Many people daydream about traveling the world, but all of them have the same excuse - lack of money. Tomislav, after traveling the world for years with almost no money, shows how it is possible for everyone to do the same, if they really want to.
Tomislav Perko, 29, is a travel writer from Croatia. After a career of a stockbroker, broke because of the financial crisis, he hits the road and turns it into his home. He uses alternative ways of traveling – hitchhiking, couchsurfing, working/volunteering, and manages to wander around the world with just a little bit of money in his pocket, meeting the most amazing people on the way.
Five years later, he publishes a book 1000 Days of Spring and goes around giving lectures about what it means to live on the road. Find out more on his website: https://tomislavperko.com/en/.
You can read the English subtitles for the talk by activating them on the CC icon on the player.
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Advanced. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Advanced. Mostrar todas las entradas
domingo, 18 de junio de 2017
viernes, 16 de junio de 2017
Dangerous overcrowding in London homes
An enforcement team targeting overcrowding, discovered twenty-six bunk beds in a four-bedroom house in Wembley. Those living there were mostly migrants. They say that despite the appalling conditions, it's the only way they can afford to live in the capital.
It’s a four-bedroom house, and a team of enforcement officers have arrived at dawn to look inside. What they find is shocking. There are 26 beds.
How many people live in this room, sir? 1, 2, 3 bunk beds, six sleeping spaces…
Another four more in this tiny room.
You pay £55…
65.
£65 per week each.
It was time for the enforcement team to do some maths. What might the landlord earn from this one property in Wembley?
We think there are up to 26 people living in this property, paying somewhere between £60 and £65 a week so we’re looking at an income on this property of around £1,500 a week, which is around £80,000 a year income.
But there was even more to come. Outside, inspectors found a shack, and inside, two more beds and a woman living here, who wasn’t happy with the conditions.
So you can’t stand the mice and the rats scurrying around midnight.
Dreadful, isn’t it, to think that somebody can be exploited to living in what isn’t even a shed, it’s a lean-to.
So how many people might be living in conditions like this across London? Well, Brent Council has a ready prosecuted 30 landlord in a year, and taking in other councils there have been at least 300 raids in 12 months. This house in Kingsbury has now been boarded up. Inside, inspectors found 17 beds. The men living here, thought to be Romanian, have now moved on. In Harrow, there's another four-bedroomed house, not quite so crowded. Until recently 13 people, mainly from Hungary, had been living here, but they are not happy. One of the tenants has armed himself with a baseball bat.
Because I’m gonna protect ourselves.
The tenants here claim their landlord gave them just two weeks’ notice to get out and when they objected, two strange men turned up outside the property.
Walking up and down, punching in the air.
Just jumping around, preparing to the fight.
Harrow Council has now warned the landlord to respect tenants rights. He’s declined to comment, saying it’s going to court. The tenants say they have no choice but to live in conditions like these.
I think because this is the cheapest where you can find a room.
And back at that Wembley house with 26 beds, Bagarald told us he lives here because his job as a carer for the elderly pays so little.
I’m paid twenty pounds per day.
Meish works as a casual builder and downs sixty to eighty pounds a day but says even living here his life is better than back home in India.
This country is money. Our conditions is money.
The landlord here now faces prosecution, but without alternative very cheap accommodation, many thousands of low-paid workers may continue to live in similar conditions.
Gareth Furby, BBC London News.
It’s a four-bedroom house, and a team of enforcement officers have arrived at dawn to look inside. What they find is shocking. There are 26 beds.
How many people live in this room, sir? 1, 2, 3 bunk beds, six sleeping spaces…
Another four more in this tiny room.
You pay £55…
65.
£65 per week each.
It was time for the enforcement team to do some maths. What might the landlord earn from this one property in Wembley?
We think there are up to 26 people living in this property, paying somewhere between £60 and £65 a week so we’re looking at an income on this property of around £1,500 a week, which is around £80,000 a year income.
But there was even more to come. Outside, inspectors found a shack, and inside, two more beds and a woman living here, who wasn’t happy with the conditions.
So you can’t stand the mice and the rats scurrying around midnight.
Dreadful, isn’t it, to think that somebody can be exploited to living in what isn’t even a shed, it’s a lean-to.
So how many people might be living in conditions like this across London? Well, Brent Council has a ready prosecuted 30 landlord in a year, and taking in other councils there have been at least 300 raids in 12 months. This house in Kingsbury has now been boarded up. Inside, inspectors found 17 beds. The men living here, thought to be Romanian, have now moved on. In Harrow, there's another four-bedroomed house, not quite so crowded. Until recently 13 people, mainly from Hungary, had been living here, but they are not happy. One of the tenants has armed himself with a baseball bat.
Because I’m gonna protect ourselves.
The tenants here claim their landlord gave them just two weeks’ notice to get out and when they objected, two strange men turned up outside the property.
Walking up and down, punching in the air.
Just jumping around, preparing to the fight.
Harrow Council has now warned the landlord to respect tenants rights. He’s declined to comment, saying it’s going to court. The tenants say they have no choice but to live in conditions like these.
I think because this is the cheapest where you can find a room.
And back at that Wembley house with 26 beds, Bagarald told us he lives here because his job as a carer for the elderly pays so little.
I’m paid twenty pounds per day.
Meish works as a casual builder and downs sixty to eighty pounds a day but says even living here his life is better than back home in India.
This country is money. Our conditions is money.
The landlord here now faces prosecution, but without alternative very cheap accommodation, many thousands of low-paid workers may continue to live in similar conditions.
Gareth Furby, BBC London News.
jueves, 15 de junio de 2017
Shakespearean theatre uncovered in London
Under an old warehouse in Shoreditch, secrets of London's 16th Century Theatreland are being painstakingly uncovered. Thousands of artefacts have been uncovered giving us more clues about Elizabethan life.
Three meters under what was an old warehouse in Curtain Road Shoreditch, secrets of London’s 16th century theatre land are painstakingly uncovered.
It’s a hugely exciting project to be part of, and it’s not just that here we are with all that chance to look at one of this really rare buildings which is connected to people such as William Shakespeare, but it’s also what’s gonna happen to the archaeology at the end.
The Curtain Playhouse was one of London’s first theatres. Historians believe this was the first place where Shakespeare performed some of his plays. The rectangular shape of the stage and the mysterious underground tunnel are puzzling archaeologists.
You realise the size and shape of the stage, but these were doorways that would allow access under the stage so, again, you know, how were actors using that space, how does that influence what you can form on the stage itself. It’s asking a whole range of questions that can really kind of change our understanding of the evolution of early English drama.
We’ve got this lovely drinking jug…
Thousands of Elizabethan artefacts have also been found, including the cones everyone carried for tackling headlights.
These are tops from ceramic pots that would’ve been used to collect theatre-goers takings. They were sealed to prevent theft, and taken to a special office to break them open and transfer the money to a strongbox, hence the term box office, still in use today.
16th century audiences were apparently a rowdy bunch.
There would’ve been thousands coming to these places. We know about pawnshops, in fact there was a famous pawnshop at the door of The Curtain in 1613, we know people were eating and drinking, we know that people would throw rotten apples or whatever at the actors if they didn’t like it.
The Curtain Theatre and artefacts will be on show to the public when an office and housing development opens near the sight in 2019.
Yvonne Hall, BBC London News, Shoreditch.
Three meters under what was an old warehouse in Curtain Road Shoreditch, secrets of London’s 16th century theatre land are painstakingly uncovered.
It’s a hugely exciting project to be part of, and it’s not just that here we are with all that chance to look at one of this really rare buildings which is connected to people such as William Shakespeare, but it’s also what’s gonna happen to the archaeology at the end.
The Curtain Playhouse was one of London’s first theatres. Historians believe this was the first place where Shakespeare performed some of his plays. The rectangular shape of the stage and the mysterious underground tunnel are puzzling archaeologists.
You realise the size and shape of the stage, but these were doorways that would allow access under the stage so, again, you know, how were actors using that space, how does that influence what you can form on the stage itself. It’s asking a whole range of questions that can really kind of change our understanding of the evolution of early English drama.
We’ve got this lovely drinking jug…
Thousands of Elizabethan artefacts have also been found, including the cones everyone carried for tackling headlights.
These are tops from ceramic pots that would’ve been used to collect theatre-goers takings. They were sealed to prevent theft, and taken to a special office to break them open and transfer the money to a strongbox, hence the term box office, still in use today.
16th century audiences were apparently a rowdy bunch.
There would’ve been thousands coming to these places. We know about pawnshops, in fact there was a famous pawnshop at the door of The Curtain in 1613, we know people were eating and drinking, we know that people would throw rotten apples or whatever at the actors if they didn’t like it.
The Curtain Theatre and artefacts will be on show to the public when an office and housing development opens near the sight in 2019.
Yvonne Hall, BBC London News, Shoreditch.
miércoles, 14 de junio de 2017
Talking point: Culture
This week's talking point is culture. Before getting together with the members of your conversation group, go over the questions below so that ideas come to mind more easily the day you get together with your friends and you can work out vocabulary problems beforehand.
If you were visiting a foreign country and wanted to learn more about its culture, which of the following would interest you most? Why?
The ancient Greek dramatist Menander (342BC-292BC) said that 'Culture makes all men gentle'. What do you think he meant?
Imagine that your school is organising an exhibition entitled 'Aspects of our culture'. Talk together about the various aspects of culture represented in the pictures. Then suggest two other aspects of culture that you would like to see represented in the exhibition.
Which two activities in the pictures above do you find the most appealing? Why?
In what ways are cultural activities important for society?
What are some of the customs and traditions in your country which are more representative of its culture?
If you were visiting a foreign country and wanted to learn more about its culture, which of the following would interest you most? Why?
a performance of traditional music and dances
a theatrical performance
visiting a museum
visiting historical and archaeological sites
eating local dishes
attending a local ceremony, like a wedding
graffiti on the walls of buildings
The ancient Greek dramatist Menander (342BC-292BC) said that 'Culture makes all men gentle'. What do you think he meant?
Imagine that your school is organising an exhibition entitled 'Aspects of our culture'. Talk together about the various aspects of culture represented in the pictures. Then suggest two other aspects of culture that you would like to see represented in the exhibition.
Which two activities in the pictures above do you find the most appealing? Why?
In what ways are cultural activities important for society?
What are some of the customs and traditions in your country which are more representative of its culture?
martes, 13 de junio de 2017
Amsterdam, first city of the modern age
It's the fishing village that grew to become one of the largest ports in Europe: capital of the Netherlands, birthplace of the modern stock market, home to Rembrandt, Vincent Van Gogh and Anne Frank.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What does '60' refer to?
2. Why was the city's location a threat to its residents?
3. What did the residents of Amsterdam pioneer in the centuries that followed after the city's foundation?
4. How many 'cities' within Amsterdam are mentioned?
5. What was the purpose of the piece of wood coming out the top of buildings with a hook on it?
6. What did Rembrandt capture in his paintings?
7. Why are there no curtains in the windows?
8. What can you buy in a coffee shop?
9. What does the Dutch word gedogen mean?
Welcome to Dam Square, the site of a long-ago dam, they put the dam in Amsterdam. It’s the bustling centre of the city. I’m with the Royal Palace right behind me, the perfect starting-off point.
Perhaps the best way to tour this city is by boat, along its 60 miles of canals.
Here it was in the Middle Ages people started coming here and they…
Our guide is Russell Shorto, author of a bestselling history of Amsterdam. From its founding in the late 12th century, this city's location on a river delta that often flooded, posed a challenge for its residents.
And this is the crucial point, they started banding together in small groups in their communities and building dams and dikes and canals in order to control this problem of water, and make it work for them.
Their success in transforming their natural environment led to a re-shaping of their entire approach to life.
They started to realize, you know, we've got something here. We’ve got this… it changed their mentality, and then they built on that.
What the people of Amsterdam built in the centuries that followed were the first businesses of the modern age: shipping, insurance, the first stock exchange, and international trading enterprises, like the Dutch East India Company. As the economy grew, so did the city, with eye-catching details we saw at every turn.
This is the Herengracht, the Gentleman's Canal, one of the great 17th century canals. This is the Golden Age city that we're in. And you had the Medieval City first, and then the City Fathers made this plan where they were going to lay out this ring of canals around it, because the city was expanding so rapidly.
The canals were lined with the townhouses of Amsterdam's thriving merchant class, each adorned with special architectural details, like these stones to show the owner's profession.
If you look over there, those gables, to… the ones… that’s called a spout gable. You see the piece of wood coming out the top with a hook on it, that's a hoist beam. You would bring your goods on the canal up to your door, and then you would hoist them up, and you would store them in your attic.
And it wasn't all business; genius and talent also flourished in the arts during Amsterdam's Golden Age of the 1600s.
Where we are now, the Doelen Hotel, this is Rembrandt area. You see the guys up there with their fluffy era Rembrandt-era hats on.
Rembrandt's paintings of the city's leading citizens, including the famous Nightwatch, fill Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum. He captured all his subjects' outward signs of success, but also, author Russel Shorto says, something more.
He seemed able to paint who you were inside. And if you look at those paintings, you see that, you feel that, you feel these people thought about themselves, for the first time, the way we think about ourselves today.
Along with Rembrandt, there was Van Gogh. There’s an entire museum devoted to his works. And one of the city's most visited sites is the Anne Frank House, where young Anne wrote her famous diary during the two years she and her family hid from the Nazis during World War II.
These days, it seems, there is a refreshing openness about life here. And what’s with the young, no curtains in the windows.
You know, some people say that that is, 'Look, we have nothing to hide.' Or 'We're decent, ordinary people here.’, you know.
Nothing to see here!
Exactly, because, you know…
Another thing an American visitor notices, Amsterdam's tolerant attitude toward everything from marijuana use to sex. The nearly 200 coffee shops here don't just sell coffee; you can also legally buy marijuana, and smoke it on the spot. And there's the famous red light district, where prostitutes legally display their wares. Shorto says the city's tolerance is of long standing.
That is a tricky thing to try to understand, and I don't know if any foreigner, any outsider can really get it, but there's a Dutch word, gedogen, which means -this is my definition of it- it means 'technically illegal, but officially tolerated'.
Put everything we’ve been seeing on our cruise together, and you begin to understand Amsterdam's unique draw.
It's the city itself, it's the city of canals and of canal houses, which are built for individuals. It's a monument to the ordinary individual person and ordinary individual families. This is in many ways the birthplace of our modern sense of ourselves as individuals. This was where that started.
KEY:
1 The number of miles that canals stretch around Amsterdam
2 It often flooded
3 The first businesses of the modern age
4 Two: The Golden Age City and the Medieval City
5 To bring the goods from the boats into the houses
6 Both the outward signs of success and the person's inside
7 The younger generation has nothing to hide
8 Both coffee and marijuana
9 Technically illegal, but officially tolerated
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What does '60' refer to?
2. Why was the city's location a threat to its residents?
3. What did the residents of Amsterdam pioneer in the centuries that followed after the city's foundation?
4. How many 'cities' within Amsterdam are mentioned?
5. What was the purpose of the piece of wood coming out the top of buildings with a hook on it?
6. What did Rembrandt capture in his paintings?
7. Why are there no curtains in the windows?
8. What can you buy in a coffee shop?
9. What does the Dutch word gedogen mean?
Welcome to Dam Square, the site of a long-ago dam, they put the dam in Amsterdam. It’s the bustling centre of the city. I’m with the Royal Palace right behind me, the perfect starting-off point.
Perhaps the best way to tour this city is by boat, along its 60 miles of canals.
Here it was in the Middle Ages people started coming here and they…
Our guide is Russell Shorto, author of a bestselling history of Amsterdam. From its founding in the late 12th century, this city's location on a river delta that often flooded, posed a challenge for its residents.
And this is the crucial point, they started banding together in small groups in their communities and building dams and dikes and canals in order to control this problem of water, and make it work for them.
Their success in transforming their natural environment led to a re-shaping of their entire approach to life.
They started to realize, you know, we've got something here. We’ve got this… it changed their mentality, and then they built on that.
What the people of Amsterdam built in the centuries that followed were the first businesses of the modern age: shipping, insurance, the first stock exchange, and international trading enterprises, like the Dutch East India Company. As the economy grew, so did the city, with eye-catching details we saw at every turn.
This is the Herengracht, the Gentleman's Canal, one of the great 17th century canals. This is the Golden Age city that we're in. And you had the Medieval City first, and then the City Fathers made this plan where they were going to lay out this ring of canals around it, because the city was expanding so rapidly.
The canals were lined with the townhouses of Amsterdam's thriving merchant class, each adorned with special architectural details, like these stones to show the owner's profession.
If you look over there, those gables, to… the ones… that’s called a spout gable. You see the piece of wood coming out the top with a hook on it, that's a hoist beam. You would bring your goods on the canal up to your door, and then you would hoist them up, and you would store them in your attic.
And it wasn't all business; genius and talent also flourished in the arts during Amsterdam's Golden Age of the 1600s.
Where we are now, the Doelen Hotel, this is Rembrandt area. You see the guys up there with their fluffy era Rembrandt-era hats on.
Rembrandt's paintings of the city's leading citizens, including the famous Nightwatch, fill Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum. He captured all his subjects' outward signs of success, but also, author Russel Shorto says, something more.
He seemed able to paint who you were inside. And if you look at those paintings, you see that, you feel that, you feel these people thought about themselves, for the first time, the way we think about ourselves today.
Along with Rembrandt, there was Van Gogh. There’s an entire museum devoted to his works. And one of the city's most visited sites is the Anne Frank House, where young Anne wrote her famous diary during the two years she and her family hid from the Nazis during World War II.
These days, it seems, there is a refreshing openness about life here. And what’s with the young, no curtains in the windows.
You know, some people say that that is, 'Look, we have nothing to hide.' Or 'We're decent, ordinary people here.’, you know.
Nothing to see here!
Exactly, because, you know…
Another thing an American visitor notices, Amsterdam's tolerant attitude toward everything from marijuana use to sex. The nearly 200 coffee shops here don't just sell coffee; you can also legally buy marijuana, and smoke it on the spot. And there's the famous red light district, where prostitutes legally display their wares. Shorto says the city's tolerance is of long standing.
That is a tricky thing to try to understand, and I don't know if any foreigner, any outsider can really get it, but there's a Dutch word, gedogen, which means -this is my definition of it- it means 'technically illegal, but officially tolerated'.
Put everything we’ve been seeing on our cruise together, and you begin to understand Amsterdam's unique draw.
It's the city itself, it's the city of canals and of canal houses, which are built for individuals. It's a monument to the ordinary individual person and ordinary individual families. This is in many ways the birthplace of our modern sense of ourselves as individuals. This was where that started.
KEY:
1 The number of miles that canals stretch around Amsterdam
2 It often flooded
3 The first businesses of the modern age
4 Two: The Golden Age City and the Medieval City
5 To bring the goods from the boats into the houses
6 Both the outward signs of success and the person's inside
7 The younger generation has nothing to hide
8 Both coffee and marijuana
9 Technically illegal, but officially tolerated
domingo, 11 de junio de 2017
Extensive listening: OK GO, How to find a wonderful idea
Where does OK Go come up with ideas like dancing in zero gravity, performing in ultra slow motion or constructing a warehouse-sized Rube Goldberg machine for their music videos? In between live performances of This Too Shall Pass and The One Moment, lead singer and guitarist Damian Kulash takes us inside the band's creative process, showing us how to look for wonder and surprise.
Singer and video director Damian Kulash, Jr. and bassist Tim Nordwind met at summer camp in 1987, and a decade later they formed OK Go. With Dan Konopka as drummer and Andy Ross as guitarist and resident computer programmer, they've built a unique career at the intersection of music, visual art, technology, and science. They're among an emerging class of artists whose 21st-century brand of experimental creativity dissolves the traditional boundaries between disciplines.
'When our band started, music and art were actually different things,' says Kulash. 'Musicians made plastic discs and artists made objects for galleries. Now we all make ones and zeros, so the categorical distinctions don’t make much sense anymore.'
You can read a full transcript here.
Singer and video director Damian Kulash, Jr. and bassist Tim Nordwind met at summer camp in 1987, and a decade later they formed OK Go. With Dan Konopka as drummer and Andy Ross as guitarist and resident computer programmer, they've built a unique career at the intersection of music, visual art, technology, and science. They're among an emerging class of artists whose 21st-century brand of experimental creativity dissolves the traditional boundaries between disciplines.
'When our band started, music and art were actually different things,' says Kulash. 'Musicians made plastic discs and artists made objects for galleries. Now we all make ones and zeros, so the categorical distinctions don’t make much sense anymore.'
You can read a full transcript here.
viernes, 9 de junio de 2017
How to save money every day
Making simple changes to your spending can be an easy way to help you start saving. Learn how to save money on everyday expenses like groceries, transportation and entertainment.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What can you do not to buy on impulse at the supermarket?
2. Why may sales or discounts not be advisable?
3. 'It is advisable to save on the things that are important to us.' True or false?
4. How can you prevent throwing away spoiled groceries?
5. What time of the day is electricity cheaper?
6. How can you find out what petrol stations offer the cheapest fuel?
7. What is ‘a spontaneous meal out’ an example of?
You probably already know some of the basics, like how making your own coffee or bringing your lunch to work can help you save hundreds of dollars a year. If you're doing that, definitely keep it up. But let's look at a few other ways you can save on everyday expenses and how some simple decisions that you make every day can help you save money.
The supermarket is a great place to start because there are a lot of easy ways to cut down on your shopping bill. You may already be doing things like making a list to cut back on impulse buying, clipping coupons, or using apps to find deals, and even looking at the price per unit to help you get the most for your money.
But there are even more ways you can save. For example, when you see a sale or discount, be strategic. Sales and discounts can be great opportunities to save on things you need, but stores often offer incentives for items that a lot of people wouldn't normally get. So it can pay to be selective when considering any discounts you might be offered.
And while you're considering priorities, spend on what's important, save on what's not. For example, for some people, things like organic food or your favourite brands might be important to you; for others, what's important may be different. The point is that it might be worthwhile to spend a bit more on the items you care about but look for ways to save on the things that are less important to you to keep you on budget. Making simple trade-offs like these can help you save money without giving up what's important.
Finally, before you even make a shopping list, consider your actual eating and cooking habits. A good idea is to plan your meals ahead of time or challenge yourself to eat at least one more meal at home each week. This may help prevent you from tossing out spoiled groceries that you didn't eat or ordering takeout because you didn't buy enough food for the week. This can save you hundreds of dollars each year.
Keeping with household expenses and bills, you probably already turn off the lights when you leave a room and unplug gadgets when you aren't using them, right? But there are some other small changes you can make that can help you save even more around the house. For example, did you know that most utility companies charge more for electricity during different parts of the day? Peak hours, like the middle of the day, when more people are using electricity, often have substantially higher rates compared to early mornings or late at night. Doing your laundry or running your dishwasher off peak can likely help you save on your utility bill. You can check out your utility company's website to see if they list their peak hours or contact them directly.
Let's move on to transportation. Gas prices can be unpredictable, but technology could be a way to help you save. There are plenty of websites and apps that can help you locate which gas station in your area might be offering the cheapest prices. And depending on how often you drive and where you live, you may consider ditching your car altogether. Public transportation might be one option, and there are a number of car-sharing programs that allow you to affordably rent vehicles short term. And for the truly dedicated, how about biking? It's certainly a cost-effective and healthy alternative to both driving and public transportation.
It can be easy to follow others into overspending, but try getting creative and occasionally plan activities with your friends and family ahead of time that can help you avoid temptations, like a spontaneous meal out.
Saving money doesn't have to mean sacrificing fun! It pays to take some time to figure out where you're spending and what you're willing to cut back on. You don't necessarily have to do the math on every single decision you make, but being mindful of where your money is going and how simple trade-offs here or there can add up over the long run can help you get creative and find your own ways to trim costs every day.
KEY:
1 make a list, clip coupons, use apps to find deals, look at the price per unit
2 because many people don’t need those products
3 false
4 by having one more meal at home each week
5 in the early morning or late at night
6 through websites and apps
7 temptations that lead to overspending
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What can you do not to buy on impulse at the supermarket?
2. Why may sales or discounts not be advisable?
3. 'It is advisable to save on the things that are important to us.' True or false?
4. How can you prevent throwing away spoiled groceries?
5. What time of the day is electricity cheaper?
6. How can you find out what petrol stations offer the cheapest fuel?
7. What is ‘a spontaneous meal out’ an example of?
You probably already know some of the basics, like how making your own coffee or bringing your lunch to work can help you save hundreds of dollars a year. If you're doing that, definitely keep it up. But let's look at a few other ways you can save on everyday expenses and how some simple decisions that you make every day can help you save money.
The supermarket is a great place to start because there are a lot of easy ways to cut down on your shopping bill. You may already be doing things like making a list to cut back on impulse buying, clipping coupons, or using apps to find deals, and even looking at the price per unit to help you get the most for your money.
But there are even more ways you can save. For example, when you see a sale or discount, be strategic. Sales and discounts can be great opportunities to save on things you need, but stores often offer incentives for items that a lot of people wouldn't normally get. So it can pay to be selective when considering any discounts you might be offered.
And while you're considering priorities, spend on what's important, save on what's not. For example, for some people, things like organic food or your favourite brands might be important to you; for others, what's important may be different. The point is that it might be worthwhile to spend a bit more on the items you care about but look for ways to save on the things that are less important to you to keep you on budget. Making simple trade-offs like these can help you save money without giving up what's important.
Finally, before you even make a shopping list, consider your actual eating and cooking habits. A good idea is to plan your meals ahead of time or challenge yourself to eat at least one more meal at home each week. This may help prevent you from tossing out spoiled groceries that you didn't eat or ordering takeout because you didn't buy enough food for the week. This can save you hundreds of dollars each year.
Keeping with household expenses and bills, you probably already turn off the lights when you leave a room and unplug gadgets when you aren't using them, right? But there are some other small changes you can make that can help you save even more around the house. For example, did you know that most utility companies charge more for electricity during different parts of the day? Peak hours, like the middle of the day, when more people are using electricity, often have substantially higher rates compared to early mornings or late at night. Doing your laundry or running your dishwasher off peak can likely help you save on your utility bill. You can check out your utility company's website to see if they list their peak hours or contact them directly.
Let's move on to transportation. Gas prices can be unpredictable, but technology could be a way to help you save. There are plenty of websites and apps that can help you locate which gas station in your area might be offering the cheapest prices. And depending on how often you drive and where you live, you may consider ditching your car altogether. Public transportation might be one option, and there are a number of car-sharing programs that allow you to affordably rent vehicles short term. And for the truly dedicated, how about biking? It's certainly a cost-effective and healthy alternative to both driving and public transportation.
It can be easy to follow others into overspending, but try getting creative and occasionally plan activities with your friends and family ahead of time that can help you avoid temptations, like a spontaneous meal out.
Saving money doesn't have to mean sacrificing fun! It pays to take some time to figure out where you're spending and what you're willing to cut back on. You don't necessarily have to do the math on every single decision you make, but being mindful of where your money is going and how simple trade-offs here or there can add up over the long run can help you get creative and find your own ways to trim costs every day.
KEY:
1 make a list, clip coupons, use apps to find deals, look at the price per unit
2 because many people don’t need those products
3 false
4 by having one more meal at home each week
5 in the early morning or late at night
6 through websites and apps
7 temptations that lead to overspending
jueves, 8 de junio de 2017
Emilia Clarke gives advice to her 18-year-old self
Emilia Clarke gives heartfelt advice to her 18-year-old self. From her career, to dating, to school, to family, and everything in-between, Emilia reveals what she wishes she knew at that formative age.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What is the journey going to bring for Emilia?
2. What doesn’t she need to do at parties?
3. How does she see herself physically?
4. How does she feel with some relationships?
5. What effect is a heartbreak going to have on her?
6. What does she have to do with the people she really loves?
Dear Emilia,
You just turned 18. So, as your future self, here is some advice that I'd like to give you.
This particular journey that you're on is unlike any one of your friends that you're with right now. What they're doing is gonna bring them joy and happiness, and what you're doing is also gonna bring you maybe a little more struggle, and some joy and happiness as well. There are gonna be times when someone says that dream that you've had, your entire life, the moment when someone says that's not possible, it is. I know you didn't get into drama school this time around, but you will. You have the strength to overcome it.
And you can go to the parties, and you're gonna have fun at the parties, but you don't need to do everything that everyone's doing. You know, ain't nothing wrong with a Diet Coke, ain't nothing wrong.
Eighteen-year-old Emilia, I'm gonna quote this sunscreen song at you. I know you know it. You are not as fat as you think you are. There are some women who look some way, and there are other women who look another way, like, a whole other way. And the way that the other women look, people love, because they look like women.
So, when it comes to relationship advice, there's other things that come along with relationships. You think that they're, like inspecting everything and, you know, and kinda looking at you in a way of, sort of, that makes you feel uncomfortable or judged or whatever it is. Chances are they're not. Chances are they're just super happy to be there.
You're gonna feel some serious heartbreak. You're gonna feel some, like, proper... some proper things. And the reason why it's gonna hurt so much... It's because that heartbreak is gonna make you doubt yourself. You put yourself out on a plate and you bare everything, and someone says that they don't really like that. So that makes you feel... like you're not worth it. But you are, and there's lots of people who are gonna tell you that you are worth it.
The people in your life, when all the lights are off, the real people who you really love, just hug them, like, every day.
Okay. So parting words, little Emilia... littler Emilia, I'm just gonna say that, um, you know, it's autumn right now, because it's October, but... winter is coming. And wear sunscreen!
Love, Emilia
KEY:
1 struggle, happiness, joy
2 everything that everyone is doing
3 fat
4 uncomfortable or judged
5 it’s going to make her doubt herself
6 hug them every day
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What is the journey going to bring for Emilia?
2. What doesn’t she need to do at parties?
3. How does she see herself physically?
4. How does she feel with some relationships?
5. What effect is a heartbreak going to have on her?
6. What does she have to do with the people she really loves?
Dear Emilia,
You just turned 18. So, as your future self, here is some advice that I'd like to give you.
This particular journey that you're on is unlike any one of your friends that you're with right now. What they're doing is gonna bring them joy and happiness, and what you're doing is also gonna bring you maybe a little more struggle, and some joy and happiness as well. There are gonna be times when someone says that dream that you've had, your entire life, the moment when someone says that's not possible, it is. I know you didn't get into drama school this time around, but you will. You have the strength to overcome it.
And you can go to the parties, and you're gonna have fun at the parties, but you don't need to do everything that everyone's doing. You know, ain't nothing wrong with a Diet Coke, ain't nothing wrong.
Eighteen-year-old Emilia, I'm gonna quote this sunscreen song at you. I know you know it. You are not as fat as you think you are. There are some women who look some way, and there are other women who look another way, like, a whole other way. And the way that the other women look, people love, because they look like women.
So, when it comes to relationship advice, there's other things that come along with relationships. You think that they're, like inspecting everything and, you know, and kinda looking at you in a way of, sort of, that makes you feel uncomfortable or judged or whatever it is. Chances are they're not. Chances are they're just super happy to be there.
You're gonna feel some serious heartbreak. You're gonna feel some, like, proper... some proper things. And the reason why it's gonna hurt so much... It's because that heartbreak is gonna make you doubt yourself. You put yourself out on a plate and you bare everything, and someone says that they don't really like that. So that makes you feel... like you're not worth it. But you are, and there's lots of people who are gonna tell you that you are worth it.
The people in your life, when all the lights are off, the real people who you really love, just hug them, like, every day.
Okay. So parting words, little Emilia... littler Emilia, I'm just gonna say that, um, you know, it's autumn right now, because it's October, but... winter is coming. And wear sunscreen!
Love, Emilia
KEY:
1 struggle, happiness, joy
2 everything that everyone is doing
3 fat
4 uncomfortable or judged
5 it’s going to make her doubt herself
6 hug them every day
miércoles, 7 de junio de 2017
Talking point: Travel
This week's talking point is travel. Before getting together with the members of your conversation group, go over the questions below so that ideas come to mind more easily the day you get together with your friends and you can work out vocabulary problems beforehand.
Do you like travelling? Why (not)?
What is the difference between a tourist and a traveller?
Look at the list of some benefits of travelling. Rank them in order of importance.
Look at the following types of holidays.
Which of them do you have experience of?
Which of them do you find most appealing? Why?
People now travel more than in the past. Why do you think this is?
‘Getting there is half the fun.’ How far do you agree with this?
To illustrate the topic you can watch Alain de Botton's documentary The art of travel.
Do you like travelling? Why (not)?
What is the difference between a tourist and a traveller?
Look at the list of some benefits of travelling. Rank them in order of importance.
broadens your mind
enables you to get first hand experience of new places.
enables you to learn about new cultures
gives you the opportunity to try out foreign cuisine
helps you get away from your daily routine
Look at the following types of holidays.
Which of them do you have experience of?
Which of them do you find most appealing? Why?
A cycling holiday
A skiing holiday
A working holiday
A relaxing holiday
An adventure holiday
A camping holiday
A cruise
A city break
People now travel more than in the past. Why do you think this is?
‘Getting there is half the fun.’ How far do you agree with this?
To illustrate the topic you can watch Alain de Botton's documentary The art of travel.
martes, 6 de junio de 2017
88-year-old retires and lives on cruise ship
An estimated 24 million people are expected to take cruises this year. One report showed more than a quarter of them are age 60 or older, and more than one-fifth are retired. For many of those passengers, the ships are like a second home, but for one woman, ocean liner Crystal Serenity is her only home.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. How often does Lee Wachtstetter talk to her family?
2. How long has she been living on the Crystal Serenity?
3. What is the last thing Lee’s husband told her?
4. What does she say about her grandchildren?
5. Why does she love it when everybody goes touring and she stays on board?
6. What does ‘5.15’ mean?
7. How much do it cost for Lee to live on the ship?
8. How long did it take a ship to cross the Northwest Passage when it was first done?
An estimated 24 million people are expected to take cruises this year. One report showed more than a quarter of them are age 60 or older, and more than one-fifth are retired. For many of those passengers, ships are like a second home, but for one woman, the ocean liner is her only home. CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg met her while covering another story on board. Peter, good morning.
Good morning, Nora. Part of the reason cruises are so popular for retirees is because so much is taken care of for them, the cooking, cleaning, entertainment, all the activities. But when the cruise is over, most of them return home to their regular lives. But Lee Wachtstetter showed us how she found a way to travel the world without ever leaving home.
Did you miss me?
I did.
You could say 88-year-old Lee Wachtstetter has earned her sea legs.
How often are you talking to the family at home?
I talk to them every day.
Okay.
I’ll talk to them twice a day if it means I don’t have to be there.
Aboard the Crystal Serenity, she’s known simply as Mama Lee and she’s been living there for the past eight years.
I don’t have to shop, I don’t have to cook, I don’t have to do anything. I do what I want, when I want, if I want.
She and her late husband, Mason, took nearly 100 cruises together before he died in 1997.
The last thing he ever said to me, this was the day before he died, ‘Don’t you quit cruising.’ I started frequent cruising. But I got very, very tired of packing and unpacking. So I said, there’s got to be a better way to do this.
And the answer was, how about I don’t leave it at all!
Mama Lee sold her house in Florida, along with her car and most of her belongings, and never looked back.
Everybody knows her, she knows everybody.
Birger Vorland is captain of the Crystal Serenity.
She’s a little bit of a diva, in a good way. She gets along with her day, and she makes herself busy, and she has her things and her opinions, and she’s a wonderful person.
At your age, there are a lot of people who would say, ‘Well, I’m going to go to a retirement place.’
Oh, no, no, no. [Really?] Not me. Why do that? I’m now a great-grandmother. My grandchildren are having children. But I don’t want to be there every minute for that. I love babies, but they grow up!
Mama Lee has now done more than 240 cruises around the world, and visited hundreds of different ports. But where the ship is going? Irrelevant. For Mama Lee, these days, the ship is the destination.
Everything is ‘Been there, done that.’ If I’ve been there and done that, I don’t go off the ship. And I love it when everybody goes touring. I got the whole ship to myself with all the help.
You’ve got this figured out!
Oh, absolutely.
And you don’t really get off the ship anymore?
What for?
Cruise director Rick Spath considers himself part of her extended family at sea.
That’s Lee, she doesn’t care where the ship goes, she loves to dance her way around the world.
I dance every single day at 5:15, 7 days a week.
Do you ever sit back and think about what your life would be like if you weren’t on the ship?
Very boring. I think I live a fairy tale existence. It’s not a real life, I realize that. Not everybody does this. But a lot of people could.
I still think I do the same dance at seven every dance.
Yes, you do, but that’s okay.
Thanks, Charlee.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. How much does it cost Lee Wachtstetter to do the cruise? He estimated about $175,000 a year. And by the way, since she goes on the cruise wherever the ship goes, she’s one of a thousand passengers who spent $22,000…, that’s the other story we’re covering, this ship was actually the largest ship ever to attempt the Northwest Passage. They started sailing from Seward all the way north going 500 miles north of the Arctic Circle back to New York. It’s a thirty-two voyage, and to put this in perspective, when it was first done in 1903, it took them three years.
Is there one place she will get off the ship?
Yes, when the ship goes into dry dock, here’s what happens, it only happens once every like six or seven years, they literally pull up to the harbour, pull up to the dock, there’s another ship there and they walk her 50 feet and she goes on another ship.
Where does she get her doctor’s appointments and stuff like that? I mean, does she… I mean…
So far she’s dancing.
Yeah, that’s great!
On the Crystal Serenity. Peter, thank you.
KEY:
1 every day
2 for eight years
3 don’t you quit cruising
4 they are having children now. She’s a grandmother
5 because she has the ship to herself
6 the time she dances at every day
7 $175,000 a year
8 three years
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. How often does Lee Wachtstetter talk to her family?
2. How long has she been living on the Crystal Serenity?
3. What is the last thing Lee’s husband told her?
4. What does she say about her grandchildren?
5. Why does she love it when everybody goes touring and she stays on board?
6. What does ‘5.15’ mean?
7. How much do it cost for Lee to live on the ship?
8. How long did it take a ship to cross the Northwest Passage when it was first done?
An estimated 24 million people are expected to take cruises this year. One report showed more than a quarter of them are age 60 or older, and more than one-fifth are retired. For many of those passengers, ships are like a second home, but for one woman, the ocean liner is her only home. CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg met her while covering another story on board. Peter, good morning.
Good morning, Nora. Part of the reason cruises are so popular for retirees is because so much is taken care of for them, the cooking, cleaning, entertainment, all the activities. But when the cruise is over, most of them return home to their regular lives. But Lee Wachtstetter showed us how she found a way to travel the world without ever leaving home.
Did you miss me?
I did.
You could say 88-year-old Lee Wachtstetter has earned her sea legs.
How often are you talking to the family at home?
I talk to them every day.
Okay.
I’ll talk to them twice a day if it means I don’t have to be there.
Aboard the Crystal Serenity, she’s known simply as Mama Lee and she’s been living there for the past eight years.
I don’t have to shop, I don’t have to cook, I don’t have to do anything. I do what I want, when I want, if I want.
She and her late husband, Mason, took nearly 100 cruises together before he died in 1997.
The last thing he ever said to me, this was the day before he died, ‘Don’t you quit cruising.’ I started frequent cruising. But I got very, very tired of packing and unpacking. So I said, there’s got to be a better way to do this.
And the answer was, how about I don’t leave it at all!
Mama Lee sold her house in Florida, along with her car and most of her belongings, and never looked back.
Everybody knows her, she knows everybody.
Birger Vorland is captain of the Crystal Serenity.
She’s a little bit of a diva, in a good way. She gets along with her day, and she makes herself busy, and she has her things and her opinions, and she’s a wonderful person.
At your age, there are a lot of people who would say, ‘Well, I’m going to go to a retirement place.’
Oh, no, no, no. [Really?] Not me. Why do that? I’m now a great-grandmother. My grandchildren are having children. But I don’t want to be there every minute for that. I love babies, but they grow up!
Mama Lee has now done more than 240 cruises around the world, and visited hundreds of different ports. But where the ship is going? Irrelevant. For Mama Lee, these days, the ship is the destination.
Everything is ‘Been there, done that.’ If I’ve been there and done that, I don’t go off the ship. And I love it when everybody goes touring. I got the whole ship to myself with all the help.
You’ve got this figured out!
Oh, absolutely.
And you don’t really get off the ship anymore?
What for?
Cruise director Rick Spath considers himself part of her extended family at sea.
That’s Lee, she doesn’t care where the ship goes, she loves to dance her way around the world.
I dance every single day at 5:15, 7 days a week.
Do you ever sit back and think about what your life would be like if you weren’t on the ship?
Very boring. I think I live a fairy tale existence. It’s not a real life, I realize that. Not everybody does this. But a lot of people could.
I still think I do the same dance at seven every dance.
Yes, you do, but that’s okay.
Thanks, Charlee.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. How much does it cost Lee Wachtstetter to do the cruise? He estimated about $175,000 a year. And by the way, since she goes on the cruise wherever the ship goes, she’s one of a thousand passengers who spent $22,000…, that’s the other story we’re covering, this ship was actually the largest ship ever to attempt the Northwest Passage. They started sailing from Seward all the way north going 500 miles north of the Arctic Circle back to New York. It’s a thirty-two voyage, and to put this in perspective, when it was first done in 1903, it took them three years.
Is there one place she will get off the ship?
Yes, when the ship goes into dry dock, here’s what happens, it only happens once every like six or seven years, they literally pull up to the harbour, pull up to the dock, there’s another ship there and they walk her 50 feet and she goes on another ship.
Where does she get her doctor’s appointments and stuff like that? I mean, does she… I mean…
So far she’s dancing.
Yeah, that’s great!
On the Crystal Serenity. Peter, thank you.
KEY:
1 every day
2 for eight years
3 don’t you quit cruising
4 they are having children now. She’s a grandmother
5 because she has the ship to herself
6 the time she dances at every day
7 $175,000 a year
8 three years
domingo, 4 de junio de 2017
Extensive listening: Poverty isn't a lack of character; it's a lack of cash
"Ideas can and do change the world," says historian Rutger Bregman, sharing his case for a provocative one: guaranteed basic income.
Learn more about the idea's 500-year history and a forgotten modern experiment where it actually worked — and imagine how much energy and talent we would unleash if we got rid of poverty once and for all.
Rutger Bregman is one of Europe’s most prominent young thinkers. The 28-year-old historian and author has published four books on history, philosophy and economics. His History of Progress was awarded the Belgian Liberales prize for best nonfiction book of 2013. The Dutch edition of Utopia for Realists became a national bestseller and will be translated in 16 languages this year. Bregman has twice been nominated for the prestigious European Press Prize for his journalism work at The Correspondent. His work has been featured in The Washington Post and The Guardian and on the BBC.
You can read a full transcript here.
Learn more about the idea's 500-year history and a forgotten modern experiment where it actually worked — and imagine how much energy and talent we would unleash if we got rid of poverty once and for all.
Rutger Bregman is one of Europe’s most prominent young thinkers. The 28-year-old historian and author has published four books on history, philosophy and economics. His History of Progress was awarded the Belgian Liberales prize for best nonfiction book of 2013. The Dutch edition of Utopia for Realists became a national bestseller and will be translated in 16 languages this year. Bregman has twice been nominated for the prestigious European Press Prize for his journalism work at The Correspondent. His work has been featured in The Washington Post and The Guardian and on the BBC.
You can read a full transcript here.
viernes, 2 de junio de 2017
I live in an airplane
Bruce Campbell lives in an airplane. The Portland-based aeronautics enthusiast makes his home in a converted Boeing 727 that was once used as a Greek aircraft until the mid-1960s and now resides in a forest near Portland.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What are jetliners basically, in Bruce's opinion?
2. What are their qualities as homes?
3. Why might some people object to living in a jetliner?
4. When does Bruce retract the aft (at the back) airstairs?
5. Where does he sleep?
6. How many jetliners retire per day?
7. What do we do with them?
8. What do people ask Bruce about the jetliner where he lives?
Jetliners are basically flying homes. It's a sealed pressure canister. It's incredibly strong. It will last practically forever.
I'm Bruce Campbell, and you're inside the cockpit area of my 727 home. I can appreciate that some folks might feel a bit isolated or that it might simply strike them as an unusual living environment. But for me, it's always felt completely natural.
The entry is via the aft airstairs, which are retractable and are retracted whenever I leave for an extended time.
The aft area of the aircraft now is my living space. My very primitive shower is located there. The two natural aft lavatories are both functional.
Sleeping quarters are there, in the form of a simple futon sofa. And a bench, where I spend lots of time embellishing elements of the aircraft.
Jetliners retire at the rate of about three per day. For the most part, I think we shred them. And then we spin around 180 degrees and make a home, after having just shredded an aerospace class home sized structure.
If you were an extra-terrestrial looking down on this behaviour, you'd wonder whether this species has all its marbles in place or not.
People have asked me whether it crashed here, and I simply restored the wreck. That's an odd thing to hear. It's completely impractical.
Next time you're in a jetliner, close your eyes for a moment, in your mind, remove all the seats and all the other people and then open your eyes with that vision and consider the expanse of the living room.
It's a good environment, it really is.
KEY:
1 flying homes
2 incredibly strong, will last forever
3 they might feel a bit isolated or find them an unusual living environment
4 when he leaves for an extended period of time
5 on a (futon) sofa
6 three
7 we shred them
8 whether if crashed there and he restored it
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below.
1. What are jetliners basically, in Bruce's opinion?
2. What are their qualities as homes?
3. Why might some people object to living in a jetliner?
4. When does Bruce retract the aft (at the back) airstairs?
5. Where does he sleep?
6. How many jetliners retire per day?
7. What do we do with them?
8. What do people ask Bruce about the jetliner where he lives?
Jetliners are basically flying homes. It's a sealed pressure canister. It's incredibly strong. It will last practically forever.
I'm Bruce Campbell, and you're inside the cockpit area of my 727 home. I can appreciate that some folks might feel a bit isolated or that it might simply strike them as an unusual living environment. But for me, it's always felt completely natural.
The entry is via the aft airstairs, which are retractable and are retracted whenever I leave for an extended time.
The aft area of the aircraft now is my living space. My very primitive shower is located there. The two natural aft lavatories are both functional.
Sleeping quarters are there, in the form of a simple futon sofa. And a bench, where I spend lots of time embellishing elements of the aircraft.
Jetliners retire at the rate of about three per day. For the most part, I think we shred them. And then we spin around 180 degrees and make a home, after having just shredded an aerospace class home sized structure.
If you were an extra-terrestrial looking down on this behaviour, you'd wonder whether this species has all its marbles in place or not.
People have asked me whether it crashed here, and I simply restored the wreck. That's an odd thing to hear. It's completely impractical.
Next time you're in a jetliner, close your eyes for a moment, in your mind, remove all the seats and all the other people and then open your eyes with that vision and consider the expanse of the living room.
It's a good environment, it really is.
KEY:
1 flying homes
2 incredibly strong, will last forever
3 they might feel a bit isolated or find them an unusual living environment
4 when he leaves for an extended period of time
5 on a (futon) sofa
6 three
7 we shred them
8 whether if crashed there and he restored it
miércoles, 31 de mayo de 2017
Talking point: Education
This week's talking point is education. Before getting together with the members of your conversation group, go over the questions below so that ideas come to mind more easily the day you get together with your friends and you can work out vocabulary problems beforehand.
Do you think the education system in your country is satisfactory?
Why (not)?
How do you think teaching and learning will change in the years to come?
How important is a good education in order for someone to be successful in life?
Do you think that academic success leads to happiness?
How difficult do you think it is to work and study at the same time?
If you had to choose between attending a course at university and doing a course online, which would you prefer and why?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of taking an online course?
Look at the following objectives of education. Prioritise them in order of importance:
Do you think the education system in your country is satisfactory?
Why (not)?
How do you think teaching and learning will change in the years to come?
How important is a good education in order for someone to be successful in life?
Do you think that academic success leads to happiness?
How difficult do you think it is to work and study at the same time?
If you had to choose between attending a course at university and doing a course online, which would you prefer and why?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of taking an online course?
Look at the following objectives of education. Prioritise them in order of importance:
Acquisition of knowledge
Building of character
Career orientation
Creation of a competent workforce
Creation of individuals with a desire for learning
Development of skills
Instilling of values and ideals
Building of character
Career orientation
Creation of a competent workforce
Creation of individuals with a desire for learning
Development of skills
Instilling of values and ideals
Discuss these quotes:
martes, 30 de mayo de 2017
Gisele Bündchen talks modelling career, new book and family
After nearly 20 years, Gisele Bündchen remains one of the world's most famous supermodels. Since 2002, Bündchen has been the most high-paid model in the world. But she says her successful career is just a chapter of her life.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and say whether the statements below are true or false.
1. Gisele is going to stop modelling altogether.
2. Gisele started modelling at 17.
3. Good looks have been the best asset for Gisele to become the best top model.
4. Gisele herself cleans her own apartment.
5. Gisele was discovered in a disco.
6. Gisele is now a totally different person from when she was a child.
7. Gisele the model and Gisele the person are very much alike.
8. At 25 Victoria Secret offered her a $20 million contract.
9. Gisele was unable to bring together being a Vogue model and being a catalogue model.
10. Gisele is as competitive as her husband.
11. Tom, Gisele’s husband, has three children.
12. For Gisele’s father, relationships is the most important thing in life.
13. Gisele doesn’t exactly know what she’s going to do in the future.
After nearly 20 years, Gisele Bündchen remains one of the world's most famous supermodels. At 35 she’s releasing a limited edition book through the German publisher Taschen. The collection of photos of Gisele already sold out despite a 700-dollar price tag. We spoke with her about her book, her family and turning the page on modelling.
Since 2002, you have been the most high-paid model in the world for a long time, 13 years. But there is a sense that it's a moment to refocus, to rethink who you are and where you’re going.
Yes, for sure. I think, you know, I'm so grateful to be where I am right now because I feel fulfilled. I feel like I gave in a lot of energy and dedication and focus to that, you know, and I think, 20 years is like more than half my life doing that, I feel like it’s long enough, you know, and I feel like I still have some contracts and they're going to be still going forward, there’s still some things I am going to be doing, but it's not my focus by any means anymore.
This is your life!
Well, this is a chapter…
A chapter of your life!
In her new book, Gisele Bundchen tells the story of Gisele the model.
How young were you then?
I was like 17.
It captures her transformation from a fresh-faced teenager…
Barking stocks, as you can see I had no idea of fashion and I really didn't care, I was just like, hey…
… into the world's greatest supermodel and more.
Oh, that’s Vida!
Ah, there's your dog, your famous Vida. She’s no longer with us?
No.
When did she die?
Sorry! Three years ago.
It is a personal photo album that's also a work of art.
This one was Alberto Marcos…
It features every great photographer in the industry.
This was Helmut Newton.
Fashion photographers have always loved her but she says it has nothing to do with her looks.
Are you the best because of the look that you had…
Not at all.
…or because… No.
I don't think so, not at all.
Is it because what?
I think because of my personality, yeah, I think I've never complained, you know, I think that if they say…
That’s what they say?
…if they say, Giselle, go there, it's below zero in a bathing suit and start jumping and I'm like that's what I do, you know, hey Giselle, it's a hundred degrees in the Death Valley, go shoot like, you know.
Because you want it so badly?
Because I wanted to do my best. If I choose to say yes to something and if somebody is putting their trust in me, I don't want to disappoint anybody, I'm just not that person, you know. I think I'm a person who strives to be the best that I can be. I think if I'm going to clean my apartment, you're going to be able to eat on the floor. I mean, I'm that person, you know, what I'm saying?
Yes, I do know what you’re saying.
Whatever it is that I'm going to make the time to do it, I'm not going to be there if I can’t show up a hundred percent.
She was only 14 when she was discovered in a shopping mall in Brazil. She was a tall, lanky tomboy who had no interest in fashion but five years later the Brazilian beauty was on the cover of American Vogue, the days of heroin chic were declared over, curves were in.
You changed the face of modelling. It was no longer Moss, it became Bündchen.
I think I was in the right place at the right time, you know, I think I was lucky.
…where the world was ready to switch to a different kind of look.
Yes, and then I was there.
And you were that look.
I was their look. I felt like I was at the right place, at the right time, with the right attitude. You have to remember there was always a part of me who felt like the underdog, right, so I'm like, here I am and people giving me a chance…
Because as kid you were gawky, and you olive oil and you were all that.
And I think that sticks with you. There's a part of that that no matter how… I'm telling you there is a part of that that stays with you.
It’s not unusual. We carry what we learned in our childhood throughout our life.
Exactly.
Okay, but did you begin to think inside I'm pretty… Because there is some people who never believe they're pretty because growing up they never thought they were pretty.
Maybe…
But you began to realise.
I began to realize that I had something to… that I could do with this.
There was some magic that happened between you and a camera.
Yes, I feel very comfortable with the camera. And I think the reason why I felt very comfortable is because I've always separated her, Gisele, this idea.
The persona.
The persona, then Gisele the goofball me, tomboy. You know what I'm saying, because I think the fashion wanted to, create this ideal of glamorous and sexy and all that stuff.
And you understood that and you were willing to serve that thing.
Yes, I was. Yes.
And it served her well. She's graced more magazine covers than any other model ever. And she’s earned more money than any of them too. Her first big break came when Victoria Secret offered her a $25 million contract. She was just 20 years old.
At that time it was like either you are a Vogue model or you are a catalogue model. So it was a big decision. Even though it was a lot of money, you know, it was like, I remember talking with my agent, I remember she said, you know, this is a decision you have to make because you might never do a Vogue cover again, I was like well, I have to take a chance of never doing fashion again because when am I going to make $25m again, you know, I have to take that chance.
Ever since she’s been navigating the world of celebrity, thanks in part to her relationship with a certain quarterback who would later become her husband and the father of her two children.
So when you met Tom Brady [Yes.]
What did your instinct say?
I said he was, you know, he is a very kind man.
You keep saying that.
Because he is.
Kind is what…
He's kind, you know. He’s… You know him.
Yes.
But he had as much competition and competitive instinct as you did. He was every bit as competitive as you were. Was that part of the attraction?
I would say he's much more competitive than me. I would say I'm more a collaborative person because in my job, it's about collaboration.
In his job too. Why do you think those big linemen are up there?
I know but he's kind of the boss in some way, you know. Not the boss but he kind of has to dictate. He says now guys this is smack something, I don't know, some language, dot dot, I don't know what, some language.
Whatever he says.
Whatever he says, football language.
And then, you're madly in love with Tom. He's sort of scampering up to Boston every time he can. And then you found out that his former girlfriend is pregnant.
It was a challenging thing because here I am, you know, thinking I'm dating this guy, we met and we started dating. And everything is great. And then this happens, right. So I felt like I didn't know what to do. It was kind of one of those moments of like do I just run away or do I… I think now eight years later I couldn't have asked for a sweeter bonus child.
How tough was it when Tom had to go through what he just went through?
I think we have been through a few tough times together. I think that is when I think that is when you know who are your friends and who loves you. I think my father always said the quality of your life depends on the quality of your relationships. And I think no matter how challenging it was, we always have been supportive of one another and I think that's the most important thing you can have in life, you know, a support system and love.
Here's what I think is interesting about you, among many things. One is your drive; two is your sense of looking for meaning; three is that you are at a place in which you don't quite know where the future is. [Yes.] That’s rather exciting.
That is a beautiful thing.
Exactly.
It is scary a little bit. But it's exciting. Because you have the opportunity, because, you know, when you have no definition exactly what it is [It’s better.], everything is possible. Miracles happen that way. The magic happens that way. And I worked very hard since I was 14 years old to be it today in my life at this place to make that choice, you know.
Really nice interview, I mean we've never heard from that answer that sort of context before really nice.
And she’s very candid, very, very candid.
It was very interesting. An unlimited popular edition of the book will be released next spring.
There's lots more of this interview I know you're going to have it on your PBS show, right, and also Charlie asked Bündchen about the paparazzi and we'll post that portion of their conversation at CBS This Morning.com
I like what she said that her dad said the quality of your life depends on the quality of your relationships, that is so true.
Very nice, Gisele.
What does she want to do next, whatever she wants to do so.
KEY:
1F 2F 3F 4F 5F 6F 7F 8F 9F 10F 11T 12T 13T
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and say whether the statements below are true or false.
1. Gisele is going to stop modelling altogether.
2. Gisele started modelling at 17.
3. Good looks have been the best asset for Gisele to become the best top model.
4. Gisele herself cleans her own apartment.
5. Gisele was discovered in a disco.
6. Gisele is now a totally different person from when she was a child.
7. Gisele the model and Gisele the person are very much alike.
8. At 25 Victoria Secret offered her a $20 million contract.
9. Gisele was unable to bring together being a Vogue model and being a catalogue model.
10. Gisele is as competitive as her husband.
11. Tom, Gisele’s husband, has three children.
12. For Gisele’s father, relationships is the most important thing in life.
13. Gisele doesn’t exactly know what she’s going to do in the future.
After nearly 20 years, Gisele Bündchen remains one of the world's most famous supermodels. At 35 she’s releasing a limited edition book through the German publisher Taschen. The collection of photos of Gisele already sold out despite a 700-dollar price tag. We spoke with her about her book, her family and turning the page on modelling.
Since 2002, you have been the most high-paid model in the world for a long time, 13 years. But there is a sense that it's a moment to refocus, to rethink who you are and where you’re going.
Yes, for sure. I think, you know, I'm so grateful to be where I am right now because I feel fulfilled. I feel like I gave in a lot of energy and dedication and focus to that, you know, and I think, 20 years is like more than half my life doing that, I feel like it’s long enough, you know, and I feel like I still have some contracts and they're going to be still going forward, there’s still some things I am going to be doing, but it's not my focus by any means anymore.
This is your life!
Well, this is a chapter…
A chapter of your life!
In her new book, Gisele Bundchen tells the story of Gisele the model.
How young were you then?
I was like 17.
It captures her transformation from a fresh-faced teenager…
Barking stocks, as you can see I had no idea of fashion and I really didn't care, I was just like, hey…
… into the world's greatest supermodel and more.
Oh, that’s Vida!
Ah, there's your dog, your famous Vida. She’s no longer with us?
No.
When did she die?
Sorry! Three years ago.
It is a personal photo album that's also a work of art.
This one was Alberto Marcos…
It features every great photographer in the industry.
This was Helmut Newton.
Fashion photographers have always loved her but she says it has nothing to do with her looks.
Are you the best because of the look that you had…
Not at all.
…or because… No.
I don't think so, not at all.
Is it because what?
I think because of my personality, yeah, I think I've never complained, you know, I think that if they say…
That’s what they say?
…if they say, Giselle, go there, it's below zero in a bathing suit and start jumping and I'm like that's what I do, you know, hey Giselle, it's a hundred degrees in the Death Valley, go shoot like, you know.
Because you want it so badly?
Because I wanted to do my best. If I choose to say yes to something and if somebody is putting their trust in me, I don't want to disappoint anybody, I'm just not that person, you know. I think I'm a person who strives to be the best that I can be. I think if I'm going to clean my apartment, you're going to be able to eat on the floor. I mean, I'm that person, you know, what I'm saying?
Yes, I do know what you’re saying.
Whatever it is that I'm going to make the time to do it, I'm not going to be there if I can’t show up a hundred percent.
She was only 14 when she was discovered in a shopping mall in Brazil. She was a tall, lanky tomboy who had no interest in fashion but five years later the Brazilian beauty was on the cover of American Vogue, the days of heroin chic were declared over, curves were in.
You changed the face of modelling. It was no longer Moss, it became Bündchen.
I think I was in the right place at the right time, you know, I think I was lucky.
…where the world was ready to switch to a different kind of look.
Yes, and then I was there.
And you were that look.
I was their look. I felt like I was at the right place, at the right time, with the right attitude. You have to remember there was always a part of me who felt like the underdog, right, so I'm like, here I am and people giving me a chance…
Because as kid you were gawky, and you olive oil and you were all that.
And I think that sticks with you. There's a part of that that no matter how… I'm telling you there is a part of that that stays with you.
It’s not unusual. We carry what we learned in our childhood throughout our life.
Exactly.
Okay, but did you begin to think inside I'm pretty… Because there is some people who never believe they're pretty because growing up they never thought they were pretty.
Maybe…
But you began to realise.
I began to realize that I had something to… that I could do with this.
There was some magic that happened between you and a camera.
Yes, I feel very comfortable with the camera. And I think the reason why I felt very comfortable is because I've always separated her, Gisele, this idea.
The persona.
The persona, then Gisele the goofball me, tomboy. You know what I'm saying, because I think the fashion wanted to, create this ideal of glamorous and sexy and all that stuff.
And you understood that and you were willing to serve that thing.
Yes, I was. Yes.
And it served her well. She's graced more magazine covers than any other model ever. And she’s earned more money than any of them too. Her first big break came when Victoria Secret offered her a $25 million contract. She was just 20 years old.
At that time it was like either you are a Vogue model or you are a catalogue model. So it was a big decision. Even though it was a lot of money, you know, it was like, I remember talking with my agent, I remember she said, you know, this is a decision you have to make because you might never do a Vogue cover again, I was like well, I have to take a chance of never doing fashion again because when am I going to make $25m again, you know, I have to take that chance.
Ever since she’s been navigating the world of celebrity, thanks in part to her relationship with a certain quarterback who would later become her husband and the father of her two children.
So when you met Tom Brady [Yes.]
What did your instinct say?
I said he was, you know, he is a very kind man.
You keep saying that.
Because he is.
Kind is what…
He's kind, you know. He’s… You know him.
Yes.
But he had as much competition and competitive instinct as you did. He was every bit as competitive as you were. Was that part of the attraction?
I would say he's much more competitive than me. I would say I'm more a collaborative person because in my job, it's about collaboration.
In his job too. Why do you think those big linemen are up there?
I know but he's kind of the boss in some way, you know. Not the boss but he kind of has to dictate. He says now guys this is smack something, I don't know, some language, dot dot, I don't know what, some language.
Whatever he says.
Whatever he says, football language.
And then, you're madly in love with Tom. He's sort of scampering up to Boston every time he can. And then you found out that his former girlfriend is pregnant.
It was a challenging thing because here I am, you know, thinking I'm dating this guy, we met and we started dating. And everything is great. And then this happens, right. So I felt like I didn't know what to do. It was kind of one of those moments of like do I just run away or do I… I think now eight years later I couldn't have asked for a sweeter bonus child.
How tough was it when Tom had to go through what he just went through?
I think we have been through a few tough times together. I think that is when I think that is when you know who are your friends and who loves you. I think my father always said the quality of your life depends on the quality of your relationships. And I think no matter how challenging it was, we always have been supportive of one another and I think that's the most important thing you can have in life, you know, a support system and love.
Here's what I think is interesting about you, among many things. One is your drive; two is your sense of looking for meaning; three is that you are at a place in which you don't quite know where the future is. [Yes.] That’s rather exciting.
That is a beautiful thing.
Exactly.
It is scary a little bit. But it's exciting. Because you have the opportunity, because, you know, when you have no definition exactly what it is [It’s better.], everything is possible. Miracles happen that way. The magic happens that way. And I worked very hard since I was 14 years old to be it today in my life at this place to make that choice, you know.
Really nice interview, I mean we've never heard from that answer that sort of context before really nice.
And she’s very candid, very, very candid.
It was very interesting. An unlimited popular edition of the book will be released next spring.
There's lots more of this interview I know you're going to have it on your PBS show, right, and also Charlie asked Bündchen about the paparazzi and we'll post that portion of their conversation at CBS This Morning.com
I like what she said that her dad said the quality of your life depends on the quality of your relationships, that is so true.
Very nice, Gisele.
What does she want to do next, whatever she wants to do so.
KEY:
1F 2F 3F 4F 5F 6F 7F 8F 9F 10F 11T 12T 13T
domingo, 28 de mayo de 2017
Extensive listening: What you can do to prevent Alzheimer's
Alzheimer's doesn't have to be your brain's destiny, says neuroscientist and author of Still Alice, Lisa Genova. She shares the latest science investigating the disease — and some promising research on what each of us can do to build an Alzheimer's-resistant brain.
Lisa Genova wields her ability to tell a story and her knowledge of the human brain to talk about medical conditions like Alzheimer’s in warmly human terms.
Her writing, often focusing on those who are misunderstood, explores the lives of people living with neurological diseases and disorders. A bestselling author, her work has been transformed into an Oscar-winning film, Still Alice, but the real triumph is Genova’s ability to help us empathize with a person’s journey we otherwise couldn’t even begin to understand.
Her newest book, Inside the O’Briens, is about Huntington’s disease.
You can read a full transcript here.
Lisa Genova wields her ability to tell a story and her knowledge of the human brain to talk about medical conditions like Alzheimer’s in warmly human terms.
Her writing, often focusing on those who are misunderstood, explores the lives of people living with neurological diseases and disorders. A bestselling author, her work has been transformed into an Oscar-winning film, Still Alice, but the real triumph is Genova’s ability to help us empathize with a person’s journey we otherwise couldn’t even begin to understand.
Her newest book, Inside the O’Briens, is about Huntington’s disease.
You can read a full transcript here.
viernes, 26 de mayo de 2017
How what we eat has changed
We’ve gone from roasting to processing over thousands of years. What does the future hold for our food? Watch the video above to see what we’ll be eating in decades to come.
Humanity’s relationship with food production has certainly been a fruitful one. Our constant pursuit of refining how we eat is one of the reasons there are billions of us alive today. But it’s also a key factor as to why we are greatly damaging the Earth.
It all begins with fire. As far back as 29,000 BC Central Europeans were using primitive forms of ovens, roasting pits covered by yurts. Back then, mammoth was on the menu.
As we invented tools like ploughs and mills to help turn resources from the earth into food in our bellies, we produced enough to feed houses, then villages, then towns. Human civilization established itself.
One feature of civilizations that evolved was a thing called trade, and we did a lot of it. That’s why most of today’s biggest cities are found close to rivers and trade routes.
As agricultural revolutions took place, our population exploded, our food became more resilient due to developments such as machine refrigeration and pasteurizing, invented by this guy, French chemist Louise Pasteur in 1864. We could send hundreds of thousands of men to war and feed them thanks to food storage in cans.
By the 20th century microwave ovens arrived, meaning the mammoth we cooked 30,000 years ago in a pit, could now spin around in our kitchens.
We reached a point where the scale of production needed to feed everyone was impacting the planet’s resources. By the 1990’s we were selling genetically modified tomatoes to ensure reliable crop results.
This brings us to today’s climate concerns. Current food production is responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. How will we continue to feed a vastly increasing population while reducing damage to the environment? How do we tackle our global obesity epidemic and encourage healthier diets? One thing is certain, we must look immediately for new approaches. We’ve achieved it many times before, so it shouldn’t be too hard too swallow, right?
Well, that was delicious.
Humanity’s relationship with food production has certainly been a fruitful one. Our constant pursuit of refining how we eat is one of the reasons there are billions of us alive today. But it’s also a key factor as to why we are greatly damaging the Earth.
It all begins with fire. As far back as 29,000 BC Central Europeans were using primitive forms of ovens, roasting pits covered by yurts. Back then, mammoth was on the menu.
As we invented tools like ploughs and mills to help turn resources from the earth into food in our bellies, we produced enough to feed houses, then villages, then towns. Human civilization established itself.
One feature of civilizations that evolved was a thing called trade, and we did a lot of it. That’s why most of today’s biggest cities are found close to rivers and trade routes.
As agricultural revolutions took place, our population exploded, our food became more resilient due to developments such as machine refrigeration and pasteurizing, invented by this guy, French chemist Louise Pasteur in 1864. We could send hundreds of thousands of men to war and feed them thanks to food storage in cans.
By the 20th century microwave ovens arrived, meaning the mammoth we cooked 30,000 years ago in a pit, could now spin around in our kitchens.
We reached a point where the scale of production needed to feed everyone was impacting the planet’s resources. By the 1990’s we were selling genetically modified tomatoes to ensure reliable crop results.
This brings us to today’s climate concerns. Current food production is responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. How will we continue to feed a vastly increasing population while reducing damage to the environment? How do we tackle our global obesity epidemic and encourage healthier diets? One thing is certain, we must look immediately for new approaches. We’ve achieved it many times before, so it shouldn’t be too hard too swallow, right?
Well, that was delicious.
jueves, 25 de mayo de 2017
Capturing the scent of a book
A smell can evoke memories of a certain time, place or experience – now scientists at University College London are documenting scents as a way of recording culturally significant artefacts. Helen Drew explains.
We read them, we learn from them, some of us even write them. Books old or new, falling apart or unread. Here at University College London's Institute of Archaeology library it’s the largest collection of conservation-related books in London. But it's not just the words written on these pages that are important. According to scientists, the smell of these books has a significance that should also be recorded.
Smells have a big impact on our everyday life: how we feel, how we think and even how we behave, so we started looking into those smells that might have cultural value to us as a society and so our first challenge was to find, identify smell that we knew people valued and the smell of old books and historic libraries appeared as a very clear case.
In this lab scientists from UCL Institute for Sustainable Heritage are collecting chemicals on a tiny sensor which they then pop into a machine to separate the individual chemical compounds. These chemicals can then be used to recreate that smell in the future.
What do you think of the smell of books?
They have a rather particular smell for sure and I think it’s lovely, it's sort of musty but it's… it's really enjoyable. I love the smell of old libraries.
The smell of a book becomes associated of what you read in the book, well that can lead to all sorts of associations and sometimes the smell is enough just to remind you of what a book is.
Always when you get a new book and it's like the new smell, it's a kind of part of the experience.
At the moment smell is rarely recorded.
If you go to a gallery or to a museum, a hundred percent of the time the objects communicate with you visually, you can see the shapes, you can see the colours but you cannot touch them and you cannot smell them.
There are also … archives to recreate the potpourri from a National Trust house in the 1700s, so that when visitors walk in, they're transported back in time. The whole project isn't just about recording smells but also the emotions they evoke.
Helen Drew, BBC London news.
We read them, we learn from them, some of us even write them. Books old or new, falling apart or unread. Here at University College London's Institute of Archaeology library it’s the largest collection of conservation-related books in London. But it's not just the words written on these pages that are important. According to scientists, the smell of these books has a significance that should also be recorded.
Smells have a big impact on our everyday life: how we feel, how we think and even how we behave, so we started looking into those smells that might have cultural value to us as a society and so our first challenge was to find, identify smell that we knew people valued and the smell of old books and historic libraries appeared as a very clear case.
In this lab scientists from UCL Institute for Sustainable Heritage are collecting chemicals on a tiny sensor which they then pop into a machine to separate the individual chemical compounds. These chemicals can then be used to recreate that smell in the future.
What do you think of the smell of books?
They have a rather particular smell for sure and I think it’s lovely, it's sort of musty but it's… it's really enjoyable. I love the smell of old libraries.
The smell of a book becomes associated of what you read in the book, well that can lead to all sorts of associations and sometimes the smell is enough just to remind you of what a book is.
Always when you get a new book and it's like the new smell, it's a kind of part of the experience.
At the moment smell is rarely recorded.
If you go to a gallery or to a museum, a hundred percent of the time the objects communicate with you visually, you can see the shapes, you can see the colours but you cannot touch them and you cannot smell them.
There are also … archives to recreate the potpourri from a National Trust house in the 1700s, so that when visitors walk in, they're transported back in time. The whole project isn't just about recording smells but also the emotions they evoke.
Helen Drew, BBC London news.
miércoles, 24 de mayo de 2017
Talking point: Libraries
This week's talking point is libraries. Before getting together with the members of your conversation group, go over the questions below so that ideas come to mind more easily the day you get together with your friends and you can work out vocabulary problems beforehand.
Welcome to the Syracuse University Library. We’d like to take a few minutes to introduce you to the resources and services that we have to offer at the SU library. There are five library locations on campus. Bird library is located on University Place next door to the Schine Student Center. Adjacent to Bird you will find the Belfer Audio Laboratory and archives.
The Carnegie Building on the Quad is home to Science & technology and Mathematics libraries. The Geology library is in Heroy Hall. And you’ll find the Architecture Reading Room is Slocum Hall. The sixth storey E.S. Bird Library is considered the main library on campus. It’s home to the Learning Commons, an open active environment, where we can not only find traditional library services like the check-out desk, but you also find our Technology Assistant desk for borrowing laptops, headphones and cameras. You can get help with scanning and printing and photocopying.
And of course there are plenty of places to study either on your own or with a group. Research assistance is available on the drop-in basis, or you can make an appointment to consult with the librarian subject specialist. The Learning Commons is also where you will also find Pages, the library café, where you can grab a cup of coffee or something to eat. The second floor is the great place to relax, read or study. You can browse the stacks. Use the reference collection or browse current periodicals. On the third floor you can get assistance with the Maps and Government Information collections.
The Map Room houses thousands of maps and atlases. On the third floor you’ll also find the microfilm collections. As well as the Geographic and Statistical Information Center. The fourth floor is home to our fine arts collections. You’ll find a media area for viewing our film, video and DVD collections. And a listening area for LPs and CDs collections. Be sure to check out the exhibits and visit the Biblio Gallery.
The fifth floor is a quiet floor with plenty of study tables available. Take the elevator to the sixth floor to find the Special Collections Research Center. There you can browse their exhibits. And get assistance with their collections by signing in in the Reading Room. On the sixth floor you will also find the Safire Room, a great place for quiet study. We hope you have enjoyed this brief tour of the Syracuse University Library. To learn more, visit us at library.syr.edu
- Are libraries a thing of the past and e-Books and other mobile devices the present and future of reading?
- Do libraries put pressure on users to read books quickly?
- Where do you find it easier to study, at home or in a library?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
- Is the Internet a much more resourceful space than a library?
- Do libraries provide enough resources for everybody?
- What is the importance of traditional books?
- How would you describe the atmosphere of libraries?
- Do you find them inspiring and encouraging to research and study?
- What is the role of libraries in society?
Welcome to the Syracuse University Library. We’d like to take a few minutes to introduce you to the resources and services that we have to offer at the SU library. There are five library locations on campus. Bird library is located on University Place next door to the Schine Student Center. Adjacent to Bird you will find the Belfer Audio Laboratory and archives.
The Carnegie Building on the Quad is home to Science & technology and Mathematics libraries. The Geology library is in Heroy Hall. And you’ll find the Architecture Reading Room is Slocum Hall. The sixth storey E.S. Bird Library is considered the main library on campus. It’s home to the Learning Commons, an open active environment, where we can not only find traditional library services like the check-out desk, but you also find our Technology Assistant desk for borrowing laptops, headphones and cameras. You can get help with scanning and printing and photocopying.
And of course there are plenty of places to study either on your own or with a group. Research assistance is available on the drop-in basis, or you can make an appointment to consult with the librarian subject specialist. The Learning Commons is also where you will also find Pages, the library café, where you can grab a cup of coffee or something to eat. The second floor is the great place to relax, read or study. You can browse the stacks. Use the reference collection or browse current periodicals. On the third floor you can get assistance with the Maps and Government Information collections.
The Map Room houses thousands of maps and atlases. On the third floor you’ll also find the microfilm collections. As well as the Geographic and Statistical Information Center. The fourth floor is home to our fine arts collections. You’ll find a media area for viewing our film, video and DVD collections. And a listening area for LPs and CDs collections. Be sure to check out the exhibits and visit the Biblio Gallery.
The fifth floor is a quiet floor with plenty of study tables available. Take the elevator to the sixth floor to find the Special Collections Research Center. There you can browse their exhibits. And get assistance with their collections by signing in in the Reading Room. On the sixth floor you will also find the Safire Room, a great place for quiet study. We hope you have enjoyed this brief tour of the Syracuse University Library. To learn more, visit us at library.syr.edu
martes, 23 de mayo de 2017
Will fossil fuels run out
Greg Foot, from BBC's Earth Lab, looks into the dirty world of fossil fuels. Will we run out of fossil fuels and what cost will we likely pay for their use?
We've all heard that fossil fuels won't last forever but why. And if they are set to run out, how much is left and when will that happen. To dig to the bottom of this one, we first need a quick refresher on how the fossil fuels are created, and sadly, no, they're not mostly dead dinosaurs.
You see, the vast majority of our fossil fuels come from the remains of plants and animals. They lived around 300 to 400 million years ago. We don't see the first dinosaurs until around about 230 million years ago, so when these plants and animals died, that very, very long time ago, they were covered in layers of earth or silt, and because of the combined actions of three things: one, the compression from the weight of all that stuff; two, the microorganisms in there decomposing the contents; and three, the heat underground that transforms them into potential fuels.
Coal is the remnant of ancient plants while oil and natural gas mostly come from marine creatures. The natural gas being made in deeper hotter regions, where the oil gets a little bit more cooked.
Now we dig or drill this stuff out of the ground, and because it has been accumulating for a long time, initially there was a lot, but because it takes so long to make, we're using it much, much faster than it can possibly be replaced. This means that there is effectively a fixed amount of fuel on earth and we're using it up.
So, yes, fossil fuels are going to run out but what is left and when will that happen. Well, we can fairly easily tally up what's known as our proven resources, the supplies that we know the locations of and we think we have a good chance of getting to.
In their statistical review of world energy, BP estimated that the world had just over 1,700 billion proven barrels of oil in 2014. That's enough to make 52 and a half years of global production. They also estimated just over 187 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. That's enough for 54 years. Then 891,531 million tons of coal, enough for a whopping 110 years of global production.
But there's also the stuff that we know about can't reach but think we might be able to get to some day. Hard figures on that are understandably tougher to come by, but oil and gas consulting firm Rystad Energy estimates total probable global oil reserves at 2,092 billion barrels, which is enough for about 70 years if our use doesn't go up.
The total fuel resource, the amount of fossil fuels that could be out there that we know nothing about, could, of course, be even higher, but around four years ago an idea came out that there actually is plenty of oil left, just that we haven't got around to getting it out of the ground yet. This means the numbers for the potential oil out there could, in fact, be way higher.
We've already seen humanity use new technologies to access new fuels that we couldn't get to before. Things like new techniques to extract oil where it's all mixed up in fine grained sedimentary rocks like shale or using high-pressure fracking to extract more oil and gas from the ground. One thing stopping us using these new technologies to extract fuels is that the rising energy cost of extracting it could be just as damaging as the oil running out.
Despite the cost of oil, the amount being extracted has actually remained constant, about 75 million barrels per day since 2005, and this means a plateau has been reached where supply cannot match demand. It's also worth pointing out that fracking is far from ideal. It's been claimed that it has been linked to earthquakes and toxic tap water.
We've already seen how the economics of getting to the fuel can outweigh humanity's demand for it. In 2016 around 460,000 barrels a day of high cost production like fracking was shut down in the US due to the cost. But that just means surely it’s there for later, when the economics are right, right?
Well, maybe we need to leave it there. The planet is warming due to the burning of those fossil fuels. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, trap heat and it causes a greenhouse effect. It's been estimated that we cannot burn more than about a third of those proven resources if we have any hope at all of meeting plans to keep the temperature rise at 2 degrees centigrade or less. Although it may feel that we don't seem to be in a particular hurry to look for alternatives, energy transitions have always taken a long time. It took over 50 years for coal to replace wood as the world's leading source of energy, and another 50 years for oil to overtake coal.
So here's a promising thought. In the end, with so many options for renewable sources of sustainable power being developed, we might actually never have to answer this question of what happens when the oil is finally all gone.
Right, this is where we really want to hear your opinions about this whole subject. Put your thoughts down in the comments below, subscribe to the channel if you haven't already, and then you'll get to know whenever we release a new one, and if you'd like to know if you can become a fossil, click here, it's an interesting one. See you soon.
We've all heard that fossil fuels won't last forever but why. And if they are set to run out, how much is left and when will that happen. To dig to the bottom of this one, we first need a quick refresher on how the fossil fuels are created, and sadly, no, they're not mostly dead dinosaurs.
You see, the vast majority of our fossil fuels come from the remains of plants and animals. They lived around 300 to 400 million years ago. We don't see the first dinosaurs until around about 230 million years ago, so when these plants and animals died, that very, very long time ago, they were covered in layers of earth or silt, and because of the combined actions of three things: one, the compression from the weight of all that stuff; two, the microorganisms in there decomposing the contents; and three, the heat underground that transforms them into potential fuels.
Coal is the remnant of ancient plants while oil and natural gas mostly come from marine creatures. The natural gas being made in deeper hotter regions, where the oil gets a little bit more cooked.
Now we dig or drill this stuff out of the ground, and because it has been accumulating for a long time, initially there was a lot, but because it takes so long to make, we're using it much, much faster than it can possibly be replaced. This means that there is effectively a fixed amount of fuel on earth and we're using it up.
So, yes, fossil fuels are going to run out but what is left and when will that happen. Well, we can fairly easily tally up what's known as our proven resources, the supplies that we know the locations of and we think we have a good chance of getting to.
In their statistical review of world energy, BP estimated that the world had just over 1,700 billion proven barrels of oil in 2014. That's enough to make 52 and a half years of global production. They also estimated just over 187 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. That's enough for 54 years. Then 891,531 million tons of coal, enough for a whopping 110 years of global production.
But there's also the stuff that we know about can't reach but think we might be able to get to some day. Hard figures on that are understandably tougher to come by, but oil and gas consulting firm Rystad Energy estimates total probable global oil reserves at 2,092 billion barrels, which is enough for about 70 years if our use doesn't go up.
The total fuel resource, the amount of fossil fuels that could be out there that we know nothing about, could, of course, be even higher, but around four years ago an idea came out that there actually is plenty of oil left, just that we haven't got around to getting it out of the ground yet. This means the numbers for the potential oil out there could, in fact, be way higher.
We've already seen humanity use new technologies to access new fuels that we couldn't get to before. Things like new techniques to extract oil where it's all mixed up in fine grained sedimentary rocks like shale or using high-pressure fracking to extract more oil and gas from the ground. One thing stopping us using these new technologies to extract fuels is that the rising energy cost of extracting it could be just as damaging as the oil running out.
Despite the cost of oil, the amount being extracted has actually remained constant, about 75 million barrels per day since 2005, and this means a plateau has been reached where supply cannot match demand. It's also worth pointing out that fracking is far from ideal. It's been claimed that it has been linked to earthquakes and toxic tap water.
We've already seen how the economics of getting to the fuel can outweigh humanity's demand for it. In 2016 around 460,000 barrels a day of high cost production like fracking was shut down in the US due to the cost. But that just means surely it’s there for later, when the economics are right, right?
Well, maybe we need to leave it there. The planet is warming due to the burning of those fossil fuels. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, trap heat and it causes a greenhouse effect. It's been estimated that we cannot burn more than about a third of those proven resources if we have any hope at all of meeting plans to keep the temperature rise at 2 degrees centigrade or less. Although it may feel that we don't seem to be in a particular hurry to look for alternatives, energy transitions have always taken a long time. It took over 50 years for coal to replace wood as the world's leading source of energy, and another 50 years for oil to overtake coal.
So here's a promising thought. In the end, with so many options for renewable sources of sustainable power being developed, we might actually never have to answer this question of what happens when the oil is finally all gone.
Right, this is where we really want to hear your opinions about this whole subject. Put your thoughts down in the comments below, subscribe to the channel if you haven't already, and then you'll get to know whenever we release a new one, and if you'd like to know if you can become a fossil, click here, it's an interesting one. See you soon.
domingo, 21 de mayo de 2017
Extensive listening: The future we're building — and boring
Elon Musk discusses his new project digging tunnels under LA, the latest from Tesla and SpaceX and his motivation for building a future on Mars in conversation with TED's Head Curator, Chris Anderson.
Elon Musk is the CEO and product architect of Tesla Motors and the CEO/CTO of Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX).
At SpaceX, Musk oversees the development of rockets and spacecraft for missions to Earth orbit and ultimately to other planets. In 2008, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft won the NASA contract to provide cargo transport to space. In 2012, SpaceX became the first commercial company to dock with the International Space Station and return cargo to Earth with the Dragon.
At Tesla, Musk has overseen product development and design from the beginning, including the all-electric Tesla Roadster, Model S and Model X, and the rollout of Supercharger stations to keep the cars juiced up. (Some of the charging stations use solar energy systems from SolarCity, of which Musk is the non-executive chair.) Transitioning to a sustainable energy economy, in which electric vehicles play a pivotal role, has been one of his central interests for almost two decades. He co-founded PayPal and served as the company's chair and CEO.
You can read a full transcript here.
Elon Musk is the CEO and product architect of Tesla Motors and the CEO/CTO of Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX).
At SpaceX, Musk oversees the development of rockets and spacecraft for missions to Earth orbit and ultimately to other planets. In 2008, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft won the NASA contract to provide cargo transport to space. In 2012, SpaceX became the first commercial company to dock with the International Space Station and return cargo to Earth with the Dragon.
At Tesla, Musk has overseen product development and design from the beginning, including the all-electric Tesla Roadster, Model S and Model X, and the rollout of Supercharger stations to keep the cars juiced up. (Some of the charging stations use solar energy systems from SolarCity, of which Musk is the non-executive chair.) Transitioning to a sustainable energy economy, in which electric vehicles play a pivotal role, has been one of his central interests for almost two decades. He co-founded PayPal and served as the company's chair and CEO.
You can read a full transcript here.
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