SIMON: Hello, this is Simon Marshall. I spoke to you the other day about renting flat 3A.
OWNER: Oh yes, hello Simon. What can I do for you?
SIMON: Well, there are a few health and safety things I'd like to run through if that's OK.
OWNER: Yes, fine.
SIMON: Right, well the first thing, bearing in mind it's quite an old house, is whether there's any damp. I'm thinking here of the exterior walls, and the floor.
OWNER: Well, I've never known any problems with damp there. It was all right last time I checked, certainly – though that was before the recent wet weather. I'd better have another look and get back to you on that.
SIMON: OK. Now the next thing is the gas supply. Do you have a safety certificate? A current one that is.
OWNER: We do. All the gas appliances have been checked by a registered engineer.
SIMON: Yes, I was going to ask about that. When did they actually do the inspection?
OWNER: Let me think ... they sent an engineer to check something early last year, but, no, that wasn't the inspection ... Oh I remember now, it was in the Spring. In fact I've got the certificate here somewhere ... yes, that's it: March 22nd, so it's just over five months ago.
SIMON: And the electricity. When was the last time all the wiring was inspected? I know it doesn't have to be checked as often as the gas, but it's still important, especially in older properties.
OWNER: As it happens we had an electrician in when we redecorated flat 3A. If he looked at everything then, he would have charged us for it. I'll find the bill and check it if you like.
SIMON: Fine. And when was that?
OWNER: Er ... the decorators finished just before Easter, so that would be about eighteen months ago.
SIMON: Just one more point on the electrics: are there enough plug sockets in the flat?
OWNER: It depends what you mean by 'enough' really.
SIMON: Well I've got quite a lot of electrical things – computer, radio, lamps, kitchen appliances and so on – and I'm wondering whether I could plug them all in without having cables trailing all over the place.
OWNER: I think there's one per room: that's fairly normal in older properties.
SIMON: I'll take that as a 'no' then!
OWNER: All Right.
SIMON: Now, another safety point: is there a smoke alarm?
OWNER: Yes, there's one in the kitchen.
SIMON: And is it in good working order?
OWNER: I'll have to try it out, and let you know.
SIMON: Right. Now you mentioned the previous tenants: do they, or anyone else who's lived in the flat, still have keys to the door?
OWNER: We're very strict about that. Everyone has to hand back the keys when they leave, or we don't return the deposit. And those in 3A have always done so.
SIMON: OK. Now there are a few other practical details. Firstly, you mentioned a room where people can leave things like suitcases and bags and things. Where exactly is that? Is it next to 3A, which I take it is on the third floor?
OWNER: Well the apartment's on the third, yes, but the storeroom's a little way away, just past the second door to the right. Under the stairs, in fact.
SIMON: But it's on the same floor, isn't it?
OWNER: Yes, it is.
SIMON: Fine. Now another thing I wanted to check is that there's hot water in the apartment.
OWNER: Oh yes, it runs off the central heating – that was installed back in the 70s I think – so there's a permanent supply.
SIMON: But is it really hot? Not just warm, or lukewarm.
OWNER: I suppose it depends what you mean by hot, but it's at a constant 60 degrees.
SIMON: That sounds fine.
OWNER: Yes, it used to be set at 55, but last year the tenants asked us to increase it, so we did.
SIMON: I'm glad about that! OK, now can you tell me a bit about the yard, and the garden? How big are they?
OWNER: Well the yard, at the side of the house, is about 20 square metres.
SIMON: Oh, so there's room for my motorbike, then. Actually it's only a 50 cc moped, but I like to keep it off the road at night.
OWNER: Yes, there's more than enough space there, even with all the wheelie bins.
SIMON: And the garden?
OWNER: That's much bigger. About 150 square metres.
SIMON: Who looks after it, by the way?
OWNER: Old Mr Collins. He's almost 90 but he's out there every day.
SIMON: And the last point: the TV. What size screen is it?
OWNER: It's 70 centimetres wide, I think. No, sorry, that was the old one. This one's 80. You can get ninety-odd channels on it, so I'm told.
SIMON: Really? So there's a satellite dish on the roof, is there?
OWNER: No, it's cable TV here. It doesn't cost much between everyone, though.
SIMON: That's very interesting. OK, thanks for your help. I'll be in touch again soon.
OWNER: Thank you. Bye for now.
SIMON: Bye.
COUNSELLOR: Loneliness is something we all suffer from in varying degrees, but young people living on their own can be particularly vulnerable. Many who leave the family home find they are less confident and have more difficulty in finding their feet than they expected. Often, going to work or study in another town or city will be the first time they have lived away from home. Although this may sound like an adventure for those dying to get away from the glare of the parental eye, for others it is a daunting prospect which generates apprehension, uncertainty, and even fear. In fact, in a recent survey of over sixteen hundred people who had recently left home, 32% said that understanding and coping with loneliness was a crucial issue for them and made them feel highly stressed and distracted. An annual report by researchers last year recorded a noticeable increase in the number of individuals with homesickness, transition, and isolation issues. Acknowledging that feelings of loneliness and isolation could impede progress at work or study, they examined the number of people using the welfare and health services. They found that young people in particular were prone to difficulties. Last year 61% of all people using counselling services were aged under 30 and of this group, 57% were men.
Leaving home involves a major change in lifestyle, work patterns and degree of independence. You will be away from home, family and friends and are no longer supported by familiar surroundings. For this reason, in the first year a lot of young people suffer from loneliness. Ironically, this sense of isolation comes at a time when you are likely to be surrounded by people most of the time. Living in a busy city, travelling on crowded buses and trains, you will be constantly among people, but this can sometimes compound your sense of being alone. Seeing others who appear at ease among large crowds, mingling and making friends, can make you feel excluded and inadequate. Adapting to a new environment makes people uncertain of what to do or how to behave and breeds insecurities which can make for a real sense of isolation. It is often those who are more used to being on their own who deal best with the transitional period of leaving home. Other reasons for feeling alone include high expectations of the big city where you have 'the best time of your life' and meet 'lifelong friends'. It may be the first time you have had to make new friends since you started primary school and perhaps you are reluctant or finding it hard to replace old friends whom you miss. There are also pressures to juggle work and socializing which may leave you feeling left out, or it could be that you have a long distance relationship and feel torn between your new lifestyle and that special person who lives so far away. Because loneliness can leave you with a sense of low self-esteem where you become self-conscious and feel you have been rejected, it is very difficult to overcome. You may be reluctant to even try and make new friends or take part in social activities, and will also find it difficult to say 'no' to things, leaving you feeling exploited and weak. One of the ways of combating loneliness is to remember that it's not your fault, and that it's something everyone has to deal with, despite appearances. Counsellors advise those feeling lonely to speak to someone they know about their feelings. They also ask them to consider joining groups and societies and to get involved in activities which interest them as a way of meeting more people. Of course, overdoing it and jamming your schedule with too many things just to avoid being alone will not work, but meeting others with common interests may be a step forward. If you still feel like you need someone to talk to, you could try group counselling where you will be able to talk to and receive support from a small number of people with the same difficulties as you. For more information, or to be put in touch with an individual counsellor, contact the local town hall's support services.
KATY: Hi, I'm Katy Shaw and I work at the University Language Centre. Your tutor tells me you might be interested in using the Centre, so I'm here at the College to explain a bit about it and of course to answer your questions.
PAULA: Where exactly is the Centre? Is it near the College?
KATY: It's actually on King's Road: just round the corner from here, in fact.
JEFF: Oh I know it, yes. I wondered what that building was.
STEVE: Yes, what's there?
KATY: Well, the library has about 4000 books, pamphlets and transcripts to go with some of the 12,500 items on audio or video cassettes. These are at a wide range of levels of difficulty, covering language learning material in over 100 languages. There are also reference books without tapes including dictionaries, grammars, grammar workbooks, vocabulary workbooks and model letters, as well as texts on academic writing and effective study habits, etc. Audio cassette workrooms are on the first floor, by the way.
STEVE: Do they get any foreign-language press there, too?
KATY: Yes, the library subscribes to a number of European daily and weekly newspapers including Le Monde from France, L'Espresso from Italy and the weekly international edition of the Spanish paper El País.
JEFF: What about learning with computers? Can you do that there?
KATY: CALL, or Computer Aided Language Learning, is available on the first floor.
JEFF: How many PC's are there?
KATY: Counting both Macintosh and PC platforms, there are nine at present. There are materials in over fifteen different languages, and new material and language categories are being added as library funds permit. The programs cover verb drills, grammar exercises, activities to accompany multi-media textbooks, pronunciation, translation and some multi-media applications. The same hardware permits access to the Internet with its many language learning and discussion sites.
PAULA: What about TV? That's a good way of learning a language too.
KATY: Yes, definitely. We agree. So on the second floor of the Centre there are televisions to view live satellite television broadcasts in seven languages.
PAULA: Which ones are they?
KATY: Currently, we've got Arabic, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Russian. Turkish broadcasting can be viewed live on request. The Centre records the news in French, German, Arabic, Italian, Japanese, Spanish and Russian. And English, too.
PAULA: Sounds great. How do we sign up?
KATY: To avoid paying a fee, you need to go to the Centre with a valid University ID card, or a letter from your College or Departmental Administrator on headed paper indicating your status, length of stay and language requirements.
STEVE: Are there any forms to fill in?
KATY: I'm afraid so! You do that at the ground floor Reception Desk. Your registration is for one academic year only and needs to be renewed annually. You should tell the librarian who you are on your first visit, and you will need to take part in an induction to the library service, including the proper operation of the Centre's computers, televisions, videos and so on.
PAULA: Can she help us choose the right materials, too?
KATY: Yes! The librarian can give advice and assistance in locating material, making best use of the texts and tapes, and so on. Let her know which language you want to study and what – if any – knowledge of it you already have. Also say what reasons you have for learning the language. Your answers will help the librarian help you make the best choice of books and tapes for your needs. She can also offer you advice on how much time is needed to make progress in the language, and can offer suggestions on how to improve your language learning techniques.
JEFF: Can she copy tapes for us to take home? Or can we borrow them?
KATY: The library is a resource centre and reference library only. You can do as much self-study listening and reading work there as you want, but it's not possible to take home materials, that's to say books or cassettes. And copyright law doesn't permit the library or its staff to make copies of cassettes for use by students outside the Centre. All material must be used on the premises, I'm afraid. This ensures that materials are always available for students working on their own and not out on loan for long periods, which could harm users' progress.
STEVE: So if we can't take books home, is it OK to photocopy them?
KATY: The library staff will handle any photocopying, though international copyright law prohibits users from copying more than 5% of any one title in the academic year. You place a photocopy order with the librarian or an assistant and orders will be processed between one and two o'clock, or after five thirty.
PAULA: How much does it cost?
KATY: Ten pence per page. Payment is by photocopy card, which you can buy from the Information Desk on the ground floor....
LECTURER: I think you all have a copy of the printed notes and diagram ... but I should point out before we go any further that there are a few mistakes in those notes, so please correct any you notice as we go along. Right, as you can see, we are going to be looking at the zip, or zipper as it's known in the US, which is where it had its origins in 1851. In fact, it was initially given the rather less catchy name of the Automatic Continuous Clothing Closure by the person that invented it: Elias Howe, who also designed the first sewing machine. It wasn't until 1893, though, that someone actually tried to market the zip, when Whitcomb Judson, another American inventor, took what he called the Clasp Locker to the World's Fair held that year in the US. His hook and eye system was a commercial disaster, and it was another fifteen years before the buying public began to take an interest: this time a more reliable model with facing sets of teeth named the Hookless Fastener, designed by a Swedish engineer called Gideon Sundback. Attached to clothing, purses and other items, it sold quite well. Gradually this new alternative to buttons caught on, as people realized the advantages of a fastener that only needed one hand to operate, that children could use, that left no visible gaps, and so on. The British firm Kynoch began producing and selling the Ready Fastener in large numbers in 1919, and a few years later the Zipper, designed and given its modern American name by BF Goodrich, made Mr Goodrich extremely rich indeed.
If its use in trousers was a major factor in establishing the zip as a fashion icon, despite its occasional tendency to trap parts of the wearer's anatomy, another major breakthrough came with the separable zip: the kind that opens at both ends. This type, still widely used in a range of items from jackets to tents, is shown in the diagram. Let's look first at the right-hand side of the illustration, at the material attached to the item of clothing, the bag or whatever. This is the tape, which is usually made of fairly tough fabric. At the end of that there's what is known as the heat seal patch: the cotton and nylon laminated material used to reinforce the tape. Now alongside the heat seal patch is a small piece of metal, used only on a separating zip, whose function is to enable the two halves of the zip to join. This is known as the 'pin'. Opposite that, on the other half of the zip in the diagram, is a device which correctly aligns the pin. The 'box', as it's called, begins the joining of the zip halves. Running up the inside edge of each half are dozens, possibly hundreds, of metal 'teeth', each of which has a small hook and an equally tiny hollow. Moving up and down the teeth, to open and close the zip, is a piece of metal called the slider. This is operated by means of a 'pull tab', so called because, logically enough, the wearer or user pulls it in one direction or the other. To close the zip, a wedge inside the slider pushes the hook of each tooth on one side into the hollow of each offset tooth on the other; to open it, the wedge forces them apart. To prevent the slider coming off the teeth at the other end, there is a 'top stop' on both sides of the zip. This basic design has changed little in the many years since it was first introduced, although nowadays, of course, zips – zippers – are available in a whole range of shapes, sizes and materials.