Unit 7a Book

What is important in technical fields is definitely safety, precision and accuracy. Work safety is a big issue, and companies prefer investing in safety equipment and preventative measures to paying compensations to those being injured at work.  At the same time, the products companies manufacture need to be accurate, i.e. fault-free, following the design drawings exactly, in order to prevent customer´s complaints. Therefore, product dimensions cannot have any clearances; they need to be precise. Unit 7a is going to demonstrate that there are also some other domains where people and machines need to be precise and accurate, for example, in aviation and during security checks. In order to maintain safety and security of flights, all instruments and devices on planes need to be accurate and also pilots need to maintain the course with a great amount of accuracy. Similarly, security staff at airports ensures that no security incidents happen on plane. However, as Unit 7a illustrates, sometimes a human error can cause a security incident. One such incident was investigated after a passenger managed to pass through the check with a knife in his trousers leg. The airport staff that was in charge of security check points was interviewed and asked to recall with great precision the words the passenger said when he was talking to the security officer at the checkpoint. Linguistically, the conversation can be reported in two ways: either by quoting the exact words, or by reporting them. Unit 7a is going to cover both these options.

Contents:

• Sequence of tenses:

The policeman informed the guard that the burglar wasn´t carrying any metal.

• Reported instructions:

He instructed him to open his bag.

He told him not to carry liquids on board.

• Reporting verbs:

tell, inform, report, instruct, assure, confirm, explain promise, order