Expert on Cambridge IELTS 09 Academic Listening Test 1 (Online Test)

It's nice to see so many of you here. Before letting you roam about on your own, I'm going to give you a brief account about Wonderland - our facilities and activities, and the exhibitions we have coming up. I won't keep you long, OK? For most of what we have to offer here, you can just turn up with your party. There are a couple of activities which we ask you to book a week in advance. We only have artists that you can watch sculpturing at certain times, so we need notice of your coming for that. Another activity requiring at least 7 days' notice is the dance workshop - again, it's a question of organising the staff at this end. But the video, you work yourself, so that's available any time. Another activity which you take part in is the "stars fireworks" experience, but that's a question of the weather, which of course we can't control. Speaking of weather, we run a reduced range of facilities in the winter months. The cafe and the shop provide welcome shelter from the cold and rain. I'm afraid "jungle puppet carnival" doesn't run in the winter, so the fantasyland is closed then. And exotic plants in the green house are kept indoors for warmth during the cold months, so that doesn't operate either. The adventure playground does though. Make sure the children are wrapped up well.

OK, now we run a programme of exhibitions through a year, so I'll tell you about the next few. Our current exhibition, Local Lives, ends on 26th of August, and then one called Art of Animation starts on 28th of September. This includes all the important basics of creating animations that dazzle and entertain. We're sure you will love the chance to enliven your design. Next, we're running an exhibition called "Dreamy Chocolate Plant", and that will open on 18th of October. There will be pictures and videos depicting chocolate-making process. And there's a chocolate corner for everyone to taste the chocolate from Belgium for free. Following on from that exhibition, we're putting on a show called Dazzling Shine. This starts on 12th of December and includes hundreds of diamond design photographs. Q&A and prize draws will accompany the show, with the exciting prize of a trip to Europe or a diamond. So, make sure to go to at least one of the exhibitions.

Now, the area occupied by Wonderland is rather large, so I'll just give you a few pointers to help you orientate yourselves. So, whether you come by car or bicycle, you'll come in from the road. Cars then park to the left, through the gate into the car park, and bikes to the right, through the gate opposite to the car park. Cyclists in particular might be thirsty at this point, and you can get a drink from the Soda Fountain to the north of the bike park, halfway to the museum entrance. You can enjoy your drink in the picnic area, which is opposite the car park. At the far end of the picnic area are the toilets - always good to know where they are.

Now we are standing at the entrance to the main museum. Immediately to our right is the Souvenir Shop, which sells premium gifts including coffee mugs, stuffed animals, T-shirts, postcards, handmade collections and other souvenirs. And to the left, by the entry gate is the Ticket Office. You won't need that because you've got your group booking. OK. I'll pause. Are there any questions at this point? If you'd like to come along, this way please, ladies and gentlemen.

Dr. William: Hello, Joe, Angela.

Angela: Hello.

Joe: Hi.

Dr. William: So, how's the local history project going? Are you making good progress?

Angela: Yes and no.

Dr. William: Oh?

Joe: Well, we anticipated problems of various kinds. None of the group has much experience of collaborating on projects. But we spent some time on discussing how to go about it, and thrashed out what seemed a useful approach, but it seems that Angela and I are the only ones actually following the plan. That's meant that the whole project has been lacking co-ordination and so we've fallen behind our schedule.

Dr. William: I see... that's tricky.

Angela: Yes, it is. We felt that the targets had been defined, so we'd all know what to deal with. But, looking back, we probably should have really specified individual responsibilities. As it is, we only have a loose sense of what should be done by whom.

Dr. William: Well, this is quite a common problem, actually. I take it that you've had enough group meetings, and you're looking for an effective solution. I think you'd better go to the Resource Centre, and you will find the advice service they provide there helpful at this point.

Angela: Thanks, we'll go there later.

Angela: On a specific note, I think we've got carried away with recruiting people to interview at the expense of building up the reference section, which I don't think is going to be solid enough. Do you think that will be a major problem?

Dr. William: Hmm, I'd have to see how much is there to be sure. But, well, you'll have to be pragmatic at this point, I think. What you'd better do is to ensure your methodology is really strong, so at least you can't be faulted on that front. Then, if people challenged your results, at least you would have carefully reported on how you reached them. Do you see what I mean?

Joe/ Angela: Yes.

Dr. William: So...

Angela: Yes, I think one resource that we haven't exploited fully enough is the internet. I've gone through a lot of journals in the closed reserve of the library, but, actually, there are websites where you can call up lists of approaches or data sets really quickly.

Dr. William: I think that's a good idea.

Dr. William: Now, let's think about the field trip, and at least make sure that it goes as well. You're going to Cambridge on the twenty-third?

Angela: The Wednesday, yes.

Dr. William: And on Day one, you'll take the morning flight and then get settled into the hotel.

Angela: Uh-huh.

Dr. William: But you need to get down to work after lunch, of course. Now, I've arranged for you to have a look at some useful visual materials, especially photographs, old magazines and newspapers, which are in an exhibition called "History in Pictures" in Fitzwilliam Museum.

Joe: That sounds like a good starting point.

Angela: I went to the Darwin exhibit at the Fitzwilliam Museum at Cambridge last year. It was absolutely inspiring. It couldn't be better. The staff was very professional and the exhibit was brilliantly presented.

Dr. William: Yes, indeed. There are quite a lot on show, so that'll occupy most of the afternoon. Then the following morning, I want you to go and talk to Christopher Andrew, the history professor of Cambridge University. Of course, don't forget to take a tape recorder with you so that you can replay and recall with perfect clarity what was said later on.

Angela: And make sure to have our questions ready.

Dr. William: Indeed. OK, and the afternoon is free for you to wander around, get the feel of the place, and soak up the atmosphere.

Joe: Do some sightseeing...

Dr. William: As you wish, it's a beautiful city. But it's back to work on Friday morning. Walk around the central area, you know, Trinity Street, Market Square, Great St. Mary's Church. I'm getting maps ready for you from different periods, and your task is to compare those with the make-up of the city today. Make notes on how the city has changed over time, you know, what's grown up, what's gone... that sort of thing.

Angela: That sounds so interesting. I hope the weather's good!

Dr. William: Yes. And in the afternoon I want you to think about producing your own records, follow the format of the ones in the City Library's archives. The history of the castle is an indispensable part of the city's development, so don't forget to take a digital camera with you and get some nice pictures. Try your best to reflect the relation between the buildings and the surroundings.

Joe: We'll do our best! And when will we travel back?

Dr. William: That's up to you. You can either...

You're on a summer picnic, lounging in the sun with your eyes closed after eating your turkey sandwich. Something buzzes by your ear. You lazily swat at the sound and then, ouch! You feel that familiar, aching sting on your cheek. As your face bums red and swells, the last thing on your mind is whether that pesky, no-good insect was a bee or a wasp. But we biologists want to know first-was it a bee that stung your cheek, or was it a wasp? What's the difference between these two droning, stinging creatures?

There are 10,000-20,000 species of bee including many wasp-like and fly-like bees. Most bees are small from 0.8 inches long to 1.6 inches long. Bees and wasps are closely related.

In the preceding scenario, your attacker was most likely a type of wasp. Why? Because wasps are generally more aggressive and likely to stalk public gatherings in search of human food. However, bees are more mild-mannered. They focus on the flowers, not your turkey sandwich.

That's just one way to determine whether the attacker was a bee or a wasp. What other characteristics define these two very similar creatures? More than 25,000 kinds of each insect exist, but there are several relatively simple ways to distinguish between them.

In the following part of the lecture you'll learn how physical characteristics, eating habits and nesting sites distinguish the bee from the wasp. You'll also learn which insect can brag about its slender, tapered waist and which one has to live with flat, hairy legs.

You see, when a bee or a wasp stings you, you're probably not paying attention to the curve of its waist or the shape of its legs. But if you were, you'd notice some key characteristics to help you identify it. While bees have robust, hairy bodies with flat rear legs, wasps' bodies are slender with a narrow waist connecting the thorax and abdomen, as we talked about in the last lecture, the thorax and abdomen are the names given to an insect's mid and rear segments. In addition, wasps appear smooth and shiny and have slender legs shaped like cylinders.

The reason for the different body types leads us into another difference between wasps and bees: feeding. Bees are pollinators, spending much of their lives visiting various plants and flowers to gather and distribute pollen. They also feed nectar and pollen to their young. They are classified as herbivorous insects. Their hairy bodies and flat legs are ideal for holding on to the pollen as they carry it from one area to another.

Wasps, on the other hand, are carnivorous. While adults may occasionally feed on nectar or pollen, they feed insects, flies and even caterpillars to their young. Their bodies are sleeker and more streamlined for hunting.

If you're lucky enough, or unlucky, depending on the situation, to find one of these insects' nests, it will help you in identifying bees and wasps. Bees build their nests out of wax cells that they stack on top of one another. Most honeybee nests are manufactured, but other bees make their homes in tree cavities, buildings or even holes in the ground. A wasp's nest consists of one or more rounded combs made of a papery pulp. The wasp makes this pulp out of chewed-up fibers and its own saliva. Wasps tend to build in hidden, out of the way places, like under decks or in remote crevices.

The final difference between wasps and bees answers that age-old question: do they die after they sting you? Both bees and wasps inject their venom with a stinger attached to their bodies. Wasps and most bees can pump the venom into your skin, remove the stinger and then fly away. They are predators and for most of the time, they sting to prey. The honeybee's stinger, however, is barbed and it sticks in your flesh. When the honeybee tries to fly away, her stinger won't budge. Instead, it rips from her body. Since the stinger is attached to the honeybee's digestive system, she eventually dies from the trauma. So, honeybees only sting out of the need of self-defense.