Taking a Break...














Dear Listeners

There is an expression in English:

"Bite Off More Than I Can Chew"

If you don't know the meaning of this, I will tell you.

Basically, it means setting yourself a goal that, in fact, is too difficult for you to achieve.

Ideally, I would like to create a listening exercise and a reading exercise (on read2simon) everyday; however, creating the exercises takes a lot longer than I originally imagined it would take.

So, what I am going to do is take a break from listen2simon and instead focus on reading articles and worksheets for read2simon.

Hopefully, sometime in the future, I will have time to create a daily listening exercise as well as a daily reading exercise.

In the meantime, if I have time, I might do some listening activities and post them on read2simon, so watch out for those.

By the way - even though I am taking a break from creating listening activities, you should still be watching and listening to (at least) one news report on the BBC or CNN everyday! Remember, listening is just like reading, speaking and writing - use it or lose it!

Anyway - bye for now from listen2simon. But don't forget to visit read2simon!

Best regards

Simon


1 comments

Apple's Forgotten Founder

Many of us dream of being rich. Imagine, then, having the opportunity to make millions or billions of dollars - and missing it!

1 billion = 1000,000,000 (USA) / 1000,000,000,000 (UK)

Talk About It
  1. Would you like to be a billionaire? Why or why not?
  2. What would you do if you had a billion dollars?
Listening for Gist

Write a short summary of the story.

Specific Listening for Details
  1. How old is Ron Wayne?
  2. How does Wayne get money?
  3. How does Wayne feel about missing the opportunity to be rich?
  4. What is significant [important or interesting] about Wayne?
  5. What did Wayne design for Apple?
  6. What kind of help did Steve Jobs want from Wayne?
  7. What percentage of Apple was Wayne given? How did Wayne feel about this?
  8. Why did Wayne have doubts about his role in Apple?
  9. What was Wayne worried about?
  10. How much did Wayne make from his investment in Apple? How did he feel about this?
  11. What kind of work has Wayne done in his life?
  12. How does Wayne feel about computers?
  13. How many Apple products has Wayne bought in his life?
  14. How does Wayne feel about Steve Jobs?
  15. Did Wayne originally believe that Apple would be successful? Why?
  16. How is Wayne now hoping to make some money?
Watch the Video



Language

net worth = total wealth
penny machines = gambling machines
hit the jackpot = win the top prize
modest home = a home that isn't expensive
gets by = makes a living; survives
social security cheque = money from the government
founder = sb who starts a company
co-founder = a partner of sb who starts a company
logo = a small design that is the official sign of an organisation
operating manual = a book that shows you how to use a machine
an engineer by trade = a trained engineer
befriended = made friends with (sb)
had second thoughts = started to feel doubtful
a very rough ride = extremely difficult
being on the hook = responsible
debts = money owed to sb, such as a bank
incur = happen; result in
stake = investment
netted = made (regarding money that is gotten)
"as far as I was concerned" = in my opinion
sound money = a good a reasonable amount of money
fascination = a high level of interest
in round numbers = even numbers - 0, 2, 4, 6, etc
wondering "what if...?" = thinking about what might have been
driving = working hard, pushing (to make sth succeed)
skilled = having a high level of skill
capable = having the ability to do sth
dynamic = fast-moving and full of energy
focussed = paying very careful attention to sth to ensure success
cash in = make money
Apple connection = having some relation to Apple, the company
forthcoming = happening soon in the future

More Language

"...bulldoze their way through anything to make this company succeed" = work very, very hard and do do everything they possibly can to make the company successful

"I was gonna wind-up the richest man in the cemetary" = I would make a lot of money but the pressure would kill me

wind up = end up; become
cemetary = a place where dead people are buried [=graveyard]

"About as round a number as you can get" = zero (0)

Post Listening Discussion
  1. If you missed the opportunity to be very rich, like Ron Wayne, how would you feel?
  2. Do you know any other stories about people who missed an opportunity to be rich?
Read the Story

Read the original story here:


1 comments

Old Mother

Over 30 years ago, in 1978, the world's first "test tube baby" was born. The baby's mother became pregnant using process called "artificial insemination", where an embryo of her egg and her husband's sperm was implanted in her womb after it had been fertilized in a laboratory.

Since that time, many women have successfully become pregnant and had healthy babies using this method.

Talk About It
  1. What is your general opinion about fertility treatments?
  2. Do you think there should be an age limit regarding women who can receive the treatment? If yes, what should be the maximum age? Should there also be a minimum age?
  3. If you were unable to have children naturally, would you have fertility treatment? Why or why not?
Listening Comprehension
  1. Why did the man and woman want to have children?
  2. Why has the doctor been criticised? How does he respond to the criticism?
  3. How does the female doctor feel about the situation?
Watch the Video


Language

artificial = fake; not real
insemination = man's sperm put into a woman to make her pregnant
justify = give reasons to support some action

sleep deprived = unable to get enough sleep
sore = in some pain
triplets = three babies born at the same time
heirs = people who take over the property of another person when they die
conceive = become pregnant
fertility clinic/unit = a kind of hospital which helps women get pregnant
fertility treatment = a medical process to help women get pregnant
procedure = way of doing something
implanted = put inside (the body)
uterus = the organ inside a woman where babies grow [=womb]
embryos = women's eggs that have been fertilized
sperm = cell produced by a male that is able to join with a female egg
criticise = express disapproval about something
bash = crash; knock into
destination = a place where someone is going to
impregnating = making a woman become pregnant
critics = people who criticise
life expectancy = the number of years someone is expected to live for
undeterred = keep doing something, even though it could be bad
medically fit = healthy
display = show or put (sth) in a place where it can be seen easily
boast = speak too proudly about something
insane = mad, crazy, out of your mind
publicity = noticed by a lot of people
on what basis = how
fragile = easy to break
premature = too soon or too early

Post Listening Discussion

What is your opinion of the doctor in the news report?

0 comments

Be Careful Crossing That Road!

Of course, we should always be careful when crossing the road: if there is a pedestrian crossing, we should use it.

However, sometimes walking to a crossing is too much trouble...

Actually, in the UK, there are no laws against "jaywalking", except on particularly busy roads and, of course, motorways (highways).

Talk About It
  1. How often do you cross the road "illegally"?
  2. What do you think is a fair punishment for "jaywalkers"?
  3. After you have seen the video, what is your opinion?
  4. of the police officer? Do you think his actions were justified?
jaywalking = crossing the road where there is no crossing
motorways (BrE) = freeways (AmE)
justified = have good reason to do sth

Language

confrontation = disagreement, fight, argument
caught on tape = recorded on video
on the defensive = defending yourself from attack
set this up = give the background (to a story)
jaywalking = crossing the road where there is no crossing
pedestrian = a person who walks on a pavement (sidewalk)
arrest = stop or catch (by the police) for breaking a law
punch = hit hard with the front of your hand
resisting = fighting against
yelling = shouting loudly
Urban League = an organisation protecting peoples' rights
went to far = did too much; went over the top; excessive
Police Union = organisation representing police interests
"Get the f*** off me!" = don't touch me
"Stop resisting!" = stop trying to fight

Watch the Video


More Links

See the original story on the CNN website here:


3 comments

WASHING THE DOG




BACKGROUND
I've heard about people washing their pets in the bath.

I've even heard stories about people trying to wash their pets in washing machines.

However, until today, I'd never heard of anyone trying to wash their pet in the toilet...

DISCUSS
1. Do you know any funny stories about children and animals?

LISTENING COMPREHENSION
1. Why did the little boy put the dog in the toilet?
2. How was the dog rescued?
3. Why is the puppy named "dyno"
4. At the end, why does the reporter compare the puppy to a cat?

WATCH THE VIDEO

LANGUAGE
newborn = a child or animal that has just been born
cage = a kind of wire box in which animals can be kept
flush = you do this to the toilet to make the water go down
drains = pipes that carry waste water away
ending up = arriving somewhere you didn't plan to be
"cue" = something you say when sth is about to happen
plumber = a person whose job is to repair water pipes, toilets, etc
manhole = a covered hole in the road used to access underground pipes, cables, etc
monitor (n) = a kind of display (like a TV or computer screen)
fire crews = teams of firefighters
sewage pipe = a pipe that carries away waste water (like a drain)
astonishing, incredible = extremely surprising; amazing
mild = not too serious
hypothermia = a dangerous physical condition caused by extreme cold
scratch = a mark, like a line, made by a sharp object
not a scratch on him = not hurt at all
good intentions = meaning to do good things

What the plumber says...

"My boss phoned me up telling me there's a dog stuck down a drain ... it's been flushed down the toilet by a toddler. I didn't believe him at first; I thought he was winding me up"

"He was a bit distressed, obviously. No-one would like to get prodded with a camera"

toddler = a very young child
winding sb up = playing a joke on sb
distressed = very upset
prodded = quickly pushed (with something like a finger or pointed object)

RSPCA (the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) - a well-known charity in the UK that protects animals from cruel treatment. There is a similar organization in the USA called the ASPCA

Characters in the story:

Daniel = the little boy
Will = the plumber
Dyno = the puppy
6 comments
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