Which of these items stop you from concentrating? Rank them and share your rankings with your partner. Put the best at the top.

 

other people

food

thinking about someone

boredom

traffic sounds   

sleepiness

stress

music / TV

2. Read the text and find out if the statements below are T (true) or F (false).

 

City living makes it harder to concentrate

 

A new report says living in a city makes it harder for people to concentrate. The research found that people who live in rural areas can focus better than people in urban areas. The study is from Goldsmiths College, which is part of the University of London. Head researcher Dr Karina Linnell and her team studied how two groups of people did the same "thinking tasks". The team went to a remote part of Namibia, southwest Africa, to study the Himba tribe. Himba people live a very basic life in the desert, doing traditional farming. The team also studied members of the same tribe who had moved to the nearest town. DrLinnell said the tribe who lived in the desert did much better on the tests than those in the town.

DrLinnell's research may change the way companies operate. In the future, workers may relocate from cities to live and work in the countryside. Linnell said there are too many things around us in the city that stop us from thinking about one thing for a long time. This means we do not work at our best. She asked: "What if, for example, companies realised certain tasks would be better carried out by employees based outside of the urban environment where their concentration ability is better?" The past century has seen billions of people move from the countryside to big cities. If DrLinnell's research is true, this century might see many of those people return to the great outdoors.

(From: http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1302/130221-city_living.html)

 

 

1. A new report says it's difficult for people to study cities. T / F

2. People who live in the countryside can focus better than city people. T/ F

3. The research team studied a tribe in South Africa. T / F

4. The team studied two different tribes from the town and country. T / F

5. The research might change how companies work in the future. T / F

6. The researcher said many things around us help us think better. T / F

7. Billions have relocated to urban areas in the past 100 years.      T / F

8. Many people originally from the countryside might return. T / F

Listening

There are a lot of different cities in the world and each of them has its own portrait or skyline. Skyline is the horizon created by a city's overall structure, or by human intervention in a non-urban setting or in nature.

After a long time without many skyscrapers, now more and more are appearing on the London skyline. While some love them and their fun nicknames, like the Gherkin, the Walkie Talkie and the Cheese Grater, many Londoners are worried by the new trend of building in the capital. Join Rob and Neil to find out more and learn some language related to towns and buildings.

 

Before listening to the text London Skyline (http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/general/sixminute/2014/09/140918_6min_london_skyline.shtml) match the words with their definitions.

Dwarfed, irreverently, quirky, sprung up, plain, thrown up, modest, tide, (to have) a head for heights

1) unusual and odd, but in a good way

2) quite small or insignificant compared with other things of the same type

3) made to seem small compared to something else

4) suddenly appeared

5) without showing proper respect

6) stop, block, or make something difficult to do

7) very; used for emphasizing the adjective that follows it

8) (here) increasing amounts of something

9) built or made quickly and without much care

10) a feeling of being comfortable in high places

 

Listen to the audio on the link above and answer the following questions:

1. What cities did Neil mention when he was asked a question about skyscrapers?

2. When was St Paul's Cathedral completed?

3. Does Neil like skyscrapers’ nicknames?

4. What is the height of St Paul Cathedral?

5. What adjective is used to describe the cathedral’s height?

6. How long was the Cathedral the tallest building in London?

7. What damage does the skyscraper cause?

 

Use words from the listening and tell about the skyline of your city or capital.

Discussion