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7) scarce [ ] – скудный, недостаточный, редкий
8) disposable [ ] – одноразового пользования, свободно находящийся в распоряжении
9) vigorous [ ] – бодрый, энергичный, решительный
10) boost [ ] – поддержка, увеличение, добавочное напряжение
11) value [ ] – ценность, важность, ценности, стоимость, цена, величина, значение
(Woman) Did you know that we live in times of not only great technological but also social changes
that affect our society daily? American cultural and social values are undergoing major modifications, as has
been repeatedly pointed out in studies dealing with opinion research in the past ten or fifteen years.
Unlike in the 1960s and 1970s, currently only twenty percent of the American public cites traditional values
of hard work, family, and sacrifice as important to them. Polling firms throughout the country have found
that leisure activities have come to occupy a prominent place in people's lives. As a result, time has already
become and will continue to be a scarce and valuable commodity. Manufacturers of time-saving products
and suppliers of services, such as fast-food restaurants, prepared foods sold in stores, microwave ovens, dis-
posable paper and fiber goods, fast-drying paints, and professional lawn services have shown a remarkable
gain in revenue. A drive for self-fulfillment is also now looked at as an intrinsic American cultural value,
although it was not commonly discussed even twenty years ago. The public seems to display an unprece-
dented desire to spend money and effort on improving looks and feeling healthy, vigorous, and energetic.
People's desire to satisfy personal creativity has given a boost to purchases of hobby products, weight-
reducing services, and even whirlpool baths.
(Narrator)
Exercise 1 Answer the questions.
1 Who first noted a change in American social and cultural values?
2 What does the speaker say has become a scarce commodity?
3 What does the public seem to be willing to spend effort on?
4 According to the speaker, why do people purchase hobby-related goods?
Exercise 2 Translate from Russian into English.
1 В наше время большую популярность приобрели товары одноразового пользования.
2 Согласно социальным опросам к важным человеческим ценностям стали относиться здоровье,
досуг и семья.
3 По мнению большинства, стимулом получения доходов является стремление к полноценному,
активному отдыху; расширению кругозора, сохранению внешней привлекательности и физиче-
ского здоровья.
4 Как оказывается, все эти изменения связаны не с веяниями моды, а с нашими внутренними жела-
ниями и потребностями.
5 Важное (выступающее) место в жизни молодежи стало занимать образование в отличие от по-
следних лет.
6 Увеличение ценностей людей в качественную сторону – хороший прогноз на будущее человече-
ства.
(Narrator)
Text 1 Read, translate and retell.
Piracy began before the days of the Roman Empire when captured sailors and passengers were sold as
slaves. Around the sixteenth and the seventeenth centuries, piracy became legitimized when famous English
buccaneers were licensed by the government to attack.
Line Spanish fleets and merchant ships while Spain and England were not at war. The hiring of pirates
caught on because the governments had difficulty protecting their ships and citizens from foreign pirates. In
1668, Sir Henry Morgan, one of the best known captains of a conglomeration of pirate ships, practically de-
clared a war on Jamaica. His lootings of Porto Bello, the Cuban coast, Maracaibo, and Panama earned him
his title and the post of lieutenant governor of Jamaica. Numerous legends associated with his marine and
coastal conquests have remained as part of the folklore both in England and in the Caribbean.
One of the most brutal pirates was Edward Teach, nicknamed "Blackbeard" for his long, thick beard, which
he tied back over his ears with a ribbon. After the war between England and Spain ended and his services
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