Nature and man: Ecological Problems

Since ancient times Nature has served Man, being the source of his life. For thousands of years people lived in harmony with environment and it seemed to them that natural riches were unlimited. But with the development of civilization man’s interference in nature began to increase.

Large cities with thousands of smoky industrial enterprises appear all over the world today. The by-products of their activity pollute the air we breathe, the water we drink, the land we grow grain and vegetables on. Every year world industry pollutes the atmosphere with about 1000 million tons of dust and other harmful substances. Many cities suffer from smog. Vast forests are cut and burn in fire. Their disappearance upsets the oxygen balance. As a result some rare species of animals, birds, fish and plants disappear forever, a number of rivers and lakes dry up.

The pollution of air and the world’s ocean, destruction of the ozone layer is the result of man’s careless interaction with nature, a sign of the ecological crises. The most horrible ecological disaster befell the Ukraine and its people after the Chernobyl tragedy in April 1986. About 18 percent of the territory of Belarus were also polluted with radioactive substances. A great damage has been done to the agriculture, forests and people’s health. The consequences of this explosion at the atomic power-station are tragic for the Ukrainian, Belorussian and other nations.

Nature is under threat. One country’s pollution can be every country’s problem. So we all need to work together to safeguard our environment. Environmental protection is of a universal concern. That is why serious measures to create a system of ecological security should be taken. Some progress has been already made in this direction. As many as 159 countries – members of the UNA – have set up environmental protection agencies. Numerous conferences have been held by these agencies to discuss problems facing ecologically poor regions including the Aral Sea, the South Ural, Kuzbass, Donbass, Semipalatinsk and Chernobyl. An international environmental research center has been set up on Lake Baikal. The international organization Greenpeace is also doing much to preserve the environment.

But these are only the initial steps and they must be carried onward to protect nature, to save life on the planet not only for the sake of the present but also for the future generations.

Going green

In Britain today, more 18-24-year olds vote in TV shows like Pop Idol than in general elections. All political parties are trying to encourage more young people to get involved in politics. This means talking about the issues that are important to them.

The first political party to make the environment an important issue was the Green Party. The party has existed in the UK for about 30 years. (For the first ten years, it was called the Ecology Party.) The Greens do not have any seats in the House of Commons because in general elections most people vote for the three main parties: Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. However, they have several MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) and many local councillors across Britain. They campaign on many issues, including:

· animal right: they want to ban scientific experiments on animals and improve conditions for animals on farms;

· transport: they want to reduce the amount of traffic and pollution by making buses and trains cheaper, and by encouraging people to walk and cycle more;

· green energy: they want to invest in clean, renewable sources of energy – wind farms, wave and solar power;    

· food and farming: they are against GM (genetically modified) food and the use of chemicals in farming.

Twenty years ago, politicians who weren’t in the Green Party hardly ever talked about ‘green’ issues like recycling, renewable energy and climate change. But today, all political parties have ‘green’ policies. People are realizing that earth is in danger. If we don’t change our way of life, the results will be disastrous for our planet. 

Culture and art

Art is defined in encyclopaedias as the process and result of making material works, which reflect beauty or reality. The 'creative arts' denote a number of disciplines whose purpose is to create material things which reflect a message, mood, and symbols for the viewer to interpret.

Art includes various forms such as prose writing, poetry, dance, acting, sculpture, painting, music, etc. The term 'arts' often means 'fine arts' — painting, sculpture, drawing, engraving. Installation art, furniture, industrial design, graphic design and others are included in applied arts. There are a variety of arts, including visual arts and design, decorative arts, plastic arts, and the performing arts. Artistic expression may take many forms: painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, music and architecture. New forms include photography, film, video art, conceptual art, performance art, land art, fashion, comics, computer art. Within each form, a wide range of genres may exist.

Of all the forms of art, a lot of people prefer painting and music. There are several reasons why. Firstly, it is one of the oldest forms of art. Humans have been painting for about 6 times as long as they have been writing. The oldest painting found is over 32,000 years old. Painting is a form of art which is believed by many to express feelings and ideas in the visual form. Using visual images — colours, light and shade, forms and shape, a painter makes us understand his concept of life, share his feelings and enjoy the beauty of the world. Secondly, painting offers you a wide choice of styles; it allows us to be as specific or abstract as we please. From the wide range of various art schools and styles (realism, impressionism, cubism, fauvism, surrealism, modernism, pop art, etc.) you can choose one to your liking.

The second form of art people really keen on is music. The term 'music' is difficult to define. It can be explained, for example, as the art of making pleasing combinations of sounds in rhythm, harmony and counterpoint. The music that composers make can be heard through several media; the most traditional way is to hear it live, in the presence of performers. Live music can also be broadcast over the radio, television or the internet. Firstly, music helps to relax and relieve stress. Stress melts away as people are taken in by the beauty of the music. It can help them feel calm and deeply relaxed. Secondly, music affects human’s emotions. Each type of music sets distinct mood. In doing so, it appeals both to the mind and to the subconscious. Whether someone is feeling sad, frustrated or confused, he listens to merry or tender music, and his mood shifts.

There are many divisions and groupings of music. Among the larger genres are classical music, popular music or commercial music, country music and folk music. Classical music is sophisticated and refined, but it is a universal form of communication, it historically was the music of the upper strata of society. Popular music is music belonging to any of a number of musical styles that are accessible to the general public; it is mostly distributed commercially. It is sometimes abbreviated to pop music, although pop music is more often used for a narrower branch of popular music. Pop music is usually memorable, with voices, lyrics, instruments creating catchy tunes. Pop music attracts listeners through easy sound images.

Famous people

           Failure: the first step towards success

           Many people who have found success started out by failing.

Below are four of the most famous.

 

A Some people consider this man to be the greatest scientist that has ever lived. However, his early life was nothing special. He was very small as a child and he was a very poor student. When he was twelve, his mother took him out of school so that he could learn how to run the family farm. Unfortunately, he wasn’t very good at that either, so in the end he was sent back to school. After eventually passing his exams, he went to Cambridge University there he became a brilliant scholar. Later, he developed his law of gravity.

B This man is one of the most famous inventors of all time. Which is incredible when you think he only went to school for three months. After his teacher lost patience with him, his mother taught him from home and he learnt many important lessons from reading books. His working life started as badly as his schooling had, and he was fired from his first two jobs. However, this gave him more time to experiment – by the end of his life he had invented over a thousand devices. His most famous invention was a certain type of light bulb.

C Ask anyone to name the most famous film director in Hollywood and many of them will say this man’s name. However, his career in cinema started badly, as he was rejected three times from film school. He eventually started his studies at a different school, but he dropped out to become a director before he had finished. Since then he has won the Oscar for Best Director twice and three of his films have broken box office records. He went back to school in 2002 to finish his studies and earn his BA degree.

D Although he is one of the most successful businessmen and computer programmers of all time, this man didn’t actually finish university. He was very bright at school and went to Harvard University, but he spent most of his time using the university’s computers for his own projects and didn’t do much studying. After dropping out, he decided to start his own company with a friend. This company failed, but he persisted and won a contract with IBM which eventually resulted in his company becoming one of the most powerful and recognized brands in the world today.

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