Smoking ban lights up love life

The days when smoking was cool are supposed to be long gone and smokers are supposed to be out of fashion. That's the theory. In fact, in Ireland, where a complete ban on smoking in bars, pubs and restaurants has been in place for over a year, having a quick drag has replaced speed dating as the best way to spice up your love life.

The cosy courtyard of the Temple Bar pub in Dublin looks like any other outdoor venue on a sunny evening. People stand around drinking, gossiping and moaning about work. But look closer and you'll find a different situation. Everyone is smoking and, in between drags, they are practising their best, light-hearted chat-up lines as well.

Welcome to the practice of smirting (smoking and flirting), a craze which has swept Ireland. Since the introduction of the ban in 2004, pubs and bars opened outside areas for smokers to gather and with them came a more relaxed attitude to meeting people. Now people find themselves striking up conversations over a quick fag.

On one level, it is unsurprising that those hanging out in smoking areas seem to be having more fun. Smoking is an intrinsically social habit. You meet a wider mix of people and the opportunities to start a conversation are many and easy. Nor is it simply hardened smokers who hang out outside, there are also people who weren't really smokers at all but they'd go outside for a cigarette.

This increase in social smoking is one of the more worrying aspects of smirting. Anti-smoking campaigners believed that the ban would improve health and stop people smoking. But many young Dubliners admit that they have increased their consumption of cigarettes because of the social benefits.

Question 1 Decide whether the following statements are true or false. Give evidence from the text.

a) Smirting is very popular in Ireland.
b) Nowadays, people who smoke have more chances to chat with new people.
c) Only regular smokers are found in these open spaces.
d) Young Irish smoke more now than they used to do.

Question 2 Answer the following questions in your own words.

a) Why is it said that smoking is a social habit?
b) What is the most negative aspect of smirting?

Question 3 Find words in the text that are synonyms of the words below.

a) prohibition (par.1)
b) complain (par.2)
c) start (par.3)

Question 4 Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning.

a) Anti-smoking campaigners supposed that the ban would improve people’s health.
The ban…
b) Since the introduction of the ban in 2004, pubs and bars have opened outside areas for smokers.
If the ban…
c) People stand around drinking, gossiping and moaning about work. However, look closer and the situation is different.
Although…

Question 5. Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:
What do you think of the smoking ban introduced in Spain?

2011 to Be Best Year Ever

Futurologists and experts who study New Year’s resolutions predict 2011 will be the best year ever for many people. This is welcome news for the billions around the world who hope this year will be better than last year. 2011 will see more people lifted out of poverty and there will be a greater number of people with access to computers. One expert looked forward to new developments that will help the environment. California will open the world's largest solar power plant and several electric cars will go on sale, including the much-awaited Tesla. It’s going to be a great year if you study English. There will be more cool websites and applications for students to brush up on spelling, vocabulary and grammar.

It seems more of us will keep our New Year’s resolutions this year. According to a New Year’s Day poll, the top resolution is to spend more quality time with family and friends. This means talking to them rather than being on the phone or texting messages in front of them. The second most popular thing we will resolve to do is get fitter. Experts say many of us could keep this promise well into February before giving up. We usually forget about this resolution in mid-January. Other top plans include quitting smoking, getting out of debt and helping others. Of course, studying English more featured high on many people’s lists. Make 2011 your best ever year and stick to your resolutions.

Question 1. Indicate whether these sentences are true or false. Justify your answers with evidence from the text.

a) More poor people will no longer be poor.
b) A new solar-powered car called Tesla will go on sale.
c) The most common New Year’s resolution is to save money.
d) Experts believe many people will keep resolutions about getting fit until May.

Question 2. Answer the following questions in your own words.

a) What are the predictions for the environment?
b) What do experts predict for people´s health?

Question 3. Find a word or a phrase in the text that means the same as
a) improve (par.1) b) survey(par. 2) c) keep (par. 2)

Question 4. Rewrite the following sentences without changing the meaning
a) “Billions of people hope this year will be better than last year. “
They said that …………………………………………….
b) They will open a new solar power plant and launch good English learning websites.
A new solar ……………………………………………….
c) People will find it easier to study English since there will be good websites.
If there were ………………………………………………

Question 5. Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:
What will you do to make next year the best year ever?


Some useful vocabulary for your New Years’ Resolutions
Verbs and expressionsmake a resolution/ to resolve to do something
make a decision/to decide to do something
to make a promise/to promise to do something
to look forward to doing something
give up/stop
keep up/stick to a resolution
to keep your promise

Adjectivesrealistic unrealistic
ambitious not ambitious enough
achievable unachievable

Nounsgoal, ambition, intention


Blog with a video on how to make and keep resolutions
http://esolcourses.blogspot.com/2011/01/english-vocabulary-new-years.html

Smoking ban lights up love life

KEY

Question 1

a) TRUE “Welcome to the practice of smirting (smoking and flirting), a craze which has swept Ireland.”
b) TRUE “the opportunities to start a conversation are many and easy.”
c) FALSE “Nor is it simply hardened smokers who hang out outside, there are also people who weren't really smokers at all but they'd go outside for a cigarette.
d) TRUE “many young Dubliners admit that they have increased their consumption of cigarettes because of the social benefits.”

Question 2

a) Smoking is said to be a social habit as you have more chances to get to know new people and what’s more, starting conversations is much easier.
b) The most negative aspect of smirting is that the number of social smokers has gone up in spite of the ban on smoking inside public places.

Question 3

a) ban
b) moaning / to moan
c) striking up / to strike up

Question 4

a) The ban was supposed to improve people’s health, according to anti-smoking campaigners.
b) If the ban hadn’t been introduced, pubs and bars wouldn’t have opened areas for smokers.
c) Although people stand around drinking, gossiping and moaning about work, look closer and the situation is different.

2011 to be the Best Year

KEY

Question 1

a) True.” 2011 will see more people lifted out of poverty.“
b) True.“ several electric cars will go on sale, including the much-awaited Tesla.”
c) False.” the top resolution is to spend more quality time with family and friends.“
d) False. “ The second most popular thing we will resolve to do is get fitter. Experts say many of us could keep this promise well into February before giving up.“

Question 2

a) They will open a big solar power plant and people will be able to buy electricity powered cars.
b) Many people have decided to keep in shape and smokers have relolved to give up smoking.

Question 3

a) to brush up on
b) poll
c) quitting /to quit

Question 4

a) They said that billions of people hoped the year would be better than the year before.
b) A new solar power plant will be opened and good English learning websites will be launched.
c) If there were not good websites, people wouldn’t find it easier/ so easy to study English.

Acronyms

Name the Acronym


Fill in the blank with the correct acronym from the box.


BBL / CUL8R / TTFN / PMJI

FYI / LOL / FAQ / GTG

IDK / BTW / ASAP / SETE


1. laugh out loud _______________________

2. smiling ear to ear ________________________

3. got to go ____________________________

4. by the way ___________________________

5. I don´t know _________________________

6. Ta Ta for now ________________________

7. pardon my jumping in __________________

8. see you later _________________________

9. be back later _________________________

10. as soon as possible ___________________

11. frequently asked questions _____________

12. for your information __________________


Key to” Name the Acronym”


1. LOL
2. SETE
3. GTG
4. BTW
5. IDK
6. TTFN
7. PMJI
8. CUL8R
9. BBL
10. ASAP
11. FAQ
12. FYI

Lady Gaga most ‘liked’ on Facebook

Social network Facebook has revealed who its most popular people were in 2010, and said that over the past year the 500 million people who use it uploaded more than 2.7 million photographs, shared 1 million links and 'Liked' 7.6 million pages in one ramdomly chosen 20 minute period.

More than 61 million people also indicated in 2010 that they were in new relationships, married or engaged: 28.4 million people changed their statuses to 'in a relationship', 36.7 million people changed their status to 'married' and 6 million people declared themselves to be 'engaged'.

Lady Gaga was the most ‘liked’, closing 2010 with 24.7 million indications of approval from her Facebook fans. She also has more than 7 million followers on Twitter. Over the summer, Lady Gaga became the first living person to reach 10 million. US rapper Eminem’s 23.7 million ‘Likes' beat Barack Obama’s 17.2 million.

The identity of the most liked celebrity on Facebook will have come as little surprise to people who have followed Lady Gaga's meteoric rise to superstardom, as she has arguably harnessed the power of social networking sites as a promotional tool more effectively than any other star.

At the beginning of December, several stars including Lady Gaga stopped updating their Facebook page or using Twitter until $1m had been raised for US charity Keep a Child Alive. The charity works in Africa and India to provide treatment and support to families of people with HIV and Aids. The campaign, called Digital Life Sacrifice, was launched on 1st December to mark World Aids Day. Lady Gaga added a photo of herself in a coffin to her Facebook page, writing: 'No more updates little monsters until we buy life.'

Question 1 (2 points)

Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.
a) Over 2.7 million photos were posted on Facebook during the course of last year.
b) More people follow Lady Gaga on Twitter than on Facebook.
c) Lady Gaga’s Facebook popularity is unexpected.
d) Keep a Child Alive is an American organisation.

Question 2 (2 points)Answer the following questions in your own words.
a) How did 61 milllion people’s relationships change in 2010?
b) What happened in ‘Digital Life Sacrifice’?

Question 3 (1.5 points)Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions given.
a) make public (Paragraph 1)
b) take control of (Paragraph 4)
c) commemorate (Paragraph 5)

Question 4 (1.5 points)
Complete the following sentences without changing the meaning.
a) 500 million people who use Facebook uploaded more than 2.7 million photographs. More than 2.7 million photographs .………………….………………………….
b) Lady Gaga said “I will not update my Facebook page until $1m has been raised.
Lady Gaga said that …...…………………………………………………...………………
c) Everyone thought that the campaign would raise $1m immediately but in fact it took nearly a week.
Although .......................................................................................................

Question 5 (3 points)Write a short essay (about 120-150 words) on the following topic:
‘Nowadays people are in danger of becoming isolated individuals’. Do you agree?

Famous People and websites

The following people are all famous (and usually rich!) because they started different websites.


a) Pierre Omidyar
b) Jimmy Wales
c) Mark Zuckerberg
d) Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, Jawed Karim
e) Larry Page, Sergey Brin
f) Zaryn Dentzel
g) Biz Stone, Evan Williams
h) David Filo and Jerry Yang
i) Chris DeWolfe, Tom Anderson


1 Match the website to the people who founded them:

1 Facebook
2 Google
3 You Tube
4 Twitter
5 Tuenti
6 Myspace
7 Wikipedia
8 Ebay
9 Yahoo

2 Which year was each site started in?

1994
1995
1998
2001
2003
2004
2004
2005
2006


3 Which of the above websites are:

a) social networking sites: ……………………………. , ……………………………. , ……………………………. , …………………………….
b) auction and shopping site …………………………….
c) collaborative reference site …………………………….
d) search engines and email account providers ……………………………. , …………………………….
e) video-sharing website …………………………….


Key
1 and 2

a) Pierre Omidyar ebay 1995
b) Jimmy Wales Wikipedia 2001
c) Mark Zuckerberg Facebook 2004
d) Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, Jawed Karim Youtube 2005
e) Larry Page, Sergey Brin Google 1998
f) Zaryn Dentzel Tuenti 2004
g) Biz Stone, Evan Williams Twitter 2006
h) David Filo and Jerry Yang Yahoo 1994
i) Chris DeWolfe, Tom Anderson Myspace 2003

3
a) social networking sites: Facebook, Tuenti, Twitter, Myspace
b) auction and shopping site ebay
c) collaborative reference site wikipedia
d) search engines and email account providers google, yahoo
e) video-sharing website youtube

What do the following people and companies have in common?

Michael Jackson
Barack Obama
Lady Gaga
Starbucks
Dr House
Coca Cola
Cristiano Ronaldo
YouTube

(Answer: They are all in the top 30 Facebook Fan pages.)

http://www.famecount.com/
This website gives a nice graphic portrayal of the most pop. Films, companies, etc.

This is the Spanish ranking
http://www.famecount.com/facebook-rank/Spain

Appeal for the Digital Death campaign
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWd22s

China Protects its Language from English

Chinese authorities have taken steps to protect its language from the increasing use of English and other languages. The People’s Daily Online website says, “with economic and social development, foreign languages are increasingly being used in all types of publications in China, including in newspapers, books, e-books and on the Internet”. China’s General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) said the invasion of English words and abbreviations in Chinese texts is “abusing the language”. Its website stated English has, "severely damaged the standard and purity of the Chinese language and disrupted the harmonious and healthy language and cultural environment, causing negative social impacts".

Officials from GAPP issued clear guidelines on how all Chinese publishers must now act, saying: “It is banned to mix at will foreign language phrases such as English words or abbreviations with Chinese publications, creating words of vague meaning that are not exactly Chinese.” This means abbreviations and acronyms that are currently widely used in Chinese publications, such as WTO, GDP and even IBM, must now be replaced with their Chinese equivalents. One editor at a Beijing publishing house said the translations would be time-consuming and confusing. He said: “I wonder how many people understand 'guoji shangye jiqi gongsi,’ when IBM is instantly recognizable.”

Question 1 (2 points)Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

a.The department is only concerned about the purity of the Chinese language
b.It’s not OK to use English in a word combination with a Chinese word.
c.There are rules for publishers on alternatives to foreign languages.
d.All Chinese editors of publishers think the new rules are sensible.

Question 2 (2 points)Answer the following questions in your own words.

a. What has caused the “invasion“ of English in the Chinese language and what are its effects?
b. What will publishers have to do now?

Question 3 (1.5 points)Find words or phrases in the text that correspond in meaning to the words and definitions given.

a. upset (par1)
b. as one pleases (par2)
c. unclear (par2)

Question 4 (1.5 points)Complete the following sentences without changing the meaning.

a. Foreign languages are increasingly being used in newspapers
They .....................................
b. One editor at a Beijing publishing house said the translations would be time-consuming and confusing.
One editor said “...........................................
c. The department has taken action because English is abusing thir language.
If .................................

Question 5(3 points) Write a short essay (120-150 words) on the following topic:
How much has English got into your language?

Lady Gaga most ‘liked’ on Facebook

Key
Question 1
a) False. the 500 million people who use it uploaded more than 2.7 million photographs ... in one ramdomly chosen 20 minute period.
b) False. Lady Gaga was the most ‘liked’, closing 2010 with 24.7 million indications of approval from her Facebook fans. She also has more than 7 million followers on Twitter.
c) False. The identity of the most liked celebrity on Facebook will have come as little surprise …….., as she has arguably harnessed the power of social networking sites as a promotional tool more effectively than any other star.
d) True. ... US charity Keep a Child Alive.
Question 2
a) Of the total 61 million people who changed their Facebook status indicator, 28.4 million declared that they had a partner, 36.7 people got married and 6 million people said that they were engaged to be married.
b) In Digital Life Sacrifice, various famous people did not communicate with their fans via Facebook or Twitter from December 1st on. They said they would not reconnect digitally until people had donated $1m to the charity Keep a Child Alive.
Question 3
a) reveal
b) harness
c) mark
Question 4
a) More than 2.7 million photographs were uploaded by 500 million people who use Facebook.
b) Lady Gaga said that she would not update her Facebook page until $1m had been raised.
c) Although everyone thought that the campaign would raise $1m immediately, in fact it took nearly a week.

China Protects its Language from English

KEY
Question1
a. False. “Its website stated English has, "severely damaged the standard and purity of the Chinese language and disrupted the harmonious and healthy language and cultural environment, causing negative social impacts".
b. True. “It is banned to mix at will foreign language phrases such as English words or abbreviations with Chinese publications”
c. True.” Officials from GAPP issued clear guidelines on how all Chinese publishers must now act.“
d. False.“ One editor at a Beijing publishing house said the translations would be time-consuming and confusing.“

Question2
a. English is invading Chinese publications because China is growing economically and socially. This increasing use of English words is not only affecting the essence of the Chinese language but is having a bad effect on society.
b. Publishers will have to avoid the use of any foreign words or phrases in combination with Chinese.

Question3
a. disrupted b. at will c. Vague

Question4
a. They are increasingly using foreign languages in newspapers.
b. One editor said “Translations will be time-consuming and confusing.“
c. If English were not abusing their language, the department wouldn´t have taken action.