Oral Fuency Course

    

State of Kuwait Ministry of Education ELT Supervision

                                                         

             

إعداد

التـوجيـه الفني العــام للغــة الانجليـزيـة

Prepared by

ELT SUPERVISION

    العام الدراسي 2007 – 2008 م

 

الجدول الزمني و المادة العلمية

للدورة

م	الموضـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــوع	عـدد الساعات
1	استعراض مهارات الاستيعاب المسموع	3
2	الحوار الموجه / طلاقة شفوية	3
3	مناقشة موضوعات للطلاقة الشفوية	3
4	طرق الحواروالمحادثة السليمة ( الرسمية وغير الرسمية)/ الصوتيات	3
5	استخدام العبارات والأساليب الصحيحة في المحادثة / معالجة الاخطاء اللغوية الشائعة	3
6	استعراض طرق القراءة الجهرية السليمة	3
7	مهارات التحليل النقدي	3
8	حلقات نقاشية مصغرة	3

                                                                                    الموجه الفني العام  للغة الانجليزية

                                                                                  أ/  سكينة علي

 

الموضوع الأول

استعراض مهارات الاستيعاب المسموع

LISTENING SKILLS

LISTENING SKILLS

Only about 25 percent of listeners grasp the central ideas in communications. To improve listening skills, consider the following:

Poor Listener	Effective Listener
tends to "wool-gather" with slow speakers	thinks and mentally summarizes, weighs the evidence, listens between the lines to tones of voice and evidence
subject is dry so tunes out speaker	finds what's in it for me
distracted easily	fights distractions, sees past bad communication habits, knows how to concentrate
takes intensive notes, but the more notes taken, the less value; has only one way to take notes	has 2-3 ways to take notes and organize important information
is overstimulated, tends to seek and enter into arguments	doesn't judge until comprehension is complete
inexperienced in listening to difficult material; has usually sought light, recreational materials	uses "heavier" materials to regularly exercise the mind
lets deaf spots or blind words catch his or her attention	interpret color words, and doesn't get hung up on them
shows no energy output	holds eye contact and helps speaker along by showing an active body state
judges delivery -- tunes out	judges content, skips over delivery errors
listens for facts	listens for central ideas

The Secrets to Listening Well

"Listening is as powerful a means of communication and influence as to talk well." - John Marshall
There must be a lot of frustrated people out there, a lot of people who feel like they aren’t listened to, a lot of people throwing up their arms and saying, "You just don’t get it, do you?" I say this because some of the most popular pages on The PAR Group’s web site are on listening skills. There seems to be a growing realization of the importance of solid listening and communication skills in business. After all, lack of attention and respectful listening can be costly - leading to mistakes, poor service, misaligned goals, wasted time and lack of teamwork. This is why all of our coaching programs start with a foundation of listening skills. You can’t sell unless you understand your customer’s problem; you can’t manage unless you understand your employee’s motivation; and you can’t gain team consensus unless you understand each team member’s feelings about the issue at hand. In all of these cases, you must listen to others. However, listening is less important than how you listen. By listening in a way that demonstrates understanding and respect, you cause rapport to develop, and that is the true foundation from which you can sell, manage or influence others.
"I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen." - Ernest Hemingway

Following are some keys to listening well:

1. Give 100% Attention: Prove you care by suspending all other activities.
2. Respond: Responses can be both verbal and nonverbal (nods, expressing interest) but must prove you received the message, and more importantly, prove it had an impact on you. Speak at approximately the same energy level as the other person...then they’ll know they really got through and don’t have to keep repeating.
3. Prove understanding: To say "I understand" is not enough. People need some sort of evidence or proof of understanding. Prove your understanding by occasionally restating the gist of their idea or by asking a question which proves you know the main idea. The important point is not to repeat what they’ve said to prove you were listening, but to prove you understand. The difference in these two intentions transmit remarkably different messages when you are communicating.
4. Prove respect: Prove you take other views seriously. It seldom helps to tell people, "I appreciate your position" or "I know how you feel." You have to prove it by being willing to communicate with others at their level of understanding and attitude. We do this naturally by adjusting our tone of vice, rate of speech and choice of words to show that we are trying to imagine being where they are at the moment.

Listening to and acknowledging other people may seem deceptively simple, but doing it well, particularly when disagreements arise, takes true talent. As with any skill, listening well takes plenty of practice.

LISTENING SKILLS

We were given two ears but only one mouth.

This is because listening is twice as hard as talking.

People need to practice and acquire skills to be good listeners, because a speaker cannot throw you information in the same manner that a dart player tosses a dart at a passive dartboard. Information is an intangible substance that must be sent by the speaker and received by an active listener.

The face it solution for effective listening

Many people are familiar with the scene of the child standing in front of dad, just bursting to tell him what happened in school that day. Unfortunately, dad has the paper in front of his face and even when he drops the paper down half-way, it is visibly apparent that he is not really listening.

A student solved the problem of getting dad to listen from behind his protective paper wall. Her solution was to say, "Move your face, dad, when I'm talking to you.'' This simple solution will force even the poorest listener to adopt effective listening skills because it captures the essence of good listening.

Good listeners listen with their faces

The first skill that you can practice to be a good listener is to act like a good listener. We have spent a lot of our modern lives working at tuning out all of the information that is thrust at us. It therefore becomes important to change our physical body language from that of a deflector to that of a receiver, much like a satellite dish. Our faces contain most of the receptive equipment in our bodies, so it is only natural that we should tilt our faces towards the channel of information.

A second skill is to use the other bodily receptors besides your ears. You can be a better listener when you look at the other person. Your eyes pick up the non-verbal signals that all people send out when they are speaking. By looking at the speaker, your eyes will also complete the eye contact that speakers are trying to make. A speaker will work harder at sending out the information when they see a receptive audience in attendance. Your eyes help complete the communication circuit that must be established between speaker and listener. When you have established eye and face contact with your speaker, you must then react to the speaker by sending out non-verbal signals. Your face must move and give the range of emotions that indicate whether you are following what the speaker has to say. By moving your face to the information, you can better concentrate on what the person is saying. Your face must become an active and contoured catcher of information.

It is extremely difficult to receive information when your mouth is moving information out at the same time. A good listener will stop talking and use receptive language instead. Use the I see . . . un hunh . . . oh really words and phrases that follow and encourage your speaker's train of thought. This forces you to react to the ideas presented, rather than the person. You can then move to asking questions, instead of giving your opinion on the information being presented. It is a true listening skill to use your mouth as a moving receptor of information rather than a broadcaster.

A final skill is to move your mind to concentrate on what the speaker is saying. You cannot fully hear their point of view or process information when you argue mentally or judge what they are saying before they have completed. An open mind is a mind that is receiving and listening to information.

If you really want to listen, you will act like a good listener. Good listeners are good catchers because they give their speakers a target and then move that target to capture the information that is being sent. When good listeners don't understand their speakers, they will send signals to the speaker about what they expect next, or how the speaker can change the speed of information delivery to suit the listener. Above all, a good listener involves all of their face to be an active moving listener.

Things to remember 

1. If you are really listening intently, you should feel tired after your speaker has finished. Effective listening is an active rather than a passive activity.
2. When you find yourself drifting away during a listening session, change your body position and concentrate on using one of the above skills. Once one of the skills is being used, the other active skills will come into place as well.
3. Your body position defines whether you will have the chance of being a good listener or a good deflector. Good listeners are like poor boxers: they lead with their faces.
4. Meaning cannot just be transmitted as a tangible substance by the speaker. It must also be stimulated or aroused in the receiver. The receiver must therefore be an active participant for the cycle of communication to be complete.

What are the three types of effective listening?

1. Paraphrasing

To paraphrase, one simply rewords what another individual has said. For example, the speaker might say, ``She was foolish to quit her job.'' The listener might respond, ``I hear you saying that you believe she shouldn't have quit.'' What has occurred is paraphrasing where the listener has clarified what the speaker has said.

Paraphrase - Restating what another person has said in your own words

Example: Speaker: It just wasn't the right thing for him to do

Listener: You believe he shouldn't have done that.

2. Open questions

An open question explores a person's statement without requiring a simple ``yes'' or ``no'' answer. The basic difference between an open question and a closed question is what they provide the person being asked. When you are asked an open question it helps you think more about an issue. A closed question will not do that. It may force you to answer before you are ready, or require a ``yes'' or ``no'' answer that doesn't allow more thinking about the issue. Closed questions close the door on further thought, while open questions open the door. For example, the speaker might say, ``I don't like my job.'' The listener might respond, ``What about your job don't you like?'' or, ``Tell me more about your feelings regarding your job.''

Open Question - A question that helps a person explore their feelings (rather than forcing a ``yes,'' ``no,'' or other certain answer).

Example: Speaker: I didn't like that show.

Listener: What didn't you like about it?

Example: Speaker: I didn't like that show.

Listener: What didn't you like about it?

3. Feeling Reflection.

Feeling reflection is a response in which you express a feeling or emotion you have experienced in reference to a particular statement. For example, the speaker might say, ``I get sick of working so much overtime!'' The listener might respond, ``I hear you feeling angry and resentful at being asked to work so much overtime.'' Feeling reflections are perhaps the most difficult active listening responses to make. Not only do you actively listen to what is being said but also you actively listen for what is being felt. When you make a feeling reflection, you are reflecting back what you hear of another's feelings. It is similar to paraphrasing; however, you repeat what you heard them feeling instead of what you heard them saying. To understand what individuals are feeling, you must listen to their words, to their tone of voice, and watch their body signals. By observing all three you can begin to guess their feelings.

Feeling Reflection - your perception of the speaker's feelings based on words, tone, and body language.

Example:

Speaker: I can't stand to be kept waiting!

Listener: Your pacing the floor and your tone of voice tells me that you feel this an abuse of your time.

 

How can listening skills be improved?

       Listen carefully so that you will be able to understand, comprehend, and evaluate. Careful listening will require a conscious effort on your part. You must be aware of the verbal and nonverbal messages (reading between the lines).

       Be mentally and physically prepared to listen. Put other thoughts out of your mind. Your attention will be diverted from listening if you try to think of answers in advance.

       You can't hear if YOU do all the talking. Don't talk too much.

       Think about the topic in advance, if possible. Be prepared to listen.

       Listen with empathy. See the situation from the other's point of view. Try to put yourself in their shoes.

       Be courteous; don't interrupt. Take notes if you worry about forgetting a particular point.

       Avoid stereotyping individuals by making assumptions about how you expect them to act. This will bias your listening.

       Listen to how something is said. Be alert for what is left unsaid.

       Make certain everyone involved gets an opportunity to voice their opinions. Don't let one person dominate the conversation.

       Face those you are talking with, lean slightly forward, and make eye contact. Use body to show your interest, concern.

Roadblocks to effective listening.

distracting         sympathizing         demanding         interpreting         teaching         withdrawing        giving solutions         scolding         praising         advising        criticizing         directing         lecturing        name–calling

The following types of responses indicate ineffective listening:

       warning                                              

       interrogating 

       preaching

       ordering

       judging 

       diverting

       analyzing

       blaming

       labeling 

       moralizing

       probing 

       ridiculing

       threatening 

       reassuring   

Reasons to Improve Listening Skills

       To avoid saying the wrong thing, being tactless

       To dissipate strong feelings

       To learn to accept feelings (yours and others)

       To generate a feeling of caring

       To help people start listening to you

       To increase the other person's confidence in you

       To make the other person feel important and recognized

       To be sure you both are on the same wavelength

       To be sure you both are focused on the same topic

Questions to Ask Yourself in Conversations

       What am I doing in this interaction?

       What are my strategies or goals in communicating this message?

       Where do I want to go in this conversation?

       What pressures am I feeling in talking with this person?

       What could I say differently?

       How could I say that so as to show I understood?

       What am I feeling at this time?

       What impulses do I have?

       What cues of the other am I responding to?

       How does his behavior affect my approach in this discussion?

       How could I have made what I just said more empathetic? How did I demonstrate respect for the other?

       How is my level of communication and vocabulary affecting the dialogue?

       What different style of communication could I use to reach her better?

       How attentive am I to him at this time?

       How do I feel about her response?

       How did that question further the discussion and show I was listening?

       How honest are my statements with her?

       What can I do to improve the feedback I am giving the other?

       What responses can I use to demonstrate that I am ``with'' the other?

Prepared by

Senior E.L.T Supervisor Helena Moh'd

 

الموضوع الثاني

الحوار الموجه / طلاقة شفوية                   

ORAL FLUENCY /

GUIDED CONVERSATION

Guided Conversation

• School uniforms (pros /cons).
• Single parent families.
• Family violence.
• School safety.
• Healthy eating.
• My dream holiday.
• Does wearing the hijab give the Muslim woman more freedom?
• How much do we have to save for a comfortable life?
• Ghosts; are they real?
• How much cartoon affects children?
• Aliens and UFO's; yes or no?
• Books; are they a thing from the past?
• Breast feeding.
• Does dieting lead to eating disorder?
• Brand names cost more, but is the quality better?
• Divorce; does it destroy children?
• Mothers should stay at home.
• Privacy rights for celebrities.
• Smoking in public places.
• Speed limits; safety or restrictions.
• Is stomach stapling the way to lose weight?
• Wrestling and football for girls.
• Who says crime doesn't pay!
• 25 uses for a-------( paper clip – tennis ball- bus ticket)
• How to make new friends.
• My favourite ( place – holiday – job – actor-book)
• When there is a will there is a way.
• Our generation has no future.
• It is better to bend than risk breaking.
• Food customs.
• A way from home (describing experience abroad)
• Are there good lies?
• Future possibilities in my life.
• A teacher I'll never forget.
• Why students never listen to teachers.
• Movies affect our social life.
• Workaholics and socialization.
• How to spend time on long flights.
• How hard it is to be a passive smoker.
• Being a shopping addict.
• Are you aware of your personal qualities?
• Where does time go?(managing your time)
• Working backwards from deadlines.
• Am I ready to make a presentation? Why?
• What my job means to me.
• Best memories.
• Are you daydreaming anymore?
• Are you planning for your next move? How?

Prepared by

E.L.T Supervisor Maha Al Ibraheem

 

الموضوع الثالث

مناقشة موضوعات للطلاقة الشفوية

ORAL FLUENCY /

EXTENSIVE DISCUSSION

Extensive discussion

• Stress management Time management World hunger Health / fitness Academic dishonesty Addiction Aging population Alternative medicine Medicine abuse Bird flu Endangered oceans Endangered species Immigration Organ donation Peace Religious rights Water resources War on drugs Energy alternatives Environmental crimes Epidemics Rights are more important than responsibilities Unemployment The pros and cons of arranged marriages Higher education; is it a must? Hesitation versus decision making Basic health and safety for e-learning Self motivation/ self evaluation Plagiarism  Long life learning                   Prepared by E.L.T Supervisor Maha Al Ibraheem

  Adoption
• Birth control                                                   
• Cloning
• Human cloning
• Censorship of internet
• Chat rooms; are they safe?
• Conservation or recycling?
• Feminism
• Gene testing
• Global warming
• Illiteracy ;is it a problem?
•  Nuclear weapons
• Online gambling
• Organ transplants
• Terrorism
• Women in the military
• Colour blindness
• Laughing is a medicine
• Mass Media and privacy
• Airline passenger rights
• Animal rights
• Aids education awareness
• Air pollution
• Alcoholism
• Child abuse
• Child labour
• Computer literacy
• Gender discrimination
• Racial discrimination
• Handicap discrimination
• Age discrimination
• School violence
• Seat belts
• Self defense
• Sports

 

الموضوع الرابع

طرق الحوار

والمحادثة السليمة ( الرسمية وغير الرسمية)

/ الصوتيات 

DIALOGUE & CONVERSATION

(FORMAL & INFORMAL LANGUAGE)

/

PHONETICS

Formal vs. Informal

            In English, relative formality is less a question of grammar than of vocabulary and syntax, whereas other languages -- Spanish, for example -- use a different set of verb conjugations. In an informal situation, I might say, "Gimme that." But the formal expression would be "Would you please pass me that?" More idiom than rule here.
            Why is this important? Language expresses the vast range of human relationships, and some are more formal than others. If my brother and I are watching TV and I say "Would you please pass me the chips?" he would assume I was joking or angry at him or had been replaced by a robot. But if I were having dinner with the President and said, "Gimme the potatoes," I might be thrown out before the dessert arrives.

Formal or Informal language   

Official or serious situations are often signalled by the use of formal language, while ordinary or relaxed situations are signalled by the use of informal language. Formality of language varies in relation to such factors as public v. private occasion, the size of the audience, the relationship of the speaker/writer with the audience, and so on. The ability to vary your language according to the situation is often considered a mark of an educated person.

1. Formal language, even when spoken, is often associated with the conventions expected of written Standard English. At its most extreme, formal language is signalled by complex, complete sentences, impersonality, avoidance of colloquial or slang vocabulary, and a consistent preference for learned? words, often derived from Latin.

2. Informal language is characterised by a simpler grammatical structure (i.e. loosely-connected sentences and phrases), personal evaluation, and a colloquial or slang vocabulary.

3. Formal and informal forms of address also differ, e.g. from the frozen? My Right Honourable and Learned Friend associated with official parliamentary proceedings, to the intimate darling or love associated with close friends and family.

People often speak of language as being correct or incorrect. It would be more accurate to refer to particular language structures as being formal or informal, appropriate or inappropriate for a specific context. In everyday conversation we do not have to follow the rules of grammar as carefully as we would in a formal address or a business letter. If we adhere too closely to formal rules of grammar in an informal situation, we can come across as being stuffy and unnatural. It is like wearing a tuxedo or a formal gown to an ordinary business meeting.

Formal English follow rules of grammar very strictly. Sentences tend to be longer and more complex. The vocabulary tends to be elevated, using big words and avoiding slang or vernacular. It avoids split infinitives and prepositions at the end of sentences.  Here are several structures where it is can be helpful to know the level of usage, formal or informal.

Predicate nominative or "It wasn't me".

In writing, there are three recognized levels of formality, each of which uses different vocabulary and sentence structure:

1. Informal language may make use of slang and colloquialisms, employing the conventions of spoken language. However, it is too casual and loose to be acceptable for academic writing.
2. Medium language uses general language, falling in between informal and formal writing. It is acceptable for academic writing.
3. Formal language uses a Latinate vocabulary and rhetorical devices to create literary-like effects.

In choosing a level of formality, consider both your material and your readership. A serious, dignified subject for a knowledgeable audience requires formal language. In contrast, informal writing is appropriate for private letters, some business correspondence, popular journalism, and personal narratives. Academic writing, however, should range from medium to formal language.  The following three sentences attempt to highlight the three levels of formality.   

Informal: Psychobabble is a bunch of crap that confuses people.
Medium: Psychobabble is a jargonistic smoke screen that obscures the clarity of understanding it pretends to promote.
Formal: Psychobabble is a set of repetitive verbal formalities that obfuscates the lucidity of comprehension it feigns to advance.  

Predicate nominative or Predicate noun

The predicate noun or predicate nominative is a word or group of words that comes after a linking verb and refers back to the subject of the sentence. It gives another name or designation to the subject. The following sentences end with a predicate noun:

My car is a Saturn.
My cat's name is Dickens.

Car and Saturn are the same thing. Cat's name and Dickens are also the same thing.

Pronouns as predicate nouns

When a pronoun is put in the position of predicate noun, it should be in subjective rather than objective case: that is, I rather than me, he rather than him. The is particular true in more formal situation.

It is I.
That is he.

If those sentences sound strange to you, the Grammar Doctor hereby give you permission to say,
It's me.
Yeah, that's him.

If you're torn between being grammatically correct and sounding stiff and unnatural, instead of saying,
It is I,
you can say,
This is Carl.

Instead of saying,
That is he,
you can say,
He's the one.

Who/Whom

"Who" is correct when it is a subject or a predicate noun.
SUBJECT: Who is coming to the meeting?

PREDICATE NOUN: You can be whoever you want.

"Whom" is correct if it is a direct object or an object of a preposition.

Direct Object: The man whom he hit is suing.

Object of Preposition: To whom is the message directed?

Part of the confusion over "who" and "whom" arises because the words often occur in complex sentences where it is difficult to see the function of the word in the sentence.

Give the message to whoever answers the door.

(The correct word here is "whoever" because it is the subject of "answers." People tend to use "whomever" here because it comes after a preposition, but the object of the preposition is the entire clause "whoever comes to the door.")

A Final Note

If you're not sure whether to use" who" or " whom," it is always better to say " who." First of all, it is acceptable to to do so in informal writing and speaking. Most people will not even notice if you say " who" where grammatical strictness calls for " whom." However, if you say " whom" where the structure of the sentence calls for " who," it will sound strange to most people.

Split infinitives

An infinitive is a verb with the word " to" in front of it:

to die, to sleep, perchance to dream.

If a descriptive word is put between "to" and the verb, it is called a split infinitive:

To quietly die, to bravely go forth, to fondly remember

English writers have been splitting infinitives for centuries, but pedantic grammarians in the nineteenth century began calling it incorrect to split an infinitive. It is one of those rulings based on Latin rather than the natural grammar of English. Except in the most formal settings, it is quite acceptable to quietly split an infinitive now and then, but if you do, some pedant is going to falsely accuse you of being ungrammatical.

Prepositions at the End of the Sentence

One of the major bugaboos of the English language is the " rule" that you're not supposed to end a sentence with a preposition, like the following:

Where do rules of grammar come from?

Rules should grow naturally from the language, rather than be imposed artificially.

Here is what some prominent scholars of the English language have to say about that rule.

• "Good writers throughout the history of English--from Chaucer and Shakespeare to Alison Lurie and David Lodge--have not shrunk from ending clauses or sentences prepositions. It isn't something that we should go out of our way to do, but if the alternative that comes readily to mind seems stilted, there's no reason for us to go out of our way to avoid doing it, either." Barbara Wallraff, Word Court
• "Since we hate to force prepositions apart from their objects, the most graceful sentences don't end with prepositions. But prepositions and their objects should not be unnaturally forced together, either" Constance Hale, Sin and Syntax Constance Hale also quoted Winston Churchill's famous state that poked fun at pedants who objected to prepositions at the end of sentences. "This is the sort of English up with which I will not put."

Patricia T. O'Connor in Woe Is I , refers to the rule about prepositions at the end of a sentence as a tombstone that should R.I.P. She puts her finger on the man who started that stupid rule, Robert Lowth, an eighteenth century clergyman who wrote a grammar book. He made the rule up because that's the way it is in Latin! But it never belonged in the English language. The manuscript of one of the Grammar Doctor's books was sent out to readers to evaluate. Several of them objected to grammatical errors in the manuscript. Naturally the Grammar Doctor was offended by that objection. What the readers objected to was the prepositions at the end of sentences. These were left in deliberately to make the language of the book more natural and conversational. The Grammar Doctor wanted to avoid the stuffy, pompous, dry style of so many text books.

Language and Style   

In any language, different styles of expression are appropriate in different situations. We can go from the formal to the informal, the written to the spoken, from technical language (or jargon) to slang.

There are no "rules" as such; nevertheless, there are plenty of features which distinguish formal styles from informal styles. here are some of them.

Principles of English written style:

Note: these are principles: they are by no means to be considered as "rules". Examples follow.

a) The more formal a document  is, the more it will use inanimate nouns as subjects of a sentence.
b) The more formal language is, the more it is likely to use passive structures.
c) The more formal language is, the more verbal nouns it will use.
d) The more formal a document is, the more words of Latin origin it will use.
 

Conversely

a) The more informal or spontaneous language is, the more it will use humans as the subjects of sentences.
b) The more informal a text is, the less it will use passive structures,
c) The more informal a text is, the more it will use verb structures (where a choice is possible).
b) The more informal or spoken a text is, the more words of Germanic origin it will use.
Here are some examples; in each case, the same idea is expressed using three different levels of formality: look at the different changes that occur, as we move from a formal style to an informal one

1. The inclement climatic conditions obliged the President to return earlier than scheduled. The president was obliged to return earlier than planned due to poor weather conditions. The president had to go back sooner than he'd planned because the weather was so bad.

2. Please await instructions before dispatching items. Please wait for instructions before sending items off. Don't send anything off until you're told to do so.

Essential measures should be undertaken at the earliest opportunity. One should undertake any necessary measures at the earliest opportunity. You should do whatever you have to as soon as you can.

Prior to the discovery of America, potatoes were not consumed in Europe. Before America was discovered, potatoes were not eaten in Europe. Before they discovered America, Europeans didn't eat potatoes.

From Written to Spoken Styles

Written and spoken versions of a language use different styles, different registers. To talk in "written English" may be no more appropriate than to write using a "spoken" variety of English. Generally speaking, written English is always more formal than spoken English. Nevertheless, there are informal forms of written English (notably in fiction and in the popular press), and formal styles of spoken English, in particular "discourse", or prepared speech.  In the following examples, the same message is expressed in five different styles, from an extremely formal written style, to the very informal spoken style. (The information expressed in the following examples is necessarily quite technical, as formal jargon levels of expression are totally inappropriate for non technical communication).

a) Jargon, very formal.
This is the style of language used in official reports, technical studies, etc. It is exclusively a style of written English, full of verbal nouns, technical words and passives.
Consequent to the appreciation in the exchange value of Sterling against other currencies, necessary fiscal measures were introduced by the government in order to reduce the likelihood of an import-led consumer spending surge

b) Written, formal, clear.
This is clear, written English, as found in the press or in documents aimed at ordinary educated readers.
After the international value of Sterling rose, the government was obliged to take fiscal measures to reduce the likelihood of a surge in consumer spending led by cheaper imports.

c) Written style for the general public, discourse, scripted radio or TV news style.
As the value of Sterling increased compared to other currencies, the government was forced to take tax measures to head off a rapid increase in consumer spending spurred on by cheaper imports.

d) Formal spoken style - radio, seminar, talk.
As Sterling's international value went up, the government had to take tax measures to head off a consumer spending boom spurred on by cheaper imports.

e) Relaxed, informal spoken style: discussion.
There is plenty of use of prepositional verbs. All actions are now expressed through verbs, not verbal nouns
As Sterling went up in value, the government had to put up taxes to stop consumers splashing out on too many cheap imports.

 f) Relaxed, simplified, chat, very informal spoken style; 
Note the addition of repetition and fillers.
And you see, Sterling got more and more valuable, so as a result, the government had to go round putting up taxes, you see, to stop everyone going out and splashing out, spending all their money on cheap imports.

Official or serious situations are often signalled by the use of formal language, while ordinary or relaxed situations are signalled by the use of informal language. Formality of language varies in relation to such factors as public v. private occasion, the size of the audience, the relationship of the speaker/writer with the audience, and so on. The ability to vary your language according to the situation is often considered a mark of an educated person (see Appropriateness).

Notes

-          Formal language, even when spoken, is often associated with the conventions expected of written Standard English. At its most extreme, formal language is signalled by complex, complete sentences, impersonality, avoidance of colloquial or slang vocabulary, and a consistent preference for ‘learned’ words, often derived from Latin.

-          Informal language is characterised by a simpler grammatical structure (i.e. loosely-connected sentences and phrases), personal evaluation, and a colloquial or slang vocabulary.

-           Formal and informal forms of address also differ, e.g. from the ‘frozen’ My Right Honourable and Learned Friend associated with official parliamentary proceedings, to the intimate darling or love associated with close friends and family.

These phrases are useful for expressing your ideas and giving input to a meeting.

Interrupting

May I have a word?
If I may, I think...
Excuse me for interrupting.
May I come in here?

Giving Opinions

I (really) feel that...
In my opinion...
The way I see things...
If you ask me,... I tend to think that...

Asking for Opinions

Do you (really) think that...?
(Name of participant) can we get your input?
How do you feel about...?

Commenting on Other Opinions

I never thought about it that way before.
Good point!
I get your point.
I see what you mean.

Agreeing with Other Opinions

Exactly!
That's (exactly) the way I feel.
I have to agree with (name of participant).

Disagreeing with Other Opinions

Up to a point I agree with you, but...
(I'm afraid) I can't agree

Advising and Suggesting

We should...
Why don't you....
How/  What about...
I suggest/recommend that...

I didn't catch that. Could you repeat that, please?
I missed that. Could you say it again, please?
Could you run that by me one more time?

Asking for Clarification

I'm afraid I don't quite understand what your are getting at.
Could you explain to me how that is going to work?
I don't see what you mean. Could we have some more details, please?

Asking for Verification

Do you mean that...?
Is it true that...?

Asking for Contributions for Other Participants

What do you think about this proposal?
Would you like to add anything, (name of participant)?
Has anyone else got anything to contribute?
Are there any more comments?

Correcting Information

Sorry, that's not quite right.
I'm afraid you don't understand what I'm saying.
That's not quite what I had in mind.
That's not what I meant.

Keeping the Meeting on Time

Well, that seems to be all the time we have today.
Please be brief.
I'm afraid we've run out of time.
I'm afraid that's outside the scope of this meeting.
Let's get back on track, why don't we?
That's not really why we're here today.
Why don't we return to the main focus of today's meeting.
We'll have to leave that to another time.
We're beginning to lose sight of the main point.
Keep to the point, please.
I think we'd better leave that for another meeting.
Are we ready to make a decision?

Prepared by

ELT Senior Supervisor   Helena Moh'd

Common errors in English among

Non-native speakers

The influence of the mother tongue greatly affects the perception of a second language even though the later one is acquired at early stages of learning. Several factors in a Non-native speaker language fail to match the original aspects of the second language such as pronunciation, stress, and intonation. Here are some kinds of difficulty areas for non-native speakers of English.

Errors in pronunciation

English sound		Common error		Influencing Languages / Accents
/   /	"note"	/    /	"not"	Arabs / Indians
/e /	"Late"	/e/	"let"	Arabs
/   /	"beer"	/    /	"bear"	Arabs
/ ^ /	"but"	/ e /	"bet"	Indians
/   /	"set"	/   /	"sit"	Kuwaitis &Egyptians Indians
/   /	"clothe"	/ z  /	"close"	Egyptians
/   /	"think"	/ s /	"sink"	Egyptians
/   /	"think"	/   /	"thing"	Kuwaitis
/   /	"cherry"	/   /	"sherry"	Egyptians
/   /	"age"	/   /	"Asia"	Egyptians
/   /	"measure"	/   /	jam	Kuwaitis
/   /	"bone"	/   /	"born"	Indians
/   /	"confusion"	/   /	"confucian"	Indians Egyptians
Silent	"survivor"	/ r  /	Sur-vivor	Kuwaitis
/   /	"van"	/   /	"fan"	Kuwaitis
/ w  /	"worry"	/ v  /	"vary"	Indians
/ p /	"pit"	/ b  /	"bit"	Kuwaitis
/   /	"cot"	/   /	"caught"	Indians
/ w :kt  /	" worked"	/ w :k d   /	"work-ed"	Egyptians
/sprin/	"spring"	/ si'prin /	"se'pring"	Arabs

 

   Difficulties in stress

• Misplacement of word stress: This happens to words which have more than word syllable.

         /                /   satisfied becomes /              /

          /                 / photographer becomes /                /

•  Confusion of some pairs of words failure to follow patterns of stress.

Sar'dine 'sandwich instead of 'sardine ' sandwich

Difficulties in intonation

• In intonation pattern of the tag-questions in Arabic is always rising while in English the rising intonation means the speaker is expecting agreement from the listener, whereas the use of falling intonation suggests disagreement.
• In English if the name I stressed on the last syllable,e.g. Marie ,  Monroe . It may take the high rise intonation pattern.
• Others like Harry, Jane..etc. may take the same or the high fall pattern. This is the most common used intonation in Arabic.

Difficulties in forming questions

·         A big problem is word-order, especially when there is an auxiliary verb or be or a model in the English statement. For example:

  

(a)    Yes-No questions :

Can ride the children…..?

Has been the teacher doing….?

Could have her mother made….?

(b)    Wh/ questions:

What her fate will be?

How the students are studying?

Where the boys are going?

·         One major difference is the use in English of the operator do, and its absence is Arabic.

Why we learn English?

When your journey begin?

Prepared by

E.L.T Supervisor Maha Al Ibraheem

 

الموضوع الخامس

استخدام العبارات والأساليب الصحيحة في المحادثة /

 معالجة الاخطاء اللغوية الشائعة

PHRASES IN CONVERSATION /

PHONICS

Communication skills and dialogue

Contrasting Ideas

 

 There are a number of formulas used when contrasting ideas in English.

Construction

Formula	Example	Explanation
main statement, but contrasting statement	I'd really like to come to the film, but I have to study tonight.	Use a comma or semi colon (;) with 'but'. 'But' is the most common way to show contrasting ideas.
main statement, in spite of contrasting statement OR in spite of contrasting statement, main statement	They continued on their journey, in spite of the pouring rain. OR In spite of the pouring rain, the continued on their journey.	Use 'in spite of' plus a noun, noun phrase or gerund
main statement, despite contrasting statement OR Despite contrasting statement, main statement	They continued on their journey, despite the pouring rain. OR Despite the pouring rain, the continued on their journey.	Use 'despite' plus a noun, noun phrase or gerund
main statement, however, contrasting statement OR main statement. However, contrasting statement	She is a very intelligent girl, however, her tendency to not pay attention in class causes her problems. OR She is a very intelligent girl. However, her tendency to not pay attention in class causes her problems.	Use 'however' preceded and followed by a comma (,). You can also contrast ideas in two sentences by beginning the contrasting sentence with 'However'.
main statement, although contrasting statement OR Although contrasting statement, main statement	We wanted to buy a sports car, although we knew that fast cars can be dangerous. OR Although we knew that fast cars can be dangerous, we wanted to buy a sports car.	Use 'although' with a subject and a verb.

Making Complaints

There are a number of formulas used when complaining in English. It's important to remember that a direct complaint or criticism in English can sound rude or aggressive. It's best to mention a problem in an indirect manner. Here are some of the most common:

• I'm sorry to have to say this but...
• I'm sorry to bother you, but...
• Maybe you forgot to...
• I think you might have forgotten to...
• Excuse me if I'm out of line, but...
• There may have been a misunderstanding about...
• Don't get me wrong, but I think we should...

Saying 'No' Nicely

Sometimes you need to say no when someone makes a suggestion, offers something or asks you to do something for them. Of course, saying just 'no' can be rather rude. Here are some of the most common ways to say 'no' nicely - or at least not rudely.

• Would you like to see a film tonight?
  I'm afraid I can't go out tonight. I've got a test tomorrow.
• Why don't we have some Chinese food?
  Sorry, but I don't particularly like Chinese food.
• How about taking a nice walk?
  I'd really rather not take a walk this afternoon.
• Would you like to come to the museum with us?
  Thank you, but it's not my idea of a fun afternoon out.
• Let's go for a drive
  Sorry, I'm not really fond of driving for the fun of it.
• Why don't you stay the night?
  That's very kind of you, but I really have to get back to the city.

Offering Help

There are a number of formulas used when offering help in English. Here are some of the most common:

• May I help you?
• Can I help you?
• Are you looking for something?
• Would you like some help?
• Do you need some help?
• What can I do for you today?

Demanding Explanations

Sometimes, things happen that we would like explained and we must demand explanations. For example, if you have just bought a new computer and there is a problem, but the shop assistant says that the guaranty does not cover the problem. There are a number of formulas used when demanding explanations in English. Here are some of the most common:

• Can you tell me why...
• I don't understand why...
• Can you explain why..
• Why is it that...
• How come...
• Does this mean...
• Do you really expect me to believe...?

Using Vague Expressions - Being Imprecise

There are a number of ways to give imprecise information in English. Here are some of the most common:

• There are about 600 people working in this company.
• There are approximately 600 people working in this company.
• There are a large number of students interested in taking his course.
• Management predicts up to 50% growth for the coming year.
• It's kind of a bottle opener which can also be used to peel vegetables.
• It's the type of place you can go to relax for a week or so.
• They're the sort of people that like going bowling on Saturday evenings.
• It's difficult to say, but I'd guess that it's used for cleaning house.
• I'm not really sure, but I think they enjoy hiking in the mountains.

Stating a Preference

Sometimes you need to state a preference when someone makes a suggestion, offers something or asks your opinion about what to do. Often people are asking for your opinion and you can state your preference freely, other times, people have made an offer and you need to state a preference politely if you do not want to do what has been suggested, or would rather do something else.

• Would you like to see a film tonight?
  I'd rather go dancing. How does that sound?
• Why don't we have some Chinese food?
  Well, I'd prefer eating Italian. What do you think?
• What do you think we should do?
  If it were up to me, I'd go out for dinner.
• What are we going to do today? The weather is awful!
  I think we should go to a museum.

Giving Advice

There are a number of formulas used when Giving Advice in English. Here are some of the most common:

• I don't think you should work so hard.
• You ought to work less.
• You ought not to work so hard.
• If I were you, I'd work less.
• If I were in your position, I'd work less.
• If I were in your shoes, I'd work less.
• You had better work less.
• You shouldn't work so hard.
• Whatever you do, don't work so hard.

Asking for information

There are a number of formulas used when asking for information in English. Here are some of the most common:

• Could you tell me...?
• Do you know …?
• Do you happen to know …?
• I'd like to know ….
• Could you find out …?
• I'm interested in …
• I'm looking for …

These two forms are used for asking for information on the telephone:

·         I'm calling to find out …

·         I'm calling about …

Agreeing and disagreeing

English is a polite language. Even when you think someone is wrong about something, it is rude to directly contradict that person. This means that you have to do so indirectly. You also have to be careful to notice when an English person wants to disagree, since you might think he is just discussing the subject, or even that he is agreeing with you.

Opinions

Opinions are stated as facts. You can agree with them, disagree (politely or rudely) ask for more information, or show that you do not want to discuss the matter.
For example:
That film is really good.
Yes, I really enjoyed it. (Agreeing)
I can't say it's my favourite? (Disagreeing politely)
What, that load of rubbish? (Disagreeing rudely)
I don't watch films much. (Not wanting to discuss it)

Notice that asking for more information is often a polite way of disagreeing.
For example:
That film is really good.
Oh, do you think so?
What did you like about it?

Agreeing strongly

For example:
That film should be banned
You are so right
Absolutely
I totally/completely/fully agree
That's exactly what I say
Of course it should

Agreeing mildly

For example:
That film should be banned.
I suppose so.
Well, yes, maybe it should.
Should it? Okay.
If you say so.

Staying neutral

For example:
That film should be banned.
Well, that's your opinion.
Perhaps. Perhaps not.
Mmmm.
Ah. That film.

Disagreeing mildly

For example:
That film should be banned.
Do you think so?
Why that one in particular?
Well, it is challenging.
Isn't banning it rather extreme?

Disagreeing strongly

For example:
That film should be banned.
No, it shouldn't.
That's rubbish.
What are you talking about?
You are so wrong.

Disagreeing indirectly

Rather than confront your opinion directly, English people might tell you the reasons they disagree.
For example:
That film should be banned.
It is one of the most popular films of the year.
Many people think it is a classic.
It has not upset many people.

To make their disagreement seem less forceful, English people will use words like Well, Actually or Yes, but at the start of their sentence. They might also apologize for disagreeing
For example:
That film should be banned.
I'm sorry, but I don't think so.
Yes, but you want almost every film banned.
Well, actually, it's not that bad as a matter of fact.

Effective phrases for transition

Regarding

Admittedly

Consequently

As a result

Ultimately

According to
For this reason

Phrases for Emphasis

Moreover,

In fact

Additionally

For example

In point of fact

As a matter of fact

Indeed

Words for Counterpoint

Conversely

On the other hand

However

Nevertheless

Notwithstanding

Nonetheless

Yet

Despite

Although

Instead

Conversation lessons

(1) Internet Craze

Aim : Improve conversational skills when supporting a point of view.

Activity : Debate concerning the current and future impact of the internet on daily life.         

What do you think about the following statement?

The Internet has forever changed the way we live. Its importance will continue to grow. By the year 2010 most of the world will be conducting its business, receiving its media (TV, films, music), and staying in touch solely via the Internet.

Helping Classes / portfolio Assessment

         

Aim: Improve conversational skills when supporting a point of view.

             (Reporting, answering techniques, expressing judgment, expressing satisfaction &                 

              dissatisfaction, explaining ideas).

Activity: Group activity deciding on the advantages & disadvantages of helping classes & the     

              portfolio file.

 (2) Man and Women – Equal at last?

 Aim : Improve conversational skills when supporting a point of view.

Activity : Debate about the question of whether men and women are truly equal .

       (Opinions, preferences, disagreeing, giving reasons and offering explanations)

(3) Violence In The Media Needs To Be Regulated

 Aim: Improve conversational skills when supporting a point of view

 Activity: Debate about the question of whether violence in the media. (Television, newspapers,                      

                 magazines, internet, etc.) needs to be more tightly regulated.

 (4) Creating a New Society

A large area of your country has been set aside by the current government for the development of a new nation. This area will include an invited international community of 20,000 men and women. Imagine that your group has to decide the laws of this new country.

       Aim: Building conversation skills, expressing opinions

      Activity: Group activity deciding on the laws for a new society

(5) Women in a man's world

       What do you think of careers that are stereotypically male and those that are stereotypically female? Could men do some of the traditional female jobs and vice versa?

  Aims : To practice phrases for agreeing and disagreeing .

                    To raise awareness of some of the language tricks associated with persuasion.

Prepared by

ELT Supervisor Huda Al-Ammar

Problems of Pronunciation

Sound, Stress and Intonation

 

1-      Consonants:

• The voiced consonant phonemes are:

/b/, /d/, /g/, /1/, /m/, /n/, /r/, / ð/, /v/, /w/, /j/, /z/, /ʒ/, /dʒ/.

• The voiceless consonant phonemes are:

/f/, /h/, /k/, /p/, /s/, /ʃ/, / t/ , /θ/, /t/.

Pupils can learn voiced and unvoiced consonants by pairing them (the voiced consonant is first):

The sounds /p/, /ŋ/, /v/, /r/, /θ/, and /ð/ are very difficult to Arab learners of English. Their difficulty is due to tongue position or to their absence in Arabic.

Arabic lacks the /p/ phoneme; so an Arab learner often confuses it w3ith the voiced bilabial plosive /b/. Thus, he might pronounce/kʌp/ as / kʌb/, /pet/ as /bet/, /prɪns/ as/brɪns/, and so on.

A great problem is posed by the voiced nasal/ŋ/ which an Arab speaker of English always replaces by /ŋg/ in medial and final positions. He can be expected to pronounce /siŋiŋ/ as  /siŋgiŋg/

/jʌŋ/ as / jʌŋg/  /riŋ/ as  /riŋg/, etc.

English /v/, is sometimes replaced by the voiceless labio-dental /f/, since /v/ does not exist in Arabic. Thus the Arab pupil may pronounce /vjuː/ as /fjuː/, /faiv/ as /faif/,  /seven/ as / sefn/, and the like.

A type of /r/ similar to the Scottish one exists in Arabic and is pronounced in all positions, whether followed by a consonant or a vowel sound or coming finally in the word. For instance, an Arab learner of English tends to pronounce /pɑːk/ as /bɑːrk/, /mɑːstə/ as /mɑːstər/ and /gə:l/ as           / gə:rl/ 

/t/ is alveolar in English but dental in Arabic and is often aspirated; whereas English /θ/ and /ð/ exist in Arabic as separate phonemes. The problem with them is in the written and not in the spoken form because their orthography is the same. Pupils find it difficult to differentiate /θ/ from   /ð/ in such words as think / then; bath / bathe; nothing/ weather, etc.

• Clusters:

Another problem facing the Arab learners is the pronunciation of clusters. Very often, after the mother-tongue patterns, he inserts the vowel/i/ between the first and the last two consonants to break the cluster so as to be able to pronounce it Thus:

street               /striːt/              becomes          /sitriːt/

spread              /spred/             becomes          /sipred/

spring              /spriŋ/              becomes          /sipriŋ/

midst               /midst/             becomes          /midist/

            It is clear from the above example that the problem of pronunciation is solved by the intrusive /i/ phoneme. Another feature of this breaking of consonant clusters is observed when pronouncing the past tense of regular verbs such as: looked, stopped, touched, etc. this is a result of spelling deciding pronunciation because Arabic is a phonetic language.

• Gemination:

Next to the problem of clusters is gemination which is characteristic of Arabic. We mean by gemination, here, the lengthening of the same consonant (or vowel). This problem is common with words containing double letters such as connect, collect, correct, etc. Arab learners interpret them as phonetic length which is not the case, so they pronounce them as /konnekt/, /kollekt/ and /kərrekt/

2) Vowels and Diphthongs:

Apart from the fact that an Arab learner has a poor mastery of English vowels, there is still the problem the length of the vowels /aɪ/, /iː/, /ɔː/, and /uː/. an Arab learner often pronounces these vowels as the short vowels /ɑ/, /i/, /ɔ/ and /ʊ/ respectively. Thus, instead of saying /grɑːs/ and /bɑːθ/, he would say /græs/ and /bæθ/.

The phonemes /iː/, /ɔː/, and /uː/ are pronounced considerably longer in English than in Arabic. The Arab learner, under the influence of the mother tongue, often transfers the quantity of the Arabic vowel to its English equivalent. Thus he often pronounces:

                                      /pəliːs/            as            /bɔlis/           police

/tɔːk/               as            /tɔk/           talk

  /duː/                 as           /du/             do etc.

Of the eight English diphthongs, six constitute a problem to an Arab learner of English. They are: /ei/, /əʊ/, /iə/, /eə/, and /ʊə/. They are often mispronounced owing to interference from the mother tongue. The diphthong /ei/ is often replaced by the pure long vowel /e:/ found in colloquial Arabic. Thus /rein/, /greit/ and /feil/ are pronounced by Arab pupils as  /re:n/, /gre:t/, and /fe:l/. The diphthong /əʊ/ is often replaced by the pure vowel /ɔ:/. For example /gəʊl/, /bəʊt/ and /kəʊt            / are often pronounced by Arab learners as /gɔ:l/, /bɔ:t/ and /kɔ:t/.  As for the contouring diphthongs /iə       /, /eə/, /ɔi/ and /ʊə/, they are often replaced by pure vowels /i:/, /e:/ and /u:/, for example:

/tu:r/                 for       tour

/ju:r/                 for       your

/pu:r/                for       poor

     /indju:r/            for  endure, etc.

            In the given examples, the (r) is usually pronounced by Arab pupils owing to the influence of Arabic, which is more phonetically spelt language than English.

B) Word stress:

            Word stress can be phonemic. A good example of this is the word record. As a noun, the word is accented on the first syllable. Here the noun record is pronounced /rekord/. As a verb the word is stressed on the second syllable. For example: You should record the minutes of the meeting. Here, the verb record is pronounced / riko:rd/.

            Two-or more- syllabled words have their own stress systems, as follows:

1.      Two-syllabled words are stressed mostly on the first syllable, e.g.: ‘broken, ‘handsome, ‘curtain, ‘picture, ‘farmer, ‘baby, etc.

2.      Two–syllabled words beginning with a prefix of some kind (a-, per-, dis-, re-, com-, ex-, ab-, etc.) are usually stressed on the second syllable.

Examples: a’way, be’hind, per’sist, dismiss, re’ply, com’mit, ex’ceed, etc.

3.      Some three-syllabled words have their stress on the middle syllable. Examples: im’portant, receiver, ap’proval, condition, de’velop, etc.

4.      Some other three-syllabled words are stressed on the first syllable. Examples: ‘wonderful, ‘absolute, ‘ignorant, ‘covering, ‘hopefully, etc.

5.      Four-or more-syllabled words have often two stresses – secondary and primary on the third syllable from the end, e.g., eco’nomic, po’tential, inor’ganic.

6.      Combinations are treated as one word and usually have their stress on the first part. Examples: ‘dining room, ‘hanbag, ‘notebook, ‘inkpot, ‘book-case, ‘classroom, ‘football, etc.

7.      Nouns modified by other words have their own normal stress patterns, as in the following groups: a ‘stone ‘building, a‘cotton ‘shirt, a ‘wooden ‘door, a green’bag, an’old ‘house.

8.      Words that function as both nouns and verbs have the stress on the first syllable when they are nouns, and on the second syllable when they function as verbs. Examples: contrast, extract, increase, protest, progress, record, insult, export and import.

In Arabic, the stress falls on the last syllable of a word containing two long (or short and long) syllables. This stress habit often causes problems to the Arab learner of English as it is usually retained, thereby affecting the acquisition of the new sound system. This difficulty is obvious with two- syllable words (such as subject, record, rebel, project, conduct, etc.) that may be used as either nouns or verbs, with a difference in stress to indicate the difference in meaning. In the absence of such a process in Arabic, pupils often confuse these two-syllable words.

 

C) Intonation:

Intonation is the name given to the rising and falling of the voice as we speak or to the levels of pitch in a sentence.  Intonation is related to sentence stress, since the accented syllable is often spoken on the highest note. There are two important intonation patterns in English:

1- Pattern 231 (rising-falling intonation) is used

            (a) Simple statements e.g. He went to school.

            (b) Commands, e.g. Go to the door.

            (c) Requests, e.g. Please close the door.

            (d) Question-word question, e.g. Why did he leave?

            (e) Attached question, e.g. he didn't sleep, did he?

2- Pattern 233 (rising intonation) is used:

            (a) With yes-no questions e.g. Do you like milk? Are you going?

            (b) Questions with statement word order: e.g. It's time for class? You're not ready?

Special Problems

(a) The Plural Form: The plural morphs sometimes present a problem to an Arab learner of English as they confuse /s/ and /z/ or /iz/. These phonological patterns are conditioned by the sound that immediately precedes them. Thus, the ending is pronounced /s/ when the simple form ends in a voiceless consonant sound (other than a sibilant sound: /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /tʃ/, or /dʒ/.): /f/, /k/, /p/, /θ/, /h/, etc. Examples: books, maps. baths, etc.

The ending is pronounced /z/ when the simple form ends in a vowel or a voiced consonant sound (except the sibilants): /b/, /d/, /g/, /m/, etc. Examples: ribs, beds, lives, etc.  The ending is pronounced as a separate syllable (iz) when the final sound of the singular noun is a sibilant (i.e. hissing) sound. Examples: churches, glasses, bushes, fezes, etc.

(b) Verbs: Present and Past forms: The principles governing the pronun­ciation of third person present singular forms of verbs are the same as those for the pronunciation of regular plural nouns. Examples:
            /s/             /z/                          /iz/

looks        runs                     passes

lets          robs                      pushes

hopes       bathes                 catches

The /t/ sound of the past tense form occurs after all unvoiced consonants except /t/; and /d/ allomorph occurs after all vowels and all voiced consonants except /d/; whereas the /id/ sounds /t/ and /d/. examples:

                /t/                    /d/                   /id/

            kicked             showed            heated

            laughed           leaned              wanted

            stopped           killed               needed

            wished             raised               decided

Edited by:

ELT Supervisor Mohamad Abdul salam

Words Frequently Mispronounced

Use your dictionary to find the phonetic transcription

Word	Phonetic transcription	Word	Phonetic transcription
Apricot		Words
April		Ward
Box / Books		Professor
Cards		Postman
Cassette		Photographer
College		Wander
Conditional		Bottle
Damage		Wonderful
Foot		Since
Girls		Thumb
Hotel		Cards
Houses		Breakfast
One		Homework
Onion		Newspaper
Oven		Magazine
Policeman		Shirt
Special		Report
Telephone		Director
These		March
Those		Lunch
Through		Ice-cream
Women		Afford
Wool		Calculator
Hurt		Close (adj.)
Insert		Event
Next		Quiet / Quite
Picture		Orange
Think / Sink		The
Thin / Sin		Alone / China
Six / Sex		Gallop
Play		Circus
Problem		System
Pleasure		Easily
Person		Academic
Lesson		Pacific
Your		Button
Question		Artist
Cartoon		Iron
Tortoise		Oasis / Oases
Football		Dictionary
Journey		Laboratory
February		Chocolate
French		Biscuit
British		Curiosity
Watched		Fruit
Brown		Football

 

الموضوع السادس  

استعراض طرق القراءة الجهرية السليمة

READING ALOUD

Whales and Fish: Creatures of the Deep

(1) Fish and whales are both

vertebrates, This means they both have

backbones. They also live in aquatic environments. Except for a couple of species, whales live only in the ocean water. Fish, however,

inhabit both fresh and salt waters. Whales are among the largest animals on earth. Fish are among the smallest.

(2) Being mammals, whales are warm-blooded. This means they must maintain a constant and warm body temperature. Fish, on the other hand, are more like reptiles. Most are cold-blooded. This means they change their body temperature to match the surrounding water.

(3) Whales and fish are similar in some ways. Both have fins and a tail which helps them swim and stay upright in the water. But these similarities are in appearance only. Whales move their body through the water with the help of their horizontal tail which flaps up and down to propel them through the water. Fish, on the other-hand, move their tails from side to side. Even though they are huge creatures, whales can reach astounding speeds when swimming. Killer whales can swim up to 60 kph, some dolphins 30 kph, while the large Fin Whale cruises along at 22 to 26 kph. Right Whales and Grey Whales are somewhat slower, with a top speed of about 11 kph. How fast fish swim depends on their size and shape. Herring a small fish, swims at only 6 kph. Swordfish are the speedsters. They have been clocked at 96 kph. Both creatures will swim at speeds if they are chasing or

escaping an enemy. It requires too much energy to do it any other time.

 (4) Whales are divided into two groups; baleen whales and toothed whales. The baleen or whalebone whales have no teeth. Instead, a flexible finger ail like substance called baleen is suspended from the upper jaw. It is used to strain food from the large gulps of water the whales takes in its mouth and then spits out. The baleen group of whales include 10 species. Most of the largest whales are in the baleen group. The other group is the toothed whales. As their name suggests, they have teeth. This group has 66 species and includes sperm whales, killer whales, dolphins and porpoises.

(5) Fish are placed in three groups; those that have no jaws like lampreys, those that have cartilage for

bones like rays and sharks and those that have bony skeletons like cod and salmon. There are over 20,000 species of fish. Their total population greatly exceed that of whales.

(6) The largest of the baleen whales is the Blue Whale. It can be more than 30 m long and weigh as much as 130 tonnes. That’s as much as the combined weight of 30 average-sized elephants! Toothed whales are smaller but vary in size, from 1.3m long in dolphins to the 18 m Sperm Whale which can weigh almost 70 tonnes. Oddly enough, the largest fish in the world is called the whale shark. It is up to 14 m long and weighs up to 15 tons. The average size is 7.6 m in length. The smallest fish, called a goby, is only slightly more than a centimetre long.

Life Under Water

(7) Whales are mammals which 40 million years ago returned to the sea and evolved a fish-like form. Their hind limbs disappeared and their front limbs slowly changed into flippers. Although they breathe air, whales cannot survive on land. Whales that accidentally get stranded on a beach soon die because the great weight of their bodies crushes their vital internal organs.

(8) Whales have a thick layer of fat called blubber under their smooth, almost hairless skin. This fat helps them retain their body heat. Fish have very little fat. This is why they are prized as food. To keep them from freezing in cold water environments, fish blood contains an anti-freeze substance. To protect them from salt, ocean fish are covered in a slimy material. Some freshwater species are like this too.

"There She Blows!"

(9) Whales can dive deeply and stay underwater a long time. The Sperm Whale, for instance, can dive down more than 2000 metres, depths that would crush a submarine. It can remain below the water’s surface for up to 90 minutes! Like land mammals, whales have lungs and must come to the surface to breathe through their nostrils. A whale's nostrils are called a blowhole and are located on the top of the head. A surfacing whale exhales warm moisture air from its blowhole in a huge fountain. This was mistaken by old-time whalers for a spout of water. It is more like a spout of steam, like when you warm breath hits cold air when you exhale. Whale species can be identified by the size and shape of its "blow"! Fish, on the other hand, breath by removing oxygen from water through special organs called gills. The quickly suffocate when removed from the water.

Eat and Be Eaten

(10) Baleen whales sieve plankton, squid and small fish from seawater with their baleen. Toothed whales prey on a variety of fish and squids. Whales swallow their food whole and have a muscular compartment to their stomach which crushes what they have eaten. Fish feed on plankton and other fish too. They will also feed on the remains of other creatures.

Songs of the Sea

(11) Most whales are social animals. They like to live and travel in groups called pods. Whales communicate with each other by singing complex songs made up of a variety of whistles, clicks, low and high-pitched moans, grunts and groans. Some of these sounds are too high or too low-pitched for us to hear. Their noises travel great distances under water. Whale songs are quite beautiful, even to human ears! Fish are for the most part much quieter. But, there are several species of fish that are able to produce sound to communicate with members of their own and other species.

Raising Young

(12) Since whales are mammals, their young develop inside the body of the female. A baleen whale baby, called a calf, is born eleven months after mating. Some toothed whales calves are born a little later. Whales have only one baby at a time. It is born alive, tail first and fully developed. Most whales nurse their young for about six to seven months. A few species of fish, like the pacific perch, give live birth to their young. Most fish, however, hatch from eggs laid by the thousands on the ocean floor or in the gravelly bottoms of rivers by the female of the species. The eggs are quickly abandoned. When the eggs hatch, the hatchlings must survive on their own. Only a few will mature to the adult stage. The rest will become food for other sea creatures. Such is the way of nature.

The Skeletal System

Why Do We Have a Skeleton?

(1) Buildings we construct must have supports. Without beams, girders and trusts to keep up the floors, walls, windows and roofs, buildings like our homes would collapse.

(2) Many living things have supporting structures too.

Lobsters, for example, have outer shells to give them shape and to protect them from enemies. Mammals, birds, some fish and most reptiles have inner supporting structures. Humans do too. Made of bone, this structure is called a skeleton.

(3) An adult human skeleton has 206 bones to support the fleshy parts of the body. With the help of muscles and ligaments which are attached to the bones, the skeleton enables us to move. The skeleton also protects important internal organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. Without a skeleton, we would be like a jellyfish out of water, just a immobile lump on the ground. What Are Our Bones Like?

(4) Although they look like they are dead, bones are very much alive. They are growing and changing all the time, like other parts of your body. The building block of these bones is calcium. Milk and milk products such as cheese and yogurt are good sources of calcium and should be part of our daily diet. The bones are hallow in the middle and contain marrow which makes the blood cells important for fighting diseases.

How Bones Grow

(5) When we were babies, we all had tiny heads, feet, and hands! In fact, everything about us was tiny. Slowly, as we grew older, everything became a bit larger. Our bones were no exception.

(6) When a baby is born, its body contains 300 bones. Most of these are not hard and sturdy like the bones in an adult skeleton. Baby bones are made of a special material called cartilage. It is soft and

flexible. Your earlobes and nose are made of cartilage. Over the course of childhood, the cartilage-like bones slowly hard. During puberty some bones start to grow together to produce the 206 adult skeleton.

(7) It is not until people reach between 17 and 21 years of age that the cartilage has completely hardened into bone. Once completed, there can be no more growth. The bones are as big as they will ever be.

The Spine

(8) Your spine runs the full length of your back. It allows you to twist and bend and it holds your body upright. It also provides protection for the spinal cord, a large bundle of nerves that helps to transmit information from your brain to the rest of your body. The spine is special because it isn't made of one or even two bones: it's made of 33 bones in all! These bones are called vertebrae (say: vurt-uh-bray).

Each one is shaped like a ring.

(9) In between each vertebra (the name for just one of these spinal bones) are small cookie shaped disks made of cartilage. These disks keep the vertebrae from rubbing against one another. They also act as your spine's natural shock absorbers. When you jump, these disks provide the cushioning your vertebrae need to support the force placed on them when you land. Without these disks, movement of any kind would be extremely painful.

The Ribs

(10) Your heart, lungs, kidneys and liver are all vital organs. You could not live without them. Protecting them are the ribs. Ribs look and act like a cage and form the chest portion of our bodies. It's easy to feel this cage. Simply run your fingers along the sides and front of your body. (11) Ribs come in pairs. The left and right sides of each pair are identical. Most people have 12 pairs of ribs, but about 5% of people are born with one or more extra.

The Skull

(12) The skull is the part of your skeleton that protects the most important body part of all, the brain.

(13) Although it might look like one ball shaped hallow bone, the skull is actually made up of 30 different separate bones. Some of these bones protect your brain, while others make up the structure of your face. If you touch beneath your eyes, you can feel the ridge of the bone that forms the hole where your eye sits. Just below, you can feel the cheek bones which help give our faces their distinct look. And while you can't see it, the smallest bone in your whole body is located not too far away: the stirrup bone behind your eardrum is only 2.6-3.4 millimetres long! Even though you might be able to bat your eyes or wiggle your ears, the only part of your skull that can truly move is your lower jawbone. Muscles open and close it to enable you to talk and chew food.

The Hand

(14) The centre part of your hand contain five separate bones. Each finger on your hand has three bones, except for your thumb, which has two. Between both your wrists, hands, and all your fingers, you've got a grand total of 54 bones. With the help of muscles they enable you to grasp things, write your name, pick up the phone, throw a softball and complete millions of other tasks!

(15) The ankle is a bit different from the wrist; it has three larger bones and four smaller ones. But the main part of the foot is very similar to the hand, with five bones too. Each toe has three tiny bones, except for your big toe, which like the thumb, has just two. This brings the bone total in both feet and ankles to 52!

 (16) Most people don't use their toes and feet for grabbing things or writing, but they do use them for two very important things: standing and walking. Without all the bones of the foot working together and a little gravity from earth and friction between your feet and the floor it would be impossible to balance properly.

The Joints

(17) The place where two bones meet is called a joint.

There are two types of joints in every person's body: fixed joints and moving joints. Fixed joints are fixed in place. They don't move at all. Your skull contains some of these joints. They fuse or cement

the bones of the skull together.

(18) Moving joints are the ones that allow you to ride your bike, eat pizza, climb a tree, and play soccer. They enable you to twist, bend, and move many different parts of your body. One of the main types of moving joints is called a hinge joint. Your elbows and knees each have a hinge joint, which let you bend and then straighten your arms and legs. These joints are like the hinges on a door; just as most doors can only open one way, you can only bend your arms and legs in one direction. You also have many smaller hinge joints in your fingers and toes, to allow them to bend.

(19) Another important type of moving joint is the ball and socket joint. These joints are at your shoulders and hips. One of the bones in the joint is rounded at the end and fits into a small cuplike area of the second bone in the joint. Ball and socket joints allow for lots of movement in every direction.

Hurricanes

What is a Hurricane?

(1) The word “hurricane” is a Caribbean word that means 'Big Wind.' It is defined as a tropical wind storm packed with thunder and lightning, rain and very strong winds.

What does a hurricane look like?

(2) A hurricane is shaped like a giant spin-top or pinwheel. It has bands of clouds called arms that spiral out from the hurricane’s centre. These are the clouds that produce the thunder and lightning storms and rain common in all hurricanes.

(3) The centre of a hurricane usually has an circular area free of clouds. Called the eye is the calmest place in a hurricane and its size varies from one hurricane to the next. The area surrounding the eye, called the eye wall is not calm. Here the winds are stronger than anywhere else in the entire hurricane. Knowing where the eye of the hurricane is located is important. This is where most of the damage caused by the hurricane is likely to happen.

(4) While the strength of a hurricane is measured by the speed of its winds, it’s size is measured by measuring its diameter, that is the distance across from one side through the eye to the other. Hurricanes have been measured as small as 45 km across or as large as 600 km. Most, however, are around 300 km wide.

How do Hurricanes to Form?

(5) The creation of a hurricane is a very complex process. It is only in the past twenty years that we have gained a good understanding of how they form. Satellite images of the earth and flights through hurricanes by specially equipped airplanes have enabled us to measure many aspects of hurricanes. This information has been used to create computer models of the storms. These models have helped us to understand how hurricanes form and what happens as they gain strength and weaken. The planes and the crews who fly them are called hurricane hunters.

(6) We now know that a hurricane forms from tropical storms that first develop over a warm ocean. The air near the sea surface becomes warm begins to rise. As it does, giant clouds that tower high into the troposphere are created. With the help of fast moving colder air aloft, the warm air mass begins to spin in a counter-clockwise direction an a tropical storm is born. The storm then begins to move northward like a giant spin-top toy moving across a floor. The longer it stays over a warm ocean, the warmer and thus the strong the wind becomes. When the winds reach 120 kilometres per hour, the tropical storm becomes a hurricane.

When Do Hurricanes Form?

(7) Hurricanes form between June and November each year. They are more frequent in late summer and early fall. For good reason, this time of year is called the hurricane season.

Where Do Hurricanes Form?

(8) Hurricanes form over the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. They also form over the Gulf of Mexico near Florida. Many hurricanes start near but never cross the equator into the southern hemisphere. Hurricanes do not form in the southern Atlantic. Over the Pacific Ocean near China and in the Indian Ocean, hurricanes are called typhoons.

 (9) The diagram above shows the routes most hurricanes and typhoons travel. The exact path is often zig and zag. Rarely do they travel in a straight line. Sometimes hurricanes can even turn around and change directions. This makes them very unpredictable and complicates forecasting their movements and where they are likely to strike land.

(10) A hurricane can last about 10 days over warm ocean water. Over cold water however, it dies quickly.

(11) Hurricanes form near but never on the equator, and they never cross this imaginary line. Hurricanes move slowly about 20km/per hour ( it's the same speed as riding your bike) but the winds are moving much faster ( up to 300km per hour). This is like a street-cleaner. The machine moves slowly but the brushes are spinning very quickly.

How Do Hurricanes Get Their Names?

(12) Meteorologists, scientists who study the weather, name hurricanes to make it easy to keep track of them. It also helps when this information is broadcasted to ships at sea and storm warning are issued to the general public. Names are also used to record their fury for history.

(13) The first hurricane of the year starts with the letter A. Then all the other hurricane names follow the alphabet. Tracking hurricanes tells the scientists and anyone else interested in the weather, how many hurricanes there have been in a particular year. Some years, there are only a few. In other years, there have been twenty or more. Sometimes there is only one to track. In 1998, there were a record five hurricanes being tracked in the same week.

(14) A decade ago, only female names were used to name hurricanes. Now both male and females names are used. Once used, a name cannot be reused for ten years. If a hurricane is really destructive, its name is retired. This means it is never used again.

What is the Difference between a Hurricane and a Tropical Storm?

(15) A tropical storm is a storm that doesn’t get strong enough to become a hurricane. It is also a hurricane that fails to sustain the minimum 118 km per hour winds required to be considered a hurricane. Although not as powerful as a hurricane, a tropical storm can still cause thunder and lightning storms, and bring a lot of rain and high winds.

What Are the Effects of a Hurricane on People and Property?

(16) High winds and rainfall produced by a hurricane can cause flooding and damage to crops, land and buildings. In some instances people may be injured or killed. The brutal effects of a hurricane can

be lessened or prevented by early forecasting using satellites and specially equipped airplanes. Meteorologists try to predict where and when a hurricane will strike and with how much force.

What is a Storm Surge?

(17) The surface of the ocean below a hurricane actually rises above its normal level. This creates a massive bulge of water under the centre of the storm. This bulge is called a storm surge. It moves as the hurricane moves. When the hurricane reaches land, the surge can be from one to five or more metres tall because of the shallower water near shore. Storm surges cause extensive flooding along shorelines. It usually destroys homes and washes away anything in its path. Sometimes storm surges and high winds combine to cause tremendous damage to beaches, cities and anything in their path.

What happens when a hurricane hits land?

(18) The warm ocean water is the source of heat that fuels a hurricane. When it moves over the land, the hurricane loses that source of heat and begins to weaken. Within hours, its winds drop under the 138 kilometres per hour and its name changes to a tropical storm or a tropical depression. Thunderstorms and heavy rains are still common and the storm can still cause a lot of damage but is nowhere near as powerful and as destructive as a hurricane.

What are Hurricane Categories?

(19) After many years of studying hurricanes and keeping detailed records of their size, strength and the destruction they have caused, meteorologists have created five categories of hurricanes. The weakest hurricane is a Category 1, the strongest a Category 5.

The Death Car

            It was a cold night in September. The rain was drumming on the car roof as George and Marie Winston drove through the empty country roads towards the house of their friends, the Harrisons, where they were going to attend a party to celebrate the engagement of the Harrisons' daughter, Lisa. As they drove, they listened to the local radio station, which was playing classical music. They were about five miles from their destination when the music on the radio was interrupted by a news announcement: "The Cheshire police have issued a serious warning after a man escaped from Colford Mental Hospital earlier this evening. The man, John Downey, is a murderer who killed six people before he was captured two years ago. He is described as large, very strong and extremely dangerous. People in the Cheshire area are warned to keep their doors and windows locked, and to call the police immediately if they see anyone acting strangely." Marie shivered. "A crazy killer. And he's out there somewhere. That's scary." "Don't worry about it," said her husband. "We're nearly there now. Anyway, we have more important things to worry about. This car is losing power for some reason -- it must be that old problem with the carburetor. If it gets any worse, we'll have to stay at the Harrisons' tonight and get it fixed before we travel back tomorrow." As he spoke, the car began to slow down. George pressed the accelerator, but the engine only coughed. Finally they rolled to a halt, as the engine died completely. Just as they stopped, George pulled the car off the road, and it came to rest under a large tree. "Blast!" said George angrily. "Now we'll have to walk in the rain." "But that'll take us an hour at least," said Marie. "And I have my high-heeled shoes and my nice clothes on. They'll be ruined!"        "Well, you'll have to wait while I run to the nearest house and call the Harrisons. Someone can come out and pick us up," said George. "But George! Have you forgotten what the radio said? There's a homicidal maniacout there! You can't leave me alone here!" "You'll have to hide in the back of the car. Lock all the doors and lie on the floor in the back, under this blanket. No-one will see you. When I come back, I'll knock three times on the door. Then you can get up and open it. Don't open it unless you hear three knocks." George opened the door and slipped out into the rain. He quickly disappeared into the blackness. Marie quickly locked the doors and settled down under the blanket in the back for a long wait. She was frightened and worried, but she was a strong-minded woman. She had not been waiting long, however, when she heard a strange scratching noise. It seemed to be coming from the roof of the car. Marie was terrified. She listened, holding her breath. Then she heard three slow knocks, one after the other, also on the roof of the car. Was it her husband? Should she open the door? Then she heard another knock, and another. This was not her husband. It was somebody -- or something -- else. She was shaking with fear, but she forced herself to lie still. The knocking continued -- bump, bump, bump, bump.

            Many hours later, as the sun rose, she was still lying there. She had not slept for a moment. The knocking had never stopped, all night long. She did not know what to do. Where was George? Why had he not come for her? Suddenly, she heard the sound of three or four vehicles, racing quickly down the road. All of them pulled up around her, their tires screeching on the road. At last! Someone had come! Marie sat up quickly and looked out of the window. The three vehicles were all police cars, and two still had their lights flashing. Several policemen leapt out. One of them rushed towards the car as Marie opened the door. He took her by the hand. "Get out of the car and walk with me to the police vehicle. miss. You're safe now. Look straight ahead. Keep looking at the police car. Don't look back. Just don't look back." Something in the way he spoke filled Marie with cold horror. She could not help herself. About ten yards from the police car, she stopped, turned and looked back at the empty vehicle. George was hanging from the tree above the car, a rope tied around his neck. As the wind blew his body back and forth, his feet were bumping gently on the roof of the car -- bump, bump, bump, bump.

The Hitchhiker

            As Andrea turned off the motorway onto the road to Brockbourne, the small village in which she lived, it was four o'clock in the afternoon, but already the sun was falling behind the hills. At this time in December, it would be completely dark by five o'clock. Andrea shivered. The interior of the car was not cold, but the trees bending in the harsh wind and the patches of yesterday's snow still heaped in the fields made her feel chilly inside. It was another ten miles to the cottage where she lived with her husband Michael, and the dim light and wintry weather made her feel a little lonely. She would have liked to listen to the radio, but it had been stolen from her car when it was parked outside her office in London about two weeks ago, and she had not got around to replacing it yet.

She was just coming out of the little village of Mickley when she saw the old lady, standing by the road, with a crude hand-written sign saying "Brockbourne" in her hand. Andrea was surprised. She had never seen an old lady hitchhiking before. However, the weather and the coming darkness made her feel sorry for the lady, waiting hopefully on a country road like this with little traffic. Normally,     Andrea would never pick up a hitchhiker when she was alone, thinking it was too dangerous, but what was the harm in doing a favor for a little old lady like this? Andrea pulled up a little way down the road, and the lady, holding a big shopping bag, hurried over to climb in the door which Andrea had opened for her. When she did get in, Andrea could see that she was not, in fact, so little. Broad and fat, the old lady had some difficulty climbing in through the car door, with her big bag, and when she had got in, she more than filled the seat next to Andrea. She wore a long, shabby old dress, and she had a yellow hat pulled down low over her eyes. Panting noisily from her effort, she pushed her big brown canvas shopping bag down onto the floor under her feet, and said in a voice which was almost a whisper, "Thank you dearie -- I'm just going to Brockbourne." "Do you live there?" asked Andrea, thinking that she had never seen the old lady in the village in the four years she had lived there herself. "No, dearie," answered the passenger, in her soft voice, "I'm just going to visit a friend. He was supposed to meet me back there at Mickley, but his car won't start, so I decided to hitchhike -- there isn't a bus until seven, and I didn't want to wait. I knew some kind soul would give me a lift." Something in the way the lady spoke, and the way she never turned her head, but stared continuously into the darkness ahead from under her old yellow hat, made Andrea uneasy about this strange hitchhiker. She didn't know why, but she felt instinctively that there was something wrong, something odd, something....dangerous. But how could an old lady be dangerous? it was absurd.

            Careful not to turn her head, Andrea looked sideways at her passenger. She studied the hat, the dirty collar of the dress, the shapeless body, the arms with their thick black hairs.... Thick black hairs? Hairy arms? Andrea's blood froze. This wasn't a woman. It was a man. At first, she didn't know what to do. Then suddenly, an idea came into her racing, terrified brain. Swinging the wheel suddenly, she threw the car into a skid, and brought it to a halt. "My God!" she shouted, "A child! Did you see the child? I think I hit her!" The "old lady" was clearly shaken by the sudden skid. "I didn't see anything dearie," she said. "I don't think you hit anything." "I'm sure it was a child!" insisted Andrea. "Could you just get out and have a look? Just see if there's anything on the road?" She held her breath. Would her plan work? It did. The passenger slowly opened the car door, leaving her bag inside, and climbed out to investigate. As soon as she was out of the vehicle, Andrea gunned the engine and accelerated madly away. The car door swung shut as she rounded a bend, and soon she had put a good three miles between herself and the awful hitchhiker.

            It was only then that she thought about the bag lying on the floor in front of her. Maybe the bag would provide some information about the real identity about the old woman who was not an old woman. Pulling into the side of the road, Andrea lifted the heavy bag onto her lap and opened it curiously. It contained only one item -- a small hand axe, with a razor-sharp blade. The axe, and the inside of the bag, were covered with the dark red stains of dried blood. Andrea began to scream.

The Choking Dog

            "Come on, come on, move it, idiot!" Joanne beat impatiently on the steering wheel of her Mercedes sports car. How stupid to get caught up in the rush hour! She had planned to leave work early this afternoon, at three o'clock, to give herself a chance to relax and have a bath before going out to a meeting of her local tennis club. But just at ten to three a client had arrived, and it was two hours before she had finished dealing with the man. When she came out of her office, all the other staff in the Highlight Advertising Agency had already left. Now she was stuck in a traffic jam in central Birmingham at 5:30, and at 6:30 she was expected to be chairing a meeting of the tennis club. There would be no time for any hot bath. Ahead of her, the traffic was moving at last, and she swung quickly out into the centre lane to turn right, and raced the last half-mile through the quiet suburban streets to her house. Pulling up on the driveway, she leapt out of the car and ran for the house. As she opened the door, she nearly tripped over Sheba, who was standing behind it.

            "Hey, Sheba, hello," she said, bending down to stroke the large Alsatian dog's head, "I've got no time for you now, but I'll take you out as soon as I get back from the tennis club." It was then that she noticed something worrying about the dog. Sheba seemed to be coughing or choking, her stomach pumping repeatedly as if she was trying to vomit something up. She was obviously in real discomfort and could hardly breathe; her sad eyes gazed up at Joanne helplessly.

            "Oh damn, this is all I need now," said Joanne to herself, dropping her briefcase and bending down to take a closer look, "a sick dog, today of all days!" On closer examination, Sheba did look very sick, and Joanne realised she would have to take her down to the vet immediately. Luckily, the vet's surgery was only a few streets away, and Joanne quickly loaded the dog, still coughing and choking, into her car for the short drive. When she got there, the surgery was just about to close for the day. Luckily, Dr. Sterne had not left yet, and when he saw the state of Sheba, he brought her quickly into his office. "It looks like something is stuck in her throat," said Dr. Sterne. It shouldn't take me too long to get it out."

            "Listen, doctor, I'm really in a rush to get to a meeting -- can I leave her with you, and go and get changed? I'll be back in ten minutes to pick her up, then I'll take her on to the meeting with me. Is that OK?" "Sure," said the doctor. "You get going. I'll see you in ten minutes." Joanne jumped back into her car again, and made the quick trip round to her house in a couple of minutes. As she was once more entering the hallway, the phone on the table by the door began to ring. She picked it up, annoyed by this additional interruption to her plans.

            "This is Dr. Sterne," said an anxious voice. "Is that you, Joanne?" "Of course it's me," said Joanne, surprised at the sound of his voice, "no-one else lives here." "I want you to get right out of that house immediately," said the doctor's voice. "Right now. I'm coming round right away, and the police will be there any time now. Wait outside for us." The phone went dead. Joanne stared at it. She was confused, but she was also a little frightened by the obvious fear in the voice of the doctor. She replaced the receiver, then quickly backed out of the door and ran into the street. At that moment, a police car with its lights flashing swung round the corner and screeched to a stop outside the house. Two policemen got out. After briefly checking that she was the owner of the house, they ran into the house through the still open door, without explaining anything. Joanne was by now completely confused and very frightened. Then the doctor arrived. "Where's Sheba? Is she OK?" shouted Joanne, running over to his car. "She's fine, Joanne. I extracted the thing which was choking her, and she's OK now." "Well what's this all about? Why are the police in my house?"

Just then, the two policemen reappeared from the house, half-carrying a white-faced figure, a man in a dark grey sweater and jeans, who, it seemed, could hardly walk.

            There was blood all over him. "My God," said Joanne, "how did he get in there? And how did you know he was there?" "I think he must be a burglar," said the doctor. "I knew he was there because when I finally removed what was stuck in Sheba's throat, it turned out to be three human fingers. I don't think he's a very happy burglar."

The Carpet Fitter

            Eddie was a carpet fitter, and he hated it. For ten years he had spent his days sitting, squatting, kneeling or crawling on floors, in houses, offices, shops, factories and restaurants. Ten years of his life, cutting and fitting carpets for other people to walk on, without even seeing them. When his work was done, no-one ever appreciated it. Noone ever said "Oh, that's a beautiful job, the carpet fits so neatly." They just walked all over it. Eddie was sick of it. He was especially sick of it on this hot, humid day in August, as he worked to put the finishing touches to today's job. He was just cutting and fixing the last edge on a huge red carpet which he had fitted in the living room of Mrs. Vanbrugh's house. Rich Mrs. Vanbrugh, who changed her carpets every year, and always bought the best. Rich Mrs. Vanbrugh, who had never even given him a cup of tea all day, and who made him go outside when he wanted to smoke. Ah well, it was four o'clock and he had nearly finished. At least he would be able to get home early today. He began to day-dream about the weekend, about the Saturday football game he always played for the local team, where he was known as "Ed the Head" for his skill in heading goals from corner kicks.

            Eddie sat back and sighed. The job was done, and it was time for a last cigarette. He began tapping the pockets of his overalls, looking for the new packet of Marlboro he had bought that morning. They were not there. It was as he swung around to look in his toolbox for the cigarettes that Eddie saw the lump. Right in the middle of the brand new bright red carpet, there was a lump. A very visible lump. A lump the size of -- the size of a packet of cigarettes. "Blast!" said Eddie angrily. "I've done it again! I've left the cigarettes under the  blasted carpet!" He had done this once before, and taking up and refitting the carpet had taken him two hours. Eddie was determined that he was not going to spend another two hours in this house. He decided to get rid of the lump another way. It would mean wasting a good packet of cigarettes, nearly full, but anything was better than taking up the whole carpet and fitting it again. He turned to his toolbox for a large hammer. Holding the hammer, Eddie approached the lump in the carpet. He didn't want to damage the carpet itself, so he took a block of wood and placed it on top of the lump. Then he began to beat the block of wood as hard as he could. He kept beating, hoping Mrs. Vanbrugh wouldn't hear the noise and come to see what he was doing. It would be difficult to explain why he was hammering the middle of her beautiful new carpet. After three or four minutes, the lump was beginning to flatten out. Eddie imagined the cigarette box breaking up, and the crushed cigarettes spreading out under the carpet. Soon, he judged that the lump was almost invisible. Clearing up his tools, he began to move the furniture back into the living room, and he was careful to place one of the coffee tables over the place where the lump had been, just to make sure that no one would see the spot where his cigarettes had been lost.

            Finally, the job was finished, and he called Mrs. Vanbrugh from the dining room to inspect his work. "Yes, dear, very nice," said the lady, peering around the room briefly. "You'll be sending me a bill, then?" "Yes madam, as soon as I report to the office tomorrow that the job is done." Eddie picked up his tools, and began to walk out to the van. Mrs. Vanbrugh accompanied him. She seemed a little worried about something. "Young man," she began, as he climbed into the cab of his van, laying his toolbox on the passenger seat beside him, "while you were working today, you didn't by any chance see any sign of Armand, did you? Armand is my parakeet. A beautiful bird, just beautiful, such colors in his feathers... I let him out of his cage, you see, this morning, and he's disappeared. He likes to walk around the house, and he's so good, he usually just comes back to his cage after an hour or so and gets right in. Only today he didn't come back. He's never done such a thing before, it's most peculiar..." "No, madam, I haven't seen him anywhere," said Eddie, as he reached to start the van. And saw his packet of Marlboro cigarettes on the dashboard, where he had left it at lunchtime.... And remembered the lump in the carpet.... And realized what the lump was....And remembered the hammering....And began to feel rather sick....

Internet Safety

            Twenty years ago, kids in school had never even heard of the internet. Now, I'll bet you can't find a single person in your school who hasn't at least heard of it. In fact, many of us use it on a regular basis and even have access to it from our homes! The 'net' in internet really stands for network. A network is two or more computers connected together so that information can be shared, or sent from one computer to another. The internet is a vast resource for all types of information. You may enjoy using it to do research for a school project, downloading your favorite songs or communicating with friends and family.

            Information is accessed through web pages that companies, organizations and individuals create and post. It's kind of like a giant bulletin board that the whole world uses! But since anyone can put anything on the internet, you also have to be careful and use your best judgment and a little common sense. Just because you read something on a piece of paper someone sticks on a bulletin board doesn't mean it's good information, or even correct, for that matter. So you have to be sure that whoever posted the information knows what they're talking about, especially if you're doing research! But what if you're just emailing people? You still have to be very careful. If you've never met the person that you're communicating with online, you could be on dangerous ground! You should never give out any personal information to someone you don't know, not even your name! And just like you can't believe the information on every website out there, you can't rely on what strangers you 'meet' on the internet tell you either. Just like you could make up things about yourself to tell someone, someone else could do the same to you!

Alternative medicine

Criticism of alternative medicine

            Due to the wide range of therapies that are considered to be "alternative medicine" few criticisms apply across the board, except possibly that of not being scientifically supported or even testable. Criticisms directed at specific branches of alternative medicine range from the fairly minor (conventional treatment is believed to be more effective in a particular area) to incompatibility with the known laws of physics (for example, in homeopathy). Critics argue that alternative medicine practitioners may not have an accredited medical degree or be licensed physicians or general practitioners and make sweeping claims without demonstrated expertise.

            This cannot always be considered a serious criticism, because unless a new system of medicine becomes established, it does not receive accreditation of any kind, except by its own professional organizations. This is the route homeopathy, ayurveda, siddha, unani, and naturopathy had to follow in those countries where it is now offered by accredited institutions. Proponents of the various forms of alternative medicine reject criticism as being founded in prejudice, financial self-interest, or ignorance. Refutations of criticism sometimes take the form of an appeal to nature.

 Lack of proper testing

            Evidence-based medicine (EBM) applies the scientific method to medical practice, and aims for the ideal that healthcare professionals should make "conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence" in their everyday practice. Prof. Edzard Ernst is a notable proponent of applying EBM to CAM.

            Although proponents of alternative medicine often cite the large number of studies which have been performed, critics point out the fact that there are no statistics on exactly how many of these studies were controlled, double-blind peer-reviewed experiments or how many produced results supporting alternative medicine or parts thereof. They contend that many forms of alternative medicine are rejected by conventional medicine because the efficacy of the treatments has not been demonstrated through double-blind randomized controlled trials; this is not a moot point, since all conventional drugs reach the market only after such trials have proved their efficacy. One is led to wonder why whole categories of drugs or treatments should be excused from these routine tests. Also, some skeptics of alternative practices point out that a person may attribute symptomatic relief to an otherwise ineffective therapy due to the natural recovery from or the cyclical nature of an illness (the regression fallacy), the placebo effect, or the possibility that the person never originally had a true illness

Problems with known tests and studies

            Critics contend that observer bias and poor study design invalidate the results of many studies carried out by alternative medicine promoters.

A review of the effectiveness of certain alternative medicine techniques for cancer treatment,[24] while finding that most of these treatments are not merely "unproven" but are proven not to work, notes that several studies have found evidence that the psychosocial treatment of patients by psychologists is linked to survival advantages (although it comments that these results are not consistently replicated). The same review, while specifically noting that "complementary therapies for cancer-related symptoms were not part of this review", cites studies indicating that several complementary therapies can provide benefits by, for example, reducing pain and improving the mood of patients.

            Some argue that less research is carried out on alternative medicine because many alternative medicine techniques cannot be patented, and hence there is little financial incentive to study them. Drug research, by contrast, can be very lucrative, which has resulted in funding of trials by pharmaceutical companies. Many people, including conventional and alternative medical practitioners, contend that this funding has led to corruption of the scientific process for approval of drug usage, and that ghostwritten work has appeared in major peer-reviewed medical journals.[32][33] Increasing the funding for research of alternative medicine techniques was the purpose of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. NCCAM and its predecessor, the Office of Alternative Medicine, have spent more than $200 million on such research since 1991. The German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices Commission E has studied many herbal remedies for efficacy.[34]

 Safety

            Critics contend that some people have been hurt or killed directly from the various practices or indirectly by failed diagnoses or the subsequent avoidance of conventional medicine which they believe is truly efficacious.

            Alternative medicine critics agree with its proponents that people should be free to choose whatever method of healthcare they want, but stipulate that people must be informed as to the safety and efficacy of whatever method they choose. People who choose alternative medicine may think they are choosing a safe, effective medicine, while they may only be getting quack remedies. Grapefruit seed extract is an example of quackery when multiple studies demonstrate its universal antimicrobial effect is due to synthetic antimicrobial contamination.[35][36][37][38][39]

Delay in seeking conventional medical treatment

            They state that those who have had success with one alternative therapy for a minor ailment may be convinced of its efficacy and persuaded to extrapolate that success to some other alternative therapy for a more serious, possibly life-threatening illness. For this reason, they contend that therapies that rely on the placebo effect to define success are very dangerous.

Danger can be increased when used as a complement to conventional medicine

            A Norwegian multi-centre study examined the association between the use of alternative medicines (AM) and cancer survival. 515 patients using standard medical care for cancer were followed for eight years. 22% of those patients used AM concurrently with their standard care. The study revealed that death rates were 30% higher in AM users than in those who did not use AM: "The use of AM seems to predict a shorter survival from cancer."[40]

            Associate Professor Alastair McLennan of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Adelaide University, Australia reports that a patient of his almost bled to death on the operating table. She had failed to mention she had been taking "natural" potions to "build up her strength" for the operation - one of them turned out to be a powerful anticoagulant which nearly caused her death.

Danger from undesired side-effects

            Conventional treatments are thoroughly checked for undesired side-effects, whereas alternative treatments are normally not. Any alternative treatment that has a biological or psychological impact may also have potentially dangerous biological or psychological side-effects. Attempts to refute this sometimes use the appeal to nature fallacy, i.e. "that which is natural cannot be harmful".

            Ironically, a therapy such as homeopathy which, in the eyes of all known physics and chemistry, cannot possibly have more effect on the patient than simple water does, is surely safe from all side effects considerations.

Danger related to self-medication

            Similar problems as those related to self-medication also apply to parts of alternative medicine. For example, an alternative medicine may instantly make problems better, but actually worsen problems in the long run. The result may be addiction and deteriorating health.

Issues of regulation

            Critics contend that some branches of alternative medicine are often not properly regulated in some countries to identify who practices or know what training or expertise they may possess. Critics argue that the governmental regulation of any particular alternative therapy does necessitate that the therapy is effective. The most sensible course in such a case could be to simply ensure that the sold treatment is not dangerous, but the problem would then remain to know if it does what its proponents say it does.

Bermuda Triangle

            The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an area in the Atlantic Ocean where the disappearance of many people, aircraft, and surface vessels has been attributed by some to the paranormal, a suspension of the laws of physics, or activity by extraterrestrial beings. Some of the disappearances involve a level of mystery which is often popularly explained by a variety of theories beyond human error or acts of nature. An abundance of documentation for most incidents suggests that the Bermuda Triangle is a sailors' legend, later embellished by professional writers.

The Triangle area

            The boundaries of the Triangle vary with the author; some stating its shape is akin to a trapezium covering the Straits of Florida, the Bahamas, and the entire Caribbean island area east to the Azores; others add to it the Gulf of Mexico. The more familiar, triangular boundary in most written works has as its points Miami, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and the mid-Atlantic island of Bermuda, with most of the incidents concentrated along the southern boundary around the Bahamas and the Florida Straits.

            The area is one of the most heavily-sailed shipping lanes in the world, with ships crossing through it daily for ports in the Americas and Europe, as well as the Caribbean Islands. Cruise ships are also plentiful, and pleasure craft (boats and aircraft) regularly go back and forth between Florida and the islands.

            The Gulf Stream ocean current flows through the Triangle after leaving the Gulf of Mexico; its current of five to six knots may have played a part in a number of disappearances. Sudden storms can and do appear, and in the summer to late fall the occasional hurricane strikes the area. The combination of heavy maritime traffic and tempestuous weather makes it inevitable that vessels could founder in storms and be lost without a trace — especially before improved telecommunications, radar and satellite technology arrived late in the 20th century.

 History of the Triangle story

            According to the Triangle authors Christopher Columbus was the first person to document something strange in the Triangle, reporting that he and his crew observed "strange dancing lights on the horizon", flames in the sky, and at another point he wrote in his log about bizarre compass bearings in the area. From his log book, dated October 11, 1492 he actually wrote:

            "The land was first seen by a sailor called Rodrigo de Triana, although the Admiral at ten o'clock that evening standing on the quarter-deck saw a light, but so small a body that he could not affirm it to be land; calling to Pero Gutierrez, groom of the King's wardrobe, he told him he saw a light, and bid him look that way, which he did and saw it; he did the same to Rodrigo Sanchez of Segovia, whom the King and Queen had sent with the squadron as comptroller, but he was unable to see it from his situation. The Admiral again perceived it once or twice, appearing like the light of a wax candle moving up and down, which some thought an indication of land. But the Admiral held it for certain that land was near..."

            Modern scholars checking the original log books have surmised that the lights he saw were the cooking fires of Taino natives in their canoes or on the beach; the compass problems were the result of a false reading based on the movement of a star. The flames in the sky were undoubtedly falling meteors, which are easily seen while at sea. The first article of any kind in which the legend of the Triangle began appeared in newspapers by E.V.W. Jones on September 16, 1950, through the Associated Press. Two years later, Fate magazine published "Sea Mystery At Our Back Door", a short article by George X. Sand in the October 1952 issue covering the loss of several planes and ships, including the loss of Flight 19, a group of five U.S. Navy TBM Avenger bombers on a training mission. Sand's article was the first to lay out the now-familiar triangular area where the losses took place. Flight 19 alone would be covered in the April 1962 issue of American Legion Magazine. The article was titled "The Lost Patrol", by Allen W. Eckert, and in his story it was claimed that the flight leader had been heard saying "We are entering white water, nothing seems right. We don't know where we are, the water is green, no white." It was also claimed that officials at the Navy board of inquiry stated that the planes "flew off to Mars." "The Lost Patrol" was the first to connect the supernatural to Flight 19, but it would take another author, Vincent Gaddis, writing in the February 1964 Argosy Magazine to take Flight 19 together with other mysterious disappearances and place it under the umbrella of a new catchy name: "The Deadly Bermuda Triangle"[2]; he would build on that article with a more detailed book, Invisible Horizons the next year. Others would follow with their own works: John Wallace Spencer (Limbo of the Lost, 1969); Charles Berlitz (The Bermuda Triangle, 1974); Richard Winer (The Devil's Triangle, 1974), and many others, all keeping to some of the same supernatural elements outlined by Eckert.[3]

Natural explanations

            An explanation for some of the disappearances has focused on the presence of vast fields of methane hydrates on the continental shelves. A white paper was published in 1981 by the United States Geological Survey about the appearance of hydrates in the Blake Ridge area, off the southeastern United States coast.Periodic methane eruptions may produce regions of frothy water that are no longer capable of providing adequate buoyancy for ships. If this were the case, such an area forming around a ship could cause it to sink very rapidly and without warning.

            Laboratory experiments carried out in the Monash University in Australia have proven that bubbles can, indeed, sink a scale model ship by decreasing the density of the water; any wreckage consequently rising to the surface would be rapidly dispersed by the gulf stream. Methane also has the ability to cause a piston engine to stall when released into the atmosphere even at an atmospheric concentration as low as 1%.

Compass variations

            Compass problems are one of the cited phrases in many Triangle incidents; it is possible that people operating boats and aircraft looked at a compass that they felt was not pointing north, veered course to adjust, and got lost quickly. The North Magnetic Pole is not the North Pole; rather it is the north end of the earth's magnetic field, and as such it is the natural end where the needle of a compass points. The North Magnetic Pole also wanders. In 1996 a Canadian expedition certified its location by magnetometer and theodolite at 78°35.7′N 104°11.9′W; in 2005 its position was 82.7° N 114.4° W, to the west of Ellesmere Island.

            The direction in which a compass needle points is known as magnetic north. In general, this is not exactly the direction of the North Magnetic Pole (or of any other consistent location). Instead, the compass aligns itself to the local geomagnetic field, which varies in a complex manner over the Earth's surface, as well as over time. The angular difference between magnetic north and true north (defined in reference to the Geographic North Pole), at any particular location on the Earth's surface, is called the magnetic declination. Most map coordinate systems are based on true north, and magnetic declination is often shown on map legends so that the direction of true north can be determined from north as indicated by a compass.

            Magnetic declination has been measured in many countries, including the U.S. The line of zero declination in the U.S. runs from the North Magnetic Pole through Lake Superior and across the western panhandle of Florida. Along this line, true north is the same as magnetic north. West of the line of zero declination, a compass will give a reading that is east of true north. Conversely, east of the line of zero declination, a compass reading will be west of true north. Since the North Magnetic Pole has been wandering toward the northwest, some twenty or more years ago the line of zero declination went through the Triangle, giving sailors and airmen a compass reading of true north instead of magnetic north. A sailor not knowing the difference would sail off course without realizing it, ultimately resulting in a vanishing.

 Hurricanes

            Hurricanes are extremely powerful storms which are spawned in the Atlantic near the equator, and have historically been responsible for thousands of lives lost and billions of dollars in damage. The sinking of Francisco de Bobadilla's Spanish fleet in 1502 was the first recorded instance of a destructive hurricane. In 1988, Hurricane Gilbert, one of the most powerful hurricanes in history, set back Jamaica's economy by three years. These storms have in the past caused a number of incidents related to the Triangle.

 Gulf Stream

            The Gulf Stream is an ocean current which flows out of the Gulf of Mexico, then north through the Florida Straits on into the North Atlantic. In essence, it is a river within an ocean, and like a river, it can and does carry floating objects with it. A small plane making a water landing, or a boat having engine trouble will be carried away from its reported position by the current, as has happened to the cabin cruiser Witchcraft on December 22, 1967, when it reported engine trouble near the Miami buoy marker one mile from shore, but was not there when a Coast Guard cutter arrived.

Freak waves

            This explanation is not without foundation, as they are caused by deep-water earthquakes or far-away storms; one such rogue wave wrecked the cruiser USS Memphis (CA-10) off the Dominican Republic on August 29, 1916, killing 40 men. [7]

Acts of Man

            One of the most cited explanations in official inquiries as to the loss of any aircraft or vessel is human error. Whether deliberate or accidental, humans have been known to make mistakes resulting in catastrophe, and losses within the Bermuda Triangle are no exception. For example, the Coast Guard cited a lack of proper training for the cleaning of volatile benzene residue as a reason for the loss of the tanker V.A. Fogg in 1972. Human stubbornness may have caused businessman Harvey Conover to lose his sailing yacht, the Revonoc, as he sailed into the teeth of a storm south of Florida on January 1, 1958. It should be noted that many losses remain inconclusive due to the lack of wreckage which could be studied, a fact cited on many official reports.

Cloning

            Dolly (July 5, 1996 – February 14, 2003), a ewe, was the first mammal to have been successfully cloned from an adult somatic cell. She was cloned at the Roslin Institute in Midlothian, Scotland, and lived there until her death at the age of six. Her birth was announced on July 5, 1996.

            The sheep was originally code-named "6LL3". Since the sheep was cloned from a mammary cell, one of the stockmen who helped with her birth suggested the name "Dolly" in honour of Dolly Parton who is well-known for her large breasts.[1]. The technique that was made famous by her birth is somatic cell nuclear transfer, in which the nucleus of a donor cell is placed in a de-nucleated ovum. The donor nucleus is then reprogrammed by the ovum, and ovum develops into an embryo. When Dolly was cloned in 1996 from a cell taken from a six-year-old Finnish Dorset ewe, she became the centre of much controversy that still exists today. On April 9, 2003 her stuffed remains were placed at Edinburgh's Royal Museum, part of the National Museums of Scotland.

Dolly

            Dolly was created by a research team managed by Ian Wilmut at the Roslin Institute in Scotland. The goal of the research was the reliable reproduction of mammals genetically modified to produce therapeutic proteins in their milk. Wilmut's team had already created two sheep clones from embryonic cells grown in culture called Megan and Morag; the work was published in Nature in 1996[2]. Dolly was a Finn Dorset lamb, created from fully differentiated adult mammary cells using a technique called somatic cell nuclear transfer; her creation was described in a Nature publication in 1997[3]. Dolly was the first mammalian clone produced from an adult somatic cell.

 Premature aging

            In 1999 research was published in the journal Nature suggesting that Dolly may have been susceptible to premature aging, due to shortened telomeres in her cells[4]. It was speculated that these were passed on from her donor sibling, who was six years old when the genetic material was taken from her, so that Dolly may have been genetically six years old at birth. This is because telomere length is reduced after each cell division, which requires DNA replication before mitosis occurs.

            The polymerase, part of the replication machinery, cannot reach the end of the chromosome being replicated and clips a little of the telomere at the end off every time replication occurs.

Possible signs of her condition were reported in January 2002, when Dolly was five years old. She had developed a potentially debilitating form of arthritis at an unusually early age. This supported the theory of premature senescence, although Dr. Dai Grove-White of the Faculty of Veterinary Science at Liverpool University was reported as saying, "Conceivably arthritis could be due to the cloning but equally it could not be. For all we know, she may have damaged her leg jumping over a gate and developed arthritis." Others speculate that Dolly's arthritis resulted from her lifestyle as a scientific curiosity and protected specimen due to a lack of normal outdoor exercise and unnatural stress on her joints.

            Supporters of this method of cloning counter that the technique used to clone Dolly simply needs to be refined. However, others contend that with very limited understanding of the nascent field of applied genetics, scientists can not and should not attempt to control the action of so many genes at once. Many outside the scientific community have stated that this is vindication for their initial assertions that any form of cloning is ethically wrong and should be banned.

Death

            On February 15, 2003 it was announced that Dolly had died from a progressive lung disease. A necropsy confirmed she had Ovine Pulmonary Adenocarcinoma (Jaagsiekte), a fairly common disease of sheep caused by the retrovirus JSRV. Roslin scientists stated that they did not think there was a connection with Dolly being a clone, and that other sheep on the farm had similar ailments. Such lung diseases are especially a danger for sheep kept indoors, as Dolly had to be for security reasons.

Legacy

            After the cloning was successfully demonstrated by Dolly's creators, many other large mammals have been cloned, including horses and bulls. Cloning is now considered a promising tool for preserving endangered species, usually by those who do not work in species conservation. Most animal conservation professionals point out that cloning does not alleviate the problems of loss of genetic diversity (see inbreeding) and habitat, and so must be considered an experimental technology for the time being, and all in all would only rarely be worth the cost, which on a per-individual basis far exceeds conventional techniques such as captive breeding or embryo transfer. The attempt to clone argali sheep did not produce viable embryos. The attempt to clone a banteng bull was more successful, as were the attempts to clone mouflon, both resulting in viable offspring. The banteng example is a case illustrating the circumstances under which the uncertainties of cloning attempts are outweighed by the benefits. The cloned dog Snuppy was unfortunately associated with the Korean stem cell scandal.  The risk of a cloned human baby being deformed or dying young has (for the time being) placed human cloning attempts "firmly on the back burner." [5]

 Controversy

            In March 2006 it was revealed that the scientists involved were in major disagreement over who deserves credit for Dolly. In 2006, while testifying at an Edinburgh court following accusations of racial harassment of his fellow Prim Singh, Ian Wilmut denied the accusations, but acknowledged that he was not the 'father' or 'creator' of Dolly, that he has minimized the role of some of his fellows, and he gave most of the credit (65 percent) to Keith Campbell, while playing a 'supervisory' or managerial role.

Anorexia nervosa

            Anorexia nervosa is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes an eating disorder characterized by low body weight and body image distortion with an obsessive fear of gaining weight. Individuals with anorexia often control body weight by voluntary starvation, purging, vomiting, excessive exercise, or other weight control measures, such as diet pills or diuretic drugs. It primarily affects young adolescent girls in the Western world and has one of the highest mortality rates of any psychiatric condition, with approximately 10% of people diagnosed with the condition eventually dying due to related factors. Anorexia nervosa is a complex condition, involving psychological, neurobiological, and sociological components.

            Anorexia is a life threatening condition that can put a serious strain on many of the body's organs and physiological resources. A recent review of the scientific literature outlined a number of reliable findings in this area. Anorexia puts a particular strain on the structure and function of the heart and cardiovascular system, with slow heart rate (bradycardia) and elongation of the QT interval seen early on. People with anorexia typically have a disturbed electrolyte balance, particularly low levels of phosphate, which has been linked to heart failure, muscle weakness, immune dysfunction, and ultimately death. Those who develop anorexia before adulthood may suffer stunted growth and subsequent low levels of essential hormones (including sex hormones) and chronically increased cortisol levels. Osteoporosis can also develop as a result of anorexia in 38-50% of cases, as poor nutrition leads to the retarded growth of essential bone structure and low bone mineral density.

Changes in brain structure and function are early signs of the condition. Enlargement of the ventricles of the brain is thought to be associated with starvation, and is partially reversed when normal weight is regained. Anorexia is also linked to reduced blood flow in the temporal lobes, although since this finding does not correlate with current weight, it is possible that it is a risk trait rather than an effect of starvation.

Diagnosis and clinical features

            The most commonly used criteria for diagnosing anorexia are from the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) and the World Health Organization's International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD).     Although biological tests can aid the diagnosis of anorexia, the diagnosis is based on a combination of behavior, reported beliefs and experiences, and physical characteristics of the patient. Anorexia is typically diagnosed by a clinical psychologist, psychiatrist or other suitably qualified clinician. Notably, diagnostic criteria are intended to assist clinicians, and are not intended to be representative of what an individual sufferer feels or experiences in living with the illness. The full ICD-10 diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa can be found here, and the DSM-IV-TR criteria can be found here.

            To be diagnosed as having anorexia nervosa, according to the DSM-IV-TR, a person must display:

   1. Refusal to maintain body weight at or above a minimally normal weight for age and height (e.g., weight loss leading to maintenance of body weight less than 85% of that expected; or failure to make expected weight gain during period of growth, leading to body weight less than 85% of that expected).

   2. Intense fear of gaining weight or becoming fat.

   3. Disturbance in the way in which one's body weight or shape is experienced, undue influence of body weight or shape on self-evaluation, or denial of the seriousness of the current low body weight.

   4. In postmenarcheal, premenopausal females (women who have had their first menstrual period but have not yet gone through menopause), amenorrhea (the absence of at least three consecutive menstrual cycles).

   5. Or other eating related disorders.

Furthermore, the DSM-IV-TR specifies two subtypes:

    * Restricting Type: during the current episode of anorexia nervosa, the person has not regularly engaged in binge-eating or purging behavior (that is, self-induced vomiting, over-exercise or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas)

    * Binge-Eating Type or Purging Type: during the current episode of anorexia nervosa, the person has regularly engaged in binge-eating OR purging behavior (that is, self-induced vomiting, over-exercise or the misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas).

            The ICD-10 criteria are similar, but in addition, specifically mention: i) ways that individuals might induce weight-loss or maintain low body weight (avoiding fattening foods, self-induced vomiting, self-induced purging, excessive exercise, excessive use of appetite suppressants or diuretics); ii) physiological features, including "widespread endocrine disorder involving hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis is manifest in women as amenorrhoea and in men as loss of sexual interest and potency. There may also be elevated levels of growth hormones, raised cortisol levels, changes in the peripheral metabolism of thyroid hormone and abnormalities of insulin secretion"; and iii) if the onset is before puberty, development is delayed or arrested.

Physical

    * Extreme weight loss

    * Endocrine disorder, leading to cessation of periods in girls (amenorrhea)

    * Starvation symptoms, such as reduced metabolism, slow heart rate (bradycardia), hypotension,  

       hypothermia and anemia

    * Growth of lanugo hair over the body

    * Abnormalities of mineral and electrolyte levels in the body

    * Zinc deficiency

    * Often a reduction in white blood cell count

    * Reduced immune system function

    * Body mass index less than 17.5 in adults, or 85% of expected weight in children

    * Possibly with pallid complexion and sunken eyes

    * Creaking joints and bones

    * Collection of fluid in ankles during the day and around eyes during the night

    * Constipation

    * Very dry/chapped lips due to malnutrition

    * Poor circulation, resulting in common attacks of 'pins and needles' and purple extremities

    * In cases of extreme weight loss, there can be nerve deterioration, leading to difficulty in moving    

       the feet

    * Headaches, due to malnutrition

    * Thinning of the hair

    * Nails become more brittle

    * Constantly feeling "cold"

Behavioral

    * Excessive exercise, food restriction

    * Fainting

    * Secretive about eating or exercise behavior

    * Possible self-harm, substance abuse or suicide attempts

    * Very sensitive to references about body weight

    * Become very angry when forced to eat "forbidden" foods

Causes and contributory factors

            It is clear that there is no single cause for anorexia and that it stems from a mixture of social, psychological and biological factors. Current research is commonly focused on explaining existing factors and uncovering new causes. However, there is considerable debate over how much each of the known causes contributes to the development of anorexia. In particular, the contribution of perceived media pressure on women to be thin has been especially contentious.

Psychological factors

            There has been a significant amount of work into psychological factors that suggests how biases in thinking and perception help maintain or contribute to the risk of developing anorexia. Anorexic eating behavior is thought to originate from feelings of fatness and unattractiveness and is maintained by various cognitive biases that alter how the affected individual evaluates and thinks about their body, food and eating.

            One of the most well-known findings is that people with anorexia tend to over-estimate the size or fatness of their own bodies. A recent review of research in this area suggests that this is not a perceptual problem, but one of how the perceptual information is evaluated by the affected person. Recent research suggests people with anorexia nervosa may lack a type of overconfidence bias in which the majority of people feel themselves more attractive than others would rate them. In contrast, people with anorexia nervosa seem to more accurately judge their own attractiveness compared to unaffected people, meaning that they potentially lack this self-esteem boosting bias.

            People with anorexia have been found to have certain personality traits that are thought to predispose them to develop eating disorders. High levels of obsessionality (being subject to intrusive thoughts about food and weight-related issues), restraint (being able to fight temptation), and clinical levels of perfectionism (the pathological pursuit of personal high-standards and the need for control) have been cited as commonly reported factors in research studies.

It is often the case that other psychological difficulties and mental illnesses exist alongside anorexia nervosa in the sufferer. Clinical depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, substance abuse and one or more personality disorders are the most likely conditions to be comorbid with anorexia, and high-levels of anxiety and depression are likely to be present regardless of whether they fulfill diagnostic criteria for a specific syndrome.

            Research into the neuropsychology of anorexia has indicated that many of the findings are inconsistent across studies and that it is hard to differentiate the effects of starvation on the brain from any long-standing characteristics. Nevertheless, one reasonably reliable finding is that those with anorexia have poor cognitive flexibility (the ability to change past patterns of thinking, particularly linked to the function of the frontal lobes and executive system).

            Other studies have suggested that there are some attention and memory biases that may maintain anorexia. Attentional biases seem to focus particularly on body and body-shape related concepts, making them more salient for those affected by the condition, and some limited studies have found that those with anorexia may be more likely to recall related material than unrelated material.

            Although there has been quite a lot of research into psychological factors, there are relatively few theories which attempt to explain the condition as a whole. Fairburn and colleagues have created a 'transdiagnostic' model, in which they aim to explain how anorexia, as well as related disorders such as bulimia nervosa and ED-NOS, is maintained. Their model is developed with psychological therapies, particularly cognitive behavior therapy, in mind, and so suggests areas where clinicians could provide psychological treatment. Their model is based on the idea that all major eating disorders (with the exception of obesity) share some core types of psychopathology which help maintain the eating disorder behavior. This includes clinical perfectionism, chronic low self-esteem, mood intolerance (inability to cope appropriately with certain emotional states) and interpersonal difficulties

Treatment

            The first line treatment for anorexia is usually focused on immediate weight gain, especially with those who have particularly serious conditions that require hospitalization. In particularly serious cases, this may be done as an involuntary hospital treatment under mental health law, where such legislation exists. In the majority of cases, however, people with anorexia are treated as outpatients, with input from physicians, psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and other mental health professionals.

            A recent clinical review has suggested that psychotherapy is an effective form of treatment and can lead to restoration of weight, return of menses among female patients, and improved psychological and social functioning when compared to simple support or education programs. However, this review also noted that there are only a small number of randomized controlled trials on which to base this recommendation, and no specific type of psychotherapy seems to show any overall advantage when compared to other types. Family therapy has also been found to be an effective treatment for adolescents with anorexia and in particular, a method developed at the Maudsley Hospital is widely used and found to maintain improvement over time.

            It is important to note that many recovering underweight persons (who are more or less forced against their will into recovery by parents or other relatives) often harbor a hateful dislike for those who they feel to be robbing them of their treasured emaciation. Often when well-meaning friends or relatives compliment the recoveree on how much healthier they look, the recoveree's mind replaces "healthy" with "fat."

            Drug treatments, such as SSRI or other antidepressant medication, have not found to be generally effective for either treating anorexia, or preventing relapse[39] although it has also been noted that there is a lack of adequate research in this area. It is common, however, for antidepressants to be prescribed, often with the intent of trying to treat the associated anxiety and depression. There are various non-profit and community groups that offer support and advice to people who have anorexia, or are the carer of someone who does.

North Pole

Geographic North Pole

            The Geographic North Pole (usually simply called the "North Pole") is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation meets the Earth's surface (the other being the South Pole, diametrically opposite). The Geographic North Pole defines latitude 90° North, as well as the direction of True North. At the North Pole all directions point south.

While the South Pole lies on a continental land mass, the North Pole is located in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. There is no land at the North Pole, just waters that are almost permanently covered with constantly shifting sea ice. This makes it impossible to construct a permanent station at the North Pole (unlike the South Pole).

Precise definition

            The Earth's axis of rotation – and hence the position of the North Pole – was commonly believed to be fixed until, in the 18th century, the mathematician Leonhard Euler predicted that the axis might "wobble" slightly. Around the beginning of the 20th century astronomers noticed a small apparent "variation of latitude", as determined for a fixed point on Earth from the observation of stars. Part of this variation could be attributed to a wandering of the Pole, by a range of a few meters. The wandering has several periodic components and an irregular component. The component with a period of about 435 days is identified with the 8 month wandering predicted by Euler and is now called the Chandler wobble after its discoverer. This "wobble" means that a definition of the Pole based on the axis of rotation is not useful when more than about 1'' precision is required.

            It is desirable to tie the system of Earth coordinates (latitude, longitude, and elevations or orography) to fixed landforms. Of course, given continental drift and the rising and falling of land due to volcanoes, erosion and so on, there is no system in which all geographic features are fixed. Yet the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service and the International Astronomical Union have defined a framework called the International Terrestrial Reference System that does an admirable job. The North Pole of this system now defines geographic North for precision work, and it does not quite coincide with the rotation axis. See also polar motion.

Expeditions

            One of the earliest expeditions to set out with the explicit intention of reaching the North Pole was that of British naval officer William Edward Parry, who in 1827 reached latitude 82° 45' North. The Polaris expedition, an 1871 American attempt on the Pole led by Charles Francis Hall, ended in disaster. In April 1895 Norwegian Fridtjof Nansen reached latitude 86° 14´ North. The American explorer Frederick Albert Cook stated that he reached the North Pole in 1908, but his claim is not widely accepted.

            The conquest of the North Pole is traditionally credited to Anglo-American Navy engineer Robert Edwin Peary, who claimed to have reached the Pole on April 6, 1909, accompanied by African-American Matthew Henson and four Inuit men named Ootah, Seeglo, Egigingwah, and Ooqueah. However, Peary's claim remains controversial. The party that accompanied Peary on the final stage of the journey included no one who was trained in navigation and could independently confirm his own navigational work, which some claim to have been particularly sloppy as he approached the Pole.

            The distances and speeds that Peary claimed to have achieved once the last support party turned back border on the incredible, almost three times that which he had accomplished up to that point. Peary's account of a beeline journey to the Pole and back – the only strategy that might have allowed him to travel at such a speed – is contradicted by Henson's account of tortuous detours to avoid pressure ridges and open leads. But the controversy swung back in Peary's favour in 2005 when the British explorer Tom Avery and four companions recreated Peary's journey with replica wooden sleds and Canadian Eskimo Dog teams, reaching the North Pole in 36 days, 22 hours – nearly five hours faster than Peary. Avery writes on his web site that "The admiration and respect which I hold for Robert Peary, Matthew Henson and the four Inuit men who ventured North in 1909, has grown enormously since we set out from Cape Columbia. Having now seen for myself how he travelled across the pack ice, I am more convinced than ever that Peary did indeed discover the North Pole." (http://www.tomavery.net/gallery_np2005.html).

            The first undisputed sighting of the Pole was on May 12, 1926 by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and his American sponsor Lincoln Ellsworth from the airship Norge. Norge, though Norwegian owned, was designed and piloted by the Italian Umberto Nobile. The flight started from Svalbard and crossed the icecap to Alaska. Nobile, along with several scientists and crew from the Norge, overflew the Pole a second time on May 24, 1928 in the airship Italia.

            Discounting Peary's disputed claim, the first men to set foot at the North Pole were, according to some sources, a Soviet Union party, including Pavel Gordiyenko and five others, who landed a plane there on 23 April 1948. [3] On May 3, 1952 U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Joseph O. Fletcher and Lieutenant William P. Benedict also landed a plane at the North Pole. Flying with them was scientist Albert P. Crary.

The United States Navy submarine USS Nautilus (SSN-571) crossed the North Pole on August 3, 1958, and on March 17, 1959, the USS Skate (SSN-578) surfaced at the pole, becoming the first naval vessel to reach it.

            Ralph Plaisted made the first confirmed surface conquest of the North Pole on April 19, 1968. [clarification needed] Sir Wally Herbert led the team that made the first surface crossing of the Arctic Ocean (1968-69) – and by its longest axis – a feat that has never been repeated. In so doing the team became the first to reach the North Pole by surface travel without the assistance of airlifts. In addition no one alive today has personally surveyed and mapped on the ground a larger area of Antarctica than Sir Wally. He has been awarded the Polar Medal and was knighted in 2000 for services to polar exploration. The Soviet nuclear powered icebreaker Arktika completed the first surface vessel journey to the North Pole on August 17, 1977. In 2005, the United States Navy submarine USS Charlotte (SSN-766) surfaced through 61 inches of ice at the North Pole and spent 18 hours there. [4]

            As part of the research related to 2001 Russian territorial claim, Russia is going to perform in Summer 2007 the first in history of the scientific exploration of the Arctic manned submersion onto the ocean bottom at the point of the Geographic North Pole, to a depth of 5km. MIR submersible is planned to be used for this purpose, and the crew should include a well-known Soviet and Russian polar explorer Arthur Chilingarov.[1]

 Day and night

            During the summer months, the North Pole experiences twenty-four hours of daylight daily but during the winter months the North Pole experiences twenty-four hours of darkness daily. Sunrise and sunset do not occur in a twenty-four hour cycle. At the North Pole, sunrise begins at the Vernal equinox taking three months for the sun to reach its highest point at the summer solstice when sunset begins, taking three months to reach sunset at the Autumnal equinox. A similar effect can be observed at the South Pole, with a six-month difference. This day/night effect is in stark contrast to what is observed at the Equator.

            This effect is caused by a combination of the Earth's axial tilt and its revolution around the sun. The direction and angle of axial tilt of the Earth remains fairly constant (on a yearly basis) in its plane of revolution around the sun. Hence during the summer, the North Pole is always facing the sun's rays but during the winter, it always faces away from the sun.

Climate

            The North Pole is significantly warmer than the South Pole because it lies at sea level in the middle of an ocean (which acts as a reservoir of heat), rather than at altitude in a continental land mass. Winter (January) temperatures at the North Pole can range from about −43°C (−45ºF) to −26°C (−15°F), perhaps averaging around −34°C (−30ºF). Summer temperatures (June, July and August) average around the freezing point (0°C, 32°F). [5]

            The sea ice at the North Pole is typically around two or three meters thick [6], though occasionally the movement of floes exposes clear water. Some studies have indicated that the average ice thickness has decreased in recent years due to global warming. [7] Reports have also predicted that within a few decades the Arctic Ocean will be entirely free of ice in the summer months. [8]

Territorial claims to the North Pole and Arctic regions

            In 1925, based upon the Sector Principle, Canada became the first country to extend its boundaries northward to the North Pole, at least on paper, between 60°W and 141°W longitude, a claim that is not universally recognized (there is in fact 770 km of ocean between the Pole and Canada's therwise, until 1999, the North Pole and Arctic Ocean had been generally considered international territory. However, as the polar ice has begun to recede at a rate higher than expected (see global warming), several countries have made moves to claim, or to enforce pre-existing claims to, the waters or seabed at the Pole.

2001 Russian claim

            On December 20, 2001 Russia made an official submission into the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (article 76, paragraph 8). In the document it is proposed to establish new outer limits of the continental shelf of Russia beyond the previous 200 mile zone, but within the Russian Arctic sector.[2] The territory claimed by Russia in the submission is a large portion of the Arctic, including the North Pole.[3] One of the arguments was a statement, that the underwater Lomonosov Ridge and Mendeleev Ridge are extensions of the Eurasian continent. In 2002 the UN Commission neither rejected, nor accepted the Russian proposal, recommending to carry out additional research.[2]

 Other claims

            The Russian claim was contested by Norway, Canada, the United States and Denmark in 2004.[citation needed] The Danish autonomous province of Greenland has the nearest coastline to the North Pole, and Denmark argues that the Lomonosov Ridge is in fact an extension of Greenland.[citation needed] The potential value of the North Pole and the surrounding area resides not so much in shipping but in the possibility that lucrative petroleum and natural gas reserves exist below the sea floor. Such reserves are known to exist under the Beaufort Sea, and further exploration elsewhere in the Arctic might become more feasible if global warming opens up the Northwest Passage as a regular channel of international shipping and commerce, particularly if Canada is not able to enforce its claim to it.

Prepared by

ELT Senior Supervisor Noria Al- Sedra

  ELT Senior Supervisor Eman Behbahani

 

الموضوع السابع 

مهارات التحليل النقدي 

CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS /

CRITICAL READING

 

On Critical thinking

        

            Critical thinking consists of the mental process of analyzing or evaluating information, particularly statements or propositions that people have offered as true. It forms a process of reflecting upon the meaning of statements, examining the offered evidence and reasoning, and forming judgments about the facts. Critical thinking is very important, as it allows information received to be evaluated, decreasing the risk of acting on a false premise. The process of critical thinking responds to many subjects and situations, finding connections between them.

        To be a critical thinker, one has to initially catch as much information in as many subjects as possible, and to prevent over-specializing in a single topic. That is important. This is because the lack of a wide range of information, or worse, common sense, will limit your point of view when analysing different situations or statements. As a result, you may draw a weak conclusion. Another reason is that the detailed information in a specific topic is useless when judging problems of different topics.

Critical Thinking Skills

          

            *Interpretation is to comprehend and express the meaning or significance of a wide variety of experiences, situations, data, events, judgments, conventions, beliefs, rules, procedures, or criteria. Interpretation includes the sub-skills of categorization, decoding significance, and clarifying meaning. Distinguishing a main idea from subordinate ideas in a text; constructing a tentative categorization or way of organizing something you are studying; paraphrasing someone's ideas in your own words; or, clarifying what a sign, chart or graph means? What about identifying an author's purpose, theme, or point of view?

             *Analysis is to identify the intended and actual inferential relationships among statements, questions, concepts, descriptions, or other forms of representation intended to express belief, judgment, experiences, reasons, information, or opinions. Examining ideas, detecting arguments, and analyzing arguments as sub-skills of analysis.

             *Evaluation is to assess the credibility of statements or other representations which are accounts or descriptions of a person's perception, experience, situation, judgment, belief, or opinion; and to assess the logical strength of the actual or intended inferential relationships among statements, descriptions, questions or other forms of representation.

            *Inference means “to identify and secure elements needed to draw reasonable conclusions; to form conjectures and hypotheses; to consider relevant information and to educe the consequences flowing from data, statements, principles, evidence, judgments, beliefs, opinions, concepts, descriptions, questions, or other forms of representation.” As sub-skills of inference the experts list querying evidence, conjecturing alternatives, and drawing conclusions.

             * Explanation means the ability to present in a cogent and coherent way the results of ones reasoning. This means to be able to give someone a full look at the big picture: both “to state and to justify that reasoning in terms of the evidential, conceptual, methodological, logical, and contextual considerations upon which one's results were based; and to present one's reasoning in the form of cogent arguments.” The sub-skills under explanation are describing methods and results, justifying procedures, proposing and defending with good reasons one’s causal and conceptual explanations of events or points of view, and presenting full and well-reasoned, arguments in the context of seeking the best understandings possible.

             *Self-regulation means “self-consciously to monitor one's cognitive activities, the elements used in those activities, and the results educed, particularly by applying skills in analysis, and evaluation to one's own inferential judgments with a view toward questioning, confirming,

validating, or correcting either one's reasoning or one's results.” The two sub-skills here are self-examination and self-correction.

Thinking as Asking

        Critical thinking in reading is like critical thinking elsewhere. Its purpose is to get us involved in a dialogue with the ideas we hear so that we can summarize, analyze, hypothesize, and evaluate the ideas we encounter. The practice of critical thinking is probably not new to you, but you might be unsure of how to apply it to academic work in a strategic way. The most important thing to know about critical thinking is that it is, like reading is, a skill that can be developed and mastered with time and practice.

       If you have used the strategy of discovering what organizational format your reading has used you are in a good place to start. If you have been practicing asking questions about the material you are reading, especially questions which analyze, hypothesize, or evaluate, then you are also in a very good position to think critically. And, if you have discovered some of the central ideas in the readings you have done, you can begin thinking critically. The key here is to remember that you are already doing some critical reading and that perhaps the most powerful thing you can do in furthering your abilities in this area is to become conscious in your application of a variety of questions to whatever you read. Even if you cannot always readily answer the questions you develop, you are beginning to think in a way which gets beyond there being just right and wrong answers, which gets beyond you memorizing answers to the questions somebody else makes up. In fact, you are engaging in the practice which is often one of the primary goals of a university education: you are practicing thinking.

         So, if one of the best things you can do to develop your ability to think critically is to become conscious of applying a series of questions to whatever you read, then what are some of these questions? The expert answer is that the questions that are important to ask will become evident from the structure of the material you are reading.

            Below are listed some example question frames in each of the question type categories. Question frames are questions with the concepts taken out of them. In place of the concepts are gaps for us to fill with the concepts we are immediately concerned with. In this way, questions frames become general and very portable, allowing you to apply them in a variety of contexts.

Fundamental Questions

·         what is (are)...?

·         who...?

·         when...?

·         how much...?

·         how many...?

·         what is an example of...?

Part-Whole-Connection Questions

·         how...?

·         why...?

·         what are the reasons for...?

·         what the types of...?

·         what are the functions of...?

·         what is the process of...?

·         what are the causes/ results of...?

·         what is the relationship between ...and ...?

·         what is the similarity or difference between... and...?

·         how does ...apply to ...?

·         what is (are) the problems or conflicts or issues associated with ...?

·         what are possible solutions/ resolutions to these problems or conflicts or issues...?

·         what is the main argument or thesis of...?

·         how is this argument developed...?

·         what evidence or proof or support is offered...?

·         what are other theories arguments from other authors...?

Hypothesis Questions

·         if...occurs, then what happens...?

·         if ...had happened, then what would be different...?

·         what does theory x predict will happen...?

Critical Questions

·         is...good or bad...?

·         .....correct or incorrect...?

·         .....effective or ineffective...?

·         .....relevant or irrelevant...?

·         .....clear or unclear...?

·         .....logical or illogical...?

·         .....applicable or not applicable...?

·         .....proven or not proven...?

·         .....ethical or unethical...?

·         what are the advantages or disadvantages of...?

·         what are the pros or cons of...?

·         what is the best solution to the problem / conflict / issue...?

·         what should or should not happen...?

·         do i agree or disagree ...?

·         what is my opinion...?

·         what is my support for my opinion...?

         These questions are provided as a guide to thinking critically. It is perhaps best to view these lists in the same way a carpenter views a tool box: all the necessary tools are in there, but I have to know which tool to use for which job.

Critical reading

     Critical reading is defined as the process of making judgments in reading: evaluating relevancy and adequacy of what is read.” In critical reading ,readers evaluate what they have read and make a decision. This decision may  be to accept what the writer has said, to disagree with it or to realize that additional information is necessary before an informed judgment can be made. The reading process can be divided  into three distinct stages. Different types of tasks can be designed for developing critical reading strategies. In the context of the three stages in the reading process: the pre-reading stage, the while-reading stage, and finally the post –reading stage.

In critical pre-reading activities, readers may be asked to consider:

·         the reason the author is writing about the topic;

·         the whole range of ways to write a particular text;

·         the generating of their own list of questions.

Thus, in critical pre-reading activities, readers can be asked to provide answers to questions that are not text-based but are based around the text. This will develop in the reader a critical awareness of how and why texts are written. Some questions to be considered are:

·         What is the topic/title of the text? What does it tell me?

·         What is the purpose for writing: to inform persuade entertain?

·         How is the topic written? Formal or personal style? What other ways are there  of writing about the topic?

·         What is the genre of the text: a letter, an article in a newspaper, an essay ,or an advertisement?

·         Who is the writer? How much do I know about him?

·         What does the information reveal about the writer?

·         What other information is revealed about the period when the text was written?

·         Later readers will generate their own  questions .By doing so, they are not merely comprehending a text, but are developing strategies for interpreting and problem solving crucial to critical reading of texts.

Strategies for the while-reading stage.

Readers at this stage read and react to content and language in a text by annotating and analyzing.

·         Annotating: The strategy of annotating is essential to critical reading because it focuses the reader's attention on the content and language of the text. Three useful ways of annotating are underlining, questioning ,and outlining.

        Underlining: Readers are asked to go through the passage and underline difficult words and phrases while getting a general idea of the whole passage. Then, they figure out the meaning of these words and phrases from context, and if necessary, look them up in a dictionary, another relevant book, or encyclopedia.

        Questioning: Questions are the most notable aspect of the annotations. Next, readers are advised to read the text again and express their doubts in the form of questions in the margin. Initially, questions would reflect readers' lack of knowledge as these questions would identify information that is needed. They may even represent doubts, confusion, or comments.

        Outlining: Outlining helps to focus on the most important ideas of a text, separating what is central from what is peripheral. Outlining also shows how information is organized and supported in a text. Readers are advised to identify  the main ideas in each paragraph and look for sentences that carry the main thrust of the arguments. Having, gone through the processes of underlining, questioning, and  outlining  with each activity providing the basis for the subsequent activity, readers are bound to have a good understanding of the writer's stand.

* Analysing : Having ascertained the main thrust of the writer's arguments from outlining, readers are asked to analyse arguments and language.

Arguments: An argument is basically a group of statements that have  special relationship to one another: one of the statements(the claim or conclusion)is asserted as true on the basis of the other statements, such as reason ,evidence, or assumptions. Some questions that can be asked are:

·         What point is he writer attempting to establish?

·         What is being asserted as true?

In addition to identifying the main argument or idea in each paragraph, critical readers keep asking questions while reading texts to evaluate arguments such as the following:

*Why should I accept this claim as true?

*What reasons or evidence does the writer give for this claim?

* On what basis should I accept this claim?

A critical reader seriously thinks about what  he is reading. This means that he:

* does not believe everything he reads;

* questions everything that does not make sense to him;

* analyses arguments;

* discounts arguments based on faulty reasoning;

* has good reasons for believing some things and not believing others.

     So a very important critical reading skill is to be able to distinguish fact from opinion. This is an essential first step in acquiring critical ability. Consequently, it is essential that readers should know how language is used to express facts and opinions.

Language: One way of analyzing language is to look for patterns or repetitions of any kind such as:

·         repetitions or patterns of recurring images;

·         repeated descriptions;

·         consistent ways of characterizing people or events;

·         repeated words or phrases, examples or illustrations

·         reliance on particular writing strategies;

·         use of opposites/opposing ideas to reveal contrasting perspectives;

·         use of figurative language to reflect the author's attitudes, tone ,and feelings;

·         the use of inclusive and exclusive pronouns to represent self, subject reader ;

·         the way nouns function: actors or acted upon, and the reasons for their selection;

·         the kind of verbs used: action verbs ,verbs denoting mental processes;

·         why the writer uses them, the purpose they serve ,the meaning they convey;

·         the use of modal verbs, what they convey about the writer's attitude and mode: affirmative , negative, imperative ,or interrogative.

·         The use of connectors ,not just to convey ideas, but also to convey the writer's stand or position on the matter.

           The logical strategy to use at the post-reading stage is to extend the understanding obtained from texts at the pre-reading and while-reading stages into writing tasks, such as summarizing, evaluating, synthesizing, commenting and reflecting. The purpose of these stages is to get readers to examine texts in more critical reflective ways to encourage them to take assertive positions against texts and to feel that they have options in the way they choose to read texts.

       

Prepared by

ELT Supervisor El Habib Abdullrahmane