Lecture Notes: Improving Fitness, Becoming an Astronaut, and Listening to Music While Studying PDF

Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Speaking Improving Fitness  Define the term being fit?  How do you keep yourself fit and strong?  Whether it is easy to k...

Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Speaking Improving Fitness  Define the term being fit?  How do you keep yourself fit and strong?  Whether it is easy to keep fit in the area where you live  Reasons why some people nowadays are obsessed with keeping fit  do you think young people get fit to attract the other gender  The views that, in the future, technology will help people improve your fitness. 1 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig How to Become an Astronaut Becoming an astronaut is a dream that many people have had since childhood. It can be very difficult to meet even the basic requirements, which makes it a hard job to get, but it’s also one of the most exciting and rewarding things that anyone can do. If you decide to apply and happen to be rejected the first time, all is not lost. One astronaut applied fourteen times to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) before he was accepted. The high level of motivation he showed by applying a fifteenth time was one of the key qualities NASA wanted, making him just the kind of person they were looking for! Many people think that astronaut applicants must come from a military background, for example from the army or the air force. However, many successful applications now come from those with a non-military career. No matter what background applicants may have, they need at least a first degree in a relevant subject, like engineering. Many astronauts have a higher degree in their field of study, such as a master’s or a doctorate, but this is not vital. However, space agencies will always look for someone who can demonstrate they have a love of learning. It takes more than education to be selected as an astronaut, however. NASA, for example, wants at least three years of professional experience in a related field. Candidates must also pass a series of demanding physical tests. Regular checks will be made on every potential astronaut’s blood pressure, so this cannot be too high. Perfect eyesight, either naturally or with corrective lenses such as glasses, is hugely important – your own life, and the lives of other crew members will rely on your vision. Also, given that a lot of the 2 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig tasks astronauts have to carry out when in space are manual in nature, anyone hoping to become one of the few people who make it into space will need to be very good with their hands. There are no specific age restrictions and astronauts selected in the past have ranged between the ages of 25 and 46, with the average being in the mid-thirties. What is specified though is that you must be within the minimum and maximum heights, and these differ according to the space agency you wish to apply to. A typical space mission on the International Space Station these days lasts for around six months. Some astronauts even stay for as long as a year. The ability to work as a team member is therefore of high importance as, during this time, astronauts live in close contact with a crew of up to five other people. So if you still think you have everything you need to become an astronaut, what are you waiting for? After all, for an astronaut, the sky’s the limit! There are 8 characteristics and achievements a person must have to become successful astronaut. What are they? 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5. __________________________________________________________________ 6. __________________________________________________________________ 7. __________________________________________________________________ 8. __________________________________________________________________ 3 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Listening to Music While Studying Go into any college or university library and you will see many students wearing headphones, clearly listening to music while they are studying. Why do they do this? Is it really possible to listen to music at the same time as doing the demanding reading and writing that academic studies require? Many students say that it definitely is, and that it helps them concentrate better. They go on to explain that music blocks out other background noises – like people talking – which are much worse. Interestingly, experiments carried out by psychologists indicate that the headphone-wearing students are right on both points. Music itself is a form of noise, of course. So, doesn’t it distract? Research suggests that music can indeed distract, and that it is only helpful if it has certain features. ‘It’s best if it isn’t too loud,’ says educational psychologist Miriam Granger. ‘If the volume’s high, students will work less efficiently. Another important thing is that words in a song can get in the way of your ability to read or write,’ Granger says. ‘So, for it to be effective, the music coming through the student’s headphones needs to be without lyrics.’ A number of research studies have looked at the effect that listening to different types of music might have on people’s brains. One theory that became popular in the 1990s was that listening to classical music, such as the work of the 18th-century composer Mozart, could actually make people more intelligent. This idea was based on a misunderstanding of the research, however. What research findings do show, though, is that music can make people feel relaxed. ‘That’s better than feeling anxious when you’re trying to learn something,’ Granger points out. Other academic studies show that music can help people cope with complex ideas and tasks. On the other hand, not every type of music is likely to have this effect. For there to be a benefit, the music needs to have a steady rhythm. ‘If the beat changes a lot, then it draws your attention to the music, which is not what you want when you’re studying,’ says music specialist Louis Marlot. At the same time, the ideal music is neither too fast nor too slow. ‘People taking part in controlled studies have reported that this aspect is very important,’ says Marlot. ‘When it’s just right, they say it gives them energy to continue studying.’ 4 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Both Granger and Marlot emphasize that music can affect different people in different ways. Some people are not good at doing several things at the same time, and for such people, it probably makes sense not to listen to any music at all when they have to deal with a complex task. Also, one thing we all know is that tastes in music vary, even among people of similar backgrounds and ages. A sixteen-year-old boy might love listening to rap in his free time, whereas his seventeen-year-old brother might be deeply into electronic dance music. Granger says, however, that ‘when it comes to listening to music while studying, it’s advisable to avoid music that you’re passionate about. You’re likely to focus more on the music than on whatever it is you’re reading or writing.’ Advantages of listening to music while studying 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5. __________________________________________________________________ What the music should be like: 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5.__________________________________________________________________ 5 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Video Games in the Olympics In the last few years, a number of people have spoken out in favor of making competitive video gaming, or e-sports as they are often called, part of the Olympic Games. In response, the International Olympic Committee, which is the governing body that runs the world’s greatest sporting event, has discussed the idea with a number of representatives of both traditional sports and e-sports. What is it about competitive video gaming that might appeal to the Olympic authorities? To start with, e-sports are very popular internationally. Competitive gaming initially became popular in the 1990s, and it has since grown to be a $1.5 billion industry with approximately 300 million hours of professional e-sports competitions being watched worldwide each year. This means that e-sports would significantly increase the size of audiences for the Olympic Games, something which is very difficult to ignore. At the same time, the fact that so many people follow e-sports suggests that they would be a great potential source of income for the Olympic Games, which could come in the form of more ticket sales, for example. The first modern Olympic Games in 1896 consisted of 9 sports. This figure rose to 28 by 2016 and is currently at 33. So, there are now almost four times as many sports in the Olympic Games as there were originally. People opposed to including e-sports say that the Games are already too big, so if anything, events should be removed rather than added. Video games are, in historical terms, relatively new. Therefore, gaming fans tend to be young, and the Olympic Games need more young followers. However, the fact that e- sports have only been in existence for a relatively short period of time introduces a problem: they don’t have many standard rules and regulations. Contrast this with table tennis, for example, which has one set of rules that is used for all table tennis competitions around the world. Despite video games being relatively new, there are thousands of different ones which suit many different tastes. This creates a difficulty in terms of the Olympic Games, however: reaching agreement about which video games to include in the Olympics seems impossible. One of the original principles of the Olympic movement was to encourage physical activity. Therefore, the most common objection to the idea of including e-sports in the 6 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Olympics is that they simply don’t do this. E-sports fans do point out, though, that professional gamers train for as long as professional athletes – which can be for up to 12 hours a day. If e-sports were introduced into the Olympic Games, motor or electrical power would be required, which would be a completely new element for the Olympics. Opponents of e- sports say that the Olympics should continue to be about humans, not machines. The debate is clearly far from being resolved. However, experts believe that if the e sports industry and fans push hard enough, it is inevitable that video gaming will one day become a part of the Olympic Games. Voices for including video gaming in the Olympic Games 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5. __________________________________________________________________ Voices against including video gaming in the Olympic Games: 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5. __________________________________________________________________ 7 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig How Smart Are You? We often talk about how smart some people are. But what does that even mean? And have you ever wondered if there’s a way of making yourself smarter? If so, read on for some thoughts on what intelligence is, and for some simple ways of making your brain work a little bit harder. There is a popular belief that most people only use around 10% of their brains, although this is not actually the case. And anyway, intelligence is not measured by how much of a person’s brain they are using, but what they are using it for. So, what does ‘being smart’ mean? If you think it means being able to do a specific task better than you could before, then there’s very little doubt that doing something like number puzzles will indeed help. There is also a lot of research which demonstrates the benefits of treating your brain like any other part of your body – this means doing plenty of exercise and having a healthy diet. For example, studies on mice have shown that it wasn’t mentally stimulating activities which lead to the biggest improvements – it was actually running. Rather surprisingly, another recent study showed that making changes to your clothing might help: wearing a white lab coat, which is typically associated with intelligent professionals such as scientists and doctors, boosted people’s performance on certain tests. If you simply want to give other people the impression that you are smarter than you actually are, then speaking confidently tends to have that effect, as does smiling while you are talking. Psychologists will give you all sorts of other suggestions, one of which is wearing glasses. Another recent experiment even showed that people who use a middle initial are thought to be smarter: ‘David F Clark’ was rated as more intelligent than ‘David Clark’, while ‘David F P R Clark’ did even better. Many researchers believe that getting smarter doesn’t just mean improving your brainpower. Once you’re good at number puzzles, of course you can do them faster, but does that help you in any other way? What matters more is what is known as ‘fluid intelligence’ – the general ability to manipulate information, solve problems and come up with new ideas. And an effective way to achieve this, according to scientists, is to do something that you’re not good at, something that you find uncomfortably difficult. 8 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig Another question that researchers have focused on is whether technology can make us smarter, or if it has the opposite effect instead. The answer is that it depends. What everyone agrees on, however, is that if you use it to expose yourself to complex new material, it will certainly help to develop your brainpower. Instead of going quickly from one topic to another on the internet, pick one subject and go into it in depth. What are you waiting for? Try out these tips and see how much smarter you can appear, or even become! How to improve your intelligence? 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5. __________________________________________________________________ 6. __________________________________________________________________ How to appear more intelligent to other people? 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 9 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig TURNING NIGHT INTO DAY If humans were really comfortable under the light of the moon and stars, we would happily go around at night without any artificial light. We would be able to see the world in the same way as the many species that exist in darkness are able to see it. The fact is that we are daytime creatures, with eyes adapted to living in the sunlight. In order to create a longer day we have lit up the night. We have changed it to suit our purposes by filling the darkness with light. This kind of action disturbs human and natural life and comes with disadvantages as well as benefits. By artificially increasing the amount of light in our world, we have produced light pollution. Most of us live in towns and suburbs, which suffer from too much light coming from homes, offices, factories and roads. In these areas, we are often unable to control the light that invades our homes and private lives. In most cities, the sky looks as though it has been emptied of stars. Many of us have grown up seeing nothing more than a hazy sky, and we have never enjoyed the wonderful sight of a clear night sky, full of beautiful stars. Humans have selfishly lit up the night assuming that it has no effect on any living creature. Nothing could be further from the truth. The number of species that are busy in the darkness is astonishing. By increasing the amount of artificial light, we have confused and harmed many creatures. Some birds now sing at unnatural hours in the presence of artificial light. Sea turtles, which much prefer dark beaches to build their nests, find fewer and fewer suitable places. Like most other creatures, we need darkness. It is as essential to our well-being as light itself. By reducing the amount of darkness each day, we are upsetting the regular timing and rhythm of waking and sleeping. This means that we rarely get enough sleep at the right time. It was once thought that light pollution only affected astronomers, who needed to see the night sky in all its glorious clarity. In fact, some of the earliest efforts to try and control light pollution was made to protect the view from the Lowell Observatory, situated high above the city of Flagstaff, USA. In 2001, Flagstaff was declared the first 10 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig Lecture Note Writing Dr. Mohamed Dardig International Dark Sky City. Now, more and more cities and even whole countries have committed themselves to reducing unwanted artificial light. Finally, we must not ignore the amount of energy that is wasted throughout the world as a result of our desire for extra light. It is arguable that, of all the different types of pollution, light pollution is perhaps the easiest to reduce. Simple changes in lighting design and installation produce immediate changes in the amount of light lost in the atmosphere and, often, provide immediate energy savings. How does the night light affect the environment? 1. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________ 4. __________________________________________________________________ 5. __________________________________________________________________ 6. __________________________________________________________________ 7. __________________________________________________________________ 8. __________________________________________________________________ 11 |Professional English … University of Science & Technology … Dr Mohamed Dardig