7 > Appropriate technology In this unit you will practise: +» Reading skil © Grammar: Passive * Vocabulary: Environment: word families; pronunciation: sounds Exam Focus Forming a general picture; nding specifc information Reading: Sentence completion; © Speaking skills: Describing places matching; labeling a ciagrar; locating information; muttiple choice Speaking: Part 2 Lead-in 1 A British newspaper recently carried out a survey to find out which inventions its readers thought were the most important. Their top four choices are listed below but they are NOT in the correct order. Match each invention to a section. of the pie chart to show the result of the survey. © Vaccination ‘* Computer with World Wide Web © Electricity © Bicycle 2nd (20%) 2 Check the actual result on page 168 and say whether you agree with it or not and why. 3 Discuss which of the four inventions: ‘* was developed earliest. # made the biggest difference to people's lives when it was first introduced. * would be the best way of helping a poor community in the less economically developed world. Focus on reading 1 Changing lives SKILLS PRACTICE > Introduction 2 1 Each picture 1-4 on the opposite page represents a simple technological solution to a problem in a less economically developed country. Discuss what the problem might be in each case, and how the solution works.‘Appropriate technology The right recknology — often the ‘most simple technology —in the hands of the people who need it, understand it, and have helped to develop it, ean change lives forever. 4 Bicycle ambulance > Forming a general picture 2 Match each text A-D below to one of the inventions above. Look through just the first few lines of each text to find clues to the topic. Write the name of the invention at the beginning of each text. A Without suitable transport, villagers of the terai, or plains, of Nepal had no way of taking sick or injured people to the nearest health centre, However even the poorest villages had bicycles. The charity Practical Action was already working with the villagers to build bicycle trallers to take goods to market, and the next step was to ‘adapt them to become ambulances, The two-wheel trailer is made from moulded metal with standard wheels with rubber tyres. The bed section can be padded with cushions to make the patient Comfortable, while the ‘seat’ section allows a family member to atend to the patient during transit. In response to user comments, @ cover has been designed that can be added to give protection to the: patient and attendant in poor weather. Made of treated cotton, the ‘cover is durable and waterproof. The total cost of a complete bicycle ambulance is £150. Reading Together these four texts contain about 675 words Atypical reading passage in the exam wall be slightly longer Remember that with long texts, you need to use skimming skils to find out the rain topic in each section, 3B Across Alica, the tsetse fly threatens a stage 55 million people and their livestock. The insect sucks blood and in doing so may pass on rabies or the deadly parasite that causes trypanosomiasis, sometimes known as sleeping sickness, Infected animals suffer from poor growth, \weight loss and low milk yield, They may also become infertile and dic. An estimated 500,000 people are also affected by the disease each year, and most of them will die ‘Tsetse fly traps are a simple but effective solution, They are built using blue cloth spread between three poles, which looks like a cow to the hungry insect, while bottles containing & mixture of cows" urine and acetone are placed below. Attracted by the smell, the tsetse fly settles on the cloth but is unable to get a ite and falls into the rap One tsetse fy trap costs only £20 to build but tests have shown that a Single trap is ineffective. For this reason it's important that farmers build a number of traps across an arc —— iS In Bangladesh, some 56 per cent of the under-fives are malnourished because their families don't have the land, the resources or the money to get them the food they need. However, there isa simple invention, costing only £5, that is helping children and their families to thrive, The ‘hapa fsa fish cage which allows villagers to ‘grow fish in their local ponds by feeding them on nothing more than scraps and waste. The ‘hapa’ provide vitamin and protein-rich food all year round, as wel asa little extra money to pay for healthcare and school fees. ‘few young fish are put in each ‘hapa’, which acts as their home, floating just below the surface of the pond. With a little food ~ ail cakes, kitchen waste and snails - fish grow to full size and in just a few months beain to produce young. The cages are made using a few cheap materials. Bamhoo poles form the outer frame and these are secured with string. This is then Covered in netting and floats made of cork are added at the corners. With a capacity of one cubic metre, the cage can hold up to 300 fish atatime, > Finding specific information 1 Complete this table. | D In 1993, the charity Motivation was asked to address the desperate need for wheelchairs in Cambodia, where thousands are disabled by mines every year, A team then carried out a 12-month project to set up production of the Mekong wheelchair, which had to be suitable not only for people who had lost both legs but also for the needs of people with other disabilities. A lack of steel! tubing in Cambodia and the country's predominantly rural environment convinced the wheelchair designers that the Mekong should be a wooden frame chair with three wheels to make it more stable and manoeuvrable in rough conditions. The wheelchair packs flat into rice bags, making transport of the vehicle very efficient, and takes approximately two hours to assemble. The workshops are capable of producing the Mekong at a rate of more than $00 a year and at a cost of £40 each. A child's version is also available. 3° You should now know which part of the text you need to study to find specific information. Use scanning skills to answer these questions quickly. Invention Cost ‘Wooden wheelchair a) Fish cage b) Bicycle ambulance °) ‘Tyetse fly trap a) 42 Write short answers to these questions. Remember to underline key words a) How many wooden wheelchairs can the workshops make in a year? 'b) What is the capacity of the fish cage? ©) How many Africans are estimated to catch trypanosomiasis each year? ) What proportion of Bangladeshi children under the age of five suffer from malnourishment? ©) How long did Motivation spend preparing to produce its wheelchair? EXAM PRACTICE 4 Now complete Exam questions 1-15 below. > Sentence completion Questions I Complete the sentences below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO. WORDS from the passage for each answer EXAM LINK ‘The word ‘terai’ in the Nepali language means ... A more common name for trypanosomiasis is . In Bangladesh, the local word for a fish cage is . ‘The charity Motivation called their wooden wheelchair ... > Macching In this task you have to match a number of descriptions to the correct, inventions in the text. Before you start, study the following advice. ‘TASK APPROACH Study the questions and underline key words or phrases. © Start with any questions that look easier! © Skim read to find the right section of text and then search for words or phrases wi the same meaning as the expressions you underlined. ‘Work individually to complete the task. When you've finished, compare your answers with your partner's. Questions 510 Look at Questions 5-10 and the list of inventions below. Match each statement with the correct inventions, A-D. NB You may use any letter more than once. Example Answer Blue cloth is used in its construction, B It can be put together in a couple of hours. It was developed from an earlier invention, People can use left-over food in this. This is specially designed to be easy to transport. ‘This doesn’t work well on its own, An extra part was added after users made some suggestions, A. The bicycle ambulance € The fish cage B_ The tsetse fly trap D__ The wooden wheelchair> Labeling a diagram In this task you have to label the parts of a diagram using information from a ‘TASK APPROACH text. In this example, there’s a list of answers to choose from. Before you start, study the following advice. Find the part of the text where the object is described. Read this section carefully, underlining any key words or phrases. Study the diagram, then check the text to find the correct answers. Make sure your spelling is correct! Follow these steps to answer questions 11-15 below. When you've finished, compare your answers with another student, 76 Questions 11-15 Label the diagrams below. Choose your labels from the list below the diagrams. There are more answers to choose from than questions, so you will not need to use every label. Fish cage dia uw Bicycle ambulance ee Bamboo poles Netting Cotton Plastic Cushions Rubber Floats String Moulded metal WoodFocus on grammar Passive EXAM LINK ‘The passive is most common in written English but there are also times when it’s natural to use the passive in speaking. e.g, Iwas born and brought up in Sydney. In the end, our flight was delayed by more than four hours. 1 Study the passive structures printed in bold in the examples above, then underline all the passives you can find in reading texts A-D on pages 73-74. 2 Complete this table to show how the passive is formed. Use passive structures you underlined in texts AD to complete the Example column. [Passive | Form zl a fi ani Present simple amiis/are + past participle Past simple was/were + past participle Present perfect has/have been + past participle ay wns 5 + past participle ‘The company had been established for 20 years. 6 Fs + past participle | ‘The new airport will be completed next year. ‘Modals (present) eg. can, may, must ‘modal + be + past participle 8 ‘Modals (past) eg. could, had to, ete. modal + have been + past participle | The problem could have been solved. & Decide whether the following sentences are True or False and then make any ‘corrections necessary. The passive is mostly used in informal writing. ‘The passive is used when the subject is not known or is not important. ‘The passive sounds more formal and impersonal. It’s important to say who or what does the action in passive sentences. ‘The passive can only be formed with the verb to be. Use the following prompts to make sentences using passive structures, Tickets... ‘The latest information ... The exam results... “A new species of tiger .. The election .. No sharp objects ... 7Focus on reading 2 The price is wrong [EXAM PRACTICE In this task you have to identify sections of the text which contain specific > Locating information information. Before you start, complete these guidelines. ‘TASK APPROACH * Read the questions and key words or phrases. # Study the. * Use . skills to read through the rest of the section. ‘one or two sentences of each section to find the topic. Questions 1-5 The reading passage has six sections, AF. Which section contains the following information? Example Answer the importance of technology for developing countries. A a country which benefits from a successful solar power industry ‘where financial contributions should come from how major drug companies could help developing countries two developments that could make a big difference in poor countries how many useful technologies are too expensive for poor people > Matching Questions 6-10 Look at the following statements and places. Match each statement with the correct place, A-E. 6 There has been little or no development in this location in recent years. 7 Schoolchildren now have access to the Internet using radio links here. 8 An inexpensive medical treatment has saved many children’s lives here. 9 Cheap computers are produced here. 10. This country made use of certain laws to obtain important drugs. PLACES A Bangladesh =D Brazil B_ Kenya E_ Sub-Saharan Africa C South Africa> Multiple choice Question 11 Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D. 11 According to a UN report, genetically modified crops A. should not be sold in poor countries. B should not be used anywhere. CC. should be available in poor countries, D_ should be produced more cheaply THE PRICE IS WRONG A Ina world where 2 billion people live in homes that don't have light bulbs, technology holds the key to banishing poverty, according to @ major United Nations report. Even the simplest technologies can transform lives and save money. Vaccines, crops, computers and sources of solar ‘energy can all reduce poverty in developing countries. For example, cheap oral-rehydration therapy developed in Bangladesh has dramatically cut the death toll from childhood diarthoea, B But even when such technologies exist, the depressing, fact is that we can’t make them cheap enough for those who most need them, Solar panels, batteries and light bulbs are still beyond the purse of many, but where they have been installed they change lives. A decent light in the evening gives children more time for homework and, extends the productive day for adults € Kenya has a thriving solar industry and six years ago pioneers also started connecting schools to the Internet Via radio links. These people were fortunate in being able to afford solar panels, radios and old computers. How ‘much bigger would the impact be if these things were ‘made and priced specifically for poor people? D Multinationals must become part of the solution, because although they own around 60 per cent of the world’s technology, they seldom make products for poor customers. Of 1,223 new drugs marketed world wide from 1975 to 1996, for example, just 13 were for tropical diseases. According to the main author of the report, Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, ‘It’s the big corporations that really should read this report. We'te asking them to be more socially responsible.’ They could do more to provide vital products such as medicines at different prices around the world to suit what people can afford. Alternatively, they could pay a percentage of their profit towards research and development for the poor. ee F Governments from rich countries should contribute more too. They and other sources such as the World Bank and international institutes could provide as much as $10 billion. Developing countries should also make better use of intellectual property laws that entitle them to vital medicines, just as South Africa did with AIDS drugs. Controversial, the report backs genetically modified (GM) crops despite the widespread opposition to them among Western environmentalists and non-governmental organisations. “To reject GM crops entirely is to give up a huge opportunity,’ says Fukuda-Parr. ‘If they're so good for multinationals, why shouldn’t they be used by poor farmers’ she says. ‘Computers could also revolutionise the lives of poor people, allowing them to benefit from a global wealth of free information that could help solve local problems. But they would need to be cheap and wireless. Fukuda-Parr says that Brazil and India have already developed cheap computers, proving what countries can do for themselves. But the objectives will be difficult to achieve. Time has stood still in many areas such as sub-Saharan Africa, where there has been no increase in tractor use in a decade. By “FSS Vaccines for malaria, HIV and 7B Cheap computers and wireless “ =} comecions Cheap solar and fuel cells for local electricity supplies eee ieee New varieties of sorghum, cassave ‘and maize S & e 3 A 4 2 ~ a = 5 A 4 2 IFocus on speaking Describing places EXAM PRACTICE 1 > Pare 2 WRITING PRACTICE ‘There is an optional task with guided practice based fon climate on page 160. D Practice 5, p. 160 Before you practise the following exam task, study the task card and think about a place to describe. Don't only consider your own area or country it may be easier to find things to say about another place you have lived in or visited. Study the whole question before deciding. Describe a country or state that you have lived in or visited. ‘You should say: what its main features are (c.g, cities, landscape) what the climate is like what it has to offer visitors and explain how you feel about the country or state. Look at the following example mindplan and answer these questions. 1 Which headings are definitely relevant to the question? 2. Which heading{s) are not relevant? Cross these out. 3. Which heading(s) may be relevant to the question? let Describing places LOCATION’ in + geographical area in the northlsouthicentre (ofthe country) next to/bordered by Nepalis next tofbordered by China neariclose to close to the Himolayas, near the Equator | con + river/sea/coast Cn the coast, on the river Seine on the Red Sea GEOGRAPHY It’s (quite) mountainoushillyat, etc There’s an area of mountainslakes/desert/rainforestimarsh, etc. The main towmsttourist areas, etc. are .. PEOPLE lec has a population of (approximately) Most people/The majority of the population... live in ../speak French, ete, CUMATE les hoticold/humid/wet in summerfwinter etc ‘The rainy/dry season (usualy) begins in .. fasts from ... toIELTS VOCABULARY BUILDER 1 Put the following words or phrases into the right category A-C. There ae six words in each, bay coastline cyclone drought estuary flooding forest humidity ‘mineral deposits monsoon natural gas oil reserves plain rubber showers timber valley water A Climate/Weather B Geography Natural resources 2. The nouns below can be used in describing areas of a country. What are the corresponding adjectives? * These adjectives are completely different from the nouns. 1 agriculture 4 countryside* 7 industry 2 townlcity* 5 forest 8 marsh 3 coast 6 hill 9° mountain 3. avy isthe sound in how or shout. Which TWO words in the following list do not have this sound? brown crowd drought grow house loud plough sound tough 4/21) isthe sound in law or door. Whi ‘TWO words in the following list do not have this sound? bought cough caught fought four ought raw shore though 5. Practise these sounds. Ifyou can work with a partner, take it in turns to say one of the words below. Your partner must say which column the word was from. A B A B A B torn town all ow! floor flower fall foul nor now lord loud bought — bout core cow short shout 81