• Useful phrases for discussion

• I. Introducing a point

  To start with …	Начать с того / прежде всего …
  First of all I’d like to point out …	Прежде всего, мне хотелось бы указать …
  The main problem is …	Основная проблема заключается в том, что …
  I want to draw attention to …	Я хочу обратить ваше внимание на …
  Speaking of …	Говоря о …
  What we have to discuss is …	То что мы хотим обсудить - это …
  Let’s get this clear first …	Давайте сначала выясним …

• 2. Expressing a personal opinion

• In my opinion …	По моему мнению …
  It seems to me that …	Мне кажется, что …
  In my view …	С моей точки зрения …
  I have the feeling that …	У меня такое чувство, что …
  I feel/believe that …	Я считаю, полагаю, что …
  I rather think that …	Я вообще-то думаю, что …
  I’m absolutely convinced that …	Я абсолютно убеждён, что …
  If you ask me, I think …	Если вы спрашиваете меня, то я думаю …
  You can take it from me that …	Можешь мне поверить, что …
  Let me tell you …	Позвольте мне сказать вам, что …
  I mean to say …	Я имею в виду …
  I don’t quite follow you …	Я не совсем вас понимаю …
  On the surface of it …	На первый взгляд …
  You have got it all wrong …	Вы совершенно неправильно это поняли.
  Generally speaking …	Вообще говоря, …
  In fact …/ Actually …	Фактически …
  The way things are …	Судя по тому, как обстоят дела …
  Under the circumstances …	При данных обстоятельствах …
  Apparently / obviously / evidently …	Очевидно …

• 3. Starting something as a fact

• Everyone knows that …	Каждый знает, что …
  It is a fact that …	Это факт, что …
  It is accepted that …	Принято, что …
  Nobody will deny that …	Никто не будет отрицать, что …
  It is common knowledge that …	Общеизвестно, что …
  We must face the fact that …	Мы должны признать тот факт, что …

• 4. Expressing doubt

• I’m not sure if …	Я не уверен, что …
  Do you really believe that …	Неужели вы правда полагаете, что …?
  I wouldn’t be sure about that, if I were you.	Я бы не был так уверен на твоём месте.
  How are we to know that / if …	Откуда нам знать, что …
  I wonder if you realize …	Интересно, сознаёте ли вы …
  I doubt that very much.	Я очень сомневаюсь в этом.

• 5. Expressing disagreement

• I don’t quite agree with you there.	Я не совсем согласен с этим.
  I can’t accept your view that …	Я не могу принять вашу точку зрения, что …
  I don’t see eye to eye with you on that point …	Я не разделяю вашу точку зрения …
  You are not serious, are you?	Ты ведь это не в серьёз, правда?
  May I remind you that …?	Позвольте напомнить вам, что …
  I don’t want to argue with you, but …	Мне не хочется спорить с вами, но …
  There is a grain of truth in what you say, but …	В том, что вы говорите, есть доля правды, но …

• 6. Expressing the pro and cons

• On the one hand …, on the other hand …	С одной стороны ..., а с другой стороны …
  An argument for / in favour of _____ is…	Аргументом в пользу _____ является …..
  An argument against _____ is …	Аргументом против _____ является …
  Some people think that …, while others say that …	Одни думают, что …, а другие говорят, что …

• 7. Expressing support

• You are quite right.	Вы абсолютно правы.
  That’s a very important point.	Это очень важный момент.
  You have got a very important point here.	Вы на правильном пути.
  Hear, hear.	Да, так.
  You took the words right out of my mouth.	Ты схватываешь всё на лету.
  I see eye to eye with you on that point …	Я разделяю вашу точку зрения.

• 8. Giving reason

• The reason for this is …	Причина этого …
  This is due to …	Это из-за …
  On account of …	Вследствие …
  Since …	Так как …
  I base my argument on …	Я основываюсь на …
  I’m telling you all this because …	Я говорю вам всё это потому, что …

• 9. Keeping to the point

• It would be more to the point, if …	Было бы более убедительно, если …
  What we are discussing here is …	То, о чём мы говорим здесь, …
  … has nothing to do with …	… не имеет ничего общего с …
  Come to the point.	Говорите по существу.
  Don’t beat about the bush.	Не ходите вокруг да около.
  That’s (quite) irrelevant.	Это (почти) не относится к делу.

• 10. Drawing conclusions

• It follows from this that …	Отсюда вытекает, что …
  The obvious conclusion is that …	Очевидный вывод заключается в том, что …
  There is only one conclusion to be drawn from this.	Только один вывод можно сделать из всего этого.
  Last but not least …	Последний, но не менее важный …
  The only alternative left is …	Единственный выбор, который остался, это …
  The only possible solution is …	Единственно возможное решение, это …

• 11. Giving a summary

• Finally, I would like to say that …	В заключение мне бы хотелось сказать, что …
  Summing up / To sum up …	Подводя итог …
  In conclusion …	В заключение …
  To put it in a nutshell …	Говоря кратко / в двух словах …
  To cut a long story short …	Короче говоря …
  On the whole …	В целом …
  All in all …	В общем …
  After all …	В конце концов …
  All things considered …	В результате рассмотрения вопроса …
  In the long run …	В конечном счёте …
  That explains it.	Тогда понятно.
  That’s about all there is to it.	Пожалуй, это всё.

• II. Reading for information and analyses

• Complete the tasks:

• Task 1. Read the text.

• Task 2. Look through the text and write out:

• a) international words;

• b) geographical names;

• c) names of mentioned state bodies;

• d) words denoting people and their jobs;

• e) the verbs that describe the actions of people;

• f) economic and legal terms;

• Task 3. Find irregular verbs in the text and give the three forms of these verbs.

• Task 4. Find the words in the text that can be used as a Verb and a Noun without the change in the form.

• Task 5. Copy out five adjectives and give their synonyms /opposites.

• Task 6. Look through the text for figures, which are important for understanding. Copy them out and note what they refer to.

• Task 7. Which word is most often used in the text? Explain the meaning of the word in English.

• Task 8. Write 10 what / when / where - questions.

• Task 9. Write 10 why – questions.

• Task 10. Note three things in the text that are new to you.

• * * *

• Task 11. What is the problem presented in the text?

• Task 12. Where is it found?

• Task 13. When does it occur?

• Task 14. Why does it occur?

• Task 15. How does it occur?

• Task 16. Who is affected by the problem?

• Task 17. Who (what) can help to find the solution / improve the situation?

• a) technology

• b) administrative ways

• c) creative ideas

• d) law enforcement actions

• e) legal acts

• f) other ways

• Task 18. What factors can help to achieve the desired result?

• a) people

• b) equipment

• c) money

• d) other

• Task 19. Summarize the text.

• Task 20. Comment on the problem. Give your reasons. Support your arguments with some facts from the text.

• THE PLAN AND USEFUL EXPRESSIONS

• FOR RENDERING THE ARTICLE

• Give a summary of the article (no more than 10-12 sentences). State the main problem discussed in the article and mark off the passages of the article and the sentences that seem important to you. Point out the facts that turned out to be new for you. State what information in the article contradicts your views. Speak on the conclusion the author comes to. Express your own point of view on the problem discussed.

  The title of the article	The article is headlined … The headline of the article I have read is …
  The author of the article; where and when the article was published	The author of the article is … The article is written by … It is (was) published in …
  The main idea of the article	The article is about … The article is devoted to … The article deals with … The article touches upon … The article focuses on … The main/central idea of the article is … The purpose of the article is to give the reader some information on … The aim of the article is to provide the reader with some material (data) on …
  The contents of the article (facts, names, figures, etc.)	The author starts by telling the reader (about, that …) The article describes … According to the text … The author writes/ states/stresses/points out that … Further the author reports (says) that … In conclusion … The author comes to the conclusion that …
  Your opinion of the article	To my mind … In my opinion … If you ask me … I found the article interesting/ important/ informative/ dull/ of no value/ too hard to understand

• Text 1

• NEW RULES FOR TAKING CASH OUT OF RUSSIA

• (by Carl Schreck)

• For years travelers have faced a limit on the amount of foreign currency they can take out of Russia, but a new law now gives travelers a fresh currency to reckon with: the ruble.

• Under the change, which came into effect already, rubles will now be counted among the $10,000 that travelers are legally entitled to take out of the country.

• More than $10,000 can be taken out if the traveler presents documentation from customs officials that he declared the money upon entering the country – allowing him to leave the country with that sum on top of the $10,000, Federal Customs Service spokeswoman said.

• The new law closes a loophole that allowed travelers to take unlimited rubles abroad and exchange them there. However, it is difficult to exchange rubles in many countries.

• As before, travelers are allowed to take up to $3,000 out of the country without declaring it, though under the new law, rubles now count toward that amount as well. Rubles are calculated using the Central Bank exchange rate on the day of departure.

• Rubles will also now be included in the amount of cash the traveler must declare when entering the country. A traveler can bring as much money into Russia as he wishes, but must declare any sum equal to $10,000 or more in any combination of foreign currencies, rubles, promissory notes and travelers checks.

• Incidentally, the Federal Customs Service said travelers could take out as much money as they wanted out as it was in travelers checks. The law states that travelers must declare travelers checks only if they total more than $10,000, not counting the rubles or foreign currencies they are carrying.

• Deputy Head of the Federal Customs Service’s currency control department, told reporters that the change was aimed at strengthening the ruble and its recognition as a convertible currency.

• A CIS bank analyst at Standard & Poor’s, said, however, that the new regulation would have no effect on the rubles convertibility. “Convertibility depends on macroeconomic stability, foreign trade, political and economic stability. It requires more than just an administrative measure,” he said.

• A traveler who unwittingly showed up at customs with more than $10,000 would be asked to leave the excess amount with customs. He will be issued the receipt and claim money upon returning to Russia.

• If a traveler did not plan to return to Russia, a better option than cash would be to carry credit or debit cards, which do not fall under the new law.

• (THE MOSCOW TIMES)

• Text 2

• (by Carol Sotilli)

• WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW WHEN TRAVELLING

• New airport security rules that went into effect around the world as a result of terrorism threat may be temporary, but flying will clearly be even less fun than usual in the foreseeable future. Here are some tips for making the journey as painless as possible.

• - Know the rules. The latest rules for international and domestic flights in the United States and Britain prohibited carry-on beverages and liquids, including shampoo, creams, toothpaste and hair gel.

• Exceptions to the no-beverage rule were being made for baby formula and prescription drugs and insulin (make sure they’re properly labeled in your name).

• - Pack wisely. The items being banned from carry-ons are generally allowed in checked luggage. Liquids, however, may leak during changes in air pressure, so it’s a good idea to place them in sealed plastic bags or specially made sacks. Leave room at the top of each bottle for expansion.

• - Weight rules and fees vary by airline. Check with your carrier before you fly, and weigh your bags at home to avoid extra fees.

• - Give yourself extra time at airports. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration were recommending that all passengers flying domestically and internationally get to the airport three hours ahead of flight time.

• - Check refund policies with your carrier. If you have paid for air ticket but would rather stay home, many airlines have eased flight change and refund restrictions.

• Stay current. Get the latest updates about your local airports. For info on carriers, check the airports’ web sites, which offer links to carriers operating flights from their area.

• (THE WASHINGTON POST)

• Text 3

• COUNTERFEIT PERFUME CONFISCATED