Ukraine is a country in the southeastern part of Central Europe, and it borders on other European countries: Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Moldova and Romania. The territory of our country is about 600 000 square kilometres. It is slightly larger than France, much larger than Great Britain but considerably smaller than the USA and Russia. The population of our country is about 38 million people. Not only Ukrainians live in Ukraine. There are also Russians, Jews, Belarusian, Moldovans, Romanians, Greeks, Tatars, Poles, Hungarians, Armenians, Germans, Gypsies and some other ethnic minorities.
Лишнее слово: situated
1. They sell bread in this shop.
2. They will translate this text next week.
3. Charles Dickens wrote this book in 1854.
4. We have read the whole text.
5. They will bring the books tomorrow.
6. Nobody has explained the rules to me.
7. They will have repaired the bicycle by tomorrow.
8. He will introduce me to his wife.
9. They were looking at the girl in astonishment.
10. Nobody will laugh at you.
Change the sentences into the Passive Voice.
1. Bread is sold in this shop.
2. This text will be translated next week.
3. This book was written by Charles Dickens in 1854.
4. The whole text has been read by us.
5. The books will be brought tomorrow.
6. The rules has not been explained to me.
7. The bicycle will have been repaired by tomorrow.
8. I will be introduced to his wife.
9. The girl was being looked at in astonishment.
10. You will not be laughed at.
he Barboskins (Барбоскины) is a contemporary Russian cartoon series. It began in 2011, and is already on its 10th season. It is created by Melnitsa Studios, the same people behind Luntik and the Ivan Tsarevich film series. There are almost 200 episodes, each about five minutes.
The show is about a family of humanlike dogs—two parent dogs and five puppies. (“Barboskin” is their surname.) The family is presented as extremely typical: the father spends all his spare time on the computer (working, of course, in order to support his family); the mother is a good cook but dreams of becoming an actress; the girl puppies, Rosa and Liza (Роза и Лиза), enjoy fashion and makeup; and the boy puppies, Druzhok, Gena, and Malysh (Дружок, Гена, и Малыш), play soccer and sometimes study.They find themselves in normal, everyday situations, and, according to the series’s website, “through the example of solving some kind of seemingly unsolvable problem that’s arisen, the series’ writers show young viewers how they can always find a solution to the most complicated problems with a smile, avoiding conflict and offending no one.
Like many popular Russian cartoons, this one has almost a whole industry surrounding it—computer games, clothing, contests. The games include such winners as “Fashionable Makeup,” hosted by puppy Rosa; “Attention Training” with Gena, the smart puppy; and “Let’s Wash Dishes,” with Liza. (No comment on the gender roles in this show.
While the show is apparently meant to be educational, at least one review has criticized it for its “hooliganism”—apparently residing in the fact that there are allusions to a singer named Zhanna Kiska (a play on Zhanna Friske, who was a member of Russian girl group Blestyashchie) and an actor named Brad Pitbull. The characters also, shockingly, use slang in their speech.