1. Read the first two paragraphs of the article. Answer the questions.

What is the ‘nation’s shopping basket’?

What is its purpose?

How often do the contents change?

2. Read the rest of the article and make lists of the following things.

Typical products in the nation’s ‘basket of goods’ at present.

Products that have been added to the basket in the last ten to twenty years.

Any changes in British eating habits.

3. Discuss these questions :

• What are the differences between the typical British shopping basket and a typical basket in your country?

• Have eating habits in your country changed in the last twenty years?

• What do you think will be a typical shopping basket in twenty years’ time?

READING 2

Look at the title of the text and say what you think it is about.

Guess whether the following statements are true or false, then read quickly through the text and see if your guesses were correct.

1. Chocolate makes us feel depressed.

2. Sugar causes tooth decay.

3. Cheese and cream are rich in calcium.

4. Tea helps you to sleep well.

EAT, DRINK … AND DON’T BE SORRY

In ancient Greek times, Epicurus lived by the philosophy, “Eat, drink and be merry, and let tomorrow take care of itself!” Sadly, nowadays our instinct to enjoy ourselves has been replaced with feelings of guilt about what we should or shouldn’t eat. But just how damaging are all those ‘harmful’ foods we find so tempting? Let’s look more closely at the good and bad sides of some of our favourites.

Chocolate contains mild stimulants which help concentration and boost the brain’s level of serotonin, a chemical that makes us feel good. Chocolate is also rich in iron, magnesium and potassium. On the down side, it is high in fat and calories and can interrupt sleep if eaten in the evenings.

Sugar is converted into energy more quickly than any other food, so it is hard for the body to store it as fat. Studies have shown that it makes you feel fill more quickly, so you are less likely to overeat. Eating sugar at breakfast time has been shown to improve concentration and memory in the morning. The bad news is that sugar causes tooth decay and contains no useful nutrients.

Meat is an important food as it is a major source of protein, vitamin B and essential minerals. However, it also contributes a quarter of our daily fat intake. A high intake of red meat can lead to colon cancer, and beef is blamed for Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease, an illness which affects the brains of humans.

Cheese and cream are rich in calcium and vitamin D, which help protect the system against osteoporosis, a bone disease affecting a third of all European women over 60. Unfortunately, butter is almost pure saturated fat, and is very high in calories. Eating it is thought to lead to hardening of the arteries, which is known to cause heart attacks and strokes.

Coffee and tea contain caffeine, which increases alertness. Tea contains tannin and flavanoids which help prevent heart disease. On the other hand, since they are stimulants they can interrupt sleep and relaxation and therefore shouldn’t be drunk in the evenings.

It seems, then, that we can feel free to enjoy all of these types of food, keeping in mind that moderation is the key to good health. So eat small amounts of these foods and forget about feeling guilty!

FUTURE TRENDS

If the turn of the century was marked by the drive for super sizes, then the next twenty years will be marked by a demand for ever-decreasing sizes. Mini-portions will be more and more fashionable. Even the big fast-food chains will be bringing out their own mini food, things such as mini-burgers and mini pizzas … and all at mini-prices! And not only will the portions be smaller, but the food itself will be also fresher. Advances in packaging technology will mean that we will be able to keep the food fresh and tasty out of the fridge for much longer. For example, new ultra-light materials will mean that thermos bags and bottles will be lighter, smaller and easier to carry, and we’ll be able to take our pocket-size sushi to work without worrying about it going off. As well as encouraging a taste for smaller portions, the interest in healthier food will also mean that we will be eating more and more organic food – approximately 60 per cent of the food we eat will be organic – and less and less meat. And watch out for a huge increase in consumption of all kinds of seafood. Seaweed, in particular, will be taking off as the number one health food product and we’ll be eating seaweed supplements along with most of our meals.

READING 3

CIVIC MORALITY

If you happen to drop your wallet I Europe, try not to drop it in Lisbon. It seems most Portuguese think it is sometimes or always justified to keep any money they found. Try to drop it in Belfast instead. Only a few people in Northern Ireland would consider keeping it, or so they say.

These insights into our vices come from a massive European study of civic morals. Nearly 19,000 individuals in 13 countries were surveyed by the European Value Systems Study Group, a network of academics across the continent. They listed ten antisocial and illegal activities, ranging from littering to tax evasion, and asked people how often they could be justified.

The results show that Europe’s most moral and responsible citizens are the Danes, and the French are the least, but the researchers acknowledge that some nationalities may have been more honest than others when answering the questions. So how accurate are these findings? Perhaps the group’s next survey should be on whether it’s justifiable to lie to social scientists when they ask you questions.

ETHICAL INVESTING

Ethical investing linked to lifestyle and image

Self-image appears to motivate ethical investment decisions, according to a study.

An ethical investment is one that avoids investments in sectors such as tobacco and arms considered by some to be ethically unsound. There are 30 ethical unit trusts in the UK, worth about #750 million. Some investors also manage their own ethical portfolios. In a study of more than 1,100 ethical investors, economists at the Centre for Economic Psychology at the University of Bath have found that ethical investing correlates with other lifestyle choices.

Speaking at the British Association meeting , Alan Lewis, who led the research, said: “Most ethical investors are healthy, educated and caring professional people, middle-aged or older. The paper they read most is the Guardian.”

In addition, 16 per cent of those surveyed said they were members of the Labour party. Many were members of charitable organizations such as Amnesty International and Oxfam, a third-world aid charity. There is no obvious gender bias. “It appears that this is part of a lifestyle package,” said Dr Lewis.

As ethical investments frequently underperform other portfolios, most ethical investors seem to be prepared to take a loss to support their moral beliefs. Some 80 per cent would be prepared to take a 2 per cent loss in income per year compared with an ordinary portfolio if their overall return was 8 per cent.

Everything, though, has its price. Some 40 per cent of those surveyed said they would reduce their ethical investments if they were underperforming ordinary investments by 5 per cent. The size of an investor’s portfolio seems to have no influence on this decision.

Discuss the following questions.

1. Do you think ethical investment in greener, environmentally friendlier, less exploitative businesses makes the world a better place?

2. Does it make sense financially for the individual investor?

3. Are there any kinds of company you wouldn’t like to see your money being invested in for moral reasons, even if they were a sound investment?

Read about an investment fund which takes a different view on ethics and investment. Would you be interested in investing in their fund?

WHEN VICE IS CAPITAL

“When it is good, it is very, very good, but when it is bad it is better.” This is the motto of the Vice Fund, the first investment fund not afraid to describe itself as “politically incorrect”.

Imagine that you are one of that ever-increasing number of investors who have lost a fortune on the stock exchange. Feeling depressed, you decide to drown your sorrows in alcohol. Then in the middle of a nervous breakdown you start smoking again. You try your luck at gambling with the few savings you have left, but this also goes wrong. In sheer desperation, you consider the possibility of buying a gun.

Without realizing it, the solution to your problems lies in your very miseries. Or, at least, that is what the managers of the Vice Fund claim – an investment fund which was born in the USA and invests in all those areas which pick up in times of recession – arms, alcohol, gambling and cigarettes.

VICEFUND RISK/RETURN SUMMARY

The fund is not appropriate for investors that have short-term goals.

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

1. First, we look for companies that derive a significant portions of their revenues from products often considered socially irresponsible, and

2. Then we select companies from this group based on their financial soundness and potential for growth.

A SOCIAL ACTION PROGRAMME

Read about The Body Shop’s social action programme. Fill the spaces with the correct form of the verb in brackets. Use either the past simple or the present perfect tense.

THE BODY SHOP

FACT SHEET

The first branch of The Body Shop ………………… (open) in 1976 in Brighton, England.

We …………………………. (now grow) into a worldwide organization with more than 1000 stores. Since the

Very beginning, we …………………. (be) committed to activities that benefit communities on both a local and

global scale.

• Employees of The Body Shop are encouraged to take a half day’s paid leave each month to participate in

activities that benefit their local community. In 1991, we ……………………. (win) the UK Award for Employee

Volunteering.

• We …………………. (run) 21 campaigns to date, ranging from Stop the Burning, to protest about the

• Destruction of Brazilian Rainforests, to human rights campaigns, run in association with Amnesty

International. In 1990, 2.6 million people ………………… (sign) our petitions against animal testing.

In our Refill Recycle campaign in 1992, our customers …………………. (bring) over 560,000 bottles back

to our shops in the UK for refilling.

• In 1991, we (fund) …………………… the launch of a newspaper, sold by the homeless people who keep a

proportion of the cover price. On the first day it …………………… (sell) 10,000 copies. It …………………….

(now progress) from a monthly to a weekly newspaper, with a circulation of 135,000 copies per week.

• We …………………… (start) a Romanian Relief Drive in 1990 to help abandoned children. So far, our project

Team ………………………. (renovate and refurbish) three orphanages and …………………… (begin) care programs to improve the quality of the children’s lives. Since the start we ………………… (take care)

To involve local people in our efforts and team of volunteers …………………… (work) alongside Romanian

Staff. In 1993 we …………………… (expand) our efforts with another hospital project in Albania.

ELASTIC ETHICS

It was Groucho Marx who said that if people didn’t like his principles, he had others.

And, unfortunately, business people and companies are not always as reliable or as trustworthy as we would like. Product descriptions are frequently are not as accurate as they could be, for example, when listing ingredients used in foodstuffs.

Service is not always as prompt as we expect, even in so-called fast-food restaurants. But it is perhaps in the world of advertising where ethical standards seem to be the most elastic. Advertisements are frequently deceptive and often confusing or deliberately misleading sometimes making extravagant promises. No doubt advertisers are neither more dishonest nor any less altruistic than the rest of us; they do not often make obviously false claims. It’s just that, like Groucho, they sometimes seem a little too economical with the truth.

Find adjectives and explain their meaning.

Give examples, confirming the opinion about ethics in advertising.

How elastic could your principles be?

Translate the sentences:

1. В Японии молодые работающие женщины и пожилые граждане стали основной рыночной силой.

2. Уровень рождаемости падает, продолжительность жизни увеличивается, люди вступают в брак позже – в результате люди тратят всё больше денег.

3. Когда магазины мужской одежды стали работать круглосуточно, их продажи возрасти на 20%.

4. Многие магазины работают в ночное время, потому что покупатели ночью более расслаблены и тратят больше.

5. Сегодня гораздо больше людей ежедневно пользуются электронной почтой и интернетом.

6. За 20 лет уровень разводов удвоился.

7. Пожилые люди в Японии большой располагаемый доход, так как их расходы на жилье не высоки и они не имеют детей на иждивении.

8. Плата за телефон возросла на 10% с 1995 по 2000гг., не смотря на то, что все остальные расходы домохозяйств упали.

9. Спокойная атмосфера, холодные и горячие напитки и закуски, новости в прямом эфире, возможность подключиться к интернету – всё это делает кафе наилучшим местом для путешествующих бизнесменов.

10. Потребители во всем мире все больше пользуются одинаковыми товарами.

11. Крупные компании ввели «правила поведения», особенно касающиеся условий труда в развивающихся странах.

12. Популярность этических инвестиций не снижается. Обычные инвесторы всё больше хотят знать во что вкладывают их деньги.

13. В 19 веке в Андалусии существовала традиция подавать посетителям бокал вина, накрытый бесплатным куском ветчины.

14. Мы проводим исследование рынка для различных международных проектов.

UNIT 5

WORD LIST

1. to be located / situated

2. conference facilities

3. year-round sunshine

4. health treatments

5. camel rides

6. high-speed Internet access

7. surrounded by

8. natural fibres

9. modern convenience

10. to be simply furnished

11. a formal business suit

12. to be arranged by

13. to be fully equipped

14. to meet the needs

15. a fabulous / fantastic location

16. to combine smth. With smth.

17. feedback

18. to treat smb.

19. to be fitted with

20. to be updated

21. to welcome, a welcoming speech

22. to cancel a talk

23. to reschedule smth.

24. a new development

25. a disused area

26. To host, a host, a hostess

27. To receive approval

28. To construct a building

29. to install equipment, cinema seating

30. to print promotional material

31. to organize a launch party

32. to make changes

33. to take a course

34. to do a work-out, yoga

35. to take up a sport

36. to join a club

37. to keep fit

38. to exercise body and mind

39. to socialize with smb.

40. a leasure programme, to spend leasure time

41. head office

42. staff, staff discounts, a staff welfare policy

43. to balance work and life

44. conventional sports

45. to encourage smb.

46. time off work

47. flexible working hours

48. to provide healthy meals

49. to mind smth.

50. an employer, employee

51. health and fitness routine

52. to research smth

53. to have trouble

54. to leave a message

55. to change the agenda

56. a land line, a mobile phone

EVENING AND WEEKEND ACTIVITIES