six
the world around us
6.1
tune in / listen
carefully
J So
tell me, the north and south in England are very different from each other.
(uhuh) Is it the same in Germany?
T Yes,
absolutely.
J In
what ways?
T Well,
the north is more industrial, erm, especially the Ruhrgebiet, and erm, I would say more cosmopolitan, (uhuh).
Cities like Hamburg, Berlin and so forth are more international. The south is
more rural and more agricultural, and the cities are smaller,or tend to be smaller than in the north. We
have fewer big cities there (uhuh) and erm, the climate is different as well.
J Right.
T Erm,
for example, the north is, erm, wetter and more moderate, whereas the south is
more extreme. It’s continental climate, so in the summer, it’s hotter, and in
the winter it’s colder.
J Right.
J So, so, er, what about
the countryside in that case?
T Well, the north is flatter, er, a bit like Holland, erm, I mean,
there is a bit of some hills and things, but it’s not very dramatic. The south
has a much more dramatic landscape; you have the mountains and the lakes, and
so if you want to see nature (hmm) , I recommend the south.
J Great. And what about
the people?
T Well, I would say in
the north, they’re livelier, because there (are) many cosmopolitan cities, and
in the south, they’re perhaps a bit more, more relaxed and laid back. (Uhuh).
6.2
listening challenge
E Lynne,
I often hear about this divide between north and south in England. What are the differences between the north and the south?
L Well,
the weather – I think there’s a big difference there (uhuh), erm, I think the
north is probably wetter, and probably a little cooler as well, whereas in the
south, it does rain obviously, because, well, it’s England, but it, it, rains a
little less, I would say.
E What
about the people? Are they different?
L Well,
now, people say that er, in the north it’s much friendlier, and I think that
probably is true. It takes longer to get to know people in the south, perhaps.
E Yeah,
yeah, I’ve heard that. Erm, what about the cost of living?
L Well,
I think the north is definitely cheaper there, er, if you want to buy a house,
it’s much cheaper (uhuh). I think things like food and just the general cost of
living I think is, is cheaper in the north.
E I
think of London and the south, erm, is it more cosmopolitan in the south?
L Well,
London is certainly very cosmopolitan, but there are other cities in the north
of England as well, like Manchester or Leeds or Liverpool, that are also now
very cosmopolitan and and have become very interesting cities.
E Uhuh.
6.3
There’ll be some sunshine today.
It’ll be sunny today.
There’ll be a lot of cloud tonight.
It’ll be cloudy tonight.
There’ll be some wind tomorrow.
It’ll be windy tomorrow.
There might be some fog this evening.
It might be foggy this evening.
There’ll be some snow tomorrow.
It’ll snow tomorrow.
There’ll be a lot of rain tonight.
It’ll rain tonight.
6.4
Er. What’s this?
I’m not sure. It might be a cat.
Oh, right. What do you think?
I’ve no idea.
6.5
A My
grandmother loves fast cars.
B Yeah?
What sort of car has she got?
A Oh,
a Ferrari.
B Yeah?
A Are
you going to the shop?
B Yeah.
What kind of bread do you want?
A Oh,
anything.
A I
buy loads of CDs.
B Yeah?
What kind of music do you like?
A Jazz,
mostly.
A I
don’t like this very much.
B Really?
What sort of cheese do you usually eat, then?
A Well,
I don’t really like cheese, actually.
6.6
R Where
do you think people will go on holiday?
G I
think people will stay at home. I think it’ll probably be so dangerous and so
polluted to go anywhere, that people will stay at home.
S Hmm.
S Where
do you think people will live? What will the house of the future look like?
R I
think houses will be made a lot of glass, people seem to want a lot of light in
houses at the moment, I think there’ll be a lot of different materials now, not
always using brick, and generally very light spaces.
G I
think because the population is going to get bigger, that people will live in
smaller houses, and maybe they’ll have to live closer to each other, and have
less space between their houses.
CWhat kind of hairstyles
will people have in the future?
J I
think fashions will probably carry on the way they’re going, in that men and
women’s hairstyles will become the same, and so, er, yeah, men will have long
hair, women short hair, and, and vice versa.
6.7
Good evening – well, it’s been a mixed
day today, but let’s have a look at the forecast for the next twenty-four
hours. First of all, for tonight, it’s going to be very cold indeed in the
north, and after today’s rain, it might be icy on the roads, so motorists will
need to drive very carefully.
Further south, it will be warmer, but
there will be some rain during the night.
Er, now, on to tomorrow morning – the
rain in the south will move away quite quickly, and in most parts it will
probably be warmer than today with some sunshine. Er, temperatures will rise to
about 16 degrees in the south, and perhaps 14 in the west, where it’s going to
be a bit windy.
Er, it will stay cold in the north,
with temperatures around 8 degrees, but it will be sunny along the north-east
coast, so it’ll probably be quite pleasant.
Er, but the good news is that in the
next two or three days, we’re going to see warmer and drier weather with some
sunshine in all areas.
And now, back to the news desk …
