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UNIT 1
Takeshi:
Man,
look
at
that!
In
New
York
there’s
always
something
being
built.
And everything goes
up so quickly ? you never know what’s going to
be around next week.
Roberto: Yeah, but on the other hand,
sometimes I wonder about overcrowding.
Maybe they need to start building down
more.
Takeshi: Building down?
Roberto: Yeah, it’s when you build
underground instead of aboveground.
Takeshi: Nah, that’s too much like
living in a cave. I love the skyscrapers!
They are the most incredible feats of
engineering!
Roberto: True. And some of
the first ones were built right here in New York
City.
Takeshi: That’s right!
You know, I wonder what New York looked like
before
all these buildings popped up.
Roberto: I don’t know, but I’d like to
see this one when it’s
finished.
Takeshi: Yeah. I’ll bet it’ll be
something fantastic!
Roberto: Maybe ? what do you think it’s
going to look like?
Takeshi:
I don’t know ? but you know what? I’m going to
remember what it
looked like.
Roberto:
What
are
you
talking
about?
And
why
are
you
taking
pictures?
There’s
nothing there.
Takeshi: OK.
You know how some people get famous because they
have pictures
of movie stars or
performers before they make it big?
Roberto: Yeah?
Takeshi:
Well, some buildings and architectural structures
get to be famous
too, like the
Eiffel Tower or the Empire State
Building ? right?
Roberto:
Yeah, and ?? There’s nothing here!
Takeshi: Right! But there will be.
Someday this very spot may become really
well-known
—
like
maybe
it’ll
be
some
incredible
hotel
tha
t
the
rich
and
famous
stay
at.
And
I’ll
be
the
only
one
with
pictures
of
it
before
it was built. Cool,
huh?
Roberto:
Uh ?
you are
too
much.
Hey, let’s
ask
this
guy
what
your “famous”
building’s
going to be. (to passing construction worker )
Excuse us,
can
you tell us
what this is going to be when it’s finished? Maybe
a fancy hotel or something?
Construction
worker:
Fancy
hotel?
(laughs
)
No,
this
isn’t
going
to
be
a
hotel.
It’s going to be a
parking garage.
Roberto: A
parking garage. Uh ? huh. Thanks.
Takes
hi: Well ? maybe ?
someone rich and famous will park here.
UNIT 2
Prof. Morgan: Good.
So change the first part and make those
corrections and
your paper will be
great.
Tara: OK. Thanks for all your
help, Professor
Morgan. I’ll
e-mail my paper
to you later
today.
Prof. Morgan: You know,
technology is amazing. In high school I used to
write
my term papers on a typewriter.
Tara: It must have taken a long time to
write a paper on a typewriter.
Prof.
Morgan:
Well,
I
was
pretty
fast,
but
I
made
some
mistakes.
Actually,
the
typewriters
weren’t
that
bad.
Now,
as
for
the
first
computers
?
oh my
gosh!
Tara: What do you mean?
Prof. Morgan: The first computers were
so unreliable. They used to crash all
the
time.
And
they
were
not
as
affordable
or
as
fast
as
they
are
now.
Tara:
Mine’s
pretty
fast,
but
not
as
fast
as
some
of
the
newer,
more
expensive
ones.
Prof. Morgan: I know! And nowadays,
almost everyone has a computer. In those
days, nobody had their own computer. We
used to use the ones at the
university.
Tara: In the computer lab?
Prof.
Morgan:
Yeah,
that’s
all
we
had.
I’ll
never
forget,
one
spring,
during
final exams. Everybody was working on
their term papers, and the
electricity
went out!
Tara: So? No big deal ?
laptops have batteries ?
Prof.
Morgan:
Yes,
but
remember,
in
those
days
we
didn’t
have
laptops.
If
your
computer crashed, you lost everything.
Tara: Everything?
Prof.
Morgan: Everything. We used to lose information
all the time, but that
time it was
terrible. Everybody lost their
papers
that afternoon ?
including me.
Tara: What did you do?
Prof.
Morgan: I went back to the good, old-fashioned
way.
Tara: You mean typewriters?
Prof. Morgan: Nope. I used something
more affordable, portable, reliable,
disposable, something that always
worked.
Tara: What was that?
Prof. Morgan: (holds up pencil and
paper) The first word processor.