READ AND TRANSLATE THE TEXT

More British people fixing their own teeth

People in Britain can now repair their own teeth. They can buy special dental kits in supermarkets to fix fillings (called cavities in the USA) and repair caps and crowns. The kits can cost as little as $7. Many people are buying these kits because they cannot afford to go to the dentist. The cost of having a tooth filled at a dentist in England can cost up to $70, which is ten times higher than the price of the dental kit. One of the biggest selling products is a kit called DenTek. Britons bought around 250,000 of these last year. Britain's Dental Health Foundation (DHF) said one in five people in the UK would do DIY dentistry on their own teeth or the teeth of family and friends. DIY dentistry includes actually pulling out a tooth.

Britain is famous for the quality of its free health service. However, this service does not include dental work. The fact that DIY dentistry is increasing so quickly in Britain shows that there is a lot of poverty and inequality in the country. The poorest people cannot afford to go to the dentist. A spokeswoman for a local community in Scotland said: "DIY dentistry is fairly common here. They sell a lot of those dental kits you can buy them in [supermarkets]. And you've got people taking care of their whole family's teeth." The DHF said many people would rather spend their money on a haircut or a night out than on their teeth. She said different people place different importance on visiting the dentist.How might we be able to repair these things ourselves in the future? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

What we'll be able to fixHow

Teeth

Broken bones

Broken heart

Obesity

Baldness

Poor eyesight

LISTEN AND FILL IN THE GAPS

Overtaking a big risk on the road

A new (1) ____________ in Britain shows that one in seven drivers has had to take evasive action because of their own (2) ____________ overtaking. The road safety charity Brake carried out the survey on 1,000 (3) ____________. It revealed that 80 per cent of drivers have felt (4) ____________ by other people overtaking, while 94 per cent of drivers said they have (5) ____________ dangerous overtaking. It said the biggest perpetrators of dangerous overtaking are young men aged 17-24. In (6) ____________, women drivers are (7) ____________ safer. The poll revealed that while 39 per cent of 17-24-year-old male drivers admitted overtaking when they were not (8) ____________ the road ahead was clear, the figure for female drivers doing so was just 15 per cent.

The charity also found that the most (9) ____________ place to overtake was on (10) ____________ -lane country roads. Drivers are twice as likely to die on rural roads than they are in (11) ____________ areas. Many of these deaths are preventable. A spokeswoman from Brake said: "We're urging all drivers to (12) ____________ overtaking on country roads unless absolutely (13) ____________ and 100 per cent safe." She added: "Why risk it and rush? You could cause a devastating, high-speed, (14) ____________ -on crash that ends lives and ruins others. In spite of this, a significant minority are still taking the risk and performing this aggressive and (15) ____________ manoeuvreIn those situations, cool-headed and responsible drivers hang back and (16) ____________."

DRIVING: How can we make it safer? Complete this table with your partner(s). Change partners often and share what you wrote.

Problems nowSolutions

Seatbelts

Seats

Cars

Roads

Technology

Traffic rules

ANSWER THE QUESTIONS1. How safe a driver are you (or would you be)?

2. Who is the most dangerous driver you know?

3. Should all cars have cameras to record the driver's actions?

4. Are dangerous drivers criminals?

5. How would life be different if overtaking was banned?

6. Should the power and speed of cars be limited?

7. What advice do you have for dangerous drivers?