[00:00.00]CHAPTER THREE

[00:-1.00]Reading

[00:-2.00]page 37

[00:-3.00]A PRACTICAL JOKE

[00:-4.00]We can define a joke as something you say that causes laughter,

[00:-5.00]and a practical joke as something you do that causes laughter.

[00:-6.00]After a practical joke everybody laughs or smiles,except,

[00:-7.00]usually,the victim of the joke:for practical jokes must be played on someone.

[00:-8.00]They need a victim who is made to look silly or embarrassed.

[00:-9.00]In Richard Boston's Book of Practical Jokes,

[00:10.00]the writer tells the story of a practical joke played on a Mr Potts

[00:11.00]who worked in a newspaper office.

[00:12.00]Mr Potts was not popular with his colleagues

[00:13.00]mainly because he regarded them as his inferiors,

[00:14.00]so his colleagues decided to play a joke on him

[00:15.00]that might make him feel more humble.

[00:16.00]Now it so happened that Mr Potts wore the same hat to work.

[00:17.00]It was a rather unpleasant looking green colour.

[00:18.00]When he arrived at the office every morning at exactly ten o'clock,

[00:19.00]he would say,'Good morning ',hang the hat on a peg and proceed to his desk

[00:20.00]When he left in the afternoon he reversed the process.

[00:21.00]He took his hat from the peg.

[00:22.00]Placed it on his head,said 'Good afternoon',and went home.

[00:23.00]One day,when he was out of the room.

[00:24.00]His colleagues examined the hat very carefully

[00:25.00]Then they went to one of the shops in the area

[00:26.00]and bought a hat exactly like it but quite a big large.

[00:27.00]They returned to the office.Mr Potts was still out.

[00:28.00]So they exchanged the new hat for the old one.

[00:29.00]At the end of the afternoon,Mr Potts said goodbye as usual.

[00:30.00]When he put his hat on his head,however,it dropped down over his eyes.

[00:31.00]After he left the office,everyone had a good laugh.

[00:32.00]The next day ,to every one surprise,

[00:33.00]Mr Potts appeared with the hat in its normal position

[00:34.00]His colleagues were puzzled by this and while Mr Potts was out,

[00:35.00]studied the hat carefully.

[00:36.00]They found that Mr Potts had fixed some pieces of newspaper round inside of the hat to reduce its diameter and make it smaller

[00:37.00]Then the next day they decided to take Mr Potts's old hat from their cupboard where they had hidden it

[00:38.00]They made it smaller in the same way and replaced the new hat with the old one.

[00:39.00]At the end of the day,Mr Potts said,'Good afternoon',as usual.

[00:40.00]When he put his hat on this time.However,it stuck right on top of his head.

[00:41.00]Again,everyone had a good laugh when he left the office.

[00:42.00]Mr Potts's colleagues changed the hats every day.

[00:43.00]The result was that he wore the big hat one day and the small one another day.

[00:44.00]In the end,Mr Potts went to his doctor and complained that ...

[00:45.00]'Nonsense', said the doctor.'There is no such disease.'

[00:46.00]page 42

[00:47.00]Recognizing Wh questions

[00:48.00]Listen to the questions,and write short answers about this films.

[00:49.00]1 A What is the name of the film?

[00:50.00]B When is the last show?

[00:51.00]C Who is the star of this film?

[00:52.00]D Where can you see this film?

[00:53.00]2 A How many shows are there today?

[00:54.00]B When is the first show?

[00:55.00]C What is the name of the cinema?

[00:56.00]D Who's in this film?

[00:57.00]3 A When is the last show?

[00:58.00]B Which cinemas are showing this film?

[00:59.00]C What's the name of the film?

[-1:00.00]D Which actress is in this film?

[-1:-1.00]4 A Where was this film made?

[-1:-2.00]B When's the third show today?

[-1:-3.00]C Where is this film on?

[-1:-4.00]D How many shows are there today?

[-1:-5.00]5 General questions:A How many cinemas are in this advertisement all together?

[-1:-6.00]B Which film is being shown for the first time today?

[-1:-7.00]C Who is the male star in the film,the Taxi Driver?

[-1:-8.00]D When is the latest show of all the four films?

[-1:-9.00]SPEAKING

[-1:10.00]page 49

[-1:11.00]A Using phonetic symbols

[-1:12.00]English letters do not always have the same sound.

[-1:13.00]For example:The letter 'c' is different in 'cat' and'cent'.

[-1:14.00]The letter 't' is different in 'ten'and 'nation'.

[-1:15.00]The letter 'a' is different in 'gas'and 'glass'.

[-1:16.00]The letters 'ch' are different in 'church'and 'chemistry'.

[-1:17.00]So we sometimes use phonetic symbols when we are talking about sounds.

[-1:18.00]Phonetic symbols always have the same sound.

[-1:19.00]For example:The symbol /k/ is the sound at the beginning of 'cat',

[-1:20.00]'kick' and'chemistry'.

[-1:21.00]The symbol /sh/?is the'sh' sound in all of these words:

[-1:22.00]sheep,nation,machine,special ocean,Asia and sugar.

[-1:23.00]MID-TERM PROGRESS FILE.

[-1:24.00]A Listening

[-1:25.00]page 52

[-1:26.00]Exercise A1

[-1:27.00]Listen to the conversations

[-1:28.00]and extract the information you need to complete the advertisements.

[-1:29.00]Advertisement A

[-1:30.00]A:How much does it cost to get these two films developed?

[-1:31.00]B:What types of films are they?

[-1:32.00]A:They are both one three,five.

[-1:33.00]B:How many exposures?

[-1:34.00]A:This one is 36 exposures.

[-1:35.00]B:That will be 20 yuan,and the other film?

[-1:36.00]A:That's only 24 exposures.

[-1:37.00]B:Then that one will be 15 yuan.

[-1:38.00]A:Right.And if I want any copies,how much are they?

[-1:39.00]B:They are just one yuan each,sir.

[-1:40.00]A:Right,thanks very much.

[-1:41.00]B:Thank you sir. You can collect the films in one hour.

[-1:42.00]Advertisement B

[-1:43.00]A:There is ad for a big carpets' sale in the paper.

[-1:44.00]It says that there is up to 80% of some of the rugs.

[-1:45.00]B:Oh.

[-1:46.00]A:Yes,there is a modern design 100% Wool Rug 4' x 6'.It reduce by 3,000 yuan.

[-1:47.00]B:Emm...but I'm not very keen on modern designs.

[-1:48.00]A:Well,there's an Italian Rug 5' x 8',reduce from 11,800 yuan down to 2,360 yuan.

[-1:49.00]B:That's very good. But are there any big Rugs?

[-1:50.00]We need a new one for the sitting room.

[-1:51.00]A:Yes,there is a big silk Rug,9' x 12'.It's just over 30,000 yuan.

[-1:52.00]B:Wow,that's a lot of money.

[-1:53.00]A:I know,but it's been reduced from 23,750 yuan.

[-1:54.00]B:Well,perhaps we'll go and have a look this afternoon, shall we?

[-1:55.00]A:Yes,let's.It doesn't cost anything just to look.

[-1:56.00]Advertisement C

[-1:57.00]A:That's nice.The arts Centre has a big advertisement in the paper.

[-1:58.00] Thanking everyone for helping them this year.

[-1:59.00]B:They've been very busy.They put on a lot of shows.

[-2:00.00]A:Yes,672 different performances,it says here?

[-2:-1.00]That's both stage performances and film shows,

[-2:-2.00]and they had 11 exhibitions and held 623 classes or courses.

[-2:-3.00]A:That's a lot,

[-2:-4.00]I wonder how many people actually go to their shows and things though.

[-2:-5.00]B:It says here ,over 418,000 people went to the activities all together.

[-2:-6.00]A:Gods,I think they do a very good job.

[-2:-7.00]B:You're right.

[-2:-8.00]Exercise A2

[-2:-9.00]Listen to the conversation

[-2:10.00]and complete these notes about a package holiday to Tokyo.

[-2:11.00]A:Look!Here is a good package holiday to Tokyo.

[-2:12.00]B:How long is it for?

[-2:13.00]A:It's for four days.

[-2:14.00]B:How much does it cost?

[-2:15.00]A:Let's see.It's 8,308 for a single person or,6,790 for two people sharing.

[-2:16.00]B:That's not bad.It's that a fixed price for this year?

[-2:17.00]A:No,it's a special offer,I think.

[-2:18.00]B:When does it end?

[-2:19.00]A:It's valid until 31st of March.

[-2:20.00]B:What does the package include?

[-2:21.00]A:Flights from here to Tokyo,three nights' accommodation

[-2:22.00]and entry to Tokyo Disneyland.

[-2:23.00]B:Wow,that sounds good.Is there a phone number?

[-2:24.00]I'll ring up for more information.

[-2:25.00]A:Yes,it's 2521.

[-2:26.00]B:2521.

[-2:27.00]A:4478.

[-2:28.00]B:4478.Thanks.