The Human Race and Nature

The Human Race and Nature
 
Pictures
- Look at the pictures and describe them. What animals can you identify? Where do they live? What do they eat? Which of them would you prefer to have as a pet?

- You want to get involved with an environmental group but you can only afford a limited amount of time and money. Talk about the different groups shown in the pictures below and decide together which one you will join. Talk about these issues: how urgent the problem is, how important i tis for your country/for the world generally, how effective your support would be.

- Look at the pictures; identify the animals and the surrounding of each picture. Express your attitude to these animals and describe the places where these animals could be seen.

- Look at the picture. What are the benefits and pleasures of having a pet? Should a pet become a real member of the family with all the privileges, e.g. sleeping in bed,...?

- Which of these natural disasters are the worst? What happens when they occur? What kind of damage do they cause?

- Describe these pictures and explain what is happening there. Do you know which parts of the world are mostly affected by these natural disasters?
 
7. Choose two pictures and describe what is happening there? What should be done to help those people? Have you ever seen or heard anything about these natural catastrophes?
 
- Which of these ecological problems are the worst? What are/might be the contributors? What are the consequences of the damage to the nature? How would you help to solve them?
 
Discussion
- What season of the year do you prefer and why? /include temperature, weather, countryside, people’s activities/
- What type of weather do you like most and least?
- How does weather affect your moods and emotions?
- Do you rely on weather forecasts in planning your day? How reliable are weather forecasts?
- How would you describe the climate in our country? Describe it in as much details as possible.
- What do you like and dislike about each season?

7. Describe the seasons of the year.
- What impact does weather have on your physical condition?
- What should be the relationship between man and animals?
- What are the benefits and pleasures of having a pet? Should a pet become a real member of the family with all the privileges, e.g. sleeping in bed,...?
- What do you think of zoos?
- Name some animals. Which of them are the most endangered?
- Name at least ten kinds of animals, birds, flowers, trees, mammals.
- What deciduous and coniferous trees grow in our country?
- Which ecological problem needs to be most urgently solved?
- What are you personally doing to protect the environment?
- Which of these natural disasters are the worst? What happens when they occur? What kind of damage do they cause? /earthquake, tornado, flood, forest fire, tsunami, hurricane, drought, avalanche, volcanic eruption/
- Identify environmental problems our society faces and characterize each environmental problem.
- Choose two ways of protection of environment and explain three advantages and disadvantages of them.
- Would you introduce environmental education as a compulsory or optional school subject? Support your decision.
- Should the government spend more money on protection of endangered animals and national parks in our country? Support your opinion.
- What causes air pollution?
- What are the ways of reducing air pollution?
- How does water pollution occur?
- How is land pollution caused?

Role-plays and simulations
- You are going away for the weekend and have asked a friend to take care if your pet parrot Lumpy. Give instructions to your friend, telling him/her what/not/ to do and warning him/her about possible problems. You can use following expressions to help you: cage, window, feed, grains, change the water, fly away,  clean. /Role-play/

- You have been asked to give a short presentation to pupils in a primary school on “Possible ways of protecting our environment“. /Simulation/

- A new factory is going to be built near your housing estate. Give your arguments for and against. /Simulation/

- Imagine that you have been asked to come up with a new slogan by an environmentally-friendly agency which organizes a big advertising campaign. Choose your favourite green issue /wildlife, pollution, whatever you feel most strongly about/, explain your choice and think of the slogan. /Simulation/

- Imagine that you are the weatherman/weathergirl on TV. Prepare the weather forecast for tomorrow. /Simulation/

- You are a customer at a pet shop and want to buy a pet. Ask the shop assistant for advice which pet would be suitable for you. /Role-play/

- Environmental disasters are not all natural. What man-made environmental disasters are there? Choose one and discuss its causes and its effects on the environment. What can and should be done to prevent it happening? /Simulation/
 
Človek a príroda
- ročné obdobia, počasie
- príroda okolo nás – fauna /zvieratá voľné žijúce, v ZOO, domáce/ a flóra
- stav životného prostredia /znečistenie zeme, vôd, ovzdušia/, prírodné katastrofy
- ochrana životného prostredia /národné parky, chránené územia, environmentálna výchova/
- vplyv životného prostredia na život človeka /poľnohospodárstvo, zdravá výživa, agroturistika/
 
A.
The Slovak Republic has a moderate /mierna/ continental climate. A year is divided into four seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter. Each season lasts about three months.
Spring begins on the 21st March. Nature begins to awake from its long winter sleep and new life begins.  Nights get shorter and days get longer. There is more sunshine and it becomes warmer and warmer. The thaw sets in /nastáva odmäk/, the snow melts and rivers and streams swell and there may be floods in the regions through which the rivers pass. Soon in gardens and woods the first flowers appear: white snowdrops and snowflakes /bleduľa/, yellow marsh marigolds /záružlie/, dandelions /púpava/ and daffodils /narcis/, blue forget-me-nots, coloured crocuses and tulips, purple violets, and catkins /jahňada/ and chestnuts come in blossom. Birds such as swallows /lastovička/, starlings /škorec/, cuckoos come back from the south and we can hear them singing again.  The weather in spring, especially in April, is very unpredictable and changeable. The temperatures are often below zero at night although days may be quite warm. Sometimes the sun shines and soon after it is overcast /overcast/ or it sleeps, pours with rain or it may even snow.
June 21 is the date when summer begins. Schoolchildren love this season because they have two months´ holidays ahead. Everybody starts to be more interested in weather because people set out on journeys and take holidays. Temperature rises to 25 ´C or more and we may have many fine days in a row. In the morning, there is often dew /rosa/, the sky is clear and bright, it is sunny and dead calm /úplné bezvetrie/, no wind blows and sometimes we suffer from  a heat wave /teplá vlna/ which means that the weather is sultry /sparno/, hot and dry. In summer rain often comes in the form of a storm. All of a sudden a sky clouds over, it gets dark and cools down, a breeze changes into a strong wind and the storm is about to break.  Then there is a crash of thunder and a flash of lightning and a heavy downpour /lejak/.  After the storm dies down a rainbow may appear in the sky and you can see pools of water and puddles everywhere.  Summer is also the time for strawberries, bilberries /čučoriedky/, raspberries, blackberries and cranberries /brusnice/ and the harvest of corn.
At the beginning of September when the school year begins, summer in reality is over and on the 23 September autumn comes. In autumn the sun sets earlier and rises later and days get shorter. The nice weather breaks although we can still enjoy a few fine days of Indian summer. In the gardens it is the time of harvest, we pick apples, pears and plums as well as gather potatoes and sugar beet. Grass turns yellow and gets dry. The leaves of maples /javor/, birches /breza/, ashes /jaseň/, beeches /buk/, oaks /dub/ and larches /smrekovec/ become tinted yellow, orange, brown and red  and make a lovely contrast with evergreen conifers /ihličnan/. Birds flock together and set out on the journey to the south.  In autumn the weather is often unsettled, the sky is often cloudy, mornings are dull and it looks like rain. It usually does not clear up by day.  As the temperature continues to drop , it becomes damp /vlhko/, chilly /chladno/, wet and rainy and it may drizzle /mrholiť/.  There may be passing showers, sometimes it rains on and off for a long time. The first frosts come and in the morning there may be hoarfrost /inoväť/ on the grass and haze /opar/ or fog, and a cold wind blows from the north.
According to the calendar, winter comes on December 21, but in fact it often begins earlier. Typical winter weather brings snowfall, icy wind and hard frosts /mráz, srieň/.  We can enjoy skiing in the mountains and hills covered with a thick layer of fluffy snow. Sometimes the wind piles up /kopiť/ snowdrifts /závej/ along the roads and snowploughs /pluh/ must be used to clear the snow and make the blocked roads passable again.  Children enjoy their winter pleasures, such as building snowmen, sledging ans skating on lakes and streams that are frozen over.
Useful vocabulary:
by day, at night, in the morning, at dawn /na svitaní/,  sunrise, at sunset, at sundown, at dusk /za súmraku/, at midnight, all the year round, in spring, climate, temperate zone, heavy rain, puddle /kaluž/, mud /blato/, storm, lighten, light breeze, whirlwind /vír/, hard frost, snowflake, snowdrift /závej/, fluffy snow, icicle /cencúľ/, hoarfrost /inoväť/, avalanche, thaw /odmäk/, hailstorm /krupobitie/, flood, landslide,  foggy, sunshine, unbearable heat,
spring – changeable weather, shower, hail /krúpy/, mildness, wind, gale /víchrica/, warm front, cold front, thunderstorm
summer – cloudless sky, sultry weather /dusno/, humidity /vlhkosť/, drought, downpour, cloudburst /prietrž mračien/, thunder, lightning, cool change
autumn – coldness, Indian summer, dew /rosa/, mist /opar/, fog, drizzle /mrholenie/, low pressure, hurricane, tornado
winter – cloudy day, overcast sky, snowy weather, icy wind, frost, sleet /dážď so snehom, čľapkanica/, snowstorm, blizzard /snehová búrka/
The sky is overcast. It looks like rain. It’s been drizzling all the day. It thunders. Wind is blowing. It’s windy. Snow turns into slush /čľapkanica/. Thaw sets in. The fog has cleared. Dew falls. It’s getting warmer. It’s hot and stuffy /dusno/.
•  How does the weather influence our mood and health? – Sunny weather makes me feel...., When it rains, I feel......., Changeable weather causes me to feel......, When it is gloomy and overcast, I feel......., good/bad weather, be in one´s best mood, be in a good/bad temper, feel well/unwell, be optimistic/pessimistic, feel happy/sad, sentimental, melancholic, be full of energy, active, take pleasure in small joys, be eager to do things, be a man of action, dull weather, see everything in dark colours, have problems, be slow, sleepy, lazy, tired, to depress, depression, be moody, be out of humour
•  What type of weather do you like most? Would you like to have this weather all the time? What type of weather don’t you like at all? – I best like sunny/warm/clear weather with the temperature around.....degrees. I would like/not like to have this weather all year round because...... ,  I dislike grey skies/wind/rain because.......,  I could also happily live without snow/thunderstorms/frost.......  ,  I’m glad we don‘t have tornadoes/hurricanes because....
•  Do you rely on weather forecasts in planning your day? How reliable are weather forecasts? – I listen to the weather forecast /every day/whenever I happen to catch it. It helps me to decide /what to wear/whether or not to carry an umbrella.....,  For me, weather forecasts are not very useful because /often weather turns to be quite different from the forecast/ I always  carry an umbrella anyway...., The weather forecasts are /very reliable/not so reliable/, for example.....

B.
Deciduous /leafy/ trees – acacia /agát/, alder /jelša/, ash /jaseň/, aspen /osika/, beech /buk/, birch /breza/, hornbeam /hrab/, chestnut /gaštan/, elm /brest/, larch /strekovec/, lime /lipa/, maple /javor/, oak /dub/, poplar /topoľ/, rowan /jarabina/, willow /vŕba/
Coniferous trees – spruce /smrek/, fir /jedľa/, pine /borovica/, yew /tis/, thuja
Wild and garden flowers – buttercup /iskerník/, marsh marigold /záružlie/, violet /fialka/, cornflower /nevädza/, forget-me-not, anemone /veternica/, lily-of-the-valley /konvalinka/, primrose /prvosienka/, dandelion /púpava/, snowdrop /snežienka/, snowflake /bleduľa/, crocus, iris /kosatec/,  rose, tulip,  daffodil, narcissus,  lily /ľalia/, carnation /hrebíček/, chrysanthemum, daisy /sedmokráska/, dahlia /georgína/, poppy /mak/, camomile, gladiolus, marguerite, pansy /sirôtka/, thyme /mateina dúška/, bluebell /zvonček/, lilac /orgován/, weed /burina/
Fruit trees – apple, pear, plum, cherry, wild cherry, peach, apricot
Pets – dog, cat, canary, hamster, guinea-pig, parrot
Domestic animals – pig, piglet, horse, goat, rabbit, hare /zajac/, sheep, ram /baran/, poultry, goose, gander /gunár/, gosling, duck, drake,  duckling, hen, cock, chicken, turkey, turkey-hen, cow, donkey
Wood animals – deer, fallow-deer /daniel/, roe deer /srna/, reindeer /sob/, wild boar /diviak/, wolf, fox, vixen /líška/, bear, lynx /rys/, wildcat, chamois /kamzík/, squirrel /veverička/, badger /jazvec/
Amphibians and reptiles – frog, snake, lizard /jašterica/, tortoise, snail, crayfish /rak/, crocodile, alligator, crab
Fish – carp, trout /pstruh/, pike /šťuka/, salmon /losos/, shark, whale, dolphin, cod /treska/
Birds – blackbird /drozd/, finch /pinka/, bunting /strnádka/, jay /sojka/, magpie /straka/, cuckoo, nightingale /slávik/, skylark /škovránok/, sparrow /vrabec/, swallow /lastovička/, robin /červienka/, woodpecker /ďateľ/, starling /škorec/, tit /sýkorka/, stork /bocian/, raven, crow, owl /sova/, falcon /sokol/, eagle /orol/, hawk /jastrab/, vulture /sup/, seagull, swan, pheasant, partridge /jarabica/,  turtle-dove /hrdlička/, pelican, cormorant, flamingo, pigeon, budgerigar /papagáj/, ostrich /pštros/
Exotic animals - puma, chimp, monkey, tiger, lion, zebra, rhino, giraffe, elephant, llama, hippo, panda, bear, bison, kangaroo, koala, camel, antelope, platypus, echidna, emu, grizzly, buffalo /byvol/, beaver /bobor/, racoon /medvedík čistotný/, coyote, jaguar, cheetah /gepard/, seal /tuleň/, walrus /mrož/, moose /los/
Insects – flea, louse /lice,  spider, fly, horsefly /oväd/, butterfly, lady bird, fire fly /svetluška/,  dragon fly /vážka/, mosquito, may beetle /chrúst/, honeybee, bumble bee, wasp, Colorado beetle/potato beetle, grasshopper, tick /kliešť/,  ant, chirp /svrček/, snail, shell, earthworm /dážďovka/, caterpillar /húsenica/
Vertebrates – living creatures that have a backbone
Mammals – vertebrate animals which are warm-blooded and suckle their young
Carnivores – flesh-eating mammals
Amphibians – animals that can live on both land and water
•  What animals do you like and dislike? Have you got any pets or animals at home? – My favourite animal is .......because......, I dislike.....because...... ., I am afraid of........because........, At home, I have........as a pet.  I can’t have pets at home because......., If I could, I’d like to have........
•  Do you enjoy visiting a zoo or a wild animal park? Which is your favourite? – I like going to a zoo because...., I don’t like to see animals in captivity because...., I prefer visiting a wild animal park because......., wild animal parks don’t appeal to me because.....
•  What should be the relationship between man and animals? – I believe that animals are necessary for /food/ transportation/clothing materials...., Some animal products are needed for man, such as milk, eggs, honey. I /think/don‘t think/ that animals should be used for experiments/blood sports/fur...., Breeding animals to produce different varieties is /good/bad/ because....., I feel mankind has gone too far in exploiting the animal world, for example, through /excessive hunting/the destruction of the environment/ many animal species are endangered. To protect animals, I feel it is necessary to /set aside areas for nature reserves/ pass laws to keep sportsmen and hunters from killing too many animals/....
C. +D. + E.
The environment means surroundings in which people, animals and plants develop and exist.
Civilization has brought many people advantages but its products also pollute and damage the environment in which we live. The most serious ecological problems of today are the pollution of air, water, and soil, the destruction of ecosystem, disappearance of many species of animals and plants, the weather changes, acid rain, the warming up of the Earth‘ surface, the destruction of tropical rain forests and the breaking of the ozone layer.
Air pollution is the biggest problem in large cities and in areas with concentrated industrial production.  Emissions range from smoke, dust and smells to car and lorry exhausts. Smoke contains sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide and they can cause major changes in the environment which can lead to climate changes.  These substances mix with water vapour in the atmosphere and form sulphuric acid and nitric acid.  Sunlight turns these acids into poisonous oxidants which fall in the form of acid rain or snow onto trees and gradually kill them.
Trees are important for our life because they are lungs of our planet.  They absorb carbon dioxide from the air and give out oxygen in return. In some parts of the world trees are not threatened by pollution, but by people. The great rain forests are being destroyed for firewood and building materials. If we lose tropical forests, it will become more difficult to breathe. With more carbon dioxide in the air, the temperature will rise, the ice-caps at the North and South Poles will melt, and the sea level will rise which will result in the flooding of many coastal cities.
Several gases have been identified as contributing to the greenhouse effect, which can also cause climate change. The earth is warmed up naturally by the atmosphere which traps solar radiation. But manmade atmospheric emissions and water vapour /výpar/ prevent the heat from escaping. The result is a rise of temperature, the melting of ice and the flooding of areas situated near sea level.
Ozone is another air pollutant that contributes to the greenhouse effect at lower atmospheric levels. It is produced by the reaction of sunlight on car exhaust fumes /dym/ and is a major pollutant in hot summers. On the ground level ozone can cause asthma attacks, corrosions of certain materials and stunted /zakrpatený/ growth of plants which lowers the fields of some crops.
How can the problems of air pollution be solved?
First of all, people should try to use alternative sources of energy, such as solar, water, wind and perhaps tidal energies. There are more ways to reduce air pollution caused by road traffic. It is possible to switch freight /nákladná doprava/ from road to railways and to support public transportation.  Also, people should be encouraged to drive at the speed limit in order to use fuel more efficiently.  Another way is to encourage tree planting, because trees absorb carbon dioxide and the use of unleaded petrol.
Water pollution results form harmful industrial processes and households, from pesticides and other chemicals used in agriculture. Concentrations of heavy metals are increasing. If we want to have waterways clearer, discharges /prepustiť/ to water from industrial processes should be controlled. We should also find technologies for saving water and reduce the amount of chemicals. New technologies should develop environmentally friendly pesticides.
Soil can become contaminated as a result of industrial waste and other causes. Much domestic rubbish is disposed /smerovať/ of in landfills /jama na odpad/. Waste disposal /likvidácia/ should be controlled and maintained properly. Landfill can be avoided by re-using, recycling or energy recovery from the waste material. Bottle bins, can containers, plastic and paper containers should be installed where the public can deposit used glass containers, cans plastic and waste paper for recycling. Domestic rubbish should be sorted out too. Kitchen garbage and garden waste of organic origin can be composted and turned into fertilizer.
Environmental protection should also include animal and plant protection because the balance of species of plants and animals has also been affected by human activities. Some animals are protected too.  The introduction of new species should be strictly controlled or even prohibited because their increase in number can easily slip out of control.
The establishment of National Parks and nature reserves provides protection, and also provides opportunities for outdoor recreation.
In recent years many environmental organizations have been founded some of them on international basis, such as the Greenpeace. Environmentalists point to the most serious ecological problems and try to give warnings though the mass media and public campaigns.  Many of their activities have been successful, e.g. catalytic converters and unleaded petrol in cars are compulsory in many countries, the use of phosphates in soap is forbidden, and most industrial countries have agreed to stop using ozone-destroying chemicals in aerosol sprays, smoking in public places is restricted by law.
Natural disasters – volcanic eruption, earthquake, flood, hurricane, drought, tidal wave, avalanche, forest fire, famine
What do these words mean?
•  Acid rain – rain that is harmful because it has become mixed with smoke from factories and power plants
•  CFCs – are chemicals that damage the ozone layer and are used especially in refrigerators and in some aerosols
•  Deforestation – a process of destroying forests for firewood and building materials
•  Endangered species – when a plant or animal is endangered, it is threatened with extinction, i.e. it may no longer exist
•  The environment – the air, water and land where people, animals and plants live, and the way these things depend on each other so that the life on the Earth can continue
•  Global warming – the idea that the Earth’s weather is gradually becoming warmer because of the pollution. The consequences of global warming are melting of icebergs and thus the increase of the sea level and flooding of land
•  Greenhouse effect – the gradual warming of the Earth caused by gases that stop heat from leaving the Earth’s atmosphere
•  Holes in the ozone layer – they are caused by the damage of the ozone layer by chemicals, especially CFCs, and when holes appear in the ozone layer, harmful light from the sun /ultraviolet light/ reaches the Earth
•  The ozone layer – a layer of gases around the Earth that protects us by stopping harmful light from the sun reaching the Earth
•  Pollutant – a substance that pollutes the environment
•  Pollution – damage caused to the environment by harmful waste and chemicals
•  Rainforest – a tropical forest with tall trees that are very close together, growing in a part of the world where it rains a lot
•  Recycle – meant to take materials that have already been used, and to put them through a special process so that they can be used again