Landmark Inventions of the Millennium

1. The last 1, 000 years have produced an incredible number and variety of scientific and technological breakthroughs – but which of these were the most important? Narrowing a list of the thousands of inventions made since the year 1000 to the ten greatest requires some exact criteria. The qualifying inventions either provided radically new ways to do an important job, or they made possible tasks that were previously unimagined. Their impact was felt, if not right away then eventually, by a large portion of humanity. These developments have made possible significant new technological innovations and scientific discoveries. And finally, they have had an enduring effect on the world.

2. The inventions that meet these criteria, in chronological order, are the compass, the mechanical clock, the glass lens, the printing press, the steam engine, the telegraph, electric power, wireless communications, antibiotics, and the transistor. Missing from this list are many extremely significant technological advances, including the airplane, telephone, automobile, and computer. In many cases these inventions were omitted because they are based on earlier developments or breakthroughs.

3. In considering the ten most significant inventions of the past 1, 000 years, a subtle distinction must be made: the difference between «invention» and «discovery» is not as clear as one might think. A discovery can be as simple as the observation of a previously unnoticed phenomenon, while an invention is a human-devised machine, tool, or apparatus that did not previously exist.

 

1. Определите, какое утверждение соответствует содержанию текста. Укажите один вариант ответа

o The airplane and computer are included into the list of the most important inventions of the Millennium.

o A lot of scientific and technological breakthroughs met the required criteria of the landmark inventions.

o There are ten inventions which are considered to be the most significant ones of the Millennium.

o A human-devised machine, tool or apparatus that did not previously exist can be qualified as a discovery.

2. Завершите утверждение согласно содержанию текста. One of the qualifying criteria of a landmark invention is that it… Укажите один вариант ответа

o is based on earlier developments or breakthroughs

o makes possible significant innovations and discoveries

o is an invention of the past 1, 000 years

o is a simple observation of a previously unnoticed phenomenon

3. Ответьте на вопрос: Which of the inventions: aircraft, steam engine, car, computer - was included in the list of the most important inventions of the millennium? Укажите один вариант ответа.

o The steam engine was.

o The airplane was.

o Automobile was.

o Computer was.

4. Определите основную идею текста. Укажите один вариант ответа

o Considering the difference between «invention» and «discovery» is very important in the designation of the most significant inventions.

o A great number and variety of significant scientific and technological breakthroughs were made in the world during the last 1, 000 years.

o Landmark inventions are those which make possible tasks that were previously unimagined, and which have a lasting effect on the world.

o The ten greatest inventions made since the year 1000 are undoubtedly the inventions that had a great effect on humanity.

Прочитайте текст и выполните задания

Natural world wonders

1. Spread over 135 square miles in Yunnan province, the Shilin Forest looks like an ancient petrified forest filled with rock formations that jut vertically from the ground. Geologists say Shilin Stone Forest was formed 270 million years ago, when the constant movement of the earth caused the waters of the large sea, which covered the area, to retreat and allowed the limestone cliffs to rise.

2. The Darvaza gas crater, known as «The Door to Hell», is a 196 feet wide and 65 feet deep hole in the Karakum desert in Turkmenistan. The fire, fueled by natural gas, has been burning for the last 42 years, not by a natural occurrence, but instead, as a result of a Soviet gas exploration accident. Geologists accidentally tapped into a massive underground natural gas cavern, causing the ground to collapse and the entire drilling rig to fall in.

3. Also known as «The Great Blue Hole», the Belize Barrier Reef is one of largest barrier reefs in the world. It creates a natural ecosystem that includes atolls, several hundred sand cays, mangrove forests, coastal lagoons and estuaries. It’s so vast that much of it remains undiscovered and only 10 per cent of the marine life on this reef has been identified.

 

1. Содержанию текста соответствуют утверждения… Выберите не менее двух вариантов

o The diversity of living organisms is presented in the Darvaza gas crater.

o The Shilin Stone Forest has an extraordinary origin.

o The two natural holes have the same origin.

o The diversity of living organisms is presented in the Belize Barrier Reef.

2. Завершите утверждение согласно содержанию текста. The Darvaza gas crater was formed... Выберите не менее двух вариантов

o in a hot and wet place

o in a hot and dry place

o in a hot and sunny place

o in a hot and rainy place

3. Ответьте на вопрос: What do the trees in the Shilin Forest look like? Укажите один вариант ответа.

o They are soft and non-living.

o They are low and green.

o They are high and green.

o They are hard and non-living.

4. Основной идеей текста является...

o The Belize Barrier Reef represents the whole natural ecosystem.

o The Darvaza gas crater was formed because of people’s carelessness.

o The Shilin Stone Forest was formed because of the sea level fall.

o There are unique places in the world which are the mystery of nature.

Прочитайте текст и выполните задания

Peterhof

1. Versailles was, however, the inspiration for Peter the Great’s desire to build an imperial palace in the suburbs of his new city and, after an aborted attempt at Strelna, Peterhof – which means «Peter’s Court» in German – became the site for the Tsar’s Monplaisir Palace, and then of the original Grand Palace. The estate was equally popular with Peter’s granddaughter, Empress Elizabeth, who ordered the expansion of the Grand Palace and greatly extended the park and the famous system of fountains, including the truly spectacular Grand Cascade. The Peterhof ensemble includes the Upper and Lower Parks with 150 fountains spurting upwards powerful jets.

2. Improvements to the park continued throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Catherine the Great, after leaving her own mark on the park, moved the court to Pushkin, but Peterhof once again became the official Imperial Residence in the reign of Nicholas I, who ordered the building of the modest Cottage Palace in 1826.

3. Like almost all St. Petersburg’s suburban estates, Peterhof was ravaged by German troops during the Second World War. It was, however, one of the first to be resurrected and, thanks to the work of military engineers and over 1, 000 volunteers, most of the estate’s major structures had been fully restored by 1947.

 

1. Содержанию текста соответствует утверждение... Укажите один вариант ответа

o In the past Peterhof used to be an exquisite residence of Russian tsars.

o In the reign of Empress Elizabeth the territory of the Peterhof ensemble got smaller.

o Cottage Palace was one of the most luxurious buildings in the Russia of the XIX century.

o Only talented architects took part in the restoration of the Peterhof ensemble.

2. Завершите утверждение согласно содержанию текста. Peterhof wasn’t the imperial residence in the reign of... Укажите один вариант ответа

o Peter the Great

o Empress Elizabeth

o Catherine the Great

o Nicholas I

3. Ответьте на вопрос: Where did Peter the Great want to build his imperial residence first? Укажите один вариант ответа

o In Versailles.

o In Peterhof.

o In Pushkin.

o In Strelna.

4. Основной идеей текста является... Укажите один вариант ответа

o Peterhof was founded as early as 1714 by Peter the Great after visiting Versailles.

o The main attraction in Peterhof is its beautiful Lower Park with 150 fountains.

o The Peterhof  building continued about two centuries in the reign of several emperors.

o During the Second World War thousands of masterpieces in Peterhof were destroyed.

 

Прочитайте текст и выполните задания

Anthropology

1. Anthropology is the holistic «science of man». The discipline deals with the integration of different aspects of the social sciences, humanities, and human biology. Anthropology includes archaeology, prehistory, physical or biological anthropology, anthropological linguistics, social and cultural anthropology, ethnology and ethnography. The word anthropos is from the Greek for «human being» or «person». Eric Wolf described sociocultural anthropology as «the most scientific of the humanities, and the most humanistic of the sciences».

2. The goal of anthropology is to provide a holistic account of humans and human nature. Since anthropology arose as a science in Western societies that were complex and industrial, a major trend within anthropology has been a methodological drive to study peoples in societies with more simple social organization, sometimes called «primitive» in anthropological literature, but without any connotation of «inferior». Today, most anthropologists use terms such as «less complex» societies or refer to specific modes of subsistence or production, such as «hunter-gatherer» or «forager» or «simple farmer» to refer to humans living in non-industrial, non-Western cultures, such people or folk (ethnos) remaining of great interest within anthropology.

3. The quest for holism leads most anthropologists to study a particular folk or people in detail, using biogenetic, archaeological, and linguistic data alongside direct observation of contemporary customs. In the 1990s and 2000s, calls for clarification of what constitutes a culture, of how an observer knows where his or her own culture ends and another begins, and other crucial topics in writing anthropology were heard. It is possible to view all human cultures as part of one large, evolving global culture.

 

1. Содержанию текста соответствует утверждение...

Укажите один вариант ответа

o Anthropology is known to include a number of subdisciplines studying different aspects of human life and nature.

o Anthropology studies a particular folk taking as a basis mainly direct observation of contemporary customs.

o Describing societies with more simple social organization anthropologists used the term «primitive» in the meaning of «inferior».

o In the 1990s and 2000s the crucial topic in anthropology was the use of the terms «hunter-gatherer», «forager», «simple farmer».

2. Завершите утверждение согласно содержанию текста. The word “anthropology” comes from the Greek “anthropos” that means… Укажите один вариант ответа

o «human being»

o «science of man»

o «primitive man»

o «humanistic science»

3. Ответьте на вопрос: Where did anthropology originate as a science? Укажите один вариант ответа

o It appeared in complex industrial societies.

o It appeared in societies with simple social organization.

o It appeared in «primitive» («inferior») societies.

o It appeared in non-industrial, non-Western cultures.

4. Определите основную идею текста. Укажите один вариант ответа.

o Anthropology is the science studying humans and human nature.

o All human cultures form one large, evolving global culture.

o Anthropology can be referred to both humanities and sciences.

o Anthropology takes great interest in people living in different societies.

 

Прочитайте текст и выполните задания

Renaissance

1. Renaissance, literally «rebirth», is the period in European civilization immediately following the Middle Ages, traditionally held to have been characterized by a rise of interest in classical learning and values. The Renaissance also witnessed the discovery and exploration of new continents, the substitution of the Copernican for the Ptolemaic system of astronomy, the decline of the feudal system and the growth of commerce, and the invention or application of such potentially powerful innovations as paper, printing, the mariner’s compass, and gunpowder. To the scholars and thinkers of the day, however, it was primarily a time of the revival of classical learning and wisdom after a long period of cultural decline and stagnation.

2. The term Middle Ages was coined by scholars in the 15th century to designate the interval between the downfall of the classical world of Greece and Rome and its rediscovery at the beginning of their own century, a revival in which they felt they were participating. Indeed, the notion of a long period of cultural darkness had been expressed by Petrarch even earlier. Events at the end of the Middle Ages, particularly beginning in the 12th century, caused a series of social, political, and intellectual transformations that culminated in the Renaissance. These included the increasing failure of the Roman Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire to provide a stable and unifying framework for the organization of spiritual and material life, the rise in importance of city-states and national monarchies, the development of national languages, and the breakup of the old feudal structures.

 

1. Содержанию текста соответствует утверждение...

Укажите не менее двух вариантов ответа

o The Renaissance is the revival of European civilization at the beginning of the 15th century.

o The Middle Ages is the period of the decline of the feudal system and the growth of commerce in Europe.

o The scholars and thinkers of the 15th century stated that they lived at the time of cultural decline and stagnation.

o The long period of cultural darkness in European civilization is associated with the Renaissance.

2. Завершите утверждение согласно содержанию текста. The period of the Renaissance is remarkable for the great achievements in geography, such as the… Укажите один вариант ответа

o discovery and exploration of new continents

o rediscovery of the classical world of Greece and Rome

o invention of paper and gunpowder

o revival of classical learning and wisdom

3. Ответьте на вопрос: What period in history is called the Middle Ages? Укажите один вариант ответа

o The period of time between the downfall of the classical world of Greece and Rome and its rediscovery at the beginning of the 15th century is called the Middle Ages.

o The period of time characterized by the rise of interest in classical learning and values, the development of national languages is called the Middle Ages.

o The period of time when the Copernican system of astronomy was substituted for the Ptolemaic system, and many important discoveries were made is called the Middle Ages.

o The period of time when the Roman Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire lost their influence over the organization of spiritual and material life is called the Middle Ages.

4. Основной идеей текста является... Укажите один вариант ответа

o The Renaissance is the period of the culmination of great social, political and intellectual changes in European civilization.

o Powerful innovations, such as paper, printing, the mariner’s compass, and gunpowder were invented or applied in the Renaissance.

o The Renaissance is characterized by a rise of interest in classical learning and values in European civilization.

o The Renaissance witnessed the increasing role of city-states and national monarchies and the breakup of the old feudal structures.

 

Прочитайте текст и выполните задания

⇐ Предыдущая1234567Следующая ⇒

Поделиться: