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since 28/01/12
BLOG CHUYÊN ANH · MY ENGLISH TRIBE
The posts’ tone and wording are kept as is, except for
spelling errors. Posts spanning multiple pages will
have the post date only for the first page.
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CONTENTS
Part 1. Exercises, Tests & Tips ---------------------7
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th
28 January, 2012
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29 May, 2015
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18 March, 2019
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|PART 1|
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C. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each sentence to form a word that fits in
the space.
31. The project failed to make progress as it was initially __________. (CONCEIVE)
32. We were so grateful to receive your information; its value was __________
significant. (ESTIMATE)
33. She accused Mr John __________ as he unduly raised allegations against Mr Tom.
(CHIEF)
34. According to the government figures, the __________ of jobs in the next century
will be in service-related fields, such as health and business. (PONDER)
35. Rio is not only hysterically funny, but it is also __________, making a serious point
in current affairs. (THINK)
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Official Key:
1. unavoidable 2. stressful 3. greenhouse 4. consumption
5. appliances 6. broadcasts 7. Anxiety 8. mispronounce
9. knowledge 10. memorize/-ise
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The medieval crusades, when Western European knights and adventurers attempted to
seize Jerusalem from the hands of the Seljuk Turks, are widely (1) __________ by
most people in the West, who think of them as (2) __________ and (3) __________.
True, displays of (4) __________ were occasionally (5) __________, but in fact the
crusaders were for the most part (6) __________ and (7) __________. For example,
they viewed the Byzantine Emperor, through whose lands they had to travel, as an
annoying (8) __________, denying him even so much as a (9) __________ role in the
(10) __________. In reality, his long experience of the Saracens had given him a not
(11) __________ knowledge of their fighting methods and politics. His advice, had the
crusaders chosen to follow it, would have been absolutely (12) __________. Instead,
they (13) __________ dismissed it as (14) __________ with the result that, despite
initial successful, the crusades eventually dwindled to (15) __________ failure.
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GỢI Ý ĐÁP ÁN MỘT SỐ PHẦN READING - ĐỀ THI HSG QUỐC GIA 2016
* Gợi ý phần Matching Headings
A - (v) Does it help or not? B - (viii) It's happening anyway
C - (ii) Conflicting evidence D - (x) An argument in favour
E - (vii) A counter-argument F - (i) Another argument in favour
G - (vi) Looking at the other side H - (iii) Negatives are positives
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#CNNListening01
Watch the video and fill in each blank with NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS and/or
A NUMBER.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlYGp9W-N3c
1. "The Martian" is not purely fictitious; it is also _____________________ with
scientific facts.
2. Oxygen can be generated either as a(n) _____________________ of microbes or
through _____________________.
3. The uncovering of water on Mars is said to be a(n) _____________________ for
water production on the planet.
Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/ChuyenTiengAnh
Official Key: <unavailable>
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#CNNListening03
Watch the video and fill in each blank with NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS
and/or A NUMBER.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTtT27520yk
1. By learning to be photojournalists, some female survivors and escapees have been
able to rebuild their lives after the terrorist group ____________________ their
country.
2. Through the lens, memories of immense sorrow, ____________________ have been
relived, yet the optimism is supposed to be shared.
3. Moments captured in a refugee with many young survivors are
____________________ bereavement.
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3. The speaker looks back, with hindsight, on various instances of injustice with _______.
A. dignity of the right thing he did
B. remorse for his indifference
C. revulsion against the world he lives in
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Part 1: https://www.ted.com/talks/clint_smith_the_danger_of_silence
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hBUhpX2GFU
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5) The speaker also retells a story of a little girl and his son to emphasise that _______.
A. adults are liable to fail than children
B. failure can disparage one’s achievements
C. one should not be belittled by failures
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Dưới đây là một ví dụ khác. Đọc và trả lời những câu hỏi sau in your own words.
PASSAGE 1
1. What does the writer mean by the use of the phrase "an indissoluble marriage"?
________________________________________________________________________
2. Explain why professional clubs have to "readjust their structures".
________________________________________________________________________
3. What does the writer mean by the use of the word "profile"?
________________________________________________________________________
4. What does the writer mean by the use of the word "visionary"?
________________________________________________________________________
5. What does the future hold for "modest teams"?
________________________________________________________________________
6. Explain the phrase "the benefits would accrue to those sports".
________________________________________________________________________
7. In a paragraph of about 100 words, summarise the facilities which will be available to
the television sports spectator in the 21st century.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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PASSAGE 1
Sport is heading for an indissoluble marriage with television and the passive
spectator will enjoy a private paradise. All of this will be in the future of sport. The
spectator (the television audience) will be the priority and professional clubs will have to
readjust their structures to adapt to the new reality: sport as a business.
The new technologies will mean that spectators will no longer have to wait for
broadcasts by the conventional channels. They will be the ones who decide what to see.
And they will have to pay for it. In the United States the system of the future has already
started: pay-as-you-view. Everything will be offered by television and the spectator will
only have to choose. The review Sports Illustrated recently published a full profile of the
life of the supporter at home in the middle of the next century. It explained that the
consumers would be able to select their view of the match on a gigantic, flat screen
occupying the whole of one wall, with images of a clarity which cannot be foreseen at
present; they could watch from the trainer’s stands just behind the batter in a game of
baseball or from the helmet of the star player in an American football game. And at their
disposal will be the sane options the producer of the recorded programmer has, to select
replays, to choose which camera to use and to decide on the sound – whether to hear the
public, the players, the trainer and so on.
Many sports executives, largely too old and too conservative to feel at home with
the new technologies, will believe that sport must control the expansion of television
coverage in order to survive and ensure that spectators attend matches. They do not even
accept the evidence which contradicts their view: while there is more basketball than ever
on television, for example, it is also certain that basketball is more popular than ever.
It is also the argument of these sports executives that television harming the
modest teams. This is true, but the future of those team is also modest. They have reached
their ceiling. It is the law of the market. The great events continually attract larger
audiences.
The world is being constructed on new technologies so that people can make the
utmost use of their time and, in their home, have access to the greatest possible range of
recreational activities. Sport will have to adapt itself to the new world.
The most visionary executives go further. That philosophy is: rather than see
television take over sport why not have sports taken over television?
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PASSAGE 2 (cont’d)
Questions:
1. According to the review, identify the main point the writer is trying to make.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
2. Find the phrase that implies that there is no concrete evidence to support a fact.
________________________________________________________________________
3. Find the verb that is used to convey a lack of respect for something.
________________________________________________________________________
4. Find the noun that could be followed by the phrase ‘to the rule’.
________________________________________________________________________
5. Identify a metaphorical reference about the impact of English today.
________________________________________________________________________
6. Find the phrase that implies that something was also highly regarded.
________________________________________________________________________
7. Locate where alliteration is used in the text and the purpose of the writer having used it.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
8. Find two adjectives that emphasise the negative aspects of a high-profile lingua franca.
________________________________________________________________________
9. Find two words and phrase the writer uses as cohesive reference devices.
________________________________________________________________________
10. What does the word burden refer to?
________________________________________________________________________
11. By his reference to a state of Babel, what does the writer imply?
________________________________________________________________________
12. Find an example of understatement and explain what the writer really means by it.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
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Official Audio
Q1-4: http://bit.ly/2LahCZa
Q5: http://bit.ly/2N54Z4b
Official Key: <unavailable>
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Official Key: café culture – postcard views – vintage wine – culture shock – cultural icon
– thriving economy – iconic symbol – insider knowledge
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Recently I’ve been thinking a good bit about relationships, and __________
notes with friends on the subject.
comparing contrasting jotting down going through
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Official Key:
Một vài ghi chú quan trọng:
Cẩn trọng khi sử dụng các từ được gắn nhãn formal trong từ điển. Rất nhiều từ
formal chỉ được sử dụng trong các context đặc thù như law, medicine, literature...
vì vậy không phù hợp trong bài IELTS writing. Trên thực tế, các từ formal còn
thường được sử dụng để hàm ý mỉa mai, châm biếm, hài hước... chứ không chỉ để
câu văn thêm sâu sắc hay lịch sự.
Level C1/C2 được thể hiện qua việc sử dụng thành thạo từ vựng ở các level B2
và thấp hơn, rồi mới đến C1/C2, không phải qua việc chỉ sử dụng các từ C1/C2
trong bài viết.
Let’s correct the sentences together!
Before doing this exercise, I suggest that you read Chapter 3 - Vocabulary
for IELTS from the book 'The Key to IELTS Success' by Pauline Cullen.
(www.ieltsweekly.com) The sentences have common vocabulary problems
at bands 6 and 7, so if you aim to achieve band 8 or above, you must not
make these mistakes.
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(Sentence 1)
Discomfit is a formal verb that is mainly used in literary contexts, meaning
‘to make sb feel confused or embarrassed’, so it is not appropriate for the
IELTS writing test. I would write: Many students feel embarrassed when
they are expected to speak in public. To embarrass, when used at C2 level,
means ‘to cause sb to feel nervous, worried, or uncomfortable’.
(Sentence 2)
There are two vocabulary problems in this sentence:
Consummate is a formal adjective, meaning ‘perfect, or complete in every
way’, but it does not collocate with example. This is a common problem at
bands 6 and 7 when candidates try to find a synonym for perfect without
awareness of ‘collocation’. At C2 level, perfect is used to emphasise a
noun, such as in perfect sense, perfect accuracy and perfect opportunity.
International relationships is not a correct collocation. The correct phrase
would be international relations or international diplomacy (C2).
The sentence should read: The failure of governments to reach an
agreement on world trade is a perfect/classic example of international
relations/diplomacy.
(Sentence 3)
There are two main vocabulary problems in this sentence:
In the IELTS writing test, we aim at precision and accuracy, so we avoid
using abbreviations such as etc,. e.g. and i.e.
Prominent is a C1 word, but used inappropriately in this sentence. It means
‘well known’ or ‘easily seen’ and is mainly used to describe people.
I would write: Smart phones, tablets and other electronic devices are
becoming more popular these days.
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(Sentence 4)
There are two vocabulary problems in this sentence: antagonism is mainly
found in literary contexts, and thus inappropriate to use in the IELTS writing
test; unfairness is an uncountable noun, so I would replace it with
inequalities (C2). The correct sentence would be: It is often thought that
international conflict is the result of inequalities between the northern and
southern hemisphere. Note that conflict is labelled B2 in the CALD. This is
how advanced levels are created: through the mastery of B2 and lower
levels, not the use of C1 and C2 words only.
(Sentence 5)
Predominant is a C2 word but it does not collocate with reason. It means
‘more noticeable or important, or larger in number, than others’. You can
find more collocations of reason from the Oxford Collocations Dictionary.
Here are some examples:
- chief - most important or main (B2)
- main - larger, more important, or having more influence than others of the
same type (B1)
- major - more important, bigger, or more serious than others of the same
type (B2)
- primary - more important than anything else; main (B2)
- principal - first in order of importance (B1)
I would personally use main or primary.
To shift means ‘to change’ (C1) and is often used in connection with ideas
or opinions. I would use switch in this context.
My version: The main/primary reason for switching to Broadband is the
ability to download data faster.
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Read the question carefully and prepare the content for your answer. Underline
keywords in the question and unpack their meaning. For example:
"There is no need for students to memorise content in today's connected world." How
far do you agree with this view?
The phrase "today's connected world" can be unpacked to mean "the modern society
today where students can easily access information on the Internet", and "memorise
content" can be interpreted as a learning process.
If you only write about either or both of the issues without putting them together to
show a contrast or a relationship between them, you may not cover all parts of the
question.
Unpacking key terms in this way will ensure that you do not go off topic and help in
your brainstorming process when you are trying to come up with ideas and examples.
Beyond keywords, also pay attention to the qualifiers in the question. For example:
"Above all else, learning should be fun." How far do you agree with this view?
The phrase "above all else" denotes that learning should be "predominantly" fun, even
though it should also be about gaining knowledge and honing social-emotional skills,
for instance.
The course that I've developed, which focuses on thinking skills, can help you to
understand and analyse a question thoroughly before writing.
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|PART 2|
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Mấy năm gần đây cũng không ít bạn “thọt” ở vòng HSG Quốc Gia môn tiếng
Anh. Qua đợt thi thử vừa rồi để vào lớp online ôn tập free của thầy, thầy
cũng thấy có chút “quan ngại” về kĩ năng làm bài và ôn tập của các con. Thầy
chỉ nói về cách làm bài và cách ôn tập được thể hiện qua bài thi thôi nhé,
không nói về kiến thức và talent, vì thầy biết bạn nào cũng conscientious và
talented cả, chỉ là lúc thi lại bối rối và tạch... tạch... tạch...
Hai phần mà các con hay bỏ trắng nhiều nhất là Listening và Summary
Writing. Bài Listening hễ cho một bài nào từ ngữ liệu thực tế từ
BBC/VOA/CNN thì y như rằng các con hay có tâm lí sợ sệt. Vì sao? Vì các
con làm bài IELTS/CAE/CPE quen rồi, mà ngữ liệu trong các bài thi đó
thường là prepared speech. Nhưng các con để ý đi, đề thi chính thức bao giờ
cũng có một bài từ BBC hoặc một bản tin thời sự nóng hổi với ngôn ngữ
phóng khoáng tự nhiên, không quá trang trọng cứng nhắc như trong các kì
thi. Hơn nữa, người ra đề cũng chọn lựa những bản tin có accent Anh chuẩn
như BBC để các con nghe, còn accent ở những miệt nào đó bên ý thì các con
có thể vào radio podcasts của The Guardian nghe chơi ^^
Ví dụ trong bài Preliminary Test vừa rồi, tổng thời lượng của 3 bài nghe chỉ
~ 11’20’’ thôi, thầy còn cho nghe đi nghe lại tùy ý nữa, vậy mà cũng có bạn
bỏ/không làm kịp. Và những bài nghe đó hoàn toàn từ BBC, CNN chứ không
có trong sách nào hết. Thầy cũng chọn những chủ đề cập nhật (như vụ xả
súng ở Mỹ) và gần gũi (Google) cho các con nghe, chứ cũng không có gì quá
cao siêu. Túm lại:
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NOTES ON LISTENING
1. Hãy luyện nghe tin tức bên cạnh các sách tham khảo khác. Sách thì có
rất nhiều và tràn lan nên thầy sẽ chọn lựa để recommend cho các con vào
một ngày nào đó. Còn đây là những nguồn tin chính thống có thể luyện nghe
được, tuy không có transcript, nhưng không sao, các con còn có thầy ở đây
IELTS Listening 9.0 ^^:
a) BBC Podcasts - trang này thật ra cũng nhiêu khê lắm nên các con có thể
vào Categories và chọn những chủ đề mình thích nghe. Riêng về tin tức thì
có những link sau (nếu còn sót các con bổ sung):
BBC News trên Youtube
BBC World Service Radio (tìm một số kênh khác như BBC
News, Global News, News Summary, The Forum, Newshour,
Newshour Extra, Newsday, World Have Your Say, Hardtalk,
The World This Week, World Update: Daily Commute, etc.)
BBC Radio 4 (và các kênh khác như Radio 1, Radio 5 live, etc.)
b) Others:
TED (with transcript)
The Guardian’s Podcasts (with transcript)
CNN News (các bản tin như trong Preliminary Test, thường phải
subscribe kênh truyền hình của họ và thu lại, nên các con chỉ cần
subscribe Youtube của thầy) (no transcript)
CNN Student News với tốc độ nói vừa phải, dễ nghe hơn CNN News,
thích hợp cho những ai còn đang yếu kĩ năng này (with transcript)
VOA Programs (w/o transcript)
NPR Podcasts (w/o transcript)
PBS News (w/o transcript)
Fox News (w/o transcript)
AP News (w/o transcript)
ABC News (w/o transcript)
updating
2. Hãy nghe một cách chăm chú và tập trung mỗi ngày thay vì chỉ
nghe rồi cho qua, ghi chép rồi sau đó transcribe hoặc viết summary. Đừng
quá bận tâm đến các tips/techniques tràn lan trên mạng và tài liệu tham
khảo, vì khi gặp những bài nghe Cambridge CAE/CPE, theo kinh nghiệm
bản thân thầy, thì chỉ có thể hiểu và nghe rõ được từng từ mới mong đạt điểm
cao.
3. Đừng luyện nghe với tâm lí rằng mình sẽ trúng tủ.
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The summary:
must capture all the main points of the original
must retain the style and message of the original
must use your own words as far as possible
must show a thorough understanding of the original
Tuy có 4 tiêu chí chấm, nhưng trên thực tế thầy hay có chút điểu chỉnh và trừ
điểm một số lỗi. Từ 4 tiêu chí trên, có thể hiểu một bài summary tốt phải cần
ứng được những yêu cầu:
Ngắn gọn súc tích (concise) và có ý nghĩa (meaningful); nói cách khác,
cần phải có tính liên kết và mạch lạc (coherence and cohesion), nếu chỉ
ghi những ý gạch đầu dòng hoặc những cụm từ rời rạc, dù đúng ý, vẫn
không đạt điểm cao. Những ý chính đó phải được thể hiện trong một
đoạn văn, được liên kết về ý và ngôn từ.
Không có quá nhiều những chi tiết nhỏ nhặt (detailed examples or
references) hay supporting points. Lập luận quan trọng có thể được ghi
chú thật ngắn gọn trong ngoặc đơn và phải thật chọn lọc.
Tương đồng về style và register (informal/formal).
Làm cho những ý tưởng phức tạp trong văn bản gốc trở nên dễ hiểu
hơn bằng các kĩ thuật paraphrase.
Cho thấy sự hiểu biết của mình về thông điệp của đoạn văn, nhưng
không bày tỏ ý kiến chủ quan hay đánh giá cá nhân (do not add any
unwanted material such as opinion or evaluation)
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In this note, I’m going to give you some general experiences in preparing for
advanced exams, e.g. the Cambridge First/Advanced, the Cambridge IELTS
and the NEG (National Exam for the Gifted). Here we'll look at some self-
study tips and when you should start thinking about them as it is
important to start planning ahead. So you will see tips for a month before
the exam, a week before the exam, the day before as well as advice for the
day of the exam itself.
During your study, try to get plenty of support and advice from your
teacher and classmates as well as practice materials and tips to help
you.
There are also, however, a lot of things that you can do to improve your
English outside the classroom and an organised programme of self-
study can really improve your final mark.
A good way to check you are organised a month before the exam is to
make a study plan. This will help ensure that you are practising all
the skills and types of question.
Make sure you read and listen to as much English as you can. This
shouldn't only be exam materials. A documentary or magazine article,
for example, could contain lots of useful language, and reading or
watching the news is especially important.
Regularly following the news will not just help expand your
vocabulary, but will also give you ideas about the kind of issues that
you may have to listen, read, talk or write about in the exam.
Keep a well-organised vocabulary record. You can record your
vocabulary by topic, or where it would be useful in the exam for
example for the Speaking and Writing sections. Remember to recycle
your vocabulary. If you find a useful phrase while you're reading
something, try to use it in a conversation or a piece of writing.
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PRELIMINARY TASK
You will see a short text. Some words or phrases have been removed from the
text. You will have to choose from 4 options (A, B, C or D) to complete each of
the gaps.
Source: http://www.novalworld.com/book-review/
BOOK REVIEW
Galapagos: The islands that changed the world
I was lucky enough to (1)_______ an ambition and visit the Galapagos
islands two years ago. Only when you experience the place (2)_______
can you really appreciate why the early explorers called this
isolated (3)_______ 'The Enchanted Isles'.
(1) A. fulfil B. accomplish C. discharge D. satisfy
(2) A. hands down B. hands-on C. offhand D. first hand
(3) A. atoll B. insularity C. archipelago D. outlander
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PRELIMINARY TASK
You will see a text from which some words have been removed. There are no
options for you to choose from. You need to complete each gap with one word
only. Avoid using contractions such as don’t as these count as two words.
WHY ARE SUNGLASSES COOL?
When you go shopping for sunglasses, you soon realise that as
(1)________________ as being overpriced, they are heavily (2)
________________ with images of celebrity. Sunglasses are cool, and
it is a cool which seems (3) ________________ to endure. Have you
ever (4) ________________ how this should be?
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Read the whole text quickly ignoring the gaps in order to get a
general idea of what the text is about. Then, you will need to look at
the part of the text before and after each gap more carefully in order
to try to think about what kind of word is missing.
This task largely focuses on knowledge of grammar and sentence
structures, so the type of words that are often missing are things like
prepositions, relative pronouns, determiners, quantifiers, linking
words, articles, etc. More challenging questions may require you to fill
in part of a fixed expression (e.g. (1) well/much) and lexical items
(e.g. (2) associated, beware of the collocation heavily associated
with; (3) set, to be set to do sth means to be likely to do sth;
(4) wondered).
STUDY TIPS
It is always a good idea to record the key words and their combinations in a
separate notebook (w/o meanings and relevant examples from exam practice
tasks). You can organise the notebook
in alphabetical order:
A abide by (v) (add antonyms if possible)
(be held) accountable for/to (adj)
allergic to (adj)
amble along (v) (add meanings if necessary)
aspire to (v) (add synonyms if possible)
B blend in (with) (v)
bombarded with (adj)
border on (v)
bound up with (adj) (add examples if necessary)
burn oneself out (v)
and/or by specific lexical items (w/o alphabetical order):
ALL be all (fingers and) thumbs (idm) (add meanings if necessary)
for/to all intents and purposes (idm)
be all the rage (idm) (add synonyms if possible)
laugh all the way to the bank (idm)
be not all/everything/nearly/... sb's cracked up to be (idm)
FROM a blast from the past (idm) (add examples if necessary)
a bolt from the blue (idm)
a far cry from sth (idm) (add antonyms if possible)
aside from (prep)
conjure sth from/out of sth (v)
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1. Nên đọc nhiều ngữ liệu tiếng Anh song song với việc làm nhiều bài thi
thử/luyện tập theo dạng thức đề thi. Ngoài các ngữ liệu academic, sách/tạp
chí chuyên ngành như New Scientist, American Scientist, The Economist,
National Geographic, Financial Times... rất hữu ích cho bài thi
IELTS/TOEFL, nên đọc thêm các tác phẩm văn học (fiction) và non-fiction
như sách tiểu sử/biên khảo/brochure/cẩm nang du lịch/tạp chí giải trí,... đặc
biệt là các tờ The Guardian, The Observer, The Newyorker, The New York
Times, The Washington Post, The Telegraph, The Time,... đậm phong cách
ngôn ngữ báo chí, chú trọng nhiều đến ngôn ngữ, văn phong và viewpoint,
vốn rất thường gặp trong các bài thi CAE/CPE.
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2. Không nhất thiết lúc nào cũng phải luyện tập ở hình thức kiểm tra: tự lực
làm bài tập - kiểm tra đáp án - hiểu và giải thích đáp án - ghi chép lại thành
các keyword tables (đây là bước quan trọng thường bị bỏ qua, thầy sẽ nói chi
tiết ở phần sau). Có thể làm khác đi: điền đáp án - hiểu và giải thích đáp án -
và cuối cùng, quan trọng, ghi chép lại thành các keyword tables. Có thể chọn
các bài đọc mà người học ở level cao thường bỏ qua như IELTS General
Reading và FCE, hoặc các bài đọc IELTS Academic Reading/CAE/CPE mà
người học cảm thấy không hứng thú, để luyện tập theo cách thứ hai. Tóm lại,
không nên bỏ sót bất kì ngữ liệu nào dù cho mình có hứng thú với nó hay
không, cũng không cần phải sợ mất thời gian hay quá ôm đồm vì luôn có
phương án khắc phục, và học theo nhóm là một trong những cách như vậy.
3. Bài thi Reading thực chất là một bài kiểm tra từ vựng bên cạnh các kĩ
năng cơ bản. Kĩ thuật có thể giúp mình đạt được một số điểm tương đối thỏa
mãn (hoàn toàn khả thi với bài thi IELTS), còn để đạt được số điểm xuất sắc
hoàn hảo, exceptional (nhất là trong bài thi CAE/CPE) lại là một chuyện
khác. Ngoài việc ghi chú từ vựng thông thường, nên dành ra một quyển sổ
riêng chỉ để ghi chú keywords (thầy sẽ nói chi tiết ở phần sau), điều này còn
giúp phát triển các kĩ năng khác nữa. Tóm lại, chịu khó học, hiểu và sử dụng
từ vựng, từ đó phát triển thành cảm thụ ở mức độ văn bản, không nên quá lệ
thuộc vào tiểu xảo hay bí quyết vốn đã rất tràn lan.
5. Không nhất thiết lúc nào cũng phải canh thời gian khi luyện Reading,
mặc dù theo lời khuyên chính thức, mỗi đoạn trong bài thi nên dành tối đa
20 phút. Trong quá trình luyện tập, càng không nên chia thời gian cho từng
câu hỏi. Một số bài đọc và câu hỏi khó hơn sẽ cần nhiều thời gian hơn, đây là
điều hết sức bình thường. Tóm lại, nên xen kẽ, linh hoạt và cân đối về thời
gian.
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6. Không nên quá cầu toàn khi luyện tập. Không phải lúc nào cũng phải
làm đúng 100%. Đúng 39/40 câu IELTS Reading vẫn đạt được band 9. Còn
trong bài CAE/CPE thì đạt 95% đã không dễ dàng gì, đừng vội mơ đến 99%.
Một số câu hỏi cần phải có sự thông hiểu, tinh tế trong việc cảm nhận ngôn
ngữ, rất khó ngay cả với người bản xứ chứ chưa nói đến giáo viên Việt Nam.
Tóm lại, don’t push yourself too hard.
hoặc khi đoạn văn không có các features (rất ít khi như vậy), thì việc preview
các câu hỏi trước có thể giúp ta nhận biết chủ đề. Trong bài thi IELTS, chủ đề
không thể hiện trong phần instruction, e.g.
khi đó, việc preview đoạn văn trước là cần thiết vì nó giúp chúng ta xác định
được chủ đề dễ dàng hơn là preview câu hỏi. Bài tập dưới đây minh họa các
features thường gặp của một bài đọc.
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"The Official Cambridge Guide to IELTS" by Pauline Cullen et al., 2014, page 44.
Preview chứ không Skim. Chúng ta chỉ cần biết chủ đề (topic) và ngữ
cảnh (context) của đoạn văn, chứ không phải lấy gist/main ideas.
Khi preview đoạn văn, đánh số thứ tự các đoạn văn để tiện cho việc xác
định câu trả lời (nếu đoạn văn chưa được đánh số thứ tự). Nên dùng các
chữ cái A, B, C,... thay cho số đếm 1, 2, 3,... để tránh nhầm lẫn với số thứ
tự câu hỏi.
Không nhất thiết phải predict nếu làm bài trong điều kiện kiểm tra, thi
cử. Trong quá trình luyện tập, người học thể predict về nội dung, từ vựng,
loại văn bản, cấu trúc mạch văn hành văn, văn phong,... bằng các hoạt
động dẫn dắt do giáo viên thiết kế.
2. Người học ở level cao có thể chỉ cần preview câu hỏi trước rồi mới đến
đoạn văn.
Các đoạn văn và câu hỏi trong bài thi IELTS thường được sắp xếp từ dễ
đến khó. Nhưng các câu hỏi và đoạn văn trong bài thi CAE/CPE thường ở
mức độ khó tương đương nhau, từ trình độ advanced trở lên.
Khi preview câu hỏi, cần nhận dạng được các dạng bài, từ đó định hướng
nên làm câu nào phần nào trước. Thông thường, nên làm các câu hỏi có
câu trả lời theo thứ tự đoạn văn / mạch văn trước. Sau đó làm các câu hỏi
có câu trả lời không theo thứ tự các đoạn và mạch văn. Dưới đây là một số
phân chia tương đối dựa trên các đề thi chính thức trong những năm gần
đây, cũng như định hướng nguồn ngữ liệu học tập cho các em:
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CAE/CPE IELTS
Multiple Choice Matching Headings
Sentence Completion (*) Matching Features
Short-Answer Questions (*) Matching Sentence Endings
Summary/Note Completion Table/Flow-Chart Completion
(*): usu. in order of the inf. Diagram Label Completion: not usu. in
T/F/NG – Y/N/NG (*) order of the inf.
Multiple Matching/Matching Information
Gapped Text, Cross-Text
(*) Ngữ liệu CAE/CPE với câu hỏi được thiết kế theo dạng thức IELTS. Lưu
ý rằng bất kì nguồn ngữ liệu nào cũng thể được người ra đề thiết kế lại theo ý
muốn, điều này giúp tránh việc học sinh học vẹt, học tủ.
Cần xác định được các keywords khi preview câu hỏi.
2. JUST DO THE DARN TASKS
Scanning vốn đã được luyện tập rất nhiều để tìm câu trả lời. Phần này chỉ
note lại một số lưu ý nhỏ trong quá trình làm bài Reading.
SKIMMING
1. Mục đích của kĩ thuật skimming là giúp người đọc “hiểu” được đoạn văn
nói về vấn đề gì, mục đích của văn bản, loại văn bản, văn phong, cấu trúc
mạch văn, sự liên kết và chủ đề của mỗi đoạn (trong quá trình luyện tập, có
thể note lại chủ đề của mỗi đoạn văn khi skimming). Hãy chắc chắn rằng sau
khi skim, mình “hiểu” được những điều đó.
2. Không nên skim quá nhanh. Chỉ nên skim với tốc độ mà mình cảm thấy
thoải mái và không áp lực. Một số người đề xuất các eye movement khi skim
(và scan) như: left-toright, across-and-back, up-and-down, spiraling,
browsing, drifting, etc. Tuy nhiên, nếu đọc trong tâm thế thư giãn và bình
tĩnh thì không cần quá bận tâm đến eye movement. Hãy đọc theo cách mà
mình cảm thấy tự nhiên nhất.
3. Vị trí của topic sentence có thể nằm ở đầu đoạn (câu thứ nhất hoặc câu
thứ hai), hoặc là câu cuối đoạn theo kinh nghiệm của nhiều người. Hãy cẩn
thận. Câu đầu đoạn văn có thể giới thiệu thông tin sắp nói đến, cũng có thể
chỉ là tóm lược và dẫn dắt thông tin từ đoạn trước đó. Tương tự, câu cuối đoạn
có thể là topic sentence, có thể là concluding sentence, hoặc chỉ giới thiệu và
gợi ý thông tin cho những đoạn tiếp tho (segue sentence).
4. Một số lời khuyên cho rằng nên skim đoạn văn đầu tiên / thứ hai (và cuối
cùng) kĩ hơn một chút. Tuy nhiên, với mốt số dạng bài như Multiple
Matching hoặc Cross-Text, các đoạn văn thường độc lập với nhau. Vì vậy, các
đoạn văn thường nên được skim như nhau vì chúng quan trọng như nhau.
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SCANNING
1. Mục đích của kĩ thuật Scanning là “tìm được đáp án”, hay chính xác hơn
“tìm được keywords” có thể giúp mình “tìm ra đáp án”. Tùy theo từng loại
câu hỏi mà chúng ta có thể đặc biệt lưu ý đến các loại keywords khác nhau
như: organising and signpost words (direction, sequence, order, logic
words,...), proper nouns, conjunctions and conjunctive terms, dates, figures,
content words, words in brackets, italics, acronyms, words in ‘inverted’
commas, etc.
4. Trong quá trình luyện tập, nên ghi chép các keywords trong một quyển
sổ riêng, e.g.
Test 100, Passage 100, Page 10000, Materials from Mr. Trung /
Cambridge Proficiency 7 (add as any necessary details for future
reference)
No Keywords in Q&A Keywords in the (My paraphrase)
Passage
1 tranquil pacified cool, calm and collected
2 colossal >< indiscernible hard to make out (informal)
5. Xem lại một vài gợi ý về cách sử dụng keywords cũng như tầm quan
trọng của việc học từ vựng ở mục 2-3-4 ở phần Preparation & Practice.
Please note that this note is subject to change at all times.
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1. Source: ENCYCLOPEDIA
Topic: SHIRTS
Register: ACADEMIC
2. Source:
Topic:
Register:
3. Source:
Topic:
Register:
4. Source:
Topic:
Register:
5. Source:
Topic:
Register:
Now think about the possible content and themes of these texts. Match
the themes (A-L) with the text number (1-5).
A. history E. memories of childhood I. books
B. children’s TV F. fashion J. authors
C. opinions G. Maya calendar K. symbols
D. styles H. manufacture L. favourite foods
Official Key: <unavailable>
Our ability to understand a text can be helped by thinking about what to
expect in the text. This prediction can help you to read more quickly and to
prepare for difficult ideas, especially when it's an unfamiliar or difficult
topic. This is a good habit to develop for all your reading.
going to read. What do you expect to find in the text? Choose the
correct answer.
(title)
(subtitle)
(diagram) (picture)
(caption)
1. The text will be about _____.
A. scientific equipment
B. how to use a petri dish
C. the effects of tropical diseases
D. preparing for scientific research studies
2. Where is the text probably from?
A. an encyclopaedia B. a newspaper
C. a scientific text book D. an online forum
3. How is the text likely to be written?
A. quite formally but without too much scientific jargon
B. informally, in a conversational style
C. academically, with a lot of scientific detail
Official Key: <unavailable>
3 Using what you have predicted about the content, text type and
register, skim read the article to answer the questions below, then
underline the keywords that helped you find the answers and make a
table of keywords.
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><
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The good news today is that some are becoming less neglected. Referred to in ancient
documents, studied by scientists in the late 19th century, and already dubbed “great
neglected diseases” by Ken Warren at the Rockefeller Foundation in the 1980s, they have
risen to the priorities of donors and policymakers over the past decade.
There has been a surge in academic articles in the past few years, and even the creation
of new journals, such as PlosNTDs. Funding for research into new “tools” has jumped
from $268m in 2007 to $460m last year, according to Policy Cures, a think-tank. Donors
led by the US Agency for International Development, the UK’s Department for
International Development and the Gates Foundation have considerably stepped up
support.
The activity reached a new peak last January, when 13 pharmaceutical companies signed
up to the “London Declaration” on NTDs, offering expanded donations of supplies of drugs
with a theoretical commercial value of hundreds of millions of dollars a year that have the
potential to prevent and treat many NTDs.
Some stress their corporate responsibility, while others point to economic self-interest.
“This is a long-term investment in the future middle class,” says Haruo Naito, head of
Japanese drugmaker Eisai, which pledged to produce diethylcarbamazine for lymphatic
filariasis (elephantiasis), in the process expanding its brand name and experience of
manufacturing in India and the UK.
Bill Foege, a veteran public health expert, who praises Merck as it celebrates the 25th
year of donations of its drug ivermectin, says: “This is becoming the way corporations
operate. They do not simply do it for good publicity or some sort of tax break, but because
when you are competing for good workers, it makes a difference.”
He also points to the importance of high-level advocacy among politicians and chief
executives inspired by former US president Jimmy Carter, whose tireless efforts mean
that dracunculiasis (guinea worm) could by 2015 become only the second human disease
eradicated, after smallpox. “When a head of state is interested, you can bet the minister
of health is interested,” he says.
One broader factor mobilising recent efforts has been interest closer to home for donors.
Prof Hotez has long highlighted the burden of NTDs, such as helminths and
leishmaniasis, in the poor rural and indigenous communities of North America. Caroline
Anstey of the World Bank, another important funder, prefers to dub NTDs not neglected
diseases, but diseases of neglected people.
Climate change and the growth in commerce means that some diseases – led by mosquito-
transmitted dengue – are now moving from poorer to richer emerging countries and into
the US and western Europe. No surprise that much pharmaceutical industry investment
– and not purely philanthropic support – is going into the search for a vaccine. But many
difficulties remain. Sustaining funding – let alone meeting a $2bn gap by 2015 for current
international plans – is a particular concern during a period of slower economic growth.
Sabin trustee Baroness Hayman, who is keeping a nervous eye on a recent reshuffle in
the British government that could change priorities at Dfid, the official development
agency, cautions: “We are going to have to work very hard to keep up the momentum on
funding. It would be a terrible shame if it went backwards.”
Dr Lorenzo Savioli, who runs the NTD programme at the World Health Organisation,
says: “Outside the US and the UK, few governments are interested or understood how
relevant this is for poverty reduction. We need the eurozone and the yen zone involved.”
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Prof Alan Fenwick, director of the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative at Imperial College,
London, says few African governments yet have their own budget or staff for NTDs. He
also says donors should carefully examine the growing number of organisations now
competing for support, stressing his own group’s low overhead, use of local rather than
expatriate staff and careful partnerships to avoid corruption.
Others call for efficiencies in other ways, including greater linkage between well-
established but underfunded NTD programmes and better-supported HIV and malaria
projects.
Not all NTDs are receiving equal attention in every country, and nor can they be tackled
in the same way. Some are more “tool-ready” than others, though most would benefit
from fresh diagnostics and drugs.
“Mass drug administration” – using a number of donated drugs in combination
preventatively like a vaccine – is taking off, but remains hindered by poor co-ordination.
Some question whether the approach is wise, arguing it may risk triggering drug
resistance and placing heavy strains on local communities and health systems.
Simon Bush, head of NTDs at Sightsavers, says: “Mass treatments are going well, but if
we want to move to elimination we need to look at water, sanitation and hygiene. That’s
always been the weak link.”
Ambitious goals set for eradication of several NTDs in the coming years are unlikely if
these issues are not addressed. Medicines can help, but are unlikely to eliminate diseases
of poverty alone.
1. What is the text about? You can choose as many answers as you think
are correct.
A. what are neglected tropical diseases E. how children are affected
B. effects of tropical diseases F. the most serious diseases
C. what governments are doing G. recent research
D. international help
2. What are the THREE main themes of the text?
A. development C. education E. health G. science
B. economics D. globalisation F. politics
3. What kind of publication is this text taken from?
A. text book C. magazine E. scientific journal
B. encyclopedia D. newspaper
4. What kind of text is this?
A. article B. encyclopedia C. entry D. report E. text book entry
5. What is the style of the language used in this text?
A. informal B. neutral C. formal D. academic
4 EXTRA: Summarise the text using your own words as far as possible
(Submit full answers to all of the questions via tienganhchuyen@gmail.com
to receive feedback.)
Please note that this note is subject to change at all times.
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1 Skim read the text, and time yourself (you can use a watch or a
timer on a mobile phone). Decide which time is closest to yours. How
long did it take you to read the text?
2 minutes or less: Be careful. If you read a text this long so quickly, you may
not have a very clear idea of the general meaning.
3 minutes: You are a quick reader. Make sure you have a good general idea
of the whole text.
4 minutes: You should be able to give a general summary of the whole text.
5 minutes or more: Try to read more quickly, focusing on the main ideas but
not stopping to check detailed understanding.
Why I hate living in the countryside
After two years in Herefordshire, city girl Ioana Miller has decided that rustic living is not
for her.
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By Ioana Miller
5:31PM BST 03 Aug 2012
I recall clearly how the nightmare started. Martin, my husband, sat me in the car, and announced: “I
have a surprise.” He then proceeded to drive three hours from our flat in Notting Hill to Herefordshire.
Rolling hills, sheep, picturesque farmhouses: Herefordshire’s Golden Valley is a bucolic vision. Martin
stopped the car at the top of a drive: “This,” he announced, “is Great Brampton House.” At the end of
the drive stood a large Regency residence. The sun gilded its charming, if slightly run-down façade.
“It’s beautiful!” I trilled, enchanted. “I was hoping you’d say that,” Martin had a twinkle in his eye:
“I’ve just bought it.”
He really had. Martin is — among other things — an antique dealer, a hotelier and a distiller, and he
enthused about the great deal he’d struck, the vision he had (we’d renovate the house, turn it into a
hotel, and build a 7,000 sq ft contemporary gallery), and most of all about the prospect of our moving to
the countryside to enjoy a quieter, more meaningful and healthier life. I, the city girl, would find true
happiness in Arcadia.
Two years on, Martin has realised his dream. But I’ve realised that living in the country is like forcing
myself to take a nine year-old to Alton Towers: very nice in theory, but in practice – get me out of here!
At least at a theme park you can opt out of rides. The countryside, on the other hand, is a theme park
without opt-out clauses.
I am surrounded by sheep, cows and chickens, but for human contact I have to learn Polish to chat to
the workmen, drive half an hour to our nearest neighbour, or wait until the vet comes by to check the
hens. The cinema is seven miles away. When I sought a bit of culture, a neighbour suggested that I go
to the Hereford cattle market on Wednesdays. The notable exception is of course the Hay Festival,
although that comes but once a year.
The first year was bearable: the renovation of the house took up a great deal of time, and building the
“Downstairs Gallery” was immensely rewarding. We started taking guests in March 2011, and were
inundated with requests during the Festival in June.
The gallery opened its doors last spring, and although there hasn’t been a stampede of locals
clamouring to view our installations, everyone has been very friendly about our “alternative” enterprise.
Everyone, that is, except one elderly lady. When we were putting in the 2.2m-tall gorilla statues that
stand as gate posts, she stopped her little car, got out, and tapped Martin on the shoulder: “This is not
the sort of thing we do around here.” In fact, the unusual gateposts have become a talking point among
neighbours, and draw regular visitors – children, mostly, who insist on feeding the primates bananas.
“We’re in tune with Nature,” Martin boasts to our city friends. He waxes lyrical about the Forest of
Dean, the Wye Valley and the Brecon Beacons. I can’t deny that country folk are friendly, the views of
the hills are glorious, and I love the birdsong that wakes me each morning. Despite all this, I’m at the
end of my tether. I understand only too well why demographers claim that in the next 10 years, 75 per
cent of the world’s population will have fled the countryside for the city: they, too, have had enough of
mud, muck and loneliness.
Countryside fans bleat about the violence of mean streets and the noise of traffic. I’d like to remind
them that in the country, the animals make a racket and mate with exhibitionist abandon; the weather
can wreak more damage than an urban rioter; and time drags like a slug across my vegetable patch.
I spend whole afternoons staring at the kitchen clock, willing it to fast-forward to 6pm, and drinks. So
much for the health benefits of living in the country: I’ve never drunk so much or so many different
kinds of alcohol in my life. I’ve grown so fond of the local cider, I’m considering making my own; and
even the cheap Polish vodka that the workmen left as a Christmas present looks inviting.
Arcadia’s fans claim that everyone relaxes among its bucolic scenery and quiet backwaters. Perhaps
this is true of the weekend visitor, but the home owner in the country can never take her eyes off the
property: there’s always a leaky roof to mend, a wasp infestation to control, a boiler to replace. And
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that’s without taking into consideration the beasts of burden , who get ill more frequently than one of
those urban hypochondriacs allergic to wheat, nuts and dairy. Foot and mouth is mercifully not a
problem at the moment; instead we’re faced with infections, limps, and bites – all of which require
prompt attention by the (very expensive) vet.
I’d dreamt that living out here would give me lean legs and rosy apple cheeks, à la Felicity Kendal in
The Good Life. The truth is that I’ve never moved so little. In London I set off on foot every day for a
tour of the neighbouring houses, shops and Hyde Park; but here I find it daunting to trek through fields
that go on and on, sloshing in wellies towards an infinite horizon, meeting no one except four-legged
creatures along the way. I can’t help feeling that I’m walking nowhere, on my own: it’s too depressing.
In the city, I can keep fit with Pilates classes, yoga sessions and Tai Chi. In Herefordshire, I’ve seen
belly dancing classes advertised at a not too distant pub; otherwise, I’ll have to milk cows for my
triceps, and clear five-bar gates for my glutes.
In the early days of my exile, I was convinced that we’d enjoy a very ecological lifestyle. We do have a
(stinking) compost heap, and I’ve planted squash and runner beans that would be the envy of all my
manic organic friends back in London. But the truth is, I’m always in the car. The least little errand
requires wheels because in the countryside, there’s no such thing as “popping down to the shop”.
Even the simplest urban pleasures are denied the country dweller. If I fancy a cappuccino, my only
choice is to head for the garden centre. What is a quick treat in London here involves queuing for 35
minutes among the plastic pots and fertiliser sacks: the local girl serving us has inevitably recognised a
customer as her long-lost cousin, who must be filled in on all the gossip. The same happens at B & Q,
which is a favourite rendezvous for the locals. The third time Martin went to buy electrical gadgets, the
shop assistant was greeting him like an old friend; by his fourth visit, he was regaled with tales of
spanking and wife-swapping that made The Archers sound like an everyday tale of puritans.
The countryside has its merits, I know. But after two years, I realise why Britain is the cradle of
urbanisation: our ancestors knew that, east or west, the city is best.
2 Check to see how well you’ve understood the main ideas of the
text. Select the five topics dealt with in the text from the list
below. Identify the keywords that helped you find the answers and
make a table of keywords.
A. Ioana and Martin’s dreams for their house in the country
B. A description of Ioana’s life in the city
C. Positive aspects of living in the country
D. The difficulties of meeting people in the country
E. Ioana’s feelings of cultural isolation
F. A comparison between people’s activities in the city and in the country
G. Concerns facing people who live in the country
H. Martin’s feelings about leaving the country
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4 Skim read the text and select the correct answers to complete the
sentences. You should aim to spend no more than four minutes skim
reading the text.
When tablet turns teacher
‘Aid groups might do better just to give out mobile phones and laptops with
self-teaching games’
Gillian Tett · OCTOBER 5, 2012
A couple of years ago, I took an iPad home for the first time. It was a humbling experience. Within
minutes, my two young daughters had seized on the device, and were handling it with far more
dexterity than me. So much so, in fact, that whenever I am flummoxed by a tablet or phone today, I
give it straight to my kids to sort out. And if we are ever trapped in a car, train, queue or anything else, I
am apt to hand over my phone, BlackBerry or iPad, and let them play games, take pictures or simply
explore. It is the fastest way to buy peace.
But does their dexterity arise because my children are “digital natives” – kids who have grown up in a
world surrounded by mobile phones and keypads? Or is the ability to decode an electronic gadget
innate to all young human brains, irrespective of where they live?
These are the fascinating questions which a group of Boston researchers are currently exploring in the
unlikely setting of Ethiopia. A few years ago, Nicholas Negroponte, a luminary of MIT, cofounded a
group known as One Laptop per Child, which (as I noted in an earlier column) has been distributing
ultra-cheap computers to the world’s poor as part of an educational campaign. This has boomed in
places such as Uruguay. But now Negroponte and Matt Keller, a fellow researcher who previously
worked with the World Food Programme, have launched an experiment so bold it might be science
fiction.
Six months ago, they dropped dozens of boxed tablets into two extremely remote villages in Ethiopia,
where the population was completely illiterate, dirt poor and had no prior exposure to electronics. They
did not leave any instructions, aside from telling the village elders that the tablets were designed for
kids aged four to 11. They also showed one adult how to charge the tablets with a solar-powered
device. Then the researchers vanished and monitored what happened next by making occasional visits
and tracking the behaviour of the children via Sim cards, USB sticks and cameras installed in the
tablets.
The results, which will be unveiled in Boston later this month, are thought-provoking, particularly for
anyone involved in the education business. Within minutes of the tablets landing among the mud huts,
the kids had unpacked the boxes and worked out how to turn them on.
Then, in both villages, activity coalesced around a couple of child leaders, who made the mental leap to
explore those tablets – and taught the others what to do. In one village, this leader turned out to be a
partly disabled child: although he had never been a dominant personality before, he was a natural
explorer, so became the teacher.
The discovery process then became intense. When the children used the tablets, they did not behave
like western adults might, namely sitting with a machine each on their laps in isolation. Instead they
huddled together, touching and watching each other’s machines, constantly swapping knowledge.
Within days, they were using the pre-installed apps, with games, movies and educational lessons. After
a couple of months, some were singing the American “alphabet song” and recognising letters (at the
request of the Ethiopian government, the machines were all in English). More startling still, one gang of
kids even worked out how to disable a block that the Boston-based researchers had installed into the
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machines, which was supposed to stop them taking pictures of themselves. And all of this apparently
happened without any adult supervision – and anyone in those mud huts having handled text before.
This experiment still has much further to run, and has not been independently audited. But the
researchers have already drawn three tentative conclusions. The first is that, “no matter how remote
children are, or how illiterate their community, they have the ability to figure out sophisticated
technology,” as Keller says. Second, and leading from that first point, technology can potentially be a
potent self-learning tool. And third – and more controversially – Keller concludes that “getting kids
access to technology may be much more important than giving them schools.” Instead of pouring
money into shiny buildings and teacher training, in other words, aid groups might do better just to
distribute mobile phones and laptops with those self-teaching games.
Many people would dispute that. After all, the technology world is full of hype; and some economists
and development experts such as C.K. Prahalad have questioned whether poor communities can truly
derive the benefits of modern technology without help. Singing an “alphabet song” is one thing;
reading calculus is quite another.
But at the very least, Negroponte and Keller’s experiments raise two further questions in my mind.
First, what is all this technology doing to our kids’ neural networks and the way future societies will
conceive of the world? Second, and more practically, could these lessons about self-learning be applied
to the west? Should someone who worries about the failures of the US education system to reach the
American poor, for example, be looking to tablets – and not just teachers’ unions – for a possible
solution?
The answers are not clear. But the next time my kids grab my own devices, I may not feel quite so
much parental guilt. Those devices may now be unleashing an evolutionary leap – with consequences
that my (tech-challenged) generation can barely decode.
1. (Topic) The main topic of this article is __________.
A. using computers in the classroom as a learning aid
B. what children are learning from modern-day technology
C. an experiment on children’s natural ability to use technology
D. the possible damage caused by technology on children’s brains
(Clue: The opening sentences of each paragraph may help you to find the
main topic. Look at the concluding paragraph as well.)
2. (Source) This text is from __________.
A. a newspaper or magazine B. a scientific journal C. a text book
(Clue: Use clues such as titles, and also whether you think the text is part of
a longer piece, or stand-alone.)
3. (Register) The language of this text is __________.
A. an academic style B. a colloquial style C. a neutral style
(Clue: Think about the grammatical structures and the type of vocabulary
that is used.)
5 Look at the text again. What is the main topic of each section (1–
7)? Write the number next to topic headings (A-G). Identify the
keywords that helped you find the answers and make a table of
keywords.
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(Clues:
B. Look for possible theories, and information about the researchers and the
project.
C. What kind of words will show you a personal response? Think about
pronouns and possessive adjectives.
D. Look for a description of what the children did with the devices.
E. Find a section which narrates how the experiment was set up.
F. Look for descriptions of specific situations or experiences the writer has
had.
G. Find a section which either agrees or disagrees with the researchers’ own
conclusions.)
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1 First read the questions and, for each question, select the key
piece of information you will need to find in the text. There may be
more than one possible answer. Do not read the text yet.
1. How has War Horse changed Michael Morpurgo’s life?
A. a reason B. an event C. an explanation
2. Why did Michael Morpurgo start writing stories?
A. a reason B. factual information C. a description
3. How does he plan his books?
A. a description B. a reason C. an event
4. According to the text, what works by Michael Morpurgo can you
currently enjoy?
A. a list B. a description C. a date/time
5. What did Michael Morpurgo learn when he set up his charity?
A. an event B. a list C. factual information
6. Why did Michael Morpurgo set up his charity?
A. an event B. a description C. a reason
7. When does he expect to stop working?
A. a date/time B. a list C. an event
2 Now you know what kind of information to look for to find the
answers to the questions. Using this information, read the more
carefully to select the correct answers to the questions. Identify
the keywords that helped you find the answers and make a table of
keywords.
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Sticking it out through the hard times, when the fundraising does not go well, or when a school cancels.
Running a charity is similar to running a business. It is about raising capital, having to sell an idea, and
making a good pitch with a very strong message.
Do you allow yourself the odd indulgence?
I’m very fond of good wine, in particular St Emilion and Chateauneuf Du Pape. I like to drive an Audi,
because I love the engineering of it. My wife and I enjoy driving holidays in Normandy, Brittany, and
south-west France. We are both French speakers.
What would you be doing today, if War Horse had not been rediscovered 21 years after
publication?
Probably much the same as we are doing now. By the time War Horse was a hit, enough of the other
books were selling quite well to provide us with a reasonable income to get us through our retirement.
War Horse the play opened in 2007 at the National, and over 1.2m people have come to see the play in
London alone.
Do you believe in leaving everything to children?
No I don’t. The best thing you can pass on to children is an education, and it’s terrific if you can help
them when they start out, and make a contribution to a flat. But I think too much money is as bad as too
little. We will leave a third of everything we have got to good causes.
What is the most you have ever paid for a bottle of fine wine or champagne?
I would never pay more than £50 or £60 on a vintage bottle of champagne for a celebration. I would
spend between £15 and £20 on claret to drink at home. However, best of all is when I pay nothing,
when my publishers sent us a nice bottle of champagne, on publication of a new book.
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4 Read the three texts and do the following tasks. Identify the
keywords that helped you find the answers and make a table of
keywords.
TEXT 1
What lies beneath
Jan Dalley · MARCH 5, 2011
The bleak, vertiginous mountains rear up in serried ranks, miles and miles back to a harsh horizon.
There isn’t a tree or a house, an animal track, a trace of human existence. The cruellest land, and one in
which we can now only imagine a hidden Taliban rocket-launcher, a pod of silent, veiled men slipping
from a cave. There’s beauty in this remote landscape, in the far north-east of Afghanistan – but it’s a
kind of beauty that makes you shiver.
This is the picture that greets you, in wall-sized photographic reproduction, as you walk into the British
Museum’s new exhibition Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ancient World, which has arrived at its UK
stop on a world tour of some nine western capitals, including Paris and Washington DC. The backdrop
is a brilliant coup de théâtre because, as the show is about to tell us, under this harsh land lie objects of
exquisite delicacy, proof of civilisations in utter contrast to the war zones familiar from our television
screens. There seems to be, on the surface of this earth, no clue to the manmade riches within.
Yet 2,000 years ago, a young woman of 20 or so, about 5ft 2ins in height, was buried hereabouts, with
several thousand pieces of worked gold: bracelets and headdress ornaments, golden buckles set with
turquoise, hair clips and anklets, hundreds of gold pieces stitched to her clothing like the sequins on the
bodice of a ballroom dancer.
Who was she – and to what other realm did she believe she would go, with all that bling around her?
We know frustratingly little about her, or the others equally lavishly entombed in the necropolis at
Tillya Tepe in the first century AD. That they were nomadic people makes it even more surprising,
perhaps, that their riches would be permanently consigned to the earth like this: it was here that was
found one of the show’s most extraordinary treasures, a complicatedly worked gold crown that actually
folds up for easy carriage.
The word “extraordinary” hardly covers other aspects of Afghanistan’s past on show here. Imagine
beneath this blasted land an entire Greek city, complete with amphitheatre and gymnasium, temples,
palaces and courtyards. Such was the Hellenic city now known as Ai Khanum, built around 300BC in
Bactria, at the very frontier of the Greek sphere of domination, a whole year’s march from Athens. Its
ground plan was excavated by French archaeologists in the 1960s and a neat CGI reconstruction helps
us to imagine the place, well fortified by its river and mountain boundaries and its mighty walls, while
display cases show fragments of the luxurious living to be enjoyed within: gold vases, luscious bronze
female figures of Indian dancing girls, the mosaics of a bathhouse.
Or Begram, the first-century summer capital of the Kushan kings, a dynasty whose power-base spread
up into what is now Uzbekistan and Tajikistan and down into the Indian subcontinent as far as
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Varanasi. Objects found there show the extent of the trade along these important routes – as far east as
China and as far west as Rome. An enamelled glass goblet, for instance, which is painted with a scene
of people harvesting dates, was made in Roman Egypt and exported by sea via the Red Sea and the
Indian Ocean to India, from where it would have travelled hundreds of miles overland to Begram. Who
still thinks the globalisation of culture is a recent phenomenon?
Trade here included frankincense and coral, lapis lazuli and turquoise, indigo and silverware. Pearls
from the Arabian sea; carnelian from north Africa. At Begram in 1937, French archaeologists made the
sort of find of which they must always have dreamed: a sealed room full of treasure imported from
China. And from Begram too came a set of superbly delicate carved ivories, probably Indian, and from
the first century AD, which take pride of place in this show because of their emotional history. Looted
from the National Museum in Kabul at some point in 1992-94, they were believed lost until an
anonymous London dealer, who had spotted them on the international market and identified them,
recently arranged for their return. Their restoration has been paid for by Bank of America Merrill
Lynch’s conservation programme.
They are slender and fragile objects that once decorated parts of furniture – it needs the helpful
reconstructions to appreciate what we are looking at. But vivid, playful details leap out: one ivory
bench bracket shows a half-naked woman mounted on a rearing leogryph (a “sardula” in Indian
mythology) – one of several mythological creatures here.
Such stories – of precious objects lost and found, looted or protected, hidden from the ravages of
modern wars – are everywhere in this show, and it is to some extent a celebration of the heroes of
Afghanistan’s cultural community, especially curators who hid objects in their homes to protect them
from the vandalism of the extremists. The very first exhibit sets the tone: it’s a small limestone figure of
a youth, made before 145BC, from Ai Khanum. It’s not in good shape – the head and feet are missing,
and the belly area is smashed. Next to it in the vitrine stands a photograph of the piece in rather better
(though far from perfect) condition, with the caption: “the statue before it was destroyed by Taliban
officials in 2001”.
So we know that we are in for a slightly didactic note – but we really can’t mind about that. A video
shows us the time of the Soviet occupation, when archaeological work “breaks down”, according to the
commentator, and Afghanistan becomes a “place of war” rather than a place of culture. Those who
know about the Afghan wars of the 19th century might think this is a rather short-term view of the
country’s history – it has been a ravaged and disputed land for a long time – but in archaeological terms
it is relevant, as the great majority of the finds here were made between the 1930s and the 1970s, even
though some British explorers were beginning to make discoveries as early as the 1820s.
In fact the Russians themselves were among the many nations involved in Afghan archaeology,
especially at an ancient site at Tepe Fullol (2200-1900BC), in the far north of the country, near mines
that yielded precious lapis lazuli, where a large hoard of gold and silver vessels was found in 1965: one
here shows a design of a bull similar to ancient Mesopotamian art, close to 4,000 years old. It was the
first news of this sophisticated and very ancient culture.
From China to the Mediterranean, the influences reflected in this show are almost limitless. It shows
how peoples always moved through this region, how cultures flourished and died, how the lands that
were once rich became as barren as that stark mountain range. It’s a place still at war, but this
exhibition stands as some sort of a beacon of hope. As I walked through the show, a line from TS
Eliot’s The Waste Land kept ringing round my mind: “These fragments/I have shored against my
ruins…”
TEXT 2
Mystery of Britain’s 'Franken-mummies’
Two 3,000-year-old human skeletons dug up in the Outer Hebrides have
been found to be a jigsaw of at least six different people who died hundreds
of years apart.
Richard Gray, Science Correspondent · 8:00AM BST 23 SEP 2012
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Dating of the two skeletons showed they appeared to be over 3,000 years old and predated the house
they were buried under by several hundred years.
Both had been buried in a crouched position on their sides and from the way the bones remained
connected, it appeared they had been carefully preserved.
Analysis of the bones indicated that the bodies had started to rot after death but the decay was abruptly
halted.
The mineral content of the bones suggests they were placed in an acidic peat bog, which helped to
preserve them in a primitive form of mummification before they were removed and kept above ground,
the researchers claim.
Before the discovery, mummification at that time in history was thought to have been restricted to
Egypt and South America.
Carbon dating of the bones in the male skeleton revealed while the jaw came from someone who had
died around 1440BC-1260BC, the rest of the skull came from a man who died some 100 years earlier,
and the remainder of the body from someone who died 500 years before that.
In a new study, published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, the researchers used DNA testing
to examine the female skeleton, which carbon dating suggested had belonged to a woman who died
between 1300 BC and 1130 BC.
By examining genetic material known as mitochondrial DNA, which is passed down only by females,
the researchers found the jaw bone, a leg bone and an arm bone all came from different individuals.
Other body parts could have come from other individuals too, but it was impossible to obtain suitable
DNA to analyse. The testing did suggest, however, that skull could have belonged to a relative or the
same individual as the arm.
Physical analysis of the 'female’ skeleton has also suggested the jaw and skull in fact belonged to a
male.
From its position, the researchers believe the body had been wrapped up tightly and kept above ground
for several hundred years before it was finally buried. Shortly after death, two of its teeth were removed
with one placed in each hand.
Exactly what happened to these people after their death and why they were finally buried in this way
remains a mystery, but the scientists are continuing to unpick what happened.
Professor Pearson said it appeared the crude mummification process had allowed the bodies to survive
the wet and wild Scottish climate for several hundred years before the soft tissue gradually began to
degrade after they were buried.
In around 1000 BC, seven houses were built in a terrace, with the two mummies, which were then
hundreds of years old, buried beneath one of the homes.
Less well preserved human remains were also found under some of the other houses and many had
offerings of bronze artefacts found with them.
The inhabitants of the buildings appear to have been largely self-sufficient, using clay moulds to cast
bronze swords, spears and ornaments. The remains of cattle bones suggests they kept livestock and may
have grown barley for food.
Analysis of the bones suggest they ate very little seafood despite living on an island, instead growing
their food on the low lying grassy plain next to the houses.
The building where the two mummified skeletons were found may have even become a “house of the
dead” with priest-like people living there, professor Pearson believes.
He added: “Having six preserved body parts to hand indicates there was sufficient space in which to
store them for some time prior to their reassembly.
“This raises the possibility that these dead either shared accommodation with the living or were kept in
separate, as yet unidentified, 'mummy houses’ which were warm and dry enough to inhibit soft tissue
decay.”
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TEXT 3
A layer-cake of time: Crossrail’s archaeology
London’s Crossrail project, one of Europe’s biggest engineering projects, is
also the source of a spectacular array of archaeological finds
Excavation work at the Limmo Peninsula site in east London, where a ship fragment was found © FT
Alice Fishburn · JUNE 30, 2012
Digging up part of an ancient shipwreck is usually less of a concern for London construction workers
than bursting a water main. But, then again, most London construction workers aren’t employed on one
of the biggest engineering projects in Europe: Crossrail. For the hundreds of men sweating in orange
high-visibility clothing on the Limmo Peninsula site in east London, dealing with archaeological finds
is part of the day job. In March this year, during deep excavation in the main shaft on site, they
uncovered what looked like a fragment of a boat, probably dating from the 12th to 15th century. The
on-site archaeologist immediately stepped in.
When you are dealing with a city as old as London, the past is sometimes only a spadeful of soil away.
But for most city dwellers, the concrete means that you’re never going to get down that deep. Vast
construction projects such as Crossrail, which will put 21km of new tunnels through the capital, offer a
rare and valuable window into the past. Among the most extensive archaeological explorations in
recent years, it is already producing finds that carve through British history: prehistoric animal bones at
Royal Oak, skeletons from Liverpool Street, remains of a Tudor mansion under your feet at Stepney
Green. What is more, the excavations must fit into a carefully choreographed programme that waits for
no piece of pottery.
Jay Carver, project archaeologist for Crossrail since 2009, has been involved in this complex operation
since 2006. A thoughtful man, who proclaims his passion for “roads and railways”, he has form on
large-scale projects; he also worked on the Channel Tunnel. As he leads us on to the Limmo site,
through a side door in Canning Town Tube station, the noise of enormous machinery preparing the way
for the even more enormous tunnel-boring machines is deafening. “People’s perception [of
archaeology] is green fields and digging a Roman villa in the countryside,” says Carver. “But in the city
you’ve got this huge layer-cake of time.”
Before the construction workers even get on to these sites, archaeological assessment has formed a
pretty good idea of what lies beneath. London has a wealth of helpful archival records, from birth to
burial, and while there are always surprises such as the shipwreck, there is also extensive knowledge.
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Everyone knew that excavations at Limmo would uncover the old Thames Ironworks. Two
archaeologists are busy wheeling barrows of soil away from the site of the huge Victorian shipbuilding
company that founded the football club which became West Ham.
“There aren’t many occasions when you get to dig so much of London,” says Robert Hartle from the
Museum of London Archaeology (Mola). “[It] is going to expand our understanding of everything from
prehistory to a couple of hundred years ago. It’s a great opportunity.”
From Limmo, you can see the Olympic park, the O2 arena and modern London. But under the ground,
the walls of an older structure are emerging. Charles Warner, a descendant of the last works manager
before the company closed in 1912, heard about the excavation and gave Carver a beautiful coloured
map which outlines where each building stood. The archaeologists are busy matching it up with the
foundations – the erecting shop here, the machine shop there. “This pit looks very, very interesting,”
says Carver, pointing to a dip in the ground with some rusty stains. “I find industrial archaeology very
exciting because it very dramatically brings the site back to life.”
Clambering around with them, grooves in the floor become drainage systems, blocks become
machinery mounts and the remains of big bolts point to long-gone objects. The old Victorian factory
rises again.
This glimpse into a hidden world is going on all over the city at 22 Crossrail sites. While Londoners
regard most construction projects as a nightmar of Tube delays and traffic, archaeologists eagerly
anticipate them. “The whole of London is this big old jigsaw puzzle, and we’re just waiting to fill in the
gaps,” says Sarah Matthews, senior osteology processor at Mola, a contractor on the project. “You
knock a building down and it’s an opportunity to fill in that square of land with the history and
information we get.”
The cheery “chief bone-washer”, as she describes herself, has seen
the guts of the city come through her door. “Basically, pick a street in
London and we’ve dug it,” she says. Finds that arrive at the Mola
warehouse typically pass through washing and drying rooms. Vases,
stone balls from the tops of pillars and marmalade jars from the
excavation of the Crosse & Blackwell factory are scattered around.
Some Christmas decorations perch incongruously near a box labelled
“human bone”. In a corner of the office, a man methodically files
clay pipes. The building is full of “skellies”, as Matthews
affectionately terms them – some 6,000 or so.
About 300 of them come from one of the most high-profile Crossrail
finds: the skeletons uncovered beneath what will be a ticket hall at
Liverpool Street. The excavation is still in its trial stage, but has
already caused great excitement because the graveyard was situated
on land belonging to the Bedlam hospital. Some of the skeletons may
Jay Carver: Project belong to former inhabitants, although nothing is yet confirmed.
archaeologist for Crossrail, “Insanity doesn’t leave a physical trace on the body,” says Nick
Elsden, assistant contracts manager. “At present, we can’t sort out
at the Limmo Peninsula
anybody who might have come out of Bedlam from those who might
site in east London have been from the parishes in the city.”
Matthews lays out a set of bones that is about 85 per cent complete. “The Crossrail bones were
beautiful,” she says. “This skeleton is in really good condition.” As she waves vertebrae and femurs in
the air, she sketches a picture of a young male, probably buried between 1568 when the graveyard
opened, and around 1720, when it closed. Another box produces a “lovely” example of a “very nasty”
fracture. The human in question lost two inches off his leg and died about a year later. “For us, it’s
learning about who Londoners used to be. We can learn so much from the skeletal system; it feeds back
into our medical knowledge and our nutritional knowledge and things such as the conditions people
used to live in,” she says.
Records suggest that two celebrities might yet emerge from this graveyard: Nicholas Culpeper, a
famous herbalist, and John Lilburne, a prominent political Leveller. But so far the coffin plates that
might identify the residents have been too corroded to read. The only written text comes from a grave
slab engraved with what looks like the name “John Bail”, a baby who died aged 25 weeks in April
1664.
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However, the graves are only the beginning. It is believed that long
ago flytippers also used the cemetery as a rubbish tip and, centuries
later, their waste is “an important find”, revealing all sorts of
worked bone. “Possible pegs for musical instruments, we’re getting
turned needlecases … bits of elephant ivory and elephant teeth and
tortoiseshell,” says Elsden. A pair of medieval ice-skates, made by
strapping animal bones to your feet, has also emerged.
Liverpool Street is a particularly tough area to excavate because of
the limited space, number of facilities and crowds of people. But, as
a result, a wealth of untouched items may lie beneath. “You
wouldn’t have got at Liverpool Street for any other purpose but a
major infrastructure thing, because no one’s going to build on the
road… and underneath there’s really good preservation, because
you haven’t got foundations of things dug through it,” says Elsden.
There are hopes that the next excavation down will reveal bits of a
Roman road that led out to the suburbs.
Sarah Matthews: Senior When the Crossrail dig at Liverpool Street starts again the public
may well remain completely unaware. “It’s surprising what
osteology processor–'chief Londoners don’t actually see,” says Matthews, as she recalls a
bone-washer'–at the Museum previous excavation of a 2,500-skeleton graveyard. “We would be
of London Archaeology sat in a very densely touristed street and people would walk past,
completely oblivious.”
Part of this is due to the way in which archaeology is now
seamlessly woven into the larger construction project. London has
always thrown up gems. The Victorians who dug the first sections
of the Underground filled much of the Natural History Museum.
But assessing, recording and, in the most valuable cases, preserving
what was discovered was not formalised until much later.
Along with the layers of history, archaeologists are now adept at
layers of bureaucracy. Planning for the Crossrail project started in
2003, six years before the main programme of investigation began.
The process involves two contractors – Mola and Oxford
About 300 skeletons were
Archaeology – and numerous specialist scientists to work on the
found at Liverpool Street – uncovered finds. “It’s a massive cut through London,” says Richard
this one is 85% complete Brown, senior project manager from Oxford Archaeology, whose
career has seen archaeology becoming a formal part of the planning process. “A lot less is being lost. A
lot more is being recovered.”
“We’ve become part of the same system,” says Jay Carver. “It’s all sorted out – who needs to do what
and where.” When the boat fragment was uncovered in Limmo, it was recorded and lifted out in a
single day, and will now go through dendrochronology [tree-ring dating] to try to establish a precise
date. Archaeologists may work over the weekend or holidays to finish before the machines move in, but
no one would now think of ploughing on without consulting the experts. “We have a voice now, due to
generations of engineers and archaeologists working together,” he says.
Simon Parfitt’s involvement with the project began when his phone rang at the Natural History
Museum in May last year. Some Pleistocene-era animal bones had been discovered at Royal Oak
Portal. The researcher in vertebrate palaeontology popped round to take a look. “We were blown over
by the excavation … just the logistics of actually digging the site is quite exciting.” If you look out of
your train window coming into Paddington, you can almost see the space where several hundred bits of
these ice age bones were dug up. “The really surprising thing is that London is the most intensively
investigated area for archaeology, but it’s continuously throwing up surprises,” says Parfitt. “Royal Oak
Portal was one of those surprises – a hugely important site, which they weren’t expecting, and they had
to deal with that … because the machines were booked to start drilling.”
For Parfitt, London is a map of landscapes past. Talking to him, you can still see the hippos and
elephants romping on the terraces of Trafalgar Square. “Finchley Road is as far south as the ice sheet
got,” he tells me, as he talks about using finds from the Thames to reconstruct periods about which very
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little is still known. “The great thing about this site … is that you’ve got detailed information on the
context, the position of pieces in the ground, the geological context and dating evidence.”
The Natural History Museum arranges its stored materials by
location, but the Crossrail collection doesn’t currently fit in the
London cabinet. Instead, Parfitt fishes them out of an “odds and
sods” cupboard. Reconstructing the past is never easy, but when the
bones in question are crushed into hundreds of fragments from
thousands of years at the bottom of a river, it can be quite a task. A
volunteer painstakingly pieced them all together, glueing on new bits
as she went. After comparing them with other reference collections at
the museum, Parfitt determined that they were dominated by small
bison and reindeer remains. This enabled him to date them to a
relatively short period 80,000 years ago when this combination
existed. “The really exciting thing is that it’s recording a major
change in the climate,” he says.
Compared to the scale of the tunnel-boring machines that will gouge
through London, a small bump on the hind-foot bone of a long-dead
Simon Parfitt: Researcher bison might not seem much. But, as Parfitt explains, it contains a
in vertebrate palaeontology, whole history, pointing to the stress inflicted on animals by
at the Natural History migration. “The only reasonable explanation is that the bison are
moving in huge herds above the landscape,” he says. The initial
Museum, London theory that the bones might have shown human interference is wrong,
although there are gnaw marks possibly left by wolves.
Parfitt believes further analysis may reveal still more. “I thought there had to be other material from
that part of London, but there’s nothing… so the collection will hopefully stay here,” he says. And,
with two more years of excavations to go, there could be many finds to come. Some will be housed in
museums or archives. The bodies will be reburied or kept for analysis. Many Crossrail sites will simply
be recorded for posterity before the diggers come in, erasing one layer of history to lay down another –
and putting down tracks for future archaeologists to dig up in their turn.
For questions 1-6, select the correct text or texts.
1. Which text gives an account of a single archaeological discovery?
2. Which text outlines the wide range of different technologies used by
scientists?
3. Which texts describe the benefit of co-operation between two different
fields?
4. Which text or texts describe scientists' attempts to solve a puzzle?
5. Which text mentions a wide range of different discoveries in one area?
6. Which text or texts explain how quickly archaeologists have to work?
For questions 7-10, choose the correct answer or answer(s) from the
following options:
A. Maurizio Seracini B. Mike Parker Pearson
C. Jay Carver D. Richard Brown
Which one(s) ...
7. gives more than one explanation to an unanswered question?
8. adapts technology to help him achieve his aims?
9. says his work was made possible by the work of past scientists?
10. feels he is not really accepted by other academics?
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5 EXTRA: Summarise each of the text using your own words as far as
possible.
6 Read this text about buildings made out of earth and select the
answer you think is correct. Identify the keywords that helped you
find the answers and make a table of keywords.
Mud world
The world’s most primitive building material – earth – is being used to
create some of our most advanced homes
A view from under the stairwell of Martin Rauch’s rammed earth house in
Schlins, Austria © Beat Bühler
Avantika Chilkoti · OCTOBER 20, 2012
The fabled cities of Jericho, Ur and Babylon were built entirely of earth. So were sections of the Great
Wall of China. Today, around half the world’s population live in dwellings made of the material and,
from Lutyens to Gaudí, many of the world’s best-known architects have experimented with it. Yet only
recently has earth crept on to the curricula of architecture and engineering schools, and few laymen
think of it as a building material.
“With industrialisation and the railway, it became easier to transport energy and building materials, so
it wasn’t necessary to build with earth any more,” says Martin Rauch, a ceramic artist turned architect
championing the use of earth for sustainable construction. It became a poor man’s material and the
image is hard to shake. But in the past 15 years, rammed earth has returned to the limelight as human
and environmental health have become key concerns.
Rauch has used rammed earth to build cinemas, churches and chapels – and his own family home in
Austria. The materials used in the 18 months of its construction were local, so minimal energy was used
in production and transportation. With 47 per cent of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions
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attributable to the construction industry in the UK, for instance, such alternative methods are
significant.
The ability of earth to moderate humidity
and temperature is another advantage,
which eliminates the need for expensive
central heating and air conditioning. “It’s
a wonderful climate – in the winters it is
warm and in summer cool,” claims
Rauch.
A central concern of sceptics is
durability. However, the compressive
strength of rammed earth (its ability to
withstand squashing) is two-thirds that of
concrete at a similar thickness. And in the
city of Shibam in Yemen, rammed earth
buildings of five or six storeys were built
The exterior of the Rauch house in high density urban spaces and have
survived around 1,700 years.
The fear is that exposure to rain and moisture will cause walls to slump but, with a good hat and shoes,
little else matters: strong foundations and an overhanging roof protect earth walls from overexposure to
the rain. Rauch designs for “calculated erosion” – changing aesthetics are part of the appeal. Every few
layers, he inserts stone blocks into the surface of earth walls. These protrude as the earth erodes around
them, acting as a buffer against rain running down the surface of the building.
Research conducted by the Scottish government in 2001 highlights the key issue – people used to
accept that they would have to maintain their homes. “The longevity of earth buildings is due, in part,
to the regular maintenance regimes that were integral to traditional practice. A change of attitude is
necessary if modern earth buildings are to survive equally well as current construction practice
promotes ‘maintenance-free’ products such as cement renders and masonry paints.”
Building regulations for rammed earth vary around the world. “If I built my house in Germany, I would
have needed a licence costing between €20,000 and €30,000,” says Rauch. “In Austria and Switzerland
it is easy. In Italy rammed earth is not allowed for structural work.”
In the UK it can actually be easier to
secure planning permission if you’re
building with rammed earth, as local
authorities often object to plans that
require material to be taken off site. There
are groups trying to develop global
practice guidelines and the Southern
African Development Community is
ahead of the game, with 15 countries
sharing a harmonised code written by
British consultant Rowland Keable. In
terms of European guidelines, Earth
Building UK recently won a European bid
to develop shared training standards for
rammed earth construction.
The construction process is not dissimilar
Martin Rauch (left) and colleagues work on a to building a sandcastle. Earth is collected,
rammed earth design its consistency checked, and organic
matter that will decompose is removed.
Next, formwork is brought in; this is the frame into which the earth is, quite literally, rammed layer by
layer, either manually or by pneumatic rammers. The earth begins to cure straight away and continues
to do so for months or years, depending on the local climate. Without baking, the wall is complete and
the process can be repeated.
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This process requires significant amounts of labour and leaves little room for the mechanisation and
profits that are seen as driving economies. However, Anna Heringer, a Royal Institute of British
Architects award-winner who has extensive experience with rammed earth in the developing world,
views the labour intensity of construction as a bonus.
“There are going to be 7bn people on this earth. The cheapest technology is now cheaper than even the
cheapest labour on earth. We need some good employment opportunities, and not just for specialists.”
Heringer sees rammed earth from a social justice perspective. “We often think of sustainability in terms
of high-tech solutions and it isn’t possible for everyone in the world to have high-tech solutions. That’s
exclusive, which isn’t sustainable. Building with earth, you can have a lot of people involved – it’s
about communities too.” This ideology echoes that of the French architect François Cointeraux (1740-
1830). The father of pisé de terre technique, driven by the revolutionary spirit of “honourable labour”,
wrote books instructing the French public on how to build their own earth homes.
A team of 150 students, Loeb fellows and
members of the public worked under Rauch and
Heringer to build the Mud Hall project at
Harvard’s Graduate School of Design in April
2012. “The space we chose was very prominent at
the front of the school but it was hostile, windy
land that wasn’t used and the idea was not just to
say there’s something wrong but to take our
creativity, our hands and the earth and transform
it into a living space for people,” says Heringer.
The aim was to change conventional thinking
about sustainable development by building with
rammed earth, and although the plan was to use
the project as a demonstration and then demolish
the walls by May, they have been kept. “Now the
homeless are sleeping there at night, which is
really quite a compliment,” she says.
Human connection with the aesthetic of earth is
another factor. “We’d get people walking past and
they would stop to touch the wall, even though the
colour is quite like concrete,” Heringer continues.
“There is a presence with this material I can’t
Mud Hall, Harvard University
explain. Now we barely touch earth – just the dirt
at the bottom of our shoes and in flower pots – and there’s a longing for it.”
Depending on the earth selected, the colour of a building can be varied, the ramming process can be
designed to produce layering effects and the formwork can be moulded so patterns are embossed in the
walls. The visitor centre at the Eden Project in Cornwall, southern England, includes a wall made of
locally sourced rammed earth in order to make the most of the site – a China clay quarry with a seam of
pink clay running through it.
Rauch is aware of the limits, however. Certain structures such as foundations for buildings, ceilings and
bridges are not possible in earth. So he suggests using appropriate, context-specific materials together.
“I represent the connection of earth construction with modern material but in a sustainable way.”
In the western world, most earth constructions are actually stabilised rammed earth, where cement is
added to the mud. “This is the wrong way to do things,” says Rauch. “If there is cement in the mix it is
not real earth – it’s rammed concrete.” In stabilised rammed earth, around 8 per cent of the material is
cement. Rauch strongly believes it isn’t necessary; we have built for 10,000 years with pure earth and
he feels that the climatic and environmental qualities of the material are lost with such contamination.
Heringer adds that when cement is mixed with earth, “you can’t totally recycle it”. “We are not
building for eternity, that’s an idealistic thought. Some day it will all return to the ground and then
there’s the question of environmental impact.”
Having used earth in construction around the world, in the monsoons of Bangladesh and dry summers
of Morocco, Heringer has proved that cement is not required with innovative, context-specific design.
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The newest innovation in the field is the introduction of prefabricated elements, as pioneered by Rauch
himself. Local excavation and ramming aren’t possible in dense, urban environments. The solution is to
make a long wall, some 40 metres, of rammed earth in a factory. This is sawn into five-tonne segments
and transported to the site. The wall is reassembled with mud to weld the segments together so the
joints aren’t visible, a bit like pottery.
Building time is saved, as two months of work in the factory translates to two weeks of building on site,
and the space required to assemble a wall is a fraction of that required to gather earth and ram it.
Yet rammed earth remains, to the architecture world, what haute couture is to fashion: those in the
industry revere it but the rest of us have barely heard of it.
How on earth...?
Earth is a cheap, renewable and widely
available alternative to environmentally
costly conventional building materials.
During the Great Depression, US policy
makers considered it for housing; seven
experimental rammed earth homes were
built on the Gardendale Homestead in
Alabama but a full-scale federal initiative
never followed.
Unlike other sustainable building
materials, such as straw bale and timber,
earth is reusable and non-flammable.
When tested by Australian Standards, a
rammed earth wall 300mm thick
Kirribilli House, New South Wales withstood direct flames for four hours.
The amount of energy used in producing
rammed earth is relatively low. The Scottish government’s Central Research Unit estimates: “To
prepare, transport and construct earth materials commonly requires about 1 per cent of the energy
required by the commonly used cement-based alternatives.”
Walls made from rammed earth keep humidity levels between 40-60 per cent, the ideal range for
asthma sufferers. This benefit is lost when the earth is
stabilised with cement.
Rammed earth has a high thermal mass, which means it is
able to store and release heat. Internal temperature
fluctuations are limited as the walls absorb heat in the
daytime to release it internally as temperatures fall.
Countering the high thermal mass is low thermal resistance.
As rammed earth walls allow heat to flow through them
easily, insulation may be required in cold climates.
The cost of rammed earth construction worldwide
The cost of building with rammed earth varies, not only
with complexity of design but also with local context. Is the
local soil appropriate or will it be necessary to transport
earth to the site? What is the cost of labour in the area?
Building with rammed earth is relatively labour intensive.
This means it is a cheaper alternative to modern materials in
developing nations where wages are low, but comparatively
expensive in the industrialised world where mechanisation
is preferred.
In Australia, rammed earth constructions tend to be
Kirribilli House, New South Wales, relatively expensive. Luigi Rosselli, an Australian architect
known for his work with rammed earth, says the cost of a
Australia, designed by architect load-bearing wall built to a high standard with the necessary
Luigi Rosselli finishes would be about US$421 per square metre in double
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7 EXTRA: Summarise the text using your own words as far as possible.
(Submit full answers to all of the questions via tienganhchuyen@gmail.com
to receive feedback.)
Please note that this note is subject to change at all times.
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2 Extras
1. Find more synonyms and/or antonyms of the new words in exercise 1.
2. Make a table of derivatives of the new words in exercises 1.
3. Look up some collocations/idioms ... of the new words in exercise 1.
4. Paraphrase the example sentences in exercises 1.
5. Write your own sentences using the new words/their derivatives/their
synonyms/antonyms/paraphrases/collocations/ ... in exercises 1.
A
Disastrous spills at sea haunt oil companies for years, writes
Denise Roland. The impact on the local economy and environment
does not recede swiftly – and the clean-up costs take their toll on
the balance sheet.
But these devastating effects may soon become a thing of the
past. Scientists at Pennsylvania State University have developed
a “super-absorbent” material that can soak up 45 times its weight
in oil, creating a gel that can easily be removed from water.
“Had this material been applied to the top of the leaking well
head in the Gulf of Mexico during the 2010 spill, it could have
effectively transformed the gushing brown oil into a floating gel
for easy collection and minimised the pollution consequences,”
said authors Xuepei Yuan and Mike Chung, describing their
findings in the journal Energy & Fuels.
The technology has existed for some time but has never been
applied to oil slicks. “We have been working with these kinds of
polymers for 20 years, but after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill we
wondered whether our material could provide a solution,” says
Yuan.
Although mopping up oil is nothing new, the existing methods can
lead to further environmental problems. Various substances have
been used to soak up slicks, ranging from straw and silkworm
cocoons to synthetic fibre pads. But these materials take up oil
slowly, do not retain it well and can render it unrecoverable by
absorbing water at the same time.
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><
B
An unusual collaboration between chemists and fashion experts
has produced pollution-busting clothes, which clean up urban air
as people walk around.
Tony Ryan, chemistry professor at Sheffield University, and
Helen Storey of the London College of Fashion, lead the Catalytic
Clothing partnership. They’ve produced prototype jeans in which
the denim is laden with nanoparticles of titanium dioxide or
titania, which catalyse the destruction of nitrogen oxides, the
main cause of low-level urban pollution.
C
Gerald, 10 years Ted’s senior, took him under his wing early: the
pair trooped off together on a camping trip when Ted was just
five; Gerald took him hunting for rats and rabbits, fishing the
local canal, kite-flying and walking in the Calder Valley. Their
life-long closeness was forged here in their shared love of the
natural world, as was Hughes’s poet’s eye for the landscape and
wildlife – the hawks, pike and foxes – that would populate his
great poems.
D
Europeans began their exploration of the great Amazon river as
early as 1500, and soon penetrated its entire length from the
Andes to its mouth at the Atlantic. For hundreds of years,
however, they only nibbled at the great jungle which straddled
the huge river in every direction, setting up religious and colonial
settlements on the banks of the main rivers but never venturing
far inland.
E
Children as young as the age of three are usually excellent users
of grammar. They are more likely to obey grammatical rules than
to flout them; they tend to formulate sentences accurately more
often than not, and when they err, it is not dissimilar to the types
of mistakes made by adults. All this seems highly improbable
when we consider how incompetent children at this age are in
most other areas. Their drawings are barely recognisable;
concepts such as time overwhelm them; they can be flummoxed
by even simple activities such as sorting objects in order of size.
How many words in the extracts are unfamiliar to you?
5 or fewer: Try to work out the meaning of unfamiliar words from the
general context.
Between 6 and 8: Think about what kind of word it is (i.e., noun, verb, etc)
and the other words it’s being used with. Look for lexical sets which the
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unknown vocabulary may belong to, and then find possible synonyms or
antonyms.
9 or more: Use techniques to help you work out the meaning of unknown
words, such as looking for prefixes or suffixes, finding the root word or
another word in its family, or breaking words down into parts.
Now do the same tasks as those in PRACTICE 1.
5 EXTRA: Read these full texts and summarise each text, using your
own words as far as possible.
A
Biology takes a quantum leap
Evidence is beginning to emerge that quantum effects play a role in
biological processes such as photosynthesis
Quantum physics may give an insight into biological processes such as photosynthesis and mutation
Clive Cookson · OCTOBER 19, 2012
The weird world of quantum physics may seem a long way from biology. How can counterintuitive
concepts, such as the “entanglement” of subatomic particles and their “tunnelling” through insuperable
energy barriers, apply to everyday life?
Until recently most biologists and physicists would have said that they can’t – and many still say so.
Quantum physicists, such as last week’s Nobel laureates Serge Haroche and David Wineland, require
rigorous experimental conditions to shield their particles from outside disturbances that kill quantum
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effects. So the wet, warm and messy world of living cells would seem an inhospitable place for
quantum phenomena.
Evidence is beginning to emerge, however, that quantum effects do play a role in biological processes,
including photosynthesis, bird navigation, the mammalian sense of smell and genetic mutation. There
are also some untested claims that quantum mechanics could even solve the mystery of consciousness.
Much research will be required to give us an idea of how important quantum effects are in the living
world. And already scientists have founded a new interdisciplinary field, quantum biology, as a focus
for the work. Last month, about 50 adherents attended a conference at the University of Surrey.
The basic idea is far from new. In 1944, Erwin Schrödinger,
In the blood co-founder of quantum mechanics, proposed, in his book What
A genetic study has identified is Life?, that quantum effects were important in genetics; but
21 gene variants associated he provided no way of testing the theory. “By and large, it was
with blood fat levels, including ignored by 20th-century biologists,” says Johnjoe McFadden,
levels of “good” HDL and “bad” professor of molecular genetics at Surrey. “But in the second
LDL cholesterol – risk factors decade of the 21st century, ignoring Schrödinger’s bold
for heart disease. proposal is no longer an option.”
Quantum biologists do generally ignore unverifiable speculation that human consciousness is a
quantum phenomenon, McFadden says, and focus on effects that might be susceptible to experimental
investigation and explanation.
The ways birds navigate, using Earth’s magnetic field, is a leading contender. What happens is that a
photon hits a specialised photoreceptor in the avian eye, creating two electrons that are entangled in a
quantum sense. The behaviour of the spinning electrons as they move apart depends on the orientation
of the magnetic field, giving the birds a quantum compass.
Equally complex mechanisms are suggested for other proposed quantum processes. These include
genetic mutation, the way nasal receptors recognise smell, and the speed of photosynthesis and other
biochemical reactions. Experimentation should soon resolve the issue of whether quantum biology is
real and, if so, how widespread its effects are.
An absorbing way of cleaning up oil spills
Disastrous spills at sea haunt oil companies for years, writes Denise Roland. The impact on the local
economy and environment does not recede swiftly – and the clean-up costs take their toll on the balance
sheet.
But these devastating effects may soon become a thing of the past. Scientists at Pennsylvania State
University have developed a “super-absorbent” material that can soak up 45 times its weight in oil,
creating a gel that can easily be removed from water.
“Had this material been applied to the top of the leaking well head in the Gulf of Mexico during the
2010 spill, it could have effectively transformed the gushing brown oil into a floating gel for easy
collection and minimised the pollution consequences,” said authors Xuepei Yuan and Mike Chung,
describing their findings in the journal Energy & Fuels.
The technology has existed for some time but has never been applied to oil slicks. “We have been
working with these kinds of polymers for 20 years, but after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill we wondered
whether our material could provide a solution,” says Yuan.
Although mopping up oil is nothing new, the existing methods can lead to further environmental
problems. Various substances have been used to soak up slicks, ranging from straw and silkworm
cocoons to synthetic fibre pads. But these materials take up oil slowly, do not retain it well and can
render it unrecoverable by absorbing water at the same time.
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The new polymer, which is cheap and easy to make, forms much stronger bonds with oil than existing
materials. And since the resulting gel is similar enough to crude oil to be refined and sold, it avoids
issues of waste and disposal.
The researchers believe they may have discovered a complete solution for tackling oil spills. “This
cost-effective new technology should dramatically reduce the environmental impacts from oil spills and
help recover one of our most precious natural resources,” they say.
Birds show character through their colour
Red-heads are aggressive and dominant, while black-heads are
quieter and submissive but at the same time inquisitive and willing to
take risks. The heads in question belong to Gouldian finches, a
sociable Australian species whose feathers grow in a variety of
colours.
Researchers at Liverpool John Moores University found that a finch’s
Gouldian finches’ behaviour could be predicted from its head plumage, which is usually
black or red (and very rarely yellow). The study, published in the
behaviour can be predicted
journal Animal Behaviour, measured three aspects of avian
by their plumage
personality: aggression, boldness and risk-taking.
The scientists investigated boldness from the birds’ willingness to investigate unfamiliar objects such as
strings dangling from a perch. Black-headed birds were more likely to approach and touch them than
the red-heads.
To test for risk-taking behaviour, they presented scary images of a predatory hawk close to the birds’
feeders. Again, birds with black heads returned to feed sooner than the red-heads. For aggression, the
researchers put a feeder out for two hungry birds, with room for just one bird to eat. They found that
red-heads were quicker than black-heads to display threatening behaviour and fight off another bird.
Leah Williams of Liverpool John Moores commented: “We think that head colour is used as a signal of
personality to other birds in the flock, so they know who to associate with.”
A way to ensure that Africa’s bread rises
African lifestyles are changing fast and so too are gastronomic habits, as people leave
rural settlements for the cities, writes Denise Roland. High demand for wheat, the basis
of many convenience foods, is causing a crisis in the region, which only grows 44 per
cent of what it consumes and faces rising costs of importing the crop.
But wheat farming in sub-Saharan Africa could be at least four times more productive,
with potential for 10-fold increases in some areas, according to research by scientists at
the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre in Mexico. This would greatly
reduce or even eliminate dependence on expensive foreign imports.
Researchers used climate and soil data to simulate crop growth using
A good harvest: farming
computer modelling. They found that eight sub-Saharan nations could
in sub-Saharan Africa
significantly improve their wheat output without needing irrigation, by
could become more
exploiting genetically modified grain varieties and using advanced
productive management methods.
Turning the theory into reality will require strong support from governments and NGOs, says lead
researcher Bekele Shiferaw: “Our work suggests that fulfilling the promise of this study will require a
shift in how the crop is viewed in sub-Saharan Africa and will only occur with significant support from
governments and development agencies.”
But the huge economic benefits from applying these techniques may be difficult for governments to
ignore as the continent’s urban population looks set to quadruple by 2050 and, with it, Africa’s appetite
for wheat.
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B
Clean jeans: wash away pollution
A chemist and a fashion expert have collaborated to produce a laundry
additive that could help destroy nitrogen oxides and improve urban air
quality
Clive Cookson · OCTOBER 13, 2012
An unusual collaboration between chemists and fashion experts has
produced pollution-busting clothes, which clean up urban air as
people walk around.
Tony Ryan, chemistry professor at Sheffield University, and Helen
Storey of the London College of Fashion, lead the Catalytic Clothing
partnership. They’ve produced prototype jeans in which the denim is
laden with nanoparticles of titanium dioxide or titania, which
catalyse the destruction of nitrogen oxides, the main cause of low-
level urban pollution.
Catalytic Clothing has already been exhibited at science and fashion
shows, with the particles sprayed on to the denim. The next step, in
collaboration with Ecover, the green detergent manufacturer, will be
to develop a laundry additive called CatClo that adds the titania in a
domestic washing machine. This would bring the idea to a mass
market where it could make a real difference to urban air quality.
Ingenious: a laundry One person wearing clothes treated with CatClo could remove about
additive could help to 5g of nitrogen oxides a day. That’s about the same as the daily
destroy nitrogen oxides emissions of an average family car.
“If thousands of people used the additive, the result would be a
significant improvement in air quality,” says Ryan. “In Sheffield, for instance, if everyone washed their
clothes in the additive, there would be no pollution problem caused by nitrogen oxides at all.”
Clothes need only be washed once with CatClo, because the nanoparticles grip tightly on to
fabric fibres without affecting the clothing’s look or feel. Although best suited to denim
and other cottons, they also work with other materials.
When CatClo encounters nitrogen oxides, they end up as harmless nitrates, which are
washed away when the material is next laundered. The reaction requires light; sunshine is
best but ordinary daylight or artificial light is fine.
Titania nanoparticles are already used extensively in sunscreens where they protect the skin
from ultraviolet solar radiation. Their pollution-busting photocatalysis has been
incorporated in solid materials such as glass, paints, cements and paving stones. But the
CatClo researchers believe it will have more impact in clothing.
“The technology is not new, but the application is,” says Storey, whose
'Red Planet' dress short film about CatClo has gone viral. “The feedback revealed a massive
created by Professor market for this product from potential consumers who understand the
Helen Storey MBE concept behind it.”
and Professor Tony The additive could be on sale within two years, costing as little as 10 pence
Ryan OBE for a full washing load.
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Sun worship People often imagine that taste comes from the tongue. In fact,
According to Harvard Medical the tongue and associated receptors in the mouth detect only
School researchers, people can salty, sweet, sour, bitter, spicy and metallic sensations. Yet we
be addicted to tanning – in the also experience mint, vanilla, coffee, strawberry and myriad
sun or in salons. And the other flavours.
addiction is like being hooked “Eighty per cent of what we think of as taste actually reaches
on alcohol or drugs. us through smell,” says Barry Smith, co-director of the Centre
for the Study of the Senses at the University of London.
There are two ways of smelling – “orthonasal” (the odour comes in through nostrils) and “retronasal”
(it travels up the oral cavity inside the mouth to the olfactory bulb).
“The smell of freshly brewed coffee is absolutely wonderful. Aren’t you a little disappointed when you
taste it? If you hold your nose, coffee is hot water with a bitter taste,” Smith says. This is because saliva
strips off about 300 of the 631 airborne chemicals that combine to form coffee’s complex aroma, so
you receive only half of it retronasally.
Taste is also influenced by the trigeminal nerve, which is responsible for sensation in the face,
including the pain in the bridge of your nose if you have too much wasabi or mustard. The trigeminal
nerve also makes chillies taste hot and peppermint cool, even though there is no difference in the
temperature in the mouth.
C
Childhood in Yorkshire
A life-long closeness between brothers is forged in their shared love of the
natural world
Review by Carl Wilkinson · OCTOBER 13, 2012
Ted & I: A Brother’s Memoir, by Gerald Hughes, The Robson Press, RRP£16.99, 228 pages
“Poetry is a way of contacting your family when they are gone,” the late poet laureate Ted Hughes once
said. His poems drew deeply on his relationships with his family and the natural world around him, and
in this genial and touching memoir Hughes’s older brother Gerald – now 92 – shares his own memories
of their childhood in Yorkshire, roaming the woods and fields around their home in Mytholmroyd near
Hebden Bridge and later in the larger mining town of Mexborough.
Gerald, 10 years Ted’s senior, took him under his wing early: the pair trooped off together on a
camping trip when Ted was just five; Gerald took him hunting for rats and rabbits, fishing the local
canal, kite-flying and walking in the Calder Valley. Their life-long closeness was forged here in their
shared love of the natural world, as was Hughes’s poet’s eye for the landscape and wildlife – the
hawks, pike and foxes – that would populate his great poems.”
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6. Which part of the sentence shows the writer feels her opinion has been
confirmed?
It’s reassuring to read the words of a young person who already
understands that body acceptance is something that one cannot
take for granted.
7. Which part of the sentence shows the writer is concerned?
But it also highlights a worryingly unhealthy trend among our youth.
8. Which part of the sentence shows the writer's disbelief?
It’s an admirable notion, but it’s hard to see this working in reality.
9. Which part of the sentence shows the writer's strong disagreement?
The idea that technology alone can replace teaching is
laughable.
10. Which part of the sentence shows the writer's approval?
This is good news for the charities, who do such magnificent work
raising funds for the research and support systems they offer.
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3. When ones are in the public eye, some are inclined to believe that they
have the right to judge others. We must have suffered some really hurtful
comments once in a lifetime, and we might have realised that we are not as
thick-skinned as we thought we were. Although we may not want a full
criminal prosecution in these circumstances, it does not necessarily mean
we believe no action should be taken. We cannot let them get away with
claiming whatever they feel like.
4. No-one can deny the almost immeasurable transformation our lives have
undergone with the advent of the web and social networking, from business
to personal relationships. We are undoubtedly still learning how to
negotiate this new world, not least in the area of so-called Twitter abuse.
What once may have been judged grossly offensive if printed or broadcast
may now need to be reconsidered in an age where communications can go
round the world in an instant and be seen by millions more than they were
intended for.
5. We tend to see social media as an extension of our face-to-face social
lives, without realising the added consequences of what communicating
over the internet truly means. We feel as if we are conversing with our
friends, but with the added anonymity of superficial presence. Yet in the
same way that we would not make deliberately unfavourable comments on
a friend, nor should we over the internet. Using an eyecatching sobriquet
does not make us any less offensive.
6. We will probably not argue with the belief that freedom of speech is a
fundamental human right, and we almost certainly do not want to have our
every single word controlled or watched over. Having considered that, there
is little doubt that the web can be utilised for a multitude of activities, not
all of them law-abiding or innocuous. The police have the right to patrol
social media, especially to monitor for suspicious activity.
[B] Inferring meaning
Writers don’t always state their opinions or feelings directly in a text; or
even the topic about which they’re writing. In fact, it’s very common for a
writer to do this by selecting certain grammatical structures or vocabulary
which refer to the topic or imply their opinion.
3 For each text, A–E, choose the most appropriate topic. You may
need to use some topics more than once, or not at all. Identify the
keywords that helped you find the answers and make a table of
keywords.
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A. Personally, I left the profession because the textbook was taught without
any further discussion, without encouraging young people to develop their
own informed opinions.
B. Admitting to a love of fantasy halves your IQ instantaneously in many
high-minded circles. You might as well declare a family of little people live
in a shoebox under your bed.
C. This was developed by a young man in black-rimmed glasses who spent
five years ignoring his girlfriend in order to make a game that is supposed
to make us nostalgic for the early computer games we played (or not) as
kids.
D. Making changes to our environment may be more effective than trying to
exercise selfcontrol. Ellis found that the simple old trick of eating off
smaller plates worked.
E. It was an extraordinary triumph of old technology over new, of basic
science over spaceage wizardry and it led to a planet-saving pact, one of the
most successful treaties ever agreed.
1. Career choices 6. Humour
2. Climate change 7. Frustration
3. The education system 8. Agreement
4. Dieting 9. Incomprehension
5. Other people’s opinions 10. Neutraulity
4 Read the text and answer the questions using your own words.
Identify the keywords that helped you find the answers and make a
table of keywords.
On the face of it there is no reason why J.K. Rowling shouldn’t make the
transition to writing adult fiction. Lots of novelists have managed to write
successfully for children and adults. It would however be surprising if she
had a comparable success with adult fiction. It is more likely that her adult
novels will be good, but not remarkably good, that Harry Potter will stand
in the same relation to anything else she may do as Sherlock Homes does to
the rest of Conan Doyle’s work.
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In one sense of course it doesn’t matter what reviewers say. The novel is
sure to be a great commercial success. Legions of Potter fans will buy it –
even though the limited information released in advance of publication
suggests that it bears no resemblance to the sequence which delighted
them. Indeed it sounds as if the only thing it may have in common with the
Potter books is Rowling’s ability to tell you a story that keeps you reading.
This of course is no mean quality and it is one which many highly regarded
literary novelists lack. I suspect that the new novel will turn out to be an
intelligent page-turner, and none the worse for being that, some will say.
1. How successful does the writer expect J.K. Rowling’s adult novels to be?
2. The writer does not believe J.K. Rowling’s adult novel will be considered
a great work of fiction. Select the key words and phrases from the text
which show this. Make a table of keywords.
3. EXTRA: Summarise the text using your own words as far as possible.
5 Read the text and answer the questions using your own words.
Identify the keywords that helped you find the answers and make a
table of keywords.
This house would open all areas of
knowledge to scientific investigation
Debating societies - yes or no? Discuss. Anyhow, last night I was the
proposer of the above motion at the UCL debating society. Below is my
prepared opening statement, and I thought you might enjoy shooting it
down in the comments...
JON BUTTERWORTH· Tue 23 Oct 2012 22.33
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Certainly the endeavour much more than pays for itself at present. But a net financial
outlay would raise moral and practical questions about priorities for public expenditure.
And if there had been any credible risk of creating, for example, black holes which might
consume the world (or even a suburb of Geneva), that would clearly have been a problem.
None of that would have been reason to label the Higgs boson itself off limits in principle.
But they may have been reasons to halt that line of research until better (safer, more
affordable) methods were available.
Similarly, considerations about damage or risk to humans, to animals or to the
environment, might impact upon efforts to understand biology, psychology or related
areas. Knowledge, the ends, do not justify all means. But regulating means and methods
is a very different matter from declaring certain areas closed in principle to scientific
inquiry.
So I would have all areas of knowledge open in principle. If no acceptable means exist to
address, scientifically, some important area, I would have us develop better means. But to
declare any area closed in principle to scientific inquiry is to declare that we wish to be
fooled.
And nature, the universe, does not treat fools kindly.
I urge you to support the motion.
1. What does the writer mean by the title of the article?
2. Why does the writer describe the discovery of quantum mechanics as a
complete car crash?
3. EXTRA: Summarise the text using your own words as far as possible.
6 Read the text and answer the questions using your own words.
Identify the keywords that helped you find the answers and make a
table of keywords.
We got into the car and pulled away in silence. I turned away to look out of the window,
my knees drawn up, reliving the argument in my mind, justifying my own position. We
drove on, mile after mile, without exchanging a word. As dusk fell, I could see his
reflection in the glass, occasionally turning to look at me, to try to catch my eye. It was
raining when we came into the nearest town. I broke the silence.
“I’ll get the train. Leave me at the station please.” My voice sounded harsh and
unnatural.
“I’ll take you to the airport, it’s not a problem.” He spoke gently, trying to appease me.
“No, I’d prefer to take the train.” He didn’t agree.
The station was busy and bright after the dark of the roads. He pulled up, turning to me
in his seat.
“Let me take you, it’s not far.” His voice was almost pleading as he searched my face for a
sign of softening.
I wouldn’t look at him. I grabbed my bag, muttered something and walked away. I heard
him call after me, then other drivers beeping and shouting. Suddenly I couldn’t face the
cold empty train carriage, the anonymity of the airport terminal; I wanted the company of
someone familiar. I turned back towards the car, but he had already gone.
1. How did the writer feel at the time of writing? And how does the writer
feel now, looking back at the event?
2. EXTRA: Summarise the text using your own words as far as possible.
(Submit full answers to all of the questions via tienganhchuyen@gmail.com
to receive my feedback.)
Please note that this note is subject to change at all times.
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1. The transformation has been driven by a charity that helps people with
disabilities and mental illness through gardening. _____
2. In the past decade a growing number of hospitals, prisons and mental
health institutions around the world have adopted horticultural therapy as
a supplementary treatment for a range of illnesses. _____
3. The belief in the restorative power of plants is nothing new. _____
4. The positive health impacts can be lasting, too. In 1984 Roger Ulrich,
then a professor at Texas A&M University, discovered that looking at
plants inspires a positive response in our bodies. _____
5. Gardens also have a sensory power that is less quantifiable. _____
6. Today the demand for mental health services is growing throughout
Europe and the US. _____
2 EXTRA: Summarise the full text using your own words as far as
possible.
A root to recovery
Hospitals, prisons and mental health institutions are increasingly using
horticulture as therapy
Tamzin Baker · SEPTEMBER 22, 2012
Tucked away at the north end of London’s Battersea Park, a long-abandoned English rose garden is
being given a new lease of life. Honeysuckle and jasmine grow alongside pomegranates and rhubarb.
Groups of gardeners tend a colourful wash of flowers and plant life. After years of dilapidation, the red-
bricked walls once again have something worth protecting.
The transformation has been driven by Thrive, a charity that helps people with disabilities and mental
illness through gardening. Each year, the group’s Battersea project offers horticultural therapy to
around 300 people in the belief that it will improve their lives. For those involved, the garden has
become a classroom and refuge.
Mary (not her real name), who regularly tends the garden, has multiple personality disorder and swings
between having the identity of a highly articulate woman and various young girls. In her backpack she
carries a teddy bear, and a book by Stephen Fry. On the day of my visit she is taken up with studying
weeds such as rosebay willowherb.
“I don’t need a hospital but I am not ready for the real world. This is a good balance and when people
ask about my life I can say that I am a gardener,” says Mary, who also cares for a private garden in
west London. “Gardening is grounding and you quickly feel like you’re accomplishing something.”
In the past decade a growing number of hospitals, prisons and mental health institutions around the
world have adopted horticultural therapy as a supplementary treatment for a range of illnesses. In
Norway, for example, people suffering from depression have the opportunity to work on farms, while
mental health patients in Singapore are prescribed gardening on hospital grounds to alleviate stress.
The belief in the restorative power of plants is nothing new. For centuries Japanese gardens have
inspired peace and meditation while nearly every culture has used herbs to treat illnesses. In 500BC
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Persians began creating fragrant gardens to please the senses and in ancient Egypt, court physicians
prescribed walks in the palace gardens for the mentally ill.
“Anti-depressants are flattening and they take away one’s emotion,” says Sir Richard Thompson,
president of the Royal College of Physicians in London. “Pills are very effective when they are needed
[to treat depression] but gardening, surely, is a much better alternative when it works.”
Sir Richard adds that gardening, like any physical activity, helps us feel better. One hour of vigorous
weeding, for example, can burn up to 200 calories and also improves co-ordination and flexibility.
The positive health impacts can be lasting, too. In 1984 Roger Ulrich, then a professor at Texas A&M
University, discovered that looking at plants inspires a positive response in our bodies. After observing
two groups of hospital patients, he found that patients with rooms that overlooked trees recovered faster
than those who faced buildings. They also took less pain medication.
In 2007 Christopher Lowry of Bristol University also discovered that mycobacterium vaccae, a
harmless bacterium in soil, may trigger the release of serotonin in the brain. And at the Norwegian
University of Life Sciences, researchers observed 46 people with clinical depression and found that
participants on average had significantly reduced anxiety levels after 12 weeks of gardening.
Gardens also have a sensory power that is less quantifiable: it exists in colours, sounds and fragrances.
For some the real pleasure may be in working the soil, while for others it may have more to do with the
idea of creating living beauty.
At the South Florida Reception Center, a state prison in Miami, James Jiler encourages incarcerated
men to garden. By digging through coral rock and burying kitchen waste for compost they have
managed to cultivate papaya and tamarind trees. The fruit is sold in low-income neighbourhoods as a
way for inmates, many of whom are serving life sentences, to keep in touch with their communities.
Of the 2.3m people in the US prison system, around 80 per cent are sentenced for non-violent, drug-
related crimes, says Jiler. Many are battling serious addiction and traumas related to mental illness.
“I often find that those who suffer from mental illness have never been given credit for anything
positive,” says Jiler, who also co-directs Here’s Help, a garden project for young adults at a drug
rehabilitation facility in Opa-Locka, Miami. “When they begin working with plants they’re suddenly
getting good responses and soon correction officers are asking them for advice about their own
gardens.”
In 1985 Jiler gave up a Wall Street career so that he could help people connect to nature. Before settling
in Florida he directed the GreenHouse Project, a programme run by the Horticultural Society of New
York for inmates on Rikers Island, one of the largest prison complexes in the US, which houses some
14,000 convicts.
Jiler acknowledges that gardening is not to everyone’s liking and getting people interested often calls
for a creative approach.
“At first they’re inevitably thinking: ‘why is this guy talking to me about flowers?’” he says. “So I say
that I’m going to teach them how to grow good pot. Some are taking notes, asking questions. I have
them hooked.
“Then when a project is finished and they reflect on what the place looked like before, they suddenly
realise the power of what they just did,” adds Jiler. “There is a sense of pride that goes with turning a
seed into a plant and transforming barren ground into something beautiful.”
The sensory absorption that gardens provide can make them ideal backdrops for different types of
therapy. This has been the case for the men and women at Freedom from Torture’s treatment centre in
Finsbury Park, north London. Once a week clients, all of whom have struggled with depression and
post-traumatic stress disorder since fleeing torture in their native countries, plant flowers and
vegetables in the company of a psychotherapist.
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“Working in the garden has transformed my life,” says a client, who prefers to remain anonymous. “For
a long time I could only see pictures of brutality, but doing tasks like weeding takes your mind away
and nature brings hope to you when you plant.”
After several years he is still waiting to be granted asylum to remain in the UK. If allowed to stay, he
plans to take a university course in environmental science.
According to Caroline Roemmele, a psychotherapist, people communicate better after a short time
working in the garden. “It puts them in a better state of mind to process their trauma,” she says. “When
clients are calm and in a safe space they can begin to think about their experiences and slowly they can
become integrated into their memory.”
Roemmele also points to the social aspect of horticultural therapy, which she says is especially
important for those who have become isolated in their illness. “Often they work on a flower bed
together and discover they have common experiences,” she says. “They help support each other both
here and beyond the project.”
In spite of the proven benefits, horticultural therapy has its sceptics. In the UK, for example, the
National Health Service has no official guidance on the subject. Many clinical specialists say the
therapy is not effective on its own and should be supported by medication or psychotherapy and in
some cases both.
“General practitioners are not that switched on about the value of gardening and we’ve got to try and
convince them that it can be a cheap, worthwhile therapy for mild mental health problems,” says Sir
Richard, who has worked with Thrive for 12 years.
Today the demand for mental health services is soaring throughout Europe and the US. However, an
onslaught of budget cuts threatens to cripple these services on both sides of the Atlantic. In England,
where one in four people currently suffer from depression, mental health spending has dropped by
£150m for the first time in 10 years. The situation is equally troubling in the US: according to the
National Alliance on Mental Illness, states cumulatively cut spending by $1.6bn between 2009 and
2011. Psychiatric clinics continue to close across the country.
This would seem an opportune moment to take such a cheap and demonstrably effective treatment more
seriously. However, Sir Richard points out, holistic therapies such as these are the most likely
casualties of budget cuts.
“A recent Thrive study showed that the majority of people, if given the chance, would [choose to] have
access to a garden,” he says. “It is something that is in the English psyche and I think we should build
on that.”
The challenges: Gardens can be stressful
Gardening may provide benefits but that does not mean it is without challenges. Learning what will
take to your garden is often a tortuous case of trial and error. Some soil is deficient and while all plants
need sun, there is such a thing as too much of it.
“Thinking about all I have to do in the garden can actually make my stress levels rise,” says Alison
Grieve, a ceramist and gardener who lives near Bordeaux in south-west France. Grieve and her husband
Claude live in a remote 18th-century farmhouse, where for the past 22 years they have turned an open
field into a flower garden.
However, temperatures range from -15C to 45C, and tending to 18 flower beds is time-consuming and
often exhausting. Protecting the beds before the first hard frost is a race against time and keeping plants
alive in summer is constant work.
As a gardener you have to accept disappointments such as losing favourite plants and finding bulbs that
have been eaten by rodents. “Gardening helps you to accept that nature is imperfect. Although not
everything goes to plan, you equally get wonderful surprises.”
Horticultural therapy programmes: From Chicago to China
US
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The Bridge programme, which runs in collaboration with the Horticultural Society of New York, offers
gardening opportunities to people with mental illness in the Bronx and the Upper East Side of
Manhattan. www.thebridgeny.org
Urban GreenWorks, founded by James Jiler, is a non-profit organisation that oversees several garden
projects for incarcerated men and women, and at-risk youth in Miami, Florida.
www.urbangreenworks.org
Chicago Botanic Garden offers gardening sessions to people with mental and physical disabilities.
www.chicagobotanic.org
UK
Thrive has garden projects in Berkshire, in south-east England, and at Battersea Park in London.
Horticulture training is offered at the Old English Garden, which is sponsored by fragrance brand Jo
Malone. The group also has a database of 900 projects throughout the UK and can connect people to
projects in their area. www.thrive.org.uk
Mind is a mental health charity that runs garden projects across England and Wales. There are around
30 projects in London. www.mind.org.uk
Camden Garden Centre in London works with ex-offenders, the homeless and those recovering from
substance abuse issues.www.camdengardencentre.co.uk
Asia
The Hong Kong Horticultural Therapy Centre in China helps young and elderly people with a range of
disabilities and illnesses. www.hkhtcentre.com
The Institute of Mental Health in Singapore offers gardening as part of its rehabilitative programme.
www.imh.com.sg
A
You might think your memory is a little fuzzy but not that it's
completely inaccurate. People believe that memory is like a video
or files stored in some sort of computer. But it's not like that at
all. Memories are actually constructed anew each time that you
remember something.
Each time you take an old activation sequence in your brain and
re-construct it; like building a toy airplane out of Lego and then
smashing the Lego, putting it back into the box, and building it
again. Each time you build it it's going to be a little bit different
based on the context and experience you have had since the last
time you created it.
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B
Why coffee can be bittersweet
When you wake up and smell the coffee, actually tasting it can be
a bitter disappointment, writes Ling Ge. Recent findings from
neuroscience and psychology reveal why – and how complex
tasting really is.
Sun worship People often imagine that taste
According to Harvard comes from the tongue. In fact,
Medical School the tongue and associated
researchers, people can be receptors in the mouth detect only
addicted to tanning – in salty, sweet, sour, bitter, spicy
the sun or in salons. And and metallic sensations. Yet we
the addiction is like being also experience mint, vanilla,
hooked on alcohol or drugs. coffee, strawberry and myriad
other flavours.
“Eighty per cent of what we think of as taste actually reaches us
through smell,” says Barry Smith, co-director of the Centre for
the Study of the Senses at the University of London.
There are two ways of smelling – “orthonasal” (the odour comes in
through nostrils) and “retronasal” (it travels up the oral cavity
inside the mouth to the olfactory bulb).
“The smell of freshly brewed coffee is absolutely wonderful. Aren’t
you a little disappointed when you taste it? If you hold your nose,
coffee is hot water with a bitter taste,” Smith says. This is
because saliva strips off about 300 of the 631 airborne chemicals
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Joan Blaeu's world map from the Atlas maior Gerard Mercator and
Jodocus Hondius, in Mercator’s posthumous Atlas (1613).
If anyone has taken anything positive from the recent Apple
Maps disaster, it’s Simon Garfield. After all, what better way to
thrust cartography (to which his new book is a love letter) into the
forefront of public consciousness than by taking the world's most
omnipresent, most relied-on map and replacing it with a piece of
software so perforated with holes that ask it to find you a record
shop and it’ll suggest you drive off a bridge en route to your local
HMV. Not that the appeal of On the Map is a fluke of context –
far from it.
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2EXTRA: Summarise each text using your own words as far as possible.
(Submit full answers to all of the questions via tienganhchuyen@gmail.com
to receive my feedback.)
Please note that this note is subject to change at all times.
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in so doing helps us see that there are fewer things in life more useful,
rewarding and beautiful than a map that does what it’s supposed to.
Perhaps if Apple had read the book a few months ago, today’s iPhone
owners would have a much better idea of where they’re going.
1. In one sentence, summarise the reviewer’s opinion of the book.
2. Select all the words or phrases that reflect the reviewer’s positive opinion
of the book.
Writers often link or join their ideas using cohesive devices. These can show
time connections, cause and effect, comparison or contrast.
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(iii) Contrast Clues: Maria was enthralled by the new movie, but her friend
found it dull and uninteresting.
(iv) Cause & Effect Clues: Because he wanted to marry a divorcée, Edward
VIII chose to abdicate the British throne in 1936.
(v) Definition/Explanation Clues: The title of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel
Tender Is the Night contains an allusion, or reference, to a poem by John
Keats.
HS có thể hệ thống từ vựng như ví dụ sau:
MANUSCRIPT - I found a tattered manuscript in an old trunk and began
reading it.
(a) Context: (v) [reading is a keyword that suggests the meaning of
manuscript, perhaps words on paper]
(Mở rộng bước này, GV/HS có thể chọn các ví dụ có collocation điển hình.)
(b) Structure: manu (hand) + script (to write)
(Để làm được bước này, HS cần được trang bị kiến thức về word parts, roots,
affixes,... vốn là trọng tâm phương pháp thứ hai, sẽ được trình bày ở phần
sau. GV cũng có thể tổng hợp các bảng word parts & meanings hoặc chỉ dẫn
HS đến các mục tham khảo có trong từ điển (e.g. OALD)/Internet để HS tra
cứu.)
(c) Sound: [manuscript sound like the word manual, which is a reference
book that provides instructions]
(HS tự đọc và ghép những word parts mình đã biết hoặc đọc theo GV.) (Tùy
chọn: ở bước này, HS có thể cần được bị những kiến thức cơ bản về
phonetics/phonology (vốn nên được dạy từ lớp 6) để nhận dạng/suy đoán cách
phát âm của từ.)
(d) Reference/Dictionary:
“hand/typewritten document/paper
(ghi chú nghĩa theo từ điển hoặc nếu có, synonym, antonym, các cách diễn
đạt tương tự (paraphrase) và hoàn tất thông tin đúng ở các mục (b), (c))
unsolicited/illuminated/surviving manuscript, in manuscript
(ghi chú một số collocation hoặc nếu có idioms, phrasal verbs,... điển
hình/thú vị)
Gợi ý luyện tập - kiểm tra:
- CSSD (cơ bản): cho từ + ví dụ điển hình để HS hệ thống như ví dụ trên. HS
tự làm flash cards theo cá nhân hoặc theo nhóm/cặp.
- Matching (cơ bản): nối từ được cho trong ví dụ điển hình và nghĩa của
chúng. (Thông thường bài tập dạng này trong các sách tham khảo chỉ cho từ
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và nghĩa để nối với nhau mà thiếu phần ví dụ điển hình để giúp HS hiểu và
vận dụng các context clues.)
- (w/o) multiple-choice (nâng cao): sentence completion, synonyms/antonyms
(also matching), cloze,...
- Sentence transformation (nâng cao): viết / trắc nghiệm
2. PAVE (Predict - Associate - Verify - Evaluate)
Phương pháp này chú trọng đến việc sử dụng các word parts, context cũng
như những hiểu biết, liên hệ với thế giới quan để unlock nghĩa của từ, đồng
thời ứng dụng vào các kĩ năng khác như Writing và Reading.
Predict: sử dụng context và những kiến thức về word parts để đoán
nghĩa của từ
Associate: HS tự viết câu có sử dụng từ mới
Verify: sử dụng từ điển để kiểm tra nghĩa của từ
Evaluate: kiểm tra và sửa chữa câu văn vừa viết
Đối với GV, những kĩ năng trên có thể đã trở thành second nature, và hầu
như chúng ta cũng không nhận thức được bản thân mình đang sử dụng
chúng. Tuy nhiên, HS sẽ không dễ dàng nhận ra và áp dụng vì đây gần như
là một quá trình âm thầm và tự sáng tỏ. Do đó, GV cần:
thể hiện, làm mẫu để HS được thấy những kĩ năng trên “in action”; sau
đó đưa ra những chỉ dẫn rõ ràng, trực tiếp để giúp HS hiểu và áp dụng;
GV cần thể hiện mình như một language mentor, luôn chủ động tìm tòi
và biết cách tiếp cận ngôn ngữ, đồng thời truyền cảm hứng cho HS;
tạo một môi trường học tập năng động bằng cách tận dụng các bức
tường trong lớp học sao cho hiệu quả. Ví dụ: GV cùng với HS tạo ra
“Word Wall” cho riêng lớp mình, trên đó GV sẽ tự chọn ra Word of the
Day/Week/Month hữu ích/thú vị, những từ quan trọng mà GV muốn
HS ghi nhớ; còn lại do HS đóng góp; HS có thể tự chọn những từ mình
thích/bắt gặp trong các bản tin, giải trí, văn hóa phẩm đại chúng, ngữ
liệu học thuật,… và áp dụng phương pháp trên để định nghĩa, đóng
góp câu ví dụ tự viết, minh họa tùy ý sáng tạo, fun facts về từ/origin
của từ,…
Sau đây là một gợi ý về syllabus và những nội dung kiến thức tối thiểu cần
đạt. Phần Objectives sẽ focus vào 3 ý chính: context, thematic lexis và word
parts. GV lựa chọn, phân phối sao cho phù hợp với mỗi bài học SGK, trình
độ HS và điều kiện thực tế, tích hợp và xen kẽ 5 module bên dưới. Lưu ý rằng
có nhiều cách phân loại và sắp xếp word parts (theo ý nghĩa, chức năng ngữ
pháp,…)
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Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 Grade 9 Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12
OBJECTIVES
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Context (based on revised textbooks)
Thematic Lexis (based on revised textbooks)
-Roots: frac, rupt, vis, audi, - Roots: graph, scribe, - Roots: pel, gen, mort Roots: bell, cis, vinc, doc, Roots: greg, junct, jud, jur, Roots: spec, plic, frac, ced, - Roots: roga, sag, sens,
mit, man, pen, port, ject script, cede, cess, mit, mis, - Prefixes: hyper, hypo, dox, gno, cor, cur, man, demo, sim, spire, flect, flu, cip, a, an, anthro, theo, sent, gno, sci, fac, gen,
-Prefixes: re, ex, extra, un, vert, verse ante, anti, sub, super, ex, ab, ped, pod, ben, mal, path, ec, eu, loqu, dict, voc, clam, anim, corp, ten, tin, sed, sid, gress, tac, cred, fid, vers,
be, mal - Prefixes: para, peri, de, im, in, ad phobia, scrib, script, tract, mort, mord, morb, carn, vid, duc, reg, log, luc, sta, strin, vert, nomen, nomin, onym,
-Suffixes: logy in, dis, com, con, col - Adjective & Noun ject, tang, port, mit, mis, pel, vit, polis, polit, urb, gen ped, phil, val pend, pens, mut, plic,
-<Big> & <Small> Affixes - Adjective & Noun Suffixes pos, pon, chron, tempor morph, hyper, hypo
Suffixes - Number Prefixes & Word - Prefixes: dia, epi
- Number Prefixes & Roots Parts
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-Organising Vocab. - Organising Vocab. - Organising Vocab. - Organising Vocab. - Organising Vocab. - Organising Vocab. - Organising Vocab.
Notebook Notebook Notebook Notebook Notebook Notebook Notebook
1 -Chunks of Meaning - Vocab. Skills - Groups of Word Parts - Vocab. Skills - Vocab. Skills - Vocab. Skills in Reading - Vocab. Skills
- Word Families - PAVE - Word Parts & Meanings - PAVE - PAVE - PAVE - PAVE
-Prefixes, Suffixes & Roots - Word Parts & Meanings - Context Clues - Using Dictionaries & - Anglo-Saxon Word
Thesauruses Origins, Old English
- Vocab. Skills - Context Clues - Critical Thinking Terms - Reference Materials for - Prefixes, Suffixes & Roots - Word Parts - Middle English
- Using Reference Materials - Denotation & Connotation - Test-Taking Language Lexical Items - Words w. Multiple - Archaic Language - Words of French, Latin &
- Using a Dictionary: - Using Dictoinairies & - Words w. Multiple Meanings - Compound Words Greek Origin
2 Choosing a Definition Thesauruses Meanings - Connotation & Denotation - Manipulating Language - Greek & Latin Roots
- Using a Thesaurus: - Synonyms & Antonyms - Synonyms & Antonyms - Context Clues - Technology-Related - BrE vs. AmE
Synonyms & Antonyms - Connotation & Denotation Words - Word Parts
- Inferential Context Clues
- Context Clues in Writing
- Syntax
- PAVE - Roots, Prefixes & Suffixes - Word Origins - Prefixes, Suffixes & Roots - Word Origins & Place - Denotation & Connotation - Current Events Words
- Context Clues - Prefixes & Similar Word - Evolution of Language - Word Origins Names - Literal vs. Figurative - Compound Words
- Denotation & Connotation Parts - Eponyms - Root Families - Word Families from Language - Allusions & Eponyms
- Sniglets & Invented - Roots & Bases - Bases - Greek & Latin Roots Greek & Latin Roots - Homophones - Common Acronyms
Language - Greek & Latin Roots - Prefixes, Suffixes & Roots - Using Word Parts to - English Words from - Words w. Multiple - Clichés
3 - Greek, Latin & Anglo- Unlock Meaning French, Spanish, Asian Meanings - Contractions
Saxon Roots - Evolution of Language Languages & around the - Context Clues in Writing
- Word Parts for Size World
- Suffixes & Parts of - Informal & Archaic
Speech Language
- Academic Language
- Homophones & - Homographs, - Vocab. Skills - Borrowed Words - Semantic Mapping - Borrowed Words - Homophones
Homographs Homophones & - PAVE - Register, Slang & - Syntax - Eponyms & Toponyms - Synonyms & Antonyms
- Confused Words Homonyms - Context Clues Colloquialisms - Commonly Confused - Register - Connotation & Denotation
- Words w. Multiple - Using Dictionaries & - Connotation & - Idioms Words - Colloquial & Academic - Literal vs. Figurative
Meanings Thesauruses Denotation - Mnemonic Devices Language Language
4 - Choosing the Right - Homonyms & - Word Meanings in - Idioms, Colloquialisms, &
Definition Homophones Synonyms, Antonyms, Hyperbolic Expressions
- Synonms & Antonyms - Figurative Language: Homophones &
- Connotation Similes, Metaphors, Homographs
Analogies & Idioms - Words w. Multiple
-Word w Multiple Meaning Meanings
- Word Origins - Figurative Language - Word Choices in Writing - Word Arrack Skills & - Literal & Figurative - Synonyms & Antonyms - Classifying Words
- Idioms & Clichés - Slang & Colloquialisms - Euphemisms, Practice Tests Meanings - Semantic Families - Civics Connection –
- Words Related to Time - Words for Vocab. Doublespeak & Clichés - Writing & Word Choice - Idioms, Metaphors, - Celestial Words Economic, Political,
- English around the World Notebook - Becoming a Word - Literal & Figurative Similes & Analogies - Varying Word Choice Historical & Legal Terms
5 - Becoming a Word - Reading Comprehension Detective Meanings - Allusions - Euphemisms, - Math, Science &
Detective - Figurative Language - Language in the Media Doublespeak & Clichés Technology Terms
- Expanding Word - Expanding & Applying - Expanding Word - Using Context Clues to
Knowledge Word Knowledge Knowledge Unlock Weird Words
- Practice Tests - Expanding Word
Knowledge
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Ghi chú này giới thiệu một số trò chơi về Từ Vựng tiếng Anh mà tôi cảm thấy
khá thú vị và hữu ích trong quá trình bồi dưỡng HSG/HS ở trình độ
advanced. Hi vọng có thể giảm bớt chút khô khan và căng thẳng trong quá
trình dạy-học nhưng vẫn phù hợp với HS ở level này. Một số game (như 6, 7,
8) đặc biệt thích hợp với visual learners.
1. ANAGRAMS 4. THE MINISTER’S CAT 7. HANGMAN
2. PANGRAMS 5. PALINDROMES 8. REBUS
3. ALPHAGRAM 6. DOUBLETS
ANAGRAMS
Anagram là một (cụm) từ mà các chữ cái trong đó có thể sắp xếp lại để tạo
thành một (cụm) từ mới. Ví dụ: range là một anagram của anger. Giải các
anagram rất hữu ích trong việc học từ vựng và giải những trò chơi khó hơn
như cryptic crossword. Sau đây là một số ví dụ anagram được tạo thành từ
tên của những nhân vật và địa điểm nổi tiếng. Một số anagram khá là make
sense hoặc có sự trùng hợp thú vị về ý nghĩa ^^
Elvis Aaron Presley → Seen alive? Sorry, pal!
Madonna Louise Ciccone → one cool dance musician
Albert Einstein → ten elite brains
William Butler Yeats → a really sublime twit
Diego Maradona → an adored amigo
Elle MacPherson → her men collapse
Arnold Schwarzenegger → he’s grown large’n’crazed
Clint Eastwood → Old West Action
President Boris Yeltsin → tipsiness done terribly
Florence Nightingale → angel of the reclining
The Houses of Parliament → loonies far up the Thames
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To be or not to be? That is the question. Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to
suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. → In one of the Bard’s
best-thought-of strategies, our insistent hero, Hamlet, questions on two
fronts about how life turns rotten.
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Lưu ý:
Khi tham gia trò chơi, để tránh cheating, HS không được sử dụng từ
điển hoặc truy cập các công cụ Internet có khả năng “unscramble” và
giải các anagram ^^ Google để biết thêm các công cụ tạo, tìm kiếm và
giải anagram. Ngoài ra hiện nay trên di động cũng có khá nhiều trò
chơi dạng này.
GV có thể dựa theo Glossary hoặc một list từ trong chương trình giảng
dạy để chọn ra các từ phù hợp cho trò chơi này, đồng thời giúp HS cải
thiện vốn từ.
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Thầy hay khuyên các bạn HS khi học từ vựng, ngoài việc ghi chú những
thông tin cần thiết như pronunciation, word family, collocation, example,...
nên cố gắng extend và paraphrase câu ví dụ đó bằng ý tưởng của mình hoặc
từ những ví dụ có sẵn thay vì chỉ ghi một câu. Điều này sẽ giúp tăng vốn từ
vựng và làm cho câu văn mình viết ra stylish hơn.
Lấy ví dụ từ redistribute (v) được gắn nhãn C2 trong CALD. Định nghĩa
của CALD và OALD lần lượt như sau: to share something out differently
from before, especially in a fairer way; to share something out among people
in a different way. Khi học từ, ngoài việc ghi một câu ví dụ như OALD
Wealth needs to be redistributed from the rich to the poor. các em có thể vận
dụng các aspects của cohesion để extend và paraphrase câu ví dụ trên. Dưới
đây là 2 cách thông dụng:
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[sử dụng emphatic pointer such trong cấu trúc đảo ngữ nhấn mạnh
(inversion, fronting) và paraphrase a tactic of achieving social equality làm
cho hai câu thêm stylish và liên kết với nhau less explicitly và tự nhiên hơn
so với việc dùng các linking words thông thường; ngoài ra câu còn dùng
reference pronoun it để tránh lặp từ; cách sử dụng passive, giới từ,
collocation, cụm danh từ chính xác cũng cho thấy khả năng control và trình
độ của người viết]
Câu hỏi 1: Cấu trúc với such như trên có thể đứng cuối câu thay vì đầu câu.
Ví dụ: Wealth needs to be redistributed from the rich to the poor. It has been
devised by many Asian regions, especially Vietnam, to boost and sustain the
economy, such is a strategy for promoting social equality.
Viết như vậy chưa hay/chính xác ở những chỗ nào? Nên chỉnh sửa hai
câu trên như thế nào để mệnh đề với such vẫn nằm ở cuối câu?
Câu hỏi 2: Hoàn chỉnh, cải thiện và viết tiếp câu sau (mở đầu một đoạn
văn):
Many Asian nations, including Vietnam, have been opting for
__________________________________________ to boost and sustain their
economy, such is a tactic of ensuring social equality ____________________
______________________.
Từ giờ mỗi khi ghi chú từ vựng, các em có thể vận dụng 2 cách viết trên để cải
thiện kĩ năng viết, ghi nhớ và sử dụng từ tốt hơn.
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Let’s look at some of the skills that a successful listener needs to have. The
first skill is predicting. Predicting involves using the context and your
knowledge of the topic to guess what people are speaking about. For
example, if you are going to watch a cookery programme, you can guess that
the purpose of the programme will be to show you how to make food, and
that there will be vocabulary related to food and ingredients. Predicting is
an important listening skill because we can make more sense of what we
hear if we use what we know already about the topic.
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Which skills would you need in these different situations? Choose the correct
listening skill in each situation.
(A) predicting (C) identifying key words
(B) listening intensively (D) identifying attitudes
(E) listening for specific information
1. You are listening to someone who is speaking very fast and trying to pick
out the important information.
2. You are listening to a colleague giving you instructions on how to use a
new photocopier.
3. A friend is giving you feedback about an assignment that you did for
school. You are trying to work out whether your friend thinks your
assignment is good.
4. You are listening to a weather forecast to see if it’s going to rain
tomorrow.
5. You are going to watch a cookery programme about making a chocolate
cake. Think about the ingredients that might be used.
Official Key: 1-C 2-B 3-D 4-E 5-A
Listening skills can be divided into two main categories according to the
way we process information: those that involve top-down processing and
those that involve bottom-up processing. Your learners will need to use both
ways of processing to be successful listeners, and you need to ensure that
you give them practice in both. Let’s look at what these terms mean.
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When we listen to someone talking, we are using visual clues, the context
and our knowledge of the world to make sense of what we are hearing. We
are continually making predictions based on this. For example, if a shop
assistant asks us something, we use the context (the fact that we are in a
shop and it is a shop assistant speaking to us) and our knowledge and
experience of the world (that is, the type of things that shop assistants say
to customers) to predict what the shop assistant is saying. We would expect
to hear something like Can I help you?. This is what we refer to as top-
down processing – that is, using what we know to make sense of what we
hear. So predicting is a top-down processing skill.
A successful listener will use both top-down and bottom-up processing, and
a range of listening skills.
As we look at the four parts of the Listening paper, we will consider how
learners need to use these different listening skills to deal with the
questions effectively.
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EXPLAINING ANSWERS
Now let’s take a close look at what was involved in choosing the right
answers and why the other options are incorrect. It is important to do this
as it will enable you to help learners develop the listening skills they need
and to make sure they understand why a particular answer is correct.
So let’s think first about what the questions are asking for and which
skills are being assessed.
The fact that this statement is then followed by but indicates that option A
is not correct. She mentions gym members dropping out, but there is no
mention of limited access. Option B is not correct because although she
talks about the centres being expensive, she does not say that the cost is too
high for the services offered.
Now do the same with the extract about marketing. Look at the questions
and the options first. Then listen and try to answer the questions.
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You are going to hear two friends discussing the topic of marketing.
Choose the answer (A, B or C) which fits best according to what you
hear.
Extract One
You hear two friends discussing the topic of marketing.
1 Which aspect of college publicity material do the friends disagree about?
A how useful the environmental rating system is
B how well the different courses are described
C how visually attractive the brochures are
2 In the woman’s opinion, companies link themselves with charities in order to
A boost their profits.
B improve their image in society.
C distract attention away from other issues.
Download the handbook with answer keys, audio files and transcripts from
http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/exams-and-tests/advanced/preparation/
We can see that in question 1, learners need to listen to nearly the whole
extract to be able to identify the aspect of college publicity that the friends
disagree about. They are being asked to listen for the main idea – and this
is a skill that is often assessed in Part 1.
Look at some of the other words used in these two questions and see if you
can match them to the words and phrases used to express these ideas in the
dialogue.
Match the words and phrases used in the questions to those used in
the listening extract.
1. visually attractive 3. society
2. issues 4. improve their image
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Your learners will need to know and recognise the language used for
agreeing and disagreeing and we will look at this in more detail when we
come to Part 3.
LESSON PLAN
AIMS
to give learners techniques for dealing with Part 1 of the Listening
paper
to develop the following skills:
predicting
listening for main ideas / gist and for specific information / detail
identifying speaker purpose, opinion, attitude and feeling
listening for paraphrase and synonym
PREPARATION
a copy of Handout 1 for each learner
a copy of Handout 2 for each learner
a copy of Handout 3 for each learner
PROCEDURE
1. Put these three introductions from Part 1 on the board:
- You hear two friends talking about ways of keeping fit.
- You hear a woman telling a friend about living in her capital city as a
student.
- You hear two friends discussing the topic of marketing.
In pairs, learners discuss what they know about keeping fit, marketing, and
living in a city and being a student.
2. Give out Handout 1 to each learner. In pairs, learners do question 1.
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(KEY:
Question 1
A CORRECT Reason: the woman says that the rating system wouldn’t have
much impact on her choice / the man disagrees and thinks it is useful,
saying that if he wasn’t sure about which course to do – the ratings could
decide it for him.
B INCORRECT Reason: the fact that there are different courses is
mentioned, but no comparison is made about the way specific ones are
described.
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C INCORRECT Reason: the man talks about the glossy brochures and the
woman agrees they are attractive by giving a reason – they’re trying to
attract as much interest as possible.
Question 2
A INCORRECT Reason: the woman says I don’t know if it increases sales.
B CORRECT Reason: the woman gives this opinion when she says the cynic
in me reckons many companies just want to appear softer in the public eye.
C INCORRECT Reason: the woman says that the companies may be
suggesting to the consumer that they can ignore other causes, but she says
nothing about distracting their attention.)
8. Play Audio 2 and Audio 3. Learners listen to the conversations and
try to answer questions 3, 4, 5 and 6. Point out / elicit that the
questions in Part 1 could be focusing on specific information (e.g.
question 3) or function (e.g. question 5), as well as opinions. See
Screen 7.4 for guidance on explaining answers in Audio 2 (keeping
fit).
9. Give each learner a copy of Handout 3. In pairs, learners check their
answers by looking through the text and discuss their reasons.
(Key: 3C, 4A , 5C, 6A)
10. For homework, learners read the audio script carefully to find, record
and learn any new vocabulary.
STUDENT’S HANDOUT 1
1. Look at the introductions to three conversations.
(a) You hear two friends talking about ways of keeping fit.
(b) You hear a woman telling a friend about living in her capital city as a
student.
(c) You hear two friends discussing the topic of marketing.
In pairs, choose which conversation, a, b or c, you think will contain the
following words or phrases: health centres, products, daily routine,
residents, consumers, exercise, sales, laze around, horticulture, urban,
gym membership, rooftops, commercial sector, companies, fellow students
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STUDENT’S HANDOUT 2
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STUDENT’S HANDOUT 3
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TEACHING NOTES
Now we’ll look at Part 2 of the Listening paper and the skills that your
learners will need for this. In Part 2, there will be one speaker giving a talk
lasting approximately three minutes. The task is to complete a series of
eight sentences with the missing information, using a single word or short
phrase from the recording.
Note that the words candidates write should be exactly the same as those
they hear in the recording. If candidates come up with a grammatically
correct expression that reports the same meaning, it will be accepted.
However, candidates are advised to write down exactly what they hear, to
avoid losing the mark for introducing mistakes or different meanings.
Let’s now look at how to approach this part of the Listening paper.
As mentioned in Part 1, it’s very important for learners to take the time to
read the introduction and the questions to get an idea of the topic, and to
think about what they know about it so that they can use their predicting
skills. The example we are going to look at is a talk given by a student
called Josh about a group visit to South Africa as part of his university
course in botany.
The eight questions in Part 2 will always follow the order of the listening
text. By reading through all the gapped sentences, learners will get a clear
idea of how the text is going to develop.
Read these gapped sentences from Josh’s talk on his visit to South Africa.
They are in the order presented in the Part 2 task. Use them to help you do
the task that follows.
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Following the order of the gapped sentences, put the topics in the
order that you think they will appear in the recording.
1. Visiting an area where something specific had happened
2. Looking at different types of wild plants
3. The crops they saw in the fields
4. Admiring the landscape from the place where they were staying
5. The mode of transport they used
6. Josh’s reaction to one place they visited
Official Key: 1-3-5-2-6-4
You can see how much information your learners can glean about the
listening text and how it will develop just by looking at the questions.
Learners can use their predicting skills to get an idea of what the missing
words are. By looking at the gaps, they will be able to think about the
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specific information they are listening for. They won’t be able to predict
the actual answers, but they will be able to predict the type of information
that is missing.
For example, the context given by the first sentence suggests they should be
listening for something you can write and put on a website. Before you
listen to the talk on South Africa, try to predict what type of information
the answers will contain. Then listen and check.
Before you listen to the talk, complete the sentences with your
prediction of the kind of word the answer is likely to be. There are no
right or wrong answers.
Part 2
You will hear a student called Josh Brady talking about visiting South Africa as part of
his university course in botany. For questions 7 – 14, complete the sentences with a
word or short phrase.
TRIP TO SOUTH AFRICA
As well as his research project, Josh planned to write a (7) ………………………………
for a website while he was in Africa.
Josh’s group planned to check out a particular region after a (8) ………………………
.……...…......... that had occurred there.
Josh was surprised to see (9) ………………………………… being grown in the first
area they visited.
Josh describes the vehicle they travelled in as a (10) …………………………………
when they went in search of specimens.
Josh uses the word (11) ………………………………… to give us an idea of the shape
of the leaves he found.
Josh was particularly impressed by one type of flower which was (12) …………………
………………………… in colour.
Josh uses the word (13) ………………………………… to convey his feelings about an
area of vegetation he studied.
Josh really appreciated the view he got from the (14) ………………………………… of
his accommodation.
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SUGGESTED ANSWERS
Here is a list of the types of words you might expect to hear for each gap.
The actual answers from the listening text are given in brackets:
(7) type of written text (report)
(8) An event / a disaster (fire)
(9) A cultivated plant (tea / red tea)
(10) A type of vehicle (safari truck)
(11) A visually descriptive adjective or noun (needle / needles)
(12) An adjective of colour (orange / deep orange)
(13) An strongly descriptive adjective or noun (paradise)
(14) A part of a building or of its grounds (roof)
Remember that candidates are advised to write down the exact words used
in the text. They should not change them in any way, as they may
inadvertently change the meaning or make the sentence grammatically
incorrect.
As you listened, you were comparing what you predicted with what you
actually heard. This is what we do in much of real-life listening. We make a
prediction (top-down processing) and then use what we hear (bottom-up
processing) to confirm or revise our predictions.
DISTRACTORS
With these tasks, there will always be some distraction. This means there
will be words or phrases that could fit into gaps grammatically, and the
sentences would make sense, but the information would not be correct
because it doesn’t reflect what is said on the recording. Look at the first
question as an example. Josh says:
I didn’t post my diary or blog on the university website, because I’d promised
to submit a report on my return, which would appear there ...
By thinking about which words are being used to distract candidates, you
can anticipate the wrong answers your learners may come up with in your
lessons, and be prepared to elicit or explain why they are wrong. So Josh
knew that drought was a problem in Africa, but in fact the area they visited
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had been affected by fire; he expected to see flowers in the fields, but there
was red tea; he thought they might be taken around in a minibus, but they
were driven round in a safari truck; and it was not the balcony which
offered the best views, but the roof.
As we can see, the words that are missing in the Part 2 sentences are often
nouns, and are words that are carrying information. Recognising the use of
sentence stress can help them to identify these.
For example, listen to this extract from the talk. Notice how the speaker’s
voice changes as he says the words in bold:
When we first saw the landscape however, we felt rather confused. Much
of the area seemed to be cultivated fields, principally of red tea, rather
than the colourful flowers we’d been led to expect.
The other words in the sentence (function words like articles, prepositions
and auxiliaries) can be more difficult to hear because they are said more
quickly. Often, however, these words are not important, and are certainly
not going to be the missing words in Part 2.
One way of helping learners to identify the key words that will often carry
the specific information they need is to do some intensive listening and to
raise their awareness of sentence stress and intonation.
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In the lesson plan below, you will look at some activities you can do with
your learners to help raise their awareness of how these important words
are highlighted.
LESSON PLAN
AIMS
to give learners techniques for dealing with Part 2 of the Listening
paper
to develop the following skills:
predicting
listening for specific information
identifying opinions
PREPARATION
a copy of Handout 1 for each learner
a copy of Handout 2 for each learner
a copy of Handout 3 for each learner
PROCEDURE
1. Put the following adjectives on the board:
fantastic, exotic, unbelievable, brilliant, wonderful, awesome
2. In small groups, learners discuss a place they have visited using the
adjectives where appropriate. Ask them to decide which place sounds
the best to visit.
3. Give each learner a copy of Handout 1.
4. Remind the class that in the exam they will have 45 seconds to look at
the questions before listening to the recording. Using that time to think
about what words might be missing will help them to identify the correct
answer.
5. In pairs, learners read the introduction and predict what the missing
words are.
6. Whole class feedback on learners’ ideas.
7. Give each learner a copy of Handout 2. Explain/elicit how sentence
stress is used to highlight key information.
8. Play Audio 1. Individually, learners underline the words and phrases
that are stressed.
(Key: When we first saw the landscape however, we felt rather confused.
Much of the area seemed to be cultivated fields, principally of red tea,
rather than the colourful flowers we’d been led to expect.)
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STUDENT’S HANDOUT 3
Now look at Part 2.
You’ll hear a student called Josh Brady talking about visiting South Africa as part of his
university course in botany. For Questions 7–14, complete the sentences with a word or
short phrase.
You now have 45 seconds to look at Part 2.
M: Hi everyone. My name’s Josh Brady, and recently I was lucky enough to go on a botany
trip to South Africa with my tutor and other students from my university, to gather data
for the research project we’d been involved in all year. I didn’t post my diary or blog on
the university website, because I’d promised to submit a report on my return, which
would appear there, and I was working on that from Day One.
We were going to explore a beautiful region of coastal countryside that had previously
been affected, not by drought as is common on some parts of the African continent I’ve
studied, but by fire. We wanted to see how the flora and other life forms there had
recovered – in fact, some plants growing there are dependent on this kind of event to
trigger their germination.
When we first saw the landscape however, we felt rather confused. Much of the area
seemed to be cultivated fields, principally of red tea rather than the colourful flowers
we’d been led to expect. Sensing our confusion, our tutor reassured us that we’d soon be
off to a wilder area where we’d see a more striking range of specimens. We’d imagined
this would involve being taken around in a kind of minibus, or even a van and trailer, but
in fact what we boarded was what I can only describe as a safari truck and we headed out
into the natural vegetation.
When we arrived and started walking through the vegetation, I found the shape of the
leaves rather a surprise – coastal plants can often be tough, with leaves coming to a point
like sharp knives, but these resembled needles more than anything else. That meant I was
inadequately dressed for walking through them, in thin trousers. I was also totally
unprepared for the amazing scent that the plants gave off. By the end of that trip, I’d lost
count of how many species we’d come across – small delicate pink specimens, bright
yellow heathers, one with deep orange blooms, the mental image of which will stay with
me forever, and bright crimson wild specimens.
The local farmers are totally committed to protecting the flowers and plants that have
colonised the area. Conservationists call it shrubland, in other words a vast area of
vegetation that now has a rich array of plant species, but that sounds a bit negative for a
place that to me seemed like a paradise. One drawback was that, although the bedrooms
in our hostel each had a balcony, the view was of the back yard, with a small garden
beyond – which was hardly impressive. But by way of compensation the roof offered a
spectacular vantage point over the surrounding scenery. We spent every evening
watching the sun go down from there – a magical end to each fantastic day.
Anyway, the trip was the most amazing I’ve ever done … [fade]
Now you’ll hear Part 2 again.
Repeat Part 2.
That’s the end of Part 2.
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TEACHING NOTES
In Part 3, candidates hear a discussion or an interview between two or more
speakers lasting for approximately four minutes, and they have to answer
six multiple-choice questions.
Before they listen, candidates have one minute to look at the questions. It is
really important to encourage learners to use this time to read through the
questions and the options and to underline the main words. This will help
them to recognise the cues so that they know when to start listening
intensively.
Let’s look at some questions from a sample Part 3 Listening paper. The
listening text is an interview, in which two journalists, Jenny Langdon and
Peter Sharples, are talking about their work.
Read the first question, and then listen to the recording and choose your
answer. Remember that you can listen to the recording twice. After you
have done this, we will go on to look at which skills you were using, and the
reasons why the options are correct or incorrect.
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Let’s think about which skills you were using to get the right answer and
why the alternatives were incorrect.
Option A is incorrect because Jenny says It was a turning point alright –
but I can hardly claim it as a shrewd career move, showing that this was not
something she had been seeking.
Option B is incorrect because she says that the story was attributed to her
and she benefited from this – so her colleagues did not say it was their story
and Jenny was pleased with the outcome.
Option D is incorrect because she says she was headhunted, meaning that
the national daily came to her and offered her the prestigious job – she
didn’t ask for it.
Option C is the correct choice. Jenny says the editorial team had actually
cobbled the front-page story together from my notes – so she was not the
person who wrote the finished article.
Candidates are often asked to identify what speakers think and agree on in
Part 3. You will find that most, if not all, the opinions given in the options
are stated by one of the speakers, but only one is given by both.
Let’s look more closely at why option A is correct.
Look at the extract from the listening text below. Then think again about
the options that have been given and decide in each case whether it is
Jenny, Peter, both of them or neither of them who think these things.
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So in this case, the only point that they agree on is A – the importance of
getting experience. Jenny says her course gave her a good grounding, but
goes on to say But I wouldn’t say it taught me everything I needed and then
talks about the important experience she got on the student newspaper,
which filled in the gaps. Peter says that it is a good idea to do a course but
it’s no substitute for getting out there.
So they both say that courses are useful and then follow this with a but to
show that courses aren’t enough on their own – experience is necessary.
This makes it clear why answer A is correct. It is good to encourage your
learners to listen out for words like but or however when listening for the
speakers’ opinions, to prevent them from misunderstanding what is being
said.
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Notice also how learners could be tempted to go for the wrong option in the
question you have just looked at. For example, here it is true that both
Jenny and Peter say that their experience on student newspapers was
important but they don’t say that the courses weren’t of value. So option C
is acting as a distractor.
To do this, they will have to be able to deal with distraction; the incorrect
answer options may seem possible at first, so candidates need to listen
closely to be sure that they are wrong.
The best candidates will use both these strategies at the same time. For
example, they will decide on which answer they think is best and then
confirm this by thinking about why the other answers are wrong. Often,
they make their initial decision during the first listening and then check it
during the second listening.
The incorrect answers may include some of the words used in the text. They
may include information or ideas that the candidate may think are true, but
that are not mentioned. However, the correct answer will only contain
information or ideas that have been expressed
in the text.
Let’s now look at another question from this Part 3 sample Listening paper,
where Jenny is talking about her first job working at a national daily
newspaper, and then see how you can help learners to deal with distraction.
Listen to the next part of the recording twice, and decide which answer is
correct. Then complete the comments to explain the reasons for your
choices.
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Now think about the reasons for your choice. Complete the teacher’s
explanations of the answers with the words Jenny uses.
USE OF PARAPHRASE
Have another look at the correct option – option B. Notice the difference
between what Jenny says in the listening and the way her words are
reported in the question. Jenny says I was first in the firing line if anything
went wrong – even stuff I’d had no hand in! In option B different words are
used to summarise what Jenny says (He tended to blame her for things
unfairly) but the meaning is the same. Your learners should be aware that
the words in the question do not quote from the listening directly, but
report or summarise the ideas in the listening. So they need to be prepared
to listen for different expressions of the ideas mentioned in the question.
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To sum up, when dealing with multiple-choice questions you need to train
learners to:
read questions carefully and underline key words
be aware of the different expressions for the same ideas
listen intensively to what the speakers say
eliminate incorrect options
use the second listening to confirm options that they think are correct
For example, in question 16, when asked about her former boss, Jenny
replies Well, there’s no denying he deserved that reputation! In this case,
Jenny uses a negative phrase, There’s no denying, to indicate that she
agrees with what the interviewer has just said.
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LESSON PLAN
AIMS
to give learners techniques for dealing with Part 3 of the Listening
paper
to develop the following skills:
- listening for main ideas
- identifying opinions and agreement
- listening for paraphrase and synonym
- intensive listening
PREPARATION
copy of Handout 1 for each learner
a copy of Handout 2 for each learner
a copy of Handout 3 for each learner
PROCEDURE
1. Explain that learners are going to listen to an interview with two
journalists. In small groups, learners discuss the following questions:
- What do you think the advantages and disadvantages are of being a
journalist?
- Would you like to be one? What qualities / skills does a good journalist
need?
2. Give each learner a copy of Handout 1. Focus learners on Exercise A.
3. Play the recording Audio 1 while learners number the topics in the order
they hear them.
(Key:
(3) The variety of articles that Jenny has written
(4) Peter’s work for a student newspaper
(1) An article that changed Jenny’s life
(6) A different type of writing
(2) Jenny’s relationship with her boss
(5) The advantages and disadvantages of journalism courses)
4. Give out Handout 2 to each learner. Tell learners to focus on questions 15
and 16.
5. Individually, learners read the instructions for questions 15 and 16 and
underline the important words.
6. Whole class. Explain that the exact words in the questions will probably
not appear in the listening. Learners are likely to hear the ideas in the
questions stated in different ways.
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11. Individually, learners listen to Audio 3 twice and answer questions 17–
20 (Handout 2).
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12. Give each learner a copy of the audio script (Handout 3). In pairs,
learners compare answers and discuss the reasons for their decisions.
(Official Key: 17 C, 18 B, 19 A, 20 D 13)
13. Homework: learners read the audio script carefully to find, record and
learn any new vocabulary.
STUDENT’S HANDOUT 1
(A) You are going to hear an interview with two journalists. Number
the topics in the order that you hear them discussed.
….. The variety of articles that Jenny has written
….. Peter’s work for a student newspaper
….. An article that changed Jenny’s life
….. A different type of writing
….. Jenny’s relationship with her boss
.…. The advantages and disadvantages of journalism courses
(B) With a partner, look at the following words and phrases from the
questions. What do they mean? How can you express these ideas in
different ways? Try to think of as many synonyms and paraphrases as
you can.
on the lookout for
resented
wasn’t responsible for
prestigious
respected
blame her for
unfairly
unreasonable
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STUDENT’S HANDOUT 2
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STUDENT’S HANDOUT 3
Now turn to Part 3.
You’ll hear an interview in which two journalists called Jenny Langdon and
Peter Sharples are talking about their work. For Questions 15–20, choose the
answer (A, B, C or D) which fits best according to what you hear.
You now have 70 seconds to look at Part 3.
Int: Today we’re looking at careers in journalism. My guests are Jenny
Langdon and Peter Sharples, both regular columnists on major
publications. Jenny, you made your name really young, didn’t you?
F: Relatively, yes. I was a raw recruit on the local paper when a scandal
broke concerning a celebrity living nearby. Out of the blue I found myself
with a scoop on my hands. Basically, I found the guy, interviewed him, then
hid him someplace where reporters on rival papers wouldn’t find him. When
the story broke next day, the editorial team had actually cobbled the front-
page story together from my notes, but it was attributed to me by name.
Before I knew what was happening, I’d been headhunted by a national
daily. It was a turning point alright – but I can hardly claim it as a shrewd
career move or anything!
Int: And the editor at that national daily was a notoriously bad-tempered
individual…
F: Well, there’s no denying he deserved that reputation! I mean, having
landed a dream job, I was really thrown in at the deep end! My desk was
right outside his office, so I was first in the firing line if anything went
wrong – even stuff I’d had no hand in! But I knew better than to argue, and
was thick-skinned enough not to take it personally. Anyway that’s what the
paper was like, always on the edge, and I really flourished in that
environment.
Int: Eventually getting your own daily column …
F: … and that’s where I really came into my own. I mean, I’d done stints on
the sports desk, been celebrity correspondent – the works. Actually, I only
got offered the column as a stop-gap when my predecessor left under a
cloud. But I was desperate to hold on to it. And it came at just the right
time – if it’d been earlier, I’d never have had the nerve or the experience to
make it my own.
Int: Let’s bring Peter in here. You started off on the celebrity magazine
called Carp, didn’t you?
M: I did. Ostensibly thanks to a speculative letter to the editor when I was
still a student. Actually, I’d been doing stuff for a student newspaper all
through university. Skills I learnt there stood me in good stead. When Carp
Magazine called me for interview, my approach to college news convinced
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them I was in touch with reality – you know, budgets, deadlines, all that –
that’s what swung it in my favour – it wasn’t just having my finger on the
pulse as far as youth culture was concerned – important as that was at
Carp.
Int: Can I ask you both whether you’d say courses in journalism are worth
doing? Jenny?
F: Well, I wanted to write and a journalism course seemed a reasonable
enough starting point. Journalism is at least paid up front – unlike some
forms of writing, and there’s no denying that was an incentive. So, yes, I did
one. And, you know, if I hadn’t, who knows if I’d have been able to handle
the stuff thrown at me when I first arrived at the newspaper – it does give
you that grounding. But I wouldn’t say it taught me everything I needed.
Fortunately a stint on the student newspaper filled in the gaps.
M: … as is so often the case. They’re often criticised for taking too strong a
line on issues, but they’re invaluable because they give you that free rein,
and you’re generally writing from the heart rather than for the money. I’d
say by all means do a course, theorise all you like in the classroom, but just
bear in mind that it’s no substitute for getting out there – for developing
your own style.
Int: Now you’ve both recently published novels – is this a change of
direction?
F: People keep asking that. I like to think that, much as I rate myself as a
journalist and feel I have nothing left to prove, I’m still up for the next
thing that comes along. I’ll never be a prize-winning novelist, but having a
go at it keeps me on my toes. It would be easy enough to get stale doing a
column like mine, but that does remain my grand passion – I don’t know
about you Peter, but I’m hardly thinking of moving on.
M: Well, I expect there’s people who’d say we should stand aside to give up-
and-coming writers a chance. But, no, I’m not. I’d go along with the idea of
diversification keeping you nimble though, and I’m not making great claims
for my novel either. But I would take issue with the idea that journalism
itself holds no further challenge. I wish I had your confidence Jenny – I’m
always telling myself that I’m only as good as my last piece and there’s no
room for complacency.
Int: And there we must leave it. Thank you both … Coming up now …
[fade]
Now you’ll hear Part 3 again.
Repeat Part 3.
That’s the end of Part 3.
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In everyday conversation, our focus is often on people and their actions, e.g.
I saw Trung yesterday., When are you going on holiday?, so we often use
pronouns and active verb forms. In academic writing, however, we tend to
focus more on ideas, processes, actions and situations. This means we use a
lot more abstract nouns and noun phrases, as well as passive verb forms in
academic English. Compare the examples below:
The government centralised criminal records. This improved access.
The centralisation of criminal records improved access. (focus on a
process)
The UN withdrew peace-keeping troops. This led to an increase in
fighting.
The withdrawal of UN peace-keeping troops led to an increase in fighting.
(focus on an action)
Many of these groups of nouns are followed by the preposition of, e.g. the
provision of services, an outbreak of a disease, etc. Some of these nouns can
also be followed by other prepositions. These patterns usually mirror the
patterns of the associated verbs, e.g. provision for, contribution to,
expenditure on, etc.
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It is common to use the clearer noun+of+noun form the first time a noun
phrase is used in a piece of writing and then a more concise noun+noun
pattern when the noun phrase is repeated (and its meaning is already clear
to the reader):
A strand of DNA can be represented as a string of ordered bases. The
order of bases in the DNA strand is important as it is used as a template
in the creation of proteins.
Many of these nouns are uncountable when they refer to a general process
or type of action. However, they can often be used in a countable sense to
refer to a particular instance, example or result of a process/action.
The addition of fluoride to water was once a controversial
innovation, but is now routine. (U; the process of adding)
There are several additions to the program that we hope to make in
the future. (C; things to be added)
You can find more information about this in the next note.
Be careful not to put too many nouns and adjectives together into a very
long noun phrase. It can become unclear which words belong together and
the meaning can become ambiguous. In each case below, although the
second example is slightly longer, it is clearer and easier to decode:
(x) The diagram shows the natural groundwater flow pattern.
The diagram shows the natural pattern of groundwater flow.
(x) Section two investigates international banks’ Chinese branches
development.
Section two investigates the development of Chinese branches of
international banks.
When you add new vocabulary to your word list, note down noun and verb
forms together as well as commonly used fixed noun phrases within your
subject area. When you are writing, you can refer to your notes to help you
find different ways of phrasing your ideas or paraphrasing ideas from other
sources. Remember, though, that a noun phrase which is used in one piece
of writing (and may be explained) may not be clear in a different context.
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1 Let’s review what we have learnt from the previous lesson . Choose
the best noun phrase to complete the sentences.
1. The statistics are based on observation of a year’s cycle of
sedimentation / a year of sedimentation cycle in the lake.
2. In the first chapter, scientific collaboration networks’ structure / the
structure of scientific collaboration networks is investigated.
3. State laws make employers liable for all of injured worker medical
expenses / an injured worker’s medical expenses.
4. Following the outbreak of civil war in 1993 / 1993’s civil war
outbreak, many people fled to refugee camps.
5. The centre of the chimpanzees’ territory / The chimpanzees’
territory’s centre is a clearing in the forest.
6. This is further evidence of the Portuguese’s influence / the influence
of the Portuguese, who were the colonial rulers of East Timor until 1975.
7. The report provoked an angry response from the prime minister’s aide
/ the aide of the prime minister and legal advisor, Robert Andrews.
8. Data sources include interviews with former ministers and official
government documents / official documents of government.
9. This technique is used for abnormal conditions of weather early
detection / the early detection of abnormal weather conditions.
10. According to Newton’s principle of determinacy / the determinacy
principle of Newton all motions of a system are uniquely determined by
their initial positions.
Official Key: 1 a year’s cycle of sedimentation 2 the structure of scientific
collaboration networks 3 an injured worker’s medical expenses 4 the
outbreak of civil war in 1993 5 The centre of the chimpanzees’ territory 6
the influence of the Portuguese 7 the prime minister’s aide 8 official
government documents 9 the early detection of abnormal weather
conditions 10 Newton’s principle of determinacy
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Nouns in English are divided into two main types, countable and
uncountable nouns, which behave in different ways. Understanding
whether a noun is countable or uncountable affects your choice of article
(a/an, the) or quantifier (some, much, few, etc) and also your choice of
singular or plural verb form. Although errors connected with countable and
uncountable nouns do not normally affect meaning, especially in academic
writing, they do create an impression of ‘inaccurate’ writing, perhaps
leading to the perception that the writer may not have an accurate grasp of
the subject.
Many nouns can be used in a countable or an uncountable sense in different
contexts. In general, the uncountable sense usually refers to a general
concept, group or category considered as a whole, whereas the
countable sense refers to a specific example or instance of something.
They attempted to investigate college students’ experience of
teaming (= [U] all the things which happened to them considered as a
whole).
A fundamental question about human memory is why some
experiences (= [C] individual events) are remembered whereas
others are forgotten.
Little agreement (= [U]) exists on the best terms to describe strata.
Most international environmental agreements (= [C] official written
sets of rules) are self-enforcing.
Other common C/U nouns include:
development/improvement
[U] = a general process [C] = a specific event
fear
[U] = a general feeling [C] = concern about a specific problem
medicine
[U] = the area of study/work [C] = a particular drug
life/death
[U] = a general concept [C] = of a specific person
paper
[U] = the material [C] = a piece of academic writing
technology
[U] = machines, computers, etc in general
[C] = a specific machine/method
Some nouns which are normally uncountable can be used in a specialised
countable sense in very specific academic and professional fields.
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The study examined the link between alcohol use and anti-social
behaviour (= [U]) in adolescents.
These two types of noun have distinct grammatical behaviours (= [C]
specific patterns).
Four women did not give permission ([U]) for their medical records
to be accessed.
This limits permissions (= [C] technical ability of individuals to
access) on the file to read only for all users except root.
The subjects had average or above average intelligence (=[U]).
Educators need to take into account the special talents and multiple
intelligences (= [C] different types of intelligence) of students.
Much of the work (= [U]) in this field is related to the original ideas
developed by Asher.
In his later works (= [C] pieces of writing, art, etc) Freud
differentiated the basic view mentioned here.
An equal amount of money ([U]) was invested during each time
period.
Activation commissions are monies ([plural] sums of money) paid to
retail outlets to signup subscribers.
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Một bài viết claim là band 8.5 của một bạn share cho thầy còn nhấn mạnh cách làm
tăng điểm bằng việc thay từ đồng nghĩa sao cho pro/advanced, profound hơn chút,
sao cho formal hơn, ví dụ trong câu sau:
“Many local people still have to live in houses made of mud and stone.”
Bài mẫu cho rằng sử dụng “houses” ở đây chưa pro, và cần thay bằng “residences”
hoặc “dwellings”, còn nói thêm rằng để điểm cao hơn cần dùng từ advanced hơn
như “domiciles” hoặc “abode”.
Trong những post trước, thầy có chia sẻ rằng việc paraphrase bằng cách thay
synonyms trực tiếp có thể làm thay đổi tone, trong nhiều trường hợp ý nghĩa từ
positive lại trở thành negative, tác dụng ngược lại với những gì mình muốn diễn đạt.
Chỉ khi thật sự hiểu được các nét nghĩa giữa các synonyms thầy mới dám dùng để
thay thế, và còn phải theo context, collocation nữa.
Tất cả các từ trên đều là formal và có nghĩa cơ bản như house, nhưng cách dùng có
chút khác nhau. “Domicile” và “abode” thường gặp nhiều trong các context về luật.
“Dwelling” dùng trong các context khá academic, vdụ “the inhabitants still have to
live in dwellings...” “Residence” cũng vậy, khá academic, thầy hay gặp trong các
văn bản, giấy tờ của chính phủ.
Bản thân văn phong formal nó là một spectrum, chứ không phải là một điểm cụ thể
nào đó, và tùy vào cách diễn đạt, thể loại viết, target reader... mà mức độ formal sẽ
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khác nhau. Bài essay IELTS chỉ cần văn phong từ neutral đến mức formal vừa phải,
không cần quá formal hoặc academic như các bài tiểu luận, research paper... trong
trường Đại học. Có thể hiểu IELTS giống như là pre-university course vậy. Em
không cần phải thay hết các từ thành formal, hay phải né tránh các từ gắn nhãn
informal.
Trên thực tế, nhiều từ gắn nhãn formal trong từ điển thường dùng để tạo hiệu ứng
châm biếm, hài hước, kịch tính... chứ không chỉ để làm câu văn scholarly, profound
hơn. Cũng có những từ gắn nhãn informal nhưng thầy vẫn thấy dùng trong các bài
viết IELTS được. Câu gốc ở trên thầy thấy không nhất thiết phải làm cho nó kịch
tính hay profound hơn. Quan trọng là những gì em viết trước và sau đó như thế nào
nữa.
Nói chung, các bài mẫu được chia sẻ có nhiều dụng ý tốt, có thể giúp các bạn học
hỏi thêm language, nhưng có những bài các bạn gửi thầy xem được claim là band
cao... thầy thấy mục đích showcase từ vựng nhiều hơn là giúp người viết nhận ra
cách tổ chức, diễn đạt và liên kết ý tưởng. Nếu có thể, ngoài việc chỉ ghi chú vocab,
khi đọc các bài viết này, em hãy note thêm cách triển khai, liên kết ý tưởng trong bài
xem có gì hay, đặc biệt không... đừng chỉ chăm chăm ghi nhớ collocation để force
vào bài và nghĩ rằng làm vậy sẽ natural hơn. [more later]
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|PART 3|
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Đố mọi người
đây là sách
gì? (P/S:
based on The
Oxford 3000
and Oxford
Academic
Word List)
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For good or for bad, the Pokémon Go app has taken the world by (1) _______.
It’s easy to (2) _______ the popularity of Pokémon Go these days. On street corners,
in parks, and almost everywhere else, people have their faces (3) _______ to their
screens while participating in this amazingly successful (4) _______-reality game. In
fact, Pokémon Go has quickly become one of most used apps in the world, with (5)
_______ of over 100 million and counting. The game has been (6) _______ “a social
media phenomenon,” and the media has (7) _______ to its massive popularity as
“Pokémon Go mania” or “Pokemania” for short. Released in many countries in July
2016 (early August in Vietnam), the game builds on the (8) _______ of the famous
Pokémon characters and requires players to (9) _______ the (10) _______ creatures in
real-world locations. Players create avatars, choosing among various hair, eye, and
skin colours as well as types of clothing. They can visit sites known as PokéStops and
Pokémon gyms. Participants can pick up eggs, balls, and potions at PokéStops, which
are also the easiest places to (11) _______ and capture wild Pokémon.
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Pokémon Go was developed by Niantic, a part of Google that was later (12)
_______ into its own company headed by John Hanke. Initially, it was met with (13)
_______ reviews because of some technical problems, but those (14) _______ didn’t
stop the game from becoming a(n) (15) _______ of the app world. The game has been
praised for getting families outdoors together and even (16) _______ crime, with
some players noticing and reporting suspicious activity while (17) _______. On the
other hand, Pokémon Go has also received a(n) (18) _______ of criticism because it
has led to numerous accidents due to players’ (19) _______ while walking, cycling,
and even driving. With that (20) _______, stay safe, be aware of your surroundings,
and happy Pokémon Go playing!
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» Read the article. Choose either TRUE or FALSE for the following
T F
statements.
1. Scientists divide the river into different layers.
2. So even though their prey might be declining, squid are increasing.
3. Some squid, including the strawberry squid, live in very shallow water.
4. As it gets older, the right eye grows into a long tube.
5. The scientists noticed that the left eye always looks upward and the smaller
right eye downward.
6. This layer is too deep for most sunlight to reach, or penetrate.
7. Their name comes from their raspberry-like colour and seed-shaped
markings.
8. Squid swim in the sea and feed on fish and crustaceans.
9. Strawberry squid live in the mesopelagic layer.
10. Its mismatched eyes save the squid energy and resources.
STRAWBERRY SQUID
There are more than 300 squid species. Some are unusual. They include the giant squid, the colossal
squid (it has the world’s biggest eyes), and flying and vampire squid. Another is the strawberry squid.
It is what’s known as a cock-eyed squid. This is because one of its eyes is far larger than the other.
Some squid, including the strawberry squid, live in very deep water. Here, they are hard to study.
This means that not much is known about them. Recently, American researchers have carefully
studied 150 films, or videos, of these marine creatures. They were recorded over the last 30 years.
The researchers now believe that they know the reason for squid’s mismatched eyes.
Like octopuses, squid are cephalopods. Both have eight long arms. Squid have two extra long
tentacles. Unlike octopuses, squid have two fins on the sides of their heads. An octopus is soft. It has
no bones or outer shell. Squid have a stiff structure like a backbone. It’s called a pen. Squid swim in
the sea and feed on fish and crustaceans. Octopuses live on the seafloor. They kill their prey by
piecing it and then injecting poison, or venom.
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Strawberry squid are one of several species described as cock-eyed. All have one eye bigger than the
other. Strawberry squid are found in the North and South Pacific Ocean. Their name comes from their
strawberry-like colour and seed-shaped markings. Scientists are not sure how big strawberry squid
grow. It’s probably about 60 centimetres (24 inches). Giant squid can be 13 metres (43 feet) in length.
The strawberry squid was first recorded about 100 years ago.
Scientists divide the ocean into different layers. Strawberry squid live in the mesopelagic layer. It’s
also called the twilight zone. This layer is too deep for most sunlight to reach, or penetrate. Yet it is
not totally black, or dark, like the layers below. The twilight zone is between 200 and 1,000 metres
(600 and 3,300 feet) beneath the surface. The deeper and darker the ocean is, the harder it is for sea
creatures to survive. Most life forms that live at these depths have evolved in unusualy wyas. The
strawberry squid is one of them.
The strawberry squid’s left eye is the bigger of the two. The scientists noticed tht the left eye always
looks upward and the smaller right eye downward. Many deep-sea creatures produce light from their
own bodies. It’s called bioluminesence. The smaller eye can only see this type of light. The bigger
eye can pick out silhouettes in the light above. Therefore, the squid’s mismatched eyes detect possible
prey both above and below.
The researchers say that it takes a lot of energy to grow and maintain two eyes. The strawberry squid
is born with two similar size eyes. As it gets older, the left eye grows into a long tube. Eventually, it
becomes double the size of the right eye. Its mismatched eyes save the squid energy and resources.
Other deep-sea marine creatures have evolved in similar ways.
In recent years, the numbers of many marine species have been dropping. Over-fishing is one reason.
Climate change may be another. Yet for the last 60 years squid numbers seem to have been going up.
Even though their prey might be declining, squid are increasing. Scientists are uncertain why this is
happening.
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Doctor Stephen Strange is among the most (1. WF) __________ brain surgeons
in the world, who is (2. WF) __________ talented yet (3. WF) __________ and proud
to a fault. After a(n) (4. WF) __________ car accident which almost takes his life, his
hands are destroyed, his career (5. WF) __________ and his world turned (6. WF)
__________ down. Strange then (7. WF) __________ a journey to find a way to heal
his body.
While on his travels, Strange (8. WF) __________ the Ancient One, an
extremely powerful sorcerer. (9. GCloze) __________ he does not believe in magic
forces in the first place, but then the Ancient One opens his eyes (10. GCloze)
__________ magical powers that are beyond (11. GCloze) __________. The doctor
(12.GCloze) __________ his pride to learn magic from the sorcerer and master these
magical skills to (13. GCloze) __________ the world against the forces evil and
destruction.
Benedict Cumberbatch (14. WF) __________ with Oscar winner, Tilda
Swinton, in the latest Hollywood blockbuster in the Marvel (15. GCloze)
__________. Be (16. GCloze) __________ to head to the nearest theatre to catch all
of the magic and mystery in Doctor Strange.
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Questions
1. prestige ___________________________
2. order ___________________________
3. manner ___________________________
4. dread ___________________________
5. rail ___________________________
6. side ___________________________
7. take ___________________________
8. counter ___________________________
9. (A) A man of science (B) As if a scientist
(C) As scientific a man (D) Scientifically
10. (A) for (B) in (C) to (D) with
11. (A) all recognition (B) his ken
(C) his wildest imagination (D) the realms of possibility
12. (A) puts about (B) puts across (C) puts aside (D) puts away
13. (A) defend (B) endorse (C) justify (D) secure
14. star ___________________________
15. (A) constellation (B) cosmos (C) galaxy (D) universe
16. (A) bound (B) due (C) likely (D) set
(compiled by Trinh Thanh Trung)
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Statements T F
1. The city will include a large presidential palace, parliament and
government buildings, supreme court, five star hotel, and a new university
and cathedral.
2. Teodoro Obiang, president of Equatorial Guinea, ordered members of his
government to leave Oyala.
3. At 74 years of age, Mr Obiang is the world’s longest-serving president.
4. The new, not yet completed, city is called Djibloho (also known as Oyala),
it is on the mainland.
5. Mr Obiang has admitted that improved housing is one reason for building
the new city.
6. Equatorial Guinea is the only African country where the official language
is Portuguese.
7. In the 1990s large undersea gas fields were discovered.
8. Equatorial Guinea is one of Africa’s smaller nations, it is a former colony
of Portugal.
9. Equatorial Guinea is now one of Africa’s biggest oil producers.
10. Several years ago the president decided to build a new capital city, a
Spanish company was chosen to design it.
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* Gồm hơn 300 headwords trích từ các đề thi vào lớp 10 chuyên và HSG của
TP.HCM. Derivatives được tổng hợp từ Oxford Advanced Learners' Dictionary
9th.
* Colour prescriptions: các headwords chỉ màu sắc và derivatives, e.g. red,
orange, yellow, green, blue, brown, purple, pink, black, white, grey, colour.
* Sách có thể sử dụng do HS lớp 9 ôn thi vào lớp 10 chuyên (cả TP.HCM, Hà Nội và
các nơi khác); OLP và HSGQG (đầy đủ dạng bài)
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1 test chia làm 3 section độ khó tăng dần và dùng để sàng lọc rất hiệu quả. tất cả
các câu hỏi thầy đều có gợi ý nói và sample để tụi con học hỏi. cheers.
https://bit.ly/31I2sjT [Google Drive link asking for permission – contact Mr. Trịnh Thành Trung]
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4. XTRA DOSE
* Phần này sẽ update gần như mỗi ngày 1 bài, mỗi tháng sẽ từ 20-31 bài, vẫn là
nghe và chép keywords các bản tin CNN. Đây sẽ là phần luyện nghe thêm mỗi
ngày.
* Tùy theo nhu cầu của em khi order tạp chí, thầy có thể bổ sung các bài nghe
theo exam format, hoặc các bài tập củng cố vocabulary, v.v...
Tóm lại, trình tự các bước nghe chính tả sẽ là: nghe-chép keywords, trả lời câu hỏi
(nếu có), extension (tùy chọn).
Tất cả các bài nghe đều có transcript và key - em sẽ thấy ở phần comments bên
dưới, tuy nhiên, em phải để lại comment thì mới có thể xem được (khuyến khích
là bài làm của các em, đừng nên chỉ trả lời Thanks/Thank you). Đừng quên trao
đổi, thảo luận cùng các bạn khác nhé. Thông tin order tạp chí sang tuần sẽ có.
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* ADVANCED DOSE
Nghe nâng cao các bản tin, phóng sự, tài liệu CNN, BBC, AP:
25. Robin Li Explains the Importance of AI
26. Prescription Addiction: Made in the USA
27. David Bowie Speaks to Jeremy Paxman on BBC Newsnight
28. Emmanuel Macron Interview on AP
29. The 100-Year Life - Interviewing the Author, Lynda Gratton
30. BBC Documentary - Horizon - Most of Our Universe Is Missing
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* Truy cập online hoàn toàn trên blogchuyenanh.org theo dạng subscription -
nghĩa là sau 1 năm nếu em còn muốn sử dụng và duy trì tài khoản thì vẫn phải
thanh toán để renew. Việc đưa tài liệu lên website sẽ đem lại nhiều lợi ích hơn so
với sách paperback, cũng tiện lợi, tiết kiệm thời gian, công sức, nguồn lực cho
thầy hơn rất nhiều khi update tài liệu, không bị giới hạn như sách giấy paperback.
* Mỗi ngày sẽ chỉ update một số nội dung nhất định cho đến ngày thi OLP30/4.
Điều này thầy đã cân nhắc kĩ sau khi nhận được góp ý từ việc dạy và học
Cornucopia, nhiều bạn vì một lúc phải học quá nhiều từ vựng nên bị quá tải. Học
mỗi ngày một ít sẽ tốt hơn là nhồi nhét cùng lúc quá nhiều thứ vào đầu. Hơn nữa
mỗi ngày thầy đều sẽ có thể update thêm những ý tưởng và bài tập mới cần thiết
và theo nhu cầu của các em.
* Derivatives và bài tập chọn lọc hơn thay vì quăng một "nùi" khiến ai nhìn thấy
cũng hoảng sợ. Và cũng đừng ai hỏi sự khác nhau giữa mấy cuốn WF nữa nha vì
nếu giống nhau hết thì publish làm gì?! Nói lại lần nữa là keywords trong các
cuốn Word Formation 99% là khác nhau - thầy sẽ chọn lựa keywords khác nhau
cho từng cuốn và nếu có trùng thì là revise và bổ sung, chứ ko cắt ghép lại chi cho
trùng.
Cơ bản là vậy, em hãy cập nhật thông tin vì mỗi series sẽ có các chương trình
promo, lưu ý khác nhau thầy sẽ update dần dần nhé đừng có hối thúc hay pm hỏi
khi chưa đọc kĩ, một mình thầy ko làm xuể.
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2. LISTENING: Watch Marcel Dicke’s talk on insects without subtitles. Put the
ideas below in the order that Dicke mentions them.
1. A food crisis
2. Certain similarities between what we eat and insects
3. Getting protein from livestock and its risks
4. Insects are already used for food in the West.
5. Insects are sometimes eaten by accident.
6. Insects' worth to the economy
7. The benefits of insects as food
8. The benefits of insects to agriculture
9. The changes that we need to make
10. The efficiency of farming insects compared to farming livestock
11. The number of people who eat insects
12. What are insects?
Official Key: 11-12-6-8-5-4-1-3-10-7-2-9
3. LANGUAGE: Watch/Listen to the talk again and complete the facts about
the future of meat consumption, using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS
and/or A NUMBER from the talk for each blank.
* The (1) ______________________________ is growing very rapidly. While
there are somewhere (2) ______________________________ six and seven
billion people at the moment, that number will grow to about nine billion in (3)
______________________________.
* We have a lot more (4) ______________________________, but we need a(n)
(5) ______________________________ of 70 per cent. This is because we are
also getting (6) ______________________________, so more people are able to
purchase meat.
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Jurassic World phần 2 đã có rồi, hôm nay có ai đi xem ko? Như khảo sát hôm qua
thì nhiều bạn vote bài Listening hơn, nên hôm nay thầy share free 1 bài
worksheet để làm nhanh rồi đi coi phim nè, nội dung có liên quan đến Jurassic
World phần 1 hah.
Nhân tiện, thầy định sẽ đổi tên tạp chí thành ♥ English để thân thiện và đỡ
serious hơn tên cũ English Therapy. Layout sẽ giống như đọc báo vậy, với nội
dung sẽ là transcript các bản tin CNN, Reuters, TED Talk...
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Không biết có ai đã sưu tập đủ bộ sách của thầy Trung rồi? ^^ từ giờ đến cuối năm, thầy sẽ cố gắng:
- Cập nhật Advanced Reading và Proficiency Reading - mỗi cuốn sẽ update thêm test mới và những bạn đã mua
rồi thì sẽ dc update miễn phí, ko phải mua lại
- Extensive Reading Collection 2 - vẫn trên tinh thầy cũ, là các bài đọc mở rộng từ The Guardian, The
Economist, New Scientist...
- Advanced Speaking Collection 2 - dùng ôn HSGQG, có thêm bài tập Picture Discussion dùng luyện thi FCE,
CAE, CPE
Còn cái Vocab & Paraphrasing for Proficiency và Heart English thì vẫn flop dần đều... nên sẽ cân nhắc thêm :(((
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Having been teaching English for more than 7 years, I'd recommend students
and teachers use both learner's dictionaries (OALD, CALD) and the OD, though
the former should be more suitable for ESL/EFL speakers than native speakers.
Because new words should be added to the OD before they are considered for
inclusion in learner's dictionaries, it's necessary for ESL/EFL teachers to keep up
with emerging and changing patterns of language use.
In a recent post, I wrote about how the series should be used in learning and
teaching.
A few years ago, I got the inspiration to write the Cornucopia Word Formation
series from my friends, who are native language teachers. We had an idea about
a book of word lists, like a thesaurus dictionary, but with derivatives and
compounds. The intention is to help learners and teachers to be aware of the
'endless' possibility of forming new words, and to create a reference resource for
local advanced tests.
Native speakers naturally have a language bank stored in their brain; they only
need a tool to help them access it, to remind them of the precise words they
already know but can't bring to mind. They can also easily choose from a
'cornucopia' of words and convey the precise meaning in a very subtle way.
That's why they simply need as large a pool of word families as possible.
The Cornucopia Word Formation Collection 1, for example, gives more than 40
derivatives and compounds for 'conceive' and that's all: no definitions, examples
and usage notes. When my friends read the entry, they were surprised because
some words like 'preconception' or 'ill-conceived' aren't easy to recall, and a
book like that can help them keep a record, not only for testing purpose but also
for their self-development.
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In an English test some students recently sent to me, they're tested on forming
the word 'inconceivable' from the stem 'conceive'. It should be easy for students
to understand its meaning in a context, but not at all when they want use it
appropriately in speaking or writing. The tone may not be suitable for an exam
essay, and in my opinion, less productive Latin affixes like in- and -able tend to
slip out of use these days. New words and phrases are often created with other
aspects of word formation like compounding, using more productive combining
forms, rather than with Latin and Greek affixation.
What I mean after all is that the books should allow learners and teachers access
to adequate vocabularies so that you can recognise and understand them in a
wider range of context. But you need not only range but also depth. What's
important is how you use them to make them a natural part of your language,
rather than how much you know. For example, native speakers would be less
likely to say "The new idea is inconceivable" than "The new idea needs more
proof of concept (to show that it will work)." Therefore, it's necessary to know and
understand the word 'inconceivable' in a context, but more important whether
you can use the phrase 'proof of concept' precisely and accurately, even though
they're both derivatives of 'conceive' and need to be learnt.
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