noi dung phan nghe tieng anh 101112 tapescript

NỘI DUNG NGHE E.10 UNIT 1: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF … Hello everyone, my name is Lam I’m a cyclo driver in HCM City I usually have a busy working day I get up at five thirty in the morning I start work at six My first passenger is usually an old man I take him from District to District After I drop him at a cafe near HCM City College of Education, I pedal to Thai Binh Market My next passenger is a lady who does shopping there every two days I help her put all her purchases into the cyclo and then take her to her shop in THDao Street At about ten thirty I ride off toward NTMKhai School There I park my cyclo, chat with some of my fellows and wait for my third passengers They are two school pupils, a girl and a boy I take them home At twelve I have lunch at a food stall near BT Market After lunch, I park my cyclo under a tree, take a short rest and then continue my afternoon’s work UNIT 2: SCHOOL TALKS UNIT 3: PEOPLE’S BACKGROUND Bob: Congratulations! You are now the Olympic Champion Sally: Thanks Yes, I’m very happy B: Our readers want to know all about you S: That’s nice! Well, ask me your questions B: First of all, tell me something about yourself S: Well, I was born in 1980 I got a general education at local schools and when I was 15, I joined the Star Sports Club near my home B: Where is your home? S: In Manchester B: I see And you live alone? S: No, I live with my family, my parents and two brothers B: What you like to in your free time? S: Well, I don’t have much free time, but I like different sports-basketball and swimming, for example- and just sitting at home and reading B: What sorts of books you like? S: Oh, love stories-romantic books B: And what you want to be in the future? S: I want to be a sports teacher I’m a student at college I want to get my teacher’s diploma B: I see Now tell me… UNIT : SPECIAL EDUCATION If you ask any member of the VTK Club which time of day they enjoy most, and they will all agree: their photography lesson The VTK Club’s members come from the Nhan Chinh School for Deaf Children, Xa Dan Secondary School for Deaf and Mute Children, and the Hanoi Literature and Art Club for for Mentally Retarded Children “Whenever we hold a camera, wandering around and taking in our surroundings through a lens, we can forget the sorrow of our disabilities,” says club member Nguyen Minh Tam The six-month-old photography club, which comprises 19 deaf, mute or mentally retarded children, is now having its first exhibition in Hanoi More than 50 colour photos are on display at the exhibition room featuring the beauty of daily life through the eyes of these disabled children The subjects are simple and peaceful: old men reading books on the sides of Hoan Kiem Lake, labourers hard at work, or chickens looking for food The children’s passion for taking pictures has stimulated them and helped them escape their sorrow UNIT 5: TECHNOLOGY AND YOU Well, I wasn’t worried when my son bought a computer After all lots of children have parents who don’t understand computers But when my secretary asked me for a computer in the office, I really became worried So I decided to take some lessons in computing and my son became my teacher He was very helpful He invited me to sit down in front of the computer screen I did not know what it was called When asked him what it was, he said that it was a VDU I still didn’t know what a VDU was, but I was too shy to ask him any more From that moment my memory refused to learn because he told me a lot of things that I really didn’t understand at all After a few lessons I began to feel tired I made an excuse, saying that I had a headache I suggested we should leave the lesson for another day Since then I haven’t said anything about the computer to my son and my secretary UNIT 6: AN EXCURSION The weekend picnic I enjoyed most was just a few weeks ago My class decided to pay a visit to the Botanical Garden It was a glorious Sunday We met at the school gate on time and travelled to the Botanical Garden by bus It was a long way to destination and we sang merrily all the way The Botanical Garden was a very beautiful place We make a short tour round the garden and took some pictures of the whole class Then we played a lot of games on a spacious piece of grassland One of the boys brought along his guitar and we sang our favourite songs We laughed, talked and danced, too After a delicious meal with various kinds of food that we brought, we all took a rest Some of us slept very soundly because it was so peaceful and quite there In the afternoon, we went on playing some more games Then we packed up the leftovers and returned home We all felt happy UNIT 7: THE MASS MEDIA The time is o’clock and here is the news summery Heavy rain during the night has caused floods all over the country today Many people have left their homes because rivers have risen Some roads in the north-west are under two metres of water The rain has stopped at the moment, but it’s sill cloudy and there is a strong wind Because of the bad weather people can’t go out to work A ninety – year-old woman has climbed Mount Whitney in California for the twenty – third times At 4,418 metres, Mount Whitney is the highest mountain in California The woman says the view from the top is wonderful She also says that the mountain has kept her young and healthy In spite of her old age, the woman tries to climb the mountain very often UNIT 8: THE STORY OF MY VILLAGE Popffero used to be a small quiet town on the sound coast of England But it has become a crowded and busy tourist resort now They’ve completely destroyed its old atmosphere The small old houses have been pulled down, and tall buildings have been put there instead They’ve also built a big hotel in the middle of the town The narrow streets have been widened and resurfaced, so the big trees on the two sides of the streets have been cut down The large area of grass land in the suburbs of the town has been turned into an ugly car park Even the old corner shop isn’t there anymore It has been replaced by a big department store And there is an expensive restaurant where there used to be an old tea shop Many people in Popffero are happy with the changes as there are more jobs for them But some people don’t like the changes, they miss the quiet and peaceful life of the old town UNIT 9: UNDERSEA WORLD Whales are mammals that live their entire lives in the water Some whales are huge The blue whale, for example, grows to 30 meters in length and over 200 tons in weight It is the largest animal that has ever lived on earth Whales may also be the most intelligent animals in the ocean Whales like to feed in the cold oceans where there is a lot of krill- their favorite food Cold water in the North and South Atlantic Ocean and the North and South Pacific are good feeding grounds for whales Some whales are known to migrate into warm waters to bear their calves Whale populations decrease quickly due to heavy hunting pressure Conservation groups asked the International Whaling Commission to stop whaling However, Native American hunters, such as the Eskimo, are still allowed to hunt a limited number of whales to feed their communities If no effective measures were taken to protect whales, these wonderful animals would disappear forever UNIT 10: CONSERVATION Have you ever seen a forest destroyed by fire? A great forest fire is an awful thing to see Once a fire started, it spreads quickly Foresters say that late summer is the season when the fire is the greatest danger to woods and forests They are very dry then Sometimes when the danger of fire is very great, foresters will not allow anyone to go into the forests If people leave a camp-fire burning near a heap of leaves, this often causes a forest fire Campers must always remember to put out the camp-fire and cover the place with earth It is the duty of every camper to take the greatest care not to start a forest fire Anyone careless enough to start a forest fire has done something, which make life more difficult for all of us Every fire destroys valuable wood, wildlife and good soil Everyone of us must know how important it is to care for out great forest and save them from fire UNIT 11: NATIONAL PARKS Cuc Phuong, the first national park in Vietnam, was officially opened in 1960 it is located 160 km south west of Hanoi spanning Ninh Binh, Hoa Binh and Thanh Hoa provinces The 200 square kilometre park attracts tourists and scientists alike In 2002, nearly 100,000 visitors made their way to Cuc Phuong Many come to see the work being done to protect endangered species According to scientists, there are about 2,000 different species of flora and 450 species of fauna Cuc Phuong National Park has many caves Quen Voi, also part of the park, is where Nguyen Hue’s army was stationed before it made its surprise attack on Thang Long and defeated the Quing invaders in the spring of 1789 Cuc Phuong is also home to the Muong ethnic minority, who live mainly on bee keeping and farming UNIT 12: MUSIC Lan Huong: Hello, I’m Lan Huong Our programme is “My Favourite Musician” Now our guest tonight is Quang Hung, a well-known actor Welcome to the programme, Quang Hung Quang Hung: Thanks Lan Huong Lan Huong: Now Quang Hung, can you tell us about the Vietnamese musician you like best, please? Quang Hung: Sure Recently, there have been quite a few good musicians Their songs are very popular and easy to listen to Lan Huong: Do you like them? Quang Hung: Well, I like some of them But I think the best Vietnamese musician of all times is Van Cao He’s really my favourite musician Lan Huong: Van cao, the author of Tien Quan Ca? Well, can you tell us why you like him? Quang Hung: He’s a great musician Just listen to Tien Quan Ca whenever I hear it, I want to stand up and sing out as loud as possible It’s hard and solemn And I always feel great, feel proud of my country when I hear it Lan Huong: That’s true It’s very rousing Do you know when he wrote it? Quang Hung: In 1944 Lan Huong: Do you like any other songs by Van Cao? Quang Hung: Oh, yes, lots of them Especially the songs about rural life in Vietnam They are sweet and gentle, and very lyrical Lan Huong: Well, let me see if we can play one of the songs for you UNIT 13: FILMS AND CINEMA Lan : Hi, Huong, Titanic is on at Thang Tam Cinema next week Can you go with me on Wednesday? Huong: Wednesday? Sorry Lan I have lots of work to during the day and I’m going to the singing Club at night Can we go on Thursday instead Lan: I don’t think so I’m going to visit my grandparents on Thursday Huong: Well, what about Monday? I suppose you are free on Monday Lan: No, sorry I’m going to see a play with Tuyet on Monday What about Friday? Huong: Sorry Lan Friday is not a good time for me I’m taking Chinese classes on Fridays How does your weekend look like, Lan? Lan: Um …, I’m busy on Saturday But I’m free the whole day Sunday Huong: I’m going on a picnic to Hoa Lu with some of my friends on Sunday I’ll be back late at night Lan: Well, I guess that we just leave … Uh, wait a second, what day are we both free, Huong? UNIT 14: THE WORLD CUP Pele’ is considered one of the greatest football players of all time He was born in 1940 in Brazil As a football player, Pele’ was famous for his powerful kicking and cotrolling the ball He joined a Brazilian football club in 1956, and in 1962 he led the team to its first world club championship Pele’ became the only player to participate in three World Cups in 1958, 1962, and 1970 By 1974, Pele’ had scored 1,200 goals and became a Brazilian national hero He played for an American football club for two years before he retired in 1977 Later Pele’ became an international ambassador for the sport, working to promote peace and understanding through friendly sport activities UNIT 15: CITIES The Statue of Liberty, one of America’s most familiar image, is on island in New York Harbour It is a symbol of freedom Its formal name is Liberty Enlightening the world It was a gift to America people from the French to show the friendship between the two nations This is the statue of a woman who is wearing a loose robe and a crown on her head Her right hand holds a burning torch, and her left hand holds a tablet with the date July 4, 1776 on it The statue weighs 205 tons and is 46 m high, it stands on a stone and concrete base The base and pedestal increase the height of the monument to 93m The outside is made of copper Inside, it has an iron frame The statue was completed in 1884 in France, and then transported to America in 1886 Tourists can visit the statue from 9.30 a.m to p.m daily except Christmas Day UNIT 16: HISTORICAL PLACES The ancient town of Hoi An lies on the Thu Bon River, 30 km south of Da Nang It was formerly a major trading centre in Southeast Asia between the 16th and 17th centuries Hoi An was also an important port for Dutch, Portugese, Italian, Chinese, Japanese and other merchant vessels from the Far East Hoi An is famous for its temples, pagodas, small tile-roofed houses and narrow streets All the houses were made of wood and their pillars were carved with ornamental designs One of the main attractions of Hoi An is the Japanese Covered Bridge, which was built in the 16th century and is still well-preserved All visitors to Hoi An are recommended a visit to the Assembly Hall of Cantonese Chinese Congregation This house was built in 1855 and still keeps many precious objects that belonged to the Chinese community of Hoi An Another attractive address to tourists is Tan Ky House, which was constructed nearly two centuries ago as a house for the Vietnamese merchant The house now looks almost exactly as it did in the early 19th century E 11 LISTENING Unit 1: FRIENDSHIP Lan’s Talk My best friend is Ha We’ve been friends for a long time We used to live in Nguyen Cong Tru Residential in Hanoi Her family moved to Haiphong in 1985 It is said that Haiphong people are cold, but Ha is really, really friendly I started to get to know her when I was going on a two-day trip to Do Son last year and I didn’t know anybody there I gave Ha a ring and she was so friendly, she said, “Oh, I’ll come to visit you.” So she rode on her motorbike to Do Son and twenty minutes later she was there She stayed with me for two days She happened to know a lot of people there, so she introduced me around, and we’ve been best friends ever since Long’s Talk My best friend is Minh We met in college I was there singing and Minh was a guitarist So we worked together a lot Minh has a great sense of humour, he’s very, very funny, and that’s one of my favourite things about him And over the years, we have been through good times and bad times with each other, and that’s one of the things I like best about him And we have a lot of the same interests We like to go to plays and movies together But when we’re going through a rough time, he’s really a good friend, and he’s a very good listener, and he always helped me through Unit 2: PERSONAL EXPERIENCES Unforgettable Experiences Interviewer: This is Radio In our “Unforgettable Experiences” programme tonight we talk to Christina, a successful businesswoman Hello Christina, welcome to our programme Christina: Hello and thank you! It’s nice being with you tonight Interviewer: Christina, could you tell our audience about the most memorable experience in your life? Christina: Well, my most unforgettable experience happened thirteen years ago, when my house burned down Interviewer: Really? How did it happen? Christina: The fire started in the kitchen where I forgot to turn off the gas stove Interviewer: What were you doing at that time? Christina: I was sleeping when I was suddenly woken up by terrible heat I opened my eyes to find myself surrounded by walls of fire Interviewer: That’s terrible! How did you escape? Christina: I was terrified Then I heard my mother’s voice calling my name I rushed to her She carried me out Luckily, I got away without even a minor burn Interviewer: Not many people are so lucky Did the fire affect you in any way? Christina: Oh, yes Yes, very much, in fact Although I lost many things in the fire, the experience helped me grow up Interviewer: What you mean? Christina: Well, before the fire, I was selfish I always complained to my mother about how small my room was, or how few clothes I had Then the fire came and destroyed everything we owned But I slowly began to realize that I didn’t really need my odd things I just needed my family After all, you can get new clothes anytime, but a family can never be replaced Interviewer: I see, so the fire took many things from you, but it gave you some thing, too Christina: Exactly It taught me to appreciate my family more than things Unit 3: A PARTY Mai is my neighbor She turned 16 recently and her parents held a birthday party for her I was one of those invited The party began at about three in the afternoon There were about twenty of us gathering in Mai’s house She didn’t like having the party at a restaurant because it is noisy and expensive We gave presents to Mai and she happily opened them It must really be exciting to receive all those presents After that Mai’s mother served us soft drinks and biscuits We then listened to music and played cards The winners were given prizes At about four thirty Mai’s mother brought out the birthday cake It was beautifully decorated with pink and white icing Sixteen colourful candles sat in the middles of the cake We all clapped our hands eagerly and sang “Happy Birthday” as she blew out the candles and cut the cake We helped ourselves to slices of the delicious cake and sang all the songs that we knew Finally at about six in the evening the party came to an end We were all tired but happy The parents of other children came to collect them by motorbikes I helped Mai and her mother clean up the mess we had made After that I walked home, which was only three doors away Unit 4: VOLUNTEER WORK Spring School is an informal school It provides classes to advantaged children in HCM City Around 30 street children live and study at the school and about 250 children with special difficulties from District regularly attend classes The Organisation for educational development co-operated with Spring School to set up English classes in 1998 Dane, theatre, singing and folk music classes were set up a year later Children from these classes participate in fundraising performances They raise money to continue their English and Performance Arts classes Spring School requires volunteers to help organise their fundraising dinner held annually in June This is an exciting night in which children dance, sing and play music at one of the largest hotels in HCM City They also need foreign volunteers to contact sponsors and help to expand the school activities Volunteers are required from February until July to help organise these events It is hoped that more schools like Spring School will soon be found in other cities in Vietnam Unit 5: ILLITARACY In an informal survey carried out in Perth, western of Australia, students were asked to give their views on what makes an effective school 80 per cent of the students felt that mutual respect in the classroom was essential learning to take place This implied that students should be treated as individuals with both their strengths and their weaknesses 60 per cent of the students felt they should be encouraged to set realistic goals for their learning, and to have positive attitudes towards themselves and others About 55 per cent of the students expected their teachers to be motivated and interested in what they were doing; this would then reflect in their performance of the students Nearly all the students believed that learning should be centered on important life skills such as communication, building self-respect and self-confidence, the ability to learn from failure, and time management, suited to the maturity of the students concerned One hundred per cent of the students felt that the social side of school was as important as academic activities The older students felt that they should be allowed to give some input school decision making a direct effect on students Unit 6: COMPETITIONS Trang: What are you reading, Paul? Paul: The history of Boston Marathon Trang: It sounds interesting! How often is it held? Paul: Every year, in the USA Trang: When did it begin? Paul: In 1897 And the same year, John McDermott won the first Boston Athletic Association Marathon Trang: Who was John McDermott? Where did he come from? Paul: He was the first man who won the first Boston Marathon in the USA Ha came from New York Trang: How long did it take him to reach the finish? Paul: He clocked hours 50 minutes and 10 seconds Trang: Did women have right to participate in long distance running? Paul: Yes But not until 1967, women were formally accepted to take part in the Boston races A few years later, Kuscsik became the first official female champion Trang: When did she win the race? Paul: In 2972 There were women starting the race and all finished Trang: Is the race held for only American people? Paul: No Each year, more runners from every part of the world join it In 1984, 6164 runners from 34 countries ran in the marathon Trang: What are the rules of the Boston Marathon? Paul: The Boston race is about 42 km Runners have to go through 13 towns during the race It ends in the centre of Boston Trang: Oh, that’s great Thanks a lot, Paul Unit 7: WORLD POPULATION Interviewer: Good evening ladies and gentlemen In our program tonight, we are honoured to have Dr Brown, a world famous population expert Dr Brown, could you tell us something about the world population? Dr Brown: Well, there are over 6,700 million people in the world today, and the total is increasing at the rate of about 76 million a year Experts say that the population of the world could be over billion by the year 2015 Interviewer: Do all parts of the world have the same rate of population growth? Dr Brown: No, they don’t The population is growing more quickly in some parts of the world than others Latin America ranks first, Africa second, and Asia third Interviewer: What is the main reason for the population explosion? Dr Brown: Well, I think the main reason is a fall in death rates This is due to the improvement of the living conditions and medical care Interviewer: I believe the explosion of population has caused many problems Is it right? Dr Brown: Yes, it is It caused a lot of problems such as shortage of food, lack of hospitals and schools, illiteracy, and low living standards Interviewer: Can you make some suggestions on how to solve these problems? Dr Brown: I think, there are a number of solutions to the problems The first is to educate people and make them aware of the danger of having more children The second is to provide safe, inexpensive birth-control methods The third is to strictly implement a family planning policy And the fourth is to exercise strict and fair reward and punishment policies Interviewer: Thank you very much for being with us tonight, Dr Brown Dr Brown: You’re welcome Unit 8: CELEBRATIONS LAN: You lived in Japan for more than two years, could you tell me something about Japanese New year, Mai? When is the New Year observed? MAI: It’s on 1st January, and it lasts three days through 3rd January LAN: Do people the same things as we in Vietnam? MAI: Well, there are some similarities and also some differences LAN: Please, tell me about them MAI: The preparations begin a few days before the New Year when housewives start cooking special food for New Year’s Day LAN: Do they clean and decorate their houses? MAI: Sure, they On the New Year’s Eve every household a big cleaning up The idea is to get rid of the dirt of the past year and welcome the new one LAN: Yes, they usually decorate their houses with some small pine trees on both sides of the door, which represent longevity and constancy People also exchange cards and gifts MAI: I see And what they usually on the New Year’s Eve? LAN: Family members sit around and start watching the national singing contest on television But the last notes must be sung before midnight Then television and radio will broadcast 108 bells As soon as the 108th bell is rung, people all say “Happy New Year” MAI: What they usually next? LAN: Some families put on special kimonos or dress to go to visit their shrine Then they come home and eat their special New Year Day’s food and drink a lot of rice wine New Year’s Day is mostly celebrated among family only Unit 9: THE POST OFFICE Over the past few years, Vietnam has quickly developed its telephone system Vietnam ranks second only to China for growth in the number of telephone subscribers It is among the 30 countries in the world that have more than two million telephone subscribers In the early 1990s, there were only 140,000 telephones across Vietnam At present, we have more than six million subscribers In 1996, Vietnam began upgrading its fixed telephone networks and changing numbers from six to seven digits in Hanoi and Ho Chi Ming City as well as five to six digits in other provinces Five years later the mobile phone system was upgraded to meet the growth in customer demand Since 2000, Vietnam has reduced the price of several services, especially in the monthly fees for fixed and mobile telephones In the future, more attention will be paid to the rural areas At present, 93 percent of communes across Vietnam have telephone services A network of 6,014 communal post offices have been set up across the country Unit 10: NATURE IN DANGER In many parts of the United States, large areas of land have been made into national parks to protect and preserve the natural beauty of the land National parks usually contain a variety of scenic features, such as mountains, caves, lakes, rare animals and plants Today, there are 52 national parks in the United States, covering approximately per cent of the total land area of the country National parks are open to the public and have million of visitors every year Many national parks, however, are in danger of being destroyed Rare animals in national parks are killed or hunted for fur, skin or other parts Trees are cut down for wood Large areas of national parks also experience devastating fires caused by careless people The increasing number of visitors is harming the parks due to the pollution from their vehicles If these problems are not solved immediately, and if there is not enough money for the parks’ staff and maintenance of their resources, many national parks will be completely destroyed Unit 11: SOURCES OF ENERGY The natural environment includes all natural resources that are necessary for li8fe: the air, the ocean, the sun, and the land Because they are vital for life, these resources must be protected from pollution and conserved Ecologists study their importance and how to use them carefully According to ecologists, resources are divided into two groups: renewable and nonrenewable When a resource is used, it takes some time to replace it If the resource can be replaced quickly, it is called renewable For example, grass for animals is a renewable resource When cows eat the grass, the resource is used If the soil is fertilized and protected, more grass will grow Coal, however, is nonrenewable because it takes millions of years to make coal All fossil fuels are nonrenewable resources Solar energy, air, and water are renewable resources because there is unlimited supply However, this definition may change if people are not careful with these resources The amount of solar energy that reaches the earth depends on the atmosphere If the atmosphere is polluted, the solar energy that reaches the earth may be dangerous If life is going to continue, the air must contain the correct amount of nitrogen (N), oxygen (O), carbon dioxide (CO2), and other gases If humans continue to pollute the air, it will not contain the correct amounts of these gases Unit 12: THE ASIAN GAMES Good evening It’s 10.15 and it’s time for “The Asian Games Report” It’s the 3rd day of the Games Well, today’s most important event was the women’s 200-metre freestyle The Japanese, Yuko was the first and got the gold medal She made a new record time of minute 58 seconds The Japanese athletes won two gold medals yesterday, and three the day before, so in the first three days they’ve won six gold medals .Here we’re in the Gymnasium Lily, the Chinese gymnast, has just finished her display She’s got an average of 9.5 points That’s the best score today! Lily’s won the gold medal! And this is Lee Bong-ju coming from Korea This is the second time he completed in the long jump- at the Asian Games Last time he jumped 8.5 metres Today he’s won a gold medal for men’s long jump He jumped 8.9 metres .Now we’re waiting for the last high jumper, Vichai coming from Thailand The bar is at 2.30 metres and it seems too high for him Vichai has just jumped! Ooh! He’s crashed into the bar! He’s landing The bar has fallen too He’s getting up and walking away But he’s very disappointed Unit 13: HOBBIES My hobby is reading I read story books, magazines, newspapers and any kind of material that I find interesting My hobby got started when I was a little boy I had always wanted my parents to read fairy tales and other stories to me Soon they got fed up with having to read to me continually So as soon as I could, I learned to read I started with simple ADC books Soon I could read fairy tales and stories Now I read just about anything that is available Reading enables me to learn about so many things I learned about how people lived in bygone days I learned about the wonders of the world, space travel, human achievements, gigantic whales, tiny viruses and other fascinating things The wonderful thing about reading is that I not have to learn things the very hard way For example, I not have to catch a disease to know that it can kill me I know the danger so I can avoid it Also I not have to deep into the jungle to find out about tigers I can read all about it in a book Books provide the reader with so many facts and so much information They have certainly helped me in my daily life I am better equipped to cope with living Otherwise I would go about ignorantly learning things the hard way So I continue to read Reading is indeed a good hobby Unit 14: RECREATION Three American students are talking about how they would like to spend their summer vacation ANNA: It’s hot and humid in New York City in the summer and I often feel depressed then So in July and August I often go out of the city to the west where there are some beautiful national parks and forests I often go with my friends, and I spend two weeks in a national park every year We might stay at campgrounds in the park, but wilderness areas are more fun What we enjoy most is to ride our dirt bike in the desert, take showers in waterfalls and swim in the lakes and rivers And at night we sleep in our sleeping bags or tents and cook on our gas stove It’s wonderful that we can live in nature and enjoy it TERRY: I used to go to the mountains, the desert, and other places with spectacular scenery in summer I don’t any more, although I’m attracted to the beauty of nature But I think these natural places aren’t as beautiful as they used to be Now more and more people are going to these places They leave trash in the forests, and take rocks and plants with them They don’t care about nature I believe not only people are important to the world nature is important, too MARY: Like most other people I’m very fond of natural spectacular scenery, but when I travel, I spend most of my time in cities Why I don’t want to live in nature and enjoy it? It’s the solitude of the wilderness It’s for animals and plants, not for me I hate camping, too I can’t put up an umbrella tent in the wind I can’t make a fire in the rain, and a backpack is usually too heavy for me So I’d better stay in the cities and enjoy the comfort they offer lly too heavy for me So I’d better stay in the cities and enjoy the comfort they offer Unit 15: SPACE CONQUEST In a speech to the Congress in 1961, the US President Kennedy challenged the nation to put a man in the moon before the end of the decade After the president’s speech, NASA’s Apollo program was developed to meet the challenge On July 16, 1969, the Apollo 11 was launched The astronauts on board of the spacecraft were Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man on the moon He was followed by Aldrin 40 minutes later TO walk on the moon surface, the astronauts need to wear a spacesuit with a portable life support system This controlled the oxygen, temperature and pressure inside the spacesuit Armstrong and Aldrin spent a total of two and a half hours on the moon’s surface They performed a variety of experiments and collected soil and rock samples to return to the Earth An American flag was left on the moon’s surface as a reminder of the achievement The crew of Apollo 11 returned to the Earth on July 24, 1969 They successfully completed their historic mission It is regarded as the greatest human efforts in the history of man kind Unit 16: THE WONDERS OF THE WORLD THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA The Great Wall of China, which is said to be visible from the moon, winds up and down across deserts, grasslands and mountains of provinces It is considered one of the greatest man-made wonders in the world thanks to its magnificence and significance In 1987, the Great Wall was listed as a World Heritage by UNESCO The Great Wall as we see today was mostly built during the Ming Dynasty for defence purposes It started in 1368 and took 200 years to complete Some parts of the wall are much older and go back to around 200 B.C It stretches for about 6,000 km from east to west The wall is about 11 meters high and a stone roadway runs along the top of it The Great Wall is a symbol of the Chinese nation through out history If you prefer to see the wall in a relatively natural state, you’d better go to northwest of Beijing This part of the wall is the best choice for it is still in its original state A visit to the Great Wall will certainly bring tourists great excitement in each step of the wall E.12 LISTENING Unit 1: HOME LIFE PAUL: So, Andrea, you’re going home for the holiday? ANDREA: I am sure I’ve booked a flight for tomorrow afternoon and I can’t wait PAUL: That’s sounds great ANDREA: What about you? Going home too? PAUL: I haven’t decided yet I’m still considering … ANDREA: Haven’t decided yet? Oh, you are never going to get a flight out of here All the seats have been reserved by now I’m sure It’s the holiday season, after all PAUL: Well, it’s not very important to me My family lives about 180 kms from here I usually take the train or the coach ANDREA: You don’t sound excited about it PAUL: Well, we are not really a very close-knit family I have three brothers, and they’ve spread out all over the place We rarely get together as a family any more ANDREA: Well, try to get home as soon as possible We’re a big family – there are six of us – children – so it’s always a lot of fun PAUL: Six kids? ANDREA: Yes And we’re really close My brothers are married, so it makes for a very crowded home over the holiday And there are too many people to cook for, so we end up going out to dinner a lot That’s also fun PAUL: Well, at my home, my mother loves to cook, so when we get home she often cooks big meals We have leftovers for days Unit 2: CULTURAL DIVERSITY TOURIST: Can you tell me about wedding ceremonies in VN? TOURIST GUIDE: Well, wedding is very important to the Vietnamese, not only to the couple involved, but also for the both families The wedding day is usually chosen carefully by the groom’s parents TOURIST: What does the groom’s family usually on the wedding day? TOURIST GUIDE: On the wedding day, the groom’s family and relatives go to the bride’s house bringing gifts wrapped in red paper The people who hold the trays of gifts are also carefully chosen TOURIST: Do you have someone in charge of the ceremony? And what does he during the wedding ceremony? TOURIST GUIDE: Yes, we have Master of Ceremonies who introduces the groom, the bride, the parents, the relatives and guests of the two families The wedding ceremony starts in front of the altar The bride and the groom would pray, asking their ancestors’ permission to get married The Master of Ceremonies gives the wedding couple advice on starting a new family The groom and the bride then exchange their wedding rings TOURIST: Where is the wedding banquet held? TOURIST GUIDE: Well, it depends Often the wedding banquet is held at the groom and bride’s home or at the hotel or a restaurant and all close relatives, friends, and neighbours are invited TOURIST: What kind of food and drinks are served? TOURIST GUIDE: Traditional food and beer or vine are served During the reception, the groom, bride, and their parents stop by each table to thank their guests The guests in return, will give envelopes containing wedding cards and money to the newly wedded couples along with their blessing TOURIST: Oh That’s very interesting Thank you TOURIST GUIDE: You’re welcome! Unit 3: WAYS OF SOCIALISING The Telephone – Potential Family Battleground Hello, everyone In today’s talk I’m going to give you some pieces of advice on how to use the telephone in the most decent way so as to avoid unnecessary disagreements between you and members of your family The telephone, as you know, is a marvelous instrument, but it may cause arguments between you and your parents – arguments that could be easily avoided if you would sit down, talk it over, and agree to a few simple regulations The most obvious problem, of course, is what everyone considers a reasonable length of time for a call The exact duration must be worked out with your parents, but ten minutes should be an absolute maximum That’s certainly long enough to say almost anything in five different ways, and yet it isn’t so long that other members of the family will become angry Even when your parents are out, the length of your call should be limited, because they, or someone else, may be trying to reach your home for a very important reason Calling hours should be agreed upon If your parents object to your leaving the dinner table to take calls, tell your friends to avoid calling that hour; if someone does phone, ask him to call back, or offer to call him when dinner’s over A serious calling problem is calling very late at night, or very early in the morning This particular mistake is made mostly by young people who consider 10 or 11 p.m., when a lot of tired adults are happily sleeping, the shank of the evening So please tell your friends not to call after ten o’clock The shock of waking out of a sound sleep and the fright of that instant thought – “There’s an accident” - are enough to give your parents a heart attack Weekend morning calls aren’t startling, but it’s the one time your parents can sleep late If your mother and father out of kindness, have installed a separate phone for you, remember that you’re still a member of a family So try to stick to your family’s regulations That’s all for my talk today Thank you for listening Unit 4: SCHOOL EDUCATION SYSTEM JENNY: Look, these questions about how you got on at school Shall we just go through them? GAVIN: Yes, let’s JENNY: Oh, so, did you always work very hard? GAVIN: Well I certainly worked pretty hard at the subjects I enjoyed Yes, I did What about you? JENNY: Yes, I did actually, I think I worked very hard, yeah Now let’s come to the next question GAVIN: Did, yeah, did you always listen carefully to your teachers? JENNY: No I don’t think I did No, I think I was quite disruptive, actually What about you? GAVIN: Well I think I did listen to the teachers certainly when I got to the level where I was doing the subjects I enjoyed JENNY: Yeah, OK, the next question is, did you always behave well? GAVIN: I don’t think I always behaved well I was, a bit, er, a bit of a tearaway JENNY: Um Well, I think I was pretty well-behaved on the whole, so I’d say yes, yeah GAVIN: Good for you! Did you pass your exams easily? JENNY: No I can’t say I did, no, I, I found them quite a struggle, actually What about you? GAVIN: I didn’t pass them that easily, though I worked hard I found it very difficult to answer all that long questions in a short time JENNY: Yeah, yeah, exactly What about this one, then? Did you always write slowly and carefully? GAVIN: Quite slowly Essays took a long time to write and I suppose I took a bit of care, yes JENNY: Yes, I agreed I was also, I was very careful and erm, yeah, yeah I was quite methodical GAVIN: And did you think your school days were the best days of your life? JENNY: Um, no, no I can’t say they were What about you? GAVIN: No, I went away to a boarding school when I was quite young and I didn’t like that No, they weren’t the best days of my life Unit 5: HIGHER EDUCATION JOHN: Now, David, can I get this right: You’ve just completed a Msc course on which a large proportion of the students were international students? Is that right? DAVID: That’s it Yes, I was in AERD – that’s the department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development JOHN: And how you think the students from the other countries got along on that course? DAVID: Pretty well JOHN: What advice would you give to students, particularly international students, based on your experience as a student here? DAVID: I think the most basic thing is to make use, full use, of the tutors and lecturers Maybe some of the overseas students are a bit shy to take questions or problems to tutors JOHN: What you think they should do? DAVID: I think they should find out at the beginning of the course the times at which the tutor is going to be available for tutorial appointments, and then make full use of them JOHN: So, any problems, they should tell the tutor as soon as possible? Let’s move on, what about the amount of reading that you have to as a university student? DAVID: Yes! It looks pretty daunting at first, with those long reading lists Don’t think that students have to read everything that’s listed Try to find out which are the most important items on the list – ask the lecturer or tutor if necessary, and then, if your time is limited, spend it reading those books thoroughly JOHN: OK, that’s very helpful, David Thank you very much DAVID: No, not at all Unit 6: FUTURE JOBS Let’s look at some of the recent changes in the US job market and see if we can make some predictions for future jobs A good way to begin is to look at the American workforce and how it is changing The most important change has been the shift from manufacturing jobs to service jobs Manufacturing jobs are jobs in which people make something or produce things For example, people produce cars Service jobs are those in which workers provide services, or we may say, they something, like washing people’s cars Generally, service jobs are grouped into five categories: One: Transportation companies Two: Wholesale companies Three: Retail companies Four: Finance companies Five: Personal services, such as hotels, cars repair, accounting, education and medicine Now the point here is that people have change from manufacturing jobs to service jobs For example, 100 years ago, 80% of workers produced goods, today only 30% Economists predict by the year 2020, nine out of every ten workers will work in service jobs Unit 7: ECONOMIC REFORMS The inhabitants of Tango, a small island in the Atlantic Ocean, discovered a plant which contained a powerful drug They grew the plant all over the island and they took the drug every day This made it more difficult for them to think rationally - it stopped them worrying about the future and enabled them to forget all their problems At the same time, it made it much easier for them to relax and enjoy themselves And because of the drug, the whole population of the island stopped working and spent all their time singing and dancing and looking at the sea Unfortunately this had very bad effects on the country's economy The workers and farmers became lazy, the children didn't want to go to school and the whole population began to run short of food This, however, didn't discourage people from taking the drug The Prime Minister made speeches on the TV warning them about the drug, but nobody took any notice, and before long the economy of the country was in ruins This forced the Government to take measures They introduced a law to make the drug illegal But that only made the situation worse The law couldn't prevent the people from taking the drug On the contrary, the fact that the drug was illegal encouraged people to take it more They put the drug-takers into prison But this did not have any effect, there were not enough prisons for them Eventually, the Government found a solution: they exported the drug to other countries This saved the islanders from having to work more than one day a week and allowed them to spend the rest of their time sitting in the sun without any care in the world Unit 8: LIFE IN THE FUTURE Interviewer: Many scientists predict that in the 21st century people will be living into the incredible age of 130 What you think about this? Dr Davis: Well, I quite agree with them They have reasons to be confident about that Interviewer: What are the reasons? Dr Davis: In fact, their prediction is based on research and on the fact that the centenarian population is mushrooming as our general health improves Interviewer: Can you explain this further? Dr Davis: A century ago average life expectancy in Europe was 45 Today, providing we look after ourselves, eat more healthily, cut down on things like butter, alcohol and cigarettes, we can add nearly 35 years to that figure Interviewer: So these are the factors that help people live longer? Dr Davis: Yes But the most important factor is the development in medical science Interviewer: What you mean? Dr Davis: Nobody dies from old age, just from diseases that affect people when they get older Interviewer: So scientists are trying to find cures for fatal diseases like cancer and Aids? Dr Davis: Right Nowadays, about 50% of cancers are curable, and I really believe that within 30 years this will increase to 80% And in ten years' time Aids will also be brought under control, too Interviewer: That sounds interesting What about living forever? Dr Davis: So far, eternal life is just science fiction But with the advance of science, it's not impossible Unit 9: DESERTS Hello everyone In today's talk, I'm going to tell you something about deserts, what they are and how they are formed A desert is a hot, dry, sandy place A desert is also a beautiful land of silence and space The sun shines, the wind blows, and time and space seem endless Nothing is soft The sand and the rocks are hard, and many of the plants, such as the cactus, have hard needles instead of leaves The size and location of the world's deserts are always changing Over millions of years, as climates change and mountains rise, new dry and wet areas develop But within the last 100 years, deserts have been growing at a frightening speed This is partly because of natural changes, but the greatest desert makers are humans In the 19th century some people living in English colonies in Australia got rabbits from England Today there are millions of rabbits in Australia, and they eat every plant they can find The great desert that covers the centre of Australia is growing Farming first began in the Tigris-Euphrates, but today the land there is a desert In dry areas, people can plant crops on dry and poor land When there are one or two very dry years, the plants die, and the land becomes desert In developing countries, 90 percent of the people use wood for cooking and heat They cut down trees for firewood But trees are important They cool the land under them and keep the sun off smaller plants When leaves fall from a tree, they make the land richer When the trees are gone, the smaller plants die, and the land becomes desert Humans can make deserts, but humans can also prevent their growth Algeria planted a green wall of trees across the edge of the Sahara to stop the desert sand from spreading Mauritania planted a similar wall around its capital Iran puts a thin covering of petroleum on sandy areas and plant trees Other countries build long canals to bring water to the desert areas Well, that's all for my talk Thank you for listening Unit 10: ENDANGERED SPECIES For a long time the image most people had of a gorilla was a dangerous-looking animal with big, bared teeth But researchers studying gorillas show a very different picture of mountain gorillas The animals are peaceful, gentle, sociable, and mainly plant-eating creatures Gorillas live in family groups A typical group is led by the biggest and strongest grown-up male gorilla He is called a silverback because the hair on a male's back turns from black to silvery grey as he grows up A silverback's group usually includes one or two sub-adult males and a few females and their young Mountain gorillas spend much of their time eating Their food includes a variety of plants, along with a few kinds of insects and worms At night the animals make a nest to sleep in Many lightweight gorillas nest in trees The heavier ones may nest in grasses on the ground Babies sleep with their mothers at night Life for mountain gorillas is not always peaceful They are endangered and threatened by civil wars in the smaller parts of Africa Hunters kill them for food Their forests are cut down for farmland, fuel, and housing But many scientists, forest rangers and other concerned people are working hard to protect mountain gorillas and their habitats Unit 11: BOOKS I recently read The Incredible Journey by Sheila Bumford, a book about three animal friends who travel across the Canadian wilderness looking for their owners It is a fascinating story that describes some of the incredible things animals can When a Canadian family goes to England for a long trip, they leave their three pets with a friend who lives 300 miles away Though well treated by the friend, the pets miss their family One day, they are able to leave the friend's house unnoticed and begin the long journey to find their owners The central theme of the book, a problem the animals must resolve, is how to survive life in the wilderness in order to arrive home They never could have completed the journey alone, but they take care of one another, and all the three make it and are reunited with their owners Each animal has a distinct personality, but they care for one another almost as if they were a family The most impressive of them is the old dog The journey was the most difficult for him, hut amazingly he found the strength to make it The author didn't try to turn the animals into people, speaking and acting like humans Instead she was faithful to her characters as animals and showed us their journey through animal eyes That made the book interesting and unbelievable I would recommend the book to anyone who likes animals I think that anyone who has ever had a pet or wanted one would enjoy it Typed by Le Ngoc Thach, Thong Linh High School Unit 12: WATER SPORTS SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING The great Australian swimmer, Annette Kellerman, student at the University of Wisconsin, planted the first seed of what was to become synchronized swimming when she performed a water ballet in a glass tank in New York in 1907 Katherine Curtis, an American woman, was very inspired by the new water sport So she tried to get synchronized swimming added to the physical education programme for female students In 1923 she founded a water ballet club at the University of Chicago and sixty swimmers of the club attracted national and international publicity The sport quickly became popular among young women in Chicago Curtis developed the competition rules, based essentially on the scoring methods used in gymnastics and diving The first recorded competition was held on May 27, 1939, between Chicago Teacher's College coached by Curtis and Wright Junior College of Illinois Shortly afterwards, the Central Association of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) staged the first multi-team competition on March 1, 1940 The following year, the AAU officially accepted synchronized swimming as a competitive sport for team events In 1946 the first formal national championships were conducted by the AAU Synchronized swimming became an Olympic event at the Los Angeles Games in 1984 Unit 13: THE 22nd SEA GAMES The first newspaper article: Only Amnat won a gold in the Southeast Asian Games Pole Vaulting yesterday Nobody else could clear the bar While he was the only one who stood alone on the podium, Amnat was among the Thai athletes who won 10 gold medals in early events yesterday He won the gold in the Pole Vaulting Final after clearing 4.80 m Meanwhile four other pole-vaulters missed their attempts at the heights ranging from 4.40m to 4.80m Amnat has proved a lonely winner in this event, but his points were still below the SEA Games record of 5.05m The second newspaper article: The Vietnamese Milk Company (Vinamilk) has offered jobs to the 27 members of Vietnam's Women's Football Team after they won the Games' second title Perhaps they are going to be milkmaids when they retire It is not an odd proposal because the majority of the footballers will become unemployed when the Games are over And they now have to struggle to make ends meet Vinamilk has promised to train their new employees as soon as the deal is signed The goalkeeper of Vietnam's Women's Football Team is dreaming to run a café after doctors have said her injuries would stop her from playing ever again At the moment, she is short of money, so the Vinamilk offer looks tempting to her Unit 14: INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS In 1945 leaders from 51 countries met in San Francisco, California and organised the United Nations (often called the UN) World War II had just ended Millions of people had died and there was destruction everywhere People hoped they could build a future of world peace through this new organisation The United Nations has four main goals and purposes: To work together for international peace and to solve international problems; To develop friendly relations among nations; To work together for human rights for everyone of all races, religions, languages and of both sexes To build a centre where nations can work together for these goals Today almost every country in the world is a member of the UN Each count signed an agreement that says: • All members are equal • All members promise to solve international problems in a peaceful way • No member will use force against another member • All members will help the UN in its actions • The UN will not try to solve problems within countries except to international peace Obviously, the United Nations has not been completely successful in it There have been several wars since 1945 However, the organization has helped bring peace to some countries that were at war It has helped people who left their countries because of wars It has helped bring independence to colonies Unit 15: WOMEN IN SOCIETY Women hold up half the sky This is an old Chinese saying However, research shows that perhaps women more than their share of “holding up the sky" Fifty percent of the world's population are women, but nearly two-thirds of all working hours are done by women They most of the domestic work like cooking and washing clothes Millions also work outside the home Women hold forty percent of all the world's jobs For this work they earn only 40 to 60 percent as much as men, and of course they earn nothing for their domestic work In developing countries, where three-fourths of the world's population lives, women produce more than half of the food In Africa, 80 percent of all agricultural work is done by women In parts of Africa, this is a typical day for a village woman At 4.45 am, she gets up, washes, and eats It takes her half an hour to walk to the fields, and she works there until 3.00 pm She collects firewood until 4.00 pm then comes back home She spends the next hour and a half preparing food to cook, then she collects water for another hour From 6.30 to 8.30 she cooks After dinner, she spends an hour washing the dishes She then goes to bed at 9.30 pm Unit 16: THE ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS Mr Hung: What are you doing? It’s so late Why don’t you go to bed? Nga: I’m trying to finish my essay about the culture and religions of the ASEAN countries I’ll have to submit it to my teacher tomorrow May I ask you something, Dad? Mr Hung: Yes? What’s that? Nga: Do you know how many people in Southeast Asia speak English? Mr Hung: I'm not sure But the ASEAN region has the third largest number of English speakers -just after the US and UK Nga: Really? Exactly how many people speak English? Mr Hung: Around 50 million, I think, … mostly in the Philippines Nga: Do you know anything about religions? Mr Hung: The ASEAN countries include three main religions They are Islam, Buddhism and Catholicism Nga: What is Islam? Mr Hung: A religion based on a belief in one god and the teaching of Muhammad It's the religion of the Muslims Nga: Can you tell me something more about the Muslims? Mr Hung: It's an interesting question The ASEAN countries have more Muslims than any other geo-political entity Nga: But how many Muslims, Dad? Mr Hung: Oh, let me try to remember about a quarter of a billion, mostly in Indonesia and Malaysia Nga: And what about the other religions? Mr Hung: Other main religions of the various countries in the region include large numbers of Buddhists, and Catholics in the Philippines Nga: What is the main religion in Vietnam? Mr Hung: It's Buddhism Many people go to pagodas Nga: Well, and now I think I've got all the information I need for my essay Thank you very much, Dad Mr Hung: That's all right Finish your writing and go to bed I'm afraid you'll get up late tomorrow morning  ... Vietnam, was officially opened in 1960 it is located 160 km south west of Hanoi spanning Ninh Binh, Hoa Binh and Thanh Hoa provinces The 200 square kilometre park attracts tourists and scientists... friend is Ha We’ve been friends for a long time We used to live in Nguyen Cong Tru Residential in Hanoi Her family moved to Haiphong in 1985 It is said that Haiphong people are cold, but Ha is really,... twenty of us gathering in Mai’s house She didn’t like having the party at a restaurant because it is noisy and expensive We gave presents to Mai and she happily opened them It must really be exciting