VOL 5 Test 6 - Dissertation on water pumps IELTS Listening Answer Key & Explanations

VOL 5 Test 6 - Dissertation on water pumps

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Tutor: Hello, Kathy. How's your dissertation on water pumps going?

Kathy: Not too bad. Thanks. I'm getting on well with the literature review now, and my lab work's fine so far.

Tutor: Oh, that's good. Remember, you should aim to have your results section completed by the end of next month, so there's plenty of time to finalize the whole thing by the summer deadline. 1Anyway, looks like you're on track. I've been through your first chapter now, and I was quite impressed.

Kathy: Oh, that's a relief.

Tutor: Well, sometimes your 2sentences are a little long and over complex, but the overall structure of the piece is very clear. I'd recommend you get a critical friend to go through it with you. Then once you've built in citations of other work in the field, I think it'll be pretty good.

Kathy: Oh, thanks. I was pleased I decided to focus on water pumps.

Tutor: You seem to be testing an appropriate range of pump design. Lots of students make the mistake of either restricting their range too much or conversely not narrowing it down enough. You've managed to avoid those twin traps. 3However, I think you'd get more convincing results if you took some additional measurements. I've noted exactly what I mean on your work.

Kathy: Yes. I thought that might be necessary, and I know I need to get down to some more library work too.

Tutor: Well, I don't think that's essential at the moment.

Kathy: Oh, right. So what do you suggest I do next? Repeat my last experiment using different variables?

Tutor: Well, you could have a word with James Higgins tomorrow. He's coming here to give a lecture on hydraulics to the faculty, and it would be a great chance to have a chat with him, especially as your experimental work has drawn so heavily from his last article in the British Engineering Journal.

Kathy: Oh fantastic!

Tutor: 4And you never know how successful a chat with him might turn out to be. I got my first research post when I was a final year student, and asked a visiting professor to explain what he meant in some article he'd written. So I urge all my students to take any such opportunity that arises.

Kathy: But times have changed. People like that are too busy to talk to mere students these days.

Tutor: I don't know about that. Anyway, is there anything else I can help with? Any practical information about layout perhaps?

Kathy: Well, I suppose I'm a bit unsure about how the bibliography should be presented.

Tutor: Mhmm.

Kathy: Mind you, I can just check what's normally done in journal articles, so that's not something to bother you with. 5I'd welcome some guidance though about what I should or shouldn't include in the appendices. I know some things, some of my data tables or details of specs perhaps, are not really needed in the main body of the text, and I'm likely to be pushed for words there.

Tutor: Okay. I can certainly help you with that. But it will take a while, so can we deal with that next week? I've got that solar panel seminar to go into in a few minutes. There's plenty of work you can be carrying on within the meantime.

Kathy: Sure. That's no problem. 6I think I'll go and investigate the latest version of the CAD software to see if it might help with my pump design experiments at all.

Tutor: Before you go, though, I'd like quickly to run through what you should be doing over the next few months, not just for your dissertation, but also to help your chances of getting the research post you'd like. Is that okay with you?

Kathy: Yes. That would be really helpful.

Tutor: Well, you certainly need to 7become a member of the Mechanical Engineers Society, and then you'll be able to go along to their meetings. There, you must make a point of making yourself known to various people like Professor Jones. He's the current president and is very approachable.

Kathy: Okay. So I could do some networking there?

Tutor: Exactly. Also, I think you should 8try to set up some visits to industry. Go to a lot of different workplaces just to see how things are done. It's actually a very good way of making sure you're familiar with the cutting edge of what's going on. Textbooks, even academic articles, sometimes lag behind industry.

Kathy: That sounds really interesting. Also, I'd love the chance to do a bit of work abroad for a while.

Tutor: Well, that's actually the next thing I was going to recommend. I'm sure we could 9set up a month for you in either The States or Canada, and that would be a great way to find out how things are done elsewhere.

Kathy: That'd be good. Thank you.

Tutor: And the last thing I was going to suggest was that you could 10go to the European Water Engineering Conference being held in Spain in May.

Kathy: 10I could even present my dissertation there.

Tutor: Yes.

Kathy: Oh, thank you so much. That's all really helpful.

Tutor: Good. So now if we pop

Answers For VOL 5 Test 6 - Dissertation on water pumps

Answers and detail explain for VOL 5 Test 6 - Dissertation on water pumps

Answer Table

Explain

VOL 5 Test 6 - Dissertation on water pumps

Questions 1-6

1What part of Kathy's dissertation has the tutor just read?

2What did the tutor like about Kathy's work?

3Kathy and the tutor agree that she needs to

4Why does the tutor give an example from his own experience?

5Kathy would like the tutor to advise her on her

6What is Kathy going to do next?

Questions 7-10

Benefits

7

8

9

10

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