um, your ear hurts, for example, the doctor will put needles into all the spots connected with your ear. The needles don’t hurt because they don’t go in very far. Sometimes the doctor runs an electric current through the needles. We don’t understand exactly why this helps people. 08 Math W: Geometry is the study of points. Now, a point is a small dot, like a period at the end of a sentence. If we have two points, we know that there can be other points between them. There can also be a line. The line is continuous. It has no space between each point. Part of a line, with points at each end, is called a line segment. Two line segments can be the same length. We call these line segments congruent. That just means the line segments are equal in length. Chapter 1 S kill R eview A-C 01 Campus Life W: What should I do to prepare for my exams? I have some old exams from last year. Do you think it’s a good way to study? M: Yes, it can help. Being familiar with the way the test is made up is beneficial. You may be less anxious at exam time. First, quickly look over all the material you’ve studied. Then decide which things you need the most work on. Then use questions from the exams to practice. W: Great! I should just memorize all the answers! M: No, I don’t think that’s a good idea. Questions on the new exam will probably be different. You need a strong understanding of the material. Memorizing won’t replace a thorough knowledge of the subject. W: I guess that’s probably true. So, what else can I do? M: Make sure you go to all the review sessions. Go to your professor’s office hours too. W: I always do that. I really like my professor. M: Good! In the exam, be sure to read the directions carefully. They may be different from the practice exams. Also, make sure you get to the exam in plenty of time. Get comfortable before it begins. W: OK! Thanks for your help. Transcripts 641 02 Physical Science W: Some people once thought that only four things made up the Earth: earth, water, air, and fire. Earth, water, and air are all forms of matter, but fire is really different. It may seem the same in that you can see it, feel it, and smell it. You can even move it from place to place, but it really isn’t matter at all. It’s an activity. It is matter changing form. Of course, fire has to have something to burn. We call this fuel. Fire also has to have air so that it can burn. Usually, when we build a fire, we first put down easily flammable material like newspaper or dry leaves. Then, we carefully place pieces of wood over it, leaving room for air. Since fire doesn’t start by itself, we need a spark or heat source to start it. Matches, lighters, even magnifying glasses can be used. That’s a glass piece, specially made for seeing small things. We can make sun shine through it to form a very hot spot of light. Wood has to reach about 150 degrees Celsius. Then, something in the wood changes. Part of the wood turns into gas. We see this gas as smoke. The parts of the wood that don’t burn change to ash. This is the soft, white powder left after a fire. A third part of the wood becomes carbon, or char. This char, or charcoal, burns slowly and hotly without smoke. This gives us enough time to cook food. Skill D 01 Campus Life M: Hey, Rita, what are you looking at? W: I’m looking at a Nova Scotia College of Art catalog. I’m going to transfer there. They have a great lithography program. M: Oh, yeah? So you’ll have to send them your transcript. W: I guess so. What exactly is on my transcript? M: Well, basically all your courses and grades. W: How do I get it? M: At the transcript office. It’s $8. It takes the secretary three or four days to do it for you. W: Great! I can do this soon. I really want to learn to do lithos! 02 Communications W: Do you say what you really mean? We learn from listening to others. It’s a good way to learn. But if we’re not careful, we learn other people’s mistakes, too. Here’s an example. You often hear, “We’ve reached a consensus of opinion.” “Consensus,” already means that all of the people have the same idea. Adding “of opinion” is not needed. A saying that’s used too often is called a cliche’. We have to be careful in using cliche’ s. For example, it’s easy to say something like, “I love chocolate.” What we really mean is, “I like it a lot.” 03 Sociology M: More and more US parents are choosing to homeschool their children. This means the parents teach them at home. They do this for several reasons. Some think public schools are too dangerous. Some think the education level is too low. And some want to teach their children about their religion. This is not allowed in public schools. At home, children can help choose which subjects to study. And since there are only one or two students, the teacher --- mom or dad --- can give them lots of attention. Of course, homeschoolers might get lonely. And parents are sometimes not the best teachers. 04 History W: Albert Einstein is considered the greatest scientist of the twentieth century. He was born in Germany in 1879, and was interested in science from an early age. He had trouble in school. In fact, he failed on his first try to enter university. In 1896, however, he did enter a university in Switzerland. In 1921, he won the Nobel Prize for physics. When Hitler came to power in Germany, Einstein moved to the United States. He told the US president that Hitler was making an atomic bomb. The US made one first. This new bomb helped end World War II. 05 Campus Life M: Yaaaahh W: Quit yawning! I’m trying to read. M: Sorry. I’m just tired today. W: Our biology professor said when you yawn, it’s because your lungs need more oxygen. It cleans your blood. M: Hmm .my blood must be filthy, then. W: You’re probably not breathing as deeply as you should. Why don’t you go outside and take a few deep breaths? That’ll give you lots of oxygen. M: Yeah, but I’ll still be tired. W: Maybe a break and some fresh air will give you some energy. M: I need a break from this boring textbook. W: If you’re bored, go outside and try doing something interesting. M: Good idea. I think I’ll go for a bike ride. 06 Geography M: South America is a large continent, but it has only 12 countries. The largest country in South America is Brazil. It is almost as big as the United States! A lot of people don’t realize that from just looking at a map. Brazil takes up almost half the land in South America. The smallest country is Surinam. This is smaller than many US states. South America lies between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The equator crosses the northern part of the continent. At this point, South America is about 1,500 kilometers wide. The southern-most point in South America is a narrow tip called Tierra del Fuego. This is only about 300 kilometers north of Antarctica. 07 Campus Life W: Hello, Chad. What’s happening? M: Not much. What are you doing with that camera? W: I’m taking pictures for our class photo exhibit next week. M: Where’s that going to be? W: In the student center. I need to get three or four good shots of nature on campus. M: Will all the photos be of nature? W: No. There are three other categories: students, professors, and buildings. M: And students are taking all the pictures? W: Yes. We have to take them, develop them, enlarge them, and frame them. M: Wow. You’re going to be busy. W: Yep. Well, I’m gonna go photograph the cherry tree blossoms. See ya. 642 Transcripts 08 Social Studies M: A population is all the people, animals, or plants living somewhere. Taking a census means getting information about every member of a population. Census information helps governments, especially democracies, run well. In a democratic government, people vote for the leader. Democracies need to know everyone who is old enough to vote. The two oldest known censuses were taken in China. One was taken in 2 AD and the other in 140 AD. The Bible also tells of three different censuses. Censuses were taken by the Roman Empire, too. The person counting Romans and getting the taxes was called the “Censor.” Skill E 01 Campus Life M: Hey, neat! You got a telescope for your birthday! W: Yes. Now, we can look at the moon! M: Can we see any planets with this telescope? W: Yes. We can most easily see Mars --- it’s closest to Earth --- and Venus. It’s the next closest. M: Is it true that Mars once had rivers and oceans? W: A lot of scientists think so. Did you know it has two moons? M: No! Amazing! How many moons does Venus have? W: None! M: Do you think people will ever visit Mars? W: Maybe someday, but not Venus. It’s too hot. M: Well, at least we can see them with your new telescope! 02 Phys. Ed. M: Soccer, or football, is one of the best liked sports around the world. It’s an easy game to understand, but it has many rules. Each player must follow the rules carefully. A player who doesn’t can be given a yellow card. This is a warning. A player who breaks the rules many times may get a red card. A player who gets a red card is forced out of the game. He or she will not be allowed to play anymore. There is one very basic soccer rule. It is one that everyone knows. A player cannot do anything that could hurt another player. 03 Literature W: There’s a famous story about Mark Twain. Once he got on a train in New York. I don’t know where he was going, but the train was full. A ticket-office worker said there was no room on the sleeping coach. But on the train, the conductor saw him and came right over. He showed him to a sleeping coach in first class. He made especially sure that Twain was comfortable. Then he said, “I’m so proud to have you on this train, sir!” Mark Twain asked, “Oh! Who am I?” and heard, “General McClellan.” You can imagine his surprise. 04 Psychology M: It’s important to choose a job that’s right for your personality. Are you a friendly person who enjoys meeting people and talking with them? Perhaps you should become a salesperson or a teacher. If you’re quiet and thoughtful, maybe you should be an accountant or scientist. Think about what your job requires. Will you be interacting with others or spending most of your time alone? There are many factors to consider in choosing a career. Money is certainly one of them. So is social status. But remember, whatever you decide, you have to do that job every day. Choose carefully! 05 Campus Life W: Hey, Tony. Want to go play basketball? M: I can’t. I’ve got to study for my mid-term exams. W: Man, you can’t study all the time. You’ve gotta exercise! M: How? I don’t have the time! W: You can do simple things. Like, instead of taking the elevator to class, walk up the stairs. And when you’re studying, take a rest every hour and go for a short walk. M: Hmm yeah, I could do that. W: You know, just squeezing a tennis ball makes your hands stronger and helps you relax. M: That’s easy. Anything else? W: Yeah. Walk backwards sometimes. It strengthens the back of your lower legs. M: Thanks. Have fun at basketball. 06 Astronomy W: OK, mmm .we all know that the Earth spins as it rotates around the sun. Does anyone know how fast it spins? M: Two thousand kilometers an hour? W: Close. About 2,200 kilometers an hour. It turns completely around once each day. Now, what would happen if the Earth stopped spinning so fast? If it slowed down to one rotation every 365 days, every place on the planet would have either daylight or darkness all year long. This is similar to the situation on the moon. For two weeks, the sun shines on the front side. Then, for two weeks, it shines on the back side. How do you think a slower rotation would affect your lives? 07 Campus Life W: I finished writing my paper on the American Revolution. M: Wow! I’m still looking for information on George Washington. W: Well, I saw a TV show about it last week. I wrote down all the important people and then looked them up on the Internet. M: I wish I’d seen that show. W: You can still find information on the Internet. Just type the words you’re looking for and then click the “search” button. M: I tried. But it gave me so many websites! W: Maybe you can ask Professor Cohen if there’s a good video you could watch. That would help you know what to look for. 08 Psychology M: It’s easier to remember something if we make a picture, or image, of it in our minds. You can remember a common object by giving it three qualities: detail, color, and movement. Take something you often lose, like a key, for instance. Make the key special in your mind. Give it detail. Imagine it has very sharp teeth. Then, give it color. Make it shiny gold. Finally, give it movement. Imagine it is alive. If you don’t watch it, it could jump up and lock you out. If you think of it this way, you’re not likely to forget it again. Transcripts 643 Skill F 01History W: Spain is a country in Southwest Europe, south of France and west of Italy. In the 16th Century, it was the most powerful nation in the world. After America was discovered in 1492, Spain sent many people there. They brought back lots of gold and silver. Trade with the new American colonies made Spain rich. It established colonies in other parts of the world, such as Cuba and the Philippines. But in 1588, Spain lost a famous war against England. After that, its power began to decline. In 1898, Spain lost Cuba and the Philippines in the Spanish- American War. 02 Campus Life W: Dr. Shin, how long have you been a university professor? M: Eighteen years, Sandra. W: Could you please tell our campus radio listeners what made you want to become an educator? M: I guess it was my mother. She was a writer. At an early age, she taught me that “the pen is mightier than the sword.” So when I entered university, I started to study writing. W: And you became a writer like your mother? M: No, I actually never wrote any books. But I did discover that I love teaching. So I’ve been a writing teacher ever since. W: Well, we’re certainly glad you became one. Personally, I really enjoyed your class. Thank you for being on the show today, Dr. Shin. 03 Literature M: Batman has changed several times since he first appeared in a comic book in May 1939. The first Batman is now called the “Golden Age” Batman. He was famous for using his mind, not his strength, to catch criminals. In April 1940, Robin first appeared as Batman’s partner. In April 1943, Batman and Robin were joined by their butler, Alfred. He was the only one who knew Batman and Robin’s real names. In 1952, Batman teamed with Superman for the first time. In May 1964, the “new look” Batman appeared. His costume had a black bat in a yellow oval. The first Batman did not have the oval. 04 Ecology W: The kind of oil that usually spills into the sea is called crude oil. Sometimes it leaks naturally. Other times, humans accidentally spill it when digging for oil or carrying it on boats. When oil spills, three things happen: spreading, evaporation, and emulsification. In spreading, the oil forms long, narrow strips, called windrows. You can remember this word as “wind” plus “rows.” The wind pushes the oil into long rows across the water. In evaporation, the lighter parts of the oil disappear. Only the heavier parts remain. In emulsification, E-M-U-L-S-I-F-I-C-A-T-I-O-N, the waves mix water into the oil. This forms a heavy and sticky substance, which is sometimes called chocolate mousse. The oil also mixes with other things floating in the water. 05 Campus Life W: I don’t feel well. I think I’ll skip class today. M: What’s wrong? W: I feel hot then cold, and I ache all over. M: Ooh! That doesn’t sound very good! You’d better take your temperature. W: Do you have a thermometer? M: Yes, I do. Here you go. W: Thanks, Joe. M: Here, let me read the thermometer for you .Uh-oh, your temperature is really high! You’d better go see the school nurse! W: You know, I could have malaria. These are malaria symptoms. I just came back from a trip to Africa with my parents. I wasn’t very good about taking my medicine. 06 Science M: Light travels at 297,600 kilometers per second. That’s pretty fast! Sound travels much more slowly at 1 kilometer per 3 seconds. Knowing this, we can judge the distance of a storm. When you see a lightning flash, begin counting seconds. When you hear the thunder, stop counting. How many seconds have passed? The lightning is one kilometer away for every 3 of those seconds. There’s another way to know how close a storm is. As rain falls, it cools the air. That cooler air may flow about 3 miles ahead of the storm. The air becoming suddenly cooler tells you about how close it is. 07 Campus Life M: Hi, Barb! How was your vacation? W: Great! We went to New Mexico. M: You went to Mexico? W: No, NEW Mexico. It’s a state in the southwestern US. The license plates there say USA, so people don’t get confused. M: That’s funny. What did you do there? W: Well, on our way there we stopped at the Grand Canyon, in Arizona. It was awesome! Then, we went to Albuquerque --- the biggest city in New Mexico. Then we visited Carlsbad Caverns. M: What are those? W: Caves --- sixty miles of them. In one cave, we had to wear hats with lights so we could see in the dark. 08History W: Leonardo da Vinci was not only a great artist. He was also a scientist and inventor. Leonardo was born in 1452 in Vinci, Italy. He began studying painting at age 14 and became famous just a few years later. His best-known paintings are Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. But Leonardo was also an excellent scientist. He kept detailed notebooks of observations about the natural world. And he cut open dead people to learn how the human body works. Finally, he was an inventor. But his two most famous inventions --- the parachute and the war tank --- weren’t built until after he died. 644 Transcripts Chapter 1 S kill R eview A-F 01 Psychology W: Some people can remember things in a way that seems almost impossible. It’s as if their minds just take photos. They might be able to repeat a lecture word for word. They can even accomplish this feat many years later. Some very good chess players can play with their eyes covered. This is called “Blindfold Chess.” They can play against several other players at once --- and win! Someone tells them the other players’ moves. They can easily remember where the pieces are on all the boards. Scientists call this “eidetic memory,” though many people call it photographic memory. However, this may be misleading. Scientists believe the memories are not stored photographically, but in another way. A scientist named Dr. DeGroot did a test to show this. A chessboard was set up a certain way, and some chess players were given fifteen seconds to look at it. Then, they were asked to set the pieces up again in the same way. The more seasoned chess players easily set up the pieces again. The beginners had a more difficult time doing it. In the next test, Dr. DeGroot began in the same way. However, this time he set them up in a way that would never happen in a real game. Now, the really good players had difficulty remembering, too, remembering only as well as the beginning players. It seemed they needed to apply their knowledge of what was really possible in a game. That is, they needed to apply what they knew about chess to remember well. 02 General Studies M: Some people really go overboard using their yellow markers to underline everything. I’m going to suggest that this isn’t the best strategy for studying. The first time you read a passage, don’t highlight. You can end up with an all-yellow text. Just read the passage first. Then ponder it for a while. Then read it again, this time looking for the most important ideas. In the next reading, you can start highlighting. Only underline one or two key words or phrases per page. Even better --- compile a list of the words and phrases. Write the page number beside each one so you can look them up again. Now, when you review, you won’t have pages and pages to read. This makes it much easier to review for an exam. W: Excuse me, Professor Hill. M: Yes, Jacqueline? W: Can you give us some suggestions on how to choose the words and phrases? M: Yes, of course! Here are some steps to help you decide what to choose: 1. Look for the main idea. Follow the way it’s being told through the passage. 2. Look at the beginning and ending paragraphs. They often give the information in a simple form. 3. Pick out transitional words that give you important information. i.e., “the point is,” “in sum,” “most importantly,” and so on. 4. Try reading the ending first, so you know where the passage is going. 5. The next day, look over the passage again. Only read what you’ve underlined. Do it again a week later. Now, each night for several nights before a test, look at your list. Take an hour or two. You’ll remember some things from class. When you find something you can’t remember, look it up. You’ll learn what you don’t remember this way. You’ll have no problem getting a high score on the exam. Learning this does take time, though. So don’t get discouraged. Keep practicing. You’ll get it. C hapter 2 Skill A 01 Culture M: Let’s talk about sneezing. When someone sneezes --- Ah choo! --- the customary response is, “Bless you” or “God bless you.” Why do we say this? There are several theories. Some of these are superstitions --- that is, things that many people believe but that aren’t really true. One superstition is that saying “bless you” keeps the devil from flying down your throat. Another is that “bless you” keeps your soul from flying out of your body. Actually, there is a historical reason for this custom. There was a pope in Rome named Gregory the Great. When he was elected pope, the great plague was beginning all over Europe. Thousands of people were dying. In fact, the pope before Gregory had died of the plague. To get rid of the plague, Pope Gregory ordered people to march through the streets, asking for God’s help. If someone sneezed, others would immediately say “God bless you!” They hoped this would keep the person who sneezed from getting the plague. Today, of course, we know that when you sneeze, the devil isn’t trying to rush down your throat. Your soul won’t leave your body. And saying “bless you” to sneezers in the street is not going to cure disease. We do know, though, that each sneeze forces thousands of germs into the air. People keep germs out of public places by covering their mouths when they sneeze. And hearing an old-fashioned “bless you” from a stranger can make us feel better when the sneezes begin. 02 Campus Life W: Hey Alex. How’s it going? M: OK. I just finished math class. Man, I hate math! W: Why? It’s easy! M: Yeah, right. W: I’ve got a secret that helps me in math class. Wanna know what it is? M: OK. But it probably won’t help me. W: Listen and try it. Math is too abstract, right? Well, try to make it real for yourself. My secret is I think about numbers in math as if they were money. M: Huh? W: Yeah. I have a hard time picturing numbers. But if I see the numbers as dollars and cents, then I can see them clearly in my head. Transcripts 645 M: Really?! W: Yeah. For example, if the teacher says, “What is 853 minus 727,” I think of eight dollars and fifty-three cents minus seven dollars and twenty-seven cents. The answer is one dollar and 26 cents---one twenty-six. It’s easy! M: Hey, that’s awesome! I’ll try it tomorrow. Thanks. W: No problem. See you at the basketball game tonight. M: See you. 03 Computer Science W: More people are buying home computers and using them for home networks. They need faster ways to get information over the Internet. Right now, there are mainly two avenues for information to be sent. These are cable modems and Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Lines or ADSL. These faster ways of sending information are called broadband connections. Cable modems and ADSL are both types of broadband connections. They are much faster than a 56K modem. There is another new kind of DSL connection. It is known as very high bit rate DSL or VDSL. Some companies already have this for certain places. VDSL isn’t everywhere yet, but it may be very soon. Many people like it and are beginning to use it. VDSL accommodates a very, very large amount of bandwidth. It gives up to about 52 megabytes per second. In other words, it provides 52Mbps. In comparison, ADSL or cable modems can only give 8 to 10 megabytes per second. It’s easy to see that VDSL is a lot faster. VDSL will soon be more common, making home networks cost much less. In the United States, a telephone line has two copper wires. These wires have a very broad bandwidth. A telephone call only uses a very small part of the bandwidth. The telephone wires can carry much more information than telephone calls. DSL can use this extra bandwidth at the same time a call is being made. It can do this without changing the sound of the telephone call. 04 Campus Life M: Hey Lucy, are you going to watch any of the movies at the film festival? W: No, I wasn’t thinking of it. I have too much homework to do. M: Aw, that’s no fun! Can’t you even take one night off? Your dor- mitory is so close to the Annenberg Center! It’ll take you five minutes to get there. W: Well, maybe I will go to one. M: How about tomorrow night? I can go then. W: What movie is playing? M: School of Rock. Have you seen it? W: No. What’s it about? M: Well, it’s a comedy and it’s really funny. It’s about this guy who’s really trying to make it as a rock star. He gets kicked out of his band and he really needs money. So he acts like he’s somebody else to get a teaching job. Then, he tries to turn his class into a rock band. W: Sounds pretty crazy! OK, I’ll come see it. 05 Biology W: Most animals in the world have some kind of way to hide themselves so that they can hunt for food and protect themselves from other animals. This method of hiding is called camouflage: C-A-M-O-U-F-L-A-G-E. The simplest form of camouflage is for animals to “blend in” with their surroundings. Their colors match the surroundings in which they live, which makes them hard to see. Deer and other forest animals, for example, have light brown colors that help them blend in with the brown trees and dirt on the forest ground. Many fish have a gray-blue color. This helps them blend in with the soft light under water. Other animals use color patterns to help them blend in. A tiger’s pattern of black stripes and orange fur blends into the long grass where it hunts. This makes the tiger difficult for its victims to spot---until it’s too late! Another form of camouflage is called copying. For instance, a king snake is red, yellow, and black. It copies the colors of the coral snake. The coral snake is very dangerous; its bite can kill you. The king snake is not dangerous, but other animals are afraid to attack the king snake because it looks like a coral snake. A third form of camouflage is disguise: D-I-S-G-U-I-S-E. This means that an animal looks like something else. For instance, a crocodile in the water can look just like a floating log. This disguise helps it catch deer when they come near the water to drink. 06 Psychology W: Do you ever wonder why we dream? Many people do. For centuries, in fact, people have been trying to understand what our dreams mean .or if they mean anything at all. In ancient Egypt, about 2000 BC, people thought dreams were very important. They believed that dreams foretold what would happen in the future. The Egyptians wrote books that listed what dreams meant. If a man saw himself looking out a window in his dream, it was considered a good omen. It meant that his cry would be heard by a god. If a man saw himself in his dream looking at people who were far away, it was considered a bad sign. It meant that he was soon going to die. In modern times, Sigmund Freud is famous for his research on dreams. Freud believed that dreams represent our suppressed desires --- things we want to do, but can’t. Dreams allow our minds to act out desires that we can’t express in our everyday lives. Usually, these suppressed desires involve sex. For example: A train going into a tunnel represents a man and woman having sex. According to Freud, this dream would mean you want to have sex, but for some reason you can’t. Another famous dream researcher was Carl Jung --- um, J-U-N-G. Jung believed dreams allow us to think more about ourselves than when we are awake and to solve problems that we have during the day. In 1973, researchers named Allan Hobson and Robert McCarley said dreams don’t mean anything. Dreams are just the result of natural activity in our brains. Skill B 01 Biology W: I’m still confused about the lecture today on blood types. M: OK. What questions do you have? W: Well, first, the way we classify blood types. We use the letters A, B, and O, right? M: That’s right. There are four different types of blood: A, B, AB, and O. Each person on Earth has one of these types. W: And .where do we get our blood types? M: They come from both our father and mother. Your blood type could be the same as one of your parents, or completely 646 Transcripts different. W: But everyone’s blood is red! M: Yes, it all looks the same, but it’s dangerous to mix two different blood types together. If you get hurt and need blood, you have to make sure the new blood is the same type as yours. If it’s not, you might die. W: But didn’t the professor say there was one type that could mix with any of them? M: Yes. That’s type O. 02 Literature W: Folktales are stories that grow out of the lives or imaginations of people, or folk. Folktales began as an attempt to explain and understand the world around us. Many folktales all over the world are nearly the same. Travelers passed them on from one country to another. Each person telling the folktale changes it slightly. The stories that traveled mostly over land changed a great deal. The ones that traveled by water changed less. There are many different kinds of folktales. Some have simple plots with lots of repeated phrases and words. These are called cumulative folktales. One example is called “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly.” This sentence is repeated on almost every page of the story. In some stories, animals talk just like humans. These are talking beast folktales. A famous example is “The Three Little Pigs.” Humorous tales are meant for fun and nonsense. They are usually about someone who makes unbelievably funny mistakes, such as the Norwegian husband who has to take care of his house and nearly destroys it. Romances are stories in which lovers seem hopelessly separated until magic brings them back together. A good example is “Beauty and the Beast.” Tales of magic are types of stories we commonly call fairy tales. These include things like talking mirrors, enchanted forests, and magic kisses. “Snow White” is a popular example. 03 Campus Life W: Hello, Lance! What can I help you with today? M: I heard there’s a tutoring center for each department. Can you tell me where it is for the English Department? W: Yes! Ours is just next door. M: Can I go there right now? W: You can, but they might still be at lunch. You know, you’ll have to sign up for an interview first, anyway. You can do that over the Internet, too. M: OK. Can you give me the address? W: Go to www.pentutoring.info. They’ll get in touch with you within three working days. M: What will they send me? W: They’ll send you the tutor’s name, phone number, email address . Oh, yes, and how much you have to pay per hour. M: Uh-oh! I don’t have any money. W: That’s OK. You can get free tutoring. You’ll just need to agree to do a three-week feedback survey. M: That’s all? W: That’s all! M: Great! Thanks! W: No problem! 04 Biology M: Spiders can spin silk better than any other insect. Only a few others, like silkworms, can make silk. Spiders use silk in many different ways. They often use it the same way a mountain climber uses rope. They’ll drop down on a silk strand. If they get into trouble, they can quickly run back up again. Another way they use silk is to make homes for their babies. Most kinds of spiders spin a thick silk covering around their eggs. Some spin it around the new little spiders. Spiders can make different kinds of silk strands. One way is to coat a silk strand with different materials. They might make it sticky to catch a fly. I think we’ve all seen a fly getting stuck on a spider’s web. You sometimes notice because the fly buzzes loudly. Or a spider might water-proof the silk with something. Then, they can stay dry in a rainstorm. A trapdoor spider’s home is a good example. The door over the trapdoor spider’s hole is a water-proof roof made of spider silk. 05 Physics M: A good way to understand why balloons float in the air is to understand why things float in water. Let’s say that you have a plastic one-liter bottle of Coca-Cola. If you pour out the Coke and put the cap back on, you have a one-liter bottle full of air. Now, tie a string around it and take it to the bottom of a swimming pool. What will happen when you let go of the bottle? W: It will rise to the top? M: Yes. If you sit on the bottom of the pool holding the string, the bottle will act just like a balloon does in the air. Does anyone know why the bottle rises? W: Uh, because the air is, um, lighter than the water? M: Exactly! The bottle and the air inside it weigh just a few grams, But a liter of water weighs about 1,000 grams. The air is lighter than the water the air displaces, so the bottle floats. We call this the law of buoyancy. Balloons work by the same law of buoyancy --- except balloons are filled with helium, not air. Helium is a gas that is much lighter than air. You can think of the helium balloon you are holding as floating in a huge “pool” of air. The helium balloon displaces an amount of air, just like the empty bottle displaces an amount of water. As long as the helium and the balloon are lighter than the air they displace, the balloon will float in the air. 06 Health W: Mmm. I love coffee. It wakes me up! You know why? Because it has caffeine. Caffeine is a kind of drug. Ah! Caffeine is found naturally in many plants, such as coffee beans, tea leaves, and cocoa nuts. It’s also added artificially to many other kinds of food and drinks. So, it’s safe to say that the typical American gets plenty of caffeine. As a matter of fact, most of us get too much. More than half of all adults in the United States consume more than 300 milligrams of caffeine each day. Including me! Seriously, though .too much caffeine is not good for your body. Caffeine interferes with a chemical in your brain called adenosine. That’s A-D-E-N-O-S-I-N-E. Now normally, adenosine helps prepare your body for rest. This chemical slows down nerve cells, which causes you to become sleepy. To the nerve cells in your brain, caffeine looks just like adenosine, but caffeine acts differently. Instead of slowing down your nerve cells, caffeine speeds them up. As a result, your heart starts to beat faster. Your breathing tubes open wider. Your blood pressure rises. Blood vessels tighten near the surface of your skin. The [...]... used to sail their boats back and forth across the equator on their way to trade things with other nations They depended on the wind to get them there quickly Hence the name, trade winds The trade winds begin in regions called the Horse Latitudes These are regions between 30 degrees and 35 degrees north and south of the equator The winds in the Horse Latitudes are light, and the weather there is hot... of the light winds, trading ships would become stalled in the Horse Latitudes Sailors were worried about running out of water, so they threw their horses into the sea This way, they could drink the water meant for the horses It also made their boats lighter, so they could go faster The trade winds blow from the Horse Latitudes toward the equator In the Northern Hemisphere, they blow from the northeast... M: Advertisements They’re everywhere You can’t hide from them There’s no escape Turn on the TV There they are Turn on the radio There they are Waiting for an elevator? There they are Using your computer? There they are Looking out your car window? Ahhhhhh! Ads, ads, ads! Aren’t you getting tired of them? W: Yes! Especially on my computer and on TV I wish there weren’t so many of them M: Well, would... crossed by the trade winds The Sahara Desert, in North Africa, is a trade wind desert Temperatures there can reach 57 degrees Celsius Another type of desert is the rain shadow desert Rain shadow deserts lie next to tall mountains As clouds rise over the mountains, they spill all of their rain or snow before they get to the other side So, these deserts are formed in the “shadow” of the mountains The Judean... position The tail is like the shark’s propeller The shark swings it back and forth to move forward In an airplane, this forward movement pushes air around the wings For a shark, this forward movement pushes water around the fins In both cases, the forward movement creates lift - the airplane and shark both rise Sharks have two pairs of fins on each side of their bodies These fins are in about the same... control their vertical position The tail is like the shark’s propeller The shark swings it back and forth to move forward In an airplane, this forward movement pushes air around the wings For a shark, this forward movement pushes water around the fins In both cases, the forward movement creates lift -the airplane and shark both rise Sharks have two pairs of fins on each side of their bodies These fins... desert Temperatures there can reach 57 degrees Celsius Another type of desert is the rain shadow desert Rain shadow deserts lie next to tall mountains As clouds rise over the mountains, they spill all of their rain or snow before they get to the other side So, these deserts are formed in the “shadow” of the mountains The Judean Desert in Israel is a rain shadow desert So is a large part of the western United... markets If they do, they have to pay very high interest rates The World Bank gives them some money, low-interest loans, and interest -free credit It helps them take care of the money, too When the countries get loans, they have 35 40 years to pay them back They can have ten extra years if they need it In the year 2002, the bank agreed to give about $15 billion to low-income countries For some of the poorest... said men with tools formed the Causeway Others argued, quite correctly, that natural processes formed the Causeway Many people believed a legend that a giant named Finn McCool made the Causeway and named it The truth was, no one back then really knew for sure Well, nowadays, we know the truth Modern geologists know for sure the Causeway was formed by volcanic activity They compare the Causeway’s origin... in about the same position as the main wings and tail wings on an airplane The shark can position these fins at different angles This changes the path of the water around them and enables the shark to move quickly upward or downward The shark also has two vertical fins on its back These are like the stabilizer fin on an airplane They allow the shark to keep its balance as it moves through the water . Beginning READING Building Skills for the TOEFL ® iBT TRANSCRIPTS Listening Section / Speaking Section / Writing. and using them for home networks. They need faster ways to get information over the Internet. Right now, there are mainly two avenues for information to