Why You Should Surround Yourself
with Books
A full bookcase, or kindle, says good things about
your mind. Lifelong learning will help you be happier, earn more, and even stay
healthier, experts say. Plus, plenty of some of the smartest names in business,
from Bill Gates to Elon Musk, insist that the best way to get smarter is to
read. So what should you do? You should go out and buy books, lots of them. And
according to bestselling author Nassim Taleb, it isn’t even that important
whether you have read all the books you own or not.
Taleb begins his thesis with an anecdote about the
legendary library of Italian writer Umberto Eco, which contained an amazing
30,000 volumes. Did Eco actually read all those books? Of course not, but that
wasn't the point of surrounding himself with so much potential knowledge. By
providing a constant reminder of all the things he didn't know, Eco's library
kept him intellectually hungry and perpetually curious. An ever growing
collection of books you haven't yet read can do the same for you, the author
argues.
A private library is not just something to boost
your ego but a research tool. Books you have already read are actually far less
valuable than unread ones. The library should contain as much of what you do
not know as your personal circumstances allow you to put there. You will
accumulate more knowledge and more books as you grow older, and the growing
number of unread books on the shelves will look at you menacingly. Probably,
the more you know, the more books you’ll buy, and so the larger the number of
unread books you have. Taleb calls this collection of unread books an “antilibrary.”
An antilibrary is a powerful reminder of your
limitations - the vast quantity of things you don't know, think you know, or
are probably wrong about. By living with that reminder daily you can nudge
yourself towards the kind of intellectual humility that improves
decision-making and drives learning. Why? Perhaps because it is a well known
psychological fact that is the most incompetent who are the most confident of
their abilities and the most intelligent who are full of doubt. It's equally
well established that the more readily you admit you don't know things, the
faster you learn. So, just relax. All those books you haven't read are your
greatest opportunity to grow.
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) Experts suggest that continuing
to learn can help you have a higher salary.
b) Umberto Eco felt quite bored by
his library.
c) The books you haven`t read yet
are said to be worth more than the ones you have.
d) It’s common knowledge that
learning is quicker if you recognise what you don’t know.
Question 2: [2 POINTS] Answer
the following questions in your own words according to the text.
b) Define the idea of an “antilibrary” in your own words and say why Taleb
says it is such a good thing.
Question 3: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and
definitions given.
a) famous
(paragraph 2)
b) in reality (paragraph 3)
c) to permit (paragraph 3)
d) huge (paragraph 4)
e) chance (paragraph 4)
Question
4: [1,5 ] Choose the correct option, a,
b, c or d for each question and COPY the sentence onto your POINTSanswer sheet.
1. According to Taleb…
a) owning books is never more
important than reading them.
b) owning the books that you read is
essential.
c) reading the books that you own is
not essential.
d) buying books that you do not read
is not intelligent.
2. Taleb suggests that…
a) the number of unread books a
person has will probably increase with age.
b) the number of unread books a
person has will probably decrease with age.
c) the number of unread books a
person has will definitely decrease with age.
d) the number of unread books a
person has will not definitely decrease with age.
3. If people admit their limitations,…
a) they won’t be more motivated to
learn, according to Taleb.
b) they would be more motivated to
learn, according to Taleb.
c) they would have been more
motivated to learn, according to Taleb.
d) they will be more motivated to
learn, according to Taleb.
Question 5: [3 POINTS] Write a short essay (about 120-150
words) on the following topic:
– Do you
prefer books or the internet for studying and entertainment? Justify your
opinion.
The Big Dispute over Manchego Cheese
Two different cheeses which share the same name are
at the heart of an international dispute. One is a traditional sheep’s milk
cheese, as typically Spanish as cured Serrano ham and Don Quixote. The other is
a mild cow’s milk cheese, enriched with vegetable oil, sold cheaply in Mexican
markets and stuffed into quesadillas. Both cheeses are called Manchego, but
they have very little in common. That is how they have come to be at the centre
of a dispute that is putting a major trade deal between Mexico and the European
Union at risk.
Machego makers in Spain say their product has a
denomination of origin and want Mexican cheeses to stop carrying the same name.
Ismael Álvarez de Toledo, president of the Spanish Association of Manchego
Cheeses insists that there is only one product worthy of the name – and it is
made from the milk of sheep in the region of La Mancha. He explained, “Mexican
manchego is an insipid cow’s milk cheese that sometimes doesn’t even look like
cheese because it often comes in slices for making sandwiches.” He insisted
they have no right to use the name.
The trade deal threatened by this disagreement was
signed in 2000. Mexico has recently wanted to revise the deal’s conditions as
they need to diversify their business away from the USA, and it was hoped that
a new treaty could be reached by Christmas. This has not been possible,
however, because of the Manchego cheese problem. Furthermore, the EU takes
geographical indications of its member states very seriously. Ten years ago,
Spain successfully blocked a Belgian cheese maker who was selling an imitation “Manchego.”
It was decided that Manchego was a brand name that belonged only to cheeses
from the region.
Mexico is fiercely protective of many of its own
denominations of origin, such as Tequila, but their cheese industry does not
seem particularly concerned about this issue. “Mexico is more like the US in
that we focus more on brands,” said René Fonseca, general secretary of the
National Milk Industry.” We’re not interested in protecting generic names.”
Fonseca even argues that it was in fact Europeans who first introduced the name
Manchego to Mexico and so it is not the Mexicans´ fault. Álvarez, however,
insisted that the confusion has led to real economic losses for Spanish producers,
especially in the American market.
The
Guardian, 15th January 2018 (Adapted)
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 trade
agreement between Mexico and the EU is only a couple of years old.
b)
The EU thinks that what its member countries want
is important.
c) Mexico
doesn’t care about protecting the names of any of its products.
d)
The dispute is said to have caused financial
implications for Spain’s cheese industry.
Question 2: [2 POINTS] Answer the following questions in your
own words according to the text.
a)
Describe the difference of
opinion related to cheese between Spain and Mexico in your own words?
b) Why is
this an international dispute?
Question 3: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words and
definitions given.
a) disagreement,
argument (paragraph 1)
b) economically, inexpensively
(paragraph 1)
c) tasteless (paragraph 2)
d) to agree, to achieve (paragraph
3)
e) for example (paragraph 4)
Question
4: [1,5 POINTS] Choose the correct option, a,
b, c or d for each question and COPY the sentence onto your answer sheet.
1. Mexico is trying to…
a) conduct trade only with the EU.
b) improve their trade agreement
with the EU.
c) do more trade with the EU than
the USA.
d) protect their trade in the USA.
2. The text says that Spain…
a) has already allowed another European country to produce a version of
Manchego cheese.
b) is in favour of
allowing other European countries to produce versions of Manchego cheese.
c) has already prevented another
European country from producing a version of Manchego
cheese.
d) is going to prevent another
European country from producing version of Manchego cheese.
3. According to Fonseca,…
a) the Mexican government is the
original cause of the problem.
b) the cheese industry is the
original cause of the problem.
c) people from Europe are the
original cause of the problem.
d) no one is really to blame for
this problem.
Question 5: [3 POINTS] Write a short essay (about 120-150
words) on the following topic:
– Do you
think that typical home cooking is better or worse than fast food? Justify your
opinion.
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