Contents

Unit / Section Function / Skill Genre / Text type Grammar / Discourse Lexis / Technology

1.1 Eureka!  p.4  Questioning Talk + Q&A session Past / present perfect  Oil and gas drilling

Unit 1 Innovations

continuous

1.2 Smart wells  p.6 Clause linking Technical article Past participle; cohesion Drilling; remote control

1.3 Lasers  p.8 Giving a talk Lecture; technical description Section markers in a talk Laser technology

2.1 Spin-offs  p.10 Function of a device Product description Present / past simple passive; to Products from space 

+ infin; for + -ing; which research
Unit 2 Design

2.2 Specifications  p.12 Necessity, ability,  Design specification; meeting Modals and semi-modals Design; mechanical 

recommendation

2.3 Properties  p.14 Describing properties Brainstorming session Phrases to encourage  Construction; synthetic 

participation textiles

Review Unit A  p.16

3.1 Problems  p.20 Low probability; reassuring Product recall notice Present continuous passive;  Automotive

phrases suggesting low risk
Unit 3 Systems

3.2 Solutions  p.22 Summarising; linking Product recall notice Non-defining relative clause;  Automotive; braking systems

present participle; although

3.3 Controls  p.24 Contrasting; note-taking Lecture  Linkers of contrast Automotive; aeronautics

4.1 Shutdown  p.26 Past events Engineering article Two-part phrasal verbs  Mechanical; electrical; 

physics
Unit 4 Procedures

4.2 Overhaul  p.28 Past procedure; instructions Engineering article;  Nouns derived from phrasal  Mechanical; maintenance

instruction manual verbs

4.3 Instructions  p.30 Instructions and feedback;  Practical demonstration;  Oral vs written instructions;  Mechanical; electronics

simultaneous actions instruction manual while / as + -ing

Review Unit B  p.32

5.1 Causes  p.36 Cause and effect Brainstorming session;  Verb / noun / prepositional  Metallurgy; chemistry

Unit 5 Processes

‘fishbone’ diagram phrases of cause and effect

5.2 Steps  p.38 Explaining a process Technical brochure Choosing active or passive Iron and steel making

5.3 Stages  p.40 Note-taking; writing up Lecture; flow diagram Gerunds / nouns as captions;  Aluminium refining / smelting

lexical cohesion

6.1 Risk  p.42 Degrees of certainty Risk assessment tool Phrases expressing degrees of  Petroleum; environment

Unit 6 Planning

certainty

6.2 Crisis  p.44 Immediate / long-term plans Critical path analysis; crisis  Future / future perfect passive;  Petroleum; marine

meeting about to / on the point of

6.3 Projects  p.46 Participating in meetings Project proposal meeting Phrases for chairing a meeting Civil engineering

Review Unit C  p.48

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 Unit / Section Function / Skill Genre / Text type Grammar / Discourse Lexis / Technology

7.1 Prototypes  p.52 Describing developments  Technology review Range of forms and functions  ICT; smart phones

Unit 7 Developments

and progress

7.2 Comparisons  p.54 Comparing; contrasting Product comparison Phrases / linkers expressing  Electronics; touch screens

comparison and contrast

7.3 Products  p 56 Explaining technology to  Product launch Phrases introducing  Electrical; materials science

non-specialists explanations / analogies

8.1 Theft  p.58  Speculating about past Work memo; work discussion Present perfect passive modal Logistics; warehousing

Unit 8 Incidents

8.2 Security  p.60 Investigating; questioning Incident report; product  Indirect questions and related  ICT; telecoms; security 

brochure noun phrases

8.3 Emergency  p.62 Degrees of agreement /  Safety talk; serious incident  Phrases qualifying ‘yes’ or ‘no’; Health and safety; HazMat

disagreement report up to a point / on the contrary

Review Unit D  p.64

9.1 Proposals  p.68 Proposing; recommending Meeting with client Noun clause / gerund after  Electronics; wireless controls

Unit 9 Agreements

propose / recommend / suggest

9.2 Definitions  p.70 Defining a term Definition; glossary Defining relative clause; pre- /  Sensor technology

post-modifiers in definitions

9.3 Contracts  p.72 Stipulating conditions Contract; pre-contract  Alternatives to if: on condition / Work contracts

discussion  provided that

10.1 Plans  p.74 Concise technical writing  Test plan Nouns / hyphenated phrases  Destructive testing; 

used as pre-modifiers earthquake proofing
Unit 10 Testing

10.2 Reports  p.76 Report format; report-writing Test report Grammar / markers associated  Testing buildings and 

with report sections bridges

10.3 Methods  p.78 Collaborative problem- Meeting; pre-meeting briefing  Range of language forms  Non-destructive testing

solving documents

Review Unit E  p.80

11.1 Investigations  p.84 Collaborative data  Raw data for a report Expressions of causation,  Hydro-electric power; 

organisation  sequence and speculation. maintenance
Unit 11 Accidents

11.2 Reports  p.86 Format of report; abstract;  Investigative report Third conditional, present  Accident investigation

writing a report perfect modal

11.3 Communication  p.88 Assertiveness; summarising;  Communication guidelines Phrases to signal  Aviation; aeronautics

writing an abstract  communicative intent

12.1 Projects  p.90 Sequence of events; past  Project evaluation report Perfect participle; past tense of  Agricultural engineering

Unit 12 Evaluation

necessity  modals 

12.2 Performance  p.92 Past ability; self-evaluation Employee appraisal interview  Three-part phrasal verbs; past  IT, robotics, petroleum

tense of modals

12.3 Innovations  p.94 Debating; persuading;  Team presentation; awards  Range of language forms Nanotechnology

teamwork  committee

Review Unit F  p.96

Language summary  p.100

Extra material  p.110

Speed search  p.116

Audio script  p.118

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 1 Innovations
1 Eureka!
Start here 1 Work in pairs. Talk about accidental discoveries or inventions
in science or technology which you have heard about.
Example: 1 Alexander Fleming was growing some bacteria in his
lab when some penicillium fungus fell on the bacteria and killed
them. That is how he accidentally discovered antibiotics.

Task 2 Work in pairs. Match the notes 1–6 with the accidental
discoveries.
X-ray inkjet printer
vulcanised rubber co-ordinate geometry
safety glass antibiotics 1
1 Alexander Fleming – grows bacteria in lab – penicillium
fungus falls on bacteria – fungus kills them
2 Charles Goodyear – works with raw rubber powder
containing sulphur – brushes powder off hands – powder
falls onto hot stove – forms tough elastic substance
3 Rene Descartes – watches insect flying around room –
realises he can specify insect’s position in 3D space as –
distance from two walls and ceiling
4 Wilhelm Roentgen – projects light from cathode ray
generator onto wall – sees outline of bones of own hand on
wall
5 Ichiro Endo, engineer – works with a hot iron and a syringe
full of ink – touches neck of syringe with iron – forces ink
out
6 Edouard Benedictus – puts away glass flask – flask
contains liquid plastic – drops flask on floor – flask doesn’t
break – thin plastic film holds pieces together
3 Describe the accidental discoveries outlined in the notes
Language
in 2. Use the past continuous and the past simple tenses where
page 101 appropriate.
Example: 1 – see the example in 1.

Writing 4 Write about the discoveries and inventions you talked about
in 1, using the past simple and continuous. Follow the example
in 1.

Scanning 5 Practise your speed reading. Look for the information you need on the SPEED SEARCH
pages (116–117). Try to be first to complete this text.
We don’t know if Archimedes really stepped into his bath and shouted ‘Eureka!’
(‘I’ve discovered it!’) when the water level (1) . But we do know that he
discovered that a body immersed in fluid experiences a (2) force equal
to the weight of the liquid displaced. We also know that Archimedes invented the
(3) and the (4) .

4 1 Innovations

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 Listening 6 02 Listen to this talk and choose the picture that
illustrates what Jaap (Will’s colleague) was looking at when he
had his eureka moment.
7 Listen again and answer these questions.
1 What is Will’s (the speaker’s) job title at his petroleum
company in Brunei?
2 What problem has the speaker been trying to solve for the
last few years?
3 What was happening when Jaap suddenly had his eureka
moment?
4 What was the name of the type of drill that Jaap and his
team invented as a result?
5 How does this new drill solve Will’s problem?

Speaking 8 In the question and answer session after his talk, Will gives
these answers. Write down the questions that were asked. Then
Language practise the questions and answers in pairs.
page 102
1 Well, I would say that the main reason for using snake well
technology is mainly economic. Snake wells allow us to get
more oil out of a single field.
2 Yes, it does. The technology has a very big environmental
benefit, because snake wells mean that you can build fewer
oil platforms and do less drilling.
3 Yes, we are. We’re using it right now, at this very moment.
We have a number of snake wells in operation off the coast
of Brunei.
4 Well, most of the oil in the Brunei field is between 2,000 and
4,000 metres below the seabed, I think.
5 We’ve been drilling snake wells off the Brunei coast since
2005.
6 Well, our company first started exploring the Brunei field a
long time ago. I believe the first survey was in the 1980s.
7 Yes, we have. In addition to the snake well, we’ve been
developing a system of sensors that transmit data from the
drill bit back to computers on the surface.
8 Well, I don’t know exactly what my next project is going
to be! Maybe I’ll drill a snake well off the coast of Nigeria.

Language Present perfect continuous

How long have you snake wells?
been using
Our company  has them  since 2005.

Speaking 9 Work in pairs. Take turns to act the roles of a reporter and an oil company
representative. When you are the reporter, use the present perfect continuous in your
first question about each project, and then follow up with different types of questions.
Student A: Turn to page 115. Student B: Turn to page 113.

1 Oil sands, Canada: how long? surface / underground 2 Drilling for gas, Russia: how long? based where in
mining? area project covers? kind of oil extracted? Russia? onshore / offshore? gas converted into ...?
extracted oil converted into …? expected length of meaning of ‘LNG’? future exports to ...? expected
project? production (tonnes)?

Innovations 1 5

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 2 Smart wells
Start here 1 Work in pairs. Discuss these questions about the illustration below. Make notes.
1 What are the advantages of this method of oil extraction compared with vertical
wells?
2 How do you think computers are used in this method?

‘Snake’ well system below seabed

‘Snake’ wells connect pockets

of oil that stretch for up to
3 miles under the seabed.

seabed
gas

oil oil gas

Valves and seals are located oil

in the oil pockets so they can
be isolated if they start to pump
too much gas or water. water

Reading 2 Read this article and check the notes you made in 1.

SMART
access multiple pockets of oil and achieve 40 Fields  technology and new drilling
output equivalent to several individual techniques.
wells, which has the dual advantage of Buried deep beneath Champion West’s
reducing cost and ensuring that no oil is seabed, sensors relay digital information
20 overlooked. about temperature, pressure and other

OIL FIELDS
A snake well uses steerable drills that 45 factors to control centres on land by
can be positioned with great accuracy. means of a network of fibre-optic cables.
Special imaging software generates This enables continuous monitoring
detailed computer models of underground of production, and engineers can make
If an oil company discovers a large single 25 geology and reservoirs. This enables drills speedy decisions on how best to extract
reservoir of oil and gas, the solution is to hit a target far underground that is less 50 the maximum amount of oil, monitor
simple: drill a vertical well down to the than two metres across. its movement within the reservoir and
reservoir and bring up the oil. But what Located 90 km off the coast of Brunei, the instantly notice production problems,
5 can be done when an oilfield consists Champion West oilfield is Shell’s flagship such as blockages.
of hundreds or even thousands of small, 30 project using Smart Fields technology. For They can take action to solve problems,
isolated pockets of oil? It would be too 30 years, Champion West lay dormant, its 55 for example by the remote electronic
expensive to drill hundreds of vertical rich oil reserves locked 2,000 to 4,000 m activation of hydraulic well valves. If gas
wells to reach all the small pockets. beneath the seabed in a complex web of or water threatens to break into the well,
10 The innovative solution to this problem small reservoirs (see illustration above). for example, the valve for that section can
is the ‘snake well’. Unlike the conventional 35 In the past, these small pockets of be closed down using a remote control.
vertical well, this is a horizontal well that oil were too expensive to develop. But 60 Swellable seals are used to isolate the
weaves laterally back and forth across a now Champion West has been changed zones from one another, and prevent fluid
number of oil-containing zones. Guided by into one of the world’s most advanced from one zone from flowing into another
15 smart technology, a single snake well can oil and gas fields by means of Smart adjacent zone.

6 1 Innovations

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 3 Answer these questions about the article.
1 What are the two main economic reasons for drilling a snake well?
2 How accurate is the drill of a snake well when it is guided remotely?
3 For how long was the Champion West oilfield left unused following the discovery
of oil there? Why was it left unused?
4 How is data about conditions inside the snake well transmitted to the surface?
5 How do engineers stop the oil in the well being contaminated with water or gas?
4 Match the reference words 1–6 from the article with the correct words or ideas a–j
that they refer to.
1 this (line 12) a) increased output from many oil zones
2 which (line 18) b) conventional vertical well
3 that (line 21) c) engineers
4 This (line 25) d) snake well
5 This (line 47) e) blockages
6 They (line 54) f) transmission of data
g) computer model generation
h) underground reservoir
i) steerable drills
j) network of cables

Vocabulary 5 Match these words or phrases with their synonyms (in bold) in the article in 2.
1 capable of being expanded 6 having two parts
2 complicated 7 trapped
3 capable of being guided 8 separated from one another
4 neighbouring 9 horizontally sideways
5 normal 10 equal in value

Language Linking (past participial phrase)

The past participle alone can sometimes replace subject + passive verb. It makes the
text more concise.
• The Champion West oilfield, located 90 km off the coast of Brunei, is Shell’s flagship
project … (= The Champion West oilfield, which is located ...)
The past participle can also be placed at the beginning of a sentence. Find these
examples in the text in 2:
• Located 90 km off the coast of Brunei, the Champion West oilfield is Shell’s flagship
project …
• Guided by smart technology, a single snake well can access pockets of oil …
• Buried deep beneath Champion West’s seabed, sensors relay digital information …
Note that the participle must have the same subject as the verb in the main clause.

6 Join the information in each note into a single sentence in a similar way. Begin each
sentence with the past participle in italics.
Example: 1 Isolated in small pockets, the oil can’t be extracted using vertical wells.
1 the oil is isolated in small pockets + it can’t be extracted using vertical wells
2 the sensors are connected by fibre-optic cable + they collect data from inside the
snake well
3 the drills are guided by remote controllers + they can hit a target only 2 m wide
4 the oil is locked 4,000 m beneath the seabed + it couldn’t be extracted for 30 years
5 the sensors are attached to the drill bit + they allow controllers to guide the drill
6 the software was developed by GeoSolutions + it generates computer models of
the geology

Innovations 1 7

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 3 Lasers

Start here 1 Work in pairs. Discuss these questions and make notes. Then share your ideas with
the rest of the class.
1 What does LASER stand for?
by Stimulated of
2 Study the diagrams below. What are the three main differences between ordinary
light and laser light? Use some of the words and phrases in the box.

An ordinary light beam

A laser beam

Torch Laser

laser    light amplification    stimulated emission of radiation    organised    disorganised    
directional    in one direction    in all directions    coherent    concentrated    photon     
colours of the spectrum    wavelength                                                                               03

Listening 2 04 Listen to part of a talk about lasers. Match the words in the box with the
labels 1–8 in the diagram on the next page.

ruby crystal    atom    light tube    mirror    power source    photon    laser beam    partial mirror

8 1 Innovations

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 2 4 5
3

8
6

7
1

3 Work in pairs or small groups. Before you listen to the next part of the talk, put these
notes into the best order.
Note: The eight items in the notes correspond to the eight points in the diagram above.
A escaping photons form a powerful laser beam
B atom absorbs photon – gets excited – calms down – emits new photon
C tube flashes on / off rapidly – pumps energy (photons) into crystal
D partial mirror lets 1% of photons escape
E power source makes tube flash on / off 1
F new photon hits excited atom – atom emits two photons (instead of one)
G photons are reflected by mirror along inside of crystal
H new photons travel inside crystal at speed of light
4 05 Listen to the next part of the talk, and check your answers to 3.

5 Listen again and tick the phrases that you hear. (Note: X is a number, and A is
someone’s name.)
1 A has been explaining
2 let’s move on to the next section of the talk
3 if you look at point X on the diagram, you will see
4 we can now turn to the next part of the talk
5 as you can see in point X on the diagram
6 I think I’ve covered the main points
7 I’ll now ask A to take over
8 now I’m going to hand over to A
6 Group the phrases from 5 under these headings.
Moving to the next topic Referring to the previous topic(s)
Handing over to the next speaker Referring to a visual

Speaking 7 Work in groups to prepare a talk on lasers. Divide into three sub-groups and prepare
one section of the talk with your sub-group. Then return to the main group to finalise
the talk.
Sub-group A: Laser light – a brief explanation
Sub-group B: The basic components of a laser machine
Sub-group C: How a laser machine works
8 Give your talk to another group. Use phrases from 5 to signpost the sections of the
talk, to refer to the diagram and to hand over to the next sub-group. Invite and answer
questions from the audience.

Writing 9 Write a description of how a laser machine works, referring to the diagram above. Use
past participial phrases where possible.
Begin: Here is a brief outline of how a laser machine works. First of all, the high-voltage
power source, located below the ruby crystal, makes the tube flash on and off rapidly.
These flashes inject particles of light, known as ‘photons’, into the ruby crystal. …

Innovations 1 9

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