Unit 10a Book

1. Introduction

It is a well-known fact that in some countries, for example, Japan, earthquakes are an unfortunate fact of life, so it is not surprising that local construction companies keep looking for a way to protect their buildings. Some of them rely on thermoplastic carbon-fibre composite, which consists of inorganic, synthetic fibres covered with a finish of thermoplastic resin. Its unique tensile strength then makes this material one of the world’s lightest but also strongest seismic reinforcement systems.  Some other anti-seismic systems use seismic dampers fitted inside the walls of buildings. These dampers consist of pistons inside cylinders filled with a viscous fluid such as oil, so that as the wall moves, the piston can push into the fluid and this movement absorbs some of the kinetic energy of the wall.

            This unit deals with the latter option; however, as this is a new system and it is not clear to what extent the dampers are effective, some simulation tests are necessary. Unit 10a describes how the dampers are used during an earthquake simulation to see if the absorption of kinetic energy is sufficient to protect the building from damage. This context is used to introduce, or rather, revise hyphenated noun phrases. Why? You will see that they are useful tools for making a technical text/report concise, i.e. shorter (briefer) but still fully understandable. And these are undoubtedly qualities that are typical of a technical text.

Introduction adapted from:

Bingham, C., Wright, L. (2013). Technical English Level 4 Teacher´s Book. Pearson Longman, p. 97.

https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/rtf-fresh-perspectives/a1072-10-innovative-construction-materials-used-around-the-world/

https://aquicore.com/blog/10-new-materials-changing-commercial-construction/

Contents 

• Reading about various destructive test methods
• Grammar revision: Hyphenated adjectives as part of noun phrases: a motion-detecting device

2. Forum: Earthquakes

The Czech Republic is lucky. This is because it is located in the heart of Europe where the tectonic plate forms a thick continental crust preventing earthquakes. But how about countries located on a thin crust or near tectonic cracks or borders between continental crust and oceanic crust? What preventative measures should the population of these countries take? What should their inhabitants do during earthquakes? Give them some advice in this forum.

3. Reading: Earthquake Simulations

Unit 10a deals with plans for a destructive test on an experimental building. The test is intended to discover whether the building, fitted with a new type of damper, aka shock absorber, is capable of resisting seismic shocks up to 7.3 on the Richter scale. Read about this test on p. 74 in the book (Bonamy, D. (2013). Technical English 4) and complete these two tasks: Reading A and Reading B.

4. Grammar: Ways to Make a Technical Text Concise

Maybe you have noticed that in the text on p. 74, there are some hyphenated adjectives. These are adjectives consisting of two or more parts connected via a hyphen. They are often used in technical texts because they have the capability of making such texts more concise, i.e. brief but still understandable. This is achieved by converting information originally expressed as a complex noun phrase or a relative clause to a condensed form. For example:

Notice that in the first example, there is no plural “s” because “167-square-metre” in the phrase “167-square-metre building” functions as an adjective, not a noun. Unlike nouns, English adjectives do not make plurals.

There are more types of hyphenated adjectives, as there are more grammar forms that can be used to form them. For example:

A noun + past participle:        a wind-powered turbine

A noun + present participle:   a motion-detecting device

A numeral + noun/unit:          a twelve-centimetre screw

You came with these hyphenated adjectives in Unit 8b, where you had a chance to study this grammar overview. If necessary, go through this grammar overview again and revise hyphenated adjectives by completing this matching task and this gap-fill task. Finally, use hyphenated adjectives in a short text here.

5. Listening and Revision: Earthquake Simulation

Now that you know about earthquake simulations in theory, would you like to see one with your own eyes? Are you curious to see if the building collapsed during the earthquake simulation? After all, the collapse can be expected, as this is supposed to be a destructive test. In any case, to satisfy your curiosity, watch a video. As you watch it, complete this listening comprehension task. Finally, revise this unit material by completing this task.

6. Word list

The key terms related to the topic of Unit 10a can be found:

• in the Excel format here.
• in the interactive flash card format here. This format is particularly good for drilling the new vocabulary.
• in a zip file here. This file is downloadable, so that after unpacking it, you can drill the new vocabulary on your desktop, laptop or any other portable device where you have a browser installed. Important: after unzipping the zip file, make sure to keep all the related files in the same directory at all times. Do not change any file names and do not transfer or delete anything.

Recommendation: Remember that the best way to learn new vocabulary is to see each new word in a context; that is, step by step as you complete all the tasks in the unit.

7. A printer-friendly version of Unit 10a

A printer-friendly version of Unit 10a exercises and the key to these exercises can be found here.