Recording 106, page 138
Exercise 5a Listen to three teenagers talking about what they think about the future. Note down what they say about the different topics.
What do the students at Westwood Junior High School think about the future? What are their predictions? Let’s listen to Megan, Corey and Vicky.
Interview 1
Interviewer
Megan, may I ask you some questions?
Interviewer
What do you think life will be like fifty years from now? Where will people live?
Megan
I’m sure the population will not rise too much. So we’ll live in 3-element houses.
Megan
Yes. A 3-element house will consist of three parts: a revolving glass sphere in the air, then a big globe-shaped room underground. From there, a tunnel will lead to a glass sphere below the sea. In this way, we’ll be able to live in three elements: air, earth and water.
Interviewer
Sounds interesting. What do you think school will be like in the future?
Megan
Well, technology will change everything. Kids won’t learn at school, with teachers. The children of the future will learn alone by using special digital devices. There will be Wi-Fi everywhere.
Interviewer
Will we use any interesting machines in 50 years’ time?
Megan
Yes. Our cities will be very crowded. There won’t be enough space for cars, so people will fly bicycles! Scientists will invent a new flying bicycle so people will fly over the city and park on top of buildings. There won’t be any more traffic problems.
Interviewer
I see. Thank you for the interview, Megan.
Interview 2
Interviewer
Corey, can I ask you some questions?
Corey
Yes, of course. Go ahead.
Interviewer
What do you think life will be like fifty years from now? Will it change for the better or for the worse?
Corey
Well, I’m an incurable optimist. I’m sure life will change for the better. People won’t use plastic anymore, for example. If they want to do shopping, they will do it all online.
Interviewer
Mm-hmm. Where will people live? Will we live on other planets, like Mars for example?
Corey
Yes, I think so. In the future, there won’t be enough space for everybody on Earth. Some people will live on other planets; they will live on the moon or Mars. And people will be able to choose to live on Earth or on a new planet.
Interviewer
What about school? How will school change in the future?
Corey
Schools will change for the better. They’ll be completely paperless and everything will be computerised. Students will learn with digital technology, and they won’t need any books. Computers will automatically record everything that the teacher says or does. Students will listen to the recorded lessons and revise for exams during their sleep.
Interviewer
I see. What about technology? Do you think there will be some interesting new gadgets and machines in 50 years’ time from now?
Corey
Yes, I’m sure there will be a lot of new technological inventions. From a fridge that does your shopping online, to a wardrobe that tells you what to wear. Robots and computers will do most of the work, and people will have more free time. We’ll wear portable computers on our wrists and communicate information to other people by touch. It’ll be super.
Interviewer
Thank you for the interview, Corey.
Interview 3
Interviewer
Vicky, I’d like to ask you some questions about life in the future.
Interviewer
What do you think life will be like fifty years from now? Will it change for the better or for the worse?
Vicky
Well, I don’t know really. Some things will probably change for the better, and some for the worse. Sometimes I think that some idiot will set off a nuclear weapon and destroy the world.
Interviewer
Oh, you’re not very optimistic, are you?
Vicky
No, I’m not. A lot of things worry me. But then, as the Italians say, que sera, sera. Whatever will be, will be.
Interviewer
Yes, I agree. Well, what do you think where people will live? Will we live in underwater cities, for example?
Vicky
Well, it’s possible. I don’t know. It’s a fact that there won’t be enough space for everybody on our planet, so maybe we’ll build space colonies that will orbit the Earth.
Interviewer
Do you think school will change in the future? And if yes, how?
Vicky
I think the school week will be shorter, and robots will probably teach some of the lessons.
Interviewer
What about new technological inventions?
Vicky
There will be new inventions to make life easier. Computers will rule the world, and they’ll have feelings. There will also be lots of new radio- and voice-controlled machines. We’ll use our eyes for personal identification – for example to get into our homes. Technology and our bodies will mix and ordinary humans will have some ‘superpowers’, similar to those of superheroes we all know from comic books and science fiction films.
Interviewer
Thank you for the interview, Vicky.
