10.1 Выполните письменный перевод текстов (a, b, c).

A WORLD TRADE CENTRE (WTC)

The WTC was designed by Minoru Yamasaki and constructed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey as headquarters for the development of international business. Construction began in 1966 and was dedicated in April 1973.

The WT. is located on a 16 acre area and includes six buildings: two 110-story towers (One World Trade Centre and Two World Trade Centre) and four low-rise buildings all surrounding a five acre landscaped plaza.

Each of the towers is 1350 feet high, 209 feet square and contains 110 stories. Each floor is equivalent to about 1 acre in size.

Located atop the towers are TV and radio transmitters that serve the business and entertainment needs.

The 107^th floor of the One WTC houses a restaurant whereas the 107^th floor of two WTC houses the Observation Deck with floor-to-ceiling windows facing in every direction and affording a 55-mile view.

Your eye reaches as far as New York midtown with the famous skyscrapers, the New York harbour, the mighty Hudson, the Statue of Liberty and the eternal Brooklyn Bridge.

By day, the panorama is a real life-drama played out before your eyes. By night, it sparkles with its own jewellery of lights and stars.

Wind and weather permitting you can reach even greater heights. Take the escalator up from the Deck to the Rooftop Promenade above the 110^th floor. You’ll be standing on the world’s highest outdoor observation platform.

The Deck is open daily from 9.30 a. m. to 9.30 p. m. from October through May, and 9.30 a. m. to 11.30 p. m. from June through September, for more information call (212) 435-7377.

B THE ORIGIN OF THE MOON

For thousands of years people have seen the Moon above them and probably wondered what its nature and origin were. So far these questions remain unanswered although many of the Moon’s mysteries have been unravelled. Of all the hypotheses of the Moon’s origin there seem to be three most likely.

According to the «fission» or «escape» theory, the Moon is a «daughter» of the earth. This theory suggests that a single large planet formed where the earth is now; and as it cooled, it began to spin so rapidly that it flattened into a disk-shape, then into a sausage-shape, and finally split into two parts. The larger part became the earth, and the smaller part was flung out into orbit to become the moon.

The «capture» theory views the moon as a «girl-friend» of the earth. The moon formed separately in another part of the solar system, possibly in the asteroid belt, or perhaps outside the solar system entirely. Some time after it was formed, it passed close enough to the earth to be captured by the earth’s gravity and held in orbit around it. This theory doesn’t explain how the moon formed; it just explains how it got to where it is now.

The «double planet» theory suggests that the earth and moon condensed into separate bodies as the solar system was forming. The moon is thus a «sister» of the earth; both bodies formed close together, and they remained close together ever since.

None of the three theories was particularly convincing, the explanations being uncertain and unlikely.

By 1957, when the Space Age was inaugurated with the launching of the Russian satellite Sputnik 1, theories about the moon had reached the limit imposed by earthbound observations. Any further advances in lunar study would require something new in the history of science: a massive, all-out effort to study the moon at close range, to put instruments on its surface, and to bring its rocks back to earth for analysis, that is direct exploration of the moon’s surface and depths.

In 1959 such investigations were begun with the moon flight of the Russian automatic probe Luna 2. One of the most important results of the flight was that it proved the absence of a magnetic field on the moon. Consequently it at once became clear that a cosmonaut could not use a compass on the moon’s surface.

Since that time dozens of space probes have reached the moon and near moon space, relaying a mass of important information about our natural satellite. Rock specimens have been studied, delivered by Russian Luna automatic probes and the American Apollo expedition.

C «WHITE COSMOS»

Members of Russian Antarctic expedition carried out large-scale plans from seven stations of the icy continent. The 30^th Antarctic expedition included scientists who were engaged in special medical research, the purpose of which was to get a better understanding of man’s adaptation to an environment with extreme conditions.

This is a highly complicated psycho-physiological process, which is affected by two main groups of factors, – climatic and social. At the Vostok intercontinental station a maximum of cold – minus 89,2С – was registered. But the influence of climate on man is determined not only by temperature. There is such an indicator as coefficient of weather severity which takes into account temperature, wind velocity and humidity.

On the coast of the Antarctic, frosts are not so severe as in the depths of the continent. But because of hurricane winds (their velocity reaches 60 or more meters per second) the coefficient of weather severity is very high.

On high ground to climatic factors one has to add hypoxia – shortage of oxygen – because of lowered atmospheric pressure. Long periods of polar day and, especially, polar night have a considerable affect on a person’s psychological state.

Things are much more complicated as regards the system of human relations, which is under strong pressure from subjective factors. Moreover, the pressure is the stronger, the smaller is the isolated group. Conditions in winter in the Antarctic can be likened to a long-term space flight. Therefore expedition members are also carefully selected according to the criterion of psychological compatibility.

The Antarctic, the earth’s giant fridge, may be called «white cosmos»: its environment is sterile. In normal conditions, especially in big cities, the human organism is constantly under attack by viruses and other patho-genes. The continuous defense against invasion by infections leads to a corresponding immunity. But in the sterile environment of the Antarctic the organism’s resistance lowers which results in an untypical flow of diseases, especially at the end of the winter. It takes a longer time for wounds to heal and for fractures to knit.

Hypoxia at a high altitude also affects the flow of diseases and postoperation treatment. For instance, in the conditions of hypoxia pneumonia can be effectively treated only with a supply of oxygen.

And yet these difficulties and dangers detract little from the desire of scientists to visit the white continent. Many people go there over and over again. In 1985 Dmitry Maksutov who headed the 30^th expedition went to the Antarctic for the sixth time and he was then 60 years old.

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