Here are the funniest 'global stereotype' maps Unless you've been living in a cave for the last few years, you've definitely seen (and laughed at) the wildly popular 'global stereotype' maps. The man behind them is Bulgarian artist Yanko Tsvetkov, who told i100.co.uk he started making the satirical maps for fun when trying to explain European geopolitics to friends from abroad. Yanko said the maps he put up on Flickr "accidently" went viral, and based on the interest, he decided to expand the project. It was so popular it ended up spawning two books called Atlas of Prejudice Volumes 1 and 2, and Yanko has just finished a third which unveils "new fascinating landscapes of human bigotry." His ideas span from visualisations of how the ancients viewed the world: To the intricacies of modern geopolitics... Cultural phenomenons (these maps are brand new): And even predictions for the future. Yanko told i100.co.uk he doesn't have a simple explanation for why people love the stereotyping maps so much. Yanko Tsvetkov
How to be more | Environmentally Conscious Classroom Activities For The Language Of Opinions Much more intensive language of agreeing and disagreeing etc than just the usual discussion questions. No comment Students are often much worse at asking for opinions than giving them. Yes, and… One way of avoiding students just saying “I agree” is to practise the common technique of adding to what their partner says with expressions like “Not only that but…” and “You forgot to mention…” Tell students they must agree with everything their partner says and add something each time until one of them gives up. Show your comprehension Divide the language you want to present into two categories, e.g. agreeing/disagreeing, strong/weak, or informal/formal. Come together Students often seem to assume that all discussion should be a kind of debate, whereas in real-life business meetings etc they will need to move together in some way sooner or later. Switch views Do you really think that? Alternatives to formal debates Relay debates I didn’t realise you felt that strongly about it Guess the opinion
Italy rescues 600 migrants from Mediterranean Italy has rescued about 600 migrants in six operations, one in cooperation with Maltese authorities, in the past 24 hours, the country's coastguard told Al Jazeera. The rescued people included 100 Somali migrants who were stranded on a plastic boat in the Mediterranean on Tuesday, an official involved in the rescue said. A coastguard source, contacted on Wednesday, did not to give further details about the operations. One of the stranded migrants had called Al Jazeera on Tuesday and said the boat was flooding with seawater and that those on board - men, women and children - needed to be rescued immediately. The migrant contacted Al Jazeera after obtaining the phone contact details of the channel's journalist from a friend in Somalia. "We left from Tripoli three days ago and we are going to Italy," said the migrant who declined to disclose his name to Al Jazeera. "We don't have supplies, we don't have food, there are pregnant women on board. Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
Black Friday and Buy Nothing Day | General English - Magazine What is Black Friday? Black Friday is the day after the American holiday of Thanksgiving, which is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. Because it is a holiday in the United States, it has long been a popular day for consumers to start shopping for Christmas. Over the last 20 years big retailers have started to offer discounts and bargains on this day, and it has become more and more popular. Last year, people in the USA spent an estimated $54.7 billion between Black Friday and Cyber Monday (the Monday after Thanksgiving, when people often buy more online). Is Black Friday out of control? Many of us love to get a bargain, but some feel that events like Black Friday encourage people to buy things that they don’t really need and can’t afford. What’s the alternative to Black Friday? Instead of taking the opportunity to buy as much as possible on Black Friday, you could do the opposite and buy absolutely nothing. Ethical spending What else can you do on Buy Nothing Day?
Useful Phrases for Discussion and Debate in English 1. Introducing a point First of all I’d like to point out…The main problem is…The question of…Speaking of…What we have to decide is… 2. First of all, I’d like to say…In addition to that…Moreover,…Furthermore,…Another example of this is..First, second, third…Finally,… 3. It seems to me that…I have the feeling that…I feel that…I’m absolutely convinced that…You can take it from me that…I think/don’t think that…In my opinion,…Well, if you ask me…As I see it…The way I see it, …Personally, I believe/suppose/feel (that)…I’m convinced that…Expressing pros and consThere are two sides to the question.On the one hand…,on the other hand…An argument for/ in favour of/ against if…While admitting that…one should not fornet that…Some people think that…,others say that… 4. There are two sides to the question.On the one hand…,on the other hand…An argument for/ in favour of/ against if…While admitting that…one should not fornet that…Some people think that…,others say that… 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. “Well, I think that…”
These 15 countries speak English as a second language best Nearly two billion people - that's almost one in three people - study English as a non-native language. In the developing world, English is less of a foreign language skill and more a tool synonymous with development, expanding a country's economy and increasing its connectedness to the rest of the world. And for small countries with few native-language speakers, it also makes sense to learn a little of the world's lingua franca for business and policy making. The English Proficiency Index has just released statistics on where English is learned around the world and quality of teaching to find the countries with the highest proficiency of English as a second language: Four Nordic countries and the Netherlands come top of the rankings, with at least 65 per cent of the population fluent in English. Other European nations dominate the rest of the list. The only non-European countries to feature are highly-developed city state Singapore, and its neighbour Malaysia, as well as Argentina.
Making presentations in English: video resources for teachers and advanced learners of English Many of my students tell me that they want to learn how to make presentations in English. Additionally, many teachers of English are required to teach presentation techniques (or at least require their students to make presentations) during their courses. I think that of the best ways to help yourself become a better presenter is watch great presentations and see what you can learn from them. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to find audio and video examples of well executed, inspiring presentations in mainstream English teaching materials. When I come across a great presentation video on the Internet, I save it for my upper-intermediate to advanced students of English. This is Broken by Seth Godin The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki Identity 2.0 by Dick Hardt. Ted talks There are many fantastic videos at the TED talks site. Hans Rosling (Karolinska Institut) on bringing boring statistical data to life Skeptic Magazine founder Michael Schermer Sir Ken Robinson on creativity
The importance of storytelling in business, with examples December 07, 2018 - Sophie Thompson - 7 min read Humans have always told stories and they're a vital part of our daily communication, but stories have meaning beyond entertainment value. In fact, storytelling is a strong business skill and when implemented effectively, it can boost a business in a number of ways, such as improving customer loyalty, creating a strong marketing strategy, increasing profit and so on. In this article we discuss the importance of storytelling in business and provide examples. Why is storytelling important in business? Storytelling conveys purpose and businesses with purpose are noticed and win the loyalty of consumers. We have discussed the reasons as to why storytelling is important below. Business development When you come up with an idea for your business there will be a story behind it - whether it's to do with developing a new product or growing your business. Steve Jobs used storytelling to introduce the first iPhone in 2007. Competitive advantage Memorable
Prince Charles 'black spider' memos reveal lobbying of Tony Blair | UK news A cache of secret memos sent by Prince Charles to senior UK ministers has finally been published, following a 10-year freedom of information battle between the Guardian and the government. The letters reveal that Charles lobbied ministers, including former prime minister Tony Blair, on a wide range of issues including agriculture, the armed forces, architecture and homeopathy. The correspondence was disclosed after the Guardian won a decade-long legal tussle with the government, which had argued that publication of the letters would make it hard for Charles to maintain a position of public neutrality when he became king. The letters, published at 4pm on Wednesday, reveal how Charles lobbied Tony Blair when he was prime minister to replace Lynx military helicopters. Charles complained: “I fear this one more example of our armed forces being asked to do an extremely challenging job without the necessary resources.” Blair replied: “We can do quite a lot here ...