Установите соответствие между текстами A–G и заголовками 1–8. Занесите свои ответы в таблицу. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании один заголовок лишний. 1. Clever habits 2. Surviving flora 3. Adding two more 4. What’s the weather like? 5. Humans cause harm 6. Young and beautiful 7. Native people’s habits 8. Where is the taiga found? A. The taiga biome stretches across the Northern Hemisphere. It takes in large areas of North America and Eurasia, especially Canada and Russia, respectively. It also spans across Alaska and Scandinavia. The taiga biome occupies about 27% of the Earth’s surface. It is located south of the tundra biome, which is characterized by a frozen land and constant snow. Because of its location, the taiga biome is rather cold. It is to the north of the temperate forests and grasslands, which are much warmer. B. There are cold winds that blow cold Arctic air into the taiga biome, making it very cold most of the year. Therefore, this climate is called the subarctic climate. The earth rotates around the sun annually. Due to the tilt of the sun, the taiga biome faces away from the sun, resulting in long snowy winters, which are extremely cold. Another effect is that there is less radiation from the sun to heat the land up. For these reasons, the summer is barely three months long, and the winter is double that. C. The taiga is home to various species of plants. These plants are used to an extremely cold climate and mainly consist of coniferous trees, evergreens, and spruces. The absence of sunlight in the biome is an important factor, which means plants must have adaptable leaves. The evergreens have green leaves throughout the year, so they have enough food due to the presence of chlorophyll in their leaves. They keep the same leaves for a very long time, enabling them to use minimal solar energy. D. There is a limit to the number of animals that can survive in the taiga, due to the cold temperatures. Still, there are many animal species, including mammals, birds, and insect species. Like the taiga plants, animals in the biome must have adaptive features to survive in this climate. During the summer, more animals are in sight than during the winter. This is because most of them either migrate to warmer biomes where they can cope easily, especially for birds, or spend the winter sleeping until the next summer season. E. Surprisingly, there are six seasons, as identified by the native people of the boreal forest or taiga. The seasons are spring, break-up, summer, autumn, freeze-up, and winter. The period in October, when the trees lose their leaves and the lakes become frozen, is known as freeze-up. This period occurs after autumn and ends when winter starts. The other period is when the snow melts, and the ground looks bare. This season is called the break-up season and may last quite long – until all the ice in the lakes has melted. F. Compared to certain trees that grow in more temperate climates, most of the trees in the boreal forest or taiga are young. Forests are typically less than 100 years old throughout the western boreal zone, and mainly younger than 200 years old in the eastern boreal zone. Due to frequent natural disasters that are the result of an ecological loop that renews the boreal forest, scientists do not believe this amazing forest to be ancient. But they all agree that it is the largest biome on land. G. The boreal forest contributes greatly to the earth’s oxygen supply by collecting carbon dioxide produced by people. It helps a lot in the preservation of the ozone layer thanks to its green vegetation. However, human activities such as deforestation are destroying the boreal forest’s structure. When a tree is harmed, it takes a long time to grow back, because the biome has an extremely slow growth rate. That’s why the boreal forest has drawn the attention of the environment protection specialists worldwide.

Вы услышите 6 высказываний. Установите соответствие между высказываниями каждого говорящего A–F и утверждениями, данными в списке 1–7. Используйте каждое утверждение, обозначенное соответствующей цифрой, только один раз. В задании есть одно лишнее утверждение. Вы услышите запись дважды. Занесите свои ответы в таблицу. 1. You can save some money by going to the theatre. 2. One can never relax at the theatre. 3. Theatre shows us that there are bigger things in life. 4. A visit to the theatre can help us develop as human beings. 5. Theatre provides us with a connection to the absolute classics. 6. Going to the theatre allows us to be emotional. 7. Theatre gives us a chance to get to know ourselves better.

Установите соответствие между текстами A–G и заголовками 1–8. Занесите свои ответы в таблицу. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании один заголовок лишний. 1. Always in a hurry 2. The city of skyscrapers 3. Winning and losing 4. Unknown side of the city 5. Saving the variety 6. Getting around the city 7. For the holiday and more 8. Nickname for a building A. New York is really the melting pot of the world. Over 30 percent of its residents have come from abroad. It is believed that the city has the greatest linguistic diversity on the planet. There are over 800 different languages divided among its people. As some of these languages are nearly extinct, the City University of New York has begun a project called the Endangered Language Alliance. Its aim is to preserve rare languages like Bukhari, Vhlaski, and Ormuri. B. New Yorkers love to think they know everything about their city: where to find the best fruit, how to avoid paying full price at museums, what route to take to avoid traffic. But New York City can reveal new treasures even to its veterans. Beyond the city where New-Yorkers work, eat, play and commute every day lies a hidden New York: mysterious, forgotten, abandoned or just overlooked. There are places about which you’re not likely to read in any guidebook. C. The Chrysler Building was in a race with the Bank of Manhattan for getting the title of the tallest skyscraper in the world. The Bank was likely to triumph, with its height of 282 meters. But the spire of the Chrysler Building was constructed in secret inside the tower. Just one week after the Bank of Manhattan was finished, it was put in place, making it 318 meters tall and beating the Bank. It wouldn’t keep this title for long: one year later the Empire State Building was erected. D. The Flatiron Building was constructed between 1901 and 1903 at the intersection of Broadway and Fifth Avenue. It was designed by Chicago’s Daniel Burnham as a steel-frame skyscraper covered with white terra-cotta. Built as the headquarters of the Fuller Construction company, the skyscraper was meant to be named Fuller Building. But locals soon started calling it “Flatiron” because of its unusual shape. The name stuck and soon became official. E. How does Rockefeller Center manage to find the perfect fur-tree each Christmas season? They do aerial searches by helicopter, of course, and bring it to the city during the night when there isn’t much traffic on the streets. After the tree is taken down for the year, it continues to be useful. For example, in 2005 Habitat for Humanity used the wood to make doorframes for houses for the poor and in 2012 the paper was used to publish a book. F. In New York life never stands still. People have to call cabs, ride subway cars, do business of all kinds, eat pizzas and sandwiches for lunch. When you multiply that by more than eight million people in less than 500 square miles, you get the idea: everyone goes everywhere as fast as it is humanly possible. Whatever you do, don't stop in the middle of the sidewalk or you’ll make everyone around you incredibly angry. G. New York is extremely easy to navigate. Manhattan is divided into numbered streets from north to south and avenues from east to west. It’s almost impossible to get lost there. Buses are useful to travel around Manhattan, and the subway is the best means of transport to the other parts of the city. At some stage you’ll definitely use a yellow taxi. Try to get one on an avenue that’s going in the same direction you are – you’ll save time and money. And don’t forget to leave a tip for the driver.

Вы услышите 6 высказываний. Установите соответствие между высказываниями каждого говорящего A–F и утверждениями, данными в списке 1–7. Используйте каждое утверждение, обозначенное соответствующей цифрой, только один раз. В задании есть одно лишнее утверждение. Вы услышите запись дважды. Занесите свои ответы в таблицу. 1. Window shopping can lead to impulsive buying. 2. Window shopping has some pros and cons. 3. Window shopping is a way to keep up with fashion. 4. The internet has made window shopping easier. 5. Window shopping is a way of having some rest. 6. Window shopping doesn’t make you spend money. 7. Window shopping helps you explore the mall.

Task 2. Study the advertisement. You are considering going on the family weekend and now you’d like to get more information. In 1.5 minutes you are to ask four direct questions to find out about the following: Family weekend on the lake! 1) location; 2) accommodation; 3) price for the weekend for a family of three; 4) fishing equipment rental. You have 20 seconds to ask each question.

Task 1. Imagine that you are preparing a project with your friend. You have found some interesting material for the presentation and you want to read this text to your friend. You have 1.5 minutes to read the text silently, then be ready to read it out aloud. You will not have more than 1.5 minutes to read it.