Материал для подготовки к практическим занятиям (стр. 1 )

Материал для подготовки к практическим занятиям

I.  Industrial and Civil Engineering

Промышленное и гражданское Строительство

Текст 1

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

From the History of Building

Man has always been a builder. The first houses in different countries of the world were made of wood. In other regions the most convenient building material was stone.

The ancient Egyptians erected temples, palaces. Having dried the bricks in the sun, they put up four walls, and above these they placed a flat roof. The roof was flat because there was very little rain in Egypt. Egyptian builders gave the world the column which has played an important part in the history of building. Most of the buildings of old times were based upon the column and beam method of construction.

The Greeks built a slanting roof because there was much rain in their country. The Romans added the arch, thus increasing strength and beauty to their buildings. Since the middle Ages, brickwork has been in constant use everywhere.

In our country architecture flourished for the first time in Kiev Russ. The churches of the time were strong buildings with thick walls and small windows.

During the last hundred years many new methods of building have been discovered. The use of precast concrete is a very advanced construction technique. Nowadays houses are often built of complete concrete structural units which are factory-made and assembled on the spot.

since the middle ages – начиная со средних веков

a flat roof – плоская крыша

a slanting roof – покатая крыша

the column and beam method of construction – стоечно-балочный метод строительства

an arch – арка

a brickwork – кирпичная кладка

precast concrete – сборный бетон

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

Most of the buildings of old times were based upon …

a) concrete structural units

b) the use of steel

c) the column and beam method of construction

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. Did ancient people use wood or bricks to build their houses?

2. What kinds of buildings did the ancient Egyptians erect?

3. What method of construction was used for most of the buildings of old times?

4. Why did the Greeks build a slanting roof?

5. What building materials are used nowadays?

Текст 2

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Town planning

The purpose of a town plan is to give the greatest possible freedom to the individual. The new development absorbs or modifies an existing environment, and so before it can be designed it is necessary to find out about that environment. It is also necessary to do research of population growth, the distance from work to home, the preferences for different types of dwelling, the amount of sunshine in rooms, the degree of atmospheric pollution and so on. After the survey is complete a forecast of future development is made in the form of a map: the master plan or development plan. The plan of the city must be flexible so that it may extend and renew its dwellings, reconstruct its working places, complete its communications and avoid congestion in every part.

The plan is never a complete and fixed thing, but one that is continually being adapted to the changing needs of the community for whom it is designed. The flexible plan, preceded by a survey, is one of the most revolutionary ideas that man has ever had about the control of his environment.

Most towns today have a characteristic functional pattern as follows: a central core containing the principal shopping centre, business zones, surrounded by suburbs of houses. Most town planners accept the traditional town pattern. In the preparation of a master plan they are preoccupied with the definition of the town centre, industrial areas, and the areas of housing; the creation of open space for recreation, the laying down of a pattern of main roads which run between the built-up areas.

The master plan thus has to define the ultimate growth of the town, but though the master plan is a diagram, and even a flexible one, it is the structure upon which all future development is to take place.

forecast – прогноз

a master plan – генеральный план застройки

congestion – перенаселенность, скопление

a pattern – образец

suburbs – окраинные районы

housing – жилищное строительство

recreation – отдых

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

Before a town plan is designed, it is necessary...

a) to renew and extend the dwellings

b) to make a forecast of future development in the form of a map

c) to find out about existing environment

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. What is the purpose of a town plan?

2. When is a forecast of future development made?

3. Why must the plan of the city be flexible?

4. Most towns today have a characteristic functional pattern, haven't they?

5. What does the master plan define?

Текст 3

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Building Constructions

The buildings erected can be divided into two broad classifications: they are either for housing or for industrial purposes. As far as material is concerned the buildings can be divided into stone, wood and concrete types. The buildings made of stone; brick or concrete blocks are durable, fireproof and have poor heat conductivity. Nowadays houses are often built of complete structural units which are factory-made and assembled on the spot.

The main parts of a building are a foundation, a framework, floors and a roof. In order to build a house first an excavation must be dug. After that the foundation is constructed to keep the walls and floors from the contact with soil. It may be of stone, bricks, concrete. Then a framework is raised. It is the part of a building on which the stability of the structure depends. This part of a building carries the loads from the roof and floors. The framework is closed with various materials in the form of panels. Floors divide the building into stories. They may be of timber, reinforced concrete or other materials. The floors are supported on beams. A roof is the topmost part of a building. Its function is to cover the building and protect it from rain and wind. Roofs also tie the walls and give strength and firmness to the structure. Wood, metal, tiling, bitumen felt and other materials are used for roofs.

Today builders make use of many materials: aluminium, plastics, alloys, reinforced concrete panels, prestressed concrete elements, metal frames. Glass-fiber reinforced concrete is considered the ideal material, which will provide the desired qualities. Among these characteristics are the material’s lightness and ease of handling, its strength and durability, its visual attractiveness and cost effectiveness.

heat conductivity – теплопроводность

factory-made – изготовленные на заводе

assembled on the spot – смонтированные на месте

a framework - каркас

a floor - перекрытие

reinforced concrete - железобетон

a beam - балка

prestressed concrete - предварительно напряженный бетон

durability - долговечность

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

The function of a roof is to...

a) provide the stability of the structure

b) cover the building, give strength and firmness to the structure

c) carry the loads from the floors

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. How can the buildings be divided?

2. What types of buildings are erected according to the materials used?

3. What are the main parts of a building?

4. A framework carries the loads from the roof and floors, doesn’t it?

5. What materials do builders use in building construction today?

II.  Road Engineering

Дорожное строительство

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Traffic Problems Can Be Solved

Advertisements for cars don’t show the reality of driving. Cities and towns all over the world have a huge problem: traffic jams. Of course cars are symbols of freedom and wealth. They represent a personal choice to travel when and where you want to but when you are stuck in a traffic jam; all cars are just little metal boxes to sit in.

There are millions of cars on the road today. How do cities cope with this? Some of them have found solutions to their traffic problems.

The city Curitiba in Brazil has very few traffic jams. This is because the authorities have developed an efficient bus network to transport people rapidly around the city. Main roads have special lanes for buses only, so that they do not get caught in traffic jams.

In Milan, cars need a permit to enter the city center. Only residents and some employers can obtain a permit, so very little traffic now drives in or out. Nearly everyone parks on the edge of the restricted area and heads for the center on foot. As a result, Milan now has many pedestrian-only shopping streets.

In Athens, car owners are only allowed to drive into the city centre every other day. They must match the final number of their car number plate to the day’s date – if the date is an even number, and so is the final number of the number plate, then they can enter the inner-city area. The same goes for odd number plates and odd dates. This means that 50 per cent of all cars must stay at home each day.

a traffic jam – дорожная пробка

to be stuck – застревать

to cope – справляться

a bus network – сеть автобусных маршрутов

a lane – полоса движения

residents – постоянные жители

an employer – предприниматель

on foot – пешком

every other day – через день

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

Only residents and some employers can obtain a permit, so …

a) car owners are only allowed to drive into the city centre every other day

b) very little traffic now drives in or out

c) they do not get caught in traffic jams

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. What is a huge problem of cities and towns all over the world?

2. Have some cities found solutions to their traffic problems?

3. Why does the city Curitiba have very few traffic jams?

4. Milan now has many pedestrian-only shopping streets, hasn’t it?

5. How many cars must stay at home each day in Athens?

III.  Economy and Management

Экономика и управление

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Contracts

Business transactions usually start with enquiries. As a rule the prospective buyer gets the name and the address of the prospective seller either at an exhibition, from an advertisement in a newspaper, magazine, and thanks to a television or radio commercial. All these channels of information and advertising are very important. Enquiries can be sent by mail, by telex or by fax. Sometimes enquiries can be made orally, by telephone. In the enquiry the prospective buyer states in what goods exactly he/she is interested and asks for details on the price and terms of sale.

After considering the enquiry for some time the seller sends an offer in reply. The offer usually quotes the price and stipulates terms of delivery, terms of payment, time of delivery and some other necessary details.

In the course of making enquiries and offers, the parties very often meet to agree upon one or another question.

After the buyer receives the offer he carefully studies it. Then, very often, he has a few talks or exchanges letters with the seller. After the two parties come to an agreement about terms and conditions of the transaction they sign a contract. Contracts usually contain the following information: date of the contract, names of the buyer and the seller, description of the goods, price and the total value, terms of delivery, terms of payment, etc.

an enquiry– запрос

a transaction – сделка

to stipulate – устанавливать

terms of payment – условия платежа

an offer – предложение

commercial – реклама на телевидении

terms of delivery – условия поставки

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

Business transactions start with …

a) an advertisement

b) offers

c) enquiries

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. How can a person or a company get the name and address of the seller?

2. How can enquiries be sent?

3. What information do offers usually give?

4. Why do the parties often meet in the course of making enquiries and offers?

5. What information does the contract usually contain?

IV.  Automation of Technological Processes

Автоматизация технологических процессов

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Basic Computers

The computer is the heart of any direct digital control (DDC) system. Although there are many models of DDC computer systems currently available, most operate in the same basic way and are similar in design to per­sonal computers.

In their simplest form, all computers consist of hardware and software. The term hardware includes all the components that a com­puter is assembled from the central processing unit, memory, input and output terminals, operator display terminal, keypad, and peripheral de­vices.

Peripheral equipment is used to link the computer's internal environ­ment to the outside world to allow humans to access stored information and to allow for machine-to-machine communications in a computer network.

Software is a series of instructions that tell the computer how to operate.

These instruction sets or commands are packaged together to form pro­grammes

which are designed to manipulate data for a specific purpose. There are several

echelons of software used in computers, which range from pro­grams that tell the

computer how to handle basic tasks to programs that guide the computer

through difficult data puters com­monly use several layers of

software running concurrently to guide their operation, and these layers are

transparent to the computer operator.

a direct digital control (DDC) system – система прямого цифрового контроля

hardware – аппаратное обеспечение

software – программное обеспечение

the central processing unit – центральное процессорное устройство

input and output terminal – терминал ввода и вывода

a keypad – вспомогательная клавиатура

peripheral de­vice – периферийное устройство

environ­ment – среда окружения

to access – иметь доступ

data processing – обработка данных

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

Peripheral equipment is used …

a) to link the computer's internal environ­ment to the outside world

b) to form pro­grammes

c) to manipulate data for a specific purpose

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. What is the heart of any direct digital control (DDC) system?

2. What do all computers consist of?

3. What components does the hardware include?

4. What is peripheral equipment used to?

5. What does software mean?

V.  Mechanical Engineering

Строительные и дорожные машины

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Cars: Passion or Problem

For some people, the car is a convenient form of transportation. But for others, the car is an exciting hobby. Some people spend their lives collecting valuable cars. Others drive them in races. For many people cars are more than transportation: they are a source of passion and pleasure. Yet cars can also be a source of many problems.

In 1903, Henry Ford began selling Model T car for $825. His company, Ford Motors, was the first to produce cars in large numbers. This made the car available to large numbers of people and helped them to travel long distances quickly and easily. The car has brought people much closer to places of work, study, and entertainment. Many people also work in car-related industries: fixing cars, washing cars, advertising cars, and selling car products such as stereos and cellular phones.

Most Americans buy a new car every five or six years. This means that one American may own a dozen cars in a lifetime. In fact, there are more cars than people in the United States. In New York City, 2.5 million cars move in and out of the city each day. In this traffic, the average speed is sometimes 8.1 miles per hour. This speed could easily be reached by riding a horse instead of driving a car. But New Yorkers continue to drive, just as people do in California, where freeways are often crowded. Many people are unhappy with car traffic and pollution, as well as with the use of beautiful land for building new roads.

Cars are important to nearly everyone, including engineers, businesspeople, environmentalists, and even poets. Poet Curt Brown believes that cars are part of our passion for new places and new experiences. According to Brown, this “very, very comfortable flying chair” will continue to bring us travel and adventure, no matter how it changes the future.

fixing cars - ремонт автомобилей

a cellular phone - сотовый телефон

a freeway - автострада

crowded - перегружены

an environmentalist - эколог

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

For many people, cars are more than transportation: …

a) many people also work in car industries

b) they are a source of passion and pleasure

c) many people are unhappy with car traffic and pollution

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. Is the car a convenient form of transportation?

2. Can cars also be a source of many problems?

3. What company was the first to produce cars in large numbers?

4. What are many people unhappy with?

5. Who are cars important to?

VI.  Heating and Ventilation

Отопление и вентиляция

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Energy and Its Sources

The consumption of energy is expected to grow. The amount of energy consumed by a country is closely connected with its degree of technological development and industrialization, which are in turn related to the people's standard of living.

Energy can be classified according to its sources. Coal, oil, and natural gas are «fossil fuels» which are extremely useful raw materials. But when they are burned for fuel, harmful pollution may result and there is a great waste of natural resources.

Wood was the main source a hundred years ago. The growth of coal usage in the early 1900s is associated with rapidly increasing industrial development. There followed a great expansion in the consumption of natural gas and fuel oil for heating, electrical generation and especially transportation.

Several conclusions can be made: research and development work to find new sources of energy and ways of increasing efficiency are needed; the new sources of fuels must be fully developed and utilized. Natural gas is a popular source of energy because of its convenience for use and cleanliness in burning. It is generally believed that gas will be the first fossil fuel to be in short supply, and the cost of oil extraction is high.

To these sources we can add the energy obtained from water motion and the sun. Solar power is often mentioned as the logical alternative. The amount of radiant energy that reaches the earth's surface is more than what is needed. For the generation of electricity, there are serious problems to be solved. To collect and concentrate the energy by reflectors and converters of present efficiency is the major difficulty. There remain many technological problems in this area.

Man is consuming the remaining resources at a rate that they may last only a few centuries. Efforts to eliminate the extravagant waste of energy are needed. Several conclusions can be made: research and development work to find new sources of energy and ways of increasing efficiency are needed; the new sources of fuels must be fully developed and utilized. And we must give a serious consideration nuclear energy, i. e. the energy from nuclear reactions, the burning of nuclear fuel.

consumption - потребление

fossil fuels – ископаемое топливо

pollution - загрязнение

conveniently- легко, просто, удобно

generation – поколение

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

The amount of energy consumed by a country is closely connected with …

a)  its degree of technological development and industrialization, which are in turn related to the people's standard of living

b)  its sources

c)  research and development work

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. What is the amount of energy consumed by a country connected with?

2. What kinds of fuels can you name?

3. What alternative sources of energy do you know?

4. To collect and concentrate the energy by reflectors and converters of present efficiency is the major difficulty, isn’t it?

5. What conclusions can be made to find new sources of energy?

VII.  Water Supply and Water Disposal

Водоснабжение и водоотведение

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Water

Water can appear in three phases. It takes many different forms on Earth: water vapour and clouds in the sky; seawater and rarely icebergs in the ocean; glaciers and rivers in the mountains; and aquifers in the ground.

Water can dissolve many different substances, giving it different tastes and odors. Water fit for human consumption is called drinking water or potable water. Water that is not potable can be made potable by distillation (heating it until it becomes water vapour, and then capturing the vapour without any of the impurities it leaves behind), or by other methods (chemical or heat treatment that kills bacteria).

This natural resource is becoming scarcer in certain places, and its availability is a major social and economic concern. Currently, about one billion people around the world routinely drink unhealthy water. Most countries accepted the goal of halving by 2015 the number of people worldwide who do not have access to safe water. Water, however, is not a finite resource (like petroleum is), but rather re-circulated as potable water in precipitation in quantities many degrees of magnitude higher than human consumption. Therefore, it is the relatively small quantity of water in reserve in the earth. Water-poor countries use importation of goods as the primary method of importing water (to leave enough for local human consumption), since the manufacturing process uses around 10 to 100 times products' masses in water.

The problem of protecting natural water resources has grown very pressing for many countries since the beginning of the second half of the 20th century. The development of human society, the growth of civilization and social and technical progress have resulted in the changing of the composition of natural water resources. The rivers, lakes and ground-waters contain today the products of mechanical, chemical and biological pollution.

dissolve - растворять

consumption - потребление

potable – годный для питья

quantity - количество

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

The problem of protecting natural water resources has grown very pressing for many countries since…

a) nowadays

b) the beginning of the second half of the 20th century

c) the beginning of the second half of the 19th century

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. What forms does water take on Earth?

2. What is called drinking water or potable water?

3. Water as natural resource is becoming scarcer in certain places, isn’t it?

4. What do water-poor countries use as the primary method?

5. Why has changed the composition of natural water resources?

VIII. Property Examination and Administration

Экспертиза и управление недвижимостью

Building Materials Строительные материалы

Задание № 1. Переведите текст со словарем.

Building Materials

The importance of the building materials industry in our national economy is enormous as its output governs both the rate and the quality of construction work.

It is common knowledge that today the manufacture of building materials doesn’t lag behind the demands for them.

The main current task is to decrease steadily the cost price of manufacture. All building materials are divided into 3 groups: main building materials, binding materials and secondary or auxiliary materials.

1. Main building materials such as rocks and artificial stones, timber and metals, which are used for bearing structures.

2. Binding materials such as lime, gypsum and cement which are used for jointing different planes.

3. Secondary or auxiliary materials which are used for interior parts of the building, such as tiling, synthetic linoleum, coating and other facing materials.

If materials do not require any technological changes in their chemical structure they are called natural building materials. These are stone, clay, sand, lime and timber. Many of these materials have been known from time immemorial. Thus bricks have been used in building for more than 12, 000 years and the ancient Pyramids were constructed of stone.

Cement, clay products (bricks) and concrete are examples of artificial building materials.

Along with traditional building materials new ones have been created, such as reinforced concrete, lightweight concrete, precast prestressed concrete, etc.

The newest building materials created nowadays comprise film products, alloys, plastics, glues and others. As to their qualities building materials should be durable, strong, water resistant, acid resistant, heat resistant, etc. Some of them should also have a pleasant appearance.

Materials with universal properties are as yet a challenge of the future.

enormous - огромный

output - выпуск

to govern - определять, влиять

rate - скорость

to lag behind - отставать

demand - спрос

current – текущий

to speed up – ускорять

cost price - себестоимость

capital investment - капиталовложения

secondary - вторичный

auxiliary - вспомогательный

interior - adj. внутренний, n. интерьер

precast prestressed concrete - сборный предварительно напряженный бетон

challenge - зд. задача

Задание № 2. Закончите предложение, выбрав соответствующий вариант окончания.

Tiling, synthetic linoleum, coating and other facing materials are called …

a) secondary or auxiliary materials

b) main building materials

c) natural building materials

Задание № 3. Ответьте на вопросы к тексту.

1. What can you say about the importance of the building materials industry?

2. Does the manufacture of building materials lag behind the demand for them?

3. What is the main current task of the industry of building materials?

4. What groups are all building materials divided into?

5. What main building materials are there?

6. What are main building materials used for?

7. What binding materials are there?

8. What are binding materials used for?

9. What secondary building materials are there?

10. What are auxiliary building materials used for?

9. What natural building materials do you know?

10. What artificial building materials do you know?

11. What new building materials have been created along with traditional building materials?

12. What materials does the newest building material group comprise?

Тексты для самостоятельного чтения

I. Industrial and Civil Engineering

Промышленное и гражданское строительство

Текст 1

Housing

Houses are built of wood, brick, stone and concrete. Many new types of individual houses are made from reed slabs, rolled gypsum concrete panels or wooden sheets. A lot of houses are built of prefabricated blocks (prefabs). All the parts of such houses are produced on an industrial scale in factories and assembled on the spot. The building process takes place under the supervision of foremen and engineers. The structure is put up by bricklayers, carpenters, plasterers, plumbers, painters, lock­smiths, glass-cutters, etc. In the construction of a house the first step is to make a careful survey of the site and to examine the soil in order to find its bearing power. Next, the building lines are staked out. After this, the foundations are built. The excavation is dug for the basement and then followed by the actual building of the foundation walls below ground level. Then the foundation work is finished by providing anchor­ing sills. That is the case of a wooden building.

In the case of a brick structure, the building of the walls may be directly proceeded with. Foundations are to keep the floors and walls from contact with the soil, to act against the action of the frost and to prevent from settlement. The part upon which the stability of the structure depends is the frame­work. It carries the loads which are imposed on it. To do this work prop­erly and safely the floors, walls, roofs and other parts of the construc­tion must be correctly designed and proportioned. The designer deter­mines the size of the walls, the floor joists, the beams, the girders and the parts which make up the framework. He also decides how they are to be spaced and arranged.

The building of a wall consists in laying down courses of bricks and bonding them together with mortar. Walls are constructed to enclose areas and to support the weight of floors and roofs. The walls may be solid and hollow.

Besides brick, stone, concrete and other natural and artificial materials are used for the construction of walls. When doors or windows are to be made, a lintel is usually inserted in the wall above the opening. The entrance leading into the house from the street is called the front door, from the yard – the back door. The window panes are fastened in with the help of glazier's putty.

1. What materials are houses built of?

2. Where are the parts of houses built of prefabricated blocks produced on?

3. What are the steps in the construction of a wooden building?

4. Who supervises the building process?

5. Who puts up the building structure?

6. What are the steps in the construction of a brick structure?

7. What natural and artificial materials are used for the construction of walls?

Текст 2

The Development of the House

The first houses in different countries of the world were made of wood. At that time the greater part of our planet was covered with thick forests. Even in those days men found ways of using wood as a building material. In some places they tied together the tops of several trees and covered them with the hides (skins) of animals. In other places they covered them with leaves or grass.

The primitive people's first houses were tents or huts. Primitive building required no tools. The invention of tools permitted the cutting of stones and timber. Stone was the most convenient building material in countries where there was not much wood but plenty of stone.

People began to use stone widely to build their houses many cen­turies ago.

The column has played an important part in the history of building. Most of the building of old times was based upon the column and beam method of construction.

About 4,000 years before our era the Egyptians possessed great con­structional know-how (ability). They built simple houses by present standards. They used bricks which in their most primitive form were not burned, but were hardened by being dried in the sun. Since the middle ages, brickwork has been in constant use everywhere, in every sort of construction and in every architectural style. They made flat roofs because there was very little rain in Egypt. Their buildings were simple in construction but very beautiful. We still admire their monu­ments, sphinxes and palaces.

Greek builders learned much from Egyptian builders. They built their houses with slanting roofs because the climate of these two coun­tries differs greatly. Soon Greek builders became second in column making. But they added the arch, thus adding much strength and beauty to their buildings.

The use of precast concrete, a very advanced construction tech­nique, has many advantages over other building materials. Precast building units can be assembled at the site all the year round in any weather. The precast concrete technique which is constantly being im­proved in our country plays a great role in our extensive building prog­ramme.

1. Why were the first houses in different countries of the world made of wood?

2. What were the primitive people's first houses?

3. What was the most convenient building material in countries where there was not much wood?

4. What method of construction was most of the building of old times based upon?

5. Why did Egyptians make flat roofs and Greek builders slanting roofs?

6. How did Greek builders add much strength and beauty to their buildings?

7. What are the advantages of the use of precast concrete?

Текст 3

Home, Sweet Home

It is common knowledge that there is no place like home. To the British their homes are important. They are dedicated to them; they give them a lot of time and effort, looking after their homes with much love, care and enthusiasm.

More than half of British families own their homes (houses or flats). Others live in council accommodation and some people rent from private owners.

There are three main types of houses that people live in: detached, semi-detached and terraced.

A detached house is the most expensive type of home. It stands on its own land and is not attached to another building. Such houses have privacy from neighbours, and they are ideal for keen gardeners who can devote plenty of time to work in their garden.

A semi-detached house is joined the house next door by a shared wall. A house of this kind is less expensive than a detached house, but still offers a good standard of privacy and comfort. It usually has a small garden at the front and a larger garden at the back.

A terraced house is usually two - or three-storey high. It is one of a continuous row of similar houses, joined together by their side walls. Many rows of terraced houses were originally built for workers in nearby factories or coalmines. A terraced house usually costs less than a semi-detached or detached house of similar size. There are miles of terraced houses in most towns. Over a quarter of British families live in them.

There are also other types of buildings in which people live: apartment blocks, bungalows and country cottages. Bungalows are one-storey houses which are particularly popular with older people. Apartment blocks are high-rise blocks of flats which provide accommodation for a lot of city dwellers. But these buildings are not very popular. About 20% of the populations live in flats. There are more flats in cities than in rural areas. Most people in Britain traditionally like to live in houses.