Устные темы по английскому языку к учебнику Starlight-7
учебно-методический материал по английскому языку (7 класс)

Global Warming

The Earth is heating up and most scientists believe that it's all our fault. When we burn fossil fuels, greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide increase and surround the earth like a thick blanket. This traps heat and temperatures rise. Scientists say that in the next 100 years average temperatures will rise by about 3 degrees Celsius. This doesn't sound like a lot, but it means big trouble! Ice is already melting, sea levels are rising, and the climate is changing. How exactly is all this changing our world and what will happen if we don't act in time?

According to recent climate reports, melting ice from the polar ice caps and mountain glaciers could cause sea levels to rise by about one meter by 2100. If this happens, the whole countries will vanish and people will lose their homes. Already, two small Pacific islands have disappeared under the waves. Coastal cities will also be under threat. In Greenland, ice is melting three times faster than just a few years ago.

Global warming is a serious threat to wildlife. In particular, Arctic polar bears are in great danger. The ice that they hunt from is melting very fast. So it is not easy to find food.  Many of them starve or drown. By 2100 polar bears probably won't survive. Changing weather patterns and rising sea levels threaten thousands of other species too. Some people believe that 30 - 40% of the world species would become extinct because of climate change.

Heavy rain and snow, storms, heatwaves, powerful hurricanes and tornadoes happen a lot more frequently these days. When temperatures rise, there are changes in the atmosphere.  Climate change means more and more extreme and unpredictable weather.

Experts say we must do something now.  We should reduce our carbon footprint. Cycle, walk, or take a bus instead of traveling by car. Use energy-saving bulbs, and wear more clothes instead of turning up heat.

Global Warming

The Earth is heating up and most scientists believe that it's all our fault. When we burn fossil fuels, greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide increase and surround the earth like a thick blanket. This traps heat and temperatures rise. Scientists say that in the next 100 years average temperatures will rise by about 3 degrees Celsius. This doesn't sound like a lot, but it means big trouble! Ice is already melting, sea levels are rising, and the climate is changing. How exactly is all this changing our world and what will happen if we don't act in time?

According to recent climate reports, melting ice from the polar ice caps and mountain glaciers could cause sea levels to rise by about one meter by 2100. If this happens, the whole countries will vanish and people will lose their homes. Already, two small Pacific islands have disappeared under the waves. Coastal cities will also be under threat. In Greenland, ice is melting three times faster than just a few years ago.

Global warming is a serious threat to wildlife. In particular, Arctic polar bears are in great danger. The ice that they hunt from is melting very fast. So it is not easy to find food.  Many of them starve or drown. By 2100 polar bears probably won't survive. Changing weather patterns and rising sea levels threaten thousands of other species too. Some people believe that 30 - 40% of the world species would become extinct because of climate change.

Heavy rain and snow, storms, heatwaves, powerful hurricanes and tornadoes happen a lot more frequently these days. When temperatures rise, there are changes in the atmosphere.  Climate change means more and more extreme and unpredictable weather.

Experts say we must do something now.  We should reduce our carbon footprint. Cycle, walk, or take a bus instead of traveling by car. Use energy-saving bulbs, and wear more clothes instead of turning up heat.

BODY TALK

We can’t help it, but we all sneeze, yawn, blush, hiccup, cough or even snore from time to time. But what exactly is going on in our bodies when we do all these things?

YAWN     Some studies suggest that when you’re tired or bored, you don’t breathe as deeply as usual, so yawning helps you to take more oxygen into the blood. Other scientists say that yawning stretches the muscles and lungs and increases the heart rate, so we stay more alert. But all of them are sure that yawning is contagious!

COUGH     A cough is an important way of clearing your airways, throat and lungs of irritations. When you cough, you breathe in and close your vocal cords. As you release the air, you make a barking noise - a сough.

BLUSH       We blush when we’re embarrassed. When you feel self-conscious, your body releases adrenalin which increases the blood flow to your face. You only blush when you become aware of other people’s thoughts and feelings.

HICCUP     We get hiccups when something irritates the diaphragm muscle below the lungs. When we eat or drink too much, or when we feel nervous or excited, the diaphragm pulls down air in a jerky way. This air meets your voice box and you make a hiccup sound.

SNEEZE     When something such as dust, pollen or a virus irritates the inside of our nose, a message goes to the brain. The brain then tells six different muscles including your eyelids to push air out through your nose at up to 160 kmph.

SNORE     When you are asleep and air can’t move freely through your mouth or nose, parts of your mouth and throat vibrate and cause snoring. Reasons why the air can’t get through might include an allergy, a cold or being overweight.

BODY TALK

We can’t help it, but we all sneeze, yawn, blush, hiccup, cough or even snore from time to time. But what exactly is going on in our bodies when we do all these things?

YAWN     Some studies suggest that when you’re tired or bored, you don’t breathe as deeply as usual, so yawning helps you to take more oxygen into the blood. Other scientists say that yawning stretches the muscles and lungs and increases the heart rate, so we stay more alert. But all of them are sure that yawning is contagious!

COUGH     A cough is an important way of clearing your airways, throat and lungs of irritations. When you cough, you breathe in and close your vocal cords. As you release the air, you make a barking noise - a сough.

BLUSH       We blush when we’re embarrassed. When you feel self-conscious, your body releases adrenalin which increases the blood flow to your face. You only blush when you become aware of other people’s thoughts and feelings.

HICCUP     We get hiccups when something irritates the diaphragm muscle below the lungs. When we eat or drink too much, or when we feel nervous or excited, the diaphragm pulls down air in a jerky way. This air meets your voice box and you make a hiccup sound.

SNEEZE     When something such as dust, pollen or a virus irritates the inside of our nose, a message goes to the brain. The brain then tells six different muscles including your eyelids to push air out through your nose at up to 160 kmph.

SNORE     When you are asleep and air can’t move freely through your mouth or nose, parts of your mouth and throat vibrate and cause snoring. Reasons why the air can’t get through might include an allergy, a cold or being overweight.

Google

Google was a brainchild of Larry Page and Sergey Brin. They met in 1995 at Stanford University, USA, while studying Computer Science. They wanted to make the Internet more user-friendly so they decided to create a search engine which listed search results according to their popularity.

At first, their research received a fair amount of criticism, but the two friends didn’t give up. Soon people liked the simple, neat design and speedy performance. Larry and Sergey were answering thousands of search requests every day.

The new search engine needed a catchy name. It was inspired by a mathematical word ‘googol’ which means ‘1 followed by a hundred zeros ’. It was a really good name, considering the endless amount of information available on the Net. So ’googol’ became ‘google’.

In 2000 Google introduced ten foreign language versions and officially became the world’s most popular search engine. Google now responds to about a billion search requests per day and it continues to gain popularity.

Google

Google was a brainchild of Larry Page and Sergey Brin. They met in 1995 at Stanford University, USA, while studying Computer Science. They wanted to make the Internet more user-friendly so they decided to create a search engine which listed search results according to their popularity.

At first, their research received a fair amount of criticism, but the two friends didn’t give up. Soon people liked the simple, neat design and speedy performance. Larry and Sergey were answering thousands of search requests every day.

The new search engine needed a catchy name. It was inspired by a mathematical word ‘googol’ which means ‘1 followed by a hundred zeros ’. It was a really good name, considering the endless amount of information available on the Net. So ’googol’ became ‘google’.

In 2000 Google introduced ten foreign language versions and officially became the world’s most popular search engine. Google now responds to about a billion search requests per day and it continues to gain popularity.

SLEEP

Until quite recently, scientists believed that sleep was a simple, resting state, but it isn't like this at all! When we sleep, our body temperature drops, our heart rate and other bodily functions slow down, but our brains stay very active. 

There are 4 different stages of sleep. Stages N1 and N2 are light sleep and we can easily wake up. In stage N3 we sleep more deeply and it's harder to wake up. The last stage is rapid eye movement sleep, or REM sleep. Our eyes move around, our brain is very active, and we have a lot of dreams.

While we sleep, our brain sorts through information, replaces chemicals, repairs cells, and solves problems. Lack of sleep can seriously affect our mind and body. It can make us feel grumpy, forgetful and unable to concentrate. It can even shorten our life.

Here are some tips for getting a good night sleep.

1. You should try to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. This helps your body to get into a routine.

2. Avoid drinks like cola and coffee before bedtime — they contain caffeine that keeps you awake.

3. Don't exercise or watch scary movies just before going to bed. This will wake your body up and it’s difficult to fall asleep. 

4. Have a calming bedtime routine, such as having a warm bath or reading.

SLEEP

Until quite recently, scientists believed that sleep was a simple, resting state, but it isn't like this at all! When we sleep, our body temperature drops, our heart rate and other bodily functions slow down, but our brains stay very active. 

There are 4 different stages of sleep. Stages N1 and N2 are light sleep and we can easily wake up. In stage N3 we sleep more deeply and it's harder to wake up. The last stage is rapid eye movement sleep, or REM sleep. Our eyes move around, our brain is very active, and we have a lot of dreams.

While we sleep, our brain sorts through information, replaces chemicals, repairs cells, and solves problems. Lack of sleep can seriously affect our mind and body. It can make us feel grumpy, forgetful and unable to concentrate. It can even shorten our life.

Here are some tips for getting a good night sleep.

1. You should try to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. This helps your body to get into a routine.

2. Avoid drinks like cola and coffee before bedtime — they contain caffeine that keeps you awake.

3. Don't exercise or watch scary movies just before going to bed. This will wake your body up and it’s difficult to fall asleep. 

4. Have a calming bedtime routine, such as having a warm bath or reading.

Voluntourism: how to make a difference!

More and more young people are taking on volunteer work nowadays. Some even travel to the other side of the world and do unpaid work for a charity or other non-profit organisation there. They help to build homes for poor families, teach children English, take care of orphans, or help to protect an endangered species. There is a wide variety of voluntary jobs to choose from.

A number of charity groups organise educational programmes for children around the world. Many students teach subjects like English and Mathematics to children while staying in their community and getting to know the people and their culture.

Young people who are good with their hands or simply would like to help in a very practical way can participate in one of the many construction projects. Several charity organisations help build houses or schools for poor children around the world.

For people interested in wildlife, conservation groups organise volunteer holidays throughout the world. You can help wildlife research in different countries.

To some volunteers it seems that they are not doing much by helping out for only a couple of weeks but, in fact, every bit of help counts. Thanks to young volunteers, the lives of millions of people around the world are improving and, in their eyes, the sun is probably shining brighter than it used to.

Voluntourism: how to make a difference!

More and more young people are taking on volunteer work nowadays. Some even travel to the other side of the world and do unpaid work for a charity or other non-profit organisation there. They help to build homes for poor families, teach children English, take care of orphans, or help to protect an endangered species. There is a wide variety of voluntary jobs to choose from.

A number of charity groups organise educational programmes for children around the world. Many students teach subjects like English and Mathematics to children while staying in their community and getting to know the people and their culture.

Young people who are good with their hands or simply would like to help in a very practical way can participate in one of the many construction projects. Several charity organisations help build houses or schools for poor children around the world.

For people interested in wildlife, conservation groups organise volunteer holidays throughout the world. You can help wildlife research in different countries.

To some volunteers it seems that they are not doing much by helping out for only a couple of weeks but, in fact, every bit of help counts. Thanks to young volunteers, the lives of millions of people around the world are improving and, in their eyes, the sun is probably shining brighter than it used to.