📘 Part 3: Appliances

This episode's vocabulary

Cooker (noun) - a large box-shaped device that is used to cook and heat food, either by putting the food inside or by putting it on the top.

White goods (pl. noun) - large electrical goods for the house, such as cookers and washing machines.

Tumble dryer (noun) - a machine that dries wet clothes by turning them in hot air.

Hybrid (noun) - something that is a mixture of two very different things.

Cut down (phrasal verb) - to do or use less of something.

Workload (noun) - something that is a mixture of two very different things.

Faff/fiddle about/around (phrasal verb) - to spend your time doing a lot of things that are not important instead of the thing that you should be doing.

Status symbol (noun) - a thing that people want to have because they think other people will admire them if they have it.

Sedentary (adj.) - involving little exercise or physical activity.

To offset (verb) - to balance one influence against an opposing influence, so that there is no great difference as a result.

Forklift truck (noun) - a small vehicle with two strong bars of metal attached to the front that are used for lifting piles of good.

Get to grips with sth. (phrase) - to make an effort to understand and deal with a problem or situation.

Insurmountable (adj.) - (especially of a problem or a difficulty) so great that it cannot be dealt with successfully.

Conducive (adj.) - providing the right conditions for something good to happen or exist.

Сounterpart (noun) - a person or thing that has the same purpose as another one in a different place or organization.

Automation (noun) - the use of machines and computers that can operate without needing human control.

Well-shielded (adj.) - well-protected

Spill (noun) - an amount of something that has come out of a container.

-

Questions and Answers

M: What kinds of appliances are there in people's homes in your country?

R: I imagine things that are typical of other Western nations. Like we have cookers, washing machines, refrigerators, other white goods. I think some people have tumble dryers as well, actually. Or even better, a washing machine tumble dryer hybrid. And those are, although I should point out those are seen as something of a luxury item.

M: What benefits do people get from using electrical appliances?

R: Well, it cuts down massively on your workload, to be sure. And there's less faffing and fiddling around with various bits and pieces if a machine can do everything for you. This means you've got more free time by comparison. Some people also see them as a status symbol if they have a specific brand.

M: How do you think modern technology has changed the way we work and live?

R: Well, it's given us more time to do as we please, though we seem to have filled that time with more things that distract us from what matters if you ask me. I think the biggest impact has been in reducing the time taken for household chores. In most countries, this was usually done by women, but now they're free to work on other things. It's also separated us a bit from manual labor and contributed to our sedentary lifestyles.

M: So you think that the influence of modern technology is negative?

R: Um, I think they're, just like anything, there's positive and negative aspects to it. Probably, on the whole, it's more of a positive experience as long as we offset the negatives.

M: Do you think it's important to train employees to use equipment at work?

R: Well, if they're required to use it, then it's almost essential isn't it? It would be a bit reckless to just hand someone the keys to a forklift truck and say, off you go. You'd have a lot of compensation claims on your hands that way. Plus formal training might help employees get maximum use from whatever technology it is they have to work with.

M: Do you think that older people have difficulties in using modern equipment?

R: Well, unless they're completely decrepit, it's probably not an age thing. It's just an experience thing. They just haven't had the need to get to grips with anything like that. There might be some issues with neuroplasticity as well, but that shouldn't be insurmountable, not for households, white goods.

M: How can we help older people to use this modern equipment?

R: Well, I imagine the most obvious way is by patiently showing them how to do it, or how to use it, in addition to creating programs and sort of formats that are conducive to helping them learn how to do that.

M: And should younger people teach older ones, how to use modern equipment? Like how to use an iPhone, for example?

R: Well, it's a good idea. It teaches you lots of life skills, like clear communication, and, well, how to teach people something. So on the whole, it's a good idea, I can imagine it might be quite stressful for everybody involved.

M: Do you think it could be difficult for older people to learn things about modern equipment?

R: Well, I remember reading about this. And it's not the fact that young people are just naturally better with technology. It's because they're just comfortable with the things that they do. It's you comfortable with your context, not the technology.

M: Are there any disadvantages of using electrical equipment at home?

R: Well, aside from the fact they need more complex maintenance than their non-electrical counterparts, I think the risk of electrocution is greater and they are relatively more expensive. Also, on a global scale, it's probably not very sustainable. It's actually completely unsustainable for every single household to have something like that.

M: Do you think modern technology makes people lazier?

R: Well, I can see why people might say that on an individual or family level. But it's probably only made people lazy in relation to time spent on tasks, the tasks involved in that. Like look at how much productivity has gone up since we introduced automation into our lives, you can flip a switch and go off to work while everything is taken care of for you. You could make the case if it starts to take over all of our jobs, then it's a bad thing, and it's probably making people lazier. But I don't see why we wouldn't just create new things for us to work on to be honest with you.

M: What can people do to protect their equipment from problems?

R: It seems to be pretty well-shielded already, to be honest. Though, people could prevent them from being exposed to sudden shocks or spills. Like but in the case of phones, you wrap it in a phone case for example, and make sure they're out of the way of any potential sources of damage like underneath the kitchen counter or installed inside a bigger unit.

M: What about other electric appliances, like microwaves or dishwashers? What can happen? How can we protect them?

R: Well, they are already, like I say, they're already pretty well-protected, but they're usually so heavy that they stay in place as they are, you could maybe just make sure they're not close to the edge of your kitchen counter, for example, that would help.

M: Thank you very for your lovely answers!

-