Английский язык=English

УДК 811.111(075.8):91
ББК 81.2Англ-923
 
И23

Рец ен з ен ты: доцент кафедры речеведения и теории коммуникации Минского государственного лингвистического университета, кандидат филологических наук доцент 
М.А. Гладко; доцент кафедры английского языкознания Белорусского государственного 
университета, кандидат филологических наук О.Н. Кулиева

Выпуск издания осуществлен при финансовой поддержке Министерства образования Республики Беларусь

Все права на данное издание защищены. Воспроизведение всей книги или любой ее 
части не может быть осуществлено без разрешения издательства.

Иванюк, Н.В.
И23  
Английский язык=English : учеб. пособие / Н.В. Иванюк. – 
Минск : Вышэйшая школа, 2014. – 159 с.
 
ISBN 978-985-06-2489-5.

Цель пособия – обучить студентов-географов различным видам чтения, переводу, аннотированию иноязычной литературы по специальности, а также сформировать у них навыки устной монологической речи. Тексты являются аутентичными, заимствованными из британских и американских источников.
Учебное пособие может быть использовано как для аудиторной, так и для 
самостоятельной работы. 
Адресуется студентам географических факультетов университетов, а также 
всем, кто изучает английский язык и интересуется географией. 

УДК 811.111(075.8):91
ББК 81.2Англ-923

ISBN 978-985-06-2489-5 
© Иванюк, Н.В., 2014
 
© Оформление. УП «Издательство 
 
 
“Вышэйшая школа”», 2014

ПРЕДИСЛОВИЕ

Учебное пособие предназначено для студентов географических 
факультетов университетов. Оно составлено в соответствии с базовой 
программой по иностранным языкам для неязыковых специальностей 
высших учебных заведений, предполагающей обучение различным видам чтения, профессионального общения, а также письменной речи для 
аннотирования иноязычной литературы по специальности. 
При отборе материала учитывалась его познавательная ценность 
и языковые достоинства. Большинство текстов заимствованы из книг, 
сборников статей, а также периодических изданий, вышедших как в 
Великобритании, так и в США, чем объясняется наличие американского варианта английского языка. 
Пособие состоит из одиннадцати уроков, двух приложений и словаря терминов.
Каждый урок включает две части. Первая часть содержит научный 
текст, относящийся к какой-либо отрасли физической географии (геоморфология, климатология, биогеография и др.), целью которого является изучающее чтение. Второй текст раздела, тесно связанный по тематике с первым, предназначен для обучения аннотированию.
Во второй части урока предлагается общеобразовательный текст, 
являющийся продолжением основного текста первой части и предназначенный для обучения как аннотированию литературы по специальности, так и для обучения профессиональному общению на английском 
языке. Текст на русском языке целесообразно использовать для передачи его содержания на английском языке. 
Предтекстовые упражнения каждого урока направлены на обогащение словарного запаса студентов-географов, а также на снятие 
трудностей при произношении терминов и географических названий. 
Послетекстовые упражнения дают возможность проверить понимание 
содержания прочитанного, способствуют усвоению терминологии, расширению словарного запаса и развитию навыков устной речи. 
В приложениях даются тексты для самостоятельного внеаудиторного чтения, которые сопровождаются вопросами для контроля понимания, а также тексты для составления устных и письменных аннотаций. 
Пособие снабжено словарем наиболее часто встречающихся терминов.

Н.В. Иванюк

Lesson 1
GEOGRAPHY AS A SCIENCE

PART I

I. Practise the pronunciation of the following terms.

Geomorphology [ˌdi:m:fld], climatology [ˌklamtld], 
biogeography 
[ˌbadrf], 
hydrography 
[hadrrf], 
oceanography 
[ˌjnrf], 
demography 
[di:mrf], 
microgeography 
[ˌmakrdrf].

II. Read these international words and try to guess their meaning.

Physical, cultural, fundamental, regional, aspect, geology, phase, economy, economic, resource, mineral, potential, information, ocean, group, leader, region, continent, type. 

III. Enlarge your active vocabulary.

surface [s:fs] – поверхность 
Earth [:] – Земля
interrelation [ˌntrle()n] – взаимоотношение, взаимосвязь
to affect [fect] – подвергать воздействию 
approach [prt] – подход 
urban [:bn] – городской 
application [ˌæpke()n] – применение 
to distinguish [dstŋw] – различать 

IV. Geography is a discipline that integrates a wide variety of subject matters. Read the text, name them and say what they study.

What Geography Studies

Geography is the science of place, i.e. the study of the surface of the 
Earth, the location and distribution of its physical and cultural features, the 
areal patterns or places that they form, and the interrelation of these features 
as they affect humans. The word ‘geography’ was invented in the 200s BC by 
the Greek scholar Eratosthenes. It is based on two Greek words – geo means 
‘Earth’, and graphy means ‘to write’. 

We can divide geography into three fundamental branches: physical geography, human geography, and regional geography. As the divisions are based 
only on differences in approaching geographic studies, the three branches are 
interdependent and are usually applied together. Each branch is divided into 
several fi elds that specialize in particular aspects of geography. 
Physical geography includes the following fi elds: geomorphology (which 
uses geology to study the form and structure of the surface of the Earth), climatology (which involves meteorology and is concerned with climatic conditions), biogeography (which uses biology and deals with the distribution of 
plant and animal life), soils geography (which is concerned with the distribution of soil), hydrography (which concerns the distribution of seas, lakes, 
rivers, and streams in relation to their uses), oceanography (which deals with 
the waves, tides, and currents of oceans and the ocean fl oor).
Human geography, sometimes called cultural geography, involves all 
phases of human social life in relation to the physical earth. For instance, 
economic geography deals with the industrial use of the geographic environment. Natural resources, such as mineral and oil deposits, forests, grazing 
lands, and farmlands, are studied with reference to their position, productivity, and potential uses. Manufacturing industries rely on geographic studies 
for information concerning raw materials, sources of labour, and distribution 
of goods. Marketing studies concerned with plant locations and sales potentials are based on geographic studies. The establishment of transportation 
facilities, trade routes, and resort areas also frequently depends on the results 
of geographic studies. Many other fi elds of human geography include historical geography, urban geography, behavioural geography, demography and 
linguistic geography, political geography, which is an application of political 
science. Political geography deals with human social activities that are related to the locations and boundaries of cities, nations, and groups of nations. 
Military geography provides military leaders with information about areas in 
which they need to operate.
Regional geography concerns the differences and similarities among various regions of the Earth. This branch of geography seeks explanations for the 
variety among places by studying the special combination of features that 
distinguishes these places. Regional geographers may study the development 
of a small area such as a city. This study is called microgeography. Or they 
may focus on large areas, called macrodivisions, such as the Mediterranean 
region or an entire continent. Regional geographers identify macrodivisions 
according to their cultural characteristics. Regional geographers may divide 
macrodivisions into many smaller areas that share specifi c characteristics. 
For example, they may consider language, the type of agriculture or economy practiced by the population, terrain, or a combination of these factors to 
distinguish areas from one another.

V. Give the Russian equivalents of the following English phrases.

The study of the surface of the Earth, the location and distribution of 
the physical and cultural features, the areal patterns, the interrelation of the 
features, to divide into three fundamental branches, specialize in particular 
aspects, to be concerned with/to deal with, to involve all phases of human social life, in relation to, an application of political science, the differences and 
similarities among various regions, to seek explanations for, to distinguish 
areas from one another.

VI. Match the words with their defi nitions.

urban area
oceanography
geomorphology

biogeography
climatology
hydrography

physical geography
human geography

1) a fi eld of physical geography that studies the hydrospher e;
2) a geographic area with a high density of people over a limited area;
3) scientifi c study of phenomena found in the world’s oceans; 
4) a fi eld of knowledge that investigates the origin of landforms on the 
Earth and other planets; 
5) a fi eld of knowledge that studies human-made features and phenomena 
on the Earth from a spatial perspective;
6) scientifi c study of the Earth’s climate over long time spans (greater 
than several days);
7) a fi eld of knowledge that studies natural features and phenomena on 
the Earth from a spatial perspective;
8) a fi eld of physical geography that studies the spatial pattern of living 
organisms. 

VII. Answer the following questions.

1. What does the word ‘geography’ mean?
2. When was the word ‘geography’ invented?
3. What branches does geography include?
4. What sub-fi elds does physical geography consist of? What do they 
study?
5. In what way does physical geography differ from human geography? 
6. What are some of the sub-fi elds of human geography? What do they 
study?
7. Regional geography deals with the differences and similarities among 
various regions of the Earth, doesn’t it?

VIII. Complete the following sentences with the information from the text.

1. This text deals with … . 2. Geography is defi ned as … . 3. …, … and … 
are considered to be the fundamental branches of geography. 4. The sub-fi elds 
of physical geography are …, …, …, …, …, … . 5. They specialize in particular aspects of physical geography: geomorphology studies …, climatology 
deals with …, biogeography is concerned with …, soils geography concerns 
…, hydrography focuses on …, oceanography studies … . 6. What distinguishes human geography from the other branches of geography is that … . 7. It 
includes the following sub-fi elds: …, …, …, …, …, …, …, … . 8. The main 
branch of human geography is … which studies … . 9. Some of the other dominant areas of study in human geography include: behaviour (…), politics (…), 
urban systems (…). 10. Regional geography specializes in … . 11. Regional 
geographers may focus either on … or … . 12. In order to distinguish areas 
from one another regional geographers may consider …, …, …, … . 

IX. Discuss the text in the form of a dialogue, using set expressions and 
phrases given below:

Do you mind our brief regarding… ?
It is a well-known fact that … 
On the whole …
I can start by saying …

History of Physical Geography

to reject – отрицать 
responsible – ответственный 
variety – разнообразие 
measurement – измерение 
to determine – определять 

The nature of understanding in physical geography has changed over 
time. During the period from 1850 to 1950, there seems to have been four 
main ideas that had a strong infl uence on the discipline: 
1. Uni formitarianism. This theory rejected the idea that catastrophic 
forces were responsible for the current conditions on the Earth. It suggested 
instead that continuing uniformity of existing processes were responsible for 
the present and past conditions of this planet.
2. Evolution. Charles Darwin’s ‘Origin of Species’ (1859) suggested that 
natural selection determined which individuals would pass on their genetic 
traits to future generations. As a result of this theory, evolutionary explanations for a variety of natural phenomena were postulated by scientists. 
3. Exploration and Survey. Much of the world had not been explored 
before 1900. Thus, during this period all of the fi elds of physical geogra
Help box

phy were actively involved with basic data collection which included activities like classifi cation and description of landforms, measurement of various 
phenomena connected with weather and climate, and classifi cation of soils, 
organisms, biological communities and ecosystems.
4. Conservation – a concern for the environment which began to develop 
as a result of the human development of once natural areas in the United 
States and Europe. 
After 1950, the following two forces largely determined the nature of 
physical geography: 
1. The Quantitative Revolution. Measurement became the central focus of 
research in physical geography. With measurement came mapping, models, 
statistics, mathematics, and hypothesis testing. 
2. The study of Human/Land Relationships. The infl uence of human activity on the environment was becoming very apparent after 1950. As a result, many researchers in physical geography began studying the infl uence of 
humans on the environment.

X. You are a lecturer in Geography Studies. You are invited to a workshop 
for geography students at the University of Westminster and are expected 
to focus on the essence of geography problems. Make a report which concerns the fundamental fi elds of geography.

PART II

I. Practise the pronunciation of the following proper names. 

Spitsbergen [sptsˌb:n] – Шпицберген 
Franz Joseph Land [fræntsjzflænd] – Земля Франца-Иосифа

II. Read these international words and try to guess their meaning.

Arctic, barrier, expedition, polar, provision, principle, storm, temperature.

III. Enlarge your active vocabulary.

peninsular [pnnsjl] – полуостров 
impenetrable [mpentrbl] – непреодолимый
to squeeze [skwi:z] – сжимать 
erroneous [rnjs] – ошибочный 
to immerse [m:s] – погружать
to chart [t:t] – составлять карту
morass [mræs] – трясина 

to traverse [træv(:)s] – пересекать 
erratic [rætk] – беспорядочный 

IV. Read the text and fi nd all the terms relating to geography.

Fridtjof Nansen

It was widely believed from 1866 to 1892 that Green land and Wrangel 
‘Land’ were peninsulas projecting from a great, but as yet undiscovered, 
arctic continent. A young Norwegian scientist Fridtjof Nansen was sure the 
hypothetical arctic continent did not exist. He felt it was impossible to sail a 
ship to the Pole not because of the land but because the ice was an impenetrable barrier. He decided to work with the forces of nature, not against them. 
All previous expeditions had travelled against the ice and currents; that is 
why they could not penetrate into the polar sea. Nansen proposed to build a 
ship ‘as small and strong as possible; just big enough to contain supplies of 
coal and provisions for 12 men for fi ve years... ʼ The main point in this vessel 
is that it is built on such principles as to enable it to withstand the pressure of 
the ice. The sides must slope suffi cient ly to prevent the ice, when it presses 
together, to get hold of the hull. Instead of crushing the ship the ice must 
squeeze it upward and out of the water.
Nansen thought this ship could sail in open water as far as the New 
Siberian Island, and then drift across the Pole and onwards to the sea between 
Greenland and Spitsbergen.
On June 24, 1893 the expedition sailed from Oslo. They rolled around the 
northern tip of Norway, spent a month and a half fi ghting the ice and storms 
of the Kara Sea and trying to fi nd their way to New Siberia with inaccurate 
and erroneous charts. On September 21, the ship ran into the head of a large 
bay in the ice and was stopped at 78°30’ North latitude – 700 miles from the 
North Pole.
Fog set in. When it lifted, the Fram was surrounded on all sides by thick 
fl oes which slowly began to close in on her. The ship was squeezed upward 
and out on top of the ice. When the sun went down they were fro zen fast in 
the North Polar Sea.
Temperatures dropped quickly. The darkness in creased every day until 
the sun disappeared, and the Fram became immersed in the silent blackness 
of the long arctic night. Thirteen men, alone and frozen in at the top of the 
world, began their drift over solid seas never before traversed, or seen by the 
eyes of man.
Observations of the sun and stars were the only means by which the 
Fram’s position could be deter mined from day to day and her drift charted. 
On Christ mas Eve, 1893 they had gone only 40 miles to the north and were 

drifting toward Alaska instead of Greenland. In January 1894, the erratic drift 
to the east and south stopped and the ship began to move toward Greenland 
and Spitsbergen.
By March 1895 the Fram had drifted to within 360 miles of the Pole. 
From here, Nansen calculated he could reach 90° north in 50 days by dogsled. On March 14, 1895 Nansen and Frederik Johansen left the ship. They 
struggled on to within 226 miles of the North Pole, but the morass of chaotic 
ice and open water fi nally beat them. They turned south. The two did not 
plan to go back to Fram, but rather to attempt a trek over ice and water to 
the Franz Joseph Land, an uninhabit ed group of islands 200 miles north of 
Siberia. They reached the island in August and had to spend the win ter in the 
Franz Joseph Land.
Nansen and Johansen returned to Norway aboard the English ship 
Winward on August 13, 1896, after an absence of three years and two months.
Nansen left the Fram in command of Captain Sverdrup when she was 356 
miles from the Pole and some 325 miles north-east of Franz Joseph Land. 
From here the ship continued her drift north and west. In Sep tember 1895 the 
crew celebrated their second anniver sary in the ice. During the second year 
they had drift ed nearly twice as far as during the fi rst, and their speed continued to increase as they moved homeward. On August 13, 1896 the same day 
Nansen and Johans en reached Norway, the ship came to open water. 

V. Find the English equivalents of the following Russian words and phrases.

До сих пор неоткрытый, предполагаемый арктический континент, 
непреодолимый барьер, предыдущие экспедиции, провиант (съестные 
припасы), противостоять давлению льда, огибать, окружать плавучими 
льдинами, начинать погружаться, собачья упряжка, предпринять 
попытку перехода, продолжать дрейф, вторая годовщина. 

VI. Match the words from column A with the suitable words from column 
B to make word combinations.

А
Arctic
to sail
an impenetrable
the main
open
thick
the erratic
to attempt
to move

В
point
water
fl oes
barrier
a ship
continent
a trek
homeward
drift