In the past, people believed that all witches, ghosts and other evil spirits wanted to take over the world on that day.

To scare away the spirits, people started to get dressed in costumes, put on spooky masks, light bonfires and put jack-o-lanterns in front of their homes.

Today, in many schools pupils organize jack-o-lantern contests.

Jack-o-lantern is a hollow pumpkin with holes cut out to represent a human face.

There is an interesting holiday in the USA, which is called the Groundhog Day on February 2.

Strangely enough, but people believe that if a groundhog wakes after its winter-long sleep and sees its own shadow then the winter will continue for six more weeks.

For Ireland, the most important festival is St Patrick’s day on March 17.

St Patrick was born in fourth century and grew in Ireland, which was worshipping many gods.

Being a dedicated Christian, St Patrick put all his efforts to make Ireland a Christian country, establishing churches and schools everywhere.

There is a legend that St Patrick was able to work miracles.

One of the most popular miracle was when Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland.

Since then, Patrick is considered the Patron of Ireland.

There are many national holidays in Russia, when people all over the country do not work have special celebrations. The major holidays are: New Year's Day, Women's Day, May Day, Victory Day and Independence Day. The first holiday of the year is New Year's Day. People see the new year in at midnight to the 31st of December. They greet the new year with champagne and listen to the Kremlin chimes beating 12 o'clock. There are lost of New Year traditions in Russia. In every home there is a New Year tree glittering with coloured lights and decorations. Children always wait for Father Frost to come and give them a present. Many people consider New Year's Day to be a family holiday. But the young prefer to have New Year parties of their own. A renewed holiday in our country is Christmas. It is celebrated on the 7th of January. It's a religious holiday and a lot of people go to church services on that day. On the 8th of March we celebrate Women's Day when men are supposed to do everything about the house and cook all the meals. The greatest national holiday in our country is Victory Day. On the 9th of May, 1945, the Soviet Army and its allies completely defeated the German fascists and the Second World War and the Great Patriotic War ended. This year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of this great event. A magnificent memorial on Poklonnaya Gora has been built to commemorate the Victory.. A lot of guest from different countries of the world came to Moscow to participate in the celebrations. Independence Day is a new holiday in our country. On the 12th of June, 1992, the first President of Russia was elected. We also celebrate Day of the Defender of Motherland on the 23d of February, Easter, Day of knowledge and lots of professional holidays.

Билет 9

Outstanding people

There are many outstanding people in Great Britain. Britain produced statesmen, thinkers, explorers, musicians, writers, scientists and other people who are well known around the world. Isaac Newton one of the greatest men in the history of science was born in a little village in the middle of the 17th century. He studded math at Cambridge University. Newton's contribution to physics astronomy and math is so great that, he may be considered the founder of the mordent mathematics and physics. He discovered the law of motion and the universal law of gravitation. He studded the nature of light and colour and came to the conclusion that white colour consists of many different colours known as spectrum. He died when he was 84 and was burred at Westminster Abbey. Charles Darwin was born in the beginning of the 19th century. He was a great biologist. He created a new theory of evolution. Once there were only simple organisms living in the seas, hundreds millions of years they have developed to produce all the different kind animals and plants we knew today. Michael Faraday was born at the end of the 17th century. He was interested in electricity very much and spent long months studding this strange force. He discovered that electricity passed from the magnet to the wires and cowbell become a strong electric current. So he opened many laws of electricity and magnetism. Lord Rutherford the great pioneer of nuclear physics received the Nobel Prize in 1908 for his investigations into decay of elements chemistry of radiated substances. Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1929. Leonardo da Vinci was an immensely talented painter, engineer, sculptor, architect, musician, mathematician, scientist and inventor lived during the Italian Renaissance. What is unique about Leonardo and make him an universal genius, is that he excelled at both technical and creative endeavors in a wide variety of fields. He completely embodies the notion of the inquisitive "Renaissance Man". William Shakespeare is the greatest of all playwrights and poets of all times. Not much is known of his life. His masterpieces is "Romeo and Juliet", "Hamlet", "Othello".

Билет 11

The problem of choosing the future profession

The problem of choosing the future profession has always been very important. The profession a person chooses in many ways determines his future life. This is a universal problem of our epoch. Every generation in this or that way comes across it. For most people choosing a career is not an easy task. It is one of the most important decisions one makes in life. The properly chosen career makes a person happy and successful for the rest of his life.

There are several factors that influence the decision of young people to make their choice. They concern material and spiritual aspects of the future profession. It is generally believed that professions should be both prestigious and interesting. Everybody wants to benefit from the social privileges provided by the profession. At the same time other factors are important. Much depends on the inclinations and interests of the person. Although it is wonderful when one's hobby becomes one's profession it seldom happens in reality. Another important factor is social environment. The profession of the parents often in this or that way influences the future profession of their children. Today we have dynasties of physicians, historians, lawyers, economists, pilots, and military officers.

It is impossible to forget about the material aspect of the future profession. It indicates the level of the society's values. Today all professions can be classified as prestigious and not prestigious. The problem of prestige is subjective. Nobody can explain the meaning of this notion. "Prestigious" jobs give a chance to an individual to enter the upper circles of the society. When the job is prestigious money is of secondary importance. The future profession should be interesting and meet the demands of the person.

To avoid mistakes, I discuss career prospects with my friends even today. Some of us want to become physicians, others teachers, economists, historians, historians of art, mathematicians, biologists, and computer operators.

Teachers also should be patient and kind. Teachers should not only give knowledge to their pupils but understand their problems, help them to become real citizens of their country, be honest and hard working. For education to be successful, teachers and pupils should work together. Every word and every gesture of the teacher should be carefully chosen, otherwise the misunderstanding is inevitable. Certainly, it is very difficult to be a teacher, because sometimes pupils do not behave properly. They can shout, whistle, and drum on the desk. Teachers should maintain discipline among the troublemakers. At the same time one should not forget that discipline should work hand in hand with freedom. Freedom is welcomed if it helps a pupil to learn. Teachers should encourage their pupils to do things successfully. Teachers should be well educated themselves. Unfortunately both professions - physician and teacher are not well paid in our country. One has to be an enthusiast to choose one of them. I do not know how to cope with this problem but it is said that a state declines if the government does not support health care and education.