The Coming of the Vikings

After the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 AD, there was little progress in the working of metals for many years. Iron-smelting, tin and lead mining, and the general metal-working developed by the Romans in occupied countries almost ceased. What metal-work was still carried on was of poor quality.

Then, about 800 AD, a new power entered northern Europe - the Vikings. These men from the north, Norsemen, were great seafarers and fighters. They owed much of their success to their skill with metal. Their swords were much longer and stronger than those used by the Romans, and with these they won their battles.

In those days it was difficult to make good swords because of the lack of furnaces hot enough to melt iron sufficiently to treat it with carbon and turn it into steel. All that could be done was to heat the iron in charcoal, which is rich in carbon. Some carbon from the charcoal found its way into the metal and hardened it on the surface, like the crust on a loaf.

The swordmakers built up their blades by taking a number of thin strips, which had been hardened on their surfaces, and twisting them together in various patterns. The metal was then reheated and hammered (forged) until it became a solid piece with hardened strips running right through the blade. As well as making blade strong, this method also created an interesting wavy patterns on the metal.

Task 2.

Comprehension Check

Exercise 1.Here are the answers to some questions about the text.

Work out the questions.

1) The Roman Empire fell in 476 AD.

2) The Romans were skilled in iron-making, tin and lead mining, and the general metal- working.

3) No, there was little progress in the working of metals after the fall of the Roman Empire.

4) The Vikings owed much of their military success to their skill with metals.

5) It was difficult for the Vikings to make swords because of the lack of good furnaces.

6) Yes, the Vikings had their own method of making swords.

7) They heated the iron in charcoal.

8) Yes, this method also created an interesting wavy pattern on the metal.

Exercise 2.Read the text again and agree or disagree with the

statements given below.

1. Between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Vikings invasion there was much progress in the working of metals.

2.The Vikings’ swords were much longer and stronger than those used by the Romans.

3. In those days men possessed good equipment to melt iron sufficiently.

4. The Vikings could turn iron into steel.

5. The Vikings didn’t use reheating and hammering in the process of sword making.

Exercise 3. Look through the text and find the synonyms to the words

given below.

decline; advance; stop; outstanding; construct; expertness; mastery; deficiency; achievement; model.

Exercise 4.Translate the following idioms into Russian. Use them in the

sentences of your own.

a) To have too many irons

in the fire. Заниматься многими делами одновременно.

b) To iron out differences. Сглаживать различия.

c) Strike while the iron is hot Куй железо пока горячо.

d) To rule with an iron hand Править железной рукой

e) Iron will Железная воля

f) Hammer in Втолковывать, вдалбливать

Exercise 5.Arrange the jumbled sentences into the organized text.

1. This was a new method of discovering truth by experiment.

2. One event of his life particularly interested Edison, a great inventor and scientist.

3. One day he invited a number of professors and students to meet him in one of the squares of Pisa where there was a very high tower.

4. It was this method which Edison used throughout his life.

5. Gallileo didn’t believe the scientists of the time that a heavy weight dropped from a height more quickly than a light weight.

6. He went to the top of the tower and dropped two iron balls with different weight.

7. They struck the ground at the same time.

8. Thomas Edison loved to tell the story of Galileo, a great Italian scientist of the 17th century.

Oral Practice

Making an appointment. Telephone calls.

Patterns

Telephone Calls

Exercise 1.Learn the dialogues by heart and make up similar dialogues

of your own using the patterns.

1.Peter: Could I make an appointment with Mr.Brown?

Secretary: Certainly. What day would suit you?

Peter: Monday or Tuesday.

Secretary: Let me see. Oh, Monday is busy, I’m afraid. Will Tuesday

2 o’clock be all right with you?

Peter: Thank you very much.

2.Peter: May I speak to Susan, please?

Susan: Speaking.

Peter: This is Peter O’Brien. Can I see you tomorrow? I’d like to invite you

to the theatre.

Susan: Thank you. I’d love to go there with you.

Peter: So, see you at 6 sharp at the entrance.

Susan: Fixed, then. I’m looking forward to meeting you.

3.Ben: Is that Mr. Hardy’s office?

Secretary: Yes.

Ben: My name is Ben Green. I’ve got an appointment with Mr.Holt

for tonight but something urgent has turned up. Could you put

our meeting off till Wednesday night?

Secretary: Hold the line, please. I’ll pass the information on to him . . .

Oh, yes, Mr.Holt can meet you on Wednesday same time.

Exercise 2. You have an appointment with Mr.Brown, so:

- introduce yourself

- explain that you have an appointment with him

- explain the purpose of your visit

- accept or decline the offers (for example, you have another appointment)

- explain that you need to confirm your return flight for tomorrow evening

Exercise 3.What would you say if somebody is phoning your brother but:

1. he is not in

2. he is in the next room

3. he is coming only tomorrow

4. he cannot answer the call immediately because he is busy

Exercise 4. Practise making arrangements.

Unit 4

Text 1

Iron - Smelting without Charcoal

The First Blast Furnaces

So far, no furnace in Europe had been hot enough to melt iron to a liquid state. All that could be produced was a ‘spongy’ mass from which impurities had to be hammered out. However, design of furnaces improved over the centuries, and about the year 1400 very efficient blast furnaces were introduced by the Germans. They had found that a blast of air from water-powered bellows increased the temperature, though the iron still did not liquify. It became soft and spongy, worked its way down through the burning charcoal, and collected at the bottom of the furnace.

Furnaces were usually built about ten or fifteen feet high, but to economise on fuel a new one was built thirty feet high. Although the internal temperature in this was no higher, the iron arrived at the bottom in a completely liquid state. Not only could the metal be run off into moulds, but many of the impurities (which had previously to be hammered out) separated automatically from the melted iron. The reason for this tremendous stride in metallurgy was simple: the height of the furnace. The soft ‘sponge’ iron took so long to seep down through the charcoal that it absorbed a great deal of carbon. It became carburised, and as the melting point of carburised iron is 350^o C less than ‘sponge’ iron, it became liquid.

By about the year 1600, iron production in Britain was beginning to suffer from lack of fuel. For 3,000 years all iron-smelting, both here and abroad, had been done with charcoal. Charcoal is partly-burned wood. In Britain, timber was running short and it was impossible for the iron-makers to equal the output of a country such as Sweden, where timber was abundant.

Fortunately for Britain a Quaker, Abraham Darby, found a way to do without charcoal altogether. In his iron factory at Coalbrookdale, Shropshire, he made many experiments using coke, and finally succeeded. There were technical difficulties to overcome, and at first Darby kept the process secret for the benefit of his family. Later his methods were adopted throughout Europe. No longer dependant on dwindling forests, Britain remained her position as a leading iron producer.

Task 1.

Phonetic Exercise

Practise after the speaker and learn to pronounce the words given below.

liquid /’likwid/; spongy /’sponji/; design /di’zain/; liquify /likwi’fai/; automatically /o:t'‘mжtik'li/; metallurgy /’metl':ji/; carburised /’ka:bjuraizd/; technical /’teknik'l/; throughout / q ru’aut/.

Task 2.

Lexical Exercises

Exercise 1.Find the English equivalents for the words and word -

combinations given below.

примеси; доменная печь; поток воздуха; жидкое состояние; высотой в десять футов; экономить на топливе; температура внутри печи; большой прогресс в металлургии; поглощать углерод; недостаток топлива; кокс; преуспеть в ч-л; проводить опыты; преодолевать трудности; по всей Европе; воостановить свои позиции.

Exercise 2. Match the English words and word-combinations given

below with their Russian equivalents.

1. to melt iron to a liquid state 1.удалить примеси

2. to hammer out impurities 2. отделять от

3. efficient blast furnaces 3. точка плавления

4. at the bottom of the furnace 4. сравнять результаты

5. to separate from 5. расплавить железо до жидкого

состояния

6. melting point 6. быть в изобилии

7. to equal the output 7. на благо. ради

8. to be abundant 8. на дне печи

9. for the benefit of 9. высокопроизводительные

доменные печи

Exercise 3.Answer the following questions:

1. When did the first blast furnaces appear? 2. What is the work of a blast furnace based on? 3. Does the productivity of blast furnaces depend on their height? 4. Why did iron production in Britain begin to suffer? 5. What did Abraham Darby introduce into the process of iron-making?

Exercise 4.Complete the following statements by choosing the answer

which you think fits best. Are the other answers unsuitable?

Why?

1. No furnace in Europe could melt iron to a liquid state because:

a) there were too many impurities in it.

b) they were not hot enough.

c) water-powered bellows didn’t work properly.

2. The reason for the tremendous stride in metallurgy was:

a) the height of the furnace.

b) the shape of the furnace.

c) the internal temperature of the furnace.

3. Iron production in Britain began to suffer from:

a) the exhaustion of the deposits of iron ore.

b) political situation.

c)lack of fuel.

4. Abraham Darby succeeded in his experiments to do without charcoal

because:

a) he used coke.

b) he hammered out the impurities.

c) he mixed iron with carbon.

Exercise 5.Give a written Russian translation of the following passage.

1. In addition the rapid developments in the use of iron and steel during the Industrial Age brought with them greatly increased demand for other metals, particularly copper, tin and lead. Moreover, the demand was not only for greater tonnages but also for a far greater variety of metals. Many of these metals were one hundred years ago little known names in the periodic table, but have now come into prominence and have become marketable commodities. It is accordingly not surprising that there have been more notable advances in metallurgy during the century under review than in the whole history of this ancient art.

2. Limestone is included in the furnace because it mixes and combines with sand, clay and stones in the ore. They form a waste material, called slag, which floats on top of the molten metal.

Task 3.

Focus on Grammar

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