Topic 6

RUSSIA

Exercise 1. Study the following words and word combinations.

1. to lie - 2. to be washed by - 3. to border on - 4. to vary from…to… - 5. a desert - 6. a valley - 7. a mountain chain - 8. pure - 9. a deposit of smth. - 10. oil - 11. iron - 12. lead - 13. diamonds - 14. mineral wealth - 15. non-ferrous metals - 16. the current population - 17. outskirts - 18. power - 19. a branch - 20. legislative - 21. executive - 22. judicial - 23. double-headed eagle - 24. to be exercised by - 25. to be performed by - 26. Federal Assembly - 27. Council of Federation - 28. State Duma - 29. to be headed by smb.- 30. to be elected by the people - 31. to belong to smth. (smb.) - 32. the Supreme Court - 33. census of the population - 34. national anthem -

лежать, находиться омываться (чем-либо) граничить с (чем-либо) варьировать, изменяться от чего-либо до чего-либо пустыня долина горная цепь чистый месторождение чего-либо нефть железо свинец алмазы запасы полезных ископаемых цветные металлы население в настоящий момент пригороды власть, держава ветвь (власть, как часть правительства) законодательный исполнительный судебный двуглавый орел осуществлять (-ся) кем-либо осуществлять (-ся) чем-либо Федеральное Собрание Совет Федераций Государственная Дума возглавляться кем-либо избираться народом принадлежать чему-либо, кому-либо Верховный Суд перепись населения национальный гимн

Exercise 2. Read and translate the text.

RUSSIA

Russia is the largest country in the world. The current population is about 150 million people according to the last census of the population. Russia covers the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia.

Russia is washed by 12 seas and 3 oceans. The oceans are: the Arctic, the Pacific, and the Atlantic. The seas are: the White sea, the Okhotsk sea, the Black sea, the Baltic sea and others.

Russia borders on many countries such as Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China in the South-east, Finland and Norway in the north-west, Estonia, Latvia, Belarus and the Ukraine in the west, Georgia and Azerbaijan in the south–east.

The land of Russia varies very much from forests to deserts, from high mountains to deep valleys. The main mountain chains are the Urals, the Caucasus and the Altai. There are a lot of great rivers and deep lakes on the territory of Russia. The Volga is the longest river in Europe. The main Siberian rivers are the Ob, the Yenisei and the Lena. The largest lakes are Ladoga and Baikal. Baikal is the deepest lake in the world (1600 meters) and its water is the purest on earth.

The climate in Russia is very diverse: it is cold in the north, severe and continental in the east, subtropical in the south and mild in the west.

Russia is rich in natural and mineral recourses. It has deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, iron, zinc, lead, nickel, aluminium, other non-ferrous metals, gold and diamonds. Three quarters of all the mineral wealth are concentrated in Siberia and the Far East.

There are many beautiful cities and small villages in Russia.

The capital of the Russian Federation is Moscow.

Russia is a highly industrialized agrarian country. Agriculture is a major branch of our economy. About 10 million people are engaged in agriculture. They produce grain, meat, milk and other dairy products. The farmers raise cattle, pigs, sheep, horses and poultry. They also grow wheat, rye, barley, oats, maize, potatoes, fruit and vegetables.

Russia is multinational parliamentary state. The head of the state is the President. The government consists of three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. The president controls each of them.

The legislative power is exercised by the Federal Assembly. It consists of two chambers: the Council of Federation and the State Duma. The President and the members of the Federal Assembly are elected by the people for four years.

The executive power belongs to the Government - the Cabinet of Ministers. The government is headed by the Prime Minister.

Today the state symbol of Russia is a three-coloured banner. It has three horizontal stripes: white, blue and red. The white stripe symbolizes the earth, the blue one stands for the sky and the red one symbolizes liberty. A new national emblem is a double – headed eagle. The national anthem of Russia is “the Patriotic song” by A.B Alexandrov and S.V Mikhalkov.

Exercise 3. Answer the following comprehension questions.

1. Where does the vast territory of Russia lie?

2. What oceans and seas is Russia washed by?

3. What countries does Russia border on?

4. What are the main mountain chains, rivers and lakes in Russia?

5. How can you characterize Russia’s climate?

6. What mineral and natural resources is Russia rich in?

7. What is the population of Russia?

8. What branches does the government consist of?

9. What is the legislative power exercised by?

10. What body does the executive power belong to?

Exercise 4. Translate the sentences into English.

1. Россия расположена в восточной части Европы и северной части Азии.

2. Обширная территория России омывается 12 морями и тремя океанами.

3. Россия граничит с Монголией, Китаем, Финляндией и другими странами.

4. В России имеется большое количество месторождений полезных ископаемых.

5. Полезные ископаемые России включают нефть, газ, уголь, железо, цинк, золото, алмазы, цветные металлы и другие.

6. Россия является крупным производителем нефти и природного газа.

7. Россия - парламентская республика с президентом во главе государства.

8. Исполнительную власть представляет кабинет министров, возглавляемый премьер-министром.

9. Законодательная власть в стране принадлежит Федеральному Собранию.

10. Судебная власть осуществляется Конституционным Судом, Верховным Судом и региональными судами.

11. Национальная эмблема России – двуглавый орёл.

Exercise 5. a) Transform the following sentences in English, changing the positive degree of the

adjectives into the comparative degree according to the model.

Model: Russia is rich in natural resources (Poland).

Russia is richer in natural resources than Poland.

1. The climate of Russia is cold in the North (in the South).

2. The Lena is a long river (the Volga).

3. The Caucasus are high mountains (the Carpathians).

4. Fresh – water lake Baikal is very deep (Ladoga).

5. Moscow plays a great role in the life of the country (St.Petersburg).

b) Transform the following sentences in English changing the positive degree of the

adjectives into the superlative degree according to the model.

Model: The Volga is a long river (in Europe).

The Volga is the longest river in Europe.

1. The Lena is a long river (in Russia).

2. Baikal is a deep lake (in the world).

3. Russia is a rich country in minerals (in the world).

4. Baikal water is pure (on earth).

5. Moscow is a big political centre (in our country).

Exercise 6. Put the following sentences into the active voice.

Model: An area of 17 million square kilometers is covered by Russia.

Russia covers an area of 17 million square kilometers.

1. Russia is washed by 12 seas.

2. Russia is linked by 3 oceans.

3. A great amount of minerals are exported by Russia.

4. The legislative power is exercised by the Federal Assembly.

5. The members of the Federal Assembly are elected by the people for four years.

6. The Government is headed by the Prime Minister.

7. Grain, meat, milk and dairy products are produced by the farmers.

8. The Russian Federation is set up by the Constitution of 1993.

9. Each chamber is headed by the Speaker.

10. The judicial branch is represented by the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court and regional courts.

Exercise 7. Are the sentences true or false? Correct the false sentences.

1. In Russia there are no long rivers and high mountains.

2. The climate of Russia is very mild.

3. About a third of the entire area of Russia is covered with forests.

4. Moscow is the capital of Great Britain.

5. Russia is not rich in mineral resources.

6. The Volga, the biggest river in Russia, flows into the Black sea.

7. Russia is not a parliamentary republic.

8. The executive power belongs to the State Duma.

9. The judicial power belongs to the system of courts.

10. The legislative power is exercised by the Constitutional Court.

Exercise 8. Study the plan of the text and use it in your retelling.

· Russia occupies the vast territory.

· Russia is washed by 12 seas and 3 oceans.

· It borders on many countries.

· The climate of Russia.

· Natural and mineral resources of Russia.

· The current population of Russia.

· The capital of the Russian Federation.

· Industry and agriculture in Russia.

· The state system of Russia.

Exercise 9*.

1. Prove that the climate of Russia is very diverse.

2. Compare the territory of Buryatia with that of Russia.

3. Explain how the state system of Russia differs from that of Great Britain.

Exercise 10*. Read the dialogues and say what new information you’ve got from them.

F.-foreign guest; R.- Russian man.

№ 1

F: We have been touring Russia for about two weeks and I must say it is a very, very large

country.

R: In fact, it is the largest country in the world.

F: And the second largest country in the world is Canada, by the way.

R: That’s right, but its population is about a twelfth of ours. Russia is the third largest state

in the world as to the number of people living in it.

№2

F: I have read Russia is very rich in natural resources and mineral deposits.

R: That’s right. We have rich deposits of coal, iron, ore, oil, gas, non-ferrous metals and so

on, in other words, all the elements of the Mendeleyev Periodical Table.

F: Yes, but the climate of your country is severe.

R: That isn’t correct. The climate is different in different parts of the country. On the same

autumn day, for example, there may be 25 degrees C (Centigrade) below zero in Taimyr

(the Arctic region of the country) and 25 degrees C above zero in Sukhumi (its tropical

region).

Exercise 11*. Read the text and say what holidays there are in Russia.