Listen to a BBC radio programme and choose the option A, B or C that best completes each sentence. 0 is an example.
0 Neil says that men’s existence will be
A longer.
B shorter.
C the same.
1 The Y chromosome
A is responsible for men’s intelligence.
B has 10,000 years left.
C still has all the vital functions.
2 Jennifer Hughes has said that
A it is very unlikely that the Y chromosome loses any more genes.
B natural selection is failing to preserve the genes.
C only the mother’s genes pass characteristics to a child.
3 Men's sex chromosomes are
A more sophisticated than female ones.
B less sophisticated than female ones.
C as sophisticated as females ones.
4 Rosie’s boyfriend
A has not used the washing machine in 30 years.
B is 30 years old.
C wasn’t used to doing household jobs.
5 Women
A are more afraid of spiders than men.
B run away from mice.
C take longer in the bathroom.
6 Rosie
A hates the fact that men are stronger than women.
B thinks that men are less violent than women.
C says that women usually try to find a solution to problems.
7 The ratio of men to women in the world is
A 100 males to every 100 females.
B 100 males to every 105 females.
C 101 males to every 100 females.
Transcript
Neil:Hello I'm Neil and with me today is Rosie.
Rosie:Hi there.
Neil:Well, today we're talking about men.
Rosie:That sounds interesting.
Neil:It is very interesting especially if you're a man because it seems we've had our existence extended.
Rosie:I'm sorry?
Neil:Well, some previous scientific research had suggested that the Y chromosome, which is responsible for men's sex organs and hormones, is rotting away!
Rosie:Oh dear. Are you going to make it till the end of the programme, Neil?
Neil:Ah yes – even the most pessimistic findings suggested that men had 100 thousand years left. Scientists compared the decline in the male human's Y chromosome with that of the monkey.
Rosie:Okay.
Neil:And their conclusion was that the Y chromosome still got all of the vital bits.
Rosie:Lucky you! Well, here's Jennifer Hughes from the Whitehead Institute in Cambridge Massachusetts. She was in charge of the research:
Jennifer Hughes, Whitehead Institute in Cambridge Massachusetts
I think that the odds of the Y losing any more genes are pretty slim. It appears that it's been stable for 25 million years and that is a good indication that's it going to be stable for many many millions of years to come and the genes that remain on the Y probably have very important functions and therefore natural selection is doing a very good job of preserving those genes.
Rosie:She said the odds of the Y chromosome losing any more genes are pretty slim – meaning it's unlikely. Genes are the parts of cells which have the information which passes characteristics from a parent to a child.
Neil: So it sounds like us males are safe for many millions of years to come.
Rosie:She also added that natural selection is doing a very good job of preserving the genes.
Neil:Now here's an interesting fact, Rosie. Did you know that men's sex chromosomes are not as sophisticated as female ones?
Rosie:No I didn't know that, but it doesn't come as a surprise to me!
Neil I thought you might say that. But you know what – I'm happy having less sophisticated chromosomes if it means men continue to live for a little longer. Now there's only one way to end this programme, Rosie, and that is to imagine a world without men.
Rosie:OK, well for a start more would get done.
Neil: Are you suggesting that men are lazy?
Rosie:Well, they can be. My boyfriend, for example, had never used a washing machine until he was 30 years old.
Neil:Right, well we're getting into stereotypes here! So how about this one – if there were only women in the world, you'd never get into the bathroom.
Rosie:OK, I'll give you that one. I agree that women do spend longer in the bathroom than men.
Neil: And who's going to catch spiders and mice for you?
Rosie: Ah, now that is absolutely not true! My boyfriend is terrified of mice. In fact he ran away from one in the kitchen just last night.
Neil:Well, to be honest, I don't really like mice either, I must say. But what about lifting heavy things? I am always expected to do heavy lifting, which I hate by the way.
Rosie:Yes I confess that men are useful for that. And on a more serious note, I think there would probably be far fewer wars if there were only women. I think women would be more likely to talk problems over than resort to violence.
Neil:Well you might be right there but it's difficult to say because most of the world's leaders are men of course. OK Rosie, this entertaining debate must come to an end. We need an answer to the question. I asked what the ratio is of men to women in the world. What was your answer?
Rosie:I said 100 males to every 105 females
Neil:And you were completely wrong. It's 101 males to every 100 females. Bye for now!
Rosie:Bye bye!
Key:
1C 2A 3B 4C 5C 6C 7C
