英语听力入门原文及答案

英语听力入门原文及答案英语听力入门原文及答案英语听力入门原文及答案xxx公司英语听力入门原文及答案文件编号：文件日期：修订次数：第1.0次更改批准审核制定方案设计，管理制度Unit1PartIA1.Oxford/commitment/academicrecord2.oldest/largest/reputation/research/science3.first/Australia/150years/excels4.excellence/17.000/location5.largest/1883/situated/26,0006.1636/enrollment/18,500/schools7.awards/degrees/20,0008.located/135/thirdB1. 2,700languages/7,000dialects/regional/pronunciation2. official/language3. Onebillion/20percent4. Fourhundredmillion/first/600million/second/foreign5. 500,000words/Eightypercent/other6. Eightypercent/computers7. Africancountry/same8. 1,000/Africa9. spaceship/1977/55/message/theUnitedStatesC1–(a)2–(c)3–(d)4–(b)Allright,class.Todaywe’regoingtobelookingatdifferentlanguagelearningstyles.Youmaybesurprisedtofindthattherearedifferentwaysofgoingaboutlearninglanguages,noneofwhichisnecessarilybetterthantheothers.Researchershaveidentifiedfourbasiclearner“types”–thecommunicativelearner,theanalyticallearner,theauthority-orientedlearnerandtheconcretelearner.Communicativelearnersliketolearnbywatchingandlisteningtonativespeakers.Athome,theyliketolearnbywatchingTVandvideos.Theyliketolearnnewwordsbyhearingthem.Inclass,theyliketolearnbyhavingconversations.Now,concretelearnersliketoleanbyplayinggames,bylookingatpicturesandvideosinclass,talkinginpairs,andbylisteningtocassettesathomeandschool.Now,authority-orientedlearners,ontheotherhand,liketheteachertoexplaineverything.Theyliketowriteeverythingdownintheirnotebook,andtheyliketohaveatextbook.Theyliketolearnnewwordsbyseeingthem.Andfinally,wehaveanalyticallearners.Theselearnersliketolearnbystudyinggrammar.Athome,theyliketolearnbystudyingEnglishbooks,andtheyliketostudybythemselves.Theyliketofindtheirownmistakes.Now,ofcourse,it’sunusualforapersontobeexclusivelyone“type”ratherthananother.Mostofusaremixturesofstyles.WhattypeoflearnerdoyouthinkyouarePartIIA3GCSEexaminationsstudents/highereducationstudent/secondyear/highschool/collegegeneralexam/SchoolCertificatesittingUniversityEntranceExaminationbachelor’sdegree:3/4yearsmaster’sdegree:anotheryearortwodoctorate:afurther3-7yearsWell,inBritain,fromtheagesoffivetoaboutelevenyoustartoffataprimaryschool,andthenfromeleventosixteenyougoontoasecondaryschooloracomprehensiveschoolandatsixteenyoutakeGCSEexaminations.Afterthis,somechildrentakevocationalcoursesorevenstartwork.OthersstayonatschoolforanothertwoyearstotakeAlevels.Andattheageofeighteen,afterAlevels,theymightfinishtheireducationorgoontoacourseofhighereducationatacollegeoruniversity,andthat’susuallyforthreeyears.Well,itdependsonwhatstateyou’reinbutmostkidsintheUnitedStatesstartschoolataboutsixwhentheygotoelementaryschoolandthatgoesfromthefirstgradeuptothesixthgrade.Somekidsgotoakindergartentheyearbeforethat.Thentheygoontojuniorhighschool,that’sabouteleven,andthat’stheseventh,eighthandninthgrades.Andthentheygoontoseniorhighschoolaroundagefourteenstartinginthetenthgradeandfinishinginthetwelfthgradeusually.Somestudentswillleaveschoolatsixteenandthey’llstartwork,butmostofthemstayontograduatefromhighschoolatageeighteen.Inthefirstyearathighschoolorcollegestudentsarecalled“freshmen”,inthesecondthey’recalled“sophomores”,inthethirdyearwecallthem“juniors”andinthefourthyearthey’recalled“seniors”.Nowalotofhighschoolgraduatesthengotocollegeoruniversityandtheydoafour-yearfirstdegreecourse.Someofthemmightgotojuniorcollegewhichisatwo-yearcourse.Well,inAustralia,wellmoststatesanyway,childrenstarttheirprimaryeducationatfiveafterperhapsabrieftimeinkindergarten.Theywillstayatprimaryschooluntilthey’reabouteleven,thenthey’lleitherstaythereorgotoanintermediateschoolforacoupleofyears.Thentheystarthighschoolusuallytwelveorthirteen,whichyoustartinthethirdform.Now,afterthreeyearsathighschoolyousitageneralexam,somestatescallitSchoolCertificateandthatisasortofgeneralqualificationandthatifasortofgeneralqualification.AfterthatyoucanleaveschoolatsixteenoryoucangoonandsityourUniversityEntranceExamination,whichthengivesyouentréeintoauniversityorit’sanotherusefulqualification,andfromthenonyougotovarioussortsofhighereducation.EducationinCanadaisaprovincialresponsibility,butschoolsareadministeredbylocalschoolboards.Kindergartenisforchildrenwhoarefourorfiveyearsold.Childrenbeginformalfull-dayschoolinginGrade1,whentheyareaboutsixyearsold.Theymuststayinschoolatleastuntiltheyaresixteen.However,moststudentscontinuetofinishhighschool.Somegotocollegeoruniversity.Eachyearofschoolingrepresentsonegrade.(TheschoolyearextendsfromthebeginningofSeptembertotheendofJune.)ElementaryschoolincludeskindergartentoaboutGrade8.Secondaryschool(orhighschool)maystartinGrade8,9,or10anditusuallycontinuesuntilGrade12.InCanada,studentsmaygotouniversityortoacommunitycollege.Iftheywanttolearnskillsforspecificjob,theyattendcollegeforoneorfouryearstogetadiplomaorcertificate.Forexample,labtechnicians,child-careworkers,andhotelmanagersgotocollege.Universitiesofferdegreeprogramsaswellastrainingprofessions,suchaslaw,medicine,andteaching.Universitiesofferthreemainlevelsofdegrees.Studentsearnabachelor’sdegreeafterthreeorfouryearsofstudy.Amaster’sdegreecantakeanotheryearortwo.Adoctoratemaytakeafurtherthreetosevenyearstocomplete.B1Idioms/vocabulary/French/spelling/pronunciationB21.F2.T3.FI–InterviewerP–ProfessorI:AndnowwehaveaninterviewwithProfessorJ.T.Lingo,ProfessorofLinguisticsatChimoUniversity,whoisheretotalktousaboutthegrowingbusinessofteachingEnglish.Goodmorning,professorLingo.P:Goodmorning.I:IunderstandthatteachingEnglishisbecoming“bigbusiness”allaroundtheworld.P:Itseemsthatlanguageschoolsarespringingupeverywhere.I:Whyisthat?P:Withthemovetowardaglobaleconomy,Englishhasbecomethemostwidelyusedlanguageintheworld.Itisthelanguageofbusiness,aviation,scienceandinternationalaffairsandpeoplefindthattheymustlearnEnglishtocompeteinthosefields.I:AnddopeoplefindEnglishaneasylanguagetolearn?P:Well,everylanguagehassomethingaboutitthatotherpeoplefinddifficulttolearn.Englishissuchahodgepodgeofdifferentlanguages–it’sessentiallyGermanicbutalotofitsvocabularycomesfromFrench,andtechnicalwordsstemfromLatinandGreek.ThisfeaturemakesEnglishfairlyadaptable–whichisagoodthingforaworldlanguage–butitcausesirregularityinspellingandpronunciation.I:Englishspellingbafflesme,too.P:Englishalsohasthelargestvocabulary.Oftentherearewordsforthesamething,oneisAnglo-SaxonandonefromtheFrench–like“buy”whichisAnglo-Saxonand“purchase”whichisfromtheFrench.TheFrenchwordoftenhasmoreprestige.I:Anglo-SaxonP:That’sthewordforOldEnglish.TheNormanConquestin1066broughttheFrenchlanguagetoBritainandhelpedEnglishevolveintotheEnglishitistoday.I:IsthereanythingelseparticularlydifficultaboutEnglish?P:Well,theidiomsininformalEnglishposeaproblemforsomestudents.I:InformalEnglish?P:Aswithanylanguage,therearedifferentvarieties:slang,colloquial.Formal,written,aswellasthedifferentdialects–British,AmericanandCanadianEnglish.I:AndhowisCanadianEnglishdifferentfromAmericanandBritishP:CanadianEnglishisclosertoAmericaninpronunciationandidiom.SomeofourwordsandourspellingsdoreflectBritishusage,however.Wewouldn’tusetheBritishterm“lorry”fortruck,butwehavekeptthe“o-u-r”spellingsinwordssuchas“honour”and“colour”.I:Thishasbeenveryinteresting.I’mafraidwe’reoutoftime.Ithasbeenapleasuretalkingtoyou.PartIIIUniversityLifeA1I.Age/ForeignstudentpopulationII.15hrs(+2or3forlab)/Discussiongroup:15-20/muchsmaller/informal,friendly/2-3hrs:1hrTodayI’dliketogiveyousomeideaabouthowlifeatanAmericanuniversityorcollegemightbedifferentfromthewayitisinyourcountry.Tobesure,thestudentbodyonaU.S.campusisaprettydiversegroupofpeople.Firstofall,youwillfindstudentsofallages.Althoughmoststudentsstartcollegeataroundtheageof18,youwillseestudentsintheir30sand40sandevenoccasionallyintheir60sand70s.StudentsonaU.S.campuscomefromawidevarietyofsocioeconomicbackgrounds.Manystudentsworkatleastpart-time,someofthemworkfull-time.Manystudentsliveindormitoriesoncampus,somehavetheirownapartmentsusuallywithotherstudents,andothersliveathome.Somecollegesanduniversitieshaveaverydiversestudentpopulationwithmanyracialandethnicminorities.Someschoolshaveafairlylargeforeignstudentpopulation.SoyoucanseethatonemeetsallkindsofpeopleonaU.S.collegeoruniversitycampus.Nowthatyouhavesomegeneralideaofdifferencesinthestudentpopulation,I’dliketotalkafewminutesaboutwhatIthinkanaveragestudentisandthendiscusswithyouwhatatypicalclassmightbelike.Let’sbeginmytalkingaboutanaveragestudententeringhisorherfreshmanyear.Ofcourse,suchapersonneverreallyexists,butstillit’sconvenienttotalkaboutan“average”studentforourpurposes.ForeignstudentsareoftensurprisedathowpoorlypreparedAmericanstudentsarewhentheyenterauniversity.Actually,atveryselectschoolsthestudentsareusuallyverywellprepared,butatlessselectiveschools,theymaynotbeaswellpreparedasstudentsinyourcountryare.SchoolsintheStatessimplyadmitalotmorestudentsthanisusualinmostothercountries.Also,mostyoungAmericanuniversitystudentshavenottraveledinothercountriesandarenotverywell-versedininternationalmattersanddonotknowalotaboutpeoplefromothercountries.Foreignstudentsusuallyfindthemfriendlybutnotverywell-informedabouttheircountriesorcultures.Whatkindofacademicexperienceswillthisso-called“average”studenthaveTheaverageundergraduatestudenttakesfiveclassesasemesterandisinclassfor15hoursaweek.Ifherorshetakesaclassthathasalaboratory,thiswillrequiretoworthreemorehours.Manyintroductoryundergraduateclassesaregiveninlargelecturesof100ormorestudents.However,manyoftheseclasseswillhavesmalldiscussiongroupsof15to20studentsthatmeetonceaweek.Inthesesmallergroups,ateachingassistantwillleadadiscussiontohelpclassifypointsinthelectures.Otherkindsofclasses–forexample,languageclasses–willbemuchsmallersothatstudentscanpracticelanguage.Ingeneral,Americanprofessorsareinformalandfriendlywiththeirstudents,and,asmuchaspossible,theyexpectandinviteparticipationintheformofdiscussion.Alargeamountofreadingandotherworkisoftenassignedtobedoneoutsideclass,andstudentsareexpectedtotakefullresponsibilityforcompletingtheseassignmentsandaskingquestionsinclassaboutthoseareastheydon’tunderstand.Asaruleofthumb,studentsspendtwotothreehourspreparingforeachhourtheyspendinclass.Americanprofessorsoftenencouragetheirstudentstovisitthemduringofficehours,especiallyifthestudentsarehavingproblemsintheclass.A2II.Examinations/quizzesIII.Graduateschool/Seminars/someareaofinterest/aresearchpaperLet’smoveonnowtodiscussstudentobligationsinatypicalAmericanclass.Theseobligationsareusuallysetdowninthecoursesyllabus.Asyllabusisgenerallyhandedouttostudentsonthefirstorsecondclassmeeting.Agoodsyllabuswillgivestudentsacourseoutlinethatmentionsallthetopicstobecoveredinclass.Itwillalsocontainalltheassignmentsandthedatestheyshouldbecompletedby.Anaverageuniversitycourseofonesemestermighthavethreeexaminationsortwoexaminationsandapaper.Thedatesoftheexaminationsandwhattheexaminationswillcovershouldbeonthesyllabus.Ifapaperidrequired,thedateitisdueshouldalsobeinthesyllabus.Theprofessormayalsodecidethatheorshewillbegivingquizzesduringthesemester,eitherannouncedorunannounced.Forstudentscomingfromasystemwherethereisoneexaminationineachsubjectattheendoftheyear,allthistestingcanbealittlesurprisingatfirst.Bytheby,maybethiswouldbeagoodplaceformetomentiontheissueofattendance.Anotherrealdifferenceinoursystemisoutattendancepolicies.Perhapsyoucomefromasystemwhereattendanceisoptional.Generallyspeaking,Americanprofessorsexpectregularattendanceandmayevengradeyoudownifyouareabsentalot.Allthisinformationshouldbeonyoursyllabus,alongwiththeprofessor’sofficenumberandofficehours.Ihaveonlyacoupleofhoursleft,andI’dliketousethemtotalkabouthowgraduateschoolissomewhatdifferentfromundergraduateschool.Ofcourse,it’smuchmoredifficulttoentergraduateschool,andmoststudentsarehighlyqualifiedandhighmotivated.Studentsingraduateschoolareexpectedtodomuchmoreindependentworkthanthoseinundergraduateschools,withregularlyscheduledexams,etc.someclasseswillbeconductedasseminars.Inaseminarclass,theremaybenoexams,butstudentsareexpectedtoreadratherwidelyontopicsandbepreparedforthoroughdiscussionoftheminclass.Anotherpossibilityingraduateclassesisthatinadditiontoreadingsdonebyallstudents,eachstudentmayalsobeexpectedtoworkindependentlyinsomeareaofinterestandlatermakeapresentationthatsummarizeswhatherorshehaslearned.Usuallyeachstudentthengoesontowriteapaperonwhatheorshehasresearchedtoturnintotheprofessorforagrade.Ihopethattoday’slecturehasgivenyousomeideaaboutstudentlifeonanAmericancampusandthatyouhavenoticedsomedifferencebetweenoursystemandyours.B2tomakemistakes/everynewthing/thelanguage/WorkingoutsidetheclassroomPassive/theteach/stickhisneckout/morelikelytoberightthanhimselfHowwouldyoudescribeagoodstudentorabadstudent,sortofthingstheydoordon’tdointheclassroom?He’seagertoexperimentwitheverynewthingthathelearns,whetheritbeastructureofafunctionoranewword,heimmediatelystartstryingtouseit.He’sinterestedinthemistakeshemakes,he’snotafraidtomakethem.He’snotsimplyinterestedinhavingitcorrectedandmovingon?Heplayswithlanguage.I’vedonethischapterIknowthis,withouttryingtoexperimentatall,withoutreallytestinghimself.He’susuallypassive,hewon’tspeakupmuchintheclassroom.He’llrarelyaskyouwhythis…Justsortofacceptswhatyougivehimanddoesn’tdoanythingmorewithit.…andinatesthe’stheonepersonwho’slikelytosuddenlyrealizethathewasn’ttoosureaboutthatafterall.Andpeepoverathisneighbor’spaper.Analternativelearningstrategy.Heinvariablydecidesthattheotherpersonismorelikelytoberightthanhimself.That’stheresultofthissortofunwillingnesstomakemistakesandstickhisneckout.Thatcharacterizesthegoodorbadlearner?He’lldomoreoffhisownbataswell,hewon’trelyentirelyontheteacher.He’llworkoutsidetheclassroomaswellasinit.Studentswhomakemostprogressarefirstofallthosewhoexperimentandsecondlythosewhoreadbooks.PartIVUniversityCampusA2.theHistoryDepartment3.thePsychologyDepartment4.theLibrary5.theEducationDepartment6.thePhilosophyDepartment7.theGeographyDepartment8.theSportsGround9.theForeignLanguagesDepartment10.theChineseDepartment11.thePhysicsDepartment12.theMathematicsDepartment13.theChemistryDepartment14.theClinic15.theAuditorium16.theAdministrationBuildingLookatthemap.Atthebottomofthepage,finethegate(1).Nowlocate16.Itisbetweentheriverandthelake,closetotheMainRoad.ThebuildingbehindtheAdministrationis15.Whereis4It’sontheright-handsideoftheMainRoad,closetotheriver.AcrosstheMainroadfromtheLibrary,thebuildingbytheriveris5.Thefirstbuildingontheleft-handsideoftheMainRoadis7.6isbetweentheEducationandtheGeography.ThebuildingattheendoftheMainRoadis12.onitsleftis11andonitsright,nearthelake,is13.Anotherbuildingbehindthelikeis14.10isfacingthelake,acrosstheMainRoad.ThebuildingbetweentheChineseDepartmentandtheriveris9.2isthefirstbuildingontherightoftheMainRoad.NexttotheHistoryDepartmentis3.Andlast,8isbehindtheEducation,PhilosophyandGeographyDepartments.BRobertMartin/biology/nextfall/sixyearsinapublicschoolinthehometown;twoyearsinamilitaryschool,highschoolinthehometown/science(biologyinparticular),sportsSoIhadtoearnalittlemoneytohelppaymyway.Itsoundsasifyou’reaprettyresponsiblefellow.Iseethatyouattendedtwogradeschools.Idon’tfindatranscriptamongyourpapers.Butit’shardtokeepupwithbothsportsandstudies.I’llholdyourapplicationuntilwegetthetranscript.Whatdidyourguidancecounselortellyou?HetoldmeIhadarealknackforscientificthings.IhavebeenfascinatedwithsciencesinceIwasachild.Aninterestofthatkindreallysignifiessomething.Unit2Colorfullands,colorfulpeople16,998,000/64,186,300/840,000/1,000,000/3,320,000/143,244/32,483/2,966,000/5,105,700/29,028/-1,312/5,315/36,198/4,145/ThebiggestcontinentintheworldisAsia.Itcovers16,998,000squaremiles.ThePacificOceanisthelargestoceanwith64,186,300squaremiles.WhichisthebiggestislandIt’sGreenland.Itoccupiesanareaof840,000squaremiles.TheArabiaPeninsulaisthelargestpeninsulaandhasanareaof1,000,000squaremiles.DoyouknowwhichisthelargestdesertYes,it’stheSaharaDesertinNorthAfrica.Itcovers3,320,000squaremiles.ThebiggestsaltwaterlakeistheCaspianSea,whichis143,244squaremileslarge.LakeSuperioristhebiggestfreshwaterlakeanditcoversatotalareaof32,483squaremiles.ThesmallestcontinentisOceania,withanareaof2,966,000squaremiles,andthesmallestoceanistheArcticOceanwith5,105,700squaremiles.Youallknowtheworld’shighestpeak,don’tyouMt.Qomolangma(orMt.Everest)is29,028feetabovesealevel.Incontrast,thelowestaltitudeintheworldistheDeadSea,1,312feetbelowsealevel,oryoucansay-1,312feet.ThedeepestlakeisBaykalinRussia.Thedepthis5,315feet.MarianaTrenchnearthePhilippinesisthedeepestoceanictrench,withadepthof36,198feet.ThelongestriverintheworldistheNileinAfrica.Itis4,145mileslong.B1,243,738,000/955,220,000/267,901,000/199,867,000/159,884,000/147,105,000/138,150,000/125,638,000/122,013,000/118,369,000/96,400,000/82,071,0001. ThecountrywiththelargestpopulationintheworldisChina.Accordingtothe1997census,thetotalpopulationwas1,243,738,000.2. ThesecondlargestinpopulationisIndia.Itlistedapopulationof955,220,000in1997.3. AndthethirdlargestistheUnitedStates,withitsestimatedpopulationof267,901,000in1997.4. Whichcountryisthefourthlargestinpopulation

It’sIndonesia.About199,867,000peoplelivethere.

5. Brazilranksthefifthinitspopulation.Therethepopulationwas159,884,000.6. NextcomestheRussianFederation,withapopulationof147,105,000.7. TheseventhinlineisPakistan,withanestimatedpopulationof138,150,000.8. Japanisthecountrywiththeeighthlargestpopulation.Itspopulationestimatedin1997reached125,638,000.9. ThenextlargescountryinpopulationisBangladesh.Theestimatedpopulationwas122,013,000in1997.10. NigeriainAfricaranksthetenthinitspopulation.Thereareabout118,369,000peoplelivingthere.11. Theeleventh

Mexico.Accordingtostatistics,itspopulationwas96,400,000in1997.

12. Andlast,thetwelfthlargesisGermany.Its1997censusshowedithadapopulationof82,071,000.CChinese1,300million/Spanish332million/English322million/189million/182million/170million/Russian170million/Japanese125million/German98million/75.5million/Korean75million/French72million/Vietnamese67million/66million/64million/63million/Turkish59million/58million/44million/Polish44million/Arabic42.5million/41millionDoyouknowwhichlanguagesarespokenbymorethan40millionpeople?Chinesehasthelargestnumberofspeakers,morethan1,300million.Next,Spanishisspokenby332millionpeople.ThenextonthelineisEnglish,whichhasmorethan322millionspeakers.Number4,Bengaliisspokenby189millionpeople.NextcomesHindi,thelanguagespokenchieflyinIndia,whichhas182millionspeakers.PortugueseandRussianarenextonthelineandtheyarebothspokenby170millionpeople.Number8,Japaneseisspokenby125million.Next,Germanhas98millionspeakers,whileJavanesehas75.5million.WehaveKoreanonthelistwith75million,anditisfollowedbyFrench,whichisspokenby72million.Number13,Vietnameseisspokenby67millionandTeluguisspokenby66million.Next,wehaveMarathionthelistandithas64millionspeakers.MarathiisfollowedbyTamil,with63millionspeakers.NextcomesTurkish,thelanguagespokeninTurkey,andithas59millionspeakers.Number18,Urduisspokenby58millionpeople.Gujaratihas44millionspeakers,andPolishisalsospokenby44millionpeople.Number21,which42.5millionpeoplespeak,isArabicandlast,thenumberofpeoplewhospeakUkrainianis41million.PartII1. Ababyboy2. social/ecological/populations3. longer/healthierAbabyboyborninBosnia-Herzegovinaovernighthasofficiallybeennamedtheworld’ssixbillionthinhabitant.Althoughseveralotherbabiesarelikelytohavebeenbornatthesametimeelsewhereintheworld,theUnitedNationshaddeclaredthatthefirstchildtobedeliveredattheKosovoHospitalinSarajevotodaywouldsymbolizethepassingofthemark.TheUSecretaryGeneralisvisitingthemotherandhersonasaUNattempttodrawattentiontothesocialandecologicalproblemsofrapidlyexpandingpopulationsTheboywhocameintotheworldashorttimeagoinBosniatosuchinternationalacclaimwillbesharingabirthdaywithafewhundredthousandpeopleandinthenextyearanothereightymillionwillbejoininghimontheplanet.Theearth’spopulationhasdoubledsince1960andwithmorethanabillionyoungpeoplejustenteringtheirproductiveyears.Thepopulationgrowthhasplentyofmomentum.Butbirthcontrolprogramsarebeginningtohaveanimpact.Demographerspredictthatbythemiddleofthenewcenturytheglobalcountwillleveloffatsomethingundertenbillion.TheUNpopulationagencyhaspresentedtoday’sachievementasasuccessforhumanity,pointingoutthatpeoplearelivinglongerandhealthierlivesthananygenerationinthehistory.BbcaTheboywillbesharingabirthdaywithafewhundredthousandpeopleandinthenextyear,anothereightymillionwillbejoininghimontheplanet.Theearth’spopulationhasdoubledsince1960andwithmorethanabillionyoungpeoplejustenteringtheirproductiveyears.Demographerspredictthatbythemiddleofthenewcentury,theglobalcountwillleveloffatsomethingundertenbillion.PartIIIAwater/70%redorbrown/plantcoversnow/continentsislandsarmsoftheoceanconnectingachannelvalleysplainsB12million/2/10million/10/3/6/4/16million/18million1.MexicoCity2.SaoPaulo3.RiodeJaneiro4.Bombay5.Delhi6.Shanghia7.SeoulI-InterviewE-ExpertI:InBritainweareoftentoldthatpeopleareleavingthebigcitiestoliveinthecountrysidebutisthisthecaseworldwide?E:Notatall.Ifyoulookatthebiggestcitiesin1950,sevenoutofthetoptenwereinthedevelopedcountriesbutbytheyear2000,thedevelopingcountrieswillhaveeightoutofthetopten.NewYork,whichin1950wasnumberonewithapopulationofaround12million,willonlybethesixthlargestcityintheworldbutwithanextra2million.I:AndLondon?E:London,whichwasnumbertwo,won’tevenbeinthetopten.Itspopulationin1950,bytheway,wasabout10million.I:AndwhyisthishappeningWhyarepeoplemovingtothebigcitiesfromthecountryinthedevelopingcountries

E:Thereasonsarecomplexbutmanyaremovingtolookforwork.Andtheproblemsthiscreatesareenormous.It’sestimatedthat26millionpeoplewillbelivinginMexicoCitybytheyear2000,withSaoPauloinBrazilnotfarbehind.I:It’sdifficulttobelieve.E:Iknow.RiodeJaneirowillhaveapopulationofamere13million.Well,justimaginethekindsofdifficultiesthisisgoingtocauseintermsofhealth,transportandeducation.I:Yes.WhataboutthecitiesofAsiaWilltheybeexperiencingasimilarsortofgrowth

E:Insomecases,yes.CalcuttainIndiawhichwasNo.10intheleaguein1950isexpectedtobethefourthbiggestcityintheworldwithapopulationof16million-quadruplingitssizeinjust50years.BombayandDelhitooareexpectedtobeinthetopten.I:WhataboutJapan?E:Ah!Well,Tokyowasnumberthreein1950andthat’swhereit’llbeatthebeginningofthenextcentury,althoughitspopulationwillhavetrebledtoabout18million.LookingattheothermajorcitiesinAsia,ShanghaiandSeoulwillbeinthetoptenaswellbut,perhapssurprisingly,notBeijingorHongKong.I:Now,ifwecouldturnourattentiontoho