1. Due to my summer maritime practice I’m once again convinced that English is very important English for sailors. This language is the most widespread language in the whole world. It’s the language of common amount of international organizations, science, technologies, industries, banking etc.

English is very important for sailor, because many accidents happened at sea because of the communication barrier. Today, every crew on the ship has multilingual and multicultural crewmembers so it’s highly important to be good at English. It is even stipulated by maritime law STCW`95, that among other requirements Officer of the Watch need a level of English adequate to communicate with other ships, coastal stations and multilingual crews. A sailor should not only know loads of maritime terms but also possess knowledge and skills to communicate effectively and solve most of problems with more confidence.

2. The organization of the ship is changing but usually one can find three departments: the deck department, the engine department and the catering department.

The deck department includes navigators, radio-officers, a boatswain, sailors and a doctor (rarely). We call navigators according to their rank on board ship: the Master (the Captain), the Chief Officer (the First Mate), the Second Officer (the Second Mate), and the Third Mate (the Third Officer), and very rarely the Fourth Officer (the Fourth Mate). The Master is responsible for the ship, her cargo and the crew. He must be an experienced navigator.

The Chief Officer is the Master’s main assistant and the head of the Deck department. He must be always ready to replace the Master and perform his duties. All the navigators must keep watch on the navigating bridge. They may not leave if when on watch.

The navigators relieve each other of watch every four hours. Every navigator must know how to define the ship’s position, plot her course on the chart and take bearings.

Radio officers keep watch in the radio-room and are responsible for radio-communications. There is often one or two Radio Officers on board the ship, but on ships with continuous radio watches there may be even three radio officers.

A boatswain and sailors must keep the ship's hull, holds and tackle in good condition

The engine department consists of the Chief Engineer, the Second, Third and Fourth Engineers, some motormen and two or three electricians. They keep watch in the engine-room and must maintain and repair its equipment.

Catering department consists of a Chief Steward, who is in charge of cooking and ordering provisions, he is assisted by Assistant Cook, who also cooks, and stewards, who serve meals. Only well-qualified sailors can perform their duties properly that's why the crews' framing is very important.

3. The structure of most vessels is similar. The main parts of a ship are the hull, the engines, the propellers and the rudder. The hull is the main body of a vessel. It is a watertight shell, which is divided into a number of horizontal surfaces called decks. There are also walls built between the decks called bulkheads. They form compartments. The first compartment below the main deck (large horizontal surface on top of the hull) is called tween deck, below it is second deck. The hull is divided into three parts: fore end, midships and after end. The hull contains the engine room, cargo space and several tanks. The tanks are situated at the fore end, after end and between the bottom and the holds. They are used for storing fresh water and water ballast.

There can be more decks above the main deck. All structures above the main deck form the superstructure. At the fore end is the forecastle. In the most occasions bridge superstructure at the after end is combined with the poop.

Another important part of the vessel is engines. They are fitted near the bottom of a ship in the engine room. It drives the propeller at the stern of the ship. The engines of most ships are steam turbines, gas turbines or diesel engines. The turbine through the series of gears drives the propeller shaft and makes the propeller revolve. Ships require different types of fuel for different types of engines. For example steam turbines use oil to heat the boilers and produce steam.

The propellers, also called screws, rotate and move a ship through water. A common propeller has four blades and is bolted to the end of propeller shaft. Many large vessels have two propellers and very big have four. Additional propellers increase ship`s power and maneuverability. Some ships have additional propeller located at the bow called bow thruster, which help the ship to turn faster.

The rudder is a large flat piece of metal that steers a ship. It is hinged to the stern and so it can be swung like a door. The rudder is connected to the helm on the ship`s bridge, so it is controlled with helm.

Other common parts of a ship include funnels to discharge smoke and exhaust fumes, anchors, and lifeboats. Cargo ships have derricks operated by winches, cargo hatches for loading and discharging cargo to the holds.

4. Vessels were invented because thousands years ago humans understood the importance of travelling across the seas and oceans. . The first ones seemed to be logs used to travel across small water bodies. But soon enough ships developed and become the most important tool in trade development. Even past so many years more than a half of world`s trade is done with vessels.

Main types of the ships are passenger vessels, general cargo ships, tankers, dry bulk carriers, multipurpose ships, cargo ships can be divided into liner and tramp service vessels, traditional cargo ships, container ships, roll-on/off ships, LASH ships, OBO vessels, oceangoing bulk carriers, barges, refrigerator ships, tugboats (harbor and oceangoing), ferries, icebreakers, dredgers (bucket, suction, grab dredgers), lightships, pilot launches, oceanographic ships and fishing vessels.

Cargo vessels are to carry cargo from one point of the world to another across the water bodies. These ships have some types according to the method of carrying of the cargo and of the type of the cargo they can carry.

Passenger vessels and ferries are to carry passengers across the oceans and seas.

Tugboats are to help ships in navigating in port’s harbors or to help some ships which need assistance somewhere in the sea or ocean.