Inside Listening and Speaking 2

Midterm Assessment

AUDIO SCRIPT

[Passage 1 – M1: Male Interviewer; M2: Male Interviewee]

M1: Good morning, listeners. I’m Kurt Sanders. Welcome to Science Matters. Today,
I’m speaking with Dr. Roger Clemens, a meteorologist and author of The Danger
from Above. Welcome to the program, Dr. Clemens.

M2: Thanks for having me, Kurt.

M1: First, what exactly is the danger from above?

M2: Asteroids and meteors, Kurt. Scientists estimate that hundreds of Near-Earth
Objects, or NEOs, come into contact with the Earth each year. About 99% of these
NEOs disintegrate, or burn up, in the Earth’s atmosphere. Some are large enough to
cause damage, though. These are very scary. For example, a meteor exploded over
southern Russia in 2013. That meteor injured about 1,500 people, damaged
thousands of buildings and so on. That event reminded us just how dangerous these
objects can be.

M1: And they have certainly caused a lot of damage in the past, haven’t they, Dr.
Clemens?

M2: They certainly have, Kurt. There have been several major impacts throughout
history. For example, in 1490 several thousand people were killed by asteroids
overhead in Ch’ing-yang. Ch’ing-yang is a city in China.

M1: How would we defend ourselves against a future collision, Dr. Clemens? Could
we destroy an asteroid before it hit us?

M2: Well, we might not be able to destroy a large asteroid, Kurt. Scientists are
worried that the asteroid might just break apart. Then a piece of the asteroid could
hit the Earth, resulting in widespread damage. We could try to alter the area near an
asteroid though. The energy produced by doing this might deflect it, you know, push
it off course. NASA has been doing research into this type of method.

M1: I like that idea. Are there any other options on the table, Dr. Clemens?

M2: Well, scientists have outlined a plan to construct a sun-powered laser. The laser
would be powerful enough to disintegrate and completely destroy an asteroid. This
would obviously be a complex operation. In addition, scientists are considering a
strategy that involves using a spacecraft to pull the asteroid in a different direction.

M1: Are there any asteroids we know about that could pose a threat in the future?

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Inside Listening and Speaking 2
Midterm Assessment

M2: Well, scientists have detected an 885-foot-wide asteroid called Apophis that
comes uncomfortably close to Earth every now and then. Some scientists believe
there is a small possibility that Apophis could collide with Earth in the 2030s. So we
must keep watching this asteroid. Right now, a powerful telescope is in the
preliminary stages of construction in northern Chile. It’s called the Large Synoptic
Survey Telescope, or LSST. When the telescope is completed around 2022, it will
photograph the sky every few nights and give us a much better picture of what’s
going on out there in space. Of course, the chance of an impact occurring in the next
century is about 1 percent.

M1: Hm, very interesting. Unfortunately, that’s all we have time for today. Thanks
for joining us, Dr. Clemens.

M2: It’s been my pleasure, Kurt.

[Passage 2 – F1: Female Professor; M1: Male Student; F2: Female Student]

F1: So, I hope everyone has done their homework and prepared a business plan for
today. Who wants to start? No volunteers? Sanjay, how about you?

M1: Sure, Dr. Brady. I propose starting a company that caters to overseas students
on our campus. The company would prepare and deliver authentic cuisine at an
affordable price.

F1: Catering. Hm, you don’t think there are enough restaurants in our community?

M1: No, I don’t. I mean, there are plenty of restaurants, but the food is mostly not
authentic. For example, my preliminary research revealed that most Chinese
students don’t eat at local Chinese restaurants because they don’t like the food. It’s
not like the food they’re used to at home, and that’s a problem. The students are
reluctant to eat out because they can’t find any food they like, plus restaurants are
expensive. And if students don’t eat well, they become unhealthy and depressed.
After all, there’s no substitute for a home-cooked meal.

F1: What about other nationalities, or would you just focus on Chinese food?

M1: No, I’d also focus on other cuisines—for example, Thai, Japanese, and Indian.
There’s been a 25% increase in international enrollments in the past five years, so
it’s a growing market.

F1: I see. What do others think of this idea? Maya?

F2: I’m not sure about this idea. It might be difficult to cater to so many different
nationalities. Who would cook all this food?

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Inside Listening and Speaking 2
Midterm Assessment

M1: I thought of that. Many students are looking for part-time work. Some of them
are here to learn English. It’s hard for them to find jobs. I would employ those
students.

F2: But you don’t speak Mandarin or Thai. You’d need to be able to communicate
with your staff.

M1: Yes, that’s true. Well, of course, they’d need to speak some English in that case.

F2: And you couldn’t just hire random students to cook these authentic meals. It
takes years to become a professional chef.

M1: To some extent, you are right. But many students here are excellent cooks. Last
week, my math class had a potluck lunch. Students prepared food from their culture.
Some of the dishes were absolutely amazing and much better than most restaurant
food. Also, I wouldn’t have to pay students as much as professional chefs, so that
would keep labor costs down.

F1: What about the location? And what about the cost of establishing the business?

M1: I’d rent a place on Pleasant Road. There are several abandoned buildings on
that street.

F2: It would cost a lot of money to fix up one of those buildings and install a fully
equipped kitchen.

F1: That’s a good point, Maya. You’d need investors, Sanjay.

M1: Yeah, I thought of that. I’d establish a crowd-funding account. I have a large
network of friends from various countries who really like my idea. Also, I’m sure
many of the students’ parents would be interested in funding the business.

F1: Okay, so you’ve done a customer analysis and you have an investment strategy.
What about your marketing and operations plans?

M1: I’d use social media as a marketing tool, of course. The main financial output is
establishing the kitchen, creating and maintaining a website, and building an app. I
would keep the company structure simple. I would run the business, hire someone
to coordinate orders and deliveries, three part-time cooks, and two on-call
deliverers.

F1: Very good, Sanjay. Now let’s move on to someone else’s business plan. Judy?

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