Exhibit of Old Maps More Than Geography

Text for written translation

Answer the following questions

Read the text and reproduce it in the form of a dialogue

Translate the words and word combinations given in brackets

Say whether the following statements are true or false

1. Maps show the arrangement of things over the earth.

2. First maps were made by the ancient Romans.

3. During the Middle Ages map making was revived.

4. The invention of the telescope made it possible to determinate longitude accurately.

5. The reference map shows the distribution of specific phenomena on the earth’s surface.

6. Exceptional skill in the use of maps is required in many professions.

1. The Egyptian Ptolemy was the first to make maps (используя широту и долготу).

2. (Изобретение телескопа) helped map makers in their work.

3. The first really (точная карта) was produced in 1682.

4. The 20 th century brought (аэрофотосъемка) to the aid of map makers.

5. Maps are used in many professions, such as (география, гражданское строительство, геология, навигация).

6. The weather map shows how (температура, осадки, ветры, давление) are related in space.

Men have made and used maps since the dawn of history. They have done so because maps serve much better than words for giving information. Even primitive peoples recognize this. When an explorer in a wild land asks directions from a native, the native often answers by drawing a map on the ground, on a shell, or on a piece of bark. Explorers have found the Eskimos to be unusually skilful in doing this.

What can be presented on maps?

When did people begin to make and use maps?

Who was the first to attempt to make a map of the world?

When was map making revived?

How did the great voyages of discovery influence the development of map making?

What inventions helped map makers in their work?

What are three kinds of maps? Speak about each kind.

What abilities help to make and to read maps?

3.9 Make up the plan of the text “Geography and Maps”. Retell the text

The maps in the exhibit, titled “Russia and the Rest of the World”, date from the 16 th to the beginning of the 20 th century and give insight into the politics and attitudes of their time.

Russia had maps before Peter the Great, but they were more impressionistic than scientific. They showed approximately where different athnic groups were located, as opposed to showing rivers, roads and other geographical features. But Europeans who traded Russia needed accurate maps and most of maps in the exhibit were created by foreigners. A map drawn by Dutchmen Gessel Gerrits in 1614 is an excellent illustration of the Western attitudes toward Russia. One corner is dominated by a map of Moscow and Central Russia is drawn in a fair amount of detail. On the right-hand side, the map drops off abruptly, and Gerris simply wrote the word “Tartar” to depict all of modern day Siberia. This map and the others from the same atlas were used as the basis for most 17 th – century maps of Russia.

The two most noticeable maps located at the gallery are not actually part of the exhibit but are on permanent display. One depicts Europe in 1914 but has none of the usual borders and geographical features. Instead, a caricature of the tsar represents Russia, while different animals represent other European countries. The other map shows Russia as a large black bear.

Дата добавления: 2015-01-03