Engelsk A

Tirsdag den 12. december 2023
Kl. 9.00-14.00

Vejledning til opgavesættet


Du skal besvare følgende opgaver:
  • Assignment 1-3
  • Assignment 4A eller 4B
Tekster til Assignment 4A:
  • “Climate change: EU to cut CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030”, an article, BBC News website, 2021
  • “Nuclear energy scares people. The climate crisis is giving it another chance”, an article, CNN Business website, 2021
  • “3 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy Is Terrible! 2/3”, a video, YouTube website, 2015
  • ”3 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy Is Awesome! 3/3”, a video, YouTube website 2015
Tekst til Assignment 4B:
  • “The case for having kids”, a TED talk by Wajahat Ali, 2019.

Vejledning til opgaverne
Den samlede eksaminationstid for Assignment 1-4 er fem timer. Besvarelsen bedømmes som en helhed ud fra de faglige mål for niveauet. Der lægges vægt på beherskelsen af det engelske sprog, forståelse af forlægget og færdighed i skriftlig fremstilling på engelsk.

Det anbefales, at du skriver din besvarelse i skabelonen, som hentes ved klik på Template i menuen til venstre. Besvarelsen afleveres i ét dokument med opgaverne i rækkefølgen 1-4.

OBS: Vær opmærksom på, at du ikke må nævne dit eget navn i din opgavebesvarelse, hverken i sidehovedet eller i Assignment 4.




Sådan henviser du til tekst, video- og lydklip


Hvis du citerer, skal du angive kilde.
Alt anvendt materiale skal være engelsksproget og angives med kildehenvisninger.

Du kan henvise til dele af video- og lydklip, f.eks. ved at angive afspillerens minut- og sekundtal for henholdsvis starten og slutningen af klippet.

Generel skabelon for henvisninger til tekster


Alle henvisninger angives i fodnoter

Henvisning til kilderne (sources) i opgavematerialet
“Support for gun control just hit its lowest point in almost a decade” (l. 15 eller ll. 15-17)

Henvisning til videoer i kilderne (sources) i opgavematerialet
”Why Americans Love Guns” (01:23-02:12)

Ved evt. brug af materiale fra undervisningen skal kilden angives.




Tekster i opgavesættet


Teksternes ortografi og tegnsætning følger forlæggene. Trykfejl er dog rettet.
Opsætningen følger ikke nødvendigvis forlæggene. Dog følges forlægget nøje, hvor opsætningen på den ene eller anden måde indgår i opgaven.



Assignment 1


Assignment 1a

Japan is now producing more adult diapers than infant ones. The number of kids in Japan has fallen for the 37th straight year. And unlike other countries, it has not been able to replace its population numbers through immigrant workers. There will be labor shortages and not enough money to fund the safety-net programs. Now, Japan has introduced two solutions. First, a financial incentive. Some local governments in Japan have offered couples money to have babies, with the money increasing with each additional child being born. This actually worked for one year in 2014 in this town called Ama. It actually raised the birth rate from about 1.66 kids per woman to 1.8. But it did not gain traction across Japan.

Wajahat Ali, “The case for having kids”


Find en sætning i ovenstående tekststykke, hvor verballeddet står i præteritum, simpel tid.
 
Omskriv sætningen, så verballeddet står i futurum, simpel tid.
 


Find en sætning i ovenstående tekststykke, hvor verballeddet står i perfektum, simpel tid.
 
Omskriv sætningen, så verballeddet står i pluskvamperfektum, udvidet tid.
 


Find en sætning i ovenstående tekststykke, hvor verballeddet står i præsens, udvidet tid.
 
Omskriv sætningen, så verballeddet står i præteritum, simpel tid.
 


Find en sætning i ovenstående tekststykke, hvor verballeddet står i futurum, simpel tid.
 
Omskriv sætningen, så verballeddet står i præsens, simpel tid.
 


Assignment 1b

Now probably because I've been drowning in small people lately, I've been paying close attention to a particular headline. It seems around the world, in developed countries, people are having fewer babies. From North America to Europe to China to Japan, there's actually been a consistent decline in birth rates. In fact, over the past 50 years, the global fertility rate has halved.

Wajahat Ali, “The case for having kids”


Forklar brugen af simpel tid og udvidet tid i ovenstående tekststykke.
Brug relevant grammatisk/faglig terminologi.
Din forklaring:






Assignment 2


  • Skriv en sammenhængende tekst på 100 til 150 ord om billedet, hvor du anvender tre sætninger, der står i passiv.
  • Markér subjekt og verballed i dine passive sætninger.


Fotograf: Diana Markosian, 2018



Assignment 3


Udfyld tabellerne nedenfor.

Fifteen years after the Kardashians first aired, it is curious to consider the evolution of the format, and the psychology of those who take part in it.
(…)
Unlike TV talent shows, which prey on the genuinely desperate, it is hard to see much exploitation here, beyond something very broad about what happens when interior life is scooped out by Instagram fame. A theme of the show is authenticity, and the Byron Bay locals like to distinguish themselves from people from, for example, the Gold Coast, who are disparaged for having “spray-on dresses and fake lips”. With many lumbering cues, the show’s audience is invited to consider that Gold Coasters, with their tans and tiny dresses, live a more authentic existence than the parade of shallow oddballs in Byron Bay.
Each character has, very obviously, made the calculation that exposure and the opportunities that come with it are worth the cost of derision. Elle throws a fundraiser to draw attention to the destruction of ocean life, at which she serves tuna canapés and is delivered cleanly to the audience on a plate. Jade, who presents like a creation of Sacha Baron Cohen’s, is exposed for allegedly buying his Instagram followers in Turkey.

Emma Brockes, “Netflix’s Byron Baes is contrived, trashy and awful. It’s practically a public service”


Find og skriv tre forskellige måder, hvorpå der i teksten udtrykkes ejerskab, enten ved brug af genitiv eller pronomener.
1. eksempel  
2. eksempel  
3. eksempel  


Find tre forskellige relative pronomener i teksten, og angiv, om de indleder en parentetisk eller en definerende/bestemmende relativsætning.
  Dit valgte relative pronomen Parentetisk eller definerende/bestemmende relativsætning?
1. eksempel    
2. eksempel    
3. eksempel    


Find og angiv henholdsvis hovedsætning og ledsætning i nedenstående sætning.

Fifteen years after the Kardashians first aired, it is curious to consider the evolution of the format.

Hovedsætning:


Ledsætning:






Assignment 4


Answer either assignment 4A or assignment 4B.



Write either assignment 4A-1 or 4A-2.




The Future of Nuclear Energy


Source material:

Assignment 4A-1


Argumentative essay

Write an argumentative essay in which you discuss the future of nuclear energy.

Give your essay a title that reflects your thesis statement.

Word count: 800-1200 words
State your word count at the end of your essay.


Your essay must include references to the source material.
All sources must be documented.



Assignment 4A-2


Manuscript for a speech

Using the texts from the given material, write a manuscript for a speech in which you discuss the future of nuclear energy.

Include in your speech the circumstances in which the speech is given.

Word count: 800-1200 words
State your word count at the end of your essay.


Your manuscript must include references to the source material.
All sources must be documented.



Assignment 4B


Write an analytical essay in which you analyse the TED talk “The case for having kids” by Wajahat Ali.

Word count: 800-1200 words
State your word count at the end of your essay.

Use the following source: In your essay, you must include references to the text.
All sources must be documented.



Climate change: EU to cut CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030


21 April 2021


| Renewable energy, like wind power, is gradually replacing coal in many EU countries

The EU has adopted ambitious new targets to curb climate change, with a pledge to make
them legally binding.


Under a new law agreed between member states and the EU Parliament, the bloc will cut carbon
emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared with 1990 levels.

 5 
The EU parliament had pushed for a higher target of a 60% reduction.

"Our political commitment to becoming the first climate neutral continent by 2050 is now also a legal
one," said EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen.

"The Climate Law sets the EU on a green path for a generation."

The deal comes ahead of a virtual summit of world leaders later this week, where the US is expected
 10 
to announce its own climate targets for 2030.

US President Joe Biden, who will lead the meeting, rejoined the Paris climate agreement in
his first day in office and has previously committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2050.

The UK, meanwhile, announced radical plans to cut carbon emissions by 78% by 2035 earlier
this week, although environmentalists warn that the government has consistently failed to achieve
 15 
previous targets set by its independent Climate Change Committee.

(...)


Tilbage



Nuclear energy scares people. The climate crisis is giving it another chance


By Julia Horowitz, Salma Abdelaziz and Li-Lian Ahlskog Hou, CNN
December 27, 2021


London (CNN Business) — Growing up in Finland, Iida Ruishalme had a deep affinity for nature
— particularly the forest, where she loved to go trekking with her dogs. Now, she's worried that her
daughters won't experience such idyllic days as the climate crisis accelerates. So last month, she
boarded a night train from Switzerland to join protests in the German capital Berlin.

 5 
Ruishalme agrees the world needs more wind farms and solar panels. But what she and her fellow
demonstrators really want is a commitment to something else: nuclear energy.

"We have to give this technology a chance," the Mothers for Nuclear member said, joining dozens
of others who stood with signs outside the city's famous Brandenburg Gate.

Nuclear power is one of the most reliable low-carbon sources of energy available, but memories of
 10 
accidents at Fukushima, Chernobyl and Three Mile Island still loom large, fueling skepticism and
fear and deterring investors from funding new projects.

Nuclear plants are also notoriously expensive to build. Construction tends to run over budget and
time, and wind and solar energy has typically come out cheaper. How to safely store the radioactive
waste it produces is another headache.

 15 
Germany began winding down its nuclear industry following the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan,
when an earthquake and tsunami triggered a meltdown of three reactors in one of the worst nuclear
incidents of all time. All six reactors still operating in Germany should be shut by the end of next year.

getting to zero-carbon power grids is too slow and too expensive without nuclear
Demonstrators in support of nuclear power outside Berlin's Brandenburg Gate on Saturday, November 13.

Yet the scale of the climate crisis is encouraging other governments and investors to give the
nuclear industry another look.

 20 
Whether the world invests heavily into nuclear will depend on what people have the stomach for.
Ruishalme, for one, hopes they'll put their anxieties aside.

"Our gut feelings don't produce ready-made solutions," she said, adding that she too once
considered it "too risky," but changed her mind after researching the pros and cons.

Europe's big decision
 25 
Nuclear energy currently accounts for about 10% of the world's electricity production. In some
countries, the share is even larger. The United States and the United Kingdom generate roughly
20% of their electricity from nuclear energy. In France, it's 70%, according to the World Nuclear
Association.

The world is now at a nuclear crossroads: It could scale up nuclear as a sturdy energy source to
 30 
keep emissions down, or throw all its money behind renewables, which are quicker to build and
more profitable — but sometimes patchy.

Advocates emphasize that nuclear power flows even when the sun doesn't shine and the wind
doesn't blow.

"We need renewables to be complemented by a reliable, 24/7 energy source," said James Hansen,
 35 
a climate scientist at Columbia University who also took part in the Berlin demonstration.

The UK government agrees. It supports the construction of the country's first nuclear power station
in more than two decades in southwestern England. US President Joe Biden's infrastructure
package, meanwhile, includes $6 billion in grants to keep older plants running. And President
Emmanuel Macron recently announced that France would begin building new plants for the first time
 40 
in nearly 20 years.

That puts France and Germany at odds with each other ahead of a crucial decision by the European
Union on whether to classify nuclear as "green" or "transitional" on a controversial list of sustainable
energy sources set to be unveiled Wednesday. The outcome could unleash a wave of fresh funding,
or leave nuclear on the outside.


The Grohnde nuclear power station in Lower Saxony, Germany. It will be decommissioned later this month.

 45 
EU climate chief Frans Timmermans recently indicated that both nuclear and natural gas — which
is made up mostly of the greenhouse gas methane — could qualify for green financing.

"I think we need to find a way of recognizing that these two energy sources play a role in the energy
transition," he said at an event hosted by Politico. "That does not make them green, but it does
acknowledge the fact that nuclear being zero emissions is very important to reduce emissions, and
 50 
that natural gas will be very important in transiting away from coal into renewable energy."

While nuclear power produces zero emissions when generated, the uranium required to make it
needs to be mined, and that process emits greenhouse gases. Nonetheless, an analysis by the
European Commission concluded that emissions from nuclear are around the same as wind energy
and less than solar when the full cycle of production is taken into account.

 55 
Hansen, a longtime advocate for nuclear power, said it's crucial in global efforts to decarbonize, and
that Germany shouldn't use its political clout to stand in the way of fresh investment.

"The consequence of treating it as not sustainable
is we're not going to have a pathway to limit
climate change to the level that young people are
 60 
now demanding," he said. "It's really important that
Germany not be able to impose this policy on the
rest of Europe and on the world."

But German politicians and experts argue that high
costs and the time it takes to build new plants — no
 65 
fewer than five years, and often much longer —
mean money would be better spent elsewhere.
It's really important that Germany not be able to impose this policy on the rest of Europe and on the world."

JAMES HANSEN, COLUMBIA
UNIVERSITY CLIMATE EXPERT


The latest UN-backed climate science shows the world should nearly halve emissions over this
decade to have any chance of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the
century, a vital cap to avoid worsening climate impacts. The world must also shoot for net zero by
 70 
mid-century. That means emissions must be reduced as much as possible, and the rest captured or
offset.

Current pledges, including those made at the recent COP26 climate summit in Scotland, only get
the world around one-quarter of the way there, according to Climate Action Tracker.

The International Energy Agency says that nuclear power generation should more than double
 75 
between 2020 and 2050 in the pursuit of net zero. Its share in the electricity mix will drop, but that's
because demand for power will soar as the world electrifies as many machines as possible,
including cars and other vehicles.

nuclear power generation could soar in the coming decades the international energy agency’s road map for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 shows nuclear energy production doubling, though it could be a smaller part of the electricity mix as use of renewables grows, too. announced pledges net-zero emissions by 2050 scenario electricity generation 6,000 terawatt-hours 5,000 4,000 3,000 2,000 1,000 0 2,692 3,282 3,777 4,449 5,497 2020 (actual data) 2030 (projection) 2050 (projection)
Note: The IEA’s projectors are based on two scenarios. The “announced pledges” one puts the world on track for 2.1 degrees C of warming.
The “net-zero” scenario aims to limit warming to 1.5 degrees C.
Source: International Energy Agency (all data is from October)
Graphic: Julia Horowitz, Krystina Shveda and Natalie Leung, CNN

Yet Ben Wealer, who researches nuclear power economics at the Technical University of Berlin,
argues that the world can't wait for new nuclear plants, especially since the next eight years are so
 80 
crucial to decarbonizing.

"Looking at the time frames, it cannot be a huge help in combating climate change," he said. "It
blocks the cash we need for renewables."

Even if the world did have more time, delays are a problem. The Hinkley Point C plant in the United
Kingdom, for example, is now to be completed in mid-2026, six months later than planned, and its
 85 
costs are rising. The latest price tag was as much as £23 billion ($30 billion), about £5 billion
($6.6 billion) more than when the project was launched in 2016.

German officials also argue that the lack of a global plan for storing toxic waste should disqualify
nuclear as a "sustainable" energy source.

Christoph Hamann, an official at Germany's federal office for nuclear waste management,
 90 
emphasized that government efforts to construct sites below ground where waste can be stored
indefinitely remain a work-in-progress.

"We're talking about a very toxic, high radioactive waste, which is producing problems for the next
tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of years. And we're directing this problem, when
using nuclear power, to future generations," Hamann said.

 95 
Wave of funding
It's not just Europe that's mulling more nuclear. The most energetic push is in China, where there
are 18 reactors under construction as the world's biggest emitter tries to pivot away from coal. That's
more than 30% of the reactors being built globally, according to the World Nuclear Association.

And the debate is becoming more complex as new nuclear technologies are developed and show
 100 
signs they could generate better financial returns.

The US government has backed TerraPower, the startup chaired by Bill Gates. The company, which
wants to stand up a next-generation nuclear project at a former coal hub in Wyoming, utilizes molten
salt to transfer heat from the reactor and use it to generate electricity, which it claims will simplify
construction and allow it to adjust output to meet changing demand.

 105 
Meanwhile, Britain is supporting a push by engineering firm Rolls-Royce to build smaller nuclear
reactors, which have lower upfront costs. That pitch could help draw in private investors.

mothers for nuclear while reading nuclear provide
Iida Ruishalme, the European director of Mothers for Nuclear, traveled to Berlin to show her support of nuclear power.

"It's very, very difficult for any country to achieve net zero ambitions without nuclear," said Tom
Samson, the CEO of the new Rolls-Royce venture.

The parts of a Rolls-Royce reactor are designed so almost all of it can be built and assembled in a
 110 
factory. That limits the amount of time that's required to piece its components together on an
expensive construction site. Initially, production is estimated at £2.2 billion ($2.9 billion) per unit.

"If you look back in history, you can find lots of examples of big nuclear projects that have struggled,"
Samson said. "We've designed ours to be different."

About £210 million ($278 million) in funding from the UK government will allow the company to begin
 115 
applying for regulatory approvals. It hopes to set up three factories in Britain and start churning out
about two units per year, which would power 2 million homes. The first unit is expected to go into
service in the United Kingdom in 2031.

For comparison, the Hinkley power station is expected to provide electricity for 6 million homes.

Samson also emphasizes that smaller reactors produce little waste. The spent fuel from a small
 120 
modular reactor operating for 60 years would fill an Olympic-size swimming pool, he said.

Fission or fusion?
According to data from PitchBook, nuclear energy startups raised $676 million in venture capital
funding globally in the first nine months of 2021. That's more than the total amount raised over the
past five years combined.

 125 
That figure includes funding for startups that explore nuclear fusion, which has been attracting more
attention. The nuclear power generators currently operating use fission technology, which involves
splitting the nucleus of an atom. Fusion is the process of combining two nuclei to create energy —
often referred to as the energy of the sun or the stars.

Scientists are still working out how to successfully manage a fusion reaction and turn it into a
 130 
commercially viable project. But investors are increasingly excited about its potential since it doesn't
produce lingering radioactive waste and comes with no risk of a Fukushima-style meltdown, nor
does it rely on uranium.

Helion, a US-based fusion startup, announced last month that it had raised $500 million in a round
led by Sam Altman, the former president of Y Combinator.

 135 
As the world weighs which way to turn on nuclear, it could be years until it's clear which was the right
road to take. A look at Germany and France in 10 or 20 years from now may provide the answer.

Ultimately, arguments around emissions, reliability and economics may be cast aside. The real future
of nuclear could come down to public opinion.

"If there is a nuclear accident, a new major one, that could kill the entire industry," said Henning
 140 
Gloystein, director of energy, climate and resources at Eurasia Group.

— Xiaofei Xu contributed reporting.


Tilbage



Sources


“Climate change: EU to cut CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030”, BBC News website, 21-04-2021. Viewed 17-03-2022.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56828383

Julia Horowitz, Salma Abdelaziz and Li-Lian Ahlskog Hou, “Nuclear energy scares people. The climate crisis is giving it another chance”, CNN Business website, 27-12-2021. Viewed 17-03-2022.
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/19/energy/nuclear-energy-climate-cmd-intl/index.html

“3 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy Is Terrible! 2/3”, Kurzgesagt YouTube channel, 01-04-2015. Viewed 17-03-2022.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEYbgyL5n1g

”3 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy Is Awesome! 3/3”, Kurzgesagt YouTube channel, 01-04-2015. Viewed 17-03-2022.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVbLlnmxIbY

Wajahat Ali, The case for having kids, TED website, April, 2019. Viewed 17-03-2022.
https://www.ted.com/talks/wajahat_ali_the_case_for_having_kids?language=en

Photo by Diana Markosian, from World Press Photo website, 06-08-2018. Viewed 17-03-2022.
https://www.worldpressphoto.org/collection/photo-contest/2019/diana-markosian/1

Emma Brockes, “Netflix’s Byron Baes is contrived, trashy and awful. It’s practically a public service”, The Guardian Website, 18-03-2022. Viewed 18-03-2022.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/mar/18/netflix-byron-baes-streaming-reality-show