Part 1
You will hear a woman calling a letting agency about renting accommodation.
Jack: Hello, Stamford Properties, Jack speaking.
Louise: Good morning. My name's Louise. I want to rent a furnished place to live for six months or a year in Stamford. Do you deal with rentals?
Jack: We certainly do.
Louise: If you can tell me about three or four suitable places over the phone, we'll drive over to Stamford and have a look at them.
Jack: Fine. What sort of property are you interested in?
Louise: Preferably a house, though a flat would be okay. And we need two bedrooms. We've got a daughter.
Jack: Right. Let me see... We have a very nice modern house to let with living room, kitchen, and two bedrooms. There's also a large garage with a freezer in it. There's a door from the garage into the house, so you wouldn't need to go outside.
Louise: We all have bikes. Would there be room for them in the garage?
Jack: Yes, plenty.
Louise: And what's the rent?
Jack: It's slightly higher than the average for this type of house, which is about £1,100. This one is £1,200 a month.
Louise: Okay. And what's the address, please?
Jack: It's in Delaware Road, which is spelled D-E-L-A-W-A-R-R. It's a cul-de-sac, so there's very little traffic.
Louise: What part of the town is it in?
Jack: It's on the edge, not far from Stamford College. In fact, you can walk there in five or six minutes.
Louise: Oh, that might be useful for my daughter. She hasn't finished her studies.
Jack: Right. Now, another option is a flat. You said house or flat, didn't you?
Louise: That's right.
Jack: Well, this one is in the basement of a converted house. It's on a hill, so the front is below street level, but the back is at ground level.
Louise: And what's at the back?
Jack: There's a garden that's shared with the people living in the rest of the house. There are three flats in all, each on one floor. This flat doesn't have a garage, but there's unrestricted parking in the street.
Louise: Uh-huh. And the rent?
Jack: That's £900. It's in Hartford Street, which is in the oldest part of the town. It's a residential area, not far from the center.
Louise: Is the flat itself old?
Jack: Yes, it dates back to the mid-19th century, so it's got plenty of character.
Louise: I see.
Jack: Now, another house I can offer you is very different. It was designed a few years ago by an architect for himself and his family, and it's really striking. It's well worth a visit.
Louise: Does it have a garage?
Jack: Yes, and on the first floor there's a balcony overlooking the back garden, which is quite large.
Louise: Is the house large, too?
Jack: Yes, and there are three bedrooms, so your daughter would be able to turn one into a study if she wanted to.
Louise: Actually, that might suit my husband. He's a writer. I suppose the house is very expensive?
Jack: Well, it's £1,350 a month, but it's certainly worth the money. It's in Marsh Lane and is just a couple of minutes' walk from a small area of woodland that's open to the public.
Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 8 to 10.
Louise: Okay. Well, they all sound like possibilities. We'll come over and see them. Would next Wednesday suit you?
Jack: June the 14th? Um, I'm afraid I'll be on leave that day. I could get one of my colleagues to show you round, or we could make it another day.
Louise: How about the 15th instead?
Jack: Yes, I'll be free then. Shall we say 10 o'clock?
Louise: That might be too early, as we'll have a couple of hours' drive. 10:30 would be better.
Jack: That's fine.
Louise: And what's your address?
Jack: 61 Oxford Road. If you're using a sat nav, our postcode is SM17 4AU. You should be able to park just outside. Then we'll go in my car to view the properties.
Louise: Lovely. Thank you for all your help, and I'll look forward to seeing you next week.
Jack: You're welcome. Goodbye.
Part 2
You will hear a man called Mike Shenton, who is a manager at a large furniture company, talking to a group of new employees.
Mike Shenton: Hi everyone. My name's Mike Shenton, and I'm Human Resources Manager here at Cliffton Furniture. I think you can all congratulate yourselves on getting through the selection process, and I hope today marks the start of a long and happy association with Cliffton Furniture.
Mike Shenton: So let me start by telling you about how Cliffton Furniture began. Well, about 70 years ago, our founder, Joe Cliffton, was a young man of 17. His father was a gardener who worked in a big estate. And when he cut down trees, he'd sometimes bring the wood back home thinking he could use it. But in fact, it was young Joe who used it to teach himself carpentry skills. And soon Joe decided that his furniture was good enough to put on the market. Now Joe had no training in either manufacturing or sales, but he was passionate about making furniture, and things just took off.
Mike Shenton: So during this last year, we've recruited around 50 new staff, including all of you here today. And this is an indication of the rapid growth in activity we've experienced recently. Most of our new recruits will be here in the factory, but some will be working in our outlets around the country, including our recently opened outlet up in the North.
Mike Shenton: I believe our success is largely due to the nature of the company's culture. Like most successful businesses, we expect our staff to perform to the very best of their ability. But what's unique with Cliffton Furniture is the appreciation we have of the strengths of every member of the team. Even if you're a new, young recruit, we'll be aware of what you can bring to the company and help you develop your skills.
Mike Shenton: For the next three months, we'll be monitoring you carefully. This week you'll receive training in company policies and procedures related to your particular job. And you'll also be assigned to an experienced member of staff doing a similar job who'll be able to answer your questions. After that time period's over, you'll receive an evaluation from your team leader, who'll give you feedback on your progress.
Mike Shenton: You'll be given a lot of information today, but much of it's also in the employee handbook. This is something we've produced as a reference for new staff. We intended it as something you can take home and study on your own. Let us know what you think of it. This is the first draft, so let us know if you think anything's missing. Once we're happy with it, it'll be available on the company intranet.
Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 15 to 20.
Mike Shenton: Now, you'll be spending the rest of the day on your orientation program. So first, you'll meet Philip May, who'll be telling you about how your work can be scheduled to allow you to have the best possible work-life balance. You'll find you're offered a great deal of flexibility if you need time off to deal with unexpected problems at home, for example.
Mike Shenton: Sally Graves will be describing our new 'cycle to work' initiative, as well as arrangements for secure parking for bikes, and other possibilities such as car shares, which can not only help the environment, but also save you a lot of money.
Mike Shenton: After lunch, you'll meet Ahmed Al-Jefri, who's an important man because he's the one who makes sure you get your pay slip! He'll be explaining the company pension scheme and other benefits. You'll find he's very approachable, so don't hesitate to contact him if you have any problems.
Mike Shenton: Then, Caroline Brewer will be showing you a video to help you avoid accidents and injuries. This doesn't just apply to those of you working on the factory floor. It's a general introduction and is relevant for office staff as well.
Mike Shenton: After that, Amina Ray will be helping you log on to the system and making sure you're aware of the security issues when using it. So even if you think this is an area you're up to speed with, please do make sure you listen carefully, as any mistakes here could have serious consequences.
Mike Shenton: And finally, Terry Blagrove will be talking about what procedures to follow if you feel you have any sort of work-related grievance. His office door is always open, so do call in if you think you have a problem.
Mike Shenton: And now I'll hand you over...
Part 3
You will hear a business student called Alex talking to Jill, who is from the university careers service.
Jill: Oh hello, you must be Alex. I'm Jill. How can I help?
Alex: Hello, I'm in my second year of a business degree. I want to do a work placement during the summer vacation and I could do with some advice.
Jill: Well, that's what the careers service is for. Give me a bit of background, Alex. What's your long-term career plan?
Alex: I've got an idea for a financial services company to support small firms. I want to set it up as soon as I graduate. I'd like to keep it small and independent; I don't aim to turn it into a massive multinational company or anything like that. But before I came to uni, I worked for a while in various companies. So what with that and the degree, I feel I'm getting the range of knowledge and experience I need.
Jill: How are you finding the course?
Alex: I'm getting a lot out of it. Obviously finance is something I'm interested in, though I'm surprised how many ideas I'm getting from the marketing module. It's made me realize how important that is for any firm to survive. The human resources module we're doing at the moment is a bit disappointing though. I think that's because of the lecturer rather than the subject itself.
Jill: And my final question for the moment: What do you hope to gain from doing a work placement?
Alex: In a way, what I want most is to find out the problems that businesses have to deal with, like competition from other companies or the country's economic situation. I've already learned a lot about how businesses are run both from the jobs I've had in the past and from studying. Yes, it's the bigger picture that I'm interested in.
Jill: Okay. Well, let's have a look at the job placements we've got in our database at the moment.
Before you hear the rest of the discussion, you have some time to look at questions 24 to 30.
Jill: Right. Here are some organizations that might be suitable for you. Let's make a shortlist first, then look at them in more detail.
Alex: Fine.
Jill: This chain of clothing stores offers a number of work placements for periods from two weeks to a year. It'd be a good firm to work for, as it's well known for the way it treats employees. There's a very cooperative business culture, so there are always a lot of people who contact the place looking for jobs there.
Alex: Good. Let's put that on the shortlist.
Jill: Ah, this one's a furniture chain, Cathcarts.
Alex: Ah, there's a branch in the town I come from. They sponsor sports clubs for children and teenagers in the area. They're highly respected.
Jill: Yes, they've got a good reputation. What about this electronics manufacturer?
Alex: Oh, I love their advertising campaigns!
Jill: A lot of people do. They're very good at promoting their brand very well, and their website is very attractively designed.
Alex: Yes, let's put them on the shortlist too.
Jill: You probably don't know this company, Stewart McLeod. They manufacture machine tools which are way ahead of all their competitors. They've got an excellent research and development department.
Alex: Hmm, that sounds interesting.
Jill: Next, there's PK Spencer, the book retailer. Their shop assistants are trained to be really helpful to anyone wanting help in finding books. And if there's a problem, they make a point of dealing with it immediately.
Alex: Oh, I didn't know that. Though come to think of it, I've always found that when I've bought books from them.
Jill: Do you know Alders, the leisure travel chain?
Alex: I've seen adverts, but I've never had any dealings with them.
Jill: It's one of the most successful travel companies in the country. Alders was probably the first to realize that more and more people would book travel and hotels online, and they revised their business model accordingly. Today, they still respond very quickly to new developments in their sector.
Alex: That sounds good.
Jill: The last one is a chain of coffee shops. I'm sure you're familiar with it.
Alex: Yes, I go there quite often. In fact, I was chatting to one of the staff only last week, and he was saying how much he enjoys working for the company. He said the pay and holidays are second to none, and one big advantage is the chance to get on their management training scheme. They'd better be on the shortlist too.
Jill: Okay.
Alex: Gosh, all of those seem like good companies to work for. We haven't managed to make a shortlist!
Jill: Well, let's look at them all in more detail and see if we can...
Part 4
You will hear a zoology lecturer talking about recent research on an animal called the naked mole rat.
Lecturer: In this series of lectures, we're going to look at the different ways in which living organisms are adapted to their environments. I'd like to start by describing an animal you may not have heard of before. It's called the naked mole rat, and it's only found on the dry plains of East Africa.
Lecturer: As its name suggests, it's similar to a rat, and like a rat, it's a rodent. It's about 10 centimeters long, and its most obvious feature is its pair of teeth, which are very large and which it can move independently, like a pair of chopsticks.
Lecturer: So why is it called the naked mole rat? This is because it has no fur or hair, just pink skin.
Lecturer: Although these animals live in hot climates, they don't need protection from the sun as they spend the whole of their lives underground. This means they're protected from extremes of temperature, as well as from predators such as birds.
Lecturer: They live in large groups or colonies, which can consist of up to 300 individuals. And to live in, they build an extensive network of tunnels, which can cover an area the size of a football field.
Lecturer: They can move as quickly and as easily backwards as they can forwards, which is a useful skill for animals living in such cramped and crowded conditions. They live almost entirely on roots, but are careful not to entirely consume them, leaving enough to grow again and provide them with food for months or even years.
Lecturer: They have very weak eyes and poor hearing, but produce a twittering sound like that of a bird.
Lecturer: The first time that a naked mole rat was documented was back in the 19th century by a German naturalist called Eduard Rüppell. But because of its unattractive appearance and bare skin, he didn't realize it was a new species; he just assumed it had some sort of disease.
Lecturer: It wasn't until the 1950s that scientists really began to pay attention to this strange species. At that time a researcher at the University of Nairobi in East Africa established a group of naked mole rats in her laboratory. But she couldn't understand why they failed to breed.
Lecturer: This mystery wasn't solved until some time later, when DNA studies established that naked mole rats are very unusual—in fact, almost unique among mammal species. They are what's known as 'eusocial' mammals, meaning that, like some insects, they form colonies with a very specific organization.
Lecturer: Each colony has one queen, who produces all the offspring, together with two or three sexually active males which mate with her. All the rest of the colony are asexual and don't mate, but they're deployed as workers, digging for food and so on, and also as soldiers, protecting the colony from danger.
Lecturer: In the late 1980s, an English researcher called Chris Faulkes became involved in genetic research on the naked mole rat. He was part of the team that wrote the genome of this species. But after that, he started to get interested in some special features of the physiology of this strange animal, and to wonder if these had medical implications.
Lecturer: One very striking feature of the naked mole rat is how long they live—for over 30 years. This is a very long time for a small mammal. One reason for this is that the blood vessels remain in good condition. They don't lose their elasticity like those of other mammals. Faulkes has also found out that the muscles of naked mole rats stay in good condition throughout their lives.
Lecturer: As you'd expect, some of the special features of the naked mole rat seem to be linked to the environment they live in. For example, because they're crowded together in enclosed conditions with poor ventilation, they've developed the capacity to manage to survive when breathing air that contains a very low level of oxygen—low enough to kill a human almost instantly. In fact, the animals can even survive without breathing at all for up to 18 minutes.
Lecturer: Another extraordinary thing about these animals, and which also contributes to their long lives, is that they appear to be resistant to cancer. A team working in the USA has identified a gene which they think makes cancer cells self-destruct. To see if it has a similar effect in other animals, they're now planning to carry out experiments in which they introduce this gene into mice. Ultimately, there may be hope for treating humans, but that's not going to happen for a long time.
Lecturer: So let's summarize the ways these remarkable animals have adapted themselves to the harsh environment they live in. Firstly...