re-elected Prime Minister in the general elections of 1983 and 1987. Andrew

Wyet is one of the prominent living American painters. He was born in 1917.

The son of illustrator – Andrew is the leading member of the dynasty of

painters that includes his sisters, their husbands and his own two sons. He

won fame at the age of 12 for his illustrations of "Robin Hood". He was 20

when he first exhibited his paintings. Andrew studied with his father and

was strongly influenced by him. His father's style of illustration

expresses sentimentality. But very early the young artist gravitated a way

from his teacher. Wyet's style is both precise and minute in detail, he is

a realist influenced by photography. He painted portraits, landscapes,

seascapes and domestic scenery. His favorite media are tempera and water

colors. His works are easily recognized by dimly lit and deserted

landscapes in tones of grey and brown which convey the feeling of

loveliness and solitude. His most famous works are "Christina's world" and

"Inland shell".

|Problems of Youth. The age between 14 & 17 is considered to be one of the

best periods in people’s life. Grown-ups remind it with excitement &

tenderness. But most teens wouldn’t agree with this opinion if they were

asked. Youth is the time when a person is trying to find his place in the

world. And during this search he or she comes across different problems

which are as important as those of the adults. The youth of the 21st

century face almost the same problems which were acute to their parents

when they were young. These problems are quite serious & they can’t be

considered trifles.

One of them is a generation gap. Every generation is unique in its

experience. It has its own ideals and a system of values concerning every

aspect of human life. Adults always complain that the young people do not

blindly accept the ideals of their parents. Different generations take

different directions. Grown-ups always teach the young how to live. But the

latter want to live their own life. And it generates the conflict of the

generations.

Drinking & taking drugs have become the most actual problems of the modern

society. As for drinking , teenagers don’t realize the harm it does to

their health , they just don’t want it to the privilege of grown-ups but

unlike grown-ups they are notable to drink responsibly . They really

believe that certain drinks will make them look like they’re accepted. So,

we can say that the low level of self-appraisal is the main reason of

drinking & drug problem.

In fact, teenagers have got a lot of work. They’re busy with their

studies, household chores, some of them have a paid job. But there’s no

time for fun & they want to be entertained at least sometimes. This

excessive work leads to an inner conflict which’s usually expressed in the

form of an open, direct protest against the world of grown-ups.

Our age – is time of making a choice what we will be in future, what we

want to do and how. So we have to choose the university to have better

education and future profession. If you have a good education you’ll be

always perfect at you profession and of course you’ll earn much money, make

your life better. And the best way to prepare is to study better at school.

The school ages are also very difficult. We do a lot of homework and even

have no time to go for a walk or do whatever we want.

And of course, communication can be one of the most important problems of

all young people of today. If you don’t like noisy clubs and other places

of entertainment, you can make friends without leaving your apartment. The

Internet gives such an opportunity. But the problem is that people can sit

at the displays for 24 hours without eating, sleeping, having a rest,

working or learning properly. I am sure, that it’s a great problem of the

present and future.

So as you see it’s very difficult to be young nowadays as indeed it

always was. But you only can be young ones and some wonderful things can

happen to you only when you’re young. So it’s better to enjoy youth while

it lasts.

Holidays. Every nation and every country has its own customs and

traditions. But there are also international holidays which are celebrated

in all countries world-wide. They are: Christmas, New Year, Easter and St.

Valentine's day. Christmas comes but once a year. Christmas is a

traditional family reunion day. On this day, many people attend a church

service, open their presents and eat a Christmas dinner. In Britain,

Christmas is the most important public holiday of the year. It combines the

custom of giving gifts with the tradition of spending this day with the

family. Every year a huge Christmas tree, the gift of the Norwegian people,

graces Trafalgar square. In Russia Christmas is celebrated on the 7th of

January. On this day people celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ. New

Year is a public holiday but it is not marked with any particular custom in

Britain and America, yet it has a joyful celebration in Russia. People stay

awake until after midnight on December 31st to watch the Old Year out and

the New Year in. Many parties are given on this night. Theatres, night

clubs and streets are crowded. Easter is one of the most important

Christian holiday. It is traditionally associated with Easter eggs and with

the coming of spring, and most churches are specially decorated with

flowers for the service held on Easter Day. There are also some special

holidays which are usually celebrated in a particular country. Let's start

with the traditional British holiday Pancake day. But people don't only eat

pancakes on this day, they run with them. In many towns in England pancake

races are held every year. These races are run by housewives. The most

American holiday is Thanksgiving day. It was first celebrated in early

colonial times by Pilgrim Fathers after their first good harvest.

Thanksgiving is a day when the family eats a large traditional dinner,

usually with turkey and pumpkin pie. In Russia we celebrate Women's day on

the 8th of March. On this day men are supposed to do everything about the

house and cook all the meals. I think it is very important to follow

special traditions, because they untie people. n Britain traditions play

more important part in the life of the people than in some other countries.

English are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. There is

a big difference of people between America and Britain. An Englishman in

America is respected, Americans love his accent and his country. An

American in England is thought to be a little strange because of his

behavior and his language. To the English their private lives are

important, their holidays are important, their garden are important, their

animals are important. For American the work is the most important thing in

life. And in England you can hear the most extraordinary excuse not to go

to work, for example "My dog's got a cold". In English houses the fire-

place has always been the centre of interest in a room. For many months of

the year people like to sit round the fire and watch the dancing flames.

Above the fire there is usually a shelf with a clock and some photos. The

English are a nation of stay-at-homes. There is no place like home. The

Englishman is never tired to say "My house is my castle". The Americans are

different. I think they are more open, they speak their minds, so if they

don't like something, they actually tell it directly. Not like the British,

who might think one thing and say another. Americans start conversations

with people in the street, in the subway; they are more enthusiastic.

American customs underline independence and freedom of the nation. Russia

is the country of the dramatic beauty. To my mind, the main traits of the

real Russia character are hospitality, "open heart", "golden hands", wise

Russian fairytales reflect their wisdom. The Russians are a very talented

nation. Russia gave the world beautiful names of Pushkin and Lermontov,

Tchaikovsky and Repin, thousands of names of world famous poets, writers,

composers, scientists. Every country is also known for its food. England is

noted for its pudding, bacon, marmalade, porridge and five-o'clock-tea.

America is the country of Coca-Cola, hamburgers and chewing gum.

Traditional Russian cooking is worldfamous for such dishes as okroshka,…

|Sports. Sport is probably as old as the humanity itself. It has been

developing with the development and growth of the mankind people all over

the world. If you want to feel fit you'd better go in for one kind of sport

or another. I should admit that everyone must do all he can to be healthy.

Good health is better than the best medicine, as the old Latin proverb

says. All kinds of physical exercises are very useful to make our bodies

strong and to keep ourselves fit and healthy.

Sport not only helps people to become strong and to develop physically but

also makes them more organized and better disciplined in their daily

activities. It makes for a healthy mind in a healthy body sport helps

people to keep in good health. We all need to exercise. Even if you don’t

plan to make a career in sport you still have to practice. Regular

exercises give you more energy. That is why many people who suffer from

general tiredness should take more exercise than more rest. Exercise makes

you feel and look better. The best exercise is one, which is involved, in

repeated movements: walking, jogging, and swimming. Bending and stretching

will add flexibility and feeling of lightness.

As for me I try to take all these things into consideration and as a

result of it I go in dancing studio, play badminton and sometimes

volleyball, ride bicycle and swim. I think that dancing is better than

sport if you just want to keep feet, but not make a sport career. Because

sometimes sport is dangerous if you don’t know how to do exercises

properly. For example, if you run too much your calves can become too big

or you even can get injury. So you better go to a sport clubs where

experienced instructor will help you to achieve good results.

I like to dance very much and I think it’s a best way to be healthy and to

keep feet for girls. Because dancing develops all groups of muscles and

helps to keep good deportment. Besides it makes one feel confident and

helps to overcome shyness. So I am in good form and hope to be in future.

My favourite holiday. Many great holidays and anniversaries are celebrated

in our country. On the 1st of May there is May Day — the holiday of spring

and labour. On the 8th of March there is Women's Day — the holiday of all

women and girls. We celebrate Day of Independence of Russia on the 12th

June and Day of Russian Constitution on the 12th of December. Now people

celebrate some religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter. But my

favourite holiday is New Year's Day, of course. It is a really wonderful

holiday. People get ready for this holiday long before it. They buy New

Year trees and decorate them. Every year a fairy-tale comes to every house

and every family on New Year's Eve. Children and even grown-ups wait for

this day because they believe that all their wishes and desires come true

and different wonderful miracles happen on that day.

On New Year’s Eve people get together to see “the old year out and the new

year in”. They eat tasty food, drink champagne, dance and have a good time

together. They wish each other happiness and good luck in the new year and

put the presents under the New Year tree. Children like this holiday very

much. They wait for New Year presents, which, they believe, Father Frost

brings to them. Everybody is merry on that day and wishes the next year to

be good and happy and all one's troubles and disappointments to remain in

the past.

Great Britain is situated on the British Isles. It consists of England,

Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and is one thirtieth the size of

Europe. Great Britain is surrounded by seas on all sides and is separated

from the continent by the North Sea and the English Channel.

There are many rivers in Britain. They are not long but some of them are

deep. The longest river is the Severn. There are many mountains in the

north of England and in Scotland but they are not very high. The highest

mountain in Great Britain is Ben Nevis. There are many lakes in Scotland.

The most beautiful is Loch Lomond.

Great Britain has a very good position as it lies on the crossways of the

sea routes from Europe to the other parts of the world. There are many

countries which are connected with Great Britain by sea. Thanks to Gulf

Stream the climate of Great Britain is mild. It is often foggy and rainy.

The summer is not very hot and the winter is not very cold.

Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. It lives by

manufacture and trade. Its agriculture provides only half the food it

needs, the other half of its food has to be imported. Britain is one of the

most highly industrialised countries in the world: for every person

employed in agriculture, eleven are employed in mining, manufacturing and

building. The main branches of British economy are engineering, mining,

ship-building, motor vehicle manufacturing, textile, chemistry,

electronics, fishing and food processing. The industrial centres of Great

Britain are London, Manchester, Eirmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield and

others.

The United States of America is another important English-speaking country.

It consists of fifty different states and the District of Columbia joined

together under one government.

The USA covers an area of almost 9400000 square kilometres and is twice as

large as all the countries of Europe combined. It is placed in the middle

of the North American continent and is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the

east and the Pacific Ocean in the west. Placed between two oceans, the USA

has a free access to the trade routes of the world.

On the whole the USA has a continental climate. It is at the same time one

of the coldest and one of the hottest countries, one of the wettest and one

on the driest.

The flag of the United States is called “Stars and Stripes”. The 50 stars

represent the 50 states and the 13 stripes represent 13 original English

colonies, which in 1776 became free and independent of England.

The USA is governed by Congress and by the President. Congress consists of

the Senate (100 senators — 2 from each state) and the House of

Representatives (435 Congressmen). The President, who is also the head of

the government and the commander-in-chief of all the armed forces, is

elected every four years.

The capital of the United States is Washington. It is situated on the

Potomac River not far from the Atlantic coast. Washington is not a very

large city. Such cities as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco,

Houston, Dallas, Philadelphia, Detroit, New Orleans and some others are

larger.

The USA is one of the most developed countries in the world. It is a

country of great contrasts. There are a lot of unsolved problems in the

country such as unemployment and inflation, but nevertheless it is one of

the greatest countries in the world.

|Protection of Environment. It is a small world we live in, and it is high

time for all of us to realize it. Since ancient times people have been

trying to produce more and more to increase human wealth. Nobody noticed

that we were destroying Nature by using it as the source of raw materials,

and as the garbage can for our waste. Nature seemed to be boundless and

endless... Far from it as it turned out. Millions of cars and smoky

factories pollute and spoil the air we breathe in. Pollution is hanging

over big cities like an ugly brown cloud. It is hurting our lungs as well

as the life of animals, birds and plants. People need wood and paper, so we

cut down our forests. We don't know what to do with waste materials of our

industry, so we pour them into water, bury them into soil, and shoot them

into atmosphere. We pollute the water we drink, and the land we live in.

People build nuclear power stations and carry out nuclear tests. As a

result, radiation represents one of the main problems nowadays. The rapid

growth of population in the world may turn into another grave problem very

soon. The speed, with which we are using up our non-renewable resources

like oil and gas, is appalling. With the development of our civilization we

have become dangerous to the planet and to ourselves. What must we do not

to find ourselves in a dirty desert in the near future? This question

cannot be ignored. Some scientists are pessimistic about our problems. They

suppose that we have already reached the point of no return. Others are

more optimistic and believe that our ecological problems are solvable

because more and more people begin to understand how dangerous they are.

There is increasing awareness of people of the real state of the planet. In

many countries environmental protection agencies and research centers are

set up. Such organizations as "Green Peace" and "Friends of the Earth" try

to put pressure upon those governments that do not care for ecology in

their countries. The humankind will be able to survive only if we all

understand that environmental protection is our universal concern.

Mass media. The most popular sources of entertainment and information are

the press, radio, tv, and movies. The press plays an important part in the

life of society. Millions of Americans in their free time read newspapers.

The English word ‘newspaper’ does not really describe everything that you

can read in this kind of publication. Newspapers include not only stories

about recent events (news), but opinions, advertising, and other non-news

items. The first American newspaper was called Public Occurrences Both

Foreign and Domestic. This paper was first published in Boston in 1690. Now

there are about 2,600 newspapers published in the USA. The New York Times,

the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times are three of the most

important daily papers that describe foreign and domestic news. The radio

does not interfere with your activities. You can listen to the radio while

doing some work about the house, reading a book or driving a car. On the

radio one can hear music, plays, news, and different commentary and

discussions called ‘forums’. At a forum several authorities exchange views

on social, economic and political problems. A peculiar feature of the

American radio is soap opera. It is a sentimental serial drama that

describes domestic problems and which is for housewives. Soap opera is

usually broadcast every day. Most people find soap opera boring. There ate

a lot of games on the radio. They are called ‘panel games’. Radio brings

also cultural and educational programs. Many programs are made up of

classical music. Television is a ‘chewing gum for ears and eyes’. There are

many serials on TV in the USA. They appeared in the 1950s. TV games-

attract a large audience, too. During TV quiz programs TV viewers answer

different questions. There is a lot of education on television. For

example, you can take a TV course in history, political economy,

management, banking and in many other subjects, or learn a foreign language

by TV. Educational TV films and programs are shown in schools and colleges

as a part of the curriculum.

Moscow is the capital of Russia. It is one of the biggest and most

beautiful cities in the world. Moscow is a modern city now. The population

of the city is about 9.8 million people. Moscow is a political centre,

where the government of our country works. Moscow was founded in 1147 by

Yuri Dolgoruky. The total area of Moscow is about nine hundred square

kilometres. We say that Moscow is a port of five seas, as the Moscow—Volga

Canal links Moscow with the Baltic, White, Caspian and Black seas and the

Sea of Azov. Moscow is an industrial centre too. There are many factories

and plants in it. One of the best-known plants produces many lorries, and

the other one produces cars. The Bolshoi Theatre is one of the famous

theatres all over the world. If you are fond of painting you can go to the

Tretyakov Art Gallery or to the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum and see a lot of

interesting portraits and landscapes there. We say that the Tretyakov Art

Gallery is a treasure-house of Russian art. Young people like to visit the

Central Military Museum. There are many tanks, guns and war documents

there. One can see the Kremlin and Red Square in the city. There are many

fine buildings, wide streets, green parks, large squares, churches and

monuments in Moscow. It is necessary to mention such famous monuments as

monuments to the great Russian writer Alexander Pushkin and to the first

Russian printer Ivan Fedorov. Visiting the capital a lot of foreigners from

all over the world come to see these monuments. One of the highest

buildings in Moscow is the State Moscow University. It was founded in 1755

by the great scientist Mikhail Lomonosov. Transport. Moscow is a very big

city, and its transport must be comfortable and fast. One can see a lot of

cars, buses, trolley-buses, trams in the streets of our city. The Moscow

metro began its work on the 15th of May, 1935. There were 13 stations at

that time. Now it has 190 stations. Our metro is a beautiful and convenient

one. There are nine railway stations in Moscow and five airports around the

city. There are many stadiums in Moscow. The Central Stadium is in

Luzhniki. Many competitions and football matches are held there. The

Olympic village was built for the 22nd Olympic Games in Moscow in 1980. It

is a big complex for sport games. I live in Moscow and I am proud of this

city.

The vast territory of Russia lies in the Eastern part of Europe and in the

northern part of Asia. In area, it is one of the largest countries in the

world. Airlines service many cities throughout the country. A flight from

Moscow to Magadan takes eight hours. Russia is washed by twelwe seas and

three oceans. The oceans are: tha Atlantic, the Arctic, the Pacific. The

northern and eastern coasts of Russia are washed by the White Sea, the

Barents Sea and by the Okhotsk Sea. The land of Russia waries a lot from

heavy forests to barren deserts, from high peaked mountains to deep

valleys. Russia is located on two plains. They are: the Great Russian Plain

and the West Siberian Plain. There are three main mountain chains in

Russia. The Urals, the longest mountain chain, separates Europe from Asia.

There are various types of climate on the territory of Russia. But the

temperate zone with four distinct seasons prevails. Russia is a land of

long rivers and deep lakes. The broad Volga River system has a great

historic, economic and cultural importance to Russia. It became the cradle

of such ancient towns as Vladimir, Tver, Yaroslavl, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod.

Numerous canals join all the rivers in the European part of Russia, making

it the largest inland water transportation route in Europe. The Volga River

runs into the Caspian Sea, which is in reality, the largest lake in the

world. The Baikal is the deepest lake in the world. The European part of

Russia is densely populated. There are a lot of cities, towns and villages

there. Russia is rich in natural resources. It has deposits of coal, oil,

natural gas, iron ore, gold, nickel, etc. Russia borders on fourteen

countries, including the former Republics of the USSR, which are now

independent states. The history of Russia dates back to the year 862. Now

Russia is a Presidental Republic. Russia has always played an important

role in the world. It is one of its leading Powers.

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