Choosing photos for a website

A Work with a partner. You are going to role-play a similar situation to the conversation in listening above.

Student A: You are the Website Manager. Turn to p. 118 and prepare to describe your photos.

Student B: You are the Communications Director. Find out which links the photos are for and take notes.

B Swap roles and repeat the role-play.

Student B: You are now the Web Manager. Turn to p. 119.

5c You are now back in the office. Look at the four photos that your partner described. Was the description good? Do you agree with his/her choice?

USEFUL PHRASES

This one is nicer/clearer/stronger/weaker/more unusual/dramatic/powerful

I like the way this one…

I think this one is better because…

It makes you feel sad/angry/…

I think we should use this one because…

Whale Hunting!

A Answer these questions.

1. What do you think the arguments in favour of whale hunting are? And those against it?

2. Why do you think some countries/people are against whale hunting?

3. Why do you think some countries/ people are in favour of whale hunting?

B Read the article once to compare your ideas from 6.a.

To kill or not to kill – that is the question for a number of countries

By Sam Gordon

What is the most controversial issue in your country? Whaling is one topic that’s been dividing nations for many years now. Oil from whales lit the lamps of major cities in the US and Europe, and whale oil was used to manufacture soaps, varnish, cosmetics, paint and even the glaze on photographs. In order to oversee the development of the global whaling

industry, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) was formed in 1946.

However, in 1986, the IWC voted for a temporary ban on whaling. The biggest concern was the huge decline in whale population across the planet. Indeed many people say that the global moratorium came too late and that commercial whaling has already driven many species to the brink of extinction. According to Greenpeace, blue whales (the largest animal on the planet) are at less than 1% of their original abundance in the Antarctic. Sei Whales and Fin Whales are also listed as “endangered species” while Sperm Whales are classified as “vulnerable”.

But there are many other good reasons to oppose whaling. Whales are extremely intelligent mammals. They have social networks very similar to those of humans, and scientists have recently discovered that whales have brain cells only previously found in humans and great apes. On top of that, whaling is also a notoriously cruel industry. Whales are often caught using explosive harpoons that puncture their skin and then explode inside their bodies. In some cases, when the harpoon doesn’t hit its target properly, whales can take minutes or sometimes hours to die.

Despite this, some countries continue to hunt whales. In 1992, Norway declared itself exempt from the ban. And currently Japan hunts more than 1,000 whales a year – all of them part of a supposed “scientific research” programme run by the Japanese Institute of Cetacean Research. Many people argue that this “research” is nothing more than a front for commercial whaling (the meat that is left over after samples are taken is sold as a delicacy). The situation was not helped in 2001, when Maseyuku Komatsu from the Japanese Fisheries Agency described Minke Whales as the “ cockroaches of the sea” in an interview on Australian television.

Many ecological groups have tried to sabotage the hunts. In 2005 and 2006, Greenpeace sent boats to interfere with the whaling fleet in the Antarctic. In some cases, protests have turned violent. Just recently, the Ady Gil (a ship belonging to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society) was rammed by a whaling ship. The Ady Gil later sank. At present, the world is fairly divided on the issue with Iceland, Japan and Norway on the pro-whaling side, and the US, Australia, New Zealand and the EU on the anti-whaling side. Asked recently how difficult his job was on a scale of one-to-ten, Cristian Maquieira, the chairman of the IWC, said “about a twelve”!

6c Use your dictionary to match up these words and phrases from the article with their meanings:

6d Read the article again. What do these numbers/dates refer to?

1. 30,000

2. 1946

3. 1986

4. 1%

5. 1992

6. 1,000

7. 2001

8. 12

E Discussion

1. What do you think of whale hunting?

2. What do you think of hunting in general?

3. Is any form of hunting a controversial issue in your country? Which one? Why?

Project: Endangered animals.

Не нашли, что искали? Воспользуйтесь поиском: