Listening 2026 May–Aug Practice Set 7

Narrator: Section 1. Reception: Good afternoon, you're through to reception at The Island Hotel in Crete, how may I help you today? Mr. Schiffer: Yes, hello there, I'm hoping to book a double room for my wife and myself for about two weeks from the 25th April of this year. Firstly, could you tell me whether it's particularly hot during this time? Reception: Yes, of course Sir, during late April and early May, the daytime temperature shouldn't exceed 19 degrees Celsius, but the weather has been rather erratic and difficult to predict in recent years, so I am unable to say for certain. Mr. Schiffer: Okay, that sounds good, my wife doesn't like going outside when it's very hot! I haven't booked flights yet, but I must say that I'm unfamiliar with Crete and its transport system. Does the hotel provide an airport shuttle service? Reception: Yes Sir, we provide a complementary airport pick-up service for all our guests. It takes about 40 minutes to get here from the airport, but it's at least 60 minutes at rush hours and you will be provided with a fully air-conditioned shuttle bus. Mr. Schiffer: Okay, excellent. In that case, do you have any rooms available for the dates I gave you? Reception: I shall have a look on the system now for you Sir, bear with me just a moment. Yes Sir, I can see now that we have several rooms available. Would you prefer a garden view or a sea view? Mr. Schiffer: Well, ideally I would like a sea-view room with a balcony, but of course that depends on the difference in price. Reception: Not to worry Sir, all of our standard double rooms have en-suite facilities and a balcony. If you would like one of our sea-view rooms, there is a premium of 60 euros per night. Mr. Schiffer: Okay, so could you tell me the total nightly rate for a standard double room with a sea view? Reception: Yes, of course Sir, for the spring months, our rate is 216 euros per night. For 14 nights, altogether this will come to 3,024 euros. Mr. Schiffer: Perfect. I also read on your website that the hotel has gym and spa facilities. Are there any other facilities on offer? Reception: Yes, we have a large outdoor infinity pool overlooking the ocean, with luxury sun beds and a poolside bar. We also have three full-sized tennis courts, where we run a popular doubles tournament, with the winner receiving two all-inclusive spa day vouchers. Mr. Schiffer: Goodness, I shall have to brush up on my tennis skills! Mr. Schiffer: Are there any other activities organized by the hotel that we can partake in? It's just that it's our wedding anniversary on the 30th of June, and I would like to provide my wife with the perfect romantic getaway. Reception: I can assure you, Sir, that your wife won't be disappointed. Ours is a five-star resort which is renowned for its luxury and beauty. In terms of activities, the hotel provides thrice weekly entertainment. On Tuesdays, guests will take a mini bus and partake in learning to cook succulent fish dishes with our Michelin starred chef, Enrique. The class will take place in a beautiful valley deep in the Cretan hills, where guests will be treated to an intimate piano performance by our in-house concert pianist, Pedro. On Wednesdays, a select number of guests will be fortunate enough to explore the mountains by helicopter, before being transported to a tropical Cretan garden by shuttle bus. Finally, on Thursdays after a fancy dinner, we provide a spectacular fireworks display, which guests can view from the comfort of a cable car. Mr. Schiffer: Oh wow, that all sounds absolutely wonderful! I shall book the room now, and then I need to look at flights so as not to become extortionate. Would you like to take my details now or later? Narrator: Section 2. Woman: Hi folks, my name is Loretta Johnston, and I'm here from the Baltimore Department of Public Waste. Woman: Thank you for coming out to our community meeting tonight. Woman: I’ve got a few words to say about the waste collection here in Baltimore. Woman: First there's the sorted collection bins themselves. Woman: They're made of sturdy, solid material so none of your trash can seep out, or puncture the bin. Woman: Also, since these things sit out on the curb overnight rain or shine, they have to be waterproof. Woman: We can't have water getting up in it and filling up the bin. Woman: Remember to pay attention to which bin is which, and sort your waste accordingly. Woman: You should have a blue or green bin for recyclable garbage, a yellow bin for unrecyclable garbage, and a red bin for toxic waste. Woman: Our city-wide waste management is divided into two services. Woman: The first is commercial waste collection, or trash collection from buildings. Woman: The majority of building waste is paper, which goes in the blue or green bins. Woman: You'll notice in your office buildings there are signs that warn you not to overfill these bins. Woman: All that paper adds up, and an overflowing bin is infinitely harder for collectors to carry to the truck and empty. Woman: Aside from paper, another large source of building waste is metals. Woman: Metals such as tin and aluminum can be put in the yellow recycle bins, but metals like lead and copper should be disposed of in the red bins. Woman: These heavy metals are harmful to the environment and exacerbate our city's existing pollution problem. Woman: That's about all the information you need for building waste. Woman: Moving on to the second service, household waste collection is probably what you primarily think of when you think of what we do here. Woman: Many of the same guidelines apply—the sorting is the same, etcetera. Woman: Please remember to keep garbage like kitchen waste in a plastic bag. Woman: It makes collection easier and lessens the abominable rotten-trash smell. Woman: So after we take your trash away, what happens to it? Woman: We take all the garbage to one of a number of garbage disposal plants, each of which is located in the middle of an open space of some sort. Woman: No one wants to have their home or office right next door to a waste disposal plant, right? Woman: Waste is collected and then disposed of once every four weeks. Woman: A lot of trash can build up in that time, so we're in the process of developing a plan to fund collection more frequently. Woman: Ideally it would be collected weekly, but we will likely have to settle for biweekly. Woman: The garbage trucks make their rounds to clear the bins at night in order to avoid traffic. Woman: I'm sure you've seen how much waste your own household produces in a given week. Woman: Now imagine all the trash produced by all the households in Baltimore. Woman: It's a lot, right? Woman: It may surprise you that this amount is only marginal compared to commercial waste. Woman: Yep, the main waste producers are actually businesses, industrial facilities, retail, and offices. Woman: Hard to believe humans produce that much waste, right? Woman: No wonder we have pollution problems! Woman: Anyway, after all incoming waste is sorted, recyclables are sent to a recycling plant while garbage and toxic waste are transported to their respective areas of the plant for treatment. Woman: Items such as stones, which should not be disposed of in our bins, are separated out and discarded. Woman: Once the trash has undergone the treatment process, it is compacted and disposed of with all the other trash and finally, when the landfill space is full, it is buried deep underground and in time something new is built on the land. Woman: That's everything about waste collection, thank you for listening. Woman: Are there any questions? Narrator: Section 3. Tutor: Before we start, Jimmy and Kathy, thanks for coming in today to talk about your current research paper! Tutor: Well, I will also give you later. Jimmy: That's great! Tutor: Okay, I have read the introductory chapter, and so far I like where you're going with your research, you two. Kathy: Thanks! What did you think of the procedure section? Tutor: I haven't gotten there yet. I will get to that and the results and discussion section in a bit. Jimmy: Oh. If you haven't read the rest, are you just saying you like the introduction? Tutor: No, the layout is really well done. You have each section clearly marked and have the header and footer perfectly formatted, and your title page is right on the money. A lot of students have trouble with that one. Jimmy: To be honest, we did refer a lot to the example we received in class. Tutor: That's good to do for spacing and layout, as long as you're not also copying the information. The background information is a little sparse, though. You may want to add to it. Kathy: You think so? I was more worried about whether I had enough data. Tutor: You definitely need more background information. I would think about finding some more online articles or doing more research in the campus library. Jimmy: That's a good idea - we can go tomorrow. I find it too tough finding the subject matter in the online journal database. Tutor: I also like being able to flip through the physical journal as opposed to trying to scroll down on a computer. Kathy: Me too. Oh, I almost forgot. I've included all of my citations in the abstract, but could you help me with the bibliography? I should be using a bibliography, right? Not an appendix? Tutor: Sure, I can help with that. Yes, for this type of scientific research paper, list all sources that you cite in the body of your paper in a bibliography. Go to the website I gave you last time to see the exact way to list each source. Kathy: Okay, thanks. I'll do that. We still have a lot of things to fix up. Jimmy: Yeah, but there's a lot of good stuff here to work with. So enough about the paper, how is the presentation going? Kathy: Well, it's alright. I am going to go try out the new presentation software while Jimmy's working on the bibliography. Jimmy: Yeah, we are hoping to make an animation of an actual pump but still have a lot to learn about how to do that. Kathy: Who would have thought before we started this project that we would be able to recreate the motion of a pump? This stuff is just so interesting. Tutor: So glad to hear it! Jimmy: Yeah, I am glad I took engineering this semester. I would definitely like to keep up with it. Tutor: You know, there's an organization called the Machine Engineer Society. You should look into joining it. You would need to score well in your engineering class to qualify; but I think you can do it. Kathy: Hm, interesting. I will definitely check it out. I would really like to get in contact with some professionals in the engineering field to find out more. I don't really know anyone in the field now, though. Jimmy: I think if you keep meeting people in your classes and professors you'll be able to get in contact with some really helpful people. Tutor: Well said, Jimmy. If engineering pumps is something you both are specifically interested in, make sure you stay up to date on new developments. In fact, you could visit the local water treatment facility periodically to see what new developments are going on. Kathy: Hm, that may be a good way to get some practical experience. Tutor: Well, I don't think they would let you handle any equipment by just visiting the facility. If you really want to get your hands dirty, so to speak, I would recommend instead seeking a summer internship. Kathy: Wow, you have so many helpful suggestions for getting a leg up. Now if only you could tell me how to get my work published! Jimmy: Haha, wouldn't that be nice. Tutor: Well, honestly, all you really need to do is once you have a dissertation, present it. Present it often and to many audiences, and once you get feedback, adjust it. You'll get published one day. Kathy: Wow, this meeting has been truly inspiring. Thanks for your help! Narrator: Section 4. Lecturer: Good afternoon, and welcome to Insect Biology 101. I'd like to begin this course with a few remarks about good insects and bad ones. Lecturer: Bugs are all around us and that's both a benefit and an annoyance—sometimes maybe even serious harm. Lecturer: First let's talk about the good things that insects do for us. Lecturer: Probably the most important insect for humans, and maybe for all other life, is the bee. Lecturer: Bees help plants in the process of pollination, and thus are necessary to most flowers and fruit-producing trees. Lecturer: That is, they carry pollen from 'male' flowers to 'female.' If it weren't for bees, we'd have very few food plants and no fruit either. Lecturer: In fact, there would be no 'we.' No less a thinker than Albert Einstein pointed out that, without bees, humanity would be dead within a year or less. We'd starve. It's that simple. That should maybe make us just a little humble. Lecturer: A little less dramatic is the fact that bees also make the honey we eat. Lecturer: Moreover, they produce beewax, which is useful in candles and it's also used as a first-rate furniture polish. Lecturer: Sure, these may not be vital to our lives, but they can serve as reminders of how important bees are. Lecturer: That's a point I keep coming back to in this course. Though, in all fairness, I should point out that butterflies aid in pollination as well as bees. Lecturer: Now, here in Michigan, what's the worst part of summer? Yep, that's right—mosquitoes. But I'm talking about helpful insects, right? So let's look at the dragonfly first. Lecturer: If there were no dragonflies, there would be even more mosquitoes! Dragonflies mainly eat mosquitoes and also a few other insects. Lecturer: Yes, that's right. They don't just fly around, they also help to eliminate harmful insects. So, the next time you see a dragonfly, don't you dare kill it! Lecturer: Now let's talk a little about those harmful insects. Take the mosquitoes I just mentioned as an example. Lecturer: Not so many years ago, mosquitoes here in America weren't just annoying. Some were even deadly. They carried malaria and yellow fever. Lecturer: My own ancestor, the Confederate General John Bell Hood, lived through the worst battles of Civil War, only to die at age thirty-eight from yellow fever. A pest, not a bullet! Lecturer: But there's worse. In the first British colony, Virginia, seventy percent of the people coming to America died within the first seven years! Things were so bad that the English had to start bringing in slaves from Africa. In general the Africans were immune to malaria and lived longer. And the effects of slavery are still with us. American slavery: that's an awfully big evil due to one little insect! Lecturer: Other insects, of course, destroy food crops. In China, for instance, locusts continue to be a danger to the harvest in some areas. Lecturer: Less important, but still annoying, moths eat people's clothes and dust mites slowly destroy carpets. Lecturer: Worse, but still in the home, termites or 'white ants' eat wood: the wood of your house. If they are not stopped, they can eventually destroy the whole building. Usually they seriously damage a building before anyone even notices them. Lecturer: So, as we all know, insects can be a real trouble. Lecturer: So, what to do? You can go ahead and start killing harmful insects. In the early decades after the Communist Revolution in China, Chairman Mao encouraged the people to swat every fly they could see. Slogans on the walls of buildings called them 'Little capitalists.' But flies reproduce too quickly for this to be a long-term solution. Lecturer: For some decades in the West, to kill insects with chemicals seemed a good remedy. Unfortunately, chemicals can only be used in a limited area for a limited time. It's a small scale solution. The insects come back. Lecturer: Worse still, some of the poisons used like DDT were found harmful to the environment. Many kinds of wildlife, like hawks, were harmed. And people in chemical-using rural areas have one of the highest rates of liver cancer in the world. It's no secret that the chemicals remain harmful to humans. Lecturer: Like all species, insects adapt to their changing environments at an amazing rate. When a new chemical is introduced to their habitat, the insects that survive are generally the ones with some way of resisting the harmful effects. They then breed with the other survivors, and just like that insects become resistant to most poison in a few generations. An insect generation, remember, is a couple of months at most! Lecturer: So, again we have to ask: what to do? Well, there are biological solutions. Lecturer: Some of these are pretty simple. One is destroying the insects' habitat. You take away their home or food. Cleaning your kitchen is the best way to prevent roaches. No garbage: no food. Getting rid of marshes and swamps eliminates mosquitoes. Lecturer: Other solutions might include bringing in dragonflies or bats in areas where mosquitoes are many. This is a cheaper alternative to chemicals. Biological methods like this also bring no extra pollution to the environment. But you have to be careful. If you change the environment too much, you might be hurting other forms of life accidentally. Lecturer: One recent method of controlling insect populations involves interrupting their breeding cycle. What does that mean? It means 'birth control for bugs.' Lecturer: Insects are provided with food that makes them unable to reproduce. Since they can't have babies, the population disappears, or nearly so. And since no young are born, resistance is not a problem with no young insects developing increased resistance. Interrupt the life-cycle, eliminate the bug! Lecturer: It's clear that we must have an understanding of the life cycle of the insect. At least that's the plan. We'll go into more details as this course goes along. Now I will stop here to see whether you have any questions or not.