a) Barton Sparagon is a doctor who researches ….
b) The term ‘hurry sickness’ has been in use for ….
c) Jill Stein works as ….
d) The self-centred behaviour is ….
e) Chronic impatience is ….
f) The high-tech revolution has brought ….
g) Children face the same ….
h) Though people are ready to ….
i) Sparagon tries to make people become ….
Ex. 4. Read sections A-E and answer questions a) - f) given below.
a) What are symptoms of hurry sickness?
b) Who invented the term ‘hurry sickness’?
c) What did heart disease patients have in common?
d) What does Jill Stein mean when she says that time is being more compressed than ever?
e) What do people prefer nowadays: to have face-to-face interaction or to connect through their mobile phones?
f) What are people hard-wired to be able to do?
Ex. 5. Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.
One result of technology and the increased pace of life is that people …
A frequently meet colleagues in public places.
B have personal telephone conversations in public.
C need to visit therapists on a regular basis.
D no longer have offices to work from.
Ex. 6. Find in the text and read two statements that are results rather than causes of hurry sickness.
Ex. 7. Complete the summary below. Choose no more than three words from the text for each answer.
| Hurry sickness is not new condition but it has increased both in 1 … in recent years, mainly as a result of the rapid development of 2 … Typical symptoms include chronic impatience, which experts believe can have potentially serious effects not only on those around us but also on our 3 …. The fact that children are also beginning to suffer from a variety of health problems suggests that they are as vulnerable to the pressures of modern life as their parents. Curing the condition is a slow process, which requires the sufferer to4… the stress in their lives, and try to change their behaviour patterns. |
Focus on vocabulary
Word building
Ex. 1. Make nouns and adjectives from the following verbs.
| Verb | Noun | Adjective |
| 1. analyse | ||
| 2. annoy | ||
| 3. connect | ||
| 4. emphasize | ||
| 5. interact | ||
| 6. damage | ||
| 7. stress | ||
| 8. act |
Ex. 2. Complete the sentences with words from exercise 1 .
a) After half-term, the … of the course will change to exam preparation.
b) Moving home is supposed to be one of the most... life events.
c) Impatience … our physical health.
d) Price is decided through the … of supply and demand.
e) They made a detailed... of the data before drawing any conclusions.
f) Humans can’t be constantly involved in high-speed ….
Ex. 3. Choose the correct prefix to form the opposite of the following adjectives.
| ab- in- un- im- dis- |
a) accurate g) normal
b) available h) reliable
c) aware i) secure
d) capable j) significant
e) connect k) patient
f) possible l) efficient
Ex. 4. Complete these sentences with words from exercise 3 .
a) Tests revealed an … level of cholesterol in his blood.
b) The problem only affected an … number of people.
c) You will lose marks for … spelling in the IELTS Listening test.
d) Two-thirds (62%) of parents are … of their child’s online contacts.
e) Unfortunately, funding for new computer equipment is … at present.
Word meaning
Ex. 5. Identifying the part of speech is helpful in working out the meaning of a word. Study the way the words in bold type are used in the examples below. Decide what part of speech each word in bold type is.
a) Hurry sickness has been an issue in our culture.
b) There is a breakdown of the nuclear family.
c) These problems result from unprecedented homework requirements.
d) Children don’t have the coping mechanisms to deal with it.
e) People should be aware of their stress and the impact it is having on their lives.
f) People learn to challenge their behaviours.
g) One exercise is to assign an impatient person to stand in the longest line in the store.
h) These techniques may ultimately be counterproductive.
