unit 6 - part e
TRANSCRIPT
LESSON SUMMARY
• Reading: Article about inventions• Vocabulary: adverbs• Speaking: discussing inventions• Topic: science and technology
What is the best invention?
READING
“Necessity is the mother of invention”An expression that means that if you really need to do something, you will think of a way of doing it.
Exercise 3
TRUE / FALSE TASK
READING STRATEGIES
�̵ Read the statement and the task carefully�̵ Underline the parts of the text that contain useful information�̵ Rely only on the information given in the text, not on your general knowledge
READING
READINGEver since the horse and buggy, people have been inventing new ways of travelling – some more effective than others. Here are three of them…
Crazy ways of getting around – past, present
and future
READINGThe C5
‘Imagine a vehicle that can drive you five miles for a penny. A vehicle that needs no petrol, just a battery.’ This might sound like an amazingly good idea now, but back in 1985, when Clive Sinclair invented the C5, people weren’t so sure. ‘It will be the answer to our inner-city traffic problems.’ explained the marketing executives. ‘You won’t need a driving license. Anyone can drive it, whether you are 14 or 40.’ The problem was the C5 didn’t work well in the British climate and could be dangerous on wet road.
1 Past
Read the text. Are the sentences True (T) or False (F)
1. In 1985 people welcomed the idea of an environmentally friendly car.
2. The C5 failed partly because it was dangerous in bad weather.
3. Dean Kamen predicted that Segways would be more popular than cars.
4. They’ve sold more Segways than they expected. 5. Ben Gulak has placed advertisements for the
Uno on US TV. 6. The driver doesn’t have to operate any controls
on the Uno.
F
T
READINGThe Segway
Its inventor, Dean Kamen, confidently predicted that the Segway ‘will be to the car what the car was to the horse and buggy’. Despite sales predictors of 40,000 a year when it appeared in 2001, sales have been disappointingly low. But the Segway might not be a total failure. The police in some European countries use them (though probably not in theme parks, warehouses and some airports. You aren’t allowed to use them on public roads in many European countries, though that might change and sales could then increase dramatically.
2 Present
Read the text. Are the sentences True (T) or False (F)
1. In 1985 people welcomed the idea of an environmentally friendly car.
2. The C5 failed partly because it was dangerous in bad weather.
3. Dean Kamen predicted that Segways would be more popular than cars.
4. They’ve sold more Segways than they expected.
5. Ben Gulak has placed advertisements for the Uno on US TV.
6. The driver doesn’t have to operate any controls on the Uno.
T
F
READINGThe Uno
Canadian teenager Ben Gulak has recently won an award for the best new invention of the future – the Uno. He has already appeared on American television to demonstrate his unique electric vehicle, it looks exactly like a motor scooter except the wheels are beside each other. A computerized system keeps the vehicle carefully balanced. You can easily ride it – it has absolutely no controls. There is only an on-off switch. To move it, you move your body. To go forward, you simply lean forward. To stop it, you lean back. You lean left or right to go round a corner. ‘People really seem to like it,’ says Gulak. With the right business help, the Uno might become a common sight on our roads in the future.
3 Future
Read the text. Are the sentences True (T) or False (F)
1. In 1985 people welcomed the idea of an environmentally friendly car.
2. The C5 failed partly because it was dangerous in bad weather.
3. Dean Kamen predicted that Segways would be more popular than cars.
4. They’ve sold more Segways than they expected. 5. Ben Gulak has placed advertisements for the
Uno on US TV. 6. The driver doesn’t have to operate any controls
on the Uno. F
T
Find 12 adverbs ending in –ly in the texts.
READINGThe C5
‘Imagine a vehicle that can drive you five miles for a penny. A vehicle that needs no petrol, just a battery.’ This might sound like an amazingly good idea now, but back in 1985, when Clive Sinclair invented the C5, people weren’t so sure. ‘It will be the answer to our inner-city traffic problems.’ explained the marketing executives. ‘You won’t need a driving license. Anyone can drive it, whether you are 14 or 40.’ The problem was the C5 didn’t work well in the British climate and could be dangerous on wet road.
1 Past
READINGThe C5
‘Imagine a vehicle that can drive you five miles for a penny. A vehicle that needs no petrol, just a battery.’ This might sound like an amazingly good idea now, but back in 1985, when Clive Sinclair invented the C5, people weren’t so sure. ‘It will be the answer to our inner-city traffic problems.’ explained the marketing executives. ‘You won’t need a driving license. Anyone can drive it, whether you are 14 or 40.’ The problem was the C5 didn’t work well in the British climate and could be dangerous on wet road.
1 Past
READINGThe Segway
Its inventor, Dean Kamen, confidently predicted that the Segway ‘will be to the car what the car was to the horse and buggy’. Despite sales predictors of 40,000 a year when it appeared in 2001, sales have been disappointingly low. But the Segway might not be a total failure. The police in some European countries use them (though probably not in theme parks, warehouses and some airports. You aren’t allowed to use them on public roads in many European countries, though that might change and sales could then increase dramatically.
2 Present
READINGThe Segway
Its inventor, Dean Kamen, confidently predicted that the Segway ‘will be to the car what the car was to the horse and buggy’. Despite sales predictors of 40,000 a year when it appeared in 2001, sales have been disappointingly low. But the Segway might not be a total failure. The police in some European countries use them (though probably not in theme parks, warehouses and some airports. You aren’t allowed to use them on public roads in many European countries, though that might change and sales could then increase dramatically.
2 Present
READINGThe Uno
Canadian teenager Ben Gulak has recently won an award for the best new invention of the future – the Uno. He has already appeared on American television to demonstrate his unique electric vehicle, it looks exactly like a motor scooter except the wheels are beside each other. A computerized system keeps the vehicle carefully balanced. You can easily ride it – it has absolutely no controls. There is only an on-off switch. To move it, you move your body. To go forward, you simply lean forward. To stop it, you lean back. You lean left or right to go round a corner. ‘People really seem to like it,’ says Gulak. With the right business help, the Uno might become a common sight on our roads in the future.
3 Future
READINGThe Uno
Canadian teenager Ben Gulak has recently won an award for the best new invention of the future – the Uno. He has already appeared on American television to demonstrate his unique electric vehicle, it looks exactly like a motor scooter except the wheels are beside each other. A computerized system keeps the vehicle carefully balanced. You can easily ride it – it has absolutely no controls. There is only an on-off switch. To move it, you move your body. To go forward, you simply lean forward. To stop it, you lean back. You lean left or right to go round a corner. ‘People really seem to like it,’ says Gulak. With the right business help, the Uno might become a common sight on our roads in the future.
3 Future
We can use adverbs before adjectives and other adverbs.
These shoes were amazingly cheap. The car was travelling incredibly slowly.
LEARN THIS!
• Amazingly good, disappointingly low, careful balanced
Look at the inventions in the pictures and read these questions. Make notes.
Use the words below each photo to help you.
1. How do you think each invention works?2. Which invention do you think is the most
or least useful? Why? Try to use adverbs if you can.
3. What is a fair price each invention, in your opinion?
SPEAKING
Work in pairs. Ask and answer the questions in the previous exercise.
How do you think the first invention works?
You attach the toilet paper holder to your head, and unroll the paper. Then you use it
to …Which invention do you think is the most
useful and why?I think the … is the most useful because it’s
really …
What is a fair price for the first invention, in your opinion?
I think a fair price is €15
SPEAKINGUseful expressions:• I think…• In my opinion,• From my point of view,…• As far as I’m concerned,…
Understand an article in detailWhat have you learned
today?
What can you do now?
Describe and discuss strange inventions
