Objective Proficiency p 71. City Living. Extra Speaking

1. MONOLOGUE. Prepare a talk of AT LEAST 5 minutes on the subject. You may use the pictures above and the contents below if you wish:

"Until we're educating every kid in a fantastic way, until every inner city is cleaned up, there is no shortage of things to do."

Bill Gates (born October 28, 1955) is chief executive and current chairman of Microsoft.

The term inner city is used to describe lower-income residential districts in the city centre and nearby areas. Can you compare and contrast this concept with Spanish cities? What do we find in Spanish city centres? And in outlying areas? Do you agree with Bill Gates that education is crucial to gentrify an area? What are the benefits and problems of gentrification? What would you do about squatting? Should certain properties be condemned?

2. INTERACTION
In this part of the test, the examiner will ask you some questions about issues related to the TOPIC. Remember that you are expected to have a conversation as natural as possible and give full answers. This part of the examination will last AT LEAST 5 minutes. You will not see the questions below.
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TEACHER'S QUESTIONS

 

1.  What could be done to curb pollution in cities?

2. Do you think our towns and cities are fast becoming concrete jungles and highly congested places? What do you think should be done?

3. What do you find more alluring? Living in the city or in the countryside? Have you ever thought about moving to a different place?

4. Are industrial estates in your area prosperous? What about science parks? And the central business districts?  Has the high street been hit hard by the recession? What could be done to make them more affluent?

5. In the last few years cash-strapped consumers have gone deeper into debt and many of them are beginning to feel the pinch.  What do you think should be done concerning the controversial issue of eviction?

6. Can you think of a building that you would regard as a blot on the landscape? Why? What would you do about it?

7. Do you agree with the proverb "home is where the heart is"? Discuss.  

Vocabulary
A. Question 1. Picture 1


Amenity: /əˈmiːnəti/ (plural amenities) a feature that makes a place pleasant, comfortable or easy to live in. Sp. Servicio. E.g. The campsite is close to all local amenities. Many of the houses lacked even basic amenities (= baths, showers, hot water, etc.). The city has all the amenities. This town offers a great variety of local amenities to enhance your quality of life.



Facility: /fəˈsɪləti/1. facilities [plural] buildings, services, equipment, etc. that are provided for a particular purpose. Sp. Instalaciones. E.g. sports/ leisure facilities. Conference facilities. Shopping/ banking/ cooking facilities. The hotel has special facilities for welcoming disabled people. All rooms have private facilities (= a private bathroom). 2. a place, usually including buildings, used for a particular purpose or activity. E.g. the world's largest nuclear waste facility. A new health care facility.



Mod cons: /ˌmɒd ˈkɒnz/ the things in a house or flat/ apartment that make living there easier and more comfortable. The amenities and appliances characteristic of a well-equipped modern house that contribute to an easier and more comfortable way of life. Sp. comodidades. E.g. The property has many interesting features and all mod cons.



Creature comforts: all the things that make life, or a particular place, comfortable, such as good food, comfortable furniture or modern equipment. Material comforts that contribute to physical ease and well-being, such as good food and accommodation. Sp. comodidades. E.g. you’re a long way from home and the only creature comforts you have are a television.



Commodity: /kəˈmɒdəti/ 1 (economics) a product or a raw material that can be bought and sold. Sp. Materia prima, mercancía, producto. E.g. rice, flour and other basic commodities. A drop in commodity prices. Crude oil is the world's most important commodity. Commodities such as copper and coffee. 2 (formal) a thing that is useful or has a useful quality. E.g. Water is a precious commodity that is often taken for granted in the West.
 


Picture 2
White elephants ( white elephant a thing that is useless and no longer needed, although it may have cost a lot of money. E.g. The new office block has become an expensive white elephant. Origin: From the story that in Siam (now Thailand) the king would give a white elephant as a present to somebody that he did not like. That person would have to spend all their money on looking after the rare animal.)
 


Wastefulness (the trait of wasting resources. Useless or profitless activity; using or expending or consuming thoughtlessly or carelessly. Sp. derroche, despilfarro. E.g. the wastefulness of missed opportunities) 



Boom-and-bust ( periods of rapid growth with an increase in investment and consumption and that are followed by sudden collapses in economic activity. Sp. auge y decadencia. E.g. the eras of boom and bust. Boom-and-bust cycle. Arnold's life had followed a boom-and-bust cycle, rich one moment, broke the next.)

 

Picture 3
Slums (slum an area of a city that is very poor and where the houses are dirty and in bad condition. Sp. barrio pobre. E.g. a slum area. City/urban slums. She was brought up in the slums of Leeds.)



Squalor: /ˈskwɒlə(r)/ dirty and unpleasant conditions. Sp. suciedad, miseria. E.g. the poverty and squalor of the slums. He had lost his job and was living in squalor.



Dingy: /ˈdɪndʒi/ dark and dirty. E.g. a dingy room/ hotel. Dingy curtains/ clothes. E.g. the proliferation of dingy slums in the city.



Habitation: /ˌhæbɪˈteɪʃn/ the act of living in a place. E.g. The houses were unfit for human habitation (= not clean or safe enough for people to live in).



Habitable: /ˈhæbɪtəbl/ suitable for people to live in. E.g. the house is not habitable because of a vermin problem (i.e. there are rats).



Uninhabitable: /ˌʌnɪnˈhæbɪtəbl/ not fit to live in; impossible to live in. E.g. The building was totally uninhabitable.



Overrun, overran, overrun: to fill or spread over an area quickly, especially in large numbers. E.g. The slums were completely overrun with mice. The tiny village was overrun by tourists. 




Shanty town: an area in or near a town where poor people live in shanties. Sp. barrio de chabolas. E.g. Lagos is home to at least 15 million people, many of them living in crowded shanty towns.



Shanty: a small house, built of pieces of wood, metal and cardboard, where very poor people live, especially on the edge of a big city. Sp. chabola. E.g. many people live in makeshift shanties.



Makeshift: /ˈmeɪkʃɪft/ used temporarily for a particular purpose because the real thing is not available. Provisional, improvised. E.g. A few cushions /ˈkʊʃnz/ formed a makeshift bed. The hall had been turned into a makeshift hospital.



Shack: a small building, usually made of wood or metal, that has not been built well. Sb. chabola, choza. E.g. The settlement consists only of shacks; there are no roads, no water, no street lighting.  



Run-down: in very bad condition; that has not been taken care of. Neglected. E.g. run-down inner-city areas. 



Street children: Street children is a term used to refer to children who live on the streets of a city. They are basically deprived of family care. E.g. since the recession began street children have proliferated.



Beggar: /ˈbeɡə(r)/ a person who lives by asking people for money or food. E.g. beggars sleeping on the pavement.



Beggars can't be choosers: (saying) people say beggars can't be choosers when there is no choice and somebody must be satisfied with what is available.



Homeless: having no home. E.g. The scheme has been set up to help homeless people.



Live/ sleep rough: (British English) to live or sleep outdoors, usually because you have no home and no money. E.g. young people sleeping rough on the streets.



(Out) on the streets/ street: (informal) without a home; outside, not in a house or other building. E.g. the problems of young people living on the streets.

 




Picture 4
Use/ travel by/ rely on (British English) public transport



Traffic jam: a long line of vehicles on a road that cannot move or that can only move very slowly. E.g. We were stuck in a traffic jam. Put up with/ get stuck in/ sit in massive/ huge/ heavy/ endless/ constant traffic jams. Be caught in a traffic jam. Cause traffic jams.



Gridlock: a situation in which there are so many cars in the streets of a town that the traffic cannot move at all. E.g. the city reaches gridlock during peak hours. Cause gridlock.



Congestion/kənˈdʒestʃən/ the state of being crowded and full of traffic. E.g. traffic congestion and pollution. Cause congestion. The new bridge should ease congestion in the area. Tackle/ ease/ reduce/ relieve/ alleviate the heavy/ severe traffic congestion.



Congestion charge: an amount of money that people have to pay for driving their cars into the centre of some cities as a way of stopping the city centre from becoming too full of traffic. Congestion charging.



Tailback: /ˈteɪlbæk/ a long line of traffic that is moving slowly or not moving at all, because something is blocking the road. a long queue of slow-moving traffic extending back from a busy junction or similar obstruction on the road. Sp. atasco, embotellamiento. E.g. It took a couple of hours for the two-mile tailback to clear. Cause tailbacks. Tailbacks affected all roads into Leeds. 



Onslaught /ˈɒnslɔːt/ an overwhelmingly large number of people or things. E.g. in some parks the onslaught of cars and people far exceeds capacity.



Influx (of somebody/something) (into…) /ˈɪnflʌks/ the fact of a lot of people, money or things arriving somewhere. E.g. a massive/ sudden influx of visitors. The influx of wealth into the region. 



Horde: a large crowd of people.E.g. There are always hordes of tourists here in the summer. Football fans turned up in hordes. 



Dense: containing a lot of people, things, plants, etc. with little space between them. E.g. a dense crowd/ forest. Areas of dense population. Densely (adv) E.g. a densely populated area.



Density: the quantity of people or things in a given area or space. E.g. areas of low population density.  
 


Experience/face lengthy delays.



Snarl up: /snɑːl/ to involve somebody/ something in a situation that stops their movement or progress; to become involved in a situation like this E.g. Flooding and snarled holiday traffic were expected in Southern California. The coach became snarled up in traffic. The accident snarled up the traffic all day.



Rush hour: the time, usually twice a day, when the roads are full of traffic and trains are crowded because people are travelling to or from work. E.g. the morning/ evening rush hour. Don't travel at rush hour/in the rush hour. Try to avoid travelling in the rush hour. Rush-hour traffic.



In a mad rush: in a hurry. E.g. I ran around all day today in a mad rush, looking for a present for Bill. Why are you always in a mad rush?



Beat something, beat, beaten: to avoid something. E.g. If we go early we should beat the traffic. We were up and off early to beat the heat. Beat the rush hour



Choke: to be unable to breathe. To make somebody unable to breathe. E.g. Be affected/ choked/ damaged by pollution. 
Choke something up (with something): to block or fill a passage, space, etc. so that movement is difficult. E.g. The roads are choked up with traffic.



Rickshaw: /ˈrɪkʃɔː/ a small light vehicle with two wheels used in some Asian countries to carry passengers. The rickshaw is pulled by somebody walking or riding a bicycle.



Beep/ honk/(especially British English) toot/(British English) sound your horn. Honking taxis. The sound of horns tooting. He beeped his horn at the cyclist.



Hectic: /ˈhektɪk/ very busy; full of activity. E.g. to lead a hectic life. Enjoy the hectic pace of life



Hustle: /ˈhʌsl/ busy noisy activity of a lot of people in one place. E.g. We escaped from the hustle and bustle of the city for the weekend. 
Bustle: busy and noisy activity. E.g. the hustle and bustle of city life.



Elbow somebody/ something (+adverb/preposition) to push somebody with your elbow, usually in order to get past them. E.g. She elbowed me out of the way to get to the front of the line. He elbowed his way through the crowd.



Flock to go or gather together somewhere in large numbers. E.g. Thousands of people flocked to the beach this weekend.

Monologue: questions 
Inner city: the part near the centre of a large city, which often has social problems. E.g. There are huge problems in our inner cities. An inner-city area/ school.



Outlying: far away from the cities of a country or from the main part of a place. E.g. outlying areas. In Spain deprived areas are located in outlying parts of cities.  



Gentrify: /ˈdʒentrɪfaɪ/ to change an area, a person, etc. so that they are suitable for, or can mix with, people of a higher social class than before. Renovate and improve (a house or district) so that it conforms to middle-class taste. Sp. aburguesar. E.g. Old working-class areas of the city are being gentrified.  



Gentrification (N) the process by which wealthier (mostly middle-income) people move into, renovate, and restore housing and sometimes businesses in inner cities or other deteriorated areas formerly home to poorer people. E.g. urban gentrification often involves population migration as poor residents of a neighborhood are displaced. In a community undergoing gentrification, the average income increases. The real estate market also changes when gentrification occurs because increases in rents and home prices increase evictions.



Squatting: squatting consists of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land and/or a building – usually residential – that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use.



Condemn: to say officially that something is not safe enough to be used. E.g. the pool has been 
condemned as a health hazard. A condemned building.


Question 1
curb something to control or limit something, especially something bad. E.g. He needs to learn to curb his temper. A range of policies have been introduced aimed at curbing inflation.
  
Question 2 
Concrete jungle: a way of describing a city or an area that is unpleasant because it has many large modern buildings and no trees or parks. E.g. a three-room flat in the concrete jungle of suburban Moscow. 



Congested (with something) /kənˈdʒestɪd/ crowded; full of traffic. E.g. congested city streets. Many of Europe's airports are heavily congested.



Built-up: (of an area of land) covered in buildings, roads, etc. E.g. To reduce the speed limit in built-up areas. Although the centre of Funchal is very built-up, there is still a lot of green land around the city.



Towering: /ˈtaʊərɪŋ/ extremely tall or high and therefore impressive. E.g. towering cliffs. Be surrounded by towering skyscrapers. Hari looked up at the towering buildings.



High-rise: (of a building) very tall and having a lot of floors. E.g. high-rise housing. To live in a high-rise. A high-rise block of flats. A high-rise block.



Low-rise: (of a building) low, with only a few floors. E.g. low-rise housing



Tower block: a very tall block of flats/ apartments or offices.



Apartment block: (North American English apartment building) a large building with flats/ apartments on each floor.



Skyline: /ˈskaɪlaɪn/ the outline of buildings, trees, hills, etc. seen against the sky. E.g. the New York skyline. Ugly tower blocks dominate the skyline. The skyline of the city.



Suburb: /ˈsʌbɜːb/ an area where people live that is outside the centre of a city. A residential district. E.g. a highly respectable suburb of Chicago.



Suburban: /səˈbɜːbən/ 1. in or connected with a suburb. E.g. suburban areas. A suburban street. Life in suburban London. 2. (disapproving) boring and ordinary. E.g. a suburban lifestyle. They live in the suburbs.



Commuter town, dormitory town, dormitory suburb (North American English also bedroom community, bedroom suburb): a town that people live in and from where they travel to work in a bigger town or city. E.g. Recently people have moved from the city centres to suburbs or dormitory towns.



The commuter belt  the area around a city where people live and from which they travel to work in the city.



Commuter: /kəˈmjuːtə(r)/ a person who travels into a city to work each day, usually from quite far away. E.g. The five o'clock train is always packed with commuters.



Commute: /kəˈmjuːt/ to travel regularly by bus, train, car, etc. between your place of work and your home. E.g. She commutes from Oxford to London every day.



Outskirts: the parts of a town or city that are furthest from the centre. E.g. They live on the outskirts of Milan. The outskirts of town.



A satellite town or satellite city is a concept in urban planning that refers essentially to smaller metropolitan areas which are located somewhat near to, but are mostly independent of, larger metropolitan areas.



Urban: /ˈɜːbən/ connected with a town or city. E.g. urban renewal/ regeneration (= the process of improving the buildings, etc. in the poor parts of a town or city). Efforts to control urban sprawl (= the spread of city buildings into the countryside). Be surrounded by a soulless urban sprawl. He lives in an urban environment. Cope with the stress/ pressure of urban life.



Sprawl  + adverb/preposition: (V) /sprɔːl/ to spread in an untidy way; to cover a large area. Sp. extenderse. E.g. The town sprawled along the side of the lake.



Sprawl: (N) /sprɔːl/ a large area covered with buildings that spreads from the city into the countryside in an ugly way. E.g. attempts to control the fast-growing urban sprawl. 



Green space: (or urban open space) an area of grass, trees, or other vegetation set apart for recreational or aesthetic purposes in an otherwise urban environment.



Green: an area of grass, especially in the middle of a town or village. E.g. Children were playing on the village green. 



Bypass: /ˈbaɪpɑːs/ a road that passes around a town or city rather than through the centre. Sp. carretera de circunvalación. E.g. the western bypass around the town. The Newbury bypass.



Ring road: (US outer belt, beltway, loop) a road that is built around a city or town to reduce traffic in the centre. It encircles a town or city. Sp. circunvalación. 







Question 3
Alluring: /əˈlʊərɪŋ/ powerfully and mysteriously attractive or fascinating; seductive. E.g. the town offers alluring shops and restaurants.



Allure: /əˈlʊə(r)/ the quality of being attractive and exciting. Sp. Atracción, fascinación, seducción. E.g. sexual allure. The allure of the big city.



Lure:/lʊə(r)/ /ljʊə(r)/ the attractive qualities of something. Sp. encanto, atractivo. E.g. Be drawn by/ resist the lure of the big city. Few can resist the lure of adventure.



The bright lights: the excitement of city life. E.g. although he grew up in the country, he's always had a taste for the bright lights. Head for the bright lights (of the big city/New York).



(Out) on the town: (informal) visiting restaurants, clubs, theatres, etc. for entertainment, especially at night. E.g. a night on the town. How about going out on the town tonight? A lot of guys out for a night on the town.



Vibrant: /ˈvaɪbrənt/ full of life and energy. Exciting. E.g. a vibrant city. enjoy the vibrant nightlife.



Atmosphere: /ˈætməsfɪə(r)/ the feeling or mood that you have in a particular place or situation; a feeling between two people or in a group of people. E.g. He loves the lively atmosphere of a big city.
A party atmosphere.



Prefer/seek the anonymity /ˌænəˈnɪməti/ of life in a big city.



Raucous /ˈrɔːkəs/ sounding loud and rough. Sp. ruidoso. E.g. raucous laughter. A raucous voice. A group of raucous young men. They grew more and more raucous as the evening went on. A raucous party next door didn't let me sleep.



Reveller /ˈrevələ(r)/ a person who is having fun in a noisy way, usually with a group of other people and often after drinking alcohol. Sp. juerguista.



Not get/have a wink of sleep. Not sleep a wink: to not be able to sleep. E.g. I didn't get a wink of sleep last night. I hardly slept a wink. 



Drowns out (drown somebody/ something (out) (of a sound) to be louder than other sounds so that you cannot hear them. Sp. ahogar. E.g. She turned up the radio to drown out the noise from the street. 



The rat race: the way of life of people living and working in a large city where people compete in an aggressive way with each other in order to be more successful, earn more money, etc. E.g. It's very easy to get caught up in the rat race. The novel is about a couple who get out of the rat race and buy a farm in France. Escape/ quit/ get out of/ leave the rat race.



City slicker: (informal, often disapproving) a person who behaves in a way that is typical of people who live in big cities. Sp. Urbanita. E.g. he cultivated the image of cool-as-ice City slicker. The false promises of city slickers. 



Urbane: /ɜːˈbeɪn/ (especially of a man) good at knowing what to say and how to behave in social situations; appearing relaxed and confident. Sp. Fino y cortés. E.g. He was charming and urbane, full of witty conversation. A sophisticated, urbane man.



Rural: /ˈrʊərəl/ connected with or like the countryside. E.g. rural areas. A rural way of life.



Focal point a thing or person that is the centre of interest or activity. Sp. foco de atención. E.g. In rural areas, the school is often the focal point for the local community. He quickly became the focal point for those who disagreed with government policy. 



Live in a village/ an isolated area.



Countryside: /ˈkʌntrisaɪd/ land outside towns and cities, with fields, woods, etc. Live in the countryside. Be surrounded by open/ unspoilt/ picturesque /ˌpɪktʃəˈresk/ countryside. Everyone should enjoy the right of access to the countryside.  



The country [singular] any area outside towns and cities, with fields, woods, farms, etc. E.g. to live in the country. We spent a pleasant day in the country. A country lane. Seek/ start a new life in the country.



Meadow: / ˈmedəʊ/ a field covered in grass. Sp.prado, pradera. E.g. He'd built a house in the meadow.



Backwater: /ˈbækwɔːtə(r)/ a place that is away from the places where most things happen, and is therefore not affected by events, progress, new ideas, etc. A place or situation in which no development or progress is taking place. Sp. lugar apartado, lugar atrasado, zona estancada. E.g. live in a sleepy/ quiet/ rural backwater. Nothing spoils the tranquillity of this quiet backwater. The region became more and more of an economic backwater.



The sticks: country areas, a long way from cities. Sp. en el quinto pino. E.g. We live out in the sticks.



The middle of nowhere: (informal) a place that is a long way from other buildings, towns, etc. E.g. She lives on a small farm in the middle of nowhere. We got lost in the middle of nowhere.



Uninhabited: /ˌʌnɪnˈhæbɪtɪd/ with no people living there; not inhabited. E.g. an uninhabited island.



Off the beaten track: in or into an isolated place. E.g. we tried to find locations slightly off the beaten track. The village was not far from a large town; it could not be considered remote or off the beaten track. The landscape is appealing precisely because it’s so off the beaten track.
 


Enjoy/ like the relaxed/ slower pace of life.



The outdoors [singular] the countryside, away from buildings and busy places. E.g. They both have a love of the outdoors. Come to Canada and enjoy the great outdoors. Enjoy/ love/ explore the great outdoors. 



Parkland: /ˈpɑːklænd/ open land with grass and trees, for example around a large house in the country. Sp. zonas verdes. E.g. The house stands in 500 acres of rolling (ondulado) parkland. The college is set in 30 acres of attractive parkland.



Look for/ find/ get/ enjoy a little peace and quiet.



Wind down /waɪnd/ wound, wound: to rest or relax after a period of activity or excitement. Sp. relajarse. E.g. I went to the countryside in order to wind down.



A home from home: (British English) (North American English a home away from home) a place where you feel relaxed and comfortable as if you were in your own home. The guests are made to feel that the hotel is a home from home.



Need/ want to get back/ closer to nature.



Quaint: /kweɪnt/ attractive in an unusual or old-fashioned way. Sp. pintoresco, evocador, singular. E.g. quaint old customs. A quaint seaside village. Quaint country cottages. Quaintly E.g. whitewashed (Sp. blanqueadas) houses quaintly set on hilly, winding /ˈwaɪndɪŋ/ streets. Quaintness /kweɪntnəs/ E.g. the cosy quaintness of village life.



Serene: /səˈriːn/ calm and peaceful. E.g. a lake, still and serene in the sunlight. 



Idyll: /ˈɪdɪl/ (AmE /ˈaɪdl/) a happy and peaceful place, event or experience, especially one connected with the countryside. Sp. idilio. E.g. the rural idyll remains strongly evocative in most industrialized societies. A Mediterranean holiday idyll.



Idyllic: /ɪˈdɪlɪk/ (AmE /aɪˈdɪlɪk/) peaceful and beautiful; perfect, without problems.E.g. a house set in idyllic surroundings. To lead an idyllic existence. The cottage sounds idyllic.



Work-life balance: the number of hours per week you spend working, compared with the number of hours you spend with your family, relaxing, etc. E.g. Part-time working is often the best way to improve your work-life balance. Seek/ achieve a better/ healthy work-life balance.



Downshift: to change to a job or style of life where you may earn less but which puts less pressure on you and involves less stress. E.g. Downshift to a less stressful life.



Up sticks: to leave the place where you have been living and go to live elsewhere. [from nautical slang to up sticks 'set up a boat's mast' (ready for departure)] (British English, informal) up sticks/ (North American English, informal) pull up stakes and move to/ head for… I was even thinking I might up sticks and move to somewhere completely new.



Move in: to start to live in your new home. E.g. Our new neighbours moved in yesterday. We moved in our new home in the countryside.



Move out: to leave your old home. E.g. Many businesses and middle-class residents are moving out of city centres.



Set up home: (British English) (used especially about a couple) to start living in a new place. E.g. They got married and set up home together in a picturesque village.



Create/ build/ foster (encourage) a strong sense of community. 



Depend on/ be employed in/ work in agriculture.



Live off/ farm/ work the land 



Live off: depend on as a source of income or support. E.g. If you think you’re going to live off me for the rest of your life, you’re mistaken. 



Tackle/ address the problem of rural unemployment. 



Peasant: /ˈpeznt/ 1 (especially in the past, or in poorer countries) a farmer who owns or rents a small piece of land. E.g. peasant farmers. A peasant family. Peasant revolts. 2 (informal, disapproving) a person who is rude, behaves badly, or has little education. Lout.



Country bumpkin: a person from the countryside who seems stupid



The best of both/all possible worlds: the benefits of two or more completely different situations that you can enjoy at the same time. E.g. If you enjoy the coast and the country, you'll get the best of both worlds on this walk.

 



Question 4
Industrial estate: (North American English industrial park) an area especially for factories, on the edge of a town. They focus on manufacturing.



Trading estate: an area of land, often on the edge of a city or town, where there are a number of businesses and small factories.



Business park: an area of land that is specially designed for offices and small factories. They focus on administration.



A central business district (CBD, also called a central activities district) is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. Downtown (AmE) City centre (BrE). Usually typified by a concentration of retail and office buildings.



Downtown (especially North American English) in the centre of a city, especially its main business area. E.g. to go/ work downtown. Live downtown/ in the downtown area. 



High street: (North American English main street) the main street of a town, where most shops/stores, banks, etc. are. E.g. Peckham High Street. High-street banks/ shops. The approaching festive season boosted the high street.



Science park: (also research park or science and technology park) an area where there are a lot of companies or organizations involved in scientific research and development. Often, science parks are associated with or operated by institutions of higher education (colleges and universities). Businesses and organizations in the parks focus on product advancement and innovation.  



Affluent: rich and with a good standard of living. E.g. affluent Western countries.  







Question 5
Cash-strapped without enough money. E.g. cash-strapped governments/ shoppers. Cash-strapped consumers have gone deeper into debt.



Feel the pinch: (informal) to not have enough money. E.g. Lots of people who have lost their jobs are starting to feel the pinch.



Evict: /ɪˈvɪkt/ evict somebody (from something) to force somebody to leave a house or land, especially when you have the legal right to do so. E.g. A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent. The council has tried to get them evicted.



Eviction: /ɪˈvɪkʃn/ the action of expelling someone from a property; expulsion. E.g. to face eviction from your home. The forced eviction of residents.






Question 6
Regard: to think about somebody/something in a particular way. Sp. considerar. E.g. Capital punishment was regarded as inhuman and immoral. He regarded him as a hero.



A blot on the landscape: an object, especially an ugly building, that spoils the beauty of a place. E.g. wind power turbines are a blot on the landscape.




Question 7
Home is where the heart is: proverb your home will always be the place for which you feel the deepest affection, no matter where you are. People long to be at home. Your home is whatever place you long to be. E.g. I've had a lovely time visiting you, but home is where the heart is, and I think it's time I went back. If home is where the heart is, then my home is my parents' old house. I've never loved my own apartment the way I love their place.