quarta-feira, 22 de dezembro de 2010
Christina Aguilera
Language level: Advanced
Source: Speak Up
Standard: British accent
CHRISTINA AGUILERA
My life as a Sex Goddess
Christina Aguilera is currently one of the music industry’s hottest stars. Although she is probably best known for her sexy blonde image, she is actually a genuinely talented singer who knows and appreciates the history of popular music. This was evident in her nostalgic album, Back to Basics. As she explains in this interview, music for her was always a form of escape:
Christina Aguilera
Standard: American accent
Ever since I was little…actually, I will say that I did use…you know, music as on escape. You know, I didn’t have the best environment growing up, you know there was a lot of abuse and whatnot in my household as a child, and so music was my ultimate escape, you know, I would go up to my room and shut my door and get lost in my music. And I think it’s true to this day that it’s almost therapeutic for me to write and to record my music.
MY HUSBAND AND I…
Christina Aguilera has certainly helped promote her sex goddess image by posting naked for magazines like GQ. Rumour has it that her husband, music industry executive Jordan Bratman, is not tohappy about this:
Christina Aguilera:
But no, the great thing about Jordi is, you, whenever I do shoots like that or whenever I’m a little more provocative in maybe a photo shoot or a picture, he just stands back and has the biggest smile on his face, because he knows that, at the end of the day, it’s him that I go home to and nobody else and he actually likes the fact, he always laughs it off whenever people ask if he has a problem with me or whatnot. He’s saying: “why would I? You know, it’s great having a sexy wife!” so he always makes me smile when it comes to things like that, but, you know, he’s my number one fan.
NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS
In actual fact Christina Aguilera believes she is mellowing with age.
Christina Aguilera:
There have been a lot of, you know, emotional changes over the years, and I think, as you grow older, you get smarter and wiser and stronger, and that’s kind of what I’ve been going through over the last few years, it’s been a crazy thing, you know, being in this business at quite a young age, you know, you learn the hard way a lot by having kind of…success at an early age, you get a lot of people around you for the wrong reasons and you kind of sift through the bad ones, and, at this place, I’m just one the happiest I’ve ever been, really. I’m at a place where I feel my…my instincts have sharpened quite a bit, and I have really great people around me, so I’m very content.
A star is Born…(no audio available)
Christina Maria Aguilera was born on Staten Island, New York in 1980. Her father was an Ecuatorian-born U.S. Army sergeant who is said to have been “physically and emotionally abusive,” while her mother was Canatian.
“The couple divorced when Christina was seven and she moved (with her mother and younger sister, Rachel) to her grandmother’s house in Rochester, Pennsylvania (as suburb of Pittsburgh).
It was her grandmother’s who recognized her musical ability and she soon became a local phenomenon, swimming talent contests and singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” before matches involving Pittsburgh teams. She made her recording debut in 1999. In 2001 she sang a cover of “Lady Marmalade”” (with Lil’ Kim, Maya and Pink) for the movie Moulin Rouge.
PRINCESS' DIANA BIOGRAPHY
Source: www.englishexercises.org
Author: Aarhus
Author: Aarhus
Listen to the following video and answer the questions:
1. What was Princess Diana's surname?
.
2. When was she born?
She was born in
3. When did her parents divorce?
They divorced when she was years old.
4. Who won the custody?
.
5. With whom did she play as a child?
She played with .
6. In 1975 her father earned a title. Which one?
.
7. Where did she study?
In .
8. What job did she have in London?
She was a teacher.
9. When did she start dating Prince Charles?
She started dating him in .
10. Prince Charles was years her senior.
11. When did they marry?
They married in .
12. When was Prince William born?
He was born in .
13. On which side did the rumours talk about infidelity?
.
14. What kind of problems did Diana have, according to the press?
.
15. What British Prime Minister confirmed their separation?
.
16. When did they officially divorce?
They divorced in .
17. How was she called while she was a member of the Royal family?
.
18. How was she called afterwards?
She was called .
19. What did she raise awareness about?
About the dangers of anti-personnel .
20. What illness did the people she visited have?
They had .
21. In which city did she die?
She died in .
22.What nationality was Dodi Al Fayed?
He was.
23. What happened to both Dodi and Diana?
They had a .
24. Where did the funeral procession take place?
It took place at .
Word master, Finding Comfort in Euphemisms When Words Make Us Feel Uneasy
Or download MP3 (Right-click or option-click and save link)
Credits VOA Special English: www.voanews.com
AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on WORDMASTER: There's a new book called "Euphemania: Our Love Affair With Euphemisms."
RS: Author Ralph Keyes defines euphemisms as comfort words that we use in place of words that make us feel uncomfortable.
RALPH KEYES: "Today we no longer feel any strong need to say 'gad' or 'golly' instead of God. And yet euphemisms reflect changing values. We're much more likely today to make euphemisms out of words for money or money-related matters, for war, for death.
"If we aren't comfortable saying we 'slaughter' meat, we 'butcher' meat, we can always say we 'process it.' I was recently at a park in California and at the entrance to the park it said 'Feral pig depredation in process.'"
AA: "Huh?"
RALPH KEYES: "Depredation. Yeah, huh, exactly."
AA: "Feral pig -- oh, I get it."
RALPH KEYES: "A lot of pigs are going to die. But we're not comfortable saying 'die.' If you walk through old graveyards, and I've done this, sometimes even the old, old tombstones would talk about 'Worms are eating his corpse' and 'Soon, you shall be like me.' Nowadays we wouldn't dream of using words like those. You know, people 'pass,' they 'pass on,' they 'went over,' you know, they were 'called home.'"
AA: Well, interestingly, one thing I learned from your book is what 'consumption' is. I'd been hearing that word all my life and never really knew what it was. Why don't you tell us what consumption is?"
RALPH KEYES: "Well, this one is personal to me because my great-grandmother, Myrtie Lacey, died of consumption. And it was only quite a few years later that I learned that consumption is an old-time euphemism for tuberculosis. Tuberculosis used to be the biggest killer, and so we came up with lots of euphemisms for that disease, the most common one being 'consumption' because tuberculosis 'consumed' the body."
RS: "Do euphemisms change over time? In your research did you find that?"
RALPH KEYES: "Oh, yes. We're always clever about finding new ways to express ourselves. One thing I saw and included in the book was the word 'canoe.' [It] showed up as an old-time euphemism for sex. Well, I've since learned that 'going canoeing' is the full euphemism.
"Now, why is that a euphemism? Well, because in a time when couples were supposed to be chaperoned when they were out together, they quickly discovered that if they went out in a canoe, there wasn't room for a third person. And today we say 'hook up.'"
AA: "Well, you know, and on a somewhat related topic, lately there was all this controversy about the new increased security measures at the airports in the US, and this new phrase 'Don't touch my junk' has become -- "
RALPH KEYES: "Isn't that amazing? Where did 'junk' come from?"
AA: "And, of course, we're talking about 'privates' Laughter
RALPH KEYES: "Privates, exactly. Thank you, Avi."
RS "'Private parts.'"
AA: "'Private parts,' to use the technical term."
RALPH KEYES: "Right."
RS: "You talk about how our values are changing. How do you see through euphemisms that our lives are changing?"
RALPH KEYES: "Well, you can tell what issues we're concerned about most. The oldest known euphemism is bear. 'Bear' is a derivation of 'bruin,' which means 'the brown one.' And some of our earliest ancestors in northern Europe were so afraid of this large, ferocious animal that they wouldn't even say its actual name. Bear has now become, of course, the standard word for this animal. We no longer know what the original word was."
AA: Today's euphemisms suggest to Ralph Keyes that people are likely to more afraid of bear markets than actual bears.
RALPH KEYES: "You don't even use the word money. You say 'assets,' 'liquid assets.' You don't 'borrow' money, you 'leverage.' You don't 'pay off' loans, you 'deleverage.' You know, markets don't 'fall,' there's an 'equity retreat' or a 'market correction.'"
AA: "'Equity' itself -- these home equity loans, the way that people were borrowing against their homes. They used to be called second mortgages."
RALPH KEYES: "Exactly. Which is a much more clear and ominous term -- a 'second mortgage.' It's like a second ball and chain, which is why it got changed to 'home equity loans' by the lending industry."
RS: "Just one last question, is focused on our audience of speakers of English as a foreign language. What would you recommend, what advice would you give for them studying euphemisms?"
RALPH KEYES: "Well, I'd listen very carefully for the ways people use euphemisms, because they do all the time, and you can get in trouble by either not understanding the euphemisms that are being used or using the wrong ones.
"And incidentally, this can happen even among English speakers. In the US, for example, 'top-shelf' refers to first rate [best quality]. In the UK, 'top-shelf' refers to pornography, because it's kept on a top shelf."
RS: Ralph Keyes is an author, speaker and teacher. His newest book is called "Euphemania: Our Love Affair With Euphemisms." And that's WORDMASTER for this week.
AA: Archives are at voanews.com/wordmaster. With Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti.
terça-feira, 21 de dezembro de 2010
She is the one.
Author: Viviana Olmedo ESL teacher from Argentina
Source:
Source:
She is the one by Rob Williams LISTEN AND WRITE EACH VERSE IN THE RIGHT ORDER
LISTEN AND WRITE THE MISSING WORDS
We were 1) we were wrong We were 2) all along If there's 3) calling me on She's the one When you get to where you wanna go And you know the 4) you wanna know You're smiling When you said what you wanna 5) And you know the 6) you wanna play You'll be so 7) you'll be flying WRITE THE LETTERS IN RIGHT ORDER Though the sea will be 1) gtonsr I 2) owkn we'll carry on Cos if there's somebody calling me on She's the one If there's somebody calling me on She's the one When you get to 3) reehw you wanna go And you know the things you wanna know You're smiling 4) nhew you said 5)htwa you wanna say And you know the way you wanna 6) ays it You'll be so 7) ihhg you'll be flying I was her she was me We were one we were free If there's somebody calling me on She's the one If there's somebody calling me on She's the one If there's somebody calling me on She's the one  | ||
Duck Tour in London
Language level: Basic
Source: Speak Up
Standard: British accent
The London Duck Tour
Are you planning a trip to London? Here’s an original way to see sights of the English capital: the London Duck Tour: The “duck” in question is not an aquatic bird, but an amphibious vehicle! The tour not only visits many of London’s most important Landmarks (such as Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Downing Street and the Ritz), but also plunges into the Thames for a 30 minutes trip up the river. The “ducks” date back to the Second World War, but don’t worry: they have been totally rebuilt and are absolutely safe. During the tour, a guide recounts unusual historical anecdotes about London and tells the story of the “ducks.” Remember to look your seats well in advance as these vehicles only hold 30 passengers.
DURING THE WAR
General Motors designed and built about 21.000 “ducks” for the US army during the Second World War. “Ducks” are most famous for transporting thousands of troops across the English Channel on D-Day (June 6th, 1944), when the Allied forces invaded France. The military continued to use them until the 1970s, when helicopters took over many of their tasks.
AN EXPENSIVE VEHICLE
London Duck Tours also hire “ducks” for events and parties. Anyone who falls in love with these remarkable vehicles can buy their own: a “duck” for can cost anything from €10.000 to over €100.000. Remember, the cost of renovating these vehicles in high. In any case, they still have a role to play in the modern world, as they have demonstrated during recent US disasters: “ducks” helped rescue many people in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Booking Information
Booking office: 55 York road, London SE1 7NJ Online Booking: www.londonducktours.co.uk
Telephone Booking: 0044 20 7928 3732
Cost: Adults £ 17,50
Children: £ 12,00
World financial crisis
Credits for www.ingvip.com belonging for Teacher Fulvio and VOA special English
This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.
1. Leaders from the one hundred ninety-two members of the United Nations gathered in New York this week for the new General Assembly. A big subject, not surprisingly, was thefinancial crisis on Wall Street that has restricted the flow of credit.
2. Friday, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for urgent action to calm financial markets. He also called for new international groups to supervise markets in the future.
3. President Bush discussed his financial rescue plan in his eighth and final speech to the General Assembly on Tuesday. In that speech, he also urged the world community to unite against terrorism and the spread of nuclear weapons.
4. President Bush said Iran is among the few remaining countries that support terrorism. And he said its nuclear program, along with that of North Korea, demands world attention. In his words: "We must notrelent until our people are safe from this threat to civilization."
5. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad spoke a few hours later. He said Iran, like other countries, has a right to peaceful nuclear energy. He said a few world powers were "bullying" Iran through political and economic pressure.
6. The Security Council has already passed three resolutions on Iran over its suspected nuclear weapons program. The five permanent council members and Germany met privately on Friday and agreed on a new resolution.
7. The proposal does not include any new restrictions. Instead, it restates support for offering to help Iran if it halts uranium enrichment -- and to take additional steps if Iran refuses.
8. Also at the United Nations this week, governments and private groups promised sixteen billion dollars to reduce poverty, hunger and disease worldwide. Diplomats said that was more than anyone had expected. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called it "all the more remarkable because it comes against a backdrop of financial crisis."
9. The new money is to meet U.N. goals to reduce poverty and improve education and health care in the developing world by two thousand fifteen. Three billion dollars will go to a new plan to end malaria in Africa by two thousand fifteen.
10. World leaders also called for action on rising food and fuel prices and climate change. Among those urging greater action on global warming was the president of Sao Tome and Principe, Fradique Bandera Melo de Menezes. In the last ten years, he said, ocean waves have begun to flood coastal roads in his island nation off the coast of West Africa.
11. And, on another subject, Iraqi President Jalal Talibani discussed security gains in Iraq. He said his government aims to take over security responsibilities for all of Iraq by the end of this year. He urged other nations to open diplomatic offices in Iraq. And he urged them to drop all sanctions and financial claims remaining from the days of Saddam Hussein.
And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English -- online at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
- a few hours later = algumas horas mais tarde
- agreed = concordaram
- aims = almeja
- all the more = ainda mais
- along with = junto com
- already = já
- Also = também
- among = entre
- backdrop = cenário
- bullying = intimidando
- called for = pediu por
- claims = exigências
- demands = exige
- developing = em desenvolvimento
- disease = doenças
- drop = abandoner
- enrichment = enriquecimento
- few = poucos
- financial crisis = crise financeira
- flood = inundar
- flow = fluxo
- gathered = reuniram-se
- General Assembly = Assembléia Geral
- goals = objetivos
- halts = suspender, interromper
- have begun = começaram
- health care = assistência médica
- hunger = fome
- improve = melhorar
- Instead = ao invés
- meet = atender a
- met = reuniram-se
- off the coast = ao longo da costa
- passed = aprovou
- peaceful = pacífico
- poverty = miséria
- pressure = pressão
- prices = preços
- Prime Minister = Primeiro Ministro
- private = privado
- privately = reservadamente
- promised = prometeram
- proposal = proposta
- refuses = recusar-se
- relent = demonstrar piedade
- remaining = remanescentes
- remarkable = notável
- rescue = resgate
- restates = reafirma
- rising = crescente
- safe = seguro
- Security Council = Concelho de Segurança
- speech = discurso
- spoke = falou
- spread = disseminação
- steps = medidas, passos
- subject = assunto
- supervise = supervisionar
- support = apoiar
- surprisingly = surpreendentemente
- take over = assumir
- threat = ameaça
- through = através de
- unite against = unir-se contra
- until = até
- urged = insistir com
- urging = urgente
- warming = aquecimento
- waves = ondas
- weapons = armas
- Worldwide = no mundo, mundialmente
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