We (1) ... along this mountain road, miles from anywhere, when we (2) ... across a trail of tins of food and bottles of water along the road. I looked out of the car window and noticed this camper van about ten metres below us in a field, with its back door hanging off. It (3) ... off the road. We stopped the car. A young man (4) ... back up towards the road. He (5) ... in blood, so we offered to take him to hospital. As we drove off, with him lying on the back seat, he (6) ... asking about his girlfriend  — was she all right? When we (7) ... the hospital we found that she (8) ... up and taken to casualty by someone else. Luckily, she was okay  — and so was he, eventually.

Most people take time off work to travel, but for Ian Wright making a living requires travelling. Ian, who (1) ... around the world many times, is one of the presenters of Globe Trekker  — a popular TV series which (2) ... the sights and sounds of different countries.

Since he (3) ... the job as a presenter on British TV, Ian (4) ... in over 50 episodes of the show, visiting countries like Ethiopia, Cambodia, Jamaica and Iran. On his travels, Ian often (5) ... local food and sometimes exposes himself to danger. Once, while filming in the Pacific, he (6) ... by a block of lava. "In Vanuatu we visited the most accessible volcano of the world. It erupted every ten minutes, spitting out lava all over the crater. It was unbelievable  — until the wind changed. A piece of lava landed two meters away from my head. And we ran crying like babies."

Although Ian (7) ... Globe Trekker episodes for many years, he is as enthusiastic as ever!

Hi, Rob!

How are you doing? I'm OK. My day didn't start too well though. My alarm didn't go off and I (1) ... . (My mum (2) ... to work early today so she wasn't around in the morning to get me up.) Then I got held up on the way to school because the bus I was on (3) ... down. When I finally made it into class, I (4) ... off by the teacher and had to stay on after school for a detention (остав­ле­ние после урока)! Then on the way back home I bumped into Craig. He (5) ... a few family dramas to deal with recently. Apparently his dad has been laid off from the bank where he worked and his sister (6) ... out of the university so they're both at home feeling miserable.

What are you up to at the weekend? A few of us (7) ... together for a game of beach volleyball. Why don't you come along?

Archie

I (1) ... very well the first law conference l attended. It was in the 1990s. The conference had many outstanding speakers but only one of them (2) ... a lasting impression in my mind. That speaker, a law lecturer, (3) ... answering a number of questions on his paper that (4) ... when he (5) ... a question by an elderly gentleman in the audience: "If your father committed a murder and he confessed the crime to you, what would you do?" The speaker Smiled and said, "Sir, you (6) ... me a very difficult question. I need time to answer that, but I will, after the tea break."

When the session resumed, the speaker took his place on the stage. "I (7) ... to answer the gentleman's question now. As my father's son I would listen to him. I would even cry with him. As his lawyer, I would advise him to confess to the crime and I would go with him to the police station." His answer received what it (8) ... - thunderous applause.

The idea of World Music Day or Fête de la Musique (1) ... in France in the 1980s but (2) ... across the globe. Today the event (3) ... on 21st June in over 120 countries. An American musician, Joel Cohen, who (4) ... for a French radio station, first came up with the idea for a music festival that everyone could enjoy and take part in. He suggested an all-night music festival to celebrate the summer solstice (the longest day). The French minister for culture liked the idea and it first (5) ... reality in June 1982. The main idea behind the festival is that music is a great way to bring people together regardless of their nationality, ethnic and cultural background. The day (6) ... individual musicians but also orchestras, cultural organisations, and schools. The best thing about the festival is that musicians (7) ... to perform outside the usual music venues and concert halls. And every kind of music is on offer.

Jane (1) ... to be a nurse ever since she was a child but her father had told her that nursing was not a suitable profession for her to follow. She decided to talk to her friend, Anne, about what she should do. Jane and Anne (2) ... friends for a long time and lived in the same street. When Jane arrived at Anne's house, Anne (3) ... in the garden reading. Jane explained the situation to her. As she finished speaking, Anne's mother came out of the house and shouted to the girls to come over. "Sorry Jane, but I'm afraid, your father had an accident this morning at work and is in hospital. I (4) ... you over there now.' When they arrived at the hospital Jane (5) ... to see her father sitting up in bed and smiling broadly.

'Father, I was so worried, I thought something dreadful (6) ... .' 'Oh, there's no need to worry. I (7) ... my arm but the nurses here (8) ... such good care of me, they've been wonderful. And Jane, I've been thinking.' Jane Smiled at her friend, and knew that everything was going to be all right.

Dear Peter,

Well, here we are at last! We had been looking forward to coming back for ages and we finally (1) ... safe and sound last week. Since then we (2) ... several times to organize the flat and find schools for the children. We've had to borrow some furniture from friends and relatives as the flat we (3) ... turned out to be unfurnished Sally says that it is all our own fault. We should have checked the details more carefully! I thought it (4) ... good value for money! It was difficult to make the decision to come home as we (5) ... abroad for so long. I think we are going to find it strange to settle down here again. I haven't started looking for a job yet as I (6) ... busy. I (7) ... you a call to arrange a night when you can come to dinner and we can discuss old times! Looking forward to seeing you again.

Best wishes, Stephen

We had been staying at (1) ... holiday resort on mainland Greece for nearly (2) ... week when we decided to visit one of the nearby islands. First, we booked the trip at our hotel, then we walked down to the harbour and found our boat. The captain welcomed us on board and we sat down near (3) ... front. (4) ... first, the weather was good and the sea was calm. However, after about fifteen minutes, dark clouds filled the sky, and it was clear that a storm was about to start. Ten minutes later, it was pouring (5) ... rain and the sea was extremely rough. It was absolutely terrifying! The captain of the boat explained (6) ... us that he couldn’t approach (7) ... the island  — he was worried that we might hit the rocks if we went too close! All we could do was wait for the storm to pass. All of the passengers were feeling very ill as well as frightened. But finally, the storm passed, the sea became calm once more and we finished our journey. I’ll never forget being (8) ... sea during a storm.

Personal space is the term that refers (1) ... the distance we like to keep between ourselves and other people. When someone we do not know well gets too close we usually begin to feel uncomfortable. Living in cities has made people develop new skills for dealing (2) ... situations where they are very close to strangers. Most people (3) ... crowded trains try not to look at strangers, they avoid (4) ... skin contact, and we apologise (5) ... people if our hands touch by (6) ... mistake. People use newspapers as (7) ... barrier between themselves and other people and if they still do not have a newspaper, they stare (8) ... the distance, making sure they are not looking into anyone‟s eyes.

The explosive growth of the Internet over the past decade has been accompanied by a rise (1) ... new ways of interacting and communicating in cyberspace. First came emails and then chat rooms. Now, growing in (2) ... popularity (3) ... an incredible rate, is something known as blogging. For those who have never heard of it, a blog, which is short (4) ... web log, is a kind of journal or diary that people write to "post' online. (5) ... beauty of blogging is that anyone can put a blog on (6) ... web and write about any topic under the sun. Some of the most interesting blogs can be found on Internet newspaper sites where readers post their comments (7) ... articles in the news. One surprising development of blogging is that they are now often used as a source of news themselves. It is not uncommon (8) ... journalists to use information that they have found on blog sites to write their articles.

Did Marco Polo tell the truth when he wrote about his journey to China? Or did (1) ... 13th century Italian explorer just make up stories about places he would like to have visited?

According to some experts, when Marco was 17, he set (2) ... with his father and uncle (3) ... an adventure that lasted over 20 years. They passed through Turkey into (4) ... northern Iran, along the Great Silk Road and across  (5) ... Gobi desert. Eventually, in 1275, they reached the summer capital where they met the emperor. The opportunity to return home only came 17 years later. Shortly after his return to Venice, Marco Polo was captured (6) ... sea, possibly by pirates. They put him (7) ... prison where he devoted his time (8) ... composing his book.

Have you ever wondered why humans cry? Most mammals produce tears to clean (1) ... eyes, but humans are unique  — perhaps (2) ... the exception (3) ... gorillas and elephants that produce tears in response (4) ... emotional stimuli. We might feel like crying when we hear (5) ... sad news, or even cry (6) ... happiness. Scientists are unsure (7) ... any benefits of crying. Though some people say that (8) ... good cry may help them get over difficult emotional situations.

In a month's time I'll be setting (1) ... on the trip of (2) ... lifetime. My plan is to cycle all the way round the world, starting and finishing in my home town of Plymouth. It's taken over two years to prepare for the adventure; planning it, training for it and organising the finance. I've saved up about a quarter of the money I need, and I've managed to raise (3) ... rest by doing up my house and selling it for a lot more than it originally cost me. Understandably, my parents are not very keen on (4) ... idea, and I don't blame them (5) ... wanting to try to discourage me (6) ... going. They still haven't forgiven me for the worry I caused them when I tried, unsuccessfully, to cycle from Norway to South Africa. They've finally accepted, however, that nothing will prevent me (7) ... attempting it, and my mum has said she'll be the first to congratulate me (8) ... my achievement when I get back in two years' time.

I had always been lucky with (1) ... holiday flights until I went on (2) ... package holiday to Hawaii. The journey (3) ... there was fine, but coming back was a different story. To start with, the return flight was delayed (4) ... two days which was not really a problem as I was having a good time. Unfortunately, when I finally left (5) ... Honolulu, the capital, (6) ... the first part of the journey, I landed in Los Angeles instead of Chicago. I was taken off the plane and had to stay overnight in a hotel. (7) ... Next/next day I got on a direct flight to London, only to end (8) ... Minneapolis.

Albert Einstein's work has enormously broadened our understanding of (1) ... universe and has had a considerable impact (2) ... all our lives. Thanks (3) ... his equation E = mc², we now know that energy and mass are directly related (4) ... each other. To (5) ... very great extent, it is Einstein who is responsible (6) ... our knowing that space and time are actually one thing. Additionally, without E = mc², we would not have nuclear power  — and nuclear weapons  — today. Einstein did not become famous because of E = mc², which was first published in 1905. At (7) ... time, his paper was largely ignored, even (8) ... most scientists. Indeed, it was 14 years later that Einstein first made headlines round the world, when scientific evidence began to show that his Theory of General Relativity was correct.

Possibly the chilliest place you could ever (1) ... in is the Snow Village Ice Hotel, (2) ... in northern Finland. The hotel (3) ... the warmest of welcomes in the coldest of settings. The walls, ceilings, and furniture  — including the beds  — are all (4) ... from ice, so the indoor temperature stays permanently below zero. Before sending you off to your personal room for the night the hotel (5) ... a mattress, a blanket made of reindeer (се­вер­ный олень) skin, and a thermal sleeping (6) ... . Lying in bed, (7) ... will be impressed by total silence. Slippery surfaces and icy corners are everywhere, and the hotel's lights remain (8) ... on all night. Last time I was there I (9) ... in bed for hours counting reindeer jumping over fences. I finally (10) ... asleep at 5.00 a.m. after enjoying a very brief glimpse of the legendary Northern Lights, magical displays of blue and green light visible in the night sky up to 200 times a year.

Don Strange, who works as a vet in northern England, (1) ... a busy life. As well as having to (2) ... pets which are unwell, he often visits farms where problems of various kinds await him. He has (3) ... count of the number of times he has been called out at midnight to give (4) ... to a farmer with sick sheep or cows. Recently, a television company chose Don as the subject of a documentary programme it was making about the life of a country vet. The programme showed the difficult situations Don (5) ... every day. It also showed Don (6) ... a meeting with villagers (7) ... about the damage a new road might (8) ... to their local environment. Viewers loved the documentary and, overnight, Don became a household name, known to millions of people. He continues to receive large numbers of letters which make a real impression on him, especially those from teenagers who have (9) ... the important decision to become vets themselves as a (10) ... of seeing the programme.

Young people tend to spend most of their out-of-school hours (1) ... with homework and other school commitments. These (2) ... them so busy that they have no time to (3) ... for other major projects. But there are some remarkable exceptions to this (4) ... . Some use any free time they have to (5) ... themselves to environmental issues. Ava Lang, for example, is only 14 but at: weekends she goes round restaurants to persuade the owners to (6) ... her with their used cooking oil. She then arranges for this to be (7) ... into biodiesel. Another youngster who does a considerable (8) ... of work to help others is Tim Fried. He races go-karts as a (9) ... of raising money for charitable causes. In this way he manages to (10) ... his love of sport with some socially useful work.

Whether you like it or not, celebrity gossip is hard to avoid. Newspapers, magazines and websites are (1) ... with photos of the stars. Celebrities, (2) ... the badly-behaved ones, regularly (3) ... enormous publicity in the media. It seems we're (4) ... by scandal, eager to know who is going out whom, and whose marriage has just fallen apart. Thanks to the public's (5) ... for gossip, a paparazzo can be (6) ... $500,000 for each 'exclusive' photo of stars like Britney Spears and Cristiano Ronaldo

Celebrities (7) ... that money-hungry reporters and photographers follow them everywhere they go, often (8) ... them serious troubles. In response, celebrity hunters argue that famous people shouldn't be so sensitive. They should accept their loss of privacy as the (9) ... of wealth and success. But have things gone too far? Do we really have a 'right to read about stars having a mental breakdown, or to see pictures of them looking completely devastated after they've (10) ... up with their husband or wife? There seems to be a fine line between curiosity and cruelty.

According to the United Nations' population figures, the world's population will be (1) ... for 8.9 billion by the year 2050, (2) ... to 6.7 billion in 2009. This figure (3) ... into account that each woman on the planet will give birth to two children. Eight billion, nine hundred million people may sound like an astronomical figure, yet statistics (4) ... that, throughout the world, the number of children being born is (5) ... . The explanation (6) ... for this is the fact that women have become better educated and would rather (7) ... a career than enjoy motherhood. Therefore, they (8) ... bringing up many children and being out of work for long periods of time. All the same, the world's population will continue to increase in spite of the ageing population. This will happen because of an overall rise in life expectancy, especially in the developed countries. The main (9) ... for this is that many diseases which were fatal in the past, can be (10) ... nowadays.

We offer an amazing theme park holiday  — the most (1) ... experience in holidays. Our holidays (2) ... two weeks and during that time you will fly between several (3) ..., visiting various famous theme parks for one day each. Our group comes from all over the world so you will be travelling with new and interesting people. We start our tour in LA, where over three days we visit Universal Studios where you can (4) ... the effects of white-water rafting (сплав­лять­ся на плоту). Then it's off to Disneyland in LA to meet some famous friends. On the last day we (5) ... a trip to the breathtaking Magic Mountain theme park, where you can go on the most fantastic roller coaster rides (аме­ри­кан­ские горки). Next we (6) ... out to Miami where the programme includes a day at Disneyworld and another at Cape Canaveral to see where Homer Simpson (7) ... to be an astronaut. This will be the end of the tour  — you will be exhausted but happy. Five days of theme parks Can you (8) ... a better holiday?

When the Moscow State Circus goes on its annual (1) ... of Europe, the younger members of the circus are still expected to (2) ... with their education. The circus usually stops for a few days in each town, so how do the young performers manage? One twelve-year-old gets up very early to practise her act before going to school. "It's exhausting (3) ... but I like the circus life," she says. "The worst part is when I (4) ... new friends and have to leave them, although I try to keep in (5) ... with them." The person who (6) ... the circus (7) ... sure that all the children get a proper education. When the circus arrives in Britain, he (8) ... the traveller education service and gives them the details of all the children and when they will be in certain towns and cities. "It's a fantastic system, he says. "I receive a (9) ... when we (10) ... the next town telling us where to meet. We are then accompanied to the school and introduced to the head teacher."

Until recently, vegetarianism was fairly uncommon in Britain, and it is still (1) ... strange by some. But since the 1960s its popularity has (2) ... greatly, to the extent that high street stores stock a huge (3) ... of products for vegetarians. The reasons people (4) ... for not eating meat are numerous. Perhaps most vegetarians do it for moral reasons, arguing that it is wrong to kill. The opposing point of (5) ... is that it is (6) ... for us to kill for food. Still, there are societies where eating meat is not allowed because it is against their religion. There are other good reasons to (7) ... up meat, one of which is the inefficiency of livestock farming. Although it is, in (8) ... cheaper to eat only vegetables, in practice vegetarianism is most popular in richer countries such as Germany and Britain, where many people exclude meat for health reasons. In these countries, at least, it (9) ... out to be a matter of (10) ... rather than necessity.

If you happen to be walking in your local park tomorrow and you find a book with a label inside (1) ... Read and Release me," don't just treat it as a (2) ... . You've probably (3) ... across an example of bookcrossing, a book-sharing movement (4) ... in 2001 by American software developer Ron Hornbaker, whose aim is to "make the (5) ... world a library'. Bookcrossers "release' books either by (6) ... them on to friends, or by leaving them in public places for others to (7) ... up, or 'catch', and then read, before they in (8) ... release them back "into the wild". Over half a million people worldwide take (9) ... in bookcrossing, "releasing books in cafés, airports, bus stations, telephone boxes. Often a book is left in a place which is associated with its (10) ... or content: Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express on a train, for example, or an archeology book in a museum.

When the Moscow State Circus goes on its annual (1) ... of Europe, the younger members of the circus are still expected to (2) ... with their education. The circus usually stops for a few days in each town, so how do the young performers manage? One twelve-year-old gets up very early to practise her act before going to school. "It's exhausting (3) ... but I like the circus life," she says. "The worst part is when I (4) ... new friends and have to leave them, although I try to keep in (5) ... with them." The person who (6) ... the circus (7) ... sure that all the children get a proper education. When the circus arrives in Britain, he (8) ... the traveller education service and gives them the details of all the children and when they will be in certain towns and cities. "It's a fantastic system, he says. "I receive a (9) ... when we (10) ... the next town telling us where to meet. We are then accompanied to the school and introduced to the head teacher."

Everyone, whatever their age, can share in the joy and fulfillment of learning, as June Weatherall found out.

§ 1. When I first retired, I thought I'd love spending more time on the gardening, needlework, and other creative activities I'd found so relaxing after my demanding job. But it didn't turn out that way. I found that I didn't want, or need, that kind of relaxation anymore, I wanted to stimulate my mind instead.

§ 2. So, with a couple of friends, I went along to an art appreciation evening class at our local regional college. It was wonderful, but only lasted a year. At the end, I asked my tutor, "What next?' He suggested I attend his history of art access course. "Whatever's that?' I asked. The college had an open evening coming up, so I went along to find out. A full-time access course takes one year and gives you access to university if, like me, you left school without any qualifications, and it's free if you do it full-time. I only wanted to do the art history bit.

§ 3. Lyn, who organises the courses for the college, was enthusiastic. "Why don't you do the whole course? You could start in the spring term with art history, do another module in the summer, then go full-time in the autumn and do all the subjects." It sounded wonderful, but wasn't I a bit old, at 63, to start being a student? A definite 'no'. One of the students that year was 82. That decided it. It must be worth having a go.

§ 4. The art history part of the course, which I've just completed, was stimulating. The tutors are enthusiasts and infect us all with their enjoyment of the subjects they teach. "Lively' would be the word to describe the classes. My fellow students, who are also doing subjects like psychology, maths, biology, etc., are good company. They're mainly people in their thirties with children, taking a second bite at the educational cherry.

§ 5. We have homework and have to do an essay each term for each subject, and sit exams. For art history, we had to produce a journal about all the painters we'd learnt about  — which was fun, but rather time-consuming. Occasionally, I envy the more typical mature students, who just do courses for fun and don't have to do exams or essays, but really I'm a very happy lady. There are drawbacks, however. The main one is you have to make a commitment. During term time, you can't just drop everything and go out for the day if the sun shines  — one of the supposed joys of retirement.

§ 6. Will I go on to university if I'm successful? I'll see how next year goes. Meanwhile, exercising my brain cells is working well for me. I feel alive. The garden's getting a bit out of control, but that's the least of my worries!

§ 1. I crept to the door and listened; they were snoring, so I tiptoed along and got down the stairs safely. I couldn’t hear a sound. I looked through a crack in the dining room door and saw that the men who were watching the body were all asleep in their chairs. The door of the parlour, where the corpse was lying, was open, and there was a candle in each room. I went past, but the front door was locked and the key was missing.

§ 2. Just then I heard footsteps on the stairs behind me. I silently ran into the parlour and cast my eyes about the room. The only place I could see to hide the bag was in the coffin. The lid was pushed along, showing the dead man’s face with a wet cloth over it. 1 tucked the money-bag in under the lid, just below where his hands were crossed. That sent a shiver down my spine; his hands were so cold. Then I ran back across the room and hid behind the door.

§ 3. The person coming was Mary Jane. She went to the coffin, knelt down and looked in. Then she put her handkerchief to her face and I sensed that she had started crying, although I couldn’t hear her and her back was turned. I slipped out. Looking back into the dining room, I saw that the watchers were still all asleep and I hadn’t been seen.

§ 4. As I climbed back into bed, I was a little shaken after all the risks I had just taken. I thought to myself it would be alright if it stayed where it was because when we had gone another hundred miles or two down the river I could write to Mary Jane and she c6uld dig him up and get it. But that’s not going to happen because they’ll find the money when they screw the lid on. The king will get it back and nobody else will get their hands on it again. Of course, I wanted to sneak back down and get it, but 1 didn’t dare to try. Every minute it was getting later now. Soon some of the watchers would start waking up and I might get caught  — caught with six thousand dollars in my hands. How could I explain that?

§ 1. While having lunch in an expensive restaurant, I tasted the wine I had ordered. I thought it might be spoiled, so I called the wine waiter. He was most unpleasant at the mere suggestion that something might be wrong. Unwillingly he tasted the wine  — and immediately apologized and brought another bottle. That's what I call power!' said my guest, but it helped that I knew I was right. As the customer, you have considerable rights.

§ 2. If a restaurant fails to provide a table you have booked, they will have broken their contract with you and you can politely threaten to take them to court for the cost of a spoiled evening. They will then usually find you a table. On the other hand, if you let them down, they can take you to court for lost business. In one case, a company booked a table for one o'clock for five people at a popular restaurant, then called to cancel at 1.35 p.m. on the day, saying their client did not want to eat. When the company refused to pay up, the restaurant owner took them to court and won: the judge decided that, since it was too late to re-book the table, the company should pay for the loss of profit on the meal.

§ 3. The menu is a vital legal document. The price should be included, together with the tax (налог), and the restaurant can be fined for not displaying it outside or immediately inside the door, so that customers know in advance what they are committing themselves to. It is illegal for any establishment to give a false description of their food. Everything must be what it claims to be: fresh fruit salad must consist only of fresh, not tinned, fruit; Welsh lamb must be an animal born or raised in Wales.

§ 4. You cannot rely on getting bread and butter free. A restaurant is allowed to make a cover charge  — which relates to linen, tableware, salt and pepper, Sauces and items like bread or olives  — provided it appears on the menu by the door.

§ 5. If the food is not cooked to your satisfaction, you can insist on the restaurant taking it back and supplying what you ordered. If it gives you food poisoning, the restaurant is obliged to pay for the suffering and inconvenience provided you have been to your doctor. If the food is not up to a reasonable standard for the money, you can either send it back or pay less than the bill demands. If you do not pay the full price, give your name, address and proof of identity so that you cannot be arrested for leaving without paying.

§ 1. Cruising over the pack-ice with our heavy snowmobiles, my guide, Arne, and I looked out across the dazzling expanse of snow. We had come to the tiny, remote island of Svalbard northeast of Greenland, to photograph polar bears, but now we were exhausted with searching. The day had been particularly frustrating, as every bear we'd slowly approached had run away from us. Fed up and hungry, we decided to abandon our search for the afternoon and stop for a snack beside one of the many tall, blue icebergs.

§ 2. As always, a good meal was followed by an intense desire to sleep, and we decided to give in to it, even though the temperature was down to −30 °C. Sleeping at the same time would be unwise with our furry friends around, so we decided to take it in turns. As Arne slept, I scanned the Snow with my binoculars, looking for anything moving. An hour passed. I was just about to wake my companion, when I noticed a dot on the horizon. I wiped the lens, but it was still there. I began to make out the typical mayonnaise colour and the striding walk  — it was a polar bear and it was heading in our direction. I awoke Arne instantly. For the next thirty minutes, the bear continued on its direct course towards us, which was strange because the wind was blowing our scent straight towards him, so he must have been aware of our presence.

§ 3. When he was a couple of hundred metres away, I decided to lie down in the snow so as to get a better photograph. "You realise you look like seal like that, don't you?" warned Arne, for once sounding a bit worried. ave for dinner. Onwards the bear came, and by now I could hear the crunching Seals are what polar bears like to sound of his feet on the ice. It struck me that this was a big bear, travelling at some speed. I turned to speak to Arne, and saw him pulling a gun from his bag. Polar bears are incredibly unpredictable animals, and to be in their environment without protection is foolish. But Arne had strict instructions from me only to use the gun to frighten the bear away, and then only if necessary.

§ 4. By now the animal was only 25 metres away and the atmosphere had changed. Arne sat up on the snowmobile calmly awaiting the bear's next move, while struggled to change the film in my camera with my cold, shaking hands. Then, just as I was thinking that there was no escape, as I tensed myself for the inevitable attack, the bear veered off (из­ме­нил на­прав­ле­ние) to one side and then went straight past us. "Look!" whispered Arne. "Behind us!" I turned and saw a second creamy head with two black eyes peering around the corner of an iceberg a few hundred metres behind us. A female bear. Our friend's goal had clearly been in his sight the whole time, and we were the only thing between him and his beloved.

This is what the famous musician Yehudi Menuhin writes about himself.

§ 1. Being a touring musician is a bit like being a sailor. It's constant motion, a continuous routine of settling into new hotels and meeting new people. So my ideal holiday is enjoying being alone with my wife.

§ 2. My earliest memory of a holiday was when I was five. We had just bought our first car, and drove joyously from San Francisco, exploring the most beautiful parts of California. It was a wonderful experience. I vividly remember the beautiful Yosemite valley, a place of waterfalls and beautiful mountains, a wilderness before we polluted it with cars and noisy stereo systems. As a child I collected photographs of those huge railway engines that pulled hundreds of goods wagons across America. These trains were like monsters, with groups of four wheels on each side. For Americans trains are hugely romantic. My first train journey across America was when I was eight years old. During the day I sat at the window watching the scenery fly past. At night I always had the top bunk bed in the sleeping compartment. I would scramble up to read in bed, feeling cosy and contented as the train rhythmically travelled over the rails through the night.

§ 3. Since then I've worked and studied for many hours on trains, enjoying the view and the sense of timelessness. I loved the smell of steel upon steel mixed up with the smell of the countryside. I loved the sound of the engine's horn, which used to remind me of the ferries which crept along in between the ships in San Francisco Bay on foggy nights. I have been lucky travelling all over the world and managing, just occasionally, to take a few days actually to see something more than just the airport, hotel and concert hall. When my wife and I were in Peru, we took three days off and flew in a small plane to the mountains where we spent a wonderful time walking and exploring in the jungle.

§ 4. Forty years ago we bought a small house on a Greek island and went there whenever we could. Initially there were just a few carts, and everything was transported on the back of a donkey or a man. We had a tiny cottage with a lovely garden of fruit trees where we used to pick grapes and oranges. We spent a lot of time on the beach  — as I love swimming  — and in the village getting to know people. After ten or fifteen years we were firmly involved in the community, able to share a totally different world, different language, different music.

§ 1. Catherine Cassidy has every reason to be proud. This summer she graduated with a degree in Zoology from Queen's University, Belfast. She has ambitions to be a scientific journalist. She is also completely deaf. She can lipread. I interviewed Catherine via e-mail. She told me getting to university was an achievement in itself. She says: 'You have to work much harder than your peers (сверст­ни­ки) and have to be prepared to commit yourself.'

§ 2. The Disability Discrimination Act insists that universities increase their intake of special needs students. But there are difficulties. First, there are no reliable figures on the numbers of disabled in the community, so universities are unsure of the percentages they should be aiming to recruit. Second, some students might require specially adapted computers, or online learning support. Of all the disabilities, deafness is probably the one that is hardest to cope with at university. Universities run on talk. Knowledge is communicated in lectures, seminars, talking to fellow students  — reading is only secondary. For deaf students, casual spontaneous discussions are out.

§ 3. Fortunately for Catherine, Queen's University is a centre of excellence for the teaching of deaf students. The Joint Universities Deaf Education centre (JUDE) organised a special phonic earpiece (слу­хо­вой ап­па­рат) that enabled Catherine to listen to lectures. JUDE has been extended to the other higher education institutions of Northern Ireland. JUDE is setting an example in what can be achieved. Sharon Easton, deaf student support officer, says: "We visit schools to make deaf people aware that higher education is a possibility. Another part of our role is to talk with employers. We're offering them deaf awareness training  — how to adapt to the needs of deaf employees, and where to apply for grants.'

§ 4. Catherine's skill in lip-reading made communicating with her seem so effortless that many people did not believe she had a problem. At times this experience has been painful. Catherine says: 'People have labelled me "not really deaf". It is like telling me I don't count. And this can be very disheartening, very demoralising.'

§ 5. Catherine believes that excellent and well-focused special needs support should be available to all disabled students at university whatever the cost. She says: 'You are accepted by a university on the basis of your ability to carry out mental tasks. You have a right to be there - people should not judge a person by any physical disability.'

§ 1. I was struggling to get by. I had just moved to Gloucester from London and had taken the first job that I was offered. I was barely earning enough to do my weekly shopping and I wished I had the money I used to make back in London. As I couldn't afford my own place, I had settled for my best friend's sofa, but the hard cushions and backaches had made me realise that, above all else, I longed for my old flat  — my little peaceful place! I soon began to wonder if moving had been the right decision. That's when I heard a radio advert that changed my life...

§ 2. "Looking for your own place but worrying about the cost? Worry no more! You could live free for a year in the 'Enviro-House', one of Britain's first environmentally friendly homes. We're looking for a resident to live rent-free! For more details, visit www..." My friend had heard about this house and he thought that it would be very difficult to stick to an energy conserving routine. I should have considered this, or at least have been concerned about how many "guests' would actually pass through. But, as I sat on the painfully uncomfortable sofa, the only thing in my head were the words... "Live free, live free."

§ 3. I visited the website and entered the competition to become an 'eco-housemate'. I was one of three lucky finalists who had to battle it out for a place in the house live on local television. The other finalists were keen environmentalists with a passion for the issue, unlike me. I had never really given it much attention to be honest, as it was insignificant to me. I joked with the audience that the only way I was going to learn was if they sent me to the house! They agreed. As I walked through the front door of the house, I had worrying visions of living in a futuristic house, full of high-tech gadgets. I certainly wouldn't have been surprised to see a number of complex-looking machines. However, I was shocked to see the house was completely normal. In fact, it looked just like any other house. This eased my mind a bit, as I rarely find modern technology easy to understand, I prefer the simple life. The heating system, water supply and electricity all worked in exactly the same way as they would in any other house in the UK. The only difference was that the house used renewable sources of energy. Solar panels and small wind turbines were used to provide the hot water and electricity.

§ 4. My experiences in the house made me look at the way I had lived my life in the past and how I should live it in the future. For example, it's neither difficult nor time-consuming to recycle, as long as you make it part of your daily routine. I also changed my perspective on which energy sources to use. It's very simple to make those all-important changes we just need the motivation to make them.

1. David Mulcahy

David Mulcahy is a high-powered stock broker. He owns a beautiful flat in London's exclusive Notting Hill area. As well as a delightful home, David owns a brand new Mercedes, the car of his dreams "The only problem," David says, "is that I never get to drive it to work! I refuse to pay £8 to get in and out of the centre, so instead I take the tube!" "The tube', which is London's metro system, is a cheaper alternative, but David still thinks it's far too expensive. "A day pass on the tube is around £5. So, I pay over £100 each month, just to get to and back from the office!" He goes on, "I wish I could drive my car to work, but it seems that the car of my dreams is turning out to be a complete waste of money!"

2. Rachel Childress

Rachel Childress is the director of a large multinational organisation. Her commute is quite different to that of others. While most people get on the bus, Rachel takes the Channel Tunnel (or "Chunnel'). She lives in England but works in France. One of Rachel's close friends suggested that she should either move to France or give up her active role in the company. But she didn't think so... "Well, it's a brief 35 minute journey and manage to avoid all those horrible, long queues." The 'chunnel' train can accelerate to speeds of up to 160 km/h, so Rachel can even get to work faster than some of her friends who work in London. She says, "If it wasn't for this marvellous feat of engineering, I wouldn't know what to do."

3. Benjamin Goldstein

Benjamin Goldstein is a naval architect and his job requires him to travel to many parts of the world to oversee projects that he is responsible for. "I was offered this job as soon as I finished getting my qualifications and I almost turned it down, because I didn't think I would be able to stand all the travelling. I ់ it would be just too tiring. Fortunately, a good friend of mine, who also does a lot of travelling, gave me tips on how to cope with it and I've never regretted accepting the job." He says, "If you keep yourself fit and make sure you get plenty of rest before and during long flights, it isn't actually that bad. And good nutrition helps, too."

4. Judith Kettering

Judith Kettering made a big move last year. After completing university, she decided that she wanted to start a new life in another country. She wanted to teach English to foreign children, so she hopped on the aeroplane to Greece and, since then, she has never looked back. "I'm so happy here in Athens, but if there's one thing that annoys me it's the traffic jams! The buses are so slow!" She claims that, sometimes, buses have been up to 45 minutes later than the time stated on the schedule. "I've been late for work several times because of traffic jams and it's caused me a lot of bother!" She has a proposal though. "If more people got on the bus instead of driving, the roads would be clearer and services could run more efficiently. Plus, if you're a bit of an 'earth child' like me, you'll know that getting on the bus or tram is a great way to fight against air pollution!"

Like most tourists, I enjoy taking photographs on holiday and can't wait to show them to friends and family when I get back. But whilst for me they represent treasured memories, to others they are more often than not simply a collection of boring, badly composed, out of focus pictures. So this year I decided to do something about this by booking myself on a trip to Rome which included photography lessons.

The first time I went to Rome, I remember thinking that it was a photographer's paradise with a fantastic photo opportunity lying around every corner. (1)___ Added to this was the fact that there were crowds of tourists everywhere, blocking all the best views. But this second time things were different. Antonio, my photography tutor, was on hand to give expert advice every step of the way.

The first thing Antonio told our group was that the secret to creating a good photographic image rather than just a snapshot is to first take a long look at what you want to photograph. For example, he said, you should consider the background just as much as you do the subject. (2)___ You can get unwanted figures out of your image simply by getting down on your knees to take a picture, for instance, or changing the angle of the shot.

Our first port of call was Piazza Navona, where Antonio gave us advice about how to photograph the Fountain of Neptune. (3)___ Then, he added that we should take the photo with the fountain slightly off centre.

Next, we headed off to the Pantheon, which was originally an ancient Roman temple. Along the way, I took the opportunity to photograph anything that caught my eye. The Pantheon itself is so huge that it is impossible to take a good photograph of the whole thing. (4)___ I tried out this technique by lying down on the floor and taking a picture of just one section of the great domed ceiling. I was pretty pleased with the results.

For the next couple of hours, we wandered around the historic centre visiting many of Rome's architectural highlights. (5)___ And I felt that I was really able to appreciate the sights as I had to look at each one so carefully in order to get good pictures.

We finished off our first morning tour with a stop at a traditional Roman street café. After all the hard work and walking I'd done, a large Italian ice cream seemed like the perfect reward! (6)___ It felt like a whole new world had opened up to me. I learnt an incredible amount over the next two days, as well as having a thoroughly enjoyable time in one of the world's most beautiful cities.

1. Claire Lippold, 23, works for the Bat Conservation Trust

I did a degree in biology, and studied bats as part of my thesis. When I saw the ad for this job, I thought it would be perfect for me. We get about ten thousand calls a year, many from people worried that if they have bats in their attics they can't have any building work done. They need the right advice, because the law protects bats. We're contracted by an organisation called Natural England to arrange a service whereby anybody with bats on their property can have a specialist volunteer come out and give information and advice about the creatures they're living with. Generally, once they have the information, they're happy.

2. Anthea McNufty, 26, works for NHS Direct, the phone-in helpline operated by the National Health Service

Having worked in nurse training for a while, I found I missed the patient contact I'd enjoyed doing nursing itself. When I saw this job, I thought of it as a way of getting some of that contact back - without the cleaning up! I remember the dread of what the calls might be about on my first day, but they give you so much training before you're let loose that you can handle it. It was a bit difficult not having the physical clues I'd have been able to pick up on the wards. But you very quickly get used to working with the computer, it makes you feel safe.

3. Agnes Thomson, 60, works for a major broadcasting company

Yesterday, I got lots of calls relating to weekly programmes, though there was quite a contrast: the radio show for the blind, 'In Touch", and "Watchdog' on TV. The 'In Touch' callers had heard of some new equipment and wanted further details. Watchdog is a consumer programme and people generally call me because they have a problem with a product from a company we've covered on the show. Quite often people phone to complain spontaneously, and when we call them again within ten days with a response, which we promise to do in some cases, they've forgotten what made them cross.

4. Caroline Hickman, 34, works for a company with a wide range of household products

I really get a lot out of the work. We have such a wide range of products - from beauty and haircare through to nappies (nenehuku) and household cleaners - that no two calls are ever the same. With laundry products, for example, we get lots of Specific queries - people want to know what to use with certain types of material. We can't always go into details of all the settings of different brands of machine, though. We also get a lot of calls about skincare from people who want to know about specific ingredients in our products. You also get fascinating insight into the country's lifestyles. For instance, we tend to get lots of calls about cleaning products on a Monday, presumably because people buy them over the weekend, then, towards Friday we'll get haircare and beauty because they're planning a night out.

A few years ago, a company called Space Marketing came up with a plan to send a mile-long advertisement into space. Using light reflected from the sun, it would beam out a message as large as the moon that could be seen by every single person on the planet as it orbited the Earth.

This would have been one advert that couldn't have been thrown out with the junk mail or switched off by remote control. (1)___ Advertising standards agencies eventually decided not to allow Space Marketing to go ahead with their plans and they were forced to abandon them, but not before several major companies had made serious enquiries about launching their logos into space.

Space may indeed be the final frontier for advertisers, because on Earth we are already surrounded by advertising wherever we are and whatever we are doing. (2)___ There are the promises of health and vitality on the cereal packet weate from this morning, for example, and the ad that we saw on the side of the bus we caught to work. Most of the time, we are probably not even aware of these less obvious advertising tactics, but that doesn't mean that they aren't effective. (3)___ You are in a packed cinema, watching the latest Hollywood blockbuster. There are adverts before the film or during a break in the film, but are there any during the film? Well, look carefully at the make of car your favourite actor is driving. And what about his watch? Can you see what brand it is? Chances are, you can, and the company that owns the brand is likely to have paid thousands for it to appear in the film.

Whilst products are most often placed' in this way in movies and TV series, they also sometimes appear in music videos, video games, plays and even books. (4)___ You may not realise you are being influenced by a technique that sounds so simple, but advertisers consider product placement to be a highly effective form of advertising. After all, they would not be willing to spend as much money as they do on it if they didn't truly believe it worked.

In fact, associating products with cool, exciting lives seems to be one of the most common forms of advertising. (5)___

And let's not forget the power of pure entertainment (6)___ If the consumers are looking forward to the next 'episode' of an ad, once again the product has become associated with something 'cool" and is therefore likely to See a considerable rise in popularity.

So, whether Space Marketing eventually succeeds in launching ads into space or not is perhaps a less important issue than it might seem.

It was back in 1995, when my husband Eric was working as a rubbish collector for the local town council, that I first got the idea of recycling clothes. He would frequently find bags of perfectly good clothes just thrown into the rubbish. I wondered if I would be able to do something with them which would make money for me and perhaps even help the community at the same time. I decided to give it a try.

The first thing I did was to place an advertisement in the newspaper inviting people in the neighbourhood to bring me their second-hand clothing, shoes and bedding instead of throwing them away. Within a week, our garage was bursting with black plastic bags. (1)___ This kept me busy for weeks.

At the same time, I was also looking for a shop to rent where I could sell these items. (2)___ But it wasn't until I contacted Adventure, an organisation which helps people to set up their own businesses, that I finally got the assistance I needed. They helped me find the right shop and gave me advice about getting a business loan to get me started. That's how Second Best was born.

For my idea to work, I was going to need a steady supply of clothes. The town council already had recycling bins for paper, glass and the like. (3)___ I was able to make arrangements to have the clothes collected and brought to my shop, where I had installed laundry facilities to cope with all the washloads I needed to do!

It wasn't only making money in the shop that interested me, though. I was still eager for the community to benefit from my idea, too, so I started to find ways that the large quantities of very old or damaged clothing that I couldn't sell in the shop could be put to use. (4)___ Some of the old clothing is now turned into bandages for hospitals, for example, while one school in the area asks for old jeans to make into lunch bags.

Adventure believes in encouraging people by giving an annual Special Merit Award to the most successful new business they have helped. (5)___ Not only had I helped so many others, they said, but I had also had to overcome a difficulty. In 2000, my shop had been destroyed by fire and I had had to start the business all over again from Scratch.

Getting back on track wasn't easy. Not only did I have to search for another shop to rent, but I also had to spend time building up new stocks of clothes, as nearly all of the original stock had been destroyed. (6)___ Otherwise, I would have been forced to call it a day.

Today, twelve years after I first started up, Second Best is a very successful small business.

The reporter Stuart Harris, the inventor Tom Granger and the broadcaster Paul Bridges tested four clock radios currently available to pick a good one.

1.  The "dual alarm function' that is advertised with this model does not allow you, as Stuart Harris first supposed, to be woken by the buzzer (зво­нок), have a sleep and then finally be driven out of bed. The instruction booklet advises you to use this function to set two different wake-up times, one for work days and one for weekends, but whose life is programmed to this extent? Since this model is relatively cheap, the inclusion of a cassette player is quite a bargain  — you can fall asleep to your own soothing tapes and wake up to a day without news. The men all thought the quality of the radio excellent, too - if only the whole thing was smaller. It's as big as a rugby ball. Paul Bridges said, "Any clock radio I buy has to leave enough space on the bedside table for my keys, wallet, glasses and telephone. Anyway, I'm completely paranoid and always book a wake-up call in case the alarm doesn't go off."

2.  Tom Granger described this model with its extra built-in lamp as "incredibly tasteless' in the way it's made. He complained that he had to read the instruction booklet twice before he could get it to work; the clock kept jumping from 12.00 to 0200 so he had to go round again. The light was certainly hard to position; you would never be able to read by it  — it only shines on the clock, which is illuminated anyway. Paul Bridges said he was 'very amused by the lamp idea but agreed that the radio was hard to tune (на­стро­ить). Interestingly, however, this model is the third most popular on the market.

3.  Clearly aimed at young people, with its brightly coloured casing (кор­пус), this one appealed to the child in Tom Granger. "I would choose this one because it doesn't disappear into the background like the others," he said. In fact, the traditional design of the controls made it the only one the men managed to set up without reading the instruction booklet. Too bad the alarm is allowed a 20-minute margin for error; the manual (ин­струк­ция) notes, "the alarm may sound about 10 minutes earlier or later than the pre-set time". Paul Bridges made fun of such a notion, adding that this model was "terribly difficult" and, indeed, "completely useless".

4.  The simplest and cheapest of all the models tested, this scored points with Tom Granger because it 'seemed very standard and took up little space', but also because it has old-fashioned dial tuning. "It's more intuitive to set up. With modern push-button tuning you're never really sure if you've pressed all the buttons in the right order so you can't have confidence that the thing will actually work. He accepted, however, that manufacturers had been obliged to improve the quality of radios because of the advent (вве­де­ние) of button-tuning. Stuart Harris thought the tuning rather approximate, as did Paul Bridges, but they agreed that the radio quality was fine. The buzzer on this model certainly works; it succeeded in getting them out of bed in just two beeps!

Las Vegas is known as the marriage capital of the world. The process of obtaining a marriage licence can be completed within minutes in Las Vegas while it often takes several weeks and involves lots of paperwork in other parts of the world. It is also (1) ... cheap at just $60. There are a lot of (2) ... to choose from. The competition between different venues keeps the prices relatively low and (3) ... . This has made Las Vegas a popular destination among couples wanting to get married. The fact that it is (4) ... to plan in advance means there are plenty of spontaneous weddings in Las Vegas each year of couples on holiday.

Most people agree that the Oscars are the biggest film awards in the world. They are the most (1) ... awards anyone in the film business can win. They are called the Oscars after the golden statue which is given out to the winners. Why the statue is named Oscar remains (2) ... . Oscars are of great importance because winning one can really help a film to be successful or an actor to achieve (3) ... . As a result, an actor often gets offered lots more work and better films once he/she has won an award, as people take him/her more (4) ... .

The New Zealanders Dwayne van der Sluis and Andrew Akers must be the happiest people on Earth now that their (1) ... and latest craze, zorbing, has become a success. Zorbing involves standing in a ball  — or zorb  — which consists of specially hardened plastic. The zorb is rolled down a hill, speeding at about 50 kilometres an hour. It may sound like quite a (2) ... pastime, but the 70 centimetres of air between you and the ground make it (3) ... to get hurt. That's why zorbing didn't take long to gain in (4) ... .

The best way to keep well is to avoid (1) ... foods and habits. It is also helpful to take plenty of exercise, and we should give (2) ... to people of all ages to do this, particularly the very young. If we can educate people at an early age to keep fit and to look after themselves carefully, then the (3) ... of their having problems in later life will be (4) ... reduced.

One of the most exciting archeological discoveries in history was (1) ... in 1922, when the British archaeologists Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon (2) ... across the tomb of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. When Carter entered the dark chamber Carnarvon asked him (3) ... he could see anything. "Yes, wonderful things," came the reply.

Have you ever started a new hobby, but given up after oily a couple of weeks? Or started a course and stopped after the first few lessons? Most of us have tried to learn something new, but very (1) ... of us ever really get any good at it  — (2) ... is just too difficult to continue doing something new. But now there is some good news: did you know (3) ... if you can keep up your new hobby for just 30 days, you have a better chance of succeeding? And you may learn something new about yourself as (4) ... .

Many young people dream about a career in modelling. However, few of them realise exactly what it is like to be a professional model. It is (1) ... all glamour and riches. Only a (2) ... hopeful youngsters actually make it as professionals. (3) ... can be very hurtful to be told that you don't have (4) ... is needed.