LBS/DRI/08-01-2007
Practice on introductions
English first year
Preparation to the industrial accident module
Note : all passages are extracts from Longman Preparation Course for the TOEFL IBT test, 2006.
Today we’ll be discussing the planet Venus, which is the second planet in our solar system. I’m sure you all
know which planet is the third planet in our solar system .
Our topic for today is Iroquois villages, and I’m going to have a rather unusual presentation of this topic.
I’d like to make a couple of points now , about non-verbal communication. The first point is that non-verbal
communication does not require intent. One can communicate nonverbally without intending to do so.
Today we’re going to talk about creativity. Think about it for a moment. What is creativity ? How would you
define it ? It’s kind of difficult, isn’t it ?
Let’s look at what the experts have to say about this. Rather than actually defining creativity, experts try to list
what characteristics are part of creativity.
Have you ever wondered why the huge river in South America is called the Amazon ? Well, two sources seem to
have contributed to this name.
Something that affects some residents of Alaska and other societies in the far north of the globe during the winter
months is a disorder called SAD. SAD is actually an acronym and stands for seasonal affective disorder.
Something that people find quite surprising about the Sahara is that it actually used to be green. It once used to
be a lush green jungle-like area.
What is really important about this discovery is that the Iceman was found with all of his clothing and tools
intact. He is the first prehistoric man ever to have been found this way; other prehistoric bodies have been found,
but these bodies had generally been prepared for death.
Do you know what a glacier is ? Well, a glacier is a mass of ice , but there’s more to it than that. A glacier is a
mass of ice that’s moving.
A particular problem that attracted a lot of attention in the second half of the twentieth century is how the
survival of the giant panda is related to the unusual flowering and seeding cycle of Asian bamboo.
Now, if you were asked to name the world’s major mountain ranges, you might not think of the Appalachians.
As you can see from the map, the Appalachians are a range of north-south mountains running in the eastern part
of North America.
The issue of nullification caused a serious controversy in one particular situation in the first part of the
nineteenth century. In 1828, the Us Congress passed a bill that authorized new tariffs on some imported
manufactured goods.
Let me talk a bit about the expression “catch-22”. Do you understand what a “catch-22” is ? This expression is
so well known now that it has entered the American lexicon : well, a “catch-22” is a situation that is
unresolvable, one where there is no choice, no best path to take.
It’s not clear to scientists exactly how the Earth’s layered structure came to be. In the first category of theories,
the Earth started out only as the core, with the lighter layers coming later, and in the second category of theories
the Earth started out with all its material and later separated into layers.