Решение задач по специальности «Английский язык. Реферирование текстов»

Задание 1. Реферирование новостного текста по выбору студента на английском языке (образец см. в теме 4, ограничение объёма: не менее 1 страницы А4, 12 шрифт). Talk like an Egyptian: mummy’s voice heard 3,000 years after death Researchers in UK recreate Nesyamun’s sound using 3D version of his vocal tract Nicola Davis Thu 23 Jan 2020 The “voice” of an ancient Egyptian priest has been heard for the first time since he died and was mummified 3,000 years ago, researchers have said. Nesyamun lived under the pharaoh Rameses XI, who reigned around the beginning of the 11th century BC. Nesyamun’s mummy, currently in Leeds City Museum, has been the subject of much scrutiny: it was unwrapped in 1824, with subsequent work revealing that he was in his 50s when he died. His death, which some suggested to have been from strangulation, was later proposed to be caused by an allergic reaction, possibly a result of an insect sting to the tongue – an unfortunate demise but one experts say may explain why the mummy had his tongue sticking out, but had no damage to the bones around his neck. But while Nesyamun may have been unfortunate in death, he was lucky thereafter: his mummy was moved shortly before a bombing raid on Leeds in 1941 that destroyed the museum it had been in and many of its artefacts. Now a team of researchers have 3D-printed a reproduction of Nesyamun’s vocal tract to hear what his voice would have sounded like “What we have done is to create the sound of Nesyamun as he is in his sarcophagus,” said the study co-author Prof David Howard, head of the department of electronic engineering at Royal Holloway, University of London. “It is not a sound from his speech as such, as he is not actually speaking.” Writing in the journal Scientific Reports, the team revealed that they took the mummy to Leeds General Infirmary and carried out a series of CT scans. From these, the team were able to produce a digital reconstruction of Nesyamun’s vocal tract, and reproduce it through 3D printing. However, mummification, burial and a long stretch of time had taken their toll: the tongue was shrivelled and the soft palate was missing – with the team having to virtually fill in the latter. They then coupled their model to an electronic larynx and loudspeaker. The vocal tract filters sound produced from air that has passed through the larynx, with the resulting sound unique to each person. The position of different components of the vocal tract can then produce particular words or other vocalisations. Howard said: “Our larynx sound is electronic and if that sound were produced by Nesyamun, he would be passing lung air outwards via his larynx where his vocal folds would be vibrating to create the same effect.” If the insect-sting theory is correct, the last gasp of Nesyamun may have been expected to be “ow!” or “argh!”, but the team found that the vocalisation produced sounded rather like “eeuuughhh.” But then, as Howard pointed out, the sound is more specifically that of Nesyamun lying in his coffin after mummification. To better put their finger on the sound produced from Nesyamun’s vocal tract, the team analysed data and recordings from modern men and said the mummy’s sound fell somewhere between the vowels in “bad” and “bed”. Howard said the dimensions of Nesyamun’s larynx and vocal tract suggest his voice would be slightly higher pitched than the average man today. Nesyamun’s voice, the team wrote, would have been crucial to his work: he would have had to talk, chant or sing as part of his role as a priest, incense bearer and scribe at the temple of Karnak in Thebes. But it would also have been important after death. “Every Egyptian hoped that after death their soul would be able to speak, in order for them to recite the so-called ‘negative confession’ telling the gods of judgement that they had led a good life,” said the study co-author Prof Joann Fletcher of the department of archaeology at the University of York. “Only if the gods agreed could the deceased soul pass through into eternity – if they failed the test they died a second, permanent death.” Fletcher added those who passed the test were termed “true of voice” – a phrase that appears in Nesyamun’s coffin inscriptions alongside his name. Prof John Schofield, an archaeologist and co-author of the study also at the University of York, said the team’s approach could offer the public a new way to engage with the past. “It is just the sheer excitement and the extra dimension that this could bring to museum visits, for example, or site visits to Karnak,” he said. “The idea of going to a museum and coming away having heard a voice from 3,000 years ago is the sort of thing people might well remember for a long time.” “What we’d like to try to do next is develop a computer model that will allow us to move [the vocal tract] around and form different vowel sounds and hopefully, ultimately words,” he said. “This [current sound] is never a sound he would have made in life, but from it we can create sounds that would have been made during his lifetime.” Schofield added the approach could also be applied to other preserved human remains – such as the iron age bog bodies found in Denmark and beyond. Salima Ikram, a professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo who was not involved in the work, said the study was “amazingly cool”, adding that it would be a useful comparison to make 3D-models from living humans to explore the accuracy of the approach. “This study gives us a unique aural insight into the past and connects us intimately with Nesyamun, giving him a voice in the 21st century,” she said.

Talk like an Egyptian: mummy’s voice heard 3,000 years after death

The article under consideration was published in The Guardian, on the 23rd of January 2020. The article under the headline «Talk like an Egyptian: mummy’s voice heard 3,000 years after death» has the subhead «Researchers in UK recreate Nesyamun’s sound using 3D version of his vocal tract», which clears up the topic of the article and fascinates the readers at the same time. The author of the article is Nicola Davis, a journalist, who writes about science, health and environment for the Guardian and Observer and has a MChem and DPhil in Organic Chemistry from the University of Oxford. Nicola Davis devotes her article to an amazing experiment which was carried out by a team of  researchers in order to reproduce the «voice» of  an ancient Egyptian priest  Nesyamun lived under the pharaoh Rameses XI in the beginning of the 11th century BC. She starts  with a paragraph that gives the story of Nesyamun’s mummy from 1824 when it was unwrapped, till the present days. She writes about some interesting facts the scientists managed to find out  scrutinizing the mummy, such as Nesyamun’s age and the cause of his death. Now it is possible to hear his voice. It is spoken in detail about the methods used by scientists to make it possible to hear the voice from the far past. Prof David Howard, head of the department of electronic engineering at Royal Holloway, University of London, Prof Joann Fletcher of the department of archaeology at the University of York, Prof John Schofield, an archaeologist and co-author of the study also at the University of York, describe the way they were acting. Having carried out a series of CT scans, the team became able to make a digital reconstruction of Nesyamun’s vocal tract and reproduce it through 3D printing. Then the researches coupled their model to an electronic larynx and loudspeaker. Further the author reports that despite the fact that the sound is indistinct and far from real speech, the research is considered to be of great scientific value. Much attention is given to the possible application of this method both for scientific and educational purposes. It could contribute in further studying of Egypt history, other preserved human remains as well as offer the public a new way to engage with the past. Nicola Davis conveys the words of archaeologists about the great potential for the further development of this research. The article is illustrated with the record of Nesyamun’s «voice» and a picture of cross-section of the 3D printed replica of the vocal tract of a mummy. The author focuses attention on enthusiastic work of scientists, passionate about discovering ancient secrets. Unsurprisingly, every fact concerning Egyptian mummies is of great interest for a broad audience of readers.

Задание 2. Конспект отрывка из англоязычного научного текста (из числа предложенных в материалах) на русском языке, ограничение объёма: не более 1 страницы А4, 12 шрифт

Text 4. How to slow down ageing  Статья, озаглавленная Как замедлить старение, была опубликована в январе 2017 года. Авторами статьи являются Элизабет Блэкбурн, медицинский психолог, и Элисса Эпель, биолог, лауреат Нобелевской премии. Как следует из названия, статья содержит ответы на вопрос  как замедлить старение человеческого организма и, соответственно, дольше сохранять здоровье и вести полноценную, счастливую жизнь. Авторы суммируют результаты своих исследований, посвященных влиянию питания на процессы старения человеческого организма, открывшие совершенно новую область научного понимания данных процессов. Прежде всего, статья обращает внимание читателей на сам механизм старения организма, а именно на то, что старение напрямую зависит от длины теломеров, защищающих ДНК каждой клетки организма от изнашивания и разрушения. А так же подчеркивает тот факт, что в любом возрасте процесс старения, обусловленный сокращением длины теломеров, возможно замедлить, непосредственно влияя на теломеры и даже способствовать их росту, буквально поворачивая время вспять. Сделать это возможно, правильно подбирая рацион питания. Далее в статье приводятся данные, полученные путем научных наблюдений, свидетельствующие о необходимости сократить потребление сахара, в основном в виде сладких напитков и рафинированных продуктов, так как именно регулярное потребление сахара демонстрирует сокращение длины теломеров, сравнимое с вредом, наносимым курением. Большое внимание авторы уделяют и рассмотрению набора продуктов питания, способствующих защите теломеров, среди которых главная роль отводится продуктам, входящим в состав средиземноморской диеты. Именно наличие в рационе питания таких продуктов, как рыба, овощи, клетчатка, полезные жиры, наряду с витаминами и минералами, способствует сохранению молодости, что так же подтверждается данными наблюдений. Следующая часть статьи посвящена подробному рассмотрению каждого из трех главных врагов человеческого организма — воспаления, окисления и инсулинорезистентности. Каждый из этих процессов, подчеркивают авторы, способствует ослаблению защитных сил организма и может привести к возникновению опасных для жизни заболеваний. И каждый из этих процессов может быть замедлен или даже остановлен путем соблюдения описанных выше основных правил питания, а прежде всего, еще раз подчеркивают авторы в заключении, путем сокращения потребления сахара и рафинированных углеводов.

Задание 3. Краткий пересказ художественного текста (из числа предложенных ниже) на английском языке, ограничение объёма: не более 10 предложений.

Text 3. A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin  The story A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin depicts one day in the life of little  Mrs. Sommers. That day she was excited having got extra fifteen dollars and planning to spend them on clothes for her children. Her «better days» were behind, she intended to bargain to make the most she could out of this money, as her children were to have new attire and look smart. Tired and faint Mrs. Sommers came to the crowded department store. Surprisingly she found herself touching silk stockings. They had been reduced in price, her own stockings were cotton and too old, so temptation was irresistible. New boots and  gloves came the next. Little  Mrs. Sommers felt belonging to the well-dressed crowd, she seemed to be taking a rest from her responsible life and became unable to think. She bought a couple of high-priced magazines, then she had a bite and a glass of vine in a restaurant, finally she went to the theater. When the play was over and the money was over, little  Mrs. Sommers wended her way home feeling like a dream ended.