English for academic and scientific purpose

The writings of Darwin and Wallace clearly influenced the development of ecology; but perhaps even more fundamentally, they also launched the field of evolution. The scientific discipline of ecology has thus been, in some sense, a key node in an ecology of scientific disciplines. From its roots in natural history, it has built partnerships with botany and zoology; with geology and paleontology; with mathematics; and with evolutionary studies, from molecular biology to population genetics and development. It has not ignored physics and engineering along the way, in its need to understand the mechanics of how animals and plants grow and move, or how they capture energy and resist stresswhy, for example, trees are shaped the way they are. Ecologists make their living by recognizing the interconnectedness of different parts, and different disciplines.

What we must do now, however, is to unify science and the social sciences and humanities further in the service of preserving the earth. That challenge is stretching ecology in new directions. To sustain the planet, we must be able to protect the goods and services ecosystems provide, and that requires knowing what they mean to us. In large part, that is the domain of economics. Bringing ecology and economics together is not new, and most land-grant universities have strong departments of agricultural and resource economics that deal with the economics of agriculture, fisheries, and forests. However, new dimensions in environmental and ecological economics have been developing rapidly, focusing on questions about the value of whole ecosystems, about the optimal design of nature reserves, and about how to manage public goods. Broadly understood, environmental public goods include the air we breathe and the water we drink, the fish we catch and the lakes and oceans that sustain them, as well as the antibiotics that have contributed so much to the advancement of medical care.

Ecology views biological systems as wholes, not as independent parts, while seeking to elucidate how the wholes emerge from and affect the parts. Increasingly, such a holistic perspective, rechristened at places like the Santa Fe Institute as "the theory of complex adaptive systems," has informed understanding and improved management of economic and financial systems, social systems, complex materials, and even physiology and medicine. Essentially, that means little more than taking an ecological approach to such systems. (6)

Task 5

Give the Russian equivalents to the following.

steep in historical traditions, crucial parts, respond to the environmental challenges, management of natural resources, be outside the discipline of ecology, describe the dynamics of interacting species, influence the development of ecology, bring ecology and economics together, view biological systems as wholes, optimal design of nature reserves, broadly understood, unify science and the social sciences.

Task 6

Match up the words with a close meaning.

Task 7

Match up the words with the opposite meaning.

Task 8

Match the following words with their definitions.

Task 9

Use suffixes to form different parts of speech.

tial; -ical; -tific; -al; -less; -able; -tion-ment; -ness; – tical

Argue; aware; influence; geology; science; policy; nature; depart; help; contribute; understand; expand; describe; computation.

Task 10

Match a line in A with a line in B

Task 11

The table below contains words that have been chopped in half. Find the pieces that fit together and write them down.

Task 12

Guess the words.

Task 13

Write out 7-8 words or word combinations to characterize the discipline “Ecology”

Task 14

Agree or disagree with the following statements.

1. Charles Darwin contributed a lot to ecology.

2. Ecology is of great help in political decisions about nature.

3. Ecology is connected only with botany.

4. Ecological economics is not a new discipline.

5. Mathematical methods help understand the dynamics of natural systems

Task 15

Answer the following questions.

1. Why is the discipline of ecology dynamic?

2. What is the contribution of Charles Darwin to ecology?

3. What scientists contributed to the development of ecology?

4. Why is synergy among the disciplines important?

5. Why is ecology important for politics and economics?

6. How does/did mathematics/biology influence ecology?

7. What is evolution and who launched this field?